【Huainan Cao Cao】
Yang Wei was supported by Xu Wen and ascended the throne, becoming Xu Wen's puppet and a prisoner in the palace. One can imagine Yang Wei's mood. He lives in depression and fear all day, and his spiritual world has long since collapsed. He resorts to drinking every day to relieve his sorrow and numb himself with alcohol. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, a smile never appeared on his face.
In the sixth year of Zhengming (920), one year after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Yang Wei was seriously ill and could not afford it. Xu Wen rushed from Shengzhou to Yangzhou to help deal with the funeral affairs and discuss the successor issue of the Huainan Group.
Someone guessed Xu Wen's heart and said: "I remember that when Liu Bei was entrusting an orphan in Baidi City, he once said to Zhuge Liang that if the young master is unworthy, you can replace him. Now, Yang's strength has been exhausted..."
Unexpectedly, Xu Wen's face changed drastically and he angrily shouted: "Nonsense! If I wanted to usurp power, I would have already seized power when I killed Zhang Hao twelve years ago. How could I wait until today? What if the Yang family's descendants are young? Others, the Yang family, still has heirs. Even if the Yang family has no son, it is a daughter, and I will support her to ascend the throne and become the king! Anyone who dares to talk nonsense will be killed without mercy!"
What a loyal minister. The civil and military officials were so frightened that no one dared to persuade him to enter.
Therefore, Xu Wen welcomed Danyang Duke Yang Pu as the regent of the country in the name of Yang Wei.
The trouble is hidden here. Yang Pu is the fourth son of Yang Xingmi. Between him and Yang Wei (the second son), there is the third son Yang Meng. After Yang Xingmi's death, the eldest son Yang Wo and the second son Yang Wei were successively elected. Now that Yang Wei is critically ill, Yang Meng should take over in turn. But Xu Wen bypassed Yang Meng, abolished the elders and established young ones, and welcomed Yang Pu.
Why abandon Yang Meng? Because Yang Meng is very talented, knowledgeable, educated, and more importantly, ideal and ambitious. There is a heroic spirit between his eyebrows.
When Yang Wei ascended the throne, he conferred the title of Prime Minister Xu Wen. At that time, Yang Meng was responsible for escorting the festival records. When Xu Wen saw Yang Meng, he couldn't help but gasped, and said to the people around him afterwards: "I see that his bones are amazing. He is not a person who is inferior to others and is difficult to control. (This boy has a special vision and is afraid that it will be difficult.) Down)"
Coincidentally, Yang Meng also had some comments about Xu Wen. He would often stamp his feet and beat his chest, saying, "Why is the foundation of our Yang family controlled by others?"
These words reached Xu Wen's ears, and Xu Wen was very unhappy. So Yang Meng was sent to Chuzhou to serve as a regiment training envoy.
Now that Yang Wei was seriously ill, Xu Wen abolished the elders and established young ones in favor of Yang Pu, and then moved Yang Meng to be the training envoy of the Shuzhou regiment.
The next month, Yang Wei passed away due to ineffective treatment for his illness at the age of 24. He left us prematurely.
Subsequently, with the support of Xu Wen, 21-year-old Yang Pu ascended the throne and became king.
After Yang Pu ascended the throne, he upgraded the Shengzhou Governor's Mansion to Jinling Mansion, and Xu Wen became the governor of Jinling.
The following year, the Yuan Dynasty was amnesty, and "Wuyi three years" was changed to "Shunyi first year". Xu Wen continued to write letters to Li Cunxu in the name of Yang Pu, urging him to ascend the throne and proclaim himself emperor.
This has two main purposes: if Li Cunxu proclaims himself emperor and establishes a country, Huainan's political costs will be shared; regardless of whether Li Cunxu proclaims himself emperor or not, Huainan's efforts to persuade China to move forward will win Li Cunxu's favor, enhance political mutual trust between the two parties, and maintain a good strategic alliance partner. relation. In short, it is to create a relatively peaceful external environment for Huainan Group.
In addition, Huainan returned an important prisoner to Qian Yi: Qian Yi. Qian Yi is Qian Yi's cousin. Sixteen years ago, Muzhou Chen Xun betrayed Qian Yi and paid money to Huainan. Qian Yi sent Qian Yi, Gu Quanwu and others to suppress him. Yang Xingmi sent Tao Ya to help, and Tao Ya defeated the Hangzhou soldiers. , captured Qian Yi alive.
Sixteen years later, Xu Wen sent Qian Yili back to Hangzhou to express his goodwill to Hangzhou Qian Liu; Qian Liu also returned Huainan captives Li Tao and others (eight years ago, Li Tao led his army out of Qianqiu Ridge to attack Hangzhou, but was defeated and captured). prisoners).
With the external situation stabilized, Xu Wen could focus on domestic affairs.
Xu Wen advised Yang Pu to "take care of things in the southern suburbs". The competent authority said that there was insufficient funds. Xu Wen was furious and said, "I heard that when offering sacrifices to heaven in the southern suburbs of the Tang Dynasty, it would cost one hundred dendrobiums just to pour grease on the door locks and door shafts." This is the extravagant and lustful practice at the end of the dynasty. How can we imitate it? Offer sacrifices to the gods of heaven and earth, and be sincere and spiritual.
In October, Yang Pu "had something to do in the southern suburbs" and worshiped Xu Wen as his grand master, Yan Keqiu as his right servant, and Xu Zhigao, Tongping Zhangshi, as the observation envoy to Jiangzhou. Later, Cui Taichu, the envoy of the Shouzhou regiment, was appointed General Youxiongwu.
Cui Taichu was seven feet tall, extremely brave, and good at wielding a sword with a long sword. During the "Huangchao Rebellion", he was recruited to join the army. Yang Xingmi caught his eye and recruited him as his subordinate. He later became the deputy commander of the Shouzhou Ya Army and became the commander of the Shouzhou Ya Army. A subordinate of Zhu Yanshou, the state regiment training envoy. Cui Taichu saw through Zhu Yanshou's disloyalty, so he secretly reported to Yang Xingmi and became an important informant of Yang Xingmi. Later, Yang Xingmi pretended to be blind for three years and deceived Zhu Yanshou into execution.
Later, Cui Taichu followed Xu Wen to defeat Wang Maozhang, and moved to Shouzhou as acting envoy of the regiment (Quanzhi regiment envoy), and soon became a full-time official. At that time, many people were eyeing this position and tried every means to fight openly and secretly. When Cui Taichu took control of Shouzhou, these people continued to slander and frame Cui Taichu for separatist rule and rebellion.
At this time, Xu Wen sent Xu Zhixun to the northern expedition to Yingzhou. Before departure, Xu Wen gave Xu Zhixun a secret mission: to inspect Cui Taichu.
When the army passed by Shouzhou, Cui Taichu, wearing a straw hat and straw sandals, personally led Master Xu's horse and whip, and walked more than ten miles of mountain road in one breath, showing great respect.
Seeing his docile and submissive appearance, Xu Zhixun threw all doubts behind him and secretly reported to Xu Wen that Cui Taichu was loyal and had no objection.
Xu Wen sighed in disappointment, the child is still too young! He was tricked by the traitor Cui Taichu. It is precisely because Cui Taichu behaved too well and pretended to be a grandson that it shows that he has something evil in his heart. There is no need to pretend to be loyal and innocent. Those who deliberately pretend to be grandson must have a big secret in their hearts.
Cui Taichu, who was born in the army, hated Confucian scholars and was suspicious by nature. He engaged in eavesdropping. All restaurants, hotels and other places with high traffic in the territory had dark rooms and sent people to eavesdrop on the discussions of business travelers. The so-called partition walls have ears. Cui Taichu once proudly told people around him that Shouzhou has no walls but no ears. So that all the people walking on the road became mute, and no one dared to speak nonsense.
Can such a person be incorruptible in his inner world by being groveling to his superiors, pretending to be a grandson licking his anus, and building a powerful and airtight intelligence agency within his jurisdiction?
Sure enough, Cui Taichu was brutal and demanding in Shouzhou, and the people were in dire straits.
So Xu Wen rose up and down secretly, summoning him from the local area to the central government.
In this regard, Xu Zhigao raised objections, saying that Shouzhou was an important border town and was of great importance, and it might cause major trouble.
Xu Wen was furious and said: "If I can't even handle a little Cui Taichu, what should others do?" With a piece of paper, he ordered, Cui Taichu, come here!
Cui Taichu handed over his power in a cowardly way and can rest in peace for the rest of his life.
