Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 334 Liu Chong: I am here by imperial decree to punish the traitors!

The tenth day of the seventh month in the second year of the Han Dynasty.

As the news of the emperor's personal expedition spread far and wide through the "Great Han Gazette," the entire Chen Kingdom was shaken and filled with apprehension.

Despite having made ample mental preparations and been working diligently to prepare for war, those who have not yet left are well aware that since the emperor intends to find a pretext for war, he will never let this matter end halfway or be taken lightly.

But no one expected that the emperor himself would lead the army into battle.

However, Liu Chong had been managing the Chen Kingdom for many years, so he was not without preparation.

Liu Chong immediately sent out a proclamation, which had been carefully compiled by a group of trusted scholars, to all directions, denouncing the wicked traitor who imprisoned his father, killed his brother, and forced Liu Hong to abdicate the throne.

The proclamation also detailed Liu Bian's many "crimes," such as mistreating scholars, mass emigration, ravaging the people, and waging numerous wars. Every word was sharp and scathing, and Liu Bian was also accused of being a disloyal, unfilial, unrighteous, and traitorous rebel.

Finally, Liu Chong solemnly produced a blood edict, claiming that it was a "secret edict" written in blood by the retired Emperor Liu Hong, who bit his finger, and that he was raising troops to punish the rebels in accordance with the "secret edict"!
The methods are exactly the same, the only difference being that one is real and the other is fake.

The "blood-stained edict" presented by Liu Chong was obviously a fake; even if it were real, it would still be fake, let alone the fact that it was fake in the first place.

How could Liu Hong not know whether he bit his finger or lost his clothes by stepping on the wrong answers of his "descendants"?

Moreover, Liu Hong was even more excited than Liu Bian about launching a military campaign against Liu Chong.

Liu Chong had occupied the State of Chen for many years and had long since turned it into an independent kingdom, so much so that even the central court could hardly interfere in its internal affairs.

In the second year of the Xiping era (173 AD), Chen Guoxiang Shi Qian reported that the former Chen Guoxiang Wei Yin and Liu Chong had jointly offered sacrifices to the gods of heaven with illegal intentions, which was a crime of treason.

The ministers suggested that an envoy be sent to investigate the matter. At that time, Liu Hong had just punished Liu Kui, the Prince of Bohai, who had plotted rebellion, and it was inconvenient to deal with Liu Chong. So he ordered that the former Chancellor of Chen, Wei Yin, and the current Chancellor of Chen, Shi Qian, be transported to the Northern Temple Prison in a cage, and sent the eunuch Wang Pu, along with the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, the Imperial Censor, and others, to interrogate them.

Wei Yin claimed that he and Liu Chong were jointly worshipping Huang Laojun only to seek the blessing of longevity, and had no other intentions.

To avoid bearing the infamy of slaughtering members of the royal family, Wei Yin was ultimately accused of having a duty to correct the behavior of the vassal kings, but instead his behavior was improper and led King Liu Chong of Chen astray. Shi Qian falsely accused the vassal kings and deceived the king with immoral acts, so both were executed, and no punishment was imposed on Liu Chong.

Liu Chong did many things afterward, but the court at that time was powerless to deal with him. Therefore, Liu Hong tolerated Liu Chong in every way, and harbored a lot of resentment for many years.

If Liu Hong knew that Liu Chong had fabricated such a lie, he would probably want to personally lead an expedition with Liu Bian to quell the rebellion.

As expected, Liu Hong, upon hearing this in the Chongde Hall of the North Palace, flew into a rage, cursing Liu Chong and insulting Liu Chong's great-grandmother, grandmother, mother, and wives and concubines!

As for their great-great-grandmothers, they cannot be insulted, as they are their common female ancestors.

In a fit of rage, Liu Hong smashed and destroyed objects in the palace, leaving the hall in a mess. The eunuchs and palace maids trembled with fear, but none of them dared to step forward to stop him.

Even General Zhu Miao, who had taken on the duty of guarding the Jiade Hall since the day the emperor personally led the expedition, merely stood outside the hall with his hand on his sword, coldly watching Liu Hong's every move.

Moreover, the eyes that were fixed on Liu Hong showed no reverence for the retired emperor, only vigilance and wariness.

The only person qualified to advise or even rebuke Liu Hong, Empress Dowager He, was not in Chongde Hall at this time, but in the adjacent Empress Dowager's palace, Deyang Hall, reviewing memorials. With the emperor personally leading the expedition, the most honorable "ruler" in Luoyang City was undoubtedly the Emperor Dowager in the Northern Palace.

However, Liu Bian had already made meticulous arrangements before setting off.

Despite some repair of his relationship with Liu Hong, Liu Bian would never let down his guard against this "good father" throughout his life.

He launched the palace coup at the age of thirteen, but it should be noted that his "good father" had already carried out a real bloody palace coup at the age of twelve, with his wet nurse and eunuchs, and even personally led the charge with a sword. It was a palace coup that truly involved the army, rather than the kind of offensive that Liu Bian did.

To guard against Liu Hong's unrest and to ensure stability in the rear, Liu Bian invited Empress Dowager He to come out and rule as regent, and appointed Grand Tutor Lu Zhi to assist in governing, with the Three Dukes, Nine Ministers, and various government offices serving as his assistants.

This was the regency system that Liu Bian discussed and decided upon with Empress He, Lu Zhi, and others before he personally led the expedition.

It was a common practice in the Han Dynasty for empress dowagers to rule as regents. Although Empress He was the empress dowager and the emperor was young, strong, and healthy, no one could refute her rule as regent in place of the emperor.

The reason why Empress He was chosen to oversee the country instead of Lu Zhi was not because Liu Bian did not trust Lu Zhi's loyalty and ability, but because the precedent of ministers overseeing the country could not be easily set.

A capable and ambitious emperor is a powerful emperor who concentrates power in his own hands and implements national policies that are opposed by his ministers.

If power is distributed to ministers, the reason must be that one of the successor's age, ability, or temperament causes the successor to lose the trust of the aging emperor, thus forcing the emperor to distribute power to ministers in order to enhance the country's ability to withstand risks.

Therefore, Empress He was the best candidate to act as regent.

However, even though Empress He was acting as regent on behalf of the emperor, she was still subject to Lu Zhi's control. In fact, Liu Bian secretly gave Lu Zhi an edict that could veto Empress He's decisions.

Liu Bian fully trusted any empress. If even his own mother wanted to harm him, how many people in the world could he trust?
However, Empress He's ability to govern the country is ultimately questionable.

However, Empress He in this life may not be lacking in ability. Liu Bian's concern lies more in her lack of experience in governing personally.

It wasn't just the change in her mindset caused by not having to worry about Liu Bian's throne, but also because Empress He had taken control of the review and compilation of the "Daily Records" since Liu Bian's palace coup more than three years ago.

Why did the empresses of the Later Han Dynasty, regardless of their background, mostly possess a certain level of political ability, and when faced with a young ruler and a suspicious state, they were able to rule from behind the throne, demonstrating that their political skills were generally not bad, or at least of average ability?

It is precisely because of the right to review and compile this "Daily Records of the Emperor's Activities" that this book is so important.

The novel historical record, the "Daily Record of the Emperor's Reign," was created by Empress Ma of Emperor Xiaoming. After Emperor Xiaozhang ascended the throne, she ruled as regent and personally wrote the "Daily Record of Emperor Xianzong."

The daily records of the emperor in the Later Han Dynasty differed from those of later dynasties. After the accompanying historians wrote the records, the empress dowager could not only read them, but they also had to be reviewed by the empress dowager or empress. The empress dowager or empress could also make deletions and modifications to the records, removing sensitive content that was not suitable for inclusion in the historical records.

This "Daily Records of the Emperor's Activities" is like a thick package of political experience; as long as one is not too stupid, one can grow into a qualified political being by reading it.

Before Liu Bian's palace coup, the "Daily Records" were in the hands of Empress Dowager Dong, but with the change of power, Empress He controlled the "Daily Records" for more than three years.

Empress He often consulted the "Daily Records of the Emperor's Activities." Based on the records of Liu Hong and Liu Bian's words and deeds during their governance, and with the political direction given by Liu Bian and the assistance of the opinions and replies from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, she was able to handle most of the memorials according to Xiao Gui Cao's methods.

(2217 words)
(End of this chapter)