The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 327 Who is the Villain?
Zhang He turned his head upon hearing the sound.

A strikingly handsome face came into view.

It was Wang Jun who came to Luoyang to gather military intelligence on Xu Shu's orders.

Zhang He held Xu Shu in high esteem.

After thinking for a moment, he turned to the eunuch and said seriously:
“I do not live in the palace, so saying that I was murdered is a bit of an exaggeration.”

"But this platform is so high and steep that it is the focus of the whole city. If it collapses, it will definitely affect the morale of the military and the people."

"To be on the safe side, please summon all the palace servants who remain on duty immediately. I need to verify their origins one by one."

The young eunuch dared not disobey the orders of the general in charge, so he could only drag his old body to summon more men.

However, a short while later, all of the remaining hundred or so palace servants of Luoyang Palace arrived.

Zhang He looked around.

Only four words came to mind:

The elderly, the infirm, and the disabled.

Then he turned to Wang Jun and said:

"If there are spies here, they can probably only do things like pass on classified information, and they won't be able to destroy the high platform."

Upon hearing this, Wang Jun immediately admitted his mistake and then guessed:
"What if it was done by spies from outside?"

"The old and weak in the palace are neither strong enough to destroy the platform nor strong enough to guard the palace. They might be able to infiltrate and sabotage it without anyone noticing."

Zhang He frowned again upon hearing this.
"Does Shi Zhi mean he intends to search the entire city?"

Wang Jun glared at him and said:
"Have to guard against it."

Zhang He rubbed his forehead, feeling quite tired.

It is necessary to capture the spies.

But given the current situation...

But it doesn't seem that necessary.

If you really want to be serious...

I'm afraid that apart from a few loyal generals and ministers like Zhang He and Wang Jun, there are no exceptions.

Anyone could become a spy, right?

Why bother……

Just then, the old eunuch suddenly returned with another equally aged craftsman.

After some introduction, it turned out that this person had participated in the construction of the Western Garden during the reign of Emperor Ling and was skilled in craftsmanship.

This refers to the Xiyuan Garden where the "Xiyuan Garden Sells Official Positions" incident took place.

Zhang He then sent him to investigate the ruins of the high platform.

The old craftsman observed for only a moment before drawing his conclusion:
"General, this platform was not blown down by the wind, nor was it damaged by human hands. It collapsed because its own structure was unbalanced."

"Unbalanced?" Zhang He glanced at Wang Jun upon hearing this.

"It has been reinforced multiple times, so why is it still said to be unbalanced?"

The old craftsman sighed:
"This platform was originally exquisitely crafted; the weight of every piece of wood and the polishing of every mortise and tenon joint were meticulously calculated."

"Adding one point is too much, subtracting one point is too little."

"If there is no external interference, the platform will maintain its balance after it is completed, and will sway gently in the wind without falling over."

"Unfortunately, the repairman was unaware of the intricacies and did not examine the details carefully. He added more wood without authorization, which disrupted the original balance."

"To be honest, this platform should have collapsed when it was being repaired."

"The fact that it lasted for two or three years before collapsing can only be attributed to the general's good fortune!"

Instead of being pleased by the unexpected flattery, Zhang He frowned even more deeply.

The old craftsman and the young eunuch realized they had said something wrong and became flustered, repeatedly apologizing.

But Zhang He wasn't angry with the two old people at all.
He impatiently ordered the palace servants to clean up the ruins and then hurriedly left.

"General, General, please wait!"

Wang Jun quickly caught up.

"General, are you so troubled by this scene? Is it because you are moved by the sight of this land and worried about its devastation?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang He said dejectedly:
"The mountains and rivers have never been shattered; only the imperial artifacts of the Wei dynasty have been broken!"

Wang Jun narrowed his eyes slightly:

"Is the general implying something?"

Zhang He suddenly stopped and said:

"Shizhi is a wise man, why ask a question he already knows the answer to?"

"Although the current emperor has some of the heroism and cunning of his ancestors, he is still young and impatient, lacks long-term planning, and is easily deceived by treacherous and wicked people."

"In contrast, Liu Bei's son ruled Chang'an with ease, and his subordinates were all virtuous ministers and generals."

"Having reigned for only three years, the government is efficient and the people are harmonious, and everything is being revived; it seems the Han dynasty is about to be restored for the third time." "Compared to this, how can I not be filled with anxiety? And how can I not deeply despise the treacherous officials at the emperor's side?"

To govern by doing nothing...?

Wang Jun had special channels to learn about the emperor's situation in Chang'an, which made him wonder.

But don't be too particular about the details, just look at the surface.

The Han Dynasty's vigorous growth in recent years has really made a name for itself.

However, that's not the focus right now.

Seeing that Zhang He was already angry, he pressed his advantage and asked:
"There are only the two of us here. General, why don't you make things clearer and tell us who is the villain by the emperor's side?"

Zhang He scoffed lightly, waved his hand without saying a word, and turned to leave.

Upon seeing this, Wang Jun's tone suddenly changed:
"Not long ago, Minister Wang passed away. Some people in the court said that when General Sima heard the bad news, he was so grief-stricken that he wept every day and almost went blind. He was quite like a wise and virtuous man."

Zhang He paused again, surprised, and asked:

"The prince... has he gone?"

But he quickly realized the meaning of the second sentence and immediately stomped his feet and cursed:

"How could such a shameless scoundrel truly mourn for a virtuous man? He's clearly just eager to climb the ranks since the positions of the Three Dukes are vacant!"

Wang Jun remained noncommittal.

To continue:

"Last year, Sima Fujun volunteered to go north to the four commanderies of Yan, Dai, Shanggu, and Yuyang to reward the troops and pacify the borders, and he achieved considerable success."

"This year, he also successfully recruited more than 10,000 Xianbei and Wuhuan knights, and was rewarded by His Majesty, who promoted him to the title of General Who Pacifies the Army."

Zhang He was even more furious after hearing this:

"After all these years, do you think I don't know what kind of person Sima Yi is?"

"Even if there is such merit, the faults outweigh the merits."

Even if one has a public-spirited heart, it is still more selfish than public-spirited.

"If His Majesty relies on this man as a pillar of the nation, isn't he afraid that, like the clumsy craftsman who tried to repair the Lingyun Terrace, the more he tries to fix it, the more it will collapse?"

Wang Jun immediately showed a look of fear.

As if afraid of bearing the blame for criticizing the emperor.

He could only mutter under his breath, "What can I do? What can I do?"

After Zhang He finished his tirade, his anger subsided, and he secretly felt a bit scared.

But upon closer reflection, given my current state, even if I were to criticize the emperor, who would come to Luoyang to punish me?
Who would dare to come to Luoyang now?

Looking up at Wang Jun, who was feigning composure, he seemed to understand something and squinted, saying:
"Is Xu Yuanzhi truly powerless against Sima Yi?"

……

Xuzhou, Xia Pi.

An oil tanker was moored on the bank of the Surabaya River, and three people, an old man and two young men, got off.

The old man's hair was sparse and white, and it was noticeably shorter than that of an average person.

As he walked, he would turn around every few steps, seemingly oblivious to what was behind him.

The two younger ones had thick hair, walked with a brisk pace, and exuded youthful vigor.

One of the fat men, with sparse eyebrows and a broad forehead, tried to walk in front of the old man several times.

But his companion grabbed his sleeve and pulled him back.

After this happened many times, I couldn't help but get angry and said in annoyance:

"Zhang Shusi, you go your way, I'll enjoy my view, why are you pulling and tugging at me!"

Zhang Shusi, also known as Zhang Xiu, the second son of Zhang Zhao, gestured forward with his lip upon hearing this and said:
"We have come to Xuzhou specifically to attend the funeral. Lord Yu is a former official of the prince, so naturally we should take him as our leader."

“My father had a long-standing relationship with the prince, and I am here to mourn on behalf of my father. As a junior, I should naturally follow Lord Yu.”

"As for you..." Zhang Xiu looked at the carefree Zhuge Ke.

He shook his head slightly and said:
"I have never heard of any relationship between Prefect Zhuge and the princes. I can't stop you from coming here if you insist on it, but what gives you the right to walk in front of us?"

"On what grounds?" Zhuge Ke repeated.

"Just because my father has rendered meritorious service in defending the country, while you are all just empty talkers at banquets! What's worse, some of you have even embarrassed the younger generation!"

Upon hearing this, Yu Fan, who was walking in front, immediately turned around and glared at him angrily, his face flushed red.

But when he saw Zhuge Ke glare back defiantly, he felt a pang of fear, but he turned around without a word and quickened his pace toward Xiapi City.

Zhang Xiu tried to give chase, but Zhuge Ke grabbed him and said with a grin:

“Since Minister Wang is already dead, there’s no rush to mourn him.”

"The Yishui Bridge is nearby. I've heard that Zhang Liang met Huang Shigong there and received the 'Art of War by Taigong' from him. Why don't we go there and seek our destiny with the immortals?"

(End of this chapter)