I was living in the Five Dynasties period, just after crossing the Zhongdu Bridge.

The third day of the sixth month in the thirteenth year of Tianfu.

Luoyang, the western capital, is an ancient city with a solemn atmosphere.

Liu Zhiyuan's entourage has already entered the palace, but he hasn't even warmed the dragon throne he's sitting on yet.

Logically speaking, since Yelü Deguang had become that imperial body stuffed with salt, the Central Plains had become ownerless.

Now that Liu Zhiyuan has declared himself emperor and commands hundreds of thousands of troops, he should seize the opportunity to march straight to Tokyo (Daliang) and take over the position that symbolizes the rightful heir of the Nine Provinces.

But he didn't.

He stopped in Luoyang, and stayed there for several days.

It wasn't that the troops were exhausted, nor that the supplies were insufficient; it was simply that an emperor was still sitting in the city of Daliang.

This is a disgusting act left behind by the Khitans.

When the Liao emperor returned north, he was cautious and left his cousin Xiao Han in Daliang to oversee the city, ostensibly to keep watch, but in reality to monitor him.

But who would have thought that Yelü Deguang died after killing Hulinre, and his nephew Wuyu, also known as Yelü Ruan, was elected emperor in Zhenzhou.

Just then, Liu Zhiyuan raised an army and marched south. Upon hearing this news, Xiao Han could no longer sit still.

This is a typical case of "a new emperor, a new court," and he had to hurry to the imperial court to pledge his loyalty to the new emperor.

But he left as he was supposed to, yet he did something extremely despicable before he left.

He forcibly dragged Li Congyi, who was hiding in Luoyang, to Daliang and appointed him as the emperor in charge of military and state affairs of the Southern Dynasty and the Central Plains.

They even appointed a prime minister and set up a makeshift team, euphemistically calling it "Southerners governing Southerners."

This put Liu Zhiyuan in an awkward position.

If he enters Daliang in the name of the Han emperor, then what about the person sitting in Daliang city?

When two emperors meet, who kneels before whom?

Are we going to follow the example of Shi Chonggui and Yelü Deguang?

If they were to directly attack the city, it would be Li Siyuan's son. In the hearts of the Shatuo people and even the former officials of the Central Plains, Li Siyuan still held some familial affection for them.

If we don't attack, Li Congyi, though a puppet, still carries the legitimate name of the Li family. If he gains a firm grip on the throne in Daliang, the question of whether the world belongs to the Liu or the Li family will likely become a topic of discussion again.

Therefore, in a side hall of Luoyang Palace, a small court assembly concerning the fate of the nation was being held in great detail.

The number of attendees was small, but they were all pillars of this new Han dynasty.

Liu Zhiyuan, sitting at the head of the table, had a solemn expression.

Those sitting below were all figures whose mere stomp of their feet could make this half of the country tremble:

The commanders of the Imperial Guards Cavalry were Liu Xin, the commanders of the Imperial Guards Infantry were Shi Hongzhao, the Privy Councilor was Yang Bin, the Deputy Privy Councilor was Guo Wei, and the Commissioner of the Three Departments was Wang Zhang.

And the two powerful civil officials, the Chancellor Su Fengji and Su Yugui.

"Your Majesty."

Su Fengji was the first to speak.

This person has a gentle appearance but a deep and scheming mind, and is most adept at understanding the intentions of superiors.

"Li Congyi is nothing more than a watchdog left behind by the Khitans. Now that Xiao Han has fled, this widow and her child, holding onto the imperial power, is truly courting death. As the saying goes, there cannot be two suns in the sky, nor two masters among the people."

"I believe that hesitation will only lead to more chaos. It would be better to send a high-ranking general to Daliang first, ostensibly to appease them, but in reality to send Li Congyi on his way. In this way, with the country without a ruler, Your Majesty's entry into the city will be in accordance with Heaven's will and the people's will!"

Seeing that Liu Zhiyuan was already interested, Su Fengji continued.

"I recommend Guo Congyi, the Defense Commissioner of Zhengzhou, to go there!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Guo Wei, who was sitting opposite him, frowned.

Guo Wei came from a military background and, although he was skilled in political maneuvering, he ultimately couldn't cultivate the same level of carefree detachment as Su Fengji.

Killing a prince of the previous dynasty is something everyone secretly wants to do, but saying it out loud is ultimately a dirty thing.

"No."

Guo Wei cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, Li Congyi is merely being put on the spot by the Liao people. Moreover, he is the youngest son of Emperor Mingzong. Killing him now would likely alienate the people. In my opinion, we should simply strip him of his imperial title and grant him a sinecure to keep him in retirement. Why go to such lengths to kill him?"

"Womanly compassion!"

Su Fengji sneered, "Has Vice Privy Councilor Guo lost his mind? This is our Han Dynasty, not the Tang, much less the Jin! Keeping him around is like keeping a seed of disaster. What if someone rebels in his name one day? Will Privy Councilor Guo be the one to quell the rebellion?"

Although those words are harsh, they make sense.

The struggle for imperial power has never tolerated any sentimentality.

Seeing that the two classes, civil and military, were about to start arguing again, Liu Zhiyuan quickly gave Shi Hongzhao a wink. The latter understood immediately, stopped drinking his tea in silence, slammed his teacup on the table, and spoke up.

"Alright!"

Su Fengji's eyelids twitched at the sound of Shi Hongzhao's words.

These two men have never gotten along. One is a scholar who looks down on uncouth warriors, while the other happens to be a military general who looks down on pedantic scholars.

Since Liu Zhiyuan had given the signal, Shi Hongzhao naturally understood what the emperor wanted.

He had already made some plans in his mind.

Su Fengji's recommendation of Guo Congyi to kill someone in Daliang was clearly an attempt to win Guo Congyi over.

Although the dirty work of killing the former dynasty's prince had a bad reputation, it was a real pledge of loyalty and the greatest contribution to relieving Liu Zhiyuan's worries.

Why should Su Fengji use this credit to exchange for favors?

"Your Majesty."

Shi Hongzhao rubbed his hands together. "I think it's a bit like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut to crack a nut."

"I have a guy under me named Shen Lie who's been causing quite a stir in Guanzhong lately. Now that Zhao Kuangzan, that spineless coward, has submitted his petition, there's not much of a battle left to fight in Yaozhou."

"Shen Lie is a shrewd and ruthless man."

Shi Hongzhao chuckled, "Why don't we have him go directly from Yaozhou to Daliang and take care of this matter? It's perfect, he's a direct subordinate of the Imperial Guard and comes from the Emperor's inner army, so it'll be easy to use him."

These words were clearly driven by personal motives.

Firstly, Shi Hongzhao had received a bribe from Shen Lie. The man paid to help someone out of trouble, so mentioning it now was also an opportunity for Shen Lie to show his face.

Secondly, he wanted to intercept the opportunity to demonstrate his loyalty to the emperor and keep it in the hands of his own faction of military officers.

Liu Zhiyuan found the name Shen Lie familiar, but he figured the imperial decree to send Shen Lie to Yaozhou was just something he did casually and didn't take it to heart.

"No!"

Before Liu Zhiyuan could even speak, Su Fengji became anxious, "Too slow."

"Yaozhou is far away in Guanzhong, thousands of miles away from Daliang. By the time Shen Lie arrives in Daliang, how long will it be? Now that the army has arrived, the sooner Your Majesty enters the city, the sooner the country will be at peace. How can we let the affairs of state be delayed for the sake of Shen Lie?"

Su Fengji's words struck Liu Zhiyuan's weak spot.

Delay will only lead to unforeseen changes.

Although the Khitans had left, they were not all dead. Li Jing in the south and Meng Chang in the west were both eyeing the Central Plains, this lucrative prize.

He must take control of Daliang as quickly as possible and declare the Han dynasty's legitimacy to the world.

"You're talking nonsense!"

Shi Hongzhao was furious and pointed at Su Fengji's nose, about to start cursing.

That's enough.

Liu Zhiyuan sternly stopped him.

"Su Qing is right."

Since the official had spoken, it naturally had a decisive effect.

"Li Congyi... cannot be kept. This matter shall be handled as Su Qing suggested, and Guo Congyi shall set off immediately to enter Daliang ahead of time to... do that convenient thing."

On the road to acquiring power, old feelings and righteousness are all bargaining chips that can be sacrificed.

Li Congyi must die; his existence is a defilement of the Han imperial power.

Su Fengji's face lit up with joy, and he glanced at Shi Hongzhao with a smile.

Shi Hongzhao snorted, his expression somewhat unpleasant.

But Liu Zhiyuan was, after all, a master of political maneuvering.

He adopted Su Fengji's suggestion, but he didn't intend to discourage Shi Hongzhao, since balance is the core of imperial strategy.

"but......"

Liu Zhiyuan changed the subject, his gaze falling on Shi Hongzhao, "Did you just mention Shen Lie, Minister Shi?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Shi Hongzhao said in a muffled voice. "Shen Lie is currently the Sixth Commander of the Fuwei Army."

"With Guanzhong secured, Yaozhou will no longer be on the front lines."

"The Fuwei Du force that Shen Lie leads, if I remember correctly, should be based on the elite troops I established in Hedong, right?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Hongzhao's mind immediately cleared, and he quickly chimed in, "Exactly! Those are the Emperor's own sons' soldiers; their loyalty is beyond question!"

"Since they are imperial guards, there is no reason for them to be left out in the field."

Liu Zhiyuan nodded slightly. "Draft an edict, ordering Shen Lie, the defense commissioner of Yaozhou, to immediately hand over the defense duties and lead his troops back to the Daliang accompanying camp. After I enter the city, the defense of Daliang will need some trustworthy veterans to fill the gaps."

Shi Hongzhao was overjoyed and quickly expressed his gratitude, saying, "Your Majesty is wise!"