Yang Zhen called for the chamberlain from outside the door. The Emperor immediately said to the chamberlain,""Pass down my order to have Prime Minister Zhuge and his men travel day and night to Yong An Palace as soon as possible!”The chamberlain received the edict and went out.
"Zi Yuan, you said that I'm going to attack Wu, right?" the Emperor said to Yang Zhen.”
"Your Majesty, I dare not speak rashly!”
The Emperor said,"Speak boldly, I pardon you!"”
"Your Majesty! Yang Zhen's words are just his own opinion. Your Majesty, please listen to it for the time being. It's not up to the standard of elegance. I hope Your Majesty can forgive me if I go overboard!”
"Speak!" the Emperor said. Zhen is all ears!"
"Your Majesty's eastern expedition against Wu was all because of loyalty. It was only because the Wu army killed General Guan and General Zhang. General Guan and General Zhang were as close as brothers to His Majesty. How could the elder brother not feel the atmosphere when his brother was killed? How could he not take revenge? Therefore, His Majesty's eastern expedition was not wrong in this aspect! "But…" Yang Zhen suddenly stopped and did not dare to say anything else.
"But what?" asked the Emperor. Tell me, I have already said that even if you attack me, you are not guilty!”
"Your Majesty! Then Zi Yuan said it!"
"Just say it!" the Emperor said earnestly.
"Your Majesty, actually, I want to say that Your Majesty attacked Wu in name for revenge, but his purpose is to use this opportunity to destroy Wu.”
The Emperor suddenly coughed twice and pointed at Yang Zhen.""You, continue!"
Although Yang Zhen was young, he had read some books at home and understood some principles. At this moment, his words hit the nail on the head and shocked the Emperor. The Emperor only thought that he was a soldier, but he never thought that he would be able to see through the Emperor's intentions. Yang Zhen continued," When Your Majesty attacked Wu, his morale was high. However, he did not expect to suffer a crushing defeat. More than half of the country's virtuous ministers and generals were killed or injured. This is Your Majesty's fault!”
When the Emperor heard this, he suddenly burst into laughter and said,""Good! Ever since I returned to the country, no one has ever said such words. I was wrong, but I also have hatred!”
"What do you hate, Your Majesty?" Yang Zhen asked.”
"I hate Zhuge Liang," the Emperor said.”
"Prime Minister Zhuge?" Yang Zhen was shocked.”
The Emperor nodded. I only hate him for knowing my true intentions of attacking Wu, but he kept persuading me to stop sending troops. If he had agreed to send troops without hesitation and followed me to the expedition, I would not have suffered such a defeat!”
"Your Majesty, it's already in the past. Don't think about it anymore," Yang Zhen said.”
The Emperor said," En, Zi Yuan, you're tired too. Go and rest. I want to be alone!"”
Yang Zhen nodded and left the palace.
Yang Zhen left the palace and returned to his room to rest. After sleeping for four hours, he got up again and prepared to go to the Emperor's palace. As soon as he opened the door, Yang Zhen saw a person standing in front of the door with his back against it. When the person heard the sound of the door opening, he turned around and cupped his hands towards Yang Zhen."Commandant Yang!"
Yang Zhen recognized this person. He was Ma Su, the General of Anyuan. "Greetings, General Ma!" Yang Zhen immediately kowtowed.”
"Commandant Yang, there's no need to be so polite," Ma Su said. I just have something to ask you!”
"General Ma, feel free to ask if there's anything you need," Yang Zhen said."Yang Zhen will tell you everything he knows!”
" Commandant Yang," Ma Su said," you've been by His Majesty's side day and night. How is His Majesty's health?"”
" General Ma," Yang Zhen said," His Majesty's health is not as good as it used to be. He's very sick now. He often coughs during the day and often has nightmares at night. He has to take a lot of medicine every day."”
Ma Su thought for a moment and said,""Commandant Yang, go and serve His Majesty!”
Yang Zhen felt that Ma Su was very strange, but he did not think too much about it. He immediately closed the door, bid farewell to Ma Su, and went to the Emperor's bedroom.
Three more days passed, but the officials from the capital still had not arrived. The Emperor was not so optimistic. His condition was getting worse by the day, and his coughing was getting worse by the day. Yang Zhen served by the Emperor's side all day long. He did not leave the Emperor's side for a moment. He personally fed the Emperor medicine, served tea, and fed him. He even served the Emperor's feces and urine, afraid that the Emperor was not feeling well. Yang Zhen treated the Emperor like his own father. This allowed him to find a trace of his father in this old and frail Emperor who was about to ride a crane.
The Emperor saw it and remembered it in his heart. He had risen in troubled times and fought for many years. When he was in middle age, he had a son. Ever since the child was born, he had never spent a period of time with him. The chaotic times made him forget about the child he should have. In his later years, his child grew up, but he could not find a trace of a father in his child. Looking at Yang Zhen's busy figure, the Emperor found a sense of joy as a father in his body. Perhaps it was because of the loneliness before his death, but the Emperor would tell Yang Zhen about his past every day. He would talk about his life and also tell him some of his views on the war. These words benefited Yang Zhen greatly.
On this day, the Emperor was still telling Yang Zhen about the Battle of Ruchuan. As he spoke, the Emperor suddenly stopped. He did not dare to continue because Yang Zhen's father, Yang Huai, had died in this battle. He looked at Yang Zhen, who was listening with great interest, and said,"Zi Yuan, this part is not good. The credit has been taken by the Prime Minister.”
Yang Zhen nodded and patiently listened to the Emperor's account of the Battle of Red Cliff.
When the Emperor finished speaking, Yang Zhen brought over a bowl of medicine and said to the Emperor,""Your Majesty, it's time to take your medicine!"
After the Emperor finished taking the medicine, he said to Yang Zhen,""Zi Yuan, you and zhen have been getting along very well these days. I know that my health is not good and I will not be long in this world. Do you have any requests while I am still alive?”
"Zi Yuan doesn't have any requests!”
The Emperor took out a gold medal from the side of the dragon bed and said to Yang Zhen,""Zi Yuan, do you recognize this brand?”
Yang Zhen shook his head. The Emperor said," This gold medal was forged by the craftsman I ordered. There are two of them. I'm going to give you one." If you are in danger of dying after a hundred years, you can avoid death by holding this gold medal!”
The Emperor handed the gold medal to Yang Zhen. Yang Zhen took the gold medal and glanced at it. On the gold medal, there were two large golden words "Exempted from Death". Yang Zhen knew that this was a great honor and quickly knelt down."Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty!"
"Yang Zhen, get up!" the Emperor said.”
Yang Zhen had just stood up when he heard a servant report from outside,""Your Majesty! Prime Minister Zhuge and his entourage had arrived and were waiting for the imperial edict outside the palace!”
"It's finally here!" the Emperor said.
Yang Zhen's heart was in a mess because their arrival meant that the mission given to him by the Emperor was about to be carried out. He was very worried. The Emperor seemed to have seen through Yang Zhen's thoughts and said to Yang Zhen,""Zi Yuan, don't be nervous. Treat it calmly. If it really doesn't go as I think, I hope you won't show mercy!”
Yang Zhen nodded, and the Emperor said to the chamberlain,""Pass!"
The Emperor was still lying on the dragon bed. Yang Zhen stood beside the Emperor with a steel knife tightly gripped. He saw a person walk in first. The person's face was as white as jade, and he wore a black hat and a black robe. There was a black jade brocade belt around his waist, and he held a black feather fan in his hand. Behind him, two rows of people walked in. The civil and military officials stood in one row each and followed the person. As soon as the man entered his sight, Yang Zhen knew that he was the current Prime Minister, Zhuge Liang.
Everyone walked in one after another and knelt on the ground together, shouting,"Long live Your Majesty!"
"Rise!" the Emperor said.
Everyone stood up and saw the Emperor stretch out his hand and shout,""Prime Minister!"
Zhuge Liang immediately walked to the Emperor's side and held his hands with both hands, saying,""Your Majesty's body is not well. You need to take care of yourself!”
The Emperor said," I know my own body. Prime Minister, there's no need to be polite. I dream of my second and third brothers day and night. It seems that they miss me too much."”
"Your Majesty!" Zhuge Liang cried.”
When the ministers heard this, all of them shed tears. Yang Zhen, who was standing beside the Emperor and Zhuge Liang, also shed tears. When the Emperor heard the crying, he said,"My dear ministers, there's no need to be so sad. I've also ascended to the realm of bliss early!"”The Emperor looked around at his ministers. Seeing that all of them had arrived, he said,""Good, good, good. You're all here. Zhen has been waiting for you for a long time. While I still have breath, there are some things that I have to explain clearly.”
"Your Majesty, please issue an edict!" Zhuge Liang said.”
"After I die, the Crown Prince will ascend the throne. The Prime Minister will lead the military and political affairs of the country, and the Minister will be Li Yan's deputy.”After saying that, he coughed a few times. Yang Zhen quickly used his hand to pat it. He did not expect the Emperor to cough so badly that he actually coughed up blood. Zhuge Liang said,"Call the Imperial Physician!"”
The Emperor waved his hand." I drink medicine every day and am beyond cure. There is no cure now. There is no need for the Prime Minister to summon the Imperial Physician." I swore loyalty in Taoyuan and became brothers with Guan Zhong and Zhang Yu. I started in troubled times. Although I often failed, my faith was undefeated. After becoming the prime minister, he would definitely win all the battles and finally obtain a piece of land and be called the emperor. I am not intelligent enough to listen to the advice of the Prime Minister. I sent troops to attack Wu and brought defeat to myself. Now regret has turned into illness, and death is imminent. However, the Crown Prince was stupid and could not control the entire country. He had no choice but to entrust important matters to him.”
"Your Majesty!" Zhuge Liang cried. I already understand Your Majesty's intentions.”
The Emperor's eyes were filled with tears as he looked around at the officials. Seeing that Zhao Yun and Chen Dao were here, he called out,""Zilong, Shuzhi!"
The two of them were already in tears. When they heard the Emperor's call, they immediately went over and knelt in front of the dragon couch. They called out at the same time,"Your Majesty!"
The Emperor said," I've been fighting for many years. Fortunately, I have two loyal men who have protected me many times in times of danger. After I die, I hope that the two of you will take care of yourself."”
Zhao Yun and Chen Dao were already crying their eyes out. In an instant, the image of the two of them fighting on the battlefield and guarding the Emperor's side surged into their minds. The Emperor saw Ma Su and Wei Yan among the ministers. He moved his lips, wanting to say something, but he did not say anything. After a long time, the Emperor said,"The ministers may leave for now. I have something to say to the Prime Minister!"”
Hearing this, Yang Zhen suddenly felt inexplicably nervous. He glanced at Zhuge Liang and tightly gripped the steel knife tied to his waist.
The ministers retreated, and even the chamberlains were chased out by the Emperor. Only the Emperor, Zhuge Liang, and Yang Zhen were left in the room! "What do you think of Ma Su, Prime Minister?" the Emperor asked.”
Zhuge Liang replied,"This man is a talent of the present age. Why would Your Majesty ask this?"”
The Emperor shook his head." Prime Minister, before I die, I have something to tell you. I hope you will remember it!"”
Zhuge Liang said,"Please speak, Your Majesty. I will remember it in my heart."”
"Ma Su exaggerates," the Emperor said."He cannot be of great use. I hope you will examine him carefully."”
Zhuge Liang replied,"I have already remembered it. What other instructions do you have, Your Majesty?"”
"I don't read," the Emperor said,"but I know the general outline. The sage said,'When a bird is about to die, its cry is mournful. When a man is about to die, his words are kind. I wanted to destroy Cao Cao with you and help the Han Dynasty together. Unfortunately, they parted on the way. I trouble the Prime Minister to hand over the edict to Prince Zen, so that he does not take it as a common saying. I hope the Prime Minister can teach me everything!"
Zhuge Liang said,"This is what I must do." Don't worry, Your Majesty!"
The Emperor suddenly grabbed Zhuge Liang's hand and said,""With the Prime Minister's talent, he is comparable to ten Cao Pi. He will definitely be able to stabilize the country and unify the world. The Crown Prince was stupid. If the Prime Minister felt suspicious of assisting him, he would ask for assistance. If he felt that he could not assist him, the Prime Minister could replace him and become the master of Chengdu.”
Yang Zhen was extremely nervous at this moment. He waited until Zhuge Liang answered. His left hand was holding the steel knife tightly, and his right hand was already holding the handle. Cold sweat broke out on his back.
When Zhuge Liang heard the Emperor's words, he immediately knelt down and broke out in a cold sweat. He cried,""Ever since I followed Your Majesty, I have no selfish thoughts. Your Majesty has entrusted the Crown Prince and the country to me, so how could I not do my best to assist? If Your Majesty doesn't believe me, I can immediately kill myself on a pillar to express my feelings.”After saying that, Zhuge Liang stood up and knocked his head against a nearby pillar.
"Yang Zhen!" the Emperor shouted.”
Yang Zhen shot forward and stood in front of the pillar. Zhuge Liang bumped into Yang Zhen's chest. Yang Zhen felt a sharp pain in his chest. He grabbed Zhuge Liang and pulled him in front of the Emperor."Prime Minister, why must you do this!"
"Prime Minister, I'm not suspecting you!" the Emperor said. Prime Minister, please be at ease!"
"Your Majesty!" Zhuge Liang cried. Even if I have thousands of guts, I don't dare to rebel. I hope Your Majesty will investigate!”
Yang Zhen let out a long sigh of relief. Looking at the Emperor and Prime Minister Zhuge, he relaxed and stood beside the Emperor.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。