It is said that Cao Cao was ordered to join forces with Huangfu Song to break the Yingchuan Yellow Turban Army, and moved from the cavalry captain to the Jinan minister. Jinan is subordinate to Qingzhou and has jurisdiction over more than 10 counties. When Cao Cao arrived, the county magistrates were mostly dependent on the nobles, corrupted the law, and had no scruples. Cao Cao's previous Jinan ministers ignored it. After Cao Cao arrived, he still governed Jinan like the five-colored rod in the north of Luoyang, and vigorously rectified it, and dismissed eight tenths of the chief officials at once. In the past, Liu Zhang, the king of Chengyang Jing, made a contribution to the Han Dynasty, set up an ancestral hall in Jinan, and the counties of Qingzhou followed suit, and Jinan was especially prosperous, reaching more than 600 ancestral halls. Some merchants even took out 2,000 stone and asked the poor to pay for the same extravagant sacrifices as they did, and extravagance flourished day by day. Ordinary people can't afford to compare, sit and wait for poverty, and the successive county magistrates dare not prohibit it. During Cao Cao's tenure, he destroyed all the ancestral halls, forbade no one to carry out ancestral worship, regardless of officials, merchants, and ordinary people, so as to eliminate the evil spirits and gods, and put an end to the trend of obscenity.

After suppressing the Yellow Turban Uprising, the Ten Standing Servants became more unscrupulous, Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong sent people to ask for gold silk from the soldiers who had made meritorious contributions to suppress the Yellow Turbans, and those who did not obey were dismissed by Emperor Song. Emperor Ling also named Zhao Zhong as the general of the chariot cavalry, and Zhang Rang and other thirteen people as liehous, the government was bad, and the people were resentful. Cao Cao was unwilling to cater to the powerful, fearing that it would be a family disaster, so he refused the positions appointed by the imperial court as the Taishou of the Eastern County and the Lang Lang, and returned to the village after illness, building houses outside the city, studying in spring and summer, and hunting in autumn and winter for self-entertainment.

During this period, Wang Fen, the assassin of Jizhou, united with Nanyang Xu You, Peiguo Zhou Jing and other local heroes to depose Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty and establish the Marquis of Hefei as the emperor. Because Cao Cao was quite famous, Xu You and others consulted with Cao Cao and invited him to participate. Cao Cao refused, saying: "Regarding the abolition of the establishment, the world is ominous." The ancients also had the right to weigh success or failure, and those who abolished the establishment considering the importance of the establishment, Yi Yin and Huo Guang were also. Yi Yin has a loyal heart, and according to the power of a minister, he is above the lawsuit, so he advances and retreats and abolishes, and plans to establish a lawsuit; Huo Guang was entrusted with the appointment of the country, the position of the minister, because of the importance of the queen mother's administration, and the tendency of the group of ministers to share the same desire, Changyi's accession to the throne is shallow, there is no noble favor, the court lacks ministers, and the discussion is close, so the plan is like turning in circles, and the success is like decay. Today's monarchs only see that it was easy for the ancients to abolish the establishment, but they cannot see the difficulties of the abolition today. The kings are self-controlled, and the people are united with the party, why are the seven countries? Hefei's price, which is Wu Chu? And the pretentiousness is very, the desire must be overcome, and it is also dangerous! Cao Cao not only refused, but also analyzed the reasons for the success of the ancients in abolishing the establishment and the difficulty of deposing the Ling Emperor to support the Marquis of Hefei today, and sternly pointed out the danger of not doing it. Wang Fen and the others did not listen to the dissuasion, and wanted to wait for Emperor Ling's northern tour of the old house in Hanoi to raise troops. As a result, the conspiracy was revealed, and Wang Fen was afraid of suicide.

In August of the fifth year of Zhongping (188), Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty recruited Zhuang Ding to set up a military organization in the West Garden of Luoyang, Kyoto, in order to disperse the military power of He Jin, the general of his relatives, and set up a military organization - "Eight Captains of the West Garden": Jian Shuo, Captain Jianshuo, Yuan Shao, Captain Yuan, Bao Hong, Captain Baohong, Cao Cao, Cao Cao, Zhao Rong, Zhao Rong, Zhao Rong, Feng Fang, Feng Fang, Feng Fang, Feng Fang, Xia Mu, and Xia Mu, and Chun Yuqiong, respectively, and Chun Yuqiong, the right Captain. Xiaohuangmen Jianshuo was in charge of all armies, and was directly ordered by the supreme general Emperor Han Ling, and even the great general He Jin had to obey his dispatch and command.

At that time, Bian Zhang and Han Sui of Jincheng (now Lanzhou) in Liangzhou in the northwest killed Assassin Shi and Taishou, and led more than 100,000 troops to rebel against the imperial court. In order to weaken He Jin's forces, Jian Shuo used Han Sui as an excuse to make a rebellion, and proposed to ask the general He Jin to take Yuan Shao and Cao Cao to lead troops to the northwest to quell the rebellion. He Jin had insight into the eunuchs' tricks, and on the grounds of the revival of the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou and Xuzhou, he asked Yuan Shaodong to be sent to Xuzhou and Yanzhou, and when Yuan Shao's soldiers returned, he would attack Han Sui in the west. Therefore, the imperial court reassigned the cavalry general Huangfu Song and Zhonglang general Dong Zhuo as deputies to lead the army to Liangzhou to quell the rebellion.

Dong Zhuo was repeatedly defeated by Dong Zhonglang as the general of Dongzhong Lang to conquer Zhang Jiao, and the imperial court ordered Emperor Fu Song to replace Dong Zhuo to lead the Han army in Jizhou, and make every effort to encircle and suppress the main force of the Yellow Turban, and Dong Zhuo was deposed and exempted from trial and sentenced to "commutation of the death penalty of the first degree". December 29 was the Chinese New Year's Eve, and the imperial court granted amnesty to the world for the victory of the Yellow Turban Army. Dong Zhuo took the opportunity to bribe the Zhongchang attendant and obtain a pardon.

Bian Zhang and Han Sui killed the assassin Shi and Taishou, and in the name of "crusading against the eunuchs", they attacked Sanfu. The imperial court sent the general He Jin to lead the troops to conscript, but he refused to go, and the imperial court changed the order of the general Huangfu Song to lead the army, and Dong Zhuobai Zhonglang will be the deputy.

Huangfu Song was deposed because of the unfavorable battle and the fact that the Zhongchang attendants did not ask for bribes from the soldiers of the Yellow Turban Army. The imperial court also worshiped Sikong Zhang Wen as the general of the chariot and cavalry, and took over the affairs of the Sanfu Military Region, Dong Zhuo was the general of the captives, Zhou Shen was the general of Dangkou, and Sun Jian joined the army to accompany him. The Han army and the rebels confronted each other in Meiyang County, and Zhang Wen and Dong Zhuo were unfavorable in the initial battle. Zhang Wen summoned Dong Zhuo, Dong Zhuo was late, Zhang Wen blamed Dong Zhuo, and Dong Zhuo was offended. Seeing this, Sun Jian, who Zhang Wen joined the army, persuaded Zhang Wen to take the opportunity to kill Dong Zhuo, so as to establish his authority, but Zhang Wen did not allow it.

One night, a meteor streaked across the sky, shining into the rebel camp, and the neighing of mules and horses made the rebels consider a bad omen and prepare to retreat. Dong Zhuo was overjoyed when he learned of the situation, and the next day he attacked with Bao Hong, the right wind, to break the rebels and behead thousands of people. The rebels were defeated and returned to Yuzhong County, Jincheng County, Liangzhou. Zhang Wen sent Zhou Shen to lead 30,000 people to pursue, Dong Zhuo proposed to Zhang Wen to lead troops to meet Zhou Shen, Zhang Wen did not allow it, and let Dong Zhuo lead 30,000 people to crusade against the Qiang people in Beidi County, Liangzhou. Dong Zhuo sent Sima Liu Jing of the other department to lead 4,000 troops to settle in Anding County, and then marched.

Dong Zhuo's army was surrounded by the Qiang and Xiongnu people in the north of Wangyuan County, and the army was short of food and the situation was critical. Dong Zhuo asked the soldiers to pretend to stop the water in the Weishui to repair the embankment, claiming that it was fishing, but in fact let the army pass under the embankment quickly. When the rebels found out, they couldn't catch up. At the beginning, Zhang Wen sent six people, of which five people, including Zhou Shen, all ended in failure, but Dong Zhuo's army was full of squad divisions, and the troops were stationed in Fufeng County. The imperial court awarded Dong Zhuo as the marquis of the township for his merits, and the history of the Xiliang thorn was sealed, and 1,000 households were sealed. Liangzhou has 98 counties in 10 counties of Longxi, Hanyang, Wudu, Jincheng, Anding, Beidi, Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan and Dunhuang, with an army of more than 200,000. Dong Zhuo is entrenched here, and there are many generals, so he has a heart of disobedience.

In November of that year, the Liangzhou rebels re-invaded Sili Youfufeng County and besieged the county seat of Chencang. The imperial court used Huangfu Song, appointed General Zuo as the main general, and Dong Zhuo as the former general as the deputy, each leading 20,000 people to rescue Chen Cang. Dong Zhuo suggested to Huangfu Song to march quickly, but Huangfu Song did not listen to Dong Zhuo's suggestion and said: "Chencang County is well defended, and the rebels in Liangzhou cannot conquer it. ”

In February of the sixth year of Zhongping (189), the rebels of Liangzhou besieged the county town of Chencang for more than 80 days, and retreated from exhaustion. Huangfu Song ordered a pursuit, but Dong Zhuo dissuaded him: "Don't chase the poor, don't force the people." Huangfu Song said: "The rebels are tired soldiers who have lost their fighting spirit, not the people who have returned to the masses and are poor." Subsequently, Huangfu Song put Dong Zhuo in charge of the palace, and he led the army to pursue, winning consecutive battles, beheading more than 10,000 ranks, and the rebel leader Wang Kingdom died of illness shortly after fleeing. Dong Zhuo was very jealous of Huangfu Song because of this.

During Emperor Ling's serious illness, the imperial court recruited Dong Zhuo as a young man, Dong Zhuo refused to accept the order, and wrote a letter to excuse himself: "My subordinate volunteers and Hun soldiers in the Huangshui River have come to stop my car, begging me not to abandon them, I can't stop them, I can only stay to comfort them, if the situation changes, I will report to the court." The imperial court was helpless, very worried, afraid that its tail would not be lost, and issued an edict to worship Dong Zhuo as the governor of the state, and his subordinate troops were transferred to the emperor

Lofty. Dong Zhuo accepted the appointment, but refused to hand over the army, and wrote a letter to defend: "I have been in charge of the army for ten years, and the relationship between the soldiers and me is too good, and they are willing to work for me, and I beg to take these soldiers to the state and serve in the frontier."

Huangfu Song and Dong Zhuo have always been at odds, and Huangfu Li persuaded his father Huang Fu Song to take the opportunity to get rid of Dong Zhuo, but Huang Fu Song did not comply, but only played the matter of Dong Zhuo's refusal to hand over military power to the imperial court. So, Emperor Ling issued an edict to reproach Dong Zhuo, and Dong Zhuo was even more resentful of Huangfu Song. In order to avoid the suspicion of the imperial court, Dong Zhuo only set off to Bingzhou with 5,000 soldiers, but stayed in Hedong County to observe the situation in Beijing.

In April of the sixth year of Zhongping (189), Emperor Ling was ill and urgently summoned He into the palace to discuss the future. He Jin got up to slaughter the family, because his sister entered the palace as a nobleman, gave birth to the prince Liu Wei, and became the queen, so he got the important responsibility. Emperor Ling also favored Wang Meiren, gave birth to the prince Liu Xie, and the queen was jealous, killed Wang Meiren, and raised Liu Xie in the palace of the Empress Dowager Dong. Empress Dowager Dong is the wife of Liu Chang, the Marquis of Xie Pavilion, the mother of Emperor Ling, and was established as emperor because Emperor Huan had no children. Empress Dowager Dong once persuaded Emperor Ling to appoint Liu Xie as the crown prince, but Emperor Ling favored Liu Xie and wanted to establish him, but he was critically ill. In order not to let the power fall into the hands of He Jin, the emperor played the emperor: "If you want to establish an association, you must first punish He Jin, so as to prevent future troubles." Emperor Ling said, Xuan He entered the palace.

He Jin had just arrived at the palace gate, and he met Sima Panyin and said to him: "Don't enter the palace, Jian Shuo wants to murder the general." He Jin was shocked, hurriedly returned home, and summoned the ministers to discuss the matter of punishing the eunuchs. Cao Cao, the captain of the military academy, persuaded: "The dictatorship of eunuchs starts from Emperor Chong and Emperor Qian, and the court is extremely extensive, how can it be killed all at once?" If the secrets are leaked, there will be a catastrophe of extermination. ”

He Jin scolded and said: "Your junior knows the major affairs of the imperial court!" As he was talking, Pan Yin came and said, "The Spirit Emperor has collapsed." Jian Shuo consulted with the ten permanent attendants, kept the secret and did not mourn, and announced that Uncle He Guo entered the palace, wanted to end the troubles, and then canonized Liu Xie as the emperor. As soon as the words fell, the mission arrived, and Xuan He Jin immediately entered the palace to settle the future.

Cao Cao said: "For today's plan, first correct the throne, and then plot to be a thief." ”

He Jin said: "Who dares to ask for a thief with my Zhengjun? One person stepped forward: "I am willing to borrow 5,000 elite soldiers to enter the palace, establish a new king, and punish the eunuch party." He Jin saw that this person was Yuan Shao, a lieutenant of the Central Military Academy.

Yuan Shao, a native of Ruyang (now Shangshui County, Henan Province), was born in the late Eastern Han Dynasty in a powerful family of eunuchs "Runan Yuan". From Yuan Shao's grandfather Yuan An, there were five officials in the fourth Yuan family. Father Yuan Fengguan worshiped Sikong, uncle Yuan Kuiguan worshiped Situ, and uncle Yuan Chengguan worshiped Zuo Zhonglang General, who died early. Yuan Shaoshu came out and passed on to Yuan Cheng for a room. Yuan Shao is handsome in appearance and majestic in temperament, and is very loved by Yuan Feng and Yuan Kui. With his worldly qualifications, he became a young man, and at the age of 20, he became the magistrate of Puyang County, and was known for his integrity and ability. Soon, due to the death of his mother's illness, he served in mourning, and then made up for his father's funeral, a total of six years. After that, Yuan Shao refused the imperial court's call and lived in seclusion in Luoyang. At this time, the rule of the Eastern Han Dynasty was becoming darker, and the dictatorship of the eunuchs was becoming more and more intense, and the "party members" represented by bureaucrats, scholars, doctors, and students were wantonly hunted and killed, imprisoned, and persecuted. Yuan Shao claimed to be a recluse, and on the surface he did not communicate with guests, but in fact, he secretly befriended party members and chivalrous people, such as Zhang Miao, He Hao, Xu You and others. Zhang Miao is a well-known party member and one of the "Eight Chefs". He Hao is also a member of the party, and has a close relationship with party leaders Chen Fan and Li Ying (both of whom are one of the three jun). In the disaster of the party, he often entered Luoyang several times a year to discuss countermeasures with Yuan Shao and help the party members take refuge. Xu You was also an active participant in the struggle against eunuchs. Among Yuan Shao's close friends was Cao Cao, who formed a political group aimed at opposing the dictatorship of eunuchs. Yuan Shao's activities attracted the attention of the eunuchs, and Zhao Zhong, the regular attendant, warned indignantly: "Yuan Benchu raised his value, and he should not be summoned by the imperial court to raise outlaws, what do you want to do!" Yuan Kui heard the wind and rebuked Yuan Shao and said, "You are preparing to destroy our Yuan family!" But Yuan Shao remained unmoved.

The Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, and the Eastern Han Dynasty was forced to cancel the ban on party restraint and grant amnesty to the party members of the world. He Jin was dissatisfied with the dictatorship of the eunuchs, and wanted to use the prominent Yuan family to consolidate his position, Yuan Shao intended to use He Jin's power to get rid of the eunuchs, and used each other to make the relationship between the two extraordinary.

Emperor Ling died, He Jin saw Yuan Shao come forward, willing to be a thief, great joy, then ordered the Imperial Forest Army of 5,000, led He Hao, Xu You, Zheng Tai and other ministers 30 members, one after another, in front of the Ling Emperor's coffin, to support the crown prince Liu Wei that is, the emperor. After the worship of the hundred officials was over, Yuan Shao was draped all over his body, and led the Imperial Forest Army into the palace to kill Jian Shuo. Jian Shuo hurriedly fled into the imperial garden, and was killed by Guo Sheng, a regular servant.

Liu Wei ascended the throne, that is, Emperor Shao of the Han Dynasty, Empress He was called the Empress Dowager in the Dynasty, and Taifu Yuan Kui and the general He Jin assisted the government, and recorded Shangshu at the same time. At this time, Yuan Shao said to He Jin through He Jin's guest Zhang Jin: "The eunuchs of the Yellow Gate and Chang Shi have been in power for a long time, specializing in bad things, and the general should choose another virtuous one, rectify the country, and eliminate harm for the world." He Jin thought so, so he appointed Yuan Shao as the lieutenant of Sili, He Hao as the lieutenant of the Northern Army, Xun You as the Huangmen squire, and Zheng Tai as the scholar. More than 20 people were promoted at the same time, which was a victory in the struggle between relatives and bureaucrats and eunuchs.

Jian Shuo was killed, the eunuchs panicked, Zhang Rang and others sued the Empress Dowager He, and bribed Empress Dowager He's mother Wu Yangjun and He Jin's younger brother He Miao to ask for asylum. He Jin was afraid that an accident would happen, and he said that he was sick and did not participate in the funeral of the Spirit Emperor. Yuan Shao believed that only by killing all the eunuchs could he avoid future troubles. He said to He Jin: "In the past, Dou Wu was ready to kill his inner pet, but he suffered from it, the reason was that the incident was not secret, his words were leaked, and the soldiers of the five battalions obeyed the orders of the eunuchs, but Dou Wu believed them, and as a result, he killed himself. Now the general occupies the position of the emperor's uncle, and the brothers lead strong soldiers, and the generals of the army are all handsome and famous, and they are willing to do their best to serve the general. Everything is in the hands of the general, this is a good opportunity given by the heavens, and the general should get rid of the scourge for the world in one fell swoop, and his name will be remembered for future generations! ”

He Jin reported to the Empress Dowager He, but the Empress Dowager He disagreed, and He Jin did not dare to disobey the Empress Dowager's will. Yuan Shao saw that He Jin was shaken, and then said to him: "The eunuch is close to the Supreme and conveys the edict, if it is not caught in one net, it will be in endless trouble." Besides, now that the plan has been revealed, why didn't the general make a decision earlier? Things change over time, and if you start late, you will suffer. However, because Empress Dowager He's mother Wu Yangjun and He Jin's younger brother He Miao were bribed by eunuchs many times, they obstructed them and obstructed them in many ways; also because He Jin was indecisive, he hesitated and couldn't make up his mind. Seeing this situation, Yuan Shao was very anxious, and once again offered advice: "You can mobilize the fierce generals from all over the world to lead the troops to the capital and admonish the Queen Mother." At that time, the Queen Mother saw that the matter was urgent and could not be ignored. ”

He Jin thought that this idea was good, and wanted to send a letter and summon soldiers and horses from all over the country to Beijing. Chen Lin, the chief bookkeeper, said: "No, as the saying goes, 'hiding your eyes and catching birds, you are self-deceptive', and small things cannot be deceived to achieve ambition, let alone national events?" Today's great general relies on the authority of the emperor and is in charge of heavy troops, which can be said to be a dragon and a tiger, and he is high and low in his heart. If you want to kill a eunuch, it is as easy as burning hair in a drum oven, as long as you quickly send out the power of thunder and make a decision immediately, the world will follow it. If the text summons foreign ministers to offend the Jingshi, the heroes gather, each with one heart. It can be said that if you go against the grain and give people a handle, not only will it not succeed, but it will give birth to rebellion. ”

He Jin smiled and said, "This coward's opinion is also. Cao Cao was beside him and said to He Jin: "Eunuchs disturb the government, both ancient and modern. That is the favor of the lord of the world, and the authority given to him, so that it is so. If you want to punish sin, you should eliminate the evil. To eradicate the evil, it is enough to send jailers to arrest him and put him in prison, so why summon soldiers from all over the world? If all the eunuchs are killed, the matter will be revealed, and I will be defeated. He Jin was angry: "Is Meng De also selfish?" Cao Cao withdrew and sighed to the sky and said: "Those who cause chaos in the world must be He Jin." ”

He Jin did not listen to the dissuasion, and secretly ordered Dong Zhuo to lead the army to Beijing, and sent his subordinates Wang Kuang and Bao Xin, the cavalry captain, back to their hometown to recruit troops.

Dong Zhuo was overjoyed when he received the edict of leading troops to Beijing and He Jin's secret order, and marched to Luoyang with his troops, and wrote in accordance with He Jin's secret order: "Zhang Rang and others are fortunate to steal their favors, and the sea is turbid. In the past, Zhao Yingxing Jinyang's armor was used to chase the evil of the king's side. The minister heard that 'the soup is not boiling, it is better to go to the salary; Although the carbuncle is painful, it is better than raising poison', and the minister dared to ring the bell and drum into Luoyang, which was to crusade against Zhang Rang and others. Eliminate the eunuch party, the society is very lucky! The world is very lucky! “

He Jin received Dong Zhuo's letter and showed it to the minister. Zheng Tai, the servant of the imperial history, admonished: "Dong Zhuo is a jackal, and when he was introduced into the capital, he wanted to eat people." He Jin said: "You are suspicious, and you are not enough to make great things." Lu Zhi also admonished: "I know that Dong Zhuo is a person, with a good face and an evil heart, if he enters the forbidden court, he will cause disaster, it is better to stop him from coming, so as not to cause chaos." He Jin didn't listen, Zheng Tai and Lu Zhi abandoned their officials and left, and most of the ministers of the court went. He Jin sent people to Mianchi to welcome Dong Zhuo into Beijing, but Dong Zhuo did not move. He Jin saw that Dong Zhuo did not listen to the edict, so he regretted it, and hurriedly sent a counselor to dissuade Dong Zhuo from entering Beijing. Chong Shao saw Dong Zhuo in Mianchi and asked Dong Zhuo to return to Hedong County to crusade against the exiled Xiongnu Shan Yufulo, but Dong Zhuo did not comply, continued to write a letter to defend himself, and led the army to arrive outside Luoyang City. When the labor army went out of the city, Dong Zhuo again asked Dong Zhuo to withdraw the army, Dong Zhuo instructed the soldiers to come forward to threaten the seed, and the seed Shao was furious and reprimanded Dong Zhuo, Dong Zhuo knew that he was at a loss, so he led the army to retreat west to the Sunset Pavilion twenty miles away from Luoyang City.

And said that Zhang Rang knew that the foreign soldiers were coming, and discussed: "The foreign soldiers came to Beijing because of the conspiracy of He Jin, if we don't kill first, we will be wiped out." So he first ambushed fifty sword and axe men in the Jiade Gate of Changle Palace, and then told the Empress Dowager He: "The general ordered foreign soldiers to enter Beijing to kill us and others, and I hope that the Empress Dowager will have mercy and help." Empress Dowager He said: "You can go to the General's Mansion to apologize." Zhang Rang said: "If you go to his house, you will inevitably have flesh and blood powder." I hope that the Empress Dowager will enter the palace to persuade the general. If he doesn't comply, I can only ask for death in front of the Queen Mother. The Queen Mother was sad, so she sent an edict to announce that He entered the palace. Exactly: the first strike is strong, and the second strike suffers. I want to know how He Jin's life is when he enters the palace this time, and look at the next decomposition.