Chapter 114 Chaotic Bloody Stairs (4k)
Zhang Zhongyu had not yet absorbed the Wu Shi San, and his skin was extremely sensitive. He was punched one after another, completely shattering last night's dream.
He now opened his mouth to beg for mercy, but could only make miserable howls.
Soon, Zhang Zhongyu fainted from the pain, but the guards who were beating him were still not satisfied. Their fists fell like rain, and soon Zhang Zhongyu died in the corner like a dead dog.
Seeing Zhang Zhongyu's death, Hou Yuan felt a sense of pleasure in his heart of revenge. He knew that he had no way out, so he simply snatched the torch from the soldier next to him.
Hou Yuan looked at the tall Sikong Mansion. The sun had already set. He then looked at the side door in the backyard of the Sikong Mansion, which had not been closed in time, and rushed over immediately.
Hou Yuan rushed forward, and the battalion commander Mu Shaoyou also ordered his soldiers to charge forward.
Led by two people, the imperial guards rushed into Sikong Zhang's mansion frantically. Then soldiers rushed into the mansion with firewood and started to set fire with Hou Yuan.
The imperial army rushed into the palace, and no matter how high the morale of the guards guarding the palace was, they finally couldn't hold on. After all, there were enemies outside the palace that outnumbered them several times, and the guards inside the palace had no armor. Even if the enemy had no weapons, they could be beaten to death with one punch.
These ordinary imperial guards became even angrier when they saw the magnificent pavilions and stairs in the Sikong Mansion.
The imperial guards then armed themselves with torches and used sticks and stones as weapons and went straight to the residence of Sikong and set fire to the buildings inside.
Zhang Yi, who was guarding the front gate, saw the fire in the backyard and was planning to organize the guards around him to fight again. However, he did not expect that most of the guards around him had already dispersed, and the imperial guards, who were already blood-thirsty, had already rushed to the front hall.
At this time, Mu Shaoyou was already blood-thirsty. He snatched the blade of the Sikong Mansion guard. The angry imperial guards rushed forward and chopped down the last few loyal servants around Zhang Yi, and finally dragged Zhang Yi to the hall.
Zhang Yi was already old and sick, and was dragged by Mu Shaoyou, begging for mercy.
Mu Shaoyou looked at the brocade robe on Zhang Yi. It turned out that this minister was also made of flesh and blood. He would cry out in pain and beg for mercy when he was beaten.
Mu Shaoyou put down the blade, picked up a piece of wood from the ground, and hit Zhang Yi's body with it, causing him to roll on the ground in pain.
More soldiers joined in this violent feast. When Zhang Yi was almost on the verge of death from the beating, Mu Shaoyou picked up a torch, set the Mingtang on fire, and threw Zhang Yi in.
On the tall building of Princess Chenliu's mansion, Princess Chenliu saw the flames rising to the sky from Sikong Mansion and clapped her hands and said, "It's on fire! It's a big deal!"
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In the North Palace, General of the Guards, Prince of Jiangyang Yuan Yi, who was in charge of the palace guards, and Grand Chamberlain Liu Teng, who was in charge of the palace eunuchs, knelt in front of the throne of Empress Dowager Hu. General Hou Gang of the Left Guard, who was in charge of the Langwei, had his hands tied behind his back and was forced to kneel on the side by two armored soldiers.
Prince Yuanyi of Jiangyang said, "Queen Mother, the Bailu Cao sent a message that the rebellious imperial guards, led by the commander of the Caiguanying Brigade, Hou Yuan, have already invaded the residence of Zhang Sikong. Now the residence is on fire, and it is unknown whether Zhang Yi and his son are alive or dead."
Behind the pearl curtain, Empress Dowager Hu's face was full of panic. This time the rebellion of the imperial guards made her even more confused than the last assassination in Yongning Temple, which made her feel unsafe even in the imperial palace.
Yuan Yi and Liu Teng outside the pearl curtain were the people that Empress Dowager Hu trusted the most. She asked:
"King Jiangyang! How can we put down the rebellion of the imperial guards?"
In fact, Empress Dowager Hu had asked this question when the imperial guards entered Luoyang. Yuan Yi’s answer at that time was “guard the palace gates carefully and prevent palace coups.”
Yuan Yi's answer at the time was to wait for the imperial guards to cause a bigger disturbance before he could use it to attack Qinghe Prince Yuan Yi.
Now that the Imperial Guards have fallen into chaos, it is naturally time to put an end to this farce.
King Yuanyi of Jiangyang gave the solution he had already thought of, saying: "Execute the main culprit and pardon the accomplices."
Empress Dowager Hu asked, "Who is the main culprit?"
Now King Jiangyang Yuan Yi also had a headache. The "main culprit" who led the imperial guards to revolt was Hou Yuan, the son of General Hou Gang of the Left Guard, whom he had recommended. The fire had not yet spread to King Qinghe, but had spread to himself first.
After receiving this news, Jiangyang King Yuan Yi's first step was to strip Hou Gang of his military power and put him under custody.
King Yuanyi of Jiangyang looked at Hou Gang. He originally wanted to kill Hou Gang with his own hands, but Hou Gang said that he wanted to explain to the Queen Mother in person, so he spared his life.
When Empress Dowager Hu asked, Hou Gang said loudly, "The chief culprit, Hou Yuan, is my son."
Empress Dowager Hu stood up from the throne in shock. Hou Gang, who was held by the soldiers, said, "I discovered this rebellious son's conspiracy a few days ago and imprisoned him in my house. I didn't expect that the traitor would go to my house first and rescue this rebellious son. He has brought such a tragedy to the court. I am willing to die!"
Hou Gang banged his head on the ground and said, "Please allow me to quell the rebellion, Queen Mother! I will do my best to kill my relatives and the ringleader, and then die to atone for my crime!"
This time, even the eunuch Liu Teng had a different expression when looking at Hou Gang. He was cruel, indeed he was a cruel man!
Hou Gang is too cruel to himself!
Empress Dowager Hu listened to Hou Gang's words, but still did not trust him.
Empress Dowager Hu was suspicious herself, not to mention that the main culprit was Hou Gang's son. If she let him go and lead the imperial guards to continue rebelling, that would be like letting a tiger return to the mountain.
However, Hou Gang's attitude also shows that the Langwei system he controls is still loyal. Empress Dowager Hu looked at her brother-in-law Yuan Yi, and Yuan Yi said:
"I am willing to take General Hou with me to quell the rebellion!"
Yuan Yi had no choice. Given the current situation, no matter how much he hated Hou Gang, he had to protect him.
Seeing Yuan Yi as a guarantor, Empress Dowager Hu decided to give Hou Gang another chance. She said, "Then assign a guard to him, grant him the tiger seal to mobilize troops, and give him to King Jiangyang to go and quell the rebellion. Only the ringleader will be executed, and the accomplices will be pardoned."
At this time, another guard on duty at the palace gate came to report:
"Your Majesty, the Minister of State Affairs, Guangyang Wang Shen, and the Minister of Personnel, Cui Liang, are knocking outside the North Palace Gate, requesting to see the Queen Mother."
Now Empress Dowager Hu was eager to know the news outside the palace, so she hurriedly said, "Summon him!"
Yuan Yi and Liu Teng looked at each other and saw reluctance in each other's eyes.
During the period of blockade of Beigong, they were the only ones who could influence Empress Dowager Hu. During this period, they instilled a lot of slander into Empress Dowager Hu, causing her to once again begin to doubt Prince Qinghe and even the ministers of the Secretariat.
If Empress Dowager Hu only trusted herself, then she could achieve the goal of "isolating herself from the outside world and managing the government."
But unfortunately, the time was too short. Although Empress Dowager Hu was short-sighted in politics, she at least understood the need to listen to different voices. After the ministers from the outer court entered the palace, things were no longer under her full control.
King Jiangyang Yuanyi stood up. He now had more important things to do.
Although Empress Dowager Hu summoned Yuan Shen and Cui Liang, she did not dare to let the guards open the North Palace Gate. She just used a hanging basket to lift the two up.
Yuan Yi and Hou Gang also had to go down in a basket when they went out to quell the rebellion.
The four of them happened to meet on the wall of Beigong. Yuan Shen and Cui Liang saw Yuan Yi and saluted respectfully with their arms crossed. Yuan Yi said calmly, "The military situation is urgent. I have been ordered by the emperor to suppress the rebellion. I will leave you two for now."
Yuan Shen and Cui Liang quickly bowed and said yes. The four of them passed each other, each with different thoughts.
-
Time goes back to before dark, to the Shangshu Terrace.
The Minister of State Yuan Shen saw an opportunity.
He knew Su Ze outside the door, but the ministers in the Secretariat did not know Su Ze.
Although Su Ze said that he would guard the Shangshu Terrace, the ministers were still not sure whether it was a lie. What if the imperial guards rushed in after the gate was opened, how would the unarmed scholars in the Shangshu Terrace respond?
The best way is to wait until the situation in Luoyang calms down and the Shangshutai ensures safety before opening the door. But Yuan Shen doesn't think so.
The person who shared the same idea as him was the Minister of Personnel Cui Liang.
The Ministry of Personnel was the head of the thirty-six departments under the Secretariat, in charge of the personnel power of selecting, appointing and evaluating officials. The Minister of Personnel was also the real minister of the Secretariat.
This Minister Cui and Cui Guang were both from the Qinghe Cui family. During his tenure, he promoted countless children from aristocratic families and had a profound influence in the court.
However, although the Secretariat was powerful, it was still just an executive body. In the Wei Dynasty, even the Shangshu Ling was not considered a prime minister, let alone these Shangshu.
Cui Liang had also reached the ceiling of Han ministers. The Shangshu Ling above him were all princes of the Wei Dynasty, and this position was a nominal one. For example, there was no Shangshu Ling to lead the Shangshu Office now, and all major and minor matters were discussed and handled by the Shangshu.
If one wants to become a real prime minister, he must be given a position in the Menxia Province, such as the Minister of the Palace, or the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat.
In order to obtain such a title, one must gain the trust of the Supreme.
Like the distant clan leader Yuan Shen, Cui Liang also saw this opportunity.
If he could appear before Empress Dowager Hu at this time and report the situation outside the palace to her, he would surely gain her full trust.
Yuan Shen and Cui Liang both saw this opportunity, and they decided to take the risk of leaving the Shangshu Terrace and talk to Su Ze, who claimed to protect the Shangshu Terrace.
It turned out that they made the right bet.
After getting Su Ze's guarantee and loyalty, the ministers of the Secretariat, under the leadership of Yuan Shen and Cui Liang, quickly granted Su Ze the order of the Secretariat in charge of the garrison of Nan Ya. Relying on this order, Su Ze quickly controlled the situation in the entire Nan Palace.
After ensuring the safety of the Southern Court and understanding the situation in Luoyang through various means, Yuan Shen and Cui Liang decisively went to the palace to ask for a meeting.
This led to the encounter with Yuan Yi Hou Gang on the Beigong city wall.
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King Yuanyi of Jiangyang looked curiously at the restored order in the Southern Court, as if the chaos had never happened. After he walked out of the gate of the Southern Palace, he said to Hou Gang beside him:
"You know what to do, right?"
Hou Gang lowered his head and said, "I understand."
King Yuanyi of Jiangyang said, "I will go to the residences of the princes, ministers and officials and summon their guards with an imperial decree. How many troops do you need to quell the rebellion of the imperial guards?"
Hou Gang said: "Five hundred elite soldiers will be enough."
"Okay, I'll do it right away."
With the Queen Mother's order, Prince Yuan Yi of Jiangyang quickly mobilized 500 guards from the residences of the princes, ministers and high officials. He did not dare to give these guards armor, but simply used the tiger talisman to open the Zang Office, distributed weapons to these guards, and led them to the Sikong Mansion.
Flames from the Sikong Mansion shot up into the sky, but the Imperial Guards had no unified leader. Apart from looting the mansion, they were like a headless fly with no idea what to do next.
A part of the imperial guards began to join the looting team, and the houses around Zhang's mansion were in trouble. Even the Shamen Temple was rushed into and robbed by the imperial guards.
Some of the imperial guards became frightened and simply dropped their weapons and returned home.
When Prince Jiangyang and Hou Gang led their troops over, Hou Gang had people spread the message of the imperial court's policy along the way, which was "let accomplices be forgiven for past crimes."
Hou Gang did not send anyone to chase the fleeing imperial guards. More imperial guards left Sikong Mansion and returned home with the looted spoils.
Hou Gang didn't have to spend much effort to surround the last group of Yulin troops around Sikong Mansion.
Hou Yuan, who was wearing a red cloak, saw his father. He ran towards his father excitedly, but when he opened his mouth, he couldn't say anything, and he saw a red light of blood.
Hou Yuan's head flew into the air and was caught by Hou Gang. He held up his son's head and said:
"The main culprit has been killed! You are not guilty of laying down your weapons!"
Yuan Yi, who was standing behind Hou Gang, smiled. Hou Gang's performance proved his worthiness to continue serving him, but he might not be able to continue to be the General of the Left Guard. No matter how magnanimous Empress Dowager Hu was, she could not allow a man whose son had rebelled to continue to stay in the palace.
Yuan Yi was thinking about how to get the Queen Mother to pardon Hou Gang and arrange a new position for him.
When the Yu Lin soldiers in front of Sikong Mansion saw that Hou Yuan, who was regarded as a flag, was dead, they all laid down their weapons and surrendered.
Just before Hou Gang put down the rebellion, Mu Shaoyou left Luoyang City, carrying the property he had looted from Sikong Mansion, following a masked man in black.
Looking back at the flames rising to the sky in Luoyang City, the man in black said to Mu Shaoyou: "Your family is in the car, you can leave Luoyang now."
Mu Shaoyou lowered his head and asked, "Where can I go after leaving Luoyang?"
"Where you go is up to you."
Mu Shaoyou got on the carriage and was about to drive away when he heard the sound of hurried horse hooves.
Could it be that the person who was chasing him was him?
Just when Mu Shaoyou was about to whip the whip and gallop, several military horses passed by him. They were not rushing out of Luoyang City, but entering Luoyang?
But who would ride a horse into the city at this time of night?
Mu Shaoyou's question was soon answered. He heard the messenger on horseback shouting:
"Military situation in the six towns! The Rouran Gaocha are invading! Huaishuo and Wuchuan towns are in danger!"
Hearing this military intelligence, Mu Shaoyou trembled all over. His wife came out of the car and asked anxiously: "This world is getting more and more difficult. Where should we go, my dear?"
Mu Shaoyou looked to the north and said, "Let's go to Pingcheng."
"Ah? Didn't the knight just say that there was chaos in the six towns?"
Mu Shaoyou said: "My uncle Mu Shao is the garrison commander in Pingcheng. If there is chaos in the northern border, I still have a chance."
After this incident, Mu Shaoyou was no longer the camp commander who only thought about embezzling the profits from the southern goods trade.
The wife asked, "What chance?"
Mu Shaoyou said: "The situation is going to be chaotic, where can we escape to? When the chaos comes, the only way to protect you is to climb higher, go to Pingcheng!"
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(End of this chapter)