"The King of Jin opposes Chan Rang, saying that his father is alive, and those who dare to say that the prince succeeds him will be regarded as a rebel and will be punished by the nine clans." This sentence, which spread in the market, shook the hearts of every princeling in Beijing like a bomb explosion, and became the main topic of conversation among the people in Beijing after tea and dinner, stirring people's hearts into panic. Originally, it was thought that the crown prince's ascension to the throne was a sure thing, and the princelings were excited, who would want to have such rumors? This made many princelings feel that they did not dare to discuss the matter more.

"Yue Gong, how is this good? Are the rumors true or false? Ji Wei, the eunuch of the prince's mansion, made a special trip to the Yue Palace's mansion to inquire about Yang Su after obtaining the consent of the prince Yang Yong for this rumor.

"Humph! Who in the capital dares to discuss the government? This rumor must have been released by King Jin's subordinates. Yang Su had no doubt about the origin of this rumor, because this was the current attitude of Yang Guang, the king of Jin.

"What if the king of Jin commands a man to do it? Yue Gong, you have to give His Royal Highness the Crown Prince an idea! Ji Wei shouted in a shrill voice.

"Father-in-law Ji, please go back to the house, let the prince ignore the rumors, everything needs to wait for His Majesty's decision."

"Good! The prince went back to the house and informed the prince. After Ji Wei finished speaking, he turned around and swayed away.

"Yue Gong, this must be a rumor that Zhang Heng is the king of Jin, and its purpose is nothing more than to put pressure on us, so that I can't mention the matter of Zen concession in front of Your Majesty." Right Prime Minister Han Hong said.

"Hmmm! Whether the crown prince can be enthroned by Chan has to wait for His Majesty to decide, and it is really difficult for us to take the initiative to mention it. Tomorrow, the old man will enter the palace and ask His Majesty in person. Inform all of you that the matter of Chan Rang is a royal matter, and it is not appropriate to discuss it too privately, so as not to be caught by the King of Jin and other shortcomings. ”

"Yes." Han Hong agreed, and went out of the house.

Prince's Mansion.

The crown prince Yang Yong is worried about the rumors.

Finally waited for the henchman eunuch Ji Wei to come back from the Yue Palace, and hurriedly greeted him and asked, "Father-in-law Ji, what did the imperial uncle say?" ”

"Your Highness, the Duke of Yue judged that the rumors were released by the King of Jin, which is exactly the attitude of Yang Guang, the King of Jin, so it is easy to understand why he has not returned to Beijing."

"Oh? And so it was! The emperor's younger brother has this attitude, which makes the prince embarrassed, not left or right. Alas! Yang Yong sighed a little discouraged. According to his original intention, he hoped that his brother could give his father face under his father's initiative to practice meditation, at least he could reluctantly acquiesce, but now he is strongly opposed. After this rumor was heard by his father, his father was very likely to cancel the Zen concession, which made Yang Yong unwilling.

"Tomorrow, the Yue Guild will enter the palace to meet His Majesty to discuss this matter, His Royal Highness does not have to worry, and wait for the news of the Yue Gong."

"Alas! It's useless to be worried, and the prince of Ming Japan also went to the palace to ask the queen mother's attitude. ”

Imperial Palace Wenhe Hall.

Because of the opposition of his second son, Emperor Wen became indecisive about the matter of Zen Rang, and the more he thought about it, the more he couldn't make up his mind. So he asked Yuan Yan to go out of the palace and pass Zuo Prime Minister Gao Xi into the palace to discuss, Emperor Wen knew that Gao Xi was an impartial and neutral person, and wanted to hear his opinion.

"Gao Aiqing, yesterday the King of Jin sent his confidant Zhang Heng back to Beijing with a book to me, and after I read it, I learned that my son King Jin strongly opposed the throne. The King of Jin is very powerful outside, if I don't adopt his opinion, it will not only make the court uneasy, but also afraid that the crown prince will not be able to sit on the throne, what does Aiqing think about this? ”

"Your Majesty, now that the King of Jin is outside the Central Plains because of the dissatisfaction of the Central Plains feudal towns, I am afraid that there will be changes, in the eyes of the old ministers, it is better to suspend the Zen concession, and wait for the King of Jin to repair the canal, after the Central Plains rebellion is quelled, then it will be decided according to the situation. If His Majesty recovers, there is no need to mention the matter again. If you still can't manage the government, then it's not too late to do meditation again, and you don't need to be in a hurry. ”

"Hmmm! Perhaps, before the King of Jin calms down the chaos caused by the opening of the canal, I will not add chaos to him. If the court is also in chaos because of Zen concessions, then the real chaos in the world will be. After listening to Gao Xi's proposal, Emperor Wen thought about it and felt that this was the only way for now, so he would put this matter aside for now and take a look.

"Your Majesty, if this is the case, please ask Your Majesty to go to the court tomorrow and personally talk to the officials, so as not to be suspicious, and to reassure the officials and the people. It's just that Your Majesty's body ---"

"Huh! After being healed by Sun Shen, my health has been better recently, but I can't be tired or anxious. I agreed, and I will go to me tomorrow morning. Emperor Wen said in front of Gao Xi with a good appearance.

After speaking, he turned his head to Yuan Yan, the eunuch of the Yellow Gate who was waiting on the side, and ordered: "Yuan Yan, wait for a notice to be issued to inform officials at all levels in Beijing that they must not be absent tomorrow morning." ”

"Yes, Your Majesty." Yuan Yan hurriedly nodded.

"Your Majesty, now our dynasty is bounded by Tongguan, the west is stable and the east is chaotic, it is rumored that when the Jin King Chitose was building the canal, he connived at his subordinates to arbitrarily kill the children of the big clan, which caused the dissatisfaction of the Jizhou clan. Recently, the minister learned that the king of Jin was planning to dig the Tongji Canal, that is, the section from Liyang Banzhu to Jianghuai Shanyangcheng, to open up the Yellow River and Huaishui. This seems to be too hasty for quick success, this section of the southward Tongji Canal is thousands of miles long, passing through Henan, Shandong, Jianghuai and other places, these several families are far more than Jizhou, in the opinion of the ministers, is it not to let the King of Jin slow down, and when the Yongji Canal is fully penetrated and let the people see the benefits, then the new canal excavation will be less resistant, so that the Central Plains and Jianghuai and other places will be completely chaotic. Gao Xi whispered his own suggestion.

"Hmmm! What Gao Xiang said is reasonable! Rong Zhen thought about it, tomorrow morning, the senior minister can bring this matter forward, and let the officials discuss it! ”

"In this way, Weichen will not disturb His Majesty's recuperation, and the old minister will retire." After that, seeing that Emperor Wen nodded in agreement, Gao Xi said goodbye to Wenhe Palace.

Yue Wangfu.

At this time, Su Xiaoci, the squire of the Ministry of War, was urgently negotiating with Yang Su about a piece of news that he had just gotten, this news was sent to the Ministry of War by Pei Renji of Shuofang City, and Su Xiaoci, the director of the Ministry of War, was panicked after seeing the news, and hurriedly came to the Yue Wangfu to discuss with Yang Su.

"Yue Gong, it seems that Yang Guang, the king of Jin, is not easy to get along with, this is an urgent matter sent by Shuo Fangshou Pei Renji to the military department." After that, he handed a letter in his hand to Yang Su.

"Huh? Yesterday, Zhang Hengcai, a henchman of King Jin, brought 20,000 elite cavalry to be stationed outside the south gate, but he didn't want to transfer another 50,000 troops to Shuofang City. This is naked military intimidation! Yang Su shouted angrily after reading the letter.

"Yue Gong, the most dangerous thing is not that the King of Jin transfers troops, but that the King of Jin does not pay attention to the legal system of the court and the Ministry of War, and now his Jin army of hundreds of thousands can go wherever he wants! If we send troops into Beijing without permission, it will be a capital crime of rebellion! Su Xiaoci reminded Yang Sudao with a melancholy face.

"Hmmm! What Su Gong said is yes! Tomorrow, His Majesty will discuss politics in the early court, and if he is free, he will ask Su Gong to use this letter as evidence, how about the King of Jin and Jin privately transfer troops? Yang Su said to Su Xiaoci slyly.

"Alas! What about the impeachment of King Jin? Don't you see the 100,000 troops of the King of Jin stationed in Hetao? If the impeachment of King Jin will make His Majesty unhappy, don't say it. Please think of a way to deal with it quickly! Su Xiaoci said helplessly. Everyone knows that Emperor Wen is a famous calf protector, and no one can speak ill of his son.

"Duke Su, this duke has his own way, and you still need your military department to come forward to participate in the Jin King! Besides, if you don't play this matter, if Your Majesty knows, you won't ask you Lord Su to ask for guilt. Yang Su reminded.

"Alas! Anyway, tomorrow morning, the official will mention it in court! After that, he got up and was about to leave, Yang Su hurriedly got up and sent him out of the house.

After sending Su Xiaoci away, Yang Su returned to the study. At this time, Yu Wenkai and his general Zhang Xun were waiting in the study.

"Lord Yuwen, have Zhang Xutuohong's peasant soldiers been settled in the west of the city?"

"Yue Gong rest assured, 20,000 elite soldiers arrived in a few moments today, and they are now camping." Yu Wenkai said.

"Good! General Zhang waits for you to go out of the city to Zhang Xutuo to assist him in camping and other matters, if there is a shortage of food, the prince will transfer it to him from the inner government. ”

"Yes, my lord, the last general will go to the military camp outside the city in a moment." Zhang Xun replied.

"Alas! It's all up to His Majesty tomorrow to decide. If the matter of Chan concession is announced, General Zhang, you will let Zhang Xutuo's men and horses enter the city and quickly occupy the south gate to prevent the Jin army from entering the city to cause trouble. Mr. Yuwen went to the Imperial City Forbidden Army to transfer 30,000 horses to camp outside the north gate to prevent the Jin army Yuwen Chengdu from coming from the north. If His Majesty cancels the decision to make concessions, he will not move for the time being, and after Yang Guangjin's army retreats, the Hongnong soldiers will return to Meixian County. ”

Seeing that Yang Su had finished his orders, Yu Wenkai and Zhang Xun went out of the Yue Wangfu on an errand.

Originally, according to the instructions of Doctor Sun, Emperor Wen could not go to the court to govern. However, there has been no early dynasty for more than 20 consecutive days, and the matter discussed in today's early dynasty is related to the stability of the national system and is unavoidable. Emperor Wen had to come to the council hall early in the morning with his sick body.

At this time, many civil and military forces in the capital were already waiting in the main hall. After everyone saw that Emperor Wen, who had not been in the dynasty for a long time, ascended to the dragon throne with the support of Yuan Yan, they lined up neatly and waited solemnly for Emperor Wen to speak.

"Zhong Aiqing, I haven't been in court for a long time because of my poor health, and I miss it very much. The day before yesterday, I originally wanted to give up the throne to my crown prince, and I also preliminarily set a time for the ceremony of performing meditation. But today, I have to take back the Zen concession in court, because the time has not come. In the autumn of last year, I issued an edict to dig the Yongji Canal, which was carried out by my second son, King Jin, and although the project went smoothly, it also caused turmoil among the people on both sides of the river, among which many lawbreakers took the opportunity to cause trouble. It has also caused instability in the Central Plains, and it is necessary to stabilize the capital city. Therefore, I decided to postpone the matter of Zen concession and discuss it after the Yongji Canal is opened. When I am not in power, the crown prince is still in charge of the political affairs of the country, and the secretaries should do their best to assist. After Emperor Wen finished speaking, he beat his chest and panted.

"The ministers obey the order--- "The civil and military forces under the order stood up and responded. Only Yang Su and the other princelings shook their heads and sighed, and it was inconvenient to say anything.

"Your Majesty, I recently heard that His Royal Highness the King of Jin was in the Yongji Canal when the canal had not yet been opened, and it was rumored that the Tongji Canal was being planned, saying that it was to connect the Yellow River and Huaishui, so when will the King of Jin open the canal is an end! Besides, the place where the new canal passes through is the place where the people of the Central Plains gather together, and there is no lack of good land in the land occupied by the canal, will it not cause chaos in the hinterland of the Central Plains? Right Prime Minister Han Hong came out of the class and said. As soon as Han Hong's voice fell, the Chinese military officials of the palace began to discuss, and many agreed with what Han Hong said.

"Your Majesty, what Prime Minister Han Cheng said is extremely true. Now a Yongji canal has caused chaos in the whole territory of Jizhou, hundreds of families abandoned their homes and fled south to the Central Plains states for refuge, and there were many people who lost their land, and even caused Jinan Tangbi and Luoyang Wang Shichong to raise troops to crusade against Jizhou. The minister thinks that the wind of opening the canal cannot rise, please Your Majesty Mingjian! "The servant shooter Su Wei came out of the class and asked.

"What the two Aiqing played is reasonable, but the opening of the canal is conducive to the economic development of the Central Plains after all, and it is good in the long run. It's just that more consideration should be given to the interests of the family and the people in the implementation, and I decided to send a special envoy to Jizhou to supervise and cooperate in solving the people's livelihood problems on my behalf. Emperor Wen thought of this policy of rights and interests, and his heart was happy, and he couldn't help but ask Gao Xilai.

"Your Majesty, it is feasible to send a royal envoy to act on behalf of the imperial court. As for the result? Let's try it. The matter of the Tongji Canal mentioned by Master Su Caicai, Weichen has also heard of it, most of it is true, Weichen has also thought about it, Yongji Canal connects to the Haihe River of Zhuojun, and the Tongji Canal connects to the south of the Jianghuai River Huaishui, if a north-south canal will open up all of my east, the benefits will benefit future generations, but please Your Majesty to pass on the Jin King Chitose, this matter can not be rushed, if it is urgent, it will become a bad thing, causing chaos in the Central Plains states, and the war is everywhere. ”

"Hmmm! Gao Xiang's words are insightful, although it is beneficial to open the canal, but it cannot be too hasty, and I will pass it on to him from the King of Jin. Well, that's it. Do you have any other performances? ”

"Your Majesty, Weichen has a foundation." Just when everyone thought that the court discussion was over, and Emperor Wen got up and wanted to leave, Su Xiaoci, the squire of the military department, said again.

"What else does Su Aiqing have?" Emperor Wen held the dragon case and asked with a strong tone.

"Your Majesty, everything discussed in today's court discussion is related to the King of Jin Chitose, the King of Jin should have come to the palace to listen, but if the King of Jin does not come, he will just let his subordinate Zhang Heng lead 20,000 troops to the outskirts of the capital, I don't know what this move means? Moreover, yesterday afternoon, Weichen received an urgent report from General Pei Renji of Shuofang City, saying that General Yuwen Chengdu of the Jin Dynasty personally led 50,000 Jin troops from Hetao to Shuofang and wanted to come to the capital, what did this move mean? I am not allowed to enter Beijing without His Majesty's decree or the dispatch of the military department, and others can defend the system, why can His Royal Highness King Jin go alone? Your Majesty, please. Su Xiaoci's words immediately caused the voice of the Jin King to be discussed by the Chinese martial arts, as if a stone had been thrown into the calm lake, and the voice of the Jin King was more and more refuted.

"Okay, the secretary of the court is forbidden." Emperor Wen forcibly raised his hand and whispered. The voices of discussion in the hall gradually calmed down, and he looked at Emperor Wen.

"My beloved son has indeed acted out of his ways, and he blames me for not being able to teach. I will vigorously restrain them. After a few days, the troops outside the city and Shuofang will retreat on their own. That's it for today's court meeting. After Emperor Wen finished whispering, he turned his head slightly to look at Yuan Yan, the close attendant who was waiting on the side of the dragon case.

Yuan Yan understood, and immediately shouted loudly: "The court discussion is over, and the ministers have withdrawn." Then, he helped Emperor Wen down the steps and turned to the harem.

When everyone saw Emperor Wen descending to the court, they also turned around and walked out of the palace, and went out of the palace in twos and threes.

As soon as he got out of the palace gate, Yang Su whispered to Yu Wenkai beside him: "Order Zhang Xun to let Zhang Xutuo's troops withdraw to Meixian tonight, and the forbidden army in the north of the city will return to the camp." ”

Yu Wenkai nodded after hearing this, and walked quickly to the side. It's just that all this is seen in the eyes of people.