Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 350 A Monkey in a Crown
On the thirteenth day of the eighth month of the second year of the Han Dynasty, the capital of the State of Chen was established.

The two characters "Wanqiu," outlined in heavy gold powder, landed on the brand-new, almost blindingly bright plaque atop the city wall, gleaming brightly yet exuding a stark, jarring effect.

This name is unfamiliar to the local people, who have been born and raised here for generations. When introducing their hometown to outsiders, they will proudly tell them that it is called "Chen"!
Three thousand years ago, Emperor Yan Shennong established his capital here and renamed it "Chen".

During the Xia dynasty, it belonged to the territory of Yuzhou.

In the early Western Zhou Dynasty, the State of Chen was established, governing 13 towns. In the late Spring and Autumn Period (479 BC), the State of Chu conquered Chen and reduced it to a county, thus beginning the county's name.

During the Qin Dynasty, Chen County was established, marking the beginning of the basic county-level administrative divisions. Initially, it belonged to Yingchuan Commandery, and later to Chen Commandery.

In the first year of the Second Emperor's reign (209 BC), Chen Sheng raised an army in rebellion, established his capital in Chen, and called himself "Zhang Chu".

In the seventh year of Emperor Gaozu (200 BC), Huaiyang Prefecture was established.

In the eleventh year of Emperor Gaozu (196 BC), Huaiyang State was established, and Chen County was under its jurisdiction, which was under the jurisdiction of Yanzhou.

During the Xin Dynasty, Huaiyang State was renamed Xinping, and Chen County was renamed Chenling, and it belonged to Yanzhou.

During the Later Han Dynasty, Emperor Xiaoming renamed Xinping as the State of Chen, and Chen County was placed under its jurisdiction, which was then under the administration of the Governor of Yuzhou.

This city has been called "Chen" for almost generations.

After the wise King Chen raised the banner of rebellion, he posted notices to abolish the name "Chen" which had been used for three thousand years. He also invoked the name of an ancient sage king and told the people on the city wall that "Wanqiu" was the original name of this place.

Six thousand years ago, three thousand years before Emperor Yan Shennong, Taihao Fuxi established his capital here, named it "Wanqiu," and is now buried in Wanqiu. (Note 1)

The people could not understand why the wise King Chen, after raising an army, would abandon this name and instead use the more ancient but unfamiliar name "Wanqiu".

But in Liu Chong’s view, he only wanted to emulate Taihao, inherit his virtues, and aspire to take Taihao, a sage ruler who benefited all people, as his model, so that the world would be well-governed and the people would no longer be ravaged by tyrannical and incompetent rulers!

Those with discernment could see what this Prince Chen was trying to do. Liu Chong's actions were nothing more than an attempt to clothe his treasonous behavior in a sacred and orthodox guise, as if in doing so he could be ranked alongside the ancient sage kings.

Below the city gate, the Chen soldiers, separated from each other and gathered in one place, mostly wore expressions of amusement, or even made no attempt to hide the contempt in their eyes.

They were indeed scholars from the State of Chen, but the State of Chen was merely a prefecture-level administrative region of the Han Dynasty, not a state-owned entity of any particular vassal state.

Although they had once admired Liu Chong, who was indeed a wise king who cared for the people and revered Confucianism, some of them were even willing to bet on him to gain favor with the emperor.

However, Liu Chong's actions are now extremely clumsy. For example, his renaming of "Chen County" to "Wanqiu" has not earned him any respect among aristocratic families and scholars, but has instead drawn sharp ridicule.

Xie Zhongyong, the head of the Xie clan of Chen, raised his wide sleeves to half-cover his face, turned to his friend Ying Rong beside him, and said in a low voice with sarcasm: "Brother Ziyan (Ying Rong), if this man simply changed his name to 'Chen Du,' I might think more highly of him. To abandon the foundation of 'Chen' that has lasted for three thousand years and actually try to curry favor with Taihao is truly foolish." (Note 2)

Xie Zhongyong shook his head as he spoke, a cold smile playing on his lips.

Ying Rong shook his head slightly, his gaze sweeping over the guarded soldiers on both sides. He really couldn't understand the King of Chen's inexplicable actions, and only hoped that the imperial army could recover the Chen Kingdom as soon as possible.

Ying Rong was a direct disciple of Yang Ci, but instead of inheriting Yang Ci's "Ouyang Shangshu," he forged his own path, making significant contributions to the "Zuo Zhuan" of the ancient literature school. He authored "Chunqiu Zuozhuan Tiaolie" (Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals of Zuo), a work of over 50,000 words. Several months earlier, Zheng Xuan, the Minister of Ceremonies, had read it and greatly praised it, saying, "Ying Rong has thoroughly inherited the learning of the Former Han Dynasty; I am no match for him." However, Ying Rong refused all summons from the court, choosing instead to live in seclusion and pursue his studies. More than three hundred scholars traveled to Changping in the State of Chen to study "Zuo Zhuan" under Ying Rong's tutelage. Therefore, before Liu Chong raised the banner of rebellion, he forcibly "invited" this renowned scholar, Ying Rong, to Chen County as a guest.

Before being summoned by Liu Chong to hear the announcement, Ying Rong had just been drinking with Xie Zhongyong at the residence. After a few cups of wine, the effects of the alcohol had not yet worn off.

Already harboring resentment for being forcibly "invited," Xie Zhongyong's words only intensified his anger. He couldn't help but lower his voice and reply, "Imitating Taihao? Taihao made nets, taught farming and fishing, established marriage rites, and educated the people with benevolence and virtue. Which one is this imitating? Is he imitating raising an army to rebel and driving the people like dogs and horses?"

A scholar on the other side of Ying Rong sneered, his words sharp and his eyes full of disdain: "In the past, Lord Ye loved dragons, but when a real dragon looked down, Lord Ye was terrified and ran away. Now, King Chen loves antiquity and talks extravagantly about the virtues of a sage ruler. Does he really have the benevolence of a sage king? I'm afraid he's just trying to draw a tiger but ending up with a dog, only to become a laughingstock!"

The person who compared Liu Chong to Lord Ye (who loved dragons but was terrified of them) was named Yu Yi.

His father was Yu Xu, who opposed abandoning Liangzhou and used the strategy of increasing the number of cooking fires to defeat the Qiang army, and who successively served as the Commandant of the Capital, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.

Yu Yi was the eldest son. His younger brother, Yu Gong, was the current governor of Shangdang County, but he himself was devoted to classical studies and never took office. Like Ying Rong, he was a "guest" who was "invited" from his home in Wuping County of Chen State.

Seeing that his two friends had such opinions, Xie Zhongyong, fueled by the alcohol, also scoffed, "It's nothing but a monkey in a crown. No matter how loudly you proclaim your name, can you change the world or alter the divine artifact?"

Although the group tried their best to keep their voices down, the scholars around them all heard their conversation, but none of them intended to report it, not even the scions of the powerful families who had sponsored Liu Chong.

These whispers, like an undercurrent, quietly flowed through the so-called "Wanqiu" city.

By now, who can't see the odds of Liu Chong's uprising succeeding?
Just over a month and six days after the imperial court dispatched troops, the situation in the Chen Kingdom deteriorated rapidly.

Initially, the Chen rebels captured Xinji County in Yingchuan Commandery, but were blocked at Xu County and encountered Lü Bu's elite cavalry.

On the western front, Guan Hai's 30,000-strong army was nearly wiped out by Lü Bu's 6,000 armored cavalry. General Gao Shun of the Central Fortress led a large army to the rear, and after recapturing Xinji, quickly captured Zheqiu City and Changping County, important western towns of Chen.

On the southern battlefield, Jia Xu, the Attendant-in-Ordinary and Acting General of the Imperial Guard, led the troops of Yanzhou and supervised Xun Yu, the Chancellor of Jibei, to seize Xiang County, while Tian Feng, the Chancellor of Pei, captured Ningping.

On the eastern battlefield, Wang Yun, the governor of Yuzhou, led Ju Shou, the chancellor of Lu, to defeat Wuping, and ordered Chen Gong, the chancellor of Liang, to capture Ku County.

On the northern front, General Huangfu Song, whose route was the most valued by the Chen state, did not make as good progress as the other three routes. He only captured Fule and was attacking Yangxia, a formidable city that was difficult to attack and put up a stubborn resistance.

But what alarmed Liu Chong the most was not the unfavorable situation of the war, but the rapid fall of several cities that had been captured. This was because the Embroidered Uniform Guard had acted as an inside agent to open the city gates or burn down the granaries inside the city, which showed just how much planning and preparation the young emperor in the court had made in advance.

Therefore, this Prince Chen, who claimed to be emulating Taihao, immediately declared martial law throughout the city, searched for and arrested the Embroidered-Clothed Secret Agents within the city, and forbade ordinary people from walking outside, otherwise they would be treated as spies!

(2311 words)
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Note 1: Before the Xin Dynasty, Taihao and Fuxi were not the same person.

Because of the prevalence of the "Five Elements Theory" and "Apocryphal Texts and Theology," Liu Xin, a great Confucian scholar from the ancient literature school, constructed a complete imperial lineage that conformed to the generating order of the Five Elements in order to provide a reasonable basis for Wang Mang's usurpation. Therefore, he combined Taihao and Fuxi into one.

Note 2: Xie Zhongyong was Xie Xuan's sixth-generation ancestor.

Xie Yu - Xie Anzhen - Xie Zhongyong - Xie Jingjun - Xie Zuan (214-282) - Xie Heng - Xie Pou - Xie Yi - Xie Xuan
(End of this chapter)