Second-hand time travel: Liu Bei, the big-eared bandit

Chapter 207 Fear
West Garden.

"Your Majesty, Zou Jing, the Commander of the Northern Army, requests an audience."

Zhang Rang stood at the entrance of the warm pavilion and reported softly.

"not see."

The door to the warm pavilion was tightly closed, and Liu Hong's voice came from inside.

"...Your Majesty, Liu Yu, the Grand Master of Ceremonies, has been waiting outside for two days."

Zhang Rang hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice.

"I said... I won't see anyone!"

Liu Hong's voice sounded somewhat anxious.

Zhang Rang sighed, lingered at the door for a while, and then looked at Jian Shuo, who was standing in front of the door.

Jian Shuo shook his head at Zhang Rang.

Zhang Rang hurriedly returned to the audience chamber in the West Garden, looking at Liu Yu and Zou Jing with some helplessness: "His Majesty is still recovering from a cold and is unable to attend to official duties. Please return."

"Is Zhang Changshi trying to isolate the inside from the outside world?"

Zou Jing, being a border general, spoke with a rather blunt tone: "If His Majesty is truly ill for more than a month and unable to attend to state affairs, then an edict should be issued to discuss the heir apparent!"

"Lord Zou, be careful with your words!"

Zhang Rang frowned and glared at Zou Jing: "This is not the way of a subject!"

Zou Jing threw the memorial in his hand on the ground, preparing to step forward and curse.

Liu Yu quickly stood up and pulled him back, saying, "Brother Zou, this is the Emperor's residence! It is not Zhang Changshi's fault that the Emperor does not see us, so why take your anger out on him?"

Zou Jing gritted his teeth, glared at Zhang Rang, and sat down on the steps of the audience chamber.

Zhang Rang bowed to Liu Yu and said, "Thank you for your understanding, Lord Bo'an. However, His Majesty is indeed unwell. There is no need for you to come here. Once His Majesty recovers, he will summon you both."

"Attendant Zhang, may I speak with you in private?"

Liu Yu pulled Zhang Rang aside, pointed to the empty corridor outside the audience room, and discreetly slipped an object into Zhang Rang's sleeve.

Zhang Rang walked to the middle of the corridor, but grabbed Liu Yu's hand and stuffed the jade that Liu Yu offered back, refusing to accept the gift.

After looking around to make sure no one was eavesdropping, he finally spoke: "Does Lord Bo'an wish to inquire about the affairs of Liangzhou?"

"Yes, this matter is no different from Zhao Gao of Qin! Please enlighten me, Zhang Changshi."

Liu Yu nodded and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Zhang Rang.

"This was not His Majesty's intention, and His Majesty knows that this matter will do nothing but harm..."

Zhang Rang hesitated for a moment, but finally spoke up: "But this matter is in the wishes of everyone, and Your Majesty has no choice but to do so."

"Zhang Changshi, what do you mean by that?"

Liu Yu didn't understand.

"I have said all I need to say, Lord Bo'an, please do not ask any further questions... You will understand in the future."

Zhang Rang bowed to Liu Yu, then turned and hurriedly left.

"To please everyone?"

Liu Yu frowned and muttered to himself, but he just couldn't figure it out.

……

The Yuan residence.

Yuan Shu was arguing with Yuan Ji in a secret room.

"How can we condone such a blatant act of calling a deer a horse? Do you not know who Zhang Wen is? Even if he were willing to submit to our sect, he would only be a scourge! Zhang Wen and Cui Lie are such mediocre people who only tarnish our sect's reputation. What use is it to associate with them? Why should we speak up for him!"

Yuan Shu spat all over Yuan Ji's face.

"Do you think this is a decision made by me alone? Changqiu Palace wants this result, my paternal uncle wants this result, the wise men of Guandong want this result... even the Emperor wants this result!"

Yuan Ji stared at Yuan Shu and shook his head: "You found Liu Bei's retainers and relatives and accused Zhang Wen of colluding with the Hu people and kidnapping the families of his generals... Do you know what the consequences would be if Zhang Wen were charged with this?"

"What else can be done?! What does it matter if a mediocre person like Zhang Wen dies? The outcome of the battle in Liangzhou is known to all 100,000 troops. If things are turned upside down like this, how will the world view it?"

Yuan Shu was very puzzled. In his view, Zhang Wen was someone promoted by Cao Teng and did not have a very deep relationship with the Yuan family. Moreover, the alteration of military reports could not be hidden from anyone.

"Gonglu, Zhang Wen was originally a minister who only knew about wealth and power. All the officials knew that he knew nothing about military affairs... Do you think the emperor didn't know that? So why did the emperor let him command the army? Have you thought about that?"

Yuan Ji sighed and asked Yuan Shu in return.

"...Why?"

Yuan Shu hadn't thought about this at all—in fact, not only Yuan Shu, but many people hadn't considered it either.

“Huangfu Song is skilled in military affairs, but he is from Xizhou, and the emperor dared not use him to quell the rebellion in Xizhou. Lu Zhi is skilled in military affairs, but after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the emperor also dared not use him again... It was precisely because Zhang Wen was not skilled in military affairs but dared to fight that the emperor dared to let him command an army of 100,000!”

Yuan Ji let out a breath and patiently explained to Yuan Shu, "If Zhang Wen is convicted, who will command the army? Who can the Emperor trust?"

"Why does Zhang Wen dare to distort the truth? Because those who followed him in defeat last time were all the virtuous men of Guandong!"

"But most of those who followed Dong Zhuo and Liu Bei into Liangzhou this time were generals from the Western Zhou army!"

"Moreover, this was Dong Zhuo's own decision! Do you understand? Dong Zhuo's dispatch of troops was neither my intention nor my uncle's!"

"If the various factions in Guandong suffer heavy losses and return empty-handed, allowing the generals of Xizhou to gain great merit, who would be willing to accept that?"

"Both Dong Zhuo and Liu Bei are talented generals, and their relationship with Han Sui is ambiguous... The Black Mountain and White Wave factions are already unstable. If the two provinces of You and Liang, along with the Black Mountain and White Wave factions, form a coalition, how can we control them? Who can control them?!"

"Zhang Wen is indeed mediocre and incompetent... but it is precisely because of his mediocrity that the credit for pacifying Liangzhou should be given to him, so that all the worthy men of Guandong can receive rewards and make everyone feel at ease! As for how the world views it... let the world view it however it wants, what can it do?"

After Yuan Ji finished speaking, he shook his head and sighed to Yuan Shu, "Gonglu, you have a chivalrous spirit, but worldly affairs cannot be resolved by chivalry alone..."

Yuan Shu was taken aback: "But with such actions, aren't you afraid that the Western Regions will be thrown into chaos again?"

Yuan Ji sneered, "What does that have to do with us? The emperor is determined to cause trouble, and we should just observe and see what happens... Isn't that precisely what benefits our clan?"

"Besides, Xizhou is bound to be in chaos! You've been to the Three Auxiliary Regions, so you should know the situation there... Which of the counties in Liangzhou and the Three Auxiliary Regions is loyal to the court?"

"Don't you even consider why your paternal uncle promoted Dong Zhuo? And why he promoted Zuo Chang?"

"Do you also think Zuo Chang is incompetent? But it is precisely these incompetent people who enable our clan to influence the court!"

"Dong Zhuo and Bao Hong have made no great contributions, yet they have received generous rewards from the Emperor. Do you know the Emperor's intentions?!"

"Dong Zhuo was a member of his own clan, yet he took it upon himself to join forces with Liu Bei to seize Liangzhou. Do you know what his intentions were?!"

"Liu Bei threatened Luoyang with the White Wave Bandits, befriended Dong Zhuo, instigated Han Sui to rebel, and had the ability to quickly pacify Liangzhou. Do you know what he meant by all this?!"

"Do you know why the Emperor pushed Dong Zhong out to take the blame? Let me tell you, the sorcerer Liu Gen, who stole Liu Bei's children, was indeed working for the Empress Dowager!"

"Gonglu, Liu Bei's ambition is so obvious that even the emperor is afraid of him, yet you still work for him... Don't you use your brain?"

"Dong Zhuo is still controllable. He should be transferred to Hedong to eliminate Bai Bo and monitor Heishan."

"We should not regard Han Sui as a traitor, nor should we allow him to regain his official position. If Liangzhou falls into chaos again, we can respond accordingly."

"As for Liu Bei... the Emperor will soon send Liu Bei to Qingzhou to quell the Yellow Turban Rebellion. If he obeys, all will be well; if he disobeys, he will be considered a rebel in Liangzhou! The officials will then seize his base in Youzhou and take his family hostage..." Yuan Ji was tired of speaking, so he lowered his head and said softly, "This is the Emperor's will, the will of the officials, the will of Guandong... and also my patriarch's plan. It meets everyone's wishes, do you understand?"

"...But what benefit would this bring to my sect?"

Yuan Shu closed his eyes and shook his head: "Since the emperor is wary of Liu Bei, why don't we befriend him?"

"If we don't wait until Liu Bei is completely at odds with the emperor and the eunuchs, what can we offer to befriend him? Even Dong Zhuo dares to act on his own now, let alone Liu Bei!"

Yuan Ji glanced at Yuan Shu, then shook his head again: "Even if we've allied with Liu Bei, what will we use to control him? He dared to threaten the emperor when his children were kidnapped. How can we control someone like that?"

"Roads... Things in this world cannot be decided at will. What can you get just because you want it? To govern people, you must first put them in a difficult situation!"

Yuan Shu remained silent for a while, then slowly shook his head: "To control people, one must first put them in a difficult position? But, brother, everyone in Luoyang is wielding power and controlling people, while Dong Zhuo and Liu Bei are winning the hearts of their soldiers and generals. Can this so-called way of controlling people withstand the sharpness of swords?"

……

At the same time, Emperor Liu Hong was also arguing with someone in the warm pavilion.

The one arguing with him was Empress Dowager Dong.

"Why did my son compromise with the people of Guandong? Do you know that this will lose the hearts of the people? I sacrificed my nephew's life so that my son could reassure Liu Bei, but how is the matter of Liangzhou handled? Won't this force Liu Bei to become disloyal?"

Empress Dowager Dong appeared very uneasy. ('Yu' was how the Empress Dowager referred to herself; during the Han Dynasty, she did not use the term "Aijia" (哀家).)

“I know… but this is the only way… Liu Bei allied with the Black Mountain and White Wave tribes, and also sent troops without authorization, colluding with Han Sui. What are his intentions?”

Liu Hong's face was full of resentment: "If it weren't for Liu Gen's abduction, we might have rewarded Liu Bei with honors and made him a useful official. But now that Liu Gen has disappeared... Why did Mother make Liu Gen do this? Mother has already driven Liu Bei away!"

"If this matter is not resolved, how will my son subdue the border generals?"

Empress Dowager Dong whispered, "If I hadn't acted this way back then, do you really think that a few eunuchs could have imprisoned Chen Fan? Do you really think that a few eunuchs could have allowed you to rule in your own right? Do you think Zhang Huan would have led the army to attack Dou Wu back then?"

In truth, the generations of the Han dynasty are all in a cycle of reincarnation...

After Emperor Huan of Han died, Empress Dou Miao selected Liu Hong to ascend the throne and ruled as regent as empress dowager.

Empress Dowager Dou was initially made empress mainly through the efforts of Chen Fan. Dou Miao then appointed Chen Fan as Grand Tutor to assist in governing, and Empress Dowager Dou's father, Dou Wu, as Grand General.

At the beginning of Liu Hong's reign, Dou Miao adopted Chen Fan's suggestion and executed the eunuchs Su Kang and Guan Ba, who had presided over the first purge of the partisans during the reign of Emperor Huan. This lifted the purge and earned Dou Miao the support of the gentry. At that time, it was said that "heaven and earth were clear and bright, and people and ghosts were happy."

Chen Fan recruited many partisans to the court and quickly rose to power.

At that time, Yuan Feng and Yuan Wei disagreed with Chen Fan's ideas and were suppressed by him for a period of time.

Yuan Feng was originally the Prefect of Jingzhao, but was "promoted" to Grand Master of the Palace by Chen Fan; Yuan Wei was "promoted" from Tiger General to Grand Herald. Both brothers became one of the Nine Ministers, but lost real power.

Dou Miao became wary of Chen Fan, so she established a female minister and reinstated eunuchs in an attempt to counterbalance Chen Fan.

—After that, the records in the imperial annals became somewhat strange.

According to the historian's records, Dou Miao supported eunuchs and female officials to counterbalance Chen Fan, which actually aroused Dou Wu's dissatisfaction, leading Dou Wu and Chen Fan to attempt to kill the eunuchs and female officials... This record is actually false.

Dou Miao is Dou Wu's biological daughter, whom he raised with great care and care. They are not half-siblings... Moreover, his daughter has become the Regent Empress Dowager, and the Dou family actually calls the shots in the country. Dou Wu is not that stupid.

In reality, Liu Hong's biological mother, Empress Dowager Dong, had eunuchs such as Cao Jie and Wang Fu kidnap Dou Miao at Yongle Palace in an attempt to force Liu Hong to assume power.

Dou Wu then led his troops into the palace, but his daughter Dou Miao was taken hostage, and neither side could do anything about it—which could be considered as Dou Wu leading his troops to try to kill the eunuch.

Seeing the two palaces vying for power, Chen Fan summoned dozens of aristocratic families from the capital region, who were waiting in Luoyang to reap the benefits.

Later, another inaccurate historical record stated that Dou Miao recalled Zhang Huan, the Protector-General of the Xiongnu, to deal with the rebellious eunuchs—but at that time Dou Miao had already been taken hostage, so how could she have recalled Zhang Huan to the army?
In fact, Zhang Huan was recalled by Empress Dowager Dong because he immediately launched a campaign against Dou Wu after returning to the army.

The story of Zhang Huan's campaign against Dou Wu was portrayed as the eunuch Cao Jie forging an imperial edict to deceive Zhang Huan, leading his army to besiege and force Dou Wu to surrender. However, the edict in Cao Jie's possession was genuine—it was also the first valid edict personally issued by Liu Hong, who was thirteen years old at the time.

After Dou Wu was forced to commit suicide by Zhang Huan, Chen Fan led dozens of scholars into the Ministry of Personnel—this was the real intention of forging an imperial edict… but Chen Fan was arrested by Wang Fu and the palace guards and killed in prison.

As a result, Cao Jie and Wang Fu gained power, Empress Dowager Dou was imprisoned in the Southern Palace, and Liu Hong was able to assume personal rule.

All officials and former protégés recommended by Chen Fan and Dou Wu were dismissed from their posts and imprisoned—this was the second partisan purge. Originally, it was not a factional struggle but a purge after a coup, but it gradually evolved into a factional struggle.

Empress Dowager Dong was only a concubine at the time and was not in power, but the coup was quite successful.

How could a powerful but powerless nobleman command a general like Zhang Huan?
Of course, it's the same as driving Zhang Sheng around.

After Zhang Huan forced Dou Wu to commit suicide, Dong Zhong, the nephew of Empress Dowager Dong, immediately became the Tiger General.

Zhang Huan should have been ennobled for his merits, but he resolutely declined the honor in a letter, and also claimed that Dou Wu and Chen Fan had been wronged—because after Empress Dowager Dong eliminated the Dou family, who controlled the court, and the powerful minister Chen Fan, she released Zhang Huan's family.

As soon as the man was released, Zhang Huan changed his tune and said that Dou Wu and Chen Fan had been wronged. Shortly afterward, Zhang Huan was dismissed from his post for "forming a faction," and Dong Zhuo was also implicated and lost his official position.

After that, Yongle Palace continued to abduct people's families.

Liu Gen was indeed acting on the emperor's orders, but not the emperor himself, nor Empress He, nor Liu Bian; rather, he was acting on the orders of Empress Dowager Dong.

"How can the border general be so lenient... Even ordering him to hand over the hostages would be better than forcibly abducting his son!"

Liu Hong shook his head and sighed.

"Order him to hand over hostages? My son, didn't you already try that...? You asked Liu Kui to hand over hostages back then, did he?"

Empress Dowager Dong said coldly, "If Liu Kui hadn't forcibly brought his relatives to the capital, why would he have come to Luoyang by imperial decree? To control someone, you must first put them in a difficult situation! Now that Liu Bei is still in Liangzhou, my son, why don't you order your son to take his family first..."

"...I have my own plans for this matter, so Mother need not worry about it! Mother only needs to protect Xie'er!"

Liu Hong didn't want to say anything more, so he pushed open the door to the warm room and prepared to leave.

A gust of cold wind rushed in from outside, and Liu Hong shivered violently. He then began to cough violently and was unable to get up for a long time.

……

At this time, Liu Bei was unaware that the entire city of Luoyang was discussing his affairs.

He couldn't find Zuo Yuan's relatives in Wuwei, but he met Jia Wenhe instead.

Jia Wenhe, also known as Jia Xu, stayed at Duan Jiong's former residence after seeing Duan Jiong's tomb and provided a lot of help.

Ten years ago, Jia Xu encountered the Qiang and Di tribes blocking his way, and all of his more than one hundred companions were killed. Jia Xu claimed to be the grandson of Duan Jiong, and the Di people, fearing Duan Jiong, not only did not dare to kill him, but also treated him well and sent him home.

Although he only borrowed Duan Jiong's name and had no real connection with Duan Jiong, Jia Xu was still grateful for the matter.

Of course, this was just out of gratitude for Duan Jiong, and had nothing to do with Liu Bei.

However, Jia Xu was indeed waiting here for Liu Bei.

"But General Liu in person? I, Jia Wenhe... have a favor to ask."

Liu Bei was walking behind Guan Yu, but upon seeing Liu Bei's group, Jia Xu immediately identified the person without introduction, demonstrating remarkable judgment.

"Jia Wenhe? You've seen me before?"

Liu Bei certainly knew of Jia Xu's great name, but the two had never met. Jia Xu's arrival with a request surprised Liu Bei.

"I have never seen him before... It was Mr. Yan who sent me to find Master Duan... Now that Master Duan is no longer here, I can only seek help from General Liu."

Jia Xu was not famous when he was young. Only Yan Zhong, a famous scholar from Liangzhou, valued him and said that he had the talents and strategies of Zhang Liang and Chen Ping.

Yan Zhong can be considered Jia Xu's mentor and benefactor. Jia Xu was able to be recommended as a filial and incorruptible official thanks to Yan Zhong's help.

At this time, Yan Zhong was in Jincheng County. Like Liang Xing and others, he was an ally of Han Sui and one of the people who saw Duan Jiong's 'resurrection' in Jincheng.

Han Sui's son-in-law, Yan Xing, was a cousin of Yan Zhong.

(End of this chapter)