Time came to August of the first year of Guangxi, and there was silence inside and outside Luoyang City. Since Ding Yuan set fire to demonstrate in Mengjin, many people in the city realized that something was wrong and began to move away their belongings from their homes and tried to go south to Jingzhou for refuge. However, Taifu Yuan Wei thought this was a move that would shake people's hearts, so he ordered Zhu Jun to seal the city gates, and no imperial troops or officials were allowed to leave the city except for those coming and going.
When the residents of the city learned that Master Xiu had given such an order, they all sighed and said: There are still unavoidable disasters. They can only prepare food and water, nail the door with wooden boards, and sit in the room day and night waiting for work. It can be said to be extremely ridiculous that in such a huge national capital, there are only city guards wandering around on the streets.
But beyond that, He Jin felt even more exhausted. Luoyang would send piles of petitions to Xianyang Garden every day, most of which asked him to withdraw his troops. The tone was either gentle admonishment or harsh rebuke, which made him upset. There were also a small number of letters submitted secretly, but all of them were burned to the ground.
He could ignore the books and tables, but it was difficult for him to ignore the generals he transferred. Dong Zhuoqiao and Mao Dingyuan sent envoys to the city on two days to ask when the general would lead his troops into the city. They were willing to be the vanguard and punish the rebels for the general. He Jin left these envoys to have a meal together to comfort him, and then Let them bring gifts back to the camp.
After finally settling down for a while, Yuan Shao returned to the garden from the city, but still wanted to persuade He Jin to kill the regular servants. He Jin had long been tired of hearing it, and he waved to him every day and said: "Don't say more, I already have it in my heart." We have a plan." He Jin pinned his hopes on the regular attendants to sign up and return home. After all, the regular attendants also promised He Jin in July that he would return to his hometown in August at the latest.
But on the night of the tenth day of August, He Yong sent an envoy to quickly drive out of the city from the palace and go to Xianyang Garden to report that Zhang Rang had persuaded the Queen Mother through his daughter-in-law He's relationship, and the Queen Mother issued a decree to allow him to do so. The regular attendants returned to the palace to serve.
He Jin was furious and sent someone to inquire about the specific situation: It turned out that He was visiting relatives in the palace today and took the opportunity to submit a statement of Zhang Rang to the Queen Mother. The statement said: "I have committed a crime and my whole family should return home to serve the country. It's just a crime." I thought about my family background and received the emperor's favor, but my money could only stay away from Luoyang. Therefore, I was so sentimental that I begged the Queen Mother and begged to be allowed to enter the palace for a few more days. If I could see the Queen Mother and Her Majesty for a few more days, like this Come, even after returning home, I will be buried in the mountains, and I will die with no regrets."
After the Queen Mother read the memorandum, in front of all the officials in the province, she took her little girl by the hand and sat down at the table. She covered her eyes with silk and leaned against He for a long time, and then she sobbed and said: "In the past, when the late Emperor was here, I often Under the pressure of the Empress Dowager Yongle, thanks to the care of Duke Zhang and Zhao Gong inside, the support of the eldest brother outside, and the unity of the inside and outside, we have the wealth and honor we have today. But unexpectedly, the eldest brother was instigated by someone and actually used bows, arrows and swords against his brothers. "
Speaking of this, the Queen Mother wiped away her tears and solemnly ordered: "Let Mr. Zhang and others enter the palace for a few more days. Several of his people protected me back then, but I cannot be an unscrupulous person who does not know how to repay. If the eldest brother wants to If you depose me from the throne, I will be worthy of my death." After these words, how should the officials in the province respond? He could only follow the wishes of the Queen Mother and issue an edict to summon Zhang Rang and other regular attendants to the palace.
The army was pressing down on the territory, but the Queen Mother still refused to give in. Instead, she protected the regular attendants in the palace. At this point, there was nothing she could do. That night, the general was extremely depressed and invited his only son He Xian to drink with him. His wife Yin was waiting on him. He only drank two glasses when he felt a surge of sadness pouring into his mouth. He couldn't help pouring out his bitter words to He Xian:
"My father, why did I ever want to go against the Queen Mother? But for more than twenty years, all the ministers have been rebellious and deeply hostile to the party members. Now the party members have become popular and their reputation has spread to the countryside. It has become a general trend. With the ability of the late emperor, he still wants to lift the shackles of the party. Relying on party members. But now that the Queen Mother and her younger brothers and sisters are protecting Chang Shi, they will definitely make the party members dissatisfied. This is exactly the way to bring disaster!"
He Xian quite agreed with this, but he also had doubts. He asked his father puzzledly: "In that case, why don't you send people to arrest the regular servants and kill them on the spot? But you insist on bringing troops into the capital and threatening the eunuchs to remove themselves from their posts?"
He Jin glanced at him, shook his fingers slightly, and admonished him, "Young man, you don't even understand this." Then he poured himself two cups and sighed, "Now that the Queen Mother is in power, everyone inside and outside is a party member." , there are only a few people who praise me, and only Chang Shi shows some respect for me. If I kill him, I will be known as a dictatorship. When Your Majesty grows up, how should I deal with myself as a father?"
Speaking of this, He Jin went through several of the great generals who had been relatives since the ZTE: Dou Xian committed suicide, Deng Zhi committed suicide, Geng Bao committed suicide, Liang Shang died well, Liang Ji committed suicide by the Yi Tribe, Dou Wu committed suicide by the Yi Tribe, among the six Only one person died well.
He Xian sweated through his deep clothes when he heard this, leaving He Jin to sigh in vain: "Bo Cheng, there is a precedent here. Since my father took office as a general, he has been wary and afraid to slack off. How much more is he good at killing the late emperor's left and right men? Compared with this I said, moving troops into Luo is nothing more than a trivial matter."
At this point, both father and son were silent in the case. Only Mrs. Yin came in and made soup with sour plums. At this time, Ms. Yin was six months pregnant and had difficulty moving. Seeing her daughter-in-law walking with her belly full, He Jin hurriedly took the soup and apologized to Mr. Yin: "My father is not thoughtful. You are pregnant now, so you should go earlier." Now rest, I'll call the maid."
Unexpectedly, Mrs. Yin shook her head, but still knelt down on one side, and said to her father-in-law in a gentle manner: "Listen to what you said, how can I sleep peacefully? Now, everyone inside and outside Luoyang is paying attention to you, and you are a little careless. , it is difficult for me and Bocheng to survive. When life and death are at stake, I also have something to say: According to what I have seen, your administration has not been successful so far, but you just don’t know the Queen Mother’s thoughts.”
He Jin was greatly surprised. He looked squarely at Mr. Yin and said, "I would like to hear the details."
Mrs. Yin then put her hands on her knees and spoke eloquently: "Since the late emperor's death, your Excellency has taken refuge in Xianyang Garden, hidden among the troops, and said he was sick outside the city. He did not attend funerals or funerals, and did not enter the palace in the fourth month. Among them, who is the one you are guarding against?"
He Jin blurted out: "Jian Shuo failed to stab me, and he was killed by me, but Jian Shuo has many followers in the palace, so I must guard against him!"
Yin shook her head and said: "At that time, the throne of the emperor was uncertain and the artifact had no owner. Jian Shuo dared to do such a treasonous act. But now that the emperor has ascended the throne, it has been three months, the Dong family has been executed, and it has been two months since the Queen Mother came to the court to take the throne. , and there are chariots and cavalry to assist, how can there be another assassination? As the Queen Mother thought, your Excellency did not enter the palace, but also sent troops to Luo, it is because you have no brotherhood and have a disobedient heart!"
He Jin suddenly understood. He stood up, the oil lamp swayed, and the figure on the wall moved back and forth. He Jin turned his back to the two of them, pondered for a moment, then turned back to Mrs. Yin and said, "You are right. Bocheng is lucky to marry you. I will go to the palace tomorrow to reminisce about our old relationship with the Queen Mother in person and reveal my difficulties. Once the Queen Mother senses my affection, her grudges will be gone, and those regular attendants will not have anything to worry about."
On the twenty-fifth day of August, He Jin put on his mountain-pattern court clothes, a red turban on his head, and military boots on his feet. He looked at himself in the bronze mirror and looked at his expression. He couldn't help but smile to his son and said, "I have been in the garden for four months, and I have a lot of fat on my waist." Meat". Then he ordered to summon his generals Wu Kuang and Zhang Zhang, and said to them: "I am going into the city today to meet the Queen Mother. Each of you will bring 500 troops and follow me into the city." Wu Kuang and Zhang Zhang looked happy and asked why. Jin said: "The general is determined to enter the palace and kill the regular servants?"
He Jin frowned when he heard this, but then smiled with relief and said: "How can you kill people in the palace? Don't have any wild ideas. But I have a plan, and I will be able to convince the Queen Mother to kill the regular servants." The two of them returned happily. He Jin was free to choose his mount from the stable. When the two men led the team, he finally selected a white-fronted horse, pulled the bridle, and the horse neighed. He Jin immediately rode in front.
Thousands of people rode out of Xianyang Garden and walked on the outskirts of Luoyang City. The land on both sides of the official road was golden, and the waves of wheat were rolling, so that the wind was filled with the ripe fragrance. Farmers were immersed in the streets, harvesting wheat. The ears of wheat show that this year is a rare harvest year. Seeing this scene, He Jin felt pleased and asked the troops to line up in twos and twos, forming a long thin line on the official road so as not to disturb the common people.
The north wind blew fiercely and the horses' hooves beat slowly. After walking for an hour, He Jin finally saw Yongmen again. There were only a few people walking in front of the Yongmen Gate, and only an old general was seen in front of the gate, reprimanding the guards for dereliction of duty. His voice was clearly audible even half a mile away. He Jin knew that it was Zhu Jun, the captain of the city gate. He rode his horse forward to greet him. Zhu Jun was stunned when he heard the sound. He turned around and looked up to see He Jin. Only then did he show a satisfied look on his face and asked him, "General, are you going to the palace to meet the Holy Spirit?"
He Jin nodded and said yes, and Zhu Jun sighed and said: "Once this matter is over, the general will restrain Yuan Benchu, Dong Zhuo and others. They will do whatever they want, but the reputation of the general will be ruined."
He Jin was stunned when he heard this, feeling that he had missed something, but he didn't have time to think about it carefully and couldn't figure it out. At this time, Zhu Jun stroked his beard and asked again: "If the general is free tonight, can he come to my house to talk to me?" He Jin replied with a smile: "If Mr. Zhu invites me, I can come in."
The two of them said goodbye. He Jin went to Baihumen and asked Wu Kuang, Zhang Zhang and other soldiers to wait here. He dismounted and walked to the Jiade Hall to see the Queen Mother.
At this time, Luoyang is already a pyre, and any disturbance will become a spark that ignites the torch. As soon as the general entered the city, the news spread throughout Luoyang in just an hour.
Yuan Shao was stationed at Pingcheng Gate at this time. When he received the news from Xun You, he couldn't help but smile. He then summoned Wu Chen and told him: "You can directly send my message to Taifu and say The time has come tonight, wait for my news, and as soon as the general dies, we will act as planned!"
Wu Chen bowed and agreed. He had been traveling back and forth to the state for Yuan Shao in the past six months, and he had long been impressed by Yuan Shao's layout. But at this time, he still couldn't help asking: "What if the general does not die?"
Yuan Shao sneered when he heard this. He looked up at the towering palace wall of Nangong and said calmly: "If the general enters the palace in June, the Queen Mother may let him go. But now it is August, the time has passed, and there is no gap. Disappear. As the saying goes, what can be gained after overturning the water? The He family was destroyed, and the revival of the party members began today."
