The first stop after leaving the palace is definitely to go home to see the mother, the children, and the old father-in-law and mother-in-law.
The mother and mother-in-law were still the same, crying when they saw Liu Bei and feeling sorry for Liu Bei's experience. However, the father-in-law Han Rong was full of pride and was very happy to have a son-in-law who was the general of the government.
So when Liu Bei asked Han Rong to forgive him for taking concubines, Han Rong waved his hand and expressed that he didn't care at all.
"What does it mean for a man as upright as you to have a few concubines? It's not important, and it doesn't require anyone's permission. You can do it if you want. Of course, Ning'er has wholeheartedly considered you and has sacrificed a lot over the years. Don't worry about it. Just forget it.”
"She will always be my first wife and that will never change."
Liu Bei smiled and said: "No matter how upright a man is, he can only have one true wife."
"Well, that's fine."
Han Rong patted Liu Bei on the shoulder: "I didn't dare to think that you could reach this point. Now that you have reached this point, it is beyond the imagination of many people. Xuande, the current situation in Luoyang , very dangerous, I don’t have much ability, but if there is a place that needs me, don’t refuse, the Han family is not useless.”
"How can my father-in-law be so useless?"
Liu Bei said respectfully: "When my son-in-law needs help, please ask my father-in-law to give me advice!"
"good."
Han Rong nodded happily.
After finishing the meeting and greetings with his family, Liu Bei immediately went to see Lu Zhi.
When I saw Lu Zhi, the sky had darkened. Lu Zhi prepared a large table of wine and food for Liu Bei in his mansion, which were some of Liu Bei's favorite foods.
When master and disciple meet, they meet again after a long absence. Don't be busy talking about business and eat something first.
Liu Bei devoured the many meats that Lu Zhi personally ordered to prepare for him. Lu Zhi smiled and drank wine and ate side dishes, sighing at the young man's good appetite.
Although Liu Bei is busy with government affairs, he has never forgotten to exercise over the years, so his appetite has always been very good. His food intake is a little smaller than when he was twenty-one or twelve years old, but compared to other people of the same age, he is still a stable adult. Dumb.
He devoured a large table of meat and was overwhelmed. Lu Zhi's eyes were filled with relief and love, and the more he looked at Liu Bei, the more pleasing he became.
"It's been a long time since I had such a satisfying meal."
After the meal, Liu Bei followed Lu Zhi for a walk in his yard to eat, and sighed sincerely.
Lu Zhi laughed when he heard this.
"You, the great shepherd of Liangzhou, are there still people who don't let you have enough to eat?"
"Liangzhou is poor. In order to save more money for development and disaster relief, I must take the lead in living a simple life."
Liu Bei smiled and said: "It's simple, and you won't go hungry. But you can't eat such fine food. Even if you can eat it, you can only eat it during the holidays. You have to take the lead in cooking during ordinary seasons." I want to set an example so that officials can be of the same mind as me."
Lu Zhi put away his smile and nodded.
"What does it mean to be a teacher? To be a teacher is to be effective. The superiors do it and the subordinates imitate it. Ban Gu's words are very right. If the chief official is serious and simple, then the subordinates will not dare to act recklessly. If the chief official is frivolous and extravagant, , then the subordinates will definitely do worse."
"Teacher, what you said seems to mean something?"
Liu Bei looked at Lu Zhi with a smile: "Teacher is still the same as before, able to criticize the current ills."
"So what? You can see clearly but can't. This is the most painful thing."
Lu Zhi said with emotion: "After you went to Liangzhou, I was promoted to Taiwei and appointed as a minister. On the surface, I looked majestic and powerful, but in fact, I couldn't do this or that. How can I give advice? , the emperor didn’t listen, I’ve been a captain for so long without any merit, I even want to depose myself.”
Saying this, Lu Zhi sighed again.
"Yuan Wei and He Jin have almost openly opposed the emperor. They seem to not care about other things at all. They have only one purpose in their actions, which is to let the emperor establish the crown prince's position as the prince. These days, officials are constantly coming. To the emperor, people mention this almost every day."
Saying this, Lu Zhi suddenly remembered something, looked at Liu Bei and asked: "Xuande, regarding the emperor's decision to abolish the elder and establish the younger, you..."
"I firmly oppose it and I will never support it. I have made it known before."
Liu Bei immediately made his attitude clear: "I do not support the emperor's abolition of elders and establishment of younger ones. The emperor also understands my position. He called me back this time just because the Yuan family and the He family bullied others too much, despised the emperor's authority, and used their ministers to fight against the emperor." superior!
Although they whitewash themselves and find various excuses, it is a fact that they do not obey the emperor's orders, which has violated the image of superiors and inferiors. As a member of the Han clan, I really cannot take it lightly! The Yuan family and the He family must pay the price for their disobedience! "
As long as Liu Bei opposed abolishing elders and establishing young ones, Lu Zhi would be relieved.
"Before in Luoyang, many people were secretly speculating on the reason why you came to Luoyang. Yuan Wei and He Jin publicly claimed many times that you returned to Luoyang to support the emperor's abolition of elders and establishment of younger ones, so many people had been suspicious before. your motivation.
But if you make your attitude clear and insist on opposing the abolition of elders and the establishment of younger ones, those who side with Yuan Wei and He Jin because of this matter will definitely be wavering and dare not continue to firmly support Yuan Wei and He Jin. In this way, they The forces will inevitably be attacked. "
Watching Lu Zhi analyze the political situation with a determined expression, Liu Bei felt a little strange.
Earlier, Lu Zhi was not willing to do this kind of thing. He thought it was a bit low and not what a person who takes the world as his own responsibility should do.
As time passed, Lu Zhi began to do such things, although I don't know if he still despises this kind of behavior in his heart at this moment.
But Liu Bei no longer cares.
"That's exactly what I plan to do."
Liu Bei said: "There are still many people surrounding the Yuan family and the He family. It is unwise to turn them all into enemies. I want to eliminate some misunderstandings with them and weaken the wings of the Yuan family and the He family. , at the same time, I will also find ways to disintegrate their army."
"Are they those foreign soldiers?"
Lu Zhi asked: "The foreign soldiers came from many places, Youzhou, Bingzhou, Qingzhou, Yuzhou, Yanzhou, and Jizhou. It is not easy to disintegrate them. Xuande, do you have any idea?"
"Think of some ideas."
Liu Bei said: "Qingzhou Shepherd Liu Gong is the elder of my clan. This time I sent troops to assist He Jin, mainly because of the rumors of abolishing the elders and establishing young ones. As long as you understand people with reason and move them with emotion, Liu Gong is not an ignorant person." , he will definitely change his mind."
Lu Zhi thought for a while and nodded slowly.
"Liu Qingzhou has indeed always had a reputation for being upright. It is said that he sent troops to Luoyang this time because he opposed abolishing elders and establishing young ones. Apart from that, it probably has nothing to do with He Jin himself. If he can be persuaded, he might be able to He changed his mind and recalled the troops."
"We can't persuade the army of Yuan's former officials. These people are bound to Yuan, so we won't consider it for the time being."
Liu Bei said slowly: "But in addition, I will shake the armies of the local governors who sent troops to Luoyang because of the abolition of the chief and the establishment of young. I will also shake those who are on Ho Jin’s side.”
"Easier said than done."
Lu Zhi said slowly: "Even if they stand with He Jin because they abolished the elder and established the young, He Jin himself is a relative of the prince Bian. At this point, the He family has a natural advantage. If they had not abolished the elder and established the young, Who would be the enemy of He Jin in this matter? All things considered, this matter itself is the biggest advantage that the He family has."
"Having said that, He Jin also made the biggest mistake. He offended the emperor."
Liu Bei said: "Because of the prince's affairs, he offended the emperor of the dynasty. If the emperor of the dynasty cannot tolerate him, he may not follow the old path of Mrs. Gou Yi."
Lu Zhi was stunned for a moment, then his eyes widened.
"Xuande, do you mean that the emperor has the idea of getting rid of He Jin? Does the emperor want to get rid of He Jin and then make the prince a prince?"
"The emperor has not said it explicitly, but what I know is that the emperor will not allow his son to go through the same things as him in his early years."
Liu Bei said in a low voice: "Teacher, there is no palace struggle without bloodshed since ancient times. He Jin and the others said before that they should prevent the two palaces from bleeding. I think this matter will end in bloodshed sooner or later."
(End of chapter)
