Tiger Guards

Chapter 603 Within a Month
July 13th, Chenliu, Yanzhou.

Zhang Yang, the governor of Yanzhou, received proclamations from Xudu and Luodu urging the emperor to punish the rebels.

Zhang Yang's position is beyond question. Originally, his capital was Puyang. However, due to Lü Bu's army entering Luoyang, Zhang Yang also retreated from the front line to Chenliu, which was closer to Lü Bu.

With the Yellow River canal in place, both sides can maintain relatively low-cost material transportation links.

The proclamation from Xudu was not only sent directly to Zhang Yang, but was passed from county to county.

As long as the local county magistrate still recognizes the imperial court, he has an obligation to post and distribute the proclamation from the moment he receives it.

Even if the county magistrates are perfunctory, the local people still have the ability to judge and act.

The manifesto from Xudu, however, seemed rather weak and ineffective.

Whether it's accusing Grand Marshal Zhao Ji of being arrogant and disrespectful to the emperor, or accusing Grand Secretary Fu Wan of conspiring with foreign generals to cause trouble... it all seems rather weak.

While the Grand Marshal was campaigning against the various Hu tribes, the Grand General was tricked into leaving Xuchang. This was the truth that the officials and people of Yan and Yu provinces witnessed.

Since the chaos that has gripped the world, only in these three years, with the Grand Marshal and the General jointly ruling, have the court's power and influence grown steadily, making it seem as if the world could be at peace at any moment.

Especially after the campaign to overthrow Yuan Shikai and protect the nation, the various clans and vassals in the southern states attached themselves to the imperial court and closely aligned themselves with it.

In reality, only Yuan Shao of Ji Province seemed to be acting independently and disobeying the imperial court's orders, while Gongsun Zan of You Province and Sun Ce of Qing Province outwardly obeyed the imperial court's edicts.

Therefore, the only obstacles to the imperial court were Yuan Shao of Ji Province and the various regional feudal lords.

The Grand Marshal and the General-in-Chief jointly governed the state and the prefectures and counties under their control were naturally under the rule of the imperial court. How could the likes of Liu Zongfan, Sun Yuan, and Gongsun Zan compare?
At this level, Gongsun Du of Liaodong didn't even qualify for the list.

Therefore, the sudden change in Xuchang could not possibly have been a coup d'état initiated by the Grand Marshal and the General-in-Chief; it was more likely a rebellion orchestrated by the Liu clan and their allies, in alliance with internal officials.

Meanwhile, the Grand Marshal and General-in-Chief issued a proclamation from Luodu, denouncing the Liu clan members for their greed for power and refusal to come to court to assist the Three Departments in governing the country. Instead, they intended to carve out their own territories and declare themselves kings, which led them to join forces with some officials to rebel.

First, he delayed the bestowal of rewards upon the meritorious officials under the Grand Marshal's command, intending to incite a mutiny and cause setbacks at the front; second, he colluded with Yuan Shao to falsify military intelligence and deceive the Grand General into leaving Xuchang; finally, he held the emperor hostage, attempting to destabilize the country.

Fu Wan, the Grand Chancellor and General of the State, left Xuchang with a secret imperial edict to mobilize troops to defend the emperor, but his wives, concubines, and children were killed by the rebel army. His entire family was loyal and righteous.

Therefore, the Grand Marshal and General-in-Chief had no choice but to ask the Empress to oversee the country and issue proclamations to all directions, calling on righteous men throughout the land to jointly punish the traitors who had disrupted the country.

On one hand, there were the Grand Marshals and Generals who had made achievements in both civil administration and military affairs. The officials of Yan and Yu prefectures and counties had become accustomed to their presence and had only taken up their posts under the rule of Lü Bu and Zhao Ji.

Therefore, they inherently trusted the Three Provinces system and the military strength of Zhao Ji and Lü Bu.

On the other hand, there were the old and new feudal lords in various states who had not made any significant achievements since the rebellions of Dong Zhuo, Li Jue and Guo Si. Their performance could not be described as bad, but rather as lacking in brilliance in internal governance and military performance.

Unlike Lü Bu, who wandered to Guandong after killing Dong Zhuo and displayed remarkable abilities in various places.

Needless to say, Zhao Ji defeated all the Hu tribes, making them tremble with fear and submit. After sweeping away their strongholds, he was already a powerful figure throughout the land.

While other places still need to consider which side to take, the officials and soldiers of Yanzhou have no choice but to fully support the capable and skilled Grand Marshal and General.

The proclamations from Xudu and Luodu were like two pebbles thrown into a pond, causing ripples to vibrate repeatedly.

In Chenliu City, Zhang Yang has begun to hunt down and kill those who spread the false proclamation issued by the traitors of Xudu.

As long as Lü Bu remains in Luoyang and Xingyang remains under Gao Shun's control, Zhang Yang's troops will have a safe way to retreat.

With no escape route in sight, Zhang Yang naturally dared to suppress all dissident forces with all his might. Zhang Yang also exerted pressure on the prefectural and county levels, forcing the prefectural and county officials to either comply, resign, or formally raise troops in rebellion.

The military power of the Empress Dowager, supported by Lü Zhao, was far greater than that of Dong Zhuo in the past. Before military setbacks, even if the county officials were dissatisfied, they could only go through the motions and dared not raise troops.

If they dare to raise an army, what is the stance of the prefectural and county officials? What is the stance of the local officials and common people?

Emotions need time to build up, but Zhang Yang's sword will not allow dissident forces to incite or fuel any emotions.

Zhang Yang himself didn't even need to kill anyone; under a series of harsh orders, a group of ruthless officials with strong opportunistic tendencies could naturally be selected.

By using these cruel officials as key figures, each gathering dozens of followers, they could form a powerful and intimidating force for suppression.

Under the condition that the external environment remained unchanged, these cruel officials, following the orders of Magistrate Zhang, dared to arrest county and prefectural officials, and also dared to kill officials and commoners who dared to resist.

In this situation, Chenliu would execute several officials and soldiers who had rebelled every day.

The situation in Yuzhou was not much better, but because of Lü Bu's voluntary withdrawal, many county officials voluntarily resigned and followed him.

Lü Bu was not good at waging a propaganda war in Yu Province, and the local people of Yu Province did not like Lü Bu, nor did they like Zhao Ji.

The people of Yuzhou also disliked the deliberately distorted Three Departments system. They preferred the political environment of more than a decade ago, during the reign of Emperor Ling, and many still dreamed of restoring the glory of the past.

Naturally, the Yuzhou region supported the emperor and vehemently denounced the two traitors, Lü and Zhao, who were acting as regents for the empress.

The real dilemma lies with Xuzhou. The Empress is from Langya, the Grand Marshal is from Langya, and General Lü Bu could trace his lineage back to the Xuzhou area.

With the Empress overseeing the country and the Grand Marshal and General jointly assisting in governance, attacking the alliance of the Emperor, ministers, and vassal states in Xudu... this was a difficult gamble for the people of Xuzhou.

Lower- and middle-ranking officials and scholars are still analyzing what is true and what is false; those who can lead the region are not too concerned about justice or truth, but about risk and reward.

There was no need to consider Qingzhou in the north. Sun Ce, the Marquis of Linzi, Governor of Qingzhou, and General of the Rear, who was in his prime, would naturally respond to the call of Xudu, raise an army to support the king, and punish the empress regent who was like a hen crowing at dawn!
Yuan Shao, the Right General, Governor of Ji Province, and Marquis of Kangxiang, who was further north, also had no choice. He also needed to cleanse the negative impact of the Protectorate Against Yuan on the Yuan family. Now he could only obey the Emperor of Xudu and raise an army to attack the Empress Regent.

The Liu clans in the south need not be considered. At this time, regardless of whether troops are dispatched or not, they must support the emperor in Xuchang and prevent the empress from seizing power.

As the manifestos from both sides spread... in reality, the states still adhered to their original political stances and began to take sides.

Especially for the remote southern prefectures and counties, this was a very familiar event for them, and it was another battle of heroes against Dong Zhuo.

However, the Yangzhou region, having suffered from the chaos caused by Yuan Shu and Sun Ce, had already become accustomed to the brutal warfare in the Central Plains and would therefore adopt a more conservative attitude.

With the remote states maintaining their positions, Xuzhou also became a loyalist camp after Zhao Fan, the Chancellor of Langya, resigned and Zhang Zhao led the four tribes of Qingzhou to join Zang Ba.

Only Yanzhou, located in the center of the land, became a swaying state that all sides were vying for.

Although Zhang Yang deviated from his usual benevolent image and carried out a harsh crackdown, small groups of troops began to enter the country from Ji Province in the north, Qing Province in the east, Xu Province in the southeast, and Yu Province in the south.

After successively annihilating and ambushing several of Zhang Yang's cruel official patrol teams, more cruel officials calmed down and began to be perfunctory, greatly reducing the intensity of the suppression.

Left with no other option, Zhang Yang could only appeal to Luodu for help.

His messenger arrived in Luodu in mid-August, when the weather was turning cool.

(End of this chapter)