With Cao Cao by my side, what do I have to fear from the world?

Chapter 23, Cao Cao Arrives and He Holds Court Meeting
Liu Xie shook his head. After Xu Huang changed his clothes, he instructed Dong Cheng, "Imperial brother-in-law, that's enough. Stop complaining. Arrange Xu Huang's accommodations. He is now my bodyguard."

Dong Cheng nodded, then couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, what good are a few guards? You are the ruler of the Han Dynasty, you should summon heroes from all over the world to serve you."

Liu Xie rolled his eyes at Dong Cheng, "In the eyes of the Imperial Brother-in-law, there are countless heroes in the world, but in my eyes, there are very few!"

"I fled from Chang'an to Luoyang, but where are the heroes of the world now? Imperial brother-in-law, stop deceiving yourself."

Dong Cheng harbored deep resentment and grew increasingly displeased with Cao Cao, but Liu Xie remained clear-headed. He believed that serving the emperor sounded nice, but it was nothing more than moving to another location.

It's just the same old thing in a new guise; perhaps it would be better to stay by Cao Cao's side.

Even Wang Yun was unwilling to return power to Liu Xie. If it fell into the hands of any other warlord, they would treat Liu Xie as a puppet to be manipulated at will.

After leaving Dong Cheng, Liu Xie said to Xu Huang, "The Imperial Brother-in-law is a good man and loyal to me, but he is a bit too emotional."

Xu Huang nodded. "That's understandable."

Liu Xie smiled and said, "My brother-in-law always says that I am not ambitious and spend my days wandering around. He also blindly favors Cao Cao. Oh well, let him be."

Liu Xie led Xu Huang to his residence, pointed to several tents linked together in the distance, and said with a self-deprecating laugh, "Gongming, look, this is my palace, isn't it magnificent?"

The few solitary tents looked unremarkable, and were surrounded by a dense array of Cao Cao's soldiers' tents.

Although the Cao soldiers did not get too close, they kept glancing in this direction.

Xu Huang suddenly felt extremely depressed. The emperor was living in a tent and being watched by so many Cao soldiers all the time.

Liu Xie smiled nonchalantly, "Looking back, I'm much better off now than before. Before, I was starving and freezing, and didn't even have a place to shelter from the wind and rain."

Xu Huang remained silent for a long time, feeling deeply distressed.

"By the way, Gongming, have you eaten yet?" Liu Xie asked with concern.

"have eaten."

"That's good."

After a while, the eunuch Zhang Yu brought Wang Yue over.

When Wang Yue arrived at the military camp, he was suddenly struck by a realization: he never dreamed that the emperor would be living in a military camp.

Moreover, they were staying in very simple tents, but it was too late to regret it.

Liu Xie was delighted. "Come on, Wang Yishi, let's begin. I am quite interested in learning swordsmanship."

Wang Yue felt like he had been tricked, and with a helpless sigh, he could only casually teach him a few moves.

He was listless and trying to get by, but Liu Xie saw it and didn't bother to argue with him.

Liu Xie found a sword and imitated it very seriously.

Before long, Consort Dong and Fu Shou also heard the commotion and came over out of curiosity. The two of them found two small stools and started watching the excitement.

Xu Huang stood motionless to the side, glancing between Liu Xie and Consort Dong and Empress Fu, his mind unable to find peace for even a moment.

Before he came, he had imagined that the emperor at least had a decent palace and would be well taken care of.

But at this moment, seeing everything, Xu Huang felt a heavy weight in his heart, constantly asking himself, "Is there such an emperor in the world?"

Liu Xie, however, was very serious, swinging his longsword forcefully again and again.

Wang Yue originally thought that Liu Xie was just having a passing fancy, and that the emperor was so delicate that he would get tired and bored after only a short while.

However, to everyone's surprise, Liu Xie didn't seem tired at all, diligently repeating Wang Yue's instructions move by move. After each swing of his sword, he would shake his head, disappointed with his performance, and grit his teeth to repeat it again.

Lady Dong stayed for half an hour before leaving impatiently.

Fu Shou sat there quietly, showing no sign of impatience.

Wang Yue couldn't resist and came over again. "Your Majesty, let me demonstrate for you one more time. Hold the sword evenly, swing it powerfully, and keep your stance stable."

Seeing how seriously Liu Xie was practicing, Wang Yue felt bad and began to give him slightly more serious guidance.

Cao Cao came again in the afternoon and saw Liu Xie practicing swordsmanship. Cao Cao even stood aside and watched for a while.

Cao Cao himself was a military general and a skilled swordsman. He only watched Liu Xie's swordsmanship for a short while before laughing.

It's obvious that it has no foundation and is only just starting out.

After a while, Liu Xie sheathed his sword and looked at Cao Cao.

Cao Cao clapped his hands and praised, "Your Majesty is practicing so diligently that I cannot bear to disturb you. If Your Majesty can continue to practice, you will surely achieve great success."

Liu Xie smiled and shook his head. "I was just bored and wanted to pass the time. Lord Cao, it's rare for you to have time to come today. Is there something you need?"

"Your Majesty, I have some matters to discuss with you. It has been a few days since the last court assembly."

"Alright, immediately summon the ministers for a meeting." Liu Xie said decisively.

This pleased Cao Cao greatly.

They do whatever they are told without complaint.

Xu Huang watched from the side, and couldn't help but frown.

Cao Cao could hold court whenever he wanted, so the court meetings became a place specifically for Cao Cao to issue orders.
Under normal circumstances, a court assembly is held every day to discuss important military and national affairs.

However, Cao Cao usually wouldn't come over; he would only come when he had something to do.

After a while, the ministers arrived one after another, and to be honest, they were not in a good mood at all.

Being confined to the barracks all day, unable to go anywhere, was no different from being in prison.

Zhong Ji, the Chamberlain, glanced at Cao Cao from afar and coldly snorted, "Court assembly? We don't even know what's going on outside the barracks, is there any need to hold a court assembly?"

Wu Shuo, a court advisor, echoed in a low voice, "That's right. This court assembly has long become Cao Cao's personal fiefdom. Whenever he comes, the court assembly is held; whatever orders he wants to issue, the court assembly is held."

"Yes, I think this court assembly is completely unnecessary. Why should Cao Cao go through all the trouble of coming to the military camp? Last time he abolished the Three Dukes, I wonder what kind of trouble he'll cause this time."

Where there is oppression, there is resistance.

With so many ministers now trapped in the barracks, many are filled with resentment.

The court assembly was held in a relatively large tent, and Xu Huang, as a bodyguard, was also arranged to be by Liu Xie's side.

Cao Cao glanced at Xu Huang a couple more times!

After everyone had arrived, Xu Huang noticed that all the ministers were looking at Cao Cao, and no one was willing to say a word.

Because everyone had nothing to say, they all knew perfectly well that this court assembly was specifically prepared for Cao Cao alone.

However, Cao Cao did not step forward first. Instead, Man Chong, the magistrate of Xudu, spoke first: "Your Majesty, former Grand Commandant Yang Biao has been secretly colluding with Yuan Shu, and his behavior is suspicious. He has now been arrested and imprisoned. I beg Your Majesty to grant permission to thoroughly investigate this case!"

(End of this chapter)