Chapter 161 The new emperor ascends the throne, Liu Xie sends a message

April of the sixth year of Zhongping.

Yuan Shao and others bypassed General He Jin and jointly wrote a letter requesting the removal of Jin Mao.

Emperor Liu Hong was in a coma and all government affairs were taken over by the eunuch group.

Zhang Rang, one of the Ten Eunuchs, asked Empress He what to do about this matter.

Empress He was so angry that she said, "Dismiss all of them! Dismiss all of them!"

Having just forced Concubine Wang to death, Empress He did not want another warlord with military power to disrupt the situation.

The eighth day of April.

Emperor Liu Hong had a moment of recovery and ordered the military commander Jian Shuo to escort Liu Xie to the throne.

Jian Shuo agreed with tears in his eyes, but never mentioned Jin Mao's dismissal.

Liu Hong knew that he was about to die, so he called Liu Xie to his side, wanting to enjoy some family happiness in his last moments.

Unexpectedly, Liu Xie cried and begged Liu Hong not to dismiss Jin Mao. Compared with Jian Shuo, Liu Xie trusted Jin Mao more.

After hearing this, Jian Shuo became even more angry with Jin Mao, a warlord in a marginal area who did not have a strong cavalry, yet he dared to disrupt the central government.

When Liu Hong was awake, his mind was extremely bright. He ordered Jian Shuo to draft an imperial edict to move Jin Mao to be the governor of Yangzhou.

After Jian Shuo left, Liu Hong rewrote the letter, stamped it with his seal, and gave it to Liu Xie, saying, "You shouldn't have said this in front of Jian Shuo."

"Hide this edict well. Do not take it out unless necessary."

Liu Xie put it away while crying, and Liu Hong never got up again after lying down.

On the tenth day of April, Emperor Liu Hong passed away.

April eleven.

Jian Shuo was in the palace and wanted to kill He Jin first and then make Liu Xie the emperor.

After the palace had arranged for the executioners, he sent someone to pick up He Jin to discuss things with him, and He Jin immediately went there by car.

Outside the North Palace, He Jin's carriage arrived at the palace gate. He had to walk the rest of the way, so he got off the carriage.

Since the emperor had just passed away, in order to ensure the safety of the two palaces, Jian Shuo arranged for soldiers from the eight schools of Xiyuan to guard the palace starting from yesterday.

As a fellow captain of the upper army, He Jin naturally knew about this matter.

When he saw the fully armed troops outside the Beigong Palace, he didn't think much about it.

However, when He Jin was about to enter, a Sima came forward to stop him and asked, "Who are you?"

He Jin was very angry and was about to scold him, but he found that this Sima looked very familiar and was giving him a look.

"You, you are..."

Just as He Jin was about to say the other person's name, he was interrupted mercilessly: "This is Beigong! Now that the emperor has passed away, all irrelevant people should leave!"

Suddenly, He Jin stopped talking and realized that things seemed not so simple.

I also thought of the rumor that before the death of Emperor Liu Hong, he entrusted Liu Xie to Jian Shuo, hoping that he would help him ascend the throne.

And now, Beigong is full of Jian Shuo's people.

Fortunately, the gatekeeper was Jian Shuo's Sima Panyin, who had been friends with He Jin in his early years, so he winked at He Jin.

"This is going to kill me!"

After realizing this, He Jin was shocked. He rushed back to the camp and led his troops to station in Baijun Mansion. He claimed that he was ill and would not enter the palace again.

Jian Shuo's plan failed, and he felt uneasy, not knowing where the mistake had occurred.

April 12.

Liu Bian succeeded to the throne after Liu Hong's death and was known in history as the Shao Emperor.

The Shao Emperor honored his mother, Empress He, as the Empress Dowager. As the Shao Emperor was young, Empress Dowager He took power, announced a general amnesty, and changed the reign title to Guangxi.

The nine-year-old emperor's younger brother Liu Xie was named King of Bohai.

General Yuan Wei was appointed as the Grand Tutor and was in charge of the Secretariat together with General He Jin.

After Emperor Shao ascended the throne, Jian Shuo still wanted to replace him with Prince Xie. However, he was afraid that He Jin would kill him after taking power, so he sought help from other eunuchs such as Zhao Zhong.

He wrote to the eunuchs Zhao Zhong, Song Dian and others, saying: "The brothers of the great general He Jin control the government and act arbitrarily. Now they are plotting with the party members in the world to kill the confidants of the late emperor and eliminate us. It is only because I, Jian Shuo, command the imperial guards that they are hesitating for the time being. I have observed his intentions and he will definitely kill me first and then take action against you. Now I want to eliminate my personal grudge and help the public. We should close the upper gate together and quickly capture and kill He Jin."

The eunuch Guo Sheng and He Jin were from the same county. He helped Empress Dowager He and He Jin a lot in gaining their favored status, so he became close to and trusted the He family.

After discussing with Zhao Zhong and others, Guo Sheng rejected Jian Shuo's proposal and sent Jian Shuo's letter to He Jin to read.

He Jin then induced the eunuchs to kill Jian Shuo together. Some people thought: "Jian Shuo was appointed by the previous emperor and he was someone the emperor relied on. He should not be killed."

Guo Sheng said, "He Jin was made by me, how could there be any problem? We can just leave him alone."

On April 24, He Jin ordered the eunuch Zhang Tie to arrest Jian Shuo.

Jian Shuo knew that if the truth was revealed, he would definitely die. At this time, he remembered that Liu Hong had given Jin Mao a letter of appointment, which had not yet been issued.

Jian Shuo came to the North Palace and found Liu Xie, who was keeping watch for Liu Hong, and said, "Your Highness, I am incompetent and cannot help you take the throne."

"Now I am going to be arrested and killed. The task entrusted to me by the late emperor has not been completed. I can only give my last hope to Your Highness."

"Your Highness can entrust Queen Mother Dong to send someone to issue the appointment letter."

After explaining everything, Jian Shuo said goodbye to Liu Xie in tears. As soon as he escaped from the palace, he was blocked by the eunuch Zhang Tie.

Jian Shuo knew he couldn't escape, so after being captured, he wanted to talk to Zhang Tie alone.

Zhang Tie had been the Imperial Guard for some time, so he naturally had a few trusted followers and asked the others to stay away.

Jian Shuo then said, "I know you have a history with the governor of Xuzhou. I have in my arms a document from the late emperor appointing Jin Mao as governor of Yangzhou."

"I hope you can do something for Yangzhou Mu because of our past friendship."

"I think you should know how generous Yangzhou Mu is. He will definitely give you enough benefits!"

As expected, Zhang Tie found the bamboo slips of the appointment document in Jian Shuo's arms. On it were eight large characters "Received the Mandate from Heaven, May You Live Long and Prosper" and there was no mistake!
No one expected that Jian Shuo would forge a document in such a short time.

"Take him away!" Huangmen Ling Zhang Tie ordered Jian Shuo to be imprisoned and executed.

This was not only an order from General He Jin, but also an order from the Ten Eunuchs, and the Yellow Gate Order did not dare to disobey.

Therefore, this document naturally fell into the hands of Zhang Tie's adoptive father, Zhang Gong, one of the Ten Attendants.

And Zhang Gong was Zhang Rang's man.

Soon, all the Ten Eunuchs knew that the late Emperor Liu Hong not only entrusted his son to Jian Shuo, but also to the Governor of Yangzhou, Jin Mao!

Unfortunately, when the young emperor ascended the throne, everything was too late and the Ten Attendants did not take it seriously.

The situation in the palace has become clear, and the Ten Attendants have already lined up.

So what if Jinmao became the governor of Yangzhou?
He's just a country bumpkin and can't influence the situation in the palace!
As for the appointment document, it was naturally handed over to General He Jin. This was the Ten Eunuchs' way of showing goodwill to the new emperor and the new empress dowager.

However, at this time He Jin was busy annexing the imperial guards and placing them all under his command.

I don't have time to read any crappy documents.

This appointment document, whose authenticity was unknown, was piled in a corner of He Jin's study, and no one cared about it.

the other side.

Liu Xie was very obedient and went to see Queen Dowager Dong with the documents given by Jian Shuo.

Emperor Ling of Han's mother, Empress Xiaoren, also known as Empress Dowager Dong, had always raised the prince Liu Xie personally and had repeatedly urged Emperor Ling to make him the crown prince, for which she was resented by Empress He.

Now, after hearing such news, Empress Dowager Dong tried her best to save the situation and asked General Dong Chong, her nephew, to deliver the appointment documents to Jin Mao.

Dong Zhong was confused: "The new emperor has already ascended the throne, what's the use of a late governor of Yangzhou?" Empress Dowager Dong didn't know how to explain it, so she said casually: "Since this is the will of the late emperor, you can just go ahead and do it."

Dong Zhong accepted the order, but didn't take it seriously and randomly sent someone to deliver the letter.

Who would have thought that this man was actually a spy planted by Yuan Shao next to Dong Zhong.

Soon, the document from the late Emperor Liu Hong appointing Jin Mao as the governor of Yangzhou was placed on Yuan Shao's desk.

After reading it, Yuan Shao showed no expression and simply burned the document.

Liu Bian succeeded to the throne. The impeachment memorial jointly submitted by him and others has been approved. The dismissal documents are also on the way and will be delivered to Jin Mao soon.

How could something so discordant appear at this critical juncture?
The traces must be eliminated!

...

After Liu Bian succeeded to the throne, He Jin and Empress Dong's nephew, General Huoqi Dong Chong, competed for power, and the eunuchs also interfered. Empress Dong also wanted to participate in political affairs, but was stopped by Empress Dowager He every time.

Empress Dong was furious and cursed: "You are so domineering now, isn't it because you rely on your brother's power? It would be easy for the general to chop off the general's head."

When Empress Dowager He heard this, she told He Jin.

He Jin then went to the court with the three ministers and He Miao and others to report: "Empress Xiaoren instigated the former eunuch Xia Yun and Yongle Grand Coachman Feng Yan to collude with the prefectures and counties to deprive them of their treasures and bribes and put them all into the Yongle Palace. In the past, foreign empresses were not allowed to stay in the capital, and there were certain rules for the dress of the imperial carriage and certain tastes for food. Now, please ask Empress Yongle to move her palace to her fiefdom."

With the approval of the imperial court, He Jin led his army to besiege the General of Cavalry's residence and arrested Dong Zhong. Dong Zhong resigned from office and committed suicide, and Empress Dong also died of worry and illness.

In just less than a month, from the emperor's death to the young emperor's ascension to the throne, and then to the death of Empress Dowager Dong and General Huoqi.

The upper class in Luoyang was in a mess, but the common people didn't feel anything. However, Tang Mao, who was one of the Nine Ministers, felt it was very dangerous.

Anyone caught in the vortex of power will be torn to pieces.

At this moment, Tang Mao wanted to go home, or more precisely, return to his daughter and son-in-law.

Luoyang is too dangerous. It is not a place for normal people to stay!

this day.

Tang Mao took a carriage and wanted to go out of the city to relax.

After Liu Hong's death, he, the former money bag, was about to step down. It would depend on the external relatives, the aristocratic group and the eunuch group when they would divide the benefits, and he would go home at that time.

Tang Mao didn't know that Yuan Shao and others were planning to seize Yangzhou. If he had known, he would have run away long ago.

South Gate of Luoyang.

Tang Mao was about to leave the city when he ran head-on into the carriage of Liu Xie, King of Bohai, who had just returned to the city. He subconsciously tried to avoid it.

Unexpectedly, Liu Xie went crazy for some unknown reason. He suddenly picked up the bamboo slips in his hand and started beating and scolding the servant.

None of the King of Bohai's servants dared to get close to the mad Liu Xie, but they also did not dare to leave the carriage too far.

Tang Mao thought he was going to watch a lively event.

Something even more unexpected happened!

The horse in Liu Xie's carriage seemed frightened and charged straight towards Tang Mao's carriage.

It's definitely too late to dodge at this time.

When the two cars were about to collide, a group of strong "civilians" suddenly emerged from the crowd and stopped the accident in no time.

The two cars were only ten feet apart, which was a blessing in disguise.

"You bastards! Who told you to follow me?"

Liu Xie went crazy again. He picked up the bamboo slips in his hand and was about to beat the "civilians" who were trying to stop the car accident. The latter quickly disappeared into the crowd.

Even Tang Mao could see that this group of people were not simple and were definitely not ordinary "people".

However, Tang Mao was well aware of the principle of keeping a low profile and would not get involved in things he was not clear about.

But he didn't bother to meddle in other people's business. It seemed that Liu Xie was not going to let him go. Despite his young age, he glared at Tang Mao like a little rooster.

"You're here to spy on me too!?"

Liu Xie angrily threw the bamboo slips in his hand, hitting Tang Mao in the stomach.

"Well!"

Tang Mao felt pain and squatted on the bicycle frame, holding his stomach.

The followers of King Bohai had long realized that Tang Mao was the Minister of Agriculture of the dynasty, but they did not stop Liu Xie and just watched the joke from the side.

It was not until Liu Xie injured someone that he stepped forward and apologized lightly, and told Tang Mao to ask for compensation from General He Jin if he really had any problems.

When Tang Mao heard that they were the general's men, he no longer dared to ask for compensation and could only watch Liu Xie's carriage leave.

Wait until someone comes to ask if we want to go out of town for fun.

Tang Mao was full of anger and picked up the bamboo slips thrown by Liu Xie to continue hitting people, but he accidentally saw the red seal on the bamboo slips. Why did it look so familiar?

Take a closer look.

If you receive orders from Heaven, you will live a long and prosperous life!
Gan!
edict!

Tang Mao slammed the bamboo slips against the frame of the car and yelled, "Fuck your mother!"

"Go home!"

A series of actions that leave no room for flaws.

The entourage, the common people, and He Jin's spies hidden among the people did not notice anything special.

Only Tang Mao's heart was beating fast, and the "boom boom" sound was as loud as a drum.

Looking back, Liu Xie's behavior was really abnormal.

You didn't go crazy when you left the city, but you went crazy when you returned?
That would be fine, but why did you go crazy just because you happened to see Tang Mao’s frame?

And the frame is aimed at Tang Mao?
In addition, there was the imperial edict thrown by Liu Xie. Who would use the imperial edict as a tool to hit someone?

Unless Liu Xie is just a fool, the hot topic during this period is just the struggle for the throne.

If Liu Xie was really a fool, was Liu Hong really stupid enough to support a fool to take power?
It's all just a coincidence!

Amid so many coincidences, Liu Xie also threw a scroll of imperial edict over. If it said there were no secrets in it, Tang Mao would not believe it even if he was beaten to death.

So, Tang Mao took advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention and quietly put the bamboo slips back into his sleeves.

The first thing Tang Mao did when he returned home was to summon the elite troops sent by Jin Mao to protect him and seal off the study.

Only then did he carefully open the bamboo slips of imperial edict that were about to fall apart.

I never expected that this was the appointment letter that Liu Hong gave to Liu Xie!

In an instant, Tang Mao's breathing became short. Even though he knew that he was surrounded by his own people, he still couldn't help but look around.

The meaning of this letter of appointment was extremely heavy, and Tang Mao understood it very well.

At the same time, he also knew that he had to leave Luoyang as soon as possible.

Otherwise, you will die here!

The next day, Tang Mao went on a grand trip with a large group of people, but in fact, the only important people he brought were his wife and son.

Sure enough, this trip out of the city went very smoothly.

Ten miles away from Luoyang, Tang Mao no longer concealed his intentions and ordered Jin Mao's confidants to kill all his followers.

In the end, Tang Mao took his wife and children and rushed to Guangling County in Xuzhou.

(End of this chapter)