Jia Heng ordered the guards of Jinyi Mansion to escort Pan Bingyi and Lu Chengan, the ministers of the Ministry of Works, to the imperial prison, but did not leave the Yamen of the Ministry of Works for a while.
Instead, he ordered the accompanying Jinyi Mansion Chief Ji Yu to punish Qianhu, saying: "Ji Qianhu, seal the account books of the Tuntian Cleaning Department of the Ministry of Industry, the Materials Appraisal Office, the Jieshen Treasury, and the accounts related to the imperial mausoleum, and move them all to Zhenfu.
Secretary, check it in detail and compare it."
If you just arrest people and interrogate confessions, the persuasiveness will be limited. The key is to secure physical evidence and documentary evidence.
Of course, he has already obtained the key evidence, but that does not mean that there is no shortage of other evidence. The next step is how to obtain confessions from the arrested people, and then rationalize the key evidence in his hand.
After a while, a general flag of the Jinyi Mansion came from outside the courtyard, hurriedly entered the Yamen Hall, stood in the official hall, clasped his fists and said: "Sir, Qu Zhenfu has surrounded the Ministry of Internal Affairs, arresting Luo Chengwang, the construction director, and is now with Prince Zhongshun.
The chief historian led the guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to confront each other."
It turned out that after Luo Chengwang, the construction manager of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, reported to King Zhongshun, Zhou Shun, the chief historian of the palace, felt that the matter was serious. When King Zhongshun entered the palace for the first time to meet the emperor, he immediately went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and asked the Ministry of Internal Affairs to
The doctor, Luo Chengwang, cleaned some of his hands and tails.
But the guards at Jinyi Mansion were not slow in their actions.
Jia Heng went to the Ministry of Industry himself, and then sent Qu Lang from Beizhen Fusi to lead people to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to arrest Luo Chengwang, the Construction Director of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and others.
Jia Heng frowned and asked, "Didn't Qu Zhenfu say it was the Holy One's will?"
Because the Ministry of Internal Affairs involves the royal family, not only do you know the names of the officials, but there are also about 3,000 guards stationed in various places, and there are even yamen such as the Armed Forces Academy that manufacture ordnance and armor.
The general flag of the Jinyi Mansion raised his hands and said: "Return to your lord, the Ministry of Internal Affairs does not believe the oral instructions and asked us to come up with the imperial edict, otherwise we will not be allowed to go in and arrest the people."
Dai Quan listened, frowning.
Jia Heng pondered for a moment, then turned to look at Dai Quan and asked, "If the Ministry of Internal Affairs does not obey the order, would Eunuch Dai take someone with him?"
Having Dai Quan by his side is actually more of an endorsement, because this prison was completely uninvited by the cabinet, and it was quite a direct consequence of the imperial power.
In fact, it is impossible to gain the support of the cabinet and civil servants to build a large prison.
Once handed over to the courtiers, they will immediately fall into the endless criticism and disputes of "court discussions" and "technical affairs", and then the emperor's accumulated anger will pour out.
To put it bluntly, the imperial power acted unilaterally and alone in establishing the prison.
Dai Quan smiled, his eyes moved, and he said softly: "Zi Yu, since Jinyi Mansion is taking the lead in this case, it would be best for us to go together."
When Jia Heng heard this, he didn't say much. He turned to look at Liu Jixian, a householder of Jinyi Mansion, and said: "Immediately sent Jinyi Mansion guards to surround Prince Zhongshun's Mansion and strictly prohibited anyone from entering or exiting!"
King Zhongshun is the prince of the country and has no special purpose. It is said that it is not allowed to break into the mansion without permission. However, depending on the intentions of the Supreme Emperor and Emperor Chongping, since the investigation is strict, it is impossible for King Zhongshun to stay out of the matter. He sealed the mansion first and restricted access as the first step.
step.
Once the clues are verified, Prince Zhongshun’s palace can be searched!
Dai Quan's expression changed slightly, obviously shocked by Jia Heng's move, but he soon returned to normal.
This might not be a bad idea. If the Ministry of Internal Affairs refuses to let you in, I will surround your Prince Zhongshun's palace.
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "Eunuch Dai, I just heard that King Zhongshun is the prince of the country, and he also leads the minister in charge of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the chief minister of the palace, and the staff of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to prevent the Jinyi Mansion from arresting the culprits. He has ulterior motives and blocked it first.
He went to the palace to prevent them from colluding secretly and spreading the news!"
"What Zi Yu means is that Prince Zhongshun is also involved in the case?" Dai Quan blinked and asked with a half-smile.
Jia Heng smiled and said: "Eunuch Dai, I have never said this. After the investigation, it will be clear who is in the case."
Dai Quan nodded and reminded: "Zi Yu, the Ministry of Internal Affairs is guarded by three thousand soldiers. Although there is only one battalion to protect the general office, it should not be underestimated. It is best not to cause any trouble."
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "It doesn't matter. All the officials and soldiers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are servants of the emperor. If you dare to disobey and rebel, you will be regarded as bullying the emperor!"
"This is correct." Dai Quan said in a low voice.
After the two of them finished speaking, without wasting any more time, they led the brigade of Jinyifu warriors and captains to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Ministry of Internal Affairs
This yamen is not near Anshun Gate, but in Yonghefang, three miles away from Anshun Gate. In front of it is Yonghe Street. The yamen houses look like one, stretching from front to back. The two stone lions in front of the door were washed away by a heavy rain last night.
It's spotless and white light shines.
At this moment, on the street in front of the Yamen, groups of Jinyifu guards wearing flying fish uniforms and embroidered spring knives surrounded the Yamen in large numbers, confronting more than a hundred guards in armor and holding wild goose feather knives in front of the House of Internal Affairs.
Although the atmosphere between the two sides was not tense, they were still staring at each other and refusing to give in an inch.
At this moment, the sky is gloomy, dark clouds are rolling, and there are scattered raindrops in the sky.
As the governor of Jinyi Mansion, Qu Lang was riding on a horse, holding the embroidered spring knife on his waist. He looked at the palace guard opposite with his cold eyes under his sword-shaped brows, and said in a deep voice: "I, the governor of Jinyi Mansion, have been ordered by the emperor to
Arrest the construction department doctor Luo Chengwang and other officials, but you still won’t get out of the way!"
This is because the Chen and Han Dynasties mixed the official system of the Tang, Song and Ming dynasties. There were no twenty-four supervisors such as the Secretary of Ceremony or the Royal Horse in the inner palace, but the Six Shang and twenty-four supervisors under the control of the Ministry of Internal Affairs were in charge of the internal supervisors and palace maids.
Furthermore, when the mining supervisors in various provinces went on strike, there was a need for a yamen to manage the royal industry externally, to collect the profits from the mountains, rivers and lakes, and to support the internal funds, so the Ministry of Internal Affairs naturally came into being.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs consists of seven departments and three departments.
The seven divisions of Kuaiji, Guangchu, Duyu, Zhangyi, Construction, Shenxing, and Qingfeng are respectively in charge of the royal finances, treasury, guards, mountain hunting, etiquette, royal estate taxation, engineering, punishment, animal husbandry, etc.
thing.
In addition, the Shangsiyuan manages the royal horses, the Military Preparation Yuan is responsible for manufacturing and collecting umbrella covers, saddle armor, swords, guns, bows and arrows, etc., and the Fengchen Yuan manages the various gardens and repairs.
It is worth mentioning that the Osmanthus Bureau under the jurisdiction of Fenchenyuan was contracted by the Xia family, well, the Xia family of Xia Jingui.
The guard general of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is a middle-aged general in his early thirties, his name is Wei Chengye, his official rank is a fourth-grade military officer. He is more than six feet tall, has a short beard under his chin, and has a square face. He said in a deep voice: "
Prince Zhongshun has an order. The Ministry of Internal Affairs is an important place for the royal family. It contains secrets. No one is allowed to enter the Ministry of Internal Affairs without obtaining the imperial decree!"
The so-called imperial edict naturally refers to a written edict document, not an oral edict.
Qu Lang frowned, pressed the embroidered spring knife on his waist, and was hesitating whether to order the hundreds of guards in brocade clothes behind him to rush in and get the person.
At this moment, in the study room of the back office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Shi Zhou Shunzheng, the chief of Prince Zhongshun, and Luo Chengwang, the doctor of the Construction Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, were sitting and talking.
Accompanying him were Xie Shan, a doctor in the Kuaiji Department, and Du Jing, a doctor in the Shenxing Department. These people were the confidants of King Zhongshun.
"Zhou Changshi, how long will it take for the prince to come over?" Luo Chengwang asked anxiously.
Zhou Changshi's face was solemn and he said: "It's been more than half an hour since the prince entered the palace to meet the saint, and he still hasn't come out. The Jinyi Mansion also said that it had received an order to arrest relevant officials of the Construction Department. I'm afraid...
Something has happened."
When several people heard this, they were all shocked.
Xie Shan, the doctor of Kuaiji Division, looked gloomy, turned to look at Luo Chengwang, and asked: "Lao Luo, if you get to the imperial prison, do you know what you should and should not say?"
Luo Chengwang's expression changed and he hurriedly said: "I know what's going on and I won't implicate anyone else."
"Mr. Luo, for the construction of the imperial mausoleum, it is up to you to coordinate with the Ministry of Works on expenses, accounting and other matters. You have already prepared the account books before, so you are not afraid of them checking! The key now is whether you, Mr. Luo, can withstand the imperial edict if you are sent to prison.
Living in Jinyi Mansion and extorting a confession through torture?" Zhou Changshi's eyes were as cold as ice that could not be broken, and he stared at Luo Chengwang, observing his expression.
Luo Chengwang's pupils shrank, and a chill suddenly appeared on his back, and he quickly assured him: "Don't worry, Zhou Changshi, even if the official goes to prison or dies, he will not get involved with the prince."
"Mr. Luo, the prince will take good care of your two sons, as well as your wife and mother, and will not let your Luo family lose its incense." Zhou Changshi pondered for a moment, then slowly said.
Hearing this, Luo Chengwang felt a chill in his heart and asked, "What does Zhou Changshi mean by this?"
Zhou Changshi sighed and said: "Mr. Luo, at this point, I'm afraid I can't do it without losing a few heads."
Du Jing, the doctor of the Shenxing Department, frowned and said: "I'm afraid that Lao Luo won't be able to withstand the torture if he is tortured in prison."
Zhou Changshi nodded, took out a porcelain bottle from his arms, and said: "So, Mr. Luo, go back to the small hall of the Construction Department later and take this medicine, so that everyone can be safe and sound. Your wife, little old mother,
You can also find a solution.”
Luo Chengwang felt a chill in his heart, and stood up suddenly, saying: "Zhou Changshi, I am not the only one who knows the truth. Unless all the members of the Construction Department are told to shut up, besides, we are all grasshoppers on a rope. You are worried about me."
If you are not strict with your words, if the Jinyi Mansion takes away Zhou Changshi, will you also commit suicide out of fear of crime?"
When Zhou Changshi heard these accusations, his thin cheeks and expression were as vague and uncertain as the dark clouds gathering outside the house, and said: "Others don't know much about it. Even if they are entangled, they still have ways to refute. Besides, if it is true what Luo Langzhong said,
Today, you don’t have to worry about Luo Langzhong, I will also commit suicide so as not to cause trouble to the prince!"
Except for the two ministers of the Ministry of Works, Lu and Pan, but even these two people only knew about the affairs of the Ministry of Works and little about the affairs of the prince. Only Luo Chengwang, as the specific person in charge, knew too much.
If you go to prison, everyone will be doomed!
Only when he dies can the prince survive in death. At that time, the prince refused to admit his death and argued that the people below were colluding with him. Then the emperor, thinking of him as his brother, would be more lenient!
Otherwise, the emperor only has one biological brother, so why should he pursue him so hard?
At this moment, Zhou Changshi did not know that the two ministers of the Ministry of Industry were also on the list of arrests. Because Qu Lang came to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to pick up people, he did not mention Lu and Pan from the Ministry of Industry. Zhou Changshi still underestimated the seriousness of the matter.
.
Luo Chengwang stared closely at He Dinghong, his face ashen, and was about to leave. When he turned around, he saw that Du Jing, the doctor of the Shenxing Division, had suddenly stood up. This man was tall and powerful, and he was staring at him, faintly
Block the way.
"You think that by forcing me to commit suicide, you can get away with it, you are just wishful thinking! At this point, if we don't get to the bottom of it, it is impossible for the court to end it!" Luo Chengwang also got up, said coldly, and suddenly picked up the table
He threw the teapot at Du Jing, then took advantage of his distraction to dodge and ran towards the door.
"Why is this necessary?" Zhou Changshi whispered, stretched out his hand to pick up the tea cup on the small table beside him, lowered his head and sipped it, and sighed in his heart. Since he was so greedy for life and afraid of death, he probably couldn't stop it.
He was sent to prison for interrogation.
Then there is nothing wrong with preparing this Hedinghong.
At this point, Prince Zhongshun's palace has been forced to a dead end.
Immediately, several guards brought by Zhou Changshi at the door blocked Luo Chengwang's path. They were all tall and tall, with evil looks on their faces. Without any explanation, they pushed Luo Chengwang to the ground and knelt on his neck.
"Mr. Du, let's send Mr. Luo on his way." Zhou Changshi handed the porcelain vase with the red crane crown to Du Jing, the doctor of the Shenxing Division.
Du Jing took the porcelain vase and walked towards Luo Chengwang with a somewhat heavy heart. They had worked together for many years, but this time it was really difficult to make a move.
"Zhou Shun, you son of a bitch! I won't let you go even if I'm a ghost!" Luo Chengwang struggled violently and cursed angrily. Then he looked at Du Jing with his eyes red and gritted his teeth and said: "Old Du, what are you doing?
If I die, you will be next! I will wait for you below!"
Hearing this, Du Jing paused, his eyes flashed, he turned to look at Zhou Changshi, and whispered: "Zhou Changshi, otherwise it's not a big deal to send Lao Luo out of the city, as long as the people from Jinyi Mansion can't catch him.
"
Zhou Changshi put down the tea cup in his hand and looked at Du Jing. Knowing that he was filled with grief, he frowned and said, "Where else can we hide now?"
Du Jing said: "We have people in Yulin in the northwest. Besides, there is a war and chaos outside. Where can we find people in Jinyi Mansion?"
At this time, Luo Chengwang was driven by the desire to survive and shouted urgently: "Zhou Changshi, send me to Yulin. I will never set foot in Shenjing again in this life!"
Zhou Changshi's face was gloomy and uncertain, and he picked up the tea cup.
Luo Cheng hopes to survive, how to explain to the court, especially now that he has resentment towards the prince in his heart. When Jinyi Mansion catches him and interrogates him, he will probably betray him.
However, it was not easy to kill him in front of a few people at this time. When he raised his eyes, he saw that Xie Shan, the doctor of Kuaiji Division, also had a somewhat strange expression on his face.
Zhou Changshi frowned. If time was not urgent, why would he take such a trick? It's a pity that the arrow is on the string and has to be fired.
"Send him away from Houya and send him to Yulin immediately." Zhou Changshi thought for a while and gave the retinue a wink.
The guard immediately understood and led Luo Chengwang toward the backyard.
When Du Jing saw this, he sighed and thought to himself, there is no guarantee that he would be killed somewhere else.
But he has also exhausted his benevolence and righteousness. Now everyone is like a clay Bodhisattva crossing the river, unable to protect themselves.
Zhou Changshi said coldly: "The top priority now is to clean up the follow-up affairs. This matter cannot be implicated in the prince's head under any circumstances! Even if the blame comes from above, the worst is that the prince will be demoted. We still have a life. If
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has been thoroughly investigated, and then the prince will be deposed as a commoner, and our heads will also have to be moved!"
At this point, things are so urgent that we can only fight to the death and survive!
Not mentioning Zhou Changshi, he said that Qu Lang was confronting the guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Suddenly, there was the sound of horse hoofbeats. Following the sound, he saw nearly a hundred horsemen approaching in darkness at the end of Yonghe Street.
, the leaders were none other than Jia Heng and Dai Quan.
Seeing the person coming, Qu Lang got off his horse, held his hands in front of the road and saluted, "Captain."
Jia Heng pulled the reins of the horse, clamped the horse's belly, and drove the horse forward. The black cloak he was wearing was flying in the wind. He looked at Qu Lang and asked: "Why don't you go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to get someone?"
Qu Lang cupped his hands and said: "The guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs need the imperial edict before they can enter. There are even more guards who hold troops to resist the edict."
Dai Quan frowned, came close, and asked: "Our servant is here, who is the guard of the Ministry of Internal Affairs? Come and talk to me!"
The general, Wei Chengye, struggled for a moment, stepped forward quickly, clasped his fists and said, "The last general, Wei Chengye, is in charge of the affairs of the Internal Affairs Bureau of the Wei Dynasty. Does Mr. Dai have an imperial edict?"
"Presumptuous! Do you mean to say that our family is falsely passing on the imperial edict?" Dai Quan snorted coldly and said in a cold voice: "The Holy One ordered us to search the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but we still won't get out of the way!"
"I don't dare, general. The Ministry of Internal Affairs is an important place for the royal family. Your Majesty once told me that no one else is allowed to enter without the decree." Wei Chengye said with his hand in hand.
Dai Quan was also aroused and felt a little angry. A sharp and feminine voice sounded, and he laughed angrily and said: "Okay, it's reversed, it's reversed!"
Jia Heng's face paused slightly, and he sneered: "I, the Commander-in-Chief of Imperial Guards, Jia Heng, have been ordered by the Holy Emperor to arrest the prisoners of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. If you do not obey, you are resisting the order and tantamount to rebellion!"
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly clamped the horse's belly and spurred the horse. With lightning speed, the horse and man advanced together, rushing towards the general, "rubbing" the emperor's sword and stabbing at the neck of the guard general who called Wei Chengye.
Running away, the cold light flashes and the horses' hooves sound chaotically.
"Pfft!"
The light of blood suddenly appeared, and Wei Chengye was caught off guard. He groaned in pain, and immediately reached out to cover the bleeding neck. His pupils were wide open, as if he couldn't believe that such a brazen sneak attack was happening, and he looked at the young man opposite in fear.
With a "pop", the body fell to the ground with a sudden flow of blood, and a pool of bright red blood immediately appeared on the bluestone road.
Dai Quan frowned and couldn't help but look sideways at the young man beside him, secretly thinking that even though he was suspected of being a sneak attack, he still had the courage to kill decisively.
Jia Heng held the Emperor's Sword that was still bleeding from the "tick-tock-tock", and glanced at the guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who were blocking the road. He said solemnly: "I will count three times. If you don't put down your weapons and get out of the way, I will kill you without mercy!"
As soon as this was said, the guards in brocade uniforms shouted in unison, drew out their spring knives, and urged the horses. The original guards in brocade robes also gathered around with their embroidered spring knives.
The guards on the porch in front of the Yamen of the Ministry of Internal Affairs suddenly became agitated and couldn't help but retreat. The soldiers looked at each other, obviously shocked at the scene.
That was General Wei, a fourth-rank military officer who commanded the palace guards. He was killed on the spot!
"one!"
Jia Heng just shouted, and the guards of Jinyi Mansion behind him also shouted "one", the sound was like thunder, and the momentum was astonishing.
There was a "dang" sound, and no one knew who it was. The Yan Fei Dao fell to the ground, and then one after another, the clang sound sounded, and the guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs lowered their heads and spread out to both sides.
Jia Heng glanced at Qu Lang and shouted: "Why don't you go in and get someone!"
Qu Lang's heart was shaken, and there were two strange blushes on his cheeks, and he said loudly: "I humbly obey my orders."
Suddenly, a large number of Jinyi Mansion guards poured into the Ministry of Internal Affairs like a black tide, flooding the inside and outside.
At this time, the spring rain that had been brewing in the sky for a long time seemed to be finally unable to withstand the dark clouds. It began to rain with a heavy raindrop, and soon the general who had fallen in a pool of blood washed out a bloody stain.
Dai Quan looked at this scene and asked, "Ziyu, how should our family report to the Holy Emperor later?"
"If the guard of the House of Internal Affairs refuses to obey the order, it will not be a pity to die. Just report the truth to the truth!" Jia Heng looked at the yamen of the House of Internal Affairs, which was locked in rain and fog with a pale face.
When the Guoyong Camp was being reorganized, more than one person died!