Sima Zhao took the pottery bowl from Shan Tao's hand and drank two big gulps of cold well water, but he still felt aggrieved.
He wanted to smash the bowl, but was afraid of alarming others, so he had to carefully hand the bowl to Shan Tao and kicked the bottom of the tree trunk hard.
"What a famous and wise minister, he is nothing but a surrendered minister!" Sima Zhao said bitterly, "He can only drive his subordinates to do these useless political achievements! He must have instructed it himself, how could the Secretariat care about these trivial matters!"
"Zi Shang, be careful with your words!" Shan Tao knew that Sima Zhao was complaining about Huang Quan, the governor of Yuzhou. He looked around and whispered, "Empress Huang, you and I are not the ones who can argue with you. Please don't make trouble for no reason, okay?"
Sima Zhao took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling, and said with emotion: "Brother Juyuan, you have been in Henei County for a long time, and you don't know this person's background, but I have heard my father talk about it in detail."
"Oh?" Shan Tao looked around again and saw that there was no one within a few feet. Unable to suppress his curiosity, he asked in a low voice: "You are from a wealthy family, so you must be well-informed. I wonder what the origin of this Envoy Huang is?"
After complaining for a few sentences, Sima Zhao's anger subsided a little. He sat down with Shan Tao, legs apart, leaning against the tree trunk side by side, fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan and laughing, "Brother Juyuan knows that Envoy Huang is a surrendered minister of Shu, but you don't know how he surrendered, right?"
Shan Tao nodded slightly: "I really don't know."
Sima Zhao asked, "You have heard of the name of Lu Huqiang, the Wu surrendered minister who became the emperor's uncle, who was stationed in Dazhong in Guanxi?"
"I've heard of it." Shan Tao replied.
"It was probably in the early Huangchu period, whether it was the second or third year, I can't remember clearly." Sima Zhao looked at Jia Houqu not far away: "Lu Huqiang led the Wu army to defeat Liu Bei in Yiling, Jingzhou. At that time, Envoy Huang led 10,000 people, and was separated from the battlefield by Lu Huqiang's army."
"There is no way to retreat to the west, there is a big river to the south, and Wu's army to the east. Envoy Huang has no choice but to go north to seek refuge with Wei." Sima Zhao waved his palm-leaf fan a few more times, "How could Wei, with its generosity, accept such a man and even confer him the title of general!"
Such information about important officials in the court was not available to ordinary people. Shan Tao was just an ordinary nobleman slightly related to the Sima family, so he naturally didn't know. But Sima Zhao knew everything clearly from his family.
Shan Tao was stunned for a long while: "Lu Huqiang was defeated by the Wei Dynasty, and Envoy Huang was easily forced into a dead end by Lu Huqiang. Isn't he even worse?"
Sima Zhao snorted: "How can we be sure of this?"
Shan Tao sighed, "It's really inappropriate for you and me to discuss an important official of the court. But Zi Shang is right about one thing. It's OK to dredge the Jiahou Canal, but it's useless to build a dam! I see that the water level is still halfway to overflowing. You're worrying for no reason."
Sima Zhao nodded: "We are his subordinates and have no choice but to follow his orders. If it really doesn't work, when my father returns to the court, I will definitely write a letter to inform Envoy Huang of his abuse of the people's power!"
Shan Tao listened silently without saying anything, and could only pour Sima Zhao another half bowl of cold water.
……
A few days later, Yizhou, Chengdu City.
A large group of horses entered Chengdu city from the east gate with great fanfare. A rough look showed that there were about sixty or seventy knights accompanying them. This kind of regulated cavalry was not common in Chengdu.
Chengdu was the capital after all, and news spread quickly. In less than an incense stick of time, the prime minister's residence and the imperial palace had already known about Li Yan's arrival.
Before this, after Zhuge Liang had a face-to-face discussion with Liu Chan in the Qingliang Pavilion in the Chengdu Palace, Liu Chan immediately issued an edict ordering Li Yan to go to Chengdu as soon as possible, only saying that there were important military and national affairs, and did not mention anything else.
Although Li Yan was a little anxious for the position, he still had to obey Liu Chan's order. After receiving the order, he led sixty riders and marched westward at a rapid speed.
The journey of more than 600 miles was completed in just three days.
Li Yan came here in a hurry. After entering the city, he did not have time to return home to rest. He settled the accompanying cavalry with the garrison commander at the city gate and only took two soldiers with him. He immediately headed towards the direction of the imperial palace.
When passing by the main gate of Shangshu Tai, Li Yan suddenly saw a familiar face, standing in the crowd at the door of Shangshu Tai, bowing and greeting him.
It was Chen Feng, the Shangshu in the Shangshu Tai, and an old official who had been on good terms with Li Yan.
"It's Zhongping." Li Yan tightened the reins and stopped his horse. "Since I left the town, I've seen Zhongping less and less. How are your parents at home?"
Chen Feng bowed, but his expression was extremely solemn: "Thank you for your concern, General. My parents are safe and sound. I suddenly heard that you are returning to Chengdu, so I am here to welcome you."
Li Yan got off his horse and walked to Chen Feng with a smile: "It's been a long time since we last met. I am now ordered to enter the palace. If you have nothing to do tonight, Zhongping can come to my house for a feast, and then call my former colleagues in the Shangshu Office to have a good chat!"
"No need." Chen Feng shook his head abnormally and said, "General, do you still remember that four years ago, you wrote an official script in front of your subordinates in the Shangshutai?"
"If the general doesn't want it, please give it to me."
Li Yan was also a man of wisdom and strategy, and his expression changed when he heard this: "Which official script is Zhongping talking about?"
Chen Feng bowed slightly and said, "I really cannot compete with these gentlemen, so I keep silent and guard my Taixuan alone. This is it." Li Yan was stunned for a long time, looked at the crowd around him, and immediately came to his senses and scolded, "I have been in Jiangzhou for more than two years. Are the old things I put in the Shangshutai going to be taken away by you?"
"Get away! Don't say you are my subordinate. I don't have a subordinate as greedy and demanding as you!"
"I'm sorry." Chen Feng bowed slightly and then turned and left.
From an outsider's perspective, it seemed that Chen Feng asked Li Yan for old items, but was scolded back by Li Yan.
But when Li Yan climbed onto the horse, his expression remained calm, but his heart was in turmoil!
Four years ago, around this time, Li Yan was in the Secretariat, feeling sad that his power had been taken away by the Prime Minister's Office. He wrote Yang Xiong's "Jie Chao" in official script in his room.
"I really cannot be compared with these few gentlemen, so I keep silent and guard my great mystery alone" is the ending of "Jiechao". Li Yan remembered very clearly that only Chen Feng was present at that time.
Who is Yang Xiong? He was implicated in someone else's case in his later years and was forced to jump off a building.
Where is the good person?
What did Chen Feng hear? Why did he warn me like this?
When Li Yan arrived at the palace gate to ask for an audience, the attendant Guo Youzhi walked out slowly from the palace gate.
"Greetings, General Wei." Guo Youzhi bowed slightly.
"It's Minister Guo." Li Yan tried to remain calm and asked, "Minister Guo came so quickly, did His Majesty allow me to come in and see you?"
Guo Youzhi replied calmly: "Please wait for a moment, General Wei. His Majesty has sent the eunuch to summon the Prime Minister. Please invite General Wei and the Prime Minister to enter the palace later."
Zhuge Liang is back? ?
Li Yan was a little dazed and stood there for a few seconds without responding.
"General Wei, General Wei?"
Guo Youzhi shouted several times before Li Yan came back to his senses.
"Okay, then I'll wait for the Prime Minister here." Li Yan nodded in agreement.
The carriage from the Prime Minister's Mansion was approaching slowly from the east. Listening to the sound of the carriage's wheels rolling over the ground, Li Yan felt extremely irritated.
"Greetings, Prime Minister." Seeing Zhuge Liang get off the carriage, Li Yan took the initiative to step forward and salute.
But Zhuge Liang just glanced at Li Yan with the corner of his eyes, and ignored him completely. He walked in with proper steps following Guo Youzhi who was leading the way.
It was only a few hundred steps from the palace gate to Qingliang Pavilion, but Li Yan felt like he was walking for years. In front of him were Guo Youzhi and Zhuge Liang, and behind them were a group of brave soldiers. The atmosphere was extremely depressing.
Li Yan felt that the sun was too hot today, and it made him feel a little dazed.
Li Yan followed the two men into the pavilion in a daze and bowed to Liu Chan in a daze.
Liu Chan sat in the hall, raised his hand slightly, and whispered the words "stand up". Li Yan thanked him and stood up. Li Yan felt that His Majesty was particularly oppressive today, but he didn't know whether this oppressive feeling came from His Majesty himself, from the throne he sat on, or from Zhuge Liang.
Zhuge Liang sighed softly, and then asked, "Li Zhengfang, do you know how critical this moment is?"
"The court officials work day and night, the common people eat and drink, and the Han people are united in their determination to conquer the north, just to restore the Han Dynasty and return to the old capital. You know that the court's political and military situation is critical, but as a general in charge of the army, you took the opportunity to ask the court to open a government office and even used the Wei rebels as an example!"
"You and I were both entrusted with important tasks by the late emperor. How could you do such a mean thing?"
"I..." Li Yan's forehead was covered with sweat. "I am here to see Your Majesty by imperial decree. Why is the Prime Minister doing this?"
Zhuge Liang remained serious and said, "Just tell me if it was you who did it!"
Liu Chan also asked in a deep voice: "General Wei, is it true or not?"
Li Yan only felt that the weapons in the hands of the tiger soldiers behind him became extremely sharp, and even stabbed him from a distance. He wanted to muster up the courage to explain himself, but when he thought about what Chen Feng had just done, he realized that he could not escape from what happened today no matter what!
Li Yan took a deep breath and said, "The Prime Minister is right. I said this."
"Well then." Zhuge Liang said without hesitation: "The emperor has issued an order! Based on the crimes mentioned above, General Wei Li Yan will be demoted to a commoner!" (End of this chapter)
