Empress Ma had no idea what the mother and son were arguing about. After a quarter of an hour, Emperor Jianwen finally came out. Empress Ma was about to go in to continue persuading Empress Dowager Lu, but was stopped by her husband. "The Empress Dowager promised me that she would not go to Fengxian Palace to make trouble. Ask the female doctor to prescribe some medicine to calm the nerves and help sleep. Just rest for a few days. Zi Tong does not need to come to Cining Palace to perform filial piety these days. The Empress Dowager needs to rest."
Yes." Empress Ma was a smart person. Even though her mind was full of questions, she knew that she shouldn't ask any questions at this time. The emperor and the empress returned to the palace together. On the way, Empress Ma just talked about some interesting things that happened to the prince recently, as if the unpleasantness just now had never happened.
Empress Ma was a good wife and mother, who was modeled after Empress Xiaoci. No matter how tense and chaotic the palace was, she was calm and indifferent, silently bearing it, as if nothing could make her unhappy. She tried hard to take on her troubles and grievances, and showed her husband a peaceful life.
Since ascending the throne, Emperor Jianwen has only found a moment of comfort and solace from his wife. He was a genius in his childhood, started learning at the age of three, could write poetry at the age of five, and was crowned as a young man. He participated in government affairs with the assistance of the Zhanshi Mansion. He was always urged by Empress Dowager Lu and everyone had high hopes for him, hoping that he would be perfect.
Only his wife never puts pressure on him and treats him well unconditionally.
Emperor Jianwen walked on West Chang Street holding Empress Ma's hand. His wife's hand was not as round as before, and the bones of her fingers were clearly visible, poking his palm.
Emperor Jianwen gently twisted his wife's fingers with his fingertips, "You have lost weight recently. Are you tired?"
It's hard enough to deal with your awful mother every day. Empress Ma thought so in her heart, but she said, "Hasn't the emperor lost weight? It will be fine once he settles down."
Emperor Jianwen said, "The Empress Dowager will not cause any trouble these days. In a few days, the good helper I hired for Zi Tong will return to the palace. With her to share his worries, Zi Tong will be much more relaxed in the future."
This was the best news since she became the queen. Queen Ma was overjoyed: "But is Consort Hu coming back?"
Emperor Jianwen nodded. "The people who came to Jinan to look for her came back empty-handed. But Concubine Hu built a silver mountain in Guazhou to look for Concubine Fan's body, so that we can know her whereabouts. I have already ordered someone to rush to Guazhou and ordered her to return to the palace as soon as possible to help Zi Tong with his urgent needs."
Empress Dowager Lu had been trying to intervene and seize power in both the imperial court and the harem. Empress Ma was soft-hearted and was forced to say no due to filial piety. Especially the chaos in the Cining Palace today made Emperor Jianwen realize that his mother was too powerful and Empress Ma could not handle her, so he had to invite Hu Shanwei, the guardian of the mountain, back.
Emperor Jianwen had known Hu Shanwei ever since he could remember. It seemed to him that there was nothing she could not handle. She was a ruthless person who even dared to contradict Emperor Gaozu and escaped unscathed.
Empress Ma was so happy that she jumped for joy. "This is really great. The position of Shang Gong is up for grabs, and Shang Gong Fan has met with an accident. When people in the palace heard that Shang Gong Hu had piled up a mountain of silver to ask for his remains, they all sighed and said that Shang Gong Hu was kind-hearted. Shang Gong Hu's return to the palace is really what everyone expected."
Emperor Jianwen said, "Mrs. Hu is a person who values love. She will repay others with love. When Empress Xiaoci died, she went to guard the Xiaoling Mausoleum and raised deer and green peacocks for a year. Later, when Concubine Duanjing, whom she assisted, died, she was also sad and wanted to leave the palace. It was Emperor Gaozu who needed someone to take care of the harem and kept her. Now it's Zitong's turn. Zitong, treat her well. You two should cooperate with each other in everything. You support her and believe in her. She will work hard for Zitong and give him a clean harem."
Emperor Jianwen really didn't want to be so busy in the former dynasty that he had to be interrupted by a bunch of troubles in the harem at the critical stage of reducing the power of the vassal states and go to the backyard to put out the fire. His mother was not worrying and his wife was still young. Emperor Jianwen couldn't bear to blame his wife for her inability to manage the harem, so he had to ask for help from outside.
Empress Ma said: "This is natural. A wise minister can shine when he meets a wise ruler. If he meets a foolish one, his pearl will only gather dust."
The emperor and the empress were looking forward to the future, but neither of them expected that Hu Shanwei had no intention of returning to the palace at all.
In the past few days, diving experts from all over the country have gathered on the coast of the Yangtze River in Yangzhou. Inspired by the silver mountain, they use their swimming skills to rescue people. Every day, corpses and even bones are salvaged ashore, and there are actually hundreds of them. There are also old cases of boxes and stones sunk into the river that have surfaced. The government has new clues and is starting to search for the murderer.
This mountain of silver really caused a thousand waves. Looking at the corpses and bones that were salvaged from the shore, Hu Shanwei did not let the water ghosts take their risks in vain. He gave them all silver rewards and bought coffins. He buried these poor ownerless corpses and invited monks to chant sutras to help them be reborn as wandering ghosts.
Hu Shanwei's good deeds were praised and she became famous. She publicly said that she was doing this to accumulate merit for the missing Lady Fan and hoped for a miracle to happen.
Money makes the world go round. In order to get the reward of silver, the water ghosts rolled in the turbulent Yangtze River and dived into the water repeatedly. Even pearl collectors from the South China Sea heard the news and came to cooperate with the water ghosts to get the reward of silver.
Money can create miracles, and on a sultry afternoon, a miracle finally happened.
Shui Gui and Zhu Hu's joint corpse recovery team came to Guazhou Wharf and said that they found a shipwreck at the bottom of the river. Judging from the age of the shipwreck and the words painted on it, it was the merchant ship where Fan Shanggong disappeared.
"But we discovered a secret... You see, the brothers paid with their lives for this clue." The water ghost drew out the tone and glanced at Yinshan.
Hu Shanwei gave a wink, and the bodyguard in charge of guarding the silver mountain shoveled a shovel of silver, put it into a dustpan, and handed it to the leader of the water ghosts.
The leader of the water ghosts took the silver and said, "We eat in the water. The water is clean, but the things in the water are not clean. They are even dirtier than those on the surface of the water. We have seen a lot of these things. If we tell them, we may be sued in the future."
Another shovelful of silver.
The leader of the water ghosts finally told the truth:
In order to avoid fighting over corpses, these water ghosts started from the section of the river where the incident occurred and searched in sections along the downstream. They sent the corpses and bones they salvaged to the Guazhou wharf and then divided the reward money equally.
With the participation of South China Sea pearl divers, they were able to dive deeper and finally found the sunken ship near a sandbar about two miles from the river where the ship sank.
In summer, the river water surges and undercurrents surge, bringing up the silt in the river. The sunken ship was hit by the undercurrent and its bow was turned upside down, with half of the bow sunk in the mud. The deck was pushed under the sandbar, and the bottom of the ship was thus in a strange vertical state.
The water ghosts could clearly see a big hole in the bottom of the boat.
“… This big hole is unusual. It is not caused by the falling of the planks, nor by the decay caused by the lack of tung oil for a long time. The hole is surrounded by neat fractures. It is obvious that someone chopped it with a knife or an axe.”
Hearing this, Cao Shanggong beside her could no longer hold back and stood up in a flash, "I knew there wouldn't be so many coincidences. Take me to that sandbar quickly."
Cui Shangyi used to be a spy for the Imperial Guards, so she was not surprised. She said, "Now we can be sure that the capsizing of the ship was not an accident, but the question is where is Consort Fan? No one is found alive, and no body is found dead."
Hu Shanwei looked at the leader of the water ghosts shoveling the silver mountain, knowing that he had not yet finished his words and needed silver to pound out a sentence, so he winked and said, "I have no patience. I will give you three more shovels, and you have to pour out all the words. Otherwise, I will have to ask for help from someone else."
With a rustling sound, the white silver almost overflowed from the winnowing basket.
The leader of the water ghosts quickly continued:
It is impossible to breathe underwater, and they will soon have to dive. In order to save time, the water ghosts built a floating platform on the river where the incident occurred. They tied an anchor with a rope and sank it to the bottom of the river. Then the water ghosts jumped into the river holding stones and sank quickly. They took turns to check the situation. When they ran out of breath, they pulled the rope tied to the anchor and tied it around their waists. The people on the floating platform shook the axle with the rope wrapped around it and quickly pulled the exhausted water ghost ashore.
After taking turns to check, they found that there was a room in the broken boat that was very strange: the door was locked from the outside, and it had been soaked in the river water for almost a month, and the copper lock had rusted and grown weeds.
"This is all we have found. Next we need to smash the copper lock... ahem, the buoyancy is great underwater, so it's hard to smash things. We all have to sign a life and death agreement in advance, and each hammer has its own price."
The leader of the water ghosts said, "We are not trying to extort your money. Based on our years of experience in retrieving corpses, this is a murder case. The person you are looking for is probably inside. She is a female official. The word "official" has two "口"s on it. We ordinary people will be held responsible and may even lose our lives. It is much better for us to break down the door and retrieve people than other water ghosts who are aimlessly retrieving people outside."
When the three female officials heard that the door was locked from the outside, they felt a chill in their bones: This is not just murder, this is torture, people are slowly dying in fear, who did it? It's too cruel!
Concubine Cao couldn't stand it anymore and slammed the table and stood up, "How can this be! How can this be! If I knew who it was, I would tear him to pieces alive!"
Cui Shangyi clenched her fists and burst into tears.
Hu Shanwei said, "You have indeed taken a risk, but we cannot be sure that the person inside is the one we are looking for. Money is not so easy to earn. You have to break the copper lock, open the door, and fish out the body in the room. If it is really the one we are looking for, the silver will be as heavy as the body."
Upon hearing this, the water ghost leader's eyes lit up, shining brighter than silver. "It's a deal, don't worry. Based on our years of experience in recovering corpses, corpses that have been soaked in deep water won't rot or deform so easily. There will always be some features or belongings that you can recognize."
Without further ado, the three female officials set sail immediately for the floating platform on the sandbar.
There are four floating platforms on the river, and four water ghosts go down each time. It is inconvenient for them to move underwater, and each of them will be exhausted after hitting the bottom of the water with a hammer. They will be pulled up by the people on the floating platforms. After coming up, they are basically exhausted, and some even start coughing and gasping violently, and cannot go into the water again. No wonder they are called water ghosts, they are really begging for food from the King of Hell, and they earn money by risking their lives.
More than thirty people, each with a hammer, finally broke open the rusty copper lock.
Due to the high underwater pressure, the door lock was difficult to open even if it was smashed. The water ghosts tied a rope to the door knocker, and the people on the floating platform rolled the winch and pulled the rope, finally forcing the door open.
Almost at the moment the door was opened, a slightly swollen female corpse rushed out of the room sideways with the water flow. The water ghosts divided the work and some pulled the female corpse up, while others explored the room to look for personal belongings.
The female corpse was carried onto the floating platform. Because it had been soaked in the water for too long, her hairpins and rings had fallen apart and were lost, and her waist-length hair had floated and spread out like seaweed.
His eyes were wide open, revealing dark pupils, and his face was swollen, but the old outline could still be vaguely seen. There was a slippery, thin layer of corpse wax on his skin, and the whole person looked a little distorted, as if he had been seen in a nightmare the previous night.
She was wearing a purple round-necked, narrow-sleeved flowered silk robe, which was unique to female officials. The robe was embroidered with small sunflower branches and tied with gold threads. She wore a red skirt with a pearl-studded gold belt, and her black boots were embroidered with small gold flowers.
Although there was no personal belongings to prove it, Hu Shanwei and the other three female officials recognized this as Concubine Fan at a glance.
No one would parade around in an official robe on a merchant ship full of civilians. It was obvious that Lady Fan found her door locked and no one responded when she knocked on it. She fell into despair and decided to die with dignity, so she changed into the robe before she died.
This lady-in-waiting who always had to keep her makeup exquisite, the lady-in-waiting she had looked up to like a god when she first entered the palace...
At this time, Cui Shangyi and Cao Shanggong hugged each other and cried. Hu Shanwei knelt beside the body of Fan Shanggong. He seemed to be able to feel the despair and anger of Fan Shanggong who had no one to turn to for help and changed into an official robe to die. He also felt the cold river water seeping out from the cracks in the door, quickly crawling from the soles of the feet to the waist, chest, neck, and top of the head...
The rage for revenge was burning, and Hu Shanwei breathed heavily as if he was drowning, and hot tears fell on Fan Shanggong's face, which was stiff and swollen and covered with a layer of corpse wax.
How could you treat her so cruelly! She had already left the palace and decided to live in seclusion from now on! Why didn't you let her go! Ending her life in such a slow and painful way!
Why!
At this time, the water ghosts gradually salvaged the objects in the sunken room, including a jade belt with peony flowers carved from pure gold and white jade, which was used as a decoration on the outside of the official robe.
Another water ghost brought up a cloth bundle. Hu Shanwei opened the bundle with shaking hands, and an ivory talisman was revealed. It was round and palm-sized. On the front was written: "Shang Gong Bureau, Shang Gong, Fan Shuzhen", and on the back was written: "Female officials are allowed to wear this token. It is not allowed to borrow or lose it. Violators will be punished." There was also a line of shallow regular script engraved on the spine: "Made in the 28th year of Hongwu".
In the 28th year of Hongwu, Hu Shanwei resigned from the palace and Fan took over her position as the Shang Gong. This ivory plate representing identity was made in that year.
Seeing this ivory plaque, Hu Shanwei felt not only sad and angry, but also guilty. Fan Shanggong originally planned to work in the Gongzheng Division for her whole life and had never thought of becoming a Shanggong. It was she who wanted to leave the harem, and the only one who could immediately take over the position of Shanggong was Fan Gongzheng. She had something to ask for, and Fan Gongzheng did not refuse. He also said that if you are tired of wandering outside and feel that the outside world is uglier and want to come back, this position can be returned to you at any time...
Three years later, she secretly married Muchun, gave birth to a daughter, and lived a leisurely and peaceful rural life, picking chrysanthemums under the eastern fence. Fan Gongzheng became Fan Shanggong, and continued to carry the burden for her.
She had thought that with Lady Fan's sophistication, rich experience, strong connections in the palace, and the emperor's trust, Lady Fan should be more comfortable in this position than she was.
But unexpectedly, after only three years, a new emperor came and Concubine Fan was forced out of the palace and tortured to death on the way.
What happened at the palace? What does the "Grave Digger" allude to? Who did it
Hu Shanwei had no time to feel sad, and said, "Guard this place, don't let anyone have the chance to destroy the evidence that the shipwreck was deliberately chiseled open and the door was locked. Go buy some ice to preserve the body of Concubine Fan. Also, please ask Concubine Cao to go to Yangzhou Prefecture in the capital to report to the authorities, saying that a fifth-rank female official was murdered, and there are witnesses and evidence. The body has been salvaged ashore, and the coroner is asked to fill in the body card and collect evidence."
The area where the incident occurred was past Nanjing, in the Yangzhou section of the river, and was under the jurisdiction of Yangzhou Prefecture. Lady Cao wiped her tears and said, "I'll go right away. I'm living in seclusion here, and the prefect of Yangzhou has come to visit me, so I think it must be a bit of a face."
Cui Shangyi said, "I'll go buy some ice."
Yangzhou is a famously wealthy city, where people love to enjoy life. Many wealthy families and businessmen have ice rooms.
Hu Shanwei continued to stay on the floating platform, guarding the body of Fan Shanggong, and watching the water ghosts gradually salvage some things from the sunken ship.
By dusk, the light was too poor to dive, so everyone moved from the floating platform to the boat. As soon as they reached the shore, Cui Shangyi brought over ice, and the prefect of Yingtian arrived with the constable and the coroner.
In terms of official rank, the prefect and the eunuch were both of the fifth rank, so Hu Shanwei and Yingtianfu sat side by side and talked about the situation underwater.
Being able to serve as a local official in a wealthy and noble place, the prefect of Yangzhou was definitely no small figure. He intuitively felt that the death of Lady Fan was so bizarre and the murderer was so bold and cruel - in order to create an accident, he knew that innocent people would be implicated, but still took actions such as drilling the boat and locking the door. The murderer must be from a prominent background and much more powerful than him, the local official.
What's more, it involves the harem. The prefect of Yangzhou suddenly had a headache, thinking about how to pass the buck. On the surface, he had a sad expression, "I know that Concubine Hu is anxious, but although the shipwreck was found in Yangzhou, the ship owner in prison explained that the section of the river where the incident occurred was still in Nanjing. Ten people died in this case, including Concubine Fan, who was a fifth-rank concubine. Five people are still missing. Now it is discovered that the ship was deliberately sunk and Concubine Fan's room was locked. This major case involving the murder of an official of the court is not something that a small prefect like me can decide. I still need to report it to the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Justice will decide whether it will be under the jurisdiction of Nanjing or Yangzhou, or it may become a case directly under the Ministry of Justice. Before the jurisdiction is determined, we dare not touch Concubine Fan's body."
The prefect of Yangzhou was afraid of trouble, which angered Lady Cao. "We have plenty of money to buy ice. At worst, we can just carry Lady Fan's body to the capital to file a complaint! I just don't believe it. She served the court all her life, was loyal, and even resigned from her post and left the capital in such a low-key and simple manner to keep the secret, but this is her fate!"
The rabbit dies and the fox mourns. The Yangzhou prefect is obviously trying to pass on the blame. How long will he wait for? Hu Shanwei is also a quick-witted person. He said, "I agree with the opinion of Cao Shanggong. Let's go to the capital to file a complaint. Even if others don't care, the emperor will."
These days, Hu Shanwei has been offering a reward of a mountain of silver in Guazhou. The governor of Yangzhou is treating it as a formidable enemy and has sent more people to manage public security. He has used money to attract people's attention and caused unrest. Now, when he heard that Hu Shanwei was leaving, he was overjoyed, but he said, "Three ladies, please be patient. I don't remember this matter. We need—"
Before he could finish his words, he heard the earth-shaking sound of horse hooves, and saw a bright yellow flag flying in the distance on the post road. It turned out to be the imperial guards of the capital city!
When the leading eunuch saw Hu Shanwei, he immediately rolled off his horse, holding up a bright yellow brocade scroll and said, "There is an imperial edict!"
Everyone knelt down immediately to listen to the order.
"Announce that the former Shang Gong Bureau Shang Gong Bureau's Shang Gong Hu Shanwei will return to the palace immediately and resume his post as Shang Gong. I decree this!"
The author has something to say: After all the analysis yesterday, some readers have successfully found the real murderer.
There is a question tonight, and the first person to answer it correctly will receive a 100-point bonus.
This detail was mentioned in the previous chapter: The costumes of female officials of the Ming Dynasty, which was what Lady Fan wore before her death, were imitated from the costumes of female officials of that dynasty