Chapter 373 Clothes...
"Are you crazy?"
Chunyu Jia never expected that after Liu Yang met Liu Yu, he would suddenly say after summoning them together that he wanted to put the emperor under house arrest and summon Qiao Yan to Chang'an with the emperor's decree to execute him.
"Do you know how serious a crime it is to imprison the emperor?"
That's treason!
However, when he looked at Liu Yang, he realized that what Liu Yang said at this time was actually a serious statement!
If his previous attitude towards Qiao Yan was more inclined towards childish hatred, then what he showed at this moment was a sense of determination to fight to the death.
Crazy, really crazy!
If Wang Yun had not been sitting there steadily, Chunyu Jia would have begun to consider whether he should run away.
It is not terrible if the heir of a dynasty is incompetent, as long as he is not autocratic. At most, he will hand over the affairs in his hands to others. But if he is a madman, and a madman who may drag others into the water at any time, then he is completely doomed.
"I'm not crazy." Liu Yang replied calmly, "After my father called me today and asked me to promise that I would never be an enemy of the Grand Marshal and never have any unfriendly thoughts towards her, I knew that if I wanted to make my father realize that Qiao Yeshu was up to no good and that she was not a minister that he could control, I was afraid there was no hope."
"The only thing I can do is to put my father under house arrest before his illness gets better. I will use my father's name to completely seize control of Chang'an and turn it into a prison that can trap Qiao Yeshu."
Liu Yang spoke faster, "Doctor Chunyu, if I could have gained my father's trust through some performance, and then taken action against her in the name of orthodox elimination of thieves, why would I choose such a dangerous path!"
He was forced to take an unconventional approach because he had no other way to go!
His father still remembered Qiao Yan's life-saving grace to him, and he also regarded the military achievements accumulated by Qiao Yan in the past few years as more important than the future of the Han Dynasty. After he became confused due to illness, he was not easily persuaded by him, and he forced him to make such a promise.
In Liu Yang's opinion, Liu Yu was restricted by his good-natured temper, and sooner or later he would destroy the foundation of the Han Dynasty because of such behavior!
But it doesn't matter.
Since my father can't do it, let him do it instead.
"I advise you to think twice before you act." Wang Yun suddenly interrupted, "Don't forget that there was a negative example in Yizhou last year."
Less than two years ago, Liu Zhang of Yizhou, with the support of Zhao Wei and others, attempted to seize the position of Yizhou Mu left by Liu Yan.
But before their plan could succeed and they could completely seize the power in Yizhou while Liu Yan was critically ill, they had already encountered Qiao Yan's divine troops descending from the sky via Yinping Road.
What happened next was beyond their control.
After Liu Yan died of illness and Liu Zhang passed away, the entire Yizhou did not so much fall under the rule of the Dongzhou scholars again as it became Qiao Yan's grain producing area.
Liu Yang intended to seize Liu Yu's power in an attempt to obtain a position close to that of the emperor in advance, and then have the capital to confront Qiao Yan. He seemed to be no different from Liu Zhang at that time.
No, there are some differences.
Liu Zhang was in Yizhou, a place with little information, and had the support of local people in Yizhou, but he still ended up with such a result. Liu Yang's conditions were even worse than Liu Zhang's. After all, there were many people in Chang'an who supported Qiao Yan. How could he guarantee that he could be more successful than Liu Zhang?
Wang Yun's warning made Liu Yang's expression change suddenly for a moment, but perhaps it was because the promise Liu Yu asked him to make today had completely cut off his retreat, or perhaps it was because he had no choice but to fight hard under the pressure of dying if he failed, and his brain was working at a rare higher speed at this moment.
He shouted back, "No! My situation is very different from Liu Jiyu's!"
"Qiao Yeshu's attack on Shuzhong was supported by my father, who represented the orthodoxy of the Han Dynasty. Liu Junlang was appointed as the governor of Yizhou and the general by my father. Therefore, when Liu Jiyu seized power without authorization and intended to establish his own regime when his father was seriously ill, he was conquered by Qiao Yeshu. In fact, it was the Han Dynasty's royal army that was clearing out local rebels."
"But if I were to carry out the emperor's decree and want to eliminate the Grand Marshal, as long as I was fast enough and could portray her counterattack as a treasonous act, then everyone in the court and the country who is loyal to the Han Dynasty would be our helpers. I only want to eliminate the thief and quell the rebellion, which would be enough to capture Qiao Yan's followers."
"Why did Wang Situ say that we should take this precedent as a warning?"
What surprised Liu Yang was that after he finished his reasons for rebuttal, Wang Yun not only did not refute his remarks, but smiled and said, "Your Highness, you are right. Liu Jiyu is a traitor, and Qiao Yeshu, who held the emperor in his hands at that time, was a loyal minister who obeyed the imperial edict to fight against the traitor. But now, you are the orthodox one, and Qiao Yeshu..."
"But he turned from a loyal minister into a traitor."
"Your Highness, please remember this advantage you have, as it is also our confidence."
Liu Yang was immediately delighted by Wang Yun's firm stance at this moment.
He didn't even care that Chun Yujia was not as active in giving him advice as he was a few days ago, but instead approached Wang Yun and asked, "So, Situ Wang, do you think my plan is feasible?"
After all, Wang Yun was in a position of one of the Three Dukes. Regardless of whether Qiao Yan wanted to take sole control of the situation in Chang'an City, it was impossible for him to let Wang Yun be completely sidelined.
If Wang Yun wanted to find an official to secretly win over, he could directly summon that person on the pretext of holding a meeting at the Three Dukes' Palace. This would be much safer than Liu Yang doing it based on his status as a prince.
It was also because of this that Wang Yun did not turn around and leave at this time, but followed Liu Yang's footsteps. In Liu Yang's view, it was no different from helping someone in need.
But if Wang Yun were to speak, many of his thoughts were selfish.
If Qiao Yan really wanted to rebel against the Han Dynasty and establish himself as the emperor, Wang Yun's current position in the court would never be inherited by the new dynasty. His personal honor and disgrace were closely tied to the rise and fall of his family, so he could not lose his current position.
When printing was first introduced, Wang Yun had already realized that the aristocratic families were losing their unique status.
Zhong Changtong's words further intensified his judgment. Whether it was the fact that it was printed as a "classic" or the various arguments contained therein, Wang Yun vaguely glimpsed Qiao Yan's intention, which was revealed even though he did not state it explicitly.
If we have different ideals, we cannot work together!
It wasn’t that Liu Yang suddenly emerged and showed the potential to become a wise ruler, but that Wang Yun could not see a future in Qiao Yan.
Liu Yang has no way out, so what about him?
Of course Chun Yujia didn’t have any!
When Wang Yun made this decision, he temporarily suppressed his original intention to leave, and listened to Wang Yun saying: "If we directly say that Your Highness's plan is feasible, it would be too much to underestimate Qiao Yan and ignore her undefeated record in the past few years."
Hearing the words “invincible”, Liu Yang’s expression, which had just been getting more and more excited, paused.
No one wants to face such an opponent, and Liu Yang is no exception.
Unfortunately, they are destined to be enemies!
He smiled bitterly and said, "Situ Wang probably didn't mean to use this sentence to make me back down."
"Of course not," Wang Yun replied, "I just want to analyze with Your Highness how many resources you have."
"Earlier, I considered Lu Zigan to be your helper. I really overestimated him. Now that he is old and retired, it is indeed difficult for us to use him. This time, I will only use the most conservative method to evaluate him."
Seeing Liu Yang's gesture, Wang Yun continued, "We can even put Yuan Zixu aside for now. After the previous raid on Zhangjin in Jiaozhou, Liu Jingsheng of Jingzhou will certainly pay more attention to any disturbance in Jingzhou. Once Yuan Zixu leads his troops from Nanyang to Wuguan, Liu Jingsheng will definitely find out."
Liu Yang was very depressed, but he could only nod and agree with Wang Yun's judgment.
In the absence of any evidence, based on Qiao Yan's performance over the years, even with Zhong Changtong's counterattack against the celestial phenomena, he could not directly label Qiao Yan a traitor and force Liu Biao to obey Liu Yang's orders.
Perhaps Liu Biao would feel that there was a more favorable outcome for him, that is, Liu Yang in the capital would plot against Qiao Yan, and he would defect to the latter and become the one to replace Liu Yu and sit on the throne of the emperor.
He has always been in awe of Qiao Yan, and perhaps he would report their actions directly to Qiao Yan as soon as he received the news.
Informing on others would do him no harm but good, so why not do it?
There is also a thoroughfare from Nanyang to Yingchuan and then north to Luoyang. The speed of reporting the news is extremely fast, and it is very likely that it will get ahead of their calculations.
In this case, Liu Yang cannot take this risk.
Wang Yun saw Liu Yang's anger and said with a smile, "Your Highness, why are you so depressed? Our situation is not that bad."
"It goes without saying that the Grand Commandant Huangfu Yizhen, one of the Three Dukes, is loyal to the Han Dynasty. Although he has a personal relationship with Qiao Ye and Shu Zhuo, if he had to choose between the Han Dynasty and this close friend, he would not have made the wrong choice. If he had a rebellious heart, he could have done so as early as after the Yellow Turban Rebellion when he was persuaded by his subordinates to rise up against Emperor Xiaoling and establish himself as the emperor."
"And Huangfu Yizhen is from Liangzhou. With the status of the Guanxi family, it would not be difficult for Your Highness to persuade him. It is even possible that after capturing Qiao Yeshu, Huangfu Yizhen will be allowed to take charge of Liangzhou and put down the rebellion in the north as soon as possible."
"Sikong Huang Ziyan and I have a good relationship. If Your Highness believes that I, Wang Yun, still have some skills in speaking, you can let me be the one to persuade Huang Ziyan to help us."
How could Huang Wan and Wang Yun not be considered to have a good relationship?
But that was four years ago when we lost our friendship with Liu Xie.
But Liu Yang obviously didn't pay attention to so many things at the moment. He just followed Wang Yun's words and there was only one piece of news in his mind -
If Wang Yun’s words were followed, these three ministers would all stand on his side!
He was a little worried at first. If he held his father hostage and issued an imperial decree, the number of people he could mobilize would be too small, and the situation in his hands might get out of control at any time.
In particular, it was still barely understandable that his father was not taking care of state affairs due to a serious illness, but if he disappeared from the public eye for too long, it would definitely be a flaw that would make it difficult for Qiao Yan to join the game.
But if Huangfu Song, Wang Yun and Huang Wan could all stand on his side, let alone setting up a plan to lure Qiao Yan back, it would not be difficult to let him handle state affairs on behalf of his father and exercise the power of regent before Liu Yu recovered!
He asked hesitantly and hopefully, "Is Wang Situ really so sure?"
At this moment, how could he still think of Yuan Yao, whom he had high hopes for?
With Huangfu Song around, Yuan Yao is nothing!
Wang Yun replied, "I am at least 70% sure, but when I need Your Highness to speak, you must insist that you do have some evidence of Qiao Yeshu's crime, so you want to confront her face to face in Chang'an City."
He repeated: "Confrontation, not eradication. This will greatly increase his chances of commanding troops to help."
Liu Yang quickly wrote it down, "What else?"
"In addition, please ask Commander Xianyu, who Your Highness has already contacted, to persuade the Jinwu Guard to serve you when necessary. Things have become so urgent that the Xianyu brothers who belong to Your Majesty should consider whether they can be reused under your leadership or promoted under Qiao Yeshu."
"But if the Guards are not useful to you, then order Commandant Xianyu to arrest his brother immediately and have him mobilize the Jinwu Guards on your behalf."
Liu Yang gritted his teeth and replied: "If this is really the case, then we have no choice but to do so."
It is not necessarily true that the brothers Xian Yu Fu and Xian Yu Yin had a friendship of life and death.
After Liu Yu ascended the throne, Xianyu Fu was ranked as one of the Nine Ministers, holding the position of Weiwei, and even in charge of the Jinwu Guard. His status was much higher than that of his younger brother Xianyu Yin.
If Xian Yuyin were to take his place, he probably wouldn't have any objections.
Wang Yun: "You Fufeng is now under the command of Your Highness, and is much easier for Your Highness to command than the troops in Nanyang."
After Wei Ji followed Qiao Yan to Youfufeng, this position was taken over by Shisun Rui, which can indeed be regarded as Liu Yang's power.
"As for the armed forces, there is another person. I think he can be used by Your Highness after living in Chang'an for more than half a year."
In the blueprint outlined by Wang Yun, from Huangfu Song to Xianyu Yin, with the emperor's Jinwu Guard inside and Shisun Rui outside, it was enough to form a team to take control of the city of Chang'an if they were well prepared.
Liu Yang was now much more confident than before, and his uneasy heart had long since settled down. When he heard Wang Yun say "I've lived in Chang'an for more than half a year", he immediately reacted. "You mean Liu Xuande?"
Earlier, Chunyu Jia had told Liu Yang not to make any moves to win over Liu Bei without any preparation.
At that time, Xuzhou had just been settled, and there was no way Liu Bei would be without Qiao Yan's spies by his side.
As a prisoner who was escorted to Chang'an because of the people's plea, although he had already held a position in the Zongzhengsi, his status was completely different from that of ordinary prisoners of war, but it was highly likely that he would not work for Liu Yang just because of a few words.
But now...
According to what Wang Yun said, it seems that he can already be contacted?
"There is nothing suspicious about Liu Xuande's performance in the Ministry of Imperial Clan Affairs over the past six months. In order to spread Chang Yan's theory, Qiao Yan must have focused most of his attention on this matter. Even if he was really alert to the unusual movements in Chang'an, he should have alerted us instead of Liu Xuande."
"Your Majesty is seriously ill, but the Grand Marshal's position is becoming increasingly stable and his attitude is becoming more aggressive. It is a critical moment for the survival of the Han Dynasty. In my opinion, Liu Xuande is not a person who would rather survive than care about the Han Dynasty. If Your Majesty appeals to him with reason and justice, he will definitely be able to be used by Your Majesty."
"And the most important thing is that he has Guan Yu by his side."
In Wang Yun's opinion, Qiao Yan was indeed too arrogant.
A few months after sending Liu Bei to Chang'an, she sent Guan Yu from Yangzhou to Chang'an on the grounds that he was the only general by her side and could not cause any trouble, and only sent Guan Ping to Liangzhou to fight as a hostage in her hands.
But if they could go straight to the source and eliminate Qiao Yan, why would they care about her way of holding hostages?
"Your Highness has a prototype of gunpowder that has been researched for more than half, and a large number of Jinwu Guards. If you also have a powerful general like Guan Yunchang, there is no need to worry about not being able to eliminate Qiao Yan after luring him into a trap!"
Wang Yun said calmly, "I have a plan that can be used by Your Highness to contact Liu Xuande and try to win him over. I wonder if Your Highness is willing to give it a try?"
Although Liu Yang felt that no matter how capable Guan Yu was, he would not be much better than a defeated general, but when he heard Wang Yun think so highly of his abilities, and he trusted Wang Yun's judgment, he naturally nodded in approval.
What's more, in this situation where even his biological father felt that he should not be an enemy of Qiao Yan, how could he complain about having few men under his command?
Of course, the more the better.
He quickly replied: "Situ Wang, just say whatever you want. As long as I can achieve my goal, I will definitely give it a try even if it is really difficult."
"That's not so troublesome," Wang Yun waved his hand, "I just need Your Highness to send a few gifts. The New Year is approaching, and it's the perfect time to send gifts."
Yes, the New Year is approaching.
When Zhong Changtong gathered the talented people at Dingzhongguan, it was already the beginning of December. Three or four days had passed before the news spread to Chang'an, allowing Liu Yang, Wang Yun and others to analyze their own advantages.
Although the winter in the north was filled with factory work and land reclamation around Luoyang, it was not so easy to pass quickly. As people read the monthly reports recalling the year and summarizing the experience in fighting disasters and treating diseases, the year quickly came to an end.
The end of the fourth year of Jian'an slipped away quickly in the smoke floating over Luoyang, and in the blink of an eye, the fifth year of Jian'an had arrived.
In order to prevent her subordinates from returning to Luoyang to report their positions to her and gather them together, which would allow people on the borders to take the opportunity to cause chaos, Qiao Yan simply asked those who had submitted applications to return to come in groups of three, and to come every ten days after the seventh day of the first lunar month.
Therefore, on this new year's day on the first day of the first lunar month, the people who could appear before her were those who were already doing business in Luoyang.
Guo Jia carefully put the lucky money for the new year into his purse, thinking that it was a good thing that Qiao Yan had asked Xun Yu and Chen Qun to rectify the law and order in Luoyang, otherwise he would really be worried about whether he could still keep the lucky money in his purse when he walked from Qiao Yan's office to the tavern on the street and then returned to his residence.
Given Qiao Yan's temper, she most likely would not support the substitute.
Just look at Lu Bu's situation and you will know. He has been crying to Qiao Yan for four years, but the prince has never shifted his heart away from Lu Lingju and towards Lu Bu.
Thinking about the report in Luoyang in half a month, there would be a high probability of seeing another chaotic scene. Guo Jia, who was originally a little unhappy about the behavior of those idiots in Chang'an City, now couldn't help laughing.
"Are you in a good mood?" Qiao Yan looked at Guo Jia and waved at him, "Then accompany me to sweep the graves. Drinking less alcohol will help prolong your life."
Guo Jia: “…”
It would be fine if he wasn't allowed to drink, but during activities like tomb sweeping, he had to watch the wine being poured onto the ground for others to drink, which was really infuriating.
But before he could say anything to Qiao Yan and fight for his rights in the New Year, he suddenly realized that Qiao Yan's statement of wanting to visit the grave at this moment was by no means normal behavior.
What graves can she sweep?
Qiao Xuan's tomb is in Leping, not in Luoyang. Her parents' cenotaph is in Yanzhou, and it's not there either.
Likewise, none of her friends, such as Xun Shuang and Fu Xie, were buried in Luoyang.
It can't be that they are going to worship Zhang Rang and others.
Then it seems that there is only one person left.
Guo Jia asked tentatively: "Emperor Xiaoling?"
"Is there any other possibility?" Qiao Yan replied without thinking, "The closest Feng Shui treasure land to this place is only Beimang Mountain."
She raised an eyebrow, "Are you going or not?"
"Go! Of course." Guo Jia replied immediately.
He was not a fool. How could he not see that Qiao Yan's move to visit the tomb of Emperor Ling of Han was definitely not to talk to the emperor about his kindness in promoting her in his early years.
But——
One announcement, one statement.
It was also an act of oath that made herself and her subordinates such as Guo Jia, Cai Zhaoji, and Zhao Yun who were by her side at the moment united in purpose!
The attack horn from the opposite side has not yet been sounded, but Qiao Yan must start sharpening the sword pointing to the throne in Luoyang, which is still immersed in the New Year atmosphere!
"Speaking of Emperor Xiaoling's tomb reminds me of something," Guo Jia said as he walked with Qiao Yan into Beimang Mountain. "One year in the first month of the lunar calendar, your Excellency sent a handful of loess from the tomb to Yecheng as a gift to King Hongnong. It was said that this gift would help relieve the king's homesickness, but in fact, no one could match your ability to tease him. It's a pity that your Excellency was too lazy to deal with this matter this year. Otherwise, I would have liked to see what gift you could give."
Qiao Yan replied, "That's too much trouble. At this point, if I don't send the head of the Jizhou garrison commander, it would be a waste of the annual gift. It would also inevitably lead to people suspecting that I was slandered by the astronomical rumors and had the idea of defecting to another place."
This would do her no good.
"If Fengxiao wants to watch a show, he might as well take a look at this. In Chang'an City, Liu Yang has given out a lot of New Year gifts. But it is said that in order to show his equal attitude, the New Year gifts from all parties are the same."
Cai Zhaoji smiled when she heard this, "This belt is a good gift. I hope all the officials in Chang'an will not be complacent because of the peaceful days in Guanzhong. You should share the joys and sorrows with the people and tighten your belt a little."
Qiao Yan choked and coughed. It was hard to tell whether Zhao Ji learned such teasing words from her.
But when she thought about Liu Yang's gift-giving act, a hint of murderous intent flashed across her eyes.
If this was just an ordinary belt, regardless of whether Liu Yang was promising those who received the gift a future with a golden seal and purple ribbon, or was following Liu Yu's simple tradition, or as Zhao Ji said, it was to make people tighten their belts and purses and reduce fiscal expenditure in the new year, Qiao Yan would not care.
But if this isn't the case, then it's a bit interesting.
Liu Bei was one of those who received the belt as a gift.
When Liu Bei first saw the contents of the gift box, he was stunned for a moment.
As the only son of the current emperor, Liu Yang gave gifts to everyone in the court when the emperor had been ill for several days. No matter how you look at it, this action seemed a little subtle.
The abnormality that Liu Bei had noticed when he just came to Chang'an in March and April had only increased over the past six months. In order to protect himself, Liu Bei had almost no contact with Liu Yang.
Logically speaking, he should not be included in the scope of gift giving.
But Guan Yu immediately told him that Liu Yang's wide-ranging gift-giving was just like he had just opened a belt clothing store in Chang'an City, so there was no need to think too much about it.
If you put it that way, there doesn't seem to be any problem.
But when Liu Bei took the belt out of the gift box, he suddenly realized that there was something wrong with the feel of the belt.
It's too thick!
For an ordinary belt, even if it is used in winter, there is no need to set up the interlayer like this.
On the inside of the belt, there was a loose thread, which should never appear in a gift from a prince.
Liu Bei's eyelids twitched.
The situation before him didn't even require him to make any speculations.
There is clearly another secret in this belt!
But there is no point in returning the belt to Liu Yang now. If so, he will be in trouble because of the act of returning the New Year gift. It would be better to take off the belt and see what the other party wants to say to him.
Liu Bei quickly asked Guan Yu to guard the courtyard tightly, and then took out the short knife at hand and carefully picked up the silk thread inside.
Soon, he took out a piece of cloth hidden in it.
Before the white cloth was unfolded, a hint of crimson color had already appeared, causing Liu Bei to frown subconsciously.
In the silence outside, he placed the cloth on the table and then slowly spread it out.
The twilight of the first day of the first lunar month shone a dim yellow through the closed windows, smearing on the table and cloth in front of him. The color of the cloth was like a ball of blood shattered in the afterglow, and it was hard to tell whether it was blurry or clear.
The moment he saw clearly what was in front of him, Liu Bei's hand trembled subconsciously.
This is not some ordinary secret letter, but clearly a letter written in blood!
A blood letter accusing Qiao Yan of treason and asking for his help!
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