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

Chapter 277 Position
Just as Liu Bei's men were digging pits to bury people, Guan Yu and Dong Zhuo arrived one after the other with their large armies.

“Xuande is kind-hearted, and he even allowed the Yuan clan members to be buried peacefully.”

Looking at the bodies of the Yuan family members, Dong Zhuo said, "The Yuan family will not be grateful for this..."

"I did what I was supposed to do, not to gain gratitude..."

Liu Bei pointed to the east: "Yuan Shao maliciously attacked the Crown Prince, and is already a traitor to the country. The whole world should unite to attack him... Brother Zhongying, you might as well hurry up and pursue Yuan Shao. You will surely win the gratitude of the Crown Prince and the people of the world."

"Cough... If you could catch up, why didn't you?"

Dong Zhuo leaned closer and asked in a low voice.

"We'll chase after them when you get here. I have too few soldiers; I'm afraid we can't win..."

Liu Bei answered in a low voice.

"Protecting the Crown Prince is still the most important thing. Why don't we send him back to the capital to ascend the throne as soon as possible? What do you think, Xuande?"

Dong Zhuo lowered his voice even further.

"Lu Bu is ahead... He's leading your cavalry, so he should be under your command now, right?"

Liu Bei looked at Dong Zhuo and asked in return, "Yuan Shao has countless friends in Guandong and will most likely receive reinforcements. Lü Bu is pursuing him alone. Are you going to ignore him?"

"……That……"

Dong Zhuo hesitated for a moment: "Xuande, would you like to pursue them with me?"

"I want to protect the Crown Prince, so of course you should go after him..."

Liu Bei said matter-of-factly, "I'll have Yun Chang assist you; Yun Chang is far more capable in battle than I am."

"Hey hey hey..."

Dong Zhuo revealed a 'simple and honest' smile: "I also want to protect the crown prince... Guo Si's ability to command troops is no less than mine."

Liu Bei also revealed an honest smile: "Alright then, let's do it this way."

Therefore, Guan Yu and Guo Si each led their troops to Hulao Pass.

Liu Bei and Dong Zhuo each led a thousand men toward Luoyang.

In fact, this was exactly what Liu Bei and Dong Zhuo were discussing—both sides would bring equal numbers of troops into Luoyang, and the other troops would try their best to pursue Yuan Shao. If they couldn't catch him, they would at least control Hulao Pass to prevent chaos in Guandong.

Both sides placed the most capable generals they recognized in the other's camp outside, both to prevent third parties from causing trouble and to show that they would not fight each other for power.

The two men, one a general and the other a right general, held roughly equal authority.

After Dong Zhuo recruited Lü Bu, both of them knew that their fighting strength was roughly equal.

Both men came from military backgrounds in the border regions and were not well-regarded by aristocratic families.

Liu Bei had the right to assist in governing with the imperial edict, while Dong Zhuo was Empress Dowager Dong's nephew. In many ways, they were not that different.

With this balance, of course, one should live in peace and share the spoils together.

The army didn't need to rush back, and they traveled slowly on both sides. They hadn't returned to Luoyang by nightfall and set up camp about twenty miles outside the city.

……

At this time, Luoyang.

Empress Dowager Dong was in a dilemma.

Liu Bei's troops have not yet returned; Dong Zhuo's troops have all left Luoyang.

Even the troops of Lü Bu, Zhang Yang, Xia Mou, and others have disappeared.

In retrospect, the area around Luoyang seems much more peaceful and tranquil without the armies of these ruthless men...

But it was quiet for only half a day.

At noon, a palace servant came to report that Marquis Shi had died.

The body was discovered by a maid from Yongle Palace who was on her way to deliver grain to Liu Bian.

Liu Bian had been raised outside the palace for many years, and the Empress Dowager had rarely met him. She also had a grudge against Empress He, so naturally she didn't have much affection for Liu Bian. In addition, it wasn't even certain whether he was her own grandson... Upon learning of his death, the Empress Dowager wasn't particularly saddened.

However, it was quite terrifying.

—Although the Empress Dowager wasn't particularly clever, she wasn't stupid either; she could sense that she might be made a scapegoat. When they arrived at Liu Bian's residence, many officials were already whispering among themselves in the alleys of the Baijun Mansion.

The Empress Dowager was completely bewildered; she couldn't fathom who would murder Liu Bian at this crucial moment.

Liu Bian was always a gossip, and he had no chance of succeeding to the throne, but with his death, everyone started to think about it again—at least Liu Bian was still a prince.

His identity is just in question, but he is still a legitimate prince and has not been demoted to a commoner...

The officials were all very sensible, and no one discussed in public who had killed Liu Bian.

But the Empress Dowager panicked.

The less people talk about something, the more troublesome it becomes...

In the afternoon, the Empress Dowager quickly summoned Cui Lie, intending to have him find out the real culprit.

However, Cui Lie did not have the ability to investigate such unsolved cases, nor did he intend to. He directly stated that the murderer must be Yuan Shao.

Of course, Cui Lie's judgment was based on his own stance; he didn't care who the real culprit was.

Cui Lie had already sided with Liu Bei during the court discussion of the will, which meant he had already chosen a side, so he had no choice but to stick with it to the end.

Cui Lie urged the Empress Dowager to quickly issue a public announcement to the world, ordering Yuan Shao's execution to prevent the matter from dragging on for too long.

This is actually the best way, and it truly takes the Empress Dowager's best interests into account.

Yesterday, the Empress Dowager used eunuchs to exchange for Marquis Shi from Yuan Shao and bring him back to the capital. All the officials witnessed this.

Last night Liu Bian was still alive and kicking, but today he is dead. Unfortunately, neither Liu Bei nor Dong Zhuo, the two most suitable scapegoats, are in Luoyang.

In the eyes of the officials, the biggest suspect in the killing of Marquis Shi was, of course, the Empress Dowager... especially after rumors of Liu Bian having a son from the Yuan family.

Cui Lie meant well; he wanted the Empress Dowager to exonerate herself quickly through force, which was a way of showing goodwill to her.

However, the Empress Dowager had no one to rely on. The powerful eunuchs like Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong were gone. She wanted to pin the blame on Yuan Shao, but she didn't know how... because the people skilled at such things were all dead.

The Empress Dowager had no choice but to summon Dong Cheng, the only one she could still use.

"Why doesn't the Empress Dowager summon all the officials and put this matter on Liu Bei's shoulders?"

Dong Cheng seems to have other ideas.

"Liu Bei is not in the capital. All the officials know that Liu Bei sent the crown prince to Beiman to pay respects to his ancestors. How could this matter fall on Liu Bei's shoulders?"

The Empress Dowager expressed her incomprehension.

"Where Liu Bei is is not important... Aunt, the officials don't care about the truth, they only care about how to fight for power."

Dong Cheng explained, “The situation in Luoyang has now been barely stabilized, and the crown prince's ascension to the throne is a foregone conclusion. If Liu Bei were to assist in governing, it would be difficult for the officials to gain any benefits… Aunt, you would also find it difficult to restrain Liu Bei. Rather than allowing Liu Bei to grow too powerful and become like Liang Ji and Dou Wu, it would be better to prevent Liu Bei from becoming a regent as soon as possible…”

Dong Cheng believed that only by making Liu Bei bear a bad reputation could he restrain Liu Bei from controlling Liu Xie.

Regardless of whether Shi Hou was a prince, even if Liu Bian were an ordinary person, if the crime of murder were pinned on Liu Bei, as long as all the officials said so, it would make it impossible for Liu Bei to continue as the regent.

As for how Liu Bei flew into Luoyang to murder Liu Bian... that's not important.

Whether the world believes it or not is not important.

As long as the Empress Dowager is willing to delegate power to the officials, they will naturally try to do things well, since framing and slandering is a basic quality of an official.

Dong Cheng suggested that the Empress Dowager summon renowned ministers and agree to share power among the officials, so that they could jointly criticize Liu Bei and prevent him from obtaining the position of Junior Tutor or other regent.

The best option is for the Empress Dowager to rule as regent after the crown prince ascends the throne.

Dong Zhuo is now a member of the same clan, so even if Liu Bei is dissatisfied, Dong Zhuo can keep him in check.

Besides, Liu Bei's surname is Liu. Who knows if he has any intention of usurping the throne? Emperor Guangwu's precedent of a minor branch of the imperial family replacing the major branch is there. Who knows if Liu Bei will follow suit?

— Neither Cui Lie nor Dong Cheng were acting for the truth, but for their own stance.

Thus, the Empress Dowager was caught in a dilemma.

She knew Dong Cheng was right; this was indeed the most advantageous thing for her, but she wasn't sure if framing Liu Bei would succeed.

Moreover... the Empress Dowager knew that even if it succeeded, she would likely be subject to retaliation.

Because those palace servants who were previously imprisoned in the torture chamber must be in Liu Bei's hands—the matter of killing Empress He was not yet settled, and Liu Bei had leverage over her.

(End of this chapter)