In May of the sixth year of Zhongping, Luoyang Palace.
Liu Hong was lying on the bed, breathing weakly. There were ten eunuchs standing beside him. They were the famous Ten Attendants of the Imperial Court.
"Zhang Rang." Liu Hong said weakly.
"This old servant is here." Zhang Rang immediately walked to Liu Hong's bedside.
" I have never appointed a Crown Prince because the First Prince Liu Bian is a coward. His uncle is He Jin. If he becomes the Emperor, he will definitely become a puppet."
Liu Hong coughed twice as he spoke, causing blood to flow out.
"Quickly summon the Imperial Physician!" Zhang Rang anxiously wiped the blood off Liu Hong.
"No need. I know my body very well. I can't hold on much longer. I have one last wish. You must fulfill it for me.”Liu Hong said.
"Your Majesty, you said that this old servant will definitely complete it even if I have to risk my life.”Zhang Rang was still very loyal to Liu Hong. It was a feeling of 'a scholar dying for his confidante'.
Liu Hong trusted Zhang Rang and the others so much because he wanted to go against the aristocratic families. He had promoted He Jin to be the Great General because he wanted to use He Jin to deal with the aristocratic families. However, He Jin was as stupid as a pig. He actually stood on the aristocratic families 'side and turned against Zhang Rang and the others.
On the surface, those aristocratic families respected He Jin very much, but behind his back, they called He Jin 'Butcher He'. They looked down on him at all, and only he himself was still complacent.
"I plan to appoint the second prince Liu Xie as the crown prince and inherit my throne after I die.”Liu Hong continued.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. This old servant will definitely assist the Second Prince in ascending the throne.”Zhang Rang cried.
Soon, Liu Hong closed his eyes. He had exhausted his last bit of life force.
"Your Majesty!"
Seeing Liu Hong die, Zhang Rang was very sad. However, thinking of Liu Hong's will, Zhang Rang immediately calmed down.
"His Majesty has passed away. We must fulfill his last wish.”Zhang Rang said to the others.
"If we want to help the Second Prince ascend the throne, we must kill General He Jin. Otherwise, he will definitely interfere.”Jian Shuo said.
Jian Shuo had some of the troops of the Eight Schools of the West Garden under his command, and in name, he could also command the troops of the other seven schools.
"We'll first conceal the news of His Majesty's death and issue an edict to let He Jin enter the palace and kill him in the palace. After that, you'll take over his troops.”Zhang Rang said after thinking for a moment.
Although Zhang Rang was a eunuch, his martial arts skills and resourcefulness were not bad. Otherwise, he would not have been able to become the head of the Ten Attendants of the Eternal.
"Good!" Everyone agreed with Zhang Rang's plan. However, when one of them heard Zhang Rang's plan, a glint flashed across his eyes. It was just that no one noticed it.
General Manor.
"Great General, Duan Gui requests an audience."
"Call him in." He Jin didn't know why Duan Gui wanted to see him at this time, but he still called him in.
Soon, Duan Gui was brought in by a servant.
"Greetings, Great General!"
"Why are you here?" He Jin and the Ten Attendants were enemies, so they basically wouldn't meet in private.
"Great General, I have come to seek refuge with you. His Majesty has passed away, and Zhang Rang has kept his funeral a secret. He plans to send a fake imperial edict to let you enter the palace and kill you in the palace, then assist the Second Prince in ascending the throne.”Duan Gui said.
Duan Gui was usually unconvinced by Zhang Rang's dominance, and he wasn't that loyal to Liu Hong. He only cared about his own glory and wealth, so at this time, he decisively chose to sell Zhang Rang out.
"What is it? Zhang Rang is so bold!" He Jin was very surprised when he heard this.
After recovering from his shock, He Jin immediately began to think. He had already believed Duan Gui's words. After all, there was no point in Duan Gui lying to him.
"You go down first." He Jin said to Duan Gui.
After that, he asked someone to call Yuan Shao and Cao Cao over. Both of them were from the West Park Eight Schools.
"Greetings, Great General!" Cao Cao and Yuan Shao said respectfully. No one knew what they were thinking.
"Benchu, Meng De, I just received news that His Majesty has passed away and Zhang Rang is keeping it a secret. How do you think I should respond?”He Jin told everything to Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, hoping that they would give him an idea.
Although the two of them were very surprised, they immediately began to think about it. The news of Liu Hong's illness was no secret. After all, it had been several months since he last attended court.
"Great General, Jian Shuo is the only one who has troops under the Ten Attendants of the Imperial Court. You can first seize Jian Shuo's military power, then lead the troops and kill the Ten Attendants in the name of 'cleansing the regal', and then assist the First Prince in ascending the throne.”Yuan Shao thought for a moment and said.
When He Jin heard this, his eyes lit up. He felt that this method was feasible.
"Good, I am indeed worthy of being the descendant of the four generations of the three dukes!”He Jin praised.
"Great General, you flatter me." Yuan Shao said modestly, but his face had a proud expression.
He Jin listened to Yuan Shao's advice and seized Jian Shuo's military power at lightning speed, killing Jian Shuo.
The Ten Attendants of the Everlasting Peace also received the news at this time. They were like ants on a hot pan.
"What should we do now?"
"He Jin has already brought his troops over. If we can't think of a way, we will only die.”
“......”
Zhang Rang was the only one who was relatively calm and kept thinking about countermeasures.
"If we go to Empress He and plead for mercy on our behalf and push all the blame onto Jian Shuo, we might still have a way out.”Zhang Rang said.
"Okay, okay, okay. We'll go right away." The others seemed to have grabbed onto the last life-saving straw and immediately followed Zhang Rang to Empress He's palace.
Empress He was currently sipping tea in the palace when Zhang Rang and the others entered.
"Empress, save me." Zhang Rang and the others said with snot and tears in their eyes.
"Why are you doing this?" Empress He was a little puzzled.
"Empress, the Great General has heard the rumors and is coming to kill us." Zhang Rang recounted the incident and pushed all the blame onto the dead Jian Shuo.
Empress He was not a person without any schemes. Otherwise, she would not have survived in this scheming harem and even become the empress. One had to know that she was only the daughter of a butcher's family and had no background.
However, after thinking about it, she decided to save Zhang Rang and the others. Firstly, Liu Bian needed some people around him after he ascended the throne. Otherwise, Liu Bian would be a puppet in He Jin's hands. Although he and He Jin were siblings, she would choose her son without hesitation.
Secondly, when she entered the palace, she was alone and helpless. Zhang Rang had helped her a lot. Today, she would treat it as returning this favor.
"Don't worry, when the Great General comes, I will explain everything to you.”
"Thank you, Empress!"
Not long after, He Jin came over.
"Brother, they were all threatened by Jian Shuo. Now that they are willing to support the First Prince's ascension, please let them off this once.”Empress He said.
"Alright then!" He Jin thought for a moment and said. Empress He was his sister, and he didn't want to fall out with Empress He because of Zhang Rang and the others.
Moreover, the most important thing now was to let the First Prince Liu Bian ascend the throne. At that time, he would be the country's uncle and also the Great General. At that time, what kind of storm could Zhang Rang and the others cause?
Seeing that He Jin had agreed to let them go, Zhang Rang and the others heaved a sigh of relief.
The new book set sail. I hope everyone will support me, this book will bring everyone into a different Three Kingdoms.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。