Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 301 Bullying goes too far!

On the 20th day of the first lunar month, Liu Bei led his army to Luoyang, accompanied by many officials from Qing and Yan states, as well as the sons of nobles and wealthy families who followed him on the road.

As the Qingzhou army marched forward in a mighty force, there was an endless stream of horse-drawn carriages along the way, like a stream, with horses one after another.

Guan Yu and Lu Bu were still attacking Wen Chou, who had retreated to Yecheng and was resisting hard. Now they were digging the ground and destroying the city walls to charge in. As long as they could capture Yecheng, they would be able to advance to Handan, another important place for the Yuan family.

Zhang Liao, Yu Jin and Zhao Zhen were still attacking the only two remaining counties in Bohai, one was the crumbling Nanpi, and the other was the northernmost Zhangwu County.

If Zhangwu City was breached, the more than 10,000 newly returned Youzhou soldiers under Liu Bei's command could march directly into Youzhou's Yuyang County and Anci, Quanzhou, and Yongnu in Guangyang County.

All the generals were burdened with important tasks and were unable to come to Luoyang. At this moment, the battle with Yuan Shikai, from Jizhou to Yuzhou and then to Huainan, although they were winning victory after victory on various battlefields, there were still no less than 50,000 troops fighting in various places.

Xun Yu was in charge of dispatching food and grass from all parties. Liu Bei was worried about letting him leave, so he ordered Xun You and Cui Yan, who was Zheng Xuan's disciple in his early years, to return to Luoyang from the army first to prepare for the matters related to his enthronement as king.

As a result, while Liu Bei was still on his way to Luoyang, he was troubled by the letters sent by his trusted aides and officials from various places.

Aides such as Xun Yu, Xun You, Guo Jia, Cui Yan, as well as prefects from all over the country, such as Kong Rong, Ying Shao, Chen Gui, Zhang Miao, and those of higher seniority, such as Lu Zhi, Zheng Xuan, Zhang Jian, and Zhao Qi, almost all wrote letters one after another.

Lu Zhi and Zheng Xuan even accompanied them on the boat, and they argued over something with red faces.

Because it was too long ago that Emperor Gaozu took the oath on the white horse, and all the precious books and documents in Luoyang City were burned to ashes by Dong Zhuo.

The collection of the Han emperor that he had painstakingly accumulated over hundreds of years was destroyed in a fire. From the bamboo slips of the Zhou and Qin dynasties to the classics of the last few decades, all were burned to ashes.

Even though Lu Zhi and Cai Yong had reviewed many documents in his early years, who would have the time to read the White Horse Alliance, the document that only the Liu family could become king?

The Luoyang Palace was reduced to ruins, and the specific records of the agreement between Emperor Gaozu and his meritorious officials were even less known. The various steps and the number of white horses killed were all unknown.

While everyone was cursing in their hearts that Dong's death was not a pity, they were also discussing the matter. Regarding the steps of the sacrificial ceremony, there were naturally Confucian etiquette to fill in the gap, but the number of white horses was particularly important and must be carefully examined.

Many people looked through their own records of Emperor Gaozu, but they could not find the number of white horses killed. Some people guessed that it was one, and then asked someone to use the Book of Changes to refute: "One yin and one yang is called Tao, and those who follow it are good. Yin and yang may be male and female, but is it one horse?"

While the court was filled with people talking, Lu Zhi also expressed his views, and said to Liu Bei in a serious tone: "Xuan De, the Yi Wei says: One yin and one yang add up to fifteen, which is called Tao. Yang changes to seven-ninths, and yin changes to eight-sixths, which also add up to fifteen. The numbers of yin and yang are complete, and they have the intention of being paired."

"From this we can see that the fifteen white horses should be executed in accordance with the Book of Changes. Yin and Yang interweave, opposites complement each other, and the cycle continues. Only when Yin retreats and Yang advances, Yang hides and Yin appears, can Yin and Yang be harmonious, which conforms to the law of change of heaven and earth and all things."

Lu Zhi used the yin and yang conversion to make Liu Bei slightly stunned. Although the army was short of horses, it was only short of war horses and military horses. Although white horses were rare, they could also be recruited from pack horses and draft horses.

A few years ago, Gongsun Zan sent more than 20 white horses. Liu Bei originally wanted to give them to Yunchang, Yide, Zilong, Zijing, Xianhe, Zhao Zhen, Han Mu and others. After thinking for a while, he felt that it was too obvious for a military officer to ride a white horse on the battlefield.

So every year, a few horses were taken out and sold to the wealthy families in the south who used excellent horses to show off. The remaining horses were just right for use. Just when Liu Bei wanted to accept the advice of his teacher Lu Zhi, Zheng Xuan, another great scholar, stood up and bowed, saying, "Zi Gan's words are wrong. According to the Book of Changes, the yang energy rises from seven to nine, and the yin energy falls from eight to six. The sum of seven and eight, nine and six is ​​fifteen. Whether it is six, seven, eight, nine or even fifteen, they all conform to the natural law of the harmony of yin and yang, and are therefore auspicious signs."

"Nowadays, just like in the time of Emperor Gaozu, the Central Plains post offices, pavilions, and relay stations are all short of horses. How can we kill so many white horses just to fill the gap? I cannot agree with what Zi Gan said."

Zheng Xuan, from another perspective, refuted his old friend Lu Zhi without giving him any face, making the other party so angry that he immediately blew his beard and glared.

Liu Bei also nodded, agreed to Zheng Xuan's suggestion, and ordered everyone not to discuss it further.

Zheng Xuan blocked Lu Zhi's words and bowed to Liu Bei, saying, "Sir, I am old, my body is declining, but my wisdom is not growing. It is a pity that I am getting old and weaker, and I can no longer see the prosperity of the Han Dynasty. I would like to go to Luoyang with you to see the prosperity of the Han Dynasty! When my soul returns to the underworld, I will not talk nonsense with the Confucian sages."

Liu Bei was silent for a while, then raised his finger to the sky and said: "The prosperity of the Han Dynasty can be expected by Duke Zheng in a matter of days."

Lu Zhi, who was standing next to him, wanted to say something, but when he heard Zheng Xuan's words, he saw that his hair and beard were all white, his body was getting older, and he could hardly see clearly recently.

He couldn't help but sigh quietly, thinking: "Everyone will die one day, all I want is to die without regrets."

Like Zheng Kangcheng, Lu Zigan only hoped to live a few more years to see Xuande rebuild the country and restore the prosperity of the Han Dynasty, so that his life would not be in vain as he enjoyed the Han salary and served as a Han minister.

Seeing that Zheng Xuan's physical condition was far worse than his, Lu Zhi wanted to give up the verbal dispute. Unexpectedly, the other party's next words completely aroused his anger.

When Liu Bei supported Zheng Xuan, his smile blossomed like chrysanthemum petals, and he chuckled and said, "Zi Gan told me before that Xuande is also my disciple. The matter of being crowned king is of great importance. Even if it is tiring to travel by boat, how can I not go?"

"Xuan De regards the people as the most important and the ruler as the least important, and practices what he preaches. Yao, Shun, Yu, and Tang are all like him. If a disciple serves the ruler like this, what more can the Master ask for?"

"The Confucian scholars of the world still have some respect for the Master. If I don't go, how can I help my disciples? Xuande, why don't you call me Master?"

Zheng Xuan had white hair, long drooping eyebrows, slightly wrinkled eye sockets, and he looked at Liu Bei with a pair of dark brown eyes, smiling.

Liu Bei reacted immediately. Even if he became king with his current merits and the oath of alliance with Emperor Gaozu, in the eyes of the stubborn Confucianists, it was still considered rebellious and they would definitely write private history to criticize him. Zheng Xuan also knew about this, so he used his reputation over the years to support him and minimize the slander.

Thinking of this, Liu Bei immediately expressed his gratitude and bowed deeply, saying: "Liu Xuande will never forget the kindness of Master Zheng."

In history, when he became the King of Han, he needed the famous scholar Xu Jing to help him promote himself. However, the reputation of Kang Chenggong was many levels higher than that of Xu Jing.

When Liu Bei and Zheng Xuan looked at each other and laughed, Lu Zhi was already watching with anger, his fingers trembling as he said, "Zheng Xuan, you old bastard! How dare you bully me like this?!"

(End of this chapter)