Chapter 22 4. Cao Shuang draws public outrage

Gradually, Cao Shuang was no longer satisfied with having fun in a half-hidden way in the Luoyang capital.In the capital city of Luoyang, there are too many veterans and ministers, and their eyes and ears are too complicated.If the scandals I have done are exposed here one day, I am afraid that if I am not careful, it will cause an uproar, and I will make myself ashamed!Moreover, he also didn't like to sit in the court hall every day and confront the old guys like Sun Zi, Liu Fang, Sima Fu, Wang Su, and Gao Rou with their dark and cold eyes very boringly.Although I also clearly felt that the attitudes of the neutral elders such as Taiwei Jiang Ji and Shang Shupu She Weizhen seemed to have undergone subtle changes, Cao Shuang still didn't care and went his own way.I am the Assistant General of the State of Wei. My father, Cao Zhen, has served the Great Wei for so many years, and I once had a life-and-death contest with the Sima Clan, who was deeply dissatisfied. It was our father, son, brother and family who worked so hard for His Majesty today!Now that I am in power on behalf of the king, shouldn't it be okay to enjoy it and comfort yourself for your hard work?

Once these thoughts filled Cao Shuang's mind, he felt that everything he did was justified.But in order to avoid openly incurring public grievances, Cao Shuang decided to transfer the place of pleasure to the place where Wei was appointed by heaven-to accompany the capital Xuchang.Emperor Taizu Wu and Emperor Gaozu Wen have been operating there for a long time, not to mention the luxurious and exquisite palaces and pavilions, the Red Deer Garden with a radius of ten miles and filled with exotic animals, the rippling blue waves, and the Vermilion Bird Pond where hundreds of boats compete. , and the Yanhan Changle Palace, which stands at the top of the sky and is full of fragrances (it is said that since Emperor Xiandi Liu Xie moved out that day, there are countless relics of emperors Taizu Wu, Gaozuwen and other emperors living there. What about concubines and concubines!)... When I think about it, where is it not fascinating?

The more Cao Shuang thought about it, the more addicted he became, and his mind was determined, so he prepared to leave Beijing and travel south on the grounds of visiting Xuchang and celebrating his forty-fourth birthday.He, the general of the Fuguo, is forty-four years old this year.This should be a very grand event. Since His Majesty has not yet been in charge of the court, the birthday of this important minister of the Wei Dynasty who "acts as a king without the name of a king" should be a celebration that is enough for all people to celebrate and all officials to celebrate. Qihe's important festival!Under his instruction and arrangement, two or three months ago, some vassal envoys and state shepherds unanimously submitted a request to hold a birthday celebration for General Cao to comfort him and honor him. Memorials.Then, the young emperor Cao Fang granted the decree without any accident.As a result, the thirteen post roads from Luoyang to Xuchang suddenly became crowded and lively like never before: fragrant cars and BMWs, beauties who prostitute children, advocating musicians, famous wine and delicacies, a collection of wonderful utensils, and local specialties are like stars chasing the moon. There was an endless stream of transport going south... Almost the whole court was making intensive preparations for General Cao's birthday party.During the period, Sima Fu, Huan Fan, He Zeng, Fu Gu and others once put forward suggestions and opinions that "extravagance and extravagance should not be used", but Cao Shuang used the imperial decree of the young emperor Cao Fang to forcefully suppress them.

However, this huge preparatory project is still a bit stuck at the last link: what rank "cooking ritual utensils" should be used at the birthday celebration banquet?What Cao Shuang said was that the banquet cooking utensils must adopt the standard of Jiuding List!However, according to the regulations of Zhou Rites: "The emperor lists food with nine tripods, princes with seven tripods, high officials with five tripods, and Yuan scholars with three tripods." Therefore, the nine tripods are enjoyed by the emperor. It is a special ceremony that no subject can overstep.However, Cao Shuang, relying on his high position and power, wanted to deliberately overstep in public, and insisted on celebrating his birthday and entertaining his guests and staff with the standard of Jiuding List, so as to demonstrate his current supreme authority.

Zhang Dang, the order of the Huangmen, came to tell Cao Shuang after he had found ninety-nine and eighty-one famous cooks: "To the general, the special gift of Jiuding must be matched with the Dayu Jiuding hidden in Shaofu Temple. The Dayu Nine Tripods have been handed down since the founding of the Xia Dynasty and have only been used by the kings of the past dynasties when they worshiped the heavens and the earth and respected the ancestors. It is rare to see it in ordinary times. I dare not take it without authorization. Please show it to the general!" "What is there that Dayu Jiuding should not take without authorization? This general can use it if he says it can be used! Go and get it!"

"But……" "how?" "Master Wang Guan, Minister of the Shaofu, is in charge of the key to Shangfang's treasury. He has been approached many times by humble officials, but he insists on refusing to give it up. He also publicly declared that taking the nine tripods of Yu Dayu without authorization is an act of trespass. If you come to take it, you will definitely not give it!" When Cao Shuang heard this, "Teng" flew into a rage: This Wang Guan is really ignorant of good and evil!He listened to Ding Mi's suggestion three months ago, and deliberately transferred Wang Guan from the position of Duzhi Shangshu to the palace to serve as the young minister - the young minister was originally a very rich and fat man, He is in charge of the Shangfang curios, silk artifacts and treasures accumulated by the royal families of the past dynasties that came from the tribute from the Sifang vassal states and the prefectures and counties of the world.According to Ding Mi's original plan, as the saying goes, "Which cat doesn't get fishy", they originally wanted to use such a rich and fat job to lure Wang Guan into a trap.However, they never expected that this Wang Guan was really "clean as water and spotless", and he forcibly did not mishandle every needle, thread, bowl and dish in the Shangfang treasure house of the Shaofu Office!Moreover, Wang Guan also regarded the Shangfang Treasury of the Shaofu Department as his own backyard and guarded it extremely tightly, and he did not allow Cao Shuang and the others to get involved in taking anything or weapons without authorization.Once He Yan, Deng Yang, and Cao Shou went to him together to fetch the Confucius clogs and the White Snake Sword of Han Gaozu stored in the Shangfang treasure house of the Shaofu Office to admire, but they were scolded bloody by Wang Guan and had to Come back angrily!

The more Cao Shuang thought about it, the more angry he became - this Wang Guan is too disrespectful to the general!That being the case, this general will not give him any face!In a fit of anger, he called Cao Shou, "Take forty soldiers to accompany Zhang Dang to the Shaofu Office, and ask old Mr. Wang Guan to bring the Dayu Jiuding to my general. If he doesn't give , beat until he obediently surrenders!" After finishing the order, he went to drink and have fun with Cao Xun, Cao Yan, He Yan, Ding Mi and the others. After more than an hour, I saw Cao Shou and Zhang Dang leading forty soldiers back carrying four large wooden boxes.Needless to say, they still brought Dayu Jiuding.But Cao Shuang saw that Cao Shou's helmet strap was also torn off, half of his cheek was swollen, and Zhang Dang's nose was crooked and bleeding, and his face was bruised!

"What's going on?" He Yan asked in surprise. "Alas! My nephew and Mr. Zhang went to the Shaofu Office to ask for the tripod. That old guy Wang Guan refused to hand over the key to the warehouse, and kept saying that 'the most important weapon of the country and the lifeblood of rites must not be abused'... The little nephew was upset when he heard that, so he stepped forward and punched him, and the fight broke out in two blows!" As soon as Cao Shou saw Cao Shuang, he offered his credit, "General, you don't know, although this old fellow Wang Guan He is nearly 60 years old, but after all, he was the prefect of Hefei and took charge of soldiers and horses. His bones are still very strong. The nephew tried his best to snatch the warehouse key from his belt, and then opened the warehouse door and took out the key. Dayu Nine Cauldrons..."

But Zhang Dang said to He Yan with a worried face: "Master He—that old guy Wang Guan is really stubborn. During the fight, he slammed into the door of the warehouse, causing his own head to bleed... ...and shouted desperately, "Wang's ineffective defense of the treasury caused Dayu Jiuding to be robbed by wild thieves. It is really shameless to see Emperor Taizu Wu, Emperor Gaozuwen, and Emperor Liezuming underground!" Mr. He, what happened today It's getting a little big!" "This..." He Yan frowned, and a cloud of sadness suddenly appeared on his face.

"It's no big deal!" Cao Shuang didn't take it seriously, "If he wants to die, he will die by himself! Shou'er—you've done a good job! Give Uncle Wei a majestic presence in front of the people all over the world today. Let's see which old man dares to stand up to the general in the future! Go—take these soldiers to the accountant in the front yard to receive the reward!" At the banquet, Cao Xun and Cao Yan also yelled and cheered for Cao Shou.Yu Song, who was sitting in the corner of the pavilion, saw all this in his eyes, and a faint loathing flashed across his brows.This kind of brutal act of violence, shouting and killing, could it be the actions of a dignified Fuguo general?It's almost the same as the grass bandits who dominate the mountains!

Under the bright light, the chessboard carved from purple jade lay quietly flat on the table.This chessboard is two feet square, the central line is high and raised like a roof ridge, but the four corners are obliquely concave.In the grooves on the left and right sides of the chessboard, there are two rows of shining jade chess pieces in the order of the twelve earthly branches such as "Zi", "Chou", "Yin" and "Mao". The row of playing chess pieces on the left is emerald, and at first glance, it seems to be plunged into a bottomless green wave, and the traces of yellow texture emerging from the chess body are slowly rippling like ripples; while the row on the right The whole body of the playing chess pieces is bright yellow, and the emerald patterns on the coiled chess pieces are like belts, vivid and vivid like the clear streams of oases in the desert.This kind of jade quality, this texture, and this color are enough to show that these two pairs of jade carving chess pieces are rare treasures, hard to find in the world. Ever since Wei Lie first saw the chessboard and chess pieces, he couldn't help admiring them. He had also seen countless finely carved chess pieces, but the one he saw today was really his I only saw it in my life, just like Bole saw a horse for the first time, he was so happy that he couldn't put it down. Sima Zhao pointed at this set of playing chess, and introduced with a smile: "Wei Liejun, this set of playing chess is the ancestral treasure of our Sima family. Today Zhao is honored to invite you to play chess. It's a momentary honor for this chess set!" Wei Lie, as the General Secretary of Zhongshu Province, although he is a close servant of the emperor, does not have the moderate and peaceful nature of his father Wei Zhen, and has always been informal, talkative and active.Hearing what Sima Zhao said, he grinned and said, "Ah! Mr. Sima, do you know the origin of your ancestral treasure? It is the three-talent bomb made by the famous domineering general Liang Jiling in the previous dynasty. The treasure of chess. Its chessboard is called Ziyuliang; It's so enviable!" "Well...how can we just admire it so much? It's time to place a bet!" Sima Zhao took out a black pearl the size of a pigeon egg from his sleeve, held it in his palm and said with a smile, "Zhao this black pearl Are the pearls worth hundreds of thousands of baht? How about it? Mr. Wei Lie, play chess first!" "Oh! Mr. Sima, the bet you made is so big!" Wei Lie couldn't help being surprised when he saw it, but at the same time, he picked up a green snail gold marble chess piece on his side and looked at it with his fingertips. After a while, he put it back on the "Zi" position in the groove of the chessboard in front of him, and flicked it with his right middle finger, "That's good! Wei, it's better to be respectful than obedient, and make a move!" His finger flicked the Biluo Jinban chess piece to fly upwards obliquely, drawing a beautiful arc, crossing the arched ridge in the middle of the chessboard, and hit it with a "ding" sound. I took the Jinsicui playing chess piece on the groove of the chessboard on Sima Zhao's side, which is located in the character "zi"! You must know that this kind of attack by bouncing in the air is far more difficult and complicated than the attack by plane relative to each other.Wei Lie was able to hit the opponent's chess with one move, he can be called a superman with precise ball skills! "Hehehe! Mr. Wei Lie is worthy of being a national chess player. He hit it with one blow without any mistakes!" Sima Zhao applauded and laughed, and put the black pearl on the corner of the table in front of Wei Lie. It's your prize!" Wei Lie laughed, and then pressed his finger on the green snail golden bullet chess piece on the "ugly" groove on this side of the chessboard, and squinted at Sima Zhao: "Mr. Sima——what is your next bet?" what?" Sima Zhao took out another piece of crystal clear and moist suet jade pendant from his sleeve, and put it generously on the corner of the table in front of him: "The value of this jade pendant is not less than 100,000 baht. Chess!" "Okay! As long as you can afford to lose, I, Wei Lie, have nothing to say!" Wei Lie hadn't finished speaking, and with a movement of his fingertips, a yellow light pierced through the air and shot to a height of more than three feet in the air. It fell straight down again.There was another crisp sound, and the Jinsicui chess piece on the "ugly" character in the groove of the chessboard on Sima Zhao's side was hit by him again! There was no hesitation on Sima Zhao's face, and with a wave of his right hand, he handed over the suet jade pendant again! Wei Lie took the mutton fat jade pendant and admired it for a moment, then asked Sima Zhao with a grin, "How is it? Is Sima Jun feeling a little distressed after losing? Can you still gamble?" "Of course I have to gamble!" This time Sima Zhao took out a string of colorful coral bracelets from the red sandalwood box he brought behind him, and slapped them on the table: "Zhao will bet this string of bracelets again!" There was a sound of "ding", and he lost this string of colorful coral bracelets again. At this time, no matter how stupid Wei Lie was, he could tell that Sima Zhao was quietly bribing himself in disguise.It is impossible for Sima Zhao not to know that he is a national chess player with a hundred hits.He came to Wei Lie to play chess with me, isn't that equivalent to giving me money for nothing?However, in view of the status of the Sima family's children, it would be too blatant to openly give gifts and bribes in the Great Wei Dynasty.So, the clever Sima Zhao went around a circle by playing chess to bribe Wei Lie with gifts.Naturally, Wei Lie's heart is clear, as Sima Zhaozheng's third-rank Duzhi Shilang, is it necessary for him to give gifts and bribes to himself, a fourth-rank Zhongshu Shengtongshilang?In the end, he still wanted to use himself as a "curve bribe" - the target of the bribe was of course his father, Wei Zhen, who was a servant of the minister! Once he figured this out, Wei Lie no longer had any scruples in playing chess.He played nine balls in one go, hit every one of them, it's like winning a lot! According to common sense, a loser in a chess game should generally be dejected and complain constantly, but Sima Zhao was elated and smiling like a winner.In the end, he simply pushed the purple jade beam chessboard and the two pairs of Jin Sicui and Biluojin chess pieces in front of Wei Lie with a "wow": "Wei Liejun! It's the so-called saddle with a horse, you like this How can a superb Chinese chess player do without a matching good chessboard and pieces? How about this, a complete set of wonderful chess playing tools from Ziyuliang, Jinsicui, and Biluojin, Zhaodu will give it to you! " "Oh! Mr. Sima, you are so polite! You are so polite! Originally, so many people rushed to Xuchang to celebrate General Cao's birthday today, but only you, Mr. Sima, still thought about coming to Wei at night. A certain player played chess. Wei is very grateful for this deep friendship!" Wei Lie refused verbally, but half-pushed and took Ziyuliang, Jinsicui, and Biluo Jin waited for the Three Treasures, "Now, you give this ancestral treasure in your own family to Wei, how dare Wei take it?" Sima Zhao said with a smile: "Wei Liejun—who doesn't know that you love chess like your life? If I don't give you the three ancestral treasures tonight to make you beautiful as an adult, I don't know how you will scold me behind your back when you come down." What a cheapskate!" "Mr. Sima is not stingy! You are not stingy! You are really too polite!" Wei Lie also smiled cheerfully and picked up the pile of trophies. Shi Shiran leaned into Sima Zhao's ear and whispered, "Sima Your kindness, I, the Wei family, will never forget your kindness! Don't worry—my father has resolutely rejected Cao Shuang's offer of the position of Sikong, and also rejected his younger brother Cao Ai's marriage to my younger sister Wei Jie. ask……" Sima Zhao secretly pinched Wei Lie's extended right hand, with a smile on his face, "Next time, let's find a chance to gamble... If you don't believe me, I really can't beat you!" A national chess player!" The yellow leaves have fallen, and the sparse willow branches tremble weakly in the west wind, making sigh-like sounds. In the deserted palace Luanhe Palace, Empress Dowager Guo Yao is teaching the young emperor Cao Fang to recite the "Book of Filial Piety" by herself. Fifteen-year-old Cao Fang has delicate features and handsome looks, and she has a bit of the temperament of Wei Mingdi Cao Rui when he was the same age.Holding the "Book of Filial Piety" in his hand, he read it clearly: "...Being high is not arrogant, high but not dangerous; restraint and restraint, full but not overflowing. High but not dangerous, so you will always keep the noble. Full but not overflowing, so you will always keep the rich. Wealth and honor are inseparable from the body, Then it can protect its country and its people. It is also the filial piety of the princes. "Poetry" says, "Trembling with fear, as if facing an abyss, as if walking on thin ice.'" After reading this, he suddenly stopped and stopped reading. "Fang'er, why don't you read it anymore?" Queen Mother Guo was taken aback. "Empress Mother, I found that there seems to be something wrong with this passage in the "Book of Filial Piety"..." Cao Fang raised her head and looked at Queen Mother Guo, "In my view, either the "Book of Filial Piety" is wrong, Or some people just did it wrong." "The "Book of Filial Piety" is one of the most important sacred scriptures of Confucianism. Its words and sentences are all golden and jade words and imprinted instructions for all ages-how can it be wrong?" Queen Mother Guo smiled slightly, "The only thing wrong is It may be someone who does not follow the inscriptions in the "Book of Filial Piety." "Then, the general is the one who has violated the teachings of the "Book of Filial Piety"!" Cao Fang said suddenly and coldly, "He actually sent someone to beat Lord Wang Guan, who guards the treasure house of the Imperial Palace, to the point of bleeding. Yes, he forcibly confiscated Lu Yushangshu's official seal without reporting to his ministers in advance. It is said that he also stole many ancient treasures from the inner secret library and took them back for his own use... These actions can be regarded as a prince. Is it filial piety?" "Fang'er, don't say any more!" The Queen Mother Guo leaned over in a panic and covered his mouth, "Fang'er—you are also familiar with history books. During the court meeting, Liang Ji was ridiculed as 'this domineering general'! Have you forgotten what happened later?" Cao Fang gritted her teeth and did not answer, but his eyes, which were boiled with resentment in his chest, gradually cooled down. Empress Dowager Guo let go of her hand and said in a low voice: "The late emperor saw that the great general Cao Shuang was a respectful person and a family member with the same surname, so he appointed him as your assistant minister, Fang'er... Alas, there is no way, this It was stipulated by the last emperor's edict. Fang'er, you should bear with it for now. When you are weak, the general will naturally return the power to you." Cao Fang looked at her deeply: "Queen Mother, will he really return the power to my son-in-law at that time?" "This..." Queen Mother Guo suddenly became speechless, not knowing how to answer. At this moment, the servant outside the palace gate raised his voice and declared: "Qi Zou Empress Dowager, Your Majesty, Wei Wei Guo Zhi, please see me!" After hearing this, Queen Mother Guo took a look at Cao Fang.Cao Fang understood immediately, and got up and retreated into Luan and the back room of the palace. Then, Empress Dowager Guo sat upright, and said loudly, "See you." The footsteps of "dong dong dong" sounded, and Guo Zhi walked in angrily. When he saw the Queen Mother Guo, he knelt down: "I implore the Queen Mother and Your Majesty to be the masters of the old minister!" Empress Dowager Guo pointed to the brocade seat on the right side of the seat: "Guo Weiwei is flat, please sit down and talk." But Guo Zhi couldn't get up, and played on the ground: "In order to play the Empress Dowager, Cao Xi, the leader of the army, and Cao Xun, the general of the military guards, without the deliberation and approval of the Veteran's Weiwei Department and Jiang Ji's Taiwei Department, unexpectedly sent the infantry captain to the army. Cao Shou was elected as General Huben Zhonglang! Your Royal Highness, even such an important position as General Huben Zhonglang has been replaced by a relative of Cao Shuang’s family. The guard of the old minister is completely alone, and there is no way for him to continue!” "What's the general's opinion?" Queen Mother Guo frowned. "Oh! This incident itself was instigated and condoned by the general behind the scenes!" Guo Zhi said angrily, "In order to balance the power structure in the palace, the veteran once suggested that Guo Dexian, the most promising member of our Guo family My nephew served as Huben Zhonglang general, but was dismissed by Cao Shuang, but today he was suddenly replaced by his nephew Cao Shou. Your Majesty, look at Cao Shou's pustules, how can he compare with our nephew Guo Dexian? Capable of literature and martial arts? Why can he be a general of the tiger?" After hearing this, Queen Mother Guo pondered for a long time, but didn't speak for a long time.Guo Zhi knelt on the ground and still said angrily: "Forget it! Forget it! The old minister doesn't want to stay on Wei Wei's empty shelf and be sulked by them. You don't know, Your Highness, the Cao family's rumors are trying to get rid of it. The old ministers also kicked out of the palace, wanting their uncle Cao Fan to be the guard again!" Empress Dowager Guo suddenly asked, "Cao Shuang, Cao Xi, and Cao Xun are so foolish, what kind of attitude does Sima Shi of the Central Guard Army have?" "Master Sima? Alas, what can he do? Now that Taifu Sima has left Beijing to return to his hometown to recuperate and lie at home, Cao Shuang and the others are suppressing the people of Sima's faction! Guard, what can he do other than keep silent and try his best to protect himself? Cao Shuang and his gang are too vicious. After plotting against the Sima faction, they came to deal with our Guo family..." The Empress Dowager Guo tightly pinched the Chijin Ruyi in her hand, and her pink face was covered with a layer of frost: "This Cao Shuang is too ungrateful. Could it be that he really dared to bully my Lord Wei? The late emperor really saw it away." Look, Cao Shuang is such a blind-eyed wolf who does evil! How dare he attack our Guo family? Guo Weiwei, how about this? Let’s find a chance to take them to Wen County to visit Taifu Sima on behalf of the Palace and His Majesty, and try to invite him to return to Beijing to sit in the temple..." "Invite Sima Yi to return to the court to check and balance Cao Shuang?" Guo Zhi couldn't help being overjoyed when he heard that, "His Royal Highness's move is really brilliant!"