Daming: Brother, there is no future for monks, let's rebel

"Poison?" Zhu Han was startled. He looked at the corner of the man's mouth and saw a tiny black dot at the base of his tongue, which was spreading at a visible speed.

It was obvious that the reed had not been inserted before, but was hidden by the back of his tongue, and he bit it open when he struggled just now.

The boy slammed his fist on the edge of the well: "Another one dead!"

Zhu Han remained expressionless, gripping the man's chin and forcing his eyes to look at him before he died: "Tell the 'new master'—I will also be there, but I will be on his head." With a swift release, the man breathed his last.

A brief silence followed, broken only by the faint sound of water from the depths of the well. The night wind blew across the well opening, causing the wooden lid bearing the character "静" (quiet) to creak slightly, like a cold sigh.

"Your Highness," the guard whispered, "what should we do?"

"Take the body away, replace the manhole cover, and leave no trace."

Zhu Han put away the short handle and the wax piece. "Nothing happened tonight." He paused, then looked at the boy. "Your hand."

The boy spread his palms out, revealing gruesome bloodstains on his palms.

He hissed softly, then grinned and said, "It's alright."

"Go home."

The two left silently, just as they had arrived.

Upon returning home, it was nearly four in the morning. The lamps in the main hall were dim and cold.

Zhu Han placed the "Phoenix Two" short handle, the overprinted wax sheet, and the Night Crossing Picture (II) on the table in that order, and then placed the small copper rivet at the very edge.

After the boy finished bandaging his hand, he sat down against the windowsill, his eyelids twitching as he forced himself to stay open.

“Sleep with a lamp,” Zhu Han said.

The boy shook his head: "I won't sleep." He raised his eyes, "Your Highness, who will be the 'new master'? The Crown Prince? Prince Qi? Or—"

“None of them look like it.” Zhu Han didn’t look at him, his gaze falling on a line of small regular script at the bottom corner of “Night Crossing Picture (II)”—besides “Jingyi’s seal”, there was another extremely small character, almost embedded in the paper: “Ugly”. Ugly hour, one to three o’clock in the morning.

"Yuanfa said that 'Feng Er' has only appeared three times. The drought of the late emperor and the peace with the Northern Di were both urgent edicts issued by the emperor in front of him, and the seal was issued at the hour of Chou. Tonight, the secret compartment of the well behind Deshou also uses the character 'Chou' to mark the time."

Zhu Han raised his hand and pointed to the copper rivet, "This rivet is the positioning pin of the seal handle mechanism. Whenever 'Feng Er' is used, this pin must be used to lock it at the end of the handle. When it is locked, the seal pattern rotates once, becoming 'two'. When it is locked, the seal pattern returns to its original state, becoming 'one'. The fact that this rivet is in the well means that after tonight, 'Feng Er' has returned to 'one'."

"In other words, 'Feng Er' has been taken back and restored to its original state."

The boy realized, "'The new master' doesn't want to leave any trace."

"Yes." Zhu Han fitted the short handle with the copper rivet, and it fit perfectly. "If this handle is presented to the court, the three judicial departments can testify to the existence of 'two'. If the Crown Prince is willing to use it when the accounts are settled tomorrow, it will be the knife."

The boy clicked his tongue: "Whose throat?"

“First sever the shadow of the ‘new master,’ then sever the lineage of succession.”

Zhu Han raised his head, his eyes as cold as a newly drawn blade. "Starting from the shadows, you won't kill the wrong person."

Where is the shadow?

"Among those who 'don't go'," Zhu Han said slowly, "there are three who won't go tonight: the Empress Dowager, the Empress, and the Crown Prince. The Empress Dowager has already taken charge of the deputy order and executed Jingyi; the Empress has been suspended in the inner palace for three months to avoid trouble; the Crown Prince... he won't go, he's waiting."

"What are you waiting for?"

"Wait for me to get the knife."

The boy paused for a moment, then burst out laughing: "Your Highness, what you're saying sounds like something out of a play—you hold the knife, he bangs the table, the Prince of Qi hands over the gong, the Empress Dowager strikes the clapper, and the 'new master' unveils himself."

"Even the stage needs a sharp blade." Zhu Han smiled slightly, then quickly suppressed it. "Boy, go and summon Li Su—"

Before he could finish speaking, there were three soft, evenly spaced knocks outside the door. The boy abruptly stood up: "Li Su?"

"It's me." A gust of cold wind squeezed in through the crack in the door, and a dark figure swept in with it, taking off his hood. It was Li Su from the Censorate.

His eyes were dark and swollen, clearly from not having slept all night. After bowing with his fists clasped, he said in a low voice, "Your Highness, of the twenty men listed on the west side eaves, seven have been detained, two have hanged themselves, one has escaped, and the remaining nine refuse to confess no matter what. The officials of the Capital Garrison request Your Highness to review this."

"Take them to the secret vault and interrogate them slowly. There's no need to rush. Tomorrow, the accounts will be in front of them. Let them see what kind of evidence they have," Zhu Han said.

Li Su nodded, then his gaze shifted to the short handle and wax tablet on the table, and he immediately held his breath: "This is—"

“The handle and overprint of ‘Feng Er’”.

Zhu Han handed over the wax tablet, saying, "Tomorrow, when you enter the inner treasury, you will bring three of your most trusted officials with you, and they must keep them close at all times. Whenever you see the words 'Cheng Yu' (承御), first check the seal, then write down the name."

"I will obey." Li Su put it away and then suddenly said, "Your Highness, there was some unusual activity in the inner city tonight. A group of people from the Imperial City Guard entered the city from the direction of Chongzhen Temple before the second watch, circled around the West Market, passed the Silver Workshop, and stopped for a while outside Nanxun Gate. After that, their whereabouts became unknown."

“Chongzhen Temple.” The boy and Zhu Han exchanged a glance.

"King Qi?" the boy asked.

“It doesn’t seem like it.” Zhu Han shook his head. “If Prince Qi makes a move, he won’t take the old route of the Imperial City Guard. That’s the old way, too obvious. He’s come to the capital tonight, so he’s already made his presence known. He won’t go back to the shadows. It’s like someone is using Chongzhen Temple as a ‘relay station’.”

"Who?"

"Leave it for now," Zhu Han said. "Tomorrow, we must first guard the inner treasury, and then force out those two words."

"Which two?" Li Su asked.

“'Feng Er',” he said in a deep voice, ““Let it be revealed to the world, and no one can deny it.”

Before dawn and before the palace gates were opened, the Imperial Guards had already been deployed outside the inner treasury.

A seal was erected in front of the gate, the cinnabar was not yet dry, and a faint fragrance wafted in the wind.

The crown prince stood at the front, his face appearing even paler in his black casual clothes.

The Empress stood by his side, dressed in plain clothes and a cloak, her expression clear and serene.

Before the Empress Dowager arrived, only two chairs were placed under the Deshou Corridor. One was empty, and the other was occupied by the Grand Princess, who looked up at the sky as if waiting for the first morning bell.

"Prince Jing'an has arrived!" the eunuch announced loudly.

Zhu Han stepped into the doorway and clasped his hands in greeting: "Your Highness."

The crown prince's gaze fell on the black lacquered box in his hand, and he raised an eyebrow: "Ready?"

"The knife is here," Zhu Han replied.

"Very well." The Crown Prince's voice was low and steady. "Open the treasury."

The three locks on the warehouse door opened, and the copper rings made a deep, resonant sound like a bell.

A chill swept in from inside the door; thousands of account books were piled up like mountains, and the seals and boxes were all in their proper places.

The clerks of the Imperial Treasury knelt with faces as white as paper, their knees clenched tightly. Two tables, neatly arranged with writing brushes and inkstones, were set up by officials from the Censorate on the west side of the eaves.

"In order: first the seal, then the ledger, then the personnel," the Crown Prince began. "All those who 'attend to the Emperor' must stop at the checkpoint—to verify their identity."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Han placed the black lacquered box on the table, lifted the lid, and the short handle and wax pieces lay quietly apart amidst the breathing of the crowd.

Li Su held a wax tablet at his side, as straight as a javelin.

The first box contains the "Record of Border Preparations in March," with the Emperor's calligraphy, the Imperial Seal, and the "Official" Phoenix Seal. The texture does not match the wax tablet; however, it matches the copy kept by the Empress.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The second box—"April's Procurement"—showed everything as usual. The third box—"May's Imperial Records"—felt the words "Imperial Deputy Commissioner" appearing on the inner pages. The Crown Prince raised his hand: "Stop."

Zhu Han reached out and pressed the short handle next to the remaining mark on the wax surface.

The mark was extremely faint, like a light rub. He slowly turned the handle, and the gouge at the end of the handle overlapped with the missing stroke of the overprinted wax piece—the people present held their breath at the same time.

Li Su placed the overprinted wax pieces next to the mark, and the three overprints matched the background pattern perfectly.

“This is ‘two’.” Li Su’s voice suddenly trembled slightly. “There is indeed ‘two’.”

The Grand Princess gripped the chair armrest tightly: "Who made the pledge?" The Censorate official quickly flipped through the pages: "Pledge Office... 'Imperial White Token,' recipient—Qingxi."

"He's dead," the Empress whispered.

“The person who will issue the plaques… Jingyi Room,” the official said through gritted teeth.

"She's gone too." The Grand Princess sneered. "Fine. 'New master,' you think you can hide your face by piling up dead bodies in front of you?"

The Crown Prince exhaled slowly and looked at Zhu Han: "Finish another box."

The fourth box—"May Night Crossing Account"—shows the reappearance of the characters "Cheng Yu". The overprints match. The fifth box—"June Inner Collection"—suddenly lacks "Cheng Yu", and the imprint is now "correct". The short handle won't turn, and Li Su looks up: "Another 'one'."

"It was taken back last night," the boy whispered beside him, his hands unconsciously clenching.

"Enough." The Crown Prince stopped, his gaze as cold as frost. "Censorate, listen to my orders—arrest the Imperial City Guard team that entered the city after midnight last night on charges of 'forging official seals, stealing official silver, and conspiring to silence witnesses.' First, question the 'Chongzhen Temple.'"

"I will obey!" Li Su accepted the order.

"The inner treasury will be cleared in three days, and the seals and keys will be handed over to the seals and keys." The Crown Prince then issued another order: "Prince Jing'an, you shall be in charge of the treasury for me."

"Your subject is here." Zhu Han clasped his hands in greeting.

He turned to the morning light outside the door, where a sliver of white was rising from behind the palace wall, gently tracing the roof ridge like a golden thread.

In that instant, he seemed to see the shadow of the "new master" taking a step back between the light and the wall, or perhaps not, but only the wind swaying the shadow of the cypress tree.

"The shadow is here," he thought to himself. "The knife is here too."

He lowered his eyes, his fingers landing on the very shallow gouge on the short shank, as if touching the enemy's Adam's apple.

Beneath my fingertip, the wood grain is cold, and the gouging marks are even colder.

"Your Highness," he said in a low voice, "today, we're not just settling accounts. We also need to invite His Majesty to the palace."

The crown prince glanced at him, a hint of triumphant sharpness in his eyes: "That's what I think too."

The Meridian Gate opened, and an imperial eunuch announced loudly: "The Emperor—is coming to the Chongwen Hall."

All the officials kowtowed in unison. Drums and music resounded.

The dragon carriage came from the palace road and slowly stopped in front of the hall.

Before the curtain was lifted, a soft cough could be heard from inside the carriage. The cough was thin and light, yet it carried the weariness of years.

For months, His Majesty had been unable to hold morning court due to the frequent reports of victories in the northern frontier. This sudden summons has caused trepidation among all the officials in the land.

"Your Majesty!" The courtiers prostrated themselves on the ground.

The curtain was gently lifted, revealing a ray of golden light.

The Emperor wore a crimson-gold court robe, his hair and beard were half white, and his face was pale, but his eyes were still bright.

The attendant eunuch helped him down from the throne; though his steps were slow, they were as steady as a mountain.

He ascended the steps and sat down, his gaze sweeping over the crowd below. He said calmly, "I have been ill for a long time. I have summoned you all today to ask you about three things: First, the Phoenix Seal. Second, military funds. Third—the hearts of the people."

Upon hearing this, the air in the hall seemed to freeze.

The Crown Prince stepped forward first, bowed, and reported: "I have investigated the case of the Phoenix Seal. The counterfeit 'Phoenix Two' was made by Lady Jingyi. The deputy ordered it to leave the palace, but the Emperor made a mistake. The accounts have now been settled and are in accordance with the law. However, the actual 'Phoenix Two' and the counterfeit seal were obtained by Prince Jing'an. I respectfully request Your Majesty to inspect them."

The Emperor nodded slightly and turned his gaze to Zhu Han.

Zhu Han stepped forward, knelt down, and presented the box. The eunuch took it and placed it on the emperor's desk.

The Emperor lifted the lid, his gaze falling on the short, black lacquered handle. His brow furrowed slightly: "Why is this seal different from the phoenix seal I bestowed upon you?"

Zhu Han replied, “Your Majesty, this is ‘Feng Er,’ a secondary seal made for emergency use during the reign of the late Emperor. Its patterns are finer, and the bottom has hidden rivets. Whenever the handle is turned into the rivet, the imprint will be different. I obtained it last night from the Deshou Well, and there are overlapping imprints as proof.”

He presented the wax tablet and the painting of the night crossing together. The Emperor slowly finished reading them and said in a deep voice, "Who will hold this seal?"

"In the past, it was under the jurisdiction of the Empress, but later it was handed over to De Shou," the Crown Prince replied.

"De Shou." The Emperor's gaze turned cold. "Empress Dowager."

On the high platform, the Empress Dowager slowly rose, dressed in plain satin, her hair as white as frost.

She did not shy away from the Emperor's gaze and calmly replied, "Feng Er is indeed in my hands. In March, when the Prince of Ping's army was in dire need, I feared that it would interfere with state affairs, so I entrusted the deputy commander to the eunuch for temporary use. I did not expect that he would be used by someone else. I am guilty."

The Emperor sighed: "Empress Dowager... the rules don't concern me with how many stamps are printed, what I worry about is how much the people's hearts are affected."

He looked up at the assembled officials, his voice low yet sharp as a stone thrown to the bottom of a well: "The matter of the Phoenix Seal ends here. My second question is—the military funds. Who embezzled them?"

Upon hearing this, the prince and dozens of others bowed their heads in unison. The soft sound of armor rubbing together could be heard in the air.

The crown prince hesitated, as if he wanted to speak.

Zhu Han stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, “Your Majesty, although the military silver is nominally for ‘border defense,’ it has actually been transferred to private treasuries. I obtained the account books in the East Warehouse last night, and the ‘Imperial Censor’ approved that 70% of the silver went to ‘Juyi,’ and of the silver from ‘Juyi,’ 30% flowed to the private merchant firm ‘Guangyi Heng.’ Last night, I used the seal of the deputy to verify and discovered that ‘Guangyi Heng’ was actually secretly managed by Yuanfa, who was in charge of Chongzhen Temple.”

These words struck like a thunderbolt. The assembled officials were in uproar.

The Emperor's brow twitched slightly: "Chongzhen Temple?"

"Yes." Zhu Han looked up. "The actions of Daoist Yuanfa are suspicious. I personally saw him communicating with the Inner Court the night before last, carrying a copy of the 'Tianheng Order'. Prince Qi has already confirmed that it was not an order from the south, but a fake white token from the palace. If this matter is not cleared up, it may cause future trouble."

The Emperor's gaze turned cold and sharp: "Where is the perfect method?"

"I have already dispatched the Imperial Guards to search the area, but they found nothing last night," Zhu Han replied.

The Grand Princess sneered: "Your Majesty, if this person escapes, there are only two places in the capital where he can be hidden: Deshou and the Imperial City Guard."

"Insolence!" The commander of the Imperial City Guard knelt down. "We guarded the gate and did not harbor any traitors."

"Then search." The Emperor waved his hand indifferently. "Search Deshou."

The Empress Dowager's expression remained unchanged, and she said softly, "Your Majesty, De Shou has my seal on his robes. This is a forbidden area of ​​the palace; how can we allow a random search?"

"Mother," the Emperor said, his gaze deep, "if they are truly innocent, what harm is there in a search?"

The Empress Dowager and the Emperor looked at each other for a moment, then sighed and nodded slightly.

"Search."

The eunuch received the decree and left, leaving only the sound of the wind in the hall.

Zhu Han suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He instinctively turned around and saw a dark shadow flash by outside the long corridor beside the imperial steps.

The man was dressed in palace guard uniform, yet his steps were extremely light, and he seemed to be holding a scroll in his hand.

"Your Highness!" he warned in a low voice.

Before the words were finished, a loud bang—

The palace doors were smashed open, and an inner guard stumbled in, covered in blood, clutching a scroll tightly in his hands.

The scroll was unfurled, revealing a page of red ink—a troop mobilization order written by the Emperor himself!

"Your Majesty—urgent report from the northern frontier!" a guard shouted hoarsely. "Prince Ping has rebelled!"

The entire hall erupted in a roar.

The Emperor abruptly stood up, his face ashen: "Rebellion?"

"Yes!" The imperial guard coughed up blood. "The garrison at Jinling has been disrupted on both flanks. Prince Ping, citing 'deficiencies in border defense funds and the court's misconduct,' has led an army of 200,000 to press towards the Jiangbei Pass. I have come here with Prince Ping's proclamation—"

Before he could finish speaking, a short arrow pierced the window and struck him squarely in the heart. (End of Chapter)