When the news of Huang Yuan's army attacking Qionglai reached the White Emperor City, Liu Bei was overjoyed, remembering what the priest had said that someone in the southwest had conquered Kong Ming on his behalf. Isn't Hanjia County in the southwest? The more I believed in the words of the priests, I thought that I had a plan, and my spirit improved. After some time, it was rumored that Huang Yuan's army was defeated and abandoned the city to the east, but he didn't believe it at first, until he reported it again and again, and he knew that it was indeed undoubted, but Liu Bei couldn't help but wonder in his heart, how could Kong Ming reverse the heavens?

Huang Yuan along the way, in order to protect himself, he forcibly pulled Zhuang Ding into the army, and received a lot of robbers, originally only a few thousand people, and when he arrived in Badong, it snowballed, rising to tens of thousands, and still came to the White Emperor City. Liu Bei was busy at this time, and he didn't know what Huang Yuan's intentions were, so he hurriedly dispatched all the soldiers and horses in the city, took Zhao Yun as the general, and took Wu Yi and others to intercept him. Zhao Yun was so heroic, and Chen had the elite soldiers of his subordinates, and the two battles killed Huang Yuan's rabble were defeated and scattered, and the good news was frequent. The danger of the White Emperor was temporarily resolved, Liu Bei was happy, but he not only thought about who could crusade against Kong Ming on his behalf and welcome him into Chengdu again.

How do you know that Huang Yuan just went, Zhao Shu came again, Liu Bei watched Chen Zhi come in in a panic to report, he also panicked, thought for a moment, and asked: "With the meaning of Uncle Zhi, why did Zhao Shu come?" Chen Zhi replied respectfully: "He said that he came for the rebellion of Ping Huangyuan, but with the meaning of Weichen, I am afraid that it is more than this, but the minister does not dare to speak out." ”

"Definitely more than that." Liu Bei sneered: "Qing has been with me for many years, and he is very loyal, but he can say what he thinks in his heart." When Chen Zhi heard Liu Bei say this, he said again: "The minister is talking nonsense." In the old years, most of the ministers in the court, most of the things, His Majesty traveled west to the White Emperor but never returned to Chengdu, is he worried that something will happen in the court? ”

Liu Bei nodded, sighed, and said: "After Fa Zheng died, I raised troops to the east, and my mind was all about cutting down Wu, and I don't know all kinds of things in Chengdu. On the day Ma Meng descended to me, I deliberately coldly humiliated, hoping to be able to join Kong Ming, or Zhao Shu's men, and bury a chess piece for me, I don't want to die of illness in the prime of life, and there is no more confidant in Chengdu, how can I still go? ”

Chen Zhi continued: "The minister can guess this matter, and Zhao Shu must also know it, so the minister has the courage to assert that Zhao Shu must have come to seize power with Kong Ming this time." Now that His Majesty has no henchmen to lead the army, his prestige is still there, and Zhao Shu wants to use His Majesty's prestige to suppress Kong Ming and monopolize power. ”

Liu Bei nodded again, what Chen Zhi said was also what he thought in his heart, Zhao Shu came without an edict, and his intentions were obvious, and he must have heard that many important ministers in Chengdu had died, lest Kong Ming be dominant and want to take a head start on himself. Although Liu Bei understands Zhao Shu's intentions, he is helpless, in the first battle of Jiangxia, his cronies and old troops were killed and wounded, and the Jingzhou army and horses were all led by Zhao Shu's henchmen, and he Liu Bei himself had no soldiers and no generals, so he could only be willing to be a pawn. Recalling that he was dressed as a horse, but he became the abolished emperor Liu Xie when he was old, Liu Bei couldn't help but feel a little sad, but he didn't give up, but asked: "Where is Zhao Yunjun's horse now?" ”

Chen Zhi replied: "In accordance with His Majesty's edict, the evil has been eliminated, and Huang Yuan has been killed for hundreds of miles, and I am afraid that I will not be able to come back for a while." ”

"That's it." Liu Bei suddenly said: "Huang Yuan rebelled to the east, Qing and I also knew about it for a short time, but Zhao Shu had already brought troops, most of them had already planned, I have already entered the urn, so let him enter the city." ”

"Your Majesty, the minister has a plan, I don't know if Your Majesty is willing to do it?" After Liu Bei signaled, Chen Zhi said in a low voice: "Zhao Shu only has hundreds of horsemen beside him at the moment, and the soldiers and horses are not there, so you might as well lure them into the city and capture them, as long as the first evil is removed, the rest are not to worry." ”

"It's not a good idea." Liu Bei hurriedly shook his head and said: "Since Zhao Shu dares to bring less soldiers and horses, he must have something to rely on, his army is behind, if I capture and kill him, his henchmen will be in chaos, and there will be few soldiers in the city, so I am afraid that he will be harmed." And all the generals in Jingzhou are Zhao Shu's henchmen, once they know it, they will descend to Wei Wu, thinking that they are pioneers, and the country is in danger. ”

Chen Zhi replied: "The minister also knows that this plan is dangerous, but if Zhao Shu is allowed to stay in the city, His Majesty is also dangerous. If the soldiers are in danger, except for the leader, the city gate will be closed, and as long as they hold on for one day, Zhao Yun and his ministers' troops and horses can rush back. His Majesty may also issue an edict to Jingzhou Guan to conquer the east, so that it can act expediently. The Guan family has been in Jingzhou for a long time, and Zhao Shu's henchmen may not dare to make trouble when they see that the main leader is dead, and the two Guan generals are both heroic men and will be able to suppress them. His Majesty used this thunderous means to restrain Zhao Shu, and he will definitely be able to deter Kong Ming and the people of Chengdu, and it will be another scene when the time comes. ”

After Liu Bei heard this, he was silent for a moment, what Chen Zhi said was not completely unreasonable, was it worth taking this risk? Chen Zhi saw Liu Bei hesitating, so he fell to the ground and sobbed: "The minister has followed His Majesty for many years, and he was high-spirited in the past, and he turned to the world, but now His Majesty is really old?" Willing to be at the mercy of Zhao Shu'er? ”

These two sentences made Liu Bei's blood surge, he had been fighting for decades, and the hard-earned foundation, did he really want to give it to Zhao Shu and Kong Ming? Although Cao Cao is hateful, he has two sentences that are right, "The martyr is in his twilight years, and his heart is strong", how can Liu Bei be a person who is willing to be a fish and meat? At the moment, his spirit was lifted, and he said: "The right to this matter is up to Aiqing, and my life will be entrusted to Aiqing." ”

"Do you dare not repay you with death?" Chen Zhisan knocked up, turned around and strode out of the hall. Liu Bei turned his eyes to look at Huang Hao next to him, but he was sweating profusely, trembling, and wanted to scold him, but why didn't he feel seven up and eight down in his heart? I had to smile lightly: "Why are you afraid." He didn't know that what Huang Hao was afraid of was completely different from him.

Zhao Shu and Huan Yi waited outside the city for a long time, only to see the city gate slowly open, and Chen Zhi immediately shouted loudly with several horsemen: "The last general is ordered by His Majesty to invite the general into the city." Zhao Shu glanced at Huan Yi, and the two knew it, so they beat their horses together and came down to the city. When it came to the city gate, Zhao Shu smiled and said to Chen: "I haven't seen you for many days, but the general's demeanor is still the same." Chen Zhi returned the salute politely, and said on the horse: "The general's demeanor is the same, and the last general is not as good as ever." ”

said that it was too late, it was fast, Huan Yi took advantage of Chen Zhi's body, raised his gun and swept it, and then lifted it under the horse, and the soldiers behind him had already been prepared, and a few people rushed out and pressed him to the ground and tied it with ropes. Chen went to his henchmen behind him to come to the rescue, but was dispersed by Huan Yi and quickly seized the city gate. As soon as the city was in chaos, he listened to the drums behind him, and Tianyi also led the army to kill, there were not many soldiers and horses in the city, and the main general was captured again.

Chen Zhi shouted and scolded loudly at first, and when Tianyi approached with the army, he realized that Zhao Shu had been prepared, and he himself fell into the trap, and he couldn't help but be dumbfounded and regretful. Zhao Shunai asked someone to search for his body, got a short blade, and asked with a smile: "The general wants to harm me?" Chen Zhi sighed and said angrily: "Hate can't be done." ”

Zhao Shu smiled faintly and said, "When you see Your Majesty, you can complain." At that time, Huan Yi had already led people to divide the gates, and Zhao Shu and Tianyi took Chen Zhijing to Liu Bei's palace. The outside changed to Liu Bei's ears, the guards closed the palace door, Zhao Shu called several times and did not open, but scolded: "Chen Zhi wants to kill the important ministers, and the plot is wrong, and now it has been taken, and those who do not open the door of the forbidden army must be a party, and they can be attacked and killed." "Then I want to drink and order Tianyi to lead people to attack.

"General, slow." Zhao Shu turned his eyes to look, but it was Yan Peng who came in a hurry, stepped forward quickly and grabbed the reins of Zhao Shu's mount, and said, "The general must not be reckless." Zhao Shu hurriedly dismounted, and said in a low voice: "If I don't want to do this, the palace door will not be opened, if there is any hesitation, Zhao Yunjun will arrive, my name is not right, and my words are not good, how can I do it?" ”

Yan Pengnai said: "The general led his troops to attack His Majesty's palace, is it justified?" Now that the general and Kong Ming share the power, they must not give someone authority. After Fa Zheng went, the generals in Sichuan waited and watched, if the general did such an unjust thing, wouldn't he be disappointed and strengthen Kongming? ”

"Yes." Zhao Shu nodded, although Liu Bei has no power now, he still has prestige among his subordinates, but he has been closed doors, what should Zhao Shu do? Nai asked: "For today's matter, it is like riding a tiger, if I don't meet Your Majesty, and ask for a clear edict, I will be a rebellious minister." What do I think, sir? ”

Yan Peng said with a smile: "General, wait a minute, a certain general said it." Zhao Shu hugged his fists and said, "There is Mr. Lao." So he led the people back hundreds of steps. Yan Peng walked to the door, and the captain guarding the gate saw that he was alone, and he was afraid that Zhao Shu would really attack, so he opened the door and ordered him to enter.

Liu Bei heard that Chen Zhi was defeated in the palace, and became more and more frightened, Huang Hao breathed a sigh of relief on the side, and couldn't help but comfort Liu Bei, it was nothing more than "Your Majesty is ordered by heaven", "General Zhao prides himself on loyalty and righteousness, and he will not dare to do anything". These words only added to Liu Bei's troubles, and when he heard that Yan Peng asked to see him, he knew that he was in a hurry, so he hurriedly called in.

After Yan Peng shouted long live, Liu Bei said: "Aiqing is flat, now Zhao Shu is forcing the palace, can Qing have a good plan to teach?" Since the defeat of Jiangxia, Liu Bei suspected that Yan Peng had two ambitions, and his favor was gradually lost, but today the situation was dangerous, and he had no choice but to ask him. Yan Pengnai said: "Zhao Shu came prepared, why did Your Majesty punish Chen to kill him?" Now that the matter has been leaked, Zhao Shu is angry, and I am afraid that it will be difficult to hear all of them. ”

How could Liu Bei admit Chen Zhi's matter, and said in detail: "Chen Zhi assassinated Zhao Shu?" I don't know why this happened. ”

"Your Majesty doesn't know?" Yan Peng deliberately breathed a sigh of relief and said: "Chen arrived to welcome General Zhao into the city, and he and his henchmen and guards both had a sharp blade in their arms and plotted against him. If it weren't for His Majesty's order, killing an important minister in vain would be a great crime. ”

Liu Bei looked at Yan Peng, blankly for a moment, and said, "It's indeed a big crime." Yan Peng saw that Liu Bei had the heart to give up the car to protect the handsome, and said: "Since Your Majesty has no intention of giving Zhao Shu to death, why not Xuan Xuan to enter the palace and appease him with good words, he received His Majesty's great grace, and he came to quell the rebellion. ”

Liu Bei groaned for a while, and finally waved his hand: "Go to Xuan Zhao Shu to see you." Yan Peng saluted and left, the more miserable Liu Bei's heart became, Yan Peng's words just now were all speaking for Zhao Shu, it seemed that Zhao Shu's henchmen were all over him, and then he looked at Huang Hao, who was slightly happy, and he was even more frightened.

Soon after, Zhao Shu came to see Liu Bei with Yan Peng, looking at Liu Bei who was older than a few months ago, and there was also some bad feeling in his heart, when he followed him at the beginning of the year, it was the time of the big victory in Chibi and the spring breeze was proud, and now the old people are gone, and the rest are fighting for power and profit, which is far from the Three Kingdoms heroes that Zhao Shu wants to see.

After the big gift, Liu Bei looked at Chen Zhi who was tied aside, and asked Zhao Shudao: "Aiqing is here to quell the chaos?" Or is it a rebellion? Zhao Shu had no choice but to kneel down and said: "The minister was inspecting the defense in Xiangyang, and I heard that Han Jia was too protective of the Huang Yuan rebellion, and raised troops to the east. The voice is sad and indignant, as if he has been greatly wronged.

How could Liu Bei not know that Zhao Shu was acting? But he could only open his mouth to be relieved, and said: "How can I be suspicious, it's just that the forbidden army came to report that Aiqing captured Chen Shuzhi and seized the city defense, and it was expected that something big would happen, so I closed the palace door tightly in case of accidents." There is no doubt about Aiqing. ”

"Your Majesty." I said: "When the minister entered the city, the minister will see that Lord Chen's face is not good, so he will offend, but he will find a sharp blade hidden in his arms, and he wants to be unfavorable to the minister. The minister originally thought that His Majesty wanted to give the minister death, and it was often heard that 'the king wanted the minister to die, and the minister had to die', and the minister should have killed himself, but he was stopped by his subordinates, or said, 'The general is not guilty, if His Majesty is deceived by a traitor, but the general does not distinguish between the saints, and dies by himself.' After the general's death, everyone else talked about His Majesty in this way, wouldn't it hurt His Majesty? If His Majesty really deserves to be punished for his crimes, the ministers will die. If Chen Zhi kills the country's important ministers in vain, he also hopes that His Majesty will be punished in order to show his guilt. He bowed his head again and again to show his sincerity.

Liu Bei's face was blank, and he was speechless, Zhao Shu's words just gave him two choices, either kill me or kill Chen Zhi, in his heart, there are naturally thousands of people who are willing to kill Zhao Shu, but the current situation cannot, but if you want to say in person that Chen Zhi is guilty and deserves death, how can you do it? Now who else can there be other loyal people around him besides Chen Dao? It was a moment of indecision in his heart, his hands trembling, his lips slightly open and closed, but he did not make a sound.

At this moment, I heard Chen Zhi shouting loudly: "I committed suicide, not by His Majesty's edict." Nai broke free from the escort sergeant behind him, strode forward, bowed to Liu Bei, and said: "The minister heard that Zhao Shu was coming, because he was in the day of the White Emperor, he was offended, and he was afraid of his revenge, so he wanted to kill him with a sharp blade. Now that the matter has failed, the minister has the great grace of His Majesty, and the crime is unforgivable, and I hope that His Majesty will give the minister a death. ”

Liu Bei looked at Chen Dao, with tears in his eyes, and whispered to Zhao Shu, "Uncle Zhi has been with me for many years, but he was just confused for a while, offending Aiqing, can Qing forgive me for this time?" ”

Seeing Chen Zhi being so loyal, and Liu Bei deigned to beg for him, Zhao Shu couldn't bear it in his heart, and his mind moved slightly, but he listened to Yan Peng next to him: "It is a big crime to want to hurt the pillars of the country with personal enmity." If Your Majesty does not punish him severely, will it not make the soldiers' hearts chill and cold? Today's trend is to be broken and constantly rebel. The last two sentences are obviously for Zhao Shu. Zhao Shu is indeed a bow at the moment and has no turning back, even if Rao has been Chen Zhi at the moment, Zhao Shu is still a chaotic minister and thief in Liu Bei's heart, and Chen Zhi will not be grateful to Zhao Shu, but he just left a strong enemy in vain. After weighing it again and again, Zhao Shu had to sigh silently in his heart, and then kowtowed: "Please ask Your Majesty to be the master of the ministers." ”