A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 80: Emperor's Blood
"In the winter of the second year of Yuan Shou, in the twelfth month, the Empress and the Crown Prince went to the banks of the Wei River and ascended the Taiyi Altar to offer sacrifices at the Five Altars and pray for the country. During this time, a Qilin emerged from the Black Emperor Temple. The Empress and the Crown Prince obtained the Qilin with their hands clasped. On that day, Sima Xiangru, the magistrate of Baling Mausoleum, recited the Ode to the Qilin."

On the same day, a wondrous tree appeared, its branches branching out from the side, growing high before merging back into one. White unicorns and strange trees emerged together, and wild beasts appeared side-by-side, clearly indicating their shared origin. The numerous branches extending inwards signified outward expansion; this was the mandate of Heaven bestowed upon us a peaceful and prosperous age.

The Grand Historian Sima Tan scratched his head with his pen, wondering why his writing, which he was clearly writing official history and reliable historical records, sounded so much like the writing of a novelist.

Sima Xiangru, having put down his pen, looked at the "unicorn" and "parallel branch tree" described in the historical records and became very agitated. He even said, "You Sima family aren't novelists."
On that day, though not recorded in the annals of history, the story circulated in the biographies of high-ranking officials, generals, and marquises, tells of the Grand Historian Sima Tan and the Magistrate of Baling Mausoleum Sima Xiangru engaging in a public brawl.

Queen Zifu of Wei.

Along with Empress Lü, their names are included in the annals of emperors.

……

Yongdi.

Before the Black Emperor Shrine ceremony.

Liu Che collapsed, his blood staining the courtyard steps.

The sacrificial ceremony was forced to stop, and the emperor's close ministers were in a panic. The emperor was taken to the fasting palace to be treated by the imperial physicians.

In their prayers for blessings, the courtiers knelt in fear and trembling on the stone steps. At that moment, everyone was filled with despair, with an abyss behind them.

The Five Altars Sacrifice.

This was originally a wonderful technique for supporting the dragon.

However, the Chang'an side intercepted their fortune and seized the initiative, turning it into a dragon-slaying technique in an instant.

If His Majesty dies, he is dead. But if His Majesty does not die, those present will likely find it difficult to clear themselves of suspicion that they colluded with the Crown Prince's palace to plot the assassination of the Emperor.

After exchanging glances, Wuqiu Shouwang saw the death wish in everyone's eyes. As the Grand Master of Ceremonies and Attendant-in-Ordinary, he could not let the situation deteriorate to an irreparable point, nor could he hesitate any longer. He clasped his hands in front of his chest and tried his best to stop everyone's death wish. Then he turned around, lifted his robe, and walked towards the door of the fasting hall.

No matter when His Majesty awakens, he must ensure that His Majesty sees him first, so that he can prevent a tragedy from happening before His Majesty's executioner's blade falls.

"The trouble should end it."

At this moment, Dong Zhongshu sighed softly behind Wuqiu Shouwang. As Wuqiu Shouwang paused, Dong Zhongshu strode forward and blocked his path. "Grand Master of Ceremonies and Attendant-in-Ordinary, let me go and serve the king."

The plan for Yongwu Temple and auspicious omens was proposed to His Majesty by Dong Zhongshu. Now that problems have arisen, it is Dong Zhongshu's responsibility to resolve them.

Everyone, including Wuqiu Shouwang, was stunned by Dong Zhongshu's actions and stared at him intently.

The first person His Majesty will kill upon waking will undoubtedly be Dong Zhongshu.

Instead of helping the dragon rise, the phoenix soared to the heavens.

Everything along the Wei River and the Five Altars in Yongdi follow the same procedures, including the sacrifices and auspicious omens.

They are all Qilin.

But unlike the rare "white scales," Yongdi's preparations were just ordinary-colored "qilin." Thinking about it this way was even more disheartening. They couldn't even outrun the others in terms of time, and their props weren't as good either.

Fortunately, the news from Chang'an arrived in time. If His Majesty had actually finished the sacrifices to the Five Heavenly Emperors and released the Qilin to spread the news throughout the world, His Majesty would have been in an even more awkward position.

Two identical things, whoever does it later or worse will be the one who feels embarrassed!

However, although no one believed that Dong Zhongshu had any connection with the Crown Prince's palace, the striking similarities in the sacrifices and auspicious omens made it hard to believe that this wasn't a trap.

Previously, it was the hidden dragon that forced us, but now even the heavenly phoenix has flown to the head of the true dragon emperor. If Empress Wei is willing, she can rule as regent from today onwards.

The reign of the two emperors, His Majesty and the Crown Prince, will soon become the reign of the three emperors, His Majesty, the Empress, and the Crown Prince.

Most importantly, His Majesty was forced to leave Chang'an and was removed from the imperial center, creating a power vacuum. The impact was there, but not significant, because the Crown Prince dared not enter Chang'an and could only issue decrees through the heavily guarded Northern Army.

This led to an unprecedented spectacle of two emperors holding court simultaneously, with neither of them present. The power struggle between the imperial faction and the crown prince's faction remained within manageable limits.

With the Empress's rise to power, she can directly sit on the throne during court discussions. At that time, she will take sides, and the Emperor's faction, which already has little power to fight back, will probably be hung up and beaten like a filial son and grandson by the Crown Prince's faction.

The imperial faction will emphasize filial piety.

Go against Tiangang.

Dong Zhongshu was the "culprit".

Given His Majesty's personality, regardless of whether Dong Zhongshu is a hidden member of the Crown Prince's faction or not, he would rather kill the innocent than let the guilty go free.

Dong Zhongshu also looked deeply at Wuqiu Shouwang. Although the two had no formal master-disciple relationship, they were in fact master and disciple, and had used each other. Overall, Dong Zhongshu felt ashamed. Unlike the usual hierarchy, he bowed deeply to Wuqiu Shouwang and said, "If I can survive, if there is an afterlife, we will be master and disciple, and I will not have lived in vain."

Under the stunned gaze of King Wuqiu Shou, Dong Zhongshu stood alone and strode into the main hall.

On the imperial couch.

Liu Che was clearly very sober. He was genuinely so angry that he vomited blood, but he was faking fainting. Upon hearing footsteps, his eyes immediately turned in that direction, and when he saw that it was Dong Zhongshu, his murderous intent was completely undisguised.

"Good! Good!"

Liu Che stared intently at him, praising his calligraphy, but it was like a gust of wind blowing up from the deepest abyss. "Dong Zhongshu, I did not misjudge you. You are a hero. Come closer and tell me what the Crown Prince asked you to say to me."

Dong Zhongshu knelt down on the ground three feet away from the dragon bed and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I have nothing to do with the Crown Prince."

"At this point, why are you putting on this act? You know I will never let you go."

Liu Che spoke slowly with a gentle tone: "How could I be so foolish as to only now remember that it was because you worked for the Crown Prince that the Prime Minister pulled you out of the quagmire of Jiaoxi Kingdom and brought you to the capital. The Crown Prince is your benefactor, and the Prime Minister is your fellow student. How can you not think of repaying him?"
But I don't know when the deceased Grand Master Zhuang Zhu betrayed me and sided with the Crown Prince. Even while he was in the Court of Justice, he was thinking of sending you to my side.
"I treated him well. He died for filial piety. It wasn't me who wanted to kill him; it was the Crown Prince. He, you, all of you—how many people inside and outside this hall are the Crown Prince's men, hoping for my death and for the Crown Prince to ascend the throne soon?"

The true dragon began to suspect everyone equally, including the dead and the living.

Dong Zhongshu knew that the emperor had not finished speaking, but the emperor thought that Dong Zhongshu was subdued by his gaze and voice that could subdue all demons. His smile gradually became sinister. "You are all more powerful than the last. First, you disguise yourselves well, and then you try to kill me."

Dong Zhongshu, haven't you heard the saying, "The devil may be one foot tall, but the righteous path is ten feet tall"?

This means they're going to kill someone!

As soon as Dong Zhongshu gave his reply, the prison was immediately opened.

Outside the palace gates, the favored officials remained kneeling rigidly, their eyes closed. The eunuch Su Wen, holding his breath, awaited that moment.

At this moment, Dong Zhongshu displayed extraordinary composure, kneeling on the ground, supporting himself with his hands, and remaining motionless.

"Say!"

"Why won't you speak!"

"What outrageous things has the Crown Prince said?!"

"When will you kill me?"

In Liu Che's voice, the emotions of a normal person in fear were finally revealed. In the past twenty years of his reign, the last time he lost his composure like this was when Empress Dowager Dou was dissatisfied with his Confucian reforms and wanted to depose him from the throne.

A new threat to the throne has arisen, and if he fails completely, he may die!
No one can be fearless of death, especially an emperor who is so greedy as to pursue immortality.

"talk!"

Dong Zhongshu finally raised his head, gazed into the dragon's eyes, and said, "The failure of the Five Altars Sacrifice is due to the failure of my plan. I have failed to share Your Majesty's burdens and relieve your difficulties, and this is my first fault."

The Five Sacrifices were performed on the Wei River. This shows that I underestimated the people of the world, which led to the phoenix soaring in the heavens. This is my second crime.

Whether I relied on the Crown Prince's palace or not, I deserve the punishment of being torn to pieces and my bones scattered to the winds for these two crimes.

When I entered the palace, Your Majesty called me a hero, but as Your Majesty said, I and the Grand Master Zhuang Zhu are treacherous villains who pretend to be loyal, and are traitors who deceive the emperor. Why does Your Majesty call us heroes?

Neither the Grand Master nor the minister was a hero. During the Spring and Autumn Period, when Zhao Jianzi, the leader of the Zhao clan in the State of Jin, encountered an obstacle while riding in his carriage, his ministers pushed the carriage while Hu Hui carried a halberd and sang.

When Zhao Jianzi questioned Hu Hui about his crime, Hu Hui bluntly stated that a ruler's disrespect for his ministers would lead to "the wise not making plans, the eloquent not serving as messengers, and the brave not fighting," prompting Zhao Jianzi to accept the advice and correct his mistake. Hu Hui then stopped pushing the cart and drank with his ministers, treating Hu Hui as an honored guest.

Therefore, if a monarch insults his ministers, it will inevitably lead to the wise refusing to advise, the eloquent refusing to serve, and the brave refusing to fight, ultimately endangering the monarch himself.

A subject serving his sovereign is not a traitor; a sovereign doubting his subject is a traitorous statement!

Your Majesty, I humbly request that you retract your statement! I had just prepared to present my memorial!

The sound of gold and jade.

All the attendants and ministers inside and outside the fasting hall suddenly raised their heads. Was this a human being speaking?
"Are you impressed?"

Liu Che suddenly looked at Su Wen, then at his attendants, and thought to himself, "Is this what a true hero should be like?"

After saying this, Liu Che turned to look at Dong Zhongshu and said, "I was right. You are a hero, and the Zhuangzhu who recommended you is also a hero. You are all heroes!"

"All my life I've admired heroes and valiant men! Including your classmates, your students, your accomplices—if they're heroes or valiant men, step forward, I'll love them all!"

"I am neither a hero nor anyone's mentor nor anyone's ally!"

Dong Zhongshu knew that not only his own life and fortune, but also the lives and fortunes of many others, hung in the balance on his next reply. He gritted his teeth, straightened his body, and stared into the emperor's eyes without flinching or backing down, saying, "In the tenth month of the first year of Jianyuan, I was ordered to 'recommend virtuous, upright, and outspoken men.' I have many disciples, and my disciples have taught even more disciples. Some of my disciples have only heard of my name and have never even seen my face."

If you say that I am the mentor of these people, it would be more accurate to say that the Emperor who entrusted me with this important task and taught all the people on behalf of Heaven is my mentor!

During the reign of Emperor Xiaojing, I was a scholar. When Your Majesty came to power, I became the Chancellor of Jiaoxi. A few months ago, I returned to my post as Grand Astrologer. Soon after, Your Majesty promoted me to the rank of one of the Three Dukes. During the Chang'an Incident, Your Majesty seemed to dismiss me from my post, but in reality, you protected me by your side and reinstated me as a scholar. Every step of my journey has been thanks to the promotion and protection of Emperor Xiaojing and Your Majesty. If I were to speak of backers, Emperor Xiaojing and Your Majesty are my backers. If I were to speak of allies, twenty years ago I was a follower of Emperor Xiaojing, and today, twenty years later, I am a follower of Your Majesty!

"A ruler who lacks discretion will lose his ministers. Your Majesty's words, spoken by heroes and chivalrous men, are not the way a ruler should discuss matters with his ministers. I humbly beg Your Majesty to retract them!"

Its sound was resounding.

The sound filled the ears of the attendants and ministers inside and outside the hall, and it also filled the ears of Liu Che. His anger disappeared without him noticing, everything vanished, and his mind went blank.

"You want me to take back what I said, but what if I don't?"

"Since Your Majesty suspects me to this extent and wishes to kill me, saying, 'If the ruler wants the subject to die, the father wants the son to perish,' I have no choice but to die, and I have no choice but to perish. I am willing to commit suicide before the Five Altars of Heaven and Earth, and let Heaven bear witness to my heart!" Dong Zhongshu kowtowed again to express his gratitude to the emperor.

"Who said you were dead!"

Liu Che roared, "It's too early for you to die! Didn't you say you were Emperor Xiaojing's and my disciple? Didn't you say you were Emperor Xiaojing's and my minister? Whether you are or not, Emperor Xiaojing can no longer deny you, and I will not acknowledge you now. I will not deny you. I will only acknowledge you as a hero, and I will never take back those words!"

What exactly happened? Tell me!

"As I have said, the Five Altars sacrifice shows that I underestimate the people of the world. I must admit that to live to old age without dying is to be a thief, and the current prime minister is a great thief."

Looking at the emperor's bloodshot eyes and his flushed face, Dong Zhongshu said in complete agreement, "What I can do, the old prime minister can do too. What I cannot do, the old prime minister may still do. In the old prime minister's eyes, my thoughts are no different from a child walking naked in the market."

We're both from the Gongyang school, and we've learned the same things, so you know me and I know you. But who wins and who loses depends on the depth of each person's skill.

Having lived through six generations and navigated the ups and downs of officialdom for decades, he may have been more learned than the first commoner prime minister of the Han Dynasty, but his political skills were far inferior.

Gongsun Hong saw through his plan and quickly quelled the chaos among merchants in Chang'an. A large number of merchants close to the emperor disappeared from the world, stabilizing the situation. At the same time, imitating the Five Altars Sacrifice, he used Emperor Xiaowen's Five Emperors Altar on the banks of the Wei River to support Tianfeng first, thwarting all of Tianfeng's plans and almost succeeding in slaying the dragon.

If His Majesty hadn't been in good health, only coughing up a few mouthfuls of blood after experiencing so many blows and showing no serious harm, the Crown Prince would probably have gotten his wish.

Liu Che's eyes remained fixed on him, "Gongsun Hong... Gongsun Hong..."

Throughout the court and among the public, Gongsun Hong's reputation was polarized. Those who looked down on him held him in contempt, believing that he lacked both profound scholarship and upright character, and was an impure and second-rate scholar who had only risen to the highest ranks of officialdom through despicable means of flattery and sycophancy.

To sum up Gongsun Hong in the words of the old Confucian scholar Yuan Gusheng, "He distorted learning and flattered the world." For such a person to rise to the position of prime minister is simply an insult to all scholars in the world.

But many scholars from the lower classes repeatedly digested Gongsun Hong's story as spiritual nourishment. A poor man who only began studying in his forties, without any background or connections, rose step by step to the top of power and the pinnacle of life by studying the Spring and Autumn Annals. He became prime minister and marquis in his seventies, breaking the monopoly of the founding merit group. What story of the Han Dynasty could inspire scholars across the country to pursue their studies more than this?
All roads lead to Chang'an, and waters flow a thousand miles to the sea.

Liu Che couldn't recall why he appointed the 77-year-old Gongsun Hong as prime minister and set a precedent for "rewarding a marquis with the title of prime minister" by granting him the title of Marquis of Pingjin. Perhaps it was because he was obedient.

However, they stopped listening to him. Starting with the struggle for the position of Crown Prince's tutor after the succession ceremony, the Prime Minister's residence became a thorn in his side.

It should have been pulled out a long time ago!
Liu Che's eyes widened. "Gongsun Hong... Wei Qing... Huo Qubing, Dong Zhongshu."

"The minister is here."

"Pull them!"

(End of this chapter)