This year is the third year of Jingchu in the Wei Dynasty. On Dinghai Day in the first month, in the eyes of Ming Emperor Cao Rui, who has passed away, it may be both a regrettable ending and a beginning worth looking forward to.
The young emperor, Cao Fang, who was only eight years old, finally put on the ill-fitting dragon robe with twelve chapters and completed his enthronement ceremony in the Tai Chi Hall.
The former emperor was prosperous and the new emperor ascended the throne. Whether in the court or outside, there are always people who are happy and others who are sad. Many idle scholars among the people are already worried about the situation of the country. Naturally, there are also many people who are happy that the new emperor has granted amnesty to the whole world.
As for who is happy and who is sad in the court, it is really difficult to say.
Xiahou Xuan was originally Cao Fang's mentor when he was young and had a close relationship with the emperor. Not only that, General Cao Shuang also always valued his cousin's talent. In addition to Cao Rui's instructions on his deathbed, Xiahou Xuan not only continued to serve as Yulin In addition to the post of supervisor, he resumed the prestigious position of regular attendant of Sanqi.
Although the Empress Dowager Guo and the Emperor were nominally in charge of the Ming Emperor's grand funeral and funeral, and General Cao Shuang and Lieutenant Sima Yi were personally presiding over it, Xia Houxuan was determined to make the eight-year-old The emperor learned to control power as early as possible, so he became the busiest person after being busy.
After presiding over the funeral of Emperor Ming Cao Rui, the ministers did not take any time off. After Taiwei Sima Yi discussed with General Cao Shuang and other ministers, they all agreed that many wastes were waiting to be renovated, officials were uncertain, there were still many hidden dangers in the government and the public, and many unfinished civil engineering works left by the late emperor had not been stopped. When the new king takes the throne, Wu and Shu on the border are already eyeing him. If he continues to waste people and money and carry out large-scale construction projects at this time, I am afraid that something will happen.
Although the emperor was young but smart enough, he naturally understood the intentions of his ministers. At this time, he should indeed reward the officials, subsidize the people's strength, and remove the fortifications to appease the hearts of his subjects.
So Cao Fang, with the advice of Cao Shuang and Sima Yi, and with the help of Xia Houxuan and others, issued his first edict since taking the throne:
"I have inherited the great legacy of my ancestors with my humble body. I feel guilty and dare not slack off. Today, the general and the Taiwei have accepted the final orders and assist me. Situ, Sikong, Zhongzai, and Yuanfu will lead the hundred officials. For the sake of Ning Sheji, all the ministers and officials encouraged me to work hard and said that I wanted to do it. All palace affairs, including those in the government and the public, were stopped according to the imperial edict left by the late emperor. Officials, slaves and maidservants who are over sixty years old are exempted from being regarded as good men. "
This edict was extremely brilliant. It not only had the intention of encouraging the officials, but also had the intention of comforting the late emperor. It also had the effect of subsidizing the people. It had the effect of killing three birds with one stone.
The temple, which originally had some people in panic, quickly returned to an orderly state under the arrangements of Sima Yi and Cao Shuang, an old man and a young man.
But at this moment, no one inside or outside the court knew the truest thoughts of the two auxiliary ministers.
At least, on the surface, it seems that Cao Shuang, as a junior, has great respect for Sima Yi, who is a famous minister and general of his senior generation; while Sima Yi, as the second-in-command and assistant minister, continues to be patient and cooperate with his best efforts as the chief minister. General Cao Shuang, the assistant minister, also assisted the young emperor Cao Fang.
However, such calm could not be maintained for long.
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The busy month at the beginning of the first month is finally over. In a blink of an eye, it was February in the new early spring again. When the countries in the Western Regions heard that the new king of Wei Dynasty had ascended the throne, they sent their envoys one after another, bringing their local specialties and traveling thousands of miles to Luoyang, the capital of the Central Plains, to pay tribute.
On this day, the south gate of Luoyang City - the middle gate of Changhe Gate - was opened to welcome the envoys from various countries who came all the way from the Western Regions.
[Note 1: The Changhemen of Luoyang cannot be opened under normal circumstances except when the emperor ascends the throne and receives tributes from all directions. 】
Among the gifts presented by the Kucha State Mission this year, there is a very special tribute called Huohuanbu.
This treasure successfully attracted the attention of the civil and military officials of the entire dynasty.
This is a legendary cloth that only existed in legends in the past.
There is a saying in "Liezi Tang Wen": "King Mu of the Zhou Dynasty marched to Xixu, and Xixu offered fire to coat the cloth. The dirt will make the cloth color, and the fire will vibrate it, and it will look like snow."
Legend has it that this fire cloth comes from a mythical beast called the fire rat in Beijing County, Rinan County, Western Region.
Legend has it that there are nine boundaries in Kunlun Mountain, which is the capital of the Emperor of Heaven in the lower realm. Kunlun Mountain is surrounded by countless flaming mountains and fire ridges. In the volcanoes and in the fires, there grows a rat that is larger than an ox. This rat It weighs a thousand kilograms and is two feet long. Its hair is as thin as silk.
Not only that, it is said that when the rat lives in the fire, it will turn red all over, and once it comes out, it will turn white again. As soon as it leaves the flames, if you quickly pour cold water on it, it will die immediately. After so much trouble, it was possible to obtain its fur, and this fur was the legendary Huohuanbu.
It is said that the fire rat fur is woven into cloth and made into clothes. If it becomes dirty, the clothes will be burned directly in the fire, and the clothes will become as white as new clothes again, because the cloth is not used at all. Washing with water can only be done with fire, so people call it fire cloth.
Rumor has it that as early as the time of Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty, General Liang Ji obtained such a piece of fire cloth and used it to sew a piece of clothing.
In order to show off his treasured clothes in front of others, Liang Ji held a banquet in his house and entertained all the civil and military officials of the dynasty. At the banquet, when all the civil and military officials were in high spirits, General Liang Ji wore his beloved "treasure clothes", walked among the guests, and frequently toasted to the guests with a cheerful face.
After three rounds of wine, when all the guests were half drunk and half awake, Liang Ji pretended to accidentally spill the wine syrup on his "treasure clothes" during the toast. At this moment, Liang Ji immediately He deliberately pretended to be angry, took off his clothes in front of everyone, and threw it into the brazier in the hall without any scruples.
Everyone felt it was a pity to see such a new dress that looked as good as snow was burned like this. Some people even sighed with regret and said: It is such a pity that such a good dress should be burned like this. While all the guests were talking and talking, after the fire burned, everyone discovered that the clothes in the fire pit were still intact, and the traces of wine that had been spilled on the clothes had disappeared. Not only were the clothes not destroyed , but it seems as if it has been washed again. All the guests in the house were amazed.
Since then, Liang Ji has become famous because of the "Treasure Clothes" incident, and the outside world has also spread rumors that General Liang Ji is an extraordinary figure.
During the previous Han Dynasty, the Western Regions also paid tribute to the imperial court with this kind of cloth. However, for a long time, the imperial court cut off contact with the Western Regions, so the Huohuan cloth naturally disappeared for a while.
Therefore, in the early years of this dynasty, officials and common people all suspected that Huo Huanbu was just a myth.
Emperor Wen of this dynasty liked to write articles. He once mentioned in his article: The nature of fire is harsh and violent, and it does not contain the vitality of life. Therefore, the matter of Huo Huanbu should be purely a rumor, and it is completely false. Not only that, Emperor Wen also recorded this theory in his autobiography "Dian Lun".
Not long after the Ming Dynasty came to the throne, the late Emperor Ming believed that the words of the "Dian Lun" were immortal mottos, so he ordered the "Dian Lun" to be engraved word for word, sentence by sentence, on the stone tablets outside the gate of the Imperial Ancestral Temple and inside the Imperial Academy. , juxtaposed with the stone carvings of the Five Classics of the previous dynasty, so that they can be forever known to future generations.
But now, the envoy from the Kingdom of Qiuci in the Western Regions actually said with certainty that they had brought the legendary Huo Huanbu this time.
Eight-year-old Cao Fang has been familiar with Confucian classics from hundreds of schools of thought since she was a child. Under the guidance of Xia Houxuan and King Cao Kai of Rencheng, she naturally did not miss the emperor's "Confucian Classics". Emperor, now I can almost recite the contents of this "Classic" by heart.
Since he was a child, he had been subtly influenced by his grandfather Cao Pi's articles, so naturally he always believed that Huo Huanbu was just a legend that did not exist. Eight-year-old Cao Fang suddenly had a whim and suddenly wanted to conduct an experiment in front of all civil and military officials to prove the immortal motto of her ancestors.
On this day, Cao Fang said to Cao Shuang and Sima Yi in his immature childish voice:
"General, Lieutenant, since the envoy from the Western Regions has this treasure, you might as well test it yourself in front of all the civil and military officials!"
"I obey the order."
After General Cao Shuang and Taiwei Sima Yi looked at each other, they had different thoughts in their hearts.
As a descendant of the clan, Cao Shuang naturally respected Emperor Wen's motto.
But Sima Yi had another unknown plan. No one thought that the Western Region Mission had not donated fire-huan cloth for many years, but why such a thing suddenly appeared in this year's tribute. Only Sima Yi understood in his heart, because this was what he had arranged.
He just wanted to point out Emperor Wen's self-righteousness in front of the civil and military officials of the dynasty and even the people of the world, so that the people of the world would understand that the emperor they respected was not a god. And the majesty of the Cao family will be greatly reduced in everyone's mind!
Not only that, the legend of Huo Huanbu was made famous by the "domineering general" Liang Ji of the previous dynasty. He also deliberately planted a seed in the hearts of the emperor, the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, and the people, that the general was domineering!
After Sima Yi, Cao Shuang and other envoys from the mission fetched the piece of Huohuan cloth, one of them picked up one end of the piece of Huohuan cloth and slowly put it into the large brazier in the palace.
While all the officials were paying attention, Emperor Cao Fang couldn't help but hold his breath and stared at the brazier intently. Even if they no longer believed in Huo Huanbu's story, the curiosity in their hearts was perfectly aroused at this moment.
When Sima Yi took the even brighter and brighter Huohuan cloth cassock out of the brazier, everyone including Cao Shuang and Cao Fang started to commotion.
"I didn't expect that there is such a magical thing as Huo Huanbu in the world!"
"Did Emperor Wen say something wrong?"
"Perhaps Emperor Wen has never seen this object, and is just making random guesses."
"Hush! Silence, this is what we, as courtiers, should say!"
High above the throne, the young emperor's face was full of astonishment at this moment. This was the first time he had been hit like this since he started studying.
Three days later, someone in the market carefully discovered that the part about the fire cloth on the stone carvings of "Dian Lun" standing outside the gate of the ancestral temple and Taixue had been quietly scratched off at some point.
"Who else but the Emperor has such courage?"
"It seems that the Emperor doesn't believe in Emperor Gaozu's motto anymore..."
For a time, the entire Luoyang City was laughing at this matter in private.
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In Wuyanghou's mansion, Taiwei Sima Yi looked at the burning brazier next to the case and showed a hint of arrogant ridicule.
"Is the majesty of the emperor as inviolable as the blazing fire?
Then my Sima family is like the fire Huanbu. The stronger the fire, the more pure and strong I am! "
