The revival of the Han Dynasty must start with Dong Zhuo

Chapter 192 Volume Huangfu Song Enters the Palace

Yang Biao and Yang Xiu were outsiders after all.

After all, the ones who can truly feel the danger this time are the few people in the vortex.

The Chief Censor Huangfu Song finally chose to enter the Weiyang Palace after the court meeting and request to meet the emperor.

Liu Xie was not surprised by Huangfu Song's arrival. He just wore casual clothes and waited quietly for Huangfu Song.

After meeting the old man, Liu Xie did not prepare a mat for him, but instead invited Huangfu Song to sit opposite him.

There is a chessboard between the two of them.

Huangfu Song's eyes were a little cloudy, and he looked at the chessboard with all his strength.

"Your Majesty, would you like to invite me to play chess?"

"Why not?"

"Your Majesty is the king, so you should go first."

Liu Xie said: "Then I won't be polite."

Then, a piece fell, directly at the position of Tianyuan...

Huangfu Song said nothing and placed the white pieces on the chessboard step by step.

Liu Xie placed another black piece, this time it landed directly next to Tianyuan.

Huangfu Song's face twitched, but he finally suppressed his doubts and continued to place the white pieces.

"Snapped!"

It was not until Liu Xie placed three pieces directly near Tianyuan that Huangfu Song finally couldn't bear it anymore.

"What kind of chess is this, Your Majesty?"

"Go backgammon!"

Liu Xie explained the rules to Huangfu Song: "As long as the five pieces are connected, you can win."

Huangfu Song suddenly felt bored and threw the white piece in his hand back into the chess box.

"Your Majesty, are you making fun of me, your old minister?"

"Nature is not like that."

Seeing that Huangfu Song did not make a move, Liu Xie did not stop, but placed the other two pieces on his own, completing the layout of the Gobang.

"This way of playing is much simpler than Go, and it's also a lot more fun. You don't have to think so much."

"Lord Weiyang really liked this kind of game, and even used it to defeat her teacher Cai Yong... Of course, Cai Zhonglang was very angry in the end, and punished Lord Weiyang again."

Liu Xie placed his five fingers on the five pieces, directly covering the entire chessboard.

"But there are always people who think that such rules are too simple, just like the old general. However, little do they know that I really can't understand such complicated rules. It gives me a headache."

Huangfu Song could tell that Liu Xie wanted to talk about serious matters, and he didn't know if he was being sarcastic. "With your wisdom, is there any rule in this world that you can't understand?"

"Have."

Liu Xie nodded.

"That's why I thought that everyone should just play some Gobang happily as a pastime. There's no need to come up with so many rules."

"I discovered Dong's crimes in Lintao, and I simply wanted to bring him to justice. But the old general's nephew thought that I wanted to break up with the Grand Tutor... How can I deal with this?"

Huangfu Song: "But your majesty still won."

Liu Xie: "Because the rules of the chess game are simple from the beginning, I can win."

"Clarify the administration of officials, regulate the clans, reform the laws, and allow the people of the Han Dynasty to recuperate and live in peace and contentment. This is the simplest rule of governing the world."

"But somehow, someone always comes to talk to me about politics and power, trying to extend the rules and make things more and more complicated."

"Just like the laws of the Han Dynasty, on the surface there are more and more regulations, but they are just to leave backdoors for the powerful."

"Making the rules of the world so complicated is just to allow some people to enrich themselves and exploit the people."

"Governing the world is never complicated. As long as the people are at the core, no matter who the opponent is, I will always be the winner."

Liu Xie picked up the five black pieces and put them into the chess box.

Huangfu Song's eyes, which had been fixed on the chessboard, also turned to Liu Xie's face.

At this point, Huangfu Song no longer thought that Liu Huihui was pretending in front of him.

Because it is not necessary.

So Huangfu Song believed that what Liu Xie said was true.

Huangfu Song dejectedly took back the white piece he had played earlier and held it in his hand.

"In fact, I have always had some complaints about Dong Zhongying."

"But he did the right thing in deposing King Hongnong and replacing him with the emperor."

Liu Xie raised his head in surprise.

However, after seeing the scars all over Huangfu Song's body and his weak figure, he was still slightly distracted.

Noticing Liu Xie's gaze, Huangfu Song also put his fingers on his face and gently stroked his dry wrinkles.

"I am old."

When Huangfu Song said these three words, Liu Xie was stunned.

He had never felt the weight of history as much as he did today.

As Huangfu Song grew older, the Later Han Dynasty, which had prospered for two hundred years, seemed to really appear at this moment and bid farewell to Liu Xie gently.

Liu Xie wanted to keep him.

"If the old general is willing, I would like to treat you as one of the three highest officials in the country." Huangfu Song laughed.

"Your Majesty, I appreciate your kindness, but after this incident, I no longer have the face to stand in the court."

"I am from the Anding Dynasty. Before, Anding County was plagued by Qiang people, so I never went back. This time, the court has completely quelled the Qiang people, and it is time for me to return to my roots."

Huangfu Song stood up and bowed slightly to Liu Xie.

"Before I entered the palace, my son Jianshou thought I came to ask for mercy from Your Majesty... I'm afraid not only Jianshou, but everyone in the world thought I came to ask for mercy from Your Majesty."

"But your majesty should be aware that the situation is a foregone conclusion and cannot be reversed by human power."

Liu Xie certainly knew Huangfu Song's true intentions.

"I understand. The old general is here to resign."

Huangfu Song nodded.

"I am not only here to resign, I also have something else to say to Your Majesty."

Huangfu Song took out a memorial from his sleeve and said, "But what Your Majesty said just now makes me feel ashamed. I will not present these shallow words to Your Majesty."

Liu Xie stretched out his hand to ask for it: "I am respected as an elder. The old general came to give me advice in person, how can I refuse?"

Huangfu Song had no choice but to present it to the emperor for his perusal.

"A ruler who can truly see what is desirable should think about knowing how to be restrained; when he is about to do something, he should think about knowing when to stop and keep others at ease; when he thinks of danger, he should think about being humble and self-disciplined; when he fears overflowing, he should think about the rivers and seas that can hold hundreds of rivers; when he enjoys wandering, he should think about driving three times as a measure; when he is worried about laziness, he should think about being cautious at the beginning and respectful at the end; when he is worried about obstruction, he should think about being humble and accepting his subordinates; when he thinks of slander and evil, he should think about correcting himself and eliminating evil; when he bestows favors, he should think about not rewarding wrongly because of joy; when he punishes, he should think about not punishing indiscriminately because of anger..."

"A ruler should think of self-restraint by knowing how to be content when seeing something that pleases him; should think of knowing when to stop when doing something that makes the people feel at ease; should think of being humble and strengthening self-restraint when he feels that the emperor is high above him; should think of remembering that the rivers and seas that gather rivers are just located downstream when he is proud and complacent; should think of leaving one side of the net on the three sides when hunting; should think of being cautious at the beginning and the end when he is worried about slackening his will; should think of humbly accepting the opinions of his ministers when he is worried about being deceived by the lack of communication; should think of rectifying himself when he considers that there may be slanderers and treacherous people in the court, so that he can remove the treacherous people; should think of not giving inappropriate rewards because of a momentary pleasure when bestowing favors; should think of not abusing punishments because of a momentary anger..."

Liu Xie looked at the memorial and his eyes were red without him noticing.

The whole article is full of teachings for the monarch.

When writing this memorial, Huangfu Song should no longer be the famous Han minister who was feared by the world, but just an old man who advised the king.

Huangfu Song spent all his life writing this memorial, obviously wanting to warn the emperor before leaving that he must strictly abide by the moral qualities of a monarch in the future.

"I dare not forget the old general's teachings."

Liu Xie held the memorial in his hand, stood up and bowed to Huangfu Song in a mock manner.

At this moment, Liu Xie felt even more reluctant: "If the old general retires and returns home, he can let his son Huangfu Jianshou stay and participate in the imperial examination. If he can grow up in the future, he will surely live up to the old general's reputation."

Unexpectedly, Huangfu Song refused again.

"Of course my son Jianshou will return home with me."

"It won't be long before he has to go into mourning."

"If we grant him an official position at this time, it will only cause trouble for the court."

"Besides, my son is kind-hearted and I'm afraid he is not suitable to stay in the court. It would be better for him to return to his hometown and be a teacher."

Liu Xie choked up slightly.

"Rest in peace, old general."

Huangfu Song looked at the memorial in Liu Xie's hand, then strode away with confidence without looking back.

Another few months.

News came from Huangfu Song's hometown.

Huangfu Song died suddenly after having lunch.

The imperial court immediately sent an envoy with the emperor's edict to posthumously confer the title of Grand Marshal on Huangfu Song, bestow the seal and ribbon of General of Cavalry on him, and restore the title of Marquis of Huaili that had been stripped away by Emperor Ling.

Dong Zhuo, who had always been at odds with Huangfu Song, was stunned for a long time when he heard the news. It was only when Liu Wansheng in his arms cried that Dong Zhuo came back to his senses.

After learning that the emperor had given Huangfu Song an obviously excessive reward, Dong Zhuo did not express any objection. Instead, he asked his son-in-law to take his handwritten letter, jade cong, jade bi, and jade yue to Huangfu Song and asked him to mourn on his behalf.

Dong Bai happened to be next to Dong Zhuo at this time.

Seeing Dong Zhuo in a trance, he specifically asked, "Why is Grandfather crying?"

Dong Zhuo then realized that his eyes were red and felt sour as if sand had entered them.

Seeing Dong Zhuo rubbing his eyes, Dong Bai stepped forward and hugged Liu Wansheng in his arms, teasing his little uncle.

"Bai, has the wedding date between you and His Majesty not been set yet?"

Dong Bai was also a little angry when he mentioned this matter——

"Your Majesty has been busy with the imperial examinations and the Han Dynasty laws recently, and has no time to visit me and my other sisters."

"Grandfather, do you think His Majesty suddenly doesn't want to marry me?"

Dong Zhuo laughed in silence: "How is that possible?"

"But the imperial examination and the Han Dynasty laws are indeed of top priority, so it's normal for the emperor to be concerned about them... As for marriage, it's only a matter of time."

Looking at Dong Bai, Dong Zhuo gradually became fascinated.

"I just realized now that my granddaughter is going to get married."

"Don't worry, Bai. Grandfather will urge His Majesty. After all, I'm afraid that Grandfather's time is running out."

Hearing Dong Zhuo's words, Dong Bai quickly pulled Dong Zhuo aside and made him spit a few times.

"Grandfather, don't say such things! Bai doesn't want to hear such things! If you say it again, I will be angry!"

Dong Zhuo gently stroked Dong Bai's forehead and apologized repeatedly: "Grandfather knows! Know!"

However, Dong Zhuo still pulled Dong Bai firmly and said, "Let's go. Grandfather will go to the palace to ask His Majesty for an explanation for you!"

"My granddaughter is so adorable, how can Your Majesty have the heart to keep dragging her on like this!"

(End of this chapter)