In the winter of the fifth year of Kaibao's reign, when a funeral was going on in Luoyang, Xijing, there was also a sensational mourning ceremony in Kaifeng, Tokyo, and the impact was even greater. Therefore, the person who failed to survive the winter this time was Xingguo Gong Fan Zhi .
Over the years, many moral gentlemen who conformed to the values of the world have emerged in the Han Dynasty, and Fan Zhi is a representative figure among them. He is honest, honest, upright, and a man of ethics and integrity.
However, he was also strict in self-discipline. Compared with Duke Pu of Yan Kingdom, Fan Zhi had a much better reputation and was more popular. The main reason was that Fan Zhi did not forcefully promote himself to others.
Fan Zhi's achievements were mainly concentrated in the first ten years of the Qianyu period, which was a turbulent era. Fan Zhi stayed with Emperor Liu for ten years, accompanying Emperor Liu all the way out of the predicament, reorganizing the country, and moving towards peace and unification.
Although during this process, the conservative Fan Zhi and Emperor Liu did not always agree with each other. They had many conflicts and arguments. In the end, they were demoted from the court due to different political ideas. However, Fan Zhi's political status and achievements were more important than Liu's. However, what the emperor always recognized was the title of Duke Xingguo, which was the most significant recognition.
Even in the later stages of his political career, he still helped Emperor Liu to clean up the customs in Huaixi and stabilize the two rivers. Now that he is gone, the coffin is finalized, and Emperor Liu also gave Fan Zhi a fair and noble posthumous name.
He asked Xue Juzheng to write a Shinto inscription and write it for Liu Wensou, the minister of rites, to attend the funeral. He also asked the prince Liu Yang and the third son of the emperor Jin Gong Liu Xi to go to the funeral ceremony on his behalf, and posthumously presented the grand master, the title of minister, and the posthumous title Wensu. .
As if to reflect Fan Zhi's integrity, the dignified Xingguo Duke's Mansion is also austere. Whether it is the entrance hall or the garden, the layout is stingy and even simple. There are too many people who come to express their condolences, and there is not enough space, which even requires rowing. Long queue.
However, even with Fan Zhi's strict frugality, the Fan family cannot be considered poor. Fan Zhi is not like Liu Wensou, who refused even the emperor's rewards. In addition, with his annual salary and salary, with his family management style, he can Let the Fan family live a prosperous life. Because in Tokyo, there are many people from the public, nobles, officials and subordinates, and the most eye-catching ones are the two prince brothers.
The mourning hall was high and the scene was solemn. Liu Yang and Liu Xi respectfully paid homage to Fan Zhi's coffin under the gaze of many people intentionally or unintentionally. Then they looked at Fan Min, who was wearing hemp and mourning and guarding in front of the coffin, and Fan Min returned the greeting.
Fan Min was around thirty years old and was the only son of Fan Zhi. He looked simple and steady. He was an official and a doctor. He was a talented man in finance. He was both civil and military and served as a guard in the Forbidden Palace. Without any surprise, the Duke of Xingguo was , it must be this person.
"The deceased is gone! My condolences!" Liu Yang said to him: "Your Majesty said that Duke Fan was his good teacher and friend, and he will definitely welcome him into the Hall of Meritorious Officials!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Fan Min's sad tone was filled with gratitude.
The Liu Yang brothers did not stay in Fan Mansion for too long. After paying homage, they returned to the palace to resume their duties. No one dared to make noise in the mourning hall, but there was a lot of discussion outside the mourning hall.
"One of the twenty-four ministers of Qianyou has gone!" This is someone sighing, not only regretting the passing of the virtuous minister, but also having a trace of recollection and nostalgia for the Qianyou era.
Among the twenty-four ministers of Qian and You, nine were civil servants. Now only Wei Renpu, Xue Juzheng, Li Gu and Li Shaoyou are left. Half of them have passed away. It has only been five years.
Most people are nostalgic. As time goes by, people who have come from the previous era always have endless emotions about the past, whether it is glory or regret. And Fan Zhi represents the iconic symbol of the previous era.
Characters are also the easiest to arouse people's sighs.
Of course, there are only a few people who miss the past, and most people still look forward. Among the discussions, the most eye-catching thing is the comparison with the British public funeral in Xijing.
There is always a shortage of melon-eaters in this world. This time, they are curious about which one the Emperor values more, Chai Rong or Fan Zhi.
Most people preferred Chai Rong because he was more powerful, and since Chai Rong's father just died, Emperor Liu sent the eldest prince to express condolences in person. However, Fan Zhi himself passed away, but only the prince and Duke of Jin came to visit.
.
Then he talked about Emperor Liu's attitude. You must know that Fan Zhi was in Beijing, and Emperor Liu was not lucky enough. Some people compared it with Prince Pu of Yan State. You must know that before Wang Pu died of illness, Emperor Liu visited him in person.
, another time to express my condolences.
But this time, although he was treated with dignity and honor, he stayed in the palace and did not show any sign of it. This naturally led to speculation by the busybody, so Fan Zhi's status was lowered by another place...
Of course, there was a reason why Emperor Liu didn't go to Fan's Mansion in person. The very direct reason was that he was also ill. The cause was similar to that of Queen Dafu. It was caused by overwork and worry, coupled with depression, and the overdraft of his body in the past.
, and also suffered a certain amount of backlash.
Over the years, Emperor Liu had not never contracted a disease, including colds, headaches, and fever. But this time, he was seriously ill, and it was difficult to get sick. But it was not surprising that the disease came, after all, he had been ill in the past few years
, Emperor Liu went through too much.
Emperor Liu, who was rarely seriously ill, suddenly became unwell. This was a big deal. In order to stabilize the situation of the court and avoid unrest in people's hearts, Emperor Liu ordered the news to be blocked. Only a few people knew about it, and no one else knew about it, not even the people in the harem.
Many concubines don't know.
Even though the prince and the princes of the political affairs hall were supervising the affairs of the country, that was with Emperor Liu watching from behind. Once Emperor Liu suddenly had a problem, it would be difficult to avoid twists and turns.
Da Fu's illness did not go away easily, so it was Concubine Gao who was waiting in front of the imperial couch and taking good care of him.
When Liu Yang and Liu Xi came to recover, Emperor Liu was leaning on a round pillow. Concubine Gao personally served the medicine, spoon by spoon, bite by bite. It could be clearly seen that Emperor Liu looked much weaker, and he did not show off his strength on purpose.
He showed an energetic face.
"What a pity! I couldn't see Fan Zhi for the last time and see him off for the last time!" Emperor Liu sighed after listening to the report.
After pondering for a while, Emperor Liu ordered again: "On the day of the funeral, attend again on my behalf!"
"yes!"
"Where is Liu Fang?" Emperor Liu asked.
Liu Yang replied: "The Ministry of War is checking military status, and my fourth brother is busy with this matter!"
"Yes!" After responding, Emperor Liu said: "Fan Zhi is on your knees, let's take Fan Min as my son!"
"Exactly!" Liu Yang replied: "Fan Gong's heirs are really few. The only son, Fan Min, and the only grandson, Fan Yisun, are eight years old!"
"So, the bloodline is considered weak!" Emperor Liu sighed.
Liu Xi said: "Fan Gong still has two disciples, Fan Xi and Fan Gao!"
After hearing this, Emperor Liu thought about it and said to Liu Yang: "You should examine the descendants of the Fan family. If they are suitable and can be promoted, then promote them..."
"yes!"
"Stand back!" Emperor Liu waved his hand.
The brothers retired, and Emperor Liu's spirit seemed a little weaker, and he looked very tired. Concubine Gao thought he was sad about Fan Zhi's death, but she still advised him: "Everyone is destined to die, and officials should not be too sad."
Now, you should take care of yourself!"
Looking at Concubine Gao, she can be said to be a mature woman now, her charm is still there, but aging is still irreversible. Emperor Liu said: "How could I not know that in these years, too many people have passed away, and I am used to it."
"What I feel deeply is that I am getting old, and this disease comes suddenly without any warning. If one day, I will..."
Before Emperor Liu could finish his words, Concubine Gao interrupted him very seriously: "Don't talk like this, officials. You are in your prime. The imperial doctor also said that you are overburdened. As long as you take good care of yourself, there will be no serious problems."
It’s in the way.”
With that said, Concubine Gao continued to put the decoction into Emperor Liu's mouth. She said so, but Emperor Liu still took the medicine obediently, even though it didn't taste good.
This time, Emperor Liu felt once again that after all, he was no longer the energetic young man who could stay up late. He was nearly forty years old and could not withstand excessive torment.
"It's been five years since I opened the treasure. It's not going well!" After holding it in for a while, Emperor Liu uttered a sentence, as if to vent his anger.
After hearing this, Concubine Gao couldn't help but suggest: "How about doing a happy event to avoid bad luck?"
"Liu Xi is almost nineteen and can indeed get married!" Emperor Liu looked at Mrs. Gao.
"The officials are wise!" the imperial concubine smiled.
"Do you have a favorite candidate?" Emperor Liu asked.
"The little lady of Princess Yongning's family is also in her 28th year and has not yet been married. Do you think we can get married?" Concubine Gao said.
Upon hearing this, Emperor Liu frowned slightly. His age and status were suitable, but he was a close relative. However, Emperor Liu could not use this reason to refuse.
After thinking about it for a moment, he sighed and said, "You can discuss it with your sister. If they agree, I have no objection..."