Thousand-year-old family: its rise began with Shang Yang’s reforms

Chapter 398 Successor

Sima Yi stood in front of the bed with his head lowered, his face full of respect and humility.

"Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, the body of all saints, why do you say this?"

"It will surely last for thousands of years."

Cao Pi just smiled, his body trembling with his laughter. He slowly sat up with the help of the people around him, and then leaned on the cushion.

During this process, his eyes were always fixed on Sima Yi in front of him.

He began to regret it.

He regretted that he had given too much power to the aristocratic families in his desire to become emperor as soon as possible. Now, except for "Chen Ying" who did not have much power in the entire Wei State, the power of the Sima family had expanded to an unspeakable extent.

Even he, the emperor, would be wary of him.

He made all of this happen.

Over the years, he gradually understood what Chen wanted to do - he even understood what his father told him before he died, "Don't worry about Zhulou, don't worry about Chen."

What Cao Cao said before his death that there was no need to worry about Zhu Lou was because Chen Zhu Lou was already dead, completely "dead", and the only one left alive was the "Ancestor Heavenly Master" who wanted to save the people of the world.

The ancestor Tianshi would not announce his identity as Chen.

As the Central Plains was in turmoil but stable to a certain extent, the Chen family would not interfere in the affairs of the Central Plains.

Gradually, after Cao Pi became the emperor, he understood why the Chen family had been trusted by the "Emperor" for so many years, and why the Chen family had been passed down to this day.

The Chen family is like the guardian of the Central Plains of China and the Nine Provinces of the world.

It also seems like an unknown "practitioner".

The Chen family and the Chen family’s descendants are two different concepts.

Cao Pi sat there, and perhaps because people tend to think a lot before they die, his thoughts wandered far away.

He has read through history books over the years and finally came to this conclusion.

As long as there is no "disaster" in the land of Kyushu, such as invasion by barbarians, natural disasters, or treacherous officials disrupting the government and causing unrest in the world, the "Chen family" as a whole will not take action.

Throughout history, the Chen family has been around for more than 500 years, but the number of times they have acted as a whole as "the Chen family" can be counted on one hand.

"Expelling the Huns and conquering the Wolf's Lair" is one of them.

"Use my body to spread across the world and protect the country and the people" is one of them.

"Restore order and suppress the kings" is one of them.

"Eliminate the treacherous and corrupt officials and clear the emperor's circle" is one of them.

"Commanding the heroes and suppressing the Western Regions" is one of them.

In the past five hundred years, the Chen family's overall actions have only been these few.

Without exception, the Chen family only appears when the safety of China is threatened and turmoil spreads across the world.

As for other times of “internal strife”?
During the Qin, Chu and Han contention, the Chen family did not appear. Only Chen's descendants "Chen Zhanying" appeared.

When Wang Mang usurped the throne, Chen did not appear. Only Chen's descendant "Chen Chong" appeared.

When the Ten Eunuchs were in power, the "Chen Family" appeared. When the world was divided and the princes began to fight, the "Chen Family" disappeared again, and instead appeared the "Chen Zhulou", or "Ancestor Tianshi".

Cao Pi closed his eyes.

As he grew older and gained more power, he slowly came to understand Chen.

The Chen family is an aristocratic family.

But the Chen family members are living people. They have their own choices, their own paths to follow, and their own things to do.

Therefore, among the descendants of the Chen family, there was "Chen Ying" in the Wei State, "Chen Han" in the Han Dynasty, and "Zu Tianshi" in Dayu.

Therefore, among the descendants of the Chen family, there was a "Chen Lin'an" in the Mohist School. As a craftsman, he worked diligently to create things that benefited the country and the people. Except for the "iron wrought method" that involved weapons, all the "advanced farm tools" and "tools" were shared with the world free of charge.

Therefore, among the descendants of the Chen family, there was a "Chen Yi" who became a disciple of Bian Que. As the contemporary Bian Que, he gave up his "surname and name", gave up his identity as a descendant of a noble family, traveled around the world, and left his footprints all over the land of Kyushu to treat the people.

Therefore, among the descendants of the Chen family, there was "Chen Shanhe", who, regardless of the turmoil in the world, traveled around the Three Kingdoms and built many water conservancy projects for the Kyushu land, so that the people on this land could be less affected.

The Chen family is smart, and their children are also smart.

Except for major events concerning their country, the world, or the extinction of their race, they would not use the name "Chen" - even if people outside actually thought they were using it.

They use their own surnames and given names to practice the ancestral teachings left by their ancestors.

"Look up to the sky without shame, look down to the earth without shame, and be clear in your conscience."

There was a long silence.

Sima Yi just stood there, saying nothing, with a hint of calmness and "patience" in his eyes.

When hunting, wolves are always very patient. They just lie in the snow and watch their prey go to destruction quietly.

Cao Pi woke up from his memories with a slight smile on his face.

"Okay, let's not talk about this anymore."

"I want Rui'er to supervise the country and assist in the administration, and make him the crown prince to manage state affairs on my behalf."

"Zhongda, what do you think?"

Sima Yi said respectfully: "I will definitely assist Your Highness with all my heart."

Looking at him like this, Cao Pi seemed a little helpless and bored. He waved his hand and asked Sima Yi to leave.

Cao Pi spoke again only after Sima Yi's figure disappeared from the hall.

"What do you think, sir? What do you think of Zhongda?"

A figure slowly walked out from the back hall. He was wearing an indigo gown and had a calm and gentle expression on his face. His temperament was like boiled water, with no distinctive features at all. However, his pair of peach blossom eyes that seemed to be smiling but not smiling broke this dull temperament and made him look bright.

His surname is Chen, and his given name is just “Ying”.

Chen Ying did not bother to be polite with Cao Pi. He sat directly in front of Cao Pi, picked up a piece of dessert, and said while eating: "With the eyes of an eagle and the back of a wolf, he has great ambitions."

"He will definitely be a traitor who brings disaster to the country in the future."

Cao Pi sighed. This judgment was very different from his judgment on Sima Yi. However, he could not touch Sima Yi at this time. On the one hand, there were no great generals in the country. On the other hand, Sima was already the leader of the aristocratic family. Touching Sima Yi would be equivalent to touching the entire aristocratic family.

But now there are too many connections between Wei State and the aristocratic families.

If you are not careful, you may hurt your bones.

Seeing Cao Pi's distressed look, Chen Ying couldn't bear it after all: "Alright, alright, who are you showing that to?"

He grumbled helplessly, "I really regret eating that peach of yours back then. Even now, I have to work like a slave for you Cao family just for that peach."

“It’s such a hard life.”

After hearing Chen Ying's complaints, Cao Pi couldn't help but burst into laughter.

The best "business" he had ever done in his life was when he was a teenager and was traveling outside. He met Chen Ying, who was traveling thousands of miles to study at the time and did not bring enough money. He was drooling at the peaches sold by a roadside vendor, and bought a peach for Chen Ying.

Afterwards, the two of them traveled together and became close friends.

This is also the reason why Chen Ying chose "Cao Pi".

He is practicing "having a clear conscience".

Moreover, Chen Ying at that time did feel that given Cao Cao's character, there would be no problem in unifying the world.

Even when Cao Pi ascended the throne, he felt that there was nothing wrong with temporarily making use of the aristocratic families.

By the time the Wei Dynasty was unified, suppressing these so-called "aristocratic families" and abolishing the "Nine-Rank System" would be a piece of cake, because at that time the "Chen family" could be used to suppress everything instead of using "Chen Ying".

It’s just a pity - he and Cao Pi looked at each other and sighed.

It’s just a pity that two problems arose in the middle.

First, “Zu Tianshi” went to Dayu and became the prime minister of Dayu.

Second, this kid Cao Pi is nothing like his father and his life is really short.

If it was just the first point, Chen Ying would not be afraid.

Although "Chen Zhulou" was praised as the most intelligent "gifted man" in the history of the Chen family and even in the world since ancient times, and was called "unpredictable", he, Chen Ying, was not a fool.

But the pity is that God will not give us longer.

Cao Pi sighed slowly. He and Chen Ying thought the same thing: how great it would be if God could give him another ten years.

"Brother Chen, after I leave, the entire Wei Kingdom will be handed over to you."

There was a hint of regret in his eyes.

Autumn of the tenth year of Zhengtong.

The emperor is seriously ill.

The Emperor of Wei issued an edict, appointing his eldest son "Cao Rui" as the crown prince and temporarily taking charge of the government.

Sima Yi, Chen Ying, Cao Shuang and others were appointed as regents and assistant ministers. Among them, Chen Ying was the head of the regent ministers, and all state affairs were subject to Chen Ying's decisions.

The tenth year of Zhengtong, winter.

Changan
Weiyang Palace
Liu Bei, who had already become the emperor, sat in the Weiyang Palace, his whole body feeling cold.

He sighed slowly, and seemed to be able to see old friends who had passed away over the years.

"Kong Ming..."

Liu Bei's voice sounded old, like a tired and powerless tiger.

There was a hint of gloom in his eyes, and he sat there, looking old and weak.

"My time will probably be in these few months."

Liu Bei smiled and said, "After I leave, if Chan'er can assist you, you can assist him. If not, you can assist him."

There was an old look in his eyes: "If you can't assist, you will preside over the government. At that time, you can either join forces with Cao Wei or surrender directly to Dayu."

Liu Bei patted Zhuge Liang's hand. His desire to support the Han Dynasty remained as strong as ever over the years, but he himself had become more open-minded.

"We have done our best."

"Even if the Emperor Gao were to be the one again, he would not blame you or me."

He held Zhuge Liang's hand, but the light in his eyes was as bright as a flame.

"The merits and demerits of you and me will be judged by future generations!"

Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei held hands, with tears in their eyes.

"His Majesty--"

"I will definitely live up to your majesty's trust!"

Peach Blossom Spring
Liu Bang sat there, quietly looking at the water mirror in front of him, but his face did not show the sadness that his descendants thought. After all, anyone with a discerning eye could see that the fate of the Han Dynasty had come to an end.

Liu Che was touched on the shoulder by his father and could only take a step forward helplessly.

"Great Father, most things in the world are like this."

He said more cheerfully: "After all, our Han dynasty has been passed down for more than four hundred years, right?"

"Better than some"

Before he could finish his words, Liu Bang's hand reached out and pulled Liu Che aside. At this moment, a long sword fell from the sky and landed directly on the place where Liu Che had just stood.

Taia Sword!
Liu Bang smiled awkwardly: "Well, well, Brother Zheng, don't be angry, my great-great-grandson didn't mean it, he didn't mean it that way."

In the distance, Ying Zheng walked over slowly and glanced at Liu Che. Considering his current mortal situation, he did not bother with Liu Che, after all, he was a junior.

He just said, "Do you think your great-grandfather is very sad?"

Liu Che was a little confused, and the other Han emperors were also a little confused.

Shouldn't it be?

Ying Zheng just smiled and looked at the water mirror with admiration.

"Just like I didn't feel bad when the Qin Dynasty fell, it's the same for Liu Ji now."

"The Han Dynasty lasted for 400 years, and this man named Liu Bei gave him a decent ending, just like Ziying did back then."

"This is destiny, not human fault."

Ying Zheng sighed slightly.

He looked at the sky, the suspended fate and the long river of time, and also looked at the "Chen Ye" with his eyes closed, and said softly: "Chen Zu is already trying his best to change the so-called destiny. This is already the best outcome for the Han Dynasty."

Liu Bang also laughed: "Not bad, not bad."

He looked at the ordinary Liu Bei and said, "When this guy comes, I will definitely have a good chat with him!"

In the eleventh year of Zhengtong, February.

The Emperor of the Han Dynasty, Liu Bei, passed away and the throne was passed to the Crown Prince, Liu Chan.

He ordered "Prime Minister" Zhuge Liang to supervise the country, and asked Liu Chan to worship Zhuge Liang as his "adoptive father". From then on, Liu Chan called Zhuge Liang "Prime Minister Father".

The emperor's posthumous title was "Zhaolie".

He was known as "Emperor Zhaolie of Han".

This year was the eleventh year of the Zhengtong reign.

"Emperor Zhaolie's surname was Liu, his taboo name was Bei, his courtesy name was Xuande, he was from Zhuo County, Zhuo Commandery, and he was a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan, the son of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty."

"Comment: Zhaolie was magnanimous, generous, and knew how to treat people. He had the spirit of Emperor Gaozu, Emperor Taizu, and Emperor Wu of Wei, and he was a hero. When he entrusted the whole country to Zhuge Liang, he was sincere and sincere, which was a true fairness between a monarch and his subjects, a great example in ancient and modern times. He was not as resourceful as Emperor Chengwu, so his foundation was narrow. However, he was unyielding and never acted as a subordinate. He knew that Zhuge Liang would not tolerate him, not only for the sake of competing for profit, but also to avoid harm." - "Records of the Grand Historian: Book of Han: Annals of Emperor Zhaolie"

Over the next ten days, everything will go wrong.

In the eleventh year of Zhengtong, March.

Just one month after the death of Emperor Zhaolie of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Cao Pi of the Wei Dynasty died.

He was only in his thirties.

Before his death, he issued an edict to pass the throne to Crown Prince Cao Rui.

He appointed Chen Ying as prime minister, in charge of military and national affairs, and appointed Sima Yi as general.

This year was the eleventh year of the Zhengtong reign, also 231 AD.

Successors ascended the throne.

This chaotic world that has lasted for decades seems to be coming to an end.

This is the successor and also the pioneer.

A new era.

Right in front of you.