Chapter 984 Performance Art

Chapter 984 Performance Art

Chapter 984 Performance Art (Part )

The foggy sky added to the dampness and chill of the early morning.

Inside the house, the brazier had been lit, with occasional crackling sounds of dry branches exploding.

A high table, which was becoming increasingly popular in the north but rarely seen in Jiangdong, was set up, and several people sat around it, chatting and laughing.

The most famous person here is Gu He.

He came from a prominent family in Jiangdong, and was highly regarded by Wang Dao, who appointed him as his subordinate, and he was secretly the leader of the group.

But that's the relationship between him and Director Wang.

Wang Dao, who was also the governor of Yangzhou, once sent eight officers to inspect various places. After they came back, the other seven discussed the gains and losses of the local officials during the inspection, but Gu He remained silent.

Wang Dao asked him if he had heard any news, and Gu He replied, "Why do you listen to rumors and use them to govern?"

Director Wang was full of praise.

This matter is very subtle.

The more EQ-savvy person would say, “My lord, please don’t investigate. What if you find out something?” Overall, Gu He’s position was relatively stable. He was based in the Gu family of Wujun and cooperated with the gentry who had migrated south to gain benefits for his family and keep Jiangdong safe.

So, Wang Dao had made him famous and valued him before, and he reciprocated the favor. Both parties got what they needed, and that was all.

"Junxiao, in your opinion, the King of Langya will soon ascend the throne and become emperor?" He Xi, the Northern Inspector of Jianye, asked curiously.

"How can this be false?" Before Gu He could say anything, Zhang Cheng immediately jumped out like a fighting cock and said, "When has anything gone wrong with what Jun Xiao said?"

He Xi looked at him with contempt and was too lazy to argue with him.

The Zhang family of Wu County had fallen into great decline. It began in the Eastern Wu period, when the great families of Zhang and Quan suffered heavy losses. Although they could still retreat to their hometowns, it was a fact that the power of the upper class continued to shrink.

Zhu actually also has this tendency.

Of the four former surnames of Wu Commandery, Zhu and Zhang have been left far behind by Gu and Lu and can no longer keep pace with them.

After Sima Rui, Wang Dao and others moved south, this trend was not reversed at all. People like Zhang Cheng could only be minor officials, which was obviously not in line with his family business of thousands of farmhands.

In the neighboring Kuaiji County, the He and Qian families have risen, and the up-and-coming powerful families like the Shen family are also eyeing them covetously. It is really difficult for old families like the Zhang family, so Zhang Cheng is like Gu He's little follower, "eager to protect his master", which is funny.

Gu He obviously saw the disagreement between Zhang and He, but he didn't intend to say anything. He just continued with the previous conversation and said, "The day before yesterday, the Prince of Langya led his officials to offer sacrifices to the late emperor from afar, and cried until he fainted."

"Ah?" He Xi asked in surprise, "Why is it so?"

Gu He hesitated for a moment and said, "Because the late emperor was murdered by the thief Shao."

"Really?" He Xi asked.

Gu He said helplessly: "How can there be a definitive conclusion on this matter? Even if the thief Shao really killed the king, how can outsiders know?"

He Xi thought about it and said, "That's right. What do you think of the situation, Jun Xiao?"

"It's probably fake." Gu He said, "According to the news from Luoyang, the late emperor has been bedridden for a long time. Many officials and members of the royal family in Luoyang have visited him and all said that he didn't have much time left. If that's the case, why did Shao the thief do this? Do you think anyone in Luoyang said that he killed the emperor?"

He Xi nodded slowly and said, "But Jiangdong still uses the Divine Turtle as the reign title and respects Lord Teng - uh, that person as the monarch, but we can't say that anymore."

"That's right." Gu He said, "Don't talk nonsense in the future. After all-"

He thought for a moment and sighed, "Now we have to work together with the northerners. Jiangdong finally broke away from the Central Dynasty, and no one wants to have the court of Luoyang or Chang'an above their heads."

This sentence was directed not only at the imperial court that was heading south from the north in an attempt to unify China, but also at the imperial court that was heading north to recover Luoyang and Chang'an.

Especially the latter, once the Northern Expedition succeeds and the country is unified, what is the point of Jianye? Anyway, the new court cannot make this place the capital, and it will not be of any benefit to the native people in the south of the Yangtze River.

"Jun Xiao, what you said makes sense. I don't need to worry." He Xi nodded and said, "I'm just a little worried. I don't know what will happen in the future."

"Dongwu was in such a difficult situation back then, but they managed to hold on. Now they have Nanjun, Xiangyang, Shouchun, and Hefei in their hands, so they may have a chance." Gu He said, "In today's world, Shao Xun is like Cao Mengde, occupying the north, while Xiliang still has Ma Chao and Han Sui, Shu Han is still there, and Dongwu has Xiangyang and Shouchun as important towns. Is it difficult to resist Cao's troops in the north?"

"But Shao Mengde has not yet experienced the defeat at Chibi, and his spirit is quite high. If he drives the surrendered soldiers from various places south, it will be difficult to resist him," said He Xi.

What he actually wanted to say was that this "new Dongwu" has both advantages and disadvantages.

It is true that with the possession of Xiangyang, Shouchun and other places, the situation is much better than that of the old Eastern Wu, but the new Eastern Wu has a large number of scholars who have migrated south.

But these people still hold power. Although after years of getting along, the conflict between the scholars who migrated south and the native tribes of Jiangdong is not as big as before, and both sides have gradually found a position that they can accept, but the morale of the people is still not as good as it was during the Sun Wu period.

In a word, the old Eastern Wu could unite to fight Cao Cao, but the new Eastern Wu or the Eastern Jin Dynasty - if the King of Langya proclaimed himself emperor and still used "Jin" as the country's name - could not unite.

Shao the thief waved his hand, and who knows how many people secretly colluded with him. This hidden worry must be faced up to.

He Xi had a premonition that this might be the cause of all the trouble.

"At this time..." Gu He looked at He Xi, then at the others, and said, "We still have to unite as one. After defeating Shao's offensive several times, he will no longer want to go south, and the people in Jianye will be more stable. Twenty years later, another generation will have passed, and the connection between the scholars who have migrated south and the north will be even weaker, while the foundation of Jiangdong will become more stable."

"Then, how do you think Jun Xiao can defeat Shao's offensive?" He Xi couldn't help but ask.

"Using river defense, epidemics, and the evil deeds of the Shao bandit." Gu He said firmly.

He Xi was just shocked and speechless.

Take one step at a time.

******
The cold wind swept across the north and reached the south of the Yangtze River.

Overnight, the north wind howled and frost and snow fell suddenly. As soon as Wang Dao left the office, he saw the thatched grass flying above his head, fluttering for a while, and then covering his face.

The attendant hurried forward and removed the grass debris from Wang Dao's body.

Bian Xu, who was following behind Wang Dao, saw this, laughed dryly and said, "This door should be repaired."

Wang Dao was calm and said, "Money and grain should be used for more urgent matters."

The Eastern Wu originally had an imperial palace called "Taichu Palace".

During the Zhang Chang Rebellion, his general Shi Bing attacked Jianye and burned down the Taichu Palace.

After Sima Rui moved south, he could only use the houses in the former Eastern Wu imperial palace and gardens to work.

There’s no way, I’m too poor.

Construction requires manpower, who will provide it for you? Will the Jiangdong clan send their own farmhands?

Construction also requires felling trees and quarrying stones, and these properties have owners. Have the Jiangdong nobles allowed you to cut trees and quarry stones?

So, just make do with it.

When there is spare capacity, they will repair it, but if there is no spare capacity, forget it. Therefore, to this day, many government offices still have thatched roofs at their main gates, which is a bit outrageous.

We had prepared some wood, stone slabs and manpower this year to make bricks and tiles and build walls with rammed earth, but now it's all gone.

As for the reason——

Wang Dao and his entourage soon arrived at the military camp outside the city.

Wow! A full 20,000 people were in mourning, the whole army was in white!

Wang Dao had a blank expression on his face. After receiving the message, he quickly came to the central military tent and met Sima Rui.

"Maohong!" Sima Rui burst into tears as soon as he saw Wang Dao.

"Your Majesty." Director Wang sighed and said, "Please take care of yourself, Your Majesty."

"The hatred of the country and the family is here, and my heart is filled with depression..." Sima Rui shook his head and cried, "The revenge of the late emperor must be avenged. Maohong does not need to persuade me. I will swear to lead the army to the north, personally march to Luoyang, and take the head of the thief Shao to commemorate the late emperor."

"Your Majesty, we are running out of food and grass. What can we do?" Director Wang said with a sad face.

"Mao Hong!" Sima Rui's eyes were wide open with anger, and he shouted, "Who is the one who is making excuses? Why don't you execute him when the grain transport is delayed during the Northern Expedition?"

"I will send someone to investigate the officials in charge of the grain transport." Wang Dao said, "Your Majesty, please don't be too sad."

"Maohong, go check it out quickly. I must fight in the north!" Sima Rui shouted, "Come here! Armor me!"

The military cadets looked at each other, and finally someone gritted his teeth and brought a set of Ming Guang armor.

Sima Rui took two steps forward and gestured for him to put on armor.

Unexpectedly, Sima Rui stumbled and almost fell just after he put on the armor but before putting on other parts.

Fortunately, someone was quick to catch him.

Good weight!

Sima Rui's eyelids twitched. He pushed the man away, stood firm, and gestured to continue putting on his armor.

Everyone had no choice but to put on arm armor, skirt armor, body armor, chest armor, and shoulder guard for him one by one, and finally put an iron helmet on his head.

Someone was clumsy and didn't use the heavy helmet carefully, but Sima Rui was almost knocked unconscious by it. Fortunately, he managed to hold on.

"Your Majesty!" Wang Dao fell to the ground and urged: "We are short of food and grass now. I beg Your Majesty to return to the palace to take charge of all affairs and put state affairs first."

"Your Majesty!" Bian Xu and others also bowed to the ground and advised: "Your Majesty, please put state affairs first."

"Shua!" Sima Rui drew out his sword and angrily said, "Aren't you afraid of death?"

"Your Majesty, Shao the traitor has murdered the emperor, and the gods and men are outraged. He has also instigated a group of scoundrels in Luoyang to usurp the throne. This is truly a critical moment for our survival!" Wang Dao said, "The order cannot be without a leader for a day, and the country cannot be without a master for a day. I ask Your Majesty to return to the palace immediately and take charge of all affairs."

After Wang Dao finished speaking, he signaled with his eyes, and everyone said in unison: "Please return to the palace and take charge of all affairs."

"How can I have the face to do this when the Shao bandits are not yet defeated? It's inappropriate!" Sima Rui insisted, "Maohong, go check immediately to see who is withholding food and fodder to prevent me from marching north."

"Your Majesty." Wang Dao's son Wang Yue suddenly stood up and said, "Today someone came from Jiangbei, bringing with him the emperor's pre-abdication edict."

After saying this, he stepped forward and presented the imperial edict respectfully.

Sima Rui was stunned at first, then he knelt on the ground, took the imperial edict with trembling hands, and opened it to read.

In an instant, tears fell like rain, and he sobbed, "I am ashamed of the emperor (Sima Duan)!"

"Your Majesty." Wang Yue said sincerely, "Zhen Jun is being forced by the thief Shao. He knows he cannot defeat him. I beg Your Majesty to take charge of all affairs and continue the Jin Dynasty. Your Majesty must not let me down."

Sima Rui burst into tears upon hearing this: "How could I have done this? How could I have done this?"

The sound is so mournful that it saddens those who hear it and moves those who hear it.

(End of this chapter)