After Jian Shuo's death, Feng Fang, Zhao Rong, Han Qin and others who were loyal to Jian Shuo from the Eighth School of Xiyuan also surrendered to the General's Mansion one after another. At this point, except for some Dong Zhong's accomplices in the palace province, the Luoyang Forbidden Army Under the control of the general, he was suddenly powerful and full of guests. When the people of Luoyang went out at Mao hour every day, they could see that Yongmen was crowded with eunuchs and horses who came to plead with the general.
Try to protect the queen first, betray Jian Shuo later. At this time, many relatives of the late emperor in the palace thought that the He family was prosperous, and they could not be said to have failed to do their best to protect the new emperor when he ascended the throne, nor could they be said to be insincere. To exchange money and silk treasures with the general at this time was just another sign. It's just to express old love and hope to gain some glory in the new dynasty.
But the result was unexpected. When these troops arrived in front of Xianyang Garden, they were not allowed to enter. They sent troops and horses to block the door for Yuan Shao. In the end, they all were sent back to their homes.
Since rushing to Xianyang Garden at night, the general has not forgotten the assassination of Jian Shuo. On the day after the new king ascended the throne, Guo Sheng, a party member in the same county and township, sent another secret letter, saying that Jian Shuo was still determined to be a traitor and planned to assassinate him again. He Jin was greatly frightened and asked Zhang Jin, a disciple of the family: "What hatred does Jian Shuo have against me? Now that I have established a new king and gained power over the government and the public, he has died again and again! Can greed and anger make people like this?"
Zhang Jin was instructed by Yuan Shao. At this time, he was playing Qingfeng and An Ran replied: "The general is virtuous, but he didn't know that the late Emperor Huangmen Changshi had been in power for a long time, and his gang members were everywhere. He had the power to reach the sky, and the people below him were effective in death. The Empress Dowager of Changle specializes in adultery, but she can also pretend to be righteous and take charge of the government. The general, who is in the position of auxiliary to the country, has a humble reputation in Jiuzhou, and is famous for his military power in the north and south. He also has the ability to make and forge artifacts. If you think carefully, you must first eliminate the general and then hurry up!"
After speaking eloquently, He Jin nodded repeatedly. Zhang Jin saw that the heat was coming, so he admonished and said: "The general knows that in today's world, he must recruit heroes, select virtuous people, and order the world in order to eliminate troubles for the country. Yuan Benchu is willing to recommend party members to be used by the general. At that time, the general must not despise him!" Then he presented He Jin with a list written by Yuan Shao and recommended more than 20 well-known wise men in the country.
He Jin was overjoyed when he heard this. He often felt regretful and self-doubt because of his humble background, so he loved being arty and making friends with famous people. For this reason, he often went to Taixue to listen to the lectures of doctors, and also sought out famous teachers for his only son He Xian. Therefore, when Yuan Shao came to join him, he also fell in love with him. This was a great opportunity to reconcile with the party members. He Jin immediately followed the plan and found a job in Yuzhou, Sizhou, Qingliu, a party member, was recruited from Nanyang and other places.
When the party members heard that it was Yuan Benchu from Runan who recommended him, they all gladly accepted the offer. Within a few days, Pulun's carriages could often be seen passing by in Luoyang, with bundles of silk and jade in front of the carriages to show the general's favor to the person he was recruiting. The people of Luoyang inquired about the news privately, and heard that among the conquests there were He Yong of Nanyang, Xunyou of Yingchuan, and Zheng Tai of Henan. They couldn't help but sigh: the clouds follow the dragon, the wind follows the tiger, there are fierce tigers beside the general, and there is a turmoil. Qian, when will you be so angry that you can reach the sky, it’s just around the corner!
Seeing that the conquest was going so smoothly, He Jin relied more heavily on Yuan Shao. He moved Yuan Shao to the position of Sili Xiaowei, and gave him the important task of supervising the capital. At this time, in the court, inside and outside Luoyang, Yuan Shao could be less arrogant. The only inferior ones are Xu Xiang, Yuan Wei, Liu Hong, Ding Gong, He Jin, and Ma Rixi.
After receiving He Jin's instructions, Yuan Shao immediately made adjustments to Luoyang's personnel: first, he appointed He Yong as the Zhonghou of the Northern Army, controlling the 6,000 troops of the five schools of the Northern Army; then he appointed Xun You as the Minister of Huangmen, who went in and out of the palace to assist the Queen Mother in handling government affairs; Finally, Zheng Tai was appointed as Shangshu Lang, and he reported the secrets of Shangshu Desk every day. It also happened that Wang Yun returned to Luoyang, so he appointed Wang Yun as Henan Yin to monitor the movements of the counties in Henan.
As a result, important joints inside and outside Luoyang were occupied by party members, and many of Dong Zhong's former party members were deposed. However, since Dong Chong failed in the assassination, he knew that he was unable to resist He Jin, so he allowed He Jin to do whatever he wanted. He lived in seclusion all day long, with no high opinion on advancement and no personal relationships when retreating. On the day after Jian Shuo's death, he went to the Chancellor's Office, claiming that he was too old and weak to hold the position of general of hussars, and begged the court to allow him to return to his hometown to live in seclusion and spend his old age.
The Empress Dowager flatly refused and issued an edict: "I cannot treat the emperor day and night. The general was entrusted by the late emperor and received instructions day and night. In the end, the late emperor relied on his friendship." Dong Chong was still ordered to stay in Beijing to report on his duties.
When the news reached the Yongle Palace, Empress Dowager Dong tore up several fans and immediately drove her to the Anfu Palace in jade. In front of all the officials at the Shangshu Desk, she pointed her finger at the Empress Dowager and cursed: "How can you reach this far? Could it be that you have completely forgotten the kindness of my family!" You poisoned the harem, murdered the emperor's heirs, and aroused the late emperor's wrath. The scorpion poison is extremely poisonous! If I hadn't pity you for your humble background and being pregnant with the late emperor for ten months, I ordered the late emperor to protect your honor. Your brothers and sisters have gone too far! I don’t know that the late emperor has used hussars to control your brother! If you don’t know how to advance or retreat, I can just order the hussars to come in, it’s as easy as backhand!”
All the officials saw the Empress Dowager Yongle rushing into the Anfu Hall and scolding the current Empress Dowager until she tried her best and her whole body trembled. The Empress Dowager Yongle looked at the officials and knew that she looked ugly in tears. She immediately covered her face and turned away, leaving the Empress Dowager in front of the table with a pale face. The Queen Mother forced herself to maintain a dignified posture, fanned her face with one hand, and flipped through the edict with the other hand. However, the paper in her hand shook slightly and rustled against the table, letting the officials know the resentment in her heart.
The general received a letter from his sister that day, read it once, and without saying a word, asked Xun You to turn his head and throw it to Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao understood the idea and contacted Grand Tutor Yuan Wei, Situ Dinggong, Sikong Liuhong, and Taichang Ma Rixi that night. The next day, he handed it over to He Jin and He Miao for signature, and Zheng Tai went to the Shangshu table and said:
"Empress Xiaoren sent her old ministers Xia Yun, Yongle's Taifu Feng Xu and other commuting prefectures to the Western Province. Now that the former emperor was in the imperial court, the stories of the Tibetan queen were not allowed to be kept in the capital. The so-called public service has rules. The food is shameful and tasteful. Please empress Yongle to move to the palace."
The memorial pointed out that Empress Dowager Yongle was originally the queen of the feudal vassal. It was only because Dou Wu and others supported the late emperor that Empress Dowager Yongle settled in the two palaces. Now that the late emperor has passed away, and the Empress Dowager Yongle is not the concubine of Emperor Huan, she cannot live in Luoyang according to the regulations, but should return to the Hejian Kingdom to live.
This reason is really absurd. Before his death, the late Emperor had long since honored his biological father Liu Chang, King of Hejian, as Emperor Xiaoren, and the Queen Mother as Queen Xiaoren. For four hundred years, the Han Dynasty has always governed the country with loyalty and filial piety. Now that the Queen Mother is the daughter-in-law, how can she not personally support her mother-in-law? However, the Empress Dowager was very happy when she saw the memorial. She immediately approved the memorial and ordered Xun You to quickly urge Empress Dowager Dong to leave Beijing and join the vassal state. This was in response to the common ridicule of the imperial examination: if you promote filial piety and integrity, your father will leave.
Xun You felt helpless and could only receive the imperial edict and go to Jiade Hall. When Xiaohuangmen learned the news, they sent word to Empress Dowager Dong at night. Seeing that Xun You and his party were still a hundred feet away, Empress Dowager Dong ordered Xiaohuangmen to close the palace door tightly and cursed the Empress Dowager unfaithfully behind the door. Xun You listened at the door for two moments, but felt that the words were poor and boring, so he tied the edict to an arrow and shot it into the palace. There was silence in the palace for a while. Xun You took advantage of this moment to read out the decree again in front of the palace, signaling Empress Dowager Dong to leave the capital on the seventh day of the lunar month. Regardless of how she responded, he immediately returned to the palace to resume his duties.
By the sixth day of the fifth lunar month, Jian Shuo had been dead for ten days, and his head was worthy of being circulated throughout the three counties. During the late emperor's reign, Jian Shuo had unparalleled authority. He could control the general's progress for a time, but unexpectedly he died within ten months and his family disappeared. The rapid destruction made county officials deeply uneasy, but Luoyang's careerists still thought there were too few heads.
It was two quarters after Hai hour that day, the moon was rising over Beimang Mountain, and it was already close to the curfew. Therefore, there were few people on the road. Except for a few people who had lights in their houses, most people had turned off their lights and went to bed. Yuan Shao, the captain of Sili School, had dinner in the West Garden. Hearing from his subordinates that the Hussar General had turned off the lights and fell asleep, he immediately led a thousand Northern troops and asked the soldiers to follow him out of the garden with only bows and arrows.
A thousand people, lightly dressed and with their faces covered with cloth, crept forward in the streets and alleys, like a giant centipede in the shadows. Yuan Shao, the military guard along the road, had already greeted him, so the journey was smooth. In less than two seconds, Yuan Shao arrived in front of Dong Chong's residence. There was silence in front of the residence. Only a few night owls stopped on the courtyard wall and looked at the wall with their heads tilted. Descendants.
Yuan Shao used hand signals to order his men to disperse as planned: block all the main and side doors of Dong's Mansion, and then form a circle around Dong's Mansion. After the siege was completed, he lit a torch and shouted to the palace: "Sili Colonel Yuan Shao is ordered to investigate the case!" The soldiers of the Northern Army also shouted in unison, like thunder exploding, the river was flooded, and the surrounding people turned off their lights one after another, but in the dark night I don't know how many eyes are looking at this place.
Thousands of people chanted six or seven times in unison and then stopped. Dong Chong's tired response came from the palace: "I wonder what case Yuan Jun wants to investigate?"
Yuan Shaolang replied loudly: "The general colluded with the ministers, demanded bribes and derelict in his duties, and repeatedly killed the chaste people of the court. How can I describe it in a few words? Now I have been ordered by the Queen Mother to pursue the general's seal and ribbon, and to inspect the general's residence carefully. If the general does not have any With this trip, the imperial court can restore the general's innocence, and I hope the general will be considerate."
After Yuan Shao finished speaking, there was no response for a long time. Just when he felt helpless and was about to send people to storm the door of the house. A young man opened the door and walked up to Yuan Shao with arrows everywhere. Yuan Shao recognized him as Dong Pu, the eldest son of Dong Chong. Dong Pu held back his tears and bowed to Yuan Shao and said, "My father returned to his dormitory after hearing what the captain said. He killed himself with a sword."
Following Dong Pu into Dong Chong's bedroom, Yuan Shao saw four women crying around a corpse. The corpse was Dong Chong. Dong Chong was wearing a pair of Mingguang armor, holding the Zhongxing sword given by the late emperor, and cut his neck. A two-foot-long bloody mouth was opened, and the blood stuck to his bun and iron jacket, exuding a strong fishy smell. Yuan Shao knelt down and pulled out his windpipe from the bloody mouth with a frown. Only then was he convinced that the Cavalry General was dead. .
The next day, without Xun You's urging, Empress Dowager Dong hurriedly packed her bags, got on a four-horse carriage early in the morning, and hurriedly left Nangong from Nan Tuen Gate. No one saw her off along the way.
As the carriage and horses jolted, Empress Dowager Dong looked at the empty space beside her, and couldn't help but think of the time twenty years ago when she also rode a four-horse carriage from Hejian to Luoyang.
At that time, Hong'er was not even taller than her waist, and his eyes were clean. Along the way, Hong'er was bored and messed up her bun. As a result, when she got out of the car, she bumped into Dou Wu, Chen Fan and several others coming to greet her. Because she lost her composure, she brushed her face with her sleeves and did not dare to look directly at the three princes in the court. However, Hong'er pulled her forward and spoke wittily to the three princes. She was secretly proud, thinking that she was so noble, what else could she ask for?
She then thought of her son's thin face before his death, and a sense of regret arose from within: Even if the regency was successful, so what? Without a son, even if he could be like Empress Lu, he would not be happy! If I had known this, it would be better to stay in the river with Hong'er forever.
The Empress Dowager Yongle missed her dearly and finally cried loudly by the car window.
