Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 330 The imperial commander’s personal expedition
The three ministers, represented by Minister of Works Cui Lie, expressed their support for war. Minister of the Imperial Clan Liu Yu and Minister of Agriculture Cao Song, two closely related ministers, also followed suit. Liu Bian's gaze slowly swept across the faces of the officials of the Secretariat and the three departments. He needed all the core departments to make a clear statement.

As a member of the Han imperial family, Minister of the Imperial Secretariat Liu Tao naturally advocated for war, stating that the court had sufficient legal grounds and righteousness to punish all criminals who attempted to disrupt peace, and that it had the absolute strength and will to overwhelm all enemies who attempted to divide the Han Dynasty.

Fu Wan, the head of the three departments and the General of the Five Offices, was not a person with his own opinions. As a relative of the emperor, he knew that at this moment, the only thing to do was to follow the emperor's will, so he bowed and seconded the proposal.

As for the officials of the Imperial Secretariat?
As close attendants to the emperor, they acted according to the emperor's wishes and could almost be seen as a direct extension of the emperor's will.

All the senior officials of the court advocated war, and the atmosphere in the hall became solemn. It was time to formulate specific strategies.

Before discussing military strategy, Huangfu Song rose from his seat, his armor creaking softly. After bowing respectfully, he said urgently, "My country, I beg..."

But before Huangfu Song could finish speaking, Liu Bian raised his hand to interrupt him, saying in a deep voice, "This time, I will personally lead the expedition!"

Upon hearing this, Huangfu Song visibly paused, his face filled with astonishment. Almost instinctively, he clasped his hands in salute again and said, "Why should the nation risk its own lives for a few clowns? I am willing to be the vanguard for the nation and present the captives to the palace!"

He was really anxious!

Although the leisurely days of playing with his grandchildren and inspecting the central army's drills every few days were pleasant, this veteran general had long since grown weary of them.

Previously, when it was proposed to conquer the southern region, the region was plagued by miasma. The emperor, pitying his advanced age, could not bear to see him suffer from the miasma, so he did not allow him to lead the troops. He accepted the emperor's good intentions.

To suppress the Black Mountain bandits, the emperor again used the excuse of "using a sledgehammer to crack a nut" to send Dong Zhuo to Ji Province.

Currently, besides him, Lu Zhi is the only one in the court capable of commanding the entire army.

It is conceivable that the emperor will not allow Lu Zhi to easily command troops again. A prime minister with real power but no official title already wields considerable influence; to gain military power would not be a blessing for a subject.

Lu Zhi was also a smart man, and to avoid suspicion, he would never compete for the position of commander-in-chief.

With the opportunity seemingly within reach, how could the emperor possibly decide to personally lead the army?

Before Huangfu Song could argue again, the three dukes and nine ministers all changed color, and the opposition in the hall was already boiling.

Grand Commandant Yuan Pang narrowed his eyes slightly, stroked his long beard, and advised in a deep voice, "In the realm, swords and spears have no eyes on the battlefield, and stray arrows are hard to guard against. Even a son of a noble family would not sit under a dangerous roof, let alone Your Majesty, who is the most honored person in the land. How can you put yourself in such danger?"

"Why would the emperor personally lead an expedition against a disease as minor as scabies!"

"The nation should think thrice; the Emperor should refrain from personally going out!"

The voices of advice rose and fell, and the crowd was in an uproar, but Liu Bian remained seated on his throne, listening calmly without rushing to respond to the ministers' advice.

Even emperors like the Second Emperor, the Third Emperor, and the Fourth Emperor, who rose to power through military conquest, would inevitably face unanimous opposition from their ministers if they wanted to personally lead an expedition after consolidating their rule.

The emperor who ruled the country and the emperor who conquered it cannot be compared. An emperor who won every battle when conquering the country would accelerate the unification of the country.

However, when an emperor is ruling the country, any mishap could shake the foundations of the nation. Even a simple illness during a military campaign could demoralize the army and even lead to the disintegration of the empire.

Therefore, regardless of whether they genuinely opposed the emperor's personal command of the expedition, even if the ministers did not believe that Liu Chong was capable of defeating the emperor, nor did they believe that the emperor was reckless enough to risk his life on the front lines, as ministers, opposing the emperor's personal command of the expedition was absolutely politically correct.

What, you're so eager for the Emperor to personally lead the expedition, could it be that you're colluding with traitors, plotting to assassinate the Emperor from within and without?
At the very least, it would inevitably lead to accusations of disloyalty to the emperor.

After the clamor of the ministers subsided, Liu Bian raised his hand and gently pressed it down, signaling everyone to be quiet.

With just a simple gesture, he conveyed the power he had accumulated over the years, quickly silencing the hall.

"Alright, stop with your act." Liu Bian's gaze slowly swept over the assembled officials, he waved his hand, and said loudly, "My personal expedition this time is not for war, but for inspecting the local areas."

"How can the emperor truly govern the country if he is confined within the high walls of the capital all day long? I want to take advantage of the military campaign to see with my own eyes the actual situation in the counties and prefectures we pass through, observe the hardships of the people, and understand the truth that I can never see in my memorials."

The emperors of the Liu family have a long tradition of inspecting local areas. Emperors Xiaowu and Xiaoxuan of the Former Han Dynasty both inspected local areas several times to strengthen imperial power.

Since the restoration of the Later Han Dynasty, Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty also made several inspection tours to crack down on powerful local clans.

Emperor Xiaoming also toured Chang'an, offered sacrifices at the Former Han Dynasty Mausoleum Temple, summoned the elders of Guanzhong to appease the people of Guanzhong, and toured the Xingyang area to inspect the Yellow River dikes that were troubling the court at the time.

Emperor Xiaozhang also visited Mount Tai to offer sacrifices and went to Qufu in Lu to worship Confucius. During the Later Han dynasty, unless the emperors were still young children, they would invariably make tours of the region, at least inspecting the area around Luoyang.

Liu Bian also wanted to take advantage of this personal expedition to inspect the counties and prefectures along the way.

However, since he was leading troops on an inspection tour, Liu Bian naturally had some things to do, but there was no need to inform the court officials about them.

"Just like the old campaign against the Yellow Turbans, I will personally lead the expedition as the commander-in-chief, with General Dian Junming of the Left Guard leading ten thousand men of the Left Guard to protect me. Grand Commandant will accompany me on a leisurely inspection of the region." Liu Bian rested his left hand on the table, his fingertips lightly touching his chin, while his right hand rhythmically tapped the table, making a soft tapping sound. He said, "Lord Yizhen will act as the commander-in-chief in his capacity as deputy commander-in-chief. He will be temporarily granted the 'Hanxing Sword' and will command ten thousand men of the Right Guard, six thousand men of the Central Fortress, six thousand men of the Guerrilla Battalion, and six thousand men of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion as the Central Protector of the Army. As for how many good men from good families need to be recruited as soldiers and auxiliary soldiers, and how much grain and laborers need to be allocated, these specific matters will be discussed and decided by you ministers."

After speaking, Liu Bian spread his hands, leaned back slightly on the jade table, and actually showed a leisurely and detached expression. He delegated power to the ministers, picked up the glass of chilled plum juice on the table, and took a leisurely sip.

His calm and composed demeanor made it seem as if the impending battle had nothing to do with him.

But the emperor's behavior surprised the court officials.

It was thought that the emperor was young and impetuous, and that the country had been well-governed for the past two years, so he might have developed some ambition and desire for quick success. But now it seems that they were just overthinking it. The country seems to be truly interested in the imperial tour, rather than in indulging in momentary bravado.

However, it wasn't that Liu Bian had no ideas; it's just that a person should have self-awareness.

He's not some emperor who calls himself a gatekeeper. Since he doesn't understand military affairs, he should learn from the Holy Grandson and not interfere easily. Anyway, the generals commanded well and returned in triumph, so the emperor's military prowess still belongs to him.

Yuan Pang frowned slightly, still harboring some doubts.

The emperor wanted him to accompany him, but instead of letting him go to the front lines with Huangfu Song, he kept him by his side.

The influence of the Yuan family in Chen State is no less than that of the Yuan family in Runan County back then. If he, the head of the Yuan family in Chen State, were to step forward, many things might be twice as effective with half the effort.

Many people would even be willing to surrender with courtesy, or at least lead their clansmen as guides for the army. So why did the emperor insist on keeping him by his side?

Could there be a deeper meaning?

Yuan Pang glanced at the emperor, who was calmly drinking his soup, and finally suppressed his questions.

Well then, their emperor is always very opinionated, and since he has made a decision, he will comply.

As Yuan Pang pondered, the hall fell into a brief silence as everyone considered their next move.

Suddenly, Situ Liu Yan turned to Huangfu Song and asked in a somewhat probing tone, "Yizhen, tell me frankly, what is the current fighting strength of the central army?"

Huangfu Song was secretly frustrated that he could only be the deputy commander. When he heard Liu Yan question the fighting strength of the central army, it was as if his sore spot had been touched. He was immediately displeased and frowned. He replied, "The central army was personally trained by me, Dong Zhongying and Lu Zigan. We practiced battle formations every day. I dare not claim that one can take on ten, but without more than 30,000 good men, the 10,000 elite soldiers of the Left Guard Battalion would have no chance of fighting against them in open battle!"

Liu Yan was skeptical. He was not a military expert, hence the question, but he felt that Huangfu Song was exaggerating and that his words were too protective of the central army. His gaze involuntarily turned to Lu Zhi and Yuan Pang, who were knowledgeable in military affairs.

Lu Zhi, one of the three leaders, merely nodded slightly, not daring to boast.

As the Grand Commandant, Yuan Pang was nominally the head of the military officers, and he naturally inspected the central army's drills from time to time. He had also read the battle reports of the central army's several bandit suppression operations. After stroking his beard and pondering for a moment, he nodded to Liu Yan and said, "The elite troops in the world can be compared with the elite soldiers of Qin... no, their level of eliteness is even higher than that of the elite soldiers of Qin in the past."

Even though the Qin elite troops were a formidable force, it was due to Qin's military meritocracy and the Qin people's innate bravery. However, every soldier in this central army was armed from head to toe, almost to the teeth.

The food provided to the central army was unprecedented, with meat, eggs, and dairy products all available.

The lowest-ranking soldiers were paid military pay according to the rank of 200 shi (a unit of grain measure) of an official, and were also rewarded with land and houses, as well as subsidies for their families. They received special favors during festivals, and their children were given priority to be admitted to the Hongdu Gate School.

The equipment, the benefits, and the training were all unprecedented.

If the army hadn't been funded from the emperor's private treasury, the court's finances would have been completely ruined by such a formidable force.

But it must be said that this is also the army that all generals and soldiers dream of the most. Such a powerful, absolutely loyal, and strictly obedient force can give full play to a general's military command ability!

With such an unprecedentedly powerful army, unless the commander-in-chief was also an unprecedentedly incompetent fool, Yuan Pang really couldn't imagine how he could possibly lose the campaign against Chen.

As for the emperor's safety?
If the rebel army manages to break through the vanguard and reach the imperial camp, then Huangfu Song will have no face to face the world. He might as well just commit suicide in the central command tent!
(3015 words)
(End of this chapter)