Ming Dynasty: I risked my life to teach the prince, the emperor begged me not to die

Chapter 109: New Year with Fireworks and Blood (End)
On New Year's Eve, the weather in Peking was good. At the end of the afternoon, white smoke began to rise above the kitchens of every household.

The densely packed Huaihua Hutong has regained its bustling appearance since the groundwater turned over in October. In the narrow and cramped alley, children put on new clothes and run around and play with various toys such as windmills, wooden horses, and ground mice.

The adults cooked delicious dishes in the kitchen, and the aroma filled the entire alley.

After the various pre-marinated bacon, cured fish balls, etc. were taken out of the pot, they were brought to the central hall one by one by the male hosts and arranged neatly.

It is rare to eat meat in a year. No matter how poor the family is, they will have the best meal during the Chinese New Year. The children and the elderly look forward to it too.

The festive atmosphere is full of the New Year.

Chen Ce was also very busy in the courtyard. Although he was alone at the end of the year, he had to be nice to himself and make it feel like it was Chinese New Year.

The first dish is sweet and sour carp, which cannot be eaten, symbolizing abundance every year.

The second dish is jiandui, glutinous rice dumplings, which means the house will be full of gold and silver.

The third dish is steamed cake, which means every year will be better than the last.

All kinds of dishes have the romance unique to the people of the dynasty and are full of meaning.

There were already firecrackers in the Ming Dynasty. They no longer used the bamboo burning sounds of the Tang Dynasty. At the beginning of the Shen period, the first firecracker sounded in Huaihua Hutong.

Then followed the second, third, fourth...the sound of firecrackers rang out one after another, and the sound of joy and laughter came from every corner.

"Want me to light some guns for you?"

Mrs. Wu from next door covered her ears and spoke loudly to Chen Ce.

Chen Ce also shouted back: "What? I can't hear you!"

Madam Wu took a tinder and pointed at the firecrackers on the ground by Chen Ce. Seeing that Chen Ce failed to light them for a long time, she asked if he needed help.

Chen Ce was a little embarrassed. He had never ordered anything like this in his life. "Okay!"

Chen Ce Chong nodded heavily next to him.

Madam Wu covered her ears and ran to Chen Ce's courtyard. She took a fire starter and lit it in no time. Then, the sound of explosions continued to ring out in Chen Ce's courtyard.

After she went back, she lit the firecrackers in her own yard. The two of them smiled at each other over the fence and went back to their rooms.

The spirit tablet in the courtyard had been taken out by Chen Ce. Chen Ce first lit three incense sticks to commemorate his father and mother, and expressed his gratitude to them for their kindness in not abandoning him even when he was sick.

The central hall was filled with smoke. Chen Ce poured himself a pot of light fruit wine, then picked up his chopsticks and looked outside.

The sky was already getting dark, and there was a loud explosion. The fireworks from the fireworks stand exploded in the sky, and the red light illuminated the entire Huaihua Hutong, as red as blood!

……

The New Year procedures in the homes of the powerful and wealthy are still cumbersome. Wang Zongyi, the right vice minister of the Ministry of War, brought his family to worship their ancestors and pay tribute to his teacher. After going through the whole set of procedures, he, who had been living a life of luxury, was already sweating from exhaustion.

He came to the study to rest alone, but frowned when he found that there was no tea in the teacup. He could not help but said angrily: "Someone come! Where's the tea?!"

A servant hurriedly left with the teapot, and soon came back and carefully explained to Wang Zongyi: "Master, today is the 30th, calm down, everyone is busy."

The gurgling sound of water pouring continued to be heard. Wang Zongyi snorted and drank the tea in one gulp.

He seemed to feel something was wrong, and then he looked back at the honest servant beside him in confusion and asked, "Why is the tea warm?"

It seems like nonsense, but if you think about it a little bit, you will know that if the tea had been warmed up long ago, it should have been placed here.

If the tea is freshly brewed, it should be piping hot.

The honest-looking servant asked back: "Can you drink it when it's boiling hot?" Wang Zongyi's face suddenly changed, and just as he was about to get angry, a big hand blocked his mouth like a pair of pliers, and then the broken porcelain cut his throat, and blood spurted out like fireworks blooming outside.

Wang Zongyi wanted to shout, but his mouth was blocked. His body was twitching and twisting violently, and his tiger-like eyes were glaring at the servant.

Until his death, he had no idea what had happened, but he was a third-rank minister of the Ministry of War... Why did he die so easily...

The servant left the palace inconspicuously and came to a group of beggars, where he fought with them for leftovers. In the end, he was beaten to death by the beggars.

There was no resistance at all, he was simply seeking death, because if he lived, there would always be a possibility that he would be found and interrogated.

Only the dead can keep secrets forever.

He did it willingly.

……

The residence of the Minister of Personnel was strictly controlled for admittance to these powerful and high-ranking officials, and anyone entering the residence would need to be thoroughly searched and interrogated.

But normally no one would notice a person who collects night incense.

They are in the lowest and most despised profession. Who would care about these ants?
Ye Xianglang killed a servant in the toilet, changed into the other party's servant's clothes, and calmly followed the crowd around in the Tu Mansion.

He was too ordinary and his mental quality was too good, almost no different from an ordinary servant.

It was not until half an hour later that he saw Minister Tu.

"Sir, Censor Qi said that Wang Yue's affair has been exposed."

Tu Yu was stunned for a moment, and his expression of fear was immediately evident. He quickly asked his attendants to leave, and then said to the servant who was speaking, "Follow me!"

In the secluded side room, Tu Yu said anxiously, "What did Qi Zhong say? Tell me in detail!"

How did Wang Yue's story get exposed? What got exposed? My trip to the northwest to get my ears replaced?
Tu Yu was confused, but soon he realized that something was wrong!

No, this is not right! You are just a servant in my house, how do you know these things?
When he came to his senses, he was about to scream, but a silk cloth was tightly wrapped around his neck, making him unable to make any sound. A feeling of suffocation spread throughout his body. His eyes were full of bloodshot and almost bulged out. His face turned blue and red, and blue veins kept bulging on his forehead.

He kicked his legs on the ground and reached back with his hands, but he could catch nothing. Unwilling to give up, he tried to grab the silk again, but the silk became tighter and tighter.

In the end, his whole body went limp, but the silk was still tightly wrapped around him.

A qualified spy must also be a qualified killer who will not make any mistakes. He needs to make sure the other party is dead before he can release the silk that is strangled around his neck.

……

Bang bang bang!
Chen Ce had finished his New Year's Eve dinner and was standing in the courtyard with his hands behind his back, looking up at the gorgeous fireworks in the sky.

What a beauty.

I don’t know how many more times I can see fireworks like this. They are as beautiful as life, but they are always too short.

Chen Ce sighed, just like himself, how much time is left? It's too short, and he is reluctant to leave such a beautiful world, but he still has to leave it eventually.

Are all the people dying soon?

Chen Ce thought silently, wondering if this group of spies trained by the old man would make any mistakes.

However, since the old man trusted them so much, Chen Ce had no reason not to believe it.

Haha, this year-end is destined to be very interesting. I’m afraid Emperor Hongzhi will not have a good year.

(End of this chapter)