Volume 2 Clouds Chapter 21: Not one of them is a man!
Meng Chang's chest heaved. Luo Youdu's words deeply hurt the emperor's fragile self-esteem.
Meng Chang was still very ambitious. At least in the early period of his reign, his every word and action were full of the demeanor of a wise ruler.
Especially the twenty-four sentences and ninety-six words of "Official Precepts" written by him personally, every word of which is truly inspiring.
Among them, such golden sentences as "It is easy to abuse the people but difficult to deceive God", "Your salary and benefits are the blood and sweat of the people", and "As a parent, every parent should be kind" , could not have been written without a bit of kindness and compassion.
However, as peace came to Shu, Meng Chang no longer had the ambition to dominate the world. He just wanted to protect his own piece of land and turn Shu into a paradise on earth.
In fact, he succeeded.
During the turbulent period in the Central Plains, it was no exaggeration to call Jiangnan and Western Shu a paradise on earth.
However, as his wealth accumulated, Meng Chang inevitably led a luxurious life.
It is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but it is difficult to go from extravagance to frugality .
If the huge Shu Kingdom only supported Meng Chang, there would be no problem at all.
But there is a kind of behavior called "leading by example".
Meng Chang began to enjoy himself, and his ministers followed suit.
Meng Chang was supported by the national treasury, so what should the officials do when they have no money? They just go greedy and plunder the people's fat and blood.
Meng Chang was also very mediocre in employing people. He liked poetry and prose, and most of the talents he employed were those who were good at reciting poems and writing essays and were boastful.
They all boasted about themselves and compared themselves to Zhuge Liang, making it so that there were several all-rounders who only appeared once in hundreds of years in China, and there were several of them in the court of Shu.
For example, Zhao Jizha, who laughed at Jiang Wei's stupidity and was scared back to Chengdu, and Wang Zhaoyuan, who later boasted that it would be easy to take over the Central Plains with 30,000 troops, but was beaten so badly by Wang Quanbin and Cao Bin that even his parents didn't recognize him, both felt that they had the talent of Zhuge Liang.
I wonder if Zhuge Liang would be so angry that he would pretend to be dead if he found out that all the guys who compared themselves to him were like this.
The monarch was addicted to pleasure, and most of his ministers were boastful. The paradise on earth, Shu, gradually changed into something else. Corruption was rampant, and the court was full of corrupt officials.
However, Meng Chang himself was still obsessed with the paradise he created, thinking that the place under his jurisdiction was still a paradise. Although he might not be an emperor like the Qin Shi Huang and Han Wudi who unified the country with great military achievements, he could still be compared with sage kings like Wen and Jing.
Now, an enemy official looked down on him and said that he was just an idler? He was not worthy of being on the same level as Guo Rong.
Meng Chang couldn't bear this.
Fan Yu gnashed his teeth and said, "Not only that, on my way back, I saw Zhou soldiers gathering in a fortified town, with the intention of attacking Xingyuan Prefecture."
Meng Chang's face suddenly changed, and he asked hurriedly: "What should I do?"
The Shu Kingdom had a vast territory, but most of it was mountainous. The only truly rich places were the Chengdu Plain, the land of abundance, and the Hanzhong Plain, where Xingyuan Prefecture was located.
If Xingyuan Prefecture is lost, Shu Kingdom will lose a large amount of financial revenue.
What’s more, there is an old saying that goes, “Once you get Long, you will always want more.”
Having taken the Hanzhong Plain, it is natural that they would not covet Shu.
Fan Yupi suggested: "The best strategy now is to send more troops to Yangping Pass. I have seen that the Zhou soldiers are brave and cannot be compared with our soldiers. We can only fight them by taking advantage of the strategic location of the pass and the city walls."
Meng Chang hurriedly said, "My dear minister, what you said makes sense. I will issue an edict to dispatch troops to Yangping Pass."
He saw that Fan Yu's forehead had obvious marks of silt removal, his face was covered with scars, and his nose was a little flat. He was moved and said, "How hateful that Zhou Chen is so rude and rude. My dear minister, you have been wronged. You should go down and treat your wounds. I will never forget your loyalty."
This was exactly what Fan Yupei wanted. He thanked him with emotion and left.
Meng Chang was so angry that he paced left and right, wanting to send troops to save his face, but when he thought about how even Li Tinggui had been defeated so miserably, how could anyone in the court be his opponent?
What's more, now the situation is one of offense and defense switching.
"Your Majesty, Lady Huarui and Li Zhaorong are both outside the palace seeking an audience. "
Meng Chang took several deep breaths, suppressed his anger and said, "Let them in quickly."
The woman in white and the charming woman entered the hall together.
The woman in white is extremely beautiful and is none other than Lady Huarui, who is as beautiful as a flower pistil with skin as white as jade.
The charming woman was Li Yanniang, whose slender waist was worth a hundred thousand coins.
"Why are you two ladies here in the front hall instead of playing in the back hall?"
Madam Huarui bowed and said, "Your Majesty eats vegetarian food every month. I made some yam medicine myself and sent it to Your Majesty."
Meng Chang's worries disappeared in an instant, and he said softly: "Madam, you are thoughtful. If it weren't for the state affairs, I would like to spend the whole day with you in the mountains and rivers."
Madam Huarui said, "I don't understand state affairs, but I know that the well-being of millions of people in Shu depends on you, so you should put state affairs first. I heard that the backyard has reduced its funding, and I have received many rewards, which are all kept in the back hall. I would like to present them to Your Majesty for state use."
Meng Chang was annoyed and said angrily, "There is no reason to take back what I gave you..."
Just then, military news arrived that Zhou’s troops were approaching Baishui Pass.
Meng Chang was furious, but he suppressed his anger and said softly, "Madams, please go down first. I will take care of state affairs first."
Madam Huarui bowed and left.
Li Yanniang didn't dare to say a word. She bowed and walked away quickly.
The two walked to the backyard, and Li Yanniang finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Sister, you are so confused. What the emperor needs most at this time is comfort. Why are you adding fuel to the fire? If you really anger the emperor, what should we do?"
Madam Huarui stopped and looked at Li Yanniang, still asking in the same tone: "Sister, have you ever thought about what would happen to you and me if the enemy army broke through Chengdu?"
Li Yanniang's face turned pale. She looked around and whispered, "How dare I even think about it? It's not going to happen, is it?"
Madam Huarui laughed at herself and thought, "It's only a matter of time!"
Ever since she first entered the palace, she had inadvertently said that she liked peonies and red cassia flowers.
But that year, peonies were in full bloom all over Chengdu, and the fragrance of cassia flowers spread for hundreds of miles.
Various peonies and red hibiscus flowers bloomed forty miles along the city, like a brocade.
Chengdu is therefore known as the Hibiscus City.
Looking at Meng Chang as if he were presenting a treasure, he said to her: "The peonies in Luoyang are the best in the world. From now on, I will make the peonies in Chengdu the best in Luoyang."
From that moment on, Madam Huarui no longer dared to say that she liked him, and she even had a vague sense of the future.
All day long, Meng Chang was seen devoting his feelings to mountains and rivers, reciting poems and composing essays with the civil and military officials in the court, and discussing the world.
Lady Huarui felt it was both sad and ridiculous in her heart.
With these kinds of people, they compare themselves to Xie An and Zhuge Liang?
Madam Huarui even doubted whether they were men.
But what can we do?
I am just an insignificant woman in the troubled times. How can I gain favor by relying on the beauty given by God and restore order to the declining Great Xia?
All she could do was treat her the same way Meng Chang treated her.
Then she waited for the demise of Shu Kingdom, and finally gave herself the title of a demon concubine.
The peonies all over the city are the best evidence.
Who could have thought that she was the only one who was truly sober in the Shu Kingdom's government?
As her poem "On the Lost Country" says:
The king has raised the flag of surrender on the city wall, how could I know about it from deep in the palace?
One hundred and fourteen thousand people took off their armor, and not one of them was a man!
