Huan Rong

The second year of Ningkang, September

In Mushang season, autumn is breezy and crisp.

In Jiankang City, on the Qinhuai River, boats from south to north shuttle intertwined. The boatmen propped up the poles, the boatmen chanted, and occasionally a cruise ship from the noble family passed by. avoid.

The splashing water waves are more than three feet high, and under the warm sun, they dazzle with colorful light.

A little bit of water is crystal clear, like pearls flying in the river.

On the north bank, a few ox carts passed by. They were noble men and women who went out of the city to climb high.

Mr. Lang, dressed in a big shirt, looks handsome, and when he gets excited, he hits the festival with his hands and sings along the water.The girl raised the curtain of the car and looked at the beautiful autumn scenery, sighing a few times from time to time.

On September [-]th, the Double Ninth Festival, folks climbed high to enjoy the autumn, and presented chrysanthemums with each other. Taicheng held a banquet for the Double Ninth Festival. Hundreds of officials entered the Taiji Hall to meet and have a banquet in the palace.

The emperor feeds the ministers, and the emperor congratulates the young emperor.

In front of the hall, a brazier surrounded by several people was ignited, and the officials sat in the banquet, with a couch in front of them, and wine, meat and seasonal vegetables were set on the couch.When the music started, the officials first respected the emperor, and then toasted each other. Although it was not as casual as when the banquets were held in various houses, it was not quite as lively.

The musicians stand or sit, the drums are rumbling, and the strings are bursting.

The singer stretched her throat, the dancer whirled, and amidst the sound of singing and dancing, the banquet reached its climax.

Even if the political opinions are not in harmony and each other does not like each other, they can raise a glass and invite them to drink at this time. If they are extremely mean, they will never deliberately insult the other party's face.

Sima Yao was sitting at the top, looking down at the ministers and pushing their cups and cups. The wine was hot in his ears, and even though he was depressed, he had to force a smile on his face.

He thought that Huan Wen was domineering enough, but he never expected that Sima Huan's arrogance and domineering were just the epitome of a powerful official.

Since ascending to the throne, he has thoroughly experienced the difficulties of the previous emperors.

Be a puppet with peace of mind and kill a group of veterans?

easy to say, hard to do.

Knowing that he is regarded as a decoration, but still insisting on the dignity of the emperor, and being laughed at by his courtiers, this feeling is really hard to describe.No wonder Sima Yi was "driven" crazy, no wonder his father traveled westward after only one year in office.

It's not that the emperors of the Sima family were unambitious and mediocre, but that under heavy oppression, with powerful officials on the left and nobles on the right, the fire of ambition was extinguished before it was ignited.

Thinking of Youzhou's appearance, Sima Yao smiled wryly again.

Fortunately, he thought he could use Huan Rong, and even thought about kicking him away and taking over Youzhou.

A few days ago, Di bandits invaded Liangzhou, stabbed Yang Liang to lose, and the land of Hanzhong was at stake.It was too late for the court to send troops, so Huan Rong led thousands of prefectural soldiers to help, break the siege below the city, and chased the enemy all the way, even went down to Wudu and Qiuchi, and sent the head of Diqin assassin Yang An to Chang'an.

When the court learned about this, they praised the dynasty's national fortune on the surface, but talked about it behind their backs. Huan Rong looked very much like Sima Huan 20 years ago.

Huan Wen, Huan Rong, Huan Shi!

Sima Yao was not reconciled.

But what can I do if I am unwilling?

The official residence of Xi Yin was the prime minister, and the queen mother came to the court as regent. The civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty were either Xi Yin's party members or noble family backgrounds, and Xi Chao and others were even Huan's eyes and ears in the court.

What's even more troublesome is that Sima Daozi is estranged from him, insisting not to be titled King Langya, and he doesn't want to join the dynasty. Every time he meets, he always says one sentence: Please return to the fiefdom.

Counting with fingers, the only one among the brothers and sisters who can live freely is probably the elder sister Xin'an.

Huan Ji was in Gushu, but she took someone to Xuyi, and the reason was fair and honest, to serve the aunt instead of the husband.

The truth is, after she arrived in Xuyi, she did not stay in the Assassin's Mansion, but bought another house. Every tenth day, she paid her respects to the mansion, and spent the rest of her time having banquets in the mansion, or going out of the city to enjoy the scenery and visit the city. Had a great time.

There are gossip that Princess Xin'an imitated Princess Guantao of the former dynasty and kept a facial head in the mansion.

It was about Sima and Huan's face, and the rumors were quickly suppressed without being confirmed.However, Sima Yao believed it [-]% and was even more envious.

A majestic monarch is not as comfortable as a county princess, not to mention how uncomfortable it is.

There is no harm without comparison.

Too much contrast and more damage.

The more news he heard, the more uncomfortable Sima Yao felt, his heart was torn open, bleeding out.

Not to mention that, in the name of Emperor Wei Yuanfu, the Queen Mother moved all the beauties he brought into the palace from the palace into the side hall, and by the way replaced all the eunuchs who had served him since childhood.

Seeing Da Changle's complacent look, Sima Yao gritted his teeth and did not dare to kick him hard like before.As for reasoning with Changle Palace, don't even think about it.

Nowadays, the imperial court is in the hands of powerful ministers and gentry, and Taicheng is in the hands of the Queen Mother.

Sima Yao has become a veritable puppet, and his every move is under the nose of others. Not to mention realizing his ambitions, if something goes wrong, it is hard to say whether he can keep the life of the emperor.

Perhaps Sima Daozi had seen through this earlier, so he no longer expected to change the title of Langya King, and even resisted it from the bottom of his heart.

Huan Rong asked to send the above form of the soldiers of the four states to Jiankang, and Sima Daozi went directly to the palace to see him, insisting on returning to the fiefdom.Between the words, he said that he must go to the fief.Sima Yao had no reason not to.

"If brother doesn't nod, I'll go see the Queen Mother and ask the Queen Mother to comment!"

This statement is already considered a threat.

Sima Yao was so angry that he clenched his fist, but after all he had no choice but to nod in agreement.Watching Sima Daozi off with unspeakable joy, he didn't want to stay for a moment longer, as if he was afraid that Sima Yao would repent, he packed up after leaving the palace, didn't even put on the guard of honor, and left Jiankang in a hurry in a carriage with his guards and servants.

Sima Daozi was granted the title of King of the East China Sea, and the fief was originally in Dongyang, adjacent to the fief of Princess Xin'an County.On the pretext of having a bad relationship with Sima Daofu, Sima Daozi "entangled" with Sima Yao several times, and successfully changed the fief to Linhai County.

Linhai is located in a remote place, not as prosperous as Dongyang County, but it has the convenience of waterways, can moor ships, and trades in the sea, and the tax revenue is definitely a lot.

Furthermore, Dongyang, Linhai, and Kuaiji are all in Yangzhou. In terms of geographical location, Linhai is farther away from Kuaiji.

Sima Daozi is the same mother and brother of Sima Yao. Although he has not changed the title of King Langya, he is the default heir to the throne before Sima Yao has no prince.

Let's just stay in Jiankang, if you leave the capital, the fief will never be outside Yangzhou.

Kuaiji is the headquarters of the gentry, Huan Huoyao led Yangzhou pastoralist, but the prefects of the counties in the prefecture put the interests of Kuaiji first.In Yangzhou, the rights of the Huan family and the gentry were roughly divided into [-]-[-], and more often, the Jiankang gentry had to overwhelm the Huan family.

Sima Daozi knew that he could not leave Yangzhou, so he could only focus on other aspects.

If you don't want to be seen dead by the gentry, it is natural to stay as far away from Kuaiji as possible.After picking and picking, I finally set my sights on Linhai.

In fact, he prefers to choose Yongjia County.However, that was the domain of the Langya Wang family, and Wang Xianzhi had always been friends with Huan Rong, Sima Daozi didn't want to make himself uncomfortable, so he simply took half a step back and chose Linhai County as the fief.

Sima Daozi left the capital in a hurry and never looked back.

Sima Yao stayed in Taicheng, looking even more isolated and helpless.

During the Double Ninth Festival Banquet, dancing and music filled the ears, the officials served wine, their expressions were respectful, and their words and deeds were not bad at all. All Sima Yao saw was sarcasm, endless sarcasm.

At the end of the banquet, the officials left the palace, and the excitement dissipated, as if the prosperity was coming to an end and they would never see each other again.

Sima Yao wanted to go back to the back hall, but met Da Changle who was waiting in front of the hall.The latter conveyed the Empress Dowager's intention, saying that the Northern Expedition should not be delayed, and that the court will meet tomorrow, asking the emperor to prepare the seal.

"The decree will be drafted by Xie Shizhong and Wang Shizhong, and the official family will be sealed." Regardless of Sima Yao's ugly face, Da Changle continued, "His Royal Highness said that the official family has been on the throne for two years. You can get married."

"The Queen Mother really said that?" Sima Yao couldn't believe it.

"I don't dare to speak nonsense." Da Changle's tone was respectful, but in fact he was mocking. His face seemed to be covered with a mask, and there was only one expression from beginning to end. Regency."

When the words fell, Da Changle bowed and saluted, and with Sima Yao's permission, he withdrew from the Tai Chi Hall and reported back to Changle Palace.

Yuanfu, getting married, taking charge?

Sima Yao was sitting in the inner hall, staring blankly at the lights on the wall, not understanding why the Queen Mother suddenly brought up these things.After thinking for a long time, a flash of inspiration flashed in my mind, and I couldn't help laughing.

There is bitterness and endless self-deprecation in the laughter.

"Sending soldiers from the four states, this is not just sending soldiers from the four states!"

Huan's ambition is clearly revealed. Before that, there was Liangzhou who refused to follow his orders, and Yang Liang stuck behind Huan's back.

Now, the three prefectures of Liang, Yi, and Ning all follow his orders!In addition to Jiangzhou, Jingzhou, Yuzhou and Youzhou, as well as the newly conquered Wudu County and Qiuchi County, half of the Jin Dynasty has already been captured!

Jiankang in the above table is just for show.

Huan Rong won't mobilize troops if the imperial court doesn't allow it?

What a joke!

"Didn't the queen see it?"

No.

Sima Yao shook his head. The Queen Mother must know, even better than him, but she made a different choice.

Abandon the emperor, abandon Sima Yao!

"Thank you Shizhong, Wang Shizhong."

Sima Yao murmured, not believing the reality that he could see clearly, the two of them would not see clearly.They were supposed to be at odds with the Huan clan, and they should have continued to stand by the Sima clan, so how could they change their course and help the evildoers?

"It shouldn't be like this, it shouldn't be like this..."

The laughter stopped and the lights in the hall dimmed.

The eunuch carefully delivered the lamp, seeing Sima Yao sitting slumped on the ground with disheveled hair, muttering incessantly, thinking of Sima Yi, he felt a thump in his heart.

"His Majesty?"

Sima Yao didn't respond.

The eunuch put down the three-legged lamp, took two steps forward cautiously, and was about to speak again, when Sima Yao suddenly raised his head, with a ferocious expression, and grabbed the eunuch's skirt, causing the latter to stagger to his knees.

Afterwards, Sima Yao grabbed the eunuch's neck fiercely, with both hands constantly exerting force, his voice seemed to come out from between his teeth: "I'm going to kill you, I'm going to kill you!"

The eunuch rolled his eyes upwards, unable to make a sound.In order to survive, he instinctively tugged on Sima Yao's wrist.

However, Sima Yao was born tall and strong. At the age of 12, his figure is no smaller than that of a boy of fifteen or six years old. No eunuch can pull him away.

Soon, the strength of the eunuch's struggle became weaker, his eyes turned white, and his breath became weaker and weaker until there was no more sound.

Sima Yao panted viciously, calmed down a little, realized what he had just done, without any regret or fear, and felt a distorted burst of excitement and joy.

Standing up, looking at the eunuch's gradually icy corpse, he kicked twice again, and immediately called people into the hall, saying: "Drag down."

Everything that happened in the Tai Chi Hall naturally couldn't be hidden from the Changle Palace.

After hearing the eunuch's report, the Queen Mother put down the bamboo slips and said, "Send it out of the palace for burial. The official will send someone else, so be careful in what you do in the future."

"promise!"

Hu Shuyi turned on the light, looked at the shadow swaying on the screen, and said in a low voice; "Sister, after the Double Ninth Festival, the wind will blow up."

The Queen Mother shook her head and sighed: "The wind and rain came early, but it's just bigger."

"What did Nankang say in the letter?" Hu Shuyi sat back in front of the screen, and looked at the Queen Mother with concern, "The Duke of Huainan really agreed that the Queen Mother Xu and his concubine's clansmen will be officials in Qiuchi?"

"Not only." The Queen Mother signaled Da Changle to guard the gate of the palace, and said, "This time the soldiers from the four states are sent out to open up the road to the Western Regions. By then, there will be a lot of official vacancies when the states and counties in the north are conquered. According to Nankang's It means that Qiu Chi is just settling down temporarily, if he has the real ability to work hard, he will be able to make further progress, no matter what, you and I can take advantage of the momentum!"

Hu Shuyi clenched her sleeves tightly, her fingertips trembling almost uncontrollably.

"Sister... can this really happen?"

"Whether it will succeed or not, I will bet this time." The Queen Mother said in a deep voice.

"You have seen what the imperial court looks like now. Xi Fanghui is old, and he has power now, but it is hard to say in the future. He does not have a brother like Huan Langzi Huan's youngest son, nor a son like Huan Jingdao."

"The Wang family of Taiyuan and the Xie family of Chenjun have not been of the same mind for a long time. The Wang family of Langya wants to regain power, and the Gao family of the Wu surname is also secretly planning. The court does not seem to be doing well, but in fact, there are already undercurrents. If things go on like this, there will be chaos in Jiankang. "

Hu Shuyi's face turned slightly pale.

"Once there is chaos, you and I may not be able to save our lives. If you want to find a way out, you have to gamble once." The Queen Mother emphasized, "Look at Nankang and Xin'an, don't you understand?"

Hu Shuyi pursed her lips tightly, made up her mind, and said, "I'll listen to sister."

"Actually, the first emperor made a decision a long time ago." The Queen Mother said in a low voice.

"The first emperor?" Hu Shuyi was surprised.

"Since the official ascended the throne, all imperial edicts have been issued with the jade seal of the country, and the golden seal of the emperor has never been used once." The Queen Mother seemed to be talking to Hu Shuyi, and she seemed to be talking to herself, "I was not sure before. By cleaning up the Taiji Hall, order People have searched carefully, and they are [-]% sure that the emperor's golden seal is not in the palace."

"Sister, you mean that the government has lost the golden seal?" Hu Shuyi's eyes were round, her face was full of shock, and her voice trembled a little.

The loss of the emperor's golden seal is a big deal!

"It may not be lost." The Queen Mother said, "When the first emperor was seriously ill, Xin'an suddenly left Jiankang, Concubine Xu Shu asked to be buried, and the last emperor's edict, all connected, Amei still has no clue?"

Hu Shuyi didn't make a sound. In fact, she was too scared to make a sound.

"That's why I said that the late emperor had made a decision long ago, and what you and I are doing today is just to find a way out for the family." Or a road from the dragon to the sky.

After a long time, Hu Shuyi finally suppressed her shock and recovered her lost voice.

"I only follow my sister's orders!"

At the same time, in the Xie residence, Xie An and Xie Xuan also had a long conversation.

When the two were talking, a letter was placed on the couch, the content was not long, and there was Huan Rong's private seal at the end, but it made the uncle and nephew unable to calm down for a long time.

"Uncle, what does Huan Jingdao mean by this move?"

"Alliance." Xie An said succinctly, "Follow the trend and disintegrate the overseas Chinese in Kuaiji."

Xie Xuan twisted the word Chuan between his brows, and when he read Huan Rong's letter again, his expression became more serious.

"Since that's the case, nephew can write a letter on behalf of uncle to refuse."

"Why did you refuse?" Xie An raised his eyebrows, his expression indifferent, in stark contrast to Xie Xuan.

"Uncle?" Xie Xuan was puzzled. After thinking for a moment, a flash of light flashed in his mind, and he suddenly realized, "What does uncle mean, is this beneficial to the clan?"

"Of course not." Xie An shook his head, and said to Xie Xuan, "The Huan family wants to let Yangzhou shepherd, if I take over, I will definitely overwhelm the Taiyuan Wang family and the Langya Wang family. With Yangzhou in hand, even if it is Xi Fanghui, it will not be good for me. You also have to be wary of three points."

Xie Xuan nodded.

"However, the alliance between me and the Huan family will also be revealed to the world. At that time, the Chen Jun Xie family will embark on a road of thorns. If you choose the right one, you will lead to the sky, and you will be honored for a hundred years. If you are wrong, I will shatter the bones, The Xie clan will be greatly injured."

"Uncle," Xie Xuan hesitated for a moment, and said, "Huan Jingdao has the heart to go north to restore the Central Plains."

"I know." Xie An lowered his eyes, looked at the ice-cold tea soup, and said, "If the Han Dynasty survives, the gentry will survive. Once China is completely in the hands of the Hu thieves, the so-called inheritance of the family and the glory of the ancestors are nothing but A lie."

Look at the Gaomen who stayed in the Northland, what is the current situation?

If there is no Huaxia, how can there be a family!

"Huan Jingdao is not Huan Yuanzi." Xie An picked up the lacquer cup, and regardless of the cold tea soup, he raised his head and drank it. "He has the heart to restore the Central Plains and end the troubled times. I want to help him!"

As for after that, that's another matter.

At its root, conquering the world and securing the world are two completely different things.

Xie Xuan was silent for a moment, and then said: "Uncle, nephew, please lead your family to accompany the army in the Northern Expedition."

"Decided?"

"Yes!"

"Okay." Xie An nodded and said, "Since that's the case, you should prepare to leave as soon as possible. You don't need to worry about court affairs. I will arrange everything myself."

"promise!"

"After tomorrow's court meeting, you may wish to send a greeting card to Prince Jing."

Xie An suddenly mentioned Wang Xianzhi, Xie Xuan was momentarily at a loss.

"Things that you can think of, with the talent respected by the prince, you may not think of them." Xie An smiled, "No way, the two of you can go north together, and you won't be lonely on the road."

After a pause, Xie An carefully looked at Xie Xuan, seeing that the other party was uncomfortable, and then sighed: "You have the name of Yushu, but you are not as good as Wang Zijing in the end. It is really a bit regrettable."

Xie Xuan: "..."

The "convulsions" and "out of tune" in Brother Rong's mouth, maybe it's uncle?