The revival of the Han Dynasty must start with Dong Zhuo

Chapter 122 Hebei Court
"Failed!"

On that day, when Yuan Shao learned that Dong Zhuo had defeated the Baibo Army and the Southern Xiongnu coalition in Hedong, Yuan Shao knew that the war was over.

Shao has good looks and majesty.

But even though he had a good appearance, Yuan Shao was still as sad as if he had lost his parents after hearing the news. His facial features were completely shrunken and he lost his former demeanor.

"I'm afraid I can only be a thief."

Although Yuan Shao was a son of a noble family, he did not like the traditional crown. Even in the military camp, he often wore a silk scarf and only tied his hair with a long scarf.

Taking off the long scarf from his head, Yuan Shao had tears in his eyes: "Being denounced as a traitor by the court is a shame for me, Yuan Shao! How can I face my ancestors in the future? I might as well die now!"

The voice is so miserable that it makes people feel sad.

"How could Lord Yuan do this!"

A sharp shout!
It turned out to be Xu You, a native of Nanyang, a famous scholar under Yuan Shao.

Xu You rebuked Yuan Shao: "Don't you know, Lord Yuan, that the court is now controlled by evil villains like Dong Zhuo?"

"The imperial court's decree is actually Dong Zhuo's order! How can such an imperial court convince the people of the world with its proclamation?"

Yuan Shao was speechless.

"But it is the imperial court after all."

"Then how can it be considered the imperial court?"

Xu You stood up alone and continued to persuade Yuan Shao: "The so-called court should naturally have an emperor in charge!"

"But everyone knows that the emperor who succeeded Emperor Ling was killed by Dong Zhuo a long time ago. Where is the emperor in the world now?"

Xu You added: "The fake emperor that Dong Zhuo has enthroned is ostensibly of the bloodline of Emperor Ling, but in fact, there is another truth!"

"Have you heard that Liu Xie's biological mother, Concubine Wang, was killed by Empress Dowager He?"

"The rumor in the palace at that time was that Empress Dowager He was jealous, but that was totally wrong!"

"The reason why Empress Dowager He killed Concubine Wang was because she realized that Concubine Wang had an affair with a foreign minister, so she wanted to erase this scandal for the royal family!"

"So, in fact, Liu Xie is not the real flesh and blood of Emperor Ling!"

Although he didn't know why Xu You, who had been hiding in Jizhou, knew this palace secret, Yuan Shao immediately "suddenly realized" -

"So that's it!"

Xu You was heartbroken: "Who could have thought that the true bloodline of the emperor would be killed by a villain like Dong Zhuo, and the offspring of an outsider would be allowed to pretend to be the emperor? This is the sin of us Han officials!"

"So, how can Lord Yuan easily seek death? Can he still be considered a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty? If he dies like this, can he really live up to Lord Yuan's ancestors?"

Yuan Shao humbly seeks advice——

"So what should I do?"

Xu You: "Now that Han thieves are rampant, it is time for Lord Yuan to step forward and become the backbone of the Han Dynasty!"

"First, we must find the bloodline of the Liu family as soon as possible, make him the emperor, denounce the false ruler of Guanzhong, and restore the reputation of the loyal and righteous people in the world!"

Yuan Shao was terrified——

"Enthroning the Son of Heaven is not something a loyal minister should do!"

Xu You stamped his feet and said: "Duke Zhou also presided over the enthronement of the emperor. Does Lord Yuan think that Duke Zhou was not a loyal minister?"

"Besides, as a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty, can I sit back and watch the false emperor steal the sacred artifacts of the country and allow the Han thieves to kill the loyal people in the world?"

Yuan Shao burst into tears again: "Ziyuan (Xu You's courtesy name) is right. Although this is not my original intention... but if we want the Han Dynasty to be revived, this is the only way!"

……

The other people in the tent didn't dare to say a word and watched the two people's performance in silence.

Although Xu You now keeps saying that "Emperor Ling is the head of the Han Dynasty", in fact, as early as the fifth year of Zhongping, Xu You, together with Wang Fen, the governor of Jizhou, Zhou Jing of Pei State and others, conspired to depose Emperor Ling of Han and enthrone Marquis of Hefei as emperor.

As for Yuan Shao’s “not daring to talk about establishing an emperor”, that is even more nonsense.

At the end of the first "Princes' Attack on Dong" last year, Yuan Shao, on the grounds that "Liu Xie is far away in Guanzhong and his life or death is unknown at this time", joined forces with Jizhou Governor Han Fu and wanted to establish Youzhou Governor Liu Yu as emperor.

The two people who had both intended to re-establish the emperor were now acting coyly, which really made some people in the tent feel sick.

For example, Ju Su, the deputy commander under Han Fu, the former governor of Jizhou.

When Ju Su just heard Xu You's slander that "the emperor is not the flesh and blood of Emperor Ling", he almost couldn't help but stand up and scold!
Last time it was just “unknown whether Liu Xie was alive or dead”, but now it has become “Liu Xie is not Lingdi’s flesh and blood”.

Is it really the way for a minister to slander the emperor like this?
But thinking of Yuan Shao's great cause, Ju Su still forced himself to suppress the anger in his heart.

Because Yuan Shao had been forced into a desperate situation by the previous manifesto issued by the court!
Directly and explicitly denounced Yuan Shao as a traitor to the Han Dynasty!
If Yuan Shao could capture Guanzhong, defeat Dong Zhuo, and purge his court this time, that manifesto would naturally be like waste paper and would have no effect at all.

But now that we have not captured Guanzhong, it is another matter.

Having lost the support of the imperial court, Yuan Shao lost his right to rule from the most fundamental legal perspective.

All under heaven belongs to the king;
On the shore of the land, could it be the king's ministers?

All these legal principles and powers of the princes to rule the local areas still come from the Han Dynasty! From the emperor of the Han Dynasty!

If Yuan Shao had previously seized Han Fu's foundation, everyone could have turned a blind eye. But now that the proclamation had been issued, no one could pretend to be unaware.

Following Yuan Shao would clearly mean aiding and abetting Zhou and being a traitor to the Han Dynasty!
The four hundred years of prestige of the Han Dynasty has long been deeply rooted in everyone's heart!
No one dared to openly go against the central government.

Even though the Han is weak now.

But don’t forget, even the weak Han Dynasty had already put an end to the Yellow Turban Rebellion and executed the three Zhang Jue brothers who dared to directly challenge the authority of the Han Dynasty!
Moreover, Jizhou was Zhang Jue's former base camp. Many of Yuan Shao's officials and generals had even seen the heads of Zhang Jue's three brothers with their own eyes. With such a living example, who would dare to follow in their footsteps?
Yuan Shao?

Three dukes in four generations?

No matter how great your reputation is, can it be as great as that of General Tiangong of the Taiping Taoism in the past?

Even Zhang Jue was suppressed by the imperial court, let alone you?

These people do not understand that the current court is weaker than the court when it dealt with the Yellow Turban Rebellion, because in their hearts, the court is always the court!
Now following Yuan Shao and going against the imperial court, isn't that courting death? ? ?

Therefore, Ju Su said that the manifesto forced Yuan Shao into a desperate situation.

The power of the Han Dynasty still remains.

The blood of suppressing the Yellow Turban Rebellion is still flowing on the land of Jizhou.

If Yuan Shao doesn't do something... I'm afraid that all kinds of chaos will break out again in Jizhou, which was pacified with great difficulty.

Therefore, Yuan Shao must re-establish the emperor!
Even if this would make Yuan Shao the target of public criticism.

Even if this would completely destroy all the reputation Yuan Shao had accumulated.

Even from now on, Yuan Shao will most likely be regarded as a "Han traitor" like Dong Zhuo in the eyes of others.

But at least in this way, Yuan Shao's base can be preserved and Jizhou can be saved.

Ju Shou was originally from a prominent family in Jizhou.

Although Yuan Shao's actions were inconsistent with his moral conscience, for the sake of Jizhou's stability, Ju Shou did not interrupt Yuan Shao and Xu You. He just closed his eyes and ignored their poor acting skills.

"Ziyuan, who do you think is qualified to be the emperor?"

Yuan Shao, who was "unwilling to appoint an emperor" just now, has naturally begun to discuss candidates with Xu You...

"Grand Marshal, Youzhou Governor Liu Yu can do it!"

Yuan Shao sighed: "The Grand Marshal has the highest reputation and the most experience among the royal family members. He is indeed qualified to become the Son of Heaven."

"But the Grand Marshal has been deceived by Dong Zhuo and believes that the fake emperor Liu Xie is the emperor and is unwilling to inherit the throne. What should we do?"

Xu You was prepared: "You can make Liu Yu's son Liu He the emperor!"

Yuan Shao deliberately expressed his dissatisfaction: "Liu He's reputation is far inferior to that of his father. How can he be made emperor?"

"Mr. Yuan doesn't know."

Xu You tells a story:

Liu Yu is the descendant of Liu Qiang, Prince Gong of Donghai!
The branch of King Donghai is an extremely special existence in the history of the Later Han Dynasty!

Before Emperor Taizu Liu Xiu became famous, he married Empress Guanglie Yin Lihua.

Later, Emperor Gengshi Liu Xuan ordered him to cross the Yellow River and pacify Hebei.

When Emperor Taizu arrived in Hebei, he had no troops, and the local tyrants in Zhao were dissatisfied with the Gengshi court, so they gathered a large army to attack Liu Xiu. In order to gain support, Liu Xiu married Guo Shengtong, the niece of Zhending King Liu Yang, as his principal wife.

Later, Emperor Shizu rebuilt the Han Dynasty and made Guo Shengtong the empress and his son Liu Qiang the crown prince.

However, the marriage between Guo Shengtong and Liu Xiu was ultimately a political one. After Emperor Taizu pacified the world, he deposed Guo Shengtong for no reason and re-enthroned Yin Lihua as queen.

Crown Prince Liu Jiang was also extremely frightened by his mother's dethronement. After assessing the situation, he took the initiative to resign the throne and gave it to Yin Lihua's son Liu Yang (later changed his name to Zhuang, who was Emperor Ming of Han).

After Liu Jiang resigned from the position of crown prince, he was conferred the title of King of Donghai by Emperor Taizu, thus coming into being the King of Donghai of the Later Han Dynasty.

In a sense, the King of Eastern Han in the Later Han Dynasty was almost equivalent to the King of Qi in the Early Han Dynasty.

The difference is that although King Liu Fei of Qi was Emperor Gaozu's legitimate son, he was born out of wedlock and had never served as crown prince.

But Liu Jiang, the King of Donghai, was the legitimate eldest son of Liu Xiu! And he was the crown prince of the Later Han Dynasty! The first crown prince of the Later Han Dynasty!

And Liu Yu happened to be from the lineage of the King of Donghai. With such legal principles, is it wrong to let Liu Yu's lineage inherit the throne of the Han emperor?
Even though Liu Yu's son Liu He's reputation and qualifications are far inferior to his father's, as long as he has the blood of the King of Donghai, that is enough!
Besides, everyone knew that neither Yuan Shao nor Xu You really wanted to support the emperor.

They just needed to find a reason to establish the emperor they wanted.

Since Liu He's reputation is not enough, then use his bloodline to silence the world's gossips!
Moreover, Liu He is different from his father Liu Yu.

Liu He is a cowardly person, and now he is in Jizhou, in Yecheng, in Yuan Shao's hands!

Instead of going somewhere else to find a descendant of the Liu family, it would be more convenient to just come here.

Yuan Shao suddenly realized something, as if he had never read this history before: "How could such a thing happen? Is the bloodline of the King of Donghai so noble?"

The implication was that they had already decided to support Liu He as the emperor.

Immediately, the military officials and soldiers bowed down and begged Yuan Shao—

"Please, Lord Yuan, support the emperor! Save the Han Dynasty!"

Yuan Shao was helpless: "You guys, you really made me suffer!"

…………

Afterwards, as soon as Yuan Shao returned to Jizhou, he began to prepare for the emperor's ascension to the throne.

When Liu He heard that he was going to become the emperor, he was so scared that his legs were shaking: "How can I be the emperor? I hope Lord Yuan will find someone else!"

Xu You, who came to look for Liu He, saw this and touched the short blade at his waist with a sinister look: "You are the blood of the King of Donghai, how can you not be the emperor?"

"If you don't want to be the emperor, do you want to be a ghost?"

Under Xu You's intimidation, Liu He panicked and water flowed out between his legs.

coward!

Xu You cursed inwardly.

But on the other hand, he was satisfied with Liu He's cowardice.

If Liu He was a strong-willed person like his father, who would rather die than inherit the throne, how could Yuan Shao continue to play this drama?
"I am the emperor! I am the emperor!"

Liu He knelt on the ground and kowtowed to Xu You: "I am willing to become the emperor, and I ask you to ask Lord Yuan not to kill me!"

"Of course! Lord Yuan is not a villain like Dong Zhuo, how could he kill the emperor?"

Yuan Shao was anxious to stabilize Jizhou as soon as possible, so on the 15th day of July, he ordered Liu He to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth, and ascended the throne as emperor in the suburbs of Yecheng, with the reign title "Hanxing" to show the legitimacy of the Han Dynasty.

Not only that.

Yuan Shao also ordered his chief clerk Chen Lin to write a manifesto, scolding Dong Zhuo again and accusing Liu Xie of being a "false emperor". He said that Liu He, a descendant of the King of Donghai on his side, was the legitimate emperor!

At the same time, Yuan Shao conferred titles on all the princes in the world.

Even to his great enemies Gongsun Zan and Liu Bei, Yuan Shao offered them the positions of "General" and "General of Cavalry" in the hope that Gongsun Zan would recognize the legitimacy of the Hebei court.

But when Gongsun Zan heard that Yuan Shao supported Liu He as emperor, he directly beheaded the envoy sent by Yuan Shao.

"I am the governor of Jizhou appointed by the imperial court! I am not some Laozi's general! Where did this Liu He come from? Does Yuan Shao really think that he can become the emperor by pushing a child like this?"

Liu Bei also killed Yuan Shao's envoy -

"I am also a relative of the Han Dynasty, but I despise relatives like Liu He! How shameless!"

When Youzhou Mu Liu Yu learned that his son had usurped the throne, he vomited blood and fainted.

"I'm afraid my reputation will be ruined in an instant because of this boy!"

Liu Yao, the governor of Yangzhou.

Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou.

These two were both prestigious members of the Liu clan. At this time, they also denounced Liu He's behavior, saying that Liu He disregarded the court's etiquette and laws and was a traitor to the clan!

But it wasn't all criticism.

Yuan Shao's brother.

Yuan Shu, the most powerful warlord today, fell into a strange silence for unknown reasons and did not express any opinion on this matter.

When facing the envoy sent by Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu neither refused nor accepted it. He just asked the envoy to bring a message to his brother who always loved to show off:

"Is the one who replaced the Han Dynasty really Dang Tu Gao?"

……

And in the world, there is one person who is in the greatest dilemma at this moment——

"A capable minister who governs the country,"

"A traitor in troubled times!"

Cao Cao, who was evaluated in this way by the famous scholar Xu Shao, was looking at the golden seal in front of him at this moment.

"Seal of the Han Dynasty's General of the Western Expedition!"

Cao Cao was not a big man, but he had an air of dominance and was intimidating without even getting angry.

But at this moment, his face was full of fatigue.

"Benchu, Benchu...you, what exactly do you want to do?"

Cao Cao vaguely remembered that when he was young, he did tell Yuan Shao about his ambitions.

"I want to fight against the enemy and make merit for the country. I want to be made a marquis and become the general of the Western Expedition!"

Now the golden seal of the General Who Conquers the West is right in front of Cao Cao, within his reach.

But is this really the position of General Who Conquers the West that Cao Cao wants?

The western expedition he wanted was to start from the armpit of the Han Dynasty, sweep all the way across the Hexi Corridor, emulate the achievements of Wei and Huo, drive out the Huns, and expand new territory!
Instead of
Starting from Dongjun, they broke through Hangu Pass, entered Guanzhong, and brought the soldiers to Chang'an...

"My Lord, what are you still hesitating about?"

When Cao Cao was thinking like this, almost no one dared to interrupt him.

But there was one exception.

Xun Yu and Xun Wenruo were praised by the famous scholar He Yong as "talents who can assist the king".

Xun Yu came to Cao Cao, grabbed the golden seal of "General Conquering the West" that Yuan Shao had given him, and threw it hard on the ground!
"What is Wen Ruo doing?"

"That's what I want to ask, my lord, what are you doing?"

Xun Yu was eight feet tall, with a dignified and upright appearance.

"Isn't it the Lord's ambition to suppress the rebellion of Huo, pacify the world, and revive the Han Dynasty?"

"Where has the lord who once talked with me all night and expressed his great ambitions gone? Could it be that the lord's ambitions are not as great as the gold seal bestowed by Yuan Shao???"

Xun Yu's voice woke Cao Cao up.

But Cao Cao also had his own reasons.

"Don't I know that this is too much?"

"But Benchu ​​not only established Liu He as emperor, he also ordered Ju Yi to station in Hejian, and ordered Yan Liang and Wen Chou to station in Qinghe!"

"Ju Yi is stationed in Hejian to guard against Gongsun Zan."

"But was it really just to guard against Liu Bei that Yan Liang and Wen Chou were stationed in Hejian?"

After Yuan Shao supported Liu He as emperor, he not only sent envoys to make friends with the princes, but also transferred a large number of soldiers to all parts of Jizhou.

In Hejian alone, there were 20,000 troops under the command of Yan Liang and Wen Chou!

Isn't it ridiculous to use an army of 20,000 to defeat Liu Bei's 2,000 soldiers?

So when Cao Cao learned that Yuan Shao had mobilized his troops, he immediately realized that Yuan Shao was coming for him.

In the face of power, affection is fragile.

If Cao Cao rejects Yuan Shao's envoy today, then the next time someone comes, it will definitely be Yuan Shao's iron hoof!
"Jade can be broken but its whiteness cannot be changed!"

"You can burn bamboo but you cannot destroy its joints!"

"Even though I am dead, my name will live on in the history books!"

How could Xun Yu not know Cao Cao's worries?

But in this world, there are always some things that are worth risking your life to protect!
Xun Yu said: "Before, Dong Zhuo sent an imperial edict ordering me to take my clansmen to Guanzhong. Such an order was obviously threatening the life of my nephew Xun You, but I still chose to stay with my lord."

"Even though this may cost my nephew his life, I still don't regret it!"

"Because I believe that my lord's ambition will surely come true! For my lord's ambition, I can give up everything for him!"

"I still believe in you, lord, but how can you give up your ambition so easily?"

　Big update is coming! I will try to be on time for the chapter at 12 o'clock at night

　　
　
(End of this chapter)