Ji Han Liu Zhang

Hongnong County, Caoyang County.

The cold wind of the winter night whimpered and roared past the Chinese army tent where Emperor Liu Xie was. The sound was not very pleasant to hear, plus a few unknown night owls were neighing in the dark night, and the sound of wind and birds was heard. Mixed together, they create a miserable atmosphere.

However, the emperor Liu Xie in the Chinese army's tent was not affected at all by the atmosphere of the current scene, and he was completely free of the fear after the defeat and the worry about the unknown situation in the future. His heart was now full of heat.

Wang Chang, the envoy sent by Li Que, brought him the best news, that is, there are still loyal people among the governors of prefectures and counties, not to mention that Yizhou Shepherd Liu Zhang's surname is Liu, and he is a clan member. .

"Congratulations to your majesty, with Liu Yizhou here, Li Que and Guo Si are worried about their future, so they will not dare to act recklessly." Although the Taiwei Yang Biao is disgraced, his energy is particularly good at the moment, and he is no longer worried and nervous just now. Fear.

Zongzheng Liu Aile kept stroking his beard and said with emotion: "In June this year, Ai heard that Liu Yizhou was raising troops to attack the rice thieves in Hanzhong. The mountains were high and the roads were far away and the roads were difficult to travel, but he didn't know what the situation was. Today we have Knowing that Liu Yizhou has captured Chencang, I thought that the rice thieves in Hanzhong and the Qiang and Di in the military capital were all wiped out by Liu Yizhou...Liu Yizhou raised the rebel army, except for the brutality, and now he sent troops into Guanzhong. He must have intended to attack Li Que. , Guo Si and other Liangzhou thieves, honor the royal family and assist His Majesty, Liu Yizhou is truly the pillar of the country. "

"Your words are very true, Liu Jiyu is the pillar of the country." Emperor Liu Xie nodded, and he couldn't agree more with Liu Ai calling Liu Zhang the pillar of the country. In July this year, he set out from Chang'an and returned to Luoyang. For half a year, he ignored him and did not send a single soldier to serve the king. He regarded him as the emperor as if he was nothing.

As for why the Kwantung princes pretended not to know that the emperor had returned eastward, Liu Xie had a few guesses in his mind. He knew that the Kwantung princes were just afraid that he would come and take away their power, so that they could not use it for their own use. The princes who have had a taste of power are reluctant to give up the power in their hands. Even if a knife is placed on their necks, they will not blink their eyes and give up the power in their hands.

Therefore, on his way back to Luoyang, Liu Xiedong had no choice but to recruit Bai Boshuai from Hedong in order to fight against Li Que and Guo Si who blocked his return eastward, after Yuan Shao and Liu Biao, who were sitting in the nine counties of Jingxiang, could not count on him. Hu Cai, Li Le, Han Xian and the Xiongnu King Youxian went to escort him. At present, the Huns are more reliable than the Guandong princes...

At this time, although Liu Zhang, the herdsman of Yizhou, was far away in Shu and separated from Guanzhong by thousands of miles of mountains and forests, Liu Zhang was actually able to send troops to serve the king and never forget that he was the emperor. How could this make Liu Xie not moved or lamented.

"It's a pity." Uncle Dong Cheng sighed: "It's a pity that Shu is separated by mountains and rivers and cannot be easily accessed. Otherwise, if we can reach Shu, with the support of His Majesty Liu Yizhou Xiangzuo, there is hope for the rejuvenation of the Han Dynasty."

The cold wind was howling outside the tent, and the atmosphere inside the tent was hot. As the envoy of Li Que and Guo Si, Wang Chang kept revealing the situation in Li Que and Guo Si's army, and gave the word-for-word announcement to Emperor Liu association.

Wang Chang cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, Li Que and Guo Bang are eager to lead the army away. They are afraid that your Majesty will send troops to sneak behind them and prevent them from rushing back to Chang'an safely. Therefore, they sent their ministers to invite peace... The minister's will will definitely not make Li Que , Guo Si was proud of himself, and when he was panicking and retreating due to the loss of Chencang, he sneaked up on his rear and defeated this group of Liangzhou thieves. "

Emperor Liu Xie was silent when he heard this, he frowned and started thinking.

"No." Uncle Dong Cheng spoke quickly. He shook his head and said, "Although Li Que and Guo Bang are eager to lead their troops to retreat, Liangzhou's elite soldiers are accustomed to fighting, and all the warriors in your Majesty's tent are already here. Weary, a tired soldier cannot be a brave soldier... I want to act prudently, first agree to Li Que and Guo Si's request, work in peace with them, and let Li Que and Guo Si release the captured officials. , the palace women, and return the looted carriages and utensils, and then act according to the opportunity. "

"Your majesty should take your uncle's mature words into consideration." Zong Zheng and Liu Ai agreed with Dong Cheng.

"Taiwei." Emperor Liu Xie's face wavered. Since Dong Zhuo's death, Li Que and Guo Si have controlled the government, harmed loyal people, and caused countless disasters. Therefore, he was very angry with Li Que and Guo Si, and saw the opportunity to attack and weaken them. With the power of Li Que and Guo Si, he might be able to take advantage of the opportunity to kill Li Que and Guo Si. He didn't want to let this opportunity go.

However, both Zongzheng Liu Ai and his uncle Dong Cheng rejected the idea of ​​pursuing Li Que and Guo Bang, and Emperor Liu Xie couldn't help but hesitate. At this time, he wanted to hear what Captain Yang Biao thought.

When Taiwei Yang Biao heard this, he thought about it for a moment and said in a mature and solemn voice: "A son of a rich man cannot sit down in the hall. All the people in the world are tied to His Majesty. You must not take risks lightly... It is better to follow the words of my uncle and agree to Li "Que and Guo Si want to make peace. Let Li Que and Guo Si release the captured officials, palace women, and return the plundered carriages and utensils, and then we can make plans later."

After saying this, Lieutenant Yang Biao saw a fleeting look of loneliness on Liu Xie's face. He comforted Liu Xie and said: "Your Majesty, Li Que and Guo Si are thieves and bandits who wield power. When they are hungry, they will invade, and when they are full, they will invade." Abandoning the rest, there is no plan for the end of the year, they will die early and be defeated... and with Liu Yizhou here, hanging the heads of Li Que and Guo Si on the city wall, it must be just around the corner. Your Majesty, there is no need to rush, you can wait a moment ”

"The words of all the ministers are correct." The emperor Liu Xie obeyed the consensus of everyone, and then he turned to Wang Chang and said: "Excuse me, please reply to Li Gu and Guo Si. If the two thieves are willing to release the captured Bai If the officials, palace men and women return the plundered carriages and uniforms, I will agree to their offer of peace, otherwise, I will fight with them to the end."

The last words of the emperor Liu Xie came from the heart, almost viciously, which was very inconsistent with the image of the emperor. He just recalled the past, how many loyal ministers and good generals were harmed by Li Gu and Guo Si, just like Situ Wang Yun, who made great progress with each passing day. Wang Zuo's talent, the great sages who planned to kill the national traitors, were all killed by Li Que and Guo Bang. Thinking of Wang Yun, Liu Xie was heartbroken.

Huben Wang Chang's original intention was to take the opportunity to see if there was a chance to kill the two thieves Li Que and Guo Si. However, seeing that several important officials in the court were concerned about the emperor's safety and had a mature and prudent attitude, he was humble and understated, so he did not After saying something else, he handed over his hands to the emperor Liu Xie and accepted the order to leave: "Your Majesty's words, I will deliver them to you, but once I leave, I don't know whether the two thieves Li Que and Guo Si will use me as their envoys next time, or whether they will use me as envoys in the future. I have the opportunity to escape and serve His Majesty, so I would like to say goodbye and ask Your Majesty to take care and work hard to have more meals."

"You will act accordingly. If you have a chance, you should escape from the two thieves. If you ever escape, I will personally welcome you." Emperor Liu Xie held the hand of Huben Wang Chang and said sincerely.

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I'll take my leave now." Huben Wang Chang's eyes were wet. He reluctantly broke away from the emperor's hand and said goodbye.

Opening the curtain, the lone star Han Yue suddenly came into view, and the cold wind swept in. Wang Chang turned his head and glanced at the emperor Liu Xie inside the tent. Seeing the overly mature dignity on Liu Xie's immature face, he felt Fortunately, the emperor is wise and steady, and there are powerful vassals like Liu Yizhou outside. Maybe this muddy and whining world can be saved.

Huben Wang Chang looked determined. He withdrew his gaze towards the tent and rushed towards Li Que and Guo Bang's tent. The next day.

The hundreds of officials, palace women, and plundered carriages and utensils captured by Li Que and Guo Si were all returned to the emperor Liu Xie by Li Que's younger brother Li Ying, and the two parties reached a peace agreement. Then lead troops to attack each other.

After the peace agreement was reached early in the morning, Li Que and Guo Bang impatiently set up camp. They were the vanguard and rushed towards Chang'an. Once Chencang was lost, the road to Chang'an for the Shu soldiers would be smooth.

As for Chang'an, nothing can be lost. Although Li Que and Guo Si behave like rogue bandits, plundering everywhere for a living and not caring about the gains and losses of a city or a place, there are still their wives, children, and children in Chang'an City, and they still have hoards. If the gold, silver, money and silk are obtained by others, it will be more uncomfortable than killing them.

Therefore, after the peace agreement was reached, Li Que and Guo Bang rushed towards Chang'an non-stop.

"Zhiran, you said that Liu Zhang, a shepherd from Yizhou, could still take over Hanzhong and Wudu. After all, Hanzhong and Wudu are both counties under the rule of Yizhou, but what does he want to do with Chencang?" Guo Si was a young man. Silly, he asked Li Que on the way back to Chang'an, and he had asked Li Que for the answer to this question several times.

Li Que looked at Guo Bang with an incredulous look on his face, and finally suppressed his disgusted expression. He was speechless, but he still answered patiently: "Why else? Of course I'm here to take my life. Don't do it." Forgot, Liu Zhang’s eldest brother Liu Fan and second brother Liu Dan died in our hands, and his father Liu Yan died of depression because of the deaths of Liu Fan and Liu Dan... The hatred between father and brother is not shared. Dai Tian, ​​Liu Zhang must have hated you and me."

"You see, as soon as you and I left Chang'an and the army traveled far away, Liu Zhang took advantage of this opportunity to capture Chencang, intending to put a knife on our necks. Hey, we still don't know what the situation is in Chang'an. "

Guo Bang sighed and said helplessly: "Hey, didn't we just kill his two brothers? Speaking of which, he is not a four-brother. Are there not two left? Is it necessary to yell at us to kill us?"

"More." Guo Bang, who has a clear thinking circuit, said: "If we hadn't killed Liu Fan and Liu Dan and made Liu Yan angry to death, how would the position of Yizhou Mu be vacant? In addition, Liu Zhang, as the Jizi, If we hadn't nodded in agreement, the position of Yizhou Mu would have belonged to his third brother Liu Mao, and he would never have been able to take the seat. "

"Liu Zhang is the one who needs to thank us. Now he is shouting at us to kill us, so we should repay him with kindness." When Guo Bang said this, his face was already a little angry. It was rare for him to show kindness to others, but he didn't expect that there would be no reward. Instead, he took revenge.

Listening to Guo Si's analysis, Li Que's face turned white and red for a while, like a colorful lantern. He didn't know whether to be angry or laugh. With a teammate like Guo Si in front of him, he was really speechless.

"If you see Liu Zhang in the future, you can talk to Liu Zhang politely and let Liu Zhang know that he is a villain who repays kindness with revenge." Li Que did not refute. He felt that refutation was of no use, so he just followed Guo Bang's advice. words to speak.

Guo Bang nodded repeatedly: "This is natural. If I meet Liu Zhang in the future, I will humiliate him... Without the help of you and me, Liu Zhang would not have the illustrious status he has today. We are Liu Zhang's benefactors. ”

As soon as the word benefactor came out, Li Que couldn't hold it in any longer. He really wanted to laugh, but the reaction in his throat was so intense that he had to cover his mouth and cough a few times, making his whole face wet. flushed.

"Yes, yes, we are Liu Zhang's benefactors." Li Que coughed a few times, and when his throat felt better, he confirmed Guo Bang's inference.

Guo Bang's mind jumped, and he turned around and recalled: "I remember that when Liu Yang just passed away, Zhang Su, the envoy from Yizhou, came to the court and stated to the emperor that the ministers of Yizhou recommended Liu Zhang to succeed Yizhou Mu. He mentioned in his words Liu Hao and Liu Zhang brothers. The two of them said that Liu Hao was as shrewd as his father Liu Yan, while Liu Zhang was weak and not good at military affairs."

"Huh?" Guo Bang gritted his teeth, and he showed an expression of sudden realization: "Zhang Su, that bastard, has deceived you and me. Liu Zhang is obviously a brave man and good at military affairs, but Zhang Su just... On the contrary, you fooled us, and we rushed to get the emperor to appoint Liu Zhang as the shepherd of Yizhou, motherfucker."

"Zhang Su didn't tell lies. I asked people who had dealt with Liu Zhang at that time, and they all said that Liu Zhang was a coward and not a person who took matters into his own hands." Li Que shook his head. He was not Guo Si and would not listen to other people's one-sided words. He sought verification before forcing the emperor to agree to appoint Liu Zhang as the shepherd of Yizhou.

"That's not right. What Liu Zhang did is completely opposite to being cowardly... Could it be that the Liu Zhang now is not the Liu Zhang before, and there is a different person in the middle." Guo Bang spread his hands, he thought thoughtfully. An inference that was impossible in Li Que's ears.

Li Que sighed heavily: "The dragon lurks in the abyss and does not reveal his true form... People who have interacted with Liu Zhang in the past were deceived by Liu Zhang's performance and failed to truly understand Liu Zhang deeply, so they came to this conclusion Liu Zhang’s verdict on cowardice.”

"Once he ascended to the position of Yizhou Mu, controlled the military and administration of a state, controlled the life and death of millions of people, had great power, and was able to influence the current affairs, Liu Zhang showed his true nature."

Afterwards, Li Que concluded his speech: "No matter what Liu Zhang's nature is, looking at what he is doing now, he is here to take our lives and avenge our father and brother... The top priority is that you and I need to rush there." Chang'an, ensure that Chang'an is not lost, and then lead the troops to take back Chencang. If Chencang is in our hands, Liu Zhang will be blocked by us in Shu. If Chencang is in Liu Zhang's hands, we will have people hanging around our necks. I don’t know when the last knife will fall.”

"Guo Aduo, you don't want to panic every day and worry that there is no tomorrow." Li Que said meaningfully.

"That's natural. I still want to live to be a hundred years old." Guo Bang responded immediately, and then added: "It's all up to you, Zhiran. I will do whatever you say." (End of Chapter)