On the sixteenth day of the second month in the forty-second year of the Wanli reign, Empress Dowager Li suffered a lung ailment caused by an evil wind. Her grave illness showed no sign of improving. Hou Gongchen, Minister of Rites and concurrently in charge of the Imperial Clan Court, discovered a curse doll beneath the Empress Dowager's bed. The emperor was enraged and ordered Zheng Er, a Jinyiwei officer of the Northern Garrison Branch, to investigate the case in secret. Thus, a palace curse case led to the infant corpse case and the staff-striking case, bringing all manner of figures onto the stage. They hindered one another, laying obstacles in secret. Zheng Er discovered that Consort Zheng and her son, Prince Fu, seemed intent on causing turmoil over the succession. Yet, relying on the emperor's exceptional favor, they had nothing to fear. The Crown Prince's faction was also poised for a fight. After repeated impeachments and slander, the two sides struggled openly and schemed against each other in secret. The conflict finally came to a pause when Crown Prince Zhu Changluo inherited the throne. Little did they know that the Taichang Emperor would be poisoned by a red pill less than a month after taking the throne. The emperor's faction wanted to reappoint Zheng Er, who had been sidelined after suffering in the factional struggles, to investigate the case. But Zheng Er had lost heart at the Ming dynasty's corruption and incompetence. He had the will, but not the strength to act.
Tattered Robe
You Hired Me to Collect Bodies, So I Dissected My Ex-Girlfriend
The Corpse Collection Files