Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 166 Whose loyal minister attacked the palace to eliminate the eunuchs?
Yanzhou, Lu State, Wenyang County

Zhu Miao led a force of 2,000 men from the Archer Commandant's unit, 1,000 men from the General of the Guards' mansion, and 10,000 men from good families in the Three Rivers region.

The soldiers of General Wei's mansion were broken up and incorporated into a large army composed of good men from Sanhe, serving as officers at various levels.

Huang Zhong was appointed as a deputy general, Ju Shou as the chief clerk, Yue Yin, the chief clerk of the General of the Guards' office, served as a military advisor, Hua Xin was the chief clerk, and Zhang He, Yan Liang, Wen Chou, and the General of the Guards, Sima Weizi, each led this army of more than 10,000 men.

An army of 13,000 men is not large compared to an army of 40,000 to 50,000. Therefore, their marching speed is not as slow as that of a large army. In addition, the roads in the Central Plains are flat and unobstructed, unlike during the Yellow Turban Rebellion when constant vigilance was required; they only needed to focus on getting on their way.

The army's route was determined after discussions among the Imperial Secretariat and three renowned generals: Lu Zhi, Huangfu Song, and Dong Zhuo. It was roughly to advance along the river and head straight for Fenggao County, the capital of Taishan Commandery.

Along the way, they took advantage of the Honggou Canal, Pushui River, and Wenhe River to transport grain and supplies.

This arrangement not only allows for the most convenient marching but also reduces losses during the transport of supplies and the number of laborers required.

Therefore, the army under Zhu Miao's command could march sixty li per day. From Luoyang to Wenyang, the distance was less than a thousand li. Including a day of rest in the middle, the total marching time was eighteen days.

Thanks to the convenience of river transport, the army carried very little weight while marching, so although the long march was tiring, it could not be considered a long and arduous journey.

Qiao Mao, the governor of Dongjun, and Liu Hong, the governor of Shanyangjun, each led 1,500 troops from various commanderies and kingdoms to advance ahead and attack Juping County in Taishan Commandery, the first city on the army's route.

Wenyang County was located within the territory of the State of Lu, so Chen Yi, the prime minister of Lu, led 1,500 soldiers from various prefectures and states to meet Zhu Miao's army outside Wenyang City.

When Zhu Miao led his army to the outskirts of Wenyang City, Chen Yi, the prime minister of Lu State, who had been preparing in Wenyang County for a long time, came out of the city to welcome them. He had also set up camps and tents for the army outside the city and prepared food for the soldiers and fodder for the warhorses.

As Zhu Miao's army approached, Chen Yi hurriedly straightened his clothes, stepped forward, bowed to General Wei Zhu Miao on horseback, and said loudly, "Chen Yi, Chancellor of Lu, respectfully welcomes General Wei!"

However, Chen Yi saw that this General Wei, who came from a powerful family, only slightly raised his eyelids, with a faint, contemptuous smile on his lips. He seemed to have no intention of dismounting to return the greeting. Instead, he remained seated on his horse, turned his head to talk in hushed tones with a general beside him who was carrying two bows on his back, and occasionally let out a few soft laughs.

Upon seeing this, Chen Yi's smile froze instantly, and a hint of anger flashed in his eyes.

These relatives of the emperor are indeed a bunch of lowlifes, so incredibly rude.

He is Chen Fan's son!
Who was Chen Fan?

He was the Grand Tutor and the Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat, who were entrusted with the important task of assisting the emperor at the beginning of his reign. He was a model for all scholars in the country!
He was nearly eighty years old, but despite his frail health, he led his subordinates and students to break through the Chengming Gate of the Imperial Palace under the pretext of killing the eunuchs. Unfortunately, he was killed in the process.
Just as Chen Yi was inwardly cursing Zhu Miao with contempt, he caught the sound of a bowstring vibrating in his ears. He instinctively looked up and saw a cold light shooting towards him.

Chen Yi's face turned deathly pale instantly. Just as he was about to cry for help, the arrow pierced his chest, and his entire body was thrown backward, crashing heavily to the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Hansheng has excellent archery skills!"

Zhu Miao, on horseback, clapped his hands and laughed. Along the way, he had become completely impressed by Huang Zhong's archery skills. Moreover, Huang Zhong's methods of leading troops were also extraordinary. Under the guidance of the army commander Shi Jushou, the army's every move was well-organized and disciplined.

"This distance of fifty paces is hardly worthy of such praise from General Wei," Huang Zhong said, clasping his hands slightly, his expression calm and his tone devoid of any arrogance.

He wasn't feigning modesty; he simply felt that the range of fifty paces was nothing to boast about.

"By order of the Crown Prince, Chen Yi, the Chancellor of Lu, colluded with Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun, rebels from Taishan County, in an attempt to launch a night attack on the imperial army. He is hereby executed as a warning to others!"

The one who announced the decree was Ju Shou, who was wearing light armor and a helmet with a plume, and held a decree in his hand. He shouted loudly, "Soldiers of Lu who have not participated in the rebellion, lay down your weapons. The Crown Prince has decreed that you are pardoned!"

The soldiers at the lower ranks had no idea of ​​the details. All they knew was that the one who killed the Chancellor of Lu was General Wei, the current Crown Prince's uncle, and the Empress's brother. Could such a person be a traitor?

Moreover, they even produced an imperial edict! That confirms it, the Chancellor of Lu is the traitor!

The soldiers at the lower levels of the prefectures and kingdoms had such simple thoughts that many of them immediately panicked and dropped their weapons, fearing that they would be categorized as traitors.

However, three officers who had participated in Chen Yi's plot exchanged glances and immediately fled on horseback.

"Zishan, Boyi, you two lead light cavalry to pursue them; do not let them escape..."

Before Zhu Miao could finish speaking, Huang Zhong quickly switched to a three-stone bow, closed his left eye, took aim briefly, and then suddenly released the bowstring with his right hand. The arrow flew out of the bow with a sharp whistling sound.

Then, Huang Zhong moved with fluid grace, taking an arrow from the quiver beside his horse's belly and shooting it almost simultaneously. Without even caring whether the second arrow hit its mark, he quickly shot a third arrow.

It's a triple strike!
With three arrows fired in quick succession, the three fleeing officers had only run about twenty paces when Huang Zhong shot them off their horses, causing them to fall to the ground in the dust.

Seeing Huang Zhong's divine archery, the more than 500 soldiers from the prefectures and kingdoms who had just dropped their weapons out of fear of the imperial court became completely obedient. They obediently squatted on the ground with their heads in their hands, not daring to breathe, and let Zhu Miao's men collect the weapons from the ground.

Before long, Zhang He brought two scholars from the Lu State army to pay their respects to Zhu Miao. From these men, Zhu Miao confirmed the fact that Chen Yi was plotting a rebellion and learned that Chen Yi actually planned to cooperate with Zhang Ju's troops to attack the camp at night when the soldiers were exhausted.

"We are fortunate to have received intelligence from Imperial Censor Jia. I never expected that the Chancellor of Lu would dare to collude with the traitor Zhang Ju to plot a rebellion," Zhu Miao said with a hint of relief on his face.

Although he only had a rudimentary understanding of military strategy, he knew the consequences of a weary army that had come from afar being attacked at night by collusion from within and without.

"Indeed, if it weren't for the information from the Embroidered Robe Envoy, I wouldn't have thought of this..."

Ju Shou nodded in agreement. He used to dislike the Embroidered-Robed Envoys, thinking they were nothing more than treacherous villains who made a living by exposing others. He never expected that the Embroidered-Robed Envoys could play such a role.

However, Ju Shou did not finish speaking his mind. He wanted to say that Chen Yi, after all, was the son of the famous scholar Chen Fan, yet he would also plot a rebellion.

Although Chen Fan was praised as a virtuous man by the partisans, he was, in the eyes of the emperor and the crown prince, a true traitor.

After all... what loyal minister would dare to attack the palace just to kill a eunuch?
Moreover, Chen Fan actually died in a power struggle between the current emperor, Empress Dowager Dou Miao, General Dou Wu, and scholars.

When Emperor Xiaohuan died, the current emperor was enthroned, and Empress Dowager Dou Miao became regent, appointing her father Dou Wu as Grand General and Chen Fan as Grand Tutor to jointly assist in governing.

Dou Wu and Chen Fan formed a political alliance, threatening Empress Dowager Dou's power. As a result, Empress Dowager Dou established the position of female minister and cultivated trusted eunuchs, which aroused the dissatisfaction of the two.

Therefore, Dou Wu and Chen Fan decided to kill all the eunuchs, depose the emperor and install someone else. Thus, with the help of his wet nurse Zhao Rao, the eunuch Cao Jie, and Zhang Huan, the current emperor launched a coup, kidnapped Empress Dowager Dou, and killed Chen Fan, who was only now realizing the situation and led his subordinates and students to break through Chengming Gate.

Although the scholars still praise Chen Fan's heroic deeds, both the crown prince and the emperor would only call him a "traitor" for daring to attack the palace.

Ju Shou shook his head slightly, sighed, and a trace of helplessness and emotion appeared on his face.

He was a prince, so naturally he couldn't praise Chen Fan any further.

Back when I was a student at the Imperial Academy and a candidate for the civil service examination, I had never held any power, but I had admired figures like Chen Fan.

But now that he has some power and is serving the Crown Prince in the capital Luoyang, he has gradually come to understand that the harm that figures like Chen Fan pose to the Han Dynasty is actually greater than that of traitors like Zhang Jiao who openly raised troops in rebellion.

If emperors could be deposed and installed at will, and ministers could lead troops to attack the palace on a whim, what chaos would the world descend into!

(End of this chapter)