Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 377 Establishing Prince Zen

In the 21st year of Jian'an, it's summer.

Cao Cao came in and out like the emperor, and questioned Han officials about Yang Xiu's case, which made people in Xuchang panic.

Langya King Liu Xi was afraid of Cao Cao's actions, and fled to Huaibei with dozens of his family members. He wanted to flee Wu Chu and seek refuge with Liu Bei, King of Hanchang. (Note ①)

Langya King Liu Xi, after the eleventh son of Emperor Guangwu, Langya Xiao King Liu Jing, belongs to the Han clan clan with pure blood.

After learning that Xiahou Dun led his soldiers to pursue Liu Xi, Lu Su, the deputy governor of Jianghuai Province, heard the news and led his troops to meet him, together with General Huo Du himself. Xiahou Dun was jealous of the reputation of the Zhijun army and was too afraid to pursue him deeply.

Langya King Liu Xi and dozens of his family members were rescued. Lu Su reported to Wuhan and asked Liu Bei.

Liu Bei was overjoyed and ordered Zhao Yun to lead thousands of soldiers to welcome Liu Xi, the king of Langya, with royal rites and take his clan members, old and young, to Wuhan.

Liu Bei, his wife, and several children held a family banquet to cleanse Liu Xi's family.

In Hanchang Palace, Liu Bei and Mi were sitting on the couch together. The couple had a deep and enviable love.

Compared with Liu Bei's simple royal attire, Mi wears a phoenix crown on her head. The phoenix hairpin on the crown holds a pearl in its mouth. The phoenix steps are swaying on the cloud bun. Together with the dignified and graceful makeup, she is quite like the mother of a country.

Mi was not Liu Bei's first wife, but his second wife after he fell to the East China Sea.

Gai or Liu Bei remarried the little girl, and his two brothers spent all their family resources to help them. In addition, Mi's family property was emptied due to years of displacement. Therefore, Liu Bei would rather live a simple life than let Mi suffer. Very favored.

This is one of the reasons why Liu Bei is so tolerant towards Mi Fang. As a little princess who has been favored since childhood, if Mi loses her temper, Liu Bei will also have a headache.

After Gan fell ill and died at a young age, Liu Bei thought that Mi would have no children, so he gave his eldest son Liu Chan to Mi to raise. Mrs. Mi also liked the young Liu Chan very much. She treated him as her own child and raised him personally, without giving him up to others.

Mi sat on the side of the couch, smiling, holding chopsticks to pick up food for Liu Bei and his son. And that boy Liu Chan was sitting among Liu and Mi, very well-behaved and calm.

Liu Xi, the king of Langya, who was sitting at the second table, was wearing regular clothes and did not dare to wear royal clothes to see Liu Bei. Although he was close to Liu Bei in age and was Liu Xiu's legitimate heir, he did not dare to be proud and instead addressed Liu Bei as his brother.

After all, Liu Xifei is a fool. He dares to go south to join Liu Bei. How dare he rely on his status and neglect? Being a mascot is his own positioning.

Liu Bei looked at the respectful Liu Xi and asked, "I come from the north. I wonder what the situation is like in the Central Plains?"

Liu Xi looked worried and said: "Cao Cao did more harm than Dong Zhuo. He followed Wang Mang's example and proclaimed himself king, killed the queen, and poisoned the prince. Now he ordered his rebellious son Cao Pi to use Yang Xiu'an to massacre the Han officials. This act of cruelty has outraged both humans and gods.”

As he spoke, Liu Xi's eyes turned red and he cried: "The Han Dynasty is in decline and the world is in turmoil. If Brother Wang hadn't raised an army against Wu Chu, my surname Liu would not belong to me today."

Wiping away tears, Liu Xi regretfully said: "Unfortunately, my uncle did not understand Cao Cao's heart, so he made a speech to the emperor in Chang'an, praising Cao Cao as a loyal minister. The world is currently in chaos, mostly because of Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao."

When Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty was in Chang'an, Liu Xi's uncle Liu Miao went to Chang'an to present gifts. On the way, Liu Miao passed by Yanzhou and received courtesy from Cao Cao. After entering Chang'an, Liu Miao praised Cao Cao for being loyal to the Han Dynasty, which left a profound impact on Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty.

Therefore, when Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty fled to Luoyang, he ordered Cao Cao to come and greet him. Cao Cao was very grateful to Liu Miao, and in the eleventh year of Jian'an, Cao Cao established Liu Xi as King Langxie.

Liu Bei sighed deeply and said regretfully: "Since the An and Shun emperors, they have killed and humiliated virtuous ministers and appointed traitors, which has led to chaos in the court. When the young emperors of Jichong and Zhi were in power, their relatives and eunuchs were in power, the Han Dynasty was in decline. , the people were in dire straits. When the two emperors Huan and Ling came to power, they also kissed villains and virtuous ministers from far away, and the world was in chaos from then on."

"The emperor is not virtuous and has his treacherous ministers. Now there is no Cao Cao to cause chaos, but there is also Yuan Shao's rebellion. The world is in chaos, and my Han family has lost the support of the people. What does it have to do with my brother and uncle!"

Speaking of the latter part, Liu Bei seemed to be thinking about the twenty years he spent wandering around the Central Plains. Famines, plagues, wars, and massacres shrouded this troubled land, and his expression became depressed.

Seeing that her husband was in a bad mood, Mi changed the subject and asked, "Since Brother Wang was born in a prince's family, I wonder if he has ever been to Luoyang. Compared with Xiapi and Linzi, he is rich. How can he be?"

Liu Xi looked reminiscing and said: "When Emperor Ling succeeded to the throne, Xi once went to Luoyang with his father to worship. At that time, Luoyang was as wealthy as Xiapi and Linzi. It had a million mouths and all the rare treasures in the world. Luoyang."

"At that time, the barbarian envoys from the Western Regions, the barbarians from Jiaoling, and the princes from the northern part of the Great Wall were all ordered to pay a visit to the capital. However, more than ten years later, Dong Zhuo rebelled against the capital, massacred his subjects, visited the emperor's tombs, and indulged in lewd pleasures. Xi followed. When my uncle, the Emperor, arrived in Chang'an, passed through Luoyang, and entered Chang'an, what he saw was that everything was in ruins, and the capital no longer had the prosperity it once had."

When talking about the visit to the tombs of the emperors, Liu Xi shed tears again. However, this time he was not the only one to shed tears, but even Liu Bei could not help but shed tears.

When it comes to the humiliation of the Han clan, there is no greater humiliation than the digging of the tombs of the emperors. Moreover, Liu Bei and Liu Xi were born in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. They had seen the prosperity of Luoyang and knew the authority of the Han Emperor at that time. Compared with today's humiliating situation, there is a difference between heaven and man.

Seeing his father crying, Liu Chan asked, "Why is my father so sad?"

Liu Bei stroked Liu Chan's head and said: "When my father was young, he did not have the dignity of today. At that time, the emperor ruled the world, but the emperor was not virtuous, which caused the people to suffer and the yellow turban thieves to cause chaos. In order to stabilize the Han family and the world, my father raised troops to fight against thieves. .The emperor died, the thieves started a rebellion, and led Dong Zhuo to the capital."

"Dong Zhuo was a tiger and wolf from the northwest, and his troops entered the capital, deposed the emperor, and killed the loyal and good. At that time, my father and Cao Cao raised troops to attack Dong Zhuo. Unexpectedly, the princes all had evil intentions and it was difficult to achieve success. Seeing that our Han family was in decline and did evil things, wars broke out everywhere. My father traveled around the Central Plains for decades, led the defeated troops to Wu and Chu, and received help from all the princes, hoping to use his military power..."

Liu Chan handed the kerchief to Liu Bei and said: "Guangwu can prosper the Han Dynasty, why can't my father prosper the Han Dynasty again?"

Liu Bei wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and asked: "Now that I know what happened to the slave, Chang'an is thousands of miles away from Wuhan. If my father is in Chang'an, is it difficult to get acquainted with Xinghan?"

Liu Chan thought for a while and said: "Since ancient times, only Emperor Guangwu has prospered the Han Dynasty. There are many people who can reach Chang'an, so it is difficult to prosper the Han Dynasty!"

"Ha ha!"

Liu Bei pinched Liu Chan's cheek and said with a smile: "If my father comes to Chang'an, he will be able to prosper the Han Dynasty!"

"Although the prince is young, he is extremely intelligent. After Brother Wang, there will be a son who can inherit the throne." Liu Xi praised.

Mrs. Mi glanced at Liu Bei and said dissatisfiedly: "My brother Wang made a mistake. Adou is not the prince, but the eldest son of the king."

Seeing this, Liu Bei just stroked Adou's head and smiled without saying a word.

Mrs. Mi served Liu Bei for nearly twenty years and gave birth to only one daughter. Although things were peaceful after entering Jiangdong, Mi's health was not very good due to his traveling for many years. He often suffered from minor illnesses. In addition, he was too old and was in danger of giving birth.

While Mi was hesitating, Liu Chan lost his mother when he was young and was raised by Mi. Mi regarded her as her own child and gradually gave up the idea of ​​having children. Under this situation, Mi hoped that Liu Chan could become the prince.

Knowing the whole story, Liu Xi held up his hands and apologized, saying: "Brother Wang, I don't know the details, I hope you can forgive me."

"nothing!"

Liu Bei held Liu Chan's little hand and said: "Today is a family banquet, and tomorrow I will introduce my brother to the outstanding civil servants in the solitary tent."

"Thank you, Brother Wang, for your hospitality!"

After chatting for a long time, seeing that it was getting late, Liu Bei ended today's banquet.
-

The next day, Liu Bei invited Zhuge Liang, Huo Jun, Pang Tong and other close associates into the palace and introduced Liu Xi to everyone.

In the hall, Liu Bei sat on the couch, and everyone sat on the left and right according to their order. Compared with the previous changes, Liu Bei has a young boy Liu Chan and Langya King Liu Xi beside him.

Liu Bei pointed at Liu Xi and said to everyone: "Cao Cao is unethical and has the intention to usurp the throne. King Langya suffered the hardship and fled south to Wuhan. Now all your ministers should respect him with courtesy and do not neglect him!"

"Greetings to King Langya!" Everyone stood up and saluted.

"Don't dare!"

Liu Xi hurriedly returned the courtesy to everyone and said: "All the ministers have important ministers who are responsible for the prosperity of the Han Dynasty. Now that Xi Xi has arrived in Wuhan for the first time, he should talk more."

"Brother Wang, you're welcome!"

Seeing Liu Xi being so cautious, Liu Bei smiled and said, "Kong Ming used to be from Langya, and he and the king's brother should be from the same hometown. If anything goes wrong in the future, if you can't find a brother, you can look for Kong Ming."

"promise!"

"Liang has met King Langya!"    "Xi has met the military advisor."

Liu Xi said: "The reputation of a military advisor is well known throughout the country. Xi has heard about it in the Central Plains. It is extraordinary to see the military advisor's demeanor today."

"Thank you King Langya for your praise!"

Under Liu Bei's introduction, the two parties got to know each other. Afterwards, Liu Bei asked his attendants to serve the food, and under the influence of the wine, both parties gradually relaxed.

When he was done talking, Liu Bei's eyes fell on Liu Chan and asked again: "Sending a slave to Chang'an as a father, is it difficult to get acquainted with Xinghan?"

Liu Chan blinked his eyes and said childishly: "This is the end of the world!"

"Ok?"

Liu Bei was slightly surprised and asked: "Yesterday it was difficult to promote Han Dynasty, but now it is difficult to promote Chang'an!"

Liu Chan quickly got up from the table, saluted Liu Bei with his short hands, and said: "I would like to inform my father that the Han Dynasty has been established, but my father has not yet arrived in Chang'an!"

"what!"

Liu Bei looked surprised and said, "Why did the slave say this?"

Liu Chan raised his voice and said: "My father is based in Wuhan, and now the princes have come to join me. It shows that the Han Dynasty has been established in my father!"

"Has the Han Dynasty emerged?"

Everyone looked at each other and admired Liu Chan's intelligence.

Huo Jun raised the wine bottle and said with a smile: "Your Majesty's kindness has spread all over the world and attracted the king of the clan to join him. It can be seen that the tyranny of Cao Cao has lost people's hearts."

Liu Xi was very polite and congratulated: "Brother Wang's reputation for benevolence flourishes in the Central Plains. Today the Han Dynasty is in decline, the emperor is a puppet, and the Han Dynasty is not in the north but in the south!"

Liu Bei pretended to scold him and said: "Brother, please don't speak nonsense, the emperor is still here today!"

"promise!"

"hehe!"

Then, Liu Bei looked at Liu Chan, laughed a few times, and said with satisfaction: "The Han Dynasty was brought up by Wu Chu alone, and the responsibility for bringing peace to the world belongs to this son!"

"Young master is smart and kind. I would like to congratulate you now." Zhuge Liang said.

Compared with the attitude of the ministers towards Liu Chan, Zhuge Liang had more preference for Liu Chan because he had raised Liu Chan for a period of time. Therefore, Zhuge Liang mostly supported Liu Chan in choosing the crown prince.

Liu Bei stroked his beard and said: "The fate of the Han Dynasty was difficult, and thieves and ministers usurped and stole. Gu already received the title of king, but he did not have a prince. Now the young master Zen is smart, and Gu wants to make him the crown prince, so that he can inherit the ancestral temple and succeed to the throne of great unification. I wonder what you all think?"

Zhuge Liang stepped out of the queue and said, "Young Master is a wise man and can succeed to the throne of the great king."

"I have no objection!" Huo Jun said.

"I have no objection!" everyone agreed.

Everyone in the hall responded respectfully, but one person looked lonely. This person is none other than Liu Feng, the adopted son Liu Bei adopted in his early years.

Gai may have expected it, Liu Feng lowered his head and sighed. Wu Wujian was not Liu Bei's biological son, so he was too embarrassed.

"good!"

Liu Bei nodded slightly and said: "Kong Ming chose a good time to send a slave as the crown prince."

"promise!"

With Liu Chan being established as the crown prince, this small banquet also came to an end.

All the ministers said goodbye and left, but Zhuge Liang and Huo Jun were left behind by Liu Bei to talk about important matters.

In the side hall, the three of them were sitting on a table with sandalwood burning on the table, sipping tea.

Zhuge Liang poured tea for Liu and Huo and said, "King Langya has taken refuge with me. I don't know how I will treat him now."

Liu Bei stroked his sparse beard and said: "After Liu Xi became Emperor Guangwu, he controlled the Langya Kingdom for a long time. Because of Cao Cao's cruelty, he had no choice but to move to Nantou. I wanted to treat him with the courtesy of a marquis and let him stay in Wuhan."

Zhuge Liang pondered for a while and said: "It may be feasible to treat him with the courtesy of a marquis. However, in Liang's opinion, he cannot be granted a seat by a marquis. Although the south is vast, the people are not rich. If we treat the old Han clan relatives leniently, we may fear that the generals will There is a lot of dissatisfaction, and the treasury has limited money.”

"Kong Ming said, this is what worries this solitary person!"

Liu Bei sipped the tea lightly and said: "In this case, we can follow Kong Ming's wishes. Gu Ming will issue an edict and order the civil and military officials to show courtesy and leave him to live in Wuhan with no shortage of food and clothing. As for the specific matters, Kong Ming will be in charge."

"The king is wise!" Zhuge Liang praised.

Zhuge Liang was not worried about being unable to support Liu Xi, but worried about being unable to support those Eastern Han clan members. If everyone follows Liu Xi's example, Liu Bei will accept them normally and treat them with great courtesy. Don't raise troops at that time. Just raising the food towns of the Han clan will bring down the south.

Liu Bei's current demand for mascots is not as great as before. With Liu Pu, Liu Zhang, Sun Shao, and Zhang Lu, ordinary marquises are not even qualified to eat at the table. Liu Bei's preferential treatment of Liu Xi was mostly due to his status as the orthodox Langya King. Moreover, this Langya King was still granted the title by Cao Cao, so the slap in the face was even more serious.

Huo Jun put down the celadon tea cup in his hand and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, Zhao Jun and Kong Ming came to see you. Do you want to talk about the Northern Expedition?"

"Oh?"

Liu Bei raised his eyebrows slightly and asked curiously: "How did Zhong Miao know this?"

Huo Jun touched his moustache and said: "It is difficult for the king to leave the center. Now I have made Gongzi Chan the prince, which should be prepared for the Northern Expedition. Moreover, Kong Ming has conquered the two barbarians of Wuxi and Shanyue in the south, and the barbarians have surrendered. There are no internal worries, so the northern expedition can be carried out."

"Ha ha!"

Seeing that Huo Jun had figured out what he was thinking, Liu Bei did not hide it and said: "Now the six states in the south have been settled and the government orders are smooth. Rice and wheat have been cultivated in rotation for two years, and the results have begun to be achieved. The warehouses are full of grain and grass, and the soldiers are thinking about fighting. I think I will look for opportunities next year. Northern Expedition!”

Zhuge Liang stroked his feather fan gently and said: "The population in the south is not as rich as that in the north. If we do not attack for a long time and wait for the enemy to recuperate, it will be a great disadvantage to our army. Now that the army in the south is strong and the generals are brave, it is imperative to raise the troops to the north." "

"good!"

Liu Bei raised his eyebrows with joy and said: "The Northern Expedition is no small matter. As Kong Ming said, the troops are divided into three groups. Now I want to accept the opinions of Boyan, Yun Chang, and Zijing, and combine the opinions of all the wise men to formulate the strategy of the Northern Expedition. I hope the two Please help me.”

"Jundang will do his best to help the king in his northern expedition!" Huo Jun said.

"Liang is willing to do the hard work of dogs and horses!" Zhuge Liang said.

① "Book of the Later Han·Biographies of the Ten Kings of Guangwu": In the eleventh year of his reign, he tried to cross the river, but was executed and the country was destroyed.

ps: I’m going to take a day off tonight, so I’ll update for now.

(End of this chapter)