This chapter is watery, so it is recommended to skip it.
In the southern part of Tokyo, an old horse pulled a carriage, wandering through the narrow streets and alleys. After going around and around a few times, it stopped in front of a mansion. The door of the house is not small, but it looks messy.
The driver was a rough and strong man, equipped with weapons, and he could tell at a glance that he was a soldier who had experienced battles. He jumped out of the carriage and said respectfully into the carriage: "Master, we have arrived at the gate of the mansion."
The car curtain opened, and an old man with gray beard and hair poked his head out, hunched over, and landed on the ground with the help of the groom. His expression was full of exhaustion, and he sighed: "The roads in Tokyo are still so crowded and difficult to navigate!"
"Call the door!"
"yes!"
This old man is Hou Yi, the former Fengxiang Jiedu envoy. Since being "escorted" to Beijing, Hou Yi has been left in the mansion without anyone paying attention. He took the initiative to report and request an interview, but there was no response.
The reaction of the emperor and the court made the old man feel even more frightened. Thinking about his actions on both sides of Feng Xiang and the rat, he felt even more uneasy. Later, the news of the great victory at Jifeng Mountain came, which made Hou Yi even more troubled to sleep and eat, and he felt that his life was in danger. After this period of time, Hou Yi spent all his wealth and brought heavy gifts to visit the powerful officials of the Han Dynasty, especially the ministers, hoping to speak to them. Unfortunately, it had no effect.
With a sigh and a sigh, he walked into the mansion, greeted by the gatekeeper. Holding on to my waist, after all, I am over sixty years old. Even though my health has always been good, I can't stand it any longer. The most important thing is that I am under a lot of psychological pressure.
There are a total of more than 70 people in the Hou family. In addition to Hou Yi's relatives, there are dozens of tribesmen accompanying him, all of whom are die-hard loyalists. After a little comfort to the soldiers who came forward, Hou Yi asked the steward: "Where is Sanlang?"
A trace of uneasiness flashed across the steward's face, and he hesitated and explained in a low voice.
"This traitor!"
With an angry shout, Hou Yi showed his strength, carrying a wooden stick, and quickly broke into a courtyard in the back garden of the Hou Mansion. In the hall, a man in his thirties with a mustache was laughing with a maid. His face looked drunk, and he must have drunk a lot of wine.
Seeing Hou Yi barging in with a wooden stick in his hand, he suddenly got excited, pushed the maid aside, and started to run away staggeringly.
"Dad, stop fighting!" After several screams, the man begged for mercy with his tongue out loud.
"You rebellious son, I'm running around outside and groveling, but it's better for you to be free in the house, huh?" Hou Yi puffed his beard and glared, angrily yelled: "Playing with things is boring!"
The man's name is Hou Renbao, Hou Yi's third son. He has always had no ambitions and only wants to enjoy himself. However, he is not the kind of arrogant and domineering second generation ancestor. He is a typical example of "living a living". He is neither in the army nor in politics. He just likes to have fun. After more than thirty years of work, he still points to his father to support him. .
Seeing that his father's expression softened, Hou Renbao rubbed his beaten arm, plucked up his courage, bared his teeth, stepped forward to support Hou Yi, threw the stick far away, and said, "Dad, I also want to accompany you." When you go out, aren't you afraid of embarrassing yourself?"
"You still have the nerve to say that?" Seeing Hou Renbao's salty expression, Hou Yi immediately scolded him.
Smelling the smell of alcohol in his mouth, he became even more angry: "The emperor has issued an edict to ban alcohol. The Hou family is already in danger, but you still dare to act recklessly in the mansion. Are you afraid that you won't be able to recruit people from the Kaifeng Mansion and the Inspection Department?"
"Well. The house is all our own family, no one will tell anyone about it." Hou Renbao smiled coyly: "After entering Tokyo, my son has obeyed your orders and stayed in the house honestly without leaving the house..."
"Do you still want me to praise you?" Hou Yi asked.
Hou Renbao buried his head and pretended to be dead. Seeing his appearance, Hou Yi couldn't help but sigh. He had given up on his son. Fortunately, the other sons are making good progress.
Seeing that Hou Yi's expression softened and he burped, Hou Renbao stepped forward, his expression became more serious, and asked: "Dad, it's no use meeting those prime ministers, why don't you go directly to meet the emperor?"
After hearing this, Hou Yi almost lost his breath and had a cerebral thrombosis, his eyes widened: "If I can see the emperor, why do I need to beg them?"
"They all treated me badly, especially Su Fengji. He just accepted my gift and didn't speak for me, but he actually wanted to ask for another gift from me? This man is actually so thick-skinned. This kind of person can also be a prime minister. ? Let me see, the Han Dynasty is not much better!" Hou Yi complained.
Hearing this, Hou Renbao seemed startled and waved his hand: "Dad, don't say this nonsense. The Hou family is in danger. If word spreads, it will be even worse."
"Get lost!" Hou Yi gave a concise response.
Hou Renbao did not move his buttocks, but said with a shy face: "Dad, if my son comes, the emperor will not kill our family."
"Why?"
"Feel."
I thought this son would be able to say something insightful, but as expected, he was not "disappointed".
"roll!"
"Son, resign!"
"If you dare to drink too much again, I will break your legs! Keep your word!" Hou Yi said coldly.
Hearing this, Hou Renbao shrank his neck, his legs trembled slightly, and he hurriedly retreated.
Back in the study, Hou Yi was alone, thinking about the experience of running into obstacles during this period, and couldn't help but feel depressed. After a long time, he sighed: "What a mistake!"
"Why did you lose your mind and accept the temptation of King Chuhui in the first place? There are so many people who accepted the false destiny of Khitan. Except for Du Chongwei, the court also pardoned their sins. I regret it, I regret it..."
Hou Yi muttered to himself: "However, what the traitor said is quite right. The emperor should not kill me, otherwise this would not be the reaction. Besides, I did not rebel after all, and finally handed over the military power to help the court fight against the Shu army. Those who have made meritorious deeds.”
"Looking at the situation in Tokyo, these prime ministers are not in control of the court. Everything depends on the attitude of the emperor..."
Although Hou Yi grew up as a poor peasant, he served in the army for more than forty years, fighting for hegemony from the Liang and Jin Dynasties, until the Tang and Jin Dynasties fell successively, first seeking refuge with the Khitan, and then surrendering to the Han Dynasty. Having worked all the way from the bottom to his current position, he relied on, in addition to his martial prowess, a fairly keen sense of politics.
Although this man has little education, he is surprisingly knowledgeable, very talkative, and has a keen eye. In the decades of war, I could always stand on the right side of the team and sit upright.
This time, it was an accident. At the beginning of the founding of the Han Dynasty, there was no sign of the prosperity of a new dynasty, just like the Later Tang Dynasty during the Li Cunxu era. Originally, Hou Yi didn't really rebel, and he was just trying to use his own dignity by colluding with Meng Shu. I just didn't expect that the Han court was so determined, Wang Jun was so capable of fighting, and the newly succeeded emperor was so difficult to mess with...
Fortunately, at the last moment, Hou Yi decisively straightened his butt again and made amends.
...
Of course Liu Chengyou knew about Hou Yi's situation in Tokyo. He had kept him in the dark for so long, partly to suppress him, but also because he hadn't figured out how to deal with him yet.
Kill, I didn’t intend to kill. After Feng Dao paid homage to the prime minister, he introduced Hou Yi to Liu Chengyou. The sentence that impressed Liu Chengyou the most was: When it comes to judging the situation, a minister is not as good as Hou Yi.
In this regard, the person who could make Feng Daodu feel inferior was obviously no ordinary person.
After procrastinating for more than half a month, after Hou Yi's mentality was "calmed down", Liu Chengyou finally remembered this person and summoned him.
"I will see you, Your Majesty!" As soon as they met, the descendants bowed their heads and bowed down in a particularly low posture.
When Liu Chengyou looked at Hou Yi, he felt like an old man living in a farm.
"Get flat!"
"I dare not!" Hou Yi was still lying on the ground. This person really puts his figure down. This behavior seemed like Liu Chengyou was bullying the old man.
"You call yourself a criminal, what's wrong with the criminal?" Liu Chengyou glanced at him and asked.
"The Han Dynasty was founded, but the guilty ministers have not come to the capital for an audience, and they have not yet seen the face of the late emperor!" Hou Yi replied in a loud voice, acting very naturally.
Seeing that he was avoiding important matters, Liu Chengyou just kept talking with him, covered a memorial on the imperial case, and said in a cold voice: "Do you know how the late emperor evaluated you?"
Hou Yi was stunned, stared at the floor in the hall twice, and asked, "I don't know, old minister."
"The appearance is in line with the imperial court, and the heart is with you."
Eight heart-wrenching words rang in his ears. Even if he was an old fox, Hou Yi couldn't help but feel his heart twisting. He immediately knocked his head: "What does the late emperor mean by this? I am really confused by the stupidity of the guilty minister."
"Do you want me to explain it to you?" Liu Chengyou said calmly: "Did you forget about your secret alliance with Shu and secret collusion with the enemy country so quickly?"
"We exchanged secret letters with the pseudo-Shu Privy Envoy Wang Chu, and sent military registration and food lists to the enemy commander Zhang Qianzhao. Aren't these things groundless? Huh?" Liu Chengyou questioned.
Feeling Liu Chengyou's stern tone, Lao Hou Yi's body tensed up, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, his mind whirled rapidly, he pondered for a while, and then replied with a trembling voice: "I am not having an affair with the fake Shu, I just want to lure him northward." Annihilate it.”
Nonsense!
"So, the victory at Jifeng Mountain was due to Hou Shijun's planning?" Liu Chengyou asked flatly.
"I don't dare!"
"Hou Yi, you are also a veteran of the court. What do you think I should do with you?"
After hearing this, Hou Yi became completely nervous. I was secretly thinking about Liu Chengyou's mentality, but my mind was a little confused for a while. Suddenly, Hou Yi straightened up and raised his hands to Liu Chengyou: "Your Majesty, I have something secret to tell you!"
"speak!"
"When I was in Fengxiang, I received a secret letter from Li Shouzhen in the river. He invited me to join him in revolt. Your Majesty, Li Shouzhen has evil ambitions, and the court needs to take better precautions." Hou Yi decided to use Li Shouzhen as a shield. By the way, he became a "tainted witness" in order to atone for his sins.
Hearing what he said, Liu Chengyou felt a little happy, and said inexplicably: "It seems that Li Shouzhen has contacted quite a lot of people!"
Hou Yi was stunned for a moment and couldn't help but be surprised at Liu Chengyou's calmness.
"How did you reply to Li Shouzhen?" Liu Chengyou asked.
Hou Yi's face was serious and he solemnly said: "I categorically refuse!"
"Why not report in the morning?"
"Well...it's a very important matter. In order to avoid leaking the matter, I would like to present it to Your Majesty in person."
