The eldest brother is like his father, and Yang Bo has been the clan leader for many years and still retains his power. Even the brothers do not agree. Yang Chun and Yang Shu are even more dissatisfied, but they can only obey orders.
In this way, Yang Shuyu took the initiative to sow discord in Xihai. Unexpectedly, Li Chengzhi immediately turned his face.
Fortunately, they both came back together by different routes, and the war broke out again. I thought that both the imperial court and Xihai would suffer. Who would have expected that the war was raging and both sides would suddenly stop fighting?
What's more, the imperial court actually compensated Xihai with food and gave it to the people, as if it were a subordinate?
In this way, Yang Bo's plans were like flowers in the mirror and the moon in the water, all of them came to nothing.
For Yang Jin and others, it was not a loss. After all, at the beginning of the plan, they had advised Yang Bo to help the court and punish the rebellious ministers and traitors.
Even though the imperial court is now in a weak position, it is nothing more than a temporary measure, and the Yang family can still be the mainstay of the imperial court.
But Yang Chun and Yang Shu were so angry that they dared to get angry but did not dare to speak.
I have already said that Li Chengzhi is the God of Bottle Plague. It is best not to offend him if possible. Is he okay now?
Even the imperial court is like this. Li Chengzhi can do whatever he wants, let alone a mere Yang?
When the army from the West Sea entered Guanzhong, how could the Yang family survive?
Therefore, after receiving the urgent report that both sides had stopped fighting, Yang Chun said that his eldest brother was dying and was dying. If he heard this bad news again, wouldn't it be worse? It would be worse if he didn't let his eldest brother know about it.
In fact, he wanted to be good at making opinions and make decisions with one word. Before sending Yang Shu or Yang Jun secretly to the West Sea, it would be best to reunite with Li Chengzhi and have a good relationship.
However, Yang Jin argued hard, saying that as long as the eldest brother Fan was still alive, he was the head of the Yang family. How could such a big thing be concealed and not reported?
After going back and forth, the two brothers got into a fight.
During the stalemate, the old servant came to report and said, "The envoy has arrived."
Yang Chun was overjoyed: "Please come quickly!"
Since the old servant calls him Shijun but does not have a surname, there is no other person besides Yang Jun.
Although the seven Yang brothers, Yang Bo, Yang Chun and Yang Jin, have all recovered, Yang Bo has been ill for a long time and cannot take office.
In addition, during the reign of the late emperor, Gao Zhao, Wang Su, Xing Luan, Wang Ji and others impeached Yang Bo for instructing his slaves to seize the people's farmland, impeached Yang Chun for communicating with Rouran outside Beizhen and attracting spies, and accused Yang Jin of stealing farmland in Yongzhou. The three brothers refused to take office because they had not been vindicated for crimes such as raping civilian girls.
For example, Yang Shu was recruited by the imperial court after returning from the West Sea. He was named General of the Zuo Army (Cui Yanbo) and had a long history. In fact, he was working for the Sima Army to collect grain for the Yuan Dynasty.
The third brother Yang Yingqian was appointed as Liangzhou Biejia, the fourth brother Yang Shun was the deputy general of Shanshan, and the eighth brother Yang Wei was the governor of Longxi County, but they were all in name only.
The purpose was only to accommodate the Yang family, and to use it as an excuse to stabilize Guanzhong.
Therefore, none of the Yang brothers had the name of "envoy", let alone the actual status of envoy. Only then did Yang Chun find out that it was Yang Jun who was the governor of Huazhou at the time.
Compared to Yang Shu, Yang Jun admired Li Chengzhi even more and fell in love with him. In addition, his relationship with Yang Bo was the great-great-grandson of Emperor Gaozu, so his relationship was further distant, and his stance was more fair, so Yang Chun made a special trip to invite him. In order to persuade Yang Bo and the other brothers.
Although Yang Jun was not very old, a few years younger than Yang Wei, the youngest of the seven brothers, no one looked down upon him and everyone stood up to greet him.
Entering the middle hall, there was a chatter and a few questions about Yang Bo's condition. As soon as he sat down, Yang Chun said impatiently: "Have you ever read the imperial newspaper?"
"I have seen it, but it is to report good news, not to report sorrow!"
Yang Jun sighed, "I have heard about the details!"
"If the imperial court doesn't announce the good news, will it tell the world the truth about how Li Chengzhi almost broke through Gaoping and captured Jingzhou?"
Yang Chun sneered and said: "Now, just like begging for mercy, we have transported tens of thousands of households and hundreds of thousands of millet to Longxi. I am afraid that next time, I will be able to give up Qizhou to Li Chengzhi's request.
Next time, there’s no guarantee it won’t be the entire Guanzhong..."
As soon as these words came out of his mouth, Yang Jin's face became even more ugly. He wanted to argue a few words for the court, but he had nowhere to say it.
After thinking for a long time, he said angrily: "The imperial court also made a helpless move. It was just to show the enemy's weakness and delay the war. Why should the second brother be alarmist?"
Everyone knows that this is a delaying strategy, but the question is whether it can be slowed down?
Yang Chun was too lazy to argue with him and asked Yang Jun: "What does Ji Sun think?"
Yang Jun shook his head and only uttered one word: "Difficult!"
It is self-evident who this hard-to-say person is.
The hearts of those who were interested in helping the court quell the chaos sank even more.
Yang Jun took a break from his busy schedule to come here, so he naturally knew it well. He didn't want to argue with the Yang brothers here to avoid a quarrel. So he deliberately asked: "How is eldest brother?"
Yang Chun didn't cover up, and sighed sadly: "Since the beginning of winter, the difference has been getting worse every day. If I don't use that intoxicating medicinal wine, I will be in so much pain that I can't help myself, and I can't sleep all night..."
"Intoxicating potion?"
Yang Jun's heart moved, "Where did it come from?"
Yang Shu stood up and bowed to Yang Jun: "Last winter, I accompanied Duke Yuan (Li Shao) on an envoy to the West Sea and begged Li Chengzhi to make a special trip... If there is no such medicine..."
As soon as he said something, Yang Jin's eyes widened, Yang Shu choked, and it was difficult to say the rest of the words.
But how could Yang Jun not hear that without the medicinal wine prepared by Li Chengzhi, Yang Bo would have died of pain.
However, public matters and private matters were private. Yang Jin did not want Yang Shu to mention it at this time, let alone mention it in front of Yang Bo, so as not to affect Yang Bo's ambition.
This Yang Wulang thought carefully...
Yang Jun sighed secretly, and then advised Yang Chun: "The second brother made it clear in the letter. This is related to the happiness and sorrow of our Yang family for hundreds of years, so you can't be careless. In order to avoid causing trouble to Xiao Qiang, I think it is better to ask the eldest brother to make a decision.
…”
Just four words, "Misfortune arises from Xiao Qiang", revealed the inner truth, and everyone in the hall was shocked.
No wonder the imperial court and Li Chengzhi had already called off their troops, so the Yang brothers started fighting first...
"That's fine!"
Yang Chun sighed sadly and said loudly: "Shi Ye (Yang Bo's eldest son), go in and have a look. If the eldest brother wakes up, tell me that I will ask to see you..."
After half an hour, Yang Kan left and returned, inviting the brothers to the North Courtyard.
Li Chengzhi did not have any experience with it, so it was difficult to deduce the specific cause of Yang Bo's illness. However, after Yang Shu's description, he concluded that Yang Bo was most likely cancer.
The disease could only wait for death, so Li Chengzhi reluctantly mixed some medicinal wine with datura pollen, and Yang Shu took it back to Huazhou to use it to relieve Yang Bo's pain.
At first Yang Bo didn't take it seriously, but half a year ago, when his illness became more and more serious and he couldn't sleep at night, and he was rolling on the bed all night in pain, he realized the wonderful use of this thing.
Nowadays, he is skinny and skinny, but there is still a flush on his face, and his eyes are shining like a flash of light.
But like a servant, and like Yang Kan who is at the bedside every day, they are all accustomed to it.
It's just because Yang Bo would drink the medicinal wine whenever he was sick. After drinking it, he would be like this, and he seemed to be more energetic than ordinary people.
But for only three to five moments, once the effect of the medicine wore off, Yang Bo felt as if two of his souls had been taken away, and he would either stay dumbfounded or half-asleep until he fell asleep.
It happens every day, once during the day and once at night, and it lasts for ten hours when I am confused or drowsy.
Everyone close to him knows that drinking this medicine is like drinking poison to quench his thirst, but it is better than Yang Bo who screams in pain day and night and kills himself with a knife...
Knowing that he didn't wake up much every day, the brothers didn't dare to delay him too much. They just greeted him in unison and retreated to both sides.
Yang Chun and Yang Jin looked at each other. Seeing the cold eyes and solemn expression of the fifth brother, Yang Chun gritted his teeth, stood up and handed over the urgent report.
Snakes have their own paths, rats have their own paths. The Yang family was at its peak, and had been the leader among the gentry in Guanzhong for decades. With disciples and former officials all over the government and the public, they naturally had reliable channels.
Even if the imperial court reported good news or bad news, it had to be passed down and sent down, and people had to be sent to do things. How could the inside story be hidden from the Yang family?
What's more, more than 10,000 carts of grain and grass and hundreds of thousands of people have been transported to Qizhou. They can't be here to fight, right?
So no one doubts the authenticity of the letter...
Just after taking the medicine, when his ears and eyes were clear, Yang Bo directly took the secret report into his hands without letting Yang Kan do it for him.
With a rough sweep, he was startled at first, and then he became energetic. He was only half-lying at first, but now he sat upright.
The faces of the brothers changed, and they all secretly shouted in their hearts: Damn it!
As for Yang Chun and Yang Jin who were closer, they stood up in shock.
A few months ago, Yang Bo tried his best to overcome the public opinion and put in a lot of effort to seize millet from the fire. In the end, he even used his own methods to subdue Yang Chun and Yang Shu.
Then, most of the Yang family's accumulation was entrusted to Cui Yanbo, Yuan Yao and others. Their plan was nothing more than to make both Xihai and the imperial court suffer.
But unfortunately, in the end, it was all in vain. For Yang Bo, it was undoubtedly shocking news. It is possible that he died because of this...
While everyone was in shock and doubt, with their hearts pounding and their hearts beating with fear, Yang Bo gently put down the letter without even shaking his hands.
Upon closer inspection, there was a smile on his face. He was not laughing out of anger, but as if he finally got what he wanted.
Thinking that Yang Bo was going crazy, Yang Jin called out worriedly: "Brother?"
"No problem!"
Yang Bo breathed out a heavy breath, and scanned the faces of the brothers again, and finally stopped at Yang Chun's face, "Yanshou, these days, you must have thought that I have been sick and insane, or even more so.
Are you drunk and confused?"
If it were in the past, Yang Chun would have hesitated to respond, but now he was stunned and speechless.
Even Li Shao, who was from the same family as Li Chengzhi, did not dare to say that he "had no hesitation and followed the whole family" at this time, let alone the Yang family who had little friendship with Li Chengzhi?
The so-called showing courtesy for nothing is neither a traitor nor a thief. No matter how stupid Li Chengzhi is, how can he believe it?
After a little calculation, I knew it was a fraud. But he was too decisive, and Li Chengzhi actually turned against him on the spot?
After Yang Shu returned, Yang Chun would think from time to time: If he wasn't insane, how could his eldest brother dare to make his sixth brother do such a clumsy trick?
But looking at it now, it turns out that the elder brother did it intentionally?
Not to mention the Yang brothers, even Yang Jun was shocked. After being stunned for a while, he asked in shock: "Brother, why is this happening?"
"Ling the snake out of its hole, just trying to catch it!"
Yang Bo chuckled softly and said, "If this were not the case, how could Li Chengzhi be afraid of making a wedding dress for the Yang family? Otherwise, if the war breaks out again, even if the imperial army can defend Guanzhong, it will inevitably suffer heavy losses...
Otherwise, how can the Queen Mother be made to lose her mind, become arrogant and immoral, and risk the disapproval of the world?"
After a few words, Yang Bo started laughing, but before he laughed a few times, he coughed violently.
But it was not as heartbreaking as in the past, and he seemed to be coughing his heart out. After spitting out a few mouthfuls of bad phlegm, Yang Bo felt light and refreshed all over.
"If it weren't for the Empress Dowager Wenming (Empress Dowager Feng) who promoted virtuous people and never avoided relatives, I, the descendants of the Yang family, would at most be county guards and county magistrates. And if it weren't for the great ancestor (Emperor Xiaowen Yuanhong) who was as insightful as fire and had a keen eye for pearls, I, the Yang family, would Even if they don't end up like Ru Hao and Zhao Xiu (all of the Xing ministers during the Yuan Ke period were executed) who ransacked their homes and exterminated their clans, they will definitely be classified as the sycophants of Xing, and it will be difficult to revive them.
For example, the late emperor (Yuan Ke) feared that the Yang family was like a tiger, and even instigated Gao Zhao and others to frame us. However, the situation was such that he was not tit for tat against the Yang family, and he only stopped it in an appropriate manner and did not kill them all. In the final analysis, I, the Yang family, have suffered for generations. Your Majesty, the Yuan family has never treated us poorly, so how can we be ungrateful, unkind and unjust, and become those rebellious officials and traitors that everyone wants to punish?"
Yang Bo paused and took a few breaths before saying: "When Liu Fang came to the door with the Queen Mother Yi Zhi and advised me to put the overall situation first and help the court stabilize Guanzhong, I had a plan: I, Yang, will repay the emperor's kindness. The time has come…”
If you only listened to the following few sentences, you would definitely be confused and confused. But combined with the words "play hard to get, lure the snake out of the hole", the faces of Yang Chun and others changed drastically, and turned pale.
It turns out that Yang Bo didn't want to rebel at all, but wanted to clear the emperor.
The current situation is all caused by Gao Ying's unclear understanding of people, his lack of feedback and incompetence, and his eagerness for quick success and repeated uncertainty.
However, Gao Ying did not take any responsibility at all, but if he made any mistakes, he would blame them all on his ministers. And if things go on like this, the country will lose its generals, its ministers will not serve its ministers, and no minister will dare to speak out and do his job bravely.
If this continues, it is estimated that within two or three years at most, the world will be completely in ruins.
If Gao Ying was excluded, there might be a glimmer of hope for the Yuan and Wei Dynasties. If they were left to their own devices, they would just have to wait for death.
Anyway, no matter how bad it gets, it won’t get much worse, so why not give it a try?
But you are not so easy to clean up. A bad thing will add fuel to the fire and add fuel to the fire, so be cautious.
The first is to be stable, to convince the noble families, clans, and people all over the world, so as not to cause an uproar. The second is to be quick, to make the dust settle before Li Chengzhi realizes it later and wants to take advantage of the situation.
Therefore, the imperial court must suffer another defeat in order to force Gao Ying to take risks, so that he can have sufficient reasons.
But it cannot be self-defeating. After all, the imperial court has suffered a series of major defeats, and the morale of the military and the people have reached rock bottom. If the damage is too great, there is no guarantee that it will not collapse and be out of control.
That's why Yang Shu went to Xihai as an envoy to sow discord and made Li Chengzhi suspicious. Then there was Xing Luan, and Yuan Yao seemed to be defeated but actually retreated, so Gao Ying was in panic all day long. There were even more important ministers who were eloquent and finally deceived Gao Ying. This final step was taken.
Granting the country, ceding territory... losing power and humiliating the country, betraying the country to survive, nothing more than this.