The Child Emperor

Yuan Jiuding, the Minister of Rites, did not have the slightest impression of these Western envoys, The foreigners are vulgar in their behavior, ignorant in their speech, and rely on the opinions of their ministers. They do not have to have ordinary knowledge with them, nor do they have to keep the post house, put on shackles, and send troops back all the way. The Western Regions are good.

The ministers in the Hall of Diligence all agreed with Yuan Jiuding's suggestion, not killing the envoy was not because of fear, but because they felt that the gap between the two sides was too great to be angered.

Han Ruzi was only perplexed by one thing, Da Chu and this country are separated by thousands of miles and have never communicated with each other. According to the messenger, their king is full of hatred for Da Chu. Why is this?

Yuan Jiuding replied: There are some guests from the Western Regions in the city. According to them, the ancestors of the Western King were originally from the Central Plains. Because of the defeat, they surrendered to the Huns, and then went west with the Huns, and later generations fell into slavery. After the rise of the Western King, he hated the Huns the most. , followed by the Central Plains, believing that the Central Plains court was insane, forcing its ancestors to surrender. This is the general idea.

The god and ghost Da Chanyu's self-proclaimed self-proclaimed too arrogant, Yuan Jiuding didn't use it, only called West King.

Which dynasty?

I don't know, the words recited by the people of the Western Regions are not entirely credible. Even the King of the West probably doesn't remember the dynasty. The so-called revenge is just a momentary rant. It is said that the King of the West did not go well, because of his cruelty and ruthlessness. The rebellions of the Western countries have come one after another, and it will not be long before the King of the West will be defeated, and he will not even be able to see the mountains and rivers of the Great Chu.”

If the situation develops in this direction, of course it is best, but Han Ruzi thought about it and said: There is no need to put on the shackles. After ten days, the messengers will be sent back without gifts. The Great Chu also sent messengers to the west, maybe they can walk with them, thinking that guide.

All the ministers were taken aback. Prime Minister Shen Mingzhi had already decided to retreat, so he did not speak. Feng Ju, the newly appointed censor of Zuocha, stepped forward and said, The kings of the extreme west are fighting together, and the chaos is chaotic. Chu has sent this...

Han Ruzi raised his hand and said that he still had something to say: There are many dependent countries in the extreme west, and the chaos will end sooner or later. When the countries change and their names change, it's all up to them to talk about themselves. No, Chu made this trip to see it with his own eyes and bring back the exact news for me.

The ministers have nothing to say, especially Yuan Jiuding. If the countries in the extreme west end the chaos and resume tribute, the responsibility to find out the name and the truth will belong to the Ministry of Rites.

Han Ruzi did not recommend anyone, but followed the court's rules of conduct and asked the Ministry of Rites to openly recruit brave men to go to war-torn places thousands of miles away.

There are not many applicants, and everyone understands that there is a lot of misfortune here, and most of them may freeze to death on the road. Even if they are lucky enough to reach the extreme west, the war there may not be over, and it is still dangerous and difficult to move.

Only Han Xi understood that this was an opportunity given to him by the emperor, but he had to ask first.

He is now one of the many Sanqi standing attendants, and he can directly ask the emperor to see him. After being approved, he will go to Lingyun Pavilion to meet him. At this time, it has been four days since the Ministry of Rites recruited warriors.

Han Xi finally got a new robe with no patches, and he was in compliance with the rules when he entered the house and bowed down. Start now, without delay.

The eunuchs and guards in the room looked sideways, Han Ruzi smiled and said, Why did I write such a guarantee?

Han Xi raised his head with surprise, Isn't Your Majesty recruiting envoys to go to the extreme west? Wei Chen is willing to go, but I made it clear to His Majesty before...

Han Ruzi shook his head and picked up a piece of paper on the table, You said that you are willing to go to the Far West, but your name is not on the call list sent by the Ministry of Rites.

Wei Chen must guarantee first, and then go to answer the call. Han Xi thought this was a matter of course.

This is really a stubborn person, Han Ruzi still shook his head, There are so many people who are called, you are still between the two, why does the court make a guarantee?

In fact, there were only a few people on the list. Looking at their resumes, they were all petty officials and civilians, and even guilty prisoners in prison were not qualified to serve as ambassadors of the Great Chu.

Han Xi didn't know, he just felt that there were many competitors, this was an unexpected situation he didn't expect, and he was speechless.

Han Ruzi said, Han Xi, if you believe in me and the imperial court, you should make meritorious deeds first and then ask for rewards. There is no reason in this world to discuss rewards first and then do things. Do you understand?

Wei Chen believes in Your Majesty, but he doesn't trust the imperial court very much. Wei Chen only worries about one thing. This mission is not only to pass messages, but also to observe customs and survey the terrain. It will take at least three years to go back and forth. After three years, Wei Chen will not The court that I believe too much in is still there, but the majesty that Wei Chen believes in may not still be there, so I hope…”

Several eunuchs rebuked at the same time, and Han Xi also realized that his words were too much. He was cursing the emperor and hurriedly kowtowed to apologize.

Han Ruzi didn't care, and said, Those who do great things are not afraid of danger. If you want to restore your ancestor's title, you must be willing to take odd risks. If you want to be steady, you might as well go home and dream.

Han Xi was still kowtowing, and Han Ruzi waved his hand, indicating that he could retire, and added: If you can really go to the West, you must pray for a long life on the way.

Long live, long live, Your Majesty. Han Xi retired without any guarantee, but went to the Ministry of Rites to sign up that day.

There were more than 100 messengers from the extreme west, and more than half of them were injured or killed on the way. There were only 30 people left in the capital of Great Chu. The messages they conveyed were extremely arrogant, but they themselves were not so rude. Chu envoys returned to the country together, and there was only one request, hoping that Da Chu would accept the letter from the Zhengtianzi and give a reply.

The content of the letter was similar to what the messenger had said. It was an ultimatum, ordering the Emperor of Chu to surrender immediately.

The Ministry of Rites accepted the letter, but only gave a receipt to indicate that the letter had been received. As for the emperor's reply, it was absolutely impossible to write, not a single word.

After getting the receipt, the Western envoys were satisfied. A few days later, they embarked on the road to return to China, with a team of Chu envoys beside them.

In order to arrange the identity of the Chu envoys, the Ministry of Rites took great pains and finally named them Dachu Xingxiguanfengshi, indicating that they had no definite purpose in going to the west, but just to observe the customs of various places and convey the goodwill of the emperor of Dachu. Let Han Xi decide for himself.

There were fifty Chu envoys in total. Except for Han Xi, a son of the clan, the entourage was either a desperate debtor or a prisoner who hoped to make amends. The ministers in the DPRK and China all expressed doubts about how far this team could go.

Han Xi's family saw him off and parted in tears outside the city, not expecting to see him back again.

There was also a reply from the Western Regions, claiming that the group of Western envoys did not go through the Kunlun Mountain Pass where Deng Cui and others were stationed, but entered the Western Regions from the northern line. to the Chu world.

The officials of Da Chu in the Western Regions were kept in the dark the whole time, and they had to admit the reality at the last moment.

Han Ruzi ordered the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War to continue to collect news from the extreme West. Although the Western Regions were all small countries, they were all terrified of the gods and ghosts, and there must be a reason.

But after all, the enemy of the West has not called, and a arrogant letter will not cause visible harm to the Great Chu. After Han Ruzi sent the envoy, he began to be busy with the affairs in front of him.

In mid-February, another member of the clan finally surrendered, Han Chou died in prison, and the emperor gave him a piece of Bai Ling instead of being asked to be beheaded on the street.

The official document sent by the Ministry of Punishment stated that before he died, Han Chou knelt down to thank him and repented for various crimes. Then he got dressed and covered his face with silk, indicating that he had no face to face his ancestors after his death.

Jin Chunzhong was also there, but he told the emperor a different scene.

Han Chou knew for a long time that he was going to die, but at this moment, he was still so frightened that he kept crying and swearing to everyone he saw that as long as he was willing to let him escape, he would be willing to share half of the property as a thank you gift.

The Marquis of Luoyang's property was confiscated long ago, and he forgot all about it.

After noon, the executioner arrived, Han Chou was paralyzed on the ground, feces and urine were flowing, and he couldn't stand up at all. Several guards lifted up, and after tossing for half an hour, finally put his neck into the white silk.

Han Chou's last few words were not thanks and apology, but shouted I will not let you go if I am a ghost.

There was indeed a piece of cloth covering his face, not his own will, but because he was talking nonsense. The officials of the Ministry of Punishment ordered people to gag with a cloth and cover their faces by the way.

Han Chou didn't admit his guilt until he died, thinking... Jin Chunzhong couldn't continue.

Han Ruzi snorted, Think I'm trying to get revenge on him?

Jin Chunzhong nodded.

From Han Chou's point of view, he once tried to please the emperor and the empress dowager wholeheartedly. If the emperor accepted it at that time, he would not have betrayed and assassinated himself later, so all the mistakes were on the emperor. As for the merchants and the common people, he never considered it. Within the scope, he has always regarded Luoyang as his own unique territory, and it is his power to search for it.

Han Ruzi couldn't help sighing. It took so much time and effort to clean up a Han Chou, and it would take some time to rectify the clan.

Did the Huns reply? Han Ruzi asked.

Jin Chunzhong said: The imperial concubine replied, saying that she didn't know about it. She forwarded my letter to Da Shanyu, and it will take a while to reply.

Han Ruzi wanted to ask about Jin Chuiduo's condition, but after thinking about it, he still didn't speak.

At the end of February, news came from Yunmengze that the main village of the thieves had been conquered, and Luan Banxiong was arrested and was being escorted to Beijing.

Yunmengze, Donghai, Xiongnu, and God and Ghost Dachanyu, one of the four major troubles in Han Ruzi's heart has been removed.

This is just a small beginning, which proves that the imperial power of the Great Chu court is still there, and the road ahead will be even more difficult.

Yang Feng sent a letter saying that the Alliance Leaders Conference will be held as scheduled. Without the participation of thieves, a moderate Alliance Leader will be elected to coordinate the relationship between the rivers and lakes, and try to stay away from the court's open and dark conflicts.

In the letter, Yang Feng said that Chunyu Xiao had already exposed himself and would be arrested soon, so he would have to wait a month or two before returning to Beijing.

Han Ruzi was very curious about who the Chunyu Xiao Yang Feng finally caught would be.

Yang Feng is tirelessly pursuing his target, and Han Ruzi is not idle. Although he cannot patrol the Quartet yet, he has to take the first step—leaving the palace and taking the opportunity to reorganize the clan.