Unofficial History of Emperor Wuzong of the Ming Dynasty

On the Lantern Festival, thousands of doors are unlocked and thousands of lanterns are lit, the bright moon hangs high, and the Forbidden City is also decorated with lights and festoons. The inner court is full of fire and silver flowers, and the palace people are full of laughter.

Emperor Zhengde paid his respects to the Empress Dowager, and allocated money from the income of the Huangzhuang to the Empress Dowager Zhang, Empress Xia, Concubine Shuhuide Wu, Concubine Rong Shuxian Shen, and Concubine Wang. The nobile jade ring.Empress Xia led three sisters who were in the same situation to thank Emperor Zhengde. Emperor Zhengde felt ashamed, so he agreed to Shuhui Defei Wu's request to enjoy the lantern together.

The lanterns are all tributes from the people, and the three concubines who are the only ones left have worked hard.

Emperor Zhengde was full of admiration by citing scriptures along the way, and after walking for a while, he asked the beauties on the left and right: "Do you know the origin of this lamp?"

Concubine Wu of Shuhui saw that Empress Xia had no intention of answering, so she volunteered: "My concubine heard that during the Warring States period, a divine bird came to the world because it lost its way, but was shot and killed by an unsuspecting hunter. Infuriated, a decree was issued to order the Heavenly Soldiers to set fire to the world on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. The Bodhisattva, the daughter of the Emperor of Heaven, was heart-hearted and could not bear the innocent people being implicated, so she secretly drove auspicious clouds to the world to inform the world. On the fourteenth day of the first month, when the Emperor looked down on the world The fire was bright and the sound was loud. For three days and three nights in a row, people thought that the people had been punished. Little did they know that it was according to the elders' idea that every house was decorated with lanterns and festoons, and firecrackers and fireworks were set off to cover people's eyes and ears. After that, the first month of the month was passed down. The custom of lighting fireworks at fifteen o'clock."

Emperor Zhengde nodded again and again, and after a few words of praise, he said to himself: "Is it a metaphor! Giant bird? What kind of bird can make a man so angry when the bird is gone?"

After admiring the lanterns, Emperor Zhengde wrote a poem, copied it several times and gave it to several nominal daughters-in-law as comforting words, and then planned to leave the Forbidden City to find his mistress Jiang Bin in the Leopard Room.At this time, the old eunuch Liu Yong came to report that King Ning Zhu Chenhao sent Physician Wu to bring a hundred four-season lanterns.

The three concubines, who thought they were going to stay alone again, immediately said that they wanted to see the heartfelt message from Ning Wang Zhu Chenhao with Emperor Zhengde.

Emperor Zhengde was helpless, so he asked his concubines to wait in the Qianqing Palace, the main hall of the inner court of the Forbidden City, and he went to pick up the lantern in person.

After all, Wu Jie couldn't enter the inner court, so he had to wait outside the gate of Qianqing with a hundred guards holding hundreds of four-season lights. Going forward to bow, Emperor Zhengde quickly helped him up. After the two practiced the etiquette of monarchs and ministers, Wu Jie glanced at Zhang Yong who was behind Emperor Zhengde.

A gust of wind blew, and the lights swayed together. Emperor Zhengde said to Zhang Yong: "Send the Four Seasons Lantern to Qianqing Palace."

Not long after, there was another gust of wind, and a cluster of flames burst out of the four-season lanterns hanging in the Qianqing Palace. The fire looked around furiously, and then crawled silently along the direction of the wind, gradually licking the white marble platform. The wooden frame on the...

Only then did the palace people helping to hang the lantern realize that there was a fire, and ran to fetch water in a panic.

At this moment, the four-season lamp on the other side also suddenly ignited. The flame was not as tempting as before, and it was as tall as a person when it shot up. ——" The ground turned into a white smoke.

The eunuch Zhang Yong, the chief inspector of ceremonies, shouted loudly, "Help me!" while directing the palace people to leave first with Emperor Zhengde and several frightened concubines.However, people in the palace reported that Emperor Zhengde was still in the warm pavilion of Qianqing Palace...

Zhang Yong ordered the palace man to take a few concubines to leave from Qianqing Gate, and then went to ask for help from others.

The raging fire rushed unscrupulously through the wooden beams and bucket arches, blackening the gold bricks and gold pillars in an instant, and the eyes were full of flames and smoke.

The Qianqing Palace, which was five rooms deep, was shrouded in thick smoke and could not see clearly what was going on inside.Several servants who wanted to grab the top spot covered their mouths and noses with their clothes soaked in water and rushed in.At this moment, Zhang Zhong, the eunuch who heard the news, arrived in time with his servants and went straight to the scorching hot hall.

When the Qianqing Palace was in chaos, Commander Qian Ningqian in a flying fish suit appeared at the Kunning Gate of the Forbidden City with a pair of Jinyi Weixiong Jiujiao.

The guards stopped Qian Ning and asked what was the matter of entering the palace. Qian Ning slapped him on the face with the back of a knife: "Qianqing Palace is flooded! I am ordered to escort you! Get out of the way!"

Several guards who were not ordered looked at each other. Although Qian Ning was not as favored as before, he was still the commander of Jinyiwei. Even if there was no order from Emperor Zhengde, he would not be negligent. Can't bear it.

After the Kunning Gate opened, Qian Ning led a group of Jinyi guards around the palace back garden and Kunning Palace to the smoke-filled Qianqing Palace, and saw Zhang Zhong rushing into the fire with a few people in his soaked coat Rescue the trapped Emperor Zhengde.

Qian Ning winked at Jin Yiwei behind him, and the thirty or so people dispersed immediately.Qian Ning led the remaining six people to the tense Zhang Yong and said, "The emperor knew that there was a rebellion tonight, so he ordered me to wait outside the palace..."

"Why don't you hurry up and rescue him?!"

Seeing that Zhang Yong was not suspicious, Qian Ning led people into the main hall of Qianqing Palace logically.

The beam frame of the Qianqing Palace was built with reduced columns, and the skeleton was not strong. The fire burned the two outermost gold columns with signs of fracture, and the whole palace was crumbling.

The six people brought by Qian Ning were not idle people, they covered their mouths and noses with soaked coats and searched the Qianqing Palace in the thick smoke of the fire.

However, there is no trace of Emperor Zhengde here, even Zhang Zhong and others who just came in have disappeared.

The fire "cracked" and ate away at the wood. When Qian Ning looked up, he saw the Dougong that was burnt to be broken at any time, and ordered to retreat with a loud shout.

The six quickly followed Qian Ning and ran out. Not long after they stepped out of the palace gate, with a deafening crack, a corner of Qianqing Palace collapsed in an instant.

Now the fire has spread irretrievably, Zhang Zhong still does not come out, even Zhang Yong, who was anxiously waiting outside before, also disappeared without a trace.

Qian Ning secretly thought that something was wrong, and looked at one of the people in the flying fish suit who had been searching everywhere.The man had been quietly watching from the corner, seeing Zhang Yong leave quickly with Zhang Zhong and his party who appeared out of nowhere after Qian Ning entered, and immediately made gestures for him to lead the troops to evacuate separately.

Qian Ning nodded, and after conveying the order to the others, he led the six people back the same way first.And the person who instructed Qian Ning how to act, went alone to the Qianqing Gate, which was about to be affected by the fire.

However, when he walked to Qianqing Gate, he was stopped by a person.

The man's eyes reflected the fire that tore through the night behind him, but his face was as cold as ice.

The fire insatiably devoured everything it could reach through the cold wind. Palaces carrying buckets hurried past them, but the two just faced each other silently.

When the tongue of fire finally licked the Dougong of Qianqingmen, the man finally said coldly: "I also saw the mooncake seller in the Mid-Autumn Festival among the gangsters in Poyang Lake. Do you think it's a coincidence?"

"On the ninth day of the lunar new year, I saw Wu Shisan. In his village, I met some of the gangsters who were on the run. The leaders who came to visit you were the bandit leaders Ling Shishi and Min Twenty-four whom you were trying to win over."

"I counted the private seals that they ordered their subordinates to risk their lives to give you. There are 58 seals in total, including guards and experiences, Zhenfusi, thousands, and hundreds of households. The inferior products you gave to Zhengde are already unwilling to rebel with you. Wang Zhe died, and you hid the real seal in Meng Yu's room, and you go to see him every night to confirm whether these chips are still there."

"You keep livestock in the palace to cover up the sound of weapons being made in the secret room below that is the same as the Chengyun Palace."

"Your chariot is full of platinum, bribed the nobles, bought Qian Ning and Zang Xian as eyes and ears, and sent people to Guangdong to buy leather tents to make leather armor, and made thick knots with local officials and wolf soldiers in Guangxi... Today, those who send lamps and set fires on the way will be wanted. The thieves Yang Qing, Li Fu and Wang Ru..."

"If this is done, you will succeed to the throne logically. If not, you will let the forces in the court coerce the childless Zhengde to make Meng Yu the crown prince..."

"From the beginning to the end, I am the only one you want to hide..." Wu Jie stepped forward and grabbed the wrist of the man in the flying fish suit, "Liu Qing will do this for you, what do you promise him? On the half of the river, it's you Own?"

Zhu Chenhao shook off Wu Jie's hand violently, and hurriedly took half a step back.

Wu Jie smiled coldly, tore off the jade badge from his waist, and threw it into the sea of ​​flames that tried to devour everything...