The eighteenth year of Yanxing is destined to be an extraordinary year. No one could have expected that in just one year, several important figures in the world would die. Starting from Gongsun Kang, the governor of Liaodong, to Xu Huang and Jia Xu, the veteran generals of the Western Dynasty, to the current emperor Liu Xie, and the Mu Sun Ce of Yangzhou, it is clear that Chi County in China will undergo earth-shaking changes.
The first was Cao Cao of the Eastern Dynasty. After besieging Xiangping for three months, he finally broke into the city at the end of April, and then sent his troops south to conquer the counties of Lelang and Daifang. At this point, all the old territories of the Gongsun family in Liaodong were occupied by Cao Cao. Cao Cao counted the household registrations and found that there were 170,000 households and 870,000 people. So Pingzhou was established, and the eldest son Cao Pi was appointed as the pastor of Pingzhou. He also threatened Goguryeo, Fuyu and other countries to send envoys to pay tribute. This caused a sensation in the northern country, and even under the Yunbei Changshi Mansion, some tribes began to waver.
But this was not without cost. By the time Cao Cao returned to Yecheng in August, the people in Anyang, Changle, and Dangyin counties had been moved away by Liu Bei. All the counties in Hanoi that he originally occupied had also been lost, with a loss of nearly 200,000 Dingkou. The sacred land of Hebei was reduced to a white land for a while. And Liu Bei also built a new city between Dangyin and Yecheng, named Zhaochang City. It was like a poisonous thorn inserted into the heart of the Eastern Dynasty, which made people feel like they were stuck in the throat. However, after half a year of fighting, the Eastern Army is already exhausted, and it is not appropriate to start another border provocation at the moment. Therefore, after Cao Cao strengthened the defense of Yecheng, he temporarily moved north and rested in the Handan area.
In Yangzhou, the news of Sun Ce's assassination quickly caused turmoil. Since Sun Ce had not determined his heir before his death, and Sun Quan and Sun Shao both led troops outside, Chai Sang fell into great chaos. Not only did he fail to catch the assassin Liu A large number of scholars even fled back to their hometowns, and bandits in the two states sprang up. The Yunmengshui thieves who had been recruited by Sun Ce before, such as Zu Cai, Liu Pei and others, now also took advantage of the situation to cause chaos and recruited soldiers and civilians, as if they were a gangster. Character.
Sun Quan, who was at Ruyin City, received the news first. At the suggestion of his aide Zhuge Jin, he temporarily handed command of the army to Deng Dang and Lu Meng, and ordered them to retreat slowly after withdrawing from the siege, while he and more than a hundred of his trusted associates rode southward. He crossed the Dabie Mountains via Anfeng and Longshu, and then took a boat across Penglize to Chaisang. The round trip took only twenty days. But Sun Shao was in Jiaozhou, and even the messenger who responded was nowhere to be seen. Seeing this situation, Sun Quan couldn't help but smile to his friend Zhu Ran and said: "The sky is high and the sky is so far away that I can't reach it!"
After visiting his mother Wu, Sun Quan immediately contacted Zhang Zhao, Zhu Zhi, Lu Su and others, and hosted all the state government staff to attend Sun Ce's funeral. On that day, Sun Quan was wearing a white crown and was weeping endlessly. Those who saw him couldn't bear to look up at him in grief. After the meeting, Sun Quan summoned the officials of the state capital and chopped off the eucalyptus with his sword. He threatened to avenge his brother and said that he would march westward in the near future. At the same time, in the name of Yangzhou Prefecture, an edict was issued to Zhou Yu of Xiling, ordering him to go and exterminate the water thieves in eastern Hunan. With all these measures, Sun Quan has completely taken control of the Yangzhou capital, but it is still unknown whether he can be recognized by Sun Shao and the county officials.
But compared to the rapidly changing situations in the east and south, the problems faced by the Western Dynasty attracted more attention. Before Chen Chong left Chang'an, he thought that with Zhong Yao in charge of the overall situation, Xijing would be generally fine. When the clinker returned, all the emperor's family had died, and no bones were left. Although it was publicized to the outside world that the emperor abdicated the throne and went into seclusion, and completed the abdication edict afterwards, the speculation in the court was difficult to suppress, which was unbearable.
Liu Bei returned to Beijing twenty days earlier than Chen Chong. After understanding the details with Duan Xuan, he was shocked by his eldest son's self-assertion. He imprisoned him at home and deprived him of food for several days. Even when Chen Qun and Zhong Yao came to plead for mercy, he was not bothered. Moved, he said to Chen Qun: "This kid doesn't know pain. He wants to harm others, but he doesn't know how to repent. If we don't let him remember today, what will happen in the future?"
On the fifth day of the hunger strike, when Liu Xie was so hungry that it was difficult to even stand up, Liu Bei made him drink gruel and sleep again. When Liu Xie woke up again and was called to the hall by Liu Bei, he found that many Bafu aides were sitting at the table. Famous people such as Xun You, Chen Deng, Qian Zhao, Zhong Yao, Zhuge Liang and others were all here. Obviously There's something important to announce.
Liu Bei sat on the chairman's chair, and asked Liu Xie to kneel in the middle of the hall, and then said to everyone: "I have been a soldier all my life, so I can be said to be an old revolutionary, but I am ashamed to say that although I am experienced in military use, I am not as good as Cao Cao. Why can I have Today? It’s nothing more than eight words: tolerant and tolerant, and benevolent to love the people. Even though there are many unbearable things on the battlefield, we must ask ourselves that we are worthy of the common people of Li and all directions."
After hearing this, everyone was in awe. Liu Xie's face was solemn and he made no statement in the audience.
Liu Bei stared at his son again and said: "But this is not my nature to love people. Your father has poor moral character and loves fame and wealth! But he also knows the principle of a million people uniting as one and uniting as one. You are so cruel to subordinates and stop playing politics. It's me." If the discipline is not good, what will happen if you become an emperor in the future and govern the country and mourn the people?"
After saying that, he stepped down from the chair and asked Liu Xie to stretch out his left hand. He suddenly drew his sword and quickly chopped off his son's little finger with his sword. Liu Xie couldn't help but trembled with severe pain, and blood flowed out instantly. The surrounding staff were even more frightened and hurriedly stepped forward to stop Liu Bei.
But Liu Bei pushed away the others and pointed his long sword at Liu Xie with blood still dripping from the tip of the sword. He heard him sigh: "You were born to be rich and powerful, extremely talented, and now you have come to power too early. You are born perfect. I don't know." Suffering. Today I will let you all witness and cut off your finger to let you know how it feels to be disabled and painful. When you make decisions in the future, just think about the pain today!"
After saying that, Liu Bei waved his hand for everyone to go out, and then bandaged Liu Xie's injury with his own hands. The two of them were speechless for a long time. Then Liu Bei took people to pay homage to Xu Huang, sprinkled wine in the mourning hall and said, "Good man, if you are born again one day, I am willing to wear a ring for you."
But the matter is over, and people cannot be resurrected after death. The Western Dynasty must reaffirm its righteousness under a new name. After Chen Chong returned to Beijing, the matter of Liu Bei proclaiming himself emperor was quickly put on the agenda. Since Liu Xie's life and death were not yet known, it was difficult to directly pursue the posthumous title. There were no preparations to build an imperial mausoleum before, so the court quickly ignored the matter. However, he decided to follow Guangwu's example and directly elect Liu Bei to be emperor.
In September of that year, Ma Teng, the general who conquered the west, and Han Sui, the general who suppressed the west, expressed their opinions to the Bafu: "Now that the late emperor is living in seclusion, the world is without a master, bandits are everywhere, and the people are in ruins. If a saint rises up to inherit my teachings, even if he is Zhongni As the prime minister, and the grandson as the general, I am afraid that I will be incompetent and useful. I will rebel and regret it too much. Although the king is humble and retreats, where is the ancestral temple and the country? It is appropriate to honor the position, but to discuss the conquest. Now who is the thief and rushes to attack it? Huh?" Liu Bei refused.
In October, all the generals in the four prefectures jointly reported: "The king and Prime Minister Chen took the lead in raising righteous soldiers to assist the late emperor on the left. However, the late emperor could not flatter the general government and disrupted the rule of law. As a result, there were more thieves and the people were in danger. The king's first campaign After Guanlong, Dong Zhuo was discouraged; after defeating Guo and Li, Xizhou was defeated; now one of the two parts of the world, occupying territory across states, and carrying millions of armors, is the merit of a great king. If you talk about force, no one dares to resist, but on virtue I have nothing to say. I heard that the emperor cannot stay in the open for a long time, and the destiny cannot be humbly rejected. However, the king takes the country as his plan and all the people as his heart." Liu Bei said goodbye again.
Then the Sili Mansion once again made a statement saying: "Only the king obeys the wise principles, assists the royal family, and shines with virtue all over the world. The gods above and below Geer will not obey, the earth will be leveled, and the sky will be established, and all the countries will be united. Should be ordered by God to cooperate Among the emperors. Only the king's virtues and models are far-reaching, his honors last for generations, he only inherits the order of heaven, and respects the great position. He bows to the king every time. God holds it, and the heavenly fortune will last forever. In the play! Wang Qiqin obeys the destiny. He follows the training code, The four kingdoms of Disui and Sui are used to protect the prosperity of Ji, and they are worthy of the generosity of the second ancestor." Liu Bei said.
So he ordered a minister to set up a mandala in the ancestral temple. On Gengwu in the eleventh month, Liu Bei, the acting king, ascended the throne as emperor. Raise fire to the sky, offer sacrifices to ancestors, and look to the gods. The congratulatory article said: "The emperor and the god of heaven, and the gods of the later earth, have been ordered to give orders. They belong to Bei Li Yuan. As a parent, Bei is not worthy of it. Hundreds of people have come together, but they all agree on the words. Xian said: 'The world is undecided, and the country is cut off. Be prepared to win the favor of all people, lead the bandits and bandits, be majestic in the nine states, and be favored in the sea. The heart of heaven and earth is above, and the return of Yuanyuan is below.' The prophecy says: 'There is an emperor in Youyan, and the hidden dragon ascends in Xiyuan. Floating clouds fly on two wings. , The sky is full of Taiqiu. 'To prepare for this prophecy. Be prepared to say solid words, as for Zai, as for San. Qian from the group said: 'Where the Han Dynasty is, how can we ignore it?' And call it an imperial system to appease people's hearts. "
In the blink of an eye, New Year's Day came, and the decorations in Chang'an and other places became much more joyful because of the new emperor Jian Zuo. In Xinchou, the first month of spring in the first year of the year (AD 211), Liu Bei, the acting king, officially changed his name to Zhang Wu, and was known as Dai Han in history.
Liu Bei personally rode in a dragon chariot drawn by six horses and went to the ancestral temple in the suburbs to pay his respects. Hundreds of officials lined up to congratulate him. Then the capital was announced in Chang'an, Queen Liu Jie was made empress, and the prince Liu Xie was made prince, and a general amnesty was granted to the whole world.
Immediately, he made great achievements and assisted Liu Bei with Chen Chong for decades, and his achievements were extremely great. Therefore, he was given the post of prime minister, gave him a false ax, recorded the affairs of the minister, and gave him nine tins. He could be praised and worshiped without a name, and he could not be in the court.
Liu Bei sent Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to fight with the army, and they had numerous military exploits and could be called the minions of the country. Therefore, Guan Yu was granted the title of General, and Zhang Fei was granted the title of General of Chariots and Cavalry. Although their duties and powers were the same as before, each of their children was granted the title of fiefdom, totaling ten thousand households.
In order to respect the elders of the country, Liu Biao was made Grand Sima, Han Sui was Taibao, Han Rong was Taifu, Song Zhong was Taizai, Zhong Yao was Taiwei, Zhao Rong was Sikong, and Zhao Jian was Situ, collectively known as the Seven Dukes. Except for Zhong Yao, most of them were veterans of the princes and officials from various places. Liu Bei wanted to use this to show his orthodoxy and win over people's hearts, so he made great efforts.
Then Xun You was appointed as Shangshuling, Zhuge Liang was appointed as Sili Xiaowei, Chen Qun was appointed as Yushi Zhongcheng, Qianzhao was appointed as General Wei, Liu Bao was appointed as Jinwu, Fazheng was appointed as Zhongshu supervisor, Cui Yan was appointed as left attendant and Zhu Hao was appointed as right officer. Among the servants, Yu Fan was appointed to advise the officials. They were all ranked as middle two thousand stones, had purple ribbons and gold seals, and respected the same nine ministers.
At the same time, a number of marquises were conferred, such as Ma Chao as Caoyangtinghou, Zhang Xiu as Hanletinghou, Huang Zhong as Sangquantinghou, Yuan Tan as Qicangtinghou, Yang Qiu as Yanliutinghou, etc., such as Zhan Zhan Xu Huang, Chang Xi, Xu Shu, Liu Xuan, Gongsun Zan, Dou Wu, and even Bai Bo Shuai Guo Da, Hu Cai and others who died in the early war all had posthumous titles.
At the beginning of the new year, everything was renewed. Taking this opportunity, A Cai, the eldest daughter of the chariot general Zhang Fei, also got married. Her husband-in-law is Chen Zhang, the only son of Prime Minister Chen Chong. That year, Chen Chong was fifty years old, his wife Princess Wannian was thirty-one, and Dong Bai was thirty-two.
