In the afternoon of the eighth day of October in the second year of Han Guanghe (AD 179), it was the beginning of winter, and the weather was getting colder. The gray-white sun seemed to be frozen dimly among the thick clouds. A gust of cold wind blew slowly, and a few withered and yellow leaves fell down, and fell at the feet of Sima Fang, the governor of Luoyang, Kyoto, who was standing in the empty dam of the courtyard.This middle-aged bureaucrat, who is in charge of the central authority at the foot of the Son of Heaven, is holding a jade seal the size of a bowl with both palms very carefully at this moment, looking at it silently over and over again, his brows are full of respect. color.

This jade seal is light blue in color and crystal clear, with four big characters "Yin King's Seal" neatly engraved on it with a dignified and timeless seal.The seal button of the jade seal is carved into a galloping horse with his head up to the sky, hissing his hooves, and his posture is agile, dignified and lifelike. It turns out that Sima Fang's ancestor, Sima Ang, was a general of Zhao State at the time of the war at the end of Qin Dynasty. He accompanied Xiang Yu, Liu Bang, Zhang Er, Chen Yu and other heroes to crusade against Tyranny Qin.After the death of Qin Dynasty, he was named the king of Yin by Xiang Yu, the overlord of Western Chu. He owned Hanoi, Chaoge and other territories with a radius of hundreds of miles, and was awarded the "Yin King's Seal" as a token.It's a pity that Sima Ang's King Yin was involved in the dispute between Chu and Han within a few years.Later, Liu Bang wiped out Xiang Yu, subdued Sima Ang, abolished various kings with different surnames, and unified the world.Yin Guo was changed to Hanoi County by Liu Bang, which was directly under the central government of the Han Dynasty.And Sima Ang and his descendants also descended from the prominent royal family in the past to nobles, and they have lived in Hanoi County for generations.However, the Sima family has never forgotten the glorious history of being a royal family, and has passed down this "Yin King's Seal" as a family heirloom.Nearly 400 years have passed, and the "Yin King's Seal" is still well preserved—it looks like new, without any damage.

Staring at this jade seal, Sima Fang felt a little dazed in front of his eyes—unknowingly, he was immersed in the strange dream he had last night again: in the vast sky of the sea of ​​clouds, a dazzling electric light flashed across the sky. However, a thunderbolt exploded in the air immediately after!In the dream, he was also standing in the middle of the courtyard as he is now, and looked up in horror, only to see a five-clawed golden dragon covered in gleaming scales leaping towards the clouds and fog!It flew over the courtyard and circled several times, and let out a long and proud howl, clear and clear into the clouds, and the lingering sound lingered!Suddenly, Sima Fang suddenly felt a blur in front of his eyes, and the brilliant golden light poured down like a waterfall-the five-clawed golden dragon suddenly slipped into his wife Liu's bedroom in the courtyard and disappeared!

With a cry of surprise, Sima Fang was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat, and suddenly woke up, only to realize that it was just a dream!He half sat on the couch and looked sideways. His wife, who was nine months pregnant and was about to give birth, woke up suddenly at the same time. When she opened her eyes and saw him, she said tremblingly: "Husband... Husband, my concubine just had a dream. Seeing a ray of golden light break through the window, it actually... actually got into the belly of the concubine...in the belly... really frightened the concubine..." "It's okay, it's okay..." Sima Fang hastily comforted his wife softly, telling her to calm down and have a good rest.At the same time, doubts arose in his heart. After waking up early this morning, he found the book of dream divination and looked through it. He actually found an auspicious saying "Golden dragon enters the dream, and it will give birth to a son, which is invaluable".So, after he quietly reported the matter to his father Sima Jun, he took the "Yin King's Seal" from the ancestral hall and took it to the courtyard to pray for the "Lin'er" who was about to be born to exorcise evil spirits.

Just as he was carefully looking at the jade seal, a soft cough came from the pillars of the row of houses in the east wing of the courtyard. Hearing the familiar coughing sound, Sima Fang turned his head and saw his father Sima Jun walking slowly from the corridor with his hands behind his back.Sima Jun used to be the prefect of Yingchuan County, a place full of Confucianism and humanities.He is sixty-five years old this year, and he retired as an official at home two years ago.This high-ranking official who had been a two-thousand-stone official had never been idle when he returned to the mansion for retirement. Every day, like an ordinary old farmer, he went to the suburbs to work hard on his own up and down the slopes.His old friends and neighbors were puzzled by his frugal and simple behavior, and advised him one after another.But Sima Jun laughed at them and said: "Mencius has a saying: 'Born in sorrow, die in peace. Isn’t it appropriate to be self-sufficient and to be useful in the world?” As soon as this remark was uttered, all old friends and neighbors admired it, and it became a good talk in the street.However, this hard-working and hard-working style has also brought great benefits to Sima Jun himself: Although he has already passed the age of sixty, he still looks rosy, energetic, and shows no sign of weakness.

"Father..." Seeing him approaching gradually, Sima Fang hugged the jade seal in his arms and bowed to Sima Jun at the same time. "Excuse me." Sima Jun's face was serious, like a prince, he walked slowly to Sima Fang, and waved his hand gently to him.Only then did Sima Fang respond, and slowly straightened his waist, held his breath, and quietly waited for Sima Jun to speak.The interaction between father and son seems so solemn, which is related to Sima's traditional family education concept of "orderly respect and order, and positioning of seniors and young children". "Guanzi" has a saying: "If the king is not the king, the ministers will not be the ministers. If the father is not the father, the son will not be the son. If the superior loses his position, the subordinate will exceed his integrity. If the superior and the inferior are not in harmony, orders will not be acceptable. If the clothes are not correct, the guests will not be serious. Advancing and retreating without etiquette means that government orders will not work. If you are confident and powerful, you will be ready for the king.” This inscription has been the family rule and instruction of the Sima family in Hanoi since the time of the ancestor Sima Ang, and it has been practiced by the Sima family from generation to generation. down.

"Fang'er, I heard you talk about the strange dream last night this morning. It's really worth pondering carefully!" Sima Jun's eyes were fixed on the jade seal in Sima Fang's arms, and his tone revealed an inexplicable excitement, " After thinking about it for my father, I feel more and more that this is the dream of the ancestors of our Sima family who appeared in the sky and sent down such auspicious dreams... It seems that the days when our Sima family will flourish and prosper are just around the corner..." "Father..." Sima Fang hastily bowed and replied respectfully, "Our Sima family has always been based on Wenzhi and martial arts. In the past, the great ancestor Zhengxi General Sima Jun expelled the Qiang barbarians and became famous all over the world. Now there is my father in Yingchuan County. Daxing Confucianism has established a group of sages. My child has this omen of 'Golden Dragon Entering Dream', which is really due to the profound virtues of my Sima family father... I hope this auspicious omen can turn dreams into reality!"

"Hehehe... There are countless examples recorded in the annals of such auspicious omens coming true." Sima Jun suddenly felt excited, his eyes staring at Sima Fang couldn't help but shine brightly, "For my father, I just specially read the " "Historical Records", which contains the scene when Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang came to the world - Gaozu's mother, Liu Yu, once rested in the embankment of Daze, and dreamed of meeting with God. At that time, the thunder and lightning were dark, and Gaozu's father Taigong looked at it, and saw a dragon plate On top of it. I was pregnant and gave birth to Gaozu... Isn't this scene very similar to the dream you had last night?"

Upon hearing this, Sima Fang's face changed slightly, and he murmured for a moment, but he didn't dare to answer for a moment.Didn't he know that the content of "Historical Records" is similar to his dream, but now it's still the Han Dynasty, Wang Gang is shrouded in secrecy, and his father's words are so straightforward, it is inevitable that he will be suspected of treason... He raised his eyes timidly Glancing at Sima Jun, he murmured, "My son understands what my lord father said. However, this matter is unusual, so please keep your mouth shut and don't reveal it lightly..."

"Being a father has his own measure. Only you and I will know about this 'golden dragon entering the dream' in the future, and we must not leak the slightest bit out." Sima Jun listened, his face solemn, and he nodded slowly. He said in a loud voice, "At present, the eunuchs in the imperial court are monopolizing power, foreign relatives are fighting for power, the government is in chaos, and people's grievances are boiling, and the Holy One is listening to the words of treacherous ministers, making the prison of the party and killing the world's sages... Alas! The chaos of the current situation is imminent!

"In order to prevent changes in the world, my father has told your second younger brother Hui'er not to take official career lightly, and sneaked into the land of Jingchu to make friends with sages, hide the treasures in his body, and move when the time comes... Fang'er! You are in Luoyang! When you are in office, you must also secretly look for promising and talented people, make friends with your heart, and make friends with each other, so as to accumulate a deep network of contacts for our Sima family to establish a foundation and build a business in troubled times one day..." "Father is old, and he has worked hard to plan for the future of our Sima family. The children are very grateful." Sima Fang heard a warm current in his heart, and he couldn't help but feel hot in his eyes, and almost shed tears. Tears came, "Baby, I must follow your careful teaching and do it earnestly." "At the moment of the world's turmoil, how can I, the Sima family of the Yin Dynasty, be willing to be a mediocre generation?" Sima Jun reached out to take the jade seal, put it on his right palm, stared at it deeply, and said loudly, "There is a way in the world. I, Sima, will be a good assistant for a lifetime, enough to make peace in the world. If there is no way in the world, I, Sima, can also be a hero of a generation, enough to save the world. Fanger! Since you have this strange dream, how do you know that this is not me? Is it an auspicious sign for the Sima family to show great power in this declining world?——We must have this indestructible self-confidence!" "Father...you...you..." Sima Fang listened, his heart was shaken secretly, and he lowered his hands and replied solemnly, "Your words are really deafening, my child has been taught." "That's all. Now is not the time to talk about this kind of words here. The great Confucian Shen Gong in the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty once said: 'Those who rule don't talk too much, how can Gu Lixing be as good as ears?!' You will remember these heartfelt words of your father. You can only do it with your heart and do it in a down-to-earth manner!" Sima Jun regained his mind, glanced at Sima Fang's wife's bedroom, and said lightly, "Fang'er, you should go to your wife's place to take care of her. Mother and midwife are busy there!"