A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

Zhang Rang had already prepared his response: "Empress Dowager He is an empress dowager, and you are the grand empress dowager. An empress dowager can rule from behind the curtain, and so can you."

"If Empress Dowager He could appoint her brother as Grand General, you can also appoint the Emperor's brother-in-law Dong Zhong as General of Chariots and Cavalry, giving him control of the military."

"We eunuchs are also willing to serve as the Empress Dowager's henchmen, so that your power in both the inner and outer courts can rival that of Empress Dowager He."

Empress Dowager Dong was delighted to hear this. The next day, she appeared in court and appointed Dong Chong as General of Chariots and Cavalry. She also re-promoted the Ten Attendants, whose power was no less than that of Empress Dowager He.

Empress Dowager He summoned He Jin to the palace that very night to discuss countermeasures.

Before He Jin arrived, he had already gathered his staff, and someone gave him a plan.

He Jin's eyes turned cold. He was just worried about not having a way to get rid of the Ten Attendants, and this was a good opportunity.

"Empress Dowager Dong was the birth mother of the late Emperor and a concubine of a vassal king. She was not the Empress of Emperor Huan of Han. She only gained the position of Empress Dowager because of her mother's status. Now that the late Emperor has been buried and the new Emperor has ascended the throne, she should be ordered to return to the Hejian Kingdom."

"good."

Empress Dowager He said happily, "Brother, you must personally send someone to escort him. Be sure to find some reliable people."

Empress Dowager He emphasized the word "reliable," and He Jin nodded. He would never allow Empress Dowager Dong to return to Hejian alive.

"And Liu Xie, he should be granted the title of king and sent to his fiefdom as soon as possible."

"Then let him be enfeoffed as the King of Chenliu. When the time comes for him to fulfill his filial duty to His Majesty, let him go to his fiefdom immediately."

"Brother, you must carefully arrange the people sent to him!"

The coldness in Empress Dowager He's tone sent a chill down He Jin's spine.

Empress Dowager He would absolutely not allow anyone to threaten her son's throne.

Only if Liu Xie dies will Liu Bian be the only option, regardless of who it is.

Only then could Liu Bian's throne be secure.

"Empress Dowager, those Ten Attendants actually sided with that damned old woman! They're clearly ungrateful wretches; they should be executed as soon as possible!"

Empress Dowager He had no reason to defend herself, and simply kept delaying, saying, "Let me think about it. You should arrange things for that old woman and that little bastard first."

"promise."

He Jin accepted the order and left. A few days later, Empress Dowager Dong encountered the remnants of the Golden Army on her way back to Hejian. The entire army was wiped out, and Empress Dowager Dong also died at the hands of the Golden Army.

He Jin expressed his deep sorrow in the court and directly dismissed the local prefect and commander, dispatching a new prefect to sweep away the local bandits and gold.

That very night, Dong Zhong was stabbed six times in the back and committed suicide.

The next day, the imperial edict conferring the title of king upon Liu Xie was issued directly. Upon receiving the edict, Liu Xie was filled with anxiety, knowing that the fate of Empress Dowager Dong was his future.

But he was just a prince with no power or influence; what could he do? He couldn't do anything.

The Ten Attendants quickly received the news and rushed to Empress Dowager He to plead their case.

They hadn't expected He Jin and Empress Dowager He to be so ruthless; she was Emperor Ling's biological mother, whom they killed without hesitation.

They brought out a large amount of gold and silver treasures, piled up like mountains, to bribe Empress Dowager He, He Miao, and Empress Dowager He's mother, Lord Wuyang.

Gold and silver alone are not enough. They chose the wrong side before. There must be benefits involved for this relationship to be solid, and only then will Empress Dowager He be determined to protect them.

Zhang Rang then said to Empress Dowager He, "Your Majesty, although we have brought disaster to the country and its people, we are merely His Majesty's henchmen."

"We are merely consolidating power for His Majesty and doing dirty work for him."

"If we are all removed, the Empress Dowager will have no choice but to rely on those powerful families to govern the country."

"The power of the court will fall entirely into the hands of those powerful families. At that time, it will be uncertain who will become the emperor and whether Your Majesty will obey your orders."

"That's how it was when the late emperor was alive. All important matters of the court had to be decided by the partisans and Dou Wu. That's why the late emperor supported us eunuchs in order to seize power."

Empress Dowager He agreed wholeheartedly. Empress Dowager Dong's move had shown her the power and methods of the Ten Attendants, which were indeed extraordinary.

If she could win over the Ten Attendants, it would be a great help to her in controlling the court.

She did not grant He Jin's request because she was waiting for the Ten Attendants to come to her.

Only when the Ten Attendants sense a life-threatening crisis can she better grasp their fate and control them.

Even after the Ten Attendants pledged allegiance to Empress Dowager He, they were still not entirely at ease.

They began plotting to get rid of He Jin.

However, He Jin was always heavily guarded when he went out, and he only relaxed his vigilance when he entered the palace.

Since the previous attempt to get He Jin into the palace failed, He Jin has been extra cautious in this regard.

Only after confirming that it was Empress Dowager He's order would they enter the palace.

I heard that the two of them had set up a secret signal that only they knew.

If they wanted He Jin to enter the palace, they had to ask Empress Dowager He to issue an imperial decree.

The Ten Attendants then went to Changle Palace together and told Empress Dowager He that Emperor Ling of Han wanted to establish Liu Xie as emperor and wanted the Wei family to assist him.

They had to discuss with the General how to ensure the news didn't spread and how to avoid direct confrontation with the Wei family.

Empress Dowager He was greatly alarmed upon hearing this, for there was no one in the world who would not be afraid of making an enemy of the Wei family.

She immediately sent someone to the General's mansion to invite He Jin.

After confirming the code, He Jin entered the palace with peace of mind.

During this time, his advisor Chen Lin tried to stop him, saying, "This edict from the Empress Dowager must be a plot by the Ten Attendants. You must not go; going will surely bring disaster!"

He Jin laughed heartily, "I won't make the same mistake twice."

"I have already exchanged a secret code with this person. This code is known only to me and the Empress Dowager. Even the messenger will not know its meaning."

"Since it was ordered by the Empress Dowager, how could there be any misfortune?"

Taking advantage of this moment, Yuan Shao stepped forward and said, "If the General insists on entering the palace, please allow us to guard him with armored soldiers to prevent any unforeseen events."

He Jin thought it was a good idea, "Then you and Gonglu will each take 500 elite soldiers and come with me to the palace."

"However, the palace troops are not allowed to enter, and no one dares to make a move inside the palace. You can just wait outside the palace."

Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu exchanged a glance, both seeing the triumphant smile in each other's eyes.

"After all, the Imperial Palace has been managed by the Ten Attendants for a long time. We will escort the General to Chang Le Palace and wait outside the palace."

"Now that the palace is under the control of the Empress Dowager, this is just a small matter concerning the safety of the General. I'm sure the Empress Dowager will agree."

"Can."

He Jin agreed.

So Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu led their troops to escort He Jin to Changle Palace.

In Chang'an, there was a person observing everything with a detached eye.

This person was Cao Cao.

As instructed by Wei Cheng, he only needed to ensure the stability of the palace; other struggles were none of his concern.

Now the entire palace guards are in his hands. The only unstable factor in the palace has appeared in the past few days, and that was right now—the elite troops led by Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu!