The Great Han Dynasty: From Crown Prince Li to Emperor of All Ages!

"Today, the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers in the imperial court have been replaced."

"Liu Quli was promoted from Prefect of Zhuojun to Left Chancellor and enfeoffed as Marquis of Peng."

"Zhuojun is the closest to the Yan state, so it's hard to say whether he and Liu Dan didn't collude."

"The Grand Censor Er Kuan was promoted to Right Chancellor, and the former Vice Censor Xian Xuan was exiled to Lingnan because of the orphan, and was appointed as the Supervising Censor of Jiaozhi."

"No matter how broad-minded your son is, he will never stand on my side."

"The newly appointed Grand Censor Bao Shengzhi and Vice Censor Mang Tong are both His Majesty's confidants, and they were formerly Imperial Censors and Vice Ministers."

With his hands behind his back, Liu Ju gazed at the setting sun on the horizon and murmured softly.

『..............』

When Zhang He, the Crown Prince's steward, heard these names, he felt his scalp tingle.

Of the three highest officials, the Left and Right Chancellors and the Grand Censor have all stood against the Crown Prince; this lineup is incredibly powerful.

"I recommended Zhao Yu, Minister of the Imperial Treasury; Yin Qi, Commandant of the Imperial Guards; Guo Chang, Director of the Arsenal; Xu Bo, Director of the Water Conservancy Bureau; Fan Xi, Governor of the Capital; and Zhuang Xiongpi, Governor of Hedong."

"These people will at least have some affection for me, and won't kick me when I'm down."

"Zuo Fengyi Tian Ren once served as a retainer of General Wei Qing and participated in many campaigns against the Xiongnu. He was promoted to Langzhong through the recommendation of his maternal uncle."

"This person can be of service to me."

"Ji Ren of Youfufeng is the younger brother of Ji An. Ji An was highly valued by His Majesty and died in office as the Prefect of Huaiyang. His Majesty bestowed favors upon his younger brother Ji Ren, who was promoted to one of the Nine Ministers, and his son Ji Yan, who was promoted to the position of Chancellor of a feudal lord. This man should not be won over."

Immediately, Liu Ju listed the officials in the court one by one.

*Whoosh!*

Zhang He's tense nerves finally relaxed a little.

Of the five officials in charge of the imperial court, three either sided with the crown prince or were close to him. Of the nine officials in charge of the imperial court, four were close to him, and of the three officials in charge of the imperial court, two were close to him. This at least shows that the crown prince's situation in the court was not too bad.

The Three Auxiliary Commanderies governed the capital region, and Hedong was the closest prefecture to the Three Auxiliary Commanderies. If something happened, the troops of Hedong Prefecture could cross the Yellow River and arrive in Chang'an in no time.

"Your Highness."

"Could we try to win over Yin Qi, the Commandant of the Guards?"

Zhang He asked with sparkling eyes.

"No."

However, Liu Ju rejected his proposal outright.

"The Commandant of the Guards is in charge of the Northern Army and the armory. With his support, this matter is already half accomplished."

Zhang He still tried to persuade him, somewhat unwilling to give up.

"His Majesty cannot allow the Commandant of the Guards to become too powerful."

"Since the time of Emperor Gaozu, the Imperial Guards of our Great Han Dynasty have been composed of the Northern Army, the Southern Army, and the Imperial Guards."

"The Northern Army is the largest in number and has the widest range of soldiers, which has always been a source of fear for Your Majesty."

"At the beginning of His Majesty's reign, he made several adjustments to the Northern Army, and the authority of the lieutenant was repeatedly reduced."

"In a broad sense, the Northern Army not only included the Imperial Guards in the capital, but also the soldiers of various counties in the vicinity of the capital under the command of the Lieutenant."

"The establishment of the Three Prefectures diluted the authority of the Lieutenant General, and the Northern Army was confined to Chang'an."

"In addition, His Majesty has also established eight colonels: the Colonel of the Central Fortress, the Colonel of the Garrison Cavalry, the Colonel of the Infantry, the Colonel of the Yue Cavalry, the Colonel of the Changshui Cavalry, the Colonel of the Hu Cavalry, the Colonel of the Archers, and the Colonel of the Tiger Warriors, with a rank of two thousand shi. They also have assistant and military officers, each commanding seven hundred soldiers, for a total of five thousand six hundred men."

"These 5,600 men are the most elite in the Northern Army, and they are all directly under the Emperor's command."

"In order to contain the Northern Army, His Majesty has adjusted the Imperial Guards, establishing 2,500 Imperial Guards and 1,500 Imperial Gate Guards."

"There is also the Southern Army, with the four palaces each leading their own troops, each palace with 2,500 men, totaling 10,000 men."

"If I'm not mistaken, His Majesty will definitely arrange for someone to monitor the Northern Army to ensure that nothing goes wrong."

Liu Ju's words completely dispelled Zhang He's idea of ​​winning over Yin Qi. As the most outstanding emperor of the Han Empire, Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, undoubtedly had the ability to weigh pros and cons ingrained in his bones. Trying to exploit his weaknesses was simply wishful thinking.

"Your Highness."

"So we're just going to do nothing?"

Zhang He was somewhat unwilling. Relying solely on the Crown Prince's left and right guards with eight hundred men to attempt a rebellion was tantamount to a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

"Of course not."

Liu Ju said in a deep voice, "Now we need to distinguish which forces are hostile, which are neutral, and which are usable."

"Besides the 5,600 men under the command of the eight colonels, the Northern Army has nearly 15,000 men available for the command of the Imperial Guard Commandant Yin Qi."

"This group belongs to the neutral forces."

"The Southern Army is mainly under the command of the four palace supervisors: Jianzhang, Weiyang, Changle, and Ganquan. Li Ling, the supervisor of Jianzhang Palace, is definitely not to my use. Changle Palace is at the command of the Empress Dowager, so the supervisor of Changle Palace can naturally be used by me."

"Ganquan Palace is more than 300 li away from Chang'an. If something happens to Chang'an, the 2,500 guards under the command of the Ganquan Palace Supervisor will not be able to arrive in time."

"The Weiyang Palace Supervisors do not take sides. As long as they do not fight in the Weiyang Palace, they will not become our enemies."

"This means that the enemies we need to face are mainly the Eight Colonels, the Imperial Guards, the Qimen Guards, and the Jianzhang Guards, totaling 12100 people."

"In addition to the 800 guards of the Crown Prince's Palace, we also have 2500 men from the Chang Le Palace, for a total of 3300 men."

"hiss!!!"

Zhang He couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement. 3300 to 12100, the advantage is mine.

"Have you figured out all the guards at the armory?"

Liu Ju suddenly looked at Zhang He. Whoever controls the armory will have the right to expand the army, which is very important.

"Your Highness."

Zhang He took out a silk scroll with a clear floor plan of the armory on it and introduced it as follows: "The armory is surrounded by high walls on all sides, with only one gate for entry and exit. There are only 1,200 Northern Army guards who guard the armory on weekdays."

"These 1,200 people are divided into three shifts, each shift lasting four hours, changing shifts at 1:15 AM, 7:15 AM, and 3:15 PM respectively."

"Of the four hundred men, fifty carried halberds, two hundred carried swords, fifty carried spears, fifty carried daggers, and fifty carried crossbows."

"Um."

Upon hearing this, Liu Ju frowned.

Such a configuration is no simple matter. Two hundred swordsmen are fighting in front, fifty spearmen are following closely behind, fifty halberdiers guard the left flank, fifty spearmen guard the right flank, and fifty crossbowmen are ready to provide support from the rear.

The armory gate faces the East Mansion directly, with only Shangguan Street between them, making it impossible to deploy a large army. At most, it can accommodate a few hundred people to attack at the same time, which is a drop in the ocean compared to the armory's defensive strength.

"Your Highness."

"We can only seize the armory in one fell swoop if we strike during their shift change."

Zhang He was not completely ignorant about military affairs; he had his own insights.

"Um."

Liu nodded in agreement.

"Your Highness."

"In Chang'an, high-ranking officials and nobles often recruit retainers, and wealthy merchants also have bodyguards."

"These people are likely to become obstacles to our success."

Then, Zhang He added a few more words.

"I understand."

Liu Ju rubbed his temples. There were already many problems to solve within Chang'an alone, let alone the entire country.

What he's trying to do isn't just a rebellion, but a momentous event that will change the very foundations of the world. How to smoothly transition and transfer power is a difficult problem!