On the first day of the second month of spring in the first year of the first year of Lu Wen (BC626), the people of Lu observed a solar eclipse. The Lu people believed that this was God's expression of condolences for the death of Lu Xigong, and the government and the opposition suspended all gatherings and entertainment activities the next day.

King Xiang of Zhou sent Uncle Fu to mourn Duke Lu, and Gongsun Ao heard that Shufu was particularly good at looking at appearances, so he took his two sons Meng Sun Gu and Meng Sun Nan to visit him.

Shufu carefully observed the faces of the two young men, and said to Gongsun Ao: "Gu, you can provide for the master; It's difficult, you can bury the Master. Gu's jaw is full, and his descendants will prosper. ”

On April 26 in the summer, Lu Xun was buried. King Xiang of Zhou sent Mao Bo to Lu to announce the grant of Lu Wengong. After Mao Bo returned to China, Lu Wengong sent Gongsun Zi's son Shusun Dechen to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty to express his gratitude to the Son of Heaven for issuing his order.

What follows is an unprecedented catastrophe that occurred in the Chu royal family. This catastrophe shows the world not only the cruelty of human nature, but also the world: the affection of father and son and the supreme power cannot be a talisman for kings, but can become a talisman for the death of those in power. When rulers become stupid and tyrannical because of their power, blood and power themselves become the source of death.

King Chu Cheng had always been troubled by the establishment of a successor, but later he still wanted to appoint his eldest son Shangchen as the crown prince according to the custom. King Chu Cheng specially asked Zishang for advice for this reason. He said, "The king is now in the prime of his life, and has many favored women and sons. If the king appoints the crown prince now and regrets it later, then deposing the prince will invite disaster. The thrones of the Chu State for several generations were almost all obtained by the young; Besides, Shang Chen is a man with a loud eye and a cruel temperament, so he must not be established as a prince. ”

But King Cheng of Chu had already made up his mind, and his so-called "soliciting opinions" was just a formality (because Chu had a rule that all major national affairs should be discussed with ministers). In this way, King Chu Cheng laid the foundation for the death of himself and his son with his stupidity and arbitrariness.

After Shang Chen became the crown prince, the safety of the prince was in a precarious situation. The relationship between the two is like fire and water, but it is only because King Chu Cheng is still in power that the prince does not dare to act rashly. Among the sons of King Chu Cheng, the prince is one he particularly favors, and the prince has the unique benevolence and modesty of ancient celebrities.

Zishang had always maintained a good relationship with the prince, and now he was even more firmly on his side, and he was ready to wait for King Chu Cheng to persuade him to change the prince's position to the prince when he "felt regret".

However, the prince's merchant quickly seized the handle of the son and shrewdly used trickery to get rid of him (see previous chapter). After Zishang's death, Cheng Daxin cried and told King Chu Cheng what happened, and King Chu Cheng found out the truth.

Cheng Daxin was then appointed as Ling Yin, who focused on official business, did not like to get involved in inter-factional battles, and did not have his own small circle. Therefore, the forces of all sides were both pleased and disappointed that he took office.

After Shang Chen got rid of Zishang, he became arrogant, and in this way he created many new enemies. Although those enemies did not dare to be enemies of the prince in person, they beat the side drum in front of King Chu Cheng behind their backs to complain about the black.

In fact, Shang Chen is a person who is very good at figuring out what he wants. King Chu Cheng was lustful, so he gave his beautiful concubine to his father; King Chu Cheng was greedy for money, and the merchants collected the world's treasures and dedicated them to him. And now, King Chu Cheng obviously felt that Shangchen had become less "filial" than before.

Once, a doctor "inadvertently" talked about seeing a piece of jade that was unparalleled in the world in the imperial palace while chatting with King Chu Cheng. The reason why he said this was maybe he really saw it, or maybe he thought that if King Chu Cheng asked Shang Chen for it, Shang Chen couldn't take out that unwarranted thing, and he would be resented by King Chu Cheng. In short, his words aroused the curiosity and greed of King Chu Cheng.

King Chu Cheng summoned Shang Chen, and he also "unintentionally" mentioned that there was a blank space in his study during the conversation, and he didn't think about what treasures to decorate the following, and asked Shang Chen if he had any good suggestions.

The merchant was fed up with his father's greed, so he said that the king needed more than a courtier could imagine; But he could go out and gather to see what treasures were worthy of the king's status.

A few days later, the merchant gave him a perfunctory piece of ordinary jade, even if he handed over the errand; King Chu Cheng was dissatisfied with the crown prince, and he used intrigue to get rid of the important ministers of the country, and King Chu Cheng then planned to depose him.

In the winter of October, King Chu Cheng's sister who married Jiang Guo far away, Jiang Mi returned to China to save his relatives, and this Jiang Mi was his favorite sister. King Chu Cheng inadvertently revealed his idea of changing the princely position at a private banquet held for her. At that time, the palace guard was led by the merchants, and one of the guards outside the door faintly heard a word, so he immediately reported the situation to the merchant ministers after the change of guard.

Shang Chen suddenly sat on pins and needles. Logically, he does not doubt the veracity of the facts; However, it is impossible to conclude the truth of the facts based on only a few vague words. He changed into the clothes of a guard, slipped out quietly through a secluded small door, and entered the house of the crown prince Fu Pan Chong, asking for help from the teacher.

Pan Chong said: "The situation has not yet been clarified, and we cannot make a decision lightly. ”

Shang Chen said: "The teacher taught me how to find out the situation? ”

Pan Chong said: "The only way to seek a breakthrough is to seek a breakthrough from Jiang Mi. Jiang Mi has a straightforward temperament, a short temper, and does not like the prince; The prince can feast Jiang Mi, but don't show respect, Jiang Mi will definitely spit out the truth when he is angry. ”

In the evening of the next day, the merchant held a banquet in a palace in the suburbs to entertain Jiang Mi. The reason why he chose to be outside the city was to cut off the connection between Jiang Mi and King Chu Cheng.

Shang Chen's usual language and behavior are very presumptuous, so there is no need to disguise himself at all; He first treated his aunt with respect and persuaded her to drink a lot. When Jiang Mi was a little drunk and her movements became unreserved, he deliberately neglected Jiang Mi and did not answer her question.

Jiang Mi saw his ruffian expression, so he put away his smile and didn't even say a word. Shang Chen continued to do his faux pas: after eating meat, he spit out bones everywhere, kept telling meat jokes, and laughed to himself when he was done; He also asked what erotic tunes were popular in Jiangguo. Jiang Mi's face was already very ugly at this time, but because the villain in front of her had become the crown prince of the Chu State, she had to suppress her anger.

Shang Chen saw that Jiang Mi already had the intention of retiring, and his trick still did not succeed, so he resorted to the last trick.

There is an old maid with crane hair and a childish face by Jiang Mi's side, this old maid used to be Jiang Mi's wet nurse, so the relationship between the two is very special. The merchant pointed at her and called her to his side, took her by the hand, took her by the hand, sat her in his bosom, fed her meat, and praised her beauty and virtue; and promised her that he would marry her as a wife when he became king. The old maid was so frightened that she grabbed the edge of the table and tried to get up, but she fell to the ground in embarrassment; The merchant almost choked to death with laughter, and sprayed a scrap of meat.

Jiang Mi couldn't bear it anymore, she flipped over the dining table, jumped up and pointed at the merchant and scolded: "Hey! You hillbilly, no wonder the king wants to kill you and make you a prince! ”

Shang Chen finally got the information he wanted, he didn't dare to delay a little time, and immediately went to see Pan Chong - because Jiang Qi could return to the palace at any time to complain to King Chu Cheng, and once King Chu Cheng knew that the secret was leaked, he would immediately do it, without giving Shang Chen a chance to breathe.