Luoyang, North Palace, Jiade Palace.

The Son of Heaven was on the throne and depressed.

Li Hong suddenly ordered his men to kill thousands of people in the Huaili camp in one day, and this appalling news was sent to Kyoto by 100,000 people in Jingzhao Yin Gaixun. Luoyang immediately set off a huge storm, a storm against Li Hong.

The Son of Heaven hears it as if he had not heard. He didn't care, he had already received the ransom money from these people, and as for the lives of these people, it had nothing to do with him, so he didn't care about it and didn't care at all. Kill and kill. But the next morning, the Son of Heaven was stunned by the mountain of soap sacs. The memoirs contained in these soap sacs were all impeached against Li Hong, saying that he was arrogant in his achievements, violated discipline, cunning and indulgent, and violent and unreasonable, and should be immediately executed. Only then did the Son of Heaven realize the seriousness of the problem.

Because of the repeated statements of the courtiers and the sincere advice of the princes and ministers, the Son of Heaven had decreed that the rule that bureaucrats should receive money for writing and speaking, but then he regretted it. He sat in the main hall and saw the angry faces, and he almost exploded when he heard the endless impeachment, and he felt that his decision was too hasty. If there is no abolition of the rule that ministers must collect money when they write and speak, where will there be torture in the court. He felt sorry for himself, looked at the ministers standing in the hall and made a generous speech, and lamented that his heart was too soft, and he fell for these treacherous bureaucrats again.

After listening for a while, he became more and more annoyed.

Li Hong ignored his **** order, and went crazy to kill more than 300 corrupt officials and thousands of people, which not only made him lose his trust in the rich and wealthy ministers of the DPRK and China, but also made him lose face. A small border county commander did not listen to the order of the Son of Heaven, where did he put his face as the emperor. Although he only cares about money and doesn't care about these lives, he can't ignore his face and the prestige of imperial power. A barbarian is a barbarian, and he knows that bloody killing, and it is too dangerous for this kind of person to stay around, and he has no brains at all. The Son of Heaven frowned slightly, and then thought that although this kind of barbarian is simple-minded, he also has advantages, and if this kind of person is loyal to anyone, it is absolutely unchanging until death, and he can use it as he pleases, like an arm. If I use Li Hong's bloodshed and cruelty to deal with this gang of treacherous people in the DPRK and China, there will definitely be unexpected results.

Li Hong led the army west to Liangzhou to quell the rebellion, but when the war was in full swing, he ordered to kill corrupt officials, what was he for? Li Hong must have known that he would not only violate the laws of the Han Dynasty by doing so, but also anger the powers of the DPRK and China, and even offend himself, so why did he kill himself? Is he really crazy, idiot? At this time, Li Hong openly provoked all forces in the DPRK and China, what did he rely on? How could he be sure that he would protect him? Did he misunderstand the purpose of my sending people to Xiliang to the army, thinking that I was going to kill him, so he wanted to rebel when he died?

When the Son of Heaven thought of this, his heart suddenly became nervous. If he rebelled because of this incident, it means that this barbarian is simply stupid, and not only can he not use him, but he will also kill him immediately. No matter how faithful this fool is, he will ruin his own business in the future?

But if this matter is only because he misunderstood what I meant and tried to fight back to protect himself, and used the illegal killing and greed to win the hearts of the people of the world, hoping to find a glimmer of life for himself, then this person is very desirable. This kind of person who is not afraid of danger and fights back is still scheming and resourceful enough to take on great responsibilities, but is he loyal?

Now the lieutenant officials and the bureaucrats of the clan have jointly written a letter, demanding that Li Hong be severely punished, and the court is shouting and killing. Only Liu Yu entered the palace early in the morning and knelt in front of him to intercede for Li Hong. Liu Yu begged bitterly, and even used his own head to guarantee Li Hong's loyalty. I believe in Liu Yu, so should I also believe that the leopard will not betray me?

Although he was not sure of Li Hong's loyalty to him, he still felt the benefits of Li Hong's existence, and he was relieved today. He saw that the lieutenant officials who usually flaunted their military might, and the domineering bureaucrats were so angry by Li Hong's brutal killing that they were so angry that their fingers cracked, and one by one they became angry and angry, beating their chests and feet, and when it came to the sad places, there were still crying bitterly, he was happy, he was happy, and he gloated.

He has always been surrounded by these people in the palace, oppressed by them with all kinds of etiquette and laws, he has never done a thing that he feels is pleasing to his heart, everything he has done has never been affirmed and praised by the ministers, it is all endless exhortation and flattery in front of the face behind the insult and insult. He always wanted to take revenge on these people and make them uncomfortable, but there was nothing he could do until this lawless leopard appeared, and he finally got his wish. He not only grabbed these people's sore feet, but also cut a few pieces of their flesh fiercely, and wantonly insulted and scolded them, he felt happy, he was happy.

The Son of Heaven looked at the ministers under the court, and a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth. Hmph...... if you don't make me happy, I won't let you be happy, whoever you want to die, I want him to live, see who is happy.

But if he insists on not punishing Li Hong, it is tantamount to openly supporting Li Hong, and he will stand on the opposite side of the ministers in the DPRK and China, and he will be exhorted by the ministers in a series of crazy statements, and he will be bombarded by them with the laws of his ancestors in the court day after day, and he may be admonished to death by some ministers who do not want to die, and his head will explode when he thinks of this.

Something even more terrible occurred to him. Protecting Li Hong by himself is tantamount to offending all the courtiers, including the lieutenants who are very close to him. What if they join forces to kill themselves? Among the emperors of this dynasty, the cause of death is unknown, and there are many sudden deaths. What he remembered most clearly was the death of Emperor Xiaozhi. Emperor Xiaozhi was an eight-year-old child who ascended the throne and died after only one year as emperor because he ate a bowl of noodles sent by the general Liang Ji. The day before eating the noodles, he gave a four-word comment to the general in front of his subordinates: "General Bahu", and he died. The eyes of the Son of Heaven involuntarily looked at He Jin, the great general standing under the court. Will he kill me?

He remembered Liu Xie. If I show my intention to make Liu Xie the emperor, will He Jin kill me? He looked at He Jin and thought for a long time. He couldn't know the answer, but his heart grew more and more uneasy, more and more fearful. It's not that he doesn't know the answer, but he doesn't want to think about it.

He made a decision suddenly.

"Your Majesty......" There are ministers chanting the Son of Heaven. The Son of Heaven raised his body slightly and looked down, and it turned out to be Situ Cui Lie.

"Your Majesty, Li Hong disobeyed His Majesty's holy decree and killed thousands of pardoned officials and their families without authorization. His Majesty should hastenfully issue an order to condemn him, escort him back to Kyoto, and hand him over to the Imperial Governor's Mansion for trial and execution, so as to correct the discipline. ”

The Son of Heaven nodded, and suddenly said: "A few days ago, I went to visit the Queen Mother, and met Mrs. Cheng in Changle Palace. ”

Cui Lie was stunned for a moment, then nodded frequently, and hurriedly agreed. As soon as the Son of Heaven interrupted like this, it was difficult for him to continue, so he didn't make a sound.

Cui Lie is a famous person in Jizhou, born in a family of people. His grandfather Cui Chu and uncle Cui Ying were both great Confucians. His cousin Cui Wei, who was the Taishou of Liaodong, wrote the book "Political Commentary", which was known as the imperial standard. Cui Wei himself was an honest official, his family was surrounded by walls, and his descendants could not afford to be buried when he died, so he relied on Yang Ci, Duan Cheng and Yuan Shao's two uncles Yuan Feng and Yuan Kui to be buried in the soil. Cui Lie himself served as the county guard, and the official was the court lieutenant of Jiuqing. The Son of Heaven sold officials in the West Garden, and it cost 30 million to buy a Situ. Mrs. Cheng, the nurse of the Son of Heaven, had a good relationship with the Cui family, and knew that Cui Lie wanted to be ranked as the third prince, so she asked him to inform him, saying that she could get a preferential price. In the end, Cui Lie gave half of the money to Mrs. Cheng. Soon, he got his wish and sat in the position of Situ. Later, the Son of Heaven regretted it very much, thinking that the position of the third prince was sold too cheaply, and told the left and right lieutenants that he sold it too cheaply and lost too much. Mrs. Cheng knew that the Son of Heaven was unhappy, so she ran to the Son of Heaven to explain, saying that Cui Gong was a famous man in the world, how could he spend money to buy an official? I paid the money on his behalf, so don't be heartbroken, just give me a thin noodle. When these words came out, Luoyang was a sensation. It is better to spend a few dollars to get an official by relying on a woman. Cui Lie's reputation plummeted as a result, and he was often ridiculed by others.

"Your Majesty, Li Hong's move is clearly to despise Your Majesty and deceive the king, and he should be beheaded."

The Son of Heaven looked up and saw that it was Yang Biao, the son of Yang Ci. Yang Biao is about forty years old, slightly chubby, with a long face and long beard, and an extraordinary bearing. He is the eldest son of Yang Ci, an official servant, a marquis, and the head of the Yang family.

The Son of Heaven immediately put on a smiling face and said, "Aiqing, Jiaozhou Mansion recently sent a batch of precious flowers and trees to Lingkun Garden. Tomorrow, Aiqing will accompany me and the bachelors of Hongdu Gate to go on a tour to do endowments. ”

Yang Biao hurriedly knelt down to receive the order.

In recent years, the Son of Heaven's interest has increased again, and he is quite enthusiastic about building gardens. A few years ago, he planned to build two botanical gardens outside the Xuanping Gate in Luoyang, Bigui and Lingkun. At that time, Situ Yang Ci advised the Son of Heaven that there were five gardens in the capital: Xiyuan, Xianyang Garden, Pingle Garden, Shanglin Garden and Hongde Garden, which were enough for His Majesty to indulge in his own pleasure. Seeing the teacher's objection, the Son of Heaven immediately planned to stop the construction. Soon he went to ask a group of famous scholars and Confucians from Hongdumen, of course these scholars wanted to have more places to enjoy the flowers, so they tried their best to encourage the Son of Heaven, saying that His Majesty built a garden, which is a good thing to enjoy with the people, how can they give up halfway? The Son of Heaven thought about it, so he ignored the opposition of the ministers and built two gardens, Bigui and Lingkun.

The Son of Heaven suddenly proposed to travel, and asked Yang Biao to accompany him, of course Yang Biao couldn't refuse, but his words were interrupted.

The general He Jin and Ban played: "Your Majesty, Li Hong has committed a mortal crime and is about to be punished, once this matter reaches the Xiliang front, it will definitely shake the hearts of the army." If they were to be defeated without a fight and let the rebels occupy Xiliang, then Sanfu and Chang'an would be very dangerous. The minister believed that another man of merit should be sent to take over as soon as possible. ”

Guangluxun Liu Yu hurriedly retorted: "Your Majesty, this matter must not be allowed. The fierce battle on the Xiliang front line is in full swing, and changing the commander at this time is a taboo for soldiers. ”

Hearing this, Duan Jue, the middle attendant, came out of the queue and said loudly: "Since the rebels attacked Yicheng, it has been more than a month, and he commanded 50,000 soldiers and horses to stay in Zixiu Mountain, and did not send a single soldier to rescue Yicheng, why?" Why didn't he go to the rescue of Wing City? The minister just received an urgent letter from Zhang Taishou of Fufeng County, saying that Li Hong had a close relationship with the leader of the rebel army, and his friendship with Ma Teng was also very good, and he was going to rebel. He glanced at Liu Yu and continued, "The minister agreed with the general's opinion, and immediately sent another general of the unified army to rush to Zixiu Mountain day and night, take over the power of the army, and command the army to rescue Yicheng. ”

"Lord Liu, what is your intention to protect Li Hong? Did Li Hong spend money to buy you out? ”

"You're spewing blood." Liu Yu was so angry that his little goatee was raised high, and he pointed at Duan Jue and scolded loudly, "Lord Duan used his power for personal gain and accepted bribes, the evidence is conclusive, what face do you have to stand on top of this court and openly frame me?" ”

"Lord Liu, Ben Hou has written to ask for sin, and His Majesty has issued a decree to pardon, what are you talking nonsense here? You roar at the court, and your sin is added to the first. Duan Jue sneered and said sharply.

Taiwei Zhang Wen hurriedly stood between the two, waved his hand again and again, and said, "The two adults have said one less word, one less word." The consideration of the general and Lord Duan was very thoughtful and timely, and Lord Liu's thoughts were also deeply in line with the gist of the Art of War. Your Majesty, in the opinion of the old minister, can order Lord Gai to lead his troops to hold Huaili, and order the northern army to go west again. After the northern army is stationed in Chang'an, it is more appropriate to send someone to Xiliang to replace Li Hong. ”

The Son of Heaven snorted twice and asked, "Lord Taiwei, how is the price of donkeys in Luoyang recently?" ”

Zhang Wen suddenly snorted angrily, and replied with a red face: "Marquis Duan raises donkeys, he knows, Your Majesty asked him, right?" ”

This dynasty has added many fresh items to the entertainment industry of the Han Kingdom. He ordered the construction of a bazaar in the harem, which was regularly opened for trading. He asked the court ladies and officials to pretend to be ordinary people and vendors, and on the days when the market was open, they performed such programs as selling, bargaining, heckling, fighting, and theft. The Son of Heaven himself dressed up in the brocade clothes of the rich businessmen, feasted and entertained with these "common people", ran a business, bargained, and was very busy. He also likes to keep dogs, and puts the Jinxian crown worn by the bureaucrats on the dog's head. The Son of Heaven then invented the use of four donkeys to drive, which was lighter and easier to drive than a horse-drawn cart, and the Son of Heaven himself drove the donkey cart around the market in the palace, so uncomfortable. The Son of Heaven's novel play soon became popular in Luoyang, and the donkey dealers were very happy, because the price of donkeys exceeded the price of horses for the first time. The Son of Heaven has always been very concerned about the price of donkeys in the market, but when he asked at this time, it was obvious that he was talking about him left and right, intending to change the topic and get away with it.

Duan Jue saw the eyes of the Son of Heaven looking at him, and hurriedly went out to answer.

Sikong Xu Xiang then went out to play: "Your Majesty, in Xiliang, under the pretext of suppressing corruption, Li Hong indiscriminately killed innocents, harmed the country and the people, and also supported the army and self-respect, plotting against him. The minister thought that it was better to arrest him as soon as possible, lest it take a long time for him to form a party with the rebels, and things would be very troublesome. The minister recommended Lu Zhi, Lu Shangshu or Guanglu Doctor Zhu Jun, and Lord Zhu went west to Liangzhou to take over the military power. ”

Zhao Zhong's fat body immediately squeezed out, and he said loudly: "Your Majesty, Lu Shangshu and Lord Zhu are not familiar with the situation in Xiliang, and neither of them is suitable. I think it's better to send General Dong Zhuo Dong to lead his troops west. Now, he himself is in Luoyang, and his border army is killing the rebels in Beidi County. If he is in charge of the military power, Xiliang will be pacified just around the corner. ”

Cui Lie immediately retorted: "Dong Zhuo has fought a war in Western Xinjiang for decades, how could he have pacified Xiliang? He was beaten by the rebels and fled across the river through the cofferdam, what ability did he have to pacify Xiliang? Master Hou, do you dare to vouch for Your Majesty with a human head? ”

Zhao Zhong was so angry that he scolded him in a whisper and did not answer.

Cui Lie continued: "Your Majesty, the minister thinks that it is better to temporarily abandon Liangzhou and stick to Kansai. My Han Dynasty has been fighting every year, and the losses are huge, and I urgently need to recuperate. In a few years, when my Han recovers, His Majesty can send a general to lead 100,000 male soldiers to attack Liangzhou in the west, and then he will definitely be able to go down with a drum. ”

"Your Majesty, abandoning Liangzhou is a next resort, and you must not do it." Sun Jian, the speaker of the Lang, was filled with indignation, and said, "In order to stick to the western frontier, my Han has spent tens of billions of dollars over the past few decades, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers have thrown their corpses on the desert border, how can I give up easily? It is really unwise to give up Liangzhou for the sake of Li Zhonglang's affairs. ”

Cui Lie wanted to scold him twice, but remembering that Sun Jian was Zhu Jun's protégé, he hurriedly swallowed back the words that came to his lips. After going down to the court, you must tell Zhu Jun and let him go back and discipline this rude guy well.

Liu Ting, the captain of the guard, went out and said: "Your Majesty, Liangzhou cannot be abandoned. Does Your Majesty remember Master Fu Xie? At that time, the Xiliang rebellion had just started, and Lord Cui proposed to abandon Xiliang, but was strongly opposed by Fu Xie Fu. Master Cui should not have forgotten Master Fu's words of advice. ”

Cui Lie glared at Liu Ting angrily and sneered, "How does Lord Liu know that he hasn't changed his mind?" Now that Fu madman is guarding Yicheng, being attacked by the rebels day and night, and he is always worried about his life. When his own life is at stake, can he not change his mind? ”

At this time, Zhijin Wu Zhen cited the class and said: "Your Majesty, Li Hong has repeatedly made military exploits, and he is famous all over the world, and recently he has won the support of the people because of his vigorous rectification of the rule of Xiliang officials, and he has a very close relationship with the Hu people in the north of the frontier. Killing him alone will affect the whole body, and it may make things more complicated in Western Xinjiang. Therefore, the minister thought that it was better to promote Li Hong's official position, recruit him back to the capital, and then take the opportunity to put him in prison and punish him for several crimes. The minister thought that this method was more prudent. ”

As soon as Zhen Ju's suggestion was finished, it immediately received a positive response from more than a dozen ministers.

Liu Yu hurriedly played: "Your Majesty, Li Hong can't be killed." ”

"In August this autumn, there are tens of thousands of birds on the Huailing, and the sound of sorrow resounded throughout the four fields, they fought each other, and the dead were innumerable, which was an ominous omen of cannibalism. In October this winter, the southern barbarians of Wuling County in Jingzhou rebelled and invaded the border, which has not yet been settled. This month, the Xianbei people and Karasuma people in northern Xinjiang gathered people on the border of Youzhou and Erzhou, and they were ready to move, with the intention of invading southward. At this time, it is really unwise to suddenly kill the border general. Your Majesty, please think again. ”

Tao Qian, the counselor, suddenly came out of the queue and shouted wildly: "When the four realms are uneasy, the court is discussing the killing of the general, this is the discussion of the death of the country." ”

Tao Qian exhaled, and the whole hall was shocked, and even the Son of Heaven stared at him with wide eyes.

Zhao Zhong was furious, pointed at Tao Qian and said angrily: "Your Majesty, this person roared like thunder, it is clearly roaring in the court, and he should be beheaded according to the law." ”

The Son of Heaven laughed and said, "Thunder? Why didn't I hear that? Aiqing is old, could it be that there is something wrong with his ears? ”

The ministers looked at each other and smiled bitterly. This dignified son of heaven has never said a serious word from beginning to end today.

Tao Qian was not afraid, bowed down and said: "Your Majesty, those corrupt officials in Xiliang ruined the foundation of my Han Dynasty, and their crimes are unforgivable, so what about killing them?" Your Majesty rules the country with benevolence and righteousness, and deliberately allows them to atone for their sins with money, but has Your Majesty ever thought about it, the money for atonement is a huge amount, and according to their rank, can they save so much money? If this kind of person is not killed, who should be killed? Ladies and gentlemen in the court, I would like to ask, which of the Han laws stipulates that killing corrupt officials is guilty? ”

Cui Lie said angrily: "Isn't the crime of bullying the king still dead? ”

Duan Qi said: "Your Majesty, Lord Tao defended the criminal Li Hong, and according to the law, he is an accomplice, and Lord Tao should be escorted to the Tingwei Mansion for interrogation." ”

The Son of Heaven waved his hand and ignored Duan Jue at all.

He smiled and asked Shangshu Lu Zhi, "Aiqing, how is I better than Emperor Xian?"

Lu Zhi bowed down and replied: "Your Majesty is to the first emperor, just like Yu Shun and Tang Yao. ”

The Son of Heaven immediately heard that Lu Zhi's answer was a big irony, and what he meant by this was equivalent to saying that His Majesty and the first emperor were the turtle and the king, half a catty to eight taels.

The Son of Heaven was stunned for a moment, and continued to ask, "According to Yiqing, what kind of monarch am I?"

Lu Zhi replied: "Your Majesty is a moderate monarch compared to the ancestors of our Han Dynasty. ”

The officials of the Han family evaluate things, and like to divide them into upper, upper, and lower. Each grade can also be subdivided into upper, middle and lower three grades, a total of nine grades, or nine grades. In the "Book of Han", the greatest historian of this dynasty, Ban Gu, the historical figures since the beginning of the record are commented on in turn. Medium characters are ordinary people who are below the saints and above the villains. What Lu Zhi meant was that a monarch like His Majesty could not make a difference himself. If you are assisted by virtuous ministers, the world will be greatly governed, and if you are surrounded by villains, the world will be in chaos. This evaluation is straightforward and not sycophant, but it is more about the expectation of the Son of Heaven. The Son of Heaven is a wise young man, and he understands when he hears it. His mind was even more resolute.

At this time, there was an urgent book from the Xiliang front line that was sent by 800 miles of fast riding.

There was silence in the Garter Hall.

Zhao Zhong took out a bamboo slip from the soap sac, put it on the desk in front of the Son of Heaven and slowly opened it.

The Son of Heaven leaned over and glanced at it, and suddenly laughed, and then laughed wildly. He grabbed the bamboo slip on the desk suddenly, threw it into the air with all his strength, and shouted, "Lord Taiwei, take a look." ”

The bamboo slip fell to the ground with a "snap......". Zhang Wen hurriedly leaned over and picked it up. He hurriedly read it, and his heart was suddenly very lost. He suddenly understood the reason why the Son of Heaven told him to take a look first.

The eyes of all the ministers in the main hall were eager and expectant.

Zhang Wen said indifferently: "Li Zhonglang came to write, Xiliang won a great victory." ”