Late February.

The envoys sent by Cao Cao arrived in Xiangyang and Shouchun successively.

Shouchun's officials suggested that Lü Bu should take over the decree and ascend to the throne as the king of Chu.

Lü Bu feared that taking over the title of King of Chu would boost the prestige of the Han Dynasty and make the prefectures mistakenly believe that they were loyal to the Han Dynasty, since the decree was issued in the name of the Han Emperor. In this way, it is not conducive to becoming emperor in the future.

Imagine what it means for a Chu king of the Han Dynasty to suddenly become emperor?

Rebel? Or is it a plot to usurp the throne?

Although Lu Bu didn't care, it was infamous after all.

If you don't claim the title of king, the people will gradually forget about the Han Dynasty, and when the time is ripe, they will naturally become emperors.

In view of this, Lu Bu burned the holy decree in front of all the ministers of civil and military affairs, and forcibly suppressed the king's incident.

Liu Bei received the holy decree and hesitated for a long time.

Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, and Wen Ping knelt down every day, hoping that Liu Bei could be promoted to the king of Xiangyang.

Zhuge Liang's attitude was ambiguous.

Liu Bei wanted to be the king, but he was afraid of being infamy, so he hesitated and couldn't decide.

Mid-March.

Cao Cao's envoy arrived in Yecheng, Hebei.

Yuan Shao summoned his civil and military forces to discuss the matter of claiming the king.

"Cao Cao named me the King of Zhao, what do you think, what does Cao Cao mean?" Yuan Shao asked.

Xu You said: "According to our detailed investigation report in Yuzhou, Cao Cao was defeated by Zhuge Liang and lost most of the land in Yuzhou. The minister thought that he was worried that the main guild would go south again, so he intended to make friends. ”

"Cao Cao can't even fight Liu Bei now, so he is no longer afraid. The minister suggested not to accept the edict, befriend Lu Bu, and fight Cao Cao together. Guo Tu said.

In fact, since Yuan Shao returned to Jizhou, he has been recruiting troops, and in just a few months, 400,000 people have been recruited, and all the losses in the last war will be made up. The war horses of Youzhou were also transported to Yecheng and a powerful iron cavalry army was formed.

This is the gap between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao now. After Cao Cao's defeat, he was unable to replenish his soldiers. Yuan Shao was able to raise 400,000 people in just a few months. The previous defeat of Yanzhou was just a loss of some money and grain for Yuan Shao.

Frustrated Professor glanced at Guo Tu and asked, "Is Lord Guo's advice inconsiderable?" ”

"I want to hear about it." Guo Tu frowned.

"From the first year of Jian'an to the fourth year of Jian'an, the relationship between Lu Bu and Cao Cao was like fire and water. It wasn't until the fifth year of Jian'an that he suddenly formed an alliance, not only helping Cao Cao resist our army, but also feinting to attack Jingzhou when Zhuge Liang attacked Yuzhou. Have you ever wondered why this is? ”

"This..." Guo Tu was speechless.

"Because Lu Bu knows very well that Cao Cao's strength is not as good as before, and he can be eliminated at any time." And before eliminating Cao Cao, he had to use Cao Cao to eliminate the lord first, because the strength of the lord made Lu Bu jealous. Therefore, no matter how generous the conditions given by the lord, Lu Bu would not form an alliance with the lord for some interests and crusade against Cao Cao, which would mean that he would bring about his own destruction? ”

"Therefore, it is recommended that the lord should accept the reward of the imperial court and take the throne as King Zhao. One is to alleviate the contradiction between the lord and Cao Cao, and take the opportunity to cultivate. The second is to envelop the wise men of the world and expand their wings. Three... Completely solve the problem of banditry in the state. ”

After listening to the frustrated remarks, Guo Tu stepped aside.

Tian Feng seconded.

Yuan Shao said: "The Son of Heaven is still in Xudu, and the Han family still exists, how can I be called king?" ”

"The Han Dynasty has gone through four hundred years, and the number of qi has been exhausted, and it is long overdue to change the dynasty!" The generals shouted.

"In today's world, it is no longer the Han family that has the final say, so why should the lord care?" Guo Tu also changed his previous mind.

Tian Feng came out of the queue and said with a smile: "The lord occupies the four states of Hebei, And, Qing and You, with a million armor and thousands of good generals, the sword can pierce the sky, and the iron hoof can level the Central Plains, what is the difference between him and the real emperor, but it is normal to carry the throne of King Zhao." Why hesitate? ”

"Please take the throne of King Zhao!" Everyone said.

"This matter is very important, I want to consider it carefully..." Yuan Shao stood up and said, "It's all gone, let's discuss it tomorrow." ”

"Congratulations to my lord."

That night, Xu You, Tian Feng, Fu Zhu, and Guo Tu went to the backyard of the Assassin's Mansion to persuade Yuan Shao again. Yuan Shao was bewitched by the strategists and promised to accept the decree and ascend to the throne as the king of Zhao.

In the following months, Yecheng built a large number of buildings and built a royal palace.

Yuan Shao proclaimed the world and became king.

At the same time, Zhang Lu, Sun Ce, and Liu Zhang also received holy decrees from the imperial court one after another.

Zhang Luben was the Taishou of Hanzhong County, the weakest in strength, and urgently needed the name of the king of Hanzhong to strengthen his momentum and crusade against Liu Zhang in the south. The moment he received the holy decree, he accepted it without hesitation and became the king of Hanzhong.

Liu Zhang saw that even Zhang Lu was called the king, he was in Xichuan, with hundreds of thousands of armor, and he was a member of the Han family, why not be called the king? So, he also announced to the world that he was the king of Shu.

In order to befriend Cao Cao and plot to seize Jingzhou, Sun Ce also received the holy decree and proclaimed himself King of Wu.

Early July.

Xu Du.

Prime Minister's Office.

Cheng Yu said to Cao Cao: "The princes from all walks of life have been called kings one after another. The prime minister has covered the world, how can he be left behind? ”

"Is Zhongde trying to persuade you?" Xun Yu's face was very bad.

Cheng Yu said: "Even Zhang Lu and Sun Ce can be called kings, why can't the prime minister?" ”

"That is a traitor who is disloyal and unjust, how can he be emulated?"

Cheng Yu retorted: "The Han family is in decline, and it can't protect itself, if it weren't for the support of the prime minister, it would have already died in the hands of the princes." The heart of the prime minister, heaven and earth can be learned, it is by no means disloyal and unjust, but forced by the times to be the king. ”

"What's the last resort?" Xun Yu asked.

Cheng Yu said: "After years of war, the people are struggling to make a living, resulting in barren fields, collapsed social crops, and all military officers and soldiers also have many complaints because of their low official positions. Only when the prime minister is the king can he reward the meritorious soldiers and boost the morale of the whole army. ”

Xun Yu said: "Reward the generals, you can play the Son of Heaven..." ”

Cheng Yu interrupted Xun Yu's words and sneered: "Only those who have contributed to the society and have great power in their hands can be called the Son of Heaven, who is the Son of Heaven that Wen Ruo is talking about?" A puppet in a cage? If you let the soldiers follow such a person to compete for the world, how can they not be defeated? ”

"You... What did you say?! ”

Xun Yu couldn't believe that Cheng Yu would say such a rebellious thing.

Although in the eyes of the world, the Son of Heaven is a puppet, no one has ever dared to say it blatantly, because they still retain a trace of awe for the Son of Heaven, and now they don't even have this trace of awe, and they can trample on it at will.

Cao Cao's eyebrows tightened, he glared at Cheng Yu, and said, "Zhong De has said it. After all, the Son of Heaven is the Son of Heaven, how can he be a puppet? ”

Cheng Yu also realized that he had said the wrong thing.

"Prime Minister..."

"There is no need to discuss this matter again, let's break up the account."

Cao Cao picked up a piece of paper casually, tore it to pieces, and brushed it away.

"Wen Ruo, why are you so stubborn?" After Cao Cao left, Cheng Yu questioned Xun Yu.

(End of chapter)