People in the Three Kingdoms: Starting from Preaching

Chapter 377 Even the Emperor can’t do it!
"Your Majesty, can we hold Xuchang?"

In the slightly crude and shabby gatehouse, Empress Fu, who had always lived a life of luxury, did not feel uncomfortable at all. She had nothing else to ask for to be able to accompany Liu Xie, who was becoming more and more like a man. However, the current situation was really worrying.

In front of others, Empress Fu was naturally supportive, but behind others' backs, she couldn't help but feel worried.

It was just five o'clock in the morning when she felt some movement around her. It turned out that Liu Xie had woken up. The tossing and turning of his body not only woke up Empress Fu, but also made her feel Liu Xie's anxiety and uneasiness.

In the silence, Empress Fu hugged Liu Xie from behind and asked softly.

Liu Xie remained silent as to whether Xuchang could be defended.
Silence itself is a kind of answer. Empress Fu's expression darkened, but then she forced a smile: "Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven. Cao Cao's people will not do anything to Your Majesty. After this incident, the worst thing Your Majesty can do is return to the old days. This is your fate. Since you can't change it, Your Majesty might as well accept it calmly."

Liu Xie grabbed Empress Fu's hand, and then he sighed: "How can I go back? If I am still locked up in the deep palace like before, then being an emperor is worse than being a commoner."

Empress Fu frowned slightly, as if she sensed something unusual in Liu Xie's words.

She was about to ask further questions, but at this moment, a loud noise suddenly came from a distance, which broke the tranquility in front of her and made Liu Xie sit up in shock.

The two looked at each other in a daze, and after listening for a while, the noise became louder and louder, and then quickly spread to the side of the gatehouse.

"problem occurs!"

Liu Xie could no longer sit still, so he quickly stood up and began to put on his clothes.

Empress Fu was also a little flustered, so she started to help. However, before she could completely tidy up her appearance, Liu Xie could no longer hold back and rushed out immediately.

As soon as he went out, Liu Xie saw the soldiers on the city wall hurriedly picking up their weapons and then lining up to defend themselves. However, the direction they were defending was not outside the city, but inside the city.

"Your Majesty, there is a rebellion in the army!" At this time, Fu Xie also hurried over.

Liu Xie's face turned pale for a moment, but then he calmed down with a wry smile. In fact, if you think about it carefully, this is not a strange thing. After all, it is only an army that was conquered temporarily, and the soldiers' loyalty to him as the emperor is limited.

Fu Xie was obviously not surprised by this, which could be seen from his expression which was solemn but not shocked.

"It seems that Liu Bei, Sun Quan and others have mobilized the army, and now a considerable number of troops have rebelled."

Fu Xie looked into the distance inside the city. Although no direct fighting had taken place there, he could see two forces confronting each other.

In front of the enemy camp, Fu Xie clearly saw several familiar figures, not only Sun and Liu, but also the military chief of Cao's army. It was not difficult to imagine what had happened.

Liu Xie also saw the figures of the other party and immediately became annoyed: "I was too soft-hearted. I should have killed them. I didn't expect that they would become trouble after being thrown into prison!"

Fu Xie shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, don't blame yourself. Even if we kill them, it's still hard to avoid this. We can't fully control the army in such a short time. Now that the war outside the city has to have a result, the soldiers will naturally be afraid of being liquidated by Cao Cao after the war. Rather than saying that Sun, Liu and others instigated the rebellion, it's better to say that someone in the army took the initiative to collude with them."

After hearing this, Liu Xie soon figured it out. The reason the army rebelled was because the troops they obtained by opportunism never truly belonged to them.

But there is no point in worrying about these things now, it seems that everything is coming to an end.

The situation was at a stalemate for a while. A considerable number of troops from the Xuchang garrison did rebel, but many others remained to protect Liu Xie. Perhaps out of fear, Sun Quan and Liu Bei did not launch a direct attack.

"Fu Qing, what should we do!"

At the last moment, Liu Xie seemed to become his weak self again. At this time, he had no ideas or courage left. He just grabbed Fu Xie, hoping that Fu Xie could give him a reassuring answer.

Fu Xie slowly grasped the hilt of the sword at his waist, his expression gradually becoming resolute: "I will fight to the death."

Liu Xie was stunned for a moment: "What about me?"

Fu Xie looked over, shook his head and smiled: "They just want to purge the emperor's side. After I die in battle, they will not do anything to Your Majesty. From now on, Your Majesty can let go of the thoughts and listen to the princes' affairs with peace of mind."

For a moment, Liu Xie's expression changed, first from daze to horror, and then from horror to despair.

He wanted to say something else, but at this moment, a soldier who came running over interrupted their conversation.

"Your Majesty, they want to talk to you!"

Hearing this, Liu Xie was stunned for a moment, and then he saw Liu Bei and Sun Quan in the distance seemed to be looking over here, which made him silent all of a sudden.

Subconsciously, Liu Xie wanted to refuse. As an emperor, he was unwilling to endure such humiliation.

But after changing his mind, he gave a bitter smile. It had already come to this point, why should he still care about such a little humiliation? If he didn't even have this little courage, he would be laughed at.

After taking a deep breath, he said in a deep voice: "Then I will go and listen to what they have to say."

Fu Xie sighed and said, "Your Majesty, why do you have to do this?"

Liu Xie just shook his head and didn't answer, and went forward on his own. Seeing this, Fu Xie had no choice but to follow. Inside the city, the two armies were confronting each other with swords drawn, but there was a blank area of ​​dozens of steps in the middle as a buffer, which allowed them to guard against each other without accidentally triggering a conflict.

Liu Bei, Guo Jia and Sun Quan were each riding a horse at the front of the rebels, waiting quietly.

In fact, no fighting has taken place until now because they are unwilling to fight. There is no need to fight at all. Liu Xie is already doomed to lose. As long as he leads the rebels to stay on guard and wait for the war outside to end, everything will be settled.

Of course, it would be better if Liu Xie could see the situation clearly and surrender voluntarily, so Liu Bei planned to try harder.

After a long time, the soldiers on the opposite side finally opened a passage, and then a young man slowly walked forward. This was naturally Liu Xie who was invited. Beside Liu Xie was Fu Xie who followed him.

The two sides faced each other across an open space of dozens of steps, and the atmosphere became very subtle.

Liu Bei's heart moved slightly. He keenly felt the changes in the emperor in front of him. The Liu Xie he met at that time would not have such a calm and peaceful temperament.

Sun Quan, Guo Jia and the others remained motionless, but Liu Bei dismounted and saluted Liu Xie from a distance: "Your Majesty, I, Liu Bei, pay my respects to you!"

Liu Xie looked indifferent and said only: "Xuan De is still willing to regard me as the Son of Heaven. This loyalty really touches me."

Liu Bei shook his head helplessly: "Your Majesty, why do you say that? The emperor and father are supreme, and I will naturally respect your majesty."

Liu Xie fell silent. Looking at the scene of fighting in front of him, and then listening to what Liu Bei said, he couldn't help but find it a little ridiculous.

For some reason, Guo Jia and Sun Quan's unconcealed disregard for the emperor's majesty did not make Liu Xie feel so disgusted. At least they did not pretend to be hypocritical.

At this time, Liu Xie really wanted to say "hypocrite".

But when he saw Liu Bei's calm eyes, he couldn't say it.

Is this person a loyal minister or a traitor?
Liu Xie discovered that he had never really known Liu Bei, and he simply could not see Liu Bei clearly. At this time, he really wanted to figure this matter out.

"Are you my loyal subject?" Liu Xie asked, staring at Liu Bei.

Liu Bei was stunned for a moment, then nodded seriously and said solemnly: "I am loyal to Your Majesty, and even more loyal to the Han Dynasty."

Liu Xie said coldly: "Since you are loyal to me, why did you not respond to the imperial edict? What does my edict mean to you?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the scene fell silent, and everyone turned their eyes to Liu Bei.

The case of the Secret Decree caused a sensation in the city at the time. There were also rumors that Dong Cheng had colluded with Liu Bei, but this has never been confirmed, and Cao Cao never mentioned Liu Bei's name, so outsiders had no way of knowing whether it was true or not.

Now that Liu Xie asked this question, people like Guo Jia and Sun Quan looked at him with interest. They really wanted to hear how Liu Bei would answer.

Liu Xie looked at Liu Bei coldly. He thought Liu Bei would find all kinds of reasons to cover up for himself. For example, the most direct way was to deny that Dong Cheng had ever colluded with him.

But after a brief silence, Liu Bei immediately admitted the secret order: "I did not act according to the order because I cannot act according to the order."

Liu Xie was stunned at first, then he started to sneer: "Oh, isn't Liu Qing a loyal minister of mine? Why can't you obey my edict?"

Liu Bei said calmly: "Because of the overall situation and the country."

Liu Xie burst into laughter: "How ridiculous! He doesn't even obey the emperor's order, and yet he still brazenly talks about the country and the overall situation?"

Facing Liu Xie's sarcasm and the meaningful looks from people around him, Liu Bei remained calm, but his voice became a little higher when he spoke again.

"Your Majesty, the Yellow Turban Rebellion cannot be stopped. Only by gathering the strength of the southern states and counties can we resist. If I obey your Majesty's order to send troops to fight Cao, the alliance will only break up in the civil strife. Wouldn't this be handing over the Han Dynasty to Xu Chen?"

"Excuse!"

Liu Xie shouted suddenly, and then sneered: "Mr. Fu, if you were in my place, what would you choose when you received my edict?"

Fu Xie looked at Liu Xie, then at Liu Bei, and finally said in a deep voice: "As a minister, I should follow the emperor's orders."

There was no need to say anything more at this point. Everyone looked at Liu Bei with strange eyes, and Liu Bei's expression finally changed slightly, with a hint of embarrassment clearly showing.

But after taking a deep breath, Liu Bei calmed down again. After looking at Liu Xie deeply, he made a final defense for himself.

"I am loyal to Your Majesty, but I also want to support the Han Dynasty. In the face of this great cause, no one should give in, even if that person is Your Majesty!"

The words were so powerful that they shook the surroundings.

(End of this chapter)