Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 219 I want to see Beigong Boyu personally come before me and surrender!
"I heard that the Minister of Works and the Grand Secretary have been causing quite a stir at the Secretariat lately?"

Seeing the four people enter the hall with a distance of more than ten feet between them, Liu Bian smiled and helped the people who were bowing to him to their feet. His eyes and brows were full of smiles, and his manner was very friendly. He raised his hand to indicate that everyone should sit down.

"These are all official matters, not disputes arising from personal feelings, so Your Highness need not worry."

After Lu Zhi finished speaking, he lowered his head and rolled his eyes helplessly.

While it's unlikely that he would know everything just by the Crown Prince bending over, based on his understanding of the prince, that expression was definitely one of gloating.

No, it should be smug and triumphant!
It has to be said that this disciple's methods are becoming more and more sophisticated. He was only appointed as Minister of Works, yet he stirred up trouble in the Ministry of Personnel and stirred up conflicts between the officials with ease. The key point is that you have no evidence to say that the Crown Prince did it on purpose!
It has a style reminiscent of Emperor Xiaowen!

In fact, this matter is correct from the perspectives of both Liu Yan and Liu Tao.

With the Grand Minister in charge of the Secretariat and Grand Commandant Yang Ci bedridden, the Grand Minister, ranking second among the Three Dukes, naturally became the head of all officials in the court.

Liu Yan, having just taken office, was eager to make a name for himself. Now that he was the head of all officials, he naturally couldn't stand anyone competing with him, and the situation didn't allow him to back down even a little.

As for Liu Tao, the Secretariat had been separated from the control of the Imperial Household Department since the Former Han Dynasty, and had been transformed from the outer court into the inner court. In reality, it had no connection with the outer court, and even the current Minister of Works had no right to control him.

The inner court and the outer court were practically two separate administrative teams, and many officials even had overlapping responsibilities and conflicts.

For example, the Grand Herald, one of the Nine Ministers, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, were both in charge of affairs concerning the Northern Di and Southern Man tribes. It was only because the Grand Herald, Zhou Yi, was on the expedition with Huangfu Song's army to atone for his crimes that Zhang Xun, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, would have been arguing fiercely with Zhou Yi, the Grand Herald, today.

The overlap and conflict of power can lead to contradictions, resulting in substandard administrative efficiency, and it is at this time that the monarch's ability is tested.

If the monarch is incompetent, then naturally the administrative efficiency will be appalling, delaying the normal operation of government affairs and the court.

However, Liu Bian believed that he was not an incompetent person, so this was not a power struggle, but an involution.

Whoever proposes a plan that aligns more with the Emperor's wishes will temporarily gain the upper hand and acquire more power and trust.

Afterwards, Liu Bian handed Gao Wang the letter from Huangfu Song, which Han Sui had entrusted to Wang Lang to pass on to him, and instructed the group to read it among themselves.

After everyone had finished reading, Liu Bian then ordered Gao Wang to summon Han Sui and Bei Gong Boyu, the envoys.

Before long, footsteps were heard outside the hall. Han Sui led the envoy into the main hall of Yong'an Palace. The envoy was a little flustered and his steps were a bit unsteady. Using the etiquette that Han Sui had temporarily taught him in the side hall, he bowed to the Crown Prince with stiff and clumsy movements: "Lord Juqu, Juqu Xianwu, pays his respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince."

"Han Wenyue, a courtier, pays his respects to His Highness the Crown Prince."

Han Sui led Juqu Xianwu to sit on the seat, but the Qiang people were not used to kneeling.

As soon as Juqu Xianwu sat down, he felt like he was sitting on pins and needles, constantly twisting his body on his heels, not knowing where to put his hands. His appearance was quite comical, making people unable to help but laugh.

Juqu Xianwu looked up at the Crown Prince, at the de facto ruler of the Han Dynasty, and felt a sense of astonishment and doubt.

He couldn't understand why the people of the Han Dynasty would willingly submit to such a young boy, even those with great prestige like Dong Zhuo and Huangfu Song.

What alarmed him even more was that the Crown Prince was leaning against the jade armrest, arms crossed, looking completely frivolous, yet that frivolity was tinged with an imposing aura, and his eyes were deep and sharp.

Although he still looks somewhat immature, he exudes a majesty and aura that is far more awe-inspiring than Beigong Boyu.

This was strange. Beigong Boyu was the leader of these bandit tribes, having built his reputation through swords and bloodshed. But this prince, whom he had never met, needed no swords; his mere gaze made him feel inexplicably oppressed and tense. Juqu Xianwu felt a surge of fear, his Adam's apple bobbing a few times.

With such an excessively young ruler of the Han Empire in power, will the Qiang people ever have a peaceful future?

Upon thinking of this, Juqu Xianwu stood up again, his body trembling slightly, and expressed his respect to the Crown Prince with the traditional grassland gesture of arms crossed. His voice also unconsciously carried a hint of awe as he said, "Your Highness, our Lord Beigong (Note 1) has sent me to extend my sincere greetings to Your Highness."

Liu Bian raised an eyebrow slightly, sizing up the middle-aged man named Juqu Xianwu. His eyes held a hint of amusement as he said with a half-smile, "Oh? Are you truly sincere? But I heard you've run into trouble?"

Juqu Xianwu nodded hurriedly, beads of sweat forming on his forehead, and replied, "Yes, it is Your Highness's generals who have caused this trouble, so our Lord Beigong sent me to Luoyang to request Your Highness to stop your generals."

"If Your Highness can stop them, our Lord Beigong is willing to become the bulwark of the Han Dynasty and protect the northwest of the Han Dynasty."

A cold glint appeared on Liu Bian's lips as he slowly rose, looking at Juqu Xianwu with a sneer, and said, "To become the bulwark of the Han Dynasty? To protect the northwest of the Han Dynasty?"

“Juqu Xianwu, you are the chief of the Juqu tribe among the various Hu tribes in Huangzhong. When you succeeded to the position of chief, you received the seal of the Guiyi Qiang chief of the Han Dynasty and swore to fight for the Han Dynasty and protect the four commanderies of Hexi.”

“My ancestors were generous and benevolent, remembering your loyalty and bravery, and granted you the right to graze your livestock in the four commanderies of Hexi, with only a very low tax burden. But how have you repaid the kindness of the Han Dynasty and fulfilled your oaths?”

Liu Bian walked up to Juqu Xianwu, looked down at him sitting in his seat, and angrily rebuked him: "You have betrayed the Han Dynasty, colluded with those treacherous Qiang tribes, and joined forces to attack the cities of the Han Dynasty and kill the people of the Han Dynasty!"

"Now that you realize you are no match for the Han Dynasty, you actually dare to think that you can persuade me to order the withdrawal of the army without surrendering?"

Juqu Xianwu looked up at the crown prince in front of him. Behind the crown prince, two burly men as big as bears glared at him fiercely, making him dare not make the slightest unnecessary movement.

Juqu Xianwu looked up at the crown prince in front of him, his face pale and his body trembling uncontrollably.

Behind the crown prince were two burly and imposing guards, each gripping the hilt of a sword at their waist, glaring menacingly at him, which terrified him and made him dare not make the slightest move.

Juqu Xianwu sighed helplessly, lowered his head, avoided his gaze, and whispered, "Your Highness, our Lord Beigong said he would defend the northwest of the Han Dynasty... but that actually means surrender."

"You started the war, and I mobilized more than 100,000 troops and hundreds of thousands of laborers, spending a fortune. You think you can make me withdraw my troops with just a few words?"

"Are you kidding me at this moment?!"

Liu Bian flicked his sleeves, turned around and returned to his seat. He placed his hands heavily on the table, leaned forward, and stared at Juqu Xianwu with a cold look in his eyes, saying, "I want to see Beigong Boyu come to me and surrender!"

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Note 1: The "big man" of the foreign tribes refers to the tribal leader, that is, the chieftain.

The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Annals of Emperor Guangwu: "The chieftain of the Wuhuan came to pay homage." Note: "The chieftain refers to the leader of the tribe." "In the first month of spring in the thirtieth year, the chieftain of the Xianbei submitted to the court and paid tribute."

The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Annals of Emperor Xiaozhang of Emperor Suzong: "In the sixth month of summer, the chieftain of the Northern Xiongnu led his people to surrender to the border."

The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Biography of the Southern Xiongnu, states: "In the spring of the twenty-fourth year, the chieftains of the eight tribes jointly decided to establish Bi as Huhanye Chanyu."

The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Biographies of the Wuhuan and Xianbei states: "Those who are brave, strong, and capable of resolving disputes and lawsuits are recommended as great men."

(End of this chapter)