Faced with an irreversible future, Empress Dowager Dong even shed tears while personally persuading Liu Bei, hoping that Liu Bei would change his mind.
She still didn't want to give up winning over Liu Bei.
"Xuande, although Bian is also my grandson, his mother is the He family after all. The He family is fierce and vicious. It is impossible for Bian not to be affected by her. If Bian becomes the emperor, the He family will definitely find ways to retaliate against you. Bian will definitely I won't let you go.
Xuande, even if you are thinking about yourself, you can't just be so obedient! My son thinks too much and worries too much. He is also his flesh and blood. Why can't he inherit the throne? I just need someone to support me. Xuande, aren't you the best supporter?
You support Xie as the crown prince, and after Xie ascends the throne and becomes the emperor, you can justifiably depose the He family and make yourself a general. Xie is young, and he will definitely make you the main auxiliary minister. You are the Duke of Zhou of the Han Dynasty! Why can't you understand such a thing? "
"Queen Mother, Your Majesty has been very kind to me. How can I go against His Majesty's wishes?"
Liu Bei looked at Empress Dowager Dong in embarrassment and said helplessly: "Your Majesty has repeatedly told you to defend the prince as the prince. I am a minister. If I go against your Majesty's wishes, wouldn't it be disloyal? How could I do such a thing? ?
Moreover, everyone in the world thinks that the prince should belong to the prince. This is a well-known thing. Qingzhou Mu Liu Yu, Xuzhou Mu Liu Yan and other important ministers also think so. When the prince ascends the throne, especially the emperor's edict should be the main one, so what? Can it be me who decides? "
Empress Dowager Dong did not expect Liu Bei to be so rigid and loyal. On the one hand, she felt relieved, but on the other hand, she felt depressed and dumbfounded.
You are really addicted to being a tool!
"Xuande, do you really not care about your own future? Are you really not worried that Bian will choose to retaliate against you in the future because of the past? Even if you don't care, what about your descendants? Where is your son? If you choose the Prince Association, the future of you and your family will be stable!"
"this……"
When talking about this issue, Liu Bei made a hesitant gesture at the right time.
Empress Dowager Dong finally saw hope and was overjoyed, and decided to pursue the victory.
"Xuande, I know your loyalty well. I am the Queen Mother and the emperor's mother. No one knows your loyalty better than me. You are absolutely willing to support the emperor's wishes, so if the emperor decides to establish a prince association, As the prince, you won’t object, right?”
"Queen Mother, I am opposed to abolishing the elders and establishing young ones, but if the emperor must do this, I must be loyal to the emperor."
Calculating that Liu Hong was only a few days away, and this matter was confirmed, Liu Bei made up his mind and felt that the time was almost there, so he gave Empress Dowager Dong a relatively clear explanation.
Empress Dowager Dong was overjoyed and felt that she finally had hope for the future.
After all, Liu Bei still cares about his family.
Later, Liu Bei directly found Zhang Rang and "taught him face-to-face instructions."
"The time is almost here, Lao Zhang. Your next task is to assist the Queen Mother as much as possible, and when the Emperor wakes up, persuade the Emperor to change the name of Prince Xie to the crown prince, let Prince Xie ascend the throne, and use old hatred as a reason to persuade the Emperor to depose the Queen. ."
Zhang Rang was stunned for a moment, then turned pale with shock.
"Aren't you always opposed to abolishing elders and establishing younger ones?"
"I object, of course I object, but if the emperor must do this, as a loyal minister, of course I must obey the emperor's wishes, otherwise wouldn't it be disloyal? In the Han Dynasty, loyalty is the most important, and the emperor comes first ."
Liu Bei smiled: "Although I keep my own wishes, I really can't disobey the emperor's order. I can't be a disloyal person. It's that simple."
Zhang Rang understood that Liu Bei was trying to pass the blame to Liu Hong.
It doesn't matter, anyway, Zhang Rang has already bet on Liu Bei and has no idea about Liu Hong, a dying man.
But he felt strange.
"The most orthodox approach is for Prince Bian to ascend the throne. If Prince Xie ascends the throne, the opposition from the people of the world will probably be very loud. Even if you take control of Luoyang by then, there will probably be many people who will oppose you and even attack you for many reasons. You Not worried?
For example, Qingzhou Mu Liu Yu is the one who values orthodoxy the most. You persuaded him to withdraw his troops before, but then you turned around and pushed Prince Xie to the throne. Are you not afraid that he will immediately fall out with you and call on the world to attack you? There are also Mu Liu Yan in Xuzhou and Huang Wan in Yuzhou. These are all capable of commanding troops. "
Liu Bei nodded.
"Yes, these are all capable of controlling troops. They are very likely to protest, very likely to object, very likely to send troops to Luoyang. They do not agree with the Prince Association's ascension to the throne. The world is boiling and the public sentiment is raging. However, this is exactly That’s my purpose.”
Zhang Rang was stunned.
"Ah? Is this your purpose? Xuande, you..."
"Let all those who oppose me come forward and stand up in one go, so that I don't have to look for them one by one. They all come out in one go, so that I can uproot them all in one go and eradicate them. After a big fight, the big man You’ll be able to settle down.”
Liu Bei looked at Zhang Rang calmly: "Old Zhang, the reason for the turmoil in the Han Dynasty is that there are too many insects. This time, we will use the prince as a bait to deceive all the people with evil intentions and let them reveal themselves. Then we can justifiably catch them all, what a great thing?"
"That's something that everyone in the world is opposed to. Are you too confident?"
Zhang Rang said worriedly: "Although you have a strong military force, do you know that you are facing the entire world? Can you think about it again?"
"If you don't have the ability and ambition to level the world, how can you lead a great man to a new life?"
Liu Bei laughed and said: "Just take this opportunity to try my best. If I lose, then I lose. But if I succeed, Lao Zhang, I will be able to prove that I can dominate the world, and no one will dare to do it again." Resist me, hahahahahaha!"
Looking at the laughing Liu Bei, Zhang Rang suddenly realized that he had never really known Liu Bei.
He seemed to have never really understood what Liu Bei was thinking in his heart.
Liu Bei has always played the role of a confidant and know-it-all in front of him, who can solve everything, but he has never considered what Liu Bei needs after solving so many things.
With this said, Zhang Rang suddenly realized that his previous guess was very likely to be true.
Liu Bei is by no means as gentle and courteous as he appears. There is definitely an extremely hot desire hidden in his heart.
Zhang Rang is still not sure what impact this desire will have on the future.
It's just that he has no choice.
"Are you really confident that you can dominate the world?"
"If not, I won't come to Luoyang."
Liu Bei smiled and said: "Old Zhang, soon, it won't take long, I will show you that you are the enemy of the world, but it is nothing more than this. The big man has come to this day, not to mention that the ground is full of insects, nine out of ten can be picked out." A single insect is fine, but since it is an insect, all of them must be swept away, otherwise the Han Dynasty will not be able to sustain itself."
Zhang Rang was silent for a long time and shook his head.
"I don't know who Zhongzhi is. I only know that my life is in your hands. You must be careful, absolutely!"
"Well, I'll be careful."
Liu Bei patted Zhang Rang on the shoulder, laughed and left.
Zhang Rang shook his head, with a hint of worry, and turned around to deal with the task assigned to him by Liu Bei.
How can it be that easy?
To persuade Liu Hong to establish Liu Xie and to abolish Queen He is to drop a meteorite from the sky across the entire Luoyang and even the entire Han Dynasty!
Do today’s people have the ability of Emperor Guangwu back then?
Zhang Rang didn't know.
Liu Hong didn't wake up that day.
Liu Hong didn't wake up the next day.
On the third day, the first day of April, Liu Hong woke up, but he was even weaker and his physical condition was even worse.
After the doctor took his pulse, he remained calm on the surface and said that Liu Hong was recovering. Secretly, he told Zhang Rang and Dong Zhong who asked about the truth, saying that Liu Hong had probably run out of energy.
Hearing what the doctor said, Zhang Rang felt somewhat sad as he thought about the friendship they had shared for many years.
"The emperor is prosperous in spring and autumn, how can he reach this point?"
"The Emperor is in his prime years and has never had any serious illnesses. However, he has always loved drinking and is close to women. Drinking and sex can easily make the body empty. If you don't get sick, it will be fine. Once you get sick, big problems will arise. Moreover, the Emperor is not willing to exercise restraint or avoid eating. , so there is no cure... I have tried my best, but I am unable to do anything. Maybe there are other holy hands in the world who can turn things around?"
The doctor shook his head and sighed.
Zhang Rang and Dong Zhong looked at each other, waved the doctor away, and then gathered together to discuss.
"Changshi Zhang, although you and I have never spoken to each other, I think you don't agree with the prince's argument for becoming the next emperor, right?"
Zhang Rang nodded.
"I hate He Jin as much as you do. Of course I don't agree with Prince Bian becoming emperor. How should I deal with him once he ascends the throne? But now that the emperor prefers Prince Bian, what can I do?"
"The Queen Mother is still trying to persuade the Emperor, and I am also trying to persuade the Emperor. Let's do our best to make the Emperor change his mind."
Dong Chong said in a low voice: "I also ask Changshi Zhang to draft an edict on behalf of the emperor. As long as the emperor nods, he will seal it immediately. In this way, everything will be confirmed."
(End of chapter)
