King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 790 Baochai: What crime has Your Majesty committed?
Outside the study where Zhu Jingyuan was staying, Zhu Jingchun and his brother felt heavy-hearted as they heard the wailing coming from the room.

The poisons of this era cannot kill quickly, so the time of death after taking poison is unpredictable.

According to Zhu Jingchun and the others' estimation, they thought it would continue for another moment or two, but the sound disappeared after only a few minutes.

So the two of them pushed the door open and entered the room, and they saw a scene that horrified them.

Chen Zhi was seen holding Zhu Jingyuan in her arms, wrapping a white silk around her husband's neck, and ending his suffering with her own hands.

Having killed her beloved husband with her own hands, Chen Zhi was inconsolable. When she saw Zhu Jingchun and the other man enter the house, she said, "You can go and report to the emperor now!"

Zhu Jingchun and the other two were deeply shocked. After a few breaths, Zhu Jingchun said, "Sixth sister-in-law, according to the emperor's will, Sixth brother will die of illness at the first quarter of the morning tomorrow!"

This is the official time given for Zhu Jingyuan's sudden death. All subsequent announcements of the death and other procedures must be based on this time.

Still hugging her husband, looking at the face in front of her, Chen Zhi replied, "I know!"

Zhu Jingchun and the other person then left the room. As they were rushing outside, a conflict broke out inside the gate of Prince Gongshun's mansion.

"Your Highness, King Gongshun is recuperating from illness. Without an imperial decree... I cannot let you in!" Ni Er said in a steady voice and blocked the Chengyun Gate with his men.

Standing in front of him was Princess Jing'an Zhu Yunsheng, and behind Zhu Yunsheng was her husband Liang Yi, who was now pulling his wife back.

However, Zhu Yunsheng did not leave at all. Instead, he looked at Ni Er with a bad look, and his eyes were so sharp that it seemed as if he wanted to kill him.

This scene made Liang Yi's heart tremble.

He had some understanding of Captain Ni. He knew that although he was only a captain, he was the emperor's confidant. Even the name Ni Jinzhong was bestowed by the emperor.

Ni Jinzhong himself was not someone who was easy to mess with, not to mention that something was clearly wrong tonight, and there was even the emperor's handiwork involved, which really frightened Liang Yi.

Just when Liang Yi decided to take Zhu Yunsheng away by force, the latter broke free from his hand and drew a sword from the waist of a guard beside him.

The situation at the scene changed drastically. Someone was pointing a knife at him. Ni Er subconsciously wanted to draw his knife to be on guard, but reason prevented him from acting rashly. In the end, he stood there with the knife pointed at him.

The tip of the knife was only three inches away from Ni's throat, which was a very close distance. As long as Zhu Yunsheng stabbed forward, he would kill him.

Moreover, Ni Er was certain that the legitimate princess would not be held accountable if she killed him, and that his death would be in vain, as he would only be given a lavish funeral and generous compensation by the emperor.

Even with all this in mind, Ni Er still didn't dare to give way, because doing so would be disloyalty to the emperor.

The reason why he is trusted by the emperor is because he is absolutely loyal to the emperor, at least on the surface, so it is his turn to do such a task tonight.

"I am a princess, the legitimate daughter of the late emperor and empress. Do I need an imperial decree to see my biological brother?"

After a few moments of silence, Ni Er replied, "Your Highness, both the late emperor and the present emperor have ordered that His Highness Prince Gongshun should rest and recuperate, and no one else should disturb him!"

What he said was not false. The two emperors before and after did issue edicts, but whether it can be interpreted as he did is something that needs to be discussed.

Zhu Yunsheng sneered, "Will my Thirteenth Brother stop me from visiting my Sixth Brother? If you dare to flatter me again, I will kill you with one blow!"

You know what, the way she holds the sword and practices martial arts now doesn't look like Zhu Ming but more like Li Tang.

Ni Er was also feeling very uncomfortable at the moment. He really didn't understand why the princess in front of him was so ignorant of the current situation. He stopped her from going in for her own good.

"If Your Highness is not determined to go in, just step over my body!"

During the conversation between the two, Liang Yi gritted his teeth and stood in front of Zhu Yunsheng. He held his wife's hand and took the knife away, and then said, "Madam, stop making trouble, let's go back!"

"Let's go back and see Sixth Brother. If you really want to see Sixth Brother, it won't be too late to ask for permission tomorrow!"

Zhu Yunsheng felt extremely powerless at this moment. She indeed lacked a little bit of courage to kill Ni Er who was blocking her way with a single knife.

But in fact, she also understood that killing Ni Er would not help. There would be others who would block her way, and she couldn't just kill them all the way in.

Being pulled out by Liang Yi, Zhu Yunsheng looked extremely ugly. She had a strong and extremely bad premonition.

So when she left the gate of Prince Gongshun's mansion, she pulled Liang Yi and said, "I want to go to the palace now, and I want to go to the palace to ask for your permission!"

Helping Zhu Yunsheng walk out, Liang Yi said earnestly: "Go tomorrow, it's not too late to go tomorrow!"

In the dim light, Zhu Yunsheng stopped and turned to her husband, pleading, "Go now, go now!"

"This……"

Liang Yi felt very embarrassed. He had never wanted to get involved in the royal family's affairs from the beginning to the end. Tonight he really couldn't persuade Zhu Yunsheng, so he accompanied her to take a look.

After all, Prince Qingyang and Prince Jinghai can come, so Zhu Yunsheng's biological sister can come even more.

Although she no longer sent things to Prince Gongshun's palace, Zhu Yunsheng still sent people to keep an eye on the situation here. She knew that Zhu Jingchun and the other man came here in the evening.

"Please, I beg you!"

Zhu Yunsheng had never said such soft words before, and coupled with her pleading voice, it was even more impossible for Liang Yi to refuse her.

Love is indeed a strange thing. Liang Yi was not interested in Zhu Yunsheng at the beginning, but after being married for a long time, they have developed deep feelings for each other.

Putting aside the troubles in the royal family, the couple has actually been getting along very harmoniously and sweetly in recent years.

"Okay, I'll go with you!" Liang Yi chose to compromise.

It was now night and all the palace gates were locked. It was extremely difficult to enter the palace, but Liang Yi still decided to give it a try.

After making sure that the couple had left, Zhu Jingchun and his brother waited for a while before coming out of Prince Gongshun's palace.

They had already explained the relevant situation to Ni Er, and the latter would be the one to do the reporting.

Next, they will return to their respective mansions and wait for the announcement of the death from Prince Gongshun's palace the next day, and then do what they should do.

Ni Er rode a fast horse back to Dong'anmen. At this time, Zhou Qing, one of the leading eunuchs of the Qianqing Palace, was waiting for news there in person.

With him as the chief eunuch, the palace gate could naturally be opened temporarily.

After Ni Er entered Dong'an Gate, he took out a report and handed it to Zhou Qing, saying that it was a list of craftsmen in Shanglinyuan.

Even as the foreman of the Qianqing Palace, Zhou Qing had no idea what had happened tonight and just thought it was really a list of craftsmen.

After taking it, Zhou Qing hurried to the Qianqing Palace, while Ni Er returned to Prince Gongshun's Mansion again to prevent any unexpected events.

Ten minutes later, Zhu Jinghong, who was sitting alone in the Qianqing Palace, received Yu Hai's report.

"Your Majesty, King Gongshun has passed away!"

Zhu Jingyuan is dead. This worthless thing is finally dead...

Zhu Jinghong thought he would feel relieved, but after hearing these words, he felt no joy in his heart.

For some reason, he even felt a trace of regret, which led to a trace of shame.

It was at this moment that he remembered his parents' dying instructions, which told him not to harm his brothers and sisters. But now, less than three months after the emperor's death, he killed his own brother.

Putting aside the overall situation, from the perspective of filial piety, he should indeed feel ashamed.

However, Zhu Jinghong knew very well what he was doing, so his shame was retained and the regret that had just arisen was wiped out.

He is the emperor and he is responsible for the world. People like Zhu Jingyuan who repeatedly commit suicide will only cause trouble for him if they continue to live.

There is no such thing as guarding against thieves for a thousand days. The safest way to deal with him is to let him commit suicide. Besides, ten deaths would not be too much for his crimes. "Your Majesty, tonight... are you going to the Queen's place? Or just rest?" Yu Hai asked carefully.

"You said... am I too cruel?"

Yu Hai was frightened by these words, and then he quickly calmed himself down and answered carefully: "Your Majesty should put the people of the world first. This is the best outcome for the country, the people, and the Gongshun Palace..."

In order to make his words more persuasive, Yu Hai continued, "King Gongshun's crime is so serious that if he were to be punished according to the law, the whole palace would be implicated. Your Majesty has done the utmost to punish him alone!"

Having served Zhu Jinghong for more than ten years, Yu Hai knew very well what the emperor wanted to hear at this moment, so he spoke very boldly and straightforwardly.

After getting recognition, Zhu Jinghong felt better, but then he sighed again.

"Come out for a walk with me!"

"Yes!"

With Yu Hai's service, Zhu Jinghong put on a cloak and walked out of the Qianqing Palace. He stood on the steps in front of the palace and looked at the sky.

I saw the bright moon like a hook, casting a faint light, merging with the snow on the ground, adding a bit of coolness to the world.

Zhu Jinghong was not cold originally, but in such a situation, he could not help but pull his coat tighter.

Walking down the imperial steps and slowly forward along the imperial road, Zhu Jinghong soon walked out of the Qianqing Gate, accompanied only by Yu Hai and a few junior eunuchs.

After walking out of the palace gate, Yu Hai thought that the emperor would go to the harem, but he continued to walk south.

The journey was extremely dull, with the only sound being the sound of snow underfoot, but that was quickly blown away by the cold wind.

Zhu Jinghong walked forward, and the guards, eunuchs, and palace maids he met along the way would kneel down and pay homage to him from a distance, and would not return to their original position until the emperor left.

Letting the cold wind blow on his face, Zhu Jinghong walked aimlessly, but eventually he came to the east of the imperial palace, where he had met with the officers this morning.

But his destination was not the Longwu Palace, but the Fengxian Palace to the north of the Longwu Palace.

The grand scale of the Taimiao symbolizes the royal heritage. It is both the royal ancestral temple and the face of the court, while the Fengxian Hall is simply the emperor's ancestral temple.

When they arrived at Fengxian Hall, Zhu Jinghong dismissed all the eunuchs on duty and asked Yu Hai to guard it without being disturbed by others.

In the Fengxian Hall, there are tablets and portraits of emperors and empresses of all dynasties. At this moment, Zhu Jinghong came to the easternmost side, where the portraits of Zhu Xianming and Yang Qingyin were hung.

Even though the level of realism of the current painters is not as good as it is today, they were still the best painters in the country after all, so the content of the portraits is still very realistic.

Zhu Jinghong untied his cloak, glanced at the portraits of his parents hanging high up, and feeling guilty, he knelt down on the mat.

"Dad, Mom...I am an unfilial son!"

After saying this, he bowed down slowly. He felt that he was worthy of everyone in this world except his parents' expectations.

While Zhu Jinghong was "petitioning" inside, Zhu Yunsheng also arrived at Dong'an Gate, and with her status as a legitimate princess, she was able to enter the imperial city smoothly.

However, she was stopped at Donghua Gate, after all, one had to ask for permission to enter the palace at night.

The process of requesting an imperial decree was very cumbersome. First, the eunuch on duty at Donghua Gate reported to the eunuch on duty at Qianqing Gate, who then reported to the head eunuch, and finally to the chief eunuch Yu Hai.

After the whole process was completed, half an hour had passed by the time the news reached Yu Hai, and this was still the result of Zhu Yunsheng being treated preferentially.

Of course, if Zhu Jinghong stayed in the Qianqing Palace, this time would be much shorter.

Yu Hai came outside the hall and reported the situation. After waiting for nearly a minute, he heard Zhu Jinghong's reply: "Tell Sheng'er that I drank a few more cups this afternoon and now I am too drunk to see anyone!"

Zhu Yunsheng came at this time, and Zhu Jinghong guessed that he might know something, so he didn't plan to meet this sister, mainly because he didn't know how the brother and sister would meet.

Zhu Jinghong actually knew everything about Zhu Yunsheng's care for the sixth child, so when this clever sister noticed something through some clues, Zhu Jinghong didn't find it strange.

Moreover, he himself knew that even if tonight's arrangements were very reasonable, and even if Zhu Jingyuan really died of a serious illness, there would inevitably be people who would suspect that he had poisoned him.

But the most important thing right now is to calm this sister down. Otherwise, if she is allowed to make a fuss, it will cause trouble and cause bad influence.

After a few moments of silence, Zhu Jinghong said again: "Send someone from the palace again, no...let the queen send someone again, to take Sheng'er back to the palace to rest!"

Baochai still didn't know about Zhu Jingyuan's murder tonight, but Zhu Jinghong believed that after he passed the news on, she would understand how to deal with it properly.

This matter is more suitable for the Queen to handle than for him as the Emperor.

"Yes!"

About ten minutes later, Baochai received a report from the eunuch, and then she realized that something was wrong.

Why did he go to Fengxian Temple for no reason? Why did Zhu Yunsheng come to see the emperor so late at night? Why didn't Zhu Jinghong see his sister again?
It would have been fine if he didn't meet her, but he also specifically asked to send Zhu Yunsheng back home. There are so many things hidden in this.

Although she was unable to associate the murder of Zhu Jingyuan with the crime, Baochai could conclude that something had happened. Zhu Jinghong was reluctant to meet Zhu Yunsheng who had come to meet him, and was also worried that his sister might cause other trouble, so he specifically asked to send her back home.

After understanding the key situation, Baochai immediately sent someone to the Shanggong Bureau to pass on the message that her trusted and capable female official would handle the matter.

After arranging everything, Baochai decided to go and inquire about the situation, so she also set off for Fengxian Hall.

The concubines in the inner court were not allowed to go to the front court without permission, but the empress was not within the restriction, so Baochai could go directly to Fengxian Hall.

Baochai was granted the privilege of riding in the palace sedan chair, so it only took her a dozen minutes to reach the outside of Fengxian Hall.

She seldom came here. Just as she got off the sedan chair and was about to enter the palace gate, Yu Hai appeared inside the palace gate.

"Is your majesty in there?"

"Reporting to the Queen, that's right!"

"I'm going to see him!"

"My lady, His Majesty has ordered that no one else is allowed to disturb us!"

Baochai asked coldly, "Am I someone else? Get out of the way!"

Although Yu Hai felt embarrassed, he still gave way obediently. He knew who could stop him and who could not.

When she entered the palace, there was no one inside. The deserted atmosphere made Baochai feel a little uneasy. After all, this was a place to worship ancestors.

Soon, she arrived outside the hall and found that the door was ajar. Then she reached out and pushed it open.

In the center of the hall, Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma are enshrined, but Baochai glanced left and right and finally saw her husband on the east side.

I saw Zhu Jinghong sitting quietly on a cushion in the distance, looking up at the portrait in front of him, lost in thought, not knowing what he was thinking about.

After entering the hall, Baochai walked towards Zhu Jinghong, who noticed her and looked over.

After moving closer, Baochai first glanced at the portraits of the emperor and empress hanging high above, then knelt on a cushion beside her and kowtowed.

"Your Majesty, why are you here so late at night?"

At this moment, Zhu Jinghong looked towards the emperor and empress again and slowly replied, "I come here to apologize!"

"What crime has your Majesty committed?" Baochai asked again.

(End of this chapter)