The World of Yellow Sky

Chapter 261 The Embroidered Clothes Messenger (5k chapter, please subscribe)

In the fourth year of Zhongping (187), more than a hundred years had passed since Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu swept Liuhe, annexed the eight wastelands, and wiped out the world.

The imperial palace in Luoyang always looks majestic and sacred in the daytime, high above and magnificent, which makes people feel a sense of admiration from a high mountain.

Team after team of Han soldiers in sharp clothes patrolled around the palace with due diligence, guarding the safety of the palace, protecting the emperor of the Han Empire, and protecting the emperor of the Han family who was ordered by heaven.

It was these Han men who were loyal to the Han family that made many young people not dare to spy on the imperial palace.

But at night, when the entire land of China enters darkness, the majesty and sanctity of the imperial palace during the day turns into mystery and solemnity... and a hint of terror...

In the empty hall, under the dark palace walls, and in the silent palace, there seemed to be something surging under the dim lights. Only occasionally when the guards walked by would they make slight noises.

In the Hall of Houde, the lights were quite dim, and several old eunuchs in the hall stood quietly under His Highness.

Liu Hong's complexion was pale. He just drank a bowl of hot soup, and the hot soup flowing into his throat made his body a little more comfortable.

Before the parade ceremony, Liu Hong had already contracted a cold. Although the court doctors did their best to treat him, but after many days, there was still no improvement.

The serious illness entangled Liu Hong, making the once energetic and drunken emperor of the Han family no longer look like before.

"Jian Shuo..."

Liu Hong closed his eyes and rested for a while, then looked around.

"The minister is here."

Hearing Liu Hong's call, Jian Shuo quickly walked a few steps and held his outstretched arm.

"What time is it?"

With the support of Jian Shuo, Liu Hong stood up slowly. The illness made him weak, and his once sober mind began to become dizzy.

Jian Shuo supported Liu Hong, and replied, "It's about three o'clock to go back to the country."

"The country's health is not yet healed. After drinking hot soup, please rest earlier."

Jian Shuo looked at the weak Liu Hong, his eyes were slightly red.

"Can't sleep."

Liu Hong shook his head lightly and rejected Jian Shuo's proposal.

"It seems that I haven't seen the stars at night for a long time, let me go out for a walk."

Liu Hong showed nostalgia on his face, and said with a smile: "I still remember that when we were in Jiedu Pavilion, the queen mother took me to look at the stars all over the sky in the courtyard, it was really gorgeous."

Jian Shuo respectfully agreed.

Then he lowered his voice and told several old eunuchs guarding in the hall to fetch their clothes.

"Wait for the country, it's windy at night, put on a cloak before leaving the hall."

Liu Hong nodded, but did not refuse this time.

Soon the clothes were brought, the gate of Houde Hall was opened, and more than ten soldiers stood outside the hall respectfully, waiting for Liu Hong.

Liu Hong put his clothes on his body, refused Jian Shuo's support, and walked out of Houde Hall slowly.

Jian Shuo followed closely behind Liu Hong, paying attention to Liu Hong's physical condition nervously, not daring to neglect.

A group of people walked out of the Hall of Houde, Liu Hong was escorted by more than a dozen armored soldiers and walked slowly in the quiet palace under the night.

Liu Hong came to an open space and stopped. The guards around him also dispersed, standing guard in the aisles around them. Although the palace was heavily guarded, they still did not relax in the slightest.

The emperor's safety is above all else.

"Time flies so fast."

Looking up at the stars all over the sky, Liu Hong couldn't help sighing with emotion.

Jian Shuo is the only one beside him now, and he is not hiding any of his emotions.

"In the blink of an eye, it has been almost twenty years..."

Liu Hong was slightly distracted, as if just yesterday, he was living carefree in Jiedu Pavilion.

Now he is the emperor of the Han Dynasty, the emperor of the Han Dynasty.

Above the court and in the temple, there seemed to be endless things to do, and those courtiers would always find all kinds of things.

There was a stern look in Liu Hong's eyes. He came to the throne when he was young, and he hated those party members who pointed fingers in front of him.

It's a pity that the sudden arrival of the Yellow Turban Army disrupted Liu Hong's train of thought, forcing him to lift the party shackles.

Now news of Liangzhou rebellion, Bingzhou rebellion, Xiongnu rebellion, and rebellion in the interior from time to time made him have to rely heavily on party members.

The power of the party members became stronger and stronger, and Liu Hong began to feel a little powerless. This is one of the reasons why he established the Xiyuan Forbidden Army and appointed Jian Shuo as the captain of the upper army.

Liu Hong felt a little danger from these important ministers and generals who were supporting troops outside, as well as the rebellions that sprang up in various places.

He needs an army that can protect him, an army that is loyal to him, and the forces he can control, relying solely on the Northern Army makes Liu Hong feel powerless.

Moreover, he adopted Liu Yan's proposal not long ago and strengthened the authority of the state pastor, which is also a hidden danger.

But right now, rebellions are breaking out everywhere, and this is also a helpless move. You must know that mobilizing the army and annihilating the rebels will consume a lot of money and food.

Although Liu Hong is addicted to pleasure, he is not completely ignorant of government affairs and local affairs. He has almost all the power in the court that he should grasp firmly in his hands.

Locally, Liu Hong knew that those powerful families, that is, those sanctimonious party members, also had considerable influence. Strengthening the power of the state pastor should be able to quickly wipe out the rebels everywhere.

After the rebels are extinguished...

Slowly recovering power and gathering it in the central government, he collected a lot of money, enough to support his expansion of the army, even if the powerful ministers had a heart of disobedience, he could defeat them one by one.

"Cough-cough-cough-"

Liu Hong coughed violently, and even his body trembled.

Jian Shuo hurried forward and patted Liu Hong's back lightly, trying to make Liu Hong feel a little more comfortable.

The cool wind blowing also dispelled the sweltering heat in the air.

Liu Hong stopped coughing, and the air flow made him feel a little better.

"I'm fine."

Liu Hong waved his hand and stopped Jian Shuo's actions.

"Bingzhou is occupied by the 'Moth Thief'. I heard that the 'Moth Thief' has been able to defeat many times because they always know the movements of our army and understand the deployment of our army."

Liu Hong turned his head to Jian Shuo and asked.

"is this real?"

Jian Shuo thought for a while, and replied: "Report to the country, it is true. Hedong County came to report, there is a trilogy in the 'Moth Thieves', named 'Eagle Wolf Guard', and its duty is to monitor the world and patrol China. Take the meaning of the eagle watching the wolf."

"Humph!"

Liu Hong snorted coldly, killing intent suddenly appeared in his eyes.

"Monitoring the world and inspecting China, what a big tone."

"Taking advantage of Liangzhou's rebellion, the Xiongnu's rebellion took advantage of the opportunity to occupy Bingzhou. How dare you be so presumptuous!?"

Liu Hong looked sullen, and waved his hand to signal Jian Shuo to continue talking about Yinglangwei.

Jian Shuo pleaded guilty and continued to speak.

"Among them, the eagle and wolf guards seem to be divided into two guards. One guard is the wolf guard. It is mainly responsible for monitoring the place where the 'moth thief' is currently living. The city and military town where it is located, deliver information."

"So every time I can learn about our army's movements, and in the place where the 'Moth Thief' lives, although there are ordinary people who want to submit information for our army, most of them are blocked by the 'Wolf Guard' in the 'Eagle Wolf Guard'. It was intercepted."

Listening to Jian Shuo's narration, Liu Hong raised the threat of the Yellow Turban Army to another level in his mind.

"Xu An..."

Liu Hong chanted Xu An's name, his eyes were full of murderous intent.

He only remembered Xu An's name in his heart when he was in the second year of Zhongping.

But it was this bandit that he had dismissed before that now took over Bingzhou and half of the county in the east of the river.

"Monitor the world, inspect China..."

Liu Hong stared at the galaxy in the sky with his hands behind his back, and sneered.

All along, he hadn't paid much attention to the Yellow Turban Army led by Xu An. Even if he killed Zhu Jun later and occupied Shangdang County, Liu Hong didn't think that this Yellow Turban Army could stir up any troubles.

The Yellow Turban Army occupied the place without any support at all. Those greedy tyrants, those greedy aristocratic families and the Yellow Turban Army were naturally opposed.

Millions of Yellow Turbans and the Eight States Rebellion have subsided.

Zhang Jiao, Zhang Bao, Zhang Liang, Qu commanders from all sides, almost all of them were killed, a mere Xu An, tens of thousands of Yellow Turban troops, even if they gain power for a while, what kind of situation can they become.

Prior to this, Liu Hong's attention had been on the rebels in Liangzhou. The Qiang rebellion in Liangzhou and the Yellow Turban uprising were both in the seventh year of Guanghe in the same year, and the momentum was so large that they even invaded the Sanfu area.

And they will compromise, which also makes Liu Hong feel dangerous. So far, a large number of Liangzhou aristocratic families and powerful people have joined the Liangzhou rebellion team, which also makes Liu Hong more vigilant.

So what Liu Hong had always thought was to deal with the rebels in Liangzhou, and on the way back to the division, he would directly kill the Yellow Turban army entrenched in Shangdang and Taihang.

But now it seems that the Yellow Turban Army is more dangerous.

perhaps……

We must recover Bingzhou first, and then consider the Liangzhou rebellion.

The cold moonlight shone on the floor tiles of the palace, making it look a bit gloomy.

The candlelight in the palace lantern trembled slightly, illuminating Liu Hong's complexion was cloudy and uncertain.

Jian Shuo peeked at Liu Hong's expression and stopped speaking, he knew Liu Hong was thinking.

After a long time, Liu Hong finally made a move.

"Jian Shuo."

Liu Hong turned around and faced Jian Shuo, his sharp eyes stared straight at Jian Shuo's eyes.

"The minister is here."

Jian Shuo's heart trembled, he bowed down and immediately agreed.

Liu Hong said solemnly: "The matter of the Eagle Wolf Guard has reminded me."

Jian Shuo was slightly puzzled, but he didn't ask any questions. He knew that at this moment, he just needed to listen quietly, without any words or actions.

"I'm going to set up an 'Embroidered Clothes Messenger' to monitor the place and investigate the military situation."

Liu Hong's voice was not loud, but it sounded like thunder in Jian Shuo's ears.

Jian Shuo narrowed his eyes slightly. Although he is an eunuch, he is not an uneducated person. The messenger of embroidering clothes, he naturally knows something.

Wearing embroidered clothes, holding a scepter and a tiger talisman, he patrols and inspects around, and if he finds illegal problems, he can act on behalf of the emperor.For this kind of special power, Emperor Wu named them "Embroidered Clothes Messenger"

"With five baht coins starting from white gold, the people are traitors, especially in the capital....The traitors are inexhaustible, and they point to the beginning. The rule of officials is to behead, kill and restrain, and Yan Feng uses it evilly."

The so-called "directly pointing out" is the sign of the appearance of the "embroidered clothes messenger".

"Zhizhi" officials governed political affairs with the goal of beheading and arresting people, and the first commander was Yan Feng, and the reason for his appointment was because of his fierce personality.

"Embroidered clothes envoys" are a kind of censor. Although their official positions are very low and they are not permanent officials, these people were specially selected by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and specially set up for handling special cases. They directly obeyed the emperor's orders and were directly responsible to the emperor. Not to mention heavy.

Jian Shuo's palms were already sweating coldly, and his whole body was slowly cooling down.

The emperor wanted to form an embroidered messenger because he wanted to counter the Eagle Wolf Guard set up by Xu An in the Yellow Turban Army.

Then the authority of the embroidered clothes messenger even surpassed that of Emperor Wu!
Monitor the world, inspect China...

If he is the first commander of the Embroidered Clothes Envoy established now, then these eight words are definitely not lies.

Jian Shuo's eyes gradually became eager.

With such a great authority, Jian Shuo couldn't help being tempted.

As a eunuch, he was already physically disabled and could not have offspring.

Some love money, some love power. Although Jian Shuo is loyal to Liu Hong, he is not immune.

But Jian Shuo also knew that he was still the Colonel of the Xiyuan Imperial Army, and he was already a very powerful position. The position of the Embroidered Clothes Emissary should not be his turn.

The light in Jian Shuo's eyes gradually dimmed.

Liu Hong stared at Jian Shuo, and said solemnly: "I want to entrust you with the responsibility of leading the embroidered clothes messenger."

Jian Shuo was stunned by Liu Hong's words.

When Jian Shuo realized it, it was almost unbelievable that he already had the duty of being a lieutenant in the military, but now Liu Hong wanted to hand over the position of commander of the Embroidered Clothes Emissary to himself.

Jian Shuo trembled all over, almost unable to control himself.

"Boom."

Jian Shuo bent his knees and knelt down in front of Liu Hong, tears streaming down his face.

"My lord, it's hard to repay the country even if you die ten thousand times!"

Jian Shuo's head hit the floor tiles, making a muffled sound, and he spoke hoarsely, choking.

One hand rested on Jian Shuo's forehead, preventing him from kowtowing.

Jian Shuo raised his head slowly and saw Liu Hong's pale face with a smile on his face.

Liu Hong smiled and said: "I still need you to monitor the world for me, take care of the daily life, don't hit your head."

Jian Shuo's tears that had stopped flowing down again.

"My lord, Jian Shuo will live up to the country's entrustment!"

Jian Shuo made the compilation with both hands, and solemnly made a promise.

Under the rule of the moonlight, Liu Hong's complexion seemed to turn pale again.

"Get up." Liu Hong said softly. "It's cool at night."

"promise."

Jian Shuo's voice was still a little choked up.

Liu Hong stretched out his hand and said to Jian Shuo, "I'm a little tired, please help me walk back to the palace..."

"promise."

Jian Shuo took a few steps forward and supported Liu Hong.

The two moved forward, and not far away, several old eunuchs carrying palace lanterns followed quickly.

The soldiers guarding the surrounding area all cheered up and guarded Liu Hong again.

Jian Shuo is strong and strong, so it is not a big problem to support Liu Hong.

Liu Hong walked very slowly, although he had no strength, but with Jian Shuo's support, he walked relatively safely.

Zhang Rang, Zhao Zhong, Xia Yun...

He appointed these people as high-ranking servants and gave them incomparable favors. These people have been by his side since he entered the palace, but these people are becoming more and more reckless and greedy.

He beat it many times, but still didn't make him change his mind, especially when his condition got worse these days.

He Jin...

He originally promoted He Jin to the rank of general in order to restrain the party members, but now He Jin is getting closer and closer to those party members, and puts him, the emperor, in second place.

……

The wind gradually picked up, which also made Liu Hong's drowsy mind clearer.

Shi Changshi and He Jin, these actually just made Liu Hong a little worried.

What worries Liu Hong the most is not these things, but his two sons, Liu Bian and Liu Xie.

Although Liu Bian was his eldest son, he was frivolous, submissive, cowardly and lacked the majesty that an emperor should have. In Liu Hong's opinion, he was not suitable to be an emperor.

Moreover, Liu Hong also doesn't like Liu Bian's biological mother, Empress He.

Liu Xie behaved dignifiedly, handled affairs calmly, and looked like a king. Moreover, Liu Xie's biological mother Wang Meiren was poisoned to death. Liu Hong felt a little guilty, so he was more inclined to make Liu Xie the prince.

However, because this violated the royal tradition of establishing an heir with the eldest son first, he could not make up his mind for a long time.

This illness also made Liu Hong aware of his physical condition. The so-called boundless life and immortality are nothing but extravagant hopes.

The first emperor who swept Liuhe, the talented and general emperor, and the Taizu Gao emperor who opened up the Han Dynasty could not escape life and death. ,

Somewhere, Liu Hong seemed to have a feeling that maybe his time was numbered.

Liu Hong held Jian Shuo's hand and said softly, "Jian Shuo, there are so many dangers lurking in this deep palace, you have to be careful, be careful."

"I have had a gap with Zhang Rang, Zhao Zhong and others. At the beginning, nothing happened, but it must be worrying in the long run. In the future, my meals, soups, and medicines will all be taken care of by embroidered clothes messengers."

In fact, Liu Hong is still in control of the court, but the ten permanent servants are not without roots. For a long time, Liu Hong knows that the ten permanent servants must have cultivated a lot of party members in this deep palace, and these things have to be guarded against.

Maybe my own illness, it took a long time to get better, maybe it was...

A stern look flashed in Liu Hong's eyes, and he was already suspicious.

In the dim light of the palace lantern, Liu Hong finally walked back to Houde Hall with Jian Shuo's support.

The wind outside the house gradually became wild, and the howling wind made Liu Hong's body feel a little light.

Jian Shuo helped Liu Hong to lie down on the bed, and asked people to extinguish half of the palace lanterns that were burning, so that the lights were slightly dimmed so that they would not be dazzling.

Feeling sleepy, Liu Hong also slowly closed his eyes.

The strange scenes in the dream followed one after another, the pleasant time when he was undressing the Du Pavilion, the panic when he first entered the court, and all kinds of things that happened before also appeared in his mind one by one.

Jian Shuo looked at Liu Hong who was sleeping soundly on the bed, knelt down on the ground and bowed solemnly before exiting Houde Hall.

The sky outside the palace is still full of stars and the bright moon is in the sky. It has been like this since ancient times and has never changed.

Even though the dynasties and countries on this earth have changed over and over again, the only thing that remains unchanged is the stars in the sky.

Jian Shuo clenched his fists tightly and walked slowly step by step from the place illuminated by the palace lantern into the darkness.

The surroundings gradually dimmed, but Jian Shuo's eyes were extremely bright.

(End of this chapter)