Chapter 41(1/2)
Han Hui and Furu were both imprisoned in the West Factory, one was the direct murderer of the case and the other was a co-conspirator.
Wang Zhi’s words yesterday, coupled with today’s results, inevitably immediately reminded Tang Fan of: People were killed by Wang Zhi.
Several people involved in this case, Han Hui is the murderer, Han Mei is the accomplice, and Yuan Liang and Furu are both co-conspirators.
Although Hanmei helped Han Hui hide needles, it was because she was pregnant with Han Hui's child. She was willing to help him out of this and did not know the other inside story of the case.
Although Han Hui received help from Yuanliang, he didn't know why Yuanliang wanted to help him.
Only Furu knew that Yuan Liang was unwilling to help Concubine Ji avenge, and she was the one who found Yuan Liang at the beginning. Maybe she would have the opportunity to give advice on this case, and her role would be indispensable.
Except for Tang Fan, Wang Zhi and the Prince, only Furu knew Yuan Liang's motives and behaviors clearly. If she confessed in her confession that Yuan Liang wanted to avenge Concubine Ji, then the imperial concubine would definitely settle the account on the crown prince's head.
Now as long as Furu dies, there will naturally be no evidence of death, which is also the safest for Wang Zhi.
But Tang Fan went to the West Factory several times but failed to find Wang Zhi. Naturally, there was no way to ask whether this palace maid was killed by Wang Zhi.
He suspected that Wang Zhi deliberately wanted to avoid him, but he had no choice.
Without Wang Zhi, he couldn't even enter the palace gate. Of course, he wouldn't know what the emperor and Concubine Wan had, whether the prince would be implicated, and how the case would be settled.
It was not until half a month later that Wang Zhi asked someone to invite him to the West Factory and told him that the case had been settled.
Tang Fan asked: "How to settle the law?"
Wang Zhi said: "Furu was scolded by the imperial concubine on weekdays and held a grudge, but did not dare to take revenge. Yuanliang was Furu's food. After hearing Furu's complaint, Han Hui happened to be the intention of killing his brother, so he came up with such an idea, asking Furu to persuade the imperial concubine to give him soup, and then asked Han Hui to attack Han Zao in advance. The three of them conspired to stage such a play to blame the imperial concubine. As a result, after Han Hui confessed, she was afraid and committed suicide in prison for fear of crime."
This is exactly the same as what he said to Tang Fan when he was in the palace.
Tang Fan didn't go around in circles and asked directly: "Is Furu's death related to Mr. Wang?"
Wang Zhi asked back: "Do you think I killed it?"
Tang Fan was silent.
Silence equals default.
There was no one on the left and right in the inner room, and neither of them spoke, and the atmosphere was a little stagnant for a while.
After a moment, Wang Zhi said lightly: "From the beginning to the end of this case, you are the only person who knows the inside story completely. I might as well tell you: Furu's death has nothing to do with me."
He sneered: "I did have the intention to silence Furu, but I didn't expect that she would take action earlier. The woman did have some problems. When she was interrogated, she was very stubborn. At first, she said that it was her own doing it. She also said that Yuanliang came to her for the death of Concubine Ji. She couldn't bear it, so she helped Yuanliang. But before Yuanliang died, it was obvious that Furu came to her first. In addition, she had been with the imperial concubine for more than ten years and wanted to help Yuanliang, why didn't he help sooner or later? Concubine Ji had been dead for several years, so I believe Yuanliang would not lie."
Tang Fan nodded: "Yuanliang had already had ambitions to die at that time, and there was no need to lie to us."
Seeing that he believed his words, Wang Zhi looked a little better: "After being punished, she started talking nonsense again, saying that she was instructed by the emperor, which was simply unreasonable! I wanted to dig out all the strange things on her body before silencing them, so as not to make it difficult for the imperial concubine to explain it, but she didn't expect that the woman got the copper piece of the lampstand containing the oil lamp on the wall from somewhere and cut her neck to death."
Tang Fan thought that everyone was killed by Wang Zhi, but he didn't expect that there was such an inside story. He couldn't help but frown and said, "Furu is imprisoned in prison, and the West Factory is heavily guarded. How can she find tools and opportunities to commit suicide?"
Wang Zhi sneered: "This shows that there is also a problem within the West Factory. There must be others behind Furu!"
Tang Fan pondered: "What is the intention of the person behind her? In order to provoke the conflict between the imperial concubine and the prince?"
This is a very likely thing. Although the prince is young now, he has gradually become a wise king. He is diligent in studying and never talks about hardship. He respects his servants and is kind to his subordinates. These excellent qualities seem to make people see the hope of the future, and a group of fans are gathered around him.
Although there are many moderate officials in the court, no matter how dark and dangerous the world is, there are always people who yearn for light and work hard to reproduce the light.
Just like Tang Fan, although he is not a clear-cut stand, doesn’t he also vaguely tend to protect the prince in his heart?
It is precisely because of this that Concubine Wan secretly became anxious and resentful: Now that it will win people's hearts, will you still have a foothold when you become the emperor in the future?
Therefore, if someone wants to provoke conflicts with this, it is reasonable to start from here.
Wang Zhi gritted his teeth and said, "For this matter, I went to the palace to apologize to the imperial concubine. I was scolded very much. After I came back, I cleaned the West Factory again. Even so, I only caught a few small fish and shrimps, and did not find out the mastermind behind the scenes. It can be seen how deep this person is! He would better not let me catch it, otherwise I will use all the tortures in the West Factory on him!"
His words were so murderous that even Tang Fan sat opposite him, he felt that murderous intent was coming to his face, and it could be turned into substance.
Wang Zhi had planned this matter well, but now things have changed. In places like Xichang, Furu could even commit suicide, which fully shows that there was a problem inside the Xichang, and the other party was well arranged, so it was impossible to find out. How could Wang Zhi not be angry?
Fortunately, he is now favored by the emperor and the imperial concubine, so he just scolded him. Otherwise, this matter alone would be enough to end his political life.
Tang Fan asked: "What about Han Hui?"
Wang Zhi was not angry: "What else can it be! He didn't know these things, so he just went to kill someone after Yuan Liang's instigation. He would do what he should do! He asked all his confessions and handed them over to the Ministry of Justice on a date. There would be nothing to do about the West Factory next!"
Tang Fan nodded, and Han Hui was punished, which could comfort Han Zao's spirit in heaven.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but sigh for Han Zao.
Han Fang Lin's son was born in middle age and was very fond of Han Zao. Han Zao was not raised like a playboy like Zheng Cheng. Instead, he loved his parents and respected his brother. Even when he saw that Lin was not good to his brother, he felt depressed and gave his book boy a playful name, which shows how cute he is.
Although Tang Fan had never met him, Han Zao's benefits could be seen from the grief of Han Fanglin and the prince's regret and sadness. Unfortunately, such a good child eventually died from the poisonous hands derived from the inner demon of his beloved brother.
Moreover, if it weren't for Lin's harsh treatment of Han Hui, Han Zao wouldn't have thought of complaining to Yuanliang, and Yuanliang wouldn't have known the grievances of the Han family from this, so he found opportunities and conditions to start.
It can be said that in all things, there has been cause and effect.
Wang Zhi was in a state of trouble in order to find out the traitor of the Western Factory. This matter was deeply involved and involved. Tang Fan didn't ask much, but the other party asked: "Do you think this matter will be related to Emperor Jingtai?"
Tang Fan was shocked and immediately said, "This matter is of great importance, so you should not speculate randomly!"
Wang Zhi was unhappy: "There are only you and me here, just speculations in private, what's wrong?"
The Emperor Jingtai mentioned by Wang Zhi is the uncle who is today.
This case is actually known to everyone in the world.
When Emperor Yingzong was in power, he favored the eunuch Wang Zhen and believed his words to attack the Oirat, which led to the Tumubao Incident. Half of the ministers in the court followed him and never returned. The entire capital camp was wiped out. Seeing that the Oirat people were about to come to the capital, the prince, who was only two years old now, could not preside over the national affairs at all, especially at such a critical moment.
Yu Qian and others were ordered to be the younger brother of Emperor Yingzong, namely Emperor Jingtai, to resist the Oirat, and to calm the people, which saved the Ming Dynasty from a disaster.
During this period, Emperor Yingzong was released from the Wala side. Emperor Jingtai had become the emperor, so of course he refused to give in to the throne. Besides, even if he was willing, the two brothers would definitely not be able to return to their previous relationship. His brother would definitely suspect him, so Emperor Jingtai directly put the brother who was released back under house arrest, and he became the emperor for seven years.
As a result, when he was seriously ill, a palace change occurred. Some ministers rescued Emperor Yingzong from the cold palace, embraced him again, and put Emperor Jingtai under house arrest. The grudges and resentment of the two brothers ended here. Within a month, Emperor Jingtai died. The late emperor resented him for taking his throne, deprived him of his imperial title, and gave him a bad posthumous posthumous posthumous. It was only after the son ascended the throne today that he helped his uncle restore his reputation.
From this point of view, in fact, when Zi is not a bad person today, he has a tolerant heart and is not so concerned about governing the country, which has led to a mess in the court now.
Having said that, when Wang Zhi mentioned this past, he was naturally not to let Tang Fan follow the past, but to point out the grudge between the late emperor and Emperor Jingtai.
When Emperor Jingtai was the emperor for seven years, there must be some loyal people in the palace. After the reinstatement of the late emperor, these people were beheaded one by one. Those who were lucky enough not to die were all tied up their tails and were so low-key that they almost had no sense of existence.
But it is difficult to guarantee that some of them have endured until now, and deliberately provoking disputes with Furu's hands, which can not only provoke conflicts between Concubine Wan and the crown prince, but also make the emperor suspicious of Concubine Wan and create chaos for the palace.
Wang Zhi’s guess is indeed reasonable.
Tang Fan asked: "What is suspicious about the place where Furu lives? What did the imperial concubine say?"
Wang Zhi said: "Furu's residence, and the imperial concubine's palace, had already turned over and turned to the sky, and he had not found it at all. Furu's personal belongings were so clean that there was nothing suspicious about it. There were only the various items and property given to her by the imperial concubine over the years..."
"Wait," Tang Fan interrupted him, "Is Furu no longer a family outside the palace? She didn't ask anyone to take out the palace to send them to her family?"
Wang Zhi chuckled and said, "You are asking questions, and talking to smart people is so happy. No, not at all. The items I have been rewarded over the years are there. As for gold, silver, money, it cannot be calculated so clearly, but it is generally unchanged. I checked that she had no family outside the palace. Her parents died when she was young and were raised by her uncle's family. A few years after she entered the palace, the uncle's family burned all over the house because of a fire in the city, and the whole family moved away. Later, they disappeared."
Tang Fan listened to this and pondered silently.
The affairs of her uncle's family seemed very problematic at first glance, but in fact it was a common thing at that time and could not be used as evidence.
Like Qingzi, Feng's family in the Wu'an Hou Mansion case, was dispersed because his family was implicated and convicted. Many people who had originally lived in their family also moved away due to a fire nearby, which made Tang Fan encounter some difficulties when investigating the case.
Furu is gone outside the palace, and there is nowhere to send gold, silver and treasures, so he naturally stays in the palace. He thought that he could be released from the palace to get married when he was old, but unexpectedly, he was relied on by the imperial concubine and could not leave the palace for a while. If this case had not been made, he would have to stay in the palace to become a female official in the future.
Wang Zhi said: "The imperial concubine was very angry after learning about this. She never expected Furu to do such a thing, so I must investigate it to the end."
If he said that, how could Wang Zhi investigate? No matter how powerful the West Factory is, he will die, and he has not found out the person involved in the behind the scenes. He can't fabricate some evidence out of thin air?
But after hearing what Wang Zhi had just speculated about Emperor Jingtai, Tang Fan was really afraid that in order to avoid being held accountable by Concubine Wan, he would casually find some evidence and physical evidence.
It is true that Wang Zhi is not a traitor or evil person, otherwise he would not have listened to Tang Fan's advice and was willing to make a good relationship with the prince and help hide Yuan Liang's motives, but this does not mean that he is a good person who wholeheartedly considers others.
As the admiral of the West Factory, Wang Zhi had to consider his political future every move. You must know that there are countless big men who failed under him. He had planned to silence Furu before, but Furu himself took the lead.
Tang Fan said: "As soon as Furu dies, there is no real evidence. This matter is not worthy of being told by outsiders. You can still pay attention to her uncle's side."
It means that since Furu is dead and the evidence is lost, even if this matter is over, it will not be too late for us to talk about it in the future if there is further evidence.
Wang Zhi said impatiently: "Okay, okay, don't always use your civil servant's style to guess me. I do things differently from you, and I don't need you to teach you. Since I got you in, there has been no good things. If it weren't for the imperial concubine's trust in me, I wouldn't have passed this matter so easily!"
Lord Tang listened to his complaints silently, thinking that you came to me first at the beginning, but now I am like a broom star.
After a while, Wang Zhi saw that Tang Fan did not answer, and felt a little bored, so he said, "Your Highness the Crown Prince asked me to convey a sentence to you."
Tang Fan was stunned: "I hope to hear the details."
Wang Zhi said: "People compete for spring orchids and laugh at autumn chrysanthemums, and the sky teaches the bright moon to accompany Chang Geng."
Tang Fan immediately smiled.
Wang Zhi was suspicious: "What puzzle are you fighting?"
Last time, Tang Fan had a last meeting with the prince because of Yuanliang's death. He was very worried that Yuanliang's affairs would cause psychological shadow on the prince, and he was worried that a crown prince who was highly anticipated by many people would go to a wrong path because of this matter.
So at that time, he used some excuses from the ancients, hoping to tell the prince not to sacrifice for the sake of things. Even though there are many injustice and darkness in this world, more people have good intentions and do their best to bring the world on the right track. It is just because villains like to form cliques, like to take revenge, and like to harm others and benefit themselves. A gentleman is rigorous and upright and refuses to act like villains, which makes him seem like there are more villains in this world than gentlemen.
Tang Fan hoped that the prince would not feel that everything in the world was not fair because of Yuan Liang's affairs, and it was indeed necessary to achieve his goal through shameless means.
At that time, the prince was sad about Yuan Liang's death and did not respond much to Tang Fan's words. Tang Fan was not the prince's teacher. He was not even qualified to teach the prince, so he could only take that opportunity to do his best.
Unexpectedly, the prince still remembers this.
People compete with spring orchids and laugh at autumn chrysanthemums, and the sky teaches the bright moon to accompany Chang Geng.
This is Su Dongpo's poem. Isn't it the prince's answer to Tang Fan's advice on that day using poetry?
The most wonderful thing is that the middle and peaceful mind contained in the second half of the sentence is exactly the perfect explanation of the first half.
To be continued...