My younger brother Lü Fengxian

Chapter 324 The Emperor passes away
The fifth year of Zhongping, autumn.

In the imperial capital of Luoyang, the situation is turbulent and everyone is in danger.

The conflict between the emperor and the general is well known to everyone.

The emperor intended to appoint his youngest son Liu Xie as the crown prince, while the general preferred Liu Bian, Liu Hong's eldest son and his nephew, as the heir.

Therefore, as the emperor's illness becomes more serious day by day, the focus of the country now falls on the fight for the position of crown prince.

After all, the crown prince is the future emperor.

One emperor and one courtier.

Since ancient times, the change of power has been accompanied by the bloody fall of countless heads.

If you stand on the right side and place your bet correctly, then you might win.

It can ensure the prosperity of your family for decades.

After all, there is no greater achievement than following the dragon.

As long as you have contributed to the emperor's ascent to the pinnacle, the emperor's rewards will surely be considerable.

There are both human factors and restrictions on rules involved.

Sometimes the emperor is not so capricious. If he does not reward his meritorious officials, how can others continue to work for him?
An emperor who does not have the approval of most of his subjects will also not be able to hold on to the throne.

And the opposite.

If you make a mistake at the critical moment of choosing your side as the crown prince, it will be a disaster for yourself and your family!
After the catastrophe, nothing will survive!
Life and death, and extinction of the entire clan may happen at any moment.

Therefore, all the powerful people and those who have lost power in Luoyang City turned their attention to this silent war that would determine the future direction of the Han Empire.

"Did the emperor really appoint Jian Shuo as the Marshal of the Xiyuan Army?"

Inside the General's Mansion, He Jin asked the counselor beside him with an angry face.

"Yes, the emperor has not only established the Eight Colonels of Xiyuan, but also appointed Jian Shuo as the Marshal. He has also ordered us, the Colonels of Xiyuan, to obey him. The emperor has also issued a clear order that even you, the Great General, must obey his command."

After hearing what He Jin said, Yuan Shao, who was entrusted with the task of thinking by He Jin, observed He Jin's expression and immediately acted indignant and spoke to He Jin.

As expected, He Jin became furious after being instigated by Yuan Shao.

"what!"

"How can I, a great general, be controlled by a eunuch?"

"I will go to the palace and present this to the Emperor, asking His Majesty to revoke his order!"

He slammed the chopping board and was about to storm off.

"Wait a minute, General!"

Cao Cao, who also served under the general, immediately stood up and stopped He Jin when he saw this.

"General, a little impatience can ruin a great plan!"

"Although Jianshuo is called the Marshal of Xiyuan, the eight lieutenants of Xiyuan are now held by my colleagues such as Yuan Shao and me. We all obey the general. Jianshuo is just a figurehead. Even if he has the title of Marshal of Xiyuan, he is definitely not the real Marshal of Xiyuan!"

"Although the general does not have the title of marshal, he is a marshal in reality. Why should he be angry?"

Cao Cao's words were well-organized and well-founded, and successfully made He Jin hesitate.

"But if Jianshuo comes to command me with the Emperor's order, if I don't obey, I will be disobeying orders. If I listen, won't I still lose face?"

"Haha, what's so difficult about this?"

"General, please come closer!"

Cao Cao laughed loudly and whispered to He Jin.

"To be disrespectful, the emperor is seriously ill now. According to the news from the imperial physician who obeys the general, he will die in a few months. Jian Shuo's power all comes from the emperor. If the emperor dies and a new emperor takes the throne, Jian Shuo's power will be abolished. Why doesn't the general claim to be ill and stay at home? As long as he delays for a few months, he can win without fighting!"

"What Meng De said is exactly what I want!"

He Jin couldn't help but nod repeatedly when he heard this.

But Cao Cao was still worried and continued to persuade He Jin step by step.

"Now the eyes of the world are all on Luoyang, and the eyes of Luoyang are all on the position of crown prince!"

"It is a well-known secret that the emperor loves Prince Xie and wants to make him the crown prince. Therefore, Jian Shuo, the commander of the Western Garden, was temporarily appointed to check and balance the general. The general's nephew, Prince Bian, is the eldest son and the legitimate son of the queen. He is the eldest son and the crown prince is as stable as Mount Tai."

"As long as the general remains calm and patient for a few months, and we support Prince Bian to succeed the throne, the overall situation will be settled by then, and the eunuch party will have no chance of success!"

Cao Cao's words made He Jin so happy that he nodded repeatedly.

"Oh, Meng De's words are so shocking and awakening!"

"I will act according to Meng De's plan!"

As he spoke, He Jin pretended to have a headache, shook his head twice, and then gave instructions to everyone.

"Pass the order down. This general has just had a stroke and is feeling unwell. He is temporarily unable to manage affairs and will not see any outside visitors!"

"I'll obey!"

Yuan Shao took a look at He Jin, who had become smarter after being successfully persuaded by Cao Cao, and couldn't help feeling a little displeased. He frowned and agreed with everyone else.

After leaving the General’s Mansion.

Yuan Shao and his nominal cousin but actually his half-brother Yuan Shu returned to the Yuan Mansion together.

"Benchu, Gonglu, what do you think of your proposal? Have you persuaded He Jin to go to war with the eunuchs?"

As soon as the second Yuan returned home, he was pulled into a secret room and questioned by Yuan Wei, the current head of the Yuan family and also the current Taifu.

The Yuan family of Runan has three officials among five people in four generations, and their students and former officials are spread all over the world. Their background is not comparable to that of He Jin, a nouveau riche who relied on sending his sister to the palace.

Therefore, the aristocratic families, led by the Yuan family, appeared to be obedient and well-behaved to foreign relatives like He Jin on the surface, but in fact they were just using them.

If a family wants to keep its wealth for generations, there are actually many ways to do it.

Whether it is making a fortune, following the right person, or having talented people emerge from the ancestral graves, it can be achieved.

But if you want to be like the top wealthy family like the Yuan family, which has three officials in four generations, you will always be at the top and always be at the top.

That would require a lot of things.

Apart from anything else, at least in such a critical event as the succession of imperial power, one must not only stand in the right position, but also stand right every time!

However, there was no long-lived emperor in the middle and late Eastern Han Dynasty. Liu Hong, who is only in his thirties, is already considered long-lived.

Therefore, the pressure on Yuan to take sides is even greater.

So how can we win like Yuan and keep winning?
It's very simple, instead of pinning the fate of the entire family on illusory luck.

It’s better to determine the outcome of the bet yourself.

To put it simply, the Yuan family never chose to stand on the side of the emperor, but let the person they chose become emperor!

Therefore, for the Yuan family, it didn't matter who succeeded to the throne, Prince Bian or Prince Xie.

As long as they can honestly serve as representatives of the aristocratic families, he can continue to enjoy wealth and prosperity like Liu Hong.

If they don't want to be a puppet, then it's not impossible to change an agent. But now there are two forces blocking the aristocratic families represented by the Yuan family.

They were generals like He Jin who held real power, and the Ten Attendants headed by Zhang Rang, Zhao Zhong, and Jian Shuo.

One is a relative by marriage, and the other is the emperor's slave.

These two forces naturally carry the shadow of imperial power and are destined to be unacceptable to the aristocratic families.

Therefore, Yuan's goal was to provoke He Jin, who was a relative of the emperor, and the Ten Eunuchs to go to war.

After both of them were defeated, the emperor fell seriously ill and died.

Then the power of the court would naturally fall into the hands of the aristocratic families.

The Yuan family was the most prosperous among the aristocratic families, and it was no exaggeration to say that the power of the government fell into the hands of the Yuan family.

Precisely because the matter was of such great importance, Yuan Wei was so eager to ask Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, the two latecomers.

"Alas, originally my nephew had already persuaded He Jin, but Cao Cao interfered and made He Jin claim to be ill and unable to go out. In this way, I am afraid that he can successfully avoid the attack of the emperor and Jian Shuo and successfully delay until the emperor dies."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao couldn't help but sigh and looked surprised.

"Cao Cao's plan is a brilliant one. Prince Bian is weak and incompetent, and has no ambition. If He Jin succeeds in supporting him to ascend the throne, he will surely hold great power in the future, and our noble families will have to hide and live in fear again!"

Yuan Wei first praised Cao Cao, but then he couldn't help but look sad.

"He Jin is just a butcher. Why should Uncle and Benchu ​​be so afraid of him?"

"If it were up to me, we should just go all out. After the emperor passes away, we should contact other families and send troops to kill He Jin and the Ten Attendants!"

"By then, with the two princes in hand, it will only take a word for us Yuan family to decide who will be the emperor!"

When Yuan Shu saw that Yuan Wei and Yuan Shao looked worried, he couldn't help but speak nonchalantly.

"Not on the highway!" Yuan Shao was shocked when he heard this and quickly stopped them.

"You bastard! Stop talking nonsense!" Yuan Wei stepped forward and yelled at Yuan Shu.

"The general is in a high position and has great power. How can he be harmed so easily?"

"If I allow you to be so presumptuous, I'm afraid that my entire Yuan family will be implicated!"

"I see that you have been accustomed to having everything go your way these years. From now on, you must reflect on yourself and learn a lot from your brother Benchu."

Yuan Shu felt a little frightened at first when he heard Yuan Wei's scolding, but he became furious when he heard Yuan Wei comparing himself with Yuan Shao again.

"Yuan Shao is just a concubine's illegitimate son. How can he be compared with my legitimate son? If you only care about this illegitimate son, please leave!"

Having said that, Yuan Shu kicked open the door of the secret room angrily without waiting for Yuan Wei to speak and walked out without looking back.

"Rebellious son! Rebellious son!" Yuan Wei was so angry that he almost died when he saw Yuan Shu behaving like this.

Yuan Shao was delighted when he saw this, but his face showed respect, as if he did not hear Yuan Shu's insults. He did not get angry at all. Instead, he stepped forward to support Yuan Wei, who was almost angered to death by Yuan Shu.

"Uncle, please be patient. Gonglu is just young and frivolous. He has not suffered any setbacks. When he grows up and calms down, he can be entrusted with important tasks!"

Although Yuan Shao hated Yuan Shu, who often insulted and looked down on him by calling him a bastard, in his heart, he pretended to be a good brother. Not only did he not blame Yuan Shu for the insults, but he also spoke up for him.

"Alas, my Yuan family has three dukes in four generations and is full of heroes, so how could a rebellious son like Yuan Shu appear? Although this son is a legitimate son, his words and deeds are not like those of a son. The future of my Yuan Shu still depends on you, Benchu!"

Yuan Wei finally caught his breath and looked at Yuan Shao who was respectful to him, and was very satisfied, and kept saying.

"Uncle, as long as the Yuan family prospers forever, what does my personal honor or disgrace matter?"

But unexpectedly, this fell into Yuan Shao's calculations.

"Although Gong Lu was presumptuous, what he said just now is not without reason. Our Yuan family has always held its fate in its own hands. Now that it is difficult for He Jin and the Ten Attendants to start a war, it is better to take control of the military power first."

"As long as we have the military power in our hands, even if He Jin is out of control, we can take the initiative to attack and not be controlled by others!"

"Uncle, what you said is very true. I agree with you very much!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao nodded repeatedly.

"In that case, Benchu ​​will handle the matter. I will build momentum for you in the court and lend you a helping hand!"

Yuan Wei nodded encouragingly.

……

After He Jin claimed to be ill.

The four forces of the emperor, his relatives, eunuchs and aristocratic families were temporarily in a standoff.

The other three parties were at peace with each other, and none of them wanted to take the first step and fall into a passive position before the emperor's death.

Only Emperor Liu Hong was getting thinner and thinner day by day, and his life would not last long.

Liu Hong held on until the spring of the following year, but finally he could no longer hold on and died in Luoyang.

This emperor certainly had nothing to do with wise rulers, so although his death was a major event, there was not much mourning in Luoyang city. Instead, many people secretly celebrated when they heard that Liu Hong, the incompetent ruler, had died, as if it were a festival.

Although Liu Hong passed away, he never appointed a crown prince until his death, which clearly showed that he still had hope that his youngest son Liu Bian would succeed him.

Liu Hongyi died.

He Jin's illness was cured immediately, and he immediately led civil and military officials into the palace to mourn Liu Hong.

He Jin's reasons were extremely justified, and officials such as Zhang Rang were unable to stop He from entering the palace.

After a memorial ceremony with various ulterior motives, He Jin, under Cao Cao's advice, immediately stepped forward and saluted Liu Bian in front of the mourning hall.

"A country cannot be without a ruler for a day. Your Highness is the eldest son of the late emperor, and it is only natural that he should inherit the throne."

"I, General He Jin, ask Your Highness to ascend the throne as soon as possible!"

"Your Highness, we ask you to ascend the throne as soon as possible!"

The originally solemn and dignified mourning hall was shocked by He Jin's behavior.

Liu Bian, who had been raised outside the palace since childhood and had not received any orthodox education as a prince, obviously had no experience in dealing with such emergencies. For a moment, he could only look at his mother, Queen He, at a loss.

Empress Dowager Dong, who had always supported Liu Bian, was even more shocked and panicked, not knowing what to do.

But He Jin would not give any chance to his biggest competitor.

Seeing that the situation had reached a stalemate, he took the initiative to take out the crown and clothes that he had prepared long ago, and put them on Liu Bian without waiting for Liu Bian to refuse.

Then he immediately stepped back a few steps, led all the civil and military officials to kowtow to Liu Bian with the courtesy of the emperor, and shouted "Long live the emperor!"

In this way, the etiquette between the ruler and his subjects was established.

The country has been settled.

Empress Dong and the Ten Eunuchs, who had attempted to support Liu Bian to succeed the throne, were completely helpless and could only accept it.

At this point, the old king passed away and the new king ascended the throne.

However, the Eastern Han Dynasty was already in a state of deterioration and it was far from being able to be revived by simply changing the emperor.

(End of this chapter)