Han Dynasty Achievements

Chapter 291 Last Letter

Chapter 291 Suicide Letter

The Secretariat, the Grand Marshal's Office and the Six Ministries were all working hurriedly to deal with the matter of Yuan Shu declaring himself emperor.

The news spread quickly and instantly caused a sensation in Luoyang City.

In teahouses, taverns, streets and alleys, there were sounds of disbelief and fear everywhere.

"Is this true? Then Yuan Gonglu proclaimed himself emperor?"

"It can't be fake. I have a nephew in Yuan Shu's army. He sent back this news!"

"I also heard that Yuan Shu decided to ascend the throne in Shouchun. The reign title, dragon robe, and imperial seal are all ready..."

"He, their Yuan family has three dukes in four generations, how is it possible..."

"I didn't believe it at first, but I asked the court, and guess what? Everyone kept silent, as if they knew nothing!"

"That's all known. The imperial court must be making preparations. Is Yuan Shu really so rebellious that he wants to ascend the throne and become emperor?"

They also looked sad and said nothing.

Surprisingly, the court's reaction to Yuan Shu's declaration of emperorship ended there. There was no excessive action, and it was "quiet" as if nothing major had happened.

Le Jin sneered and said, "General, you are right. Yuan Shu is too selfish and is really a mean person!"

Three days after Zhang Wen set out on the expedition, Prime Minister Xun Yu left the capital to inspect the three states of Yan, Ji and Qing.

"Speak carefully! Speak carefully!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone looked over. Even Cao Cao, who was stroking the hilt of his sword, paused and pricked up his ears.

But the court remained silent. No important figures spoke, no orders were given, and no imperial edicts were issued.

Punishing the rebels is not only raising the banner, but also a legitimate way to seize territory and expand strength. Who would miss such a good opportunity? !

Cao Cao naturally understood, but he regretted that he was out of reach and could not get a share of the pie.

Guo Jia drank the wine gently and said, "General, there are still many variables. We need to wait and see."

Even in the dead of night, the streets are brightly lit, and every household has colorful lights on their street lamps, overflowing with joy.

Seeing how Cao Cao treated him, Lu Yu's face flushed. After trying to hold it back for a long time, he said, "General, you can write a letter to Lord Liu."

"Hey, the most difficult person to do right now is probably Prince Chenliu."

After a moment's silence, Guo Jia drank some more wine and said, "General, you can't move, but it's not a bad idea to send some people to support you."

Lu Yu nodded in agreement and said, "The Prime Minister is too inexperienced. Many things need your Majesty's decision. Your Majesty has slept one hour less than usual."

Lu Yu also looked at Cao Cao and said, "General Cao, don't be discouraged. Before leaving Luoyang, His Majesty said that General must be the one to destroy Dong Fei."

"Shouldn't the Prince of Chenliu be happy? After all, Yuan Shu's previous rebellion was under the banner of the late emperor's will..."

And various memorials flew into the palace like snowflakes.

Guo Jia nodded thoughtfully, looked at Cao Cao's back, and said pointedly: "So, the court compromised and gave General Cao the right to act at his own discretion?"

Huangfu Song’s spirit tablet was brand new, and next to the incense burner in front of the tablet, there was a letter.

Seeing Lu Yu's attitude towards him, Cao Cao exchanged glances with Guo Jia and said with a melancholy look, "I want to repay your kindness and fight to the death to eliminate the thieves, but what can I do, what can I do..."

Lu Yu thought for a moment and said, "Lord Liu is determined to destroy Dong as soon as possible, but the court disagrees."

"Who would have thought that the Yuan family, with three dukes in four generations and a reputation throughout the world, would actually have such great ambitions!"

After a long while, Guo Jia saw that no one responded, so he pretended to sigh and said, "Who would have thought that Yuan Shu would be so insane? His claim to be emperor will not be tolerated by the world, and his downfall is not far away."

Guo Jia also laughed and shook his head.

Guo Jia noticed it, his eyes moved slightly, he picked up the wine pot and took a sip, glanced at Lu Yu, and said with a smile: "Master Lu, is General Cao not on the list of the imperial court going to the war?"

"No joke,"

"Okay." Lu Yu nodded, and a bright smile appeared on his face, which was completely different from the cautiousness in the palace.

Guo Jia's gaze fell on the corner of Cao Cao's cold face, which was mostly hidden by his beard, making it impossible to make out clearly.

Guo Jia was drinking under the moonlight when he heard footsteps. He turned around and asked with a smile, "Is Young Master Lu asleep?"

After confirming it again and again, he was forced to put aside his last bit of doubt and finally became convinced that Yuan Shu had really proclaimed himself emperor!

At the same time, a message was sent throughout the country, requiring scholars across the country to distinguish right from wrong and uphold justice.

Not to mention that the Six Ministries were surrounded by people, even the front of the Suzaku Gate was filled with willing people, shouting that they wanted Yuan Shu to be cut into pieces.

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes and his breathing became faster.

The news of Huangfu Song's death came a little late, and today is a special anniversary.

If he were a little more low-key, relying on the reputation of his family and the current complicated situation, the general might not be unable to compete for supremacy in the world.

But he chose to risk the world's condemnation and seek his own death!

Guo Jia saw very clearly that Yuan Shu was not far from death. The future of the world had nothing to do with Yuan Shu.

For Cao Cao, he didn’t care what happened in the court, what he wanted was achievement!

If His Majesty in the palace is determined to destroy Dong, he must seize this great credit!

After just a moment, Cao Cao calmed down and said to Guo Jia with a smile, "Feng Xiao, what do you think His Majesty will do?"

On the other side, Yangzhou, Shouchun.

Guo Jia seemed to be still hesitant, and said: "Based on my understanding of His Majesty, if he made a big fuss, it would not happen. But the court's reaction was too restrained, and it seemed that they were preparing something. After thinking about it, perhaps only Mie understood."

Cao Cao's mouth was dry. He came closer, took a big sip of tea, and then said solemnly, "Fengxiao, what do you think?"

Guo Jia looked at Cao Cao's smile and knew that he had an idea. He said, "How to arrange it depends on what happens after we destroy Yuan. Yuan Shu's actions have angered both humans and gods, and the whole world has turned against him. I predict that Yuan Shu's staff and the army will be in a state of disarray and confusion. Regardless of whether the court sends troops or not, Shi Xie, Sun Jian, Liu Biao, Gongsun Zan and others will do their best to destroy Yuan. Yuan Shu will not last more than three months!"

At the end, Cao Cao couldn't help but burst into laughter.

The corners of Lu Yu's mouth twitched, as if he wanted to say something, but swallowed it back.

If Cao Cao had not suddenly sent troops to seize Qiao County, the current situation would not be so embarrassing.

Guo Jia had already prepared a plan, and said: "For now, the court still does not want to start a war."

Seeing that Cao Cao was still the same as before and there was no sense of strangeness, Lu Yu immediately smiled and said, "General, you are joking."

A secret underground room.

Amid the unanimous approval of the court officials, Xun Yu personally issued Liu Bian's edict, appointing Zhang Wen as the left general and commanding an army of 300,000 to attack in three directions.

"Sun Jian, Liu Biao, Yuan Shao, Gongsun Zan, Shi Xie..."

Under everyone's attention, Zhang Wen led his troops and set out from Luoyang City to the south in full view of everyone.

"How could it be false? Look at all the high-ranking officials in the court, especially Lord Yang, who is related to the Yuan family by marriage. Has he ever refuted a single word?"

Cao Cao counted these people's names, sneered, and said, "They are all chickens and dogs. I, Cao Cao, can destroy them in a blink of an eye!"

"but,"

He kept crying and saying something, but no one could hear clearly.

Cao Cao knew this, but he had his own plan. He resolved this knot in his heart, snatched the wine from Guo Jia, poured it into his mouth in big gulps, and then said with some emotion: "In the beginning, I had a good relationship with Yuan Benchu ​​and Yuan Gonglu. I thought these two brothers were righteous and chivalrous, and they came from famous families, so I was happy to make friends with them. But I never thought that only a few years later, Yuan Gonglu actually proclaimed himself emperor... Hahaha..."

In this way, it is actually equivalent to him participating in it!

Standing behind him were Guo Jia, Xiahou Dun, Le Jin, Xu Zhu, Cao Ren and a group of people, plus Lu Yu who came from Luoyang.

"Hey, in the past the imperial court was cautious and afraid of giving people something to talk about. Now..."

It was Huangfu Song's handwritten belated farewell letter to Huangfu Jianchang.

After the meal, Lu Yu was drunk and unconscious, and fell into a deep sleep on Cao Cao's couch.

Cao Cao smiled, and then said to Xu Chu and others: "Did you hear what I said? Lu Yu can go wherever he wants. You can't stop him even if he wants to chop off my head with a knife. You are not allowed to hurt him at all..."

"I obey your command!" Xu Zhu, Cao Ren and others responded without hesitation.

Cao Cao's eyes lit up and he said, "Okay!"

Guo Jia drank his wine and sighed, "Your Majesty is caught in the middle, I'm afraid it's very difficult."

Cao Cao looked towards Luoyang, stroked his beard involuntarily, and said indifferently: "Those corrupt officials should be executed!"

Guo Jia had no way to deal with Cao Cao's character of joining in the fun, so he could only sip the wine and shake his head secretly.

……

Yuan Shu's move was truly foolish to the extreme.

Cao Cao's narrow eyes flashed with coldness, and he said in a cold tone, "A bunch of foolish people!"

Cao Cao ignored Yizhou, which had been stable all this time. His expression changed and he said unwillingly, "Is there nothing we can do but wait?"

Cao Cao was slightly shocked and asked, "What do you mean?"

Cao Cao's narrow eyes sparkled, and he turned around expressionlessly and said calmly, "The court has decided to destroy you, right?"

Cao Cao was moved and thought: "Fengxiao means that Your Majesty really wants to destroy Dong?"

Guo Jia then continued, "Your Majesty's attitude seems to be different."

After a long while, Huangfu Jian's face was covered in blood. He stood up tremblingly, in great pain. He looked at Huangfu Song's spirit tablet with a hoarse voice and said, "Father, I am really an unfilial son..."

Cao Cao looked at Yangzhou, holding the hilt of the sword in his left hand, turning it gently.

The people were talking about it, and officials of all ranks in the court and the country were even more restless.

"Didn't he say before that the late emperor's will was to support the King of Bohai?"

In an inconspicuous courtyard in the corner, it is quiet and silent, without a single light.

Cao Cao stood on a small hill and looked towards Yangzhou.

Lu Yu felt safer beside Cao Cao than in the palace. He was not too restrained and nodded calmly, "Yes. There is a lot of opposition in the court. No one agrees with General Cao."

Cao Cao, who was also very drunk, quietly got up in the second half of the night and came to the yard.

Lu Yu did not hide anything and said, "Originally, your majesty wanted General Cao to lead the army together with Yuan Benchu, but was opposed. Later, he changed his mind to Langya Governor Liu Xuande."

Guo Jia drank and said in a drunken state: "In the past few years, the Han Dynasty almost fell apart, and the court was extremely weak. Your Majesty could only move forward cautiously and endure. But now four or five years have passed. Although the court is still in trouble, it has accumulated a lot and can definitely fight."

At the same time, Qiao County.

It was not until the third day that Dong Zhuo appeared in the court.

Guo Jia nodded and said, "No one can help Yuan Shu now, and no one dares to help him. If Dong Zhuo and Lu Bu use the banner of the royal army to punish the bandits, no one will be able to say anything. The most dangerous place is Xuzhou."

Cao Cao deduced it carefully and said, "I have met Liu Xuande once. He is a kind-hearted man, but I am afraid he cannot defend Xuzhou."

Guo Jia saw it clearly, and then shook his head and said, "General, Young Master Lu has been on a long journey, so let him have a good rest. Since His Majesty has already issued an order, we can just follow it."

No one spoke. After receiving the news, everyone was shocked and couldn't believe it.

Being in Qiao County, Cao Cao could neither advance nor retreat, and could not even move.

Huangfu Jian knelt on the ground for a long time, kowtowed heavily to Huangfu Song's spirit tablet, and kept kowtowing even though his head was bleeding.

Xun Yu, the prime minister of the Secretariat, convened an enlarged meeting of the court, recounted the past achievements of the Yuan family in public, and then listed the sins of the Yuan family since the Zhongping Rebellion and severely criticized them.

Three days later, You Pushe Zhong Yao was ordered to leave the capital and inspect Liang and Ji provinces.

Even at night, the construction work never stopped. Yuan Shu's "imperial palace" was being built, and the coronation ceremony was being prepared, with countless people busy at work.

Cao Cao understood, and he reached out to embrace Lu Yu, laughing loudly, "I am negligent, Lu Yu, come on, I will take you to Qiao County for a stroll. This is my hometown. There is food and drink here, everything you want. Here, you don't have to be as restrained as in Luoyang. You can do whatever you want, even if you want to chop off my head..."

Standing behind him were Cheng Yu and Shi A.

Guo Jia changed his posture and said more leisurely: "Besides that, there is Jizhou. The court is holding Liu Zhang captive, and Liu Yan can't hold out for too long. It wouldn't be surprising if he did something to force the court to release Liu Zhang."

His face was livid, his eyes were blazing with anger, and he said hatefully: "Yuan Shu is such a traitor, he is so ambitious, I wish I could pick up a three-foot sword, cut off his head myself, and present it to Your Majesty!"

"Where is His Majesty?" Guo Jia asked casually.

Lu Yu was startled. He looked around and saw that there was no one around. Then he said quickly, "General Cao, be careful with your words. Someone in the court has been chasing you. I heard that the Censorate still has a case against you. Don't give them any more evidence. Otherwise, it will be even more difficult for Your Majesty."

"Then the Yuan family's reputation has reached its limit. What else can they do except usurp the throne?"

Cao Cao looked down at his expression and instantly understood what was going on, but he didn't care at all. He said loudly, "Let's not talk about this today. Let's go and have a drink first."

Guo Jia drank his wine, smiling and not interrupting.

Cao Cao thought for a while and said, "You mean, Dong Zhuo and Lu Bu will be involved?"

"You believe this kind of nonsense. The Yuan family has done so many things. Now that I think about it, I'm afraid it's all true!"

Cheng Yu, who was standing behind him, felt uncomfortable when he heard Huangfu Jianchang's words.

Huangfu Jianchang has always been a dandy, acting recklessly. I don't know how many times he was taught a lesson by Huangfu Song, but he never changed.

Now, Huangfu Jian has changed, and he couldn't even see Huangfu Song for the last time.