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

Zhuge Liang and Lü Bu remained silent for a long time. Liu Xie paused for a moment, shook his head, and then looked away from the courtyard where Liu Bei had lived.

Lü Bu is doing very well now. His wife, Lady Yan, manages the household affairs and keeps the house in perfect order.

When I saw Diao Chan, she was still as radiant and beautiful as ever. However, her shy and beautiful face now had the glow of a woman about to become a mother, making her even more womanly.

Liu Xie took Diao Chan's pulse and nodded, "It is indeed a happy pulse. Congratulations! After more than ten years together, you have finally achieved your goal and fulfilled your wish."

Lu Bu was so happy he was like a fool, grinning incessantly. Luckily, Yan Shi reminded him, and he then remembered to prepare a banquet. Since everyone was a family, Yan Shi and Diao Chan didn't need to avoid each other while everyone was drinking.

Lu Bu used to clamor to lead troops out to fight battles. As a military general, he didn't want to stay idle at home all the time. Now that Diao Chan was pregnant, Lu Bu was so happy that he didn't care about anything else.

During the banquet, Liu Xie even teased him, "Fengxian, do you want me to give you a task and send you to attack Gongsun Du?"

Lu Bu looked at Diao Chan with affection, then hurriedly shook his head, "Your Majesty, please spare me. Either send someone else, or wait until Diao Chan has given birth."

Zhao Yun laughed along, "You dare to haggle over a task assigned by His Majesty, Marquis Wen?"

Lü Bu argued, "Isn't it because Diao Chan is pregnant? How could I not be by her side in such a big matter?"

Lu Bu was radiating happiness, and Diao Chan smiled along with him, feeling as sweet as if she had drunk honey.

Others might not appreciate this about Lü Bu: he was too family-oriented and obsessed with his wife and daughters!

But Liu Xie admired him greatly. He had a modern mindset and always had a good impression of people who valued family.

Although Liu Xie became emperor, he practiced what he preached. For many years, his palace only had four women, including Fu Shou.

The ministers repeatedly tried to arrange for him to be selected for the imperial harem, hoping to produce more offspring for the Han dynasty, but Liu Xie refused.

If he could, Liu Xie wouldn't mind having even one woman.

Fu Shou and Consort Dong were women he already had when he transmigrated. Cao Ying was brought into the palace to ease relations with Cao Cao, while Lü Lingqi was brought to his side to save Lü Bu.

Liu Xie asked, "By the way, Fengxian, do you hope Diaochan will give you a son or a daughter?"

This question would stump many people even in the 21st century.

Because the vast majority of people have the idea of ​​preferring sons to daughters.

Lu Bu did not hesitate at all and immediately replied, "I haven't thought about that. It doesn't matter what I'm born with, I'll like it either way."

Liu Xie smiled with satisfaction. He hadn't expected that Lü Bu, 1800 years ago, would have such a high level of awareness and not discriminate against women.

Liu Xie thought about it and realized that it was indeed true. Lü Lingqi and Lü Bu had a very good relationship, and Liu Xie often heard Lü Lingqi tell him how much Lü Bu had doted on her since she was a child.

However, despite his affection, Lü Bu was politically naive and made a mistake, almost giving his daughter to Yuan Shu's son.

Just as everyone was enjoying a pleasant banquet, Lu Xun arrived. He was Jia Xu's student and had come to deliver a message to Liu Xie.

After entering and exchanging greetings, Lu Xun reported, "Your Majesty, news has just arrived from Liaodong that Gongsun Du has passed away."

"Oh?" Liu Xie put down his wine cup and smiled faintly. "Good, immediately send an order to Zhang Liao, the governor of Youzhou, to advance into Liaodong!"

"Yes!" Lu Xun replied and turned to leave.

Zhuge Liang gave the emperor an approving look. Liu Xie would never let an opportunity slip by when it was time to act decisively.

Now that Gongsun Du is dead, it is the most sensitive period for the power transition in Liaodong. Gongsun Kang has not yet successfully taken over. This is the best time to send troops.

Last time, Liu Xie led his troops out of the northern border and Zhang He annihilated the 30,000-strong army of Wuhuan leader Tadun. This victory made him famous and served as a great deterrent. Now, the Wuhuan have been completely pacified and are under the full control of Zhang Liao.

Mentioning Gongsun Du gave Liu Xie something to talk about at the banquet. He sneered, "With the Central Plains in turmoil, Gongsun Du took the opportunity to carve out his own territory in Liaodong, living a carefree life and establishing his own independent kingdom. This is a misfortune for the Han Dynasty, but a great fortune for Gongsun Du!"

Lu Bu knew very little about Gongsun Du, and even Zhuge Liang was not very familiar with the affairs of Liaodong. Everyone became interested and listened attentively. Liu Xie then gave a brief account of Gongsun Du's past experiences.

"Gongsun Du's father was named Gongsun Yan. He committed a crime in his youth, and to avoid trouble, the father and son fled from Xiangping to Xuantu County. There, Gongsun Du met two of the most important benefactors in his life. One was Gongsun Yu, the governor of Xuantu County at the time, and the other was Xu Rong from the same county, who had defeated Sun Jian and Cao Cao during the war against Dong Zhuo." Gongsun Yu had a son named Gongsun Bao, who died young. Gongsun Du's nickname was also Gongsun Bao. Moreover, the two were not only about the same age, but Gongsun Du also looked somewhat like Gongsun Yu's deceased son. Therefore, Gongsun Yu adopted Gongsun Du as his son, treated him as his own, provided him with education, took care of his family, and even helped him find a wife.

Later, he was recommended to serve in the imperial court, and Gongsun Du's career soared. He served as a court official and governor of Ji Province.

When Dong Zhuo controlled the government, Xu Rong recommended him and he became the governor of Liaodong. From then on, he firmly occupied Liaodong.

Taking advantage of the turmoil in the Central Plains, Gongsun Du's ambition grew rapidly, and he gradually broke away from the control of the imperial court.

Gongsun Du did two things most thoroughly in Liaodong: one was to ruthlessly suppress the powerful clans and implement an iron-fisted policy; the other was to expand his territory rapidly, becoming the de facto local emperor of Liaodong.

There was a man named Gongsun Zhao who was the magistrate of Xiangping County. At that time, Gongsun Du's son, Gongsun Kang, served under Gongsun Zhao. Perhaps Gongsun Zhao had bullied Gongsun Kang too much in the past, so as soon as Gongsun Du became the governor, he sought revenge for his son, arrested Gongsun Zhao, and ordered him to be whipped to death in the street.

Another powerful clansman named Tian Shao was also killed by Gongsun Du when he found an opportunity.

Gongsun Du's actions were not motivated by personal grudges, but rather by a ruthless policy of eliminating powerful and influential families to intimidate the local populace. The Book of the Later Han records, "He exterminated over a hundred prominent families in the prefecture who had no prior grievances with him." Gongsun Du consolidated his rule through this iron-fisted policy.

Gongsun Du was very ambitious. He attacked Goguryeo to the east and Wuhuan to the west, constantly expanding his territory.

In the first year of the Chuping era, the same year that the warlords raised troops to attack Dong Zhuo, and Dong Zhuo burned Luoyang and moved the capital to Chang'an, Gongsun Du's ambitions surged. He believed that the emperor was far away and his opportunity had come.

He first divided Liaodong Commandery into two commanderies, "Liaoxi Commandery" and "Zhongliao Commandery," and appointed governors for each. Then he crossed the Bohai Strait and extended his reach to Qingzhou.

At that time, Jiao He, the governor of Qingzhou, had just died, and Qingzhou was in chaos. He did not care about Donglai County, which was at the far east. Gongsun Du occupied a lot of places in Donglai County and established a separate state called Yingzhou!

Soon, Xuantu Commandery to the north of Liaodong Commandery, Lelang Commandery to the southeast, and Yingzhou, which he himself established, were all under Gongsun Du's control.

Having gained control of so much territory, Gongsun Du was no longer content with being just a governor. So he bestowed upon himself the titles of "Marquis of Liaodong" and "Governor of Pingzhou," and posthumously honored his father as "Marquis of Jianyi."

He even made his own status the same as that of the emperor, and built ancestral temples for Liu Bang, the founding emperor of the Western Han Dynasty, and Liu Xiu, the founding emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Whenever he went out, he would beat drums and gongs, displaying the imperial procession, with the Imperial Guards leading the way and the Feathered Forest Guards protecting him from behind.

Liu Xie deeply abhorred this practice of separatism and establishing separate factions, and he would not be lenient with it.

Regarding Gongsun Du's affairs, Liu Xie not only knew the history but also had Jia Xu send people to gather intelligence.

Later generations often talk about the Three Kingdoms, but strictly speaking, it is actually the Four Kingdoms. After Gongsun Du occupied Liaodong, from about 190 AD to 238 AD, Gongsun Du and his family ruled Liaodong for nearly fifty years.

However, while the Central Plains have been embroiled in constant warfare and chaos over the years, Liaodong has remained unscathed. Gongsun Du has even launched frequent military campaigns to expand his territory, extending his reach ever further.

Now that Gongsun Du is dead, this is the perfect time for Liu Xie to make his move.

When the time is right, one must act decisively. Liu Xie will not be polite; otherwise, Gongsun Du's son, Gongsun Kang, would not have submitted so readily.

Upon thinking of Donglai Commandery, Liu Xie instructed Zhuge Liang: "Since Gongsun Du can send a fleet across the sea to invade Donglai Commandery, we can do the opposite. Tell Gan Ning to hurry up and train the navy, first eliminate Gongsun Du's forces near Donglai Commandery, and then cooperate with Zhang Liao to attack Liaodong from the north and south."

Zhuge Liang nodded, "Your Majesty is wise, I will make the arrangements immediately."

No matter how capable Zhuge Liang was, he didn't know much about things at sea, but Liu Xie knew very well. He had someone bring him paper and pen, and drew a nautical chart from memory.

"Everyone, do you see this? This is where Gan Ning and the others are located. To the north, across the sea, lies Liaodong, and in between there are many islands of varying sizes."

Zhuge Liang was surprised, "I didn't expect Donglai County and Liaodong to be so close. Your Majesty, how did you know?"

Zhuge Liang was deeply shocked by the emperor's skillful and accurate drawing of the nautical chart. He looked at the emperor as if he were looking at an all-knowing deity.

Liu Xie smiled mysteriously, and Zhuge Liang joked, "Could it be that Your Majesty once again encountered some mysterious master who taught you this skill?"

Liu Xie nodded. "Exactly!"

The clearer this is explained, the less necessary it becomes; instead, it only adds to the mystery and makes Liu Xie seem even more unfathomable. (End of Chapter)