In the autumn of the sixth year of Yonghong, which lasted three years and four months, the rebellion of the Three Kingdoms was finally quelled by Li Jian's troops, Emperor Wu of Liang Longyan Dayue, passed the order, and specially ordered Li Jian to return to Beijing to receive the reward, the latter did not dare to delay, did not take care of rest, and did not even have time to unload the armor, so he returned to Qingyang City, the capital of Liang State.

On the main hall, Emperor Wu of Liang gave permission to Li Jian to wear armor and hold a knife, and it was also graceful to allow Li Jian to bow down this time, twenty steps to the hall, and the Son of Heaven to drink, this honor is really unique, unprecedented since the founding of the Liang State three hundred years ago. Although Li Jian felt that it was inappropriate, he did not dare to disobey the holy grace, so as not to fall into the mouth.

Jiang Qing once advised Emperor Wu of Liang not to do this, you must know that Li Jian, as the head of the military generals of Liang State, has a reputation far beyond the other three generals, such a close distance, if Li Jian has a rebellious heart and bad intentions, no one can stop him. Emperor Wu of Liang turned a deaf ear to this, and just left a sentence: "The widow expects that he won't, and he won't dare!" ”

The two of them drank a cup of wine, and the civil and military officials waited on the side, and after returning from this great victory, Emperor Wu of Liang was in a good mood, so he asked: "My victorious general, this time I won the battle again, what reward do you want?" ”

The Emperor's grace is immense! But Li Jian was like sitting on pins and needles, as a close minister of the former emperor, it was a great luck to still be reused by today's son, how dare he ask for a reward in front of hundreds of civil and military officials, and hurriedly bowed to the ground, buried his head deep between his arms, and replied respectfully: "It is the duty of the minister to return to Your Majesty and do your best for the Liang Kingdom, and you dare not ask for a reward." ”

Emperor Wu of Liang smiled at the civil and military officials: "Zhong Aiqing, look, this is the talent of my Liang Dongliang!" Then he muttered: "If you reward gold, silver and jewelry, it will be too tacky, beautiful and beautiful, I am afraid that General Li will not like it either, so it is good, I will specially seal you as the king of Qingzhou, and reward the three cities of Qingyang, Yaonan and Fenghua!" ”

Thunder on the ground! For a time, the Zichen Hall was silent, Emperor Wu of Liang opened the golden mouth, and canonized the first king with a different surname in the three hundred years of Liang State, although the fief was remote and far away from the imperial capital, but it was the emperor's grace, Li Jian forgot to thank him for a while, and stayed in place.

As a protégé of Jiang Qing, Wang Dian, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, naturally didn't want to see Li Jian being crowned king, so he hurriedly jumped out, knelt on the ground, and persuaded: "Your Majesty, this move violates the ancestral etiquette system, and it is really inappropriate, I hope Your Majesty will think twice!" ”

Emperor Wu of Liang looked at Jiang Qing and asked, "What does Master Jiang think?" ”

Since beating Li Jian and entering the palace, Jiang Qing has never said a word, and when he heard Emperor Wu of Liang's question, he bowed and saluted: "Back to Your Majesty, General Li has made great achievements, and he naturally deserves such a reward." ”

Emperor Wu of Liang stroked his palms and laughed: "It's still Master Jiang who is sensible and has won my heart." As he spoke, his face changed, he stood up, pointed at Wang Dian and said angrily: "But you, Wang Shangshu, a small third-grade official, dare to oppose my resolution in public, what are your intentions?" You are a weak scholar who is powerless, can drive away strong enemies and keep my Liang safe and sound? Or do you think I'm inferior to you? If so, why don't you sit on this throne today! ”

Long Yan is furious! Wang Dian's face was like ashes, and he sat down on the ground in fright. Seeing this, Emperor Wu of Liang felt even more disgusted, and waved his hand: "Someone, drag it out and behead!" The next moment, several Jin Wuwei appeared from the shadows and lifted Wang Dian high, and the latter was so frightened that he couldn't stop struggling, shouting in his mouth: "Your Majesty spare your life!" Seeing that Emperor Wu of Liang's face was pale, he looked at Jiang Qing again and shouted, "Taishi save me!" Jiang Qing turned a deaf ear, and murderous intent appeared on his face. Seeing that there was no hope for help, Wang Dian's heart was like ashes, and in an instant, Emperor Wu of Liang became more and more angry, waved his hand, Jin Wuwei saw this, and dragged Wang Dian out of the hall, and the civil and military officials only heard a miserable scream, and then there was no movement.

Being stirred up like this, Emperor Wu of Liang was not interested, waved his hand, and signaled the ministers to retreat, Li Jian, as the biggest winner today, had not returned to Beijing for a long time, so he took the lead in retiring. Jiang Qing, as always, waited until the hundred officials had finished retiring, and then left last. Suddenly, Emperor Wu of Liang stopped Jiang Qing and asked, "Taishi, is there anything wrong with my actions today?" Jiang Qing bowed to the ground and said: "Your Majesty is generous, the rewards and punishments are clear, there is nothing wrong, Weichen only asks Your Majesty to be magnanimous and can let go of Wang Dian's family." ”

Emperor Wu of Liang nodded and said with a smile: "This is natural, Taishi Jiang is invited quickly, General Li will go to the fiefdom in a few days, and in the future, this matter of Kyoto, and Taishi Lao Jiang will have to worry more." ”

"Your Majesty is serious, these are all matters within the responsibility of the ministers." After Jiang Qing finished speaking, he got up and retired. Emperor Wu of Liang looked at Jiang Qing's back, and then looked at Li Jian, who was walking alone in the distance, with a playful smile on his face.

Walking out of the Zichen Palace, the palace maids and eunuchs were busy washing the ground, Wang Dian's corpse had long since disappeared, only the rich smell of blood in the air remained, Jiang Qing did not squint, and walked straight over, but no one knew that Jiang Qing's hands hidden in his sleeves were clenched with fists, obviously angry to the extreme.

Back to the general mansion in the north of the city, before entering the door, Li Jian saw his father Li Xian standing at the gate, and couldn't help but be surprised, Li Xian, as the first swordsman of the Liang Kingdom, has always been idle and wild cranes, the dragon sees the head but not the tail, and there is a year out of the Li Mother Sacrifice Day, all in the clouds, it is the Spring Festival, and often not at home, I don't know why I will wait for myself outside the door today.

Li Jian turned over and dismounted, walked quickly to him, and asked, "Father, why did you come back empty-toned today?" ”

Li Xian was discussing with the Yan swordsman Mo Zifeng yesterday, and when he heard that Li Jian had returned to Beijing with a great victory, he didn't care about tempering his martial arts, so he rushed back to Qingyang from Jiangzhou overnight, and he didn't even have time to drink a sip of water on the road, and when he saw his son, he was distressed and helpless, but he had always been cold and hot, so he just snorted coldly and said, "Come in with me!" ”

The two walked into the house, and after Li Xian ordered his subordinates to retreat, he slapped his sword on the table and said angrily: "If I don't come back, I don't know how much trouble you will cause, don't you say?" The first king with a different surname in the Great Liang Kingdom! ”

Li Jian saw that his father was angry about this matter, so he explained: "The child doesn't know why His Majesty rewarded him so much, but this king with a different surname is not a dishonorable thing, so why should my father be angry." ”

Li Xian saw that his son was still stubborn, and sighed: "Silly boy, do you know the words 'high merit and shocking the master'?" ”

When Li Jian heard this, his expression was flustered, obviously he had not considered this matter, and hurriedly said: "The child is loyal to His Majesty and Daliang, and he has no two hearts, and heaven and earth can learn from it!" ”

Li Xian frowned and said, "That's true, but will he Feng Jingquan believe it?" You have a full 300,000 iron horsemen under your command, which king will really feel at ease? My father once heard that there is a saying in your army, 'Don't listen to the emperor's orders, only recognize the general's tiger talisman', although it shows that you are strict in governing the army, but this sentence reached Feng Jingquan's ears, how would he feel? Emperor Wu of Liang succeeded to the throne, even if it was not justified, you were a hero who protected the country by killing the enemy outside during the war, but if it is peaceful today, the Liang State is only 700,000 soldiers and horses, half of which are in your hands, plus there is a father like me, the first swordsman, even if you don't have the heart of disobedience, in Feng Jingquan's heart, it will always be a thorn! ”

The more Li Jian listened, the more frightened he became, and he couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat: "The child only cares about killing the enemy on the battlefield, and he has never thought about this." ”

Li Xian sighed and said: "Twenty years ago, my father advised you to concentrate on martial arts, but you didn't listen, you had to join the army and serve the country. Ten years ago, you were trapped by love, regardless of your father's obstruction, you fell in love with the Qinglou woman, and you were almost plotted. This time, my father persuaded you not to steal the merits, although Zhu Wang, Ye Baiye, and Cao Bo are not as good as you, they are all first-class fierce generals, so why not give up these military exploits? Your position among the generals of the Liang State is still transcendent. Today, the Father advises you again, listen or not, and do whatever you want. ”

Li Jian obviously had no idea for a long time, and when he was mentioned in the past, he also felt that what his father said was reasonable, and said weakly: "The child will obey his father's arrangement this time." ”

Li Xian said word by word: "My father wants you to take the initiative to hand over your military power, go to Qingzhou as soon as possible, stay away from the government from now on, and be your king with a different surname with peace of mind. ”

Li Jian finally understood his father's good intentions at this moment, and although he was unwilling in his heart, he had to tearfully agree.

On July 15 of the sixth year of Yonghong, Li Jian went to court, handed over the talisman, and led 6,000 soldiers to Qingzhou City.

On the day of the Midyear Festival, the three big characters on the yellow calendar were impressively imprinted, and it was forbidden to travel far.