Eight hundred and fortieth chapters never peaceful
Probably in Qin Dewei's mind, Queen Mother Zhang had never been considered a difficulty.
In the final analysis, a place like the palace attaches great importance to strength. Empress Dowager Zhang only has status but no strength. How much trouble can she cause even if she wants to cause trouble?
Even if there are some obstacles encountered by Queen Mother Zhang, with Qin Dewei's wit and ability, he can easily find a way to deal with it.
It would be even better if at the same time, under the guise of helping Queen Mother Zhang, she could do some small things that would be beneficial to herself.
After all, Empress Dowager Zhang is still the supreme regent in name. Although Empress Dowager Zhang herself does not have the ability to raise this banner, it does not mean that others such as Qin Zhongtang do not have the ability to do so.
Therefore, although Qin Zhongtang may have many ways to complete the task, he still chose to exchange interests with Eunuch Qin openly and openly, and through this, Eunuch Qin was driven to "grab territory."
After the news spread, in the eyes of others, it was equivalent to paying eunuch Qin to do things, and it did not affect Qin Zhongtang's reputation.
It's all understandable. It's just to get Shang Fangjian to use a flexible method, and he didn't let the Qin eunuch frame the noble courtiers. Moreover, it was paid, so how can it be considered colluding with Quan Eunuch?
After the agreement was reached, Eunuch Qin couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
No wonder Qin Dewei has become so popular among friends and foes that he is still active and active to this day. It is not without reason.
Qin Dewei is also unique in his ability to always send a "timely rain" to his people at critical moments. Who can refuse the "temptation of the devil"?
For example, this time I solved the motivation problem for myself, so that I have enough logic to intervene in palace affairs.
When Dongchang went down with the emperor and his career came to a standstill, what else could such an opportunity be but a timely gift?
And if he and Queen Fang take the opportunity to build a sense of trust, it will be of great help to the goal of regaining a foothold in the palace.
After the tacit "public transaction" was concluded, Eunuch Qin couldn't help but ask again: "Why do you have to go to the southeast?"
Qin Dewei sighed: "Why do everyone ask this when they see me recently? I just want to do something, and there are so many things that Southeast can do."
Eunuch Qin couldn't help but advise again: "It's not necessarily a good thing to want to do something too much. You rarely make fools, why are you a little confused about this matter?"
Because others cannot see what will happen a hundred or even hundreds of years from now, but Qin Dewei can, and it is difficult for him to remain indifferent.
Facing Eunuch Qin, a person who might have a special relationship with him, Qin Dewei replied: "If you want to benefit the country's life and death, how can you avoid it because of misfortunes and blessings?"
Taking advantage of Emperor Jiajing's coma, he could flex his muscles and create some fait accompli so that everyone could see the benefits.
Otherwise, with Emperor Jiajing's paranoia, it would be too difficult to change anything.
After hearing these two lines of poetry, Eunuch Qin's only thought was that the man in front of him really didn't look like his own son!
As a father, should he encourage his son to be upright and selfless without caring about gains and losses, or should he encourage his son to be selfless and self-sufficient?
Thinking of this, Eunuch Qin suddenly felt that he had found a new direction and was full of energy.
The confusion caused by the emperor's coma was instantly swept away.
Eunuch Qin guessed that this might be a test for Qin Dewei before leaving Beijing to see if he could help him support the rear of the palace in the capital.
If you can't hold it up, it doesn't matter if your father doesn't recognize you.
After seeing off Qin Zhongtang and looking at the sun turning to the west, Eunuch Qin left the soulless Dongchang and headed straight for Xiyuan.
Arriving at Wanchun Palace, one of the dormitories in Renshou Palace, Eunuch Qin first visited Emperor Jiajing. After asking the imperial physician on duty, he learned that the emperor still showed no signs of waking up, and then asked to see Empress Fang.
Under normal circumstances, Eunuch Qin rarely went to see Empress Fang and had no direct contact with her in business matters. If he saw too much and had no actual benefit, it would only arouse others' suspicion, which would be of no benefit to himself.
This kind of situation where we don't usually interact with each other very much but suddenly ask for a visit is generally called "uninvited guest".
As an "uninvited guest", Qin Zhongtang estimated that he might have to wait a little longer. The queen also had the airs of a queen, and it was impossible to receive her immediately upon hearing the request.
So Eunuch Qin stood in front of the palace and began to waste time thinking about it.
Queen Fang and Qin Dewei are both from Jiangning, and they have some old relationship. This is probably the basis for establishing trust.
But it is a pity that his hometown is Guangdong, hiding his identity as Jiangning County. Otherwise, there would be a natural basis for a closer relationship between himself and Empress Fang.
Eunuch Qin had only half thought about it when something unexpected happened.
He had just asked the female official to send a message to see him, but someone immediately came out and led him to the back hall of Wanchun Palace.
When they arrived outside the palace, Eunuch Qin discovered that someone had already arrived in the palace. When he entered the palace, he saw clearly that the person who arrived first was Zhang Zuo, the eunuch in charge of the ceremony.
Eunuch Qin was not surprised that Zhang Zuo appeared here.
If we use the titles of ordinary people as an example, Queen Fang's current role is the matron of the house, while Zhang Zuo's role is similar to that of the housekeeper among domestic slaves.
The matron and the housekeeper will definitely meet frequently for housework. This is normal.
But when Eunuch Qin Fu and Qin appeared at Queen Fang's side in Wanchun Palace, Eunuch Zhang became very vigilant.
In other words, Eunuch Zhang has always been very wary of Eunuch Qin.
Among the Conglong eunuchs of Feixing Fan, Eunuch Qin is the eunuch with the strongest rise and the highest position of power. He is currently nominally the second in the eunuch system, and even the East Factory has been handed over to him.
Zhang Zuo, a veteran eunuch who had followed Emperor Jiajing from Prince Xing's Mansion to the Forbidden City, was a little overwhelmed when facing the Qin eunuchs.
Until a sudden palace coup occurred and the emperor was strangled into a coma, which brought Dongchang, which was extremely dependent on the emperor's personal tendencies, to a standstill.
Only then did Zhang Zuo breathe a sigh of relief, as he would not be pressed any further.
It can be said that everything in the world has its pros and cons, and the deep personal bond between Dongchang and the emperor is no exception.
Due to the emperor's personal authorization, Dongchang had special functions and status, becoming the most powerful inner court yamen, a place where all eunuchs wanted to serve.
But at the same time, the emperor's personal problems would lead to the decline of Dongchang's power. This was the reason why the Qin eunuchs were very anxious before.
Many people even thought that the Qin eunuch became mentally ill because he was overly sad because of something wrong with the emperor.
After the Qin eunuch saluted the queen, Zhang Zuo said sarcastically: "Did Mr. Qin go to the wrong door? Your Dongchang should go to Ciqing Palace and report to the old lady."
The main affairs of Dongchang are outside the palace, and they are mainly targeted at the outer court and the capital. The business scope generally does not include the palace.
This can be seen from the fact that the Dongchang Yamen Office is located outside Dong'an Gate, rather than inside the palace city or the imperial city.
In terms of reporting relationship, Dongchang only reports to the emperor, or in other words, only to those who hold imperial power.
The current nominal regent is Empress Dowager Zhang, and Empress Fang only shares the palace affairs, so in theory Dongchang should report to Empress Dowager Zhang and has nothing to do with Empress Fang.
This is why Zhang Zuo mocked the Qin eunuch for appearing in Queen Fang's palace, but the Qin eunuch responded:
"The current situation is special. The Queen and the Queen Mother are jointly responsible for internal and external affairs. I, Dongchang, report to the Queen. What's wrong with that?"
Hearing this, Zhang Zuo suddenly realized that after seeing Eunuch Qin, he might have made a blunder due to a sudden mood swing! Empress Fang definitely didn't like to hear what she just said!
Empress Fang was a person who once competed with the Queen Mother for the regency, and was also the person who caused the "Palace Move" incident.
How could she be willing to listen to someone say, "You don't care about government affairs, so it's pointless for Dongchang to report to you."
Without giving Zhang Zuo any chance to make amends, Eunuch Qin responded to Zhang Zuo's sarcasm and quickly said to the queen:
"I do have something to report to your Majesty, but since Eunuch Zhang came first, I'd better retreat first and wait for Eunuch Zhang to finish reporting before going to the palace."
This is the method of retreating to advance. Although it is very simple, it is really effective.
Queen Fang glanced at Zhang Zuo expressionlessly, and then said to Eunuch Qin: "Tell me your story first."
Eunuch Qin quickly reported: "In order to obtain the Shang Fang Sword from Queen Mother Zhang, Qin Dewei spent a lot of money to hire me to help Queen Mother Zhang kill a few slaves to vent her anger.
After much deliberation, I still have to start by tracing the trusses of Ciqing Palace on that day, so I came to see the empress and asked her to authorize me to trace it!"
The attack on the eucalyptus refers to a group of eunuchs who heard that Empress Dowager Zhang was resurrected and wanted to take revenge. They caused trouble in Ciqing Palace and were beaten with sticks.
Zhang Zuo asked accusingly: "What do the affairs in the palace have to do with your Dongchang?"
Eunuch Qin retorted: "Several people took advantage of the chaos to escape from the palace that day. Shouldn't Dongchang investigate and arrest them?"
In fact, there were several keywords in Eunuch Qin's words, each of which revealed some information. Queen Fang pondered it over and over again several times after listening to it.
First, if Eunuch Qin does not pursue the case, others will do so, as long as Empress Dowager Zhang still has these worries;
Second, Eunuch Qin said, please don’t worry, Madam, that means that no matter how much I check, I can’t find anything on you;
Third, if you can't trust Eunuch Qin, you should trust Qin Dewei. What Qin Dewei wants is not the truth, but to trick the Queen Mother Zhang together.
Queen Fang couldn't make up her mind for a moment, mainly because she didn't know whether to trust Eunuch Qin, so she first told Zhang Zuo: "You also tell me your story!"
Then he said: "Qin Fu doesn't have to step back, let's listen together."
Eunuch Qin stepped aside and listened attentively.
Although Zhang Zuo looked at Eunuch Qin as an eyesore and did not think that Eunuch Qin should be here to listen, he was helpless because he said the wrong thing at this time and could only start talking about the matter.
Eunuch Qin listened and found out that what he was talking about was the palace coup.
That night, more than a dozen palace maids acted collectively to assassinate Emperor Jiajing, but failed and were all captured on the spot.
When such a big thing happened in the palace, it was natural that the eunuch in charge of the investigation was the eunuch in charge of the investigation.
Zhang Zuo came here today to report the investigation results to Queen Fang.
The previous part was all about the specific process of interrogation. In the end, Eunuch Zhang concluded:
"After interrogation one by one, it was determined that the palace maids Yang Cuiying, Suchuan Yao, Yang Yuxiang, Xing Cuilian and other fifteen people were extremely rebellious and could be executed without delay in accordance with the law. Their bodies were filed and their heads were filed to show the public the law."
It seems that this is the case, the matter is very clear, and there is nothing to re-examine.
After Queen Fang finished listening, she remained silent, not knowing what she was thinking.
After the emperor and some of his concubines moved to Xiyuan for a long time, the eunuch Qin also actively petitioned to move his wife to Xiyuan in order to be close to the emperor.
Because of the close distance and frequent contacts, Eunuch Qin knew some of the inside stories of the harem.
There are eight bedrooms in Renshou Palace. The relationship between most of the bedrooms is not very good, and some of the beloved concubines often caused difficulties for Empress Fang.
Seeing that Queen Fang did not speak, Eunuch Qin said: "I have two doubts, and I would like to ask your Majesty to think twice."
Zhang Zuo wanted to say to Eunuch Qin, "It's none of your business," but Empress Fang allowed Eunuch Qin to speak.
Eunuch Qin questioned Zhang Zuo: "First, if so many palace maids can connect together and act collectively, I think there must be a leader or mastermind.
Dare I ask Master Zhang, who is the founding culprit? I didn’t hear you clarify who the culprit or mastermind was just now.”
When Queen Fang heard this, she looked deeply at Eunuch Qin.
Eunuch Zhang replied: "The chief conspirators are the people whose names I just named. They are all the leaders of this palace change."
Eunuch Qin commented: "It's too hasty. It's such a shocking event as the assassination of the emperor. How can a few palace maids gather a dozen people at will?"
Zhang Zuo was immediately furious. You, Qin Fu, have never even been in contact with anyone. How can you make comments?
Eunuch Qin asked again: "I have a second question, which palace did the emperor stay at that night? As far as I know, it should be in Concubine Cao Duan's palace.
And how did these maids who assassinated the emperor come from different sources to enter Concubine Cao Duan's palace together?"
Eunuch Zhang thought for a while and replied: "I guess it must be a conspiracy between the inside and the outside to let in the palace maid who assassinated the emperor."
Eunuch Qin sighed: "These are all your guesses, and they are still speculations now. Why didn't they come out during the interrogation?
Moreover, how could the emperor open the palace door to let others in when he is staying in the palace? There must be someone with enough weight to ask for the palace door to be opened. And it is hard to say whether the people in the palace knew about it or not."
Zhang Zuo heard this and yelled at Eunuch Qin: "Are you crazy?"
I hear what you, Eunuch Qin, mean by this, do you want to expand the relationship and dig out more characters? Having only palace maids is not enough, you also need to involve some concubines?
Don’t you know that the palace needs stability now? If you, Eunuch Qin, continue to do this, I’m afraid it will make people panic!
Eunuch Qin replied: "Actually, I am just guessing. I am not sure whether it is true or not. Everything should be based on the truth.
But as the person responsible for reviewing the case, you should make bold guesses, exhaust all doubts, and then carefully verify it!"
Queen Fang suddenly asked: "I heard that Dongchang is in charge of imperial prison?"
Eunuch Qin quickly let go of Zhang Zuo and replied humbly: "The imperial prison actually belongs to the Jin Yiwei. Dongchang is just helping the emperor and watching over the Jin Yiwei."
Empress Fang was noncommittal and asked: "In any case, Dongchang must have specialized in interrogation?"
Eunuch Qin weighed it for a moment before replying: "In any case, he is more professional than Eunuch Zhang."
When Queen Fang heard this, she said without hesitation: "Then please ask Eunuch Qin to interrogate the rebellious palace maid again."
Then he told Zhang Zuo: "Eunuch Zhang should hand over the documents to Eunuch Qin."
Eunuch Qin hurriedly asked: "Will the trusses be handed over to Dongchang as well?"
"Yes!" Queen Fang also agreed.
Zhang Zuo said angrily: "This is to make the palace never have peace! I don't agree!"
Eunuch Qin looked at Zhang Zuo who was furious and lost his temper, and suddenly felt that Qin Dewei was right. It would be endless fun to stir up trouble and seize power on other people's territory.