At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 172 Regret and Transformation

Zhou Qi's sudden fainting completely disrupted Tian Feng's original plan.

He did not expect that the news of the death of Gai Xun, a famous scholar in Liangzhou, would come at this time, and it would have such a huge blow to Zhou Qi.

"General!"

"Ming Gong!"

Zhang Yun and Chen Wen were shocked when they saw Zhou Qi fainted.

Fortunately, Chen Wen had quick eyes and quick hands and hugged Zhou Qi who fainted, preventing him from falling to the ground.

"Doctor, call the doctor quickly!"

Zhou Qi's fainting caused chaos in the Chariot and Cavalry General's Mansion, and soon alerted the entire Shouchun ruling class.

Xi Zhicai rushed to the Chariot and Cavalry General's Mansion as soon as possible. Xiang Hong also led the troops to enforce martial law throughout the city. Dian Wei and Chen Wen also commanded their troops to surround the mansion and treat him strictly.

They were the first to follow Zhou Qi, and everything they owned was inseparable from him. Now Zhou Qi's children are still young, and his foundation in Yangzhou is still a little shallow. If something really happens to Zhou Qi, it will inevitably set off a huge wave.

"Crench!"

The door was opened, and Xi Zhicai watched the sweating doctor come out, and hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "How is Duke Ming's health, can he wake up?"

This doctor was personally recruited by Zhou Qi. When he was in Anfeng County, he followed Zhou Qi. He knew Zhou Qi's physical condition well and was a trustworthy person.

The doctor gave a slight salute to Xi Zhicai, and said: "Duke Ming is in good health, and there is nothing serious about it. It's just that he suddenly heard the bad news, and he was in a coma for a while. Now he has woken up."

When Xi Zhicai and the others heard this, they couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

But then, the doctor changed his mind and said: "However, this coma is caused by excessive mental energy consumption under great compassion. Even if I wake up, I am afraid that my spirit will be weak in a short time."

"Heart disease still needs heart medicine medicine. Whether Minggong can recover as soon as possible still needs to get rid of his heart knot."

"For this matter, I am afraid there is nothing I can do."

Hearing this, Xi Zhicai said, "Thank you for your hard work, sir. Leave the follow-up matters to me."

The doctor gave a slight salute, and then said: "Although Mr. Ming is awake, he looks depressed and is mentally and physically exhausted. It is not suitable for too many people to disturb him."

"If there are people visiting, unless it is necessary to meet them, please ask the drama director Shi to stop them."

Xi Zhicai said seriously: "I know!"

After the doctor left, Xi Zhicai told Dian Wei and Chen Wen, "No one is allowed to enter the house to see Duke Ming without permission."

The two took the order, their faces solemn.

In the house, on the bed.

Zhou Qi's face was pale, his eyes were staring straight at the roof, his eyes were dull, and there were faint tears in his eyes.

Until this moment, he still held tightly the letter written by Gai Xun before his death.

At this moment, Xi Zhi came over and tightened the quilt tightly around Zhou Qi.

He comforted him softly: "The deceased is dead, Ming Gong should take care of himself. The lives of tens of thousands of soldiers in Yangzhou are all tied to the hands of the general."

Zhou Qi didn't answer, but closed his eyes tightly, and then two lines of clear tears slid down from the corners of his eyes.

Seeing Zhou Qi's appearance, Xi Zhicai glanced at the letter tightly held in the other's hand, his gaze flickered slightly.

He didn't say anything more, just sat quietly beside the hospital bed, waiting.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhou Qi opened his eyes again, turned his head to look at Xi Zhicai who was staying beside him, and made a hoarse voice.

"Gai Gong died, I have no interest in government affairs, and Yangzhou affairs, big and small, will be handed over to Zhicai."

Xi Zhicai panicked and said: "The soldiers of Yangzhou are all gathered here because of the prestige of Ming Gong. How can Zhicai be so virtuous and talented? How dare he take charge of the affairs of Yangzhou?"

"Please also take care of your health, Duke Ming, and take charge of Yangzhou in person."

Zhou Qi waved his hands with some difficulty, then shook his head and said, "With my master's ability, even if I don't show up for a while, there will be no trouble in Yangzhou."

"You go back, I want to take a good rest."

Xi Zhicai had no choice but to resign.

Next, all the generals under Zhou Qi's command, as well as the Yangzhou aristocratic family, and even the county guard and county lieutenant as far away as Jiangxia, all sent people to visit, and also wanted to inquire about General Cheqi's condition.

Fortunately, Xi Zhicai presided over the overall situation and handled everything properly. Yangzhou, which was originally fluctuating because of Zhou Qi's coma, gradually calmed down.

However, without Zhou Qi presiding over the overall situation, there is still a lack of backbone after all.

At this time, Xi Zhicai finally realized deeply how important Zhou Qi was to the Yangzhou military group.

Once Zhou Qi has three ups and two downs, no one can suppress the civil servants and generals in Yangzhou, and the consequences will be disastrous.

Tian Feng wanted to visit Zhou Qi, but was stopped by Dian Wei and Chen Wen.

In desperation, he had to retreat and find the next best thing, Xi Zhicai, who was temporarily in charge of Yangzhou affairs.

"I don't know when sir plans to send troops to rescue Jingzhou?"

Tian Feng didn't beat around the bush, but asked straightforwardly.

Xi Zhicai smiled wryly, "If the chariot generals don't come out to take charge of the overall situation, I'm afraid no one can command the proud soldiers in Yangzhou."

"The matter of rescuing Jingzhou, let it go for now."

When Tian Feng heard the words, his heart sank.

This was the first task Yuan Shao entrusted to him. If he could not complete it satisfactorily, it would definitely affect his position in the opponent's heart.

Although he is not someone who invites pets, he also has his own pride and does not want to be underestimated.

Tian Feng pondered for a while, and then said: "The 200 million stones of grain and grass that General Cheqi said earlier is simply impossible."

"However, as long as you are willing to rescue Jingzhou, as an envoy under the command of my hussars general, it is possible to obtain a million stones of food and grass for Yangzhou."

Tian Feng knew that at this time he had to throw down the heavy bait, otherwise Yangzhou would most likely take advantage of Zhou Qi's coma and not help each other.

He believes that as long as the benefits are sufficient, Yangzhou will not sit idly by.

as predicted.

Xi Zhicai heard Tian Feng's words, but narrowed his eyes slightly, and asked, "Sir, are you serious?"

Tian Feng vowed: "I can go to Jingzhou first to discuss this matter with Liu Jingsheng. If the other party agrees, it will not be too late to send troops from Yangzhou."

Xi Zhicai said with a smile: "Since that's the case, then I invite you to go to Jingzhou for a while."

Tian Feng did not continue to stay in Shouchun, and went directly from Jiangxia to Xiangyang.

On Xi Zhicai's side, he secretly thought: "Tian Feng is quite intelligent, and he is deeply loved by Duke Ming."

"He's new to Yuan Shao, and he doesn't have deep feelings, so maybe he can't be used by our lord."

"Furthermore, Yuan Benchu ​​is in the north and will become a powerful prince sooner or later. If Tian Feng is allowed to return to Jizhou, he will become our strong enemy in the future."

With this in mind, Xi Zhicai immediately wrote a book in the name of Yangzhou and sent it to Jizhou.

In the courtyard, under the shade.

Under the careful care of several wives and concubines, Zhou Qi's health has improved a lot, but he still looks sluggish and thinks a lot every day.

He looked up at the sky.

I saw that the clouds were overcast at this time, and it seemed that there would be a heavy rain soon.

But amidst the dark clouds, there was a beam of light piercing the sky, which was the light of the sun.

Looking at the scene in front of him, Zhou Qi seemed to see Gai Xun who had passed away, and couldn't help feeling a pain in his heart.

Gai Xun Gai Yuangu can be said to be the very rare ray of light in the dark and turbulent end of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

No matter his loyalty or character, he is almost impeccable.

Even as a time traveler, Zhou Qi couldn't help but be impressed by the other party.

In the process of Zhou Qi's rise, Gai Xun was even more kind to him.

Without Gai Xun, Zhou Qi, who came from a humble background, might not be where he is today.

In the eyes of everyone, Zhou Qi is also the kind of person who values ​​love and righteousness. He treats Gai Xun with great respect and regards him as a teacher and a father.

But only Zhou Qi knew that he had been using Gai Xun.

Just like when Beigong Boyu rebelled, Gai Xun felt that Liangzhou would be turned upside down, so he wrote a letter to Zhou Qi and asked him to go to Hanyang to serve as the county captain, and at the same time mobilized all his connections to represent the imperial court and strongly recommended Zhou Qi. different.

Gai Xun's original intention was to use Zhou Qi's ability to command troops to quickly put down the Liangzhou rebellion.

Zhou Qi, who was at home at that time, did not hesitate after receiving the letter, and directly led Dian Wei and Xu Chu to help Liangzhou without fear of hardships and dangers.

This move seems to show kindness and repay the sky, but it is not the case.

At that time, Zhou Qi had already fallen into a bottleneck, and the backer Yuan Shi was also unreliable.

If he wants to go further, he must find a better backer.

Zhou Qi is familiar with history and naturally knows that Gai Xun will be highly valued by the emperor in the future.

And Gai Xun attached great importance to him, so he became Zhou Qi's next target.

However, others don't know the historical trend. They only saw that Gai Xun's position was not high at that time, and they only saw that Zhou Qi traveled thousands of miles to Liangzhou just out of loyalty.

Just like when Gai Xun led his troops to rescue Xia Yu, the captain of the Qiang Guards.

Zhou Qi knew that the opponent's trip was bound to fail and would fall into the hands of the enemy, but he still did not try his best to prevent Gai Xun from going there, nor did he send one of his generals, Dian Wei and Xu Chu, to protect Gai Xun's safety.

Because Zhou Qi is worried that if history changes, Gai Xun may not be favored by the emperor in the future, and then he will not be able to continue to climb up through Gai Xun's thigh.

As for not sending Dian Wei and Xu Chu, it was because he knew that Gai Xun had the aura of a protagonist and would not be killed by the rebels, but he was worried that his generals would die.

Such behavior is actually somewhat selfish.

But in order to climb up, Zhou Qi still did it.

For example.

During his tenure as the captain of Hanyang County, he did not have any outstanding performance at all, nor did he quell the Liangzhou rebellion at the beginning.

On the surface, it seems that he is under the control of several wonderful governors of Liangzhou.

In fact, Zhou Qi did it on purpose.

Liangzhou is not chaotic, how did Dong Zhuo rise?
Without the rise of Dong Zhuo, how could the might of the Han Dynasty be wiped out?

If the big man doesn't sweep away the situation with dignity, how can Zhou Qi take advantage of the situation?

Everything was calculated by Zhou Qi secretly, even the closest people didn't know what was going on in his mind, and he never dared to mention it to anyone.

as predicted.

Zhou Qi later relied on Gai Xun's golden thigh to directly pay homage to General Zuo.

As the saying goes: Sheng Mi En, fighting Mi Qiu.

Although Zhou Qi is not an ungrateful person, he also knows that Gai Xun's kindness is hard to repay.

Most importantly.

Gai Xun's loyalty to Han did not match Zhou Qi's ambitions.

If Gai Xun survives for a day, Zhou Qi will not be able to rebel for a day, otherwise he will lose the hope of the world and lose his reputation.

The living Gai Xun will only become a hindrance to Zhou Qi, and can no longer be a help.

This is also why, when Zhou Qi confronted Dong Zhuo outside Luoyang City, Zhou Qi agreed so readily and left Gai Xun as a hostage.

only.

Although Zhou Qi had many calculations, he still admired Gai Xun as a person and felt deeply guilty about him.

He wouldn't do it if possible.

But compared to Jiangshan Sheji and his grand plans, what is this little personal feeling?
If there were no Gai Xun's last words, Zhou Qi would not pass out even though he would feel sad when he learned of the death of the other party.

Just because of that letter, he regretted it and sighed.

Do you know why?

It turns out that in the letter, Gai Xun has clearly stated: I know that Ziyi has always had great ambitions, or has the heart to change the world, but a gentleman does not care about his deeds. It is also beneficial.

If the world is peaceful, Ziyi must be a capable minister to govern the world; once the majesty of the court is lost, and the princes compete in all directions, Ziyi will also be a hero.

I was bent on reviving the Han Dynasty, but because of my weak words and powerlessness, I could only sit back and watch Dong Zhuo mess up the government, trample on the royal family, and bring disaster to the country and the people.

Today, the building has been overturned, the government has collapsed, and the princes have separated their regimes. The chaotic world has already been completed, and it is irreversible.

I know that my son has different ambitions, and I do not seek to re-establish the Han Dynasty. I only hope that you can bring peace to the troubled times as soon as possible and save lives from the fire and water.

Gai Xun's last pen.

In this letter, he didn't mention any grievances he had suffered, nor did he mean to criticize Zhou Qi, but he just hoped that the world would be peaceful as soon as possible and the people would live and work in peace and contentment.

This great benevolence and great virtue, as well as that broad mind, finally broke Zhou Qi's defense.

If he had known that Gai Xun was not foolishly loyal to the Han Dynasty after seeing the mountains and rivers shattered, he might not have sat back and watched the other party die in Chang'an.

But this is just a false proposition.

Although Gai Xun has clearly seen the nature of this era.

But as long as he lives for a day, even if he knows that he can't do it, he will still choose to be loyal to the Han Dynasty.

Perhaps it is precisely because of this that he will slowly exile himself and let himself gradually die in pain, as if it is foretelling the future of the big man in advance.

Now he is dead.

You can also let go of the burden in your heart and let the ashes return to ashes.

However, he still cares about thousands of people.

Thinking of all the above, Zhou Qi couldn't help crying.

After an unknown amount of time, he finally stopped crying, looked up at the beam of light piercing the sky, and muttered to himself: "In this era, there may no longer be anyone like Mr.

"I hereby swear to my husband that even if I am poor in this life, I will clear up the troubled times, let the people of the world live a stable and prosperous life again, and let the Han people no longer experience the tragedy of the chaos."

"Whoever dares to block this road, I will kill him. Even if we kill all the families and princes, we must fulfill this oath!"

"Boom!"

After Zhou Qi finished swearing, there was a sudden thunder explosion in the sky, and the dazzling lightning pierced the sky, as if opening up the world.

"Crash."

Immediately afterwards, heavy rain poured down.

Zhou Qi opened his arms and raised his head to embrace the sky, the confusion and malaise in his eyes swept away.

(End of this chapter)