Chapter 2: Zhang Fei's Righteousness and... #romanceofthethreekingdoms #ZL #zhugeliang #caocao #zhaoyun #曹操 #诸葛亮 #三国演义

Dong Zhuo, who's presented as really arrogant. Oh, yeah. And almost immediately, Zhang Fei, you know, the famously impulsive one, he wants to kill Dong Zhuo right then and there. Just like that. But Lu Bei and Guan Yu step in. Right. They manage to calm him down. It sets up that dynamic perfectly. Zhang Fei's fire, Lu Bei's prudence, Guan Yu's loyalty. And this encounter is actually a turning point for them, isn't it? Absolutely crucial. They realize they just can't serve under someone like Dong Zhuo. It goes against their principles. So they decide to leave. They lead their troops away. By night, actually. Very discreet. And they go join Zhu Jun, who's a more respected commander. And Zhu Jun welcomes them warmly. Okay. So the three brothers are making their move. And meanwhile, Cao Cao is also in the mix early on. Yep. The source mentions him briefly. He's campaigning with Huangfu Song, another imperial general, fighting against Zhang Liang. So you've got Lu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Cao Cao, all involved in these early stages against the Yellow Turbans. The stage is being set. So Zhu Jun, who Lu Bei and the others just joined, he takes on Zhang Bao directly. He does. And Zhang Bao has this huge rebel army. But it's not just about numbers. Zhang Bao uses what the text calls yaofa, demonic art. Demonic art. Okay. What does that look like in the story? Well, during one battle, he supposedly conjures this massive storm, wind, thunder, black quill rolling in. And then this illusion appears like infinite people and horses attacking from the sky. It completely throws Zhu Jun's army into chaos. They panic. Wow. How do they counter it then, this demonic art? Zhu Jun comes up with a pretty earthy counter strategy. He gets his soldiers to gather pig, sheep, and dog blood. And other foul stuff, too, apparently. They get up on a high point. Wait. Blood and foul stuff? To fight magic? Yeah. The idea in folklore sometimes is that unclean things can break spells. So when Zhang Bao and his forces approach again using the same trick, Zhu Jun's men dump all this stuff down on them. It works? According to the story, yes. The wind stops, the thunder dies down, and the source gives this great detail. Paper figures and straw horses just fall out of the sky. The illusion is broken. Paper figures and straw horses. Okay, so definitely leaning into the magical explanation there. Seems like it. And right then, as Zhang Bao is trying to escape, Lu Bei shoots him with an arrow, wounds him. Lu Bei, the sharpshooter. Always contributing. Exactly. And after this, the tide turns a bit for the imperial forces. Hong Fu Song gets some big wins. He defeats Zhang Liang. He even ends up replacing the less effective Dong Zuo. And there's that grim detail about Zhang Jio. Right. The main leader, Zhang Jio, was already dead from illness. But Hong Fu Song has his coffin opened, the body is mutilated, and the head is sent back to the capital. A pretty brutal message. Definitely. A symbol that the main rebellion is crushed. Hong Fu Song gets promoted big time for this general of chariots and cavalry, governor of Jizhou. And Lu Zhi, another general who'd been unfairly dismissed earlier, he gets reinstated too. So, some justice? Maybe. And what about Cao Cao? Does he get recognized? He does. For his part in the campaigns, Cao Cao is appointed chancellor of Jinan. It's an early step up for him too. Okay. And Zhang Bao, the one Lu Bei wounded, what happens to him? He manages to escape to a city called Yangcheng, but he doesn't last long. His own subordinate, Yan Zheng, kills him. Another betrayal. Yeah. Seems common when things are falling apart. Yan Zheng then surrenders to Zhu Jun. So, that's pretty much the end for Zhang Bao. But the rebellion isn't totally over yet, is it? There's still pockets of resistance. Exactly. Even with the main leaders gone, you still have these remnants, figures like Zhao Hong, Han Zong, Sun Zong. They dig in, particularly around Wancheng. So, Zhu Jun has to lay siege to that city. And this leads to another interesting strategic moment, right? About surrender. It does. At one point, Han Zong, one of the rebel leaders inside Wancheng, offers to surrender. But Zhu Jun refuses. Point blank. Why? Wouldn't taking the surrender be easier? Zhu Jun gives this really clear rationale. He says, basically, this isn't like the beginning of the conflict. Back then, maybe accepting surrender made sense to restore order quickly. But now, he argues, if rebels know they can just pillage and fight, and then surrender without serious consequences when they're cornered, it just encourages more rebellion down the line. That makes sense. Punishing resistance ensures future stability, maybe. That's the idea. No easy way out if you choose to rebel. Okay, but that puts the rebels in a tough spot. If they can't surrender, they have to fight to the death, right? Which could be bloody. Precisely. And this is where Li Bei steps in again with some really clever advice. What does he suggest? He sees the problem. If you bottle them up completely, they'll fight like cornered animals. So he tells Zhu Jun, don't surround the city completely. Leave one side, open the southeast gate, focus the main attack on the opposite side, the northwest. Leave an escape route. Why? It's psychological. If there's no escape, they fight desperately. If there is an escape route, their instinct might be to flee rather than make a suicidal last stand. You break their resolve to fight to the death. Ah, I see. Give them an out so they don't fight as hard. Exactly. And it works perfectly. Zhu Jun takes the advice. They attack the northwest gate hard. The rebels, seeing the southeast gate less defended, try to break out that way. But because they're focused on escaping, not fighting, they're routed easily. Han Zong is killed in the chaos. A decisive victory. Liu Bei really showing his strategic thinking there. Not just a warrior. Definitely. It's a key moment showing his deeper understanding of warfare and human nature. So Wan Cheng is falling. The rebellion is sputtering out in this area. Does it bring any new major players onto the scene? It absolutely does. And this is where it gets really interesting. We meet Sun Jian. Sun Jian. Okay, tell us about him. The source gives a pretty vacant description, I remember. Oh yeah. Broad forehead and wide face. Tiger body and bear waist. Sounds impressive. And get this. The novel claims he's a descendant of Sun Wuzi. Sun Tzu. Author of The Art of War. The very same. Whether that's historically accurate or just legend building by the novelist, it immediately gives him this huge weight. This guy comes from serious military stock. Wow, yeah. That's quite the introduction. Does he have a backstory already? He does. The source mentions a story from when he was just 17. He was with his father, saw pirates robbing merchants on the riverbank at Kuantang. He bravely goes ashore, grabs a sword, and starts waving his arms like he's directing troops to attack. Pretending he has backup. Exactly. The pirates panic, thinking soldiers are coming, drop their loot and run. Sun Jian actually chases them down and kills one. And he'd already had success in other campaigns too. Defeating a local rebel calling himself the Yang Ming Emperor. So he's already got experience and a reputation. Okay, so he's not some unknown quantity when he shows up. Not at all. He joins Sun Jian with his own seasoned troops. And he makes an immediate impact in the final assault on Wan Cheng. The source says he was the first man over the walls. First one up. Brave. Incredibly. He personally cuts down over 20 rebels right there. Then he grabs the spear of Zhao Hong, another rebel leader, kills Zhao Hong with his own spear, grabs Zhao Hong's horse, and just keeps fighting. That's like something out of an action movie. Seriously heroic stuff. It's portrayed as incredibly heroic, yeah. Really establishes him as a major warrior figure right away. And Lu Bei has one more moment in this fight too. He does. As Sun Zhong, the last of that trio of rebel leaders, tries to flee on horseback, Lu Bei takes aim again, shoots him with an arrow, knocks him off his horse, he's captured and presumably executed later. So the three brothers are still right there at the finish line. So Wan Cheng falls, Nanyang region is pacified. Rewards must be coming, right? Yes. Xu Jun gets another big promotion general of chariots and cavalry again, and also mayor of Henan, who's doing very well. And Sun Jian, for his spectacular performance, gets appointed as a sima. It's a significant military staff position. Recognition for his skill. But what about Lu Bei? After all his contributions, the strategy, wounding Zhang Bao, shooting Sun Zhong. And that's the stark contrast the source points out. Lu Bei waits. Despite everything he did, the key interventions, the brilliant advice, no reward is immediately forthcoming. The text explicitly mentions his melancholy over this lack of recognition. Ah, that's rough. All that effort and nothing to show for it initially. Yes. Sets up his struggle, doesn't it? It really does. It highlights the theme of unrecognized merit, which is central to his story, and it ties into the broader political situation. The source mentions an official, Sun Zhong, a langzong. What did he do? He bravely went straight to the emperor and accused the ten eunuchs, the powerful figures controlling the court, of being the real cause of the rebellion through their corruption and selling of offices. Wow. Spoke truth to power. How did that go for him? About as well as you'd expect. The eunuchs had him immediately thrown out by the guards. Expelled. Okay, so the court is corrupt. Honest officials are punished. What does this mean for heroes like Liu Bei waiting for recognition? It means the eunuchs are pulling the strings. They realize they have a problem. Lots of heroes who fought the Yellow Turbans are now disgruntled because they haven't been rewarded, like Liu Bei, and they don't want more people like Zhang Jun stirring up trouble. So they make a cynical calculation to kind of quiet things down, Finally. A good position. Not exactly. He's made the county magistrate of Anxi. It's a very minor post. It wasn't really about rewarding his merit. It was purely a political move to shut him up, basically. To prevent more complaints. So it's like a token gesture. A way to manage dissent without actually fixing the corrupt system. Precisely. It's a really telling insight into how power works or doesn't work in that court. Strategic appeasement over actual justice or recognition. Liu Bei, he's just been appointed as the Anxi County Commandant, so basically a local administrator. And he's heading off to take up his post. Now, for a whole month while he's serving, the source says he did not take a single thing from the people. Not one thing. And the people were apparently moved by his integrity. This kind of loyalty, this brotherhood, it's such a hallmark of the Three Kingdoms, isn't it? How idealized was that bond, really, between Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei? Because the text says they ate at the same table and slept in the same bed, and Guan Yu and Zhang Fei just stood by Liu Bei all day without fatigue. That seems intense. It's absolutely a cornerstone of the whole narrative. And, yeah, the novel definitely romanticizes it, but that idea of sworn brotherhood, of absolute loyalty, it was incredibly powerful back then. Vital, even in such a chaotic time. It was often the most reliable kind of alliance you could have. What's striking here, I think, is that even in this relatively minor job as a commandant, his brother's dedication is already totally clear. It really foreshadows the loyalty that defines them later on in much bigger roles. But, yeah, this early stability, it didn't last long. Yeah, it certainly didn't. Less than four months in, boom, an imperial decree comes down. It mandates dismissing officials who got their positions through military merit. And Liu Bei, well, he definitely fit that description after fighting the Yellow Turban, so he suspected, uh-oh, this might affect him. And then things really take a turn when an inspector shows up, basically an imperial overseer. Liu Bei, being the respectful guy he is, goes out of the city to meet him, bows properly. But the inspector's response, just incredibly dismissive. He sat on his horse, merely pointed with his whip. Just pointed. You can just picture Guan Yu and Zhang Fei seeing their brother treated like that. Instant anger. It's interesting, isn't it, how this seemingly minor official, this inspector, can just wield so much power, almost disproportionate power. What does this tell us really about how fragile local government was during this period, especially, you know, when the imperial court itself was struggling so much? Yeah, it paints a really stark picture. Here's Liu Bei, trying his best to govern fairly, and he's immediately undertook by someone who has authority, but apparently zero integrity. So the guesthouse, the inspector sat high facing south. That's the position of ultimate authority. While Liu Bei has to stand below the steps, like a subordinate. Then the inspector starts grilling him, aggressively asking, what is County Commandant Liu's background? Yeah, Liu Bei answers humbly, you know, explains he's a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan, mentions crushing the Yellow Turbans in Suozhou, fighting over 30 battles, getting some slight merit. And that's how we got the post. Mm-hmm. Try and be transparent. Exactly. But the inspector just lashes out, accuses him harshly. You falsely claim royal lineage and report false achievements. The imperial decree now precisely seeks to dismiss such corrupt and abusive officials. Just lays into him. And Liu Bei, he just retreats, basically, keeps saying yes, yes, very submissive. Later, a county clerk explains it all, says the inspector's aggression was nothing but a desire for bribes. He just wanted money. But Liu Bei, sticking to his principles, says, I did not take a single thing from the people. How could I have wealth to give him? So the inspector just escalates, starts seizing county clerks, forcing them to accuse Liu Bei of wrongdoing and blocking Liu Bei from even getting in to see him. Wow. And that scene, it just perfectly illustrates the systemic corruption, doesn't it? That was so endemic then. It wasn't just about one bad official. It was a whole system that basically enabled, maybe even encouraged, people to abuse their power for personal gain. Liu Bei's integrity, which you'd think would be his strength, actually makes him vulnerable here. He just wasn't playing their corrupt game. It's exactly right. And this is where Zhang Fei comes in. What an intervention. So after drinking several cups of sullen wine, you can just imagine the mood he's in, stewing over this, he rides past the guest house. And he sees maybe 50 or 60 elders, all standing there at the entrance, crying bitterly. He asked them, you know, what's wrong. And the elders explained that the inspector is forcing county clerks to frame Liu Bei, basically. And when they tried to plead Liu Bei's case, the gatekeepers beat them and wouldn't let them in. So the injustice wasn't just aimed at Liu Bei, but spilling over onto the community trying to support him. Precisely. And Zhang Fei, his reaction is just explosive. His round eyes widened. He bit his steel teeth, rolled off his horse and charged straight into the guest house. Just barrels in. The gatekeepers apparently couldn't stop him. He finds the inspector just sitting in the hall with one of the poor county clerks tied to the ground. Zhang Fei just bellows this furious shout. Harmful scoundrel. Do you recognize me? No. And before the inspector can even get a word out, Zhang Fei grabbed him by the hair, dragged him out of the guest house, ties him to a horse post right there in the yard, then pulls down willow branches from a nearby tree and just starts whipping him forcefully on the legs. Breaks over 10 willow branches doing it. Wow. That is an incredibly visceral scene. Just raw fury. And this isn't just a moment of personal rage. It feels like a statement, like a profound statement about the limits of bureaucratic corruption when it meets this kind of raw principled indignation. It almost sets a precedent for how these heroes will operate later on. Sometimes maybe that greater plan requires breaking the rules pretty violently. What does this kind of Zhang Fei style rage tell us about the kind of justice, maybe retribution that was common then outside the official system? It certainly tells us that when the system completely fails, people are going to find their own ways to settle scores, however brutal they might seem. So Liu Bei hears all this commotion from the county office, rushes out and sees Zhang Fei just whipping the inspector tied to the post. His first reaction is shock, asking what is the reason for this? Zhang Fei, totally defiant, just shouts back, this kind of official who harms the people, why wait to kill him? Just kill him now. The text makes a point here. It says Liu Bei was ultimately a benevolent person. Deep down, he's compassionate. So he urgently tells Zhang Fei to stop, just stop. So Liu Bei pulls him back from the brink, even after everything. Yeah, he does. And at this critical moment, Guan Yu steps forward, always the pragmatist, right? He offers some counsel. He says, basically, look, elder brother, you've done great things, performed many deeds, and all you got was this minor county post. And now you're insulted by this inspector. He uses this great metaphor. I believe a thorny bush is no place for a phoenix to perch, meaning this job is beneath you. His advice, it would be better to kill this inspector, abandon our office and seek a greater plan elsewhere. Just cut ties, move on. And Liu Bei makes a decision. He takes his official seal, the symbol of his office, walks over, hangs it around the inspector's neck and declares, according to your harming the people, you should be killed, but I will spare your life. I return this seal, and from now on, I depart. Just like that. Done. And after this dramatic exit, the three brothers, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei, they travel to Daizu to seek refuge with a relative, Du Hui, who recognizes Liu Bei as Han royalty and takes them in. That sequence from the inspector's arrival to their departure, it's such a compact drama. But it raises that important question, doesn't it? While all this is unfolding locally, this intense personal drama, what is actually happening back at the imperial court? What's setting the stage for this kind of widespread corruption and unrest? And the answer, unfortunately, lies squarely with the 10 eunuchs. They were the emperor's inner circle, supposedly trusted advisors, but deeply, deeply corrupt. They wielded this immense, pretty much unchecked power, and they conspired to, well, basically execute anyone who didn't comply with their demands. So they were really running the show behind the scenes? Pretty much. And we see this corruption filtering right down. These eunuchs, particularly Cao Zong and Zheng Reng, they started demanding gold and silk from the generals, the very generals who had just successfully put down the massive Yellow Turban Rebellion. And when honest, brave generals like Huang Fusong and Zhu Jun actually refused to pay these bribes, what happened? Well, I guess they got fired. Immediately dismissed. Just like that. And the emperor, sadly, just made things worse. He actually gave these corrupt eunuchs prestigious titles, sealed Cao Zong and others as generals of cavalry and chariots, gave Zheng Reng and 13 others titles as marquises, basically rewarding their corruption. And the result, the court deteriorated even further, predictably. And people across the empire just sighed in resentment. They saw what was happening. Wow. So the rot really did start right at the very top. It wasn't just a few bad apples down the chain. Precisely. And this unchecked corruption, it had immediate real world consequences. Reports of urgent crises like new rebellions springing up started coming in like snowflakes, the text says. You had Wuching rising up in Changsha, Zongzhu and Zongchun rebelling, and Yu Yangzongzhu even claimed he was the new emperor. But the 10 eunuchs, the ones who controlled access to the emperor and frankly, probably benefited from the chaos, they all concealed them and did not report them. They just buried the reports, kept the emperor totally ignorant about how bad things were getting across the empire. This is the systemic decay you see. This is what empowers some petty local inspector to act like he did, knowing he's basically operating within a system that's already broken and corrupt from the top down. Emperor Ling, where else? In his private garden, feasting with the 10 regular attendants. The eunuchs, the powerful eunuchs. Yeah. They held just immense sway over him, over the whole court. And suddenly, this counselor, Lu Tao, bursts onto the scene, weeping, openly weeping right before the emperor. Yeah, it's incredibly dramatic. He cries out that the empire is in imminent peril. And he directly accuses the 10 regular attendants of, well, everything. Selling offices, harming the people, deceiving the emperor. No. Stating flat out that, quote, righteous people are gone. I mean, that's an incredibly bold accusation. Right to the emperor's face. And what's just, well, shocking is the emperor's reaction. Tell me about it. The eunuchs, they do this practice display, right? Immediately burst into tears, deny everything, even offer up all their personal property. Oh, sure. Very convincing, I bet. And the emperor, completely swayed by this performance, sides with them. Dismisses Lu Tao's concerns as, like, totally basic. And orders Lu Tao's execution, right there, on the spot. And Lu Tao's last words, they really stick with you, don't they? What did he say? My death is not to be regretted. It is lamentable that the Han Dynasty's 400-year-old empire will end here. Wow. It's not just, you know, a lament. It's a chillingly accurate diagnosis of a terminally ill empire. The emperor just immediately dismissing genuine advice, swayed by such obvious deception. It reveals this systemic isolation of power, where truth was silenced, and only, like, flattering lies could reach the throne. This one incident, it really highlights the deeper rot that would inevitably bring the Han Dynasty down. It's just incredible to imagine such blatant corruption right at the very top. But just as Lu Tao is about to be executed, another brave figure steps in. Chen Dan, he's the minister of the imperial household. Right, Chen Dan. He bravely stops the execution and condemns the eunuchs even further. He even accuses Feng Xu, one of the Ten, of conspiring with the Yellow Turbans. The major rebel group. Yeah, that's a huge accusation. It is. But, despite Chen Dan's immense bravery, it doesn't end well, does it? No. The grim fate for both him and Lu Tao is sealed. They're tragically murdered and imprisoned by the eunuchs that very night. It's just a sobering reminder, isn't it? Of the ruthlessness of power in a... well, a corrupt system. So, okay. While the very heart of the empire was diseased, basically rotting from within, brave people were making their stands but ultimately failing. What about the outer regions? Were they just echoing this internal chaos? Or were new powers starting to emerge, maybe ready to exploit the capital's weakness? Oh, indeed. Amidst all this chaos at the center, you absolutely see figures starting to rise in the provinces. Two very different but equally ambitious figures really stand out in this. Okay. First, there's Sun Jian. He's this military prodigy. His swift campaigns are just such a stark contrast to the indecision and corruption back at court. An imperial decree comes down, though. Get this, it was actually a false one cooked up by the eunuchs themselves. Seriously? Yeah. It appoints him Grand Administrator of Changsha to go deal with the rebel Kuaisheng. And Sun Jian, he acts with incredible speed, pacifies Changsha in less than 50 days. Wow. Fast. Very. And he gets rewarded for, it made Marquis of Wucheng. Okay. So Sun Jian is making moves. Who else? Then there's Liu Yu, the governor of Yuzhou. He gets tasked with conquering Zongzhu and Zongchun, more rebels. Right. And this is where we see a name, a name that's going to become absolutely legendary in this period, start to make his mark. Don't keep me waiting. A man of humble beginnings, steadily building a reputation, building a loyal following, Liu Bei. Ah, Liu Bei. Okay. From what we've read, Liu Bei, he was recommended by Liu Hu, gets appointed commandant. And he plays this really crucial role in defeating Zongzhu and Zongchun. The whole campaign ends pretty decisively. Zongchun is actually assassinated by his own men who then surrender and Zongzhu. He commits suicide. So Liu Bei gets some serious recognition after this. He does. First, he gets pardoned for that earlier, a rather famous incident, Zhang Fei. Oh, where he whipped the imperial inspector. Yeah, that's in the chapter title. Tells you something about his fiery side even back then. Exactly. So he's pardoned for that. Then appointed assistant magistrate of Xiamu, then commandant of Gotang. Later, thanks to a recommendation from Gongsun Zan, another important name, he's promoted again, assistant commander of a detachment governing Penguin County. And there, he successfully reestablishes his forces, gains considerable influence. He's building his base. Okay. And Liu Yu, the governor who tasked him. Ah, Liu Yu, for his part in pacifying the rebels, he gets rewarded too. He's in fiefd as grand commandant, a significant honor. Okay. So things are shifting in the provinces, but back at the capital. Yeah. The stage is being set for an even bigger upheaval, right? Absolutely. Emperor Ling's health fails dramatically. This is the summer of over in 89 AD. He summons the grand general, He Jin, to discuss the succession. He Jin. Okay. Tell us about him. Well, He Jin's rise is quite the story itself. He was, believe it or not, a butcher by origin. A butcher? Really? Yeah. But his sister caught the emperor's eye, became Empress He, and she was the mother of Prince Bian. That connection propelled him to immense power. Grand general. Wow. Talk about connections. But there was fierce rivalry. Another consort, Wang Myron, was the mother of the other potential heir, Prince Xi. Okay. So two princes, two factions. Exactly. And Empress He, He Jin's sister, well, her jealousy led to Wang Myron being poisoned. Poisoned. Brutal. Yeah. And it's also really important to note that Prince Xi, the poisoned consort's son, was then raised by Empress Dowager Dong, the emperor's own mother. Oh, wow. So that adds another whole layer of dynastic complexity. Grandmama's favorite. You got it. And Empress Dowager Dong, not surprisingly, fervently wanted her charge, Prince Xi, to be made crown prince. And the dying emperor, he actually favored this too. So He Jin's position and his nephew, Prince Bian's claim, look pretty shaky. The stakes couldn't be higher. Right. And amidst this highly charged atmosphere, one of the eunuchs, Jian Shuo, a central regular attendant, gives the emperor some chillingly pragmatic advice. What's the advice? Basically, if you want to establish Xi as prince, you must kill He Jin first. Eliminate future trouble. So kill the grand general. Just like that. And the emperor, tragically, agreed to this plan. It set a fatal chain of events in motion. But He Jin finds out. Fortunately for him, yes. He's warned of the immediate danger by a military inspector named Pan Yin. He quickly ducks back to his private residence and decides, okay, counterattack. He intending to purge all the eunuchs, believing this is the only way to secure his power and Prince Bian's succession. A full purge. Risky. Extremely. As he's gathering his allies, someone offers a very different perspective. Cao Cao. Ah, Cao Cao again. What's his role here? At this point, he's colonel of the palace guard and he advises caution. Scarcely a different counsel. What does he say? He basically argues, look, the eunuch's power is too entrenched, too deep. A leaked plan to just wipe them all out. It would lead to disaster for our own clans. He urges a more careful, less overt approach. Find the ringleaders, maybe. That sounds pretty sensible, actually. Strategic. It does. But He Jin, brimming with confidence, maybe a touch of arrogance. Yeah. He just dismisses Cao Cao. Cuts him off with, you junior, how do you know the great affairs of the court? Ouch. That's a pivotal moment, isn't it? Talk about overconfidence. Absolutely. It's the kind of mistake that often proves fatal in these situations. By alienating Cao Cao like that, he unknowingly shut the door on really valuable counsel and set himself up for the very dangers he was trying to avoid. So what happens next? Does the plot get carried out? Well, the situation escalates rapidly. Pan Yan, the guy who warned He Jin, returns with news. Emperor Ling has just died. Okay. The emperor's dead. Now what? And the eunuchs are already plotting. Secretly? They intend to issue a fake edict in the emperor's name. To do what? To lure He Jin into the palace, kill him, and then enthrone their preferred candidate, Prince Xi. Wow. So it's happening. It's immediate crisis. Total crisis. And in this moment, Cao Cao steps up again, still offering that critical, clear-headed advice. What does he say this time? Today's plan should first be to legitimize the ruler's position, then deal with the villains. Stabilize first, then purge. Secure the throne. Prioritize stability. Makes sense. Does He Jin listen this time? Well, just then, another figure makes an incredibly bold offer, maybe more in line with He Jin's own thinking. Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao. Okay. What's his plan? He's the silly colonel. He basically says, I am willing to borrow 5,000 elite troops, break into the palace, enthrone the new emperor, eliminate the eunuchs, sweep clean the court, and bring peace to the realm. Whoa. That's direct action. No subtlety there. Not at all. Just force. And He Jin now facing imminent danger himself. He goes for it. He quickly approves Yuan Shao's audacious plan. So they do it. Yeah. 5,000 imperial guards are deployed immediately. They secure the palace, and Prince Bian, He Jin's nephew, is swiftly enthroned as emperor, right there at Emperor Ling's coffin. Supported by He Jin, Yuan Shao, and the other key ministers who sided with him. The immediate crisis is averted for He Jin's faction, but the stage is now set for an even more explosive future. Okay. So Emperor Ling dies, and it doesn't just create a power vacuum. It really shows how deep those family ties ran, and how tradition, or perceived tradition, could just paralyze even the most powerful people. Making them blind to really obvious threats. Exactly. So Prince Bian, he's enthroned as Emperor Shao, but he's young. He's basically a pawn in a much, much bigger game. Okay. Let's get into it. At the center, we have He Jin. He's the Grand General, and he's the brother of the new Empress He. Right. Big advantage there. So he moves fast to consolidate power. First target, the eunuchs who had so much influence before. And his first move is pretty decisive. He takes down Jian Shuo, a eunuch who'd been scheming against him. But then things get complicated quickly. Right. According to the romance, as soon as Jian Shuo is out, Yuan Shao, another powerful official, tells He Jin, basically, cut grass by the roots. Get rid of all the eunuchs now, before they cause more trouble. Which sounds like solid advice in that situation. It does. But what does He Jin do? He hesitates. And you have to ask, why? What does that hesitation tell us about him? Or about the politics of that moment? And this is where the family angle comes in hard. Empress He, his sister, she steps in. Yeah, she protects eunuchs like Zhang Rang. And she reminds He Jin, hey, remember where we came from? Their family, they were butchers originally. Humble origins. Right. And she says these very eunuchs actually helped their family rise up. So loyalty. Or maybe a perceived obligation. Could be. So He Jin, even with Yuan Shao's really stern warning ringing in his ears, he only punishes Jian Shuo's family, leaves the others. That initial indecision, it casts a really long shadow over everything that follows. It absolutely does. It highlights this critical fault line, this weakness that just keeps coming back to bite him. But before that fully plays out, there's another challenge. A new player emerges. Empress Dowager Dong. Dong Taihu. Right. Mother of the other potential heir, Prince Xi. Who later becomes the Qianlu King. And she has her own ambitions. Big ones. And she's working with. The surviving eunuch, Zhang Rang, and her own brother, Dong Zong. And he gets a major military post-Piaoqi general. Basically a top cavalry commander. Formidable. Okay, so now we have two Empress Dowagers. Each with a young prince. Each with powerful family backing. Exactly. A parallel power play. And Empress, he sees this. And she makes a pretty cunning move herself. She does. She invites Dong Taihu to a banquet. Okay. And during the feast, she subtly, or maybe not so subtly, warns her about grabbing too much power. How? She brings up the notorious Empress Lu. Ooh, invoking Empress Lu. That's a heavy historical reference. Everyone knew that story. Ruthless control purges. Precisely. It was the cautionary tale in Chinese history about female regents overstepping. A very sharp move by Empress He. But Dong Taihu doesn't exactly take the hint, does she? Not at all. She's furious. She starts insulting Empress He. Brings up the whole butcher's family thing again. Overload. And then she makes a direct threat. Says her brother, Dong Zong, will behead He Jin. Claims it would be, and this is a direct quote, as easy as turning over a palm. Wow. Okay, so threats are being made openly now. What did he, Jin, do? Now here's where it gets fascinating. Remember his hesitation with the eunuchs? Yeah, he stalled. With Dong Taihu, completely different. He acts swiftly. Decisively. Really? What happened? Dong Taihu gets exiled to a place called He Jin. And later, she's secretly poisoned. Rae. And her brother, Dong Zong. His residence is surrounded by troops. He ends up committing suicide. So He Jin could be ruthless when he wanted to be. Just not against the eunuchs. Exactly. It's such a stark contrast. It shows he had the capacity for decisive action. But something about the eunuch faction, or maybe his sister's influence, just paralyzed him. Which makes what happens next even more frustrating, probably. It really does. Because even after he deals with Dong Taihu, the eunuchs, Zhang Rang and Duan Gi, they survive. How? They manage to claw their way back into influence. And guess how? Let me guess. Family connections. Bingo. They bribe He Jin's younger brother, He Miao, and their mother, Lady Wu Yan. Ah, exploiting that family link again. Yeah. It's a major vulnerability. And He Miao and Lady Wu Yan then go to Empress He and persuade her to keep protecting the eunuchs. So the Empress is getting pressured from her own family now, too. Right. Reinforcing her belief that these guys are somehow essential. Part of the, quote, Han family custom. Han family custom. That sounds like a powerful justification, even if it's dangerous. Extremely powerful. And meanwhile, Yuan Shao is still there, practically pounding the table. Still warning He Jin. Repeatedly. He even brings up historical examples, like Du Wu, another powerful figure, a regent just like He Jin, who also hesitated to wipe out the eunuchs. And what happened to Du Wu? He paid for it. With his life. Yuan Shao lays it out plain. Don't make the same mistake. But He Jin still can't pull the trigger against the eunuchs. No. That recurring indecision, it stems from Empress. He's influenced, sure, but also this deep-seated idea of Han family custom. It becomes his fatal flaw. So tradition, or the idea of tradition and family loyalty, they outweigh the obvious present danger. It seems so. He just couldn't bring himself to sever that tie, even though Yuan Shao was practically screaming the warning at him. Which leads to, well, desperation, it sounds like. It leads to a truly desperate, and frankly, dangerous plan. Yuan Shao sees He Jin will act on his own. So what does he suggest? Something radical. He says, okay, if you won't do it, let's force the issue. Let's summon the regional heroes, the warlords, to the capital. Wait, bring outside armies into the capital? Exactly. The idea was to create such overwhelming military pressure that Empress, he would have to give in and agree to eliminate the eunuchs. That sounds risky. Like, incredibly risky. A real Hail Mary. It's more like playing with fire, as you said before. And someone points this out immediately. He Jin's own clerk, a man named Chen Lin, and he has remarkable foresight. What does Chen Lin say? He vehemently opposes the plan. He uses this great analogy, he says, calling in outside forces is like catching sparrows by covering your eyes. Covering your eyes. Like self-deception. Precisely. You're pretending you can control something you absolutely can't. He argues it will inevitably lead to chaos. Does he offer an alternative? Yes. He tells He Jin, you already have the power. You have the imperial authority. You have the military force right here. Just use it. Act alone. That sounds like the voice of reason. Solid advice. Incredibly solid. Prophetic, even. But He Jin? He dismisses it. Calls it a coward's view. Oh no. Yeah. He decides to go with Yuan Shao's plan. Sets a course for disaster, really. And just as this whole debate is winding down, making this fateful decision, someone else walks in. Right. A new character makes a brief but really impactful entrance. Cao Cao. Cao Cao. The very same. He apparently walks in, hears the lengthy discussion, and just dismisses it all. What does he say? With this kind of almost chilling confidence, echoing Dong Tai Hu's earlier threat, he says the whole matter is easy as turning over a palm. Okay, that leaves us hanging. What does he mean? What's his plan? Exactly. A perfect cliffhanger.