The feast dispersed, and under the north gate of Weiyang Palace, carriages drove into the darkness amid the bells.

In the end, only two cars remained, and the two cars stood side by side, only an arm's length apart.

The coachman and the servant had been sent off into the distance, and the carriage stopped like two coffins.

Finally, when the rest of the carriages were gone, the curtains on the sides of the two carriages were lifted.

The people in the car were none other than Zhang Anshi and Wei Xian.

The cold wind suddenly blew in and poured into the car, and 65-year-old Zhang Anshi and 87-year-old Wei Xian coughed violently together.

After a long time, calm returned.

"Gong Wei, I'll wait for you." Zhang Anshi smiled bitterly in the dark.

"Hahaha, Ziru is just old, and the old decay is already half cut into the soil." Wei Xian said in a hoarse voice.

"Compared with the county officials, you and I are both people who want to enter the ground, and we can't assist the county officials for too long." Zhang Anshi has something to say.

"yes, your and my time is running out." Wei Xian sighed lightly, as soon as these words came out, the cold wind seemed to blow more violently.

Talking about life and death is a sad thing.

Of course, these two people, who claimed to be dying, also looked very sad.

But in fact, they are the two largest forces in the court of the family.

Before the implementation of the imperial examination system, Wei Xian, Zhang Anshi, Liu De and Bingji laid the foundation for their own families through the appointment system and the probation system.

The children and nephews have already been counted.

Moreover, compared with the dead Liu De and Bingji, Wei Xian and Zhang Anshi lived many more years, and they escorted their children and nephews for seven or six more years.

Although the cabinet scholars have no real power, they stand at the top of the Han Dynasty's power after all.

The size of the power is related to the location, and the closer you are to the center, the greater the power.

A word from a cabinet scholar in the ear of the Son of Heaven can decide the fate of an official.

Of course, there will be people who will secretly show affection.

Without Zhang Anshi and Wei Xian condescending to speak, their sons and nephews can get a lot of benefits.

This is a loophole that no system of power can plug.

Wei Xian's eldest son Wei Fangshan is the county guard of Henan, the second son Wei Hong is the county guard of Anding, the third son Wei Shun is the deputy captain of the Handong Metropolitan Protectorate, and the youngest son Wei Xuancheng is the great Sima.

Zhang Anshi's eldest son Zhang Yanshou is the deputy lieutenant of the Western Regions Metropolitan Protector, the second son Zhang Qianqiu is the right Fufeng, and the youngest son Zhang Pengzu who passed on to Zhang He is the left Feng Yi.

Their power has surpassed that of almost all the families that have ever appeared in the Han Dynasty.

But compared to the expanding territory of the Han Dynasty, their influence has actually shrunk.

And it's going to get smaller and smaller.

That's why Wei Xian said the phrase "time is running out".

The two fell silent, looked up at the silhouette of Shuangque, and tacitly brought the topic to the crucial point.

"Today is also the birthday of the emperor's eldest son, Zhe, after today, he will be fifteen, and he will go to the border." Zhang Anshi said.

"Yes, if the county official is interested, then the eldest son of the emperor can be made the crown prince." Wei Xian said.

According to the rules set by the Son of Heaven, the sons of princes, princes and lords who want to inherit their father's title must go to the border for one year.

And the Son of Heaven is no exception.

This means that once the emperor's eldest son Zhe goes out to the border and returns to Chang'an City safely in the next year, he can theoretically be made the crown prince.

A prince with the blood of the Huo family, or a son of heaven with the blood of the Huo family, is absolutely unacceptable to Zhang Anshi and Wei Xian.

When this Son of Heaven ascended the throne, Zhang Anshi and Wei Xian were probably already old, and the new Son of Heaven might not remember the old things, but they didn't dare to take risks.

They want to find a certainty for the Zhang family and the Wei family, as well as the families who participated in the downfall of Huo back then.

What's more, the character of the emperor's eldest son Zhe and the Son of Heaven cannot be said to be similar, but can only be said to be exactly the same.

If there is another such son of heaven, then there will really be no way for the world's great families to live.

Just like the grandchildren of Zhang Anshi and Wei Xian, they will all take the imperial examination in the future, wouldn't it be inferior to the next generation.

All of the above are the reasons why Zhang Anshi and Wei Xian are reluctant to let the emperor's eldest son, Zhe, become the crown prince.

"Your Majesty is in the heyday of the Spring and Autumn Period, so he may not be able to establish a prince so early, right?" Zhang Anshi asked.

"Ziru, if Your Majesty didn't want to make him the crown prince, why did you keep the Empress Huo all the time?" Wei Xian replied.

"......" Zhang Anshi was silent.

"In the past, I didn't know why the Son of Heaven didn't abolish the queen, but now the reason why this is not abolished is obvious?" Wei Xian said.

"Your Majesty really regards the family as a thorn in the flesh." Zhang Anshi no longer has the elegance of the past, and the profound forehead lines have also seen the vicissitudes of life.

The Son of Heaven played a big game of chess, and the moment he ate the Huo family, he opened his mouth to the family.

This killing move of the Son of Heaven was buried so deeply, and they finally mislooked at the Son of Heaven again.

Zhang Anshi also often slandered that Queen Huo was so able to give birth to three princes.

And Zhang Anjun and Cai Jieyu's heirs are late.

Of course, there is no objection to clinging to this kind of coincidence today, and they have to think of other ways to reverse the current situation.

"It's not too late to make amends, I've been preparing to endure for so long, and I have to do something today." Zhang Anshi said.

"The old man and the Webster family are willing to advance and retreat together with Ziru!"

"Duke Wei is willing to entrust the family, and I will live up to the trust."

Zhang Anshi and the other four scholars formed an alliance more than ten years ago, but the matter was too dangerous, and today it must be determined again in the shadow of Shuangque

"Empress Huo gave birth to three sons, and she is much older than the other three princes, so the pass does not lie in which prince." Zhang Anshi said.

"Ziru is right, the pass is not in the son, but in the mother." Wei Xian nodded and said.

As long as Huo Chengjun's position as queen is abolished, the three princes she gave birth to will immediately lose their status as concubines.

When the time comes, if the Son of Heaven establishes a queen again, it will inevitably be Zhang Jieyu or Cai Jieyu, and their son will become a son-in-law.

In this way, once and for all.

"Or put the mother and child together and dispose of them at the same time, so that it is cleaner and neater." Zhang Anshi added.

"I'm afraid the Empress Huo will not sit still, who knows if there is a backhand." Wei Xian said.

"With or without a backhand, I'm going to make a move." Zhang Anshi said fiercely.

"Can Ziru have a plan in his heart?" Wei Xian asked.

"The county officials are prosperous in the spring and autumn, and the eldest son of the emperor is young and vigorous......"

"Sheng Naiyang also, yin and yang can be reconciled, but there must be an injury when the two yangs meet."

"We can emulate what our predecessors have done."

Zhang Anshi said this, and stopped just right.

Wei Xian has lived for more than 80 years, and has seen too many things after Emperor Xiaowu, Emperor Xiaozhao, and the son of the three dynasties.

He naturally knew what kind of past incident Zhang Anshi was talking about.

"Ziru, are the county officials suspicious?" Wei Xian's cloudy eyes twitched, and he asked knowingly.

"If the county official is not suspicious, why would he attack my family?"

"In this way, everything should be done according to Ziru's words."

"Yui!"

The guess of Zhang Anshi and others was right.

A few days later, the Son of Heaven issued an edict ordering the emperor's eldest son, Liu Zhe, to go to the Western Regions to protect the border.

After more than ten years of development, the old land of the Western Regions is not said to be the Huns, but the native Hu people of the Western Regions are much less.

And further west, there are the Central Asian Protectors and the Rest Protectors.

Therefore, strictly speaking, this place is no longer the border of the Han Dynasty.

However, the capital of the Western Regions is vast and sparsely populated, with a radius of thousands of miles, which is the size of a state, but the population is only more than 100,000.

Although there are pavilions every 100 miles along the official road, and there are hundreds of people in Tuntianwei every 3500 miles, but after being away from the official road, it is a vast sea of sand.

Not to mention the occasional bandits, even the packs of desert wolves are also dangerous.

Therefore, to serve in the Western Regions, it can still be counted as a garrison.

The identity of the eldest son of the emperor is so noble, it is not easy to go to the Western Regions for a while, and no one will look for that small loophole.

As a result, the news of the emperor's eldest son's border quickly spread in Chang'an City.

The vast majority of people praised this, and the few sons of princes and princes who wanted to evade the obligations of the border also gave up their last illusions as if they were mourning.

In addition, there were also some people who left Chang'an City under the cover of night......

Liu Zhe is the eldest son of the Son of Heaven and the first prince to conquer the border.

The Han people have already guessed something, and many people have started the layout from their own interests.

At the first moment of the first day of September in the sixteenth year of Dingxin, under the north gate of Weiyang Palace, there were several times more pavilions patrolling the city than usual.

There was not a single wandering person in the square.

In the early night, only a group of dismounted cavalry stood outside the north gate and waited quietly.

These knights are all in their thirties, in the prime of life, and all of them have been weathered, and they have all been born and died in the Western Regions for many years.

But the leader of the team is not the team leader of the team, but the Changyi Lang Zuo Du Lieutenant of the rank of Qianshi - Liu Xiang.

After 16 years of beating, the 37-year-old Liu Xiang has already become a fierce general.

Along the way, he added several scars on his face and body, and he was much more resolute than back then.

However, despite all the ups and downs, he was still too handsome on the battlefield and was often ridiculed by enemy generals.

Of course, all the enemy generals who mocked him were already in ashes.

The Son of Heaven knew that he was troubled, and specially ordered a skilled craftsman to create a pair of gilded visors for him, which was based on the ghosts and gods who guarded the ghost gate in the "Classic of Mountains and Seas".

And then every time Liu Xiang went into battle, he had to wear this mask to shake the night.

Liu Xiang participated in almost all the battles of the Han Dynasty against the Western Regions and the Western Regions.

The Huns, the Dawan, the Dayue, the Rest of the Huns, the Romans and the Barbarians...... They are all the souls of Liu Xiang's subordinates.

Coupled with the superb archery skills that can take people's lives from the army, he has the nickname of "jade-faced ghost general" in Central Asia.

It is the safest for him to escort Liu Zhe to the Western Regions.

Soon, the clock rang, the north gate slowly opened, the emperor's guard of honor came out of it, and Liu Xiang immediately had a solemn facelift, as did the soldiers behind him.

Liu He and Huo Chengjun came here, naturally to send Liu Zhe on a long trip, and several younger brothers and sisters of his relatives also came.

And the night before, Zhang Jieyu and Cai Jieyu had also brought their younger brothers and sisters to Jiaofang Hall to see them off.

Not to mention the background and power behind them, Zhang Jieyu and Cai Jieyu are also gentle people, and the princes and princesses they bring are still young, and they can't see any evil intentions.

In short, Liu He balanced the harem very well, and there was no scandal of competing for favor.

Of course, he didn't take it lightly, the people in the palace are often involuntarily, and it is the people outside the palace who decide the fate of everyone.

At this moment, Liu Zhe changed into an ordinary cavalryman's armor, but there was a faint dragon pattern on the negative seal, and he could barely see his special identity.

Liu He stood with his hands behind his back, looking at this young man who looked very similar to himself, and was very satisfied.

But he didn't go up, but left time to Huo Chengjun.

"The wind in the Western Regions is strong, and it is autumn, when you sleep at night, you must lay the felt mat, don't be greedy for cold......"

"You also need to drink more water, eat more fruits and vegetables, and don't stop eating meat when you see it...... Don't go out and walk around by yourself at night, there are a lot of jackals......"

Huo Chengjun kept saying that in sixteen or seventeen years, a delicate girl had become a resolute mother.

Mothers all over the world are like this, and there are always countless nagging and memories when sending their children away.

Liu Zhe is still quite steady, his heart has already galloped on the vast desert and grassland in the Western Regions, but at this moment he is still patiently listening to his mother's nagging.

Filial piety and sensibility are also necessary virtues to become the son of heaven.

Half an hour later, several younger siblings also came to say goodbye to the elder brother.

"Big brother, if you come across Hu Ren's books in the Western Regions, you must bring them back to me to see, I heard that they don't know how to use paper, special leaves and sheepskin ......"

Uncle Liu Yong is only thirteen years old, but he is well-read and has read many of the books copied by Liu He, and maybe he will be able to write books and biographies in the future.

"As long as you see it, I will bring it back to you! In two years, I will go out to the border, and I can find it by myself when the time comes! Liu Zhe smiled heartily.

"And me, and me! If you see a Roman crossbow or a bed crossbow, bring it back to me! Liu Youan, who was a head shorter, stood up and scrambled.

"Okay, don't say it's a bow and crossbow, if you meet a craftsman, I'll help you capture him back!" Liu Zhe's assurance made Liu Youan excited for a long time.

Four-year-old Liu Yu was just able to walk steadily, staggered to Liu Zhe's side, and asked him to bring back Hu Ren's childish toys, and Liu Zhe agreed seriously.

The last to say goodbye was Liu He's eldest daughter Liu Shu, who was only one year younger than Liu Zhe, and the brother and sister had the closest relationship on weekdays.

But at this moment, Liu Shu had a touch of sorrow on her face, which was not as bright as usual.

Liu He knew what the source of this sorrow was—she complained that she was not a man, otherwise she would be able to get out of the jam on this day next year.

Liu Shu wants to get out of the plug, not for the so-called power and status, but just to be able to gallop around like a man.

"Big brother, this cotton armor was sewn by my own hands, and it is lined with steel sheets, and it is worn under the armor, which has an extra layer of shelter and is more comfortable." Liu Shu handed the package to Liu Zhe.

"......" Liu Zhe took it, stopped talking, and then laughed loudly: "When I come back, I will bring you a Roman sword, do you think it?" ”

"Nope! I don't want it! Liu Shu said categorically.

"Then whatever you want, as long as I can find it, you can do it!" Liu Zhe asked again.

"Come back well, tell me how big the wind and sand are in the Western Regions, and tell me how high Su Fujun's tomb is!" Liu Shu's words were both gloomy and heroic.

"I see!" Liu Zhe put away the smile on his face and raised his right hand, Liu Shu was stunned for a moment, and finally laughed, and the brother and sister high-fived and made an oath.

At this point, Huo Chengjun took the children back a few steps, leaving the remaining space and time to Liu He.

This Son of Heaven, this father, this outsider, with a complex emotion, walked up to his son.

Ask for a subscription!

(End of chapter)