The next day, Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo and General Shao Hu respectively returned to Daliang from their bases. Also arriving at Daliang at the same time was Sima An, the general of the Dangshan Army.
Afterwards, Emperor Wei summoned these generals who were currently in Daliang, as well as the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Households and other important officials in the court, to hold a military meeting in the bedroom of Ganlu Hall.
Zhao Hongrun did not participate in the military meeting that day, and the Emperor of Wei did not send anyone to summon him, because at this time Zhao Hongrun was still within the three-day vigil for Zhao Yuanli, the sixth uncle of the king.
Anyone who knows the relationship between Su Wang Zhao Run and Yi Wang Zhao Yuanli, uncle and nephew, will not come to disturb them like this.
Another day later, that is, September 13th, Zhao Hongrun, Princess Yulong, Zhao Hongxuan and all the sect guards, including Wen Qi, Jie Zigui and others, who were all from Prince Su's Mansion, took the crown of Yi Wang Zhao Yuanli.
The coffin was escorted to a mountain forest in the eastern suburbs of Daliang for burial. Although the time was tight, the Ministry of Industry worked hard day and night to build a simple cemetery and a memorial temple in that mountain forest.
Of course, these are only for outsiders to see, because the cemetery and the temple in the mountains on the eastern outskirts of Daliang City are actually just a tomb. The real coffin of Zhao Yuanli, the sixth uncle of the king, has actually been handed over to the clan by Zhao Hongrun.
With Zhao Hongrun's efforts, Zongzheng Zhao Yuanyan finally relented and agreed to hide King Yi Zhao Yuanli in his ancestral grave, of course, in a secret relocation method.
After all, with the actions of Zhao Yuanli, the uncle of the Sixth Prince, who forced the palace to enter the Zhongyang Palace, it was really difficult to bury him in the ancestral tomb of the Ji Zhao family with great fanfare. What's more, the Wei State was currently under a joint attack from five forces, and there was no extra manpower and energy to deal with this.
Everything can only be kept simple.
After paying homage to the sixth uncle at the tomb of King Yi Zhao Yuanli in the mountains east of the city, Zhao Hongrun and his party returned to Daliang with a heavy heart.
By the time they returned to Daliang, it was already approaching dusk, and several eunuchs serving as eunuchs were waiting respectfully at the city gate, waiting for the return of Su Wang Zhao Hongrun.
"Your Majesty, King Su, please go to Ganlu Palace immediately to discuss with the generals and courtiers how to send troops to defend against the enemy."
While saying these words, the eunuchs glanced at Zhao Hongrun from time to time, who was wearing linen and mourning.
To be honest, it is indeed a bit strange for Zhao Hongrun to wear sackcloth and mourn for his uncle Zhao Yuanli when his biological father, Emperor Zhao Yuansi of Wei, is still alive. However, considering the father-nephew relationship between King Yi Zhao Yuanli and King Su Zhao Hongrun, they are like father and son.
, this kind of weird behavior is understandable.
What's more, Emperor Wei acquiesced to his son's decision, so how could others dare to discuss it privately.
"Xiao Xuan, you will come with me later." After nodding, Zhao Hongrun said to Zhao Hongxuan.
Later, Zhao Hongrun pointed out a few more people, namely Wei Jiao, Wen Qi, and Jie Ziyu - the former was his Zongwei chief, and the latter two were his think tanks.
"Then let's go back to the palace first."
Mijiang, who was also dressed in mourning and had paid homage to Zhao Yuanli as a niece or adopted daughter-in-law, calmly said something to Zhao Hongrun and then took Princess Yulong, Miss Su, Yang Yanxing and other female family members as well as the other Zongwei and Su.
The royal guards returned to Prince Su's Mansion.
Only Queer stood motionless next to Zhao Hongrun.
Even though Zhao Hongrun repeated that Que'er should follow Mi Jiang and the others back to the palace first, Que'er seemed not to hear it.
Zhao Hongrun was also a little helpless about this.
After all, Que'er was not willing to serve him. The reason why she chose to stay with Zhao Hongrun was just to ensure the safety of Zhao Hongrun, the nephew who was regarded as her own by King Yi Zhao Yuanli.
It is undeniable that she, like Zong Wei, Su Wang Wei and others, will protect Zhao Hongrun's safety to the death, but the difference is that she will not be as obedient as Zong Wei, Su Wang Wei and others, she will act based on her own judgment.
Just like in the past two days, no matter where Zhao Hongrun was, Que'er would always follow him and protect him twelve hours a day, making Zongwei Chief Wei Jiao feel as if he had lost his duty.
"Forget it, you can go along too."
Looking at Que'er, who also looked a little haggard from the three-day vigil, Zhao Hongrun sighed and softened his heart.
It's not that Que'er is soft-hearted because Que'er is also his woman, but that he sees Que'er's feelings for Sixth Uncle Zhao Yuanli - both Ying'er and Que'er truly regard Sixth Uncle Zhao Yuanli as their father.
, this may be because Zhao Yuanli was the only person in the world who cared about them and took care of them.
Although they also knew that the adoptive father's purpose in raising them was not pure, at any rate, he did not treat them like goods.
Taking Huan Wang Zhao Hongxuan and his clan guard Li Meng, as well as the clan guards chief Wei Jiao, Wen Qi, Jie Ziu, and Que'er, Zhao Hongrun and his entourage took a carriage to the palace, and then walked on foot to the Ganlu Hall where the Emperor of Wei was.
As soon as he stepped into the threshold of the main hall of the Manlu Hall, Zhao Hongrun heard the sound of controversy coming from deep inside the hall. It seemed that there were not many people in the Manlu Hall today.
Just as Zhao Hongrun expected, when he arrived at the inner hall under the guidance of several eunuchs, he saw that the hall was filled with dignitaries from the imperial court.
The eldest prince Zhao Hongli, Yong Wang Hongyu, Xiang Wang Hongjing, Qing Wang Hongxin, Nanliang Wang Zhao Yuanzuo, General Shao Hu, Dredging Army General Bailiba, Dangshan Army General Sima An, and the President of the Three Guards Army Li Zheng, in addition to
In addition, there were ministers from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Household led by Xu Guan, the Minister of War, Li Liang, the Minister of Hubu, and Du You, the Minister of Rites.
These people are debating what kind of strategy they should use to prepare for the war between the five forces against Wei.
It is absolutely impossible for the Wei State to start a war with the five forces at the same time. Therefore, I believe everyone present understands that if they want not to lose in this national war, they can only play a time lag with the five forces - strive for
Come up with a strategy to enable Wei to face as few enemies as possible at the same time.
For example, Xu Guan, Minister of the Ministry of War, proposed to use public opinion to condemn South Korea and delay the Korean invasion. At the same time, he sent someone to contact Song Dynasty's rebel general Nangong Yao and made a promise, hoping to win Nangong Yao to Wei's side.
According to Xu Guan, the reason why Nangong Yao, the rebel general of the Song Dynasty, rebelled was because he was "uneasy" because the state of Wei had become more and more powerful in recent years. As the state of Wei became more and more powerful, Nangong Yao's existence changed.
Therefore, this rebel general considered that he was likely to be abandoned by the increasingly powerful Wei State in the future, so he finally raised the slogan of "restoring the Song royal family" and openly rebelled.
In other words, if the court can give Nangong Yao some promises, he may not necessarily stand firmly on the side of the "anti-Wei camp". After all, over the years, although the Wei court has not treated Nangong Yao favorably, it has not treated the latter badly either.
However, this proposal was strongly opposed by Du You, the Minister of Rites.
Du You, the Minister of Rites, believed that Nangong Yao first rebelled against the Song royal family and now rebelled against the Wei state. He was ambitious and was an undercooked wolf.
In addition, Du You also pointed out that the reason why Nangong Yao rebelled was not only taking into account the concepts put forward by Xu Guan, Minister of the Ministry of War, but more importantly, Nangong Yao may have the ambition to become independent - by restoring the Song royal family, he could legitimately take charge of the Song Dynasty.
, and even became the ambition of the King of Song Dynasty.
Therefore, Du You believed that the priority should be to attack Nangong Yao's Suiyang army to prevent Nangong Yao from joining the Chu army.
When the ministers of the various dynasties expressed their suggestions one after another, General Shao Hu, General Sima An of the Dangshan Army and other generals also put forward suggestions. One said to attack Korea first, and the other said to attack Chu first.
Compared with the controversial courtiers and generals, the eldest prince Zhao Hongli, Yong Wang Hongyu, Xiang Wang Hongjing, and Qing Wang Hongxin could only stand aside and worry. They did not have much experience in fighting. It really made everyone think that they
rational.
Only Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, and Pang Huan and other generals under his command stood aside indifferently, with no intention of participating.
Perhaps because they noticed the arrival of Zhao Hongrun and his entourage, the courtiers and generals in the palace gradually silenced their voices. After all, when it came to going out to fight, no one here dared to boast that they could securely defeat His Highness Prince Su.
At this time, Emperor Wei had also noticed the arrival of Zhao Hongrun and his party, beckoned Zhao Hongrun to him, and asked: "Hongrun, you look very haggard."
In the eyes of Emperor Wei, the son in front of him looked really bad because he had guarded the spirit of his sixth uncle for three days. Not only was his complexion sallow, but there was also a bit of blackness around his eyes, plus his expressionless face.
, which makes people feel faintly evil.
Emperor Wei also felt a little emotional about this. Although the son in front of him had become more and more reliable over the years, in Emperor Wei's mind, Zhao Hongrun was still the heartless person who chopped bamboo and grilled fish in the imperial garden.
The image of a bad boy.
But today, this son made Emperor Wei feel a little strange, as if the death of King Yi Zhao Yuanli had made this son mature overnight and become more reliable, and at the same time, his whole person became gloomy.
"Thank you very much for your concern, father. I hope everything is well with you." Zhao Hongrun cupped his hands and said calmly.
Seeing his expression, the Emperor Wei, the eldest prince Zhao Hongli, Yong Wang Hongyu and other people who knew Zhao Hongrun's character couldn't help but look at the latter carefully.
They feel that today's Zhao Hongrun is too stable and too serious, which is completely inconsistent with Zhao Hongrun's past personality.
If it were in the past, this boy might have said, "What can happen to my son? Father, you should pay more attention to yourself!" In this way, he deliberately made Emperor Wei angry, because this is the way father and son get along with each other.
"Today's Lao Ba is unusual..."
Xiang Wang Hongjing secretly swallowed his saliva and felt that Zhao Hongrun today had an aura of "keep away from strangers".
"..." After looking deeply at Zhao Hongrun for a few times, Emperor Wei nodded and said, "It's okay...Although it's not appropriate, I still want to ask you, what do you think about this?"
Hearing this, Zhao Hongrun raised his hands and said seriously: "Father, I don't want to know why South Korea broke the treaty, why Nangong rebelled, and why the Chu State launched an army to attack the Wei Dynasty. I only know that since they pointed their swords at our country,
Wei, that’s my enemy of Wei, that’s all.”
After that, he cupped his hands and said: "Three days ago, I sent the war order to Shangshui. I believe that Shangshui Army and Yanling Army are actively preparing for war. The five parties are attacking the Wei forces, and I think they should be resolved first.
West Road...Father, for this expedition, I hope that General Sima An will serve as the deputy general. I will end the war in the west in the shortest possible time."
After hearing Zhao Hongrun's words, except for Wen Qi, Jie Ziu, Que'er and other people who didn't know what was going on, both Emperor Wei and everyone present were shocked.
Although Zhao Hongrun's tone was calm when he spoke, what he said made everyone in the hall feel horrified.
Invite General Sima An of the Dangshan Army to serve as deputy general?
No one here knows that General Sima An, known as "Sima Butcher", is not only a man who shouted the slogan "Kill all those who are not ours", but also a staunch defender of the country.
As long as there is even the slightest possibility of threatening the existence of Wei State, Sima An will kill him mercilessly.
Now, King Su Zhao Hongrun decided to go to the West Route first, but invited General Sima An to serve as his deputy. This means that King Su has decided to kill the Qin, Sichuan, Qiang and Hu, Han and other four forces on the West Route.
.
"General, I am willing to lend a helping hand to His Majesty Prince Su."
After a moment of silence, Sima An clasped his fists and said to Emperor Wei without hesitation.
When he spoke, a smile appeared on his lips as if uncontrollably. Even Zhao Yuanzuo, the King of Nanliang, felt his scalp numb.
"Tiger" Sima An, this man was one of the most outstanding generals in the Yu Shui Army camp besides Zhao Yuan'e, King of Yu, during the civil war between the Yu Shui Army and the Shun Shui Army.
He is even more outstanding than Shao Hu.
Meng Shuo, the former Zongwei Chief of the Southern Liang King Zhao Yuanzuo and the deputy general of Shunshui Army, was killed by a forceful raid led by Sima An with an elite force.
After the civil war, the surviving remnants of the Shun Shui Army apparently surrendered to the remnants of the Yu Shui Army, but most of them were still ordered to be executed by Sima An. In the end, Bailiba, the current general of the Shun Shui Army, came forward to save all the troops.
There are not many soldiers left along the river.
After looking at Sima An and then at Zhao Hongrun, Emperor Wei finally realized that the mood of the son in front of him today was indeed a bit abnormal. If he could sum it up in one sentence, it would be "heavy murderous intention".
However, Emperor Wei didn't know how to dissuade him, or in other words, he didn't even know whether to dissuade him, because he knew very well what exactly caused this son to undergo such a big change.
And just as he was hesitating, a chuckle suddenly came from outside the palace: "What a strong murderous aura..."
"who?"
Everyone in the hall turned around in surprise and looked towards the direction from which the voice came. They were wondering: Who dared to make fun of him at such a time.
Under the gaze of everyone in the hall, a middle-aged man wearing cloth and holding a cane, with the support of several guards, walked to the inner hall and looked at everyone with a smile.
Seeing this person, Emperor Wei had an excited expression on his face and struggled to stand up.
Not far away, the Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo, who had been silent from beginning to end, suddenly opened his eyes, subconsciously clenched his fists, and even his breathing became much thicker involuntarily.
What's more, his eyes shined with an unprecedented light.
The general, Shao Hu, immediately kowtowed to the ground and clasped his fists, calling him "Your Majesty."
"I didn't expect that even this person would be alarmed..."
Sima An, the general of the Dangshan Army who had already walked up to Zhao Hongrun, looked at the middle-aged man in civilian clothes, looked surprised, and murmured.
"Who is this?" Zhao Hongrun asked Sima An in a low voice. He could see that even the most arrogant Sima An respected the visitor.
"He is your fifth uncle, Your Highness." Sima An reminded him in a low voice.
"Fifth Uncle? King Yu Zhao Yuande?"
Zhao Hongrun opened his mouth slightly, and instantly recalled scenes of past memories in his mind: a figure who was in poor health and would cough up blood from time to time.
At this time, in a corner of the inner hall, Zhao Hongrun's Zongwei Chief Wei Jiao also looked excitedly at the guard next to the middle-aged commoner, who was clearly their brother - Shen Yu, the former Zongwei Chief.
"Shen Yu..." Wei Jiao couldn't hide the joy in his heart and couldn't help but say hello.
He would not consider whether Shen Yu would take back the position of Zong Wei Chief after his return. Right now, he just wanted to know whether Shen Yu's cut tendon had healed and whether Shen Yu had learned how to use weapons from Prince Yu's side. ability.
Hearing Wei Jiao's call, Shen Yu blinked at the former, probably wanting to express "It's not convenient to talk now, we'll talk later."
Seeing Shen Yu's appearance, Wei Jiao felt very happy. After all, since Shen Yu is so open-minded, there is a high probability that his injury has already been cured.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the middle-aged man wearing cloth and holding a cane, or simply the King of Yu Zhao Yuandai, gently broke away from the support of Shen Yu and several other guards, walked towards Emperor Wei's bed, and deeply He bowed deeply and said, "Your Majesty, Zhao Yuanji, is here to greet you."
However, before King Yu Zhao Yuandai could bend down, Emperor Wei, who had already struggled to get up and rest, stepped forward to help the former.
After being helped up by Emperor Wei, King Yu Zhao Yuanke changed his formal tone and said bitterly: "I'm late, brother Si Wang..."
Emperor Wei was stunned for a moment, then a look of sadness appeared on his face, and he nodded silently.
After sighing, he said to everyone in the hall: "Please step aside for now."
Emperor Wei gave the order, and naturally no one dared to disobey. They all retreated from the Ganlu Hall and stood outside the hall to wait.
When leaving the Ganlu Hall, Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo paused deliberately when passing Yu King Zhao Yuanke, and Yu King Zhao Yuanke also glanced at him, and neither of them spoke.
Invisibly, their eyes collided as if they were real.
"Heh." With an unknown chuckle, Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo left the Manlu Palace with Pang Huan and others.
"Your Majesty." General Shao Hu then came to the King of Yu, Zhao Yuandai.
As if he guessed what his Zongwei Chief wanted to say, King Yu Zhao Yuandai shook his head slightly.
General Shaohu understood, clasped his fists, and left the Ganlu Hall.
At this time, the inner hall of Manlu Hall was deserted.
Seeing this, King Yu Zhao Yuandai looked at Emperor Wei intently and said in a sighing tone: "I heard about Lao Liu when I entered the city... But it shouldn't be like what is said in the city, right?"
Regarding the rumors in the city that "Yi Wang Zhao Yuanli died while escorting his chariot", Yu Wang Zhao Yuanji did not believe it.
After all, no assassin would be able to get close to the Fourth Brother in front of him except under special circumstances.
When the Emperor of Wei heard this, he remained silent.
After a while, he said in a nonchalant tone: "It's Xiao Luan... It can be confirmed that the leader of the remaining members of the Xiao family is Xiao Luan."
"Xiao Luan?"
After all, they were names separated by more than ten years. King Yu Zhao Yuandai was stunned for a while before he remembered this familiar name: "Xiao Luan, the son of Xiao Boyuan, Marquis of Nan Yan?"
"Exactly." Emperor Wei nodded.
Hearing this, King Yu Zhao Yuan'ai frowned and said in confusion: "Isn't Xiao Luan dead?"
"No." Emperor Wei said in a deep voice: "According to Lao Liu, on that day, a guard who looked exactly like Xiao Luan was executed in Xiao Luan's place, while Xiao Luan escaped by pretending to be a guard.
, Lao Liu missed his old relationship, so he let Xiao Luan run away privately."
King Yu Zhao Yuanke frowned and asked again: "What's going on with the rebellion in Zhongyang Palace? Is Lao Liu colluding with Xiao Luan?"
Judging from his tone, he didn't believe that Zhao Yuanli, the sixth child, would collude with a traitor like Xiao Luan.
Seeing this, Emperor Wei explained sadly: "It is true that Lao Liu colluded with Xiao Luan, but I can see that Lao Liu's original intention was just to make me admit that I had framed the Xiao family. You and I both know Lao Liu's character.
He couldn't do what he did for treason...However, Xiao Luan betrayed Lao Liu's trust and severed his previous friendship with Lao Liu..."
With that said, Emperor Wei told King Yu Zhao Yuandai about the rebellion in Zhongyang Palace that day, but the latter could not help but lament that God's will had tricked people.
Because in Zhao Yuanqi's memory, Xiao Luan was also a forthright and righteous person, and his talents were better than his father, Xiao Boyuan, Marquis of Nanyan. Because of their similar personalities, Xiao Luan had the deepest friendship with his sixth son, Zhao Yuanqi.
It is no exaggeration to say that the Xiao family of Nanyan secretly supported Zhao Yuancai. On the one hand, it was because of Xiao Shuai's relationship, but on the other hand, the friendship between Xiao Luan and Zhao Yuanli also played a decisive role.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Luan betrayed his once sworn friend in order to take revenge.
After thinking about it, King Yu Zhao Yuan'ai sighed: "I didn't expect that after so many years, Lao Liu still can't let go..."
When Emperor Wei heard this, a trace of sadness flashed in his eyes.
He told no one that the reason why he couldn't bear to execute the sixth child, Zhao Yuanli, was because he felt guilty, because the woman he killed by mistake was the woman Zhao Yuanli had silently guarded and loved all his life.
At the same time, outside the Ganlu Hall, Shen Yu had arrived in front of Zhao Hongrun, cupping his hands and clasping his fists.
He said excitedly: "Your Highness, do you still remember your humble position?"
Although the sudden appearance of King Yu Zhao Yuanli interrupted the dispatch of troops and felt a little unsettled, Zhao Hongrun was still in high spirits when he saw Shen Yu, the former Zongwei chief, which somewhat diluted the sadness of the death of Zhao Yuanli, the sixth uncle of the king.
After punching Shen Yu hard in the chest, Zhao Hongrun deliberately said with a straight face: "We have been separated for several years. At first, there were letters to ensure safety, but then even the letters were broken, and now you have appeared in front of me?...
Let me tell you, you don’t want the salary in the past few years!”
Shen Yu grinned, then clasped his fists heavily, looked at Zhao Hongrun and said seriously: "Your Highness, I'm back!"
Zhao Hongrun nodded and reached out to pat Shen Yu's arm.
At this time, Wei Jiao, the Zong Wei Chief, said deliberately: "Shen Yu, even if you come back, Zong Wei Chief will not have your share... In other words, when you saw the Zong Wei Chief, you didn't show any sign.
What?"
Hearing this, Shen Yu glanced at Wei Jiao sideways, as if he didn't take Wei Jiao seriously at all, and Wei Jiao looked like he was gnashing his teeth in anger.
But in the end, Shen Yu and Wei Jiao still hugged each other warmly.
Wei Jiao: "It's a pity that you couldn't catch His Highness's crowning ceremony..."
Shen Yu: "Huh? Is Your Highness weak?"
Wei Jiao: "Of course, haven't you seen that His Highness has grown taller?"
Shen Yu: "Is there any?"
Wei Jiao: "...Maybe not?"
"That's enough for you two!"
Seeing these two bastard Zong Wei making fun of his height when they met again, Zhao Hongrun glared at them fiercely.
About half an hour later, Emperor Wei once again called everyone outside the palace into the palace and announced something in public.
"...I hereby appoint King Yu Zhao Yuandai as the commander-in-chief of this war."
Looking at the fifth uncle standing next to Emperor Wei's bed, seeing him covering his mouth with a handkerchief and coughing violently from time to time, to be fair, Zhao Hongrun really couldn't trust him at all.
Although it is somewhat disrespectful to say this, can such a sick man really shoulder the heavy responsibility of being the commander-in-chief of all armies?
Looking at the figure that seemed to be blown away by the wind, Zhao Hongrun even worried that his fifth uncle would die of illness on the battlefield.
I believe that Zhao Hongrun is not the only one who is so suspicious. Everyone in the hall with strange expressions at this moment is probably suspecting this matter.
However, as a party involved, King Yu Zhao Yuanke did not have this consciousness. After ordering someone to lay out a huge map in the center of the palace, he narrated the strategy of this battle in public.
To Zhao Hongrun's expectation, the seemingly weak fifth uncle's strategy was extremely upright.