Jinting Han people

In the political struggles of all dynasties, it is not uncommon to use assassinations to gain political benefits.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Wu Zixu, seeking revenge, supported Prince Guang's ascension to the throne of Wu and the destruction of the State of Chu. Taking advantage of King Liao's fondness for fish, he ordered Zhuan Zhu to hide a sword in a fish's belly, assassinating him while he was dining. He then devised a scheme of self-torture, sending Yao Li to lurk near Prince Qingji and launch a surprise attack, once again eliminating the threat of civil unrest in Wu.

It is really unbelievable that with just two assassins, Wu Zixu reshuffled the power of Wu State and ascended to the position of prime minister.

Coincidentally, during the early days of the Later Han Dynasty, Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu sent an army of over 100,000 into Shu to suppress the false emperor Gongsun Shu. The Han army split into two routes, the southern and northern. Commander Cen Peng of the southern route marched upstream, crushing all enemies with unstoppable force. Commander Lai She of the northern route enjoyed a series of victories, practically unbeatable. Unexpectedly, Gongsun Shu dispatched two assassins who, in one stroke, killed both Han commanders!
Although the country ultimately could not escape its fate of destruction, Gongsun Shu was able to extend his country's life by two years with just two assassins, which can be called a miracle.

Even in modern times, such as the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period, such assassinations that changed the course of events continued to occur frequently. For example, Lü Bu's assassination of Dong Zhuo caused chaos in Guanxi; Yuan Shu's assassination of Liu Chong left the Han Dynasty without a leader; and Xu Gong's assassination of Sun Ce ended the Sun family's dominance in Jiangdong. These examples clearly demonstrate the truth of Tang Ju's words:

"If a gentleman is enraged, two corpses will be laid to rest, blood will flow for five steps, and the whole nation will be in mourning."

No matter what kind of hero a person is, no matter what great achievements they have made, they only have one life. Once that life is lost, all their past experiences will vanish into thin air. This is the ruthless law. Therefore, as long as humans exist, the profession of assassin is destined to continue.

But for Liu Xian, the assassination missions assigned to him by Sima Yi were different from the classic assassinations in history.

The most typical assassination attempts involved killing the most important political enemy at any cost, thereby causing a major power reshuffle. However, Sima Yi had a different idea. He did not want to assassinate the empress. Firstly, this was unethical and detrimental to the long-term stability of the country. Secondly, it was unrealistic. Since the First Emperor established the position of emperor, no emperor or empress had ever been assassinated. The defenses of the imperial palace were too strict, making this impossible.

Therefore, Sima Yi hoped that Liu Xian could assassinate the middle and low-level bureaucrats in the empress's party, create panic in Luoyang, and intimidate the empress's party. On the one hand, he would declare war on the other side, and on the other hand, he would undermine their will to resist, until the empress was isolated and forced to give up power.

In Liu Xian's view, this means there are several different key points.

First, this will not be one or two assassinations, but a series of frequent assassinations;
Second, it is not just about killing people, but also about trying to publicize the assassination;

Third, not only must the assassination be successful, but the prince must also try to avoid detection and arrest by the Hou party. If the assassination is discovered in advance, the prince will obviously not be able to support himself.

Looking at it from these perspectives, this is not an easy task. If Liu Xian were to complete it alone, it would be almost impossible.

Fortunately, Sima Yi had considered these things, and he also understood that the essence of this matter was that success was the only option, and failure was not allowed, so he made corresponding arrangements in advance.

Liu Xian secretly went on an outing with Lu Ji to Longmen Mountain, using this opportunity to contact him. He obtained a list from him, which Lu Ji had prepared long ago. It was densely packed with the names of nearly a hundred people, all members of the Hou Party. Lu Ji knew the deeds of each person on the list by heart, and he analyzed it to Liu Xian:

"Most of the people here come from humble backgrounds. Although they have great reputations, they don't actually have much influence in the political arena. If we kill them, we can kill them. As long as we are quick and decisive, at least no one will track them down."

Hearing this, Liu Xian was displeased. He said to Lu Ji, "If you really want to scare the rear guard, why would you start with the poor scholars? Shi Heng, I say you should start with the close relatives of the aristocracy!"

"Aren't you afraid of getting into trouble?"

"How can this not be troublesome?" Liu Xian quickly gathered his thoughts and said, "If we're going to kill people, we should kill those who have committed unforgivable crimes and have disregarded human life. Only in this way can we justify justice. I even saw Pan Yue's name just now. Does he deserve the death penalty for writing such flattering articles?"

"As for the risks involved, I'll find a way. If this is something anyone can do, why would the prince give it to me?"

Lu Ji pondered for a moment, then agreed with Liu Xian's opinion. He then marked the names of more than 20 people and said to Liu Xian, "These people all have some backgrounds and have killed many people. However, with the exception of a few individuals, most of them hold high official positions."

"Then please Shi Heng write down their backgrounds and deeds." Liu Xian smiled disapprovingly and added, "Alas, if we kill unknown people, how will the rear party know the pain?"

"Okay, but you have to remember what I said, don't underestimate the enemy."

Afterward, Lu Ji copied these individuals' histories and backgrounds onto two scrolls of paper. Liu Xian only skimmed through them, and the numerous misdeeds were truly shocking. Shi Chong's disregard for human life was no longer uncommon, and some even falsely accused loyal officials, humiliated wives, and harmed children. Just reading the text was enough to make one nauseated. After Liu Xian and Lu Ji said goodbye, it took him a long time to recover from his depression.

After confirming the list, Liu Xian contacted Sun Xiu again the next day and made an appointment to meet in a tavern.

When Sun Xiu arrived, he took out the list and said straight to the point, "Give me all these people's addresses, official offices, appearances, and preferences. If you know, you know. If you don't know, you don't know. Don't lie. If I find out you've lied, you'll be on your own!"

Liu Xian's distrust of Sun Xiu was ingrained in his bones, just as he didn't believe Jia Mi would change for the better. However, facing Liu Xian's hostility, Sun Xiu seemed to be oblivious. He said, "Huai Chong really underestimated me. How could I not handle such a small matter?"

He immediately called the waiter in the inn, bought some brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, and began writing right there in the tavern. He first drew a map of Luoyang, marking the residences and government offices of the people on the list. Then he splashed ink on their portraits, noting their habits underneath. His familiarity with the map was so great that it seemed effortless.

Afterwards, Liu Xian compared the map with the portrait and was astonished to find that Sun Xiu's calligraphy and painting were flawless! It was truly incredible! Having known Sun Xiu for so many years, this was the first time he had noticed Sun Xiu possessed such exceptional memory and observation skills, seemingly even better than his own.

But no matter what, there was only one thing missing. Liu Xian went to visit Chen Gui. Chen Gui was the Shangshu Lang at the time, and he could meet him openly under the pretext of handing over the list of the shogunate staff.

Chen Gui claimed to be providing Liu Xian with backup, but in reality, he also had a list of trusted associates of the Crown Prince and the Prince of Huainan. To conceal their actions, these individuals could serve as cover. This was perhaps the Crown Prince's most crucial secret, and exposing it to Liu Xian at this point was like giving up everything he had.

Chen Gui told Liu Xian, "Don't worry about the curfew. Henan Yin Yanfu Gong (Le Guang), Western Rong Sima Yan Zun, City Gate Captain Liang Liu, and Luoyang Southern Lieutenant Xu Qiu are all trustworthy. If you have plans, let me know in advance, and I will inform you of the imperial guards' movements that day. With the token, you can enter and exit freely through the four southern gates of Jinyang, Xuanyang, Pingchang, and Kaiyang, as well as the three eastern gates of Qingming, Dongyang, and Jianchun, without worrying about the curfew."

Upon learning this, Liu Xian was overjoyed. This was his biggest concern. Luoyang's imperial guards were extremely complex, and if they relied on themselves, no matter how powerful the assassins were, it would be extremely difficult to circumvent them. He had never expected the crown prince to have so many ambushes. With proper operation and mutual protection, it was entirely possible that the rear guards would be unable to investigate.

Liu Xian had a rough idea in his mind. With this information as a basis, the plan in his mind was basically formed, and he knew what to do.

At this time, news arrived that a Taoist priest, Zhang Chengji, was spreading rumors in Yecheng. He spread the story that a fire at the Luoyang armory four years earlier had destroyed the heirloom artifacts, and that Qi Wannian had risen in rebellion in Guanzhong, foreshadowing the impending downfall of the Jin dynasty and the destruction of the state. The Year of Jiazi was approaching, and this time, unprecedented unrest was imminent. He, a disciple of Zhang Tianshi, had been ordered to seek out the True Lord of Taiping and lead a rebellion to save the people.

At the time, Yecheng was without a royal family member to defend it, leaving no one daring to make a decisive move. So, a petition was submitted to the court seeking its opinion. It's said that by the time the petition was submitted, Zhang Chengji had already gathered over 7,000 men, and their numbers were steadily growing. While seemingly formidable, the Jin army viewed them as a mere ragtag force, easily defeated by a single song. But who would consider themselves too much? Suddenly, every foreign military officer submitted a petition, volunteering to take on these traitors.

Liu Xian seized this opportunity to join in the fun, submitting petitions to the court repeatedly requesting war. Naturally, the court disapproved, so he claimed that, for the sake of the nation's long-term stability, he had to submit a "Seven Strategies for Public Security," which he then worked on in seclusion in his palace for days. In reality, however, he was plotting in secret, successfully deceiving most. Even among his staff, only Li Sheng and Zhuge Yan knew what was going on.

About half a month passed from the secret meeting to the planning of the plan. Liu Xian finally worked out a plan and then wrote the idea into a document, which Gou Xi helped to hand over to the prince.

To put it simply, since there are so many people supporting the prince, the plan can be bolder.

The Hou party is not prepared at this time, so we might as well use speed to counteract slowness. Before they can react, we can directly create a series of assassinations to keep the Hou party overwhelmed and exhausted. When they catch some clues, we can suddenly stop like a ghost. This will definitely create panic.

If the queen still refuses to surrender, then choose a core figure from among the queen's party and assassinate him in one fell swoop to show the prince's unstoppable and indomitable determination.

But if at this point, the Queen is still unwilling to give up power, it means that the Queen's determination is indeed indestructible, and I'm afraid we can only think of other ways.

The next day, Gou Xi brought back Sima Yi's reply: "The Crown Prince has no objection. According to the envoy's plan, we should start the process as soon as possible."

So on the night of Xinmao in April, after Liu Xian received the news, he started the first assassination.

The sky was pitch black, and a fine, silky rain fell silently. But the wind was so strong that the branches and window panels creaked. When Liu Xian climbed over the wall and left the house, no one heard his footsteps.

The streets were practically deserted now, with only a few high-ranking residences still lit with lanterns, their lights flickering in the wind and seemingly about to go out. Liu Xian deliberately avoided the main road, winding his way through a series of alleyways until he reached a small courtyard within the horse market.

He knocked on the door, and someone inside asked, "Who is it so late? What's the matter?"

Liu Xian said, "Buying a horse. I heard you have a Ferghana horse worth a thousand gold coins. Is that true?"

The person inside the door replied, "We do have a Ferghana horse here, but it's a stallion. Unfortunately, it can't be sold outside."

Liu Xian asked again, "I'm buying a stallion. As long as it's not fake, I can negotiate any price."

After the secret code was given, the door creaked open.

Liu Xian walked in and said directly to the Huainan warriors, "Don't ask any more questions. Ten good fighters, listen to my instructions, put on your armor, and follow me!"

The assassins acted quickly. When they went out, they all changed into scale armor, took long spears, and wore ring-handled swords on their waists, dressed like imperial guards patrolling at night. Liu Xian immediately led them to Jianchun Gate.

When they arrived at Jianchun Gate, a guard came up to ask for a token. Liu Xian handed over the token given by Chen Gui and said calmly, "Henan Prefecture is short-staffed. I was transferred from the Wuwei Army to enforce the curfew."

The guard took a look and found nothing wrong, so he immediately let Liu Xian and his group pass.

But they didn't go to Henan Prefecture. Instead, they brazenly passed in front of the bronze camel and circled to the west of Luoyang Palace. The palace guards at Sima Gate were not surprised and paid no attention. They watched them enter a dark alley.

At this moment, a figure emerged from the darkness, ran up to Liu Xian and said, "Sir, you are finally here."

Liu Xian asked, "Is he still there?"

"Still there." The spy pointed to the corner of the alley in the distance and said, "They're right there, waiting for someone as usual."

"how many people?"

"There are still four people, three of whom are armored guards."

Liu Xian nodded, then said to the assassins behind him, "Send four of you to put out the torches and block the retreat at the back of the alley. I'll go in and check the situation in a quarter of an hour."

Amidst the rustling of leaves, Liu Xian waited calmly, no longer feeling anxious. A quarter of an hour later, he led the remaining soldiers towards their destination.

Turning a corner, he encountered an oxcart and three guards, who then led men forward with torches and solemnly asked, "Who are you? Don't you know you're under curfew?"

A kind face appeared from behind the carriage curtain. Inside was a seventy-year-old woman. After sizing up Liu Xian for a moment, she asked bewilderedly, "Don't you recognize me?"

Liu Xian said the same thing as before, "The city is short-handed. I am the commander of the Wuwei Army, and I have been ordered to help the Henan Yin enforce the curfew."

After seeing the token, the old woman did not doubt it and took out a token as well, whispering: "This is none of your business. I am here on duty..."

Before he could finish his words, Liu Xian suddenly drew his sword, the blade piercing the old woman's neck like a flying swallow. He then reached out and muffled her screams. Almost instantly, the remaining half-surrounded warriors also attacked simultaneously, slitting the throats of the armored guards. Blood flowed out, but the whistling wind muffled it.

Under Chengniu's dazed gaze, Liu Xian placed the four corpses aside, covered each of them with a white cloth, threw a yellow cloth in the middle, and pressed it down with stones.

This is the first person planned to be killed. (End of this chapter)