Reborn In The Three Kingdoms

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There was a strange quality to his voice now. Regret, yes, but also precision. Purpose. ”But even so,” he said, now pacing slowly before the assembly, ”even so... we must ask ourselves. Can we allow His Majesty to continue bearing this burden? To be mocked by the provinces, ignored by lords, and defied by those who style themselves Emperors?”

His eyes met each official, one by one, boring into them with quiet intensity.

”The people suffer. They suffer not for lack of an Emperor, but for lack of order. What they need is not a symbol, but a hand to guide them. A true leader who can unite heaven and earth, wield both pen and sword, and silence the chaos.”

The implications were clear. Every word was wrapped in the cloth of loyalty, but soaked in ambition.

Emperor Xian still said nothing. His lips trembled, but he did not speak. Cao Cao glanced back toward him and then returned to the center of the chamber, where he faced the court and made the final pivot.

”I do not wish this,” he said, solemnly. ”But if the will of Heaven and the people demand it, if the throne must be surrendered to ensure the survival of the realm, then I, Cao Cao, Cao Mengde, Duke of Wei, will accept such a burden with humility. For the sake of peace.”

The court was silent. It was not fear that stilled them now, but awe. They had just witnessed a coup carried out not with blades, but with words. Emperor Xian, pale as the moon, could only look down at his trembling hands before looking up again. He had lost everything before he ever had a chance to hold it.

He could feel his throat working. He glanced around the court, at the faces of men who had never served him, only their own ambitions. His voice, when it finally came, was barely a whisper.

”I... I will abide by the will of my ministers.”

A death sentence.

Cao Cao bowed deeply, a gesture dripping with irony. ”Your Majesty’s selflessness honors us all.”

Then, without waiting for dismissal, he turned to the assembly. ”The Emperor, in his wisdom, has spoken. Let the edict of abdication be brought forward at once.”

One by one, ministers stepped forward to kneel in affirmation. Those loyal to Cao Cao did so with proud clarity, while others followed reluctantly, knowing resistance was suicide. Even those who once opposed such an act bowed their heads.

The eunuchs after that brought forward the abdication scroll, prepared long before today. Emperor Xian, dazed and defeated, signed without protest. The golden seal of Han passed into Cao Cao’s hands. And with it, the dynasty that had lasted for four hundred years came to an end.

News of the abdication of Emperor Xian spread like wildfire.

In the streets of Luoyang, commoners whispered in shock. Some mourned, not for Emperor Xian, but for the idea of the Han, for the stability it had once represented. Others shrugged, too weary from years of war to care which emperor sat on the throne.

But among the nobility, the reaction was more calculated, especially those who were under Cao Cao’s domain.

Xun Yu, standing at Cao Cao’s side as the edict was sealed, felt no triumph. Only resignation. He had loved the Han once. Believed in it. But now...

”It had to be done,” he murmured to himself.

Guo Jia, ever pragmatic, was already drafting proclamations. ”The transition must be smooth,” he said to Cao Cao. ”We will announce your ascension in three days, my lord. By then, every garrison, every governor, inside your domain, must swear allegiance or be removed.”

Cao Cao nodded. ”And Emperor Xian alongside his family?”

”A comfortable retirement my lord,” Guo Jia said lightly. ”A country estate. Guards to ensure his... safety.”

A polite fiction. They all knew the former emperor would not live long.

When word reached Xiapi through the Oriole Agents network, Lie Fan was in the middle of reviewing supplies and equipment deployments for the northern campaign. The messenger who was in actuality an Oriole Agent, pale and sweating, delivered the news with a trembling bow.

”Your Majesty... Emperor Xian has abdicated. Cao Cao is to declare himself emperor within the week.”

For a moment, Lie Fan said nothing. Then he laughed, a sharp, bitter sound while shaking his head.

”Of course he did.”

Jia Xu, standing nearby, arched a brow. ”This changes things, Your Majesty.”

”It changes nothing Wenhe,” Lie Fan corrected. ”We knew this was coming sooner or later. Cao Cao was never content to play the loyal minister forever. Especially since I have declared myself Emperor.”

Sima Yi who was there as well stepped forward. ”Then we accelerate our plans, Your Majesty. If Cao Cao consolidates his rule, he will continue his gaze west and south, focusing on expanding his domain and manpower. We must secure Goguryeo and the peninsula before that happens.”

Lie Fan nodded. ”Agreed. Send word to Li Wei and Gongsun Gong, to prepare faster but also be prudent at the same time. And double the Oriole Agents stationed in Luoyang. I want to know Cao Cao’s every move.”

As his advisors hurried to carry out his orders, Lie Fan turned to the window, his gaze distant like he were looking at Luoyang.

Two emperors now. Two dynasties.

And only one would survive.

The news of Emperor Xian’s abdication spread like wildfire across the land. At first, it was only hushed murmurs carried by merchants, whispered in the corner of inns and tea houses.

But soon it became a deluge, roaring through the countryside, city streets, and noble halls alike. The truth was clear, the Han Dynasty had fallen. And not by some great battle or foreign invasion, but through the quiet stroke of a pen and the subtle orchestration of a single man’s will, Cao Cao.

In every province, reactions varied. Some of the common folk, too exhausted by the endless wars and famines, merely shook their heads and carried on with their lives. ”Han, Wei, Hengyuan,” they would mutter, ”does it matter? Will the taxes lessen? Will the harvests grow?” To them, emperors were distant shadows. But among the more educated and influential classes, the reaction was far more complicated.

Within lands under Lie Fan’s domain, many saw the abdication as a belated echo, Cao Cao simply following what Lie Fan had already done. They spoke with subtle pride, some even mocking Wei’s rise. ”Let the butcher of the court sit on a throne of lies,” a young official in Wu commanded under Lie Fan muttered, earning approving nods from his peers.

In Cao Cao’s own territories, of course, the propaganda machines were already running full tilt. Decrees were posted, proclaiming the dawn of a new era, Wei’s era. Poets hired by the court sang praises of Cao Cao’s virtue and his burden to unite the realm. Soldiers were told they now served the legitimate dynasty, born of necessity and righteous vision.

But elsewhere, especially in neutral or contested lands, the reactions were more diverse. Some nobles were aghast, especially those with lingering loyalty to the Liu family. Others simply weighed the implications, who now held legitimacy, who now had the Mandate of Heaven, and what it meant for their own fortunes.

Yet nowhere was the response more surprising than in Chengdu, the quiet capital of Liu Zhang, the Governor of Yi Province.

When the news arrived in Chengdu, carried by a caravan of merchants from the north, the first to hear it were the court officials and local gentry gathered in the Governor’s outer hall.

As the rumors spread like a trail of flame through dry grass, the final blow came when a trusted agent from Hanzhong, an informant planted by Fa Zheng, confirmed it, Emperor Xian had indeed abdicated. Cao Cao was preparing to proclaim himself Emperor of Wei within the week.

The messenger, dusty from travel and trembling from fatigue, barely finished speaking when Liu Zhang’s voice echoed through the audience hall.

”What?” he bellowed.

The outburst stunned everyone. Liu Zhang, normally passive, polite, and often timid, had risen from his seat with such sudden fury that his personal guards nearly reached for their weapons in reflex.

”This, this is a travesty!” Liu Zhang roared. ”A shameless insult to Heaven and Earth! That... that usurper Cao Mengde dares to seize the throne from the Son of Heaven?! Is there no shame?! No sense of honor left in this world?!”

The messenger dropped to his knees, pressing his forehead to the floor. The nearby ministers were silent, dumbfounded. Liu Zhang had always been regarded as a man of weak will, one easily swayed by advisors. But now, for the first time, a fire burned behind his eyes.

Servants scrambled. One of them bolted from the chamber and rushed through the corridors of the estate. He ran past startled guards and confused maids, finally stopping at a modest courtyard nestled within the administrative quarters.

There, sitting beneath a plum blossom tree, Zhang Song and Fa Zheng were speaking quietly, with Meng Da nearby sharpening a small dagger with idle hands.

The servant gasped for breath. ”The Governor... His Excellency... he is enraged, about the Emperor!”

Fa Zheng and Zhang Song exchanged quick glances. Even Meng Da raised an eyebrow.

”He’s angry?” Zhang Song asked, incredulous.

”Enraged!” the servant confirmed. ”He’s shouting. Demanding action.”

They wasted no time.

When the three arrived in the Governor’s residence, they found Liu Zhang pacing like a caged beast. Scrolls and inkstones lay scattered across his desk, some having been flung in fury. He turned as they entered, his eyes wide with emotion.

”There you are!” he said. ”You’ve heard the news? That butcher Cao Mengde has dethroned the Emperor? How humiliting it was for us the Liu Clan! Now he claims Heaven favors him? The gall! The shameless gall!”

Zhang Song stepped forward slowly. ”Your Excellency... we understand your anger. Truly. This is a great betrayal. But we must not let passion dictate action.”

”We must act!” Liu Zhang shouted. ”We must march against him now, now! While he is still gathering his strength! We cannot allow this blasphemy to stand!”

Fa Zheng held up a calming hand. ”My lord. Please. If we march now, what will we gain? Cao Cao has already solidified control large amount of land. His armies are vast. His spies are everywhere. The moment we move, he will rally the claim that we are traitors, rebels against Heaven’s will. And our people, already weary of war, will suffer greatly.”

”Let him come to us,” Zhang Song added smoothly. ”Let the world see him as the aggressor. Let him be the tyrant who crushes the lands of the remnants of the Han Dynasty and Liu Zhang. Then, and only then, shall the hearts of men turn against him.”

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Name: Lie Fan

Title: Founding Emperor Of Hengyuan Dynasty

Age: 34 (201 AD)

Level: 16

Next Level: 462,000

Renown: 2325

Cultivation: Yin Yang Separation (level 9)

SP: 1,121,700

ATTRIBUTE POINTS

STR: 966 (+20)

VIT: 623 (+20)

AGI: 623 (+10)

INT: 667

CHR: 98

WIS: 549

WILL: 432

ATR Points: 0