The False Emperor (3): Zhong's Defiant Proclamation
The news of Zhong's proclamation spread like wildfire across the Central Plains, delivering a thunderous shock to the court officials.
The Emperor lives. How could anyone dare speak of a new dynasty?
"How could such a thing be possible!"
Even if the Han's authority had fallen to the dirt, with the Emperor alive and well, how dare this man call himself emperor!
"Indeed! We cannot tolerate it!"
To abdicate his own office and presume to rival His Majesty, who boasts millennia of history—no matter how mighty his forces, this was unforgivable!
"Rightly so! We must brand Yuan Shu a rebel at once!"
If other warlords sided with him, the Han could truly perish.
No one dared voice the unspoken fear. It would mean admitting the imperial house's utter decline, a self-inflicted insult amid the gathering storm clouds over the realm.
"We must move against the traitor without delay!"
"Yes! Send envoys to the Yuan clan in the north at once. Let them handle this. After all, isn't Yuan Shu their blood kin?"
"More importantly, issue stern edicts to the other warlords. Warn them not to obey Yuan Shu's commands as if they were imperial decrees."
Voices rose in a frenzy, necks bulging with veins. Yet no one dared broach the crux: subjugating the rebel.
Small wonder. The court had not a shred of military power.
Even the imperial guards were elite troops handpicked from Cao Cao's forces. All matters of war fell squarely on her shoulders.
No amount of shouting would change that. Everything hinged on Cao Cao's actions.
"...Where is Lord Cao?"
The Emperor sought her out.
The officials before him maintained order but offered no real plans, merely chanting "Subjugate the rebel Yuan Shu."
Without Cao Cao, nothing moved forward. The stagnation frustrated him to no end.
This wasn't the officials' fault alone. If the imperial house still held authority and power, they would have issued an edict commanding Cao Cao to crush the traitor before even glancing her way.
"Your Majesty, she is..."
"Commander of the Vanguard, Cao Cao enters the palace."
The eunuch's announcement from outside silenced the hall. Those upholding decorum snapped into perfect ranks, postures sharper than moments before.
The Emperor sat proudly on the jade throne, yet in Heodo, Cao Cao was the true pinnacle of power. Their very salaries came from her coffers.
Even in these trivial moments, all felt it viscerally.
The Han's real power lay with Cao Cao.
"Your servant, Vanguard Commander Cao Cao, pays respects to Your Majesty."
Dressed in court robes, she strode to the center and bowed deeply before the throne. Ever courteous and deferential, yet her stony expression made the officials glance nervously her way.
"Welcome. You've heard of Nanyang?"
"Yes. I rushed here trembling with rage at that villain Yuan Shu's deeds."
Villainous wretch. Some might scoff, but none dared even a hollow chuckle.
The one who puppeteered the Emperor to her whims. The one who crowned himself Emperor.
With a blatant usurper in plain sight, no one could criticize Cao Cao.
"Yuan Shu is a traitor who dares mock the imperial house. Uproot the Yuan clan at its root."
Who was the true villain? A thorny question—but to Han officials, Yuan Shu was unequivocally the wicked rebel.
"Hunt down his kin and exterminate them to the last. Grant me your command, and I shall gather them all, slaughtering every blood relative of those who dared call it 'Zhong.'"
"Wh-what? General Cao, isn't that too hasty...?"
"Dong Cheng."
Cao Cao's face hardened as she shot back.
"Are you defending the rebel now?"
"No, I...!"
Dong Cheng faltered at her retort.
"What do you mean? When did I ever defend a traitor!"
"Opposing the extermination of a rebel clan's kin—is that not defending traitors? Your Majesty, it seems General Dong harbors other intentions."
"Impossible! I risked my life fleeing Chang'an with Your Majesty amid Li Jue and Guo Si's chaos! How could I betray you now!"
"Then you surely understand the imperial house's sanctity."
"Urk...!"
Dong Cheng fell silent, unable to counter. His Chang'an faction followed suit, mouths clamped shut.
"Your Majesty need only issue the edict. Leave the rebel's subjugation to me. I shall sever Yuan Shu's head, display it at the crossroads, and proclaim the Han's enduring might to all under heaven."
"...Will that restore the Han's dignity?"
"Of course."
Conviction filled Cao Cao's face.
"Traitors face clan extermination. Whoever blocks Your Majesty's path, I shall cut them down without mercy."
"Very well."
The Emperor gripped the missive before him, face grave.
"Summon the envoy!"
Cao Cao stepped aside, and the Emperor received the entering envoy with stern dignity.
"Your servant, Grand General of Zhong, Zhang Xun, greets the Son of Heaven of Han."
"......."
The officials' faces soured at the envoy's brazen words. Even Cao Cao clenched her fist in fury, expression rigid.
And then.
Thwack!
The Emperor hurled Yuan Shu's missive straight at Zhang Xun's face. Silk caused no pain, but the humiliation made his limbs tremble.
"Wh-what is the meaning of...!"
"A man who ate and slept on Han soil mere months ago—how dare you claim the title of Grand General? Is Yuan Shu's sweet nectar so intoxicating? Does our Han seem a joke to you!"
The seemingly frail Emperor bellowed like a demon. Overwhelmed by his fury, Zhang Xun could only gape.
"I'd love to send your head alone to Shouchun, but they'd just kill our envoy in turn. Begone! Tell Yuan Shu he'll be buried beside Dong Zhuo!"
"...If that is the Han's will."
Zhang Xun scooped up the fallen missive and turned his back on the throne, striding out.
"Y-you insolent cur! Do you know where you stand?!"
"Thinks he's a real Grand General!"
"A nobody who's never even been a prefect, strutting in the throne room?!"
Zhang Xun fled amid a barrage of insults. The fuming Emperor collapsed into his seat.
"Hah... hah. I..."
"Well done, Your Majesty."
Cao Cao stepped forward first, bowing deeply.
"Your resolute stand against the traitors—your servant Cao Mengde engraves it upon her heart. With that resolve, that will, I shall surely subjugate Yuan Shu."
"......Understood. B-but General Cao... if we brand the entire Yuan clan traitors, what of Yuan Shao?"
"......."
Not the self-proclaimed Grand General who had just slunk away like a whipped dog—but the true Grand General. Should he move against Gongsun Zan in Beiping, his northern forces alone could dominate all warlords.
"Yuan Shao..."
"Your Majesty, a memorial from Grand General Yuan Shao has arrived."
The timely arrival shifted all expressions in an instant.
"What? A memorial from Yuan Shao? Impossible...!"
"Your Majesty, please review it. As it is addressed to you, only you should see it."
"Tch, Gongyou, this...!"
Bound tight with cord and sealed with wax, the memorial bypassed Cao Cao's hands and went straight to the Emperor. With trembling fingers, he unrolled Yuan Shao's words.
"Your servant Yuan Benchu, as Grand General of the Han imperial house..."
The intent shone clear from the opening line.
* * *
"Damn, we could've dragged Yuan Shao into the rebellion on conspiracy charges while brewing up Yuan Shu. What a waste."
Cao Cao scanned Yuan Shao's memorial, genuinely regretting the missed opportunity.
"'Ever loyal, your servant Yuan Benchu remains a man of Han.' Ugh, classic. Won't even swear eternal fealty to the Han Emperor, even in death."
"My lord, that's hardly the point now."
Sun Uk sighed at Cao Cao's sincere lament.
"Branding Yuan Shao a traitor alongside Yuan Shu's emperor claim would've ignited full war."
"Yuan Shao's fault for not keeping his house in line."
"Cao Ang."
"On second thought, pinning Yuan Shu's sins on Yuan Shao feels like a stretch. How wronged would he feel? His worthless brother lords over his lineage and crowns himself emperor."
Sun Uk sighed deeply at Cao Cao's flip-flopping.
"That Cao Ang brat... If he'd just kept it in his pants a bit better, he could've joined the imperial house."
Her words made Sun Uk's heart sink, fearing eavesdroppers.
"Mind your words, my lord. Loose talk undermines our legitimacy."
"What did I say? That he could've been imperial family."
"...My lord."
"Haha, just jesting."
Cao Cao glanced outside. With even the attendants dismissed, alone with Sun Uk, she broached it softly.
"...Is the Emperor being a woman such a problem?"
"Of course. No woman has ever been Son of Heaven in history."
"I see... Tch."
Cao Cao bit her lower lip.
"That Dong Zhuo bastard did something monstrous. Killed the Prince of Chenliu and propped up his sister as Emperor."
"The imperial blood flows true. Gender is no issue."
"True. The problem is when the warlords learn."
Only a handful knew the Emperor was female.
"Dong Zhuo paraded her to pave his own emperorship. Easy to discard anytime. Sigh, such a pity."
Cao Cao pitied the Emperor's plight from the heart.
"After unifying the realm, marrying her to Cao Ang would've been perfect."
"Heavens, who put such mad ideas in your head?"
Cao Cao quietly pointed at Sun Uk.
"Your bag of wisdom."
"...Not from Jingzhou?"
"Yep. Said sparing Cao Ang cost me that chance. Of course, he claimed marrying into an imperial princess would do. Heh, folding our Cao clan into the throne. Brilliant notion."
"Good lord."
Sun Uk was speechless.
"So if a warlord captures the Emperor..."
"They'd wed her, of course. And become Han Emperor themselves—or their son."
Cao Cao sipped her tea calmly.
"Absurd. She's just nine years old? Now she's..."
"Exactly."
Cao Cao turned her hardened gaze to the window.
"If another power seizes the Emperor, they'll toy with her to claim the Han throne."