Yongqiu Kingdom.
Cao Zhi, who has been the king here for three years, has long lost his former glory.
In the third year of Huang Chu's reign, he came to Beijing to perform the pilgrimage. He was as airy as a god and as colorful as jade. Today, although he is called the vassal king, he is subject to surveillance and oppression by those who oversee the country. Not only that, he can only have hundreds of veterans following him when hunting or traveling. Not only does he have no freedom, but he also has no power at all. .
Over the years, his two beloved daughters Cao Jingu and Cao Xingnu, as well as his eldest son Cao Miao, have also passed away due to illness. As for his brothers, King Cao Zhang, Cao Xiong, and Emperor Wen of Rencheng are also absent. After passing away, this made Cao Zhi, who was already sentimental and melancholy, even more melancholy and full of worries.
Thinking about his ambitions as a boy, he either inherited his father's ambitions, unified the country, and became a founding emperor. Even if he could not be in the 95th year, he should at least be strong and strong, or guide the country, be a famous minister and good general, and unify the country. And give it a try. Thirdly, at least I should be a hermit who is detached from the world. But now, not only have his relatives withered and passed away, but his ideals have also been shattered. How can he still be the same handsome young man and son of a troubled man as before?
Years of drinking to drown his sorrows and worrying about him had made his temples gray and no longer youthful.
He couldn't help but think of his brother, Emperor Cao Pi of Daxing.
[Note 1: Emperor Daxing refers to the deceased emperor. The ancients believed that the emperor's life span was ten thousand years, and when he died, it was just a long journey, so it was called Daxing. 】
As soon as he was born, it seemed destined that he would dominate this country in the future. On that winter day in the fourth year of the reign of Emperor Ling of the previous dynasty, my brother was born in Qiao County. It is said that when my brother was born, blue clouds appeared in the sky, and they were like the hood of a car, surrounding it all day long. The fortune teller also said that this child would not be destined to be a minister in the future.
Thinking of this, Cao Zhi couldn't help but smile. He was thinking that if he was the one in charge of the world, then there must be someone who would create auspiciousness for him.
Literati in the world all regard themselves as immortals in the literary world. As far as poetry and composition are concerned, Cao Zhi himself believes that he deserves such a prestigious reputation. But to be fair, my elder brother is also talented and intelligent, and he is well-read. Although his literary talent cannot be said to be unparalleled, it is enough to rival the Seventh Son, and he can be called a literary giant of the generation.
It was as if their father wanted to deliberately let the two brothers compete for each other, and his father's mind had always been erratic. His father had twenty-five heirs in total. After the death of Chong's younger brother, the position of crown prince had to be decided between his second brother and himself.
Not only that, even the ministers of his father were divided into two factions.
Those who support the second brother include Jia Xu, Cui Yan, Sima Yi, Chen Qun, Huan Jie, Xing Yi, Wu Zhi and others, while those who support him include Ding Yi, Ding Xian, Yang Xiu, Kong Gui, Yang Jun, Jia Kui, Handan Chun et al.
I remember that back then, they each formed factions, plotted against each other, and created public opinion. All of this seems extremely ridiculous in Cao Zhi's eyes today.
There was a wry smile on Cao Zhi's lips. He knew that this was the source of his tragedy in the past ten years.
He could not forget that year, it was his most satisfying year.
In the fifteenth year of Jian'an, his father defeated Yuan Shao and his three sons, conquered Wuhuan in the north, and completely pacified the north. My father established his capital in Ye, and carried out extensive construction work on the banks of the Zhang River. He built three towers, the Tongque Tower, the Jade Dragon Tower, and the Bingjing Tower. The Tongque Tower is ten feet high and is the most majestic. These three platforms are each sixty steps away from each other, and are connected by flying bridges in the middle.
After the Tongque Tower and three other towers were built, my father convened the civil and military forces and set up a martial arts arena in front of the stage, where his generals and officials held martial arts competitions and poetry competitions.
And the fight between himself and his brother also arose from this. His father ordered him to wait for his brothers to go on stage to compose a poem, and he won the first place in the literary battle with his Tongquetai poem.
Cao Zhi couldn't help but recall his youthful self on the Tongque Terrace. At that time, he went on stage and loudly sang his Tongque Terrace Fu, overwhelming the crowd with his performance. He was really high-spirited and extremely proud:
"Since the Ming Dynasty, I have been wandering around, climbing to the terrace for entertainment. Seeing the vastness of the Taifu, observing the camp of saintly virtues. The high gates are built high, and the twin towers are floating in the Taiqing. The flowers in the middle of the sky are erected. Looking at the sky, the flying pavilion is as close as the west city. The long flowing water of Zhangzhou is here, and the fruit of the garden is prosperous. Look up to the gentle spring breeze and listen to the mournful singing of birds. The sky and clouds are already standing there, and the family is willing to get it. Succeed. Encourage benevolence in the inner world, and be respectful in the capital. Only Huan Wen is prosperous, how can it be compared to the sage! It's beautiful! The benefits are far-reaching. With the wings of my royal family, I am peaceful in all directions. The same heaven and earth The standard is the same as the radiance of the sun and the moon. It is eternally noble and infinite, waiting to live as long as the Eastern King."
[Note 3: This is the version annotated by Pei Songzhi in the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms. 】
After hearing this gift, my father greatly appreciated him, and it was at that time that he was granted the title of Marquis of Pingyuan.
He still remembers his father's approving eyes that day. At that time, his father also encouraged himself and said: "I used to be Dunqiu Ling, when I was twenty years old, I thought about what I did back then, and I am worthy of it now. Now that you have grown up, Don’t be reluctant!”
However, no matter how high the expectations were, in the end, there was still only disappointment.
It wasn't until later that he recalled his brother that day. That day, my brother did not encourage and praise me like he did when he was a child. There was only jealousy in his eyes.
He also remembered the stanza written by his elder brother: "Climb up to the high platform to look at the beauty of the sparrow; the flying pavilion rises to its peak, and the floors seem to support the sky. Walk leisurely and leisurely, and talk about the sight of the Western Mountain. Stream. The valleys are criss-crossed, and the lush vegetation connects them. The wind blows and the clothes blow, and the birds fly past. I hesitate to look around, and I reach the river at the corner of the city."
In fact, isn’t this an excellent poem?
However, the elder brother on that day felt inferior to the ground and was jealous to the point of flesh and blood.
In fact, he can never forget that year, it was a year in which he failed completely.
It was the 22nd year of Jian'an. The second brother used various strategies and with the help of Sima Yi, Wu Zhi and others, he was finally established as the crown prince of Wei.
And what about yourself?
Over the years, he has been awakened by nightmares more than once, because he knew that what he lost that year was not only the position of King of Wei. In comparison, what frightened him more was the disappointment of his father and the king. My brother’s endless suspicion.
In fact, power and fame are not the most important to him. At this time, he just hopes not to be overwhelmed by this troubled world and become a pile of nameless bones on Mang Mountain in a hundred years.
Thinking of his brother's achievements in the past eight years, Cao Zhi himself admired him very much.
The older brother was ambitious and usurped the Han Dynasty as the emperor. During the seven years of his rule, he reformed the official system and purified the official style, which indeed created a vitality that was completely different from the previous dynasty in the late Han Dynasty. When the elder brother was in power, he also used the pretext of conquering Wu to pacify the separatist regimes of local powerful people led by Zang Ba, Sun Guan, etc. in Qingzhou and Xuzhou. This was also a major task that his father had not been able to accomplish. At this point, the Wei Dynasty finally completed the unification of the north.
He has always respected his brother and his emperor. After all, his brother is not a mediocre and ignorant king. On the contrary, he has been working hard to govern and work tirelessly for the unification of the world.
In the first year of Yankang, when his elder brother was still the king of Wei, he ordered Xiahou Shang, Xu Huang and others to recruit and surrender Meng Da, the prefect of Yidu in Shu Han Dynasty, defeated Liu Bei's adopted son Liu Feng, and recovered the three counties of Shangyong, thus stabilizing the southwest border of Wei Dynasty. A solid foundation was laid.
In the third year of Huangchu's reign, his elder brother made three expeditions against Wu, which shocked the world and made thousands of gains.
In the fifth and sixth year of Huang Chu, his elder brother also suffered from illness and went on two personal expeditions, personally supervising the army to attack Wu. Although they stopped at Guangling and did not fight with the Wu army, they quelled the Qingzhou Licheng mutiny in one fell swoop and completely solved the Qingzhou army. , Xu's hidden dangers made an unparalleled contribution to the stability of the northern part of the Wei Dynasty.
Not only that, in the fourth year of Huangchu, his elder brother restored the Imperial College, which had been abandoned for decades since the end of the Han Dynasty, and made great contributions to the promotion of Confucianism and Taoism, and also cultivated many talents for the Wei Dynasty.
His elder brother also ordered Su Zesu Wenshi to put down the rebellions in Wuwei County, Jiuquan County and Zhangye County, and stabilize the western border. After proclaiming the emperor, he ordered his sworn brother Cao Zhen to supervise the army to defeat the Qiang and Hu coalition forces, pacify Hexi, and send envoys to restore the alliance. The Western Regions, and reset the Western Regions Changshi Mansion, restoring Huaxia Zhengshuo's rule in the Western Regions.
A few years ago, when Beidi was strong and powerful, they repeatedly raided the frontier fortresses, and the people were harassed repeatedly. It was his brother who appointed Tian Yu as the captain of Chijie and Huwuwan. He also promoted famous frontier generals such as Qianzhao and Xiejun to the rank of captain of Huxianbei. , Tian Yu, Qianzhao, Liang Xi and other generals defeated Xianbei many times in northern Xinjiang, which not only promoted the majesty of the Wei Dynasty, but also made the people of northern Xinjiang no longer have to fear the northern horse coming from the south.
If you take charge of these major events and good strategies one by one, you may not be able to accomplish them so well.
His elder brother is already famous enough for future generations, and he is also enough to be called a wise king!
Thinking of this, Cao Zhi couldn't control the flow of tears. He picked up the rafter-like pen that had never been dusted with the death of his heart, splashed ink, and wrote his new chapter:
"It rained in the first month of the eighth year of Huangchu, and the north wind blew cold. The fruits in the orchard fell to the ice, and the branches were broken..."
[Note 2: This sentence is contained in Volume 156 of Beitang Shuchao. "Beitang Shuchao" records it as part of the preface to Cao Zhi's "Comfort to Love". 】
At this time, it was already the first year of Taihe for his nephew, the current Holy Emperor, and Huang Chu's title had already ended abruptly with the passing of Emperor Da Xingwen since the seventh year of Huang Chu. But Cao Zhi's sadness at the moment made him forget this. In his heart, his brother seemed to have not left.
How he wished that everything could go back to when he was a boy. If he could do it all over again, he would definitely not fight with his brother for anything. At this moment, he suddenly realized that the unfathomable emperor was once such an innocent young man:
"Zijian, come on, practice swordsmanship with your brother..."
At that time, my brother's smile was so bright.
————
Xincheng County.
Jianwu General Meng Da woke up from his nightmare again and opened the brocade box from the southwest in panic.
This is the brocade box Zhuge Kongming sent to himself!
In the brocade box, there are one Lun hat and one jade hat. In addition, there are several letters.
[Note 4: In "Strategy" written by Sima Biao of the Western Jin Dynasty, the token agreed between Zhuge Liang and Meng Da was a piece of jade. "Taiping Yulan" also mentioned: "Today I send you a Lun hat and a jade hat to express your intention."
"Oh Mencius, it is true that Liu Feng invaded the mausoleum and harmed the righteousness of the late lord in treating his scholars."
"Looking for words of explanation, pursuing the good things in life, I look eastward, so I sent you a book."
These are two short but fatal letters. At this moment, Mengda felt extremely painful, entangled, frightened and uneasy.
After the death of Emperor Wen Cao Pi, he truly felt the threat in the court. His rival Shen Yi had written a memorial to criticize him not long ago. He had already attracted Sima Yi's attention because Sima Yi's confidant joined the army and Liang Ji was here. After a few days, he was placed under his command. Not only that, Sima Yi also persuaded him to join the court as a capital official. All of this frightened Mengda.
After repeated hesitation, Meng Da put the two letters into the wax torch, but he carefully hid the jade jewel in the brocade box again.
