Chapter 29 Although there are brothers, it is not as good as friendship
The Great Sima General, Chen Hou Cao Ren, has been feeling ashamed and resentful since he was defeated by Zhu Huan, a young general from Soochow, during his three-way southern expedition a year ago. Gradually, his melancholy dragged down his already old spirit.
body.
Lying on the hospital bed, he didn't understand that he had traveled the world with Emperor Wu for decades and had defeated countless enemies, but why did he fall into the hands of a little-known boy like Zhu Huan?
The elderly Cao Ren couldn't help but let out a long sigh.
Looking back on the past, among countless battles, large and small, the one he was most proud of was the one he fought against Zhou Yu when he was serving as General of the Southern Conquest more than ten years ago.
In the fourteenth year of Jian'an, the former governor of Wu, Zhou Yu and Zhou Gongjin, personally led tens of thousands of troops to invade Nanjun, which he was defending.
I remember that at that time, thousands of Zhou Yu's vanguard had arrived at Nanjun City, but his own reinforcements had not arrived, and the situation was critical.
After he climbed the city to take a distant look, he recruited 300 dead soldiers from the camp and asked his general Niu Jin to lead the 300 dead soldiers to challenge.
My intention is to let the powerful general Niu Jin and the three hundred dead soldiers disrupt the Wu army's formation.
However, the Wu army was powerful, and Niu Jin was gradually trapped in the Wu army's formation.
Chen Jiao, the chief historian, looked from afar on the city and saw that Niu Jin and other three hundred people were about to be swallowed up by the Wu army. Everyone on the left and right turned pale and frightened.
At that time, he was so angry that he called for the horses to come. Chen Jiao and others knew that he wanted to go down to the city to rescue Niu Jin, so they all grabbed him and persuaded him: "The thieves are so powerful that they are unstoppable. Why not give up this
There are hundreds of people, why does the general need to risk his life?"
But he didn't respond to them, he just put on his armor, mounted his horse, led dozens of strong men under his command, and left the city just like that!
The city was more than a hundred steps away from the Wu army. Chen Jiao and others thought that they were just posing for Niu Jin's support by the moat, but they never expected that they would actually cross the ditch and march forward, thrusting their spears and leaping horses, and rushed into the enemy's siege.
!
When Chen Jiao and others first saw him rushing out, they were all frightened. It was not until they saw him returning to the city that they exclaimed: "The general is truly a heavenly man!"
It was after this battle that he became known as the "Heavenly Man".
After the battle, all the officers and soldiers of the three armies admired his bravery, and Emperor Wu also valued him more. He also received his first title, Anping Tinghou.
The past is vague and has become nothing more than a dream.
At this moment, he is just an old man lying on the hospital bed. His great reputation has been destroyed in the hands of this boy Zhu Huan.
"What kind of general, what kind of Sima, what kind of Marquis Chen."
He was lying on the hospital bed, muttering:
"It's so boring..."
The general's hand holding the sword looked like a piece of dry ancient wood, hanging heavily to the edge of the couch.
————
In the Jiafu Hall, the brothers who used to talk about everything when they were young now feel an awkward atmosphere that is unspeakable.
In the hall, there are fragrant clouds and mist, and Jiao'e flutters her fan.
On the case, black and white are arranged vertically and horizontally, with green dates in the middle.
Emperor Cao Pi was tasting jujube with his third brother, Cao Zhangyi, the king of Rencheng.
The kind-faced Empress Dowager Bian was leaning on the couch at the moment, smiling as she watched the two children playing chess.
How like childhood, the brothers are so harmonious.
What Empress Dowager Bian always hoped for was that her children, Zihuan, Zijian, and Ziwen, could support each other and be respectful brothers and sisters.
Zi Huan did not let Zijian stay in Beijing this time, which originally made her very angry, but seeing how harmonious the two brothers were today, she felt more relieved.
The incense of the stove was blowing, and the chess pieces were being knocked. Queen Mother Bian felt a little sleepy. She yawned and fell asleep unconsciously. In her dream, there was a cheerful child's voice.
She knew they were her children.
"Second brother, second brother, play with me and fourth brother, okay..."
"Okay, brother will go practice swordsmanship with Ziwen!"
"Second brother, I have written a new poem, please help me read it..."
"The fourth brother's poems are really good. One day, he will definitely surpass the second brother. You have to work hard..."
Queen Mother Bian just smiled and took care of her children in their dreams.
She saw that Ziwen had grown a mighty yellow beard and was wearing heavy armor. He no longer played with his wooden sword. Instead, he had a sharp iron halberd in his hand.
She saw that her son Jian was growing more and more handsome, he gradually learned to drink, and his poetry was even better than that of his father and husband Meng De.
She also saw that his Zi Huan's features were becoming more and more like his father's, unfathomable and domineering. She also saw that Zi Huan was worried that he was not as sharp as a sword and not as good at poetry. She was afraid that because of this,
Let your father down.
In the hall, brothers Cao Pi and Cao Zhang are still playing chess at this moment.
"Third brother, do you still remember the Northern Expedition to Wuhuan with Boren a few years ago?"
The emperor's expression was unclear at the moment. Although he called him third brother, his expression clearly showed that he still regarded Cao Zhang as an ambitious minister.
Cao Zhang frowned and said nothing at this moment. He didn't understand why his second brother was so cruel. He clearly didn't want to trust him and wanted all his skills and strategies to die with him in the fiefdom, but he always had to mention the most important thing he had ever done.
Brilliance, the past that most people don’t want to mention nowadays.
Because, the more glorious the past, the bleaker the present self is.
After a long time, Cao Zhang dropped the black piece in his hand heavily on the chessboard, and then stared at his second emperor brother with his sharp eyes.
Cao Pirao was the Nine-Five Supreme Being, but he was still startled by this captivating gaze.
"Your Majesty, I don't remember many things. I only remember an old saying, it's better to have friends than to have brothers."
Cao Pi could hear what these chilling and cold words meant.
Although we have brothers, it is not as good as having friends.
He was saying that when he left Yedu during the Northern Expedition to Wuhuan, he did not send him as his biological brother, but instead valued Boren, a man with a foreign surname, so much.
"Ziwen, do you know? Once upon a time, my second brother really hoped that you and Zijian would get along well."
Cao Pi's tone was low at this moment, and his face was sinister and ferocious. He also looked at Cao Zhang with the same sharp eyes and said word by word:
"Second brother doesn't understand why you and Zijian can't think of helping second brother. Why, why do you have to fight with me?
Do you know that that year, when my father went to war, he actually asked Zijian, who was not the prince, to stay in Yedu! And, until he was dying, he still wanted to call you back from Chang'an!"
After hearing this, Cao Zhang just smiled bitterly and said nothing.
"Ziwen, third brother!"
Cao Pi's eyes became more sinister at this moment, and he asked in a deep voice:
"Second brother asked you, when my father died, why did you ask Jia Kui about the whereabouts of King Wei's seal!"
When Cao Zhang heard this, his heart had already turned cold. He didn't say much at the moment. He just sneered at the corner of his mouth. That sneer made his yellow beard tremble slightly.
When Cao Pi saw his face, he was extremely disheartened.
"Snapped!"
Cao Pi dropped the white stones in his hand heavily on the chessboard, immediately blocking all of Cao Zhang's black stones.
"Your Majesty is indeed very skilled in chess. I admire you greatly!"
At this moment, Cao Zhang didn't even want to call him second brother, but coldly changed his name to "Your Majesty."
"Ziwen..."
At this moment, Cao Pi's expression suddenly no longer looked so ferocious, but became very calm.
In that calmness, there were three parts of resentment, three parts of reluctance, three parts of pity, and one part of pain.
"Ziwen, don't blame the second brother. You should have understood a long time ago that there is no way you can beat me in this game of chess..."
"..."
Cao Zhang wanted to retort, but he suddenly found that his throat seemed to be strangled by something, and he could not speak!
At this moment, he felt as if his throat was burning, and his internal organs were roasting in the fire. This feeling made him feel extremely frightened when he was on the battlefield and could not even blink when faced with swords, guns, and halberds.
"...drink...thirst..."
Cao Zhang collapsed on the seat at this moment, looking at his second brother in horror. His second brother, with tears streaming down his face, never responded to him or himself.
Mrs. Bian seemed to have been awakened by a nightmare. She wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. Before she could feel lucky that the terrible thing in her dream was just a dream, she had already seen her Zhang'er collapsed on the ground!
"No!"
Queen Mother Bian seemed to have gone crazy at this moment. She rushed out of the bed with bare feet and rushed towards her Ziwen. She, who had always been quiet and elegant, seemed to have gone crazy at this moment and rushed to Cao Zhang's side screaming.
"Ziwen, Zhang'er!"
Queen Mother Bian hugged her child in panic and was already a little incoherent:
"Sanlang, what's wrong with you? Tell mother, mother is here, mother is here, mother is here, don't be afraid..."
"thirsty……"
"Sanlang is thirsty. My dear mother, let someone pour tea for Sanlang. Come on, come on. Didn't you hear that Sanlang is thirsty? Come on!"
Queen Mother Bian shouted at the top of her lungs, but no one on the side of the waiter dared to move.
Queen Mother Bian seemed to have realized something. Her eyes were wandering at this moment, like a sharp awl, as if trying to dig out something in the hall. Finally, she found the emperor hiding in the corner of the hall.
"Why...why...they don't look for it, Erlang doesn't look for it, and my mother goes to find water for Sanlang..."
Queen Mother Bian, who was in a daze and lost trust in the water and wine in the palace, ran to the pool outside the palace step by step with bare feet, filled an earthen jar with clean water, and returned step by step.
Arriving at Cao Zhang's side.
In her eyes, there was kindness and tenderness rarely seen in the world at this moment.
"Sanlang... mother is back... Sanlang, aren't you thirsty? Come on, Sanlang drinks some water..."
Queen Mother Bian held the earthen pot gently so that the water would not choke Cao Zhang.
However, Cao Zhang was not able to drink the water. Instead, it was mixed with blood and flowed onto the cold jade bricks of the main hall.
The sound of the earthen pot breaking was like a broken blade, piercing the heart of the emperor who was curled up in the corner of the hall.
Cao Pi couldn't control his tears at this moment.
In his ears, the voice of his childhood seemed to ring again:
"Okay, brother will go practice swordsmanship with Ziwen!"
