Under the sky

Chapter 303: It’s hard to repay a debt of gratitude

"With three legs, you can ascend to great treasures, and the sun and moon will reveal the king's sign; if you roast dog meat, you will become a duke, and your brothers, relatives, and friends will be on death row."

"The Prince of Liang rules Chang'an, the dwarf sits in Yunnan, and the King of Yan burns Jinling. There is no uncle-nephew relationship."

These two ballads were circulated in Yunnan two months ago. After the Lantern Festival, people can't help but sing them like fireworks exploding.

Zhuge Ran was lame and had been carrying crutches for many years. However, when the characters are broken down, they are moon, dog, and fire. The ancient character "month" looks like meat. King Liang refers to King Liang, the younger brother of Emperor Jing who fought for the throne with Emperor Wu, the son of Emperor Jing, thousands of years ago. , King Yan was the previous emperor and took the throne from his nephew. Both ballads imply that Zhuge Ran has a disobedient heart.

"Dad, please say something!" Mrs. Zhen patted her son's back, comforting the frightened child, feeling heartbroken.

Zhuge Tingguan has been afraid of his uncle since he was a child. In his heart, Zhuge Ran is an all-powerful demon king and evil star, and it would be easy to kill him. When he heard that Zhuge Ran wanted to usurp the throne, he was really heartbroken and panicked: "Mother, I I no longer want to be the leader! Forget it, let the second uncle take over as the leader. He is in charge of everything anyway, and he is just like the leader. I can just be an Anle son!"

Madam Zhen said angrily: "What nonsense are you talking about! You are your father's son. Your position is unfair, and the whole world is attacking you. He wants to be the leader, so let him be reincarnated as a poor son!"

"Second uncle is about to conquer Hengshan. If he takes over the position of alliance leader, shouldn't he set the rules? He changed the rules and became the leader. Who can do anything to him? Mother, I don't want to die. I haven't let my mother have a grandson yet. Here!" Zhuge was completely panicked when he heard this.

"If you want your mother to have a grandson, you should go to Yuniang's room more often and stop fooling around!" Mrs. Zhen scolded him.

"It's Yuniang who failed to live up to her expectations, don't blame me!" Zhuge Tingguan looked aggrieved, "What's the use of saying this out loud! Even if Yuniang has a child, she still has to be killed by my second uncle!"

Zhen Chengxue was silent at the side. Seeing that her father was silent, Zhen said loudly: "If you don't speak, do you really want to wait for the dwarf to kill our family?"

Zhen Chengxue frowned and said, "Is this urgent and useful? I don't have to think about it?"

Zhen said angrily: "The dwarf is so arrogant that he and your uncles can't even lift their heads. A group of elders in the yard dare to be angry but dare not speak out. The reason we are in this situation is because of Guan'er's father's protection! I used to follow His father said that this younger brother was arrogant, but his father, on the other hand, called me a shrew. If I couldn't resist, I would twist my sleeves and make this younger brother even more arrogant, and he would bully me, an orphan and a widowed mother!"

Zhen Chengxue said to Zhuge Tingguan: "Master, I think this may not be true. Dian Cang is at war with Hengshan. Spreading rumors is nothing more than disturbing the morale of our army."

Zhuge Tingguan said anxiously: "What if this is true?"

"Don't worry, look at you, your eyes are swollen from crying." Mrs. Zhen wiped away her son's tears, "You are the leader, you must have dignity. The poor child has been bullied by that dwarf since he was a child, and his courage was scared away. Don’t panic, mother and grandpa will make the decision for you.”

Zhuge Tingguan said: "Second uncle hates me. I have become the leader, and he has no respect for me. You all saw him beating me last time. I am the leader, and third uncle does not dare to contradict me. He fights whenever he wants, so why should he take me seriously? He is very powerful and I can’t fight him, so he can always hide, right?”

Mrs. Zhen shouted: "Just say some unambitious words!"

Zhen Chengxue said: "Master, please be at ease, this matter needs to be investigated carefully. My uncles are all here, we can't just watch him break the rules. Can the deputy commander kill all the people named Zhuge?"

Zhuge Tingguan said: "My uncles and uncles are all afraid of him. When I was beaten, which uncle said a word to help me?"

Zhen Chengxue said: "Master, please go back to your room and rest first. Let grandpa and your mother think about how to deal with this matter."

Zhuge Tingguan said anxiously: "You are not as smart as my second uncle, how can you come up with a solution!"

Zhen Chengxue almost rolled her eyes, Zhen said: "Have you never heard of three cobblers standing up to one Zhuge Liang? Your second uncle is just a little Zhuge Liang, he can't cover up the sky!"

Zhuge Tingguan was panicked and scared, but he had no other choice at the moment, so he had to say: "Then I will go back to the room first. Grandpa and mother will discuss what they have come up with before telling me."

Zhen Chengxue said: "Don't mention this to anyone, including your brother."

Zhuge Tingguan shook his head: "I don't like to talk to Changzhan. Maybe he is also involved in this matter."

Zhen said angrily: "Your brother is heartless and has his elbows turned outward. He only wants to curry favor with your second uncle!"

"I don't think the deputy master will usurp the throne." After Zhuge Tingguan left, Zhen Chengxue said, "When the former master was there, he listened to the deputy master on everything. Now that he has the power, there is no reason to do this. If Tingguan really Afraid..." Zhen Chengxue pondered for a moment and said, "Let Tingguan abdicate and give way to Changzhan."

"Dad!" Madam Zhen screamed, "What are you talking about? Guan'er is your grandson!"

"Usually it's your son, it's my grandson, it doesn't make any difference."

"Why?" Madam Zhen said loudly, "Why does that short guy want everything? When Guan'er's father was alive, he obeyed him in everything. Now that he's dead, he still has to let him have everything he wants?"

"Ting Guan's talent is indeed inferior to Chang Zhan." Zhen Chengxue said, "Chang Zhan is your son as well."

"How can Guan'er be inferior to Chang Zhan? Xiaozi himself is the second child and can't be the leader, so he favors Chang Zhan and teaches him everything. What about Ting Guan? He beats and scolds every time they meet, and even makes trouble. Guan'er has been there since he was a child. See how frightened the child is after being beaten by his father until he grows up?"

Zhen Chengxue said: "You pamper Ting Guan too much."

"I understand Guan'er's suffering. If my mother doesn't love him, who will? His father who listened to the slander?" Madam Zhen said angrily, "Guan'er is getting older and smarter. He is filial. He is also willing to learn, what's wrong with being the leader? What do you think the short man is afraid of? What he is afraid of is that Guan'er will become more and more capable, and his hands will become more and more useless! Why does he want to usurp the throne? Isn't he just afraid of Guan'er? Now that my son is sensible, share the power with him and strike first to gain the upper hand!"

"The deputy commander may not want to usurp the throne, it's just a rumor." Zhen Chengxue said.

"Even if he doesn't want to usurp the throne, he still wants to kill your grandson! Chaozi has been urging Guan'er's father to abolish some of Cang Lichang's rules. This man is full of tricks, and Guan'er has no son. If Chang Zhan succeeds him, that child He listens to his second uncle's advice in everything, and the dwarf accepts his wish and can be the regent for the rest of his life! If the dwarf has a son, Changzhan will be able to give the head of the family to his cousin! According to me, if Changzhan is filial, he must understand his elders and children. Orderly, obediently assist his brother, don't use any crooked ideas, he is just being manipulated by the dwarf!"

Seeing that her father was still hesitating, Mrs. Zhen said angrily: "Dad, do you really want to see the dwarf force my mother and son to death? My daughter, please speak plainly. The dwarf will continue to take care of things. Where is the future of the second brother and nephew?"

Zhen Chengxue suddenly woke up after hearing what her daughter said.Although Qitianmen is the second largest sect in Guizhou, the status of the sect leader is lower than that of the leader of the main hall in Qidiancang. Ten years ago, he was invited by his daughter to hand over Qitianmen to his son Zhen Songsheng. Li, who came to Diancang as a member of the Yue family, hoped that even if he could not become the head of the hall through his daughter's relationship, he could still get a job such as the commander-in-chief, so as to pave the way for his son in the future.

However, in order to prevent his relatives from intervening in politics, Zhuge Ran did not give him any duties. He is still just the head father-in-law. Although he is highly respected, he has no real power.This respect will gradually be lost with the death of Zhuge Yan and the rift between his daughter and Zhuge Ran. After his death, the relationship between his son and Zhuge Ran will only become more distant. Qitianmen will still be the second largest sect in Gui. The son's future only ends here.

Even if his daughter is allowed to marry into Dian Cang and become the wife of the head of the house, his son's status will not be improved at all...

"I'll think of another way." Zhen Chengxue said, "Be careful to keep an eye on Chang Zhan and don't let him know about this."

"I know," said Zhen, "I can't trust him either."

After leaving the Divine Emperor's Palace, Zhen Chengxue made calculations.Although Zhuge Ran has been handling almost all of Diancang's government affairs for more than ten years, there are two things he does not control. One of them is the seal.Although Zhuge Yan obeyed his younger brother, all orders were written by Zhuge Ran, handed over to Zhuge Yan for review - even if he did not read them seriously - and then stamped with the seal of the leader.Without the leader's seal, Zhuge Ran could not issue political orders, so the authority of the leader was not shaken. This was Zhuge Ran's wisdom.Even if there is no quarrel between brothers, once the slave forgets who the master is, trouble will arise.

This habit remained the same after Zhuge Tingguan ascended the throne, but it was different from Zhuge Yan at that time. Zhuge Yan trusted his younger brother, while Zhuge Tingguan was afraid of his uncle.

Secondly, the garrison in Diancang Palace was in charge of the third uncle Zhuge Yiyun. Firstly, Zhugeran already had too many things to take care of. Secondly, with his power, it would be too much to take charge of the garrison again and he needed to avoid suspicion. .

Another thing is that Zhuge Ran almost never forms a party.This is not to avoid suspicion. Forming a party is not necessary for Zhuge Ran, and working under him is not easy.

Perhaps for Tingguan, the leader, Zhuge Ran would change his style of taking power but not being exclusive, even to avoid suspicion.Zhen Chengxue calculated that for Zhuge Ran, this was the best thing to do for Dian Cang.

But after Zhuge Yan died, Zhuge Ran immediately sent troops to attack Hengshan. He only came back a few times in the past six months and spent most of his time on the front line.Zhuge Ran temporarily handed over the internal affairs and food transportation to Chang Zhan. Regardless of the victory or defeat of the war, Zhuge Ran would most likely hand over some of the government affairs and garrison to Chang Zhan when he returned.

The daughter was right. With Zhuge Ran's wisdom, even if he didn't rebel, he would still find a way to transfer power to Changzhan and let Tingguan be an empty leader.

Zhuge Ran only has one person, but he has to take care of too many things. Now Hengshan cannot be conquered for a long time, Huashan is defeated rapidly, and the situation is heading in the direction of getting out of control...

■

When Mrs. Zhen came to Qiongzhuxuan, Yuniang saw her mother-in-law and hurriedly put the things in her hands into the drawer, stood up, gathered her skirt and saluted.

"What are you busy with?" Zhen looked over and saw a blue silk thread hanging outside the drawer, and she became suspicious.

Yuniang knew she couldn't hide it, so she opened the drawer, took out a picture of butterflies swimming among flowers, embroidered it, and said, "I want to embroider a handkerchief for Tingguan."

Seeing that her craftsmanship was not very good, Mrs. Zhen frowned and said, "You can get a good thing for a little money, so why bother with it?" Yu Niang lowered her head and said, "I'm also killing time. What I taught you is that if you don't Let’s embroider it.”

"When did Guan'er come back?" asked Zhen.

"Two...two months ago, I went to look for him in his room." Yu Niang lowered her head as if she had done something wrong.

"Why does it take so long?" Madam Zhen said angrily, "Even if it's not every day, you have to go see him every now and then. Where did the child come from hiding in the room?"

"Yes... but Ting Guan told me... not to go to him." Yu Niang mumbled, "He will be unhappy. And... my second uncle has not been here these past few months, and there are other girls in his room. I'm afraid... …Awkward."

Mrs. Zhen knew that the child had hidden a girl he got from nowhere again in the house. When she saw Yu Niang with a plain face and no makeup, she said angrily: "They say you are very beautiful and you don't have makeup. You have so much free time to do embroidery, why don't you do it?" Put on makeup? No wonder Guan'er doesn't like to come to your room! Beauty is the most important thing in a woman's family, and beauty only lasts a few years. When you get older, your husband won't even look at you!" He said again, "Hurry up and replace Guan'er. If you give birth to a son, you will have no time to relax after you have a child.”

After hearing this, Yu Niang suddenly became energetic and said with a smile: "I will definitely give birth to a smart and beautiful baby!"

Seeing that she cheered up, Mrs. Zhen patted the back of her daughter-in-law's hand and said with a smile: "You know what's going on. I will advise Guan'er to let you have a son first and then go for a romantic relationship. Don't let the wild girls outside get pregnant first. What a shame." Disgraceful.”

Yuniang nodded, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law chatted for a few more words, and then Mrs. Zhen left.

■

"It's actually easy to relinquish power from your second uncle." A few days later, Zhen Chengxue approached her daughter and grandson, "No matter how great the deputy is, he is just a deputy. If the leader has any doubts, he can use the Tang Sect's invasion of the border as an excuse. Recall him to Kunming, find someone to impeach him, and use the song as an excuse to temporarily suspend him."

Zhuge Tingguan was shocked and said: "No way! How many people in Diancang listen to him, what if he rebels now?"

"You are the leader after all, be tough, he can't do anything to you." Zhen Chengxue said, "If you want to fight with your second uncle, you have to have your own people. You recruit a few confidants and gradually replace the important people in each hall. What I'm talking about is I have lived in Cang for ten years, and I can see clearly that the deputy is in charge of his own affairs and loves to humiliate others. Many people are dissatisfied and can be used for his own purposes."

"What if they betray me?" Zhuge Tingguan said, "I can't trust these people!"

Zhen Chengxue asked: "Who is the person the leader can trust?"

Zhuge Tingguan said: "I can trust several of my friends!" He named several people in succession, all of whom were playboys who played with him every day. Their reputations were ruined. Zhen Chengxue stroked her forehead and shook her head. She changed the topic and said: "Master If you are worried, summon your second uncle from Guidi, ask him to lead people to Kunming, promote him to lead the garrison in place of your third uncle, and put your second uncle under house arrest, then everything will be safe."

Zhuge didn't believe it: "It's not that simple!"

Zhen Chengxue said: "If you want to solve the problem once and for all, there is a simpler way."

Zhuge Tingguan urged: "Grandpa, tell me quickly!"

Zhen Chengxue said: "When the deputy master comes back, ask your uncle to lead a group of people to ambush in the brothel. You wait in the brothel. When the deputy master hears that you went to the brothel again, he will definitely go to you in anger. As soon as he walks in, the assassins are all gone." Come out." Zhen Chengxue raised her hand and touched her neck, "This matter is settled."

Zhuge Tingguan asked: "Why don't he come to arrest me?"

"As usual, nine times out of ten, the deputy commander will arrest the person himself. It's not like you haven't been arrested before."

"What if he doesn't come this time?" Zhuge couldn't help but stumbled, "What if there is an accident?"

"Then convince your third uncle and let him be used by you. As long as you can command the garrison and capture the deputy commander as soon as he enters the Divine Emperor's Palace, he can't help but come to the Divine Emperor's Palace, right?"

"What if the third uncle doesn't agree?" Zhuge Tingguan asked again, "What if he tells the second uncle about this?"

"If he doesn't agree, he will have no choice but to silence him." Zhen Chengxue said, "You are the leader. Once the commander dies, the garrison will fall into your hands and you will do it yourself. Could it be that the leader still can't trust himself?"

"What if the second uncle becomes suspicious? What if the third uncle pretends to agree and then secretly informs the second uncle?" Zhuge Tingguan jumped up, "What if the second uncle doesn't attack Hengshan and leads an army to fight back?"

"Find a few night list masters and confidants to sneak into the guards and wait for opportunities to assassinate?"

"Second uncle may have an informant in the garrison, and he will become suspicious when he finds out that he is a stranger!"

"Then don't go into Dian Cang. Let your uncle lead the Qitianmen disciples to ambush outside Kunming City. Your second uncle will be surrounded and killed as soon as he comes back!"

"Second uncle has great magical powers. If you take so many people so far, the news will definitely leak out!"

Zhen Chengxue took a breath: "How about this, your mother pretends to be sick and asks the deputy to come to visit. When no one is around, you take a sword to your second uncle and stab him in the back. There are only three people involved in this matter, so it's impossible Will the secret be leaked?"

"I don't dare!" Zhuge Tingguan said anxiously, "Why can't you come up with a good idea?"

Zhen Chengxue couldn't hold it back and said in a deep voice: "Since ancient times, kings have only killed powerful officials. They are afraid of this and dare not do that. Do you want to send troops to attack him?"

"You can't beat me!" Zhuge couldn't help but jump around, "You are all stupid, my second uncle is so smart, he can't hide it!"

Seeing her son's anxiety, Mrs. Zhen comforted him: "Don't be anxious. Dad, please think of a more complete solution."

Zhen Chengxue said a few more methods, but Zhuge shook his head when he heard them, fearing that Zhuge Ran would see through them.He didn't know where the inspiration came from, and suddenly said: "Why don't we ask for help from the Tang Sect and let the Tang Sect send an army to help us?"

"Where have you been reading!" Zhen Chengxue said angrily, "Isn't this inviting a wolf into the house?"

"When the Beggar Clan captured Little Beggar Peng, we also sent people to help!" Zhuge Tingguan felt enlightened and his thoughts were very smooth, "With the help of the Tang Clan, we will gather the remaining Dian Cang disciples and the garrison, and lead them If tens of thousands of troops go to the border to fight against Uncle Er, we won’t be afraid of losing!”

Zhen Chengxue didn't know how to explain that the two situations were completely different, and she didn't know if Zhuge Tingguan could understand after explaining that this child was somewhat smart when he was a child, but how did he become such a virtuous person when he grew up?He simply said directly: "The Tang Clan's cold-faced lady has a relationship with the deputy."

These words really dispelled Zhuge Tingguan's idea.Zhen Chengxue continued: "If the master thinks these methods are not good, I will think about it again." After saying that, she winked at her daughter. Zhen Ming understood and comforted Zhuge Tingguan. After her son left, she asked her father: "What's the matter?" ?”

"If you want to kill the deputy master, you can't discuss it with the master. We have to do it ourselves." Zhen Chengxue shook her head, "Send a letter to your elder brother first and ask him to bring his disciples." He thought of a reason to persuade his daughter, "This way, even if the matter fails, The leader will not be implicated, I will bear the blame alone."

Mrs. Zhen said happily: "Father said yes!"

■

"What's wrong with your brother and your mother?" In the Lengshui Gate Hall, Zhuge Ran threw the letter on the ground and stretched out his crutch to smash the paper.If the person who came was not Zhuge Changzhan, he would have cursed loudly.

"Do you know what the situation is outside? Are you asking me to go back to Kunming now?"

Zhuge Changzhan lowered his head and said: "There is something going on over there at the Tang Clan. The Governor of Southern Sichuan, Tang Zhiqiu, has gathered people in Du County. Brother... I don't know how to deal with it."

Zhuge Ran paused with his cane: "Are there no defenders on the border? Can't Lao Yu handle it? I will be outside, and I will not accept your order!"

"Eldest brother is a little panicked." Zhuge Changzhan said, "Second uncle, it's better to go back. There are some bad rumors in Kunming."

"I heard." Zhuge Ran sat back on the chair, put his feet on another chair, closed his eyes and thought.Zhuge Changzhan did not dare to disturb him and stood quietly at the bottom.Zhuge Ran knocked on the table with his cane: "Is there no chair here?" Zhuge Changzhan sat down.

Zhuge Ran took this long test for most of an hour, and then summoned his disciples to summon Gu Dongcheng and asked him: "Can you defend Lengshuitan for a month?"

Gu Dongcheng also fell into a long test, and then nodded: "We can hold on, but we may not be able to break through the coalition."

"I like the word "maybe not necessarily." Zhuge Ran smiled, "Are you still planning to wait for an opportunity? Very good, I'll leave the cold water beach to you."

"Let's go." Zhuge Ran pointed at Zhuge Changzhan, "Let's go back to Kunming."

(End of this chapter)