With Cao Cao by my side, what do I have to fear from the world?

Chapter 36, Liu Bei is trustworthy
Looking at Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei kneeling on the ground, Liu Xie suddenly felt a surge of warmth in his heart. Among all the warlords in the world, only Liu Bei could be considered one of his own, or even family!
At the very least, Liu Bei was a member of the Han imperial family, and he always upheld the belief of restoring the Han dynasty and serving the country.

Other warlords might be hostile to Liu Xie, but Liu Bei would not.

As for whether Liu Bei could be wholeheartedly loyal to him, Liu Xie could not say for sure.

It can only be said that he had no hostility towards him. At the very least, he was better than Wang Yun. He was absolutely loyal to the Han Dynasty!
As for what Liu Bei's attitude towards the emperor would be after he became a warlord, with a larger territory and greater power, that's another story.

As long as Liu Bei has no hostility towards me, that alone is enough!

Liu Xie wants to take control of his own destiny in this life. He doesn't want to be dependent on others or rely entirely on their strength. He has to stand up for himself!

For Liu Xie, Liu Bei was definitely a powerful ally he could rely on!
Their relationship was more like a two-way journey.

Liu Bei needed Liu Xie's recognition of his identity, and Liu Xie also needed to rely on Liu Bei's power!
Throughout his life, Liu Bei upheld the motto of restoring the Han Dynasty.

The effect of a member of the Han imperial family supporting the Han dynasty is mutually reinforcing. Anyone in the world might betray the Han dynasty, but Liu Bei is the only one who would never do so!
As long as Liu Bei remains loyal to the Han Dynasty, that is enough for Liu Xie!

Liu Xie did not immediately reach out to help Liu Bei up, for he noticed that Cao Cao was watching him from the side.

At this moment, with so many people around, Liu Xie's attitude was crucial.

If he showed too much intimacy with Liu Bei, Cao Cao would obviously be displeased and might even become suspicious.

Historically, Liu Xie was overly affectionate towards Liu Bei, even recognizing him as his imperial uncle and writing an imperial edict in his belt.

In this life, Liu Xie must not do such a foolish thing; he must completely bind Cao Cao to himself.

We must not arouse Cao Cao's suspicion, nor can we displease him.

Having just gone through the ordeal of abdication and barely managed to ease tensions, Liu Xie made up his mind, and his face instantly darkened.

"Liu Bei, I've heard you're a member of the Han imperial family?"

Liu Xie looked at Liu Bei with a serious expression and asked in a deep voice.

Liu Bei and Cao Cao were both taken aback. They had thought that the emperor would be overjoyed, as if he were seeing his maternal family.

What was about to unfold was a dramatic scene of recognizing family trees and relatives, but the emperor's expression changed, clearly showing his dissatisfaction with Liu Bei.

Liu Bei hesitated for a moment, then quickly replied, "I am a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan and a great-great-grandson of Emperor Jing of Han!"

"Hmph!" Liu Xie flicked his sleeve and gave a cold snort.

"Then let me ask you, what were you doing last year?"

"I have been in Xuzhou."

"You're in Xuzhou, acting as the governor, aren't you? How impressive! You've risen through the ranks so quickly, becoming a powerful regional official. But do you know what I'm doing?"

Liu Xie said angrily, "I have been on the run, escaping the clutches of Li Jue, Guo Si and others. This escape has lasted for a whole year. Since you are a member of the Han imperial family, why do you ignore my life and safety?"

Faced with Liu Xie's sudden questioning, Liu Bei broke out in a cold sweat. Trembling with fear, his shoulders shaking, Liu Bei hurriedly explained, "Your Majesty, I am constantly concerned about Your Majesty and the state. However, Lü Bu, Yuan Shu, and others have been openly and covertly fighting against me, and I have no time to spare. Furthermore, I have not received any imperial edict, so I dare not go to Guanzhong without authorization."

"Oh? In that case, I have wronged you. If you were truly worried about the country and concerned about my safety, you would have only needed to send a few people to Guanzhong to find out my whereabouts. For a whole year, I have been waiting and hoping that someone would come to save me from this misery, restore the Han Dynasty, and eliminate the treacherous officials for me. Unfortunately, you did not come."

As Liu Xie spoke, his fingers trembled slightly. Then, he looked at Cao Cao and said with great emotion, "Fortunately, Heaven blesses our Han Dynasty. I have a loyal minister like Cao Cao. Even though Yan Province has suffered from drought and war, and Cao Cao was clearly overwhelmed with a lot of things to deal with, when he learned of my whereabouts, he didn't hesitate and rushed to Luoyang to rescue me. If it weren't for Cao Cao, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

Liu Xie's flattery made Cao Cao very pleased. He humbly waved his hand and said generously, "Your Majesty, you flatter me. This is my duty. Seeing the Han Dynasty in danger and Your Majesty being bullied by traitors, how could I sit idly by?"

Liu Bei was so ashamed he wanted to disappear. No matter how many reasons he had, he had done nothing when the emperor returned to the east, not even sending someone to deliver a perfunctory message.

However, Liu Bei knew very well that Cao Cao's reason for rescuing him was merely to use the emperor as a puppet to command the world.

The emperor is clearly being misled, mistaking Cao Cao for a loyal subject.

However, Liu Bei also felt extremely guilty, because even if Cao Cao was incompetent, at least he went to greet him.

No matter how loyal Liu Bei was, he ultimately didn't take any real action.

Liu Xie continued, "A whole year! Liu Bei, don't tell me you're too busy to spare a moment. In this entire year, couldn't you have even sent someone to Guanzhong to take a look? Unfortunately, you didn't!"

The emperor's return to the east was such a momentous event that probably no one was unaware of it.

Liu Bei was extremely ashamed and touched his head to the ground, not daring to lift it up. He had thought he could leave a good impression on the emperor and, if he was lucky, even become related to him.

Soon, Liu Xie left in a huff and went straight back to the palace.

Cao Cao watched Liu Xie's departing figure, a barely perceptible smile appearing on his lips.

He was afraid that the emperor and Liu Bei were getting too close. Now look what happened, Liu Bei ignored the emperor's return to the east, and this big accusation was directly put on Liu Bei.

Cao Cao, on the contrary, acted as a peacemaker, quickly helping Liu Bei up. "Xuande, get up quickly. The emperor is young and stubborn. Actually, it can't be entirely your fault. I only barely received the news when the emperor was almost in Luoyang. You are far away in Xuzhou, so it's no wonder you didn't know."

Everyone was very busy at the time, and with limited access to information and inconvenient transportation, it was normal not to receive news.

"His Majesty is still young; he's just being childish. Xuande, don't worry, I'll try to persuade him later."

Despite feeling deeply aggrieved, Liu Bei forced a smile and thanked Cao Cao, saying, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Lord Cao, please put in a good word for me."

Not long after Liu Bei entered the city, Zhao Yun also entered. After entering the city, he was leading his horse and wondering how to see the emperor when someone next to him spotted him at a glance and walked straight towards him.

"General Zhao, do you still recognize me?"

“It’s you, the one who delivered the letter to me. Your name is Liu Biao.” Zhao Yun quickly recognized the other person.

Liu Biao nodded and lowered his voice, "There are too many people here, General Zhao, please come with me. I'll find you a place to settle down first, and soon you'll be able to see the person you want to see."

(End of this chapter)