The next day, the whole country mourned in the Han Dynasty! The twelfth emperor of the Han Dynasty, Liu Hong, Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, died!

In fact, Liu Hong had already gone west last night, but the dark old man who had served him all his life couldn't bear Liu Hong being noisy, and wanted Liu Hong to rest for a while before telling the world. The relatives of the emperor and the important ministers of the court who came to hear the news all knelt in front of the Weiyang Palace. It's just that before Liu Hong's coffin, it was really annoying to watch.

Not only Queen He, but also all the concubines in the harem knelt in front of Liu Hong's motionless couch, crying in a ruffian. Emperor Liu Hong's biological mother of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, Empress Dowager Dong was also crying in the dark. Today's Confucians, such as Cai Yong and Kong Rong, who are loyal to the Han family, are also constantly sobbing, but He Jin and others, who were extremely favored by Liu Hong in the past, seem to be a lot calmer.

"Why are you crying? Don't disturb Your Majesty's rest! ”

"I've seen the dark elder!" The dark old man really looked upset, so he interrupted everyone in the hall. The dark old man appeared, even Cai Yong, Lu Zhi and others were also making a fool and saluting the dark elder. Empress Dowager Dong and Empress He held back their grief and let themselves sobble as little as possible. The dark old man served the emperor of the three dynasties, and he was an important minister by the emperor's side. Although he has no power in the court, no one dares to contradict the dark old man at the moment.

"Your Majesty has a saying, Your Majesty's funeral does not need to be too fanfare, especially with the funeral, do not mix with the living!"

"Dark Old!" Cai Yongzuo stepped forward and said solemnly to the dark elder: "Since the beginning of Qin, the Son of Heaven has to be buried with the people when he returns to the west, this is the rule of the ancestors, and it cannot be destroyed at will!" ”

"Rules!?" The dark old man's face sank, and he looked at Cai Yong and said in a deep voice: "The rules are set by people!" What's more, Your Majesty just doesn't want to kill more. ”

Seeing that the dark old man was a little angry, Cai Yong wanted to speak and stopped, and finally had no choice but to retreat.

"Three days of national mourning! Amnesty to the world! The dark old man turned around and turned his back to the crowd: "Your Highness has a saying: No matter where or who, if you take the opportunity to ruin Your Majesty's reputation..."

When the people heard this, their ears stood up. The things that the dark old man commanded in a deep voice, even if Liu Hong mostly had to obey. They didn't dare to do something wrong and cause the Nine Clans to be implicated.

"Zhu Jiu Clan!" The dark old man's tone was steady, but everyone in the hall was terrified. The dark elder never interfered in the government affairs, three generations of the Son of Heaven, and the dark elder only issued two edicts for the Son of Heaven after the death of the Son of Heaven, and now it is the third one. Without exception, there are only three words: Zhu Jiu Clan! In the past, the emperor's important ministers did not believe in evil and took the opportunity to accumulate wealth, but the result was that dozens of members of the family were killed on the second day, and even distant relatives across several states did not escape their fate.

"Dark Elder, now Your Majesty has gone west! I don't know if Your Majesty has left an edict to establish a reserve? Although he was afraid of the dark elder, He Jin was even more worried that he would lose his position and lose his position to the eunuch, and asked with a slightly trembling voice. Seeing this, although everyone in the hall bowed their heads, no one admired He Jin's boldness, and asked bluntly at this time.

"Humph!"

With a cold snort, He Jin was even more frightened and his legs trembled, knelt directly on the ground, and said tremblingly: "Please calm your anger, the country cannot be without a king for a day, and your subordinates are also thinking about the Han!" ”

The dark old man secretly hated in his heart, His Majesty was unfortunate, and the people who were favored in the past were so anxious. However, what He Jin said was also right, and he had no choice but to return: "Arrange for the two princes to wash and change their clothes, and tomorrow morning, the old man will read the edict for His Majesty!" ”

"No!" When everyone in the hall heard this, they bowed their heads and said yes. Zhang Rang was even more active, kneeling beside Liu Hong's couch, his eyes rolling.

Tonight is a sleepless night. The dark old deliberately delayed the matter until the second day, and the idea was simple, that is, he wanted to breathe a sigh of relief for Liu Hong and punish and punish his favored ministers. However, the dark old man once swore to the first emperor that he would not interfere with the regime, otherwise the dark old man really wanted to make a move and kill the eunuchs and relatives. This is just that the dark old man is not angry in his heart, if it is really so simple, Liu Hong will not be depressed for the rest of his life.

The next day, outside the Weiyang Palace, the ministers of the DPRK and the Central People's Republic of China, no matter what faction they were, were waiting outside the Weiyang Palace with black eyes waiting for the early dynasty that would probably change the situation in the world.

"Go to court!" A group of eunuchs shouted sharply in the Weiyang Palace.

The whole country mourned, and the ministers of the court also wore linen and filial piety, mourning the departure of the Son of Heaven of the Han Dynasty, and at the same time preparing to welcome the new Son of Heaven. After entering the court, the ministers all had a tacit understanding, suppressed the matters played in various places, and waited for the appearance of the dark elder. Not long after, a dark old man dressed in all black appeared in the Chongde Hall of Weiyang Palace.

Dark Lao Xin didn't go under the dragon couch, turned around and handed the edict in his hand to Zhang Rang and said, "Read the edict!" ”

"I ...... Today, according to the rules of the ancestors, the prince is identified as the prince, and the three princes will choose a day to assist the new monarch to ascend the throne. Feng Huangzixie is the king of Bohai, and he will go to the fief in the near future. In addition, Dong Zhuo was moved to the Western Liangmu to guard the border of the Western Regions for me. Worship the champion Hou Xiangao concurrently serves as the pastor of the state, and is the north of Yongzhen of Dahan! ...... I hope that all the kings will assist the new king, govern the Han Dynasty, and benefit the people! ”

After the edict was completed, all the ministers knelt on the ground and bowed their heads. In this way, the faces of the ministers can be colorful. Because it was a testament, the people had no way to refute it, and they had no way to say anything, so they had to follow it. Originally, Xiang Ao's appointment as the governor of the state would definitely attract opposition from all sides, especially Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao was extremely unhappy at this time, if he wasn't still in the main hall at this time, I'm afraid Yuan Shao would have been furious. Originally, his eyes were a little black, but after listening to Zhang Rang's last edict, his face was as black as charcoal.

He Jin's heart was happy at this time, and he was so excited that he didn't know the sky was blue. As long as he can assist Liu Bian to ascend to the throne of God, the power of the world is just around the corner! However, He Jin's faces were much calmer, but Zhang Rang, Jian Shuo and others were much calmer.

Yuan Shao looked up at the dragon couch unconsciously, and said fiercely in his heart: Liu Hong, Liu Hong, the thing in my hand after the state was originally my strategy, and it was given to Xiang Ao like this! Hateful! Hateful!

The dark old man who had closed his eyes and recuperated suddenly felt the endless killing intent surging towards him, and above the main hall, although it was not aimed at himself, but the killing intent was so strong that the dark old man woke up in shock, and swept towards the ministers under the hall with wide eyes. The ministers who had not yet stood up suddenly felt that their backs were like knives, not only painful, but also cold to the bone.

Before everyone could react, the chill suddenly disappeared again.

It's dangerous! Yuan Shao didn't dare to raise his head again at this time, and secretly shouted in his heart to be happy. I heard that there were masters cultivated by the royal family around His Majesty before, but I never thought that it would be so good, just a glance almost made Yuan Shao collapse.

"After that, the affairs will be presided over by the third prince!" The dark old man didn't find out who it was, so he had to give up and said: "After the first emperor has served his filial piety for three days, he will preside over the enthronement ceremony as soon as possible!" ”

"Our Command!" Taifu Yuan Kui, Situ Ding Gong, and Taiwei Ma Riyan respectfully received the order, and the ministers also bowed deeply. When the dark old man heard this, he swept over everyone again, and left the harem with a slightly deep face. Zhang Rang hurriedly got up and sent him off. The rest of the ministers also didn't dare to breathe, quietly waiting for the dark old man to leave.

After the dark old man disappeared into the main hall, Zhang Rang Chao Jian Shuo glanced at him, and quietly retreated by himself. Seeing this, Jian Shuo also followed and left. He Jin also suppressed the excitement in his heart under Yuan Shao's signal, and left the court, preparing to discuss the ambush of Jian Shuo and the seizure of military power in the West Garden. And the three dukes, Cai Yong, Lu Zhi and other important ministers favored by the former emperors gathered together to discuss the burial of Liu Hong and the enthronement of the new emperor.

The entire Luoyang City suddenly fell silent. Liu Hong has not yet entered the ground, no matter which side, he is unwilling to act secretly when the dark old man is watching the tightest, if he is caught, even if the first emperor cheats the corpse to intercede, it will be in vain.

Soon, the news of the death of Emperor Liu Hong spread all over the world, whether it was a person loyal to the Han Dynasty or a person with a heart, at this time, he was leading his relatives at home, wearing linen and filial piety. The same is true for the Northern Regions at this time.

When Xiang Ao got the news, Liu Bian had successfully ascended the throne in accordance with the ancestral system at this time. Liu Bian was only four out of ten years old at this time, so he honored the young emperor and removed the name of Guangxi, the first year of Guangxi. When Liu Hong died, he gave amnesty to the world; It didn't take long for another amnesty to be granted to the world. Except for the prisoners of rebellion, there is really no one to put in the county prisons.

Xiang Ao took the opportunity to release all the Xianbei and Qiang people in prison. Prepare to use the hundreds of thousands of Xianbei and Qiang people who don't know how to dispose of them as cheap labor. In March, officials from the Northern Regions discovered an open-pit coal mine north of Yinshan that moved Xiang Aodu, and it was of excellent quality. Especially after Ma Jundao's on-site survey, he was even more impatient to ask Xiang Ao to send people to mine as soon as possible.

Since the Western Han Dynasty, the Han Dynasty has accumulated a lot of experience in steelmaking. On the basis of his ancestors, Ma Jun has studied the refining method of 100 steel. It's just that the requirements for the furnace are too high, even if Ma Jun optimizes the furnace, its burning temperature still can't reach Ma Jun's requirements, the main reason is that there is too little good coal in the northern region, and the east and south are blocked by Montenegro and Baibo, so it is impossible to obtain good quality coal.

However, Xiang Ao did not oppress the captives, and still gave everyone hope to come forward. Although the salary is not much, it is a mercy to the captives. Moreover, as long as a certain amount of coal is mined, you can get free, whether it is naturalized in the northern region or going north to return to Xianbei, Xiang Ao promises not to stop it. However, Xiang Ao is confident, as long as the Xianbei and Qiang people want to leave after living in the Northern Regions for a period of time, Xiang Ao can only say that this person has nothing to do with the Northern Regions.

From the beginning of spring to the present, Xiang Ao has seen Shang Cao Peng and Geng Shou the most.

"My lord, caravans from all over the country have purchased a large amount of grain and iron tools!"

"Oh?!" Hearing this, Xiang Ao put down the book slip in his hand and took Geng Shou bamboo slip to look at it carefully.

"Good!" After Xiang Ao finished reading, his face was a little excited. The number recorded in the bamboo slips is at least the output of three years in the Northern Regions, but he doesn't want Geng Shou to complete it in two months, although it takes most of the money in the Northern Regions to operate for several years, but Xiang Ao thinks it's worth it.

"But..."Geng Shou said with a little shame on his face, "But the transportation is a little troublesome." Although the army of Bai Bo has returned to the area of Bai Bo Valley, Shou is worried that if Bai Bo discovers the transport caravan, he will see the wealth! ”

When Xiang Ao heard this, he was also contemplative, and he really forgot to think about Bai Bo before.

"Shennongjia is my hometown, there are many beasts in Shennongjia, and the mountains are densely packed with jungles, if it is really difficult to transport, you can find reliable people to place in Shennongjia for the time being!" Xiang Ao thought for a long time and said: "The DPRK and China are unstable, and I am extremely worried that there will be great changes. ”

"But a reliable person..."Geng Shou was not sure, it was so huge, who couldn't be moved?

"Tomorrow, I ordered Jiang Lu to come to assist Yu Changsheng, and he should be safe!"