It was midsummer and cicadas were chirping outside the courtyard. The hot weather made people upset and even affected the mood of the chess players.
"If you don't think about it carefully before you play, I'll win this game again."
Qiguan Rang held a feather fan in his left hand and waved it gently. Every feather was white and clean. The handle of the fan was made of flawless white jade. The pendant of the fan was a beautiful lotus flower. The long tassels hung down and piled up on his knees. From afar, it looked like a thick cloud that was about to disperse.
He sat on a mat with a complicated chess game in front of him. The person sitting opposite him was Feng Zhen.
There were rumors in the court that Qiguan Rang and Feng Zhen didn't get along. In reality, other than their conflicting political views, they had a good personal relationship.
For example, right now, the two of them could play chess together in the middle of summer.
There was a plate of golden melon seeds on Qiguan Rang's left. Feng Zhen also had a plate, but there weren't as many as he had.
Feng Zhen looked at the losing game and hesitated. After thinking for a long time, he threw the flag back into the box and mumbled, "I lost, I lost." He didn't just lose this game, he also lost a few golden melon seeds _ (: з) ∠) _
"Your heart isn't calm."
Qiguan Rang won another game, but there wasn't any joy in his expression.
Feng Zhen tidied up the chessboard out of boredom. He didn't care about how many golden melon seeds he'd lost to the guy in front of him.
"How can I calm down? The summer is hot and dry, but the court is chaotic. His Majesty has been sick for three days in a row … "
Feng Zhen, who was usually fearless, was a little scared now. He had followed His Majesty for many years and His Majesty had always been a "model worker." He fought bravely and worked hard. Occasionally, he would slack off, but it didn't matter. Three hundred and sixty-five days a year, he never rested for a single day. He was always making trouble for the court officials. No one in the court dared to slack off, but now he had been sick for three days in a row …
Every day, Feng Zhen had the energy to leave early after finishing his work. Today, he still had the time to play chess with Qiguan Rang. He was so bored he doubted his life.
Qiguan Rang's expression was calm, his deep eyes as quiet as a deep pool. It made people want to calm down.
"Everyone has three disasters and nine difficulties. It's common to be sick and miss court. It's just a three-day court."
Feng Zhen couldn't help but roll his eyes. What did he mean by "just a three-day court"?
"I'm worried about His Majesty …"
Qiguan Rang sneered. "What are you worried about? His Majesty did not delay government affairs. "
Feng Zhen said, "I'm worried that His Majesty wants to protect Ci with all his might."
At this time, five days had passed since the meteorite incident that the two of them had planned. Her Majesty had claimed illness and called off the court three days ago. However, she had taken many actions in private. It was obvious that she wanted to exert pressure on them and continue to protect Wei Ci. Even though Feng Zhen and Wei Ci were childhood friends, having a good personal relationship did not mean that they shared the same political standpoint. Wei Ci was dragged into the circle of aristocrats led by the Wei family, and those aristocrats were ambitious …
From this point of view, Feng Zhen and Wei Ci were on opposing sides.
No matter how good their personal relationship was, when it came to political affairs, they still had to fight to the death.
At most, on the anniversary of Wei Ci's death next year, Feng Zhen would offer him a few more sticks of incense and pour him a few more cups of wine.
If he allowed the landowning households to seize power, he didn't know what would happen to the world that had just begun to take a turn for the better. Feng Zhen had no choice but to do so.
Coincidentally, Qiguan Rang was also making a move, so Feng Zhen joined forces with Qiguan Rang.
The two of them naturally did not give Wei Ci a chance to make a comeback.
They also knew where Wei Ci's weakness was. Wei Ci's birth date was the biggest obstacle to his ascension to the top.
As long as Wei Ci fell, the Wei family that relied on Wei Ci and the other restless landowning households would also temporarily lie low.
Unfortunately …
Everything had been well planned, but Her Majesty just had to drop the ball.
After the meteorite fell, Her Majesty did not show much emotion on the surface. However, Feng Zhen had known her for many years and naturally knew that she was angry.
She was not angry that Wei Ci had betrayed her trust, but angry that Feng Zhen and Qiguan Rang had taken matters into their own hands.
It would have been fine if she was just angry. Feng Zhen was confident that he was unharmed, but Her Majesty had called off the court for three days in a row. This was a great calamity!
She could still hold on on the first day, but on the second day, she tossed and turned restlessly. On the third day, she was dazed and could not concentrate on playing chess with Qiguan Rang.
Qiguan Rang said, "It is expected that Her Majesty wants to protect Wei Ci."
Feng Zhen was speechless.
If that was the case, why didn't she say so earlier?
Qiguan Rang smiled calmly. "Wait a little longer, there is no hurry."
"How can there be no hurry?" Feng Zhen sighed. "Her Majesty now wants to force the two of us to give in. As long as we don't give in, she may call off the court for another day … To put it blasphemously, there are millions of men in the world. Why does Her Majesty have to be so stubborn about them?"
Her Majesty was so afraid of the landowning households, but Wei Ci had repeatedly helped the scholars from the Wei family.
If not for the fact that the scholars recommended by Wei Ci were all talented, Feng Zhen and Qiguan Rang might not have been able to endure until now.
Qiguan Rang snorted and said in a low voice, "Heroes have a weakness for the charms of a beautiful woman. This has been the case since ancient times. Besides … he is Her Highness's biological father. If Wei Ci really dies in our hands, Her Majesty may not be affected, but Her Highness's side is different. "
Feng Zhen said, "You don't intend to let Wei Ci die?"
"If Her Majesty wants to protect him, can you and I touch him? If Her Majesty does not protect him, then Wei Ci is dead. If Her Highness holds a grudge against him, then so be it. After all, his old bones may not live to see the day Her Highness ascends to the throne. Who cares about what happened in life after death? " Qiguan Rang placed a chess piece. "If Her Majesty wants to protect him, it's not good for us as officials to disobey. However, we have to take a step back in this matter. If we can protect Wei Ci's life, then we have to give up his official career. If we can achieve our goal, we can also answer to Her Majesty. "
If they could let Wei Ci die, that would be the best. They would completely eradicate the Wei family's support in the court.
If not, then they would take a step back and let his official career be ruined.
As Her Highness's biological father, Wei Ci's identity was too sensitive. Qiguan Rang also suspected Wei Cong's identity. Once this father and son pair had uncontrollable ambitions, the good situation would be destroyed.
Qiguan Rang would not allow Wei Ci to have the slightest hint of ambition.
Feng Zhen was speechless. "You really aren't afraid that Her Majesty will be angry with you."
Rather than saying that Qiguan Rang was dealing with Wei Ci, it was better to say that he was using Wei Ci to negotiate with Her Majesty. Qiguan Rang was blocking his official career.
"Her Majesty should know that Wei Ci has seriously overstepped his authority. She can't bear to give him a warning, so I will be the villain. "
On the fifth day of the court strike, Qiguan Rang entered the palace dressed neatly in court attire.
"I thought I wouldn't be able to wait for Wen Zheng's arrival."
Her Majesty, who claimed to be ill and unable to attend court, was now wearing light and simple daily attire, sitting in the pavilion and playing with birds.
Qiguan Rang's expression was solemn. "Your Majesty, I have something to say."
"It's about Zixiao?" Her Majesty scattered a handful of bird feed on the caged birds. "He has also been warned. Let's end this matter here."
Qiguan Rang was speechless.
"I know what Wen Zheng wants to say and what you are worried about, but Zixiao doesn't have that ambition," Qiguan Rang said helplessly.
"Whether he has ambition or not isn't the key. He shouldn't be so close to the Wei family and betray Her Majesty's trust."
Her Majesty said, "To be honest, it's not that close. It's just a normal human relationship, but it was exaggerated by those despicable people."
Wei Ci was the most popular member of the Wei family in the court. Who didn't want to curry favor with him?
With just a slight response, their friendship was deliberately exaggerated to thirteen points.
"Zixiao is a person who cherishes talents. The Wei family is in a bleak situation. It's reasonable for him to be soft-hearted and promote someone who can be cultivated in the family." Her Majesty stretched out her fingers to play with the birds. Her lips curled into a slight smile. "However, he has no ambition, but others can't be sure. It's good to take this opportunity to make him step down so that he won't be plotted against and used again. In this way, you and Zishi can rest assured? "
Qiguan Rang heard the last sentence and pretended to ask for forgiveness.
"Forget it. Sit down. There's no need to ask for forgiveness." Her Majesty stopped him. "I know what you are worried about."
Qiguan Rang and the others joined forces to deal with Wei Ci. She was indeed unprepared, but she knew it was an opportunity when she calmed down.
An opportunity for Wei Ci to retreat to a safe position.
At the same time, Jiang Pengji had to spare some time to sort out the Wei family.
Qiguan Rang was the one who planned all this.
After five consecutive days of court, she had calmed down. Naturally, she would not continue to argue.
She had previously worried about how to separate Wei Ci from the Wei family. Now she had achieved her goal.
Qiguan Rang hesitated and asked Her Majesty in a low voice.
"Has Her Majesty talked to him about these things?"
Her Majesty was surprised. "No. What's there to talk about?"
Qiguan Rang wanted to say something but stopped. In the end, he did not voice out his worries.
As long as Wei Ci was far away from the center of power, the Wei family could not cause trouble, and the position of the First Prince was stable, Qiguan Rang's goal would be achieved.
"I hope Zixiao can understand Her Majesty's painstaking efforts."
Her Majesty asked Qiguan Rang, "Why should he understand?"
Qiguan Rang was speechless.
Some things could easily cause misunderstandings without saying anything.
Who in the court did not know that Qiguan Rang hated Wei Ci?
This hatred lasted for more than ten years and reached its peak on the day of Her Majesty's "death."
Wei Ci's son, Wei Cong, came to the palace after Her Majesty's "death" and threatened the position of the First Prince, Jiang Yan.
Qiguan Rang was one of the important ministers who entrusted Jiang Yan with his son. Under his seemingly pale and calm face, there was a strong desire to kill the Wei family's father and son.
Wei Cong was rebellious and ambitious. He coveted the throne. Who told him his identity and taught him to do so?
What role did Wei Ci, his father, play?
Perhaps, he should not have kept Wei Ci alive that year!
Because of this, when Wei Ci drew his sword and committed suicide, firmly denying Wei Cong's identity as Crown Prince, Qiguan Rang only looked away coldly.
At the same time, he regretted watching coldly from the sidelines for a full 23 years.
He did not let it go until he died.
"Your Majesty, there is one thing … I have sinned, and my sin is unforgivable …" The white-haired Qiguan Rang was lying on the sickbed. His pale and sickly face was strangely flushed. This was the appearance of the last radiance of the setting sun. "If I had not treated you coldly that year, perhaps the former Emperor would not have …"
"This is not your fault." Jiang Yan, who had ascended to the throne for 23 years, looked calm. "So many years have passed. Why are you still brooding over it?"
Jiang Yan did not blame him, but Qiguan Rang could not let it go.
On his deathbed, he only had one wish that he hoped Jiang Yan could fulfill.
"… After I die, I will not … enter the ancestral land …"
Qiguan Rang's voice was as weak as a mosquito, but Jiang Yan could understand what he meant.
"I understand."
Many years later, people discovered that the grave of the famous minister Qiguan Rang was a cenotaph.
While scholars were struggling with this matter, Emperor Chen's mausoleum collapsed. People discovered that other than Emperor Chen, there was an unfamiliar male corpse buried with him in the main mausoleum. His identity could not be verified. An unfamiliar male corpse was also discovered in the "Official Hall" of Emperor Chen's mausoleum. The owner of the corpse was seventy years old.
This person was not buried with the emperor. Instead, he was buried in the "Official Hall" of the mausoleum.
According to historical research, the owner of this corpse should be an old minister of two dynasties — Qiguan Rang.
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