Chapter 278 Duanmen
Chapter 278 Duanmen
In the absence of court meetings or foreign officials coming to pay homage, Emperor Sima Chi was like a typical bird in a cage.
Not only have the guards been replaced, but most of the palace servants have also been replaced. Even if you want to know some news from the outside world, it is not easy.
After the Xiongnu captured the city, court meetings were suspended indefinitely and no foreign ministers came to meet the emperor. Sima Chi had not received any news from the outside world for a long time and was bored to death.
Before dawn on the tenth day, he got up after tossing and turning in bed for a long time and walked outside the hall.
The morning in midwinter is cool and quiet.
Sima Chi walked on the wide and straight stone road, while the palace servants and guards watched him silently.
Their eyes are complicated, with pity and sadness, coldness and ruthlessness, and more of it is indifference.
The road was very long. As Sima Chi walked, he suddenly felt sad and his body trembled slightly.
Suddenly, his hand was gently held.
Sima Chi tilted his head slightly and saw the straight nose, rosy lips, and bright eyes...
The silver moonlight fell on her, making her look as crystal clear as jade.
She smiled at him, with endless tenderness in her eyes.
Sima Chi was a little dazed for a moment.
When they got married six years ago, Liang Lanbi was still a young girl, a little arrogant and a little naive.
Six years later, Liang Lanbi has lost her immaturity. In this dangerous environment, she has learned a lot...
But Sima Chi suddenly felt that this face was somewhat hideous. He shook off the queen's hand and continued forward.
I don’t know how long I walked, but it was already bright outside and Sima Chi saw the shadow of Duanmen in the distance.
His body was shaking even more violently.
He felt that he had no choice but to move forward, walk to the Duanmen Gate, open this thick palace gate, stand in front of the palace, and accept the cheers and worship of his subjects.
The sound of orderly footsteps was heard, and a team of guards blocked the way.
They came from the East Sea Kingdom and only obeyed the orders of the King of East Sea. They were eyeing the emperor covetously and were full of malice.
The majesty of the emperor does not lie in the magnificent palace, the majestic pomp, the dragon robe, the dragon throne, or...
It just depends on whether there is human heart or not.
For these soldiers from the East Sea Kingdom, who guard the emperor all day long, they know that the emperor is just an ordinary person.
He wants to eat and go to the toilet.
He will be hurt and bleed.
He would even look at these foreign soldiers with fear, fearing that they would kill the king.
In their eyes, the emperor no longer had any mystery and was not worthy of worship.
Liu Chou hurried over and looked at the emperor intently.
Sima Chi stopped.
Liu Chou, whose courtesy name was Wang Qiao, was from Pengcheng. His father served as the Inspector of the Imperial Capital.
He was good at talking about theories and was highly praised by his contemporaries. Most importantly, he came from a Xuzhou aristocratic family and was a close confidant of Sima Yue.
"Your Majesty, it's time to go back for breakfast." Liu Chou sighed helplessly and said.
Sima Chi did not respond. He looked past Liu Chou and the guards and looked towards the golden Duanmen Gate.
Liu Chou was not in a hurry and just stood aside waiting.
After all, he was the emperor, so he was willing to give him some space to be willful. As long as he didn't go too far, everything would be fine.
Sima Chi's eyes revealed anxiety and desire.
Duanmen remained silent.
Sima Chi's eyes turned into anger and disappointment again.
The palace is a big cage, and he is the beast wandering in despair inside this cage...
"Creaky, creaky..." The door was suddenly opened.
Liu Chou turned around in surprise and saw two rows of warriors in helmets and armor.
They held long spears and marched in unison. After entering the Duanmen Gate, they stood solemnly with weapons in hand in the square in front of the Taiji Hall.
There are a lot of people and the process is long.
After a long time, there was a guard post every three steps and a sentry every five steps in front of the Taiji Hall, and the security was very strict.
Finally, an officer led hundreds of people straight towards Liu Chou.
More than a hundred guards had gathered behind Liu Chou. They were all at a loss and looked at Liu Chou.
Liu Chou hesitated again and again and ordered them to stay calm.
"Liu Changshi, take your people away." Jin Sanda strode over. His short, sturdy figure was so oppressive that Liu Chou, who was a head taller than him, subconsciously wanted to retreat.
"Who are you? How dare you trespass into the palace and offend the emperor..." Liu Chou gathered a little more momentum and scolded.
But what's funny is that he actually used the emperor's reputation to his advantage.
Jin San frowned, touched the hilt of the knife at his waist, and asked again: "Liu Changshi, are you leaving or not?"
"March! March! March!" Hundreds of Silver Spear Army soldiers struck the ground with their spears and shouted in unison.
The guards behind Liu Chou couldn't help but take half a step back.
There was another sound of footsteps from behind.
Liu Chou took a quick look and saw five people, including Shao Xun, Duke of Luyang County, Wang Yan, Grand Commandant, Liu Tun, Shangshu Zuo Pushe, Yu Min, Shizhong, and Wang Xuan, Situ Canjun, all arrived.
Jin San also felt the movement behind him, and took two steps forward anxiously.
"You——" Liu Chou subconsciously took a step back and said, "What a proud and brave general. How can you brandish a sword and a gun in front of the emperor?"
Jin San drew his sword, and the silver spear soldiers behind him also raised their spears diagonally forward, full of murderous intent.
Sweat broke out on Liu Chou's forehead.
Obviously, the title of emperor is useless in front of this bunch of killers.
Like the guards sent by the Minister of War to guard the palace, these soldiers were private soldiers who shared the same fate as their lord. They really dared to kill, no matter who stood in their way.
"Liu Changshi." Wang Yan took a few quick steps, looked at Liu Chou cheerfully, and said, "The Duke of Luyang has important business to attend the meeting with the Emperor, so you should withdraw your people."
Liu Chou secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
He was good at talking about principles, but he always felt guilty when facing murderous warriors.
Just as he was about to give the order, he saw Shao Xun, the Duke of Luyang County, coming over.
"I hear the local accent from afar, it's very familiar." Shao Xun laughed, stepped forward and took Liu Chou's hand, saying: "Mr. Liu comes from a famous family and is proficient in metaphysics. I have heard of him a long time ago."
After saying this, he looked at the East China Sea soldiers behind him and said, "Are these all from the East China Sea?"
When Shao Xun said this in his hometown accent, more than a hundred Donghai soldiers looked at him in a daze.
"This is the Duke of Luyang County who defeated the Huns. He is also from Donghai." Jin San followed behind Shao Xun and spoke in dialect.
The guards' expressions changed immediately.
Some people looked at Shao Xun with surprise, as if wondering why he was so powerful.
Some people were very excited, some even had a look of pride on their faces.
Someone stammered, as if wanting to say something but not daring to.
"Why are you showing off your weapons in the grand Imperial Palace, the Tai Chi Palace?" Shao Xun stepped forward and pushed down a Donghai soldier's half-drawn sword.
Then he patted the other man on the shoulder and said with a smile, "How long has it been since you sharpened your knife? Aren't you ashamed to take it out?"
The man subconsciously dropped his weapon to the ground, his face flushed red.
Shao Xun picked up the knife, put it into the scabbard, and said: "You must take good care of your weapons. When you go to the battlefield, you rely on them to save your life."
"Yes." The guard replied, stepping aside respectfully.
Shao Xun looked at the others again.
The sound of swords being sheathed could be heard continuously.
"Line up and leave the city." Shao Xun looked at them and said, "When this matter is over, I will drink with you. It's rare to hear the local accent and see fellow villagers. Haha, how happy!"
"Line up." An officer gave the order immediately.
Soon, more than a hundred people, organized into teams and squads, marched out of the palace in neat steps.
Liu Chou closed his eyes.
With just a few words, his soldiers were led away.
The Duke of Luyang is truly a god-like existence among the people of Donghai.
His deeds have probably been circulated in various counties in Donghai for a long time.
"Your Majesty, your Majesty, and the Queen are greeted by your servant Shao Xun." After the guards from Donghai left, Shao Xun took a few steps forward and bowed.
Sima Chi suddenly came back to his senses, looking at Shao Xun who was standing respectfully in front of him, he felt a huge sense of satisfaction and wanted to shout out in excitement.
The haze that has been lingering for more than half a year has been swept away!
Queen Liang Lanbi looked at the emperor who had regained his glory, her eyes slightly moistened, then she turned her head and looked at Shao Xun with gratitude.
"Your servants Wang Yan/Liu Tun/Yu Min/Wang Xuan pay their respects to Your Majesty and the Queen." The other four also stepped forward and saluted in unison.
"Please excuse me, gentlemen." Sima Chi held his hands up and sighed, "If it weren't for you, I don't know when I could escape from the cage."
After saying this, he gave the order to go to Taiji Hall.
After the emperor and his ministers sat down, Wang Yan dismissed the palace maids and said, "Your Majesty, from today onwards, the palace guards can be recruited again, and they should be loyal, virtuous and brave."
Sima Chi's heart moved and he nodded slightly.
He glanced at the queen calmly. The queen caught his gaze, but felt sad in her heart, thinking that her father would definitely not help her.
The emperor now has no one of his own to use.
Even if we discover new talents and loyal ministers, it will take time.
But the most urgent task at the moment is to recruit a group of new guards to strengthen the palace - if even the guards and palace servants are not his own people, it would be meaningless to be the emperor.
In such a hurry, probably only General Liang Fen was able to bring in a group of guards, but...
Liang Lanbi lowered her head, feeling uncomfortable.
"I wonder where Situ is?" Sima Chi hesitated for a moment and couldn't help asking.
Wang Yan stood up again and briefly recounted the events of Shao Xun's arrival to help, the Xiongnu's retreat, and Situ's illness.
Sima Chi became more and more excited as he listened.
Haha, Sima Yue, so you have come to this day?
They killed my ministers and bullied me for more than half a year. I was like a bird in a cage. Today I can finally vent my anger.
After the excitement, there was some doubt.
After Sima Yue left, will there be a new domineering and powerful official coming?
He subconsciously looked at Shao Xun.
Wang Yan observed the other's expression and, after explaining what happened that day, he said, "Your Majesty, the Duke of Luyang has been loyal and devoted to you, so you should reward him generously."
As soon as Wang Yan pointed it out, Sima Chi immediately understood.
The Taiwei meant that Shao Xun, as the first general to come to Luoyang to provide assistance and to force back the Huns and who had made outstanding military achievements, should be promoted and given a higher title, and then sent away to prevent him from being a hindrance in the capital.
"We can follow the example of General Gou Dao and confer the title of Marquis of a county to reward Shao Qing's contribution." Sima Chi said: "General Gou Dao made contributions in Yanzhou and was conferred the title of Marquis of Dongping County. Shao Qing made contributions in Sizhou, so he can only be conferred Yuzhou. I think Chen County is better. What do you think?"
After he finished speaking, he was still a little hesitant. Would his words still work? Would Sima Yue refute them?
But it doesn’t matter. That is Sima Yue’s business. You can’t say that I am not generous.
"Your Majesty is wise." Wang Yan replied.
In fact, the imperial court was quite generous in conferring titles.
At least it won't happen that you are an official in one place and then set up your fiefdom thousands of miles away.
When Gou Xi was the governor of Yanzhou, he wiped out Ji Sang and his fief Dongping County was in Yanzhou.
Last year, soldiers from Liangzhou came to the aid of the capital, and the imperial court conferred the title of Marquis of Xiping County on Zhang Gui, the governor of Liangzhou. This county was also a subordinate county of Liangzhou. Zhang Gui refused the title. This year, soldiers from Liangzhou came to the aid again, and it seemed that he could not refuse anymore. The title of Marquis of Xiping County was a foregone conclusion.
Shao Xun had made great achievements in Luoyang, but it was impossible for him to be granted a title in the counties of Sizhou, so he could only find a place in the nearest Yuzhou.
(End of this chapter)