Chapter 11: Dong Zhuo's Tyranny Brings Chaos to the Land!
Yuan Shao met with the leader of the alliance, Han Xing Wang Liu Bei, and the commander of the army, Cao , after they returned to their camps. He was depressed and knew it was because he had not ordered the other lords to attack Tiger Trap Pass strongly enough! However, Dong Zhuo did something that completely enraged Yuan Shao! It turned out that Dong Zhuo had sent someone to bring the head of the current Taifu, Yuan Shao's uncle Yuan Huan, along with a letter. The letter said that if they dared to lead the rebellion against him again, this would be Yuan Shao's fate! Yuan Shao was furious, but at this time, Liu Bei and Cao did not speak up. Gongsun Zan was also unhappy because he had been arranged by Yuan Shao to fight against Lü Bu. The others were just watching with a wait-and-see attitude. Yuan Shao could only send someone to fetch the command arrow and ask Sun Jian of Jiangdong to lead his troops to prepare for an attack on Tiger Trap Pass the next day! One battle would decide it, then they would take the imperial capital Luoyang and revive the great Han dynasty. Anyway, Yuan Shao's words were as good as he could make them sound, but Liu Bei and Cao did not believe in this alliance leader at all now. They were just watching the commotion, thinking to themselves. Liu Bei thought, "Let me see what you, Yuan Shao, will do this time. Your uncle was killed, and you are furious, preparing to attack Tiger Trap Pass strongly!" Cao thought, "You, Yuan Shao, are reaping what you sowed. Who can blame anyone else? If you had ordered the other lords to attack Tiger Trap Pass together today, Dong Zhuo would have been beheaded by now! Now you want to attack strongly, but I, Cao Mengde, won't do it!" Yuan Shao did not expect that Dong Zhuo would be so ruthless, killing his uncle's entire family of dozens, including relatives who had come to visit and even the dogs, cats, and pigs in Yuan Huan's household. Dong Zhuo was indeed the number one evil king of the Three Kingdoms! He was truly cruel and merciless, killing people without blinking an eye!
Sun Jian received Yuan Shao's token, but did not respond. He immediately summoned Cheng Pu and Huang Gai, two veteran generals, to meet with Yuan Shu in his camp. Sun Jian drew his sword and scolded Yuan Shu: "You bastard! Dong Zhuo and I had no grudge, yet I risked my life to fight him for the country's sake and for your family's private revenge. But you, Yuan Shu, listened to slander and refused to provide supplies, causing me to suffer a great defeat and lose my brother Sun Mao. Do you still have a conscience? Today, I will demand an explanation from you!" Yuan Shu knew that Sun Jian was a formidable warrior, and his sword was not for show. However, Yuan Shu was also incompetent and was intimidated by Sun Jian's scolding. He pointed to one of his advisors and said: "It's all my fault for listening to this man's rumors, which led to our defeat today!" Sun Jian was furious and inserted his sword into the tea table, saying: "Yuan Shu, what should be done about this?" In fact, Sun Jian just wanted to scare Yuan Shu, but Yuan Shu was not easily intimidated. He almost urinated in his pants and immediately ordered the execution of the advisor who had spread rumors, presenting his head as an apology to Sun Jian. This was to make amends for Sun Jian's defeat at the Battle of Langya. When Sun Jian saw the advisor beheaded, he thought that although Yuan Shu was a coward, he was still the younger brother of the alliance leader Yuan Shao, and it would not be wise to provoke him further. So, he decided to let the matter drop.
At this time, another person came to report to Sun Jian and said: "There is a general at the pass who has come to the camp on horseback and wants to see the general." Sun Jian saw that someone had come to ask for an audience, so he had to let Yuan Shu go and bid farewell to return to his own camp. He called out the person who asked to see him and asked when it was originally Li Su, a favorite general of Dong Zhuo. Sun Jian asked: "In the past at the Guanqiu Pass, you took advantage of our army's lack of food and launched a surprise attack, causing me to lose my brother Zu Mao! I have been resentful and wanted to eat your flesh and drink your blood! Why did you come today?" Li Su saw this and quickly knelt down and said: "The general respects only General Sun Wentai. Today, I, Li Su, was sent to form an alliance through marriage: Dong Zhuo has a daughter who is of a good age and has seen General Sun Ce, the son of General Sun, as a hero among men. He wants to marry her to your son. This is a great joy! From now on, General Sun's family will surely rise to greatness!" Sun Jian was furious when he heard this and scolded: "Dong Zhuo is an old traitor who defies heaven and has no way, overthrows the royal court, ravages the back palace, bullies the emperor, poisoned the young emperor and the empress dowager. I, Sun Jian, want to destroy his nine clans to apologize to the world! How can I form an alliance with a rebel like him? If you don't leave quickly, I will have you beaten to death! Come, men, drive him out with sticks!"
He didn't wait for Li Su to respond, and immediately ordered his personal soldiers to bring rods to beat him. Li Su had no choice but to cover his head and flee back to Tiger Trap Pass, where he reported to Dong Zhuo that Sun Jian was being very rude. Dong Zhuo became enraged upon hearing this and asked his son-in-law Li Ru what should be done. Li Ru stroked his beard in a treacherous manner and said: "Now that the Marquis of Wen, Lü Bu, has been defeated again, and yesterday Liu Bei and Cao Cao led their armies to attack the city, suffering heavy casualties. The current situation is that the soldiers have no will to fight. It would be better to lead the army back to Luoyang, move Emperor Xian of Han to Chang'an, and respond to the children's nursery rhyme. Recently, a street urchin sang: 'One Han in the west, one Han in the east. The deer runs into Chang'an, only then can there be no disaster.' I think this phrase 'one Han in the west' refers to Emperor Gaozu of Han who was in the western capital of Chang'an and passed down for twelve emperors; 'one Han in the east' refers to Emperor Guangwu of Han who was in the eastern capital of Luoyang, and now also passed down for twelve emperors. The heavenly cycle is complete. If the Prime Minister moves back to Chang'an, there will be no more worries. As long as the Son of Heaven is in our hands, we will definitely have a chance to rise again! Dong Zhuo was overjoyed upon hearing this and said: "If not for my wise son-in-law's words, I would not have realized it. Now, let us follow your words and prepare to move back to Chang'an! When the time comes, not only these eighteen vassal lords but even thirty-six vassal lords will not be able to do anything to me! Haha!"
Dong Zhuo was a man of action, and he also feared that the allied forces of the Tiger Trap Pass would discover his plan. He immediately ordered his troops to set out, and Dong Zhuo himself, along with Li Ru, had Wen Chou and Lü Bu protect them as they rushed back to Luoyang under the cover of night to discuss the relocation of the capital.
The distance between the Tiger Trap Pass and the imperial capital of Luoyang was only 50-60 li. By that evening, Dong Zhuo's troops had already returned to the imperial capital of Luoyang. Without waiting for dawn the next day, Dong Zhuo ordered his messengers to go from door to door to summon all civil and military officials to come to the Golden Dragon Temple for a meeting.
As for himself, he took up his precious sword and went to the rear palace to find Emperor Xian of Han. During this time, Dong Zhuo was more powerful than the emperor himself. All the imperial concubines had been slept with by Dong Zhuo, and Emperor Xian of Han did not dare to speak out against him.
When Emperor Xian of Han saw how things were, he could only follow Dong Zhuo as they ascended to the throne in the Golden Dragon Temple. By this time, all the civil and military officials had already arrived at the temple.
Dong Zhuo held his sword in hand and glared at everyone, saying: "Today, the Eastern Han dynasty has been in Luoyang for over 200 years, and its fortune has declined. I have observed that the auspicious energy is actually in Chang'an. I want to escort the emperor westward to Chang'an."
Yang Biao, the Minister of Works, fell to the ground crying and said: "The area within the passes is desolate and barren, and it's not suitable for our great Han dynasty's capital at present. Moreover, we have already abandoned our ancestral temples and mausoleums without reason. If we move the capital to Chang'an, it would be abandoning the imperial mausoleum, abandoning our ancestors, abandoning the gods of the land, and abandoning the people of the world! If we do this, I fear that the people of the world will be shocked, and when the time comes, heroes will rise together, and every grass and tree will become a king. Minister, minister! Today, it's easy to stir up the world, but it's difficult to calm it down. I hope you will consider this carefully. The matter of relocating the capital to Chang'an is actually a mistake for our country, our family, and the world!"
Dong Zhuo was enraged when he heard this and said: "You, a mere civil official, dare to obstruct the great plan of the state?"
Dong Zhuo had just come out of the Golden Palace and was about to get on his carriage to return home, ordering his family to prepare for their move to Chang'an. Just then, two men approached the carriage and bowed, Dong Zhuo lifted up the curtain of the carriage window and glared at them angrily, they were none other than Shangshu Zhou Bi and Chengmen Xiaowei Wu Qiong. Dong Zhuo asked the two what business they had that required them to block his carriage, Zhou Bi knelt down and bowed, saying: "We have heard that the Prime Minister intends to move the capital to Chang'an, so we came to remonstrate with you on this matter, please withdraw your order." Dong Zhuo was furious, saying: "I initially listened to your nonsense about using Yuan Shao; now Yuan Shao has rebelled and become the commander-in-chief of the eighteen-road coalition army! You two must be in cahoots! Do not listen to their nonsense, immediately behead them as an example!" The soldiers on both sides heard Dong Zhuo's order and immediately pushed Zhou Bi and Wu Qiong out of the city gate and beheaded them. In a short while, less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the two men's heads were brought before Dong Zhuo. Dong Zhuo was still not satisfied, ordering that the two men's heads be made into chamber pots for him to use at night, showing just how terrifying this demon king was. Dong Zhuo repeatedly issued orders urging the move, requiring Emperor Xian of Han and all the civil and military officials to set out immediately at dawn the next day.
On that day, Li Ru came to see Dong Zhuo and said: "Today, the money and grain are lacking, and there are many rich households in Luoyang. We can confiscate them and enter them into the government. And the population of Chang'an is sparse, we can sign all the people of Luoyang with Chang'an to supplement the household registration! However, there is another point that the Yuan family has four generations of three dukes, and their descendants and former officials are all over the court. Now we must kill Yuan Shao and his party, and eliminate them completely, like cutting grass and eliminating roots. Also, confiscate all their property, and get tens of thousands of dollars to supplement our military expenses!" Dong Zhuo liked this matter, and immediately followed his son-in-law Li Ru's suggestion, and ordered Wen Chou and Lü Bu to lead the Xiliang iron cavalry, five thousand men, to arrest the rich households in Luoyang, a total of several thousand families. They put flags on their heads with "Rebel Minister" written on them, and beheaded them all outside the city, taking their gold and silver to supplement military expenses.
Li Jue and Guo Si, following Dong Zhuo's orders, drove hundreds of thousands of people from Luoyang to Chang'an. Every hundred civilians were accompanied by a troop of soldiers, who dragged them along; countless numbers died on the way, their corpses littering the ground. Moreover, Li Jue and Guo Si were licentious, and whenever they saw beautiful women, they would order their men to seize them for their own use. They also failed to restrain their soldiers, who raped people's wives and daughters, and plundered their food; the wailing cries shook heaven and earth. Those who lagged behind were pursued by three thousand soldiers, who killed anyone on the spot with their swords. Blood flowed like a river. The surviving civilians all cursed Dong Zhuo, wishing him a terrible death and eternal damnation in the eighteen layers of hell! It can be seen that Dong Zhuo's actions were detested by heaven and man alike; his atrocities are too heinous to record!
As Dong Zhuo was about to leave, he ordered his soldiers to set fire to the city gates, burning down the residents' houses and temples. The flames engulfed the palaces of the emperors, reducing them to ashes. China's treasures were all destroyed by Dong Zhuo; his atrocities had ruined a precious cultural heritage! Furthermore, Dong Zhuo sent Lü Bu to dig up the tombs of the former emperors and their consorts, stealing their gold and jewels. His soldiers took advantage of the situation to plunder the graves of officials and civilians, exhuming countless corpses to use as military supplies! Dong Zhuo loaded his carts with gold, pearls, silk, and other precious goods, amassing a vast fortune!
Dong Zhuo had kidnapped the emperor and the empress, and was now heading for Chang'an. Meanwhile, Zhao Cen, one of Dong Zhuo's generals, saw that his lord had abandoned Luoyang and feared that the allied forces would attack Hu Pass, implicating himself in the process. He therefore surrendered Wu Pass to Sun Jian, who led his troops into the pass first. Han Xing Wang Liu Bei led Guan Yu and Zhang Fei in a charge into Tiger Trap Pass, while the other lords followed with their armies.
Sun Jian and Liu Bei, fearing Dong Zhuo's escape, discussed dividing their troops into two routes to rush to Luoyang. From a distance, they saw flames soaring into the sky and black smoke covering the ground, with no signs of human life or animals within 200-300 miles. Sun Jian first sent his troops to put out the fire, while Liu Bei ordered his men to rescue the civilians, the imperial palace, and the ancestral temples. Then, Liu Bei commanded all the lords to station their troops in the desolate areas and wait quietly for the arrival of the allied army's commander-in-chief, Yuan Shao.
Cao Cao came to see Yuan Shao and said, "Now that Dong Zhuo has gone west, we can take advantage of the situation to pursue and attack; why is Yuan Shao not moving?" Yuan Shao replied, "We have been fighting repeatedly, and now all the lords' soldiers are exhausted. If we advance, I'm afraid it will be of no benefit." Cao Cao was furious and said, "Dong Zhuo has burned down palaces, heaven and man are angry, and he has even forced the emperor to move, causing chaos throughout the land. This is a time when heaven is destroying [the Han dynasty], and we can settle the world with one battle! Why do you gentlemen hesitate and not advance?" All the lords said it was not advisable to make light moves. Cao Cao was furious and said, "This child is not worthy of discussing plans with!" Liu Bei heard this and drew his sword, saying to all the lords, "If you don't go, I will go with Meng De to rescue the emperor!" After consulting with Cao Cao, Cao Cao led his army first, while Liu Bei followed up behind. Cao Cao respected Liu Bei's military order and led an army of over 10,000 men, including Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Li Dian, and Yue Jin, to hurry after Dong Zhuo overnight. Liu Bei ordered Zhang Fei to lead an army of 30,000 men to support Cao Cao together with himself.
Here is the translation:
As Dong Zhuo's army marched to Xiangyang, Governor Xu Rong came out to greet them. Li Ru said, "The Prime Minister has just abandoned Luoyang and there may be pursuing troops. We can order Xu Rong to ambush his troops outside the city walls of Xiangyang. If any troops come chasing after us, we can let them pass through; then, after we defeat them here, we can cut off their retreat and attack them from behind." Dong Zhuo followed Li Ru's plan and also ordered Lü Bu to lead a thousand elite iron cavalrymen to guard the rear.
As they were marching, Cao Cao's army caught up with them. Lü Bu laughed loudly and said, "Indeed, it is just as Li Ru predicted!" The two armies clashed, and Cao Cao rode out and shouted, "Rebel! You have kidnapped the Emperor and forced the people to flee. Where do you think you are going?" Lü Bu cursed back, "You are a traitor who has abandoned his lord. How dare you speak recklessly!"
Xiahou Dun was enraged and charged at Lü Bu with his spear. Xiahou Dun was one of the famous generals of the Three Kingdoms, but before he could engage in a fierce battle with Lü Bu, Li Dian led an army of 10,000 men to attack from the left flank. Cao Cao hastily ordered Xiahou Yuan to lead troops to counterattack. At the same time, another shout arose from the right flank as Guo Si led an army of 10,000 men to attack. Cao Cao hastily ordered Cao Ren to divide his troops and counterattack.
The three armies clashed, and their momentum was unstoppable. Although Xiahou Dun was a famous general, he was no match for Lü Bu. Xiahou Dun was defeated and fled back to protect Cao Cao. Lü Bu saw that Xiahou Dun had been defeated and led the iron cavalry in pursuit, causing Cao Cao's army to suffer a great defeat.
As they retreated towards Xiangyang, they reached a desolate mountain slope around midnight. Just as they were gathering their remaining troops and preparing to cook dinner, they heard shouts from all directions. Xu Rong's ambush was revealed, and his troops attacked from all sides. Cao Cao hastily mounted his horse and fled in panic.
As he encountered Xu Rong, he turned back and ran. Xu Rong shot an arrow that hit Cao Cao's shoulder. Cao Cao escaped with the arrow still lodged in his shoulder and galloped over a mountain slope. Two soldiers hiding in the grass saw Cao Cao approaching and fired their spears at him, causing his horse to fall.
Cao Cao fell off his horse and was captured by two soldiers. Just then, a general rode up on horseback, swung his sword, and killed the two soldiers who had captured Cao Cao. The general dismounted and rescued Cao Cao. When Cao Cao opened his eyes, he saw that it was his brother Cao Hong.
Cao Cao said to Cao Hong, "I am going to die here. You should leave quickly!" Cao Hong replied, "Big brother, please hurry up and mount your horse! I will follow on foot." Cao Cao asked, "What about when the enemy troops arrive?" Cao Hong replied, "The world can do without me, Cao Hong, but it cannot do without you, my lord."
Cao Cao mounted his horse, and Cao Hong took off his armor and followed behind him. They walked for a while until they reached a river that blocked their path. The shouts of the pursuing troops grew louder. Cao Cao said, "My fate is sealed; I will not be able to escape again!"
Cao Hong hastily helped Cao Cao dismount and removed his cloak. He carried Cao Cao on his back and waded across the river. Just as they reached the other side, the pursuing troops arrived and shot arrows at them from across the water.
They continued fleeing until dawn broke, then walked another 30 miles before resting at a small hill. Suddenly, shouts arose, and a group of soldiers came chasing after them. It was Xu Rong, who had crossed the river upstream to pursue them.
Cao Cao was in a panic when he saw Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan leading several dozen cavalrymen flying towards him. They shouted loudly, "Xu Rong, do not harm our lord!" Xu Rong charged at Xiahou Dun, who rode out to meet him with his spear.
The two generals clashed, and just as they were engaged in a fierce battle, Liu Bei arrived with his troops. He ordered Zhang Fei to guard the rear, fearing that Lü Bu would lead his troops in pursuit. Cao Ren, Li Dian, and Yue Jin each led their troops to search for Cao Cao.
When they found him, they were overjoyed. They gathered their remaining troops, which numbered only a few hundred men. Liu Bei ordered Zhang Fei to guard the rear as they retreated with Cao Cao back to their main camp. Meanwhile, Dong Zhuo also led his troops towards Chang'an.
I've been waiting for you, did you know? Ah! It's all in vain after all!
