Chapter 313 – The Gathering of Ten Warlords – Part Three

  Though Cao Cao did not like it when Tong reminded everybody about his unethical politic moves, he swallowed his pride and smiled back .

  "Our pasts may have caused us a couple of misunderstanding . We’re here to repel the Xiongnu barbarian tribes . Let’s focus on the crisis at hand and unite as one . "

  All minor lords admired how mature Cao Cao was . They nodded and spoke in approval to change the subject .

  "Lord Zhang, let’s forget about our pasts and focus on the Xiongnu . Didn’t you invite us here to fight them together?"

  "Yes . Let’s bygone be bygone . All of us here dipped our hands in the dirty water here and there, including you . Let’s not throw dirty water at each other and cooperate . "

  "Indeed . Lord Zhang, Lord Yuan, let’s not fight each other here and look at the big picture . If we don’t drive the Xiongnu away from our land now, our 400 years dynasty will end in our generation . "

  Kong Zhou, Qiao Mao, and Zhang Miao wanted them to stop fighting temporarily . Gongsun Zan and Kong Rong frowned as they concerned about Tong’s move .

  However, Lu Zhi, Xun Yu, and Jia Xu did not comment as they knew why Tong poked the hornet nests .

  Tong raised his hand up to gesture that he had something to speak . All lords quieted down to listen .

  "You have misunderstood me . I’m not pointing out the current noble status to provoke anyone . Instead, I’m trying to explain why I have the full right to be the grand commander of this coalition . Within a few minutes, another guest will arrive here to explain to you why . I hope that you can wait a bit . "

  While smiling, Tong typed into the clan chat .

  Tong: "Lady He, please . "

  A minute after the declaration and the message, ten female servants escort a red decorated carriage, carried by eight strong men, arrived at the front of the tent .

  A female escort presented a token to the trembling guards, which terrified them further . He screamed and announced their entrance in a panic .

  "H-H-Her Majesty Empress He and His Highness Prince Liu have arrived!"

  Everybody in the tent was petrified . Aside from Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Gongsun Zan, and Kong Rong, most of them did not know that they were still alive .

  Liu Bei also opened his eyes wide, jumping in exhilarating that the Han Dynasty royalties were still alive . As long as he could prove that he carried the bloodline of Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Han Dynasty, he could raise his noble rank and obtain high status .

  Kong Rong expected this to happen when Wang Xiu reported to him that He Xing picked Tong as her prince consort . He bitterly smiled and sighed a relief as the Han Dynasty would not die in his generation .

  ’Allying with Zhang Tong is the right choice . With Zhang Tong and He Xing combination, this chaos will end soon . ’

  Cao Cao gulped down and closed his eyes in preparation . He did not expect Tong to drag the former empress into this alliance meeting, but he understood now why Tong brought up their past evil deeds .

  ’A blunder for me, but it’s better for the country . With He Xing here, no one will dare to defy her authority, and we’ll be able to fight as one . I can see several moves that she can use in the aftermath using Zhang Tong as her proxy . Well, I fail to unite the land as one, but having her manipulating Zhang Tong or the other way around is better than my long-term unification plan . With her here, there is still a chance for the Han Dynasty!’

  Cao Cao reopened his eyes, and his face regained its color . In his mind, he changed his goals and policies from the total unification under his rule into the pacification of all land . As long as people could enjoy peace, he did not mind being a loser .

  ’There is still hope . I don’t need to take the helm . ’

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  As if he had moved a mountain out of his chest, Cao Cao laughed and smiled .

  On the other hand, Yuan Shao’s face paled as he was afraid that she might retaliate against him because of his past action .

  Pu Jing glanced at the direction of the oncoming empress . His face was still indifferent as ever .

  ’A brilliant move . Killing several birds in one stone . Now, anyone who defies Zhang Tong will be marked as rebels . This unification plan of Cao Cao is over . ’

  Behind Liu Bei, Jiang Man bit his fingernail .

  ’Liu Bei is going to join Zhang Tong at this rate! Should I activate my skill and kill them here? No, I have to destroy that Xiongnu Army first . Once everyone gets to Luo Yang, they will begin fighting each other like in historical events . There is still hope . ’

  He Xing in a decorated white dress held the right hand of Liu Xie, who was five-year-old this year . They ambled inside the tent together while everyone else kowtowed and placed their forehead on the ground .

  "Long Live Her Majesty . May you be blessed and live a long and prosperous life for a thousand year!"

  A corner of He Xing’s mouth curved upward as she found the nostalgia greeting funny . After joining Tong’s clan, she obtained extra lifespans, which she could literally live that long . Furthermore, her aging stopped when she joined the clan, and she could maintain her youth forever .

  ’Come to think of it . All emperors sought eternal youth and immortality . Yet, I’ve obtained it instead of them in the middle of my life crisis . Like Tong has said, life is a tragedy to those who feel, and a comedy to those who think . ’

  In a good mood, she walked next to Tong, who was the only one standing .

  "It’s nice to see all of our retainers gathering to fight the foreign invaders . Although there were many unfortunate conflicts and misunderstanding in the past, we hope that you can temporarily forget our differences and work together . "

  Listening to the empress, everybody sighed in relief . With her current attitude, no one would dare to cause a scene .

  "We understand, your majesty!"

  Meanwhile, Liu Xie throttled inside the tent . He looked around with his innocent eyes .

  Seeing that nothing was interesting, he turned around to his mother . When Liu Xie saw the face of Tong, who was looking back at him with a smile, Liu Xie cried out in joy .

  "Papa!"

  Everybody in the tent flinched . The officials were not stupid enough to catch what their relationship was .

  ’Yup, it’s a check-mate,’ Cao Cao snickered in his mind .

  ’Well played, Zhang Tong . In this world, it’s your win,’ Pu Jing also ran out of ideas to make Cao Cao an emperor . It was impossible for them now with Tong’s relationship with the royalties .

  Cheng Yu did not speak or think . He simply smiled and bowed his head as if nothing had happened .

  Liu Bei, however, had menacing eyes, glaring at Liu Xie and Tong .

  ’How dare you! You opportunist bastard! How dare you seduce her majesty! You are just a silver pant son of a rebel . How dare you take her majesty!?’

  His hatred intensified as Liu Bei thought that Tong had already consummated with He Xing .

  Unbeknownst to the motive of all retainers, He Xing grinned . However, her eyes fixated at the seat where Yuan Shao was sitting .

  "Long traveling is tiring for my son . May we have a seat, Yuan Benchu?"

  Yuan Shao jolted in fear . He crept back and withdrew from his seat since he had no choice . Tian Feng and Wen Chou also retreated back to the side of the tent, allowing their lord to escape from the predicament .

  Yuan Shao gritted his teeth in anger, "The seat is yours, your majesty . "

  At first, Yuan Shao wanted to shame Tong in front of everyone to pay back and satisfy his ego . Yet, in the end, he had to attend the meeting without a proper seat .

  Though soldiers from the outside brought him another set of short table, carpet, and a cushion, he was frustrated that he lost his position of the leading coalition because of the girl he had planned to enslave .

  "Very well . Tong, my dear . Come sit with me . "

  The word "My dear" from He Xing had many meanings to all lords . It concluded that who had the highest status among them all .

  Also, it solidified Tong’s stance in the Han Court . No one could deny his command now .

  Meanwhile, Tong nodded and held his hand with Liu Xie . They walked together like a family and sat on the main seat in the middle end of the tent .

  Xun Yu and Jia Xu stood behind Tong without uttering a word . It was unnecessary for them to talk now anyway since they had completed their plan .

  Tong was now the supreme commander of the alliance by default . Should anyone defy his order, they would be equally challenging the empress herself and be flagged as rebels of the Han Dynasty . Then, all their nine generations would be executed by the officials .

  Upon sitting, He Xing declared, "First, I need all of you to know that Zhang Tong is my current prince consort . He will take charge of the Han Court while Liu Xie has not matured enough to succeed the throne . Do you best to support him!"

  "We understand, your majesty!"

  No one dared to object He Xing’s declaration .

  "I’ll leave the command of the armies to you, my dear . "

  Tong nodded while he was holding Liu Xie on his laps, hugging him . Meanwhile, Liu Xie laughed and played with the command seal on the table without caring about the eyes of others .

  Ignoring his fatherly image, Tong cleared his throat .

  "All lords are now presented . I’ll begin the briefing . We’ll start with the distribution of the troops and placement of our ally armies . " ……

  Tong did not hide anything about his legions placement . He revealed that another 100,000 soldiers were standing by on the northern shore of the Yellow River, getting ready to pincer attack Luo Yang City at any moment .

  The mixed southern armies of Sun Jian, Liu Biao, and Yuan Shu, who did not participate in this meeting, also gathered 110,000 men . They would attack the southern pass of Hongnong to flank the Xiongnu Army .

  As for the main assault troops, it would be them . The total of 260,000 mixed forces was in charge of crossing Hulao Gate and confronting the main army of Xiongnu . ……

  The placement and the scale of this battle gave the minor lords a cold sweat .

  Cao Cao, Gongsun Zan, and Yuan Shao had a deep frown on their face . They had concerns .

  Tian Feng stepped forward first to comment on this arrangement .

  "I disagree with this policy and your entire plan . It’s clear that your main forces located on the north bank of the Yellow River while the armies here will draw the attention from the Xiongnu . When the fight breaks out, the coalition armies at our location will suffer the most casualty . But in the meantime, your troops will only face a small detached force of Xiongnu, and you will reap the rewards from plundering their cities before we can even cross the Hulao Gate . I don’t know what the others think, but to me, you’re using us as baits . "

  Tian Feng attempted to pry open a crack of this coalition right away .