Volume 1: I Want to Be an Emperor Chapter 17: Governor of Liangzhou, Dong

  Liu Xuan's guess was correct, the newcomer was indeed Dong Zhuo, the governor of Liangzhou. The flags and horses that covered the sky and sun came rushing in, and Liu Xuan was also shocked by this majestic momentum - although he had once built a vast empire with his friends, he didn't often lead troops on the outside, and besides, the marching army at that time was very different from what it was like now. Suddenly seeing such a scene, he was slightly startled.

  At this time, the emperor and all officials had gathered together. Earlier, Liu Xuan had beheaded the general with one knife, also shocking all officials. The emperor was even more frightened, thinking that as long as his brother was in front, what was there to be afraid of?

  Among them, Wang Yun and Yang Bi looked at each other, never thinking that Liang Wang would have such high martial arts skills. The two of them were both knowledgeable and experienced, knowing how deadly Liu Xuan's previous knife was - not to mention the distant ones, even among the generals in the capital, there might be only a few who could take it down.

  Reconsidering the journey, this King Liang has a clear plan for advancing and retreating, and his words are also logical and well-reasoned. Yang Biao is even more worried: "King Liang is wise, but perhaps not a blessing to the Emperor!"

  The Han Dynasty began to reduce the power of vassals after the Eight Kings' Rebellion, and although princes and marquises still had their fiefs, they could no longer wield great local power as before, but only lived a life of wealth and luxury.

  Even to prevent the king from making trouble, even if he is morally upright and talented, he cannot be reused! On the contrary, some imperial relatives are more valued - such as Liu Yan, the shepherd of Yizhou, and Liu Yu, the shepherd of Youzhou. Strictly speaking, they are only distant relatives, but they govern a region, hold great power, and are like local emperors; Another example is General-in-Chief He Jin, who is the emperor's uncle, also gets reused.

  Now that Liu Xuan has shown such talent, can he be content with being a wealthy and noble prince without asking about the great affairs of the world? Yang Bi thought for a moment, feeling that it was unlikely, but this matter wasn't up to him to worry about, so after thinking for a moment, he didn't think about it anymore.

  He glanced at Wang Yun beside him, and just by looking at his expression, he knew that this King of the Imperial Court was also thinking about this matter. For a moment, he felt that these years had been too eventful, and he didn't know whether the Han dynasty could still be maintained or not.

  Cao Cao also saw this, but at this time he was beside Liu Xuan, and said in a low voice: "The incoming army is indeed the Liangzhou army, and it is the most elite soldier of Dong Zhuo's account, called 'Fei Xiong', led by Li Jue and Guo Si."

  Liu Xuan's eyesight far surpassed Cao Cao, seeing much clearer than him. Not only did he see that this group of soldiers and horses were extremely elite and battle-hardened, but also saw the large characters "Dong Zhuo, Governor of Liangzhou" written on the large flag early on.

  In less than a moment, that army had charged to the front. The first man was not much taller in stature, but his physique was extremely robust. That suit of armor on him looked like a moving large iron block, both wide and sturdy.

  "At this time, Dong Zhuo had not yet become Dong Fei!"

  At first glance, it's clear that this person is ferocious and cruel, and the aura of murder and violence on his body is not hidden at all. Liu Xuan took one look and knew that Dong Zhuo's underlings were probably more numerous than Hua Xiong's.

  But now is not the time to measure, when the soldiers and horses arrive near, Liu Xuan rides forward, and the surrounding officials see that Prince Liang has taken the lead, they do not contend with him, but only watch from behind.

  "Who comes?"

  Everyone pretended not to see what was written on the big flag. Anyway, at this time, the sky was approaching dawn, which was the darkest moment of the night. Even with torches and lanterns, you couldn't see far away. It was normal that you couldn't see it either.

  A loud shout, the sound traveled far and wide. Not to mention that the surrounding crowd heard it clearly, but even the soldiers and horses on the opposite side heard this loud shout clearly. Dong Zhuo, who was leading the charge, was also startled and thought to himself: "This young man has a really big voice!"

  At the same time, he pulled tight the reins of his warhorse, looked around and immediately saw Hua Xiong lying on one side - with obvious knife wounds on his body. Dong Zhuo's eyes narrowed as soon as he saw him, but his gaze passed over Liu Xuan and sized up Cao Cao, Chunyu Qiong and others behind him.

  These were just momentary things, Dong Zhuo could also see that Liu Xuan's identity was extraordinary. He came out to ask questions, and he couldn't not respond. Anyway, he had already arrived at this time, and the detailed matters would be asked later.

  "Dong Zhuo, the Governor of Xiliang!" Then he deliberately raised his voice: "Where is the Son of Heaven?"

  Liu Xuan did not fall for this and instead loudly rebuked him, "You led your troops to block the Emperor's path, could it be that you want to abduct him?"

  Dong Zhuo only then carefully sized up Liu Xuan, this young man in front of his elite soldiers didn't change his expression at all, and could even stare back at him, definitely not an ordinary person. And with these several hat buttons undone, Dong Zhuo also didn't dare to casually respond, respectfully saying: "Earlier received the general's letter, specially led troops into the capital to execute the eunuchs, halfway got news of the change in the palace, and thus led troops here to escort you! Also previously sent his subordinate officers..."

  "Since you've come to offer your services, the Emperor is here, why don't you dismount and pay your respects, instead of blocking the road with a large army?"

  Liu Xuan didn't even wait for Dong Zhuo to finish speaking, first throwing a few opening moves to intimidate the Governor of Xiliang before continuing. Especially with the big hats coming one after another, as long as you, Dong Zhuo, respond inappropriately, it will be hard to regain control!

  However, at this time, it turned out that Dong Zhuo was also a decisive person. Upon hearing the words, he didn't waste any words and immediately dismounted his horse. Then, with great respect and in accordance with etiquette, he bowed to the Emperor: "Minister of Western Liang, Dong Zhuo, pays respects to Your Majesty!"

  He then decisively dispersed his troops, making way for the Emperor's procession to pass through - his original intention was to use the excuse of escorting the Emperor to lead his army into the capital, but now that things had come to this point, there was no need to make a fuss about it.

  Liu Xuan had already slipped aside when Dong Zhuo dismounted to pay his respects, this grand ceremony was not something he could accept at present, if he still stood there, it would be hard to prevent people from noticing something, and if unexpected branches grew out of it, it would not be beautiful.

  But he also knew that if everything went smoothly, it wouldn't be long before he could receive such great honors with dignity and didn't need to rush.

  At this time, Dong Zhuo was secretly sizing up the Emperor, and saw that Liu Bian was sitting on his horse, looking very constrained when he came to pay his respects. When he lifted his head later, he found that Liu Bian seemed to have been frightened by him, with a not-so-good-looking face, stumbling over his words when responding, and needing the help of people beside him - naturally, it was Grand Tutor Wang Yun and Grand Marshal Yang Biao.

  He shook his head secretly in his heart: "Can such a child sit on the throne of this country?"

  Anyway, after the ceremony was over, Dong Zhuo, under the pretext of escorting him, had his Flying Bear Army surround all the officials and protect them in the middle. Although Dong Zhuo's appearance on the scene was a bit frightening, now that he had elite soldiers guarding him, the faces of the officials also looked better, feeling that this time they didn't have to be nervous again.

  Dong Zhuo had an excuse to lead his troops into the capital, and he was also delighted. At the same time, he secretly instructed the people around him with two sentences, and then actively rode alone into the inner circle, getting much closer to the emperor.

  Now that there are Liangzhou soldiers and horses guarding, it's naturally not necessary for Liu Xuan to do this opening the road thing. Fortunately, after the soldiers and horses were stationed, the sky also began to brighten up, and the speed of progress also accelerated a lot. At the same time, he used his dragon energy to protect Liu Xie in his arms, and he didn't have to be as anxious as he was at first.

  Turning back, he happened to see Dong Zhuo approaching him, and with a fist in his hand, said: "I don't know what to call you?"

  "I am Liu Xuan, King of Liang!"

  Dong Zhuo only then realized Liu Xuan's identity, his face shocked: "It turns out to be Prince Liang!" One sentence finished, but there was no follow-up, however looking at that expression, he should be plotting something in his heart.

  After a while, Dong Zhuo curiously said: "Is this Chen Liu Wang?"

  "Exactly!"

  He didn't have much of a relationship with Dong Zhuo, and he wasn't particularly fond of him either. However, the two hadn't turned hostile yet, so there was no need to put on a cold face and reject him outright.

  Moreover, in the next plan, Dong Zhuo will have to make more efforts. Although it is not known how much weight can be left in Dong Zhuo's heart today, thinking about it should be enough.

  Liu Xuan's guess was indeed correct. Dong Zhuo had been observing the officials in the court, the emperor and the surrounding generals since his first appearance.

  At first, he thought Liu Xuan was just a talented young man in the capital, perhaps the son of some powerful noble, which explained his remarkable abilities at such a young age. But later, when he found out that Liu Xuan was actually the Emperor's brother, Prince of Liang, and the descendant of Liu Xuan, he began to make calculations in his mind.

  Recalling the appearance of Emperor Liu Bian, he secretly thought: "The new emperor is incompetent, but he was born to Empress He and is the eldest son of the previous emperor! This status will surely make many old ministers devotedly assist him. But if it were this Prince of Langya..."

  Actually, Dong Zhuo had already calculated with his chief strategist Li Ru what to do after entering the capital, including the idea of deposing and enthroning a new emperor to demonstrate his own power and intimidate the officials in the court.

  At first, Dong Zhuo and Li Ru intended to support the King of Chenliu - The King of Chenliu was young and easy to control. Moreover, the King of Chenliu was also a younger son born out of wedlock, and according to current customs, if the King of Chenliu ascended to the throne, many old ministers would be dissatisfied. Coincidentally, these old ministers had great power in the court, and if they were dissatisfied with the emperor, it would be an excellent opportunity for Dong Zhuo to seize control of the court.

  But he also heard that the King of Chenliu was weak and sickly since childhood, although he seemed to be somewhat intelligent, but not necessarily stronger than ordinary people. He wanted to establish him as a ruler, but there was no suitable excuse.

  Now it seems that this Liang Wang is not bad after all.

  Just by observing the way he handles things, it's clear that Liang Wang has some ability, which gives him an excuse to establish himself as a ruler. More importantly, Liang Wang is also the emperor's older brother, and in terms of etiquette and law, there are grounds for discussion - deposing the elder and installing the younger is already against the ancestral system. As the eldest son, Liang Wang should have succeeded to the throne, but because of the empress and external relatives interfering with politics, the second imperial son was able to take the throne instead.

  This excuse can also cause divisions within the imperial court's original forces, making it easier for them to muddy the waters and take advantage of the situation to strengthen their own power.

  As for Liu Xuan's talent, if he is not willing to sit honestly on the throne, wanting to confront himself with this possibility, Dong Zhuo thought that as long as he controlled the military power in the capital, even if Liu Xuan had great ability, what could he do?

  "What is most urgent now is to take control of the troops left behind by General He Jin and his brother He Miao!"

  Dong Zhuo's plans were all going well, but he didn't know that on the other side, Liu Xuan was also secretly thinking: "At this critical juncture, without an army in hand, nothing can be done. I must think of a way to seize a usable military force!"

  At a glance, Liu Xuan looked at Cao Cao following beside him and felt that this matter would eventually fall on his shoulders.