Meng Chang's chest was heaving, and Luo Youdu's words deeply hurt the emperor's weak self-esteem.
Meng Chang was still very ambitious. At least in the early days of his accession to the throne, his words and deeds were full of the style of a wise king.
In particular, the twenty-four sentences and ninety-six words "Guan Zhi" written by him are inspiring, word for word.
Among them, golden sentences such as "It is easy for the people to be abused, but it is difficult for God to deceive me", "Your salary and salary are bestowed upon the people by the people", "As a parent, you must not be merciful", etc., etc., etc., could not have been written without some kindness and consideration.
However, with the peace in Shu, Meng Chang no longer had the ambition to dominate the world. He only wanted to guard his own one-third of an acre of land and build Shu into a paradise on earth.
In fact, he succeeded.
In the period of chaos in the Central Plains, it is not an exaggeration to call Jiangnan and Western Shu the paradise on earth.
But with the accumulation of wealth, Meng Chang inevitably lived a luxurious life.
It is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but it is difficult to go from luxury to frugality.
If the huge Shu Kingdom only supports Meng Chang, there will be no problem.
But there is a kind of behavior called up and down.
Meng Chang began to enjoy himself, and his ministers followed suit.
Meng Chang has a treasury to support him. What should his officials do if they have no money? Just be greedy and steal the people's fat and anointing.
Meng Chang was also very ordinary in employing people. He liked poetry and prose, and most of the talents he employed were those who could recite poems, compose poems, and talk eloquently.
Each and every one of them made extravagant claims, and compared themselves with Zhuge Liang, which made China have only one all-rounder in hundreds of years, and there were several in the court of Shu.
For example, Zhao Jizha, who had already scared Jiang Weiwu back to Chengdu by laughing at him, and Wang Zhaoyuan, who later promised to raise 30,000 troops and conquer the Central Plains with ease, but was beaten by Wang Quanbin and Cao Bin whose parents did not even recognize them, all felt that they had Zhuge's
Talent.
I don’t know if Zhuge Liang will be so angry that he cheats when he learns that all the guys who compare themselves to him have such virtues.
The king was addicted to pleasure, and his ministers were many arrogant people. The paradise of Shu gradually changed its taste. Greed was rampant and the court was full of moths.
But Meng Chang himself is still obsessed with the paradise he created, thinking that the land he governs is still a paradise. He may not be an emperor with great unification and military achievements like Emperor Qin and Han Wu, but he can still be compared with a sage king like Wen Jing who governs the world.
.
Now let an enemy minister look down upon him so much and say that he is an idler? He is not worthy of being on the same level as Guo Rong.
How could Meng Chang bear this?
Fan Yu said with gritted teeth: "It's not just that. On the way back, I saw Zhou soldiers gathering to consolidate the town, and they had great intentions of attacking Xingyuan Mansion."
Meng Chang's expression suddenly changed and he hurriedly asked: "What should we do?"
The territory of Shu is vast, but most of it is covered with high mountains. The only truly rich areas are the Chengdu Plain, the land of Tianfu, and the Hanzhong Plain, where Xingyuan Prefecture is located.
If the Xingyuan Mansion fails, the Shu Kingdom will lose a large amount of fiscal revenue.
What's more, it has been said since ancient times that you can look to Shu from Long.
Taking the Hanzhong Plain, there is no reason not to covet the land of Shu.
Fan Yuyou suggested: "Now the best strategy is to increase the number of troops at Yangping Pass. I think the Zhou soldiers are brave and brave, and they are not comparable to our soldiers. Only by relying on the dangerous points of the pass and the city wall can we fight with them."
Meng Chang said hurriedly: "Your Majesty's words are reasonable. I will issue an edict to dispatch troops to Yangping Pass."
Seeing that there were obvious traces of siltation on Fan Yu's forehead, his face was also covered with scars, and his nose was a bit flat, he was moved and said: "I hate Zhou Chen for being so arrogant and rude. I love you and have been wronged. You can go down and treat your injuries. I won't do it."
I will forget your daring loyalty."
That's what Fan Yu wanted, so he thanked him and left with emotion.
Meng Chang was furious and wanted to send troops to regain his face, but when he thought that even Li Tinggui had been defeated so miserably, how could anyone in the court be able to deal with his opponent?
What's more, now it's a game of exchange of offense and defense.
"Your Majesty, Mrs. Huarui and Li Zhaorong are outside the palace asking for an audience."
Meng Chang took several deep breaths, suppressed his anger and said, "Let them in quickly."
The woman in white and the charming woman entered the palace together.
The beautiful woman in white is the Lady Hua Rui, who has ice-cold flesh and jade bones, and is as beautiful as a flower stamen.
The charming woman is Li Yanniang, who has a slim waist and a hundred thousand dollars.
"If you two ladies are not playing in the back hall, why are you here in the front hall?"
Mrs. Huarui bowed and said, "Your Majesty eats vegetarian food on the first day of every month. I personally made some potato medicine and sent it to Your Majesty."
Meng Chang's worries all disappeared in an instant, and he said softly: "Madam, you are interested. If the state affairs had not been hidden, I would have loved to spend all day with my lady in the mountains and rivers."
Mrs. Huarui said: "I don't know anything about state affairs. I know for sure that the well-being of millions of people in Sichuan belongs to you, so you should put state affairs first. I heard that the capital in the backyard has been reduced, and I usually get many rewards, and they are all stored in the back hall. .I would like to dedicate it to His Majesty and serve it as a national resource."
Meng Chang felt disgusted in his heart and said angrily: "There is no reason to take back what I have given you..."
It happened that the military report came that Zhou soldiers were approaching Baishui Pass.
Meng Chang was even more furious. He suppressed his anger and said softly: "Madams, please go down first. I will deal with state affairs first."
Mrs. Huarui bows and retreats.
Li Yanniang did not dare to say a word, bowed and walked away quickly.
The two walked to the backyard, and Li Yanniang breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Sister, I'm so confused. What the officials need most at this time is comfort. Why are you adding fuel to the fire? I really angered the officials. What should I do?"
Mrs. Huarui stopped and looked at Li Yanniang with the same tone: "Sister, have you ever thought about what would happen to you and me if the enemy army breaks through Chengdu?"
Li Yanniang's face turned pale, she looked around and whispered: "How dare you think about this? It's not that big of a deal, right?"
Mrs. Huarui laughed at herself and thought: "Sooner or later!"
Ever since she first entered the palace, she had said unintentionally that she liked peonies and red beetles.
But back then, peonies were blooming all over Chengdu, and the fragrance of peonies spread hundreds of miles away.
All kinds of peonies and red weed flowers bloom along the city for forty miles, as if it were paved with brocade.
Chengdu also gained the reputation of Furong City.
Seeing Meng Chang presenting a treasure, he said to her: "Luoyang's peonies are the best in the world. From now on, Chengdu's peonies will be the best in Luoyang."
From that moment on, Mrs. Huarui no longer dared to say that she liked her, and she was even more vaguely aware of the future.
All day long, I saw Meng Chang focusing on the mountains and rivers, reciting poems and poems with the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, and talking about the world.
Mrs. Huarui only felt sad and ridiculous in her heart.
With these items, how can I compare myself to Xie An and Zhuge?
Mrs. Rui even doubted whether they were men.
But so what?
She is just the most insignificant woman in troubled times. She has been favored by the appearance given by God. How can she bring things right and help the generals of Great Xia?
All he could do was treat her as Meng Chang did and treat her the same way.
Then she waited for the Kingdom of Shu to perish, and finally gave herself the title of a demon concubine.
And the peonies all over the city are the best evidence.
Who would have thought that she was the only one who was truly awake in this Shu temple?
Just like her "Poetry on the Death of the Country":
The flag was lowered on the king's city. How could I find out about it in the palace?
140,000 people were all disarmed, and not one of them was a man!