Three Kingdoms

Chapter 46 The Death of Zhuge Liang (2)
That night, Zhuge Liang ordered his soldiers to help him into the cart, pushed him to the gate of the camp, looked up at the Big Dipper in the sky, pointed to a dim, crumbling star and said, "That is my general star." Looking in the direction he pointed, it turned out that the star was about to fall.

Zhuge Liang pointed his sword at the star and chanted a mantra. After the mantra was finished, he hurried back to the barracks, and immediately fell unconscious again.The generals under his command were in a panic to rescue him. Li Fu came again. Seeing Zhuge Liang fainted and unable to speak, he couldn't help crying: "I missed a major national event!"

After a while, Zhuge Liang woke up again, opened his eyes, and saw Li Fu standing in front of the bed.Zhuge Liang said: "I know the meaning of your return."

Li Fu thanked: "I was ordered by the emperor to ask the prime minister about major events in a hundred years. After the prime minister passes away, who can take on the country's important responsibilities. I left in a hurry just now and forgot to ask the prime minister, so I rushed back to ask for advice."

Zhuge Liang said: "After I die, it will be Jiang Wan who can assume the great responsibility of the country."

Li Fu asked again: "What about Jiang Wan?"

Zhuge Liang said, "Fei Yi."

Li Fu asked again: "What about after Fei Yi?"

Zhuge Liang did not answer.Everyone approached and saw that Zhuge Liang had passed away.54 years old.

After Zhuge Liang's death, that night, the sky was dark and the moonlight was colorless.Jiang Wei and Yang Yi obeyed Zhuge Liang's last order and did not dare to cry. According to the will, they put Zhuge Liang's body into a big box.He also ordered more than 300 confidants to guard; immediately issued a secret order, ordering Wei Yan to cover behind, and the camps were withdrawn one by one.

Sima Yi watched astronomy and saw a big star falling from the northeast to the southwest, and finally fell to the camp of the Shu army. It jumped three times and made a faint sound.Sima Yi was pleasantly surprised: "Zhuge Liang is dead!" Immediately ordered the army to attack the Shu army.As soon as he got to the gate of the village, he suddenly became suspicious: "Zhuge Liang is good at using Liu Ding Liu Jia Dafa. He saw that I would stick to it and not fight, so he specially used magical methods to fake death to trick me into fighting. If he chases and kills the Shu army, he will definitely fall into the trap." He ordered not to fight, but ordered Xia Houba to secretly take dozens of cavalry to Wuzhangyuan to investigate the news.

Wei Yan had a dream in his camp, dreaming that he had two horns growing on his head.Wei Yan woke up very puzzled. The next day, when Sima Zhao arrived at his camp, Wei Yan asked Zhao Zhi: "I know you can interpret dreams. I had a dream last night. I dreamed that two suddenly grew on my head. A big horn, I don’t know my bad omen, please help me solve this strange dream.”

Zhao Zhi thought for a long time before answering: "This is a sign of great auspiciousness. The unicorn has horns on its head, and the blue dragon also has horns on its head. This is a sign of rapid change!" Wei Yan was overjoyed and said, "If your words are on my body If it does, I will definitely thank you!"

Zhao Zhi bid farewell to Wei Yan, walked halfway, and met Fei Yi.Fei Yi asked him where he was from, and Zhao Zhi said, "I just arrived at Wei Yan's barracks.

Wei Yan told me that he had a strange dream. He dreamed that he had two big horns growing on his head. He asked me for advice, it was a bad omen.I pretended to deceive him with the Qilin Canglong.Actually he is the omen. "

Fei Yi asked, "How do you know he is a bad omen?"

Zhao Zhi replied: "The shape of the horn is to use the upper knife and the lower one. Now that the knife is placed on the head, isn't this a bad omen? What is it?"

Fei Yi said: "You must not reveal it." Zhao Zhi said he did not dare.Fei Yi came to Wei Yan's barracks, shouted back at Wei Yan's subordinates, and said in a low voice, "At midnight last night, the prime minister passed away. He ordered the general to cover behind and prevent Sima Yi from chasing after him. The army should retreat slowly. , don’t be mourned. Now Prime Minister Zhuge Liang’s military amulet is here, you act immediately.”

Wei Yan asked Fei Yi: "Who will act as the prime minister's chief executive?"

Fei Yi replied, "Yang Yi. Prime Minister Zhuge taught Jiang Wei how to use troops. This soldier talisman is an order from Yang Yi."

Wei Yan said: "Although the prime minister is dead, I am still here. Yang Yi is just a small senior official, how can he take on this great responsibility? He is only suitable for things such as escorting the coffin back to Shuchuan for burial. I lead the The army is going to attack Sima Yi, how can the state affairs be delayed because of the prime minister's death?"

Fei Yi said: "The Prime Minister ordered you to cover the retreat of the army when he was dying. You must not disobey the military order."

Wei Yan said angrily: "If the Prime Minister had followed my plan, he would have captured Chang'an City long ago! I am now a former general, General Pingxi, and Marquis of Nanzheng. How could I cover Chang Shi?"

Fei Yi said: "The general is right, but don't act rashly. This will make the enemy laugh at you. How about I go to see Yang Yi and ask him to hand over the military power to you?"

Wei Yan promised not to send troops first, and told Fei Yi to come back and report quickly.

Fei Yi left Wei Yan's barracks and hurried to Yang Yi's barracks without stopping. As soon as Fei Yi saw Yang Yi, he told Yang Yi that Wei Yan wanted to rebel.

Yang Yi said: "Prime Minister Zhuge had expected that Wei Yan would rebel. I ordered him to cover behind with a military talisman just to test him. I didn't expect him to rebel. I had already asked Jiang Wei to cover behind."

Yang Yi immediately escorted Zhuge Liang's coffin back to Shuchuan, ordered Jiang Wei to cover behind, and the army retreated slowly.

Wei Yan waited for Fei Yi to come back in the barracks. After waiting for a long time, he still hadn't arrived. Feeling annoyed, he ordered Ma Dai to investigate the news.Ma Dai reported: "Yang Yi and Fei Yi escorted Zhuge Liang's coffin to the valley."

Wei Yan said angrily, "How dare Fei Yi lie to me! I must kill him!" Wei Yan asked Ma Dai again, "Will you help me?" Ma Dai said loudly, "I have hated Yang Yi for a long time. I am willing to go and kill Yang Yi and Fei Yi together with the general." Wei Yan was overjoyed and immediately ordered his soldiers to march south.

Xiahouba led his troops to Wuzhangyuan and saw no one there, so he immediately reported to Sima Yi: "The Shu army has all withdrawn." Sima Yi stomped on the ground hard with his feet and sighed loudly: "Zhuge Liang is really dead, pursue him immediately! "Xia Houba said: "The governor should not go out in person, let the young general go first!" Sima Yi said: "I will hunt down the Shu army with you!" Immediately led his two sons to lead the troops to Wuzhangyuan, and there was no Shu army.Sima Yi was afraid that the Shu army would escape, so he immediately said to his two sons: "I will lead my troops to chase first, and you should go back and bring your army to chase."

So Sima Shi and Sima Zhao dispatched a large army to chase after him, and Sima Yi led a light cavalry troop to chase the Shu army non-stop.Sima Yi chased after him for a while, and found that the Shu army had disappeared. He was wondering, when suddenly a cannon rang out from behind the mountain, and a Shu army rushed out from behind. The leading general was Jiang Wei.Jiang Wei yelled at Sima Yi: "The dog thief takes his life!" At this moment, another cannon rang in the forest, and soldiers of all sizes appeared in front of the forest with the statue of Zhuge Liang hugging them.

As soon as Sima Yi saw Zhuge Liang, he was frightened out of his wits, and was shocked: "It turns out that Zhuge Liang is still alive, and I fell into Zhuge Liang's trick again." Sima Yi didn't dare to stay any longer, and immediately turned his horse's head and ran away desperately.Wei Jun also panicked and ran around with his head in his arms.

Sima Yi rode his war horse and fled for forty or fifty miles in one breath. Two Wei generals behind him rushed up, grabbed the horse's bit and said, "Don't be afraid, governor!" Sima Yi said, "Do I still have a head?" The general said: "The Shu army has withdrawn, the governor should not be afraid." Sima Yi gasped for a long time, and then his expression settled down.

Two days later, the villagers rushed to tell each other: "When the Shu army retreated to the valley, the mourning shook the ground, and the white flag was raised in the army. Zhuge Liang died. Only Jiang Wei and 1000 troops were left behind to cover. The one sitting on it is not Zhuge Liang, but a wooden statue of Zhuge Liang."

Sima Yi sighed loudly: "Zhuge Liang's ghosts and gods are unpredictable, he lives and dies, he confuses the real with the fake, he is really a genius in the world!"

Sima Yi confirmed that Zhuge Liang was dead, and immediately sent a large army to chase the Shu army again, and chased them to Chi'anpo. At this time, the Shu army had already withdrawn, so he led the troops back again.Sima Yi was relaxed and comfortable along the way, and said to the generals as he walked: "Zhuge Liang is dead, we are all at ease!"When Sima Yi saw the place where Zhuge Liang had set up camp, he was very strict in front, back, left, and right. Sima Yi sighed and said, "Zhuge Liang is really a rare genius in the world!" play.Sima Yi went back to Luoyang by himself to meet Emperor Wei.

Yang Yi and Jiang Wei lined up in a great formation and retreated slowly to the crossing of the Zhange. Then they put on mourning clothes and the whole army mourned Zhuge Liang silently. He cried to death.

The front team of the Shu army was returning to the crossing of Zhan Pavilion, when they suddenly saw the flames in front of them, and the sound of shouting and killing shook the sky, and an army blocked the crossing, not allowing the mourning Shu army to pass.

After hearing the report from the sentry in front, Yang Yi knew that it was Wei Yan who led his men to burn down the trestle road and stopped in front.

Yang Yi was shocked and said: "When the prime minister was alive, he expected Wei Yan to rebel, and today he really rebelled. Now that he cuts off our way back, what should we do?"

Fei Yi said: "Wei Yan cut off our way back so that it would be convenient for him to fabricate our crimes to the emperor and falsely accuse us of rebellion. We also hurriedly handed over the memorial to the emperor, listing Wei Yan's crimes, and then eliminated Wei Yan."

Jiang Wei said: "There is a mountain path near here. Although it is difficult to walk, it is very close to Chengdu. We can report the actual situation to the emperor earlier, and we can also block Wei Yan from the path." Write a memorial and send someone to Chengdu to present it to the emperor.

The queen master Liu Chan was in Chengdu, and he was restless all the time, and his mood was restless.He had a dream that Jinping Mountain in Chengdu collapsed, and he woke up suddenly.Sit till dawn.

The Empress Liu Chan immediately summoned civil and military officials to discuss the dream he had.

The official Qiao Zhou said: "I observed the astronomy last night, and I saw the Big Dipper falling from the northeast to the southwest. Prime Minister Zhuge must be in danger."

At this time, someone reported back, and everyone took a closer look to see that it was Shangshu Li Fu. Li Fu cried and walked into the palace, crying all the way, and the empress Liu Chan was even more panicked.Li Fu reported to the empress Liu Chan: "The prime minister is dead." The empress Liu Chan also burst into tears: "The sky is going to destroy me!" The eunuch hurriedly helped the empress Liu Chan into the harem.Empress Dowager Wu also burst into tears when she heard that Zhuge Liang was dead.All the civil and military officials and the people in the city also wept bitterly for Zhuge Liang, and the wailing could be heard everywhere for dozens of miles.

At this time, it was Wei Yan who suddenly reported to Yang Yi that he wanted to rebel, and it was Wei Yan who reported the memorial.All civil and military officials became frightened, and Liu Chan, the queen master, was shocked when he heard that Wei Yan reported that Yang Yi was going to rebel.The Empress Dowager Liu Chan asked his eunuch: "Wei Yan is a brave general, why can't he deal with the civil servant Yang Yi? He even burned the plank road!" Empress Dowager Wu said: "The prime minister told the late emperor in the early years: Wei Yan has a rebellious brain, and sooner or later this person will He will rebel, and every time he wants to kill him, because of Wei Yan’s high martial arts skills, he has been reluctant to kill him. Now Wei Yan says that Yang Yi rebelled, don’t believe what he said. He is still a talent. If Wei Yan is credulous today, Yang Yi and others will definitely surrender to Wei State. This matter is not trivial, so don’t make a decision lightly.”

At this time, the memorial of Chief Shi Yangyi was also delivered.The master Liu Chan started reading.After listening, the Empress Dowager Wu asked Jiang Wan, "What's your opinion?" Jiang Wan said, "Although Yang Yi is impulsive and can't tolerate others, he scrupulously escorts the entire army's front-line food and grass, participates in major military affairs, and works with the prime minister. For many years, now that the prime minister is dying, if he entrusts him with important tasks, he must be trustworthy and definitely not a rebel. Wei Yan is usually contemptuous, thinking that his military achievements are world-class, and looks down on others. Yang Yi often quarrels with Wei Yan, and Wei Yan has always held a grudge. Wei Yan sees Yang Yi, who led the army, was dissatisfied, so he burned the plank road, cut off the return route of Yang Yi and others, and wrote a false memorial to falsely accuse Yang Yi of rebelling. I can't guarantee it."

Dong Yun also said: "Wei Yan usually thinks that his military achievements are great and unmatched, and he is often angry and complains. He has never dared to rebel before because he was afraid of Prime Minister Zhuge. Now that Prime Minister Zhuge is dead, Wei Yan can't wait to rebel. Yes. Yang Yi is very talented and has always been reused by the prime minister, so he will definitely not rebel."

The Empress Liu Chan asked: "If Wei Yan rebelled, how should we deal with it?"

Jiang Wan said: "Prime Minister Zhuge has always been on guard against Wei Yan, and must have thought of a clever plan to deal with him, otherwise Yang Yi and others would not have retreated safely to the trestle road."

After a while, Wei Yan sent another memorial, and Yang Yi's memorials continued. Both accused each other of rebellion.

At this time, Fei Yi rushed back to Chengdu, and the latter master Liu Chan received him. Fei Yi immediately told the latter master Liu Chan of Wei Yan's rebellion.The master Liu Chan said: "Since this is the case, we will send Dong Yun to pretend to comfort Wei Yan." Dong Yun immediately took orders and set off.

Wei Yan burned down the plank road, stationed troops in Nangu, and guarded the pass, thinking that he was sure of victory, but Yang Yi and Jiang Wei rushed to the back of Nangu City day and night.Yang Yi was afraid that the Hanzhong area would be lost, so he immediately sent the vanguard He Ping to lead [-] troops to defend Hanzhong.Jiang Wei and Yang Yi led troops to escort Zhuge Liang's coffin to Hanzhong.

He Ping led his troops to Nangu, waving flags and beating drums, shouting to kill.When Wei Yan learned about it, he immediately raised his sword and mounted his horse to fight He Ping.He Ping tried his best to persuade Wei Yan's soldiers to stay away from Wei Yan, a traitor.Sure enough, Wei Yan's soldiers left Wei Yan one after another, only Ma Dai and his 300 soldiers did not leave.

Wei Yan said to Ma Dai: "If you are willing to help me, I will never treat you badly after I am done." Ma Dai said: "I am willing to obey the general's orders." So Wei Yan and Ma Dai jointly defeated He Ping.

Wei Yan cleaned up the remnants of the army, and then said to Ma Dai, "How about we go and surrender to Wei Guo?" Tell others. I think the general is both wise and brave. Which of the generals in Shuchuan can compare with you? I am willing to attack Hanzhong first with the general, and then attack Xichuan."

Wei Yan was overjoyed, and immediately led troops with Ma Dai to attack Nanzheng.Jiang Wei was guarding Nanzheng City, and he saw Wei Yan and Ma Dai showing off their power below the city, very arrogant.Yang Yi hurriedly discussed with Jiang Wei: "Wei Yan is brave and has Ma Dai's help. Although there are not many troops, they are still difficult to deal with. What should we do?"

Yang Yi suddenly remembered the kit and last words that Zhuge Liang gave him at this time: "If Wei Yan rebels, you can take it apart and watch it when you are fighting him." Yang Yi said to Jiang Wei: "When Prime Minister Zhuge Liang was dying, He gave me a good plan to deal with Wei Yan." Jiang Wei was very happy, and said: "Since the prime minister has a good plan, it will be easy to handle. I will lead the troops out of the city and set up a formation to destroy Wei Yan."

Jiang Wei took his weapons, rode on his horses, and led three thousand soldiers and horses to fight out of the city.As soon as Jiang Wei saw Wei Yan, he couldn't help yelling loudly: "Wei Yan, you traitor, the prime minister has been treating you well, why do you still rebel?" Wei Yan reined in his horse and said, "Jiang Wei, mind your own business. Tell Yang Yi to come out and die!"

At this time, Yang Yi had finished reading the tricks Zhuge Liang had given him, so he rode to the front of the battle immediately.Yang Yi smiled and pointed at Wei Yan's head and said, "Prime Minister Zhuge expected you to rebel and told me to be on guard against you. You really rebelled today. If you dare to call three times on the horse, who dares to kill me? I surrender to you!" Wei Yan laughed loudly and said, "Listen to me, Yang Yi, if Zhuge Liang was still alive, I would still be afraid of him, but now that he is dead, I am not afraid of anyone. Don't say three times , even if you bark ten thousand times in a row, what’s the difficulty!” So ​​he held the knife in his left hand, pressed the horse’s back with his right hand, and shouted at the horse: “Who dares to kill me?” Before he finished speaking, Ma Dai answered loudly behind him. : "I dare to kill you!" Ma Dai brandished a big knife, chopped off Wei Yan's head with one blow, and finally fell to the ground.All the soldiers present were stunned.

It turned out that Zhuge Liang told Ma Dai how to kill Wei Yan before he died, and when Wei Yan shouted, he caught him by surprise and killed him by surprise.

Before Dong Yun arrived in Nanzheng, Wei Yan was killed. Yang Yi wrote another memorial explaining the cause and effect of Wei Yan's eradication, and the later master Liu Chan did not pursue anything further.Yang Yi escorted Zhuge Liang's coffin back to Chengdu.

Civil and military officials of the Shu Kingdom, farmers in the countryside, men, women and children all cried bitterly, and the wailing was earth-shattering.

(End of this chapter)