Chapter 424: Recognize the Situation
Chapter 424: Recognize the Situation
The first day of October is approaching, and according to custom we have to eat sesame soup and bean rice.
But in this chaotic time, where can the nobles in Luoyang find sesame? They can hardly afford to eat.
After searching the palace for a long time, they only found a small amount, which was definitely not enough to entertain the ministers. Fortunately, they could use millet soup instead, which would be enough. After all, Huang Zu in the Han Dynasty had served millet soup on his boat to entertain guests.
On September 25th, when Wang Yan met the emperor in the observation pavilion beside the Lingzhi Pond, the emperor was scolding the palace maids because there was not enough sesame, and Empress Liang also lowered her head, shedding tears and remained silent.
The affairs of the palace were previously managed by the Empress, and the expenses for the four seasons and eight festivals were also asked from the Empress. Now that even sesame cannot be found, will the Emperor not reprimand the Empress?
Wang Yan coughed lightly, indicating that he had arrived.
The emperor put away his angry expression, looked at Wang Yan, snorted coldly, and walked straight along the corridor to the fishing platform.
The fishing platform is not high, just a few steps away from the pond, which is perfect for fishing.
The Lingzhi Pond is not very big either. It is located in front of the Fanglin Garden (Hua Lin Garden), and is "150 steps long and wide, and 20 feet deep."
There were two boats in the pond, named "Minghe Boat" and "Zhinan Boat" - they were definitely not used for electrofishing.
The emperor sat on a small rope chair, and when he swung the fishing rod, the hook fell into the water.
"I heard that there is sesame in Xuchang." After Wang Yan said this, he found a sesame bed and sat down.
He was not surprised why there was a Huchuang in the palace.
When the previous emperor was alive, Lord Chen presented several of them to the palace, and they soon became popular because they were indeed comfortable to sit on.
"What do you mean, Commander?" Sima Chi turned his head and asked.
Wang Yan did not answer, but said: "There are Xiongnu cavalry invading Yanzhou. In order to encourage the soldiers, Madam Yu of Xuchang ordered the kitchen to make more than 10,000 Hu cakes and send them to the army."
It is difficult to explain why Hubing is called this name. One theory is that it was brought from the Hu people in the Western Regions, so it is called Hubing; another theory is that sesame is added to it, so it is called Hubing.
During the Sixteen Kingdoms period of the Later Zhao Dynasty, Shi Le forbade his subjects to say the word "Hu", and the Hu Bing was renamed "Bo Lu" because it was baked in an oven. After Shi Hu succeeded to the throne, he thought the name was too abstract and changed it to "Ma Bing". After the end of the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the original name "Hu Bing" was restored and it became a popular food in the Tang Dynasty.
But no matter what, there must be sesame seeds on the Hubing. Wang Yan's words would only make the emperor even angrier - an ordinary man can eat sesame seeds, but he, the ruler of the world, does not have any. How could this be acceptable?
"Shao Xun is always stealing my grain." Tianqi said angrily.
The louder the sound, the fish all ran away, which made me even more angry.
Wang Yan did not respond to the emperor's lack of political intelligence, but only said: "Xuchang has sent five carts of sesame to the capital."
The emperor was concentrating on fishing and didn't want to say anything.
"There is still tribute this time, but it is hard to say whether there will be one next time." Wang Yan said.
The emperor's hand shook, and the fish that had just taken the hook ran away.
Wang Yan glanced at the surface of the pool.
Who keeps so many fish in this pond? Standing on the fishing platform, you can see the swaying fish tails. It would be stupid if you can't catch any.
"Your Majesty should not prohibit the issuance of food and grass." Wang Yan continued, "Even if Luoyang is short of food and there are bandits outside, this should not be done."
Sima Chi glared at Wang Yan.
The words are still the same, but the attitude is not as respectful as before. This old guy has been on the side of Shao Xun since early on, but he comes to me to pretend to be a good guy. How ridiculous!
"Your Majesty, do you know that the Battle of Zhamati is over?" Wang Yan asked.
After hearing this, Sima Chi's face changed. Then he looked at Wang Yan with a little hope and asked, "How...?"
"The royal army won a great victory, captured and killed 15,000 people, and captured Wang Zhang, the general of the pseudo-Han central army." Wang Yan said slowly.
Sima Chi was shocked and lowered his head dejectedly.
Empress Liang Lanbi came over with snacks, surrounded by palace maids. She didn't hear the previous conversation between the two, but only heard Wang Yan's account of the result of the Battle of Zhamadi. She was immediately relieved and said happily, "I just arrived and heard such good news. Lord Chen defeated the Xiongnu. Luoyang is out of danger, right? Thank God, the people in the city are saved."
"Women's opinion!" Sima Chi snorted coldly and said.
Liang Lanbi was startled and lowered her head nervously, not daring to speak.
"Mr. Chen is a loyal minister of the imperial court. He has defended Luoyang several times and his contribution is invaluable." Wang Yan stood up and said, "If it weren't for Mr. Chen, what would have happened after Luoyang was captured? Your Majesty should think carefully about it."
After saying this, he bowed to the queen again and said, "I will take my leave now."
"Does Shao Xun want to do what Yin Huo did, or what Cao Mang did?" Sima Chi suddenly asked.
Wang Yan stopped.
Since the emperor had spoken out loud, there was no need for him to hide it, so he said directly: "After defeating the Xiongnu, Lord Chen will return to Xuchang on his own, Your Majesty, don't worry."
"What does he want?"
"Save the people's ears."
Sima Chi sneered.
Wang Yan left without stopping. Before leaving, he even signaled the queen with his eyes.
Liang Lanbi was confused. What was the commander doing?
"Your Majesty, I did it..." Liang Lanbi put away the grievances in her heart, forced a smile, and walked slowly forward.
"Shut up!" Sima Chi scolded impatiently.
Liang Lanbi's nose was sore and she almost shed tears. However, she was used to the emperor's cold words, so she quietly put the snacks on the table and prepared to leave.
"Wait." The emperor put away his fishing rod, waved his hand to dismiss the palace servants, walked up to Liang Lanbi, and asked in a low voice: "Now Chang'an has been recovered, and General Wei is a noble family in Guanxi. If we move the capital to Chang'an--"
"Your Majesty, you can't do that." Liang Lanbi hurriedly stopped him, "Chang'an has no grain transport, and there are billions of dollars in military and civilian supplies. I'm afraid it will be difficult to maintain. Moreover, although Your Majesty has a reason to stop issuing military rations, it has already angered Lord Chen, so it may not be possible to carry out."
Sima Chi sneered continuously.
Liang Lanbi looked sad, but still advised: "Your Majesty, things have come to this point, what else can you ask for? Mr. Chen is wise and knowledgeable, and he will not do anything reckless."
Sima Chi looked at the queen deeply and suddenly asked, "I heard that you and Yu Wenjun went out for a trip in the past and met a Taoist priest on the road. He said that you two have the character of a phoenix. Is this true?"
Liang Lanbi looked at the emperor in disbelief.
Very few people knew about this, apart from her and Yu Wenjun, there were only the maids around them.
The more Liang Lanbi thought about it, the paler her face became. Could it be that the maid who came with her as a dowry revealed it? In order to win favor, she would do anything to achieve her goal?
Ridiculous! Really ridiculous! Liang Lanbi shed tears again. His Majesty would rather review memorials all night, or go fishing in the Lingzhi Pond and not come back all night, than...
Fighting for favor, what favor are you fighting for?
"It seems to be true!" Sima Chi's face turned pale.
Normally, if I heard such unfounded anecdotes, I would just laugh it off. But now, the more I listened to them, the more uncomfortable I felt, and the more frightened I became.
Yu Wenjun had the character to become the empress, so who was the emperor?
As Sima Chi thought about it, he actually began to tremble.
Shao Xun is not a scholar. He likes fighting and killing and is vulgar and uncultured. Would he be used to solving problems with a butcher's knife?
Is it possible that even the Duke of Shanyang cannot be appointed?
However, Wang Yifu just said that Shao Xun would not try to control Luoyang, but would return to Xuchang, which made him a little confused.
Does this person really trust me to be behind him - to make things difficult for him?
Sima Chi couldn't figure it out. Seeing Liang Lanbi still crying, he felt annoyed and walked away.
There is only so much he can do now.
After the defeat at Xin'an, I don't know if I can still command the imperial guards. Alas.
******
After leaving the palace, Wang Yan returned to the Taiwei Mansion located inside Kaiyang Gate in the southeast of Luoyang.
When passing Tongtuo Street, I was shocked to hear waves of noise getting louder than the last.
Tongtuo Street is a common name, its original name is "Changhe South Street".
Changhe Gate is one of the main gates on the south side of the palace. There is an imperial road leading south to Pyeongchang Gate.
During the Cao Wei period, bronze camels and other animals were placed on the South Street of Changhe. The camels were nine feet tall and very eye-catching, hence the name.
Well, at this time, these bronze beasts such as bronze camels, bronze horses, and bronze turtles are still there, because they are too heavy and thieves can't steal them. But if foreign troops break into the city, it's hard to say, maybe they will be melted down to make coins.
There were a large number of shops on both sides of Tongtuo Street, selling all kinds of goods. Wang Yan's wife, Guo, indirectly ran several of them and made a fortune every day.
Due to the tense situation, these shops are basically closed and Tongtuo Street has been deserted for many days.
But today is strange, why did it suddenly become lively?
Wang Yan lifted the curtain of the ox cart and looked outside, only to see many merchants opening their shop partitions and coming excitedly to the street, listening to the cheers in the distance.
"Great victory! Great victory!"
"In the Battle of Zhamadi, Shao Taibai killed 100,000 Xiongnu and shook the Yellow River with his might."
"Great victory! Shao Taibai captured the bandit general Wang Zhang and Bohai King Liu Fu in one battle."
"Shi Le heard of his defeat and fled in panic, and Luoyang was saved!"
After hearing this, Wang Yan burst into laughter.
That's how rumors spread.
One hundred thousand Huns, haha, that’s too much, three or two thousand is about right.
In addition, Wang Zhang was the General of the Central Army. How come the word "Central Army" was omitted during the course of the story, and he became the General? If the historians did not distinguish, there might be errors.
However, Wang Yan was too lazy to say anything.
It feels so good to be in this ecstatic atmosphere.
The people of Luoyang desperately need the encouragement of victory, even if it is only a temporary victory.
Human hearts, oh human hearts, Wang Yan sighed.
The cheers of the people in the city should be heard from the Changhe Gate. What will happen when the emperor finds out?
What would happen if the court officials, military generals, and soldiers heard about it?
The underlying tone of this court is changing little by little.
The situation in the world is also changing little by little.
Even if King Wen were to be resurrected, what would that do?
(End of this chapter)