These talented people left behind by Cao Rui were pulled up from their couches in the middle of the night and gathered in front of the palace gate. Some of them had not even completely lost their sleepiness.
Let alone know what happened.
Then I saw that the palace door had been locked shut.
Someone else brought a bunch of Bai Ling poisonous wine to him, saying that he and others were going to accompany the late emperor?
But when I saw that each of their beautiful faces were pale, their delicate bodies were trembling.
Thinking that their lives would be lost soon, many people were already unable to stand, collapsed to the ground, covering their mouths and crying.
How can anyone be willing to just think about dying inexplicably like this?
Finally, I heard someone brave enough to ask in a trembling voice:
"May I ask where the emperor's edict is?"
They were talented people of the late emperor. If they did not have an edict from the emperor, they should at least have an edict from the empress dowager.
As soon as these words came out, many talented people also reacted.
That’s right!
They are talented people of the late emperor!
How could it be said that Bai Ling was given poisonous wine as soon as he came up without even an edict?
If the minister did it privately, wouldn't it be trespassing?
How is this different from treason?
Hope was rekindled in his eyes, his eyes brightened slightly, all looking towards Huan Fan.
It's just that Huan Fan has already made his decision, so how can he back down because of these words?
But he saw him saying coldly:
"A certain person said, follow the authority in urgent matters."
At the same time, there was an evil spirit in his eyes, and he swept towards the place where the words came from.
Bu Qu understood, stepped out of the crowd, and walked over.
"What are you going to do?"
The person who spoke screamed, "You are treason!"
Why are they afraid that they will be tainted and humiliated as well as the late emperor?
If we really wanted to talk about humiliating the late emperor, the late emperor would have been humiliated long ago from the moment we were admitted to the general's residence to serve the general who was as fat as a pig.
Why did you wait until today to mention this matter?
But it was obvious that what Huan Fan needed was just an excuse, and it was impossible for him to engage in these meaningless verbal disputes with them.
Bu Qu controlled the talented man and looked at Huan Fan.
Huan Fan nodded slightly.
This nod is nothing less than an order.
Immediately afterwards, the servants brought over by Huan Fan came forward one after another with white silk, and each looked for their target.
Then Bai Ling strangled the necks of these helpless women!
For a time, in front of the palace gate, people were wailing gracefully, just like Du Juan weeping blood. Those who heard it were saddened, and those who heard it shed tears.
After a while, the women who were originally alive and fragrant were all turned into corpses, lying in piles across the hall.
Si Fan and the sergeants he brought over were all dumbfounded and looked at what was happening in front of them in horror.
Only then did they realize what a catastrophe it would be if what they had done was leaked.
After Huan Fan ordered the execution of these talented women, he looked at Si Fan and shouted:
"What are you still doing?"
Si Fan seemed to have come back to his senses, with a look of horror in his eyes, pointing at the corpse on the ground in disbelief, and stammered:
"Huan Shijun, this, this..."
Huan Fan smiled grimly:
"Now that things have happened, you don't think you can stay out of it, right?"
This sentence was not only meant for Si Fan, but also for the sergeants he brought here.
Seeing that they were all shocked, Huan Fan slowed down his tone again:
"Don't worry. Since I did this, I have already considered how to deal with the aftermath. As long as you follow my instructions, you will have nothing to worry about."
As he said that, he showed a ruthless expression, "But if you don't do what I say and are held accountable afterwards, will you be able to escape?"
Si Fan had already made some mental preparations since he followed Huan Fan into Tongque Garden.
When I heard Huan Fan's words, my heart sank. I knew that I had no way out and had no choice but to follow Huan Fan all the way to the end.
Si Fan gritted his teeth and showed a fierce look on his face:
"Huan Shijun, please tell me what we should do."
"If you want the affairs in the palace not to be leaked, except for these talented people, the rest can also be left behind!"
As soon as these words came out, some of the palace servants who were shivering in the corner finally came to their senses and quickly begged for mercy:
"Spare your life, spare your life!"
Huan Fan did not look at the beggar, but stared directly at Si Fan.
What doesn't Si Fan understand?
I saw him pull out his knife with a clang, strode forward, and stabbed the one who screamed the loudest to death.
Then he turned around and shouted to his cronies: "Leave no one behind!"
When the palace people saw this, they immediately screamed and fled in all directions.
It's just that the door of this palace has been closed by Huan Fan, so where can he escape?
Under the coercion and inducement of Huan Fan and Si Fan, even the hesitant sergeants were forced to have their hands stained with blood.
If there are not enough people in the palace to kill, then add a few more cuts to the corpses to make up the number.
After killing everyone in the palace, Huan Fan asked people to bring the sacks that had been prepared to put the bodies.
At the same time, he also ordered that the stones used for decoration or viewing in the temple should be removed, and a stone should be placed in each sack.
If there were not enough stones, we would use the iron lamps and other heavy objects in the temple to make up the amount.
Then, in the middle of the night, they transported more than a hundred sacks to the edge of the Zhang River and sank them to the bottom of the water, destroying the corpses and destroying all traces.
Then send people to wash away the bloodstains in the temple without leaving any traces.
After working so hard again and again, there was already light coming out of the sky.
Huan Fan then gathered up his troops and left Tongque Garden.
There were still two days left, and he still had to sort out some things first and last to prepare for Sima Yi's entry into the city.
For example, how to silence the sergeants involved in this matter, or at least delay Sima Yi's knowledge of the matter as much as possible.
It's impossible to hide it completely.
Huan Fan knew that the current city of Ye was probably just a sieve in front of Sima Yi, with no secrets at all.
So careless, so careless!
To the south of Yecheng was Hanoi, but they didn't even think of guarding against Sima Yi's move.
It's so careless!
Until he saw Sima Yi leading the army into the city, Huan Fan could not stop thinking about this sentence in his heart.
When Sima Yi saw Huan Fan from a distance, he immediately got off his horse, walked forward quickly, bowed his hands in salute, and looked a little apologetic:
"Huan Shijun, for the sake of the generals and soldiers of the army, I had to make this move, which shocked you!"
Huan Fan said nothing and just kowtowed.
"Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing, Mr. Huan?"
Sima Yi seemed to be startled, he quickly helped Huan Fan up and said loudly:
"I can't do it, I can't do it!"
Huan Fan then opened his mouth and said:
"The Taifu is in charge of the generals, and Fan is also his duty. Therefore, I had to speak harshly to him before, but I don't know how the Taifu will deal with me?"
Sima Yi laughed and stroked Huan Fan's back:
"Huan Shijun is exaggerating! Huan Shijun is the governor of Jizhou, and it is his duty to defend the city. Not to mention the harsh words, even if the soldiers are fighting each other, I dare not say that Huan Shijun is at fault."
After speaking, he slowed down his tone again, with a look of eager expectation in his eyes:
"The country is in crisis, and I just hope that I can clear up all the previous differences with Huan Shijun. I hope Huan Shijun can help me with the matter in Hebei."
Unexpectedly, Huan Fan sighed, shook his head and refused:
"A certain person and the general are from the same hometown. Fortunately, he was promoted by the general, so he was able to serve as the governor of Jizhou."
"Now that I have been entrusted by the general, I am extremely ashamed. How dare you accept the kindness of the Taifu again?"
After saying this, he bowed to Sima Yi again and saluted:
"All kinds of pictures, books and documents in Jizhou have been sealed in the treasury, waiting for the Taifu to go and open them."
As soon as Sima Yi heard this, he immediately became happy.
With these things, everything in Jizhou is under control!
I heard Huan Fan continue to say:
"If Taifu really can ignore my previous sins and consider my merits, please allow me to leave with my entourage."
"If the master doesn't tolerate me, I will ask myself to be imprisoned until the court punishes me."
Sima Yi was startled and lost his voice:
"What does Huan Shijun mean by this? Could it be that he wants to abandon his official position and leave? Doesn't this, this, doesn't this make me a sinner?"
The best situation in his mind was to let Huan Fan stay and continue to serve as the ostensible governor of Jizhou to appease the people of Jizhou.
But he planted his cronies and gradually secretly controlled Jizhou.
In this way, the transition of control of Jizhou can be completed smoothly.
Huan Fan's words broke Sima Yi's fantasy.
"How can a certain person have the nerve to stay in the position of governor of Jizhou despite being entrusted by the general? When I came out today, I had already hung my official seal in the hall. Now I just want to resign and return to my hometown."
Sima Yi also knew that the relationship between Huan Fan and Cao Shuang was indeed not shallow.
But this time when he led the army into Hebei, he had completely broken up with Cao Shuang.
Not to mention that he asked people to enumerate Cao Shuang's crimes outside Yecheng.
I'm afraid it won't be easy for Huan Fan to stay.
Sima Yi sighed deeply and looked at Huan Fan with regret:
"Huan Shijun is really unwilling to help me?"
Huan Fan looked at Sima Yi steadily and said:
"Master, do you want me to go to jail?"
The implication is that if you want him to stay, the only way is to imprison him in prison.
"How dare I do this?"
If you imprison a state governor without justifiable reasons, it is really no different from rebellion.
"Then the master is planning to make me bear the kindness of the general, the righteousness of my fellow countrymen, and make the world laugh at me?"
Sima Yi was silent for a while and then said:
"How dare I do this?"
Sighing slightly again: "Then, Huan Shijun, please do as you please."
Then he turned around and ordered:
"Second order, Huan Shijun can enter or leave Yecheng. No one can stop him. Violators will be punished according to military law!"
"Here!"
"Thank you, Master."
"I, Xie Huan, envoy you, are the ones who do not harm the soldiers and protect the officials. I am truly benevolent and righteous."
Huan Fan shook his head without changing his expression:
"From now on, I will no longer be the governor of Jizhou, and I dare not be called the envoy again."
After saying this, he bowed to Sima Yi again, turned around to greet his entourage, and left Yecheng.
But I saw that his team was huge, no less than three hundred people.
There were even people leading dozens of fine horses.
Although Sima Yi was slightly surprised, he did not delve into it.
After all, in recent years, the trend of aristocratic families, powerful people and annexing lands has not diminished with the decline of the Wei Dynasty, but has become more and more fierce.
For example, the Three Dogs of Taichung, who were in Xuchang, dared to take advantage of the situation to swallow up Luoyang royal family Tang Mu, and invade Hanoi government land.
His greed is evident.
After plundering all the worldly wealth, one naturally indulges in pleasure and extravagance.
Huan Fan came from the Huan family in Longkang County, Pei County.
The Huan family has passed down the Book of Documents from generation to generation, and can be said to be a family of Confucian classics scholars with a long lineage of ministers.
Although Huan Fan has a reputation for being honest and frugal, reputation is such a thing...
Sima Yi looked at this long team with an unpredictable look in his eyes.
It is indeed not without reason that the late emperor wanted to suppress the flashy people.
But now is not the time to lament this. Sima Yi waited patiently for Huan Fan's team to all leave the city, and Sima Yi couldn't wait to have people go to the treasury to check.
It turns out that it is true as Huan Fan said, the treasury materials, books and documents were all well sealed and there was no intentional damage.
Sima Yi finally couldn't contain his inner ecstasy:
"Huan Yuan didn't lie to me. The pictures and books are complete. It seems that all the land in Jizhou is in the palm of his hand!"
I remembered that I had been trapped in Hanoi, Henan for so many years. I had to do my best to stop the Western thieves, but also demanded food from the Eastern traitors.
Does anyone know the frustration involved?
Okay now, okay now!
Although Sima Yi was very cunning, when he picked up a book and patted it vigorously with one hand, his face was full of uncontrollable joy.
As long as we control Hebei, we will no longer have to be controlled by traitors.
It can be said that a fish escapes from the net, jumps into the river, and is free from now on!
Although it was a pity that Huan Fan left, he was still sensible and hung his official seal in the hall, pretending to resign and return home.
In this way, he will not be said to be driving away the imperial officials, and naturally he will not be in too much trouble.
The worst case scenario is to write to the court and ask the court to send another governor to take charge.
As for myself, before the arrival of the governor, in order to prevent the Western bandits from taking the opportunity to advance eastward, I naturally had to work hard and act as an agent for Jizhou.
It's just that when he entered Yecheng, he was alone in defeating the bandits and had no choice but to retreat to Jizhou.
There is another reason, and that is to punish Cao Shuang.
The most serious crime Cao Shuang committed was humiliating his late emperor.
Thinking of this, Sima Yi quickly called out:
"Come here, gather the troops and follow me to the Bronze Bird Garden."
In the past, the gatekeeper of Tongque Garden could be regarded as a leisurely and comfortable position.
Who would have expected that these days, we would be experiencing the biggest crisis.
Seeing Huan Shijun leading people to break into Tongque Garden at night, he didn't know what kind of consequences he was about to suffer.
At this time, when he saw the Taifu leading his troops, the gatekeeper felt that the sky was about to fall.
But because of his responsibilities, he had to bite the bullet and step forward:
"I'm here to pay my respects to the Tutor. I don't know if the Tutor is here, uh, but, what's the matter?"
Facing this somewhat trembling gatekeeper, Sima Taifu was much more affable than Huan Shijun.
"It doesn't have to be like this. The reason I came with the army this time is to punish traitors and revitalize the royal family. I heard that Cao Shuang secretly accepted talents from the late emperor, and he dared to hide them in the Bronze Bird Garden built by Emperor Wu."
"Such actions are simply contempt for the royal family and trampling on the imperial power. It is not an exaggeration to call him a traitor and a minister."
"Therefore, I came here this time to expose the rebellious behavior of the rebellious ministers and the dirt of the Qing royal family."
As soon as the gatekeeper heard this, he suddenly broke into a cold sweat, his legs became weak, and he almost collapsed to the ground.
"Um?"
Seeing the other party's appearance, Master Sima felt something was wrong:
"Why do you look like this?"
"Too...Too...Too Master, please forgive me!"
The gatekeeper's teeth were chattering on the ground and he couldn't even speak coherently:
"Little man, little man is just a gatekeeper. I, I don't know anything about what is in this forbidden garden!"
"That's it." Sima Yi shook his head and laughed, "I didn't say I wanted to make things difficult for you. Why did you do this? Just get out of the way and let me in."
The gatekeeper moved away with weak legs and stammered:
"There is something that I don't know whether to say or not."
"Huh?" Sima Yi, who was about to pass the gatekeeper, suddenly stopped and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Huan Shijun, Huan Shijun brought a large number of troops and broke into Tongque Garden three nights ago..."
Before he finished speaking, Sima Yi's eyes suddenly widened, and his eyeballs protruded like dead fish.
The originally amiable look disappeared immediately, and even his voice became sharp:
"What did you say!"
As if he couldn't believe what he heard, he repeated again, "Say it again!"
"Huan Shijun, three nights ago, he also brought a large number of troops..."
"Damn it!"
Sima Yi finally could no longer maintain his grace and led his men straight into Tongque Garden.
In three days, not to mention those fifty-seven talented people had long since disappeared without a trace. Even the blood stains on the ground had been washed away.
Sima Yi stood in the empty palace and was stunned for a long time. Suddenly he drew his sword and slashed at the pillar beside him, and cursed angrily:
"Huan Fan, how dare you bully me!"
Yes, capturing Yecheng is the biggest purpose of his trip.
But if there is no evidence of Cao Shuang's crime at hand, then his invasion of Yecheng this time will lose more than half of his justice.
Too careless!
Huan Fan, you have been pretending to be pitiful for so many days just to numb yourself!
Fortunately, I still wanted to let him stay and continue to serve as the governor of Jizhou.
No wonder he ran so fast!
Too careless!
I had been planning for so long, but in the end I was distracted by the victory over Yecheng without bloodshed. I was only thinking about taking over Jizhou, but I was not in the mood to think about anything else.
"Master, do you want to send someone to chase him immediately?"
Seeing the Tutor acting like this, the people around him quickly came up to suggest something.
"Chase! Of course we have to chase them. We must chase them all!"
"Here!"
After his cronies left in a hurry, Sima Yi sat dejectedly on the steps in front of the palace.
Although he ordered to chase him back, Sima Yi knew that if Huan Fan wanted to run away and he sent people to chase him now, it would most likely be impossible to chase him back.
After all, it took so long to open the treasury and check the pictures, and it took some time to come to Tongque Garden.
Thinking again of those good horses in Huan Fan's team...
"Everyone has planned this for a long time!"
Sima Yi gritted his teeth and said bitterly.
Not only did he help Cao Shuang destroy the evidence, he even set up a trap for himself.
If the talents of the late emperor that Cao Shuang sent to Yetai cannot be found, Cao Shuang can accuse himself of false accusations.
Without great righteousness, or in other words, without great righteousness, it would be excusable for him to lead the army into Jizhou.
But entering Yecheng without permission will also become a false accusation for others.
"Huan Fan's intentions are extremely vicious. He simply wants to kill me!"
Sima Yi's eyes flashed fiercely, "If we can really capture this person, we will definitely not let him stay."
"If he is left here, he will definitely become Cao Shuang's think tank and cause endless troubles in the future."
Although he was tricked by Huan Fan, Sima Yi was a man who had seen big storms after all.
He sat on the ground blankly, quickly collected his emotions, thought again, and began to consider how to face possible problems in the future.
Now that control of Jizhou is a foregone conclusion, there will be much more room for maneuver in the future.
The connection between Youzhou and Xuchang in the north will also be easily cut off by himself.
Sima Yi's eyes flashed and he shouted: "Come here, prepare pen and ink!"