Chapter 477 Twilight
In the third year of Chengtian, March 10th, Chang'an, the front hall of Weiyang Palace.
In the Changxin lamp, Liu Hong looked pale and lay weakly on the bed, recalling his life.
Unknowingly, it has been twenty years since I left my hometown in Hebei.
He still can't forget how excited and panic he felt when Old Liu Tou and the Cao family came to greet him with Hu Ben, Yu Lin, and Zhong Huang all over the road.
And when he anxiously followed the convoy to the heavenly Kyoto, it was General Dou Wu who greeted him at Xiamen Pavilion and personally ushered him into the palace with a green-covered chariot.
The next day, he became the lord of the Han Dynasty and the twelfth emperor of the Han Dynasty.
But soon Liu Hong became very unhappy because he vaguely heard some bad rumors, saying that Liu Hong would be the last emperor of the Han Dynasty and he would be the leader of the country.
It turns out that no matter how great the virtues of the ancient emperors were, they could only be passed down to twelve generations. No matter how many more, this virtue would not be enough. Therefore, the crown of the emperor is full of vermilion and green algae. This crown is given by heaven, and there are only twelve beads, no more.
Therefore, the great ancestor Gao Zu punished the Qin Dynasty and settled the sea, and had such great merits in the world, but it was only passed down to the twelve emperors. This is still counting the ridiculous king of Changyi.
This prophecy of twelve deaths is like a black spot. No matter how dazzling the glory of the Han Dynasty is, this dark spot will always be there, making it unforgettable.
Unfortunately, he, Liu Hong, is the twelfth emperor after the resurrection of the ancestors. Whether he can break this prophecy of doom depends on him, Liu Hong.
But Liu Hong, who was quite ambitious, certainly didn't believe in such a prophecy that was not good for him, so he gave himself the first reign title after ascending the throne: "Jianning".
This is Liu Hong's ambition. He wants to rebuild a peaceful Han Dynasty world.
And he did it. In the first year after he ascended the throne, the old captain who was still the guard of the Qiang army defeated the Qiang people, and in the second year he completely wiped out the Qiang rebels.
At this point, the Qiang chaos, which had lasted for hundreds of years since Emperor Zhang's reign and cost the empire countless blood and money, was resolved in the first year of Liu Hong's accession to the throne.
This merit reaches far beyond all emperors.
In terms of domestic affairs, the party members who were noisy in Chaotangou and fought against dissidents also disappeared under his thunderous means.
These people always feel that the world will not survive without them, but what? After driving away these clear currents, I, Liu Hong, still rule the world.
This martial arts skill is worthy of the title of Fengchan Taishan!
Of course, Liu Hong also knew that he was not without mistakes.
His mistake was that he trusted others too much, and he was often betrayed by others.
He trusted Chen Fan and Dou Wu, but these two people united to rebel against him. For this reason, he annihilated three of their tribes.
He trusted Li Ying, Fan Pang and other local moral celebrities, but they always slandered the court and me behind my back. That's it, he just put them in jail. Fortunately, these people still had a sense of shame, and finally committed suicide in prison out of shame.
He trusted Yang Qiu and other Hebei factions and regarded them as the imperial party and his ministers.
But what about them? He was so arrogant that he deceived and killed Wang Fu and the old Taiwei. Especially when the old lieutenant was such a loyal minister, but his death was not in vain.
People like Yang Qiu even wanted to rebel. If Cao and others hadn't discovered it in time, the consequences would have been disastrous.
Then Zhang Jiao, didn't you give me a book before to teach me how to maintain a long life? Why did they suddenly rebel? And you, Old Man Cai, just didn’t let you talk anymore, so you went to join the bandits?
The world's major events have deteriorated to this extent, and it is all because of these unfaithful and unjust people.
But these are not what Liu Hong hates most, what he hates most is He Jin.
As his own Qi family, they actually dug in and collaborated with outsiders to rebel against him, which made him come to Chang'an in embarrassment.
You know, the cemetery you built is in Kyoto, not Chang'an. Which emperor of this generation was finally buried in Xijing?
Alas, I don’t know if it’s too late to build my own mausoleum.
He lay on the couch, opened his mouth, and asked softly:
"Where is the mausoleum?"
Standing on both sides of Liu Hong's bed were Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong.
Seeing Guo opening his mouth, Zhang Rang, who was very old and had limited mobility, hurriedly stepped forward and lay in Liu Hong's ear to listen.
After listening to Liu Hong's words, Zhang Rang turned to the general and master craftsman Wu Xiudao below:
"The country asked, where is the tomb selection?"
As a general, Wu Xiu is a master craftsman and is in charge of the cemetery. Naturally, he has to answer this question.
Therefore, Wu Xiu did not dare to be negligent and hurriedly knelt down and answered:
"Your Majesty, I chose Longshou Plain, which is thirteen miles southeast. This plain is beautiful and full of flowers. It is a first-class dragon cave."
Then Wu Xiu saw Liu Hong on the couch and opened his mouth again, but couldn't hear anything.
Then, he heard Zhang Rang ask again:
"Why not be buried on Xianyangyuan? Aren't most of the emperors of the previous dynasties buried there?"
Wu Xiu opened his mouth and said awkwardly:
"Not in harmony with etiquette."
Wu Xiu then explained that the tombs of the emperors of the former Han Dynasty were separated in the north and south of Xianyang Plain according to the Zhaomu system of etiquette.
For example, Emperor Gaozu, Emperor Jing, Emperor Zhao, Emperor Xuan and Emperor Cheng were listed in the Zhao position, while Emperor Hui, Emperor Wen, Emperor Wu, Emperor Yuan, Emperor Ai and Emperor Heping were buried in the Mu position.
And we, Liu Hong, are too far apart from these previous emperors in terms of genealogy, so we cannot be buried together. Therefore, it is necessary to choose another location for burial.
In accordance with the principles of Kanyuology, which emphasizes being close to mountains and rivers, and having open halls, a group of craftsmen and officials, including Wu Xiu, worked almost non-stop to determine the place of Longshouyuan.
In fact, the reason for such haste was Liu Hong himself.
In fact, since he rushed west to Chang'an, Yang Biao and other Kansai aristocratic families tried to persuade Liu Hong to build a mountain mausoleum in Chang'an several times, but Liu Hong refused to respond.
He said that his mountain tomb is in Kyoto, three hundred steps up the mountain and twelve feet high.
Of course Liu Hong understood what Yang Biao and those people meant. No matter whether he was restored or not in the future, they wanted him to make his capital in Chang'an. The mausoleum is here, can the capital still escape?
But Liu Hong still retained a trace of the illusion of inspiring the Han Dynasty, and he still wanted to fight back to Kyoto. He couldn't accept that he was Emperor Waque who had lost half of the world.
Of course, he didn't explicitly object. This was also his way of controlling the powerful Kansai family.
It's just a pity that this power strategy ended up hitting him on the head.
Thinking that after his death he would have to bury his body outside and wait for the mausoleum to be completed, he became sad.
But at this time, Liu Hong felt even weaker. He gritted his teeth and asked one more thing:
"Have you thought about my posthumous title?"
This sentence was still conveyed by Zhang Rang.
After hearing this, everyone present in the inner court all looked at Taishi Ling Wang Li who was sitting in the left school.
There are four important palaces in the entire Weiyang Palace. From south to north, they are the front hall, Xuanshi, Chengming and Greenhouse.
To go from the palace to the palace, you have to pass through the Duanmen, and there is a six-meter-wide long road from the Duanmen to the front hall. The left school is the hall on the right side of the doorway, also called the Jiamen Hall.
As the Taishi Ling, Wang Li was required to accompany Liu Hong and compile Liu Hong's daily life, so he usually sat silently in Duanmen Zuo School, recording Liu Hong's words, deeds, and daily life.
And now Liu Hong asked about his posthumous title. Naturally, he had to refer to the meaning of Taishi Ling for such a final decision.
So after Wang Li heard this sentence, he put down his sword and pen, fell on the ground and said to Liu Hong:
"Your Majesty, the posthumous title is a posthumous matter. It cannot be decided by one minister alone. It must be discussed with all the ministers outside the palace."
This time there was no need for Liu Hong to say anything, Zhang Rang scolded:
"In your opinion, which one should you use?"
Wang Li was silent for a while and answered truthfully:
"If the posthumous title is good, it might be 'Ling', but if the posthumous title is bad, it might be 'Min'."
After hearing Wang Li's words, all the court officials present put their heads on the ground and did not dare to say a word.
What is spirit?
The one who dies but achieves his ambition is called Ling; the one who is chaotic but not damaged is called Ling; the one who knows the ghosts and gods well is called Ling; the one who becomes famous without diligence is called Ling; the one who dies and sees the gods can be called Ling, and the one who is good at offering sacrifices to ghosts and gods is called Ling. This was already a bad posthumous title, and then Wang Li said it was a good posthumous title.
And what is Min?
When the country encounters difficulties, it is called Min; when the people are injured, it is called Min; when the country is constantly worried, it is called Min; when disaster occurs, it is called Min
This statement is appropriate for Liu Hong, but who dares to say this?
So, for a while everyone lowered their faces to the floor, and the atmosphere was depressing.
Only Liu Hong on the bed kept panting after hearing these words, adding a bit of fear to this depression.
Seeing this, Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong hurriedly stepped forward to vent their anger on Liu Hongshun, but they really meant it sincerely.
Afterwards, Zhang Rang scolded Wang Li and asked him to retreat.
Then the front hall fell into dead silence again, and everyone was waiting silently.
Waiting for Liu Hong to take his last breath.
As for the issue of Liu Hong's successor, there is no need to discuss it much, because only the Prince Association followed Liu Hong westward.
At that time, Liu Hong was holding five-year-old Liu Xie in his arms. The little prince did not cry or make trouble along the way, showing his unusual temperament early on.
The Kansai ministers in the outer dynasty also preferred Liu Xie to ascend the throne. Otherwise, would they have done the ridiculous thing of bringing in another one from among the people?
Therefore, it is understandable that the court officials do not ask about the successor.
But the strange thing is that the prince Liu Xie is only seven years old this year and cannot manage politics at all. But now before Liu Hong died, he did not mention the candidate for the assistant minister, and the ministers present, including Zhang Rang, never mentioned it either. .
In short, time passed little by little in this weird and depressing atmosphere.
Only the sound of water dripping in the hall and Liu Hong's heavy breathing fainted in the hall.
A scene of twilight.
……
At this time, the Kansai ministers waiting outside the corridor of the front hall were also worried.
The dusk outside disappeared little by little, and darkness enveloped everyone's hearts.
Soon, the maids and maids waiting by the corridor came over holding incense burners to help the ministers drive away the mosquitoes outside.
And the regular attendants and visitors waiting by the side were ordered to light the lamps on both sides of the verandah one after another, making the interior of the verandah seem like daylight.
But little did they know that the lights together illuminated these ministers with their faces indistinctly, making the verandah look terrifying.
At this time, at the outermost edge of the crowd, the visitor Zhang Song was muttering in his Shu voice in the darkness:
"It's not good, it's not good."
Kneeling next to him was the visitor Pei Mao, who came from Wenxi, Hedong. Hearing the mutterings of his colleagues next to him, he wondered:
"Ziqiao, what are you talking about?"
Zhang Song is thin and small, and he was originally meant to represent the dignity of the court. But who made Yizhou become more and more important in the Kansai court, and the descendants of Yizhou powerful men like Zhang Song should naturally have his place.
At this time, seeing Pei Mao who was still confused next to him, Zhang Song joked:
"Juguang, what do you think we are doing kneeling here now?"
Pei Mao didn't understand and replied honestly:
"Aren't you praying for His Majesty?"
Zhang Song took one look at Pei Mao's good looks and felt pity:
"The Pei family from Hedong is also from a famous family, and his father is also a big official. How could he raise such an honest boy?"
He pointed to the hall in front and asked Pei Mao:
"Where are we now?"
Pei Mao still didn't understand and replied:
"In the front hall."
Zhang Song saw that this boy didn't understand when he said this, so he knew that he was more earthly than a Yizhou scholar like himself, so he taught:
"You, you really don't know anything about the affairs of the country. Your father sent you here as a visitor, and he doesn't know whether he loves you or hurts you. Let me tell you, this front hall is also called the road bed. According to the "Etiquette" "Mourning Notes": "The king and his wife died on the road. "Understood, how can the country still pray for blessings when they are all here?"
At this time, Zhang Song did not see the past embarrassment and sadness on Pei Mao's face when he told Pei Mao that his father asked him to be the visitor, and he didn't know whether he loved him or hated him.
Zhang Song was still showing off:
"In the previous generation, except Emperor Wu, everyone from Emperor Hui on down died in Weiyang Palace. Although Emperor Wu died in Wuzha, he was finally buried in the front hall of Weiyang Palace. This front hall is where the Zi Palace of the Holy Emperors of the past dynasties was located. And now that His Majesty is here directly, what else can we pray for?”
At this time, Pei Mao understood what he said, glanced at his father standing in front of everyone, took Zhang Song's words, and said:
"So everyone is standing here because a storm is coming."
Zhang Song was stunned by these words. He looked at Pei Mao, not sure whether he was really stupid or fake.
But he agreed with Pei Mao’s words and said:
"Yes, what will happen after your Majesty's death? That is..."
Just when Zhang Song was about to start talking, a young official standing in the corridor in front turned to Zhang Song and Pei Mao and said:
"Silence."
Zhang Song glanced at the man, and although he didn't agree, he still kept his mouth shut.
Because the person who said this was Zuo Zhonglang Liu Fan, the son of Liu Yan, the current governor of Yizhou.
Outside the corridor of the front hall is the end gate that separates the palace and the hall. Under the door, there are teams of halberd-bearing men from Weiwei Batun, patrolling at night.
Outside the door, there were the attendants of various ministers in the palace. They also knew the seriousness of today's matter and kept walking anxiously outside the door.
At this moment, a bus attendant named Du Ji hurried over.
The officer guarding Duanmen wondered why the people on the bus did not enter from the north, but why they went around to Duanmen.
But he knew that the bus order was specially designed to receive documents and memorials from outside the palace at night, so there must be something big happening at this time. Therefore, Captain Duanmen did not dare to neglect and hurriedly asked people to pull Du Ji up.
After Du Ji came up from the basket, he didn't bother to be polite to Captain Duanmen and hurried down to find someone.
As soon as he came in, he saw many ministers standing under the corridor of the front hall. Sangong, Zongzheng, Weiwei, Guangluxun, the princes in Beijing, and the imperial censors, these important figures who were rarely seen in ordinary times, were all crowded together with everyone, and no one wanted to talk more.
Du Ji searched the crowd and saw where Shangshu Ling Yang Biao was.
He lowered his head, hurriedly walked to Yang Biao's place, and thrust the 2,000-mile urgent report from Liangzhou into Yang Biao's hand. Then he left.
Du Ji knew that he was too sensitive tonight and did not dare to stay any longer.
And Yang Biao had already seen Du Ji, his disciple, and was stunned for a moment when he saw him stuffing a book in his hand.
But when he opened it and took a look, he was confused.
However, Yang Biao had already learned his craftsmanship through experience. With no movement on his face, he walked to a long letter lamp and ordered the silk book directly.
When he turned around again at this time, he saw that Jin Shang, Zhao Qi, Wuyong, Gai Xun, and Fu Xie were already looking over.
Yang Biao said lightly:
"Nothing, nothing is important today."
After saying that, Yang Biao looked at the closed front hall, unconsciously pinched the bones under his long sleeves, and murmured:
"It's late tonight."
(End of chapter)