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

Chapter 445 Why don’t men bring Wu Gou?

Why don't men take Wu hook and charge Guanshan Fifth State?
Please come to Lingyan Pavilion for a while, as if you are a scholar and a marquis of ten thousand households.

The twelfth year of Kaihuang.

The whole world submits, and the country enjoys peace and prosperity.

The emperor's power extended throughout the world, the people of the world submitted to him, the outside world was pacified, and he ruled the universe.

The only two remaining countries in the Western Regions have expressed their submission, and on the grasslands to the north, the newly born nation is not as brave as the Xiongnu in the past. Instead, they are very good at singing and dancing, and they also claim to be a vassal state of the Sui Dynasty.

In the east, both Japan and Goguryeo expressed their submission on the surface, although they still had some ulterior motives in their hearts.

For a moment, it seemed like a prosperous scene with a prosperous era approaching.

Internally, although Emperor Kaihuang did not appoint Chen as prime minister, he was close to virtuous ministers and kept away from villains, and the politics could be said to be clear.

The power of the Dugu family was firmly restricted to a certain extent, and Empress Dugu was not called "the two saints" together with Yang Jian as in the original history. Even in the harem, she was not so all-powerful.

His Majesty has five sons, but the two sons of Empress Dugu are the most respected. The eldest son is named Yang Yong and the second son is named Yang Guang.

The twelfth year of Kaihuang, late winter.

Many barbarian tribes went to the capital Luoyang to present gifts to Emperor Kai, and at the climax of the banquet, envoys from the Western Regions stated that Yang Jian was the emperor respected by all nations in the world, and that such a wise and amiable monarch should have a title.

As a result, many tribes jointly offered a title of honor to Yang Jian.

for

"Saint Khan"

Yang Jian was overjoyed and gave countless rewards.

The thirteenth year of Kaihuang.

Suddenly, there was war and riot.

There was a change of powerful officials within Goguryeo, and the new King of Goguryeo stated that he would no longer respect the Sui Dynasty as his suzerain state and would no longer pay tribute to the Sui Dynasty.

Yang Jian was furious.

He ordered the conscription of troops and launched a war against Goguryeo.

The war will not end until Goguryeo is destroyed.

Autumn, the thirteenth year of Kaihuang.

The bleak autumn wind blows again.

Outside Yuyang County
The yellow sand was as thick as iron, and there was only a young man riding a horse on the huge official road.

The young man had a handsome and heroic face, and on his back was a powerful-looking bow. There was a hint of black light on the bow, and one could tell that its owner took great care of it.

And on his waist was a sword.

There were two long swords on the horse's back.

The young man galloped towards the distance, and his horse's hooves stirred up countless clouds of dust on the ground.

When passing by a tea stall beside the official road, the young man stopped, dismounted, and asked the servant to pull the horse to feed grass. He sat in the middle of the tea stall and listened to the news discussed by people on both sides.

Before long, this small tea stall was filled with countless wanderers.

"Oh, you are also going to Liaodong to join the army?"

A few strong men sat there, ordered good wine and two plates of pig meat, and then began to drink and talk loudly.

There was longing on their faces.

"That's right. Our Majesty doesn't like weapons, but prefers literary skills. We martial artists have no place to use our skills."

"The Goguryeo incident has finally pissed off our sissy emperor and made him want to go to war. Isn't that right? Let's go to Liaodong and join the army. Maybe we can even get a good family background."

"Even if I can't say I'll be made a marquis or a general in the future, at least I won't have to live such a hard life anymore, right?"

"Harmful, who says it's not?"

As a few people were chatting, they talked about the time when Yang Jian came to power. One of the strong men seemed to be drunk, with a red face. He did not look like someone who was going to join the army, but rather like one of the common people living nearby.

He just sneered: "Girl chirp?"

"Our Majesty is not a woman. He personally killed the Wansui Emperor before ascending the throne!"

For a moment, everyone looked at the burly man with surprise on their faces.

"Oh? Don't talk nonsense. Didn't we say it at the time? It was that Grand Historian and his men who ordered them to do it. What does it have to do with Your Majesty?"

There was someone who knew this strong man nearby, and he immediately tried to dissuade him, saying, "Old Chang, don't talk nonsense just because you drank two ounces of horse urine. Be careful that His Majesty's personal guards will come to your door."

The strong man laughed drunkenly. He patted his chest and said, "I'm talking nonsense? Do you know who I am?"

He looked drunk and exhausted. "My name is Chang Yumin. I was one of the emperor's personal guards. I saw with my own eyes that your majesty thrust the sword into the emperor's chest."

"It would rain heavily and the whole ground would be covered with bright red blood."

"Later, His Majesty was afraid that we might talk nonsense, so he wanted to kill us all, but I still managed to escape, hahahaha."

He stood up and said, "I don't care. Whoever wants to kill me can kill me."

"I have been on the run for more than ten years. I don't want to run away anymore."

"My whole family has been killed by that son of a bitch Yang Jian. What should I be afraid of?"

He staggered drunkenly outside, saying as he walked: "If Yang Jian could kill the Wansui Emperor, then why can't others kill him?"

"Both of them were born by their father and raised by their mother. Who is more noble than the other?"

"Is Yang Jian's neck harder than mine?"

Chang Yumin left, but the expressions of the people in the tea stall changed inexplicably.

Two strong men looked at Chang Yumin, then lowered their heads with calm looks on their faces. They were obviously going to join the army as well, so they wanted to ignore this matter.

It will pass after you hear it.

The young man shook his head and sighed. He didn't care about these things. He just wanted to fulfill his dream of joining the army.

There was a sound of horse hooves outside, and then a young man walked in.

The young man looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old, with a lively and sunny temperament. He did not look like a poor man who had to join the army because of desperation. Instead, he looked like a young master raised by a general from a wealthy family.

The young master walked up to the young man and said with a smile, "Brother, there is no other place here. You are the only one here. Why don't you share a table with me?"

The young man nodded, smiled slightly, and said gently: "Of course you can."

"Brother, please feel free to do as you please." After the young man finished ordering, he looked around and said, "Brother, my name is Chen... Chen Qilu, and you? What's your name? I see you are also going to join the army, right? Are you going to Liaodong or Liaoxi?"

The young man looked at Chen Qilu's face and sighed slightly. It would be better if this young man used a pseudonym. Isn't it obvious that this is a pseudonym?

However, when people go out, they always want to protect themselves, so they immediately said, "I am Li Erfeng, from Taiyuan, and I really want to join the army. My destination is Liaodong County."

"I wonder what your destination is, brother?"

Chen Qilu's eyes suddenly sparkled: "Eh?? What a coincidence, my destination is also Liaodong County. I think it is closer to Goguryeo, so going there will be like going to the front line. By then, even if my father wants to catch me back, it will be difficult."

He scratched his head and chuckled: "Although I look like a dandy boy, I have real skills. But my father is worried about me and doesn't want me to join the army, saying that the front line is dangerous."

Chen Qilu's sigh became more obvious: "My ancestors were also glorious. They once followed Lin'an Marquis Chen Gong to fight against the Xiongnu. Why can't I go?"

Li Erfeng also smiled: "So my brother also escaped."

He patted his chest and said, "I ran away too. The same happened at home."

He snorted and laughed: "My parents arranged a marriage for me, but I haven't even seen the girl's face, and they want me to marry her. I won't do it. I heard that girl is ugly as a piece of salt, and she is a famous ugly woman. I, Li Li Erfeng, want to marry the most virtuous and beautiful woman in the world, not an ugly girl who can't get married."

The two of them seemed to have found a common language, and they chatted away with excitement on their faces.

Guandu
Chen Zhan had a gloomy expression. He looked at his eldest son Chen Ruohan, who was kneeling on the ground in front of him, with a sharp look in his eyes: "Okay, okay, now you are so brave that you dare to help your brother run away from home without telling me?"

Chen Ruohan knelt on the ground, his expression slightly gentle: "Father, since my brother wants to go, why do you want to stop him?"

He raised his head, his eyes were gentle yet firm, like a ray of sunshine.

"Dad, have you forgotten?"

"The Chen family's ancestral teachings."

“Never stop any of the Chen family members from doing what they want to do—if it does not violate the law or the Chen family’s ancestral teachings.”

"Back then, you didn't like court affairs, so did your grandfather force you to participate in court affairs?"

“Grandfather didn’t do that.”

"And why do you want to stop me from joining the army today?"

Although one of the two people was kneeling and the other was standing, the situation seemed to be reversed at this time.

Chen Ruohan, who was kneeling on the ground, looked very calm and tall, while Chen Zhan, who was standing there, seemed a little helpless and insignificant.

Chen Ruohan said softly: "Father, this is my wish, so we can't stop it."

"Do you think so?"

Chen Zhan sighed and walked aside. Chen Ruohan knew that this was his father's sign of compromise, so he stood up immediately and walked to Chen Zhan's side, where the father and son sat.

"Father, you don't have to worry."

Chen Ruohan had a slight smile on his face. He whispered, "Have you forgotten? The commander in Liaodong is a student of Chen. I have already written to him, asking him to take good care of Lin'an in the army. Lin'an will definitely be fine."

Chen Zhan pressed his forehead and said, "Both of you brothers, neither of you can make me worry less."

He looked in the distance and said, "I don't want to stop Lin'an from joining the army, but this war will be nothing but dust in the end."

Chen Zhan sneered, "I don't know what kind of personality the current emperor has, but you know it too. When he conquered the Western Regions, he was willing to put down his weapons just because the Western Regions were willing to unite all the tribes and give him the title of Saint Khan."

"But what about the soldiers who died on the battlefield?"

"Your Majesty, is it possible that you can hear the voices of their wronged souls?"

Chen Zhan's face was cold: "The descendants of the Chen family have never been afraid of war and sacrifice. When necessary, for the sake of China, all the descendants of the Chen family can even go to the battlefield and die to the last man."

"But the children of the Chen family cannot die in vain."

"It's not worth sacrificing for such a hypocritical and vain person."

Chen Ruohan had a different opinion. He looked at Chen Zhan and said, "Father, I think I should participate in this war."

There was a cold look in his eyes.

"Your Majesty's behavior has endangered the interests of the people of the world. The Chen family must take action to correct it. But in the past, the Chen family had no reason or excuse to intervene. But now, I went to war, but stopped the war because of Yang Jian's selfish desire. Then, at least in the eyes of outsiders, the Chen family has enough reason to intervene in this matter."

"We can't let Your Majesty continue like this!"

Chen Zhan looked at his eldest son who had grown up, with a look of relief in his eyes. He looked at Chen Ruohan with a gentle look: "Have you thought about it?"

Chen Ruohan nodded: "Your Majesty has not given up. A few days ago, I saw that you, father, really did not want to serve as an official, so you asked Brother Li to send me a letter, saying that you are willing to appoint me as the Minister of the Central Secretariat and take charge of a region as the head of the order. You are even willing to set up the Prime Minister's Office again for me and ask me to serve as the Prime Minister."

Chen Zhan frowned slightly: "You agreed?"

Chen Ruohan shook his head: "No."

He smiled and said, "It is necessary to abolish the position of prime minister. Not everyone is from the Chen family, so the position of prime minister poses too great a threat to centralization and imperial power. It is not appropriate to set it up again because of someone from the Chen family."

"So I said no."

"but--"

Chen Ruohan smiled and said, "But I will participate in this year's exam. I have participated in the previous exams under a pseudonym and won first place in all of them. Now, the only thing I need to do to win the title of top scholar is to win six consecutive championships."

"I don't want to be an official in the court with the reputation of the Chen family. I want to enter the officialdom with my real talents and knowledge."

Chen Zhan nodded: "Okay."

"In recent years, I've noticed that some of the family's disciples have lost their minds and seem to have done something out of line. When you go to Kyoto, be careful and take care of those pests."

He said it lightly, but to some people, it was as terrifying as thunder.

Chen Ruohan nodded: "Don't worry, father, it's time to kill those fattened pigs."

Meanwhile, Taiyuan.

Tang Guogong Mansion
Li Yuan's face was as black as charcoal, and he gritted his teeth as he looked at the letter in his hand.

This was left to him by his son Li Shimin. The text on it was very simple. He simply said that he did not want to continue to be idle at home, so he went to Liaodong County to sign up for the army.

Finally, I told him not to worry.

He pressed his forehead and said, "This kid has never given me peace of mind since he was a child!"

Somewhere village
A woman was washing clothes when she saw a dead body floating in the river.

"ah--------"

Autumn, the thirteenth year of Kaihuang.

Chang Yumin, a villager of Changjia Village, fell into the river and died after drinking.

(End of this chapter)