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

Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Cao Cao, and Dong Zhuo, located in the east, west, south, and north of the Central Plains respectively, are the four people that the powerful families currently believe have the greatest chance of unifying the country.

Unless the Wei family intervenes directly, the person who will eventually pacify the world will definitely be one of these four.

Although Liu Bei and Sun Jian are quite famous now, they are still a level below these four people.

It started too late and has too little foundation.

If both Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao had issued edicts seeking talented individuals, then only Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu would remain. Both of them came from top-tier aristocratic families and, in theory, would not want to dismantle their family roots.

The Yuan family's domineering and strange way of doing things made them afraid that these two would follow suit and create a system where everyone is equal above them and there is a clear class distinction below them, making the Yuan family the only aristocratic family in the world.

Given the character and morals of the Yuan family, they had no doubt that these two guys from the Yuan family were capable of doing such a thing.

Therefore, Dong Zhuo's decree seeking talent must not be allowed to be issued. Only if Cao Cao's side implements it can they use this to stop the Yuan family.

Little did they know that once this wind, which had been suppressed for so many years, started blowing, it would never stop.

Perhaps they knew it too, but they were still trying to suppress this trend, making a final struggle and resistance.

After reaching an agreement with the powerful families, Dong Zhuo went to the palace to ask Emperor Xie for permission, and Emperor Xie agreed without even looking at the document.

Dong Xiangguo is a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty, and he can trust him.

"Prime Minister, when will we march on Luoyang?"

Liu Xie looked up at Dong Zhuo with a childlike gaze. Their army had already reached the outskirts of Luoyang. If they could advance one more step, they would be able to capture Luoyang.

"Your Majesty, please don't worry. Luoyang is just a dish on our plate right now, but this dish is wrapped in ice, making it a bit hard to eat."

"We just need to wait. As time goes by, and this layer of ice melts, we can eat it however we want."

Liu Xie was not unaware of this; as early as when Lü Bu led his army to the vicinity of Luoyang, he had intended to directly issue an imperial edict to Lü Bu, ordering him to attack Luoyang.

However, Luoyang directly conscripted hundreds of thousands of soldiers and defended the city walls to the death. No matter how strong Lü Bu was, he could not directly break through.

The gates of Luoyang were unlike those of other cities; not only could Lü Bu not breach them, but even Wei Ping back then couldn't get through.

The city gates of Luoyang and Chang'an were built with Wei Ping as their hypothetical enemy.

Especially in Chang'an, after that incident at Yanmen Pass, Liu Bang doubled the thickness of the city walls upon his return.

The city gates were also thickened and all of them were changed to the structure of barbicans to ensure that even if someone could break down the city gates, they would not be able to get in.

Later, during the reigns of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing, they liked to save money, but they didn't spend it; they just kept it.

There were only two places where they were willing to spend money: their mausoleums and the outer walls of Chang'an.

They essentially doubled the thickness of the city wall that Liu Bang had already reinforced, building an additional thick wall several meters outside.

They were all afraid that such a freak would emerge again and directly attack Chang'an. Emperor Jing was the most proactive, because in his time, there was a sense of unrest in the country, and the feudal lords were not at peace.

"How much longer will we have to wait? Before the ice melts?"

Liu Xie wore a pained expression, constantly thinking of his elder brother who was far away in Luoyang.

My soul is captivated by it, my heart is filled with longing for it, it is etched in my memory, and I will never forget it.

Did his brother have trouble eating, drinking, or sleeping in Luoyang?

Has he lost weight? Has he gotten sick? Has he grown taller? Does he seem to be dying?

Dong Zhuo estimated that "the local warlords still need to develop on their own and will not supply Luoyang with too much grain. With the current grain reserves in Luoyang, it will probably only last for two or three years."

"That's been way too long."

Liu Xie pouted, "It's been so long since we brought my brother back to Chang'an. How much suffering he'll have to endure in Luoyang!"

"Prime Minister, can't you go any faster?"

"If that doesn't work, we'll recruit more soldiers and send them over."

Dong Zhuo secretly curled his lip. No wonder they are all descendants of Liu Bang; they are all cunning and ruthless. Liu Xie is so young, yet he has such a thick skin. Are you missing your brother? I'm too embarrassed to call you out on it.

"The world is just beginning to fall into chaos. If we recruit troops on a large scale to attack Luoyang, it will attract the allied lords from all over the country to join forces to help defend Luoyang and recapture it, making it even more distant for you and the Prince of Hongnong to meet again."

"All right."

Liu Xie sighed regretfully, "I can only say that my brother will have to suffer in Luoyang for a little longer."

"..."

On that very day, the imperial edict from the Chang'an court was issued and distributed throughout the country.

"I have heard that the essence of the patriarchal clan system lies in establishing clear roles and responsibilities; the stability of the nation depends on virtuous and capable individuals."

"In the past, the feudal lords held sway and became too powerful to control. The late emperor, through the policy of bestowing favors, divided their fiefs so that each of their sons and brothers would receive their due, and the imperial clan lived in peace. Now, looking at the powerful families, they cling to their social status, and even the talented sons of concubines are often constrained by the system of legitimate succession, unable to realize their ambitions. This is neither in accordance with human nature nor in the interest of the state."

"I believe that all under Heaven are one family, and that the noble and the lowly share the same origin. From this day forward, the eldest son of a prominent family shall inherit his title, salary, land, and residence as before; his sons of concubines who have reached the age of twenty, are well-versed in the classics and history, and are of upright character, may be appointed to official positions after being recommended by the prefect and reviewed by the court. They shall be given local assistant positions such as county magistrate, registrar, and inspector, and shall be permitted to participate in government affairs such as tax collection, water conservancy construction, and maintaining public order."

"Official positions are conferred by the imperial court, and ranks and salaries are promoted or demoted according to merit. Sons of concubines who enter officialdom must be loyal to the royal family and diligent in their duties. If they have outstanding political achievements, they may be promoted to the position of a prefectural or county official; if they commit illegal acts or dereliction of duty, they will be dismissed from their posts and their clan will be dealt with. However, the clan may not take private punishments; they must report to the government for approval."

"Once this decree is issued, all under heaven shall obey it. I hope that all noble families will prioritize the nation and not obstruct talented individuals; even commoners should be grateful for my benevolence and repay the court. Any disobedience will be punished as disrespect."

This decree ignited the passion of illegitimate sons in prominent families across the land. After all, which family didn't have a few outstanding illegitimate sons?

That is to say, the Xun family had the Eight Dragons of Xun in the previous generation, and this generation also has outstanding members such as Xun Yu, Xun You, Xun Yue, and Xun Kan. The Chen family had Chen Qun and Chen Xi. It is a pity that Chen Xi was hit and killed by a carriage, otherwise he would have surpassed Chen Qun and the Lone Moon in the Sky.

The Sima family had the Eight Talented Sima, the Zhuge family had the Three Brothers (Dragon, Tiger, and Dog), Jingzhou had the Five Constants of the Ma family, the Yuan family had Yuan Shu, Yuan Shao, Yuan Ji, and Yuan Yi, and the Cao family had Cao Cao, Cao Ren, Cao Xiu, Cao Hong, and Cao Chun...

There is only one truly core position and resource in a family, while others can only enjoy second-class, or even third-class, resources.

This is the rule of aristocratic families: if you are born into one and enjoy the benefits, you must also pay the price.

Now Dong Zhuo has given them another opportunity, allowing them to use their own hands and talents to acquire the political resources they desire.

Due to family constraints, they could not go to Cao Cao's side, but they could go to Dong Zhuo's side.

For a time, many outstanding young people who felt their talents were being buried in their families embarked on a journey to Chang'an.

Upon receiving this news, Cao Cao was deeply moved and simultaneously listed Dong Zhuo as his greatest enemy.

However, now is not the time to deal with Dong Zhuo. He had just received intelligence that someone on the Japanese islands dared to rebel!