Chapter 815: The father is kind and the son is filial, what a great Wei!
"Thump, thump, thump."
Cao Lin was looking around blankly when suddenly a burst of chaotic footsteps came from outside the hall.
A group of officials dressed in scarlet and black clothes appeared outside the palace.
Then he saw the emperor lying in a pool of blood, and Cao Lin with his face covered in red blood and a confused look in his eyes.
An expression of disbelief appeared on everyone's face almost instantly.
Regicide!
They couldn't believe it, didn't dare believe it, and didn't want to believe what they saw.
That's regicide.
There were records of regicide in the ancient Zhou Dynasty, but that was an era when rituals and music were in decline, and everyone was afraid to talk about it.
Even in that era, anyone who killed the king would eventually be rejected by the world, nailed to the pillar of shame in history, and liquidated by the righteous people of the world.
After the establishment of the Han Dynasty, the morality and consciousness of the entire world were reshaped, and the words loyalty and righteousness were passed down from generation to generation.
This is something that everyone in the world abides by.
Among the princes who participated in the Jingnan Rebellion, why was it that only the unrivaled Wuxiang Marquis Luo Shi fled to the Western Regions just after the Jingnan Rebellion ended? Why was it that only Emperor Xuan of Han was worried about his reward? Because in the eyes of many people with simple ideas, he had flaws, and he himself felt so too. This was Luo's insistence on what he preached.
The last time Dong Zhuo murdered the emperor was by Dong Zhuo. In fact, no one knew about it. Emperor Min of Han died in a dark room, and the people who were involved were all Dong Zhuo's own people. It was only known by Luo Kong, the unparalleled loyal marquis.
In the end, Luo Kong killed Dong Zhuo in front of thousands of people, maintaining the tradition that the regicide must be put to death.
And now?
Cao Lin finally came to his senses from his confusion. Even if he was stupid, he knew that these people thought he had killed the emperor. He panicked and wanted to explain: "Zhu..."
A miserable wail was heard, interrupting the words Cao Lin was about to say. Then Cao Lin saw a familiar figure stumbling towards him and kneeling down. Upon closer inspection, he found that it was his son, Cao Chengsi!
His face was full of tears, as if he was extremely sad. With extreme disbelief, he wailed: "Father, could it be that you are, you..."
A chill rose from his back and penetrated the back of Cao Lin's head. Half of his body was numb as if struck by lightning. Looking at the eyes of the people around him, he felt as if he had fallen into the Yellow River, his whole body was covered with muddy sand that could not be washed clean.
Looking at his son kneeling at his feet and crying bitterly, the coldness in his heart grew even stronger.
I see!
I see.
I really gave birth to an incredible son!
But I, your father, really cannot take the blame for regicide. My son, I'll leave this matter to you.
Just as Cao Lin was about to speak, Cao Chengsi got ahead of him again. He knew his father too well and it was absolutely impossible for him to take the blame. He immediately grabbed the corner of Cao Lin's clothes and cried, "Father, you are a loyal minister of the Great Wei, you are a loyal minister of His Majesty, it is impossible for you to do this. Who killed His Majesty? As His Majesty's most loyal minister, I want to avenge His Majesty!"
?
Cao Lin was a little confused. Cao Chengsi's deep affection made him speechless. He couldn't help but glance at the man kneeling on the ground. He thought to himself, "Isn't this the person you found? Now you ask me who killed the emperor?"
Cao Chengsi had already jumped up, strode to the man who had killed the emperor, and angrily asked, "Who are you and why did you kill the emperor?"
The soldier's eyes deliberately glanced at Cao Lin involuntarily. This scene was noticed by everyone, and then he said in a low voice: "The emperor killed my whole family. I wish I could cut him into pieces. Killing him with a sword is already too easy for him.
You can kill me or chop me up, it’s all up to you.”
A hint of smile flashed across Cao Chengsi's eyes, but he still said sternly, "Absurd! Absurd!
Give out the mastermind behind you and I will leave you with an intact body."
As soon as he finished speaking, black blood began to flow from the corner of the mouth of the person in front of him. He actually committed suicide by taking poison.
Death warriors!
Almost all of the real assassins retreated in horror.
Only Cao Chengsi took another step forward and shouted to the crowd: "Can't we find any trace of a dead person?
Lift his visor and collect information about him from all the people in Wei. I don't believe that we can't find his whereabouts and the mastermind behind it."
Now even Cao Lin couldn't help but begin to doubt his own judgment. Could it be that it really wasn't Cao Chengsi who killed him?
His brain was indeed far inferior to Cao Chengsi's. His thinking had already begun to exonerate Cao Chengsi, while others' suspicion of him grew greater.
The soldier who had been holding this man down earlier quickly lifted up his visor.
Wow!
Even the battle-hardened soldiers were so frightened that they put their visors back on. What appeared under the visor was a completely disfigured face, and it was impossible to tell who it was.
These are real assassins, assassins who come prepared to complete the important task of regicide.
quiet!
Deathly silence!
No one in the hall spoke. After an unknown amount of time, someone finally spoke up and angrily said, "Killing the king and seizing the throne, Cao Lin, great general, what are you going to do?"
Upon hearing this, Cao Chengsi did not wait for Cao Lin to speak and immediately said, "Everyone, I think the regicide could not be my father. If he really wanted to kill the emperor, why didn't he let His Majesty die in the battlefield with a stray arrow? Why didn't he kill him in a dark room with a white silk and a cup of poisoned wine, but instead used a sword in the hall?
These are all major doubts!
Moreover, everyone, do you really want to let everyone in the world know that a regicide occurred in my Wei State?
Are you all going to let the world know in history that a relative of my Great Wei clan murdered the king?
Don’t air your dirty laundry in public!
Now only we know about these things, now only we in the Cao family know about these things.
If everyone in the world knew about this, would those nobles rebel?
In addition, will the various countries unite under this banner to attack our Great Wei?
Will the great Wei state be destroyed in this?
Will the great Wei state collapse because of this?
And couldn't this person be a spy sent by other countries?
Haven’t we seen enough spies from Liang and Yan over the years?
Everyone, think twice!
For the sake of the Wei Kingdom!
This matter must be covered up!"
Most of the people here were Cao's clan relatives and in-laws. After hearing what Cao Chengsi said, they fell silent. No matter what, the country of Wei was the most important.
Without the Wei Kingdom, they, the powerful and wealthy people of the Cao family, would suffer the most.
Cao Chengsi seized on this point and made them cautious. He was a master at calculating people's hearts.
"But the army attacked the imperial city, and the emperor died in the palace. What should we do?
Even if we don't say it, what will people outside guess?"
Cao Chengsi pointed at the eunuchs' corpses on the ground and said, "Of course it was these eunuchs who held Your Majesty hostage, and of course it was these people who joined forces with spies from other countries to kill Your Majesty.
We have received the imperial edict from Your Majesty, and are leading a large army to rescue Your Majesty. The imperial edict can be issued now.
No one will know the truth, not even the historians. We can watch those scholars who confuse right and wrong, and kill those who disobey. "
Everyone was shocked and said, "Killing those who record history? How can this be allowed? There has never been a precedent before."
Killing historians. Even monarchs like Emperor Li of Han and Emperor Ling of Han never killed any historians. From the establishment of the Han Dynasty to the present day, there has been no precedent of killing historians for four hundred years.
Cao Chengsi said with a cold face: "How could there be none?
During the Bang Zhou period, people tampered with history books and killed historians, but the country was destroyed by the Luo family. Where is the Luo family now?
Without the Luo family, who would care about historians?
And we don't really want to kill the historian, we just tell him the truth.
We killed those who spread rumors, those who deliberately defamed Wei, and those who slandered the court.
Who will know the truth?"
Cao Chengsi's words were like heavy hammers hitting everyone's mind. Luo was gone, and the historian's backing was gone. So that was how it was.
Moreover, Cao Chengsi did not want to kill the historian, which made everyone feel much better. Those who spread rumors, slander, and defame the court should indeed be severely punished and punished.
Whether you can deceive others or not, at least deceive yourself first.
Having said this, Cao Chengsi knew that he had persuaded these people, and the blame for the regicide was superficially put on other unknown people, but in these people's hearts it was put on their own father.
Perhaps these clan members now feel that they said so much just to exonerate their father.
Cao Chengsi could already imagine the future scene. Most people would think that an unknown person killed the emperor. In the top circles, it was his own father who killed the emperor.
In every way, he is clean.
Now there is only one thing left, how to seize the highest power under such circumstances.
He did all these things not to help others, but for the throne, to become the supreme ruler of the entire Wei State.
But he still tried his best to restrain this thought, and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, the country cannot be without a king for a day. Now that your majesty has been harmed by traitors, we should support your majesty's heir.
When your majesty's youngest son was born, the room was filled with purple light. This is a sign of the coming of the crape myrtle. We should support your majesty's youngest son, and he will surely prosper the Great Wei."
ah?
Everyone was shocked and suspicious when they heard this, "The emperor's youngest son is only one year old, isn't he too young? Moreover, deposing the eldest son and enthroning the youngest son, isn't this a way to bring disaster?
Wouldn't this allow the world to see the internal strife of our Great Wei?"
Cao Chengsi waved his hand and said, "In prosperous times, abolishing the eldest and enthroning the youngest is indeed a way to bring disaster, but in troubled times, the country should have wise men to rule the world. Your Majesty's eldest son is very stubborn and unruly, I'm sure you all know that.
Your Majesty has not made him the Crown Prince for all these years. Doesn't this explain the problem?
Because Your Majesty is not satisfied with him, and we are all Your Majesty's loyal subjects, shouldn't we obey Your Majesty's will and choose a monarch who is better for the Great Wei?
Now that the country has come to this point, if we cannot change, we can only wait for Yan or Liang to invade Wei, and we will die and our country will be destroyed."
The tactic of killing oneself and destroying the country has always worked. When the Wei State had been defeated in foreign affairs, Murong Ke became Cao Chengsi's biggest bargaining chip to coerce the Cao clan members of the Wei State.
As expected, after Cao Chengsi said this, everyone immediately became hesitant again. Cao Chengsi took the opportunity to say: "Although the late emperor's youngest son is still young, the country has important ministers to assist it, so there won't be any problems. Just like the State of Yan, Murong Ke was also assisting the government. Could it be that there was any disturbance in the State of Yan?
Why can't my Wei State do that?
Now we should unite and overcome the current crisis first. We need to face the big issue of His Majesty's recent death and not create unnecessary problems in other areas."
Cao Chengsi always talked about the overall situation of the country. In the eyes of everyone, he was completely concerned about the country and the people. In this situation where everyone was extremely panicked and urgently needed a backbone, he became that pillar.
"Just do as you say!"
Even though Cao Chengsi was a junior, he still received recognition. This was the third step of Cao Chengsi's plan. He took over his father's power by putting the blame on others. As a general who could compete with the emperor for a short time, Cao Lin's power was quite large. Cao Chengsi started to seize the power that belonged to his father early on. At this point, he completely transferred the support of these relatives to himself.
He wants to go straight to heaven and become a minister who assists in the administration!
He believed that this was not his final destination, but another starting point. One day he would become an emperor, a small emperor who would not be an obstacle to him at all.
Cao Lin had no idea what was going on. He just felt that with just a few words, he had become an outsider.
Little did he know that in the eyes of everyone, he, the regicide who committed the unforgivable crime, had been protected by his son. However, those who dared to kill the regicide would not associate with Cao Lin. The official history books could control it, but the unofficial history could not. They did not want to be cursed for all eternity.
Cao Chengsi acted very quickly. His plan was almost successful tonight. He was very excited. He immediately asked someone to bring the emperor's youngest son, and then asked someone to clean up the emperor's body. He then ordered his death warriors to deal with all the soldiers who had entered the hall earlier to prevent rumors from spreading from their mouths.
Finally, he brought a group of people to the Weiyang Palace and wrote one edict after another.
When the little prince was held in the hall, everyone knelt down with complicated eyes. The Wei State welcomed a new emperor. As for Cao Mao's eldest son, he might fall ill and die at an appropriate time.
The next day.
When the sun rose and shone on Chang'an City, everything had returned to normal. Only the traces left on the streets that had not yet been cleaned up proved that what happened yesterday was not an illusion.
The ministers were asked to enter the palace.
The entire city of Chang'an is still under martial law.
The palace had been cleaned up overnight, with only dried bloodstains in some corners. The corpses had been burned and discarded, and after a burst of killing, the place became even colder and more lonely.
When the court officials entered the palace, they felt a chill.
When Cao Chengsi appeared in the hall holding the emperor, the court officials could no longer hold back and countless people asked questions.
Cao Chengsi recounted the details of last night in an ambiguous tone, and finally emphasized: "The general failed to save His Majesty in time, and His Majesty was eventually killed by the traitor. The general was extremely ashamed and resigned from his position and prepared to return home. I and other relatives thought about it for a long time. Although this matter cannot be said to be the general's fault, it is indeed not conducive to protecting His Majesty, so we respectfully agreed to the general's request."
These last words instantly caused an uproar in the hall. This reason was really absurd. How could Cao Lin take the initiative to give in? Something else must have happened that caused Cao Lin to leave on his own initiative.
What will happen?
One word came to everyone’s mind – regicide!
It must be that Cao Lin's murder of the king was discovered by these clan members, and then he was collectively abandoned by them, which led to the current situation. Although Cao Lin was powerful in the court, he was not omnipotent, and there were naturally people who opposed him.
He immediately asked loudly: "Cao Lin led the army to attack the imperial palace, which is an unforgivable crime. The emperor died in the palace. Isn't it Cao Lin who killed the emperor?
Can a regicide live in this world openly?"
Cao Chengsi interrupted him and asked coldly: "Do you have any evidence?
Why do you slander a minister of a country without any evidence, especially at a time when the survival of the country is at stake? What is your intention?
If I say one more word, I will let you know what it means that the law is like a prison! "
As soon as Cao Chengsi made this naked threat, the upright minister immediately retorted again. He had just said two words when he was interrupted and dragged away by the guards. He was stabbed and killed outside the palace.
The rest of the people in the hall fell silent in an instant. Those who were angry did not dare to say a word. They just stared at Cao Chengsi fiercely, staring at this unprecedented and domineering man. He was even more domineering than Cao Shuang back then!
Cao Chengsi did not continue to speak harshly, but said in a gentle voice: "Please don't look at me like this, is this what I want?
Now the country is in a turbulent time. The late emperor has just passed away and Your Majesty has just ascended the throne. It is a critical moment. What the country needs to do now is to unite as one, guard every city, guard against attacks from other countries, and guard against rebellions in the country.
I promise that all current questions will be answered at the grand ceremony in half a year. Now, please all ministers do your own work well.
Don't do things that would make your loved ones sad and your enemies happy, what do you think, ministers?"
Cao Chengsi's statement was to delay until everything was settled. During this period, he still had time to eliminate dissidents. Who would be so stupid as to say something at that time?
He would never oppose all the ministers.
In many people's minds, the person who killed the king was Cao Lin, not Cao Chengsi. Although Cao Chengsi did protect Cao Lin, they were father and son, and this was precisely Cao Chengsi's filial piety to Cao Lin. Moreover, there was no direct evidence to prove that Cao Lin killed the king, so Cao Chengsi was able to stand in the hall openly, holding the emperor, as regent.
The ministers looked at each other, and finally knelt down slowly, paying homage to the little emperor. "By the grace of the God of Luo, the emperor of the Great Wei, may you live long and live in peace and happiness for thousands of years."
The sun shines very high, but it cannot reach the temple. It is pitch black here and there is no light all year round.
…
Liang State, Jianye.
There were many spies from Liang in Wei, so any news that happened in Wei was reported back immediately. Of course, this news was a mixture of official news and gossip.
Luo Xianzhi looked at the news carefully and began to frantically think about the logic behind it. First of all, he could be sure that the person who killed the king was a Wei citizen, and the official denied the rumor that Cao Lin killed the king.
But one of the laws of politics is that what is officially denied is more likely to be the truth, so it is highly likely that Cao Lin murdered the king, but Luo Xianzhi felt that it was not that simple.
Before he could think more, someone from the palace came to invite him in. The officials from the Secretariat looked at Luo Xianzhi with some envy as he left with the eunuch.
What is power?
Being close to the emperor means having power. The power of their chief official is definitely one of the most powerful among the Shangshu Ling. He can see the emperor every few days, which greatly increases the value of the position of Shangshu Ling.
After Luo Xianzhi entered the palace, Xiao Yan asked directly: "Lingxiu, you know what happened in Wei State, right? Wei State suddenly changed its emperor. Is this our chance?
Why do you think Wei was like this?
I don't think Cao Mao deserves this. He shouldn't have encountered such a disaster so suddenly."
Why was Wei State like this?
Luo Xianzhi pondered and said, "Your Majesty, there is logic behind many things in this world. For example, if the people cannot survive, they will rebel. If there are too many people who cannot survive, the country will perish. This is logic.
But there are still many illogical things in this world.
Your Majesty, if you look at the world with the wisdom and intelligence of all people in high positions, there will be countless things in this world that you cannot understand.
In the eyes of ordinary people, those who can achieve high positions and noble titles should have their own abilities.
But I'm sure you are very clear that meat eaters are vulgar.
This world is actually a group of brainless people ruling the majority.
What happened in the State of Wei was most likely a sudden coup d'état. It was most likely that a group of idiots were instigated by a few words and then developed out of control.
For example, the former great general of Wei State played a very important role in this coup, but he probably didn't know what he was doing until he lost power.
There is no logic to what he does, so how can we know what is really going on?
In this world, we should not ask why, but what is possible. Employing virtuous people can avoid these problems, while employing unvirtuous people will lead to these problems. "
Luo Xianzhi’s words were very simple. He didn’t know what had happened in the State of Wei, but he knew the principle behind it. It was simply that there were too many stupid people, which ultimately led to unpredictable consequences.
Because stupid people do things without considering the consequences, while smart people will think, and thinking can help avoid many unnecessary things.
Xiao Yan was both satisfied and dissatisfied with this answer. The incident of regicide made him feel uncomfortable all over. After this incident, he no longer had the mind to do anything else.
He even didn't want to attack Wei. After pondering for a moment, he asked, "Lingxiu, do you think this kind of thing will happen in our Liang State? Will there be any minister who is dissatisfied with me and wants to kill me?"
Luo Xianzhi immediately said: "Your Majesty, don't think like that. Once you start to doubt, the country will go downhill."
Xiao Yan paced in the hall, "I suspect that the one who murdered the king was that Cao Lin, but he is a relative of the Wei clan. The eunuchs and relatives cannot be trusted, and the nobles cannot be trusted either. Now, can't even the relatives of the clan be trusted?
So what else is there to trust?
Do I have to govern the country myself?
After I die, can't I entrust the country to someone else?"
Luo Xianzhi raised his voice slightly and said, "Your Majesty.
The reason why what is happening in Wei State is because the power is too unbalanced. What I am doing now is to avoid this. Besides, I am here and I will be loyal to Your Majesty.
I just think that eunuchs can be trusted, relatives by marriage can be trusted, the gentry can be trusted, and clan members can also be trusted. As long as you maintain a good balance and choose the right candidates, there will naturally be loyal ministers in this world.
As long as you establish a good system and prevent those with ulterior motives from taking advantage of loopholes, it will be enough to maintain the stability of the throne.
I have a theory about this matter, would you like to listen to it?"
Xiao Yan urgently needed someone to calm his heart, so he immediately said, "Lingxiu, tell me, I want to hear it."
Luo Xianzhi hesitated for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, the eunuchs, relatives by marriage, nobles, and clan members you just mentioned cannot be trusted. I will explain these four to you.
The selection of eunuchs is the most critical. Most of these people have some mental problems due to their physical defects. This is human nature. Therefore, Your Majesty must be very cautious when choosing eunuchs and give these eunuchs something that can make their souls different.
Gold, silver, pearls and jade will only corrupt them. Apart from these, you must make them feel that they are real people, so that they will die for your orders.
Relatives by marriage and clan relatives, these two must be put together. It is extremely difficult for relatives by marriage to usurp the throne. There has been no precedent of relatives by marriage usurping the throne since ancient times. However, during the Bang Zhou period, there were examples of clan relatives usurping the throne.
This is because under the patriarchal system, relatives by marriage were not eligible to seize the throne, but with the successful ascension of powerful ministers like Cao Cao, it was actually possible for relatives by marriage to seize the throne. So at this time, there was a need for relatives by marriage and clan members to balance each other.
Never use in-laws to balance other forces, and not all in-laws can be used.
First of all, we must ensure that the future empress dowager does not favor her own maternal family. In this case, it is feasible to reuse the emperor's maternal relatives, that is, the emperor's uncle, to ensure the emperor's position.
Both clan relatives and external relatives are the power of the royal family, and only when the two are balanced can a balance be achieved. This is a point that is extremely easy to be overlooked.
Finally, there are the gentry.
This is the most powerful faction. No matter whether they are clan members or in-laws, or even eunuchs, they will all eventually become the gentry. Therefore, it is particularly important to check and balance the gentry, and all forces must be opposed to the gentry.
But we must ensure that the gentry will not become disheartened. Once this group of people become disheartened, the damage they cause will be incomparable to the previous ones. The governance of the country still mainly relies on the gentry.
To restrain the gentry, it is not only necessary to rely on checks and balances, but mainly on moral ideas. Most of these scholars have some ideals, and preserving these people's ideals is the only way.
Live for the Tao, die for the Tao.
This is what lies deep in the hearts of many readers.
I would like to say two things.
Things from Taoism and Buddhism can only be used as entertainment and must never be used to govern a country, especially not as ideas to integrate the country. They will only cause dispersion, which is not good for the country.
The common people are equivalent to the nobles. Perhaps we can say that these two are the nobles of the future and can be treated as the same category."
Xiao Yan felt as if he had been enlightened when he heard this. After thinking for a long time, he said, "Am I relying too much on my relatives?"
Relying on clan relatives is what every country in the world does today.
Although it is often said that the only lesson people learn from history is that they learn no lesson at all.
But in fact, there are still changes. From a historical perspective, the reason why the Zhou Dynasty was able to last for so many years was that it relied on clan members and relatives by marriage. The Han Dynasty was able to obtain the Mandate of Heaven again because of clan members, and even now Liu Bei's Han Kingdom is still there.
The establishment of Cao Cao's Wei Kingdom was made possible by the great efforts of the Cao and Xiahou clans.
The reason why the Yan family of Yan State lost the throne was that the clan members were not powerful enough. Everything was seen by the world, so now all countries generally rely on clan members.
Now that the Wei State has appeared, who wouldn't be afraid?
Xiao Yan was able to fight wars himself, and Luo Xianzhi was there to help him with internal affairs, so he began to doubt whether he was relying too much on his relatives. The same was naturally true for the other countries.
Faced with the emperor's question, Luo Xianzhi helplessly found that he could only say yes.
Because Xiao Yan really relied on the royal relatives. In the Liang Kingdom, it was very normal for the royal relatives to be stationed in various states and important counties. But now Xiao Yan felt that it was abnormal.
After hearing what Luo Xianzhi said, Xiao Yan became more and more uneasy, "Lingxiu, if I start to adjust the positions of these relatives now, what will be the result?
I think you are right. I should put the imperial relatives together, and give the nobles and the poor families more power. "
Luo Xian had a bad feeling when he heard it. Such a big personnel change would cause uproar, especially weakening the power of the clan members, which would inevitably cause backlash. The fuse of the Wei incident was the emperor's imperial edict to summon the gentry.
He immediately said, "Your Majesty, I don't recommend doing this now. We have just struck the noble families. If we strike the clan members now, it may lead to unpredictable results. If some clan members who are disloyal really unite with the noble families and start a rebellion in Jiangdong, it will be difficult to end it at that time."
Xiao Yan's eyes flashed with murderous coldness, and his mighty power of killing countless people on the battlefield was fully displayed. He said coldly: "Then the question is, is it their necks that are hard, or is my sword hard?"
Luo Xianzhi advised, "Your Majesty, there is no need to do this. If a mutiny breaks out in Jiangdong, it will be Daliang that will be harmed in the end. If the war lasts a little longer, won't it give Han an opportunity?
Whether we win or lose, it is inevitable that Daliang will suffer serious damage, which is completely unnecessary.
Give me some time, I can take back the power from my clan members without bloodshed. The situation in Jiangzuo must be stabilized first, and now is a good opportunity for Daliang. Your Majesty must seize this opportunity."
Chance.
When it comes to this, Xiao Yan immediately asked: "Lingxiu, is the opportunity you are talking about..."
The two said in unison: "Yizhou!"
Yizhou has always been a pain in the heart of Liang State. Whenever Liang State thinks of Yizhou being in the hands of Wei State, it will be unable to sleep or eat. For Liang State now, among the three northern kingdoms, the only one that can destroy Liang State is Wei State.
Although Yan and Han were strong, they had no navy and could not train one. All the places where Han could train its navy had been taken away by Liang. At most, these two countries could only stay on the banks of the Huai River and watch Liang helplessly.
But it was different for Wei. Wei had Yizhou, so it could train its navy in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and attack Liang State downstream. This was how Chu State passively suffered when facing Qin State.
Therefore, taking back Yizhou has always been one of Liang State's major plans, and this plan is even more important than taking over Qingzhou and other places.
But Yizhou is easy to defend but difficult to attack. Especially when facing Yizhou, Jiangdong has to attack from low to high and from below to above, which makes it really difficult to conquer. But now the unrest in Wei has given Liang an opportunity.
Xiao Yan had a say in military affairs. He sighed and said, "Even if there is unrest in Wei, Yizhou is a place where one man can block the passage of ten thousand men. This opportunity is not easy to come by.
Even if I lead the army myself, I am not sure that I can capture Yizhou. The Chu family was too incompetent to lose Yizhou, which has led to the current difficult situation for Daliang."
Luo Xianzhi said seriously: "Your Majesty, although I am not very proficient in military affairs, looking through the history books, how many siege wars actually captured the city?
The best military strategy is to attack the enemy’s plans, and the middle-level military strategy is to attack the enemy’s alliances.
The worst strategy is to actually attack the city. There is unrest in Wei State now. Yizhou was originally the grain and grass land of Wei State. It is guarded by Cao Mao's confidants and also by local gentry in Yizhou.
Now Cao Mao died in unclear circumstances in Chang'an, and the court has not yet found the murderer who killed the emperor. How would Cao Mao's confidants think? It is said that many aristocratic families died in Chang'an. What would these aristocratic families think?
Will the people guarding Yizhou worry about being retaliated against by Cao Chengsi, who now controls Chang'an?
I think with these things, we can turn Yizhou around directly, instead of suffering countless casualties and failing to capture it smoothly."
Xiao Yan nodded and said, "Lingxiu, what you said makes sense. If we can really take back Yizhou in this way, I will definitely give you a great achievement. After that, I will promote you to a higher position and no one will be able to say anything."
The Jiangdong Luo family is already a duke, so he certainly cannot get a higher title, but he can get a higher fief. Moreover, Luo Xianzhi's current official position is not high. If he can make a great contribution to recover Yizhou, not only will the impact of Xiao Yan's direct appointment of him as the Minister of the Chancellery disappear, but even a promotion to a higher position will be acceptable.
Luo Xianzhi didn't care about these things. To him, these things were destined to be obtained, so there was nothing worth paying attention to.
All he thought about was the establishment of his own achievements, the prosperity of Liang State, and what he could leave for future generations.
Luo Xianzhi knelt on the ground under Xiao Yan's somewhat surprised gaze.
Such a grand gift was extremely rare in Luo Xianzhi. In this era, the relationship between the monarch and his subjects was not so different, especially between the Luo and Xiao families.
Luo Xianzhi said loudly: "Your Majesty, I deeply hate what happened in Wei State, and the act of regicide is extremely evil.
I am from the Luo family and have been taught by my clan since I was young. Such a major event will greatly corrupt the morality of the world.
Will the man who first created clay figures for burials have no descendants?
I am sure that the current young emperor of Wei will never be able to sit on this position for long, and the unrest in Wei will begin from now on.
I am very worried that Daliang will become like that. Most people in this world believe in the power of the army and the power of the nobles, but they do not know how to grasp the essence of these things.
I do not have any special abilities, I just hope that Your Majesty can keep his original intention. The world is not that bad, and there are not so few loyal ministers in this world.
If the ideological atmosphere of Daliang changes from now on, it will be able to become a clear stream among all countries. Only civilization can make a country prosperous, and only morality can make a regime stable.
I am very worried that Your Majesty will fall into a situation where you have to use political tactics for everything. I will use this kind of thing, and Your Majesty only needs to unite the people in the country. "
Xiao Yan had never seen Luo Xianzhi so serious, nor had he ever heard Luo Xianzhi say those corrupt scholarly words. In his impression, Luo Xianzhi was a ruler with extremely sharp means and extraordinary talents, and was the best successor to Luo Youzhi.
But now, Luo Xianzhi, whom he had never seen before, appeared in front of him. Xiao Yan suddenly knew what "my heart is bright" meant. This phrase was probably used for people like Luo Xianzhi.
His methods were so sharp, even cruel, that when facing political opponents, he basically swept them away like chopping melons and vegetables, killing or exiling countless people without hesitation.
But his heart is so bright, just as he said just now, there is an ideal in it.
Xiao Yan said with emotion: "I once had a minister like Qingyun, and now I have a minister like you, Lingxiu. I am probably the luckiest person.
I hope that you and I can always work together, just like that."
that's all.
————
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, people generally believed that it was General Cao Lin of the Wei State who murdered Emperor Dao of Wei, Cao Mao. We know that this is not the case, but Cao Lin, as a regicide, was not punished, and his son even took advantage of this to become regent. This set a very bad example, and everyone has to admit that a new round of moral collapse began from then on.
What I am concerned about is that in a classic book of the time, there is a passage recorded by an eyewitness: "At that time, Cao Chengsi said: 'The Luo family is gone, there is no way to revive it, and the history has changed, that's all.' I sighed but could not speak."
Such a feeling proves that the occurrence of this vicious incident is inextricably linked to the disappearance of the Luo family. Reverence has been lost and morality has collapsed! ——"The Fission of the Xia Dynasty: After the Disappearance of the Luo Family"
(End of this chapter)
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