Chapter 384 Liu Xie Returns to Beijing
The Yan-Han dynasty has been passed down for four hundred years. Until now, the people can no longer survive under the rule of this dynasty. This is the fault of those in power.
If Liu Xie had not witnessed such changes in people's livelihood as an ordinary citizen, he might not have been so deeply aware of this point, but there are no ifs in this world.
Just like he would not face the assumption that "if there was no Qiao Yan as a leader to escort him in this world."
He would also not have faced the assumption that "if he had not been robbed by Li Jue and no longer existed as the Son of Heaven."
All he needs to do is to make the most correct choice in the current situation that cannot be changed!
For the sake of the people under his rule, Liu Yu could sentence his own son to death for doing something wrong, or he could write such a self-criticism edict to pave the way for his abdication. Why couldn't he, as the former emperor of the Han Dynasty, hand over the jade seal to the most suitable person?
It's such a difficult decision to make.
When he held the imperial seal in his hand, he couldn't help but have such thoughts in his mind. If he really made such a choice, it would mean that the Han Dynasty would be severed from his hands. It meant that he was looking at the evolution of the world from the standpoint of the people of the world, but not from the standpoint of the Han royal family.
When he returns to earth a hundred years later, how will he explain to his father who chose him as his heir?
Liu Hong might not be a good emperor.
To this day, the legend that he supervised the construction of the bronze man here, which cost the people a lot of money and labor, is still circulating in Luoyang City.
The fire in Nan Palace in the past caused the palace ladies to flee, and some of Liu Hong's actions were spread to the people in a more exaggerated and absurd way. For example, the four white donkeys he rode around the palace and the dogs he dressed in officials' clothes were given more absurd jokes in folk legends.
But he was a good father to Liu Xie.
But now, when Liu Xie made up his mind to give away the imperial seal, he also had to hand over the Han Dynasty that Liu Hong had entrusted to him against all odds.
Liu Xie's fingertips rubbed back and forth on the jade seal and touched the corner of the seal that was wrapped in gold.
It was precisely the special nature of this position that pulled Liu Xie back to his thoughts about the former Emperor Ling of Han.
Qiao Yan is not Wang Mang, the Wang Mang who was smashed by Queen Mother Wang with the imperial seal because of his intention to seize the Han Dynasty's foundation.
Among the various measures she took in dealing with people's livelihood and daily affairs, none was as radical as Wang Mang's.
This is by no means her way of hiding herself before taking a further step.
With all nine provinces in her hands, if she wanted to rely on her own courage in expanding territory and rebuild the rules during the year of natural disasters, there would actually be no one who could effectively stop her.
However, she and the people she leads seem to be taking very steady steps forward.
Therefore, even though Qiao Yan herself was not in Luoyang, the various inheritances and teachings she left behind in Luoyang over the past two years still remained here. Even at this moment, even facing the sudden attacks from Yuan Shao and Cao Cao from two directions, this place was by no means like the turmoil in Luoyang in the early years, where the people were at a loss.
They knew clearly that this was their homeland where they depended for survival and needed to be protected together. They also knew that Xun Yu and others left behind by Qiao Yan, together with the generals guarding the eight passes of Luoyang, would do their utmost to keep the enemy out.
Such a sense of belief was never seen in the latter in the records of the fight between Emperor Guangwu and Wang Mang at the beginning of the establishment of the Later Han Dynasty. Instead, the desire of the world to return to the Han Dynasty became increasingly prominent after Guangwu's restoration.
But now it's different.
Even though Liu Xie was in the house at the moment, he could hear the voices of defending Luoyang gathering in his ears.
This sense of belief should not lie with Liu, but with Grand Marshal Qiao Yan.
Since there was no one in the Liu clan who was capable of turning the tide, the choice he should make was to follow the will of heaven.
He didn't have to hesitate any more.
but……
Liu Xie was facing another problem at this time.
In order to allow them to reunite safely with their adoptive mother, his adoptive father prepared to take him back to Hanzhong when Luoyang was facing war. How could he explain that he did not intend to go back, not because he wanted to fight the enemy together with the people of Luoyang, but because he was once the emperor of the Han Dynasty?
He really didn't want the simple family affection and peaceful life he originally had to be completely destroyed by this action of sending the jade seal to Chang'an.
But it seems that this is a very difficult thing to do.
If he said that he wanted to take part in the defense of Luoyang, his adoptive father would definitely not leave him here alone. By then, who knows what the outcome would be.
If he simply left a letter saying that he would be gone for a few days and would return after finishing his business, his adoptive father would definitely do his best to find him. If anything unexpected happened, he would regret it when he returned.
What should he do?
Liu Xie's eyes flashed, and he suddenly put the jade seal in his arms, jumped up from where he was sitting on the bed, and ran out the door.
Hearing his adoptive father asking him where he was going, Liu Xie replied loudly, "I'll leave later. I want to say goodbye to everyone I met here."
When his adoptive father heard this, he stood still and did not continue to chase after him.
But Liu Xie certainly did not go to say goodbye. He ran straight to a place in Luoyang city.
Due to the various matters involved in the reconstruction of Luoyang, Qiao Yan did not restrict the public from entering the office space he set up in Luoyang, as long as they could come up with a reasonable reason to meet with their superiors.
Each official in Luoyang has his own affairs to supervise, and there will be people to guide visitors before entering this area.
Perhaps because of the battle at the eight passes in Luoyang, most people gathered at the recruiting place. Even if there were any matters that required the officials to be troubled, they all consciously avoided this time. As a result, when Liu Xie arrived here, he did not see many people seeking help here.
It also made his appearance somewhat eye-catching.
Someone immediately came up to him and asked him what he wanted to do.
Liu Xie looked at his subordinates who had not shown any impatience until this moment, and became more determined in his decision.
He said, "Excuse me, is Yang Dezu here? Just tell him that an old friend from the Han Palace is here, and ask him to come out and have a chat."
Old friend from the Han Palace?
It has been almost seven years since Dong Zhuo led his troops to attack Luoyang.
Liu Xie now appeared in front of people like a teenager. Seven years ago, he was probably not even ten years old. How could he be an old acquaintance of the Han Palace who was related to Yang Xiu?
But these officials thought about it and realized that although Yang Xiu had not returned to Chang'an at this time, but was still staying in Luoyang after Zhong Changtong's debate in Dingzhongguan, he was not considered an official in Luoyang in terms of his authority, and was at most an assistant. In this way, while Xun Yu, Wei Ji and others were discussing the northern defense line of Luoyang, Yang Xiu was not so busy.
He can come out and meet guests.
If he really is an old friend of his, it would be a bit regrettable to miss him like this.
"Please wait a moment. I'll have someone pass the message."
Liu Xie didn't have to wait long before he saw Yang Xiu's figure appear in his sight.
The moment the other party saw him, he was stunned for a moment.
But although Liu Xie's appearance was different from a few years ago, the shadow of those years still remained between his eyebrows and eyes. His next action made Yang Xiu's face change drastically, because at this moment, Liu Xie straightened his sleeves, straightened his back, and took two steps forward.
The etiquette of the Han Palace was deeply engraved in Liu Xie's memory. Even after several years of civilian life, it was never completely removed from Liu Xie.
The decency and manners that he developed as a prince made him look like a man wearing jade and gold even though he was wearing the simplest clothes.
There was no way Yang Xiu would mistake such a trait!
Never!
He also suddenly thought of the situation in early December last year.
At that time, he saw a somewhat familiar figure outside the Dingzhong Temple. Ni Heng asked him who he saw that made him dazed. Yang Xiu thought he had seen it wrongly, but at this moment, when he saw Liu Xie personally appear in front of him, he could say with absolute certainty that he was not seeing it wrong at that time.
He hurried over to Liu Xie, pulled him aside, and asked in a low voice, "Why are you here?"
Liu Xie's position as emperor had been taken over by Liu Yu, and because his whereabouts were unknown, he could not be given a posthumous title. This made it difficult for Yang Xiu to call Liu Xie "the late emperor" or "Your Majesty". If he had to say it, he might have to call him Marquis Dong.
After years of fruitless searching and Liu Yu's secure position as Emperor, most people no longer had any hope of ever finding Liu Xie. So when he suddenly appeared before them, even Yang Xiu, who considered himself to be an intelligent and steady man, was almost shocked to the point of dropping his jaw.
What made him even more confused was why Liu Xie did not look like a disheveled person who had just escaped from trouble, but instead looked like he already had a place to stay and just chose to appear in front of him at this moment.
What exactly is he going to do?
Where has he been in these years?
Why didn't he return directly to Chang'an and go before Liu Yu, but instead appeared before Yang Xiu?
But if Liu Xie's sudden appearance was a complete surprise to Yang Xiu, then his next words really shocked Yang Xiu.
"Please take me to Chang'an. I have a gift for the Grand Marshal."
With Yang Xiu's keen sense, it was not difficult to hear the entrustment in the gift that Liu Xie mentioned solemnly. Even if Yang Xiu had not seen the gift that Liu Xie mentioned with his own eyes, he intuitively felt that it would not be a simple thing.
The flash of pain in Liu Xie's eyes made Yang Xiu guess that Liu Xie, who sent this thing away, was facing an extremely difficult decision, which was undoubtedly a loss to the interests of the young man himself.
However, in order to prevent any accidents, Yang Xiu still asked, "I wonder what the gift you are talking about is--"
"Imperial Seal," Liu Xie replied in a firm tone, "Imperial Seal of the State."
"But before I give this thing away, I need you to act out a scene with me."
This scene was not difficult for Yang Xiu.
Liu Xie did not want to reveal his identity as the former emperor of the Han Dynasty in front of his adoptive father. He also needed to be able to temporarily leave Luoyang City for a while and go to Chang'an instead of directly following his adoptive father back to Hanzhong to avoid the war. So he had to have a reasonable enough reason to convince his adoptive father that he had to disappear from his adoptive father's sight for a short period of time without any problem for his life.
After much thought, Liu Xie could only think of one way, which was to let him be suddenly discovered as a genius in academics when he was saying goodbye to his friends before leaving. He could stay temporarily with Yang Xiu before the siege of Luoyang was lifted, and then go to Leping Academy to study after the enemy in the north was repelled.
With Yang Xiu, an official of the Grand Marshal's Mansion, as a witness, his adoptive father would never have any doubts about his actions and would only think that this was a piece of cake.
As for the fact that the adopted son was temporarily staying with Yang Xiu and could not meet him, this was not a problem at all in the face of the possible future.
But after Liu Xie followed Yang Xiu and disappeared from his adoptive father's sight, they left from the other end of the mansion gate without delay and immediately boarded the carriage to Chang'an.
With quick riding, it would only take two days for them to enter Guanzhong and appear in front of Qiao Yan!
Watching Liu Xie walk back into the vortex, his adoptive father couldn't help but show a bit of disappointment on his face. He asked the young man who appeared beside him, "What arrangements will the Lord make for him?"
After so many years of getting along, he already regarded Liu Xie as his own son.
The initial recognition of relatives was indeed a rehearsed drama, but human feelings are the most impossible to fake.
He knew very well that he should not be so emotionally invested, but Liu Xie was indeed a young man that one could not help but dislike.
Although he didn't know how the prince persuaded Liu Xie to set off for Chang'an at this moment, he just hoped that the other party would not become a victim of the change of regime.
"Your Excellency said that if a lie could last a lifetime, it might not be called a lie anymore."
The man's face suddenly lit up with joy. He could already hear the future arrangements in these cryptic words.
"Don't worry, if he wants to be an ordinary person, no one will stop him."
For Liu Xie, retiring to the mountains after the task is completed may be the most perfect ending.
Guo Jia appeared here at this moment because Qiao Yan asked him to pay attention to Liu Xie before he left Luoyang.
Fortunately, due to Qiao Yan's accumulation of information, Liu Xie's decision had developed in the direction they most hoped for, and there was no need for him to make any unnecessary interference. He had become a stabilizing stone that was about to crash into the turbulence of Chang'an.
Then he can go to Hulao Pass with peace of mind to respond to the attack launched by Cao Cao!
Before leaving, he brought good news to the man who had devoted himself to being Liu Xie's adoptive father for many years. "Your Majesty asked me to tell you that your son has found a wife in Bingzhou. They plan to get married after saving enough money for another half a year. Maybe you can even have a drink at the wedding when you send Lord Dong off to Bingzhou to study."
The man just smiled and said, "No need for that. We already understood the gains and losses clearly when we almost died in the natural disaster."
He felt at peace knowing that his family was doing well.
What he should do now is to welcome the return of another child.
Guo Jia was right. If this was a lie that would never be exposed, then it was the truth.
It is not known whether Liu Xie could sleep peacefully on the way to Chang'an, or whether he felt a little uneasy because of the separation from his adoptive parents and the storm he was about to face.
Unfortunately, he could not see his side as Liu Xie with his own eyes.
But perhaps, only in this way can they live their whole lives as father and son.
At the same time Liu Xie was rushing towards Chang'an, there was another person who was also riding a fast horse towards Chang'an.
It was none other than Lu Zhi.
After receiving news that Liu Yang, Wang Yun and others had teamed up to assassinate Qiao Yan and Liu Yu had issued an edict of repentance, it was no longer possible for Lu Zhi to sit comfortably in the classroom of Leping Academy as an elderly man who had left the court.
He regretted more than ever at this moment. Why did he just reject Liu Yang's attempt to win him over earlier, but did not report his plan directly to Qiao Yan!
This prevented Liu Yang's actions from being stopped in advance, leading to such a disaster.
If we are to assign responsibility, Wang Yun, who gave Liu Yang advice behind the scenes, is certainly guilty of a serious crime, but does Lu Zhi have no responsibility?
Thinking that the gunpowder was most likely taken away from Bingzhou by Liu Yang shortly after Liu Yang visited him, Lu Zhi felt a deep sense of regret in his heart.
Why should he turn a blind eye to Liu Yang's actions just because of his Han royal bloodline!
At this moment, Liu Yu blamed himself, and the internal strife in Chang'an was very likely to actually lead to a breakup between Qiao Yan and the Han Dynasty. Lu Zhi felt extremely anxious.
Although he no longer had that same stubbornness towards the Han Dynasty when he recalled what he had experienced, the ups and downs in his official career over the past decades had formed a position that would be difficult to change in a short period of time.
Liu Yu wanted to abdicate, and the words of the edict of repentance jumped out in front of him. However, the country could not be changed hands because of such a hasty abandonment, and the world that had been so hard to establish a large degree of order could not be allowed to fall into a state of collapse again because of an immature handover.
He couldn't sit still, and Cai Yong and others couldn't sit still either.
But Lu Zhi had some military experience, and his health had been in good condition over the past two years, so he still had the confidence to ride a fast horse straight to the capital, so Cai Yong and his men could only drive behind him.
Of course, there was another reason that forced Lu Zhi to speed up his pace at this time.
In the order issued by Liu Yu, it was decided that Liu Bei would be sentenced to death in seven days. Today is the sixth day.
If Lu Zhiruo came to Chang'an one night, he would not be able to see his disciple for the last time.
He knew that neither Liu Yu nor Qiao Yan had any need to kill Liu Bei, who was already a prisoner. He also knew that the decision to execute him would never be revoked because it was such a heinous act.
It seemed that the only thing he could do was to say a final farewell to Liu Bei and put an end to their master-disciple relationship.
As the cold wind from the north swept across his face as the horse galloped, Lu Zhi could not help but think of the time when Liu Bei followed him to fight during the Yellow Turban Rebellion. He thought of how when he was expelled from Luoyang City, it was Liu Bei, who was serving in Jizhou at the time, who took him in and joined him in attacking Luoyang.
The news that the people of Xuzhou had pleaded for Liu Bei's life made Lu Zhi happy for him.
But now...
The truth that human affairs are unpredictable finally revealed its cruel face at this moment.
What else can he do?
In Lu Zhi's arms was a bottle of strong liquor, which had a bit of body temperature. The sound of the liquor in the bottle shaking with the shaking of the horse was very much like Lu Zhi's confused thoughts at the moment.
The whimpering sound in the wind was passing through his hair, but at the moment he rode his horse across the Ziwuling Mountains and arrived in Guanzhong, he saw the water of the Beiluo River melting from its original frozen state and slowly flowing from the mountains into the green land that was just beginning to bloom.
There is already a hint of spring in the cold wind.
When Liu Bei was escorted out of the prison, a gust of warm wind blew on his face.
There was also a cry of surprise in the wind.
He raised his eyes and looked in the direction of the sound. He subconsciously felt that it was not an ordinary noise, so he asked the jailer, "What's that noise over there?"
Liu Bei originally just hoped that the wrong choice he made would not cause any aftermath that could not be completely contained in Chang'an City, nor bring any irreparable losses, but he did not expect that he would hear such an answer.
The jailer replied to Liu Bei without hiding anything: "Someone claimed to be the emperor who was kidnapped by Li Jue in the early years. He was rescued by someone before, and returned to Luoyang by mistake and was sent to Chang'an."
"He also brought back the imperial seal.":,n,
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