Chapter 82 The murderer was caught
When Zhu Yuanzhang heard what Deng Qianqiu said, his face suddenly turned ugly.

"What did you say?"

Deng Qianqiu took a deep breath and said, "Old... No, Your Majesty, I am just talking nonsense..."

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at him and said angrily: "This concerns human life, how dare you talk nonsense?"

Deng Qianqiu had no choice but to say, "I'm not sure, but... it's just a guess."

Zhu Yuanzhang saw his hesitation and knew that Deng Qianqiu might have concerns, so he said, "If you have anything to say, you can tell me. No matter what you say, I will pardon you."

Zhu Yuanzhang had a suspicious side by nature, which of course had a lot to do with his upbringing.

Deng Qianqiu's words immediately aroused his vigilance, especially since this concerned the life of the prince, so he was naturally worried.

Deng Qianqiu thought for a moment and said, "This is lead glaze. Of course, if this glaze is used on porcelain, it won't be a big problem. As long as it is fired well, there won't be a big problem. I think this should be fired in the official kiln... I'll take a look."

As he spoke, he took the teacup and looked at the bottom of the teacup. It was clearly written on it: "Made by the Emperor in the 11th Year of Zhizheng".

At this time, the Ming Dynasty had just been founded, and many of the utensils used came from the Yuan Dynasty court.

Deng Qianqiu looked at it carefully and said, "Most of the porcelains in the Yuan Dynasty were blue and white porcelain, but the glaze of this teacup is very bright, especially the flowers and birds on the glaze, which are lifelike. This is definitely lead glaze."

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and asked, "You said this thing is poisonous?"

Deng Qianqiu said: "I am not 100% sure, but I just know that this thing is harmful to the body. I wonder if it is poisonous. You can ask His Royal Highness the Crown Prince if he has symptoms such as mental depression and abdominal tightness. If so..."

Before Deng Qianqiu could finish, Zhu Yuanzhang shouted, "Come here, come here, call the prince."

Not long after, Crown Prince Zhu Biao came to see the emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at the prince's face and asked, "My eldest son, are you in good health recently?"

Zhu Biao didn't understand what was going on, so he blinked and said, "Father, your son is fine."

Zhu Yuanzhang said with a stern face: "Tell me the truth!"

Zhu Biao thought for a moment before saying, "I feel a little depressed this year..."

Zhu Yuanzhang continued to ask: "Do you also feel a sense of tightness in your abdomen?"

Zhu Biao was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "It may be that I am a little tired from studying this year. I have also seen the imperial physician, who thinks that I am probably tired and prescribed some medicine."

Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes were already cold at this moment: "After taking the medicine, has your condition improved?"

Zhu Biao shook his head.

Zhu Yuanzhang glared at him and shouted, "This is not fatigue, you are poisoned."

Zhu Biao was shocked when he heard this.

Zhu Yuanzhang turned his gaze to Deng Qianqiu, waved his sleeves and said, "Deng Qianqiu, you go ahead and speak."

Deng Qianqiu nodded, gave a rough explanation, and then said: "Originally I thought... this might just be my overthinking, but now that His Highness has shown symptoms of poisoning, then... it should be correct. His Highness the Crown Prince is indeed poisoned by lead."

"Lead poisoning?" Zhu Biao's face was already pale.

Zhu Yuanzhang's body shook, and he seemed to have lost his usual spirit all of a sudden, and he slumped down on the chair.

Deng Qianqiu said: "But the good news is that this is a chronic poison that takes many years to take effect. It may take several years, or even ten or twenty years for the drug to take effect. It just prevents people from living long. However, after being poisoned by this poison, people will inevitably feel listless and tired..."

After hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes seemed to suddenly ignite with a strong flame, and he angrily said: "Someone wants to kill my eldest son and make me have no descendants!"

Deng Qianqiu was shocked when he heard this. He looked at Zhu Yuanzhang strangely.

No way, what are you talking about? After all, I am Zhu Gang’s brother. What you are saying... is Zhu Gang not your son?
But Deng Qianqiu didn't dare to say this.

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't notice Deng Qianqiu's strange expression at all, and said to the eunuchs serving outside: "Come here, find the eunuch from the teahouse immediately."

Soon, the eunuch who was responsible for pouring tea for the prince came in cautiously.

"Your servant Jin Si greets His Majesty."

Most of the eunuchs in this palace had strange names, probably because most of the eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty court, especially in the early days, were served by Tatars, Goryeo or other vassal states.

Eunuchs like Jin Si are mostly around the prince and are usually quite favored. However, now that he sees that the situation is not right, he becomes worried.

Zhu Yuanzhang was obviously a little flustered just now, but now he was unusually calm. He raised his finger and pointed at the teacup and said, "Are you the one who usually pours tea for the prince?"

"Yes." Jin Si looked very obedient and said truthfully, "I have always been your servant."

Zhu Yuanzhang then asked: "Where did this teacup come from?"

Jin Si said respectfully: "In reply to your Majesty, the teacups in the tea room have always been allocated by the Imperial Household Department. I don't know..."

Zhu Yuanzhang asked coldly: "Who is the eunuch in charge of this tea set?"

Jin Si said: "Your Majesty, it is Liu Chong, the commander of the army."

Zhu Yuanzhang sneered and said, "Go and get him immediately. I want to know the truth!"

He wanted to order the guards to go, but then he changed his mind and suddenly looked at Deng Qianqiu and said, "Deng Qianqiu, choose two people to go."

Having said that, he looked at Jin Si and said, "You lead the way for Deng Qianqiu." This is simply the task of the Novice Village.

Firstly, the eunuchs cannot escape from the palace, and secondly, they are powerless.

Deng Qianqiu was obviously very confident about this, and he and Jin Siyi left the main hall, called two guards from the Yiluansi, and headed straight for the Imperial Household Department.

The head of the Imperial Household Department was also a top figure in the palace. Soon, Deng Qianqiu kicked open his duty room himself.

thump...

The door burst open.

An old eunuch sitting in the room had a drastic change of expression.

Deng Qianqiu had already walked in, raised his head slightly and shouted: "Liu Chong, your crime has been exposed. Catch him!"

The old eunuch's face looked grim. In a moment, he collapsed to the ground like a frost-bitten eggplant until he was dragged away.

This feeling...is not bad.

Deng Qianqiu still maintained a dignified look.

Then he looked at Jin Si and said, "How about it, am I mighty or not?"

Jin Si smiled and said, "Captain Deng is mighty."

Deng Qianqiu said with a smile: "You speak very well, not bad."

Jin Si lowered his head and said docilely, "Captain Deng, what should we do next?"

Deng Qianqiu thought for a moment and said, "Next, of course, the interrogation will be…"

Jin Si smiled and said, "I never thought that Liu Chong would be such a person."

Deng Qianqiu smiled and said, "There are many things you can't imagine. Is Eunuch Jin a Korean?"

Jin Si nodded and said, "Yes, but that was thirty years ago. Thirty years ago, I entered the palace, first in Dadu, and later... came here, but most of the slaves in the Forbidden City are the same as me."

Deng Qianqiu said with a smile: "You are still the best. You don't have to worry about food and drink. You can take care of the prince by his side. Your future is limitless. All right, let's go back and report."

At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang had already arrived at the Wuying Palace.

Deng Qianqiu paid an audience with the emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang still had a sullen face and said, "This matter is of great importance. The prince's health needs to be taken care of. You will be on call in Chunhe Palace and the Grand Hall for the next few days."

Deng Qianqiu said: "It is said that one can guard against thieves day and night, but it is hard to guard against thieves in one's own home. In this world, there are very few people as honest and dutiful as me. If we do not find the culprits and allow them to commit crimes, something bad will happen to the prince in the future."

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "I have ordered the Yiluansi to conduct an interrogation. I expect that the truth will be revealed in a few hours."

Deng Qianqiu hesitated for a moment, then said, "Your Majesty, if there is any news, can I... listen to it? And as for the Grand Master, I will also fulfill my duties as the Yiluansi."

Zhu Yuanzhang was actually upset, he had never expected something like this to happen, so he waved his hand and said: "You are a centurion of the Yiluansi, and now there is an imperial case. Except for the inner courtyard, you are free to go anywhere else."

Deng Qianqiu said: "As ordered."

He immediately ran away without a trace.

After watching Deng Qianqiu leave, Zhu Yuanzhang's face became extremely terrifying. His eyes became grim, and it seemed that there was a murderous aura stirring in his body.

At this moment, he was like a tiger or leopard ready to pounce, seemingly patiently retracting his claws and waiting for something.

Two hours passed.

The setting sun slowly moved down, the sky gradually darkened, and the rays of light like a phoenix bathing in fire poured in from the window, which was extremely beautiful.

But obviously, Zhu Yuanzhang was in no mood to appreciate it at this moment. He just sat there in silence.

Finally, he hurried into the palace and reported, "Your Majesty, the Yiluansi has already interrogated him."

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Bring the person here immediately. Where did Deng Qianqiu go?"

Ye Gaixian's expression was somewhat complicated. After hesitating for a moment, he said, "He is in the main hall, jumping up and down, looking at this and that..."

Zhu Yuanzhang was speechless, and then said: "Call him as well. Fortunately, he noticed this matter. Otherwise, the sky would fall."

What Zhu Yuanzhang said was by no means alarmist. Zhu Yuanzhang only did two things in his life. One was to conquer the world. In the second half of his life, almost everything he did revolved around the crown prince. From training the crown prince to govern the country to clearing away obstacles for the crown prince, he devoted all his energy and effort to every possible means.

It can be said that Zhu Biao was Zhu Yuanzhang's biggest weakness in his life.

If something really happened, it would be really terrible. Zhu Yuanzhang wouldn't mind a bloody storm.

Soon, a captain from the Yiluansi arrived, escorting a bloody old eunuch, and soon after, Deng Qianqiu also arrived.

Zhu Biao and Jin Si arrived immediately after hearing the news.

Zhu Yuanzhang stared down at the old eunuch Liu Chong, then his eyes fell on the captain, and he said, "Zhou Hong, you speak!"

(End of this chapter)