In July 1620, the Wanli Emperor died. On the first day of August, crown prince Zhu Changluo, who took the throne as emperor, granted amnesty to the world and announced the change of Yuan Taichang.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > disease rush doctor</h1>
Emperor Taichang Zhu Changluo "for many years daughter-in-law became a mother-in-law", is preparing to grind fists and do a great job, who ever thought that just ascended the throne, that is, on the tenth day after the completion of the ceremony, that is, the tenth day of the beginning of August, the Taichang Emperor Zhu Changluo fell ill, and it was really a failure to die before he could get out of the school.
The Halloween on August 11 was also cancelled. As soon as the head of the cabinet arrived at the imperial court, the inner court sent an urgent official letter.
It turned out that Emperor Taichang Zhu Changluo had unexpectedly reprimanded the medical officer of the Tai Hospital yesterday, and had asked the internal attendant Cui Wensheng to see him. This Cui Wensheng prescribed a prescription to Zhu Changluo, Zhu Changluo grabbed the medicine according to the prescription, and after eating the medicine, he had diarrhea, and it was said that he pulled thirty or forty times in one night, and now he was unconscious, and urgently asked the cabinet to deal with it.
The inner court had become a pot of porridge, the Taichang Emperor Zhu Changluo was unconscious, and the Tai doctors were helpless, one by one like ants on a hot pot. It was nearly noon, and several imperial doctors came out of the palace. The imperial doctor of the foreman was more than seventy years old, and he had a deep relationship with Fang Congzhe on weekdays, and as soon as they met, he lowered his voice and said, "The illness above is not good." ”
Fang Congzhe
Fang Congzhe was a little puzzled: "Just in his early forties, how could he be sick like this?" The old lady doctor shook her head: "Frozen three feet, not a day's cold." The emperor's sperm loss was too heavy, so the tai doctors always used drugs such as Gujing Jianzhong. This kind of drug is a slow worker, how can the gods catch it? The Emperor complained that the taking was ineffective and abused the laxatives, so that our months of treatment were ruined. ”
Fang Congzhe blurted out, "Isn't it difficult to deal with?" The old lady doctor sighed and said, "If you no longer use quack medicine indiscriminately, and only use the medicine of congestion and sperm to regulate, it is still promising, but I am afraid..." Fang Congzhe hurriedly said: "I should enter the palace to advise, and ask the emperor to take care of the medical case of the Tai Hospital." ”
Sending away the old lady doctor, it was already past noon, Fang Congzhe hurriedly ate a little lunch, and was preparing to write a piece of advice to fold or something, when he heard a wave of calls from the Taihe Gate higher than a wave: "The emperor urgently summoned the first assistant to enter Fang Congzhe's palace." Fang Congzhe didn't have time to write any more recitals, so he entered the Qianqing Palace in a hurry.
Zhu Changluo stretched out a slightly trembling hand and tightly held Fang Congzhe's hand and said, "In the past few days, the leader has been dizzy, his body is weak, he cannot come to the dynasty, and all major things have bothered Mr. Fang Congzhe. Fang Congzhe said with trepidation: "Long live the heavenly grace, does Congzhe dare to do his best to serve the country?" ”
Zhu Changluo said: "Mr. Political Affairs of the DPRK can approve Zhu on behalf of Zhu, the prince is cowardly by nature, and he also hopes that Mr. Zhu will support him, and the harem wives and concubines have not yet had time to be canonized, and Mr. Zhu can still draw up a name." These few words are undoubtedly an afterthought.
Fang Congzhe was busy comforting and said: "Long live the spring and autumn is rich, occasionally infected with minor diseases, the original is no major obstacle, hope to recuperate with peace of mind, do not mistakenly believe rumors, and practice the dragon body." Zhu Changluo shook his head and suddenly asked, "Has the Shou Palace ever been ready?" ”
Fang Congzhe felt very embarrassed, and pondered for a while before saying: "Long live rest assured, Emperor Daxing has been buried, and the Tianshou Mountain Palace began to be restored the day before yesterday..." Before he could finish speaking, Zhu Changluo interrupted him and said, "What you are asking about is the Yuanzhi Shou Palace." Fang Congzhe hurriedly trembled and advised, "The Imperial Doctor of the Tai Hospital has already reported that Banzai is only physically weak at present, where will there be a world of collapse?" Zhu Changluo said wearily: "A bunch of quack doctors in the Tai Hospital, but they can't believe it." Fang Congzhe said: "Long live if you believe in the Tai Hospital, the subject should spread the word to the world and summon famous doctors." ”
Hearing the words of Guangzhao Famous Doctor, Zhu Changluo asked, "I heard that there are officials from Hongxu Temple who have come to take medicine, so why haven't they sent it now?" Fang Congzhe said: "Li Kezhuo, the emperor of the Hongxu Temple, once said that he had an immortal to cure the disease, but the ministers and the cabinet ministers deliberated and thought that they could not be trusted, so they had already dismissed Li Kezhuo. ”
Zhu Changluo's face turned angry: "The Tai Doctor is useless, and the Immortal Fang is not credible, is it called shuffling his hands and waiting to die?" Fang Congzhe was so frightened that he prostrated his head and said, "How dare Wei Chen?" It's just that Li Kezhuo's words are really not credible, and the emperor thinks twice. Zhu Changluo waved his hand and said, "If you pass on the will, you will try this Immortal Fang." ”
Fang Congzhe knew that since the grandfather of the Wanli Emperor, the Jiajing Emperor, he had embraced Taoism and sought the elixir of immortality, and this trend had a long history. It seems that Zhu Changluo was also superstitious about this "Immortal Fang", so he had no choice but to push back: "After the minister consults with the six ministries and nine secretaries, he will come back to the Emperor Ming." Zhu Changluo waved his hand and signaled Fang Congzhe not to say anything more. Fang hurriedly withdrew from Zhe.
For three consecutive days, people in the harem kept asking, "Has Li Kezhuo's elixir been delivered?" Fang Congzhe only pushed back, and on the afternoon of the third day, Emperor Zhu Changluo's relatives accompanied the eunuchs to the Tiren Pavilion and said that the emperor had sent a decree, and Li Kezhao quickly brought the elixir into the palace. Fang Congzhe had no choice but to agree with the cabinet minister Han Huoguang that the two of them would accompany Li Kezhao, the minister of hongxu Temple, into the palace to see the opportunity.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > back to the light</h1>
Li Kezhuo of the Hongxu Temple was an old man fifty miles away, his demeanor was ethereal, and he was indeed a bit of a bone fairy wind. The "elixir" entered was contained in a very primitive brocade box. According to this Li Kezhuo, this elixir was given to him by an immortal chief when he was young when he was collecting medicine in Mount Emei, and the medicinal materials were all collected from the Divine Palace Wonderland, which could cure all diseases.
Zhu Changluo
Zhu Changluo appeared to be more emaciated than in the previous days, and his physique was weak. But his consciousness was very clear, and when Fang Congzhe came in, he asked, "Did the elixir ever bring it?" Fang Congzhe knelt down and played, "Li Kezhuo has already entered the palace with the immortal medicine, whether he can cure the disease, the minister does not dare to say anything, please ask the emperor to judge." ”
At this time, Li Kezhuo also knelt behind him holding the "elixir". Zhu Changluo gestured to present the medicine. Li Ke saw that the ministers around him had doubts, and he took a pill first, and the ministers were relieved. As soon as Zhu Changluo saw the elixir, he ordered someone to fetch water and swallowed it in a hurry.
After a while, Zhu Changluo opened his eyes and sat up, as if he was suddenly much healthier, a smile appeared on his face, and he even boasted: "It is indeed an immortal medicine, an immortal medicine!" He also praised: "Li Kezhuo is a great loyal minister. Saying that, he came out and shouted, "Li Kezhuo!" Li Ke responded lightly, "Wei Chen is here." Zhu Changluo said, "The Elixir of Transformation has really worked, please take another pill tomorrow, and you will probably be cured." Li Kezhuo replied, "There is still a pill of elixir in the family of the minister, but the chief immortal has pointed out that it is necessary to enter the second pill three days after the first pill, and the minister should offer the elixir after three days." Zhu Changluo said, "After you get well, you will definitely be given an official and a knight." ”
Since eating Li Kezhuo's "elixir", Zhu Changluo's illness seemed to have been driven away in half at once. In the past two days, in addition to sitting in front of the dragon case to recuperate, he had actually walked out of the temple door twice.
Three days ago, at the urging of the emperor, Fang Congzhe led Li Kezhao into the palace to offer medicine, although it had received an effect at that time, but with his years of experience, he always felt that this seemed to be caused by psychological effects, and it was not necessarily the miracle effect of the medicine. After returning to the palace, several close advisers came to inquire about the situation, and they all advised Fang Congzhe not to lure Li Kezhao into the palace again. In particular, several Tai Doctors of the Tai Hospital unanimously denied the role of the "immortal elixir", saying that if the first assistant again led someone to send any "elixir", they would collectively resign.
Early on the third day, Zhu Changluo sent people to urge immortal medicine and issued a holy edict, and if the cabinet blocked the import of medicine, he would be punished as an anti-will bully. He had no choice but to summon Li Kezhuo to the cabinet, and repeatedly asked that Li Kezhuo's power to ensure that the elixir had a miraculous effect, and Fang Congzhe pulled Han Huoguang to accompany Li Kezhao into the palace.
Li Kezhao saw Zhu Changluo take the drug and knelt down to invite him to bed to rest, but Zhu Changluo waved his hand indifferently and said: "No need, the spirit of Today is very good, Li Aiqing has meritorious contributions to the medicine, and the next day will be a reward." ”
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > one life</h1>
Zhu Changluo, who had already recovered, took a red pill that was not presented by the imperial doctor and died suddenly in the night. Fang Congzhe had expected that tomorrow morning there would be countless copies of his impeachment flying in, and if he didn't get it right, he would probably be put on a "king-killer" hat. According to the old practice of the Ming Dynasty, the emperor died, and the will and testament needed to be drafted by the first assistant of the cabinet. Fang Congzhe thought about it and felt that only by taking advantage of the opportunity of the proposed edict was the emperor's own opinion, and pushing the responsibility to the emperor was the best strategy.
As Expected, Zhu Changluo's violent pawns attracted the attention of the entire imperial court, and the number of twists and turns to trace the cause of the emperor's death reached hundreds within two days. Some of them have publicly pointed out that Cui Wensheng, the internal servant who gave Zhu Changluo laxatives, initially served under Zheng Guifei, and was later recommended by Zheng Guifei to Zhu Changluo. Cui Wensheng dared to use laxatives to destroy the former emperor, and there must be someone behind him.
So Fang Congzhe could not wait to obtain the consent of the cabinet ministers and promulgated the will drafted by himself. In the testament, Li Kezhao was praised in the tone of Emperor Daxing and was given silver coins. The courtiers all knew that the edict was from the hand of Shoufu, and invisibly closely linked Fang Congzhe with the Red Pill case.
In mid-October, the call to track down the "Red Pill Case" reached its climax, and the Rebbe Shangshu Sun Shenxing and the Zuo Du Yushi Zou yuan marked two eye-catching notes, Sun Shenxing pointed out: "From Zhe Zhong, there is no heart to kill the king, but there is a crime of killing the king." If you want to resign the name of the killer, it is inevitable that the truth of the murder will be avoided. This sets the tone for the pursuit of the culprits in the "Red Pill Case."
Fang came and went from philosophy, and he wrote a very long sonata, carefully defending himself while very sincerely proposing a request for retirement. Less than ten days after Fang handed it over from the Zhe Song book, the emperor's approval decree came down. At the beginning of November, the old minister, who had been in power for eight years, left the capital.
Zhu Changluo's sudden death caused Yushi Zhengzong zhou and Nanjing Taichang Temple's shaoqing Cao Zhen to point out that this incident was related to the conspiracy of Zheng Zongzong and Guangzong's favorite concubine Li Shi to seize power many years ago, that is, someone would put Guangzong and his people to death; Wang Zhicai, the chief of the Punishment Department, pointed out that Guangzong's death was related to the conspiracy of Zheng and Guangzong's favorite concubine Li Shi to seize power.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > a courtier dispute</h1>
Zhu Changluo died within a month of succeeding to the throne, and coupled with the fierce internal partisan disputes in the imperial court, the discussion about the case was very loud, and it was somewhat implied that the Donglin Party took the opportunity to cut down the difference. These discussions revolved around the cause of Zhu Changluo's death, and Fang Congzhe, Li Kezhuo, Cui Wensheng, etc. all became the targets of public criticism.
The officials Shangshu Zhang Wenda, Hubu Shangshu Wang Yingjiao, Libu Shangshu Sun Shenxing, Zuo Du Yushi Zou Yuanbiao, and many officials impeached Cui and Li for taking medicine and taking medicine wrongly. Among them, The Royal Emperor An Shun believes: "The pulse of the former emperor is majestic and floating, these three scorched fires move, the face is purple and red, the face is full of fire, and the porridge is irritable." This belly is full of fire knots, and it is advisable to clear the eyes. The red lead is the woman's water, the yang of the yin, the essence of pure fire, and the rash of dry heat thrown at the false fire, and the geometry does not die quickly! ”
Since Zhu Changluo died after taking the red pill, and the first assistant Fang Congzhe proposed to reward Li Kezhuo who had donated the red pill on the day of Emperor Taichang's death, which aroused the suspicion of some people, Yushi Wang'an impeached Fang Congzhe for "gently recommending the mad doctor" and "rewarding him to cover himself up". Yushi Guo Ruchu impeached Fang Congzhe and should not reward Li Kezhuo who had entered the medicine. Fang Congzhe, under the attack of everyone, proposed the prince's order and punished Feng Lu, who could burn for a year.
In October, the Rebbe Shangshu Sun Shenxing and the Zuo Du Yushi Zou Yuan marked two eye-catching notes, and Sun Shenxing pointed out: "From the Zhe Zhong, there is no heart to kill the king, but there is a crime of killing the king." If you want to resign the name of the killer, it is inevitable that the truth of the murder will be avoided. Fang Congshang defended and resigned, leaving Beijing in early November.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > conspiracy</h1>
Yushi Zhengzong Zhou and Cao Zhen, the young secretary of the Taichang Temple in Nanjing, pointed out that this incident was related to the same "treacherous plot" of the "attack case" many years ago, that is, someone would put Emperor Taichang and his people to death; Wang Zhicai, the chief of the Punishment Department, pointed out that the death of Guangzong was related to the conspiracy of Zheng and Guangzong's favorite concubine Li to seize power.
< h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > final penalty</h1>
After Fang Congzhe left Beijing, he still could not get rid of his connections, and demanded that the Red Pill case be strictly investigated. One day, the Emperor of The Apocalypse received a message from Fang Congzhe from his hometown, saying that he was old and ignorant, and he had failed to prevent the mediocre officials from taking medicine, and his crime could not be blamed. In order to show his sins, may he beg to cut off his official ranks and go far to the frontier with his elderly body to appease the grievances of his courtiers. Sure enough, many ministers excused him, and the Emperor of The Apocalypse was also impressed by Fang Congzhe's sincerity, but he was bitter that the truth was not clear, and it was difficult to decide for a while.
At this time, Han Ye, the cabinet minister who had been silent, finally stood up and spoke. He explained in detail all the facts he had witnessed at that time. In particular, Fang Congzhe's situation of being in a dilemma at that time was depicted very specifically. Finally, Han Ye proposed that the "Red Pill" case had been entangled for more than a year, but Cui Wensheng and Li Kezhuo, who really put the former emperor to death, had not yet dealt with it, and although these two people had used drugs indiscriminately, they were indeed ordered to take medicines and could be properly punished, and the Red Pill case should not be further investigated.
Han Ye was a famous old minister during the Wanli calendar years, who was an official for more than ten years and was very admired by the courtiers, and after entering the cabinet, he has been accompanying Fang Congzhe to cook the matter of entering the red pill, and the words he said are credible. Therefore, after his recital was reported, he quickly calmed down a storm. Soon, the Emperor of Heaven issued a decree asking Cui and Li about their sins. In 1622 (the second year of the Apocalypse), the Ming court sent Cui Wensheng to Nanjing, and Li Ke sent him to the frontier. The "Red Pill" case was finally settled due to the struggle between the various factions, but the doubts in it were not clear. Later generations have conducted a series of research and debates for this purpose, but in the end there was no result. Whether Emperor Taichang's death was related to the Red Pill remains a mystery through the ages.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > aftermath</h1>
During the Apocalypse, the eunuch Wei Zhongxian came to power, and he wanted to overturn the "Red Pill Case". As a result, Sun Shenxing, the rebbe shangshu of Fang Congzhe, was expelled from his official rank, stripped of all official titles, and fixed Liushu. The Donglin Party, who attacked Cui Wensheng, was also punished, and Gao Panlong threw himself into the pool and died. During the Chongzhen years, Wei Zhongxian was punished and turned the case back.
After the death of the Chongzhen Emperor, the Southern Ming Dynasty once again provoked party strife with this theme until the Ming Dynasty completely collapsed.