Chapter 831 The Fucking World of the Grassroots Troupe
The sunlight shone into the Yan Kingdom's palace, but it did not bring the slightest warmth to the emperor. He looked at Murong Ke being carried out, and felt that what was leaving him was not just a regent, but everything.
He couldn't help but recall that when he was still a child, his father brought this uncle, who actually had no blood relationship with him, to his side.
Tell yourself that you must treat this Uncle Wang with respect in the future.
At that time, he didn't quite understand these things. He just thought that this uncle king was extremely handsome. Later, this uncle king took him to court.
As he grew up, the voices of people around him gradually increased. Some people praised Murong Ke, saying that he was the reincarnation of King Luo Wen and that he was the hope of the country.
Some people said that he was a powerful official who had seized power from them. Such voices became more and more numerous, especially from his mother, who often spoke ill of her uncle.
The emperor was somewhat thankful that his father had given him a relatively smart brain. He could feel Murong Ke's kindness towards him, so he responded to this kindness. Faced with a dilemma, he was still able to make a relatively fair judgment.
Without greatly affecting the imperial power.
The emergence and rise of Murong Chui was the fundamental reason for the rift in his relationship with Murong Ke. He inevitably began to think about who was more important to Murong Ke, himself or Murong Chui.
The emperor really wanted to be the more important person, but whether he was thinking rationally or irrationally, there was only one answer, and that was that Murong Chui was the person Murong Ke was closer to.
This was the reason why Murong Chui was asked to divide Shaanxi and Guanxi.
So he subconsciously did not stop the Queen Mother from asking Murong Ke to swear the Luo River Oath, but now he has to suffer the consequences.
The great and supreme Goddess Luo treats everyone fairly.
…
The warm sunshine sprinkled on Murong Ke, but he didn't feel anything. This man who was highly praised by everyone in Yan State and all other countries, at this moment, had confusion in his eyes.
Just now in the palace, the emperor listened to his last words very seriously, but this did not make Murong Ke happy, because people in this world always fail to do what is right when they know it.
What will happen between the emperor and Murong Chui in the future?
Will there be a shocking war? Will the current Yan State collapse directly? Murong Ke once thought about this question, and the final conclusion was that it would.
But he didn't want a brutal war to break out between the emperor and Murong Chui.
He hoped that the victory or defeat of Guandong and Guanxi could be left to the next generation, so that the foundation of Yan State would not be destroyed. If such a day really came, he hoped that after all other countries were destroyed, only Yan State would remain.
As for his own death, he didn't think it was a big deal. Who in this world can be immortal?
…
In the palace, the emperor saw that Murong Ke's voice and shadow had completely disappeared, so he slowly turned back to the palace, and then met his mother, the Queen Mother of Yan, again.
The Queen Mother of Yan could feel the emperor's emotions. She was about to say something, but just as she opened her mouth, she fell down right in front of the emperor.
The world was spinning, everything was going black, and blood was flowing from the corners of my mouth. It was horrifying.
The emperor, who was somewhat dissatisfied with the empress dowager, was stunned. This sudden change made all the eunuchs and maids in the hall stunned. Then the emperor roared, "Go and call the imperial physician!"
Hearing the hurried footsteps running outside, the emperor felt cold all over and sweat dripped down his face. He looked at the empress dowager lying on the ground and rushed over to help her up. The empress dowager of Yan was completely unconscious and her face turned from rosy to pale in a short time.
This extremely strange thing made the emperor involuntarily think of those rumors. He became more and more frightened. Was this the punishment of God?
…
The news that the Queen Mother of Yan had fainted in the palace and died within just one day swept across the entire Jicheng. Almost everyone was dumbfounded. When Murong Ke returned to Jicheng before, almost everyone thought that the Queen Mother would probably win the struggle between Murong Ke and the Queen Mother.
Political struggle is quite simple. The one who survives to the end will be the winner. When it is impossible to destroy the opponent physically, longevity is the greatest weapon.
But no one could have imagined that the Queen Mother would die before Murong Ke.
Murong Ke has come to this point, and the Queen Mother was still so normal a few days ago. At this time, rumors are naturally flying everywhere.
One of the rumors that is most widely accepted is that the Luoshui Oath was actually made by two people. The Queen Mother forced Murong Ke to make this oath, and she herself was also included in this oath. However, her health and luck were not as good as Murong Ke's. As a result, Murong Ke was able to survive, while the Queen Mother died suddenly.
This speculation makes sense and is very consistent with people's imagination of gods, so almost everyone believes it to be the truth.
Many people in Jicheng secretly applauded, thinking that this was truly retribution.
Murong Ke's followers were already somewhat desperate. Once Murong Ke died, even if they were protected by the emperor, many of them would probably be demoted. After all, the emperor sometimes could not go against the wishes of the empress dowager.
But who could have thought that there is always light at the end of the tunnel? The old witch, the Queen Mother, is also dead. Now in the State of Yan, no one can stop the emperor. If it was only the emperor who was in power, then everyone would be back to the same starting line.
…
Murong Ke was lying on the bed. When he heard the news of the Queen Mother's death, he said with some regret: "The country has lost a virtuous queen. Your Majesty, please accept my condolences."
After the messenger left, Murong Ke, despite his weak body, couldn't help but burst into laughter.
His voice was full of satisfaction. The Queen Mother died, leaving behind Murong Chui and the Emperor, both of whom had been taught by him. As long as the two of them remained rational, they could prevent internal strife in the State of Yan.
What he was most worried about was that the Queen Mother would lead the Emperor and Murong Chui into hostility. He felt somewhat happy in his heart, and even his complexion looked much better. He could even loudly ask the servants to prepare him a full meal.
His wife came in with food and called Murong Ke's name, but got no response. She stood there in a daze, crying bitterly.
…
When the news of Murong Ke's death reached the palace, the emperor was silent. In one day, he lost his mother and Murong Ke, who was like a father to him. Who in the world could be sadder than him?
But the person has passed away, so the affairs after death must be taken care of, especially Murong Ke's posthumous title, which is quite crucial as it concerns Murong Ke's posthumous reputation.
With the supervision of Emperor Suwang, the selection of posthumous titles is basically quite fair. No one has encountered any problems in this regard so far, but this is basically the case. There is still room for manipulation in the posthumous titles.
Sometimes it is impossible to express a person's achievements and mistakes so clearly, and there is always room for ambiguity, and the same is true for posthumous titles.
Murong Ke's contributions to the State of Yan were quite great, and he could be given any posthumous title. If the emperor did not give him a posthumous title like Wenwu at this time, it would form a political trend, and the emperor would be dissatisfied with Murong Ke.
After being recommended by his ministers and finally approved by the emperor, Murong Ke was given the posthumous title of "Wen". In history books, he could be called "King Wen of Taiyuan", which was regarded as the emperor's recognition of Murong Ke as the Little King Wen.
After deciding on the posthumous title, the emperor ordered it to be sent to Guanzhong, "so that everyone in the entire Yan State would know about this and know that my most trusted minister had passed away."
Sending him to Guanzhong let Murong Chui know that the posthumous reputation he gave to Murong Ke was a move to ease the relationship. He still remembered what Murong Ke said before his death.
As long as he does not force Murong Chui to rebel, Murong Chui will not rebel.
He believed in Murong Ke's judgment, so he made this gesture of goodwill.
…
When Murong Chui received the letter from Jicheng, he was dressed in mourning clothes and almost fainted from grief.
When he was born, Murong Chengguang passed away shortly afterwards. From childhood to adulthood, it was basically Murong Ke who raised him and taught him various military tactics, etc. In the end, it was Murong Ke who took him to the battlefield.
He heard that in the early Han Dynasty, there was a Marquis of Guanjun Huo Qubing, who was favored by Emperor Wu of Han. So when attacking the Huns, Emperor Wu of Han always gave him the best soldiers. Emperor Wu of Han made a great contribution to Huo Qubing's achievements.
The same was true when he was under Murong Ke's command. He was able to achieve various achievements so smoothly. Murong Ke handled all the problems for him and he only needed to command the battle. At least half of the credit should belong to Murong Ke.
People often say that parents who love their children will have long-term plans for them. Murong Ke taught him almost everything he knew and gave him so much help. Murong Chui was not blindly loyal, but he knew how to repay a favor. Since Murong Ke treated him like this, it was impossible for him to have any other ideas.
Facing the emperor's show of goodwill, he said in a deep voice: "Please ask the envoy to report to your majesty. I will be in Guanzhong, guarding Xichui for Dayan. If your majesty gives the order, I am willing to charge into battle for your majesty, whether it is Shuzhong or Heluo, I am willing to lead the charge."
These words are actually very simple.
Guanzhong borders Shuzhong and Heluo, both of which are territories of Liang State. Murong Chui was originally planning to attack these two lands in order to make the Guanxi Xingtai more powerful, but the meaning of his words was also very clear. He would not be independent. As long as the emperor did not do anything, he would always be a subject of Dayan.
Let’s talk about the future later. He will follow Murong Ke’s last wish and not become the sinner who splits the Yan State.
Murong Chui could not see that Wang Meng, Yang Cheng and others under his command were looking thoughtful and avoiding Murong Chui's gaze. Sometimes, subordinates would really push their masters to do things.
The emperor received this reply. Although he was still somewhat dissatisfied, these things were within his expectations.
He was the emperor and owned the entire land east and north of the Yellow River. Murong Chui was no match for him. One day, when Guandong was completely unified, Murong Chui or his son would have to come to Jicheng and truly submit to the emperor.
…
Liang State had been paying close attention to what was happening in Yan State. Murong Ke died as expected, which made Xiao Yan overjoyed. He didn't expect that the opponent who could defeat him would actually die like this.
On the one hand, he was delighted and wanted to start a war again to completely integrate Qingzhou and Yanzhou. On the other hand, he was nervous. It seemed that the Luoshui Oath could not be touched at all in the future. The conditions for activating this oath were really too harsh.
If you are infected, your life will be shortened. This vow should never be made unless it is absolutely necessary.
Luo Xianzhi felt a little sad when he learned that Murong Ke had died, but Liang State had eliminated a powerful enemy, which was a very joyful thing.
Of course he could guess that before his death, Murong Ke must have made some efforts to prevent a war from breaking out between the Emperor of Yan and Murong Chui.
but.
It's almost as if nothing happened.
There is a saying in official circles that a county magistrate is not as good as an incumbent manager. When a person is in office, he is the boss. Once he leaves, he becomes worthless in an instant. If he can still exert influence, it is only because he has other support.
If this is the case for an official position, let alone life and death.
As the saying goes, when people leave, the tea gets cold. This is the reality of the world.
The brief peace between Murong Chui and the emperor was maintained by Murong Ke, but as time went by, this trust would gradually fade, not to mention that Luo Xianzhi would take the initiative to use spies.
For someone who is good at power struggles, it would be too easy to provoke the relationship between Murong Chui and the emperor to a point where it is difficult to maintain.
He had ten thousand ways in his mind that could make Murong Chui and the Emperor of Yan fight each other, and then completely divide Yan into two factions, and even cause a civil war.
But no matter what the outcome is, Liang State will be the one that benefits in the end. Who says that the Southern Expedition to the North will definitely fail?
Is there anything absolutely strong in this world?
Strong and weak can be converted into each other.
Although Liang State cannot become stronger, as long as it makes other countries more chaotic, it is equivalent to Liang State becoming stronger. This is called the theory of relativity of national power.
When Luo Xianzhi was thinking about how to completely tear the Yan Kingdom apart, a retainer suddenly ran in and shouted, "Master, something bad has happened. Something has happened to His Majesty and the Crown Prince."
The emperor, the prince, something happened?
When these three words came together, Luo Xianzhi immediately felt something was wrong and asked quickly, "What happened?"
The retainer quickly said, "I heard that the prince cursed the emperor, using some witchcraft or something like that, and then when the emperor went to dig, he really dug it out."
Witchcraft?
Luo Xianzhi was completely stunned. He thought it would be a political discord, but he didn't expect it to be this kind of shamanic technique.
He immediately knew that this was a very big deal, and it was very likely that Liang would split before Yan was separated. He had to rush back to Jianye City immediately.
…
In Jianye City, the common people had not felt it yet, but the nobles and officials had already roughly known what had happened through a lot of gossip.
The relationship between Xiao Yan and Xiao Tong has always been relatively harmonious. Xiao Tong's position as the crown prince is quite stable. Xiao Yan has never thought of changing the crown prince. He is quite satisfied with his son. Although he always said to the outside world that he did not have an outstanding son, although Xiao Tong was not good at fighting, he was good at civil administration.
Luo Xianzhi was very clear about this, so he never paid attention to the issue of the crown prince. As long as Xiao Yan did not think of deposing the eldest son and enthroning the youngest, then there would be no problem.
But no one expected that problems would arise as time went by.
The biggest problem was that Xiao Yan was old. There were very few people who could take life and death lightly. Even those emperors with great talent and strategy were worried about their own death. Xiao Yan was not a particularly talented emperor. He could only be said to be good at fighting wars and using people.
Of course he was afraid of death, especially since he was a devout Buddhist. As he grew older, he believed more and more in supernatural things.
When some of Xiao Yan's favorite concubines died, he asked the prince to find land for their burial. Since it was a task assigned by Xiao Yan, Xiao Tong chose the land very seriously. Later, after a series of transactions, Xiao Tong got a piece of land. However, a Taoist priest said that this land was not good for Xiao Yan's cause, so Xiao Yan changed it for another piece of land.
However, Xiao Tong believed that spending so much money to buy a piece of poor quality land was a sign that someone was enriching themselves and deceiving the emperor, but he did not know what to do and could only listen to Xiao Yan's ideas. Xiao Yan knew that Xiao Tong was unhappy, and he was also a little unhappy, thinking that Xiao Tong was unfilial to him.
Things should have ended here.
But no.
Another alchemist told Xiao Tong that this piece of land was not favorable to him and that he must use some means to seal it off. Xiao Tong then followed the alchemist's advice and used some objects to suppress it, but he didn't know that this was a trap.
It can only be said that Xiao Yan and Xiao Tong are truly father and son. They are almost unanimous in their belief in gods and ghosts. Xiao Tong's reasons are understandable. After all, most people in this world, even if they don't believe in gods and ghosts, would rather believe in the theories of feng shui and luck.
But Xiao Yan actually believed that this was done by the prince, which was outrageous.
…
Of course, Luo Xianzhi was not clear about the details, but after just hearing the general outline of what happened, he knew that someone must be framing the prince.
This method is simply too crude.
He hurried into the palace and saw the furious Xiao Yan. When Xiao Yan saw Luo Xianzhi, before he could say anything, Luo Xianzhi said, "Your Majesty, please calm down first."
Xiao Yan said angrily: "How can I calm down? I will give him the throne in the future, but he cursed me. Is this right?"
"Of course not."
Luo Xianzhi shook his head and said, "So the prince did not curse you."
Xiao Yan said angrily: "Lingxiu, the evidence is irrefutable. Those strange things were buried by that rebellious son himself. He himself admitted it. I don't want to see him again.
I called you back because I don't trust anyone else. There must be someone else behind this matter. Please help me investigate what exactly happened.
If they are really a group of traitors, we must root them out completely."
The last bit of rationality Xiao Yan had was that he did not kill the prince directly, but waited for Luo Xianzhi, whom he trusted, to come back and investigate the matter. This made Luo Xianzhi feel slightly relieved, at least the situation had not reached an irreversible point.
If a prince is killed, the turmoil caused to the country will be unimaginable. Once the prince dies, what is the most important thing next?
No doubt!
Of course, a new prince will be chosen.
Big problems suddenly arose as to who to choose as the crown prince, where to choose, and what criteria to use. Moreover, there were no particularly outstanding talents among Xiao Yan's remaining sons.
At that time, Liang State still wanted to attack the north?
Are you still thinking of taking advantage of the civil unrest in Yan to rob people?
At that time, it would be good enough for Liang State to be able to protect itself.
Luo Xianzhi absolutely could not allow such a thing to happen that would destroy the efforts of two generations of himself and his father, so he hurried back. After hearing what Xiao Yan said, Luo Xianzhi immediately said, "Your Majesty, you are the father of the prince, don't you know your son?
The prince has a good reputation among the scholars of Liang State. Although he is not good at martial arts, he is outstanding in literary talent, kind and righteous. He has always been very filial to Your Majesty, and the relationship between father and son has always been relatively harmonious. How could the prince suddenly curse you?
I have read history and found that this kind of thing of alienating royal fathers and sons has happened more than once in history, all for ulterior motives, and most monarchs fell into the trap.
It is because those monarchs are too worried about losing their power, but Your Majesty, you don't have to worry. I have read thousands of years of history and have never heard of a monarch who holds military power being deposed.
As for the art of exorcism?
Do you really believe it?
I am from the Luo family, and I can tell you with confidence that there may be gods in this world, but gods are gods and humans are humans. As a monarch, as long as you are upright, no magic tricks can hurt you.
I believe that someone must be framing the prince, someone must be deliberately trying to alienate your majesty and the prince."
Luo Xianzhi's long exhortation made Xiao Yan hesitate. He still had great trust in Luo Xianzhi. "Is it really as you said, Lingxiu? But why didn't the rebellious son speak?
Could he really be up to something?"
Luo Xianzhi knew that Xiao Yan was already somewhat shaken. From Xiao Yan's heart, he did not want this to happen. Luo Xianzhi said: "Your Majesty, if you really want to put the blame on the prince, the foundation of Liang will definitely be shaken.
At that time, all the efforts made by my father until now will be in vain. How can you accomplish the great cause of unifying the world for the State of Liang?
If the so-called art of exorcism can change the fate of a country, it is really too much of a joke.
Every monarch cannot be changed by mere piety. I will go and talk to the Crown Prince.
I guess those alchemists were deliberately plotted by someone behind the scenes, Your Majesty, please calm down."
Xiao Yan calmed down and said with emotion: "Lingxiu, I leave this matter to you. Alas, if I don't call you back, I might make a big mistake."
Luo Xianzhi hurriedly left the emperor's palace and went to the East Palace. The guards here were extremely strict, and all of them were fully armed soldiers. It was obvious that Xiao Yan had sent people to imprison Xiao Tong here.
In fact, it was quite difficult for Xiao Yan to restrain himself from killing Xiao Tong in this matter. Many cold-blooded kings would kill their own sons just because of slander without caring about anything else.
After Luo Xianzhi entered the palace, he saw the pale-faced prince. Prince Xiao Tong was originally a scholar, and after experiencing this incident, he felt extremely ashamed and angry. He never expected that the trust between him and his father would be so fragile.
"Your Highness."
Seeing Luo Xianzhi approaching, Xiao Tong returned the greeting and said sadly: "My Lord, did my father ask you to kill me?"
Luo Xianzhi shook his head and said, "Your Highness is His Majesty's biological son. How could His Majesty kill you?"
Parent-child?
Xiao Tong sneered bitterly, "Because of the slander of the traitor, I am imprisoned here, with my life and death out of my control. Is this family love?"
Luo Xianzhi said seriously: "Your Highness, have you never heard that there is no family affection in the royal family? Your Majesty is able to pay attention to this, which is already quite difficult. Your Highness must change this mentality and see the love that His Majesty has for you.
Your Majesty asked me to come here to investigate this matter. I believe that Your Highness is completely unaware of this and has no intention of harming Your Majesty. After my persuasion, Your Majesty now also believes that Your Highness is innocent.
But there must be someone who is not innocent in this matter. I have already taken away the person who spoke to Your Majesty. What about those who instructed Your Highness?
I want to take these people away and see who is behind this. I can only say that they are worthy of death.”
Listening to Luo Xianzhi's words, Xiao Tong probably knew what Luo Xianzhi was going to do. He did not directly say the man's name, but asked: "Jun Gong, why do you trust me so much? I remember that you and I have no friendship, and it is not worth it for you to protect me so much, even in front of the emperor. At that time, the emperor must have been very angry."
Luo Xianzhi said softly: "I still have some knowledge of people, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is not that kind of person.
and.
Even if I am wrong, the Crown Prince is the foundation of the country, and you, the Crown Prince, are indispensable to Daliang. You must be innocent, no matter what the facts are. "
These words rang in Xiao Tong's ears like loud bells and drums. He felt as if he had recognized the most important minister of Daliang again. The shock he felt from this minister was beyond words.
No matter what the facts are, some things have only one outcome!
This was contrary to what Xiao Tong had learned, but it sounded so correct, especially after Xiao Tong had experienced this.
He felt more and more that his previous views might not be correct. Something changed in him and he felt deeply ashamed of this matter.
"County Lord, I'll leave this matter to you. You are really the pillar of Daliang, just like the previous county Lord. No wonder my father trusts you."
Xiao Tong bowed deeply and greeted Luo Xianzhi with unprecedented courtesy.
Luo Xianzhi stood.
————
Meat eaters are vulgar and cannot plan for the long term. This is indeed the truth of heaven and earth. Serve your king as you would your son and think of others as you would think of fools. Only if you are like this as a prime minister can you accomplish great things. - Essays on Governance
(End of this chapter)
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