Chapter 23: Interrogate the mastermind behind the scenes and make him give out the name of Grand Tutor Yuan Wei!
"Tread, tap, tap—"

After hearing this, the first person to react was Zhu Jun.

He ordered his generals to be on high alert, and then rode forward, making the Xiliang soldiers somewhat alert. However, while everyone was in confusion, he dismounted from his horse, held his head high, and walked towards the Chongde Hall without any defense.

At this time, as long as their Xiliang army suddenly launched an attack, they could directly end the life of Zhu Jun, a famous and prestigious general. However, he was fearless and kept his composure, showing great courage.

I didn't get close just now, there was no need to go deep into the tiger's den. But now His Majesty has issued an edict, even if it is a dragon's den or a tiger's den, we must go in!
This made the soldiers of the Xiliang Army look at each other in bewilderment, and subconsciously looked at the generals of the Xiliang Army, asking with their eyes whether they should take action? Should they suddenly launch an attack? They involuntarily made way for an entrance and watched Zhu Jun leave step by step.

Until Zhu Jun entered the Chongde Hall, none of the Xiliang Army generals gave any orders to take action!
It’s not that they don’t dare, but if they attack Zhu Jun, Qin Qiong and Zhang Liao will definitely attack Li Jue.

They are afraid to use force!

Moreover, taking action at this time would only intensify the conflict and would be detrimental to their negotiations for amnesty!

"Should we go in and see His Majesty?!"

"What if this is His Majesty's plan to lure the enemy away from the mountain? Once we enter, the rebels will rush over and decapitate us. What if we do that?!"

"Zhu Jun has entered the palace alone. If we are so timid, don't we seem a little cowardly? Doesn't this prove that our Xiliang army is afraid?!"

Bai Hu, who was disguised as Wang Fang, immediately bewitched him and said, "Since His Majesty has issued an imperial decree openly and even called out our official titles, it means that he still considers us Han officials and there is still room for negotiation!"

"This……"

As it concerns their lives and property, the generals of the Xiliang Army are really hesitant. Unfortunately, the Chongde Hall is not big, otherwise they can lead the army directly inside without worrying about any traps or luring the tiger away from the mountain.

"Tread, tap, tap—"

Just when the generals of the Western Liang army were in doubt, Qin Qiong and Zhang Liao ordered the soldiers to be on high alert, then dismounted and escorted the tied-up Li Jue inside.

The Black Armor Army did not change at all because of the departure of their commander. They carried out their military orders meticulously. As long as the enemy made the slightest movement, they would launch a thundering attack!

The real elite, the tactical experience is engraved in their bones!
Qin Qiong and Zhang Liao approached step by step. Their courage to attend the meeting alone made the generals of the Xiliang Army admire them!

But the Xiliang army did not dare to act rashly, because Li Jue was still in their hands. Otherwise, the Xiliang army might really rise up and launch a decapitation operation!

Li Jue was tied up and gagged. No one knew what expression he had when he looked at his colleagues, but in the end he lowered his head in shame, feeling ashamed and humiliated.

He was a great general of the Xiliang Army, who had fought in the army all his life and was brave and good at fighting. The Feixiong Army under his command was the elite among the elite, and could be called the best heavy cavalry in Xiliang. He did not expect that he would be defeated by Qin Qiong's Xuanjia Army and his reputation would be ruined in his later years!

After Qin Qiong and Zhang Liao escorted Li Jue inside, Bai Hu, disguised as Wang Fang, said directly: "You guys continue to wait and see, I will go into the palace first to find out what's going on! Now that things have come to this, there is no way out for you and me!"

He wanted to set an example, and indeed many generals hesitated and then followed him.

At this time, Jia Xu sighed and said, "Generals, don't worry. Since your majesty has given the order, the safety of the palace is safe. Otherwise, it will be your majesty's loss of face and your majesty's trust!"

After saying this, Jia Xu also stepped inside.

Guo Si and other generals looked at each other, and finally had no choice but to follow him in. Of course, to be on the safe side, they still ordered their personal soldiers to guard outside, ready to attack at the slightest sign of trouble.

General Lu Bu and others thought about it and decided to go in decisively!
After going around in circles, the group returned to Chongde Hall again.

But it was different from when they first arrived. At that time, the Xiliang Army was in control of the situation and were ready to depose and enthrone the emperor. In their eyes, the Han Emperor and the Empress Dowager were just fish on the chopping board, puppets to be slaughtered at will!
But now, returning to Chongde Hall again, looking at the mountains of corpses and seas of blood on the ground, most of them are the bodies of Xiliang Army soldiers. The Xiliang Army has lost the initiative and the position of controlling the overall situation. They came here to meet the emperor and ask for pardon!
The reversal of the situation is really touching!
All the officials in the court watched Zhu Jun, Qin Qiong, Zhang Liao, and the generals of the Western Liang Army and the Bingzhou Army enter the palace one after another. They looked at the factory guards who were on high alert around them, and recalled the five armies of the Northern Army outside the palace. They felt a little relieved and returned to their seats.

They went to see the Han Emperor and the Empress Dowager together, and the shouts echoed throughout the venue:
"Greetings to His Majesty!!! Greetings to the Queen Mother!!!"

Grand Tutor Yuan Wei led all the officials and took the lead. He looked unmoved, but was extremely unwilling in his heart!
With this shout, it means that the Xiliang Army has failed in its attempt to depose and enthrone the emperor today! It means that the Xiliang Army has temporarily surrendered to the Han Emperor and the Empress Dowager! It means that the initiative now falls into the hands of the Han Emperor and Empress Dowager He!

Although the Han Emperor had not yet reached the point where he could kill or give life at will, it was no longer possible for him to continue to depose and enthrone people!
The situation gradually evolved from the original Western Liang army having a larger force to one where the two were evenly matched, with the imperial power even having a slight advantage!
Yuan Wei had mixed feelings. Even though he was a shrewd man who had experienced ups and downs in officialdom for decades, he felt that the situation was beyond his control!
After all the planning, in the end, everything failed!
The reason turned out to be that the puppet emperor, who was cowardly by nature, with little moral character and talent, and who even fooled him, was the real variable!
What made Yuan Wei even more uneasy was that he could not guess the Han emperor's thoughts and intentions.

This is extremely rare!
Yuan Wei had been in the political world for decades, what storms and waves had he not seen? He had a strong ability to judge people and read their expressions, but now, facing the Han Emperor, he was a little confused.

He had only felt this feeling from one person... the late emperor!
Only old ministers like Yuan Wei understood the incompetent emperor who sold official positions and was despised by the world. His superb imperial tactics made people feel that serving the emperor was like serving a tiger!
And now, His Majesty has also given him this hint!

When Yuan Wei thought of this, he felt a chill down his spine and his hair stood on end!
"Da da da--"

At this time, there were only a few troops left from the five schools of the Northern Army. Infantry Captain Wu Kuang, Changshui Captain Zang Min, and Shooting Captain Ma Ritian were arriving late!
The Yongmen cave gate on the west side was clearly open, and Qin Qiong and Zhang Liao had clearly cleared the obstacles for them, but they killed each other in a fight for power and missed the best opportunity to rescue the king!
Zhu Jun, who was attacking the north gate, had already led his troops into the Chongde Hall, and they only came to rescue the emperor at this time.

Is this a rescue?
Come here to clean up the mess!
If we were a little later, we would probably be able to catch the opening of the celebration banquet!

Among these three captains, there must be some with ulterior motives. Some may have been implicated innocently, some may just go with the flow, or some may have done it on purpose. But no matter what, they are late to rescue the king!
After they entered the hall, they knelt down and kowtowed in fear and trepidation:
"Greetings to Your Majesty!!! Greetings to the Empress Dowager!!! I, your servant Wu Kuang/Zang Min/Ma Riti, am late in coming to your rescue. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me!!!"

Liu Bian ignored the three men and let them kneel there quietly. He swept his eyes around the whole place. He was intimidating without even being angry. Under the murderous guards around him, he even had a hint of murderous aura!
This makes many officials feel uneasy!
The emperor was so angry that he laid down millions of corpses!

The former puppet emperor Liu Bian couldn't do it, but the current Han Emperor Liu Bian has it possible!
Liu Bian's gaze finally fell on the generals of the Xiliang Army, and he went straight to the point and said in a deep voice:

"You Xiliang troops have recklessly deposed and enthroned. Now you have no advantage in surrendering and are willing to become thieves. What do you think of the imperial palace? What do you think of me?"

The generals of the Xiliang Army were startled. When Guo Si and other generals were considering whether they should quickly withdraw from Chongde Hall and lead their troops to confront the enemy to gain a chance of survival, Liu Bian's "but" soon came.

"But! Considering that the Xiliang Army has guarded the border of Liangzhou and suppressed the rebellion of Qiang and Di, and has made great contributions, I am not a tyrant who will kill all of them and forget the kindness they have shown me. Now, I will give you a chance to make amends!"

This immediately made the generals of the Xiliang Army very happy!
They had been worried that Liu Bian's summons was just a ploy to lure the tiger away from the mountain, but after Liu Bian blurted out these words, they finally felt relieved.

As long as there is a chance to make amends and their Xiliang Army can be pardoned, then everything will be easy.

But after Liu Bian said the next sentence, the hearts of the generals of the Xiliang Army gradually sank to the bottom again.

"After Dong Zhuo's death, the Xiliang army still forcibly deposed and enthroned him. Who is the mastermind behind you? Tell me, and I will only punish the ringleader and not implicate the rest of the soldiers. I will pardon you! Your words are not a joke!!!"

After he finished speaking, the whole audience was shocked!

They finally understood the Han emperor's intention!

The generals of the Xiliang Army were horrified and disheartened!

Who is the mastermind behind the insistence on abolishing and enthroning? !
It’s Grand Tutor Yuan Wei!!!

After Dong Zhuo's death, the Xiliang army was leaderless. At this time, after the military advisor Li Ru visited the Grand Tutor Yuan Wei, the Xiliang army insisted on deposing and enthroning. So who was the mastermind behind the scenes? This cannot be hidden from those who are interested!

But can the Xiliang Army say that?
No way!!!
The imperial power is the common master of the world and the orthodox legal status, but the power of the Yuan family and other aristocratic families can compete with the imperial power! Even now that the imperial power is declining, the power of the aristocratic families is even better and has surpassed the imperial power!
They said at this time that they could get pardon from the Han Emperor, but this would completely offend the Yuan family!
This is the Yuan family, which has three officials in four generations and whose students and former officials are all over the world! Even the prefects and county magistrates of Liangzhou are many of Yuan's students and former officials, even Dong Zhuo, the former governor of Xiliang!
Can the generals of the Xiliang Army return to Liangzhou? ! Can their families still survive in Liangzhou? !

Moreover, after years of operation, the Yuan family has become so powerful and intertwined that it can be called the "leader of the aristocratic families". They are the first civil officials in the court and the first aristocratic family in the world. This huge force can compete with the imperial power and can also find a way to crush the generals of the Xiliang Army!

What's the point of saying it?!
It's just like escaping from the tiger's mouth and falling into the wolf's den!

In this case, the generals of the Xiliang Army might as well follow Yuan Wei to the end. At least the aristocratic families and warlords can join forces to suppress the imperial power. At worst, both sides will be destroyed. The imperial power is high and the emperor is far away, but it is still these aristocratic families that govern the world!

The generals of the Xiliang Army were in a dilemma, and all the officials in the court were shocked! Many officials who guessed the mastermind behind the scenes understood that this was His Majesty's move against the Yuan family, and also a counterattack by the imperial power against the aristocratic family!
This is a conspiracy!
Will the Xiliang Army betray the Grand Tutor Yuan Wei for the sake of immediate interests? ! Or will they choose to shoulder the responsibility alone for the sake of long-term development? ! Or will they be desperate and fight to the death? !

Many people glanced at Yuan Wei from the corner of their eyes.

However, Yuan Wei, the Grand Tutor in front of all the officials, looked at the nose with his eyes and the heart with his nose, and his face remained unmoved.

Liu Bian's taking advantage of the topic actually made him feel at ease.

At a time when the current rebellion has not yet been completely quelled, Your Majesty has broken that layer of window paper and exposed the contradiction between imperial power and the aristocratic families. This is an irrational practice and a manifestation of political immaturity!
Compared to the late emperor, Your Majesty is still too young!

Even if many people knew that it was Yuan Wei who did it, so what? Would they dare to say it? ! Would the generals of the Xiliang Army dare to say it? !
dare not!

This world is not a place where the emperor has the power to decide life and death!
There are also aristocratic families who can compete with each other!
Yuan Wei really wanted to see how Emperor Liu Bian of Han would save the situation when the generals of the Xiliang Army remained silent? !

This was not just a disgrace, it also dealt a devastating blow to Liu Bian's newly established authority and the prestige of the emperor, which had shocked the entire audience because of the sudden rebellion by the forces such as the Censorate and the Imperial Guards!
This is shooting yourself in the foot!
This kind of political tactics is not as good as that of the previous emperor, and is definitely not my opponent!
Yuan Wei was confident of victory and was already thinking about how to mobilize the Xiliang Army and how to unite the Xiliang Army and Bingzhou Army to counterattack the imperial power again. If deposing and enthroning didn't work, he had other means to suppress the imperial power!
Inside the Chongde Hall, there were hundreds of people, but at this moment, there was complete silence, so great that one could hear a pin drop.

This kind of solemn atmosphere can show the majesty of the emperor. But the problem is that after the Han emperor questioned, there was no answer and silence. That is not the majesty of the emperor, but the embarrassment of having his authority hit!
Even if ordinary people were ignored, it would be embarrassing, let alone the king of a country, who could not get an answer when questioning in front of all the officials. The silence of the Xiliang Army itself meant that they were more afraid of the mastermind than the imperial power!
The imperial power represented by the Han Emperor was actually surpassed by others. This was a complete loss of face and prestige!

Everyone doesn’t know how Emperor Han Liu Bian will end up?

But at this moment, one of the Xiliang army generals stepped forward, knelt down and kowtowed. It was Baihu who was disguised as Wang Fang. He said in fear and trepidation:

"Your Majesty, the mastermind behind this is none other than Grand Tutor Yuan Wei!!!"

"Wow!!!"

The whole audience was in an uproar, and everyone looked at Wang Fang in disbelief. Among the Xiliang army generals, there was such a reckless and ignorant general? !

If you offend the imperial power, the most you can do is flee the capital and be wanted, but if you offend aristocratic families, you will have no place to stand in this vast world!
Even the Grand Tutor Yuan Wei cast a sinister look at him!

The generals of the Xiliang Army were even more shocked!
They thought of the power of the imperial guards who had infiltrated the palace without anyone noticing, the palace gates and city gates that had been opened for no reason by the insiders and the outsiders, and the various abnormalities of "Wang Fang"...

At this moment they suddenly woke up and realized that there was a traitor among the high-ranking members of their Xiliang Army!
This traitor is 'Wang Fang'!
It was because of Wang Fang's right to guard the palace that the rebels were able to infiltrate the imperial palace while the Xiliang Army knew nothing about it. It was because Wang Fang opened the palace gates and the city gates that the Black Armor Army and the Five Schools of the Northern Army were able to march straight in!
"traitor!!!"

The generals of the Xiliang Army cursed Wang Fang.

But after Wang Fang betrayed Grand Tutor Yuan Wei, this window paper was broken. So what was the point of them keeping it secret? !
This made the generals of the Xiliang Army confused and uncertain. Should they also testify against Yuan Wei?

It is true that there are worries about offending a noble family, but now that things have come to this, at least there is a chance to get pardon and avoid this disaster!
"Your Majesty, this is asking us to take sides!"

Jia Xu sighed in his heart, and finally understood the Han emperor's idea of ​​breaking this layer of window paper. It was not only to take action against Yuan Wei and the aristocratic families, but also to make them engage in a political battle.

This made Jia Xu silent!
On one side is the imperial power which has legitimate ruling status but declined after the Yellow Turban Rebellion?

On one side are the aristocratic families that can compete with the imperial power, control the world's discourse, and even have ironclad families with changing emperors?
How should Jia Xu choose? !
Jia Xu looked at the Han Emperor Liu Bian who was sitting at the top of the table. After just one glance, he also knelt down.

Just like in the original history, during the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao clearly had the upper hand, with an army of 700,000 confronting Cao Cao's army of 70,000, but Jia Xu still ordered Zhang Xiu to reject Yuan Shao's recruitment and choose the weaker side: Cao Cao!
This is a profound wisdom of judging the situation and analyzing the correct strategic situation! This is also the embodiment of the ability of Jia Xu, the ghost strategist, who can be called Chen Ping of the Three Kingdoms!
After Wang Fang and Jia Xu knelt down one after another, Xu Rong and other generals of the Xiliang Army also knelt down one after another, pointing out that Taifu Yuan Wei was the mastermind behind their Xiliang Army and the culprit who had been insisting on pushing for the abolition and enthronement!
But generals such as Guo Si were hesitant!

The generals of the Xiliang Army suddenly split into two camps.

At this time, Yuan's students and former officials, as well as officials related to him, angrily rebuked the generals of the Xiliang Army:

"Slander!", "How dare they slander the current Taifu in order to escape punishment, the crime is unforgivable!", "Their entire clan should be exterminated!" and other accusations.

It is also said:
"The Grand Tutor is loyal to the emperor and loves his country. How could he do such a deceitful act?", "The Yuan family has three dukes in four generations and has been favored by the emperor. They are loyal to the emperor and love their country!", "Your Majesty should not believe the slander of the rebels and chill the hearts of the loyal ministers of the Han Dynasty!"

Because of Wang Fang's confession, the whole court was in an uproar and everyone had their own story.

But Yuan Wei, the person involved, remained unmoved and just stood there quietly.

"The Grand Tutor was born in the Yuan family of Runan. Three of his four generations have been dukes. They have all received Han salaries and received the emperor's grace. How is he different from a beast if he doesn't think about being loyal to the emperor and serving the country? I don't believe the Grand Tutor is such a person. Don't accuse him of anything just to get a pardon!"

Liu Bian's expression and tone did not reveal any other expressions, but his palms in his sleeves were tightened little by little, his nails almost digging into the flesh. He had been trying hard to hold back the explosion of thunderous rage!

Liu Bian had not expected that the situation would come to this point. He had the protection of the Factory Guards, the protection of the Jinyiwei masters such as Cao Zhengchun and Qinglong, the suppression of the Black Armor Army led by Qin Qiong, and now the support of the five schools of the Northern Army.

The situation was clearly not favorable to the Xiliang Army. As long as Liu Bian gave the order, the troops under his command could defeat the Xiliang Army. The Xiliang Army had no way out, but they still refused to reveal the mastermind behind the scenes!
What does this mean? !

This shows that in the eyes of the generals of the Xiliang Army, the Yuan family, or the aristocratic power behind Yuan Wei, is more terrifying than the imperial power, and makes them terrified. They, the Xiliang Army, would rather die in battle in the palace than offend the Yuan family!
If Baihu had not disguised himself as "Wang Fang", and if this general of the Western Liang Army had not stepped forward to answer Liu Bian as a tainted witness, then the prestige of Liu Bian, the Han Emperor, would have been ruined, and his imperial authority would have been gone!
joke!

What a joke!

Is this the Liu family's kingdom? Or is it the aristocratic family that rules the world?!

"Your Majesty, when Dong Zhuo was assassinated, our Xiliang army generals were fighting for power and had no intention of deposing or enthroning him. It was only after military advisor Li Ru came to visit Yuan Wei and reached an agreement with him that we decided to dethrone him."

The white tiger disguised as Wang Fang acted terrified and told everything:
"We, the soldiers of the Liangzhou Army, have been stationed at the border of Liangzhou, fighting life-and-death battles with the Qiang and Di tribes. Our lifelong wish is to be loyal to the emperor and love our country, and to drive out the Rong and Di tribes, just like Wei Huo conquered the Wolf's Lair and enhanced our country's prestige.

"Dong Zhuo forcibly deposed and enthroned the emperor, and then Yuan Wei insisted on deposing and enthroning the emperor. They were students and former officials. I think this must be a conspiracy of the Yuan family. We were just deceived by the traitors. Your Majesty, please look into it! Forgive us, the soldiers of the Liangzhou Army, for the crime of deceiving the emperor!"

Fortunately, there was Baihu, the traitor, otherwise Liu Bian would not be able to save face at all, and his intentions would be difficult to carry out. Finally, Liu Bian looked at the Grand Tutor and asked in a deep voice: "Grand Tutor, do you have any explanation?"

"If you want to incriminate yourself, why bother?"

Yuan Wei, the Grand Tutor, held his head high, looking fearless and facing death, as if he was upright and righteous. He was like a wronged person who was unwilling to defend himself, which moved all the officials in the court.

But Liu Bian just felt that Yuan Wei was hypocritical to the extreme!
"If you want to accuse someone of a crime, you can always find a pretext for it" comes from Zuo Zhuan. It was said by "Rik", a minister of the State of Jin, before he was framed by "Duke Hui of Jin". It was a rebuttal from a minister to the king, and he was eventually forced to commit suicide.

Was this a subtle criticism that Liu Bian was as incompetent as Duke Hui of Jin and framed Yuan Wei? !
But the problem is that Rick was not a loyal minister. He killed two kings in a row. When he supported the new king, Rick failed at the critical moment, twice in a row. Finally, it led to decades of civil strife in Jin State, which was not settled until the return of Duke Wen of Jin, Chong'er.

How similar are Rick and Yuan Wei?

Liu Bian asked directly, "Taifu, are you saying that I am imposing a crime on you? Am I as incompetent as Duke Hui of Jin?"

"I dare not!!!"

"Rik was a high official in Jin, and his position was above all other ministers, but the chaos in Jin was caused by Rik's incompetence. How similar is this to our Han Dynasty?

"You, Yuan Wei, are the Grand Tutor and the Recorder of the Secretariat, and your position is above the Three Dukes. However, the chaos in the capital was caused by your student Dong Zhuo. Now that you are implicated, you, Yuan Wei, cannot escape the blame!"

Liu Bian exploded in rage and shouted in a deep voice: "Then dismiss him from his post and hand him over to the court for interrogation!"

Tingwei, one of the Nine Ministers, was the head of the highest judicial institution in the central government. It was also called Dali in the Western Han Dynasty. It summarized the number of cases judged nationwide and was in charge of matters related to imperial prisons and the revision of laws and decrees.

(End of this chapter)