feud

Seven days after the beginning of autumn, it is July [-]th, the Ghost Festival, commonly known as Ghost Festival.

On the banks of the Yingshui River, Chen Jieyuan put a lotus lantern on the river and let it drift with the current.

Hu people don't have the term "Hungry Ghost Festival", and they don't know that on this day, the gates of the underworld will open, ghosts will rage, and when they return to the world, Liang people will worship their ancestors, burn money and clothes, and light river lanterns to illuminate the dead souls to go home the road.

In order to compete for the throne, King Chen Man of Qi colluded with the Huns to boost his own power, but the Huns were not so easy to talk to, so Chen Man sent his son to the court of the Huns Shanyu. The proton Chen Jieyuan stayed for ten years.The reign name of the Liang Dynasty is Pingkang, so he is 24 years old.

Having been alone for ten years, he had long forgotten where his home was and what his parents looked like. At first, he was still a little uncomfortable when he returned to the Central Plains.I hope this river lantern can illuminate the way home for the dead Chen Jieyuan.

Standing by the river for a long time, I turned around and went back to the camp. Above the sand table was Kyushu in the Central Plains.The visible land, the invisible undercurrent, and the treacherous and ever-changing current situation are all in the eyes of Sand Table and Chen Jieyuan.

"Mr. Chen."

Chen Jieyuan's thoughts were interrupted, he looked up at the person, and said with a smile: "It's General Jingyi, please sit down."

The man moved a bed and sat on it, and said: "The military division doesn't look happy, how about I accompany the military division to have a drink or two?"

"No, I just feel a little sad when I think of General Liu Ling."

"Hey! Why do you miss him? That guy was very impulsive, and he clearly said not to fight that Han... Han what the hell, he didn't believe it, not to mention losing his life, and even brought the soldiers to suffer."

Chen Jieyuan sighed: "He was given the surname Liu by Liu Kou, and he was eager to make military exploits to improve his prestige and show his loyalty to Chu, but he was too impatient. Hey...losing a good general is the fault of Xun."

"Military commanders don't have to be sad, that kind of person dies as soon as he dies, so why not care about him." Jingyi General Wei Ye was about the same age as Chen Jieyuan, and the two got along well, although most of them were Wei Ye who came to find Chen Jieyuan.

Wei Ye turned around and walked to the door of the tent, stooped to pick up a black package, walked in and said, "The freshly caught fish should be grilled and eaten."

"Okay." Chen Jieyuan took the fish, removed the iron rack, lit the charcoal fire, and the two of them grilled the fish in the tent.

The Emperor Liang Ren would issue an edict before the Ghost Festival, and within three days the people of the states would ban slaughtering, fishing and hunting.

"Drink something?" Chen Jieyuan took the initiative to say, Hu people love wine like life, and they have wine every day, even if they come to the Central Plains, they can't change it.He turned the fish over with a knife, revealing the golden and attractive cooked meat, cut it off and put it on the plate, and pushed it towards Wei Ye.

The Hu people ate half-cooked meat, some of which were still bleeding, stuffed into their mouths and swallowed.Chen Jieyuan was already used to it, so he quickly cut off the other half of the half-cooked fish and put it on the plate.

Wei Ye waited until there was something on his plate, and said, "Thank you, Military Adviser."

"Let's eat." Chen Jieyuan felt that Wei Ye was polite among the barbarians, and he didn't seem to be restrained when getting along with him, so he grabbed the meat casually and said, "General Jingyi has [-] troops, all of them Heavy armored cavalry is the mainstay of the army, and a big battle is imminent, so don't be impulsive and reckless like Liu Ling."

-

The Hungry Ghost Festival is a festival for the Liang people, and the Hu people don't have the practice of worshiping their ancestors, so as usual, Cen Li was busy with the school, returned to the mansion after dark, walked into the yard, and saw He Zhi Nian was fiddling with something by the pond, and the candlelight flickered, and walked over curiously.

He Zhinian is weaving thinned bamboo into a small basket shape, and put a lotus flower in the pond, hollowed out the heart of the flower and filled it with oil to make a lamp, he is making the second lamp, put the wick into the oil In the middle, he flicked the torch and lit it, looked up at Cen Li, and continued to work.

Put the lotus lanterns into the pool one by one, illuminating the water surface, making ripples, so beautiful that Cen Li was stunned.He Zhinian didn't know whether he was talking to Cen Li or talking to himself, and said: "The souls of the dead will come out of the underworld to wander tonight. Light two river lanterns to illuminate the way for the son's father and his elder brother. I hope they Can bless the young master to wake up as soon as possible."

Cen Li watched the lotus lanterns fluttering, and thought of the days when his father and Tu Ya were galloping happily in the grassland.It turns out that people in the Central Plains are so romantic that they would pin their thoughts on the dead on a small but bright river lamp to illuminate the way home.

The floating river lanterns are like stumbling people and souls. The reunion between the two worlds should be so touching, undulating in the tide, bright in the dark, even though it is the fantasy of the living.

The lotus lantern was supposed to be placed in the river, but He Zhinian didn't want to go out, so he had to put it in the pond, but no matter where he put it, he believed that Wang Bing's father and brother would see it and find it here.

After setting off the lotus lantern, He Zhinian went back to the house, checked Wang Bing's pulse, packed up the silver needle tools, wrapped himself in a quilt and a straw mat and slept on the ground, the lamp was still on.

Cen Li stood by the pool by himself for a while, then turned and entered the room, saw that He Zhinian had already fallen asleep, and turned off the light with the lampshade.Walked to the side of the couch by the moonlight, sat on the ground, habitually went to hold Wang Bing's hand under the quilt, and said softly: "I received the news today that Liu Ling died, Han Kuang, he, avenge your elder brother gone."

With a pulse that was so weak that it was almost undetectable, Cen Li's nose was sore, he tightened the hands on his wrists, buried his face in the quilt, his shoulders trembled violently, and he choked up.

-

Jiankang Palace.

After the sacrifice ceremony of the Ghost Festival was over, Chen Huai returned to the palace. He couldn't bear to look at any simple things anymore, so he irritatedly sent the servant of the Huangmen away, and went to Hualin Garden to relax.

Ever since he came out of the maze that day, Wang Hong has been bedridden and did not go to court.The case of missing military pay fell into Gu Siquan's hands.

As soon as Yu Lin finished his dinner, he was ordered to come to this royal garden, met the emperor, and after performing the etiquette, he stood silently by the side like a pillar.

In autumn, when the apricot blossoms withered, Chen Huai said to the fallen leaves all over the ground, "Yu Aiqing, do you know why I called you here?"

Yu Lin said: "Your Majesty is stupid, please show me clearly."

Chen Huai bent over and twirled a dead leaf, held it in his hand to look at it, and said indifferently: "Ai Qing thinks that if something happens to both me and the prime minister, who will benefit the most?"

Yu Lin said even more humbly: "Your Majesty the Ninth Five-Year Honor, God blesses you..."

"That's not what I want to hear." Chen Huai turned around, looked at the loyal minister in front of him, and said with a bit more condemnation in his tone, "You haven't figured out what I told you last time? You want to learn from Zhuang Zixiu. Do you regard my court as Pushui?"

Yu Lin lowered his head even more, and said respectfully: "Your Majesty is someone like the King of Chu Wei, while my minister is just a tortoise rolling in the mud. I know that I am like an ant. I only dare to follow the example of my ancestors, and I dare not imitate it." .”

Chen Huai almost jumped up and cursed, walked up to Yu Lin, pointed at him, and said angrily, "You really want to learn from him!"

Yu Lin immediately knelt down, resting his head on the back of his hands, in a submissive gesture, not refusing to refute.

Chen Huai didn't take soft things the most, so he softened a bit, and said, "I know you have a heart to live in seclusion, but the current situation allows you to be so leisurely? If the romantic prime minister Xie Anshi makes a comeback, you are really willing, Come to this world for a while, and go away without a name?"

Yu Lin didn't dare to raise his head, and said in a muffled voice: "During the prime minister's recuperation period, under the guise of checking the military salary, Gu Dazai used all the obvious and secret methods of the aristocratic families who supported His Majesty to squeeze out the military salary. It's all gone, the matter is a foregone conclusion, but he himself is also tied to them, why don't your majesty be a favor, sell him a favor, suppress the anger of the family for him, and then..."

"Bad idea!" Chen Huai thought he had some brilliant plan, but let him be a cheap peacemaker again, and turned around furiously, "You are feeding a tiger! He has moved on my head, and then Forbearance, this Jiangshan's surname is not Chen!"

After being drank by him like this, Yu Lin shut up again, obediently lying on the ground.The prime minister did not go to court for a few days, and the emperor's temper became extremely unstable. He thought he did not have Wang Hongru's capacity to appease the angry emperor.

There was another silence, and Chen Huai was angry, but he still had to discuss a countermeasure, saying: "I have tolerated them for a long time, this is the country laid down by my father, why should I curry favor with them instead? I am the Son of Heaven ——" He specifically emphasized the word "Son of Heaven", which shows how wronged and unwilling he is at the moment.

Yes, once the emperor, he was played by a group of subordinates.The aboriginal aristocratic Wu people do not want to forget the vengeance of destroying the country, let alone this bastard emperor who descended from the sky, who surrendered on the surface, and showed his true nature in the face of the national crisis, pushing and shoving each other but not being able to donate property, but in reality they are all rich. !If these parasites are not eliminated, the tree of Daliang will sooner or later be devoured by them.Wang Hong, who was the only one who could check and balance Gu Siquan, fell ill. At the time when he was employing people, Shang Shuling still stood by with his hands in the attitude of watching a play, how could he not be angry!

Chen Huai waited for a long time without waiting for his answer, turned around again, and instantly raised the volume: "I didn't tell you to shut up! Yu Ze!"

Yu Lin trembled all over. He had only now personally experienced the fickleness of the emperor, and he admired Wang Hong even more in his heart.Said: "Your Majesty, do you want the minister to replace the prime minister and deal with Gu Siquan?"

"That's right. After all, I'm the Son of Heaven, so I can't fall out with him face to face, but I wish I could cut him up now!" Chen Huai walked over to help him up, and frowned, "The tiger should wake up!" , Yu Ze, if you keep a wait-and-see attitude, then I can go to accompany the prime minister, regardless of this mess. But I can't, and you can't either, some people are born with much more things to bear than others. "

Yu Lin numbly let the Son of Heaven help him up, only dared to stare at the bluestone floor, and said: "Your Majesty's order is hard to disobey, and I will play games with Gu Siquan according to His Majesty's will."

"However, Your Majesty, the king of Yue, Jiuqian, only destroyed Wu and became hegemony after he had tasted his courage. The king regards the world as his home, and he is full of ambition and does not strive for a momentary speed. He can calmly deal with it even in the abyss. Today is different from the past. Frontline battles are related to the destiny of our dynasty. If your majesty can't swallow this breath and provoke civil strife, what will be the consequences? It will only lead to internal and external difficulties. Please think twice, your majesty. Could it be that Prime Minister Wang has done everything for his majesty to get the post of Jiandong general? In order to finally see His Majesty... to see His Majesty ruin the country with his own hands?!"

-

"Would you like to release the river lantern? Hanwang Mountain?"

Zhuge Gong walked into Han Kuang's tent, holding two deformed river lanterns in his hand, staring at Han Kuang while lying on the desk, and said: "On the night of Zhongyuan, the souls of the dead return to the underworld, light a lamp for the sons who died. How about a lamp? Look at me, General Zhenjun, Han Kuang?"

Han Kuang got impatient with his quarrel, so he had to put down Jian Ce, and said helplessly, "You want them to suffer in the army after they die? Hey you...don't suppress Jian Ce!"

Zhuge Gong nodded thoughtfully, "It seems to make sense, then forget it, give some to your family and relatives?"

Han Kuang sneered, and said, "What kind of family, the young master said that I was sold into the palace as a slave before I was sensible. Now I don't remember what my family looks like. If you like to go, take your hands away! I will be crushed by you!"

"Then just play with it, I'm so boring by myself." Zhuge Gong thought in his heart, and said, "And I just smelled a strange smell on you, it's really weird."

Han Kuang looked at him dubiously, and said, "What... the smell?"

"Moldy smell! Do you know, General Zhenjun, you haven't left your camp for seven days in a row, and the soldiers all think that you died for the country with the shroud of Han Wangshan horse leather. Let's go, my general, go, go, go, go." Zhuge Gong picked up his whole body from the pile of bamboo slips behind him, pushed him and said, "Just treat it for me, okay? One day I die in battle, and I can still think of this river lamp. Come back and talk to you, let's go!" Let's go!"

He said that, Han Kuang really felt like he hadn't seen the sun for a long time, his train of thought was interrupted anyway, so it's okay to go out for a breather.

"This is Jijiang, come—come—"

Zhuge Gong was still babbling as usual, and Han Kuang followed behind him.The autumn night is slightly cool, the wind makes people get goosebumps, and the moonlight shines on the river like scales, like the Milky Way on earth.

Han Kuang took a closer look, his face immediately elongated, and he didn't swear by the cultivation of a higher domestic slave, and said, "You are... a lotus lantern?"

Zhuge Gong squatted by the river, raised his head when he heard the words, raised the deformed lotus lantern in his hand, and said desperately: "Of course it is! You old man cares a lot about this, and your heart is the most important thing."

"Okay." Han Kuang took the fire folder he handed over, shook it, and because the lotus lantern was too clumsy, it took him several times to light it, and said, "What about you, who do you want to light this lantern for? "

Just as Han Kuang was getting ready to listen to the story, Zhuge Gong acted like a dandy, laughing and saying, "For myself. One day I will be shrouded in horse leather, and no one will light me a lotus lantern. After the Ghost Festival Become a dead soul and come out to wander, with this lamp, you won’t be tripped and knocked to death, eh, no, I’ve already died once, hey, how did I become a mother-in-law like you, anyway, that’s what it means!"

Han Kuang shook his head, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, put the lamp on the water, pushed it lightly, the candle flame flickered in his eyes, and said: "Then I will light this one for you too, anyway, I have no relatives to pay homage to. Why? Look at it this way with me?"

Zhuge Gong stared blankly at Han Kuang, the water light cast a soft light on his face, his sword eyebrows were slightly raised, his eyes were like ink, and his chin was sharp and handsome, this is Zhang Ying's aggressive There was no trace of refinement or weakness on the face.But from Zhuge Gong's point of view, his side face has a high nose bridge, a little protruding brow bone, but a somewhat weak and well-behaved appearance, which made Zhuge Gong fascinated.

"No...it's nothing! Good brother!" Zhuge Gong patted him on the shoulder and said, "Good brother, I, Zhuge Yichang, recognize you as a brother. Come, I will light it, and I will definitely catch up with your lamp."

Han Kuang staggered when he was caught off guard, thinking that Zhuge Gong would take his words and then go into a rage and say that he wished him to die sooner, but he didn't think that he would suddenly recognize him as a brother, and smiled helplessly.

Sure enough, it was difficult for the two of them to think of going together.

Two ugly lotus lanterns floated across the river one after the other. Soon, the one released by Zhuge Gong caught up with Han Kuang's and miraculously surpassed the latter.

Han Kuang looked into the distance, and the endless plain was shrouded in thick night.Even he himself didn't know why, so he blurted out: "In the future, you can't pat other people's shoulders on the night of the Ghost Festival. People have three places with the most yang energy, shoulders and forehead. If you pat one out, I will be easily patted. The ghost is here."

Zhuge Gong: "..."

-

Jiankang City Imperial Palace, the wind suddenly picked up, and the fallen leaves were scattered like snowflakes, and a few pieces stopped on the head of the emperor.

Chen Huai closed his eyes and clenched his fists. After a long time, he said in a hoarse voice: "What does the prime minister think, don't bother Shang Shuling."

Yu Lin's knees were already numb, and he said, "Here."

Chen Huai said weakly: "Back off, I want to be alone for a while."

There was only one person left, Chen Huai took away the dead leaves that fell on his shoulders, and suddenly remembered that there was still osmanthus wine buried under the tree.

A cold, short but powerful voice sounded: "Your Majesty."

"Yao Tingwei, what did you find?" Chen Huai stood with his hands behind his back and turned around.

"Returning to Your Majesty, on the night before the beginning of autumn, a party member entered the garden and never came out again. This is the portrait I drew based on the testimony of eyewitnesses."

Chen Huai took the portrait, looked at it carefully, and said, "This person is extremely ugly, and it's not hard to find."

Yao Zhen said: "People from Tingwei Temple searched all over Jiankang City, but they didn't find that alchemist."

Chen Huai took the portrait and said, "Have you really searched all over? There are still many places that have not been searched? For example, the mansions of Ji Chengming and Gu Siquan have not welcomed Mr. Ting Wei, right? You take my imperial decree, Go and be a guest this time. Yao Aiqing, don't let me down."

In the prime minister's mansion, Wang Hong reluctantly sat and listened to Yu Lin's unhurried and unhurried passage through Hualin Garden.

Physician Jiang who was outside the door immediately rushed in after hearing the sound, his temples throbbed wildly, and he wailed, "The prime minister is ill, don't worry about it!"

"Old doctor, I'm just going to the palace for a face-to-face meeting. I have a carriage, and I'll be back soon." Seeing that doctor Jiang was going to salute, his head was getting big, and he was afraid that his old waist would be broken, so he said immediately: " What is the imperial physician doing, hurry up and get up, I'm pissing off this junior!"

Doctor Jiang knelt down and said: "This old man is ordered to take care of the prime minister until his health is back to normal. Prime Minister, you are calling this old man unfaithful!"

Yu Lin looked at Wang Hong in embarrassment, "This..."

"Forget it, Imperial Physician Jiang, please get up quickly, I just don't want to go." Wang Hong had no choice but to help him up himself.Shouted: "Ah Shan, go and call Deng Yuai over."

Prime Minister Chang Shi is in his 30s, but he looks like a young man in his 20s.Dressed in blue and white, he walked slowly into the room and bowed to everyone.Said: "What is the prime minister's order?"

"Bring a pen and paper. I also have my official seal. I will meet His Majesty in the palace later." After Wang Hong finished speaking, he looked at Imperial Physician Jiang and said, "Principal Physician, can I write?"

Imperial Physician Jiang immediately said: "Of course I can. I will step down first."

So there were only three people left in the room, Wang Hong threw the pen aside, and said: "Deng Yuai, bring me my official seal, and also, take off my clothes."

Deng Yuai: "..."

Yu Lin: "..."