Time gradually entered the spring of the second year of the third emperor of Qin.
The great affairs of the country lie in sacrifice and military affairs.
For the people of Qin, sacrificing sacrifice to God is a very important thing.
The kings of the Qin Dynasty in the past dynasties have set up Yongsi (zhi), Xixi (zhi), Xiji (zhi), Qi (zhi) and other places to worship God. They wish the Lord the eternal blessing and worship them in the temple every year.
The most important of them are the 焜畤, mi畤, 上畤 and 下畤 which are located in Yongcheng. They are collectively called the four 畤.
Yongcheng is the sacrificial center of the Qin State. In addition to the temple, it was the capital of the Qin State for nearly three hundred years. Fifteen ancestors of the Qin State were buried here. It is also the location of the Qin Ancestral Temple.
Therefore, after Qin Shihuang unified the world, he established the Qin ritual of "one suburb for three years". Every three years, the emperor would go to Yongcheng to worship God, called Jiao Yong, and pray for good luck in the spring to bless the Qin Kingdom.
The last Jiao Yongzheng was in the seventh year of Emperor Qin II, so the next Jiao Yongzheng should be in the spring of this year.
But at this critical juncture, the little emperor fell ill.
"I am ill and cannot travel far. I would like to ask the Marquis of Zhenguo and Zongzheng Ziying to go to Yongcheng to offer sacrifices on behalf of the emperor to protect the Qin State."
When Zhao Tuo received the edict, he was surprised at first, and then worried.
The First Emperor fell ill and died.
The second emperor also died due to the recurrence of an old illness.
The little emperor is only in his teens now, so why did he get sick at such a young age?
Zhao Tuo was worried and hurriedly went to the palace to see him. As expected, he saw the third emperor lying on the couch with a depressed look.
The Queen Mother Li Shu accompanied the third emperor to receive Zhao Tuo.
"The emperor is suffering from cold illness, dizziness and brain fever, so it may not be appropriate to go to Yongcheng. However, the time has been set for Yong in the suburbs and cannot be abandoned. The Marquis of Zhenguo is the minister of the late emperor, so he can go to Yongcheng with Zongzheng to perform sacrifices on the emperor's behalf.
The gift.”
Empress Dowager Li looked kindly and repeated the things in the edict again.
In addition to the Yong and Si 畤s, the Qin State also had Xi 畤, Qi 畤 and other places for worshiping God. However, the emperor rarely visited those places in person, and mostly sent ministers and ancestral officials to do it on his behalf.
Therefore, it is normal for Minister Gu Ming to act on his behalf this time due to illness.
Zhao Tuo hurriedly responded: "Please rest assured, Queen Mother, your Majesty can rest in peace and rest. I and Zongzheng will do this well to respect God and the ancestral temple."
"This is very good. Everything is now in order to control the country."
The Queen Mother responded with a smile, and the little emperor on the couch also nodded.
During the conversation, Zhao Tuo always felt that the two people looked a little nervous.
But now that the young emperor is ill, the two previous emperors have learned from the past experience. It is normal to feel nervous and worried.
"Your Majesty's body is admired by thousands of people in the world, so please rest assured and cultivate yourself."
Before Zhao Tuo left, he spoke softly to the third emperor.
Although he did not have much contact with the young emperor, he was the eldest grandson of the First Emperor, the son of Fusu, and the current lord of the world. Zhao Tuo was full of concern for him.
"I understand, thank you for your concern."
The little emperor stammered.
Zhao Tuo said a few more words and finally said goodbye and left.
In the palace, watching Zhao Tuo's back disappear outside the door, the mother and son, who had been nervous, let out a sigh of relief.
Li Shu turned her head to look at Qi Ming on the couch and said with a smile: "My son's acting skills are very good. The Zhao thief was unprepared. Now that he has been transferred from Xianyang, our plan has come true. My son will do what he did in the past when the First Emperor seized power and expelled Lu.
Let this world not fall into the hands of outsiders!"
Under the repeated brainwashing of his mother and uncle, the third emperor had already equated Zhao Tuo with Lu Buwei, who had once dominated the country and refused to return it.
After all, the young emperor and Zhao Tuo had never met each other before he ascended the throne, and the two had almost no feelings.
Tingwei Li Yu was the little emperor's biological uncle. He had loved him since he was a child, and because of his biological mother's encouragement, the little emperor had a very bad impression of Zhao Tuo. He thought that Zhao Tuo was greedy for power, and even his uncle dared to suppress him.
people.
Moreover, under the guidance of Li Yu, he read the "Book of Shang Jun", "Han Feizi" and other classics, and even believed that Zhao Tuo was the official who stole the power of the overlord according to Legalism.
The little emperor felt excited as he substituted himself into his grandfather who had killed Lu Buwei and seized power during the Ping Lao Ai Rebellion.
At that time, Lu Buwei was the minister appointed by King Zhuangxiang of Qin, and he was even asked by the First Emperor to respect him as his father-in-law.
Today's Zhao Tuo is one of the ministers appointed by Emperor Qin II to take care of his orders. In fact, his status is not as good as that of Lu Buwei. However, the power in Zhao Tuo's hands is no less than that of Lu Buwei, especially since the old ministers in the past occupied important positions in the court.
Even the uncle of the state dared to suppress him in front of the government, and his nature was even worse.
According to what Li Yu said, Zhao Tuo used the name of reform to suppress Legalists, win over disciples, and install influence in various government offices. His gang members became increasingly large. If it was not dealt with as soon as possible, when Zhao Tuo completed the complete reform, he would be in trouble.
The Qin State has great prestige. By then, people in the world may really only know the marquis who governs the country, but not the emperor.
If Zhao Tuo becomes disloyal, what happened to the Tian family in Qi will happen again in Qin.
Therefore, the third emperor should learn from what the First Emperor did.
"I am the eldest grandson of the First Emperor. Now there are treacherous ministers who dominate the court. I will follow the example of my ancestors and expel the treacherous ministers to live up to the bloodline of the Ying family!"
"This world was left to me by my eldest father and my father, not to Zhao Tuo!"
Conflicts between young monarchs and powerful officials are inevitable.
…
After receiving the edict, Zhao Tuo did not delay too much and handed over the political affairs to the left Prime Minister Wang Wan and the officials of the Prime Minister's Office. He said goodbye to his wife and children at home and prepared to go to Yongcheng.
"I am ill in bed today and cannot travel far. I will go to Yongcheng to offer sacrifices. While I am away, you should pay more attention to the affairs of the court and take good care of your mother and sisters."
Zhao Tuo gave instructions to his son Zhao Che.
Yongcheng and Xianyang are more than 300 miles apart, and there are also sacrifices and other rituals to be carried out, so it takes a lot of time to go back and forth. Now that the state reform is underway, he is afraid that something will happen, so he asked Zhao Che to help him pay attention.
Zhao Che captured Wusun Kunmo during the Western Expedition and made great achievements. He was conferred the title of Zuogeng by the Second Emperor.
At the same time, he is still serving as the Lieutenant Cheng, assisting the Lieutenant in charge of the Lieutenant Army that guards the capital, and he is already a young man who can stand up to the throne.
After hearing his father's instructions, Zhao Che responded: "Father, just go ahead with peace of mind. Things in Beijing will not worry you."
After hearing this, Zhao Tuo nodded with satisfaction, said goodbye to his wife and daughter, and then met Zongzheng Ziying. The two of them were going to Yongcheng, three hundred miles away, to worship God on behalf of the emperor.
…
"Zhao Thief is finally gone!"
Wentong Marquis Li Yu was overjoyed when he saw Zhao Tuo's honor guard disappearing in the western suburbs of Xianyang.
Ever since he was suppressed by Zhao Tuo and had the idea of seizing power, he had endured it for several months, waiting for the Qin Lord's suburban sacrifice so that he could use a reasonable excuse to get rid of Zhao Tuo.
There was no way, Zhao Tuo's prestige was too great. As long as others were in Xianyang, Li Yu and others did not dare to move at all.
Li Yu had calculated in private that Zhao Tuo's former subordinates occupied many important positions in the army.
Zhao Che is the Lieutenant Cheng, assisting the Lieutenant in taking charge of part of the Lieutenant Army.
Black Buttocks is Lieutenant Army Sima.
Shejian is the commander-in-chief of Taiwei.
Zhong Lizhen, Lu Wan, Li Shang and others also served in the Lieutenant Army, Wei Wei Army, and even Lang Wei Army. They served for more than ten years and had a great influence in the army.
The Three Armies of Xianyang.
The Lang Wei Army, the Wei Wei Army, and the Lieutenant Army all have the power of the Zhao family.
In addition to senior officers, many soldiers had served as soldiers under Zhao Tuo and had a natural loyalty to the Zhao family.
Once things change, Zhao Tuo only needs to raise his arms and shout in Xianyang. With his status, he will surely respond to his call and all the troops will turn against him.
This kind of thing has to be guarded against. During the Lao Ai rebellion, county soldiers, guards, officers and cavalry, Rong Zhai and other armed forces were mobilized.
At that time, Wei Wei Jie, Nei Shi Si, Zuo Yi Jie, Zhong Dafu Ling, etc. were all members of Lao Ai's party, and they jointly raised troops to rebel.
Today's Zhao family is no worse than Lao Ai, so beware of them rioting with their troops.
And precisely because of the Zhao family's huge power in the army, Li Yu was more convincing when persuading the third emperor to seize power.
The Zhao party not only monopolizes national affairs, but also controls the military. It can be said to be a combination of Lu Buwei and Lao Ai.
With such a minister around, I ask you, are you afraid of being an emperor?
"Transfer Zhao Tuo away. The leader of the thief is not here. Once we take action, the Zhao family members will be leaderless and will not dare to move without permission. We will capture them all. Once we capture the Zhao family's party, we can successfully control the three armies.
, when the time comes, there will be threats from Zhao’s gangsters and family members, and His Majesty’s edicts are for righteousness, and I am not afraid that they will not surrender. In this way, the power of the country will be in the hands of Your Majesty and our loyal ministers, and will not be controlled by treacherous ministers.”
Li Yu's voice was sincere. He was the emperor's uncle and could not harm the emperor under any circumstances.
Now that the plan went smoothly, Zhao Tuo was really transferred by them, which greatly encouraged the little emperor and the Li brothers and sisters.
Li Yu's plan has also entered the second stage.
Capture Zhao Tuo's family and Zhao family members.
"In Lang Wei, there are people in the Zhao family who hold high positions in the Weiwei and Lieutenant Army. Shejian is also the Chief of the Taiwei Palace. Now that the Taiwei is sick and weak, this person will have more power over the Taiwei. Once His Majesty issues an edict to the three armies to capture
Zhao family, the news will be leaked to Zhao family members in an instant. In order to prevent Zhao family from being disturbed, we should bypass the three armies and find other help."
At present, Li Yu's mind was spinning very quickly, and he analyzed that there were many close associates of Zhao Tuo in the three armies. It was impossible to judge who was loyal to the emperor and who was loyal to the Zhao family.
Once they make a mistake in judgment, their attempt to seize power will be over.
Therefore, the three armies cannot be used in the early stage, otherwise there is a risk of being counterattacked by the Zhao family.
Li Shu frowned and said, "If we can't even use Lang Wei, how can we capture and control the Zhao family members?"
Li Yulue thought about it, and in front of the Queen Mother and her son, he mentioned a force that was often ignored.
"imperial clan."
He whispered: "All the sons of the clan are your Majesty's uncles and uncles. They are the bloodline of the Ying surname and the descendants of the First Emperor. When faced with powerful ministers stealing state power, the clan members naturally stand on your majesty's side, and the Zhao family cannot get involved with them. We and others
With the help of the princes of the clan, we will be able to capture the Zhao family members and then control the three armies."
Since Shang Yang's reform, the Qin clan has not been able to get titles without merit, and their life has not been very good.
But no matter how bad it is, it is relative. They are of the royal family, and each of them has hundreds of servants. If all the young masters respond together, it will be no problem to create a force of thousands or even thousands of people.
"Your Majesty issued an edict to the three armies not to move, so as not to disturb the Zhao family's party members. The princes will lead their servants to capture the Zhao family's mansion at night, and control Zhao Che and others, and then take Shejian, Heihipu,
Zhong Lizhen and others will take it down one by one. After the Zhao family is eliminated in this way, the three armies will be in their hands and the general situation can be determined!"
Li Yu revealed his plan, which was well organized and had a high success rate, making both the emperor and his son nod in praise.
"The people of the clan are indeed on my side."
Next, Li Yu used the excuse that the emperor was ill, and the empress dowager issued an edict to summon the princes to the palace for an audience.
In front of the princes Wen, Wu, Gao, Jianglu, Hu Hai and other princes, Li Yu spoke passionately, accusing the Zhao family of monopolizing power, stealing state power, and installing influence in the army.
The expressions of all the gentlemen changed greatly, and they looked at each other in confusion.
"The Zhao family has stolen the country and taken full control of the military. I am very uneasy. If the Zhao family has Tian Chang's heart, it will overthrow the state of Qin for nearly 600 years. Now that the world of my surname is in danger, I would like to ask all the clansmen
Elders, help me to capture the Zhao thieves and defend the world."
The third emperor's voice was weeping, and he saluted and begged the princes.
In addition to moving people with emotion, he also cleverly offered interests as bait.
"The Zhao thief monopolizing the Chao Gang made me understand that the world of one surname cannot be without the help of an assistant. If we can capture the Zhao family this time and eliminate the Chao Gang, I will ban the clan and even entrust it to distant territories to establish a clan. This will
Nothing is impossible."
In the eyes of the third emperor and Li Yu, as long as they could capture the Zhao family and let them control the state affairs, it was not unacceptable to divide the clans into feudal clans.
Of course, this enfeoffment cannot be enfeoffed within the prefectures and counties of the Qin State. When the time comes, the third emperor can entrust the princes to the barbarian lands, such as the large island named Dongying discovered in Rizhao County. The sky is high and the Qin Dynasty is far away.
If the country is difficult to manage, we can entrust some people to it.
As expected, benefits are the most touching thing.
When they heard that the third emperor was actually willing to ban clan clans and even enfeoff them, all the princes' eyes suddenly turned red.
Compared to being imprisoned in Xianyang, wouldn't it be nice to be the king and call the shots outside?
Not to mention that the third emperor was right. The Zhao family was too powerful. Once they really wanted to steal the country, their world with the surname Ying would be over.
After a slight hesitation, Gongzi Wen, Gongzi Wu, Gongzi Gao, Gongzi Jianglu and others all bowed their heads and said: "I am willing to help your majesty, capture the traitorous ministers, and support the court!"
Young Master Hu Hai, who was at the back, also said the same thing, but his eyes flickered a little.
Seeing that all the princes were willing to help with all their strength, the third emperor and Li Yu were overjoyed, and immediately arranged and laid out detailed plans, preparing to take down the remaining members of the Zhao family in one blow.
Things were settled quickly.
All the young masters were ordered to keep it secret and return to their homes to prepare.
When the young master Hu Hai returned to his mansion, his eyes were filled with complex expressions.
Seeing Qiming wearing emperor's clothes always reminded Hu Hai of his father who doted on him the most.
Since having this child, his favor in front of his father has become less and less. It is impossible to say that he has no resentment in his heart.
As for the capture of the Zhao family, it reminded him of the time when he followed his father to the east to become a Buddhist monk. Compared with other young masters who only met Zhao Tuo a few times, he had spent a long time with his sister-in-law, and
Still getting along very well.
The expression on his face changed, Hu Hai couldn't make up his mind after all.
He called his close associates and ordered: "Please ask my master Zhao Gao to come here quickly. Do not make any publicity about this matter, and do it secretly."
…
On the night of the second day, the moon was dark and the wind was high.
The city of Xianyang has entered a curfew, and there is silence.
In that dark night, the gates of more than ten young masters' mansions scattered in Xianyang City suddenly opened, and countless people held torches and turned toward the Marquis of Zhen Guo who was in the city, as well as Tai Lieutenant Shi Shejian, Lieutenant Sima Heiyi and Li Shiqi.
, Li Shang, Zhong Limei, Lu Wan and others rushed to their mansions.
"According to the emperor's order, capture the traitors of the country and revitalize the court!"
Under this banner, the young masters are about to take advantage of the darkness to capture all the Zhao family's party.
Little did they know that they had just rushed through Xianyang Main Street and had not yet surrounded the residence of the Marquis of Zhenguo.
Rows of heavily armed soldiers rushed out from the streets and alleys in all directions and surrounded them.
"There are thieves who want to plot rebellion in Xianyang. We are ordered by the Taiwei, Lieutenant and others to capture and kill the rebels!"
Countless voices shouted, and the two sides fought.
Under the torch, Zhao Che was wearing armor and was surrounded by his guards in the center.
He looked at the chaotic scene in front of him, and a person's voice flashed in his mind.
He learned about the matter last night, and Zhao Gao, the servant's subordinate, came to inform him at night.
Zhao Che was shocked at the time. He did not expect that his father would encounter such a big thing not long after he arrived in Yongcheng.
Her mother Ying Yinman was very calm and asked him to secretly find his father's old subordinates to discuss. Because he was afraid that Li Yu would find powerful people like Black Butt, Shejian and others, so he only found people who had no military power but were resourceful.
This way it is not easily exposed.
Li Shiqi and Chen Ping.
Both of these two people were promoted by Zhao Tuo.
Li Shiqi is a die-hard loyalist to Zhao Tuo, and Chen Ping was bullied by Li Yu many times when he was working at Fusu. If the Zhao family falls, they will definitely not be spared, and they are people who can be trusted.
After the two people learned about this incident, they were shocked and quickly assisted Zhao Che in preparing countermeasures.
Among them, Chen Ping rolled his eyes and proposed a tempting plan for Zhao Che.
"The emperor is jealous of the princes and wants to go to war regardless of the late emperor's edict. This has already broken his face. Even if we deal with this matter and save the Zhao family, what will happen in the future? Will the emperor continue to do so in the future?
Are you taking action?"
"The monarch is afraid of his ministers. If his ministers retreat, they will die without a burial place, and the Zhao clan will be destroyed by then!"
"Since the emperor is unkind, it is better for the young princes to do the same thing and use dead soldiers to pretend to be the remnants of the clan to enter the palace, kill the Li family, and send Jin to see the late emperor. At the same time, he will kill all the princes with random troops and say this to the outside world.
The clan conspired to rebel, which resulted in the emperor's death."
"With the bloodline of the clan cut off, a new emperor will be established, and the little prince is a descendant of the Ying surname and the favored grandson of the First Emperor. When the time comes, he will be supported by all the ministers, and he will not be able to ascend to the throne of God. In this way, the Zhao family has nothing to worry about!"
Chen Ping's cold voice kept echoing in Zhao Che's mind.
Take this opportunity to kill all the princes, kill the emperor conveniently, and allow yourself to ascend to the throne of God by virtue of your blood. From now on, the Zhao family will have no worries.
Be the emperor!
Zhao Che thought of how he looked when he was held in the arms of the First Emperor as a child, and thought of the clothes that represented the emperor's identity.
I have to say that Chen Ping's words are very tempting.
"This man is really a poisonous person."
Zhao Che sighed softly, then shook his head, driving this vicious thought and huge temptation out of his mind.
He looked at the chaos ahead again.
"My uncle and I have treated my Zhao family very well. The emperor can betray my Zhao family, but my Zhao family cannot betray the Qin Dynasty."
"If I do this, how will I face my father when he comes back?"
"If I die in the future, under the Nine Springs, how will I, Zhao Che, go to see my grandma and uncle?"
"The position of emperor is not what I want!"
Zhao Che's eyes returned to clarity.
He ordered: "The rebels will not be killed if they surrender!"
Watching all the slaves under the masters fall to their knees one by one, begging for mercy.
Zhao Che's face was as calm as water.
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