Mythical Three Kingdoms

”Ha, you see, Zhongde has been constantly bothering Chen Gongtai with trivial matters these past two days. Back when they worked together till midnight, they were so harmonious. It shows that when people have free time, they start looking for trouble,” Chen Xi pointed towards the direction of Cheng Yu and Chen Gong, where the two were once again debating.

Chen Qun turned his head to glance, sighed, debating with Chen Xi’s absurd theories was always somewhat challenging.

”Look, they’re just bored. To deal with people who idle around looking for things to do, you should make them work overtime every day. Don’t you think wasting mental energy on such meaningless debates is ridiculous? They might as well do something productive,” Chen Xi said displeasedly, watching Cheng Yu argue with Chen Gong.

Speaking of Cheng Yu, this old man’s energy is truly abundant. After a few days of riding, Chen Xi was sore all over his body, Guo Jia didn’t even want to speak anymore, and Jia Xu had gone quiet, with most other civil officials also drained. Only Cheng Yu remained energetic every day, ready to spar with Chen Gong, leaving Chen Xi rather unhappy.

This kind of meaningless debate is really boring, and anyway, Cheng Yu is surely unable to convince Chen Gong. So what’s the point of wasting words every day?

”Alas, Zhongde is indeed somewhat...” Xun Yu sighed, while ultimately refraining from making any critical remarks about Cheng Yu.

”That’s why all Chief of Staff should work overtime! They should all work overtime under the leadership of the Imperial Secretary!” Chen Xi eagerly incited Xun Yu.

”You’re idle too,” Fan Qin rode his horse past Chen Xi while leaving a comment.

”Don’t think just because you’re my wife’s cousin, you can slander me,” Chen Xi responded thoughtlessly to Fan Qin.

”Ziyang, have you noticed? Zichuan seems about to collapse from exhaustion if left alone, but gets especially energetic once provoked, completely showing no sign of fatigue,” Guo Jia transmitted this observation to Liu Ye.

”He’s always been like that; I suppose the tiredness is likely feigned,” Liu Ye remarked with suspicion.

”I think you’re quite right, the tiredness is probably feigned,” Guo Jia agreed, with a glint in his eyes yet his expression rather lethargic, he questioned, ”Ziyang, how do you plan to handle that matter?”

”Uh,” Liu Ye hesitated slightly, uncertain about sharing it with Guo Jia.

”Surely you don’t even trust me?” Guo Jia looked at Liu Ye with dissatisfaction.

”That’s not the case,” Liu Ye opened his mouth, explaining to Guo Jia but withholding specific details.

Guo Jia, hearing this, sensed potential and asked again, ”What are your thoughts?”

Liu Ye remained silent for a moment. ”Every family has its difficulties; my family is no exception. Our household’s misfortunes are manageable thanks to our main pillar. The aristocratic family inevitably has to make choices; sacrificing a family head is not out of the question. For the sake of the clan, clan members will make the right decision.”

Understanding from Liu Ye’s words, Guo Jia narrowed his eyes, ”Isn’t changing the family head overly hasty?”

”We can’t afford to hesitate at this point,” Liu Ye shook his head, deciding to support Liu Bei to rise to power, form a coalition with the dragon.

”Now isn’t the right time; you’re too hasty and not aligning with our previous plans,” although tempted, Guo Jia knew what’s destined to be his would be his, so there was no rush. On the contrary, acting now seemed too urgent to Guo Jia.

”Plans can’t keep up with changes. Given how things are, if we let him continue sitting in the main seat, we might end up at a disadvantage,” Liu Ye transmitted his response while shaking his head.

”How about dealing with others? When Zichuan gathered everyone together this time, you saw their exceptional talents. We can’t break our own support, can we?” Guo Jia transmitted his concern to Liu Ye, emphasizing that Liu Xie wasn’t as important as this group of people.

”Drive them out and let them establish their independence,” Liu Ye responded coolly, having witnessed many remarkable individuals during this northern expedition.

”Our strength is enough, but doing so could result in heavy losses. I don’t trust you to take over everyone in Chang’an in one go. If you can seize control wholly, I support you; if not, you better retract the suggestion,” Guo Jia assessed both sides’ power gap, ultimately rejecting Liu Ye’s proposal.

”We still have many reserves in Chang’an,” Liu Ye spoke after a moment of silence.

”Not enough, far from enough. Xun Wenruo and others must be aware of Wen Ru’s identity; they just can’t expose him. Do you think they are inferior to us by a notch? I’m not underestimating ourselves; except for our wider vistas, everything else remains debatable.” Guo Jia continued transmitting to Liu Ye.

”Seems so,” Liu Ye muttered after a pause, agreeing with Guo Jia’s assessment.

”So, stop contemplating these opportunistic ventures. Now isn’t the time,” Guo Jia advised Liu Ye through his transmission.

”But the issue lies not with me, but with other Liu Clan relatives. My proposal is also going with the flow; what he did this time was really poor. Even if I don’t propose, the Minister of Ceremonies will certainly bring it up,” Liu Ye communicated helplessly to Guo Jia, acknowledging that Liu Yu evidently favors Liu Bei now.

The most troublesome thing about the Han Dynasty was here; the imperial clan and the emperor were not a cohesive interest community. While there were many overlapped interests, the truth is, the Han Dynasty’s imperial clan and the emperor were not on the same path.

For the emperor of the Han Dynasty, often it was not ”there are always crafty people scheming against the Emperor,” but ”the imperial clan always schemes against the Emperor” or ”the outer relatives always scheme against the Emperor.” Thus, for the Han Dynasty’s imperial clan and outer relatives, kicking out the current emperor and replacing him with another was not unacceptable.

Clearly, now Liu Bei was capable and powerful, following him meant gaining well-being, and he had swept over the richest places in the world. Meanwhile, the emperor, Liu Xie, performed poorly since his ascension. Given this situation, why not replace him? With Liu Bei’s strength, wasn’t he capable of suppressing those rebels?

Currently, while the ministers of Han Chang’an haven’t realized it, those clear-minded among the imperial clan have already recognized it. Why not support Liu Bei to rise? Given Liu Bei’s civil and military prowess, achieving this is just a matter of time even without their support.

Getting close as a loyal minister with the dragon also beats giving these benefits to outsiders. Liu Xiu ascended with the support of aristocratic families in the past, where most of the rewards of joining the dragon were taken by those families, significantly contributing to the current Han situation.

If that’s the case, why not first elevate Liu Bei? Better to let internal benefits be absorbed rather than given away to others. Given the current global situation, if even Liu Bei from the Liu Family can’t ascend, they might as well resign and call it a day.

Isn’t the current situation clear enough? The Liu Family would either have Liu Bei ascend, or be overthrown. Given this, why not let Liu Bei ascend first and gain the merit of supporting the rightful heir? After all, the situation for Liu Bei in the Liu Family is rather favorable now!

Thus, after Liu Bei headed north, the Liu Family’s royal relatives began spontaneously linking up, with Liu Yu personally going north to convince the Wuhuan, showing goodwill towards Liu Bei. Simultaneously, he informed the other relatives of his stance. It’s worth noting that Liu Yu, currently holding the position of the Minister of Ceremonies or Head of the clan, was conveying this message.

Liu Yu’s stance was a clear signal for the clan to choose sides promptly. Despite there being quite a few foolish people within the Liu clan, they are still humans who can discern reasonably. Hence, the clan quickly aligned themselves, rallying around Liu Yu as the clan leader, proceeding to support Liu Bei.

This is why Liu Ye mentioned that even if he ignored it, upon returning to Chang’an, this situation would inevitably unfold. Also, should the clan request the emperor to step down and Liu Bei assume the throne, should Liu Bei refuse, the people he might offend wouldn’t just be the Liu Clan.

Based on Liu Ye’s understanding of the emperor, it’s likely Liu Bei’s righteousness would even be stripped by Liu Xie, who lacks understanding. Furthermore, based on Liu Ye’s understanding of Liu Bei, after being maliciously played by Liu Xie, the empathetically righteous Liu Bei would surely strike harshly.

Since this outcome is inevitable, why not take preemptive measures!