Transmigrating to the Three Kingdoms as Lu Bu: I Have a Pseudo-Apocalypse System

In the imperial palace, the puppet emperor Liu Xie sat in his study, with a copy of the "Great Han Ten-Day Report" in front of him.

He stared at the large characters on the front page, remaining silent for a long time.

Beside him stood a middle-aged eunuch, Zhao Xi, bowing respectfully. Nominally, he was a trusted confidant who had served Liu Xie for many years, but in reality, he had long been bribed by the Prince of Jin. Liu Xie could roughly guess that his every move was being monitored by the Prince of Jin.

But in order to survive, Liu Xie could only pretend not to know and treat her as a companion when he was bored in the deep palace.

Looking at this issue of the "Great Han Xunbao" (a local gazetteer), Liu Xie said softly, "Zhao Xi, what do you think I should do?"

Zhao Xi said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, this servant dares not speak recklessly."

Liu Xie smiled bitterly: "Dare not speak recklessly? How many people around me dare to speak, and are capable of speaking? Ever since Yang Biao and Zhao Wen retired, and Zhu Jun and Huangfu Song passed away, and the palace maids and eunuchs have been replaced several times, I don't even have anyone to consult with."

He paused, then pointed to the newspaper: "Look, Lü Bu pacified the Western Regions, conquering over fifty kingdoms, and the Wusun sent a princess as a marriage alliance. How do these achievements compare to those of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing back then? How do they compare to those of Emperor Guangwu?"

Zhao Xi said softly, "Your Majesty, the Prince of Jin has indeed made great contributions."

Liu Xie sighed, "His achievements are indeed unparalleled. What do I, the emperor, have left now? Even the people of Chang'an are praising his accomplishments. When Lü Bu walked the streets, the people all bowed and cheered; that was genuine support."

He stood up, walked to the window, and gazed in the direction of the Prince of Jin's residence in the distance: "He built a mound of skulls in the Western Regions, killing more than two thousand Xiongnu prisoners and piling Xubudanghe's head on top. He built stone platforms and set up catapults on platforms dozens of feet high to bombard the city, so the defending soldiers couldn't even lift their heads. He could also conjure things out of thin air, taking out grain, weapons, and equipment from the divine granary..."

Liu Xie's voice trailed off: "How can I possibly fight against someone like that? What can I possibly use to fight him?"

Zhao Xi said softly, "Your Majesty, the Prince of Jin has treated you with considerable courtesy. At the last court session, he even mentioned wanting to repair the palace for Your Majesty..."

Liu Xie chuckled: "Courtesy? That's just for show. What he wants is my abdication edict. Once he pacifies the south and unifies the country, that will be the time for me to abdicate."

He turned to Zhao Xi and asked, "Zhao Xi, tell me, if I were to voluntarily abdicate, could I save my life?"

Zhao Xi was startled and immediately knelt down: "Your Majesty, this... this servant does not know."

Liu Xie smiled wryly: "Get up. It's too early to talk about these things now. Let's wait until the Prince of Jin has pacified the south. However, I do need to make some preparations."

He walked to the desk, picked up a pen and wrote a letter, sealed it with sealing wax, and handed it to Zhao Xi: "When you leave the palace, give this letter to Shi Sunrui."

Zhao Xi accepted the letter and kowtowed solemnly: "This servant obeys the decree."

Afterwards, Zhao Xi left the imperial study and first handed the letter to the head of the palace guards, who used a secret method to open the sealing wax seal and check the contents. Seeing that there was no treasonous content, and after Zhao Xi was searched and found to have no other items, the letter was resealed and released from the palace.

……

In the residence of Shi Sunrui.

After seeing Zhao Xi off, Shi Sunrui sat in his study, staring at the so-called secret letter, remaining silent for a long time.

The letter contained only a few short sentences: I know that the will of Heaven is hard to defy, and I only ask to preserve my life. I have no other requests. I hope you will do everything you can to help me.

Shi Sunrui sighed deeply, held the letter up to the candlelight, and watched it turn to ashes.

He knew that Liu Xie had resigned himself to his fate and only hoped to live.

But this is not an easy task. Throughout history, how many monarchs who lost their kingdoms were able to die peacefully?

He recalled how, when Lü Bu marched north to attack the Di, Yang Biao, Zhao Wen, Zhang happy, and others secretly plotted to summon all the feudal lords to the capital to rescue him, hoping to wrest power back from Lü Bu.

The results of it?

Yang Biao, Zhao Wen, and Zhang Xi retired, and Zhu Jun and Huangfu Song passed away one after another. Although he had served the rebels and twice led the effort to urge them to ascend the throne, seemingly enjoying Lü Bu's deep trust and even taking charge of the Censorate and entering the inner cabinet of the Prince of Jin's mansion, he had long since lost all real power.

With Lü Bu's current power and the reach of his spies, plus the advice of Jia Xu, Guo Jia, and others, even if I were to act as an inside agent, I wouldn't be able to accomplish anything.

Besides, he also has to consider his descendants, relatives, and friends; he can't possibly go to...

Even this so-called secret letter from the Emperor that he received today, Shi Sunrui dares to guarantee, was 99% checked by the palace guards. Only after they found no collusion or anti-Lu statements was Zhao Xi allowed to send it out of the palace and to his residence.

Fortunately, Liu Xie's words in the letter seemed to indicate that even he himself had accepted his fate.

As long as it's not about helping him seize power or rebel against Lü, but simply about saving his life, perhaps it's worth a try.

Shi Sunrui began to consult historical materials and ancient books, trying to find evidence that treating the former monarch well could win people's hearts and that killing the former monarch could cause social unrest, so as to persuade the King of Jin at that time.

……

In an ordinary residential house west of Luoyang City.

A middle-aged man sat in the courtyard, drinking millet porridge with pickled vegetables. His name was Wang Tiezhu, and he was an ordinary farmer.

The son ran in from outside, holding a piece of paper in his hand: "Dad, Dad, look, this is a newspaper I picked up on the street!"

Wang Tiezhu, who was illiterate, took the newspaper and looked at it from different angles: "What does it say here?"

The son exclaimed excitedly, "It's about the King of Jin's conquest of the Western Regions! The King of Jin led his troops, marched tens of thousands of miles, wiped out the Northern Xiongnu army, and conquered all the kingdoms in the Western Regions! After the Silk Road is open, our silk and porcelain can be sold to the Western Regions, and the fine horses and jade from the Western Regions can be brought in!"

Wang Tiezhu laughed and said, "That's a good thing!"

The son said, "There's more. The newspaper said that the Prince of Jin built a shrine to martyrs in Chang'an to commemorate the soldiers who died for their country. In the future, if people want to pay tribute to heroes, they'll have a place to do so."

Wang Tiezhu nodded: "The Prince of Jin is benevolent and righteous, and he does not forget the soldiers who died in battle."

He took a sip of porridge, then suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, how well did the government-issued curved plows and waterwheels work this spring?"

The son nodded repeatedly: "It works great! Before, pulling a plow was exhausting, but now with the curved plow, it's much easier for an ox. The waterwheel is also useful, saving a lot of effort in irrigating the fields."

Wang Tiezhu sighed, "This is all thanks to the Prince of Jin's kindness. In the past, he would conscript men and rob grain every few days. How could we common people live in peace? Now things are much better. The Prince of Jin defends against powerful enemies abroad, governs with virtue at home, reduces taxes, distributes farm tools, and builds water conservancy projects. Life is getting better and better."

The son whispered, "Father, with such great achievements, will the Prince of Jin become emperor in the future?"

Wang Tiezhu glared at him: "Don't talk nonsense! The emperor is the Son of Heaven, and no matter how powerful the Prince of Jin is, he is still a subject. But then again, if the Prince of Jin becomes emperor, it won't be bad for us common people, right? He would reduce taxes, distribute farm tools, and build water conservancy projects—aren't those good things?"

The son nodded: "Of course, the Prince of Jin as emperor is definitely better than that ignorant young emperor."