Chapter 521

The grand court assembly at Bronze Bird Terrace in mid-September was originally just a process by which Gongsun Xun unilaterally enforced and reaffirmed his authority within the Yan state system. He merely wanted to use political maneuvering and authority to remind these people that the realm was not yet unified, and as ministers of Yan, as his ministers, they were not permitted to hold extraneous political stances.

Of course, there were also necessary purges.

However, when Jia Xu suddenly rose together with several Chancellors and posed his question, the nature of the matter underwent a complete transformation. After that exchange of questions and answers, this court assembly essentially became a political pledge—both a mutual pledge between the Yan state bureaucracy and the Duke of Yan, and a political pledge made jointly by the Yan bureaucracy and Duke Gongsun Xun to the entire realm.

In truth, this was precisely Jia Xu's brilliance.

If the earlier troublemaking by Kong Rong and his ilk was an attempt by those scholars on the margins of the Yan state system to reach a political pledge with Gongsun Xun himself, in exchange for their support of his proclamation as emperor, then this exchange of questions and answers was a broad political pledge made with the Yan state as the principal party to all under Heaven, in exchange for the realm's support of Gongsun Xun's imperial accession.

Which was superior, which was inferior, which was higher, which was lower—it was clear at a glance.

In fact, after this court assembly, Gongsun Xun personally ordered that the content of the questions and answers be distributed throughout the realm, unaltered by a single character, in the dual form of internal official documents and public proclamations.

This was a test, and also a declaration, but in any case, his surging ambition was no longer concealed!

After this affair, the Duke of Yan's intent had originally been known to every passerby, then known to everyone in the hall, but now it was known to everyone under Heaven!

As the news spread, naturally some beat their breasts in anguish, some were indignant and unable to calm themselves, some heaved long sighs, some were thrown into panic, some turned a deaf ear, some were overjoyed, and some burned with impatience... but on the whole, it surprisingly did not cause any great upheaval within the current territories ruled by Yan.

After all, the common folk below merely watched the excitement; the diehard opposition had long since gone south; and those who remained but still held opposing views either lacked the courage to speak out or no longer cared.

It is said that when the news reached Yingchuan, the surrendered official Du Xi, serving as County Magistrate, took the proclamation to ask Xun Yu about it. Xun Wenruo was at that moment repairing his family granary. After reading the proclamation on the granary wall, he said only one thing: "Is it not better than a yellow dragon flying out of the Zhang River?"

Having said this, Xun Wenruo paid it no further heed and continued repairing the granary to prepare for winter storage.

The news continued southward and finally reached the Jiang-Han region. Contrary to expectations, from Liu Biao of Jingzhou on down, after reading the proclamation, most were merely dejected and surprisingly offered no vehement verbal reaction... This was only natural; they had yet to recover from the shock of Shu's fall and were frantically deploying defenses around Wu County and Zigui, terrified that the great army massed in Shu would sail directly down the river and break through the Three Gorges.

If that truly happened, they probably would not even have the freedom to read proclamations.

And as the news continued southward, before the year's end, the first major power to react violently finally emerged... It was not Liu Bei or Sun Quan, locked in military standoff, nor the Jiangxia petty court, which had gradually stabilized of late, but rather, further south, Shi Xie, Shi Weiyan, who controlled the six commanderies of Jiaozhou.

After intense internal struggle and several exchanges of letters with Gongsun Yue and Tian Feng, who had entered Yizhou, to discuss the formal terms for Jiaozhou's surrender, he finally made up his mind after receiving a personal letter from Gongsun Xun himself sent along the sea routes, and began to tilt comprehensively toward Hebei.

And among these actions, the most symbolically significant political gesture was none other than a formal memorial he sent to the Jiangxia petty court before the new year, in which he explicitly stated that he would personally set out between spring and summer of the coming year to go to the old capital of Luoyang to meet with the Duke of Yan, to reminisce and discuss affairs.

And at the end of the memorial, he suggested that the young Son of Heaven accompany him north to return to Luoyang, to perform rites together with the Duke of Yan at the successive imperial tombs of the Han house.

When the news spread, the remaining powers of the entire south were thoroughly shaken, and the four southern commanderies of Jingzhou, half-encircled by Jiaozhou and Yizhou, immediately wavered across the board. The four commanderies of Lingling, Wuling, Guiyang, and Changsha, to everyone's stunned astonishment and unpreparedness, began to form a loose alliance-like self-preservation bloc centered around Zhang Xian, the Grand Administrator of Changsha.

This bloc did not explicitly raise slogans opposing Liu Biao, nor did it explicitly support Hebei; it merely began to resist Liu Biao's military and granary mobilization orders as much as possible through official postures of non-violence.

The reason for this, aside from Jiaozhou's decisive stance, also had traceable causes:

First, Zhang Xian had long ago served as Grand Administrator of both Lingling and Guiyang commanderies, giving him great political influence and rallying power in the region, making him a natural leader between the Xiang and Han rivers;

Second, although Zhang Xian's post as Grand Administrator of Changsha was appointed by Liu Biao, Liu Biao had not treated him with courtesy from the start. It was only because the previous Grand Administrator of Changsha, Su Dai, had raised troops in rebellion against Liu Biao, and after dealing with Su Dai, there was a need to pacify the region, that he was compelled to appoint such a figure to stabilize the Jingnan area... There was pre-existing prejudice between Liu Biao and Zhang Xian;

Furthermore, both Zhang Xian and the other three Grand Administrators had their clans in the north. For instance, Zhang Xian hailed from Nanyang, and his clan was now entirely within the territory ruled by Yan. His younger brother Zhang Ji, Zhang Zhongjing, had even been courteously engaged by the Duke of Yan to go to Yexia to open some kind of hospital;

Lastly, and the most important reason, was that Huan Jie—a man of Changsha origin who began his career as a former subordinate of Sun Jian, yet had become a Granary Section Clerk in the General of the Guards' office as early as after the Dong Zhuo chaos, and now ranked as Minister of Revenue of the Yan state—had set out south immediately after the grand court assembly in September and had by now long since returned to Changsha, where he began actively moving about in his capacity as a high minister of Yan.

There is reason to believe that this man brought the Duke of Yan's political pledge to the military and civil chiefs of the four southern Jingzhou commanderies, and even to the Sun clan of Jiangdong.

And at this juncture, the weight of the Duke of Yan's political pledge naturally went without saying.

Only, the Han house was, after all, the Han house of four centuries of grand unity, and the title of "Han minister" truly presented a psychological threshold that the four Grand Administrators of Jingnan's four commanderies could not easily cross.

At this moment, ministers within the Yan state system could naturally follow the Yan state's internal structure, using the Yan state's outer shell as cover to openly and grandly pledge loyalty, secretly working toward the goal of Yan supplanting Han; ordinary people who cherished the Han house could also, like Xun Wenruo and Du Zixu, pay it no further heed, for they too had done their utmost for the Han and could always claim a clear conscience; but these four Grand Administrators were truly in an awkward position...

In summary, for survival and practical reasons, they chose to trust Huan Jie and break away from Liu Biao, but they also felt unwilling to openly and honorably defect to Hebei at this time, hence they created this bizarre political model of mutual self-protection among the four Jingnan commanderies.

But even so, to the remnant Han forces along the middle and lower Yangtze, it was no different from a bolt from the blue!

Although the essence of Jingzhou lay in the north, under the present circumstances, Jingzhou had already lost Nanyang and had ceded Jiangxia to the Son of Heaven, and then the four southern commanderies, with a whoosh, went into semi-revolt following Jiaozhou's declaration. Did that not mean that the dignified pillar of the Han house, Liu Biao, Liu Jingsheng, was suddenly left with only a single commandery? Even less than Sun Quan?!

This was simply too absurd!

And amid the sense of absurdity, Nanjun, Jiangxia, Yuzhang, and Wu commanderies immediately felt utter despair... The so-called Han alliance, which originally held only ten commanderies of territory, had with a whoosh lost four. Clearly, the heavens were truly about to change!

Yet, how could these clever people not have known?

This was the inevitable outcome after the Battle of Guandu; it was just that Hebei's fierce capture of Yizhou within three months had severely catalyzed the process.

In summary, the time had come to make a decision!

And so, in the days before the new year, the Jiangxia petty court issued a succession of edicts: on one hand mediating between Liu Bei and Sun Quan, and on the other inviting the only three remaining Han feudal lords along the Yangtze to set aside their differences and come to Jiangxia to participate in the Han house's New Year grand court assembly!

Liu Biao and Liu Bei immediately agreed, while Sun Quan, citing his youth, sent Zhu Zhi, Zhu Junli, the Administrator of Kuaiji and the recently recovered second-in-command of his regime, to attend in his stead after accepting the mediation—which could also be considered a show of considerable sincerity.

Speaking of which, this spring festival "grand court assembly" might well be the Han house's last sliver of hope.

"Capital Chariot and Cavalry, in my humble view, the Han house, after all, has held the realm for four centuries; there is still a thread of survival!" In Xiling city of Jiangxia, within a spacious residence, a renowned scholar who had gone south named Cui Yan was earnestly speaking to the pillar of the Great Han dynasty, the Chariot and Cavalry General Jing Ze, who had just arrived in Xiling.

"Where does this thread of survival lie?" Jing Ze, seated in the place of honor, his face full of exhaustion, let out a sigh.

"In the north." Cui Yan quickly composed himself and replied. "To my knowledge, at the recent Bronze Bird Terrace assembly of the Yan traitor, in order to ensure that this exchange of questions and answers proceeded without incident, he first convicted people by their words alone, designating Kong Beihai as the center of a wide-reaching implication case. Hundreds of scholars and scions of famous families, even students of Yexia barely fifteen or sixteen years old, merely for criticizing his new policies or discussing his appointments, were exiled to the front lines as penal laborers... Kong Beihai himself was sent to the Yin Mountains to herd sheep! Can such a wantonly cruel and violent man last long?"

Jing Ze propped his forehead on his hand and for a moment said nothing.

"And in the south as well." Cui Yan continued earnestly. "Jingnan, Jiaozhou, and even the southern part of Yizhou have not truly fallen into the hands of the Yan traitor; they merely dared not obstruct him upon seeing his power. This is only human nature... And they, after all, cherish the Han house in their hearts and will absolutely not turn around and strike against us!"

Jing Ze sighed again in his Grand Commandant's chair before speaking: "I understand what you mean, Master Cui, and I believe the words you speak are all reasonable... But whether north or south, to seek that thread of survival, one must first win a battle, must one not?"

Cui Yan was instantly crestfallen.

"And as for the present situation? Truly, there are vulnerabilities everywhere." The Chariot and Cavalry General Jing Ze forced himself to rally and spoke to the other man seriously. "At Xuzhou, where Guan Yunchang is, he can launch a naval force at any time to strike Wu Commandery and Kuaiji by sea, and even sail up the Great River toward Danyang and Yuzhang. And forming a seaborne navy takes no more than five years, perhaps only three. Yet earlier, after the defeat at Tancheng, the General of the Left's navy was completely lost. Over in Jiangdong, how can the Sun and Liu families withstand the northern navy? The same goes for Xiangyang. Although Xiangyang's position is strategically vital, now that Yizhou is entirely lost and Jingnan is neutral, Xiangyang is effectively threatened from three sides. When Gongsun Yue leads the great army from Shu downriver, and Cheng Demou leads the Sili troops to besiege Xiangyang, how will Liu Zhennan resist? And will Jingnan truly be able to remain neutral at that time? And here in Jiangxia, I need not say more about the situation facing Anlu—there are simply no troops and no generals..."

Cui Yan grew ever more dejected, yet offered no rebuttal, for he too knew that everything the other man said was fact.

"Master Cui." Jing Ze, seeing the other's demeanor, seemed to feel he had been too harsh and forced himself to speak again. "Please be patient for a few days. When the court convenes in a few days, I will certainly seek a fine post for you. Surely, given your reputation and talent, the Son of Heaven will have no reason to refuse. Then, you may lay out all the plans in your heart before the Son of Heaven, and he will surely entrust you with great responsibility."

Cui Yan seemed to want to speak but then hesitated, as if wishing to say something, yet seeing how utterly exhausted Jing Ze was, he simply took the initiative to excuse himself and withdraw.

And once Cui Yan was gone, Jing Ze finally dropped his pretense and nearly collapsed into his seat... It must be said, this year had truly not been easy for Jing Ze—or rather, it had been simply too difficult for him!

The first half of the year had been tolerable. At most, as Chariot and Cavalry General stationed at Anlu, serving as the gatekeeper facing north for the Jiangxia petty court, he had taken in large numbers of scholars fleeing south. And as a spy, he naturally had no greed for land and property, nor any thought of treating Anlu as his private domain, so he appeared exceedingly generous and fair. Whether to the refugees from the north or to the local gentry and commoners, this Capital Chariot and Cavalry, though unable to achieve perfection in all things, always did his utmost.

Thus, the reputation of one who treats the learned with courtesy and is a pillar of worthy ministers naturally became inescapable.

In summary, in the first half of the year, buoyed by widespread support in public opinion and the combined reliance of the young Son of Heaven and the Empress, he was essentially elevated higher and higher, relied upon more and more, until he gradually acquired a reputation on par with Liu Bei and Liu Biao, far surpassing that wet-behind-the-ears Sun Quan... But how to put it? In a sense, he had already grown accustomed to it.

However, in the latter half of the year, he was swept up in a matter of monumental importance!

That is correct—the matter of the Empress giving birth to a son.

It must be said, as the Empress's brother-in-law, the nearly forty-year-old Jing Ze was naturally very gentle and considerate when facing his own wife, who was actually the Yuan clan's second daughter, not even fifteen years old. And this naturally drew the notice and goodwill of Empress Yuan.

Of course, it was also because Empress Yuan now truly had no one else to rely on; her younger brother was worthless, so her brother-in-law was naturally her only choice, albeit one of necessity.

So, by the second half of the year, Empress Yuan, already visibly pregnant, openly put forward her terms to the Son of Heaven: she could release the high officials, but given her increasingly obvious condition, she needed someone to come to Shaxian to hold the situation steady on her behalf… Yet she just so happened not to trust the Son of Heaven, so she hoped that while the west was campaigning against Shu and the northern border was secure, Jing Ze could be sent to Shaxian.

In other words, she could hand over Shaxian and the Jiangxia territory west of Shaxian, but Jing Ze absolutely had to take over, and this would guarantee the safety of her and her child in Shaxian — this was called surrendering to Han but not to the Son of Heaven; the Empress only trusted her brother-in-law!

The young Son of Heaven was also at his wit's end.

Clever as he was, he could not possibly be entirely clear on matters of men and women, or matters of pregnancy… In truth, this young Son of Heaven had not been without suspicion as to whose child was actually in Empress Yuan's belly. But the problem was, suspicion aside, having had intimate physical contact with her, he could not completely deny that the child might be his. And if it truly was his, Liu Xie's, own seed, then as someone whose father, mother, grandmother, maternal grandmother, uncle, aunt, and elder brother had all died, he truly did need such a child.

This need was a double need, viewed from the dual perspectives of the Son of Heaven and the sole surviving scion of his ancestral line.

Thus, the Son of Heaven also approved Jing Ze going to handle this matter. The sentiment of that sword strike that day, plus Yang Biao's entrustment, had ultimately made him trust General of Chariots and Cavalry Jing completely.

So, in the seventh month, Jing Youxi, who had only just arrived in Shaxian not long before, met that child!

That's right!

The child was born in the seventh month! Not the eighth!

Jing Ze realized almost instantly — this was Lu Bu's posthumous child, and had nothing to do with the Son of Heaven!

However, what Jing Ze encountered was not only this shocking fact; he also encountered Empress Yuan just after childbirth — his own sister-in-law — holding his nephew, mother and child with the umbilical cord still uncut, kneeling before him covered in blood… And Jing Ze, in the end, softened.

Because he knew that if he exposed this, it might be a colossal blow to the House of Han, but Empress Yuan and her child, no matter how innocent, would both die. Even if he was not the one to do it in the end, they would certainly die!

In short, he simply could not do what he could not do.

And so, Jing Ze concealed everything, and only announced the news of the Empress giving birth in the eighth month, which basically dispelled the Son of Heaven's suspicions and confirmed the child's existence as the legitimate heir of the House of Han.

But once this deed was done, the pressure on Jing Ze was anything but simple.

First, doing this meant that he, Jing Ze, had betrayed his ostensible object of loyalty — the young Son of Heaven and the House of Han! And the nature of this betrayal was extremely vile… How could it not be? Was there an even worse way to betray?

This was simply more absurd than regicide! And the young Son of Heaven had trusted him so deeply!

Second, he had also gravely betrayed his de facto object of loyalty — Duke Yan and the State of Yan… After all, Jing Ze knew very well that at this stage, what Duke Yan needed most was no longer anything military, and the birth and exposure of a false eldest imperial son would likely benefit Duke Yan no less than gaining Yizhou.

But this heaven-sent, effective fact that could strike at the authority of the House of Han had been personally altered and covered up by him.

The terrifying part was right here — this was originally a fact, not some scheme concocted by a Yan spy to confuse the public! It could have been directly announced by simply going with the flow, yet he, a spy, had covered it up.

Moreover, with Yizhou falling in the third month, and the proclamation of the Q&A at the Bronze Sparrow Platform arriving, he genuinely felt that Duke Yan, who had recognized and elevated his talent, was the true master ordained by Heaven! Yet he still betrayed him! And allowed the possibility of war to continue.

In other words, one moment of softening, for a life that would very likely perish at any time in this era, caused Jing Ze, who had been relatively composed, to completely lose his stance and simultaneously betray almost everyone!

At this very moment, Jing Ze had no idea what he even counted as anymore.

And just as Jing Ze was sinking into his routine torment because of coming to pay his respects to the Son of Heaven, suddenly, a guard came hurriedly to report.

"Cui Yan has left?" Jing Ze hurriedly collected his myriad thoughts, forced himself to focus, and pressed for details. "Did I not say I would seek an official post for him? How could he just leave?"

"In reply, General, Mr. Cui left a message to relay. He said he is not the sort of person who seeks land and shelter… Ever since he was expelled from the north, he has traveled to various places, only wishing to prove he is a man of use." The eloquent attendant quickly explained. "He also said he has already seen that you, General, are mentally and physically exhausted, and knows you are one of the rare loyal and devoted ministers of the Great Han. That being the case, he asks you, General, to undertake the difficult task and continue to sustain the imperial court; he will undertake the easy task, and try to seek out the two Lius and Zhu Zhi, to see if he can persuade these few to unite as one and serve the Great Han with utmost loyalty!"

Jiangxia at year's end was not so cold as to be unbearable, yet Jing Ze, stunned for a moment, raised his head in a long sigh. After dismissing the attendant, he actually felt a trace of empathy with Cui Yan… Absurd as it sounds, as Duke Yan's spy, he actually felt that he, like Cui Yan, was being abandoned by the new world that Duke Yan was bringing!

————I am the abandoned dividing line————

"When Duke Yan held his Q&A at the Bronze Sparrow Platform and subsequently proclaimed it to all under Heaven… When it reached Jiangxia, Cui Yan discussed it with General of Chariots and Cavalry Jing Ze. For a long time, they could not speak, and merely looked at each other and shed tears. As they were about to part, Cui Yan grasped his hand and said: 'General, undertake the difficult task; I, your servant, will undertake the easy one. I hope you will be prudent!' Jing Ze sighed deeply, understanding his meaning, yet in the end could not speak." — Book of Later Han, Biographies of the Solitary and Exemplary

(End of Chapter)