On the surface of the Yangtze River in the Jiujiang area, a navy fleet with sun and moon flags hung downstream.

The flagship of this fleet is a large 600-ton Yangtze River warship with a double-layer gun deck. However, after the Ming army recovered Xiangyang, there was no war on the Yangtze River. Most of the artillery was removed from the gun deck of this warship and transferred it to the naval warship. But even if the combat effectiveness was reduced by half, this warship was not something that ordinary thieves dared to provoke.

In the back of the flagship light gun deck, Hong Chengchou, still wearing a Qing official robe, sat at the wine table. His official hat was taken off, revealing most of his bald head and the rat-tail braid behind his head.

It can be said that Hong Chengchou was the only prisoner who had no braids cut. This was Li Guodong deliberately retaining Hong Chengchou's rat tail, preparing to let him go to Nanjing in this image, then accept the justice trial, and then be sentenced to death by stern chi.

"Mr. Hong, drinking, Li has no habit of abuse of prisoners. Since you are going to escort you back to Beijing, you must take good care of you along the way and let you eat and drink well." Li Guodong picked up the wine glass with a smile.

Of course, Hong Chengchou cannot be lost by hunger. This is a person who is preparing to make a piece of skin duck. If he loses weight, there will be less meat. If he can't die after cutting it a few times, he will really let down Hong Chengchou, who has been abandoned by Li Guodong and has been so determined to live, and he will spend a lot of money to take him back to Nanjing for trial.

There was a plate of fragrant sliced ​​duck on the table. This was a roast duck made by the authentic chef of Beijing Bianyifang. When the capital was in the hands of the thief, the chef of Bianyifang escaped and fled to Nanjing and opened a Bianyifang. Li Guodong specially invited the chef and made a plate of sliced ​​duck for Hong Chengchou.

In addition to the sliced ​​duck, there is another dish, which is the elbow roasted in Shandong. After the elbow is cooked, cut into shredded pork, dipped in sweet noodles sauce, wrap the scallions, wrap it with lotus leaf cakes or Shandong pancakes, and eat it together. The same sliced ​​sliced ​​duck has some similarities.

These two dishes were placed in front of Hong Chengchou, who was about to be made into sliced ​​duck. He was a smart man and could understand at a glance that in the near future, just like the fate of these two dishes, he would be sliced ​​into pieces.

Hong Chengchou pointed to these two dishes and said, "Duke Chu wants to humiliate me? A scholar can be killed but not humiliated! Hong admitted that he is greedy for life and fear of death, but if you want to kill me, then just kill me with one knife. Why should he humiliate me like this?"

"No, no, Lord Hong, it's too simple to slash you with one knife. All we want is to let the military and civilians see what the end of the traitor is!" Li Guodong smiled, "But, Lord Hong, you should eat and drink now. Li doesn't want to be accused of abuse of prisoners. The person who convicted you was not me, but the Empress Dowager, and the Three Sessions were also tried."

Where can Hong Chengchou be able to eat? He had long seen through Li Guodong's intention to deliberately raise him to gain weight, and he decided to go on a hunger strike.

When the fleet returned to Nanjing, the city of Nanjing was already empty, and almost all the soldiers and civilians rushed to the dock to welcome the victorious Duke of Chu. Even the two empress dowagers and two princesses in the Forbidden City went to the dock to welcome the Duke of Chu.

The Duke of Chu, who returned from a great victory, was warmly welcomed by the military and civilians. This was a hero who saved the Ming Dynasty and even more of the entire China. Since Duke of Chu went south, the victory in Yangzhou cut off the Qing Dynasty's attempt to occupy Jiangnan. Later, he recruited the rebel army and the Daxi army, which finally calmed down the thief that had plagued the Ming Dynasty for nearly 20 years. Then he quelled the rebellion of King Gui and the rebellion of Guangdong, and drove the King Gui to Yunnan.

This Northern Expedition was victorious, and the 250,000 Qing troops in Xiangyang and 200,000 Qing troops reinforced by the north were wiped out in one fell swoop. After the decisive battle in Xiangyang, the victory of the Ming Dynasty was decided, and there was no suspense about restoring the capital.

A grand ceremony was held on the dock, and Duke of Chu and his personal bodyguards got off the ship. Then, a group of Ming soldiers took Hong Chengchou down from the ship. The Jinyiwei, who had been waiting at the dock, immediately stepped forward and held a handover ceremony.

Hong Chengchou, wearing a Qing official robe and a Qing flower feather, was not tied up by a rope, and only a few soldiers were guarding him. At this moment, Hong Chengchou suddenly struggled to run to the river, trying to jump into the river, but was pulled back by someone.

"Jingluo Hong, aren't you afraid of death? Why do you think you're going to die at this time?" Zhang Shuheng sneered.

Hong Chengchou was loaded into a prison van. When the prison van passed through the streets of Nanjing, the two sides were filled with emotional people, all kinds of rotten vegetables, rotten eggs, saliva, and mud fell on Hong Chengchou's face like rain, making his body dirty, which was originally clean, the robe of the Qing dynasty.

The Jinyiwei took Hong Chengchou to the Heavenly Prison. Zhang Shuheng carefully selected the cleanest cell for Hong Chengchou, put on a bed and changed into a clean bedding. The cell was also specially cleaned and cleaned. It was placed on a table and bookshelf, so that Hong Chengchou could live in it and enjoy treatment that ordinary prisoners could not enjoy.

But Hong Chengchou started a hunger strike. Zhang Shuheng had no choice but to tie Hong Chengchou to the bed, then found a hose made of Eucommia ulmoides, and then he broke Hong Chengchou's mouth apart and blocked his mouth with wooden strips, making it impossible for him to close his mouth. Then he stretched the hose through his mouth and extended it along the esophagus and inserted it into his stomach.

Put a funnel at the entrance of the hose. When the meal time is up for three meals a day, Jinyiwei will pour food into the funnel, such as filling the egg lean meat porridge in the morning, and filling chicken soup, millet porridge, and tofu soup at noon; filling egg soup and white rice porridge in the evening, which ensures nutrition, which not only prevents him from dying, but also makes him fat.

But forcibly canned food is definitely a difficult torture for people. If a foreign object is inserted into the esophagus, you can imagine how uncomfortable it is. Over time, it will be infected and inflamed.

Hong Chengchou would not die so soon. Li Guodong planned to build a monument to national heroes at the foot of the Ming Xiaoling Mountain in Nanjing. Below the monument is a tomb of martyrs and a Chinese Heroes Memorial Hall. The walls inside are filled with the names of all the heroes who died in order to fight against the Later Jin Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty.

It will take as soon as half a year to build these facilities. Li Guodong planned to make Hong Chengchou into a skin duck at the completion ceremony of the National Heroes Monument.

"Lingchi executed Hong Chengchou?" The kind-hearted Princess Kunxing widened her eyes, "Duke Chu, but after all, Hong Jinglei has done something for me, the Ming Dynasty. I'd better give him some fun, why bother him like this?"

Zhang Yan sneered: "Your Highness, Princess, you are so kind! Your father even cried for Hong Chengchou and personally served as a sacrifice for him. Unexpectedly, this thief actually surrendered to the Qing Dynasty! Isn't this slap your father in the face? Just such a person, hum! I feel that it would be very cheap if he doesn't make him a human pig!"

There are two types of women, one is a cruel woman, and the other is a kind woman; kind women are very soft-hearted and cannot even bear to hurt ants; but cruel women are more vicious than men.

A widow like Zhang Yan, who has been widowed for many years, has long been as heart-warming as a stone and can do anything when she becomes ruthless. However, when she and Li Guodong were alone, they were a gentle woman, just like an older sister.

"Yes, sister, I agree with aunt! I will make the old thief Hong Chengchou into a piece of skin duck!" A cute pink little luoli clapped his hands and laughed like a silver bell.

This little luoli is Princess Zhaoren. She is eleven years old. Although her body has not yet developed well, she has become a cute little beauty. She is not as tall as her sister Princess Kunxing. She is a little fat because of her greed, but it adds to her cuteness. Every time Li Guodong enters the palace, Princess Zhaoren always comes to pester him and asks for some delicious food.
Chapter completed!