The great general of Da Wu was lying on the ground, his heart was ashen, and his whole body seemed to be lifeless.
The Grand Governor of Wu Dynasty glared at him angrily. If he had not gone to the palace to take off his sword and shoes, it seemed that he would have drawn his sword and killed someone in an instant.
Taichang of Da Wu stood tall and proud with a look of disdain on his face, as if he was determined to die.
The ministers of Da Wu...were as silent as cicadas, hanging their heads in silence.
The emperor of Wu sat on it and watched everything happening below indifferently.
Although everything in front of him was going according to his imagination.
But at this moment, he seemed to have become a real loner.
Perhaps the emperor should have been a loner by nature.
Just when the big bosses in the court were at war with each other, the rest of the people were silent and did not dare to say anything.
Emperor Sun's voice came suddenly:
"Gu Taichang, are you really unwilling to apologize to the Governor?"
When Gu Tan heard this, he turned his head suddenly, looked away from Quan Cong's face, raised his head to look in the direction of the emperor, and then immediately lowered his head.
That is the emperor, not someone he can glare at at will.
Gu Tan lowered his head and asked sadly:
"Your Majesty, do you really believe that we, the descendants of the Gu family, would do such a thing?"
The four clans of Wujun were Zhang Wen, Zhu Wu, Lu Zhong and Gu Hou.
Mr. Lu is loyal.
Therefore, the general can plead guilty. Anyway, your majesty only said that he had selfish motives, not that the general was disloyal.
And even if this matter is true, it would be a crime of negligence at best to go to the general.
After all, he judged the merits of the garrison based on the merits recognized at the time, and he did not know that the military merits were falsely reported.
But Gu's is different.
Why doesn't Gu Tan want to apologize?
Because the Gu family is thick.
Apologizing would mean admitting that Gu Cheng had an affair with Chen Xun and falsely claimed military merit.
Admitting this matter would shake the Gu family's reputation in Jiangdong:
Which family with a strong family tradition would do something like deceiving the superiors and concealing the truth from the subordinates, and seeking private honors and benefits?
This is not only a matter related to Gu Cheng, but also a matter related to the status of the entire Gu family.
Once the reputation of the family tradition collapses and the younger members of the clan are looked down upon, how can the Gu family gain a foothold in Jiangdong?
So he gritted his teeth and would rather contradict the governor Quan Cong in court, or even question Sun Quan, the emperor of Wu, rather than compromise and seek compromise.
Seeing Gu Tan standing there upright, unwilling to bow his head, Sun Quan felt agitated for no reason.
The nameless fire in his heart grew stronger and stronger, making his head feel hot.
What little patience he had had burned away.
Looking at the ministers below, he felt disgusted in his heart.
At this moment, he didn't want to sit here and argue with them for a moment. He just wanted to leave quickly and return to the harem to find the immortal couple and the goddess.
Probably only in the presence of a fairy couple can I relax.
"There are all the witnesses and physical evidence of this matter. No matter how much I don't want to believe it, can I still pretend that this matter never happened?"
The Gu brothers are originally one of humanity and one of martial arts.
In his early years, Gu Cheng first led the Yulin Army, and later followed Zhuge Ke to pacify Shanyue, and has been developing in the army.
This was not the case with Gu Tan. First he was an apprentice of the prince, and was promoted from the concubine to the commander-in-chief of Fuzheng. Later, he replaced Zhuge Ke as Zuojiedu, and then served as minister. He never led an army.
All kinds of dirty tricks in the army are simply a matter of turning a blind eye.
At this time, Sun Quan asked him to refute. How could he refute it?
Therefore, he could only plead again and again:
"Your Majesty, this is a villain's greed. Your Majesty must not be deceived by a villain! I would like to ask your Majesty to issue an edict and have your Majesty investigate again."
Sun Quan stood up impatiently and shouted:
"enough!"
Originally, I wanted to give the Gu family some face for the sake of Gu Yong.
I asked you to apologize to the Governor just to make this matter less serious.
It's better for you, you don't realize how hard I have worked so hard, but you actually asked me if I believe that the children of the Gu family would do such a thing?
If you want me not to believe it, explain it to me!
I couldn't explain it, and they said I was deceived by greedy words.
Okay, you are noble and awesome!
Since you said so, just follow the rules!
"Edict, order someone to investigate the case of Shouchun's military exploits!"
After saying that, he was too lazy to look at Gu Tan and Lu Xun who was lying on the ground pretending to be dead, and turned around and left.
After the emperor left, the meeting could no longer continue. The ministers retreated and filed out.
Outside the Dragon Palace, Gu Tan saw Quan Cong coming out and stepped forward, clenching his fists and staring at Quan Cong.
Although Quan Cong is older than Gu Tan, he has led the army for many years. Compared with scholars and Confucian scholars like Gu Tan, he is taller.
But seeing him standing still, he looked at Gu Tan with a sneer:
"What? Mrs. Gu wants to compete with someone here?"
"Quan Zihuang, you are the governor of Wu in vain. Your children cannot perform meritorious service in front of the battle, but you do such villainous behavior in the court to seek benefits for them. You are truly a treacherous person, acting like a fox."
mouse!"
Quan Cong's face darkened:
"Gu Zimo, Your Majesty has ordered a department to investigate the case according to your wishes. Now that the conclusion has not been reached, you are saying that I acted like a villain and said evil words. At this time, it seems that which one of us is more like a villain?"
Gu Tan gritted his teeth and said bitterly:
"The military merits of Shouchun have been established for a long time. If you, the whole family, hadn't obstructed it and deceived the Lord with slanderous words, how could His Majesty have been deceived?"
Quan Cong was furious:
"Gu Zimo, you can't answer His Majesty's questions, so you shout slanderous words. Your Majesty ordered a department to check, but the department didn't come to a conclusion, so you keep saying that His Majesty was deceived."
"If Yousi discovers a problem, are you still going to say that Yousi is incompetent and have wronged you, the Gu family?"
Gu Tan loudly said: "Impossible! Zizhi will definitely not do this!"
"If you Gu family can't do it, does that mean our Quan family can't do what you say?"
Quan Cong was really too lazy to argue with this person, so he turned around and left.
In the case of Shouchun on meritorious service, the evidence was true and false, nine true and one false.
In the military, merit is counted and one level of extra reward is considered a rare example of integrity.
It is common to apply for two or three more levels.
For those who are more greedy, killing one hundred and capturing one hundred can be said to be killing five hundred and capturing two hundred.
Chen Xun is not a saint, how could he do it perfectly?
If you look through it casually, you can find many omissions.
Your Majesty killed this person from the beginning precisely because he had no defense at all against the evidence he produced.
As for whether Gu and Zhang made false claims for military merit...
Anyway, Chen Xun is dead, and dead people cannot speak.
The one who can speak is himself, the coach of the Shouchun First World War.
"you……"
Gu Tan followed behind and wanted to call Quan Cong to stop, but stretched out a hand from behind and pressed his shoulder to stop him.
Gu Tan turned around and saw that it was Lu Xun.
Facing his uncle, Gu Tan couldn't help but slow down his tone:
"Come on, General?"
Lu Xun shook his head:
"Let him go. It's useless to talk more. Besides, this is the palace. Don't cause any more conflicts or lose etiquette."
Gu Tan took another look at Quan Cong who had walked away, and could only swallow his breath bitterly.
Naturally, Sun Quan didn't know about this little conflict outside the Dragon Palace.
When he returned to his residence in the harem, he did not immediately go to Mrs. Pan's bedroom. Instead, he sat in front of the case, holding Jade Ruyi in his hand, stroking it constantly, thinking about something.
Among the four Wujun clans, the Zhang family had been silent in the court for many years because of Zhang Wen's involvement in the Jianyan incident twenty years ago.
Because of Gu Yong's death, the Gu family's influence in the court was not as good as before. Coupled with the Shouchun merit debate incident, advancement and retreat were all based on one's own thoughts.
As for the Lu family...
Sun Quan couldn't help but "tsk" when he remembered Lu Xun's confession in court during the court meeting.
Not enough, not enough.
Even if Gu was later found to be at fault, to Lu Xun, it would be nothing more than unfairness and a momentary oversight.
His current status cannot be shaken at all.
Thinking of this, Sun Quan couldn't help but lightly tapped the table with Yu Ruyi, frowning a little.
But after thinking for a while, he finally couldn't make up his mind and could only skip it for now.
"As for the Zhu family..."
Sun Quan murmured four words softly and fell into deep thought for a longer period of time than before.
It was the Zhu family that caused Sun Quan the most conflict and hesitation.
Because Zhu Ju, the representative of the Zhu family, married Sun Quan’s daughter, Sun Luyu, also known as Princess Zhu.
Zhu Ju was a serious son-in-law of Sun Quan, which was different from a niece-in-law like Lu Xun.
Not to mention that Princess Zhu is Mrs. Bu’s youngest daughter.
Moreover, Zhu Ju is still the only general in the Wu Kingdom who has fully learned the art of cavalry warfare in the Han Kingdom, and he also commands the only cavalry army in the Wu Kingdom.
Thinking of this, Sun Quan let out a long breath.
Forget it, it's not a bad idea to leave Zhu alone for the time being.
After all, a prince also needs a foundation. Cutting it off too much will make it unbeautiful.
After making the decision, Sun Quan stood up and was about to call someone to get into the chariot to see Mrs. Pan.
Unexpectedly, when he opened his mouth, he groaned and stumbled.
It turned out that he only felt that the world was spinning in front of his eyes, and the stars were flying around.
I wanted to force myself to stand firm, but for some reason, my chest suddenly became extremely heavy.
His heartbeat quickened and his breathing became short, causing him to subconsciously use Yu Ruyi to prop himself up on the table.
There was only a "pop" sound, probably due to excessive force, and Yu Ruyi was crushed to pieces.
Sun Quan made a "thump" sound and sat back in front of the case again.
Clutching his chest, Sun Quan closed his eyes and opened his mouth, breathing rapidly.
But when he left the court, he was in a bad mood and kicked everyone out.
Without his call, the palace people would not dare to look inside.
Over the past year or so, His Majesty's temper has become increasingly erratic, making it difficult to understand.
Sometimes they just come in to report something, but they are inexplicably pulled down and killed with a cane afterwards.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, good news, great news!"
At this critical moment, Lu Yi's voice came from outside the door, "Your Majesty, I have something to ask you to see me!"
Sun Quan opened his mouth, squeaked a few times, and squeezed out the last bit of strength in his body: "Come in... come in!"
After Lu Yi trotted in, he didn't dare to get too close. He didn't raise his head and saluted directly:
"Your Majesty, it is a great joy for General Nie..."
When Sun Quan saw that Lu Yi didn't notice anything strange about him, he couldn't help but feel angry and anxious. His throat felt like a leaky bellows, and he could only breathe "ho ho".
Fortunately, he regained some strength in his hand, so he grabbed the broken jade Ruyi and smashed it down.
"Clang!"
Half of the jade Ruyi was smashed not far in front of Lu Yi, split into two again, and jade fragments flew everywhere.
Lu Yi naturally knew that His Majesty was furious in public this morning. He only said that Sun Quan's anger was still lingering at this time, but he shrank back again and became more respectful:
"Your Majesty, please calm down. I have a big happy event for you. Your Majesty will definitely be happy after hearing this."
I'm glad you're a sifter!
Sun Quan had no choice but to lie down on the desk and rest for a while. Only then did he feel the dizziness disappear and finally be able to breathe again.
Looking down at Lu Yi, who had been extremely respectful and did not dare to look up, he became furious and shouted:
"Dog slave, raise your head!"
Only then did Lu Yi dare to raise his head: "Your Majesty?"
"come over……"
Lu Yi stepped forward and realized that something was wrong with Sun Quan's expression. He quickly changed his expression to one of over-worry and surprise:
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, are you okay?"
It was okay if Lu Yi didn't say this. As soon as he said this, Sun Quan was so angry that he picked up the other half of the jade Ruyi on the case and threw it at Lu Yi who was obeying the order and shouted angrily:
"Even if I die in front of you, I'm afraid you won't know it!"
Lu Yi didn't dare to hide and let Yu Ruyi hit him squarely.
"Your Majesty, please be careful what you say. Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven and is blessed by the gods. How can you talk about death lightly?"
Looking at Lu Yi's appearance, think about the appearance of Gu Tan and others in the early morning court.
Sun Quan couldn't help but feel a little emotional, and because of his anger, he felt a slight dizziness, forcing him to control his emotions and slow down his tone:
"Okay, let's first tell you what good news you want to report to me."
"Here! Your Majesty, I have received the document. General Nie and General Lu, who were sent to sea by Your Majesty last year, have returned!"
Upon hearing the news, Sun Quan's eyes suddenly widened:
"What? Are you serious!?"
"How dare I deceive Your Majesty?"
Sun Quan couldn't help but stood up and was about to speak. Unexpectedly, he felt that the world was spinning again because of his excessive mood swings.
This time, he didn't have Jade Ruyi in his hand.
Fortunately, there was Lu Yi in front of me.
Seeing that something was not right with His Majesty, Lu Yi did not dare to be negligent this time. He quickly stepped forward and finally supported Sun Quan before he fell to the ground.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, are you okay? Come, come quickly, call the doctor, call the doctor quickly!"
Sun Quan fell into Lu Yi's arms and closed his eyes without saying a word.
I don't know if he fainted or was speechless.
The last month of the sixth year of Yanxi was destined to be a restless month for the kings and ministers of the Wu Kingdom.
Quan Cong's reexamination of the Shouchun military merit case marked the beginning of a fierce battle between the two palaces of Wu State.
Sun Quan's illness caused the already chaotic Wu State Court to become increasingly undercurrent.
Sun Quan, who was lying on the hospital bed, not only had no intention of stabilizing the court, but instead planned to take this opportunity to speed up the purge and rectification of all internal forces.
General Nie You and captain Lu Kai, who were sent by Sun Quan to attack Yazhou, finally returned to Wu in embarrassment with the remnants of their army after more than a year.
They were rightly told by Lu Xun:
"Traveling far away is barren, attacking people thousands of miles away, and storms are unpredictable. In addition, it is a foreign land, isolated from the sea, and the water, soil and air are poisonous. This has existed since ancient times. When soldiers enter and leave the people, they will inevitably suffer from diseases and will be polluted. Those who go there are afraid and cannot fight back, so
How can we gain so much?”
"Furthermore, the change of water and soil among the people will inevitably lead to diseases and epidemics. If you want to gain, you will suffer more, and if you want to gain, you will do more harm. The soldiers on the river bank are in vain, hoping for some unexpected gain, and the foolish officials are still uneasy..."
This time when we went to sea, nine out of ten of the soldiers died from diseases.
At the beginning, Sun Quan ignored the advice of his ministers and insisted on sending troops overseas.
If he had been replaced by the Ming Dynasty, or even if he had been replaced by the former Sun Quan, I am afraid he would have reflected on himself and accepted it with an open mind.
But at this time, Sun Quan only felt his face burning.
Filled with regret, he simply excused himself from illness and refused to go to court or see his foreign ministers.
Fortunately, although there were heavy casualties, the envoys from Funan Kingdom who followed the fleet saved Sun Quan's last bit of face.
Fan Zhan, the king of Funan, specially sent an envoy to Wu to present music and special products.
Along with them were Yi people from more than a dozen tribes, who also offered ivory, silk skin, sea pearls and other items.
In the past, Zhuge Zhi and Wei Wen were ordered to float across the sea in search of Yizhou. Although they finally found their destination, they were still imprisoned and killed for "violating the edict and failing to achieve any merit."
Although Nie You and Lu Kai were much more miserable than Zhuge Zhi and Wei Wen this time, it was precisely because of these barbarians that they escaped.
"Your Majesty, I found something in the tribute gifts from those small barbarian countries. I dare not make a decision, so I can only risk my life and disturb your Majesty."
Lu Yi was one of the very few who could meet Sun Quan's favorites at such a time.
At this time, he was quietly reporting his discovery to Sun Quan.