The author said: I haven’t spoken for a long time, everyone please give me some support!
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Zhongli Kuang opened his folding fan and fanned it twice slowly: "Your Highness already has the answer in your heart, why bother asking? Whoever benefits the most right now will be the one who kills the king."
After hearing this, Zheng Rong jumped up from his seat and said as if to refute himself: "Impossible! I have watched Zheng Yao grow up. He is a bit naughty and selfish, but he would never do such a treasonous thing! It is absolutely impossible!" He stood up with such a big movement that his sleeve touched a tea bowl on the coffee table beside him, and the precious porcelain shattered to the floor.
It was the first time for Zheng Rong's sons to see their father so furious. They could no longer sit still in their seats. They all stood up and bowed to the ground, "Father, please accept my condolences! Please calm down, Father!"
Looking at his four sons lying on the ground, Zheng Rong felt dizzy and sat back in his chair, breathing heavily. After a long time, he said, "Or maybe the late emperor had a will to pass the throne to the second son. The second son saw that the situation in the court was bleak, so he kept the death a secret and held a grand funeral ceremony after the situation stabilized. This possibility is not impossible."
Zhongli Kuang listened and said coldly: "The capital city garrison is already under the control of the second prince Zheng Yao, and there are eunuchs in the palace who are helping the evil. If he has the last will of the previous emperor, then it is even more legitimate. Why would he do something like this to give others a handle? In my opinion, the prince is just deceiving himself."
Zhongli Kuang was always harsh in his words, but his words were too harsh. Zheng Rong found them very harsh, but he made sense in every word he said. He could only frown and say, "Mr. Zhongli is right. But when the late emperor passed away, the princes of all regions must immediately come to the capital to pay their respects and wait for the new emperor to ascend the throne. This is the law of the Han Dynasty. There is nothing we can do about it..."
Qiu Yizhi knelt on the ground and said, "What foster father said is very true. However, since the second prince can keep his troops in place and wait for the right time, why can't we follow his example? Yizhi sees that foster father has been in poor health due to excessive grief in recent days, and there is news that the Turks are ready to make a move at the border. You can report the truth to the court and return to Youyan Road to mourn on the spot. It won't be too late to make plans when the situation becomes clear."
In fact, Zheng Rong believed seven or eight out of ten of Qiu Yizhi's words about Zheng Yao's regicide. After hearing that Qiu Yizhi's current countermeasures were reasonable, he sighed again, "The late emperor has been so kind to me that I wish I could grow wings and fly to the imperial city to see my brother off. Qiu Yizhi's plan is good, but when will it end if I return to Youyan and lead my own army? I'm afraid that by then everyone in the world will laugh at me for being a coward."
"Father, don't forget that you are not the only brother of the late emperor who is in charge of the army. Lingnan King Zheng Gui is also a prince and will also go to the capital to attend the funeral. He also commands a powerful army and may not be a thorn in the eyes of the second prince. Father, you can wait and see how the situation changes after he comes to the capital, and then make a decision."
When his brother Zheng Gui was mentioned, Zheng Rong seemed to have an idea and said, "Zheng Gui has been vicious since he was a child. If he had the plan we have now, he would not dare to come to the capital to pay his respects. If so, the late emperor would only have one brother, King Heluo Zheng Hua, in front of him. It would not only make the late emperor look like he has few children, but it would also damage the dignity of our royal family!"
Qiu Yizi almost collapsed after hearing this. He really couldn't understand why his wise and brave foster father, the prince, had such a pedantic idea in his mind. When he was about to persuade him again, Zheng Rong waved his hand and said, "I am tired today, so I will get off the boat and rest. If there is anything, we can discuss it tomorrow."
Zheng Rong's words naturally meant that he had rejected Qiu Yizi's proposal.
Qiu Yizi racked his brains but couldn't figure out what was so precious about the word "dignity" that the powerful King Youyan was willing to risk his life and property and walk into a dangerous place just for these two simple words.
While he was still thinking, Master Zhongli and several of his brothers stood up to say goodbye. He couldn't stay here alone, so he had to leave as well.
As soon as he left the cabin, Qiu Yizhi saw that the deck was still empty, so he stopped his master Zhongli Kuang and led him to a secluded corner. After paying his respects to his teacher, he said, "Those who die in accordance with the Way have a proper fate; those who die in fetters do not have a proper fate. This is what the saints said, and therefore there is also the warning that a gentleman should not stand under a dangerous wall. Why doesn't your godfather understand this truth?"
Zhongli Kuang held a folding fan in his hand and frowned as he said, "The prince is well-versed in both ancient and modern knowledge, and is proficient in both civil and military affairs. How could he not understand this simple truth? However, the death that you see as 'shackles' may not be 'the best way' in the prince's heart."
"Hmph! I think what my adoptive father said was just for 'face'?" Qiu Yizi listened and disagreed. "He didn't go to the capital because he was afraid of violating the court conventions and losing face; he postponed going to the capital because he was afraid of losing face by others thinking he was just trying to get away with it; he didn't pay attention to the actions of the King of Lingnan because he was afraid of losing face by making the late emperor mourn. Face, face, what is so important about this face? The safety of Youyan and the rise and fall of the Han Dynasty all depend on my adoptive father. Can we easily abandon it for this 'face'?" At this point, Qiu Yizi was already a little indignant.
Zhongli Kuang looked at his favorite student and said, "All dynasties conquered the world on horseback, but if you want long-term peace and stability, you must rule the world from afar. So how to rule the world from afar? This involves the creation of various systems and rules after the founding of the country. And these systems and rules ultimately come down to the word "face". For example, I am just a poor middle-aged scholar, and your brothers are all nobles, but because we have the status of teacher and student, you have to give face to me as a teacher and kowtow to me. All these things are to make every citizen of the Han Dynasty know where they should be, whose face they should sell, and whose face they should buy. Only in this way can the vast territory of the Han Dynasty and the hundreds of millions of subjects be under the control of the emperor."
"Hmph! Does it mean that no matter who he is, as long as he becomes the emperor, he can have the power of life and death?" Qiu Yizi said angrily.
Zhong Li Kuang sighed and said, "If the emperor wants his subjects to die, the subjects dare not disobey. In the final analysis, you died for the emperor's 'face'. You also know what kind of person your adoptive father is. Back then, he would rather give up the throne than save the face of his Zheng family. Given the situation today, I'm afraid you can't persuade him..."
After hearing this, Qiu Yizi took a deep breath, as if he wanted to expel all the depression and indignation from his chest, and said, "I can't care about the faces of so many people. Whoever wants to harm my adoptive father, I will tear away his face, not to mention his integrity!" After that, he bowed to Master Zhongli, and walked down the wooden deck with a "dengdeng" sound.
After Zheng Rong and his party got off the boat, they booked the entire "Qinggui Building" owned by Zhou Cijing. The guests who were already staying in Qinggui Building checked out happily when they heard that the Prince of Youyan was going to stay there and received double compensation from the palace, without any disputes.
The next morning, without waiting for Zheng Rong to summon him, Qiu Yizi called Master Zhongli and his three brothers to Zheng Rong's room to knock on the door and greet him.
Zheng Rong of course guessed that Qiu Yizi and others' greetings were fake, and their advice to him not to go to Beijing was real. However, although he had made up his mind to go to Beijing to see off his deceased brother, he simply asked everyone outside the door to wait on the top floor of Qinggui Building, to tell them all his painstaking efforts, so that they would have nothing to say.
But to Zheng Rong's surprise, Qiu Yizi no longer insisted on his yesterday's idea in the Qinggui Tower, and said very respectfully: "My foster father should be a loyal minister and a filial son, and set an example for us younger generations. Yizi has deeply understood this." After that, he bowed down.
Zheng Rong was quite pleased to hear this: "You can understand my painstaking efforts, which is worthy of my daily teachings." Seeing Qiu Yizhi crawling on the ground, he said, "Yizhi, get up and talk!"
Qiu Yizi did not stand up, and continued: "However, it is an indisputable fact that this trip to the capital is uncertain. It is the duty of my adoptive father to be loyal and filial to the late emperor, and it is also our duty to be loyal and filial to our adoptive father. Since we have to fulfill this duty, we must do our best to ensure that my adoptive father is safe, but is this reasonable?"
Zheng Rong knew that Qiu Yizi was going to beat around the bush again, but he kept his words watertight, so he asked, "Yizi, if you have anything to say, just say it directly."
Qiu Yizhi kowtowed again and said, "When the emperor passes away, the princes come to the capital to pay their respects. This is a rule of the court that cannot be changed. However, there is no clear regulation on whether the princes' heirs should come to the capital at the same time. Can you do something about this matter, father?"
Zheng Rong pondered and said, "Although there is no explicit order for the Crown Prince to accompany the vassal king to the capital, it has been a rule for several generations. However, none of my three sons have been canonized as Crown Princes by the court, so they do not need to accompany me to the capital..."
Standing behind Qiu Yizhi, the eldest son of the King of Youyan, Zheng Xin, also knew that the capital city of Luoyang was fraught with danger. Hearing his father's words, he felt fortunate for the first time since he was old enough to understand that he had not yet been canonized as the crown prince. However, looking at the back of his brother Qiu Yizhi lying on the ground in front of him, he thought to himself: This kid, it's okay to have many tricks, but I didn't expect him to have such a good memory. He actually remembered the rules in the corners. Fortunately, he is not my flesh and blood, otherwise...
He had no idea that this was the result of Qiu Yizhi's overnight reading of the Han Dynasty Law he brought with him. Instead, he heard Qiu Yizhi continue to say, "I only hope that my foster father will remember this law and not bring my brothers to the capital. Otherwise, if something happens, we will be caught by the enemy, and then my Youyan Palace will never be able to recover!"
Zheng Rong was listening and thinking seriously about Qiu Yizi's proposal, but he saw Zheng Miao kneeling down and said, "My son is really uneasy without my father. Please order my two elder brothers and sworn brother to stay outside to support me. I am willing to accompany you and serve you."
When Zheng Xin and Zheng Sen saw this, they immediately knelt down and said, "We are also willing to follow our foster father to Beijing!"
Seeing that his sons' faces were all very sincere and without any pretense, Zheng Rong felt more relieved and raised his hand and said, "All of you, stand up. I have also fought my way through mountains of swords and seas of blood. Luoyang is also the place where I grew up. How come you guys make it sound like a den of dragons and tigers?" As he spoke, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
The four people kneeling on the ground looked at each other after hearing this, but no one stood up.
Qiu Yizhi hurriedly knelt forward and crawled a few steps, saying: "Yizhi has been working in Luoyang City for the past month. I am more or less familiar with the geography and customs of Luoyang City, and I have made several friends in the government and the country. Therefore, I beg my foster father to let me go ahead and make the first move. The three brothers can meet in Guangyang, Youyan, or in Anhe Town, so that everything will be safe!"
Zheng Rong knew that his son, a newcomer, was so smart that none of his three biological sons could match him. He thought to himself, "It won't hurt to have a trustworthy person in Luoyang to pick him up," and he readily agreed.
So they discussed and planned in detail before deciding on a plan. At this time, they were already starving, so they asked Sun Shouqian, the owner of Qingguilou, to arrange lunch.
Zheng Xin, Zheng Sen, Zheng Miao and Qiu Yizi had lunch with their father and master, then said goodbye and left to arrange their own people according to the plan.
Qiu Yizhi called Zhao Chengxiao and ordered, "Go back to Guangyang City right now and tell the twenty-six people you brought down from Yunmeng Mountain to disguise themselves and sneak into Luoyang before the prince enters the capital. It doesn't matter if one or two, three or four people are missing, but if we miss the time or the news leaks out, and my adoptive father's plan is ruined, then we brothers will not be able to succeed."
Zhao Chengxiao had never heard Qiu Yizhi speak so stiffly before, and he knew that this matter must not be taken lightly, so he solemnly agreed, immediately led a fast horse, and took a boat to Guangyang. (To be continued)