By mid-June, the situation in Luoyang had become more complicated, because the soldiers and horses of the Southern Army had also arrived in Luoyang.
There are also Ding Yuan and Qiao Mao. Although their troops are not many, only 10,000 or 20,000, they are still an important force and should not be underestimated.
In this way, nearly 200,000 soldiers and horses gathered in Luoyang at one time, and countless grains and grass were consumed every day. The price of grains soared, and the people were miserable.
The Empress Dowager used this as an excuse to say that there were so many soldiers and horses in Luoyang that the millet market could no longer afford it. If this continued, the price of grain would rise to two thousand and one stone.
Therefore, Liu Bei was appointed as the shepherd of Qingzhou and ordered to attack the Jizhou rebels eastward.
Yuan Shao was ordered to disband the surrendered Yuzhou rebels under his command and let them return to Yuzhou on their own.
Regarding this order, Liu Bei understood the court's intentions. After all, he had more than 20,000 troops under his command, all of whom were elite, enough to deal with the Jizhou rebels.
So he sent Dian Wei to lead Zhang Liao, Gao Shun and others with 20,000 infantry, leaving Guan Yu and Zhang Fei behind with 1,000 Xuanjia heavy cavalry and 1,000 Bingzhou cavalry, preparing to arrive after the matter was settled.
The reason why he set off later was because as the Sili Colonel, he still had some formalities to complete.
Resigning an important member of the imperial court is not such a simple matter.
In addition to the handover procedures, we also had to go through the resignation procedures. In addition, some matters piled up by the Sili Colonel had to be dealt with, so it was delayed for a few days.
When Yuan Shao received this order, he naturally procrastinated and obeyed on the surface. In fact, he only disbanded a small group of troops.
With the death of Jian Shuo, the Southern Army had no actual leader, and each of the four captains led an army.
The Empress Dowager also appointed Dong Cheng as the captain of the upper military academy to command the Southern Army. On the grounds that Yuan Shao was guilty of a crime, he was relieved of his position as the captain of the middle military academy.
The eunuch's close confidant Feng Fang died in the Luoyang Palace Rebellion, and his subordinates had no subordinates. Yuan Shao's southern army and Feng Fang's troops both belonged to Dong Cheng.
Therefore, the current Southern Army currently only has three armies: Dong Cheng, the upper military commander, Cao Cao, the lower military commander, and Xia Mou, the right military commander.
A few days later, Dong Zhuo suddenly held a large banquet and invited all the officials.
By this time, all of Liu Bei's troops and horses were gone, leaving only Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, two thousand cavalry, and some logistical equipment prepared for the cavalry.
I heard that Dong Zhuo held a banquet, although I didn't understand what he wanted to do, but now Dong Zhuo was relying on his identity as the nephew of the Empress Dowager to show off his power, and secondly, he had a heavy army in his hands, which was a force that could not be ignored. All the officials could only go there.
feast.
Dong Zhuo is currently living in the Hussar General's Mansion. Although it is not as luxurious and magnificent as the General's Mansion, it is still a wealthy compound. Everyone entered the house one after another, passed the vestibule, arrived at the middle hall, and entered the banquet.
After all the officials were seated, Dong Zhuo came belatedly. Accompanied by Li Ru and Yan Zhong, he sat on the main seat, looked around, raised his wine glass, and laughed and said: "Masters, everything is not going well this year. .First there was chaos in various places, then the death of the late emperor, then the death of the general, and the eunuchs disrupting the government. It is said that it is better to remove the salary than to stop the boil; although the ulcer is painful, it is worse than nourishing the poison. Now the eunuchs have finally been eradicated, The affairs of the country are finally peaceful, why don’t you have a drink?”
All the officials below raised their glasses and said, "Here's to the General Hussars."
After drinking a glass of wine, Dong Zhuo said slowly: "Yesterday the Empress Dowager summoned me and said that the late emperor had left a legacy and made King Chenliu the emperor. It was just that because of the authority of He Jin and Empress Dowager He, the Empress Dowager was afraid of them.
Because of the conspiracy, I have never dared to take out the edict. Now that He Jin is dead, the Empress Dowager wants to depose the emperor and establish King Chenliu. Why do you think so?"
This incident was like a bombshell. All the officials looked at each other in silence and no one dared to speak.
Liu Bei has been dismissed from his post as Sili Xiaowei. Logically speaking, he is no longer an official in Luoyang. Moreover, the clever thing about Dong Zhuo this time is that he spoke in the name of the Empress Dowager and the late emperor's edict, which made him unaware for a while.
What to say.
Refute it, this is the decree of the Empress Dowager and the "edict of the late emperor".
Don't refute it. Today's emperor has justly ascended the throne, and he is also the eldest son of the late emperor. The act of deposing the emperor is really unreasonable.
Therefore, he hesitated for a while, but he was not the first to stand up and object.
At this moment, a man came forward with the case, stood in front of the banquet, and shouted: "No! The emperor is the legitimate son of the late emperor, and he has no fault, so why should he arbitrarily discuss the abolition of the throne!"
When everyone looked around, it turned out to be Ding Yuan, the governor of Bingzhou.
After he took the lead to speak out, Liu Bei no longer hesitated and objected: "What Governor Ding said is very reasonable. Although General Hussar said that there was an edict left by the late emperor, we have never seen it or heard it.
How to make a certificate?”
"Um?"
Dong Zhuo looked at them and glared at them: "This is the decree of the Empress Dowager. Could it be that Governor Ding and Liu Zhoumu are questioning the decree of the Empress Dowager?"
"Unless you take out the late emperor's edict, I will not recognize it at all!"
Ding Yuan snorted coldly.
He was an official promoted by He Jin and was a disciple and former official of He Jin.
Although He Jin is dead now, the Empress Dowager He and the Emperor are He Jin's relatives after all, so he naturally chooses to protect them.
"Those who follow me will prosper, and those who go against me will perish!"
Dong Zhuo drew his sword and stood up.
At this moment, a man walked in from the door. This man was nine feet tall, with a majestic appearance and a majestic appearance. He held a Fangtian painted halberd in his hand and stood in front of Ding Yuan, glaring at Dong Zhuo angrily.
At the same time, two more people came outside the door. One was nine feet tall, with a red face, and held a Green Dragon Crescent Moon Sword. The other was eight feet tall, with a leopard head and eyes, and held a snake spear eight feet tall. They guarded Liu Bei and looked towards him with wide eyes.
Dong Zhuo.
These three people are none other than Lu Bu, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei!
Being stared at by the three of them, Dong Zhuo felt horrified, and he was covered in cold sweat. The overwhelming pressure hit his face, and his calves seemed to be trembling.
Seeing the stalemate between the two sides, Li Ru hurriedly tried to smooth things over and said: "Today's banquet is not allowed to discuss state affairs; it will not be too late to discuss it with the capital in the future."
"Actually, the late emperor's edict did have something to do with it. The emperor died in the Western Garden. Before his death, he ordered the ten constant servants to assist Dong Hou to ascend the throne as emperor. These words were recorded in the history of Lantai Order and the History of Women in the Palace, and there are backup copies in the Shangshu Desk.
"
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! At this moment, Chen Mu suddenly said: "It's just that the authority of the general is too heavy, and the ten permanent servants dare not respect the emperor's last edict.
This is not a fallacy. However, after all, it is only the dictation of the late emperor, and it cannot be counted unless it is an imperial edict. Therefore, even the emperor and the empress dowager cannot carry out the act of deposing the emperor without any fault.
"
Chen Mu's words seemed to be trying to find legitimacy for Dong Zhuo's statement about deposing the emperor. In fact, it just proved the illegality of this matter, because before Emperor Kangdi of the Han Dynasty did make such an explanation before his death,
There is no imperial edict with the imperial seal, and secondly, it is only oral and recorded, not an edict at all.
The edicts of the Eastern Han Dynasty, later known as imperial edicts, had strict regulations. The person who wrote the writing did not need to be the emperor, but it had to be stamped with the emperor's seal, which was the imperial seal that said "Ordered by heaven, both longevity and longevity"
.
Without the seal, the edict is no different from waste paper.
But even so, Dong Zhuo seemed to have found the legitimate source of the imperial edict, and immediately said with great joy: "Everyone has heard it, the minister has confirmed that the establishment of King Chenliu is indeed the imperial edict of the late emperor, and it is not a fabricated imperial edict made by the empress dowager and someone. Do you think it's true?
Don’t you think what I said is fair?”
"I heard, although the late emperor had a will, there was no edict, and there was no edict. It was just a record of daily life notes. What kind of edict is it? There is no edict or government order at all. Old thief, if you dare to talk about deposing the emperor again, I will
I will kill you!"
Ding Yuan said harsh words, turned around and left.
Liu Bei also stood up, shook his head and said: "This late emperor's edict was only dictated orally, without any seal or seal. Since it cannot be counted, it certainly cannot be said to be an edict. The words of the General Hussar are not fair."
Lu Zhi also said: "In the past, when Taijia was unknown, Yi Yin put him in Tonggong. On the twenty-seventh day after King Changyi came to the throne, he committed more than 3,000 crimes, so Huo Guang sued the Taimiao and abolished him. Although he is young now,
However, it was just and legitimate that he succeeded to the throne before the death of the late emperor. He was smart and benevolent, and had no fault at all. The Hussar General's talk about the late emperor's edict was illegal, which proves that the origin of the current position is orthodox. Talking about abolishing the throne is no different from usurpation.
?”
After that, the two of them left.
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei followed Liu Bei. Chen Mu bowed his hands and followed them away.
Situ Dinggong remembered that he had offended Empress Dowager Dong, and now it was time to curry favor with Empress Dowager Dong. He immediately stood up and said: "I think General Hussar's words are very fair. After all, both the late emperor and the Empress Dowager once thought
The establishment of King Chenliu as emperor is a matter that everyone knows and there is no doubt about it. It is just a matter of abolishing the establishment and should not be discussed drunkenly. It should be discussed another day."
This can be regarded as setting the tone for today's banquet. At the same time, he secretly expressed his loyalty to Dong Zhuo and indicated that he supported him.
Dong Zhuo finally heard the voice he wanted to hear, nodded and said: "Situ's words are very much in line with my wishes. Let's discuss it in a few days, and then we can disperse."
The officials dispersed, and there was a constant flow of people in the courtyard of the Hussar General's Mansion. Officials left one after another.
"Ming Gong, it seems that the resistance is not small."
Yan Zhong accompanied Dong Zhuo to the backyard, and said on the way: "But Shangshu Ling also said that the late emperor's edict is true, and we can make an issue out of it."
Li Ru said: "In my opinion, we should cut the knot quickly, abolish Jinshang directly in the palace, and kill the He family. Then the matter is settled."
Dong Zhuo quickly came to the back garden, climbed up to the high platform in the garden, and looked at the officials leaving in the distance. Suddenly he saw a man leaping on a horse and holding a halberd, galloping back and forth outside the garden gate. He also saw two other strong men galloping on horseback.
Go and ask Yan Zhong and Li Rudao: "Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are very brave, but it's a pity that they can't be used by me. Who is that person?"
Li Ru thought for a while and said: "This is a subordinate of Ding Yuan. His surname is Lu, his given name is Bu, and his courtesy name is Fengxian."
Dong Zhuo sighed: "Although Liu Bei has been transferred away, Ding Yuan, Qiao Mao and others are still there, and Yuan Shao's troops are still there. Luoyang is still not in control of me. How can I cut through the mess with a sword? If I directly depose the emperor in the palace
, they will definitely attack in groups, but if Lu Bu can help me, why should I be afraid of these young people?"
It is not impossible to directly depose the emperor.
After all, the current commander of the imperial army in the palace is Dong Cheng, the nephew of the Empress Dowager. The father of Dong Guiren is naturally willing to side with the Empress Dowager.
But it is easy to depose the emperor, but it is hard to say what risks he will bear later. If a group of ministers are unwilling and Ding Yuan, Qiao Mao, and Yuan Shao lead their troops to attack, it is hard to say whether he can withstand it. Therefore, at this time, Dong Zhuo has already taken Lu Bu's idea