When the little fat man was beaming with joy, bad news suddenly came. The old Taiwei Liu Ju was seriously ill. This was like a cold water initiation, which made the little fat man completely silent. That day, he hurried to the old Taiwei's mansion to greet him.
When he arrived at the mansion in person, the old lieutenant's wives all went out to greet them. When the little fat man met them one by one, he immediately hurried to bed.
The old lieutenant was lying on the bed, his eyes could no longer be opened. He was sleeping soundly. The little fat man couldn't bear to disturb him, so he knelt down in the room and waited for the old lieutenant to wake up. Everyone was silent and did not dare to make a sound.
The fat man felt a little heavy in his heart. This old lieutenant was the first among the important ministers to support him. He also gave him advice many times. He had devoted his life to the great man respectfully.
Thinking that he might lose this important minister, the little fat man felt a little scared.
After waiting for a long time, the old lieutenant slowly woke up. He turned around and saw the little fat man. He was shocked and wanted to get up to pay his respects. The little fat man hurriedly stepped forward, held his wrinkled hand and shook it.
He nodded and said, "There is no need to pay homage to the Lieutenant. Just rest in peace and cultivate yourself."
"Ahem... Sir, time is running out. I'm afraid I have to trouble Your Majesty to find a new lieutenant again..." The old lieutenant was not afraid of death, he said with a smile, and the little fat man shook his head.
, said: "I am busy with affairs, so I decided not to look for this lieutenant. Liu Jun is just the right person to sit in this seat." The old lieutenant smiled softly and said, "Your Majesty, birth, old age, sickness and death are human nature."
"It doesn't have to be like this. There are many things that go wrong when Duke Qiao is appointed Sikong. After my death, Your Majesty can appoint Duke Qiao as Taiwei. After that, Wang Fu, Lu Zhi, Wang Yun and others can take over..." He suddenly
After coughing, the little fat man quickly said: "Please stop talking about state affairs and tell me some historical facts, okay?" The old captain smiled and nodded, and then slowly began to tell a long story again.
Regarding this matter, not only the little fat man, but also many of the officials accompanying him knelt down quietly and listened carefully. This old lieutenant, who had always been disliked by others, saw that so many people were here.
Listening to his story carefully, he felt very happy. Later, he even got up and ate a few bowls of rice, and his mental state improved. The little fat man was overjoyed and ordered the imperial doctor to stay here and take care of the old captain day and night.
The two chatted for another half day, and when the sun set, they saw that the old lieutenant was a little tired. The little fat man just stood up and said, "Don't abandon me, Lieutenant! Okay?" The old lieutenant just smiled and said: "
Your Majesty, I am just a mediocre person. If I can accomplish something as great as Mintun in my lifetime, I will die without any regrets. Why should Your Majesty bother with this?"
He then told the story of Zhuang Zhou’s wife’s death.
The little fat man shook his head and said: "I am not Zhuangzi, and I cannot reach that level. The old lieutenant cannot abandon me!" The old lieutenant saw that the little fat man looked worried and frightened, and couldn't bear it, so he nodded in agreement.
, the little fat man left, and the old lieutenant lay on the hospital bed, a little helpless. He already felt that his time was running out. In fact, this feeling had been there since Jianning three years ago.
However, he had been holding back his energy to complete the task of setting up a camp for the emperor. Before he succeeded, he was unwilling to leave. Now, he seemed to have no regrets. He smiled and murmured to himself: "
Liu Shu, I’m going to find you too... You do have a good grandson..."
The old lieutenant was resting when he suddenly heard a noise coming from outside the house. He opened his eyes again and asked in confusion: "What happened?" The eldest son Liu An beside him said angrily: "That old man
He Xiu actually wanted to break into the house and claimed that he wanted to see my father, but I ordered him to be blocked from outside."
"Who told you to treat San Gong like this!"
"Bring it to me quickly!!" The old lieutenant was extremely angry, coughing violently, and yelled at his eldest son. Liu An was stunned for a moment. Seeing his father in such a state, he did not dare to object and went out immediately. After a while, he
He Xiu was brought in, but his face was extremely unhappy and he did not bow to He Xiu. He Xiu raised his head and walked in proudly. When he saw the old lieutenant on the bed, he smiled with some disdain.
"Old thief, I heard that you are dying?"
These words made Liu An furious and almost started a fight with He Xiu. The old lieutenant was not angry, but just ordered Liu An to go out. He Xiu and the old lieutenant were the only ones left in the house. The old lieutenant smiled.
He looked at He Xiu, nodded, and said, "You old man, you have a good ear. Indeed, I have to take the first step..."
Hearing this, He Xiu frowned and said nothing, and the atmosphere in the room suddenly became silent.
The old lieutenant smiled and said: "You old man, it seems you will never have a chance to defeat me!"
He Xiu remained silent.
"Hey, if you do something with a sad face, is it because you feel sad?"
"Oh, after you die, you old thief, I will only listen to music and dance in the house!"
"Hahaha, you think, we have been fighting all our lives, can we still meet in the netherworld after death?"
He Xiu glanced at him disdainfully and said, "I don't want to meet you again. When you were young, you teamed up with Liu Shu to oppose me. Today, without Liu Shu, you and I are still like fire and water...
"
"Do you still remember that beautiful girl from the Yang family?!"
"Hahaha, of course I remember!"
The two suddenly started chatting in the room, talking happily. They recalled many things. I'm afraid they themselves didn't realize how harmonious and happy they were now. This scene was unbelievable. The two talked again.
After a long time, the old lieutenant became seriously ill. He gradually became tired and couldn't open his eyes. He Xiu stood by the bed, stared at it quietly for a moment, then turned to leave.
"Old man!"
"kindness?"
"Let's make another bet, bet on which of us will die first. If you lose, you can come to my soul, kowtow and cry, okay?"
He Xiu stood quietly for a moment.
"good!"
.....................
Ever since the old lieutenant became seriously ill, the little fat man noticed that something was wrong with He Xiu. He frowned tightly and said nothing on weekdays. He looked worried. The little fat man was suspicious. The old man would not be with the old lieutenant again.
It was just a bet. He shook his head again. Even if they made a bet, he couldn't care about it. He just looked forward to it every day, hoping that the old lieutenant would get better soon.
In this dynasty, without the old Taiwei, Wang Fu once again fell into a difficult situation without support. Cao Song and others, neither in terms of official position nor seniority, had reached the level of the Old Taiwei, and could not support Wang Fu in the temple.
Every time, the little fat man could only come forward in person to cheer for Wang Fu. These things made the little fat man miss the old Taiwei even more.
In March of the fourth year of Jianning, the ministers were discussing at court.
Suddenly someone came to see him and cried loudly: Taiwei Liu Ju died.
The little fat man trembled all over and almost fell down. He endured the pain in his heart and gritted his teeth, standing silently. The ministers even lowered their heads and began to cry softly.
turn around,
He Xiu stood alone and sluggishly. Suddenly, tears kept falling from his eyes. He was sobbing like a child. He kept wiping the tears on his face and twitching all over.
He suddenly turned around and looked at the little fat man,
"This time, I...I want to lose...I don't want to...win!"
He Xiu held his head in pain, his face covered with tears.