After that, Ji Zheng lived in the palace, and under the full support of the Yue Kingdom and the leadership of the Taishi, he was active in the Luoyang political arena. In just one month, Luoyang was turned upside down, the owners and clans had to choose between Ji Zheng and Ji Ren, and even the princes from all walks of life made their positions clear.

In the blink of an eye, the Mid-Autumn Festival is slightly cool, and the golden land is filled with the joy of harvest. On September 15, the Son of Heaven invited all the princes to hold a harvest festival at the Temple of Earth in the northern suburbs of Luoyang.

On this day, the autumn is high and cool, the wind is smooth, and the incense is floating on the square altar. I saw that there were three giant tripods on the altar, and there were three animals in the tripod, and there were five copper mustaches, and there were five grains in the mustaches. In addition, there are six instruments in the altar, which are made of jade and sacrificed to the four directions of heaven and earth. Worship the sky with the cangbi, the earth with the yellow cong, the east with the green gui, the south with the red zhang, the west with the white amber, and the north with the xuanhuang.

The princes from all walks of life sent envoys one after another, and everyone gathered under the altar, waiting for the appearance of the Zhou clan. These envoys were all powerful people in the vassal states, and they knew each other well. At this time, everyone was celebrating each other and talking happily, of course, the topic of discussion was naturally inseparable from the candidate for the prince of the Zhou family.

"I heard that this Ji Zheng is an illegitimate child, although he is older, but in terms of life experience, Prince Ji Ren has more advantages."

"No, although Ji Zheng is an illegitimate child, after all, he is a descendant of the Zhou family, and in terms of bloodline, they are all the same.

"That's right, I heard that this Prince Ji Ren is a ruthless person, the last time the Huangchi Alliance, he burned both brothers with a big fire, if it weren't for Ji Zheng's fate, no one would be able to compete with him for the position of the prince."

"Nonsense, it is rumored that the fire is Ji Zheng's bitter trick, the purpose is to frame the third prince, anyway, our country will support Prince Ji Ren! What is this Ji Zheng? I haven't heard of him in twenty years, so I really don't know where he came from! ”

"What's the use of you being a small country supporting or not supporting? Ji Zheng is now a colt of the Yue Kingdom! ”

"Isn't Yue Guo also a big prince?"

"No, Yue Guo has just defeated Wu Guo, and now it is not to be underestimated!"

Zhang Xun listened silently to the arguments of the other envoys, still unfazed on the surface, but full of pain and anger in his heart. This time, he specially applied to King Wu to come to Luoyang, in order to settle the past grievances with Ji Zheng face to face.

At this time, a person came up to Zhang Xun and saluted: "General Zhang, don't come unharmed." ”

Zhang Xun pulled out of his messy thoughts at this time, and when he raised his eyes, he saw that the person who saluted in front of him was none other than Zhao Wuxian, the envoy of the Jin Kingdom.

Zhang Xun replied, "Lord Zhao." ”

Zhao Wuxian said with a smile: "I heard that General Zhang has a very good relationship with Prince Ji Zheng, and the relationship between the same family is like a brother of flesh and blood. Hehe, I wonder if this news is true? ”

Zhang Xun was noncommittal, and asked with a smile: "So what?" Isn't it? ”

"Haha, it's nothing, it's nothing, I'm just asking, I also want to find out about Wu Guo's attitude. In fact, everyone understands that this time the Son of Heaven invited the princes from all walks of life to come just to test the meaning of the princes. ”

"Hmph, you mean the new crown prince?"

"That's right, a new prince must be established in the spring of next year, and as for who to appoint, the Son of Heaven must always listen to everyone's opinions."

"This is a family affair of the Zhou family, what does it have to do with the princes?"

"Haha, General Zhang, why bother pretending to be confused?" Zhao Wuxian laughed and patted Zhang Xun's shoulder, "Then I'll say it directly, when the Huangchi Alliance, the Yue Kingdom took the opportunity to sneak attack Gusu, so deep hatred, I don't believe that King Wu can still support a Yue State concubine?" But General Zhang and Ji Zhengqing are siblings, so who should King Wu send, and he shouldn't send General Zhang? So, I can't figure it out, what is Wu Guo's attitude? What was General Zhang's attitude? ”

"Hmph, you'll know when the time comes."

"Haha, okay, I believe that King Wu should be able to figure out the pros and cons of this."

At this time, the ceremonial music sounded, and the Zhou clan led the honor guard slowly towards the altar. The messengers hurried to their places and lined up to meet them.

The Son of Heaven stepped into the altar, followed by the two princes, dressed in splendid dresses.

At a certain moment, Ji Zheng and Zhang Xun passed by, although the two did not look at each other, they both sensed each other's existence. And such an existence has long been different from the past, the once intimate and unfamiliar, how alienated and strange it is at this time; The former brotherly love at this time implies anger and hatred.

The Son of Heaven came to the altar and offered the newly harvested grain to the heavens. Next, Ji Zheng also took the new valley and sacrificed it to Huang Cong to pay homage to the earth. Subsequently, the Son of Heaven ordered Ji Zheng to preside over the sacrifice, and Ji Ren stood aside, and there was no sacrificial ceremony.

At noon, the harvest festival ended, and the Son of Heaven hosted a banquet in the palace for the magnates of Luoyang and the envoys of the princes. At the banquet, the Son of Heaven still ordered Ji Zheng to preside, and he enjoyed the wine and food with peace of mind.

The banquet was in full swing, and the Taishi got up to toast and said: "The prince is political, virtuous and benevolent, and has the talent of the heavens and the earth, and the prince is like this, which is really a great luck for the Son of Heaven and a great fortune for China!" ”

The Son of Heaven smiled and nodded frequently, and everyone in the audience also nodded yes.

Ji Zheng raised his glass and said: "Since Zheng is the eldest son of the Zhou family, I should lead by example and take the prosperity of China as my responsibility!" ”

After that, Ji Zheng raised his glass and drank it all, and everyone in the audience also raised their glasses.

At this time, Taifu, who was also ranked as the third prince but had never been in harmony with the Taishi, stood up to toast and said: "As far as the ministers can see, although the prince Ren is slightly younger, he has the world in mind and cares about the people. To worry about the worries of the people, to enjoy the joy of the people, there is a prince like this, that is the blessing of the community! ”

Although the Son of Heaven nodded in agreement, the smile on his face retracted.

The prince saw the subtle changes in the face of the Son of Heaven at a glance, and although he was unhappy in his heart, he still raised his glass and toasted to Ji Zheng: "My brother has been traveling among the people for 20 years, and he can appreciate the suffering of the people better than me, so I will ask my brother to remind him more in the future." ”

With that, the prince raised his glass and drank it all. Ji Zheng also raised his glass, secretly admiring the third brother's city in his heart. In just one sentence, not only quietly demonstrated his humble attitude, but also revealed the shortcomings of his life experience and exile among the people, and the sentence "more reminders" is more like the future king's advice to his courtiers.

Ji Zheng drank the wine in the cup and looked at the Taishi with his spare eyes, and sure enough, the Taishi also had a solemn face, he was staring at his subordinates, and motioned for him to get up and toast.

Next, the two forces fought openly and secretly at the banquet, and the words and swords were full of deceit, and you lived and died.

Seeing this farce intensifying, the Son of Heaven was very displeased, and was just about to leave the table, but saw Lord Taibao suddenly get up and slowly walked to the middle of the field. Everyone didn't know what he wanted, and they all looked at Lord Taibao.

Lord Taibao saluted the Son of Heaven and said righteously: "The country cannot be without a prince for a day, and now that the prince has died, the two princes have already reached adulthood. If a new crown prince is not appointed in the spring of next year, the Zhou Kingdom will be in turmoil. If the Zhou country is in turmoil, the world will be in chaos! ”

The Son of Heaven took a deep breath and nodded thoughtfully, "Today's banquet, in fact, everyone knows it. In that case, it's better to be open and honest. Lord Taibao, you have always been fair, why don't you start with it, and tell me, among the two princes, who do you prefer more? ”

After the words fell, there was silence in the court, Ji Zheng and Ji Ren lived on both sides of the Son of Heaven, the two looked at each other, and they knew each other that it was time for life and death at this time.

After a moment of silence, Lord Taibao spoke: "Your Majesty! The minister thought that the prince was orthodox in life, and he had always been taught by the court, and he had been exposed to it for 20 years, and the royal demeanor had never deviated, and his conduct was noble and elegant, so he was more suitable for becoming the prince. ”

With that, Taibao walked in front of Ji Ren and saluted Ji Ren.

Ji Ren returned the salute deeply.

Taifu also walked in front of Ji Ren and saluted Ji Ren: "Minister, I also think that Prince Ren is more suitable!" ”

Immediately after, several courtiers walked out of their seats and stood on either side of Ji.

Seeing that the situation was not good, the Taishi hurriedly walked to Ji Zheng to salute, he didn't have time to say more, he just shouted loudly: "The minister thinks!" Prince Zheng is more suitable! ”

Taishi's henchmen walked towards Ji Zheng's side one after another, and Taifu's henchmen did not show weakness, trotting in front of Ji Ren in a long line.

For a time, the whole court was in chaos, the opposing parties were divided on both sides, and those officials who were originally vacillating had to make a choice immediately, left or right, and there was no middle ground at all. After a short time, the ministers of the Zhou State were separated from each other, forming two distinct teams.

Looking at the farce in front of him, Zhang Xun couldn't help but want to laugh, he whispered to himself: "Xiao Ji, Xiao Ji, is this your betrayal of everything you pursued?" ”

At this time, the two princes each had a team in front of them, and the number of teams was almost the same.

The Son of Heaven has his heart set on Ji Zheng, but when he sees that the strength of the two sides is equal, he is slightly unhappy in his heart, but he can't show it. He pointed to the envoys of the princes and said, "Now that the matter has come to this, let us also talk about it." ”

Zhao Wuxian took the lead in getting up, stood on either side of Ji, and saluted Ji Ren: "The Jin Kingdom is willing to support the prince Ren as the crown prince!" ”

Seeing this, the envoy of the Yue Kingdom hurriedly stood on Ji Zheng's side and saluted: "The Yue Kingdom is willing to support Wang Zizheng as the crown prince!" ”

After the Jin State and the Yue State expressed their opinions, they were silent, and the envoys of the other vassal states, you look at me, I look at you, and no one is willing to take the lead in expressing their position.

The atmosphere in the hall was embarrassing for a while, and at this time, Taifu saluted to the Son of Heaven and said: "Your Majesty, since Wu is the overlord of the world, he should be an example for the princes, please ask Your Majesty to order Wu to make a statement." ”

The Son of Heaven frowned slightly, and nodded angrily.

So, everyone turned their eyes to the seats, looking for the trace of Wu Envoy.

I saw that at this tense banquet, there was a person carrying a wine jug and drinking without distraction.

The Son of Heaven recognized that this person was Zhang Xun, so he pointed at Zhang Xun and asked, "Are you an envoy of Wu?" ”

Zhang Xun got up slightly drunk and saluted: "Make Zhang Xun in Xiawu." ”

The Son of Heaven nodded and said, "I have an impression of you, that archer contest was the first time you realized the assassin's intentions. ”

Zhang Xun waved his hand and smiled: "It's not enough to worry about it, it's not enough to worry about it." If it weren't for Wang Zizheng's timely rescue, His Majesty would probably not have been able to escape. Therefore, Your Majesty is still grateful to Wang Zizheng. ”

"What is your attitude towards today's affairs?"

Zhang Xun was drunk, even though everyone's eyes were on him, but there was only Ji Zheng left in his eyes, and he looked at each other for a while, as if he had a thousand words, but he couldn't say anything.

Zhang Xun will never forget the first time he looked at these eyes, when the snow was falling, and he saw this young man training hard in the snow through the window.

In a blink of an eye, fifteen years have passed, and now, in the eyes of both of them, they can no longer find the immaturity and innocence of the year, but instead the maturity and helplessness left after the years of polishing.

Zhang Xun walked leisurely through the crowd on both sides of the separation and walked in front of Ji Zheng.

He looked at Ji Zheng, his eyes lit up with anger, and after a moment, he turned away, took a deep breath, and pointed at everyone with drunkenness.

"Looking back on a hundred years, the princes have quarrels, the situation is chaotic, and the people are struggling to make a living! However, what all living beings want is nothing more than peace in the world and peace and contentment. ”

"The way of the world is like this, and the root of it is because of the immortality of the human heart. My king has the world in his heart and cares about the Zhou family, and since he ascended the throne, he has never slackened for a day. For more than ten years, sweeping the eight wildernesses, clearing the Liuhe, pacifying the world, and shaking the four seas, the princes have returned to their hearts and become the overlord of the world together! ”

"When the Huangchi Alliance, my king swore a blood oath, the Son of Heaven and the princes of Xia'an, if there are people who are disloyal to the Zhou family, our country should use the power of moving mountains and reclamation to turn the world upside down, and grind it into powder, so as to protect the peace of the world!"

"However, Wang Zizheng, as the bloodline of the Zhou family, did not take the general trend of the world as his own responsibility, privately married with the Yue Kingdom, touched the untransformed country, led the barbarian people, wantonly attacked and killed, causing another war in the world, and the people died tragically for no reason."

"What is the people's place to do this?! Where is the world?! And Wang Zizheng led the army to secretly attack, how can he be a gentleman?! If the prince becomes the co-ruler of the world in the future, he will inevitably corrupt morality, cronies and villains, and ghosts will run rampant in the court, and the world will be in chaos when the world is declining! Therefore, our Wu State categorically will not agree with Wang Zizheng! ”

After saying that, Zhang Xun strode to Ji Ren's side, and saluted Ji Ren solemnly: "Wu Guo is willing to support the prince as the crown prince!" ”

Immediately afterwards, the envoy of the Song State stood up and said: "The Song State is willing to support the prince to be the crown prince!" ”

"The State of Qin is willing to support the prince to be appointed as the crown prince!"

"The State of Chu is willing to support the prince to be appointed as the crown prince!"

"Cai Guo is willing to support the prince as the crown prince!"

As a result, all the princes expressed their support for Ji Ren, and even the State of Qi, which had briefly allied with the Yue State, also stood on Ji Ren's side at this time.

In the end, except for the Yue Kingdom who was willing to support Ji Zheng, the other princes all sided with Ji Ren. The two teams are one long and one short, and Ji Zheng is at an absolute disadvantage. Ji Ren was proud, but Ji Zheng was embarrassed, it seems that life and death have been decided, and Ji Zheng may not be able to return to the sky.