The Child Emperor

General Han Xing found many reasons to shirk the trouble of bringing him to the door. First, he claimed that Guan Yin was not with him, and then he said that the matter of deploying troops was too complicated for him to decide by himself, and finally had to reveal his true thoughts.

"This is asking me to use my wealth and life to support Marquis Juan. Who can be deceived by this trick? When the champion marquis becomes emperor, he will definitely take a knife on me. Even Marquis Tien will be afraid of my power, and the power will be high. , I understand."

As a military general, Han Xing has reached the top level, and there is no room for improvement. Like Prime Minister Yin Wuxian, he hopes to spend his old age peacefully, away from the wind and waves.

"However, father, you have already recommended Marquis Juan. You have long been considered to belong to Marquis Juan. That's why most of the clan's children decided to secretly support Marquis Juan." Han Xing has only one daughter, who is well-loved and married. Later, two sons were born, one with her husband's surname and the other with a modified Han, who was nominally adopted to a nephew of Han Xing, in fact, to inherit his family's incense.

Han Xing could only smile bitterly. Facing his daughter, he couldn't hide it any longer, "Actually, this is the idea of ​​the champion. Rather than forcing the wanhou to have nowhere to go, it is better to give him a chance to participate in the election of the emperor. , it's better to stay in the capital to deal with..."

The Han girl was stunned, "Father, I thought... I'm really helping Huanhou, and your son-in-law..."

Han Xing said helplessly, "Don't worry about your family. With me, the champion Hou won't embarrass you when he ascends the throne."

"There are other people, the royal family, honorable... Mrs. Ping'en Hou..."

Han Xing sighed, "When Prince Ju was killed, the imperial clan did not plead for him, but instead accused him of being disobedient and unfilial. The champion has always kept it in his heart..."

"That was more than ten years ago, and... and it was Emperor Wu who wanted to kill Prince Ju. No one dared to resist Emperor Wu."

"No way, the emperor always has to get rid of some people when he ascends the throne, and revenge for the great prince is probably just an excuse. The champion Hou wants to find out which clan children are dissatisfied with him through the tired Hou, and he has no other ability as a father, but can only protect your family. It's safe. Stay here for a few days, and you can go back when the capital is stable."

The Han woman's face was pale, "Several Mrs. Hou came with me, what should I tell them?"

"Put the responsibility on me. In short, it is not feasible to open the warehouse and release food. This is a major event for the champion Hou to show the emperor's favor to the world after he ascends the throne. How can it be done in advance? Juan Hou is too young, those scholars think It's too simple."

The champion Hou won't be enthroned until several months later. During this period, no one cares about the lives of the victims, nor does the generals and their daughters care about them. They just want to protect themselves in the stormy seas.

The Han girl's retirement was both shocked and at the same time felt a little at ease. At least her father had already arranged a retreat for her family.

The night was deep, and there were no deep houses in the small Shang County. The Han girl called the maid, who was shivering in the cold wind, and went to her room. She had to think of some suitable excuses to deal with Mrs. Ping'en Hou and others. 's questioning.

"Why are you shaking like this?" Han asked dissatisfiedly. Although it was cold outside, the maid was shaking too much, and it was a shame.

The maid said in a trembling voice, "Madam...there are ghosts in the yard..."

"Bah, you have a ghost in your heart. If you dare to talk nonsense again, you will tear your mouth apart."

The maid didn't dare to make a sound, she tried her best to control her body, not to think about the "ghost image" she just saw, thinking that she was a bitch and that ghosts wouldn't look down on her.

"Ghost" really doesn't look down on a maid.

It's been five days since he left Beijing. After overhearing the conversation between Han's father and daughter, Meng E felt that she could act.

The place where General Han Xing lived was heavily guarded, but it was outside, and there were no soldiers patrolling the inner house where the female family lived.

Because of the large number of guards, Han Xing felt very at ease, and he didn't even have the door latched.

After waiting for half an hour, Meng E gently pushed the door and entered the general's bedroom. The silk handkerchief was swept away, and the general's snoring disappeared. He slept lightly and had the first deep sleep in years. After a while, he served His entourage also fell asleep.

Han Xing claimed that the official seal was not in Shangxian County, but Meng E did not think so. When Han Ruzi sent her out, he said: The south and the north army faced off, and the power of the general was the heaviest at this time, and he would never let the official seal go away.

Meng E first searched Han Xing's bed for a while, but did not find the seal box. She stood on the ground and thought for a while, then went to search on the bed of the follower, but still nothing, stood on the ground and thought for a while, and reached out to touch what was under the follower's head. Pillow, with a gap on it, it's not just a pillow, it's a rectangular box.

The drug can make people sleep soundly, but if the action is too big, it will still wake the other party up. Meng E rolled up the coat that the follower put aside into a ball, pushed away the pillow very quickly, and put the clothes under the follower's head.

The entourage turned over, muttered a few words, and continued to sleep soundly.

Meng E picked up the pillow and touched it lightly. It really was a locked wooden box.

Meng E held the wooden box and went directly to Han Xing to find the key. She guessed right, the key was hanging on the neck of the general.

Holding her breath, she gently picked up the key, groping in the dark, slowly aiming at the keyhole, and with a click, the box opened.

The next thing is very simple. There is still a box in the wooden box, there is no lock, and there is a seal inside. Meng E takes it out, puts another seal of similar size in, and then restores everything to its original state.

The fake seal is very different from the real seal. You can recognize it at a glance. Meng E's move is just to deceive for a while.

Early the next morning, Qu Zixi, a doctor of the Imperial College, came to bid farewell to the general. He had tried his best to persuade him. From the trust of Marquis Juan, the survival of the common people, the stability of the imperial court, to the expectations of the world, the general approved everything, but refused to do so. Cooperate.

Under the persuasion of the Han woman, several noble ladies who came to Shang County stopped urging their husbands. They really didn't care much about opening the warehouse and releasing food, and felt that it would not help the Marquis Tien for the throne.

At noon that day, Han Xing finally found out that the official seal had been transferred. Surprised and angry, he immediately sent troops to chase after Qu Zixi, who had left in the morning, closed the city gate, surrounded the residential compound, and searched all the guests, regardless of gender.

In order to appease her companions, the Han girl first undressed and checked herself, followed by the other ladies and maids. Meng E and the three maids were the most thoroughly searched. Mrs. Ping Enhou apologized and persuaded, but nothing When it was not found, Meng E expressed understanding, but swore that she hadn't stolen anything.

Everyone lived in the backyard of the county government office, and even the county magistrate and his family were searched, and everyone was frightened, but nothing was found.

Han Xing, who has always been good-natured, was really angry. He put on a full set of armor, held a sword, and sat on the hall of the county government office. A large number of guards were lined up on both sides, waiting for Qu Zixi to be brought back. Such a scribe can't run fast.

Before dark, Qu Zixi was pushed into the lobby by a group of soldiers. He was also very angry and stood up to Han Xing without kneeling, "The general is so majestic, is this how you treat guests?"

Han Xing said with a cold face, "Mr. Qu should reflect on his own way of serving as a guest."

Two guards stepped forward and searched Qu Zixi's body from top to bottom. Someone else brought the bag, opened it, and threw it on the ground. Qu Zixi laughed, "It turns out that I suspected that I stole something. Thinking that in the eyes of the general, he is a thief, and this name is not removed, why is Qu?”

Qu Zixi had the stubborn temper of a scholar, pushed aside the guards, undressed and stripped himself above the lobby, and took off cleanly, reciting fragments from the Analects of Confucius and Mencius aloud to show his integrity.

Han Xing's spirit was gone, and he began to regret his recklessness. He knew Qu Zixi's status among scholars, and also knew how difficult it would be for these scholars to be annoyed. Thinking back to when Emperor Wu killed innocent people indiscriminately, the clan was silent, and the ministers bowed their heads and obeyed orders. Only a group of scholars from the Hanlin Academy, Guozijian, and Taixue dared to write a letter to accuse Emperor Wu. Being beaten, dismissed, and imprisoned could not make them change their minds. Instead, there were more and more participants. In the end, although Emperor Wu did not change because of this, he also dismissed the scholars. All are released, and one is not killed, which is an unprecedented concession.

Han Xing left his seat, put on a robe for Qu Zixi himself, reprimanded the soldiers who were chasing him, and then invited Qu Zixi into the back house and apologized again.

Qu Zixi didn't say much, but repeatedly emphasized that his reputation was damaged. After returning to Beijing, he must ask the court for an explanation. He insisted on forgiving the general until midnight and was sent back to his original room to rest.

Han Xing couldn't sleep. The entourage was his confidant. Even so, he was tortured for a day, and he was already bruised and bruised, and he still couldn't provide any clues.

In the second half of the night, Han Xing welcomed a guest he least wanted to see.

A qi person was in Shangxian County, speaking on behalf of the champion, and at the same time monitoring the general. After a whole day of observation, the qi person was puzzled, "The general's seal is really lost, or is it... a bluff? This time Loyalty is more important than anything else, the champion believes in the general, and hopes that the general will repay the champion with loyalty."

Han Xing was so devastated that he swore that the official seal was really stolen, that he was loyal to the champion, and that he would recover the official seal no matter what, "It's useless to have the official seal alone, without me, the General Shogunate will not make military orders, and I will write back tomorrow morning. Guguan, personally sit in charge, never give people a chance to take advantage."

"The general is personally in charge, and the champion should be relieved, but the loss of the official seal is a trouble after all."

"What should I do to make the champion believe me?" Han Xing was cornered, so he almost knelt down and begged for mercy.

"The stealing of the seal was obviously done by Hou Juan's subordinates. The General refused to act ruthlessly, so he would get into trouble. Now that he waits one more day, the official seal will be farther away, and the General has to make a decisive decision."

Han Xing was dumbfounded. According to the original plan, after the election of the emperor, Marquis Juan admitted defeat, and the general set an example, admitting the champion Marquis as emperor. But if the official seal does not ask about it, it is always a big hidden danger.

Han Xing secretly complained about the bad things of Hou Tien, and was also annoyed by the pressing of the champion Hou and the hopeful, but there was no way, he could only choose the stronger side.

"Okay." Han Xing walked to the door and said to a guard, "Go and call the four maids of the Marquis Mansion."