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“If only there were no other problems,” Emperor Xian said honestly.
“That vile heretic’s continued control of Hanzhong - and his chosen name for it
- is an ill omen.”
“I work tirelessly to restore order,” Cao Cao promised. “If I have my
way, Hanzhong will be restored to Han control and every other problem dealt
with in ten years or less.”
“That’s an ambitious target,” Kong Rong suggested. “Such ambitions will
be hard to realise alone, Excellency.”
“I will never stop trying to reach out to Liu Biao and Yuan Shao, no
matter how futile that may appear to be,” Cao Cao retorted. “But then again, I
have turned back an army four times the size of mine at Guandu by having good
friends at critical moments... so in what sense am I alone...?”
Kong Rong did not answer Cao Cao’s question.
“...So that is the military situation,” Cao Cao concluded. “I will fight
where I must, and negotiate where there is hope of it. I shall turn proceedings
over to others now, so that they can report on other matters that are of equal
importance to the proper running of a state.”
“Indeed, Mister Cao,” Emperor Xian said. “Thank... thank you... for your
report.”
Cao Cao smiled falsely and bowed in respect.
Emperor Xian returned to his private quarters when court proceedings
ended; he dismissed all but his trusted confidante Empress Fu so that he could
speak openly.
“My lady, I... ... ...aiee,” Emperor
Xian began. “I... I thanked him! For what???”
“Perhaps... perhaps it was necessary,” Empress Fu suggested.
“No, no, there was never a moment where his men dragging Consort Dong
out of here and strangling her like a chicken was ever ‘necessary’,” Emperor
Xian said angrily but quietly.
“She was carrying my child! I don’t care whether
it was ‘a prince or princess’ and whether one was more expendable than another:
he insulted me, angered me, disrespected me, and murdered members of my family!
He is no better than Dong Zhuo! He might even be worse!”
“I... cannot disagree, Majesty,” Empress Fu replied. “But when I said what
I said, I referred to your thanking him. If you had rebuked him, he might have
punished us for it.”
“I... yes, well, that’s why I thanked him,” Emperor Xian sighed. “But when
I see him smirking, and then I look at that sea of men, and I see no more than
two or three friendly faces... made worse by the return of Jia Xu.”
Empress Fu shook her head sadly.
“That man is like some sort of family ghoul, the spirit-made-flesh of
some vindictive man that one of my ancestors bested,” Emperor Xian continued.
“Every time I think I’ve seen the last of him he reappears, retaking his place
as chief adviser to the latest monster that has seized power in my court. He
guided Dong Zhuo to murder my stepmother and brother, install me as sovereign
and leave me with the stain of feeling like a collaborator in my own brother’s
death; he had Dong murder half of the nobility, loot my ancestors’ tombs and
burn Luoyang; he ensured that Wang Yun’s plot to expunge Dong Zhuo’s influence
was foiled and installed those two cretins Li Jue and Guo Si as regents to make
an even greater fool of me; and now, in the wake of a failed attempt to remove
Cao Cao, back he comes again to deliver inexplicable victory at Guandu and
ensure that I will never be rid of that hankerer! The followers of that edict
were my last chance!”