Three Kingdoms: Ancestors of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 190
In the middle of summer, the calm Chengdu is gradually getting stormy.

In the gazebo, Liu Chan knelt on the couch, dressed in thin clothes, holding a scroll, studying quietly.

Qiao Zhou, Guo Youzhi, and Liao Li also sat on the ground beside them, feeling the cool breeze blowing away the summer heat.For a while, everyone was very uncomfortable.

Since Dong Yun was ordered by Liu Chan to investigate the civil uprising in Sichuan, Liao Li, who had a grudge with Dong Yun, was very uncomfortable.

After Fei Yi went to Guanghan County to become the prefect, there was no one around Liu Chan to use, so he brought back Guo Youzhi, who had previously assisted Zhuge Liang in dealing with religious issues, by his side.

Guo You, courtesy name Yanchang, was born in Nanyang, Jingzhou.Because the family believes in the way of heavenly masters, it may also be called the Five Dou Rice Religion, so the name is added after it to show piety (Note ①).

During the Battle of Hanzhong, Zhang Lu of Tianshi Taoism returned to Cao Cao of Taoism of the same faith, which made Lao Liu really sad.

Although it cannot be said that Cao Cao's belief in Taoism was the main reason for Zhang Lu's submission, it certainly played an important role.

Moreover, Zhang Lu left angrily saying, "I would rather be a slave of Cao Gong than a guest of Liu Bei." In the end, he encouraged the people of Hanzhong to follow Cao Cao to Guanzhong and remove nearly half of the population of Hanzhong.

These things really made Lao Liu very sad.

Because of this, Lao Liu also began to realize the influence of the witch ghost way and celestial master way spread in the Bashu area on politics.

So Lao Liu chose the taller one from the shorter ones, and finally selected Guo Youzhi, a young man from Jingzhou, from the crowd to assist him in handling religious affairs.After Liu Chan succeeded to the throne, he also followed Zhuge Liang's suggestion and promoted him to a servant in order to win over the religious forces in Yizhou.

Guo Youzhi has a gentle temperament and self-knowledge. He knows that his talents are not as good as Guan Xing, Fei Yi, Dong Yun and others, so he basically agrees with others' opinions for fear of making mistakes.

After Liu Chan came to power, he has been busy with affairs. The wars between Nanzhong and Longyou intersected, and his free time was reserved for wooing Yizhou scholars and farming affairs in Yizhou, and he did not have time to take care of religious affairs.

After the victory of the Northern Expedition, Liu Chan, who was free, began to focus on the religious issues in Yizhou, trying to better solve the religious issues, so he transferred Guo Youzhi back to his side for consultation.

After a long time, Liu Chan rubbed his sore eyes, moved his eyes away from the scroll, looked at the scenery outside the pavilion, and relaxed his eyes.

"Has something new happened in Chengdu recently!" Liu Chan looked at the scenery and asked everyone with his back turned.

Liu Chan lives in a deep palace and rarely visits in secret.To know the affairs of the great Han Dynasty, in addition to the officials' performances, one relies on the collection of customs to make the performances, and the other depends on asking the cronies around you to know other affairs.

Qiao Zhou put down the scroll, pondered for a while, and said, "There is nothing important to discover recently, only Wei Guoxie sneaked into Chengdu to encourage the people, please give the prime minister Jiuxi."

Liu Chan's eyes flickered, and he said with a smile, "Oh, that's interesting! Can you elaborate on this matter?"

"A few days ago, an old man went to the prime minister's mansion and asked the prime minister to give him nine tins. The prime minister refused to accept it, and said that the Northern Expedition has made some achievements, but it is still difficult to repay the kindness of the great man. How dare he grant nine tins.... Destroy Wei and kill Cao Rui, Your Majesty will return to the old capital, and Shixi can also be given!" Qiao Yiyi came together.

"Then how do you know that this matter is the work of Wei Guoxi?" Liu Chan asked.

"Prime Minister Shang captured the old man at the head, and interrogated him to find out!" Qiao Zhou laughed.

Liu Chan closed the scroll, somewhat doubtful, not doubting that Zhuge Liang really wanted to teach Jiuxi, but doubting whether it was really Cao Wei who sent spies into Shu to encourage the people, after all, everything is possible.

Maybe Zhuge Liang knew who did it, but he was just worried that speaking out would disturb the current stable political situation of the big man, so he had to continue to let out the wind to make the ruling and opposition parties think that Cao Wei did it.

Liu Chan didn't know Zhuge Liang's thoughts at the moment, so he didn't dare express his opinion easily, so he could only follow Qiao Zhou's words and said with a smile: "Xiangfu is loyal to the great man, and his heart can be learned from the sun and the moon, so he can look down on the world. Is it a trick to deceive me, a big man, and no one knows this trick?"

Liu Chan seemed to have thought of something, put the scroll on the case, and said disapprovingly, "Have similar things happened in Longyou and Badi recently?"

Guo Youzhi thought for a while, and said, "No big thing happened, but Badi admired a widow."

Liu Chan was a little interested, and asked gossip, "Could it be that the widow doesn't want him to marry?"

Guo Youzhi looked up and saw that Liu Chan was interested, and continued, "Your Majesty is wise, but this matter involves Li Zhengfang (Li Yan), the governor of Jiangzhou."

Liu Chan frowned slightly, showing dissatisfaction, and motioned Guo Youzhi to continue.

Guo Youzhi was relieved, and narrated: "This widow's name is Cheng Zhenjue, she is very beautiful, and her husband is Zhang Wei, a senior scholar. Zhang Wei is rough and talented, and he works in the Jiangzhou Governor's Mansion. Zhang Wei died of illness a few years ago, leaving behind Cheng Zhenjue. one person."

"Wang Chong, the tooth general in the army, occasionally saw Cheng Zhenjue. He was shocked and fell in love with him. After Zhang Wei's death, he wanted Cheng Zhenjue to be his wife, but Cheng Zhenjue refused. Forcing Cheng Zhenjue to marry Wang Chong, Cheng Zhenjue would rather die than surrender, throw herself into the river and be rescued!"

"Since then, the people of Jiangzhou have admired Cheng Zhenjue a lot. After this incident, Dudu Li felt ashamed and wanted to question Wang Chong. But what is interesting is that Wang Chong fled in fear of crime and defected to Cao Wei."

In Guo Youzhi's indifferent narration, there is a meaning.

Liu Chan glanced at Guo Youzhi, but he didn't expect this gentle Guo Youzhi to hide his blade between his words, referring to Li Yan, the governor of Jiangzhou.

The implication is that during his tenure in Jiangzhou, Li Yan, the governor of Jiangzhou, wooed generals and schools and colluded with party members.Forced the widow to marry him, and finally saw that the matter was revealed, and wanted to convict Wang Chong, but worried that Wang Chong would confess to him, so he informed Wang Chong in advance and let him go.

Liu Chan's face was flat, he picked up the teacup, took a sip, and said meaningfully: "The tree wants to be quiet but the wind does not stop; the waves want to be calm but the tide keeps going!"

The three people present were thinking about each other, Qiao Zhou didn't let go of the scroll, as if reading a book; Liao Li stroked his beard, thoughtful; Guo Youzhi, who had reached his goal, fell into silence.

Liu Chan glanced at Guo You. Li Yan was Guo Youzhi's township party member in Nanyang, Jingzhou. It was a little strange why Guo Youzhi would attack Li Yan.

Liu Chan tentatively asked: "I wonder what you think of Governor Li?"

Liao Li Fuxu said arrogantly: "Li Dudu is quite talented, he is proficient in martial arts, and he is an official of culture and customs."

Liu Chan looked unhappy and glanced at Liao Li; Qiao Zhou and Guo Youzhi also frowned slightly, dissatisfied with Liao Li's arrogant words.

Qiao Zhou said cautiously: "Dudu Li has quite the essence of legal studies."

Guo Youzhi hesitated for a while, then said in a low voice: "Dudu Li is worried about state affairs, and often writes to ask about matters in the next court."

Liu Chan sneered, undeniable to Li Yan.

Although Liu Chan knew that Li Yan often formed cliques for personal gain, he did not associate Zhuge Liang's award of Jiuxi with Li Yan.
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①The Wang family in the Eastern Jin Dynasty also added after their names because of their belief in the way of heavenly masters, such as Wang Xizhi, Wang Xianzhi, Wang Huizhi, Wang Caozhi, Wang Ningzhi, Wang Huanzhi, Wang Suzhi, etc.

(End of this chapter)