"When a bird is about to die, its song is mournful; when a man is about to die, his words are also kind." [The Analects of Confucius·Tai Bo]
Zhou Yu sat in Wang Bin's house for a while longer. In fact, he didn't know that he had completed what the emperor had asked him to do. He greeted Wang Bin and exchanged greetings. By now, he had an excuse to leave. But until the sun set,
Later, Wang Bin was in good spirits. He chatted with Zhou Yu about people and customs in Hebei. Zhou Yu was slightly interested and exchanged words with Wang Bin.
"The country will not come." Seeing Zhou Yu's distraction from time to time, Wang Bin suddenly said.
Zhou Yu's heart trembled. He looked at the old man's sad and indifferent expression. He didn't know what was arousing in his heart. He would rather pretend to be confused and said: "Ming Gong is too worried. Your Majesty is still waiting for the famous announcement to enter the palace after he recovers."
"Really..." Wang Bin responded faintly, as if he remembered something, his eyes dimmed a bit, and his tone was particularly weak.
Zhou Yu didn't know how to persuade the other party. He vaguely knew that the relationship between Wang Bin and the emperor might not be as close as ordinary people thought, at least in recent years. But it was undeniable that Wang Bin was firm from the beginning to the end.
Standing beside the emperor, the relationship between uncle and nephew has never faded. Now that it has reached this point, maybe it is just that there are some knots in each other's hearts that cannot be solved, but if they don't solve it now, in the future...
Looking at the waning old man in front of him with a stubborn look of expectation in his eyes, Zhou Yu pursed his lips. He was quite eloquent and didn't know what to say for a moment. Everyone in the house was busy in an orderly manner, and everyone was thinking
They all seemed to be weighed down by heavy boulders, and no one looked very relaxed. The crows on the trees screamed from time to time, making noises that sounded like being disturbed, which made people misunderstand the streets separated by the wall several times.
The look in Wang Bin's eyes gradually dissipated, like the setting sun hanging on the wall, fading into twilight.
Just when Zhou Yu was in a low mood and wanted to say goodbye and go back, there was suddenly an unusual noise outside. Immediately after, the Cangtou from the house came running up and said in excitement and panic: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty is here!"
Wang Bin's throat made two "ho, ho" sounds, as if he was happy about this. Seeing that the other party was speechless for a moment, Zhou Yu hurriedly rushed over and said: "Tell Wang Lang quickly and go to the door quickly."
Welcome!"
Not only Wang Bin, but also Wang Fu, Zhou Yu's solemn heart relaxed after hearing the news of the emperor's arrival. As expected, the emperor was not really ruthless. He not only missed the past, but also sympathized with his old friends.
Wang Fu had already gone to greet the emperor. The emperor did not exchange too many greetings with him. He just said a few words to Zhou Yu who came out to see him, and then went directly to Wang Bin's room.
"Your Majesty..." Wang Bin was so excited that he couldn't control himself. He said tremblingly, trying to stand up from the couch and salute.
"Hurry and help Wang Bin back!" The emperor hurriedly waved, and Zhou Yu immediately stepped forward and Wang Fu helped Wang Bin back to the couch.
The emperor sat on the couch where Zhou Yu had just sat. After briefly asking Hua Tuo, Zhi Xi and others, he asked everyone who had nothing to do with him to retreat. Seeing that there were no outsiders in the room, the emperor sighed lightly and looked straight.
He looked straight at Wang Bin and said sincerely: "I'm late, uncle won't blame me, right?"
"I dare not... I am extremely honored that your Majesty can come." Wang Bin choked with sobs and looked directly at the Emperor with piercing eyes. He is usually a cautious and peaceful person. Only when his mind is agitated, he will inadvertently
made such an offensive move.
The emperor also let him look directly at him, like a junior seriously accepting the instructions of his elders.
"...Speaking of which, I also watched you step by step until you are today. You are still young, you have brought peace to the world, and you have governed the world. You have done everything that the previous generations of emperors failed to do...
...The world says that Your Majesty is one of the rare wise kings and heroes in ancient times. I am happy to hear this, but sometimes I still think that at that age and in an ordinary family, Your Majesty was still just a child." Wang Binkou said.
Chu Wuji stretched out a skinny hand and gently placed it on the emperor's palm: "Even Emperor Gao and Emperor Guangwu, when they were ten years old, the burden on their shoulders was not as heavy as yours."
The emperor's eye circles were slightly red. He did not speak. He held Wang Bin's cold hand tightly in his palms, trying to transfer his warmth to the other person.
"The great road is ruthless, and the ruler who governs the world must be ruthless. This is what I learned when I read "Han Feizi". It's just that I am stupid. It's too late to read it now, and I haven't been able to help you. I'm so tired at this age.
I have to take on a heavy responsibility, and when I get to the spring, Queen Linghuai will definitely talk to me..." Wang Bin was already a little unconscious, and often did not follow the next sentence, but the emperor listened very seriously, because the other party
He was the only one who did not treat him completely as an emperor, but as a nephew: "... Your Majesty built a secretary prison, and there were a group of young men of the same age beside him. At that time, I saw your Majesty writing poems with them.
Singing harmony, throwing pots and shooting arrows, he really looked like a young man... At that time, I thought, this is what the king should be like, he shouldn't just sit in the front hall of Weiyang Palace for people to worship, and always look dignified and solemn.
Unlike ordinary people, at his age, he should have made a few more friends, be happy every day, laugh to his heart's content, and have fun as much as he wants."
"Ah Weng." Wang Fu knelt down and called with some uneasiness. At this time, Wang Bin became more and more offensive and rude as he spoke. The emperor cannot maintain his dignity at all times. Should he be like those ordinary teenagers who want to be wild and indulge their nature?
In the eyes of the ministers, a qualified emperor should not have too many human selfish desires. He was born to rule the world, so he should have few desires and be ruthless, and should not have excessive personal needs; but he should also have a heart of generosity and love.
He always cares about the people of the world and worries about their worries. Such an emperor is not a human being, but a tool. However, in the eyes of his relative Wang Bin, the emperor should be more childish. These elements can make him more like a human being.
A living, flesh-and-blood person.
Although Wang Fu could understand the loneliness in the emperor's heart, he could not understand his father's absurd thoughts, especially after he was severely beaten by the emperor a year ago. He was even more afraid that the emperor would be unhappy when he heard this, and he was busy trying to stop it.
.
"I know, I know everything." Surprisingly, the emperor did not show any displeasure on his face. Instead, he looked at Wang Bin very seriously, as if he had forgotten the people standing or kneeling beside him.
He forced a smile and said: "What uncle said is... I will save it in the future."
Everyone was shocked. They were not only shocked that Wang Bin held such a heavy weight in the emperor's heart, allowing the emperor to obey the other man's words before his death; they were also shocked by what the emperor had just promised.
"I still have something to report to you...it's about the emperor's eldest son." Wang Bin seemed to have used up all his strength, and his final words were weak.
The emperor seemed to know what he was thinking, and said without thinking: "He already has a name. Since he was born in the morning, let's give him the word 'Xi'."
In fact, Wang Bin was not pleading for the Song family, but considering the issue of the emperor's heir from the emperor's standpoint. No matter what the Song family's faults were, the prince was always the emperor's flesh and blood. Others turned a blind eye and did not dare to say anything. At this juncture, Wang Bin
No scruples either.
With regret in his heart, Wang Bin felt relaxed all over. He gasped for breath and slowly closed his eyes, as if he was about to fall asleep.
He seemed to go back to a few years ago, when he had close contact with the emperor for the first time in the carriage, and they made plans for the pro-government after the execution of Dong; as time passed, he seemed to have returned to a much longer time ago, when his sister had entered the palace.
A reluctant farewell.
If he could have stepped forward in time before his sister was killed, if he could have been more active in helping the emperor after being conscripted into the court, if he could have been firmer when Wang Duan married Mi's daughter...
No one knows what the outcome of these 'what ifs' will be, and even Wang Bin has no time to think about it.