The Last Days of the Han (Three Kingdoms AAR)

[Zamarak500]

202-203: A SECOND PROVINCE ​

Yao Shuren had done it. He had come to the rescue of the Han Dynasty, ensuring that the Imperial Capital would not be threatened by rebel generals and ensured that Emperor Mu would have a long and happy reign. Or whatever excuse this war was about. In reality, everyone knew that this was a conquest by a warlord seeking to expand. Jiang Xian only saw an imminent threat being replaced by a patient but dangerous one. Neighbors started to look at him as a rising power, and even Gongsun Zan made sure to keep tabs on his actions. But Yao Shuren’s focus was now inward, as he needed to work on ruling this central province of China. He went from controlling a disparate border province to having lordship over the heart of the Han Dynasty. He even had the western capital of Chang’an, a symbol that gave him a lot of power and prestige. There was a lot to do if he wanted to exploit it to his advantage.

The first step was obvious: he needed to pacify the local officials. Only a week ago they had been fighting for Jiao Jiao against him, yet now he was supposed to rule them. Having them all slaughtered might fix the problem, but it would require far too much resources to achieve this efficiently. And besides, if only one of them got out alive, this would mean a revolt. So instead, he decided to insert them in his council, removing a lot of his Liang officials to make place for the Sili newcomers. At the top of the list was the new Assistant Administrator Wang Hong, the same Wang Hong who once served as Grand Commandant under Niu Fu and who led the Wang Clan against the Chancellor. This return of the Wang Clan to prominence was an attempt to coerce them to his side. Yao Shuren also hoped that it might convince Wang supporters still in Luoyang that he was their best bet to remove Jiang Xian. Joining in as Mo Jie’s replacement as Chief Clerk was Ren Duo. Ren Duo had the important position of Intendant of Henan, the region around the Imperial Capital, which once again played in Yao Shuren’s ambitions to eventually take the city.

Still, Yao Shuren couldn’t trust these newcomers completely. To ensure that things stayed under control when he returned home, he decided to appoint Xu Shu to Henei Commandery, which was in the east of Sili Province. Having been so instrumental in the conquest of the province, the strategist would surely prove a loyal ally in the region. But just to be safe, Xu Shu was also appointed as the new Chief Censor. With all these changes, only two officials from Liang remained part of Yao Shuren’s council. The first was the Commandant Puyang Fengxiao, although he would be dead by the end of the year from rabies. The other was the corrupt scholar Duan Zuo. Even with such a big province at his disposal, the Governor had difficulties finding competent and righteous scholars to come serve his cause, leaving him with Duan Zuo as his only option. Seeing how he kept his job while Mo Jie didn’t, the scholar celebrated all the more.

While making his way back to Liang, he entertained the idea of moving his seat of power to Chang’an. Residing within the western capital would certainly give him a lot more legitimacy and prestige. However, in this he was faced with unexpected opposition, a backlash that was spearheaded by none other than Mo Jie. He might have been too shy to complain about his firing, but he was worried enough about this to speak up. Like many former rebels who had rallied to Yao Shuren, their priority was Liang Province first and foremost. They had fought against the centralized authority of the Imperial Capital for years. So to see their new lord suggest that he move closer to the center of China, and the western imperial capital no less, was worrying. They feared that his priorities might no longer be in Liang Province (which was accurate). To this was added old magnates who had been around since the days of Dong Zhuo and the Liang Rebellion. They had been the backbone behind Dong Zhuo and Guo Si, and now they feared a loss of influence if Yao Shuren moved away. Taken aback, especially by what he mistook from Mo Jie as aggressiveness, the Governor backed off, choosing to continue ruling his domain from Liang. For now.

But Yao Shuren had barely made his way back to Liang that already a revolt sparked in Sili Province. Most officials and administrators were willing to accept their new liege, especially as he welcomed them within his administration. They understood that things had changed, that if they wanted to keep their posts (and their lives), then they needed to adapt to the new regime. They had their shot under Jiao Jiao at becoming the power in the region, and now it was gone. But two officials refused to accept their new tyrant. The leader and oldest of the two was Chang Xia, the guardian of the western imperial capital. Chang Xia had previously served as Niu Fu’s assistant in ruling the Han Dynasty, and he wasn’t going to let the late Chancellor’s dream die like this. He had also fought Yao Shuren during his invasion of Sili Province, achieving the most success against the invading army. Still carrying the dream of avenging his former liege and marching on Luoyang to remove Jiang Xian, he was ready to fight it out. By his side was Administrator Wang Chen, who had been Excellency of Work during Niu Fu’s Chancellorship. Wang Chen was one of the most prominent members of the Wang Clan during its height in power. While Wang Chen was not known to be the most courageous member of the Clan, he clearly feared for his future under Yao Shuren, which is why he joined force with Chang Xian. A former follower of Niu Fu allying with a man who had been his enemy a few years before. The two made for some strange bedfellows.

This revolt, while small, had an advantageous geographic positioning. The territories held by the rebels cut off Sili Province in two, with most of the new appointees to Yao Shuren’s council stuck in the east while Yao Shuren was moving his army back west, unaware of the revolt so far. Chang Xia, who realized how the situation could be turned to his advantage, quickly sent men to track down all the messengers and kill them. This way, he could make sure that the Governor remained unaware of what was happening in his newly conquered province. Merchants and traders were not allowed passage through the rebel lands either, out of fear that they might go spoil everything to Yao Shuren once they reached the other side. While Xu Shu did his best to keep everything under control in the eastern half of the province, there was little they could do to defend themselves if Yao Shuren didn’t notice what was happening.

But Yao Shuren would be alerted to this revolt, and from an unexpected source at that. Xu Chu (not to be confused with Xu Shu) had last been heard off when he deserted his post on the eastern Han frontier following the death of Chancellor Duan Wei in 196. Wrongly believing that he would be imprisoned and executed for his service under Duan Wei, Xu Chu abandoned his duties to the Han, becoming a fearsome bandit leader in the ensuing years. While a powerful brute who rallied some men to his side, he never had the wits or charisma to build an actual army like Zhuge Liang would later do in Yi Province. The collapse of the Han territories had been a boon for him, with some deserters joining him in his raids. He had started to get on Jiao Jiao’s radar, only for Yao Shuren invasion to stop him from doing anything about it. But after all these years, Xu Chu had grown dissatisfied with his place in the world, dreaming of once again leader great armies in battles.

When he became aware of the civil war by looting the corpse of one of the messengers trying to reach Liang, he finally saw an opportunity. Taking the missive with him, he marched his men at high speed to the provincial capital of Liang. When he arrived, his group was recognized as wanted bandits, which led local guards to try to arrest him. Xu Chu then attempted to force his way in with his men, fighting defenders and civilians alike. Alerted to the commotion, Yao Shuren noticed this hulking man beating his soldiers with ease. Stopping the fighting by his simple presence, Yao Shuren demanded to know what was happening, at which point Xu Chu handed him the missive and told him of the situation in Sili Province. When asked for a reward, Xu Chu simply asked to be allowed to serve Yao Shuren and lead troops for him. The Governor accepted him in his service, even appointing him Magistrate of Lintao for his effort. His fellow bandit leaders weren’t as lucky, though. Unlike their chief, they didn’t have a previous career in the imperial military to justify their use. The majority of Xu Chu’s followers were executed as petty criminals, their heads posted through Liang and Sili Provinces as warning against banditry.

Now needing to marshal his troops again, Yao Shuren called back his oldest supporter to come assist him on the campaign. With Xu Chu being clearly too wild for the Governor’s tastes and Xu Shu stuck on the other side of the revolt, Yao Shuren needed someone he could trust by his side. But if he wanted someone more level headed, then maybe the old Hu Zhen was not the best man for the job. For a few years now he had been known for bouts of rages bordering on insanity, which some attributed to his age (he was 56). While others might have already gotten rid of this problematic general, Yao Shuren proved surprisingly patient when it came to Hu Zhen. For all his ruthlessness, Yao Shuren never forgot the key support Hu Zhen had given him. Even when he had to finally take actions against the old man by firing him as Chief Clerk, the Governor still kept his longtime companion on his military staff. It seemed that even tyrants had people they cared for.

Meanwhile, the eastern part of Sili Province was not going well, as raids from the rebels threatened the newly established authority in the region. What garrisons were available stayed in the fortified cities, leaving the villages to the mercy of Chang Xia’s men. This was far from ideal, but it wasn’t like they had any other option. In the absence of anyone else, Xu Shu was forced to act as the authority for his liege, although this was not always respected. Wang Hong certainly believed that it was his right to act as the leader since he was the Assistant Administrator. Meanwhile, the Chief Clerk Ren Duo was suspicious of both men, although he was smart enough to follow Xu Shu’s orders more closely considering that he was Yao Shuren’s man in the region. Still, situation was bad enough that Ren Duo was forced to start trading with Luoyang to help the defense. Jiang Xian did try to seize on the opportunity to ask Ren Duo to defect and bring the Henan region back into Han control, but Ren Duo refused. He had been given the region as part of the division of territories among the officers following Niu Fu’s death, which meant that he loathed Jiang Xian and his schemes.

Wang Hong continued to act as if he was the leader here, and soon enough he decided to stop the revolt all on his own. He was convinced that he could talk his cousin out of it, that he could bring him back to his side. Xu Shu protested that this was a waste of time and extremely dangerous. But Wang Hong refused to listen, stubbornly continuing with his plan. Against all odds, he was eventually able to meet with Wang Chen. When the two cousins met, Wang Hong chastised Wang Chen for risking their newly acquired position by revolting and tried to order him to stand down. They finally had a shot at becoming powerful again, and he was putting it at risk. If he abandoned this insanity, Wang Hong assured his cousin that he would be able to ensure Wang Chen was pardoned. This did make the rebellious Wang hesitate, but by then Chang Xia had been made aware of the situation. Soon enough, rebel agents captured and imprisoned Wang Hong. And just like that, the rebels had a new bargaining chip.

But Yao Shuren had no desire to negotiate. His advance toward Chang’an forced the rebels to abandon their attacks on the eastern commanderies to come defend their territories. The rebels finally met the Liang soldiers in January 202 at Changle, ready to stop their advance. Surprisingly, the two armies were around the same size, as Yao Shuren didn’t have the time to rally a massive army before marching on the rebels. He preferred to deal with this as fast as possible. He ordered Xu Chu to take command of the left flank while he would take control of the right one. The goal was to do a pincer maneuver to crush the enemy army while it attacked the center. All they needed now was for Hu Zhen to hold, which proved a problem when he had one of his episodes, rendering him unable to lead efficiently. Thankfully, one of Hu Zhen subordinates stepped in, allowing the Liang forces to come out victorious.

The rebels quickly fled to the safety of Chang’an, where Chang Xia was horrified to learn of what had happened. This was a decisive setback for their revolt, as unlike Yao Shuren they didn’t have much new troops to replace their losses. Still, he remained defiant and prepared the defense of the western capital in anticipation of the enemy army. When the Liang forces did arrive, they found the city closed to them, forcing Yao Shuren to prepare a long siege. This was bad news, as Chang’an had a reputation of being heavily fortified and extremely difficult to conquer, which is why it had been the imperial capital for so long (well, that and the trade routes). By March, the soldiers were getting demoralized of having spent two months with little to no success to show off. However, Chang Xia’s terrible management of the supply didn’t leave the defenders more motivated, with many of them hoping to see this end soon. Correctly guessing the situation within Chang’an, Yao Shuren was able to use deception and bribes to have so of the defenders open him the gates, allowing him to walk into the western capital.

He quickly had Chang Xia captured and executed. However, he did not allow his men to pillage the city, to their frustration and disappointment (especially Xu Chu). He didn’t want to gain unwanted attention for destroying the city. People might start to consider him a brute like Dong Zhuo, which wasn’t ideal at the moment. However, he did punish the western capital for joining the rebellion, forcing it to pay a massive amount of wealth of reparations for the next five years. And even then, he would cancel that payment after a few months when he realized it’s negative effect over the economic power of Chang’an. Wang Hong was found and freed, although Yao Shuren was extremely disappointed in him. For his disobedience, Wang Hong was fired and whipped multiple times. The wounds inflicted by the lashes would eventually infect and kill him in July 204. As for Wang Chen, he raced to Chang’an and begged for his life, hoping that his cousin’s promise of safety was true. But his cousin was no longer around to help him, and Yao Shuren had no mercy for rebels. He had Wang Chen killed, ending permanently the power of the Wang Clan. With this show of force, no one in Sili Province would challenge his rule, knowing full well how it would end. No one touched his province.

 

[Bibliophile]

Yao Shuren is doing very well for himself. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up as, at least, one of the finalists in this competition for control of China if the story gets to a point like that.
Also Mo Jie’s firing is merely a setback. I am certain that with great effort, he will be back into prominence (or perhaps this is the prelude to him pulling a Niu Fu)

 

[Midnite Duke]

Rebel against Yao, fight until your last breath for there will be no mercy. Mo Jie can raise mo MOney asleep than new dude can while trying! Thank you for updating

 

[Zamarak500]

Yao Shuren is doing very well for himself. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up as, at least, one of the finalists in this competition for control of China if the story gets to a point like that.
Also Mo Jie’s firing is merely a setback. I am certain that with great effort, he will be back into prominence (or perhaps this is the prelude to him pulling a Niu Fu)

Yao Shuren is doing quite well, but let's remember that without an heir, everyone could go up in smoke.

Rebel against Yao, fight until your last breath for there will be no mercy. Mo Jie can raise mo MOney asleep than new dude can while trying! Thank you for updating

The AI does weird council, doesn't it? If he just switched the intrigue and the stewardship advisors, they'd both be better in the other's position.

 

[The Meme King]

Really makes me wonder how much the tone of the AAR has changed since the first six or seven years til now, it keeps getting more and more dramatic, stakes keep raising.
I think you are doing a fantastic job on this one zamarak! I really like how the combination between having 10 main characters, the 3 kingdoms setting and your excellent reports allow you to have a very focused and in-depth AAR but still feeling well paced and with lots of important events sprinkled in.
Reading these have unironically been the highlight of my week and i REALLY appreciate the effort and skill and love you put in those, amazing job, keep doing it PLEASE!

 

[Zamarak500]

Really makes me wonder how much the tone of the AAR has changed since the first six or seven years til now, it keeps getting more and more dramatic, stakes keep raising.
I think you are doing a fantastic job on this one zamarak! I really like how the combination between having 10 main characters, the 3 kingdoms setting and your excellent reports allow you to have a very focused and in-depth AAR but still feeling well paced and with lots of important events sprinkled in.
Reading these have unironically been the highlight of my week and i REALLY appreciate the effort and skill and love you put in those, amazing job, keep doing it PLEASE!

Wow thanks! That one heck of a praise! I just hope I continue to keep that quality you see in this AAR!

 

[Zamarak500]

201-203: A BASTION OF THE HAN ​

To say that Liu Siyuan’s ascension to the position of Governor was a surprise is a mild understatement. With his lack of involvement in his neighbors’ affairs over the recent years, be it the Yang civil war or the various conflicts in former You Province, it was expected that he would stick ot his own things. So the Jing rebels returned to fighting the doomed Yang Weili, with everyone expecting him to lose this province too. After all, he was even less liked here than in Yang Province. Except that Yang Weili instead surrendered his authority to Liu Siyuan, allowing the scion of the Han to take the helms of Jing Province. This development changed the whole game, as Liu Siyuan brought the thousands of troops he had at his disposal, turning the table on the rebels in an instant. Thankfully for them, the new governor was sick with the flu at the time, so he waited to recuperate before going on campaign. Normally this wouldn’t have stopped him, but his wife was insistent that he take better care of himself. Since she was the only one he truly listened to these days, he stayed in Xincai.

Officials who had been lukewarm at best toward Yang Weili quickly swarmed toward Xincai, trying to get in the good graces of their new liege. They also wanted to bring their own accounts of their former governor, who many blamed for the current mess in the province. But none was faster to arrive than Qu Duyi, a strange fact considering his commandery was one of the most southern of the province. Qu Duyi willingness to slander Yang Weili to get in the good graces of his new liege was an extreme low blow considering he owed him his career. Indeed, Qu Duyi had been appointed to the commandery just before Hu Zan revolted, being send there to be a check on the barbarian chieftain Quaid Quach so he wouldn’t get any ideas. His size and his military knowledge seemed to have made a good impression on Liu Siyuan, as he was soon enough appointed Commandant of Jing Province, with the task of enforcing the new Governor’s authority in the lands still loyal to them.

But no matter the criticisms from Qu Duyi or the others, Liu Siyuan chose to not punish Yang Weili in any way. Not that he really trusted Yang Weili, instead suspecting that the man had some hidden motives for giving him the province. However, he did want to reward him for the gift of Jing Province. It also helped that the strategist had a supporter in Lady Hao, who had always liked the man. Yang Weili was given command over some troops as one of Liu Siyuan’s generals, as his military talents were still respected, even after the Yang civil war. He was also given access to Liu Siyuan’s inner circle as an advisor, as the governor had promised to the envoys. But the biggest reward was the betrothal of Liu Siyuan’s only son Liu Tao to Yang Nenniang, Yang Weili’s youngest daughter at the time. This familial link was welcomed with relief by the strategist, as he heard some local officials tried to advise Liu Siyuan to kill Yang Weili to appease the rebels. With their children betroth, this would be bad taste. And besides, Yang Weili knew that Liu Siyuan wasn’t that kind of paranoid angry man. He would never sacrifice him to the rebels like that.

Talking of the rebels, they were just as shocked by this new development as everyone else. Previously it seemed like they were on the verge of victory, ready to put a better man in charge of the province. Yet now they had this great scion of the Han, this undefeated warrior, facing them and ready to bring them to heel. The two main rebels met to discuss the situation, and it soon became clear that their resolves were weakening. Liu Rui, the oldest of the two, was starting to waver. He was himself a descendant of the Imperial Clan (although a far more distant one than Liu Siyuan, descending from emperors of Western Han). Fighting a fellow scion of the Han, one who had professed a desire to save the Dynasty at that, weighted heavily on his mind. Xiang Lang wasn’t exactly better. Seeing how the tables had turned, he hoped that his former mentor Yang Weili could secure him lenient terms. Their respective doubts weren’t helped by Chen Chengguo, the man they were trying to put in charge. So far, the self-proclaimed cousin of Chen Wen had not joined the rebellion or even showed any sign that he supported their cause since they had risen up. This was demoralizing. Yet in the end they chose to continue, afraid that peace was not an option anymore.

Thankfully for them, the rebels got some indirect help from a group of dissatisfied peasants. It seemed that no everyone was happy to see the change of regime. Yang Weili had, for better or worse, taxed Jing Province heavily, both in men and in gold, in order to help his campaigns during the civil war. Now that someone new was in charge, many of them expected to see this end, to have this new ruler be a lot less problematic for their daily lives. But then Qu Duyi started showing up in villages demanding troops and payments for the new Governor of Jing Province. Even worse, it seemed that Liu Siyuan’s approach to this was a lot less subtle, with his Commandant ordering people around and expecting results. By the end of December, only a month after the change of leadership, someone decided that he had enough. Peasants rose up in the south of the province, declared that they would no longer listen to the local authorities and challenged Liu Siyuan to do anything about it.

By the time news of this reached Xincai, Liu Siyuan was putting his finishing touch on his new provincial administration. Knowing he would need local officials to serve on his council like Qu Duyi, the new governor selected two other administrators and placed them in key positions. For the position of Chief Clerk, he selected an officer he had met on previous occasions. Bu Baoxun was a veteran of the many southern wars, which had left him completely soured on Yang Weili, something he was pretty vocal about. However, he now hoped that the new governor would prove a great man to serve under, one who could fulfil his personal ambitions. Meanwhile, Liu Qi was chosen to serve as Chief Censor of the province. A man of weak personality, he was all too happy to rally to the banner of his distant cousin. Liu Qi was also the son of Liu Biao, the respected former governor before Chen Wen’s conquest of the province. Having Liu Biao’s son backing up the new governor meant a lot to the people of the province, who were quick to accept their new ruler.

While many hoped to become the right-hand man of the new governor, Liu Siyuan chose to appoint one of his personal followers to the position of Assistant Administrator. Obviously, most at court expected him to appoint Jiang Gong. The man had been the main advisor of Liu Siyuan for a full decade by now, first joining his side all the way in 192. Even he admitted in private that he was the most likely candidate. However, this analysis did not take into account the Governor’s growing paranoia. By now he was convinced that there was something going on between Jiang Gong and Li Tong, that they were plotting to do something. Not giving them access to the highest spheres of the province was a good way of stopping it from happening. Instead, this honor went to Su Ta, the only close ally Liu Siyuan still trusted due to their frequent sparring sessions. Su Ta tried to decline, but this only angered his liege who forced the position on him. He then left Xincai with his army, leaving his new Assistant Administrator to guard his home base.

His first decision when he took command of the troops was to fire Quaid Quach from command. The presence of the barbarian was intolerable, not to mention highly unpopular with the men. Liu Siyuan could barely understand why Yang Weili would have allowed such a thing. Talking of Yang Weili, he was not welcomed to come take command either. Nor was Li Tong, or any of the other commanders under Liu Siyuan’s employ. He didn’t trust any of them enough yet. No, he would command the whole war by himself. The flanks, the center, all of it. Not the most practical tactic, but he was a good enough commander to pull it off. And his first goal was to go attack the lands of Xiang Lang. His commandery was right next to Xincai, which meant that it was the perfect target.

In April, Liu Siyuan finally got an opportunity to stamp his authority on the province by appointing his first official to a local commandery. The chieftain Quaid Quach had actually caught the flu from Liu Siyuan and never recovered. Now dead, his succession proved problematic to his tribesmen. His eldest son Quaid Duc was five, and none of the older men had a good claim on the local tribes. In an attempt to settle things, they appealed to the Governor of Jing Province to select their new chief. But Liu Siyuan saw an opportunity to bring Han civilization to the southern coast, and instead appointed the first administrator of Nanhai Commandery in a decade. For this honor, Liu Siyuan selected Wang You, the official who had fled Luoyang following Niu Fu’s death. He was selected mostly because he was seen as so inoffensive, so unable of challenging authority. In other words, the sort of men Liu Siyuan would never have to fear. Wang You was sped south before the barbarians could change their mind, and with the help of Qu Duyi installed as the new administrator.

The following month Liu Siyuan made another appointment, this time to one of the counties he controlled personally. Li Tong had been sidelined a lot recently, in good part out of suspicion that he was plotting to regain control of his former county. The general had noticed how he was losing favor with Liu Siyuan, which did not please him one bit. When his liege finally removed him access to his former Shansang County, he was infuriated. Had he not served his lord loyally? Had Liu Siyuan not promised him that he would be able to play a part in the administration of the county? This led Li Tong to start being a lot more vocal against the Governor’s decisions, which caught the attention of Su Ta. When he told Liu Siyuan of this, the scion of the Han felt both betrayed and validated. On the one hand, one of his followers was talking behind his back, but on the other, he had been right about Li Tong. He ordered Su Ta to arrest and execute the general. Shocked at this extreme course of action, Su Ta instead suggested that they might as well give him Shansang County, as it didn’t matter much now that Liu Siyuan had the whole province. Seeing value in sending Li Tong away from court, he did as he was advised, offering Li Tong what he had been promised all that time.

In June, Liu Siyuan got news that Qu Duyi had handled the revolt that was happening south. The peasants had been a problem for months, hindering the harvests as the summer approached and causing problems in supply. Wishing to prove himself to his new lord, the Commandant took the recruits he had levies and linked them with troops from his own commandery. With this readymade army he marched against the peasants and crushed their little uprising, bringing them all to heel. Liu Siyuan was a bit suspicious of the fact that his commandant had taken such initiative without asking for orders first, but he allowed it to slide considering the good work that was done. When asked what to do with the prisoners, Liu Siyuan went into a rage and ordered them executed for their treason. This harsh punishment took Su Ta aback, as he didn’t expect that kind of hot headed brutality from his lord.

But just as this problem disappeared, a new threat showed its head. The peasants had not even been executed when barbarians entered Jing Province. Huang Rang, who had used the confusion of the Yang civil war to get free of Chinese authority, now wished to use the Jing civil war to expand his territories. The chieftain had eyes on the neighboring county, and with Liu Siyuan occupied in the north with his civil war there was little to stop him. Whatever force Qu Duyi had would be no match against the strength of the barbarian army. And besides, Huang Rang was an excellent commander, always leading troops from the frontline like the great barbarian leader he was. There was a reason Hu Zan had wanted him on his side, after all. As predicted, Liu Siyuan could do little about this war for the moment, choosing to first focus on the rebels before dealing with external threats.

But there were also many developments at home too. One of the ways local officials had attempted to get into Liu Siyuan’s good graces was to offer him women to be his concubines. After all, the governor only had a wife to ensure the future of his family, so it would be better to get more women to help him ensure more sons. At first, these women were angrily sent back by Liu Siyuan. His love for Lady Hao was too great to accept other women in his home. But eventually, his carnal passions worn down his defenses. The situation was made doubly more awkward by the fact that his wife was once against pregnant, which explained her absence by his side. She wasn’t pleased when she learned that he had started taking concubine, but she understood that it was normal for a man to do so. Still, she felt secure in her position, especially as she delivered her child in November 202, a boy named Liu Kun.

News of a second son galvanized Liu Siyuan resolves, and soon enough he left the sieges to go confront the rebel army. This took the rebels by surprised, as they had expected to be free of doing their own sieges as Liu Siyuan focused on Xiang Lang’s territories. While Xiang Lang certainly appreciate the reprieve for his domain, the two rebel leaders also knew how dangerous it was going to be. When they met Liu Siyuan in January 203, both smartly stayed as far as possible from the frontline, unwilling to luck out and face the Governor in single combat. They instead left the overall command of the battle to their subordinates. Whatever they did wouldn’t matter though, as Liu Siyuan simply had too much troops with a high morale to be stopped. The battle was a total victory for the Jing forces.

Xiang Lang fled to his territories, quickly followed by Liu Rui. The two men realized that they had no chance of defeating Liu Siyuan on the field like they had done with Yang Weili. Their only hope was now to hold until the barbarian invasion of Huang Rang became such a problem that their enemy would have to leave, after which they would probably try to negotiate a favorable end to the hostilities. But Liu Siyuan kept pushing and pushing, and as the months advanced it seemed like their hope was disappearing. Liu Siyuan was going to end the rebellion first before dealing with anything else. Considering how he had dealt with the peasants. it seemed unlikely that this would end well for them. In May, after much consideration, the two rebels came to an agreement. Instead of waiting for their city to fall, they opened the gates and presented themselves to Liu Siyuan.

They begged him to spare their lives, saying excuse after excuses. Liu Siyuan quickly had them put in chains and sent to Xincai, the two men forced to walk behind the cart with bare feet. Liu Rui tried to appeal to Liu Siyuan’s sense of familial kinship, but all it did was avoid him an immediate execution. Instead, he would languish in a jail cell until his death in early 205. As for Xiang Lang, his fate was a lot better. Instead of appealing to Liu Siyuan, he begged his former mentor Yang Weili for help. Even after all this, Yang Weili did not want his protégée de get executed. He managed to convinced Liu Siyuan to have him released, although he was demoted and replaced by a man named Wei Kang at the head of Jiangxia Commandery. The fact that both Xiang Lang and Wei Kang started their career under the strategist did not escape notice from the new governor.

But someone did get executed at the end of this rebellion, even if he had not taken any part in it. As soon as the two rebels surrendered, Liu Siyuan had Chen Chengguo arrested and brought before him. The old man, already infirmed and weak of health, was so weak upon arrival that he couldn’t get out of bed. Chen Chengguo pleaded the Governor to spare his short remaining life. He had done nothing, never even agreeing to this revolt in the first place. He never wanted to be governor, he claimed. He had even sent supply to Qu Duyi to deal with the peasants, a fact that was verified and indeed true. But Liu Siyuan wouldn’t allow this potential rival to rise up again. He already had Yang Weili to worry about. He had Chen Chengguo executed publicly for treason, the old man brought on a bed because he couldn’t stand up. It is said that he was so weak that he couldn’t even turn his neck to avoid the sight of the sword. With this problem dealt with, Liu Siyuan could enjoy full control over his new province. Now all that was left were those pesky barbarians…

 

[Bibliophile]

It seems that, lately, every time we check in on Liu Siyuan he is a razors edge away from a paranoia induced mental breakdown. Gaining Jing province was certainly never going to ease his mind; he seems the sort who considers more subjects to be the same as more potential enemies. I’m glad he has some visible tethers to his humanity, such as his wife and that moment of mercy for his former protege.
All in all this update gave me the feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop. Thinks may seem relatively fine now, but I keep expecting something horrible to happen next time we check up on him.

 

[Midnite Duke]

The wrong man lost his head. Thank you for updating

 

[Zamarak500]

202-203: FRIENDLY CORRESPONDANCE ​

While Jiang Xian’s hold on the government was strengthening ever since the start of Emperor Mu’s reign, he was critically missing allies outside of the Imperial Capital. It was safe to say that his regime was not well liked within the provinces. Liu Siyuan had been good friend with Niu Fu, so he wasn’t going to have his back. Yao Shuren was in the process of conquering Sili Province, which was not exactly a better scenario than the former officers. Gongsun Zan had made it clear that his goal was to save the Han. Which would be great, if it wasn’t for the fact that Jiang Xian had a suspicion that the warlord would want to be the one holding the reigns of power instead of some court official. Yi Province wanted nothing to do with him, and the new regime of Lu Xun in Yang Province barely seemed interested in affairs outside of its own territories. Thankfully for the Chancellor, all of those powerful warlords were too occupied with their own wars to give him any attention, letting him be the supreme authority in the whole Dynasty. Not that it meant much these days.

Thankfully, he did get some recognition here and there. The small warlords in the West did send him missives asking for recognitions of their wars or the succession to their titles, hoping to gain an edge on their rivals by having the court approving their actions. Yuan Shu paid lip services to the Imperial Capital, which was strange. Jiang Xian suspected that it was mostly because the snake was trying to woe his way into power. The governor of Jiaozhi Province was quite enthusiastic in his letters, although it was mostly to ask for help, help that the capital couldn’t send. But out of everyone, the most supportive voice of them all was Xiao Ru, the Administrator of Chen Commandery. From day one he had supported the new Chancellor, a kindness that Jiang Xian had tried to repay as much as possible. And this seemed to work, as the two started exchanging letters quite frequently.

In fact, a letter arrived in early 202 to thank the Chancellor for his help in dealing with the issue of Yuan Shu. “I would like to present my deepest gratitude to his Imperial Majesty the Son of Heaven, he whose wisdom it was to appoint such a respectable Chancellor to assist him in ruling the Dynasty. By following his advice to delay the annexation of Chen Province by our traitorous neighbor, you made the decision of saving a loyal subject of the Han.” The letter was read in front of the court by the envoy on Xiao Ru’s orders, which made Jiang Xian smile. By thanking Emperor Mu instead of the Chancellor, Xiao Ru was helping present Jiang Xian as the best thing possible for the Dynasty right now, instead of a power-hungry schemer trying to eclipse his monarch. It seemed that Xiao Ru had an understanding of how to play the game of court politics, or at least how to write a nice letter to the Emperor. Which was surprising, considering how he heard that Xiao Ru was hindered by some communication disability.

Of course, Jiang Xian wrote him a letter back, as he always did. He talked about the successes that they were having in building up a small force to defend the city. After all, this was still a priority, especially with Yuan Shu and Yao Shuren both clearly eyeing more power. “On imperial order, the Grand Commandant of the Imperial Armies, respected and beloved by all, was dispatched to loyal towns of the Han. Previously under the sway of the traitors, these poor peasants were all too happy to serve the Present Emperor Above, he who rules China through his wisdom alone. Joining those were stray soldiers returning home under the Son of Heaven’s nurturing care after fighting for a false cause. The Han is strong again.”

And this was all technically true. Wan Ke’s blind devotion to the Han Dynasty had actually galvanized neighboring villagers to enlist into what was left of the imperial army, soon followed by deserters fleeing Yao Shuren’s imminent victory. Of course, he did leave out the number of men who had joined as to project power. It was also better to not mention his lack of trust in these new men, which is why he left them under the care of the far more trustworthy Xing You.

By the time Xiao Ru received this letter, he was in the middle of fighting multiple wars to protect his new tributary. He had thought that making Liu Qi submit would help him gain influence in the region and enrich his coffers, yet now he was being forced to fight his wars for himself. Liu Qi also proved intransigent, insisting that he would only pay tribute if Xiao Ru sent help. This of course infuriated the warlord, who had just beaten the Prince of Pei and yet was receiving orders from him. And besides, he had all those problematic people to deal at home! So he left the frontline to his current favorite Gan Bogao. However, Gan Bogao was not happy about this one bit, seeing it as a bad consolation prize for being kicked out of the position of Assistant Administrator. Still, this was a chance for him to prove that he was worth it. And indeed, even without anyone else present to support him, Gan Bogao was able to strike a victory against one of the many enemies of the Prince of Pei, soon after starting the reconquest of the principality. Xiao Ru was pleased enough with this that he mentioned it in his ensuing letter to Luoyang: “His Imperial Majesty will be pleased to know that his subjects in Chen Commandery are working hard to save his imperial relative, who is beset by enemies and traitors.”

Jiang Xian, always the cunning politician, used news of this small victory as proof that his administration was a success. Now warlords like Xiao Ru fought to reconquer the Han and restore imperial authority in the province. Wasn’t it the dream that the court had always wanted? And now Jiang Xian was the one delivering it to the Emperor, thanks to his astute diplomacy. While Emperor Mu praised the Chancellor for his hard work, followed by most officials, not everyone did so. Wang Mao presented a critic of the Chancellor in front of court, knowing that he was one of the few who could do it publicly. Jiang Xian didn’t want to appear as a tyrant, forcing him to welcome those petitions from his few remaining opponents. Wang Mao asked a simple question: if the Han has restored imperial authority in the provinces, then why does the capital not receive any tax? The old man had checked the books and could confirm that ever since the loss of Sili Province, the imperial coffers had been mostly empty, and badly managed at that. Embarrassed, Jiang Xian wrote a request to Xiao Ru for some gold as to prove that the provinces still paid taxes to the Imperial Capital. “All I request is a gift of loyalty, which will be repaid in trust for the foreseeable future.”

Many were surprised by this bold demand for wealth, and even more were surprised by how easily Xiao Ru proved amiable to this. If losing some coins was all he needed to ensure good relations with Luoyang, then by all means! Of course, he didn’t plan to make it a regular thing, but one payment was completely acceptable to the warlord. He was also in a good mood, as he had started a correspondence with another warlord of the region, Administrator Yuan Yi of Shanyang Commandery. Yuan Yi was a cousin of Yuan Shu, yet he shared nothing of the man’s wickedness. He was brutally just, humble and zealously hardworking. He also had a hard time controlling his subordinates, who were both waging wars for Pei Commandery. Still, this didn’t stop the two men from getting along. Xiao Ru even approached him with this request for taxes. Yuan Yi, seeing the wisdom in keeping the Court happy, also sent a payment to Luoyang.

When tributes arrived with accompanying letters, Jiang Xian celebrated his own ability to convince others. He quickly had the Excellency of Works Xie Pei was made to present these tributes, although he did present them to the troops before he brought it to court, showing the men that the Han was being restored. Once he arrived, Jiang Xian was able to use his report and the cheering soldiers to once again state the success of his policies, although he did thank the Emperor for his wisdom in following them. Pei Qian, the oldest son of the Pei Clan, tried to point out some issues. After all, this was only two payments from two commanderies, not exactly a restore Han. And besides, how did this fix the terrible management of Jiang Xian? But while he raised some good points (the bureaucracy was indeed in a terrible state under the Chancellor), he was unable to make the same kind of waves as Wang Mao had done previously.

The Chancellor’s thank you letter arrived in the middle of the summer. By that point Xiao Ru’s attention had returned on the wars. By now his Assistant Administrator Chang Lin had decided that he wanted to play a role in the battles, and soon enough he had replaced Ban Bogao as the leader of the campaign. This at first had the effect of enraging Xiao Ru, who could barely tolerate the man who had dared to sleep with his concubine. However, he was convinced that having the man away from the province might prove a good idea. At least if he could undermine the man… But that dream would be for nothing. He found no ally willing to help him against his overly ambitious subordinate, either because they were pissed at him or because they never liked him in the first place. Even worst, Chang Lin won an important battle against one of the invading armies, forcing it to back off. “I am beset with the worst traitor of them all, a man whose betrayal is on levels his Imperial Majesty can barely imagine!” he wrote in an angry letter.

This letter arrived by autumn, just as Jiang Xian was dealing with his own problematic official in the capital. Pei Hui, the younger of the two Pei brothers, had started to get involved with the local guard to ensure peace in the capital. For all his abilities at court politics, it was clear that actually ruling the capital was not one of Jiang Xian’s strong points. His attempt to turn the guards into an army had left the laws difficult to enforce, with thefts becoming frequent ever since the death of Niu Fu. Even with the menace of imminent invasion now gone, some criminals had been operating freely within the walls of Luoyang. Pei Hui was able to speak with the Grand Commandant Wan Ke and organize a hunt for those men, quickly leading to a series of arrest and punishments. His efforts to restore law in the city were praised at court. Within weeks, his blind father Pei Mao came forward and petitioned Emperor Mu, pleading that his son be rewarded for his good service. In an attempt to take control of the situation, Jiang Xian petitioned that Pei Hui be promoted to a subordinate role in the Ministry of Justice. This was mostly to avoid that the younger man be given a higher post. And even so, he still had bad memories of Pan Zheng’s time in the censorate. As always, Emperor Mu did as Jiang Xian wanted. Needless to say, this did not end up in the next letter.

By then Xiao Ru was in a humiliating position. He had just celebrated the birth of his fifth son Xiao Cang, born from his wife Lady Xia. One of his concubines had also given birth to a child soon after. The only problem was that this boy was not his! AGAIN! What was happening now? Did the guards forget to put a lock on his mansion’s door or something? And this time the guilty one was Chunyu Shenxi, the local Censor and the man guarding the provincial capital of Chengguo for Xiao Ru. Unlike Chang Lin, who had been quite arrogant about the whole thing, Chunyu Shenxi broke into tears when confronted, explaining that it had been a moment of weakness he continuously regretted. In what seemed like a rare case of leniency, Xiao Ru officially pardoned him for his transgression (although he had him witness the gruesome execution of the concubine). In private, he started to think that he really wanted to move in the provincial capital. Better plot the murder of Chunyu Shenxi then.

In January 203, Jiang Xian decided to take justice into his own hands. The letters from Xiao Ru showing how the administrator lacked control over his subjects had convinced the Chancellor that he couldn’t allow another Pei Hui situation. He quickly called upon Xing You, the most loyal of the three officers he had elevated (and the only one who understood how politics worked at court). It might be time to clean the capital of criminals and corrupt officials. If this happened to include enemies of Jiang Xian, well that was just a proof that all the lawful men supported him, wasn’t it? Xing You got the memo and started to send soldiers to arrest those that posed problems. He couldn’t go after the most influential men like Wang Mao or the Pei siblings, but a lot of men lower down the totem pole were quickly arrested on trumped up charges (and sometimes on real ones), after which they were stripped of their ranks and thrown in jail. Jiang Xian did avoid executing them, instead having those found guilty demoted to commoner and forced into forced labor in neighboring villages. “Vigilance against evil is a necessary duty of any loyal servant of the Han.” he wrote in his next letter.

The good state of the Imperial Capital made Xiao Ru wonder why he was dealing with all this shit. The Principality of Pei had especially been tiresome. What was the point of having a tributary if he had to waste all his resources to protect them? He was the one carrying these wars and winning them. In fact, it was thanks to him that most invasions had abandoned. But Pei still remained a mess, and by March Xiao Ru had enough. He contacted Liu Qi’s subordinates and suggested that maybe it would be better to just remove him. When they seem to agree, Xiao Ru sent his army to remove Liu Qi from power, taking control of Pei Commandery in the process. Xiao Ru did allow Liu Qi to continue to hold the title of Prince of Pei, although he would no longer hold any territory. He quickly promoted Liu Qi’s former subordinates to high positions on his council, replacing men from his own commandery who had proved untrustworthy in his eyes. He then wrote a lengthy letter to Luoyang to justify this seizure of power.

While the annexation of Pei took most of the letter, it was the last part that caught the attention of the Chancellor. “The territories that I hold are core to Yu Province, which is why I plead his Imperial Majesty to appoint a new governor now that most of it is held under one banner.” In other words, Xiao Ru wanted to be made governor. This was a difficult decision for Jiang Xian. Giving the warlord what he wanted would give him the right to annex his neighbors with ease. Xiao Ru would no longer need the Imperial Capital after that, and would probably cut off all communications. To help in this dilemma, Jiang Xian called upon his Assistant Scholar Jia. The man timidly suggested that they do as Xiao Ru asked. After all, they weren’t exactly in a position to force their will on the warlord. Either they refused and he broke away, or they agreed and he might break away. Still, Jiang Xian decided to play dirty on this one. Instead of appointed Xiao Ru Governor of Yu Province, he had Emperor Mu carve out a new province made out of the warlord’s territories. That way Xiao Ru lacked the authority over his neighbors, for which he might need imperial support. In June 203, imperial envoys arrived and offered Xiao Ru his governor’s tally, making him the first Governor of Chen Province.

While he was a bit annoyed at the trick, Xiao Ru was still pleased by his new status. He could now call himself a Governor, placing him above all those small warlords ruling over their commanderies. He was now the greatest power in the region. He wrote a letter of thanks to the Imperial Court, although he tried to avoid discussing his submission to the Dynasty, something that had been requested along with his promotion. Besides, he already had his attention elsewhere. By now only one invader remained: Liu Mi, the Prince of Liang. The two of them had faced each other previously, having been great rivals following the collapse of You Province. But this time was different. Liu Mi was weakened and on the verge of death. After losing so much lands, he was trying to secure more territories to ensure his infant son’s safety after he died. But he was defeated on the battlefield once more, with no chance of things ever going his way. Then Xiao Ru came and offered him a deal. Submit, and you’ll be allowed to keep your territories and your title. Liu Mi grudgingly agreed on the understanding that it would all go to his son when he died. Sadly, when he passed away in September 203, Xiao Ru casted the child aside to appoint one of his subordinates, ending the Liang Principality. Yet Xiao Ru didn’t care. After all, he was a governor now. There was much to do.

 

[The Meme King]

Seeing the not entirely stable web of alliances that Xiao Ru and Yao Shuren have with Jiang Xian makes me wonder about the different factions at play in the world. Obviously there are those who support and those who disavow Jiang Xian, but how many of those who disavow him are willing to work together to put someone else in charge? I could see Liu Siyuan and Gongsun Zan working together were it not for Liu Siyuan's paranoia. And there is no way Siyuan would ever trust Yuan Shu or Lu Xun. Zhang Lu and Lu Bu are wildcards for sure. Though it's clear that Zhang Lu is not long for this world and Lu Bu is on the verge of annihilation.
Really hope we get to see more of Jiang Gong trying to advice Liu Siyuan before he goes batshit, if Zhuge Liang's crusade against Xiao Ru is half as epic as i imagine it, will totally be the highlight of this AAR, but most of all i am REALLY missing Shisun Rui, prob my favourite character overall, the last time we saw him it was often talked about how he would be "forgotten by the annals of history" but at the same time he did not have a proper epilogue like Guo Bian and other characters did, so it makes me wonder if he will ever be relevant again...

 

[Bibliophile]

Things seem to be going well for Xiao Ru (the cheating of his spouse and concubine not included). Jiang Xian is also doing well so far but I feel less confident about his success. Nothing so far has changed the reality that he is surrounded on all sides by power hungry warlords. When push comes to shove. I don’t know if Jiang Xian will be able to keep the power he is so desperately clinging to.

 

[Zamarak500]

Seeing the not entirely stable web of alliances that Xiao Ru and Yao Shuren have with Jiang Xian makes me wonder about the different factions at play in the world. Obviously there are those who support and those who disavow Jiang Xian, but how many of those who disavow him are willing to work together to put someone else in charge? I could see Liu Siyuan and Gongsun Zan working together were it not for Liu Siyuan's paranoia. And there is no way Siyuan would ever trust Yuan Shu or Lu Xun. Zhang Lu and Lu Bu are wildcards for sure. Though it's clear that Zhang Lu is not long for this world and Lu Bu is on the verge of annihilation.
Really hope we get to see more of Jiang Gong trying to advice Liu Siyuan before he goes batshit, if Zhuge Liang's crusade against Xiao Ru is half as epic as i imagine it, will totally be the highlight of this AAR, but most of all i am REALLY missing Shisun Rui, prob my favourite character overall, the last time we saw him it was often talked about how he would be "forgotten by the annals of history" but at the same time he did not have a proper epilogue like Guo Bian and other characters did, so it makes me wonder if he will ever be relevant again...

A lot of event you hope to see! But it is true that we have a lot of players that are starting to get big, including some you missed. After all, Tan Zhihan and his tributary Tao Shang could be a powerful duo. And then there is the foreign threat. While the warlords are all fighting, Budugen the Great is slowly expanding his massive confederacy. Yao Shuren didn't want to fight him a few years back, and he gets more powerful each years. Also, you said that Zhang Lu is not long for this world, but I'd like to point out that Lu Jun lived into his late 70's. So who knows? Maybe we'll have Zhang Lu for another decade?

As for Shisun Rui, it's true that I never gave him a proper sendoff, and he does deserve that I write him one. But while he might get one last mention in the story, I sadly got bad news here. When I say he fell into obscurity, I meant it. He did try to take leadership of Niu Fu's former followers, but they chose Jiao Jiao instead. Under their regime, of all the factions Shisun Rui is the one who got the short end of the stick. Not only did he get no power in the new state, but his domain got shafted under Hedong Commandery. This meant that his liege was now Wang Hong. You know, the guy he spent his last year in Luoyang trying to stop? That must have been humiliating to him, and satisfying for the Wang clansman. However, as mentionned in the recent Yao Shuren chapter, Wang Hong's fortune turned for the worse, and he would eventually die of infected wounds due to lashes in 204.

But when came the time to appoint a new Administrator, Shisun Rui was passed over by Yao Shuren. However, this was fine by him, and he instead even wrote a letter of recommandation for Yao Shuren's choice: Yang Xiu, the son of Shisun Rui's former comrade Yang Biao, the leader of the plot against Dong Zhuo. Shisun Rui had always been humble, and he probably prefered helping the son of his late friend's career than try to save his own. I won't get in details on Yang Xiu as he does appear in our story, especially since he's a firm believer in the Xuan Su school on "How to interact with my neighbors". For the rest of his life, Shisun Rui would serve as the main advisor of Yang Xiu, eventually dying of a heart attack in 209 at the age of 49. Out of respect, Yang Xiu would ensure that his two sons Shisun Meng and Shisun Bozhou be appointed as replacements to their father's counties (and he also had two other sons).

Considering that I had no plans of mentionning Yang Xiu until he became relevant, his succession and Shisun Rui's place in it would have never been mentionned. I'm happy you mentionned him cause he was indeed a great character. Still have a smile at how his own arrest warrant landed on his desk. He certainly played a massive part in the Court's affairs in the 190's. Too bad he became an obscure figure by the time of his death, although he didn't die losing everything like other characters, and was still a well liked figure. He could have stayed relevant if he alligned himself with Jiang Xian, but he was too morally righteous for that. So yeah, thanks for bringing him up.

Things seem to be going well for Xiao Ru (the cheating of his spouse and concubine not included). Jiang Xian is also doing well so far but I feel less confident about his success. Nothing so far has changed the reality that he is surrounded on all sides by power hungry warlords. When push comes to shove. I don’t know if Jiang Xian will be able to keep the power he is so desperately clinging to.

The situation is certainly not looking good for Jiang Xian. But hey, the giant Chancellor might pull some trick out of his hat. Who knows?

As for Xiao Ru, his luck seems to be in his expansion so far, while he's been unlucky at pretty much everything else.

 

[Midnite Duke]

Thank you for the update and the tremendous amount of work in this labor of love.

 

[Zamarak500]

202-203: THE PROVINCE OF THE CELESTIAL MASTERS ​

Zhang Lu had successfully taken over Yi Province, permanently removing the hated He Xiaolong from power and disposing of the child governor in the process. His sect had been marginalized in the province ever since the lost of their theocratic state in Hanning Commandery. But now their leader had risen from the depts of the jungle to become even more powerful than he was before. He ruled one of the largest provinces of the Han Dynasty, and one that was far enough from the Imperial Capital that they didn’t need to take orders from it (not that Jiang Xian was in any position to enforce his authority on his neighbors either). Certainly, the old religious leader could only smile at his success. Everything had gone according to plan, and now he could focus on his goal of making his sect the most powerful in all of China. And this would all start with Yi Province.

However, there was a lot of work before it arrived to that. For starters, his co-conspirators in removing He Xiaolong had not been made private to the rest of his plans, leaving them quite shocked at the change of governor. They had expected a change of regent, not a complete removal of the current administration! Gao Rou didn’t know how to react to this turn of event. Convinced that he couldn’t take a decision alone, he quickly asked his mentor Wu Mengjie what they should do. Gao Rou had some moral issues with the fact that they had basically betrayed the Liu Clan that had ruled them for three generations. And that was beside the fact that they facilitated the murder of an imperial relative. Wu Mengjie told him to wait, that he would go to the provincial capital and feel out the current situation.

Seeing Wu Mengjie arrive with a small escort instead of an army was certainly a relief to Zhang Lu, as he now had a chance to convince the general to back him up. In a private meeting, he talked with Wu Mengjie and promised him that he was going to respect his arrangements with them. Not only that, but he managed to convince the Commandant of the necessity of the takeover. Yes, the death of Liu Jishan had been tragic, but the fact was that leaving a child in charge of the province would have been a recipe for disaster. They needed a strong and competent leader with experience administrating territories, especially in this chaotic period. The barbarians had proven multiple times to be dangerous and opportunistic, smelling weakness a mile away. Zhang Lu even used the writings of Pan Zheng to support this. Basically, Zhang Lu was a far better choice to rule the province than Liu Jishan. His arguments were able to calm Wu Mengjie, who returned to his protégée and told him to accept the new governor. They weren’t completely satisfied with the situation, but agreed to give it a shot.

Zhang Lu needed the generals on his side, which is why he had worked so hard to convince Wu Mengjie to back him up, even allowing them to keep their positions to appease them. One of the ways he was going to gain their support was by taking an opposite approach to that of the previous administration. He Xiaolong had been frustratingly isolationist, avoiding many opportunities for war proposed by the officers. Zhang Lu decided to adopt a more expansionist policy, especially with such perfect targets on his southern border. As it turned out, Jiaozhi Province had collapsed following the death of its governor two months before Zhang Lu’s takeover, leaving most of its territories in the hands of barbarian tribes. This included the extremely weak region of Yulin. Not only was it an easy target, but it was also led by a ten years old chieftain. The perfect target to start an expansion in Jiaozhi Province. It wasn’t hard to make the generals approve the campaign, and in November 202 Yi Province declared war on Yulin.

While Gao Rou and Wu Mengjie had been convinced to accept the new regime, there were still holdouts. Huang Quan had supported the plot halfheartedly, only doing so when he was convinced by Gao Rou that this was what was best for Liu Jishan. He did it out of loyalty to Liu Fan and his son. The general was thus horrified when news of what had transpired came to him. He went into a rage, calling Gao Rou and Wu Mengjie liars and traitors before preparing for an eventual march on the provincial capital. Yet he was once again convinced to stand down. What was he going to do now? Resurrect Liu Jishan? Plunge the province in a bloody civil war? Cause the death of everyone he was supposed to protect? Taken aback, Huang Quan agreed to stand down, although it was clear that he still refused to accept Zhang Lu’s leadership. In an attempt to both mollify the general and get him out of the province, Zhang Lu made him the sole commander of the campaign, allowing him to go do what he did best and win a war.

With Huang Quan dealt with, Zhang Lu started to focus on how to diminish the influence of Gao Rou and Wu Mengjie. While he did keep them in their previous positions, he had no intention to allow them the kind of power they sought, especially on the long term. His first move to fix this problem came in the early months of 203. During the Yellow Turbans Rebellion, the rebels had used titles of generals to designate their leaders, a practice then followed by Zhang Lu’s theocratic state in an attempt to represent the more militant aspect of the Celestial Masters. He now brought those offices back in Yi Province. Gao Rou found himself appointed as “General of Justice” and Wu Mengjie as “Advisory General”. While those were civilian offices in all but names, Zhang Lu sold them as important positions in a new militaristic Yi Province. This allowed Zhang Lu to diminish the generals power in the army, and by the time they realized what was happening their influence was halved.

Pan Zheng was also brought into this inner circle of “Generals”, being appointed as General of Prosperity. Zhang Lu hoped to reward the scholar and use the man’s fame for his own plans. Still, this was an important administrative office, and the sect leader believed that the scholar would be perfect for the job. But Pan Zheng wasn’t exactly keen on helping Zhang Lu turn the province into a heaven for his weird ideas. Being as honest as always, he instead refused the appointment. Zhang Lu persevered, convinced that he could persuade Pan Zheng to serve under him. He expressed a desire to implement an administration that would favor the Chinese over the barbarians, even quoting some of the Nánfāng Yěshòu to show Pan Zheng that he had read his work. And this wasn’t all for show either. Since virtually all of his followers were Chinese, he had good reasons to favor his people over the savages. Intrigued, Pan Zheng eventually agreed to serve as General of Prosperity.

In March, Huang Quan sent news to the provincial capital of his advance. He earliest letters were about the bad supply and the need to improve the situation of his men. This problem was due to two things. First and foremost, the reorganization of the provincial administration was causing problems, especially as Zhang Lu was trying to reestablish his old style of rule. And then there was the fact that he didn’t want to spend too much resources on this campaign. He especially didn’t want to leave most of the troops under the control of the only officer he wasn’t able to bring to his side. While Zhang Lu did address the supply problem, it was not enough in the eyes of Huang Quan. His fight for a better treatment of his men made him a hero to their eyes, building up a loyalty that would push them to follow him everywhere, or fight for anyone he did. But for now, he simply led them to Yulin, where they faced a barbarian army roughly their size. This meant that the talents of the commanders would decide the issue of the battle. Huang Quan surprised the barbarians by launching a ferocious yet highly organized assault, being the first on the frontline. The general secured a victory at Bushan, with the barbarians fleeing Yulin to reorganize.

For his bravery and his willingness to risk his life by their side, the soldiers hailed Huang Quan as their hero. He was willing to get dirty with them, and they repaid it with kindness and loyalty. So when Huang Quan ordered them to chase after the retreating barbarian army, they quickly hastened their pace, finally defeating them in June. Now, while abandoning the territories you were supposed to conquer to deal a finishing blow to the enemy army was an acceptable strategy, they made one critical mistake. Since the barbarians couldn’t flee to Yi Province and had their route south blocked by Huang Quan, they escaped to the only place they could: Jing Province. And Huang Quan followed them there, Qu Duyi, Liu Siyuan’s Commandant who was posted in the south at the time, quickly wrote a letter to his liege warning him of this transgression.

Thankfully for Huang Quan, Liu Siyuan was already aware of all this. In one of his rare efforts to appear loyal to the Han, Zhang Lu had informed the Imperial Court of his campaign against the barbarians, a campaign that had been approved by Emperor Mu. Liu Siyuan had then been sent the signed edict of the Emperor, signed and attested, all receive before Huang Quan even thought of crossing the border between their provinces. Liu Siyuan hated the sect leader for what he had done to Liu Jishan, who was a distant relative of his after all. However, he was currently occupied with his own barbarian problem, and so didn’t want another one roaming in his countryside. And even then, if it had been anyone other than Huang Quan, Liu Siyuan would have still intervened. But he heard of the loyalty of the man to Liu Fan, which is why he tolerated it. Well, after everyone finally made it clear to him that no, this wasn’t the start of a massive invasion from Yi Province, there is no need for alarm.

While this was all happening, Zhang Lu was becoming increasingly aware of his age. He was sixty-eight and not getting any younger. Fearing that death could come at any time and ruin everything he had built, the sect leader decided to ensure a clean succession by summoning his eldest son to the provincial capital. And summoning was the right word, as the 43 years old man wasn’t even in Yi Province at the time. When their theocratic state collapsed in 196, many followers of Zhang Lu decided to abandon him instead of doing the long and deadly trip to the wild south. Shockingly, this included Zhang Fu, his son and heir. Going to die in a backwater part of the Han didn’t seem like a good plan for him. He refused to come, no matter the insistence of his father, instead preferring to find work under a magistrate in Jing Province.

A least he had access to books there. Even if he was away from the sect during that time, Zhang Fu started to reaffirm his belief in the Way of the Celestial Masters, trying to convert some of his fellow courtiers without success. Still, he became something of a household name, now known as a decent administrator within his local area. He also never married, which was a problem considering that his brother Zhang Sheng was also single. When his father surprised everyone by taking over Yi Province, Zhang Fu decided to stay put, trusting that Zhang Lu would recall him if he ever needed him. And indeed, in the summer of 203, Zhang Lu ordered his son to come back to his side to become his heir. Fearing what the generals would do, he ordered Zhang Fu to be brought back secretly, only revealing his presence and his status as heir once he was safely behind fortified walls.

Zhang Fu arrived just on time, as his father was not long for this world. In early June, only days after the arrival of his son, Zhang Lu died at the age of 68, having ruled for only nine months. His goal had always been to establish a powerful theocratic state headed by his family, a goal that he was on his way to achieve when he died. His followers quickly moved and had Zhang Fu declared the new Governor of Yi Province. Wu Mengjie and Gao Rou were once again taken aback by the speed of things, yet went along with the change. After all, this wasn’t the first time that a son succeeded his father at the head of the province. And just like that, Zhang Lu had accomplished his final trick: ensuring the succession of his son. Now it was Zhang Fu’s duty to continue his work.

But Zhang Fu was not like his father. He lacked the political skills that had allowed the late sect leader to use everyone as pawns, securing their loyalty and service all while increasing his own power. But Zhang Fu was a decent administrator, with little other redeeming quality. He was insultingly crass when he spoke, something that along with his stubbornness made him no friends. He was also far too trusting of his entourage. This meant that he tended to follow the advices of the more ambitious members of the sect, those that arrogantly believed that their power was secure enough to ignore the generals. He was convinced that the generals would simply accept him as their leader anyway, not understanding why they might have a problem with his lack of tact. He also tended to prioritize scholars over the officers, meaning that Pan Zheng was highly regarded by the new Governor (a feeling not reciprocated).

This of course highly displeased Gao Rou and Wu Mengjie. Already annoyed at the trick Zhang Lu had pulled to dimmish their influence, they were now infuriated by the new governor’s attitude. The conquest of Yulin in September thanks to the efforts of Huang Quan did nothing to calm them, even as Zhang Fu tried to present it as a proof of the success of this new regime. This time, Gao Rou would prove the first one to start plotting. He had come to regret abandoning the Liu Clan for Zhang Lu and sought to fix his past mistake. He brought Wu Mengjie in his confidence, and the two started to work on a plan to put Liu Dan in charge of the province. While the mad brother of Liu Fan was, well, mad, he was also a careered officer of the Imperial Army who had fought in the Imperial Campaign against the White Wave Bandits in the early 190’s. The perfect sort of leader for them.

Finally, they declared themselves in revolt in October, only four months after Zhang Fu’s ascension. They tried to bring Huang Quan to their side, citing their desire to restore the Liu Clan to power. A chance to restore their rightful ruler, the brother of Liu Fan no less! But what trust existed between Huang Quan and his fellow officers had died with Liu Jishan. He was not going to make the mistake of trusting them again. Huang Quan thus refused to side with them. Their plan to bring their fellow general by their side now ruined, the two rebellious officers still believed in their chances of victory. They had as much troops as Zhang Fu, and they were expert commanders. They were convinced that it would just be a quick and easy war, unaware that they had just started what would become the longest civil war in living memory.

_________
PS: Well, it's official. Pan Zheng, who was the youngest character of the main cast, is now as old as Mo Jie and Yang Weili (the oldests) were at the start of the story.

 

[Bibliophile]

Well that is a rather unfortunate situation. Hopefully Pan Zheng survives the civil war.
I will admit I didn’t see the death of Zhang Lu happening so soon after he conquered Yi Province. I’m not sure if Zhang Fu is capable of carrying his father’s legacy with such lackluster stats. Even if he wins this civil war, I don’t know how long he will be able to keep control of the province.

 

[Midnite Duke]

Yi is wild! Thank you for the update.

 

[The Meme King]

While I did expect Zhang Lu to die, I did not expect for his death to be nearly as painless or his rule as stable as it was. He ruled for less than a year, yet is probably the best ruler the series has seen so far, succeeding on mostly everything he wanted to and being limited only by his natural lifespan. Then again maybe he just died early enough before all the cracks started setting in?
Now this civil war in Yi has got me hyped up, specially if Pan Zheng and Huang Quan have landed on the side of Zhang Fu instead of Wu Mengjie and Gao Rou, who def emanate "team good guys" energy. Either way, the peasants of Yi province must be utterly shocked, as in less than a year the province, which already had problems with barbarians, now falls into civil war and Zhuge Liang's banditry. All the while Budugen the great seems to gather more and more power.
I have to say, from the looks of things rn, certain passages in previous chapters and even the *name* of the AAR, I get the feeling that the barbarians are gonna win this one.

 

[Bibliophile]

I have to say, from the looks of things rn, certain passages in previous chapters and even the *name* of the AAR, I get the feeling that the barbarians are gonna win this one.

I’ll admit that possibility has crossed my mind as well. We’ve been watching this whole cast of characters vying for power, seeking to restore the Han, or a combination of both. Meanwhile, reading between the lines, we see barbarians either building up power or slipping out from Chinese dominion in some fashion. It would be almost funny, after watching all these characters struggle for dominance, for the story to end with Budugen riding from the north, conquering everything, and declaring himself the new emperor. It wouldn’t be to strange, he’d simply be doing what the Mongols of otl did except much earlier (if I remember my history correctly).

 

[Zamarak500]

Now this civil war in Yi has got me hyped up, specially if Pan Zheng and Huang Quan have landed on the side of Zhang Fu instead of Wu Mengjie and Gao Rou, who def emanate "team good guys" energy. Either way, the peasants of Yi province must be utterly shocked, as in less than a year the province, which already had problems with barbarians, now falls into civil war and Zhuge Liang's banditry. All the while Budugen the great seems to gather more and more power.
I have to say, from the looks of things rn, certain passages in previous chapters and even the *name* of the AAR, I get the feeling that the barbarians are gonna win this one.

I'm surprised you put Pan Zheng in the good guys category. I don't know, on my scale of bad to good, his score hasn't been that great so far if you ask me. Not the worse, but also not exactly the best either.

I’ll admit that possibility has crossed my mind as well. We’ve been watching this whole cast of characters vying for power, seeking to restore the Han, or a combination of both. Meanwhile, reading between the lines, we see barbarians either building up power or slipping out from Chinese dominion in some fashion. It would be almost funny, after watching all these characters struggle for dominance, for the story to end with Budugen riding from the north, conquering everything, and declaring himself the new emperor. It wouldn’t be to strange, he’d simply be doing what the Mongols of otl did except much earlier (if I remember my history correctly).

The Mongols did invade and rule over China for a century, you're right. It should also be mentionned that they aren't the first nor the last barbarian dynasty in China. There's actually been a lot of them.

• The whole Sixteen Kingdoms(304-439) are just that, barbarian dynasties rising up in the north. I could mention them all, but if you ask me three of those dynasties are really worth mentioning here.
  • Han Zhao/Former Zhao (304-329); Started as the Han Dynasty, then changed for Zhao later on. Formed by a Xiongnu officer who served the Jin Dynasty (the one that won the Three Kingdoms IRL) and claimed descent from the Han (cause Han princesses were often married to barbarian leaders). Not that strong, but kickstarted the whole period and pushed the Jin Dynasty to the south.
  • Former Qin (351-394): Formed by Di barbarians (in the AAR, it's the small tribes between Yi and Liang that everyone wants as tributary for some reason). They managed to unify the north of China for a while, but then their emperor had the great idea to keep the defeated enemies as generals. So when he failed to invade the Jin Dynasty south, his "generals" rebelled and his dynasty collapsed.
  • Northern Wei (386-535): A Xianbei Dynasty (yes, like Budugen) that ended the Sixteen Kingdoms era by unifying the north. Stuck around for a while, and survived three southern Dynasties (Jin, Liu Song, Southern Qi). It was eventually split into Eastern Wei and Western Wei as warlords propped up their own puppet emperor, and those dynasties lasted until they were overthrowned by said warlords in 550 and 557. Probably in my top 5 favorite Chinese dynasties.
• Liao Dynasty (916-1125): Khitan Dynasty, they rose up just after the fall of the Tang Dynasty and played a big role in the ensuing mess, even proping up one of the Five Dynasties of the period. They actually ruled little of China, but also had control of the steps so they were pretty powerful. Then the Song Dynasty unified most of China, but failed to take the few prefectures controlled by the Liao. They then got corrupt and lazy and all the usual stuff before being overthrown by their Jurchen subjects.
• Jin Dynasty (1115-1238): The Jurchen vassals after they formed their Dynasty. They then steamrolled the Chinese Song out of Northern China and even forced them to become they tributary. Were the powerhouse in China at their height. Died from a bad case of being the closest neighbors of the Mongols under Genghis Khan.
• Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368): The Mongols that you mentionned. Formed by Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan, just before he finished conquering the Song Dynasty. By that time the Mongol Empire existed only in name, even if he was technically in charge. The Yuan Dynasty ruled not only China, but Mongolia, Korea, the Steps and Tibet. Then a lot of problems at the same time under a last pretty bad emperor fucked them, which led to their overthrow and the creation of the Ming, although they survived as a rump state in Mongolia until 1635.
• Qing Dynasty (1636-1912): The last Imperial Dynasty of China was actually formed when invading Manchus conquered the Ming Dynasty. While they were pretty powerful in their early years, they got fucked by Europeans doing what Europeans did best (exploiting locals). Had one massive rebellion in the 1850's that is still the second most deadliest conflict after WW2. They won it, but thanks to the Europeans, leaving them weak. Then they refused to reform and eventually got overthrown in 1912.

So yeah, barbarians ruling China was not uncommon IRL, so who knows? Maybe Budugen will form this timeline's first barbarian dynasty. Btw, if you guys even need context over something don't be shy to ask, I'm always happy to answer.