Out of Tianfu, Zhu Cihong was just about to drive back to the palace, but saw that Sun Yingyuan had been following him.

Zhu Cihong pretended to be surprised and said, "Is there something wrong?" ”

Sun Yingyuan was a little embarrassed, and after a short ideological struggle, he finally said: "Shu Chen dared to ask, what does His Highness think of the round girl, does he have the idea of being included in the East Palace?" ”

Zhu Cihong said: "The world is undecided, why is it home?" ”

Sun Yingyuan was overjoyed, rubbed his hands and said a little embarrassed: "Your Highness, that minister has a reluctant request......

Zhu Cihong said meaningfully: "Say it! ”

"The minister wants to ...... The minister wants to marry Chen Yuanyuan! ”

Sun Yingyuan finally threw down his face and said what was in his heart, but he was worried in his heart, and he didn't know if His Royal Highness the Crown Prince really had no intention of Chen Yuanyuan, in case he didn't know what to do......

"Accurate!" Zhu Cihong was very happy.

That's it? Sun Yingyuan looked confused, he really didn't expect it to be so smooth, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince ......

Zhu Cihong raised his eyebrows and said, "Why don't you want to?" ”

"Yes, yes!" Sun Yingyuan said again and again, and then made a big salute: "Thank you, Your Highness, for your success!" ”

Zhu Cihong helped him up and said: "You are the first general of my Tianwu Army, and you are the first to follow this palace, just a woman, you don't have to be so angry, and this palace is still small, this matter of accepting a concubine will not be considered in a few years." ”

Sun Yingyuan bowed his head and said: "Your Royal Highness is for the country and the people, the country before the family, and the ministers admire and are ashamed." ”

Zhu Cihong said: "Don't say that, you are in your thirties and have not yet started a family, it is the palace that has treated you badly, and it has also treated the soldiers of the Tianwu Army, and when the matter between Beijing and Shanxi is cleared, the palace will personally hold a blind date meeting for you, and you can choose the women in this world!" ”

Sun Yingyuan's face was moved, and he clasped his fists again and saluted: "Your Highness's great grace, the ministers will be remembered forever!" ”

"But Your Highness, the minister only needs Chen Yuanyuan is enough, and let the soldiers pick the rest."

Zhu Cihong frowned and said, "Are you planning to include Chen Yuanyuan in the main house?" Sun Yingyuan, you are now a hereditary count, marrying a singer as a wife, have you thought about your reputation? ”

Zhu Cihong knows that although most of the historical Qin Huai Bayan married eunuchs, they were basically treated as concubines, such as Qian Qianyi, who was too cold, married Liu Rusi, Kou Baimen married Zhu Guobi, the Duke of Baoguo, and Li Xiangjun married the son of the former Hubu Shangshu Hou Sui......

Sun Yingyuan said: "Your Highness doesn't know, the minister's hometown is in Jiangnan, and the atmosphere in Jiangnan is open......"

Zhu Cihong waved his hand and said: "Okay, this palace is more open than you, you can accept Chen Yuanyuan as a concubine first, if you insist on supporting him as the main house after a few years, this palace will definitely not object at that time." ”

After speaking, Zhu Cihong boarded the honor guard and left, still muttering: An old man who has been on the battlefield for a long time and is almost forty years old will be carried away by love, and he will fall in love at first sight, he is really convinced!

......

In Tian Fuzhong, Pingxi Bo Wu Sangui sent people to ask for Chen Yuanyuan, which made Tian Hongyu very entangled.

Due to Zhu Cihong's ambiguous attitude, Tian Hongyu still couldn't figure out whether the crown prince wanted Chen Yuanyuan or not, so he didn't dare to agree easily.

At this time, I heard the housekeeper hurriedly report: "Master, Uncle Jing Wubo is here!" ”

Jing Wubo is back again? Tian Hongyu didn't dare to slack off, and hurriedly went out to greet him.

Sun Yingyuan didn't come alone, but also brought a team of heavily armed soldiers, all of whom were wearing red belts and carrying a big red sedan chair, as well as a large number of courtesies, and even the matchmaker brought seven or eight.

Knowing Sun Yingyuan's intention, Tian Hongyu was overjoyed, compared to Wu Sangui, Jingwu Uncle Sun Yingyuan is naturally the best choice, he is a hereditary earl, the first contributor to the battle of Liaodong, and the confidant of the crown prince, listen to the expression in his language, or the meaning of the crown prince, how can Tian Hongyu refuse? Immediately drove away the people of the Wu family.

Wu Fuzhong, when he heard the report from the family, Wu Sangui was furious, and immediately scolded: "It's Sun Yingyuan again!" Why can't this old man get along with me? Forget it if you rob me of my first merit, even Lao Tzu's woman will rob it! ”

The more Wu Sangui thought about it, the more angry he became, with his handsome and handsome face, coupled with the reputation of the Wu family, he was the youngest nobleman in the Ming Dynasty, and it was so difficult to even ask for a singer.

Wu Sangui's father, Wu Xiang, persuaded: "Sangui, it's just a woman, why bother, Uncle Jing Wubo is the prince's henchman, you must not go against him!" ”

"The Tianwu Army is really too deceitful!" Wu Sangui snorted coldly, feeling resentful in his heart, but he didn't dare to have the idea of robbing his relatives, so he could only forcibly swallow this breath and take his family to Liaodong that day.

......

In the leopard room next to the West Garden of Taiye Pond in the northwest corner of the imperial city, a team of brocade guards escorted the sinners in the palace to and fro.

Since Zhu Cihong ordered a thorough investigation into the accidental death of the prince, Li Tingbiao used the leopard room as a temporary headquarters for interrogation and investigation, and arrested all the palace maids, eunuchs and nurses who served the two princes from the palace, and tortured them here.

The Ming aristocracy raised tigers and leopards and other fierce beasts is the most prosperous period of the past dynasties, with the Ming Wuzong Zhu Houzhao is the most prosperous, there are not only leopard rooms in the imperial city, but also tiger city, elephant room, pigeon house, deer farm, eagle room and many other places to raise animals.

There are many secret rooms in the leopard room such as a labyrinth, and there are school fields, Buddhist temples, etc., covering an area of nearly 1,000 acres, extremely broad, since the death of Emperor Zhengde, it has been basically abandoned, to the Chongzhen period, the country is worried about internal and external troubles, Chongzhen does not go to this kind of place to play at all, and there are fewer animals raised inside.

In the leopard room, Li Tingbiao led a leopard to the maid of the Six Princes, with a smile on his face, and said, "Tell me how you plotted to kill the Sixth Highness." ”

This palace maid had been tortured into an inhuman form, and at this time, when she saw a fierce leopard grinning at her, she was even more frightened, and screamed: "The slave maid really didn't murder the Sixth Highness!" ”

Li Tingbiao's face turned cold, and as soon as he loosened the chain in his hand, the leopard was free and pounced on the palace maid, biting her frantically, and tearing her to the point of not being human in a short time.

The tragic situation of the palace maid frightened the other palace maids around who were tortured without blood, screaming again and again, Li Tingbiao led the leopard to a palace maid and said, "You can tell me." ”

The palace maid was already frightened, and her teeth chattered: "The slave maid was recruited, and the slave maid didn't know how that day, so she strangled the Sixth Highness to death in a daze!" ”

"Oh? Strangled? I heard from the Imperial Physician that there are no scars on His Royal Highness Sixth Highness, it seems that you want to compare with this leopard, whose mouth is harder? ”

Li Tingbiao shouted: "Put them and the leopard in an iron prison!" Let the leopard go and ask! ”

A team of brocade guards happily accepted the order, drove a group of eunuchs, palace maids and nurses into the Iron Colosseum, and led a leopard who had been hungry for two days into it.

The iron gate slammed shut, followed by a frenzied scream and a terrible scream......

On the second day, Zhu Cihong took the confession sent by Li Tingbiao, and his eyes were full of coldness.

Some nobles did not hesitate to spend a lot of money to buy the eunuchs and nurses around the two princes, and took advantage of the delirium of the fifth son of the emperor to repeatedly teach him: The Nine Lotus Bodhisattva said that the emperor treats his relatives poorly, and will kill all his sons, and threatens Chongzhen with the name of "Nine Lotus Bodhisattva".

After the death of the five princes, Chongzhen still did not stop fundraising, and they bought the palace maids around the six princes, and used a silver needle as thin as a cow's hair to pierce the veins of the six-prince who was only two years old and murdered him.

Just as Zhu Cihong was about to go to Chongzhen with the evidence, the accident happened again, someone from the leopard room reported it, and the palace maid and the nurse who confessed committed suicide by biting their tongues.

Zhu Cihong's heart was cold after hearing this, and secretly said that the methods of these nobles are really clever, and the design is so thorough, there is no witness, even if Chongzhen knows, there is no way to take people.

Reclining on the sandalwood soft chair, Zhu Cihong suddenly remembered the collusion between some nobles in the capital and the Eight Great Jin merchants, and he asked Xu Shengdao beside him: "How is the progress in Shanxi?" ”

Xu Sheng bowed and replied: "I just got a return today, and now all roads are going well, General Cao has led a large army into Shanxi, and the pass of the three towns of Xuanda has also been blocked by the order of His Royal Highness led by Gu Wei, and the eight major profiteers are unable to fly!" ”

Zhu Cihong nodded, it's time to completely settle the accounts of the eight traitors, I hope to start from them and involve a group of Jingshi nobles, as long as the palace wants to clean them up, what reason to kill can't be found? What's more, the reason for betraying the country seems to be more clever than murdering the prince.

However, Zhu Cihong obviously refused to give up, and he said to Li Tingbiao: "The case in the capital continues to be investigated, and the more people involved, the better, whether it is the noble emperor or the civil and military officials, all of them will be turned over to the palace!" ”

Li Tingbiao happily accepted the order, he knew very well that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was short of money......