Like them all?
Chongzhen was stunned.
My goodness, this guy Li Ruolian is not polite at all.
Seeing Chongzhen stunned, Li Ruolian knelt on the ground and continued, "I am telling the truth. Your Majesty, please punish me."
Chongzhen smiled bitterly and patted Li Ruolian on the shoulder: "There are not many people as honest as you in the Ming Dynasty."
"I am terrified."
"I'll let you take over the Imperial Guard in a few days, how about that?"
really!
Li Ruo Lian's sturdy body shook.
His Majesty would indeed use him, and the previous disappointment in the court disappeared in an instant.
In fact, when Chongzhen asked him to assassinate him, Li Ruolian already had a premonition.
I didn’t expect that this trust would come so quickly!
Li Ruo Lian suddenly felt the burden on his shoulders become much heavier. He knelt on the ground and said, "I accept your command and thank you!"
"How many assassins do you have among the Jinyiwei in the capital?"
"Your Majesty, there are more than a hundred people."
"Enough!" Chongzhen's lips curled up with an excited smile.
Coming through time with his memories, he only wanted to do two things.
Steal money and kill people!
"You don't have to look for the murderer. I have three other things for you to do."
"I accept your order."
"First, investigate which merchants transported grain and fodder to the Ministry of Revenue and armor, weapons, and firearms to the Ministry of Works, and find out which ministers in the court had close contacts with them, with a focus on Shanxi merchants and Jiangsu and Zhejiang merchants."
Li Ruo Lian silently recorded it in his mind.
"Second, imitate the handwriting of these people and write a few secret letters." Chongzhen reached out and picked up a stack of memorials from the table and handed them to Li Ruolian.
Li Ruolian opened the memorial and glanced at it, and his scalp went numb.
These people included nobles, court officials, and even dead people.
The dead person was Wei Zaode, the former chief minister of the cabinet, and his memorial was also among them.
Li Ruo Lian asked respectfully, "Your Majesty, what are the requirements in the secret letter?"
"These people are colluding with the bandits. I need evidence."
"Your Majesty, I obey your order!" Li Ruolian put the memorial into his arms and hid it without hesitation.
Chongzhen was very satisfied with Li Ruolian's performance. He nodded and continued, "The third matter is a bit tricky. Someone might die."
"I have received your grace, and I am not afraid of life or death!"
"Good! The third thing is a major event that will shake the capital!"
event?
Li Ruolian was shocked and immediately became energetic.
"Tonight at midnight, massacre the residences of former Cabinet Prime Minister Chen Yan and Military Secretary Guang Shiheng. Remember, it must be done quietly and cleanly. Execute all men, women, old and young in the residences, leaving no one alive. Loot all their property, but don't give it to me, just keep it for yourself."
Li Ruo Lian was quiet for a while.
He didn't expect that the emperor would kill people in such a low-key way.
He shouldn't hesitate to kill anyone.
But Li Ruo Lian still hesitated for a moment, and said with an embarrassed look on his face: "Your Majesty, there are patrols in the capital at night by the patrol camp and the Jinyiwei. Although my people are good at fighting, they will inevitably face a tough battle if they are discovered by them. Life and death are minor matters, but ruining your majesty's plan is a big deal."
Li Ruo Lian's worries were not without reason. Although the patrol camp and the Jinyiwei were weak in combat, they had the advantage of numbers. If a conflict occurred, the other side would exhaust them to death if they had support.
Not only will the task not be completed, but manpower will be lost in vain, which is not worth the loss.
Chongzhen already had a plan in mind. He shook his head slightly and said, "Don't worry. I will leave the others to me."
"Yes, sir!" Li Ruolian bowed and left quickly.
As soon as he walked out of the palace gate, Wang Zhixin and Wu Mengming walked in side by side.
They both fell to their knees at the same time.
Wang Zhixin looked worried: "I wonder how your majesty is doing? I am guilty of scaring your majesty."
Wu Mengming's face was filled with anxiety: "Your Majesty, I have failed in my duty. Please give me a chance, I will definitely bring the murderer to justice!"
The task of providing outer security when the emperor leaves the palace is the responsibility of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot. Regardless of whether they are present at the time or not, they are the first persons responsible.
If something like this happened, the emperor would be blamed and he would be to blame.
Chongzhen said with a hint of mockery: "Okay, I grant you the right to commit suicide, go ahead."
Wang Zhixin and Wu Mengming were stunned.
They were the emperor's favorites and were deeply trusted by the king.
Although what happened today was serious, in their eyes, it was not serious enough to warrant death. Besides, now was a time when people were needed, so how could His Majesty be willing to let them commit suicide?
But since the words came from Chongzhen's mouth, they dared not disbelieve it.
After a moment, Wang Zhixin was the first to beg, "Your Majesty, please spare my life. Your Majesty, please spare my life! Although I have failed in my duty, I beg Your Majesty to spare me for my loyalty."
"I am willing to make amends for my crime and find the real culprit behind this."
Seeing this, Wu Mengming began to imitate Wang Zhixin. He kowtowed and cried, "Your Majesty, please forgive me! Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
He was not as eloquent as Wang Zhixin, so he could only kneel on the ground and kowtow to beg for mercy.
The voice was miserable and the tears were streaming down her face, which was very moving.
Chongzhen was annoyed by Wu Mengming's crying. What was Chongzhen thinking at that time? He actually let such a guy become the commander of the Jinyiwei!
So sad and hateful!
He had wanted to let Li Ruo Lian take charge of the Jinyiwei in a few days. After all, the internal relationships of the Jinyiwei were complicated. Once there were changes in the top leadership, there would definitely be chaos inside for a while.
Now, his mind has changed.
Let Li Ruolian take over the Jinyiwei as soon as possible, otherwise under the leadership of this guy Wu Mengming, the Jinyiwei will be unable to do anything.
After analyzing the situation, Chongzhen ordered Wang Chengen outside the door: "Wang Chengen, draft an edict. Jinyiwei Commander Wu Mengming failed to do his duty and failed to supervise. He is now dismissed from his post and sent to the imperial prison to await his fate."
"Wang Zhixin, the governor of the East Factory, is guilty of dereliction of duty, but considering his loyalty and his donations to the court, we will let him off the hook for now. I order him to solve the assassination case within three days and make amends for his crime!"
"As for the vacancy of the Jinyiwei Commander-in-Chief, it will be filled by Jinyiwei Commander-in-Chief Li Ruolian."
"For the meritorious service of the Brave Guards in protecting the emperor, Lieutenant General Pang Zijin will be promoted one rank and awarded 500 taels of silver; the rest of the people will be rewarded with 5 taels of silver each."
"Let's leave it at that for now!"
Wu Mengming had nothing to say, he knelt down and accepted the order: "Your Majesty, I, the guilty minister, Wu Mengming, thank you for your grace!"
Without waiting for him to finish his words, Wang Chengen ordered the Jinyiwei outside the door to take Wu Mengming away.
The two Jinyiwei were very realistic. They did not care about the face of the former Jinyiwei commander at all. They tied Wu Mengming tightly with ropes and pushed him out of the palace.
Wang Zhixin first knelt on the ground to receive the order, then knelt for a long time and reported the situation: "Your Majesty, there are important discoveries in the assassination case. I kneel down and ask Your Majesty to listen."
"I'm listening."
Afterwards, Wang Zhixin told everything he saw in Duke Dingguo's mansion.
The corpse in the side courtyard of Duke Dingguo's Mansion was a male corpse, about twenty years old, wearing the same clothes as the servants in Duke Dingguo's Mansion.
He died between his eyebrows. Next to his body were a bow and two arrows, nothing else.
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