Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1306 Layout
Yuan Xi had to admit that Liu Xie's desperate move of abdication actually brought him what he needed most at the moment.

The State of Jin now has territory, military force, and financial resources. If there is anything it still lacks, it is the last piece of the puzzle - status.

Yuan Xi said that he didn't care about these things, but he also knew that when dynasties changed, status was a hurdle that could not be avoided. That's why a new dynasty would try every means to prove to the world the legitimacy of its succession to the previous dynasty. It's because China has always emphasized inheritance since ancient times.

This was the case with the Shang Dynasty in the Zhou Dynasty, the Qin Dynasty in the Han Dynasty, Wang Mang's usurpation of the Han Dynasty, and later generations. The same was true when the Wei State tried its best to abdicate, which was to shut up the people of the world, but now this matter has been messed up.

Yuan Xi could guess why Liu Xie was willing to do such a thing. He deeply hated the Wei State for destroying the Han Dynasty, but he was powerless to resist. In a fit of rage, he openly undermined the status of the Wei State and brought the Han Dynasty to the hands of the Jin State.

As for why Yuan Xi was chosen instead of Liu Bei, the reason is very simple, because Liu Bei could not afford it.

First of all, the abdication was not carried out among the members of the Han Dynasty. Secondly, and most importantly, if Liu Xie gave the title of emperor to Liu Bei, it would only cause Liu Bei to be attacked by the princes of the world, which would be tantamount to harming him.

Not to mention the State of Wei, the State of Jin would even become enemies with Liu Bei. Liu Bei had just fought a great battle with the State of Wu, and the State of Hannan was severely damaged. Liu Bei was seriously injured. From Liu Xie's point of view, he would never let Liu Bei become the target of public criticism at this time.

Among all the people in the world today, only Jin State has the strength to afford it. Liu Xie's move may not be a stopgap measure to divert disaster away. If he escapes from Xu Du and makes a comeback, he may revive the Han Dynasty and deny his actions on the abdication stage.

This was what Liu Ye and others thought, so they rushed over not only to congratulate, but also to persuade Yuan Xi to take this opportunity to become emperor immediately.

According to the news from Xudu, the abdication ceremony was completed. The Wei Kingdom nominally took over the throne of the Han Dynasty and Cao Pi became emperor. However, half of the people in Xudu heard Liu Xie's shout.

The truth cannot be hidden. Now that the news spreads rapidly, the world gradually knows that the country that the Han emperor truly recognizes is Jin. In this situation, it is better to strike while the iron is hot and take this opportunity to become emperor!

This was also the common opinion expressed in the memorials submitted by officials from all over the country. The same was true for Lu Xun, Bu Zhi and others. They implied that the opportunity should not be missed. If Liu Xie changed his mind later, or if the Wei Kingdom killed Liu Xie later, they would miss the best opportunity at the moment.

After listening to the speeches of the officials, Yuan Xi gradually understood their thoughts. He thought for a while and said to them, "I understand what you all mean. Let me think about it for a few days."

"Since there is nothing else to do, I will rush back to Yecheng first and then make plans."

After hearing this, Liu Ye and other officials revealed a barely perceptible regret on their faces. Naturally, they also had their own plans and selfish motives, because the location of the coronation was also very important to the local officials.

Liu Ye and others privately speculated that if the world was unified, the capital of Jin would most likely be established in three places: Jicheng, Yecheng, and Shouchun.

Not to mention that Jicheng is the official capital of the Jin Dynasty, Yecheng is where the Yuan family made their fortune, and Shouchun is the ancestral home of the Yuan family. In fact, there is a considerable possibility that if Yuan Xi could become emperor in Shouchun, he would definitely have to rely on local officials to pay homage to the court team. This is undoubtedly good news for Liu Ye and others.

But when Yuan Xi said he wanted to leave for Yecheng, this possibility was greatly reduced, and Liu Ye and others were naturally a little disappointed.

After Yuan Xi sent everyone away, he began to think in his heart. He could naturally see through the thoughts of the Shouchun officials at a glance, so he had been fighting in various places in recent years to avoid the situation where officials formed cliques for personal gain. However, as the time for him to become emperor approached, his means of checks and balances could not avoid the trend of becoming emperor, establishing a court, and enfeoffing officials and generals.

He now has a lot of talented people under his command and numerous factions, most of whom are extremely talented. How to distribute this cake and how to make everyone satisfied is much more difficult than most of the wars at that time. Yuan Xi is also very troubled by this, so he wants to rush back to Yecheng to discuss with Zhuge Liang, whom he trusts the most.

This time, the officials submitted memorials, but Zhuge Liang was the only one who did not reply. Yuan Xi understood that Zhuge Liang must have his own ideas. Now that Jianghuai was pacified, it was time to return to Yecheng.

A few days ago, Mrs. Wu brought Sun Shangxiang and finally met Sun Quan. No one knew what the mother and son talked about, but Shan Yuanxi believed that Mrs. Wu should be able to explain some things clearly.

If Sun Quan still refused to repent at this point, Yuan Xi would have no choice but to trap him in a corner for the rest of his life. However, doing so would actually waste Sun Quan's talent for causing trouble. After all, in Yuan Xi's mind, Sun Quan was a very suitable candidate for causing trouble.

While he was thinking, Bu Lianshi came in and said that Fu Shou wanted to see Yuan Xi.

After hearing this, Yuan Xi said to Master Bu Lian, "She has difficulty walking. Since she is next door, let's go over there."

After hearing this, Bu Lianshi hurried over to help Yuan Xi over. When her bare hand touched Yuan Xi's palm, she remembered his ridiculous behavior a few days ago and her face turned red.

The two men arrived at the second room. Madam Wu was talking to Fu Shou, while Sun Shangxiang was catching butterflies in the bushes beside them. When they saw Yuan Xi coming, all the women stood up to greet him.

Seeing that Fu Shou wanted to stand up but was struggling, Yuan Xi said, "The Queen should just sit down and talk."

Fu Shou sat back on the bamboo chair and said bitterly, "I am no longer the queen. Not to mention that I was deposed a long time ago, now that the Han Dynasty has fallen, the one who can truly be the queen is the king's wife."

Yuan Xi embraced Sun Shangxiang who ran over and said, "The emperor was forced by the Wei thieves and had no choice but to take this expedient measure. I don't think he will give up like this."

Fu Shou shook his head and said, "The emperor's words are golden, and the Han Dynasty has long been in decline over the years, and the people's hearts are no longer with them."

"I want to see you, Your Majesty, because I want you to consider the fact that the Emperor has handed over the Emperor's inheritance to the King of Jin, and find a way to rescue him from prison."

"He has lost his usefulness and has completely offended the State of Wei. The King of Wei will surely be angry and embarrassed, which will be detrimental to him. His safety..." Fu Shou's eyes were filled with tears when she said this. Seeing this, Yuan Xi also sighed and said, "I am not absolutely sure, but I promised the Queen that I would try my best to find a way to rescue the emperor from Xudu."

"But as to whether it will succeed, it depends on God's will."

After hearing this, Fu Shou bowed hastily. Seeing this, Yuan Xi was about to leave. Madam Wu also said goodbye and left with Sun Shangxiang.

Madam Wu handed Sun Shangxiang to Master Bu Lianshi and approached Yuan Xi and whispered, "Are you planning to rescue the emperor?"

"Aren't you worried about the reputation problems that might arise later?"

Yuan Xi said softly: "It doesn't matter. Just like Empress Fu said, the emperor has already given the world away. Now it's just a formality."

"But we still need to go back to Yecheng to discuss the future. I don't know the truth about the series of events in Xudu."

What Yuan Xi said was true. Liu Xie was able to do this because of the people around him. Although Liu He had a friendship with Yuan Xi, he would not directly hand over the country to an outsider.

Among the spies that Yuan Xi had ambushed in Xudu, the most likely one was Dong Zhao, but Dong Zhao had not contacted Yuan Xi at all over the years, and Yuan Xi could not even confirm whether Dong Zhao was still his man.

However, if it was really done by Dong Zhao, it would be quite ironic. Dong Zhao was already a minister of state of Cao Wei and one of the most powerful people. It would be rare for a traitor to be so capable.

After hearing this, Madam Wu asked, "Your Majesty, are you going back to Yecheng?"

Yuan Xi nodded and said, "With Jianghuai pacified and Wu destroyed, there will be no major war in Shouchun for the time being."

"If there is a place, it is the border between the western route and the State of Wei. However, there are several generals led by Wei Yan and Wen Pin stationed there, so it is almost impossible for Cao's army to attack."

"But the situation in Jianghuai still needs someone to take charge. The attitude of the officials just now also made me realize that we need someone I trust to take charge here."

"Madam was once the regent of Jiangdong and is familiar with internal affairs, so during this period of time, I would like to ask Madam to stay in Shouchun to assist in government affairs."

"I can take Xiangxiang back to Yecheng first, and Yuan Qian can follow you. After all, he also needs to start familiarizing himself with Jiangdong affairs. Once Boyan has pacified the situation in Nanchang, you can go back to Shouchun to teach him."

Madam Wu was a smart woman. She understood what Yuan Xi meant and said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will do my best."

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "I believe you, there will be no problem."

Madam Wu hesitated for a moment, "Quan'er has already admitted defeat and no longer intends to oppose the king. He..."

Yuan Xi said, "It is not suitable for him to stay in Jianghuai, lest he be used by other forces."

"I have considered it carefully and decided to seal him in Bingzhou, near the Yinshan Mountains to the north of the Hetao Plain."

Mrs. Wu was startled, then suddenly realized: "The king wants to..."

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "He is still young. If he is confined to one place like this, I am afraid he will not be willing to do so."

"Now that most of the world is pacified, Wei cannot defend Guanzhong. The next few years will be a time for foreign barbarians to invade. Let him display his talents there and deal with the invading barbarians, and he can also prove himself."

"If he really has talent, then he can guard the northern border for me, pacify the Xianbei, advance westward into Liangzhou, and expand the territory of the future Jin State even more vast."

After hearing this, Mrs. Wu smiled bitterly in her heart. Her young husband's behavior was really unexpected.

However, this was already the best outcome for Sun Quan. Although the environment in the north was harsh, considering what Sun Quan had done, it was a mercy for Yuan Xi to give him a life imprisonment. If he had been trapped for life, it would be much worse than it is now.

Yuan Xi now thought that Jia Xu had been working with Tian Yu on the Korean Peninsula for several years, and he should have become much more honest. Now that the Three Kingdoms of Han had been pacified, Goguryeo had sent a private letter saying that it was willing to submit to the Jin State.

This was not only because Goguryeo could not withstand the pressure from the Xianbei, but also because Goguryeo was originally migrated by ancient Chinese people, and their ancestors were completely different from those of later Goryeo, so they naturally had a strong sense of identity with the Chinese.

In fact, Goguryeo also looked down on the Xianbei who were not related to the outside world. They believed that they were a branch of the Chinese and the Xianbei were savages. In such a situation, they could not remain neutral, so they naturally wanted to find a party with which they had a greater sense of identity.

Now, if Yuan Xi could peacefully annex Goguryeo, he would be able to free up Jia Xu, this powerful weapon. He would be very interested in seeing what miraculous effects this unscrupulous combination of Sun Quan and Jia Xu could have in dealing with the Hu people outside the Great Wall.

(End of this chapter)