Jinting Han people

Chapter 204: Unraveling the System (4k)

When Liu Xian heard the words "down with Sun," he couldn't help but smile. He slowly straightened his body, looked Li Ju up and down, and said, "Shihui, who taught you to say that?"

Li Ju was stunned at first, then he smiled and touched his head, saying, "In my opinion, brother, shouldn't I have said these words? Sun Xiu has done such evil things, isn't it only right to overthrow him?"

Liu Xian stared at him motionlessly and said, "Because this is a political matter. In the world, there are moral rights and wrongs, but in politics, you must first learn to protect yourself. Don't do things you are not sure of. Otherwise, if the matter fails, it will eventually affect you, and the loss will outweigh the gain."

"You are well-versed in military books and skilled in warfare, but you are not a good politician. Especially in today's officialdom, it's not as simple as you think it is."

Li Ju wasn't entirely convinced. He was younger than Liu Xian and hadn't suffered any serious losses. His humble background only made him more arrogant. But he was also a sentimental person. Seeing Liu Xian's statement, he said bluntly, "It was Envoy Jie and Lord Ouyang who taught me to say that."

Liu Xian suddenly realized that the two men were Jie Xi, the Governor of Yongzhou, and Ouyang Jian, the Governor of Fengyi. He guessed what they meant and said, "Shihui, don't get involved in this. How about this? I'll just talk to them myself."

Liu Xian knew Xie Xi, the governor of Yongzhou. Xie Xi was from the Xie family of Jinan. His father, Xie Xiu, had served as the governor of Liangzhou and had once been ranked first in the country in imperial examinations, earning him widespread fame. The three brothers, also blessed by their father's excellent upbringing, were known as the "Three Xies."

Among them, Xie Xi was the most outstanding, having received praise from Xun Xu, the former Minister of the Secretariat, at the age of seventeen. He subsequently enjoyed a prosperous career, serving successively as Minister of the Secretariat, Imperial Household, Governor of Yuzhou, and Shangshu (a position that refers to holding positions in both the Secretariat and the Secretariat, as well as serving as a provincial governor), making him a truly exceptional figure among his generation.

He was now the third most powerful figure in Guanzhong, second only to Zhao Wang Sima Lun and Zhao Wang's Chief Secretary Sun Xiu. He held not only the post of Governor of Yongzhou but also concurrently held the titles of General Yanglie and Lieutenant of the Western Rong, holding the power of a temporary envoy, a position even higher than that of Zhang Gui, the former commander of the Western Expedition Army. Logically, he should have been the commander-in-chief of this campaign against the rebels, but Xie Xi, knowing his limitations, realized he had previously focused on civil affairs and lacked military prowess, so he ceded the position to Zhang Gui.

In Liu Xian's opinion, this Jie Shijun was indeed much stronger than Sun Xiu in terms of moral integrity, and it could even be said that they were incomparable. But why did Liu Xian have such a high level of vigilance?
The answer is simple: Xie Xi was appointed Governor of Yongzhou after the Yuankang period, when Prince Zhao went to Chang'an. In other words, like Sun Xiu, he was also a member of Empress Jia and Jia Mi's staff.

As there was infighting within the Hou Party, Liu Xian naturally had to think carefully and speak carefully.

At this time, Xie Xi was outside Xiayang City, making arrangements regarding the Huns. After hearing Li Ju's report, he immediately put down his work and went to visit Liu Xian, who was still on his sickbed, in the name of visiting a meritorious official.

Xie Xi is a man with a very distinctive appearance. He has the thin figure typical of scholars, and a face with hard lines as if it had been chopped by an axe or a knife. His brow bones and forehead are high. This makes it seem like he is about to challenge someone just by closing his mouth and staring at them with his eyes wide open.

He met Liu Xian and exchanged a few pleasantries, praising him for being a great hero in suppressing the rebellion and asking him to recover from his injuries. At the same time, he mentioned Sun Xiu's poor performance in this battle and could not help but scold him:

"It's so difficult for a country to support its own military! It takes at least three years to train a single archer from beginner to master. Just because of Sun Xiu's ego, we lost so many elite soldiers in Hedong! Not to mention the loss of armor, weapons, and food! Even though we ultimately won, what's the difference between that and a crushing defeat?"

"If we allow this monkey to continue to mess around like this, it will ruin the Jin Dynasty and the people's hearts."

Liu Xian naturally agreed with Jie Xi's opinion. He had been in Guanxi for three years, constantly oppressed by Sun Xiu. Naturally, he understood Sun Xiu's character. Sun Xiu was a very difficult person. Although he was evil, his evil was unique. He was evil in a way that was devious, persevering, and unscrupulous. From this perspective, when it comes to his talent for evil, Sun Xiu was unparalleled, leaving others to sigh in despair.

But what could Liu Xian say? He was not Empress Jia's man, so naturally he would not show any emotion in front of Jie Xi. He just said:
"I am only a small county magistrate. I am afraid that what you said to me, Lord Jie, will be of no use."

Xie Xi stared at Liu Xian for a moment, then said slowly, "Why is Huai Chong playing dumb? You should understand what I mean. I can't say much before the battle is over. After all, we've already changed our generals at the last minute, and we can't afford to make two mistakes. But now that the battle is over, for the sake of the people in Guanzhong, we should get rid of Sun Xiu as soon as possible."

"Oh?" Liu Xian asked, "What are you planning to do, sir?"

"I intend to submit a memorial exposing Sun Xiu's numerous crimes to the public. I will also have all the county governors in Guanzhong sign it and submit it directly to the Ministry of Chancellery, urging the Queen to execute Sun Xiu!"

When Liu Xian heard this, he immediately felt Jie Xi's determination. He looked up at Jie Xi and found that he was looking at the white clouds outside the window. His eyes were as firm as steel. His attitude softened slightly, and he sighed:

"Your Excellency's idea is good, but I heard that Lord Ouyang had previously submitted a petition impeaching Sun Xiu, and he also found someone to sign it, but in the end, it was left unresolved. Military Commander Zhang must have also written a similar petition, but the result was that he was sent to the capital in prison. If Your Excellency wants to achieve his goal simply by submitting a petition, I'm afraid this method will be difficult to use!"

"This is exactly what I've been worried about." Xie Xi turned around and said earnestly:

"The chaos Sun Xiu caused is known to everyone. If no one mentioned it in court, it would be my fault. But if I make this public, I'm not sure I can defeat Sun Xiu, so I need your help, Huai Chong."

"My help?"

Liu Xian couldn't help laughing. He touched his injured chest and wondered if he could do anything to help Jie Xi. Although he might be quite famous, he was still just a sixth-rank county magistrate with a jurisdiction of a hundred miles.

Xie Xi sat down again at this time. He said calmly, "To be more precise, it was the help of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"Your Highness?" Sima Yi's clever yet frivolous face immediately surfaced in Liu Xian's mind. He hadn't expected that someone in Xiayang would actually take the initiative to talk to him about Sima Yi. It seemed like a distant memory.

Seeing Liu Xian's puzzled expression, Xie Xi patiently explained, "Huai Chong is far away from the capital now, so he might not be very clear about the political situation in Luoyang. Although the Queen is in control of the government now, she cannot be said to have absolute control."

"Can't you call it that?"

"Of course not. The Queen herself isn't very good at handling government affairs. Everything has to be handled by Zhang Hua and Pei Wei, and supervised by the Secretary General Jia Changyuan. If it were a peaceful time, when the country was at peace, perhaps things would have gone on like this. But now that such a huge chaos has occurred, I'm afraid the Queen can't keep it under control."

"What can't be suppressed?" "Of course it's the princes!" Xie Xi said this, and he also smiled bitterly, saying:
"The Queen was able to successfully seize power and kill the King of Chu and the King of Runan because she chose a perfect time. When Emperor Wu passed away, the older generation of princes were either dead or old. Aside from the King of Runan, the only ones capable of taking on responsibilities were the King of Liang and the King of Zhao. Unfortunately, one was free and the other was incompetent. Most of the younger princes, especially the Crown Prince and Emperor Wu's sons, except for the King of Chu and the King of Qin, had not yet come of age. This allowed the Queen to seize sole power."

"But now, three years have passed, and the younger generation of princes have gradually come of age. Princes like Sima Jiong, King of Qi, Sima Ying, King of Chengdu, and Sima Yan, King of Wu, have reached the age where they can manage affairs and take charge."

"The current royal family princes in the court all have their own fiefdoms and the right to establish their own governments and train their own armies. This means that each year, the royal family's power will grow stronger than the previous year, and the Queen's life will become increasingly difficult. Therefore, she cannot ignore the royal family's opinions and will inevitably compromise with them."

Hearing this, Liu Xian completely understood Xi's intention and continued, "Your Excellency is trying to say that although Sun Xiu has the final say in Guanzhong, it's ultimately because of the Empress's support. But if the Empress is under too much pressure and abandons Sun Xiu, then Sun Xiu will naturally be a rootless duckweed."

"So, the envoy wants me to write a letter to the crown prince. When you impeach Sun Xiu, I want him to seize the opportunity and make a big fuss about it. This way, I can put enough pressure on him. Even if I can't kill Sun Xiu, I will at least find a way to get rid of him."

The insight department nodded, and Liu Xian also felt in his heart that this was indeed a good idea.

Although Sima Yi always presented himself as a low-key person, his identity was clear. Although the Empress was the Emperor's wife, she was ultimately only a relative by marriage. Sima Yi was the true heir to the Jin Dynasty and the leader of the imperial clan. Therefore, all the frustrated princes would gather around Sima Yi.

If Sima Yi agreed to this, and the reconciliation system cooperated to put pressure on Empress Jia, it would mean that both the inside and the outside were dissatisfied with Sun Xiu. In order to appease the court, it was reasonable for Sun Xiu to lose power.

But then, Liu Xian pondered another question: Why should he help Jie Xi? Sun Xiu was undoubtedly evil, but weren't Empress Jia and Jia Mi the source of the current chaos? Putting aside the question of whether Sun Xiu could be eliminated, even if he were, how much better would the next person he sent be?
The Jie faction hopes to reform the Hou Party by eradicating the insidious problem of Sun Xiu. Is this really possible?
Moreover, this involves the interests of Crown Prince Sima Yi himself. He has been keeping a low profile for so many years. I am afraid he may not necessarily change his way of doing things just for this matter. Can his own suggestion really work?

Most importantly, if he helped to understand the clique, would it make his own cause of national restoration more difficult? He did not want to get too close to the Hou Party. As he had said to Li Ju before, he should at least keep a distance and become a bystander.

For a moment, Liu Xian was in great confusion and struggle.

Therefore, he did not reply to Jie Xi immediately that day, but said: "Thank you for your consideration, Jie Shijun, but this matter is of great importance. Please allow me to think about it for a while."

Xie Xi didn't hesitate. Before parting, he said to Liu Xian, "I've been in Guanzhong for so many years. Although I've only met you once, I've always heard of you. The people of Guanzhong say you love the people like your own children. I believe you will make the right choice."

After Jie Xi left, Liu Xian felt a bit bored, so he got off the bed and strolled through the courtyard. It was approaching the Double Ninth Festival, and the grass and trees were withered and yellow. Most of the leaves in the courtyard had already fallen, leaving only the fragrance of chrysanthemums and persimmons. Outside Xiayang County, the lively laughter of children playing filled the air, as if they were lamenting the preciousness of peace in the aftermath of the war.

Listening to the laughter, Liu Xian stood in the middle of the courtyard with his hands behind his back, thinking about Jie Xi's advice and his own position, and was a little dazed for a moment.

At this time, Lu Zhu heard the noise and leaned against the door with her hands on her waist. After watching Liu Xian think for a while, she asked, "What are you thinking about, young master?"

Liu Xian turned around and saw Lu Zhu's bulging belly. He quickly came over to support her and walked into the house while saying, "It's nothing. Don't worry. Just take a good rest."

Since Luzhu was due to give birth in a month, they now slept in separate rooms. Liu Xian even hired an old woman to care for her, but Luzhu still wasn't used to it. She couldn't rest. Even when she was alone, she couldn't help but embroider flowers and birds, or constantly caress her belly and softly recite poems from the Book of Songs to the child in her arms. This woman of lowly origin still retained the side of a lady from her upbringing at Jin Gu Garden.

After Liu Xian helped Lu Zhu onto the couch, he looked at the scroll of poetry in front of the couch and couldn't help laughing. Then he said, "You don't have to be so anxious. You don't know if the child can understand it."

After Luzhu lay down, she smiled happily and said, "Maybe, but when I read poems to the child, he moved in my belly. I think he understood."

Liu Xian smiled again. He had often heard his aunt Fei Xiu talk about the events before his birth, how his mother, Zhang Ximiao, went crazy with joy when she was pregnant with him. In the past, Liu Xian had found it hard to imagine what that feeling must have been like, but now, looking at Lu Zhu, he could probably understand a little.

Lu Zhu asked again: "Sir, have you ever thought about what kind of person you want to teach him to be in the future?"

Liu Xian thought about it seriously and replied, "I haven't really thought about it that much. I just hope to be a good father in the future. Whether it's a boy or a girl, I hope that he can proudly mention my name, know what is right and what is wrong, do more good things and avoid doing bad things. Then I will be satisfied..."

At this point, Liu Xian froze. He suddenly realized that what he had been worrying about wasn't actually such a difficult choice when it came to the future and his child. He was about to become a father. Perhaps Shi Hui was right, and that he didn't need to think too much about what he should do.

Seeing him in a daze for a while, Lu Zhu smiled and said, "Sir, what have you thought of now?"

Liu Xian came back to his senses, held Lu Zhu's hand, and said slowly: "I'm thinking about destiny."

"Destiny?"

"I was thinking, when a person is walking on a long road with no end in sight, yet is willing to slow down and appreciate the scenery on both sides, he still reaches his goal in the end. This is probably destiny."

“I believe I have this destiny.”

In the past, Liu Xian often drew energy and wisdom from past experiences. But now, Liu Xian also drew energy from the future and made a choice. He agreed to understand the system and sent Sima Yi a letter impeaching Sun Xiu as required.

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(End of this chapter)