Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 39: Seal off Luoyang City and hunt down Taiping Dao!
As the night deepened, Yong'an Palace seemed to be shrouded in a layer of inky veil, and the silence was somewhat depressing.

In the bedroom, the candlelight had long been extinguished. Suddenly, a burst of hurried and chaotic footsteps suddenly broke the silence, coming from far away and becoming clearer and clearer.

From outside the palace came Gao Wang's sharp and urgent cry: "Your Highness, Your Highness! Jia Jialing has something important to report to Your Highness."

Liu Bian, who was sleeping soundly, was suddenly awakened by the shout. He slowly opened his eyes, with some sleepiness and confusion still lingering in them.

Gao Wang's cries continued, each one more urgent than the last. Liu Bian couldn't help but feel annoyed. His voice was filled with displeasure at having his sweet dream disturbed. He asked, "What's the matter?"

After hearing Liu Bian's response, Gao Wang cautiously pushed open the door to the bedroom and quickly walked in. He presented a memorial and said, "The Jia family leader requested an audience, saying that this matter concerns the Taiping Dao."

"Peace Road?"

When Liu Bian heard these three words, he woke up instantly and his sleepiness receded quickly like a tide. His eyes fell on the memorial, and his brows unconsciously wrinkled slightly, with a hint of worry appearing on his face.

At this time, Jia Xu was also led into the hall by Gao Wang, but Liu Bian was still concentrating on studying the memorial, his expression becoming more and more solemn.

Jia Xu's memorial described in detail the causes and consequences of the internal strife within the Luoyang faction of the Taiping Dao tonight, but in Liu Bian's opinion, the entire content can actually be summarized in four words - what can be done about it!
Since the execution of Feng Yan, Xu Feng and other people who colluded with the Taiping Dao, the Embroidered Uniform Envoy has been closely monitoring Tang Zhou's every move.

Because of this, whenever Tang Zhou came into contact with any of the Taiping Dao's spies, they were quickly apprehended by the Embroidered Uniform Envoys and vanished without a trace. Fortunately, those within Luoyang City who were associated with the Taiping Dao were mostly minor officials, with only a handful holding rank above 600 dan. Otherwise, Luoyang City would have been plunged into panic and dismay.

However, the Embroidered Robe Envoys were known for their expertise in internal surveillance, but lacked experience in external operations. This time, they arrested too many people, which ultimately aroused Ma Yuanyi's suspicion and sparked internal unrest within the Taiping Dao's Luoyang faction.

Therefore, Xiuyi, who was lurking beside Tang Zhou, pointed directly at Bao Chu and Zhu Gongdao, forcing them to reveal their identities and ask for help.

On the side of the Praefectural Guards, Xiahou Dun happened to be on duty patrolling the streets tonight. He noticed the whistling arrows sent by Zhu Gongdao for help and rushed over to investigate the situation. He took the opportunity to capture Ma Yuanyi in one fell swoop.

"Wenhe, now that things have come to this, let's take action." Liu Bian looked at Jia Xu and said calmly, "Anyone in Luoyang City who has connections with the Taiping Dao can be arrested without any need for a report!"

Now that the incident has already happened, it is meaningless to dwell on the Embroidered Uniform Envoy's negligence in this matter. The most urgent task is to resolve the possible consequences of this incident.

However, Jia Xu did not immediately obey the order and leave. Instead, he looked at Liu Bian quietly and asked, "Your Highness, what should we do if someone stubbornly resists?"

Liu Bian was silent for a moment, then whispered a few words in Gao Wang's ear. Gao Wang understood and turned away quickly. When he returned, he had someone bring him a six-foot-long horse-slaying sword and a scepter, a symbol of power.

Liu Bian held up the horse-slaying sword, his eyes suddenly flashing with a fierce look, and he said coldly: "I grant you the imperial sword to slay anyone who resists, even if they are three ministers, I will execute them first and report to you later!"

"Wenhe, leave now. I will issue an order shortly to seal off the twelve gates of Luoyang. The city gate captains, the Jinwu Guards, the infantry captains, the cavalry captains, the archery captains, and the left and right Yulin cavalry are all to cooperate with your actions. Anyone who disobeys may be executed with the imperial sword!"

Liu Bian left only the Tiger Guards, the Imperial Guards, and the Prince's Palace Guards to guard the palace, and entrusted most of his troops to Jia Xu. Feeling Liu Bian's trust, Jia Xu felt a warm current in his heart.

After wasting decades, he once planned to retire from the world, but he didn't expect to meet a king who trusted him.

"I will definitely live up to your Highness's trust!" Jia Xu bowed and saluted, then turned and left with the imperial sword and staff in his hands.

Following Jia Xu's actions, the entire Luoyang City fell into chaos.

"Zhongde, you will command the six commanders of Luoyang. Anyone who dares to violate the nighttime ban will be beaten to death!"

"Zi Bu, take one hundred and twenty-eight Yu Lin Lang and station them in the armory. No one is allowed to enter or leave unless I am here personally!"

"Gongren, you will lead fifty guards from the Crown Prince's Palace to control the Imperial Stables!"

"Zhongkang, you will control the Twelve Gates of Luoyang!"

"Dian Wei, all gates of the imperial palace are under your command!"

Liu Bian sat on the bed with a long sword in his hand, wearing a single piece of clothing, and summoned all the officials in the Prince's Mansion, making arrangements according to the plan he had already thought of in his mind.

If there is a change in Luoyang, people will inevitably be in turmoil. At this time, it is necessary to immediately control the entire city and take over the city defense to prevent anyone from colluding with the Taiping Dao to deliberately cause riots, and at the same time to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the chaos to rob.

The next step is to control the armory and the imperial stables to prevent the weapons and armor in the armory and the horses in the imperial stables from being taken away by thieves.

Haha, this was also the inspiration given to him by the old thief Sima.

He can temporarily control the entire city with only 3,000 soldiers, and he has more than 10,000 elite soldiers at his command. As the regent prince, he has made arrangements according to the procedures of rebellion. Could his control over Luoyang City be weaker than that of the old thief Sima?

Overnight, panic spread in Luoyang City like a plague.

Behind the tightly closed doors and windows were the trembling bodies of the people, who dared not even breathe for fear of bringing about an unprovoked disaster. The officials and scholars in the city were also terrified, and even if they had not heard the shouts of the six captains of Luoyang and the patrolling Chief of the Imperial Guards forbidding anyone to go out, they still did not dare to go out.

During the years of the Later Han Dynasty, there were many disturbances in Luoyang City. The two Party-Faction Persecution Disasters were enough to leave a deep impression on the people of Luoyang City.

All officials and scholars understood that they must not go out without permission at this moment. The common people were even more afraid to go out. They were even worried that someone would come to rob them, so they closed the windows, blocked the doors tightly, and even blocked the doors with earth and rocks.

Of course, there were also some fools who thought they had the support of their elders at home. They walked into the streets with swagger and even scolded the patrol soldiers, causing unrest. They were then beaten to death in the street by the patrol officers under the Luoyang Six Departments. The splattered blood was particularly glaring under the dim moonlight, and the matter was reported to Cheng Yu.

Cheng Yu was also ruthless. Anyone who dared to let his family go out at this time was either a fool or colluding with thieves. He sent someone to contact Jia Xu directly. Soon, a team of Northern Army soldiers, accompanied by the patrol officers of the Six Departments of Luoyang, broke into the house like ferocious monsters. With the crying and shouting coming from the house, everyone in the mansion was arrested and imprisoned, leaving only the empty house and the remaining candles swaying in the cold wind.

It was not until the afternoon that the blockade in Luoyang City was lifted. Liu Bian sent eunuchs to summon officials from various government offices, and all officials with a salary of 600 stones or above in the capital were summoned to the Jiade Hall to discuss matters.

(End of this chapter)