Chương 322: Family Members, Yuan Shao and Others Discuss Where to Go

Zhen Mi, holding Liu Yan, stood timidly behind her and whispered, "Empress Dowager, this is my son, Liu Yan..."

Zhen Tuo, Zhen Dao, and Zhen Rong also sent their children forward.

He Lian looked at this and then at that, and suddenly couldn't help but laugh.

"How many children did you bring?"

Cai Yan laughed and said, "Ten of them! They were all born around October last year. My husband's five sons and six daughters are almost a year old now, which is a very fun time."

He Lian looked at the group of children with envy in her eyes.

She glanced at Liu Ce furtively, lost in thought.

......

Zhang Ning said, "Let the children play and have some fun."

So, a group of children were placed on the floor covered with a blanket and started crawling around.

Liu Chen climbed the fastest, quickly reaching Liu Bian's feet, looking up at him, and making "ee-ee-ya-ya" noises.

Liu Bian looked down at the chubby-faced little guy, paused for a moment, then squatted down and reached out to touch his face.

Liu Chen chuckled, grabbed Liu Bian's finger, and stuffed it into his mouth.

Liu Bian was startled and quickly pulled back, but the little guy wouldn't listen and started making "ee-ee-ya-ya" sounds again.

Liu Bian suddenly laughed.

This was the first time he had smiled since he was dismissed.

Seeing this scene, He Lian's tears welled up again, but this time, they were tears of relief.

Consort Tang stood to the side, her eyes also reddening.

Cai Yan walked to Empress Dowager He's side and said softly, "Empress Dowager, this will be your home from now on. We have many sisters and many children, it will be very lively."

He Lian nodded, took her hand, and choked out, "Thank you... thank you all..."

Zhen Jiang smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please don't be so polite. We're all family."

Zhang Ning leaned closer and said, "Empress Dowager, if you're feeling bored, come visit us in our courtyard."

Liu Bian squatted on the ground, surrounded by a group of children, and finally a smile appeared on his face.

He Lian stood in the courtyard, watching this scene, and tears welled up in her eyes again.

But this time, it was tears of relief.

She walked to Liu Ce's side and whispered, "Thank you."

Liu Ce looked at the children and smiled slightly, saying, "No need to thank me. We're all family."

He Lian leaned on his shoulder without saying a word.

I just stood there quietly, watching the children play.

...

A few days later, in the council hall of the Prince of Yan's residence.

Liu Ce was having a meeting with Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Xun Yu, Guo Jia, Xi Zhicai, and others.

"My lord, have the people been settled?" Fang Xuanling asked.

Liu Ce nodded and said, "It's all settled. The Jinyiwei are secretly protecting the mansion next door."

Xun Yu pondered for a moment and said, "My lord, the Empress Dowager and the deposed emperor are in Youzhou. This matter cannot be kept secret. The feudal lords of the world will likely find out soon. At that time, whether it will be a blessing or a curse remains to be seen."

Guo Jia chuckled and said, "What's meant to be will be. In my opinion, this is a great blessing!"

He analyzed, counting on his fingers, "First, with the Empress Dowager and the deposed emperor in our hands, we have the 'legitimacy' card. The little emperor Dong Zhuo installed is less legitimate. If we're ever unhappy, we can simply have the Empress Dowager issue an edict to install Liu Bian as emperor, and the whole country will respond!"

"Secondly, any feudal lord with a brain will come to curry favor with us. Why? Because we possess a 'treasure'! If they want to use the banner of 'purging the court of corrupt officials,' they'll have to ask our opinion first, right?"

"Third, and most importantly..."

Guo Jia lowered his voice and said, "With the Empress Dowager on our side, we have the power to 'use the Emperor to command the disobedient'! However, this 'Emperor' is the former, but the former is still an Emperor! The title is there!"

Liu Ce waved his hand and said, "Alright, alright, stop showing off. The most important thing right now is to stabilize the situation. Dong Zhuo won't touch us for the time being, so let's not provoke him. Let's manage the three provinces of You, Ji, and Bing well, train our troops, and stockpile our grain."

He looked at everyone and smiled, "As for what happens in the future... we'll talk about that later."

Fang Xuanling nodded and said, "My lord is wise."

Du Ruhui said, "What about Cao Cao? He failed in his assassination attempt on Dong Zhuo and is now wanted. I heard he fled east. Should we...?"

Liu Ce thought for a moment and said, "Send someone to keep an eye on him. Cao Cao is no ordinary man. If there's an opportunity in the future... we can try to befriend him."

The group accepted the order.

...

In the Chenggao post station east of Hulao Pass, the candlelight flickered as restlessly as people's hearts.

The doors and windows were sealed tightly, and the occasional breeze that seeped through the cracks made the candle flames sway this way and that.

Outside the door were about a hundred personal guards that Yuan Shao had brought out of Luoyang. Each of them had their hands on the hilts of their swords, their ears perked up like rabbits, and they were even breathing very softly, as if afraid that someone might be listening in the walls, or that Dong Zhuo's pursuers might suddenly rush out of the darkness.

Inside, the atmosphere was even colder than the autumn wind outside.

A crumpled map of the world lay on the table, its edges worn and torn, as if it had been smuggled from some post station.

Next to the map were several bowls of wheat porridge, long since cold, covered with a layer of white frost-like oil, untouched by anyone.

Yuan Shao was dressed in a black outfit, looking travel-worn and exhausted from his overnight escape.

He sat at his desk, pressing his fingertips heavily on the characters "Luoyang" on the map.

Just days ago, he was the Commandant of the Capital Region, and he drew his sword against Dong Zhuo in front of the entire court.

His words, "My sword is never lacking in sharpness," silenced the entire hall. He was so cool that he wanted to applaud himself.

That scene, that momentum, is something you could brag about for a lifetime.

But once I'm all cool, my mind clears up.

With the Xiliang cavalry in his hands, Dong Zhuo could depose and install emperors with the mere flick of his wrist.

No matter how ruthless Yuan Shao is, he can't outmaneuver a blade.

Luoyang is already a den of dragons and tigers; if we stay even half a step further, we will die without a burial place.

So he hung the insignia of the Commandant of the Capital Region on the east gate and, overnight, led his family and confidants, fleeing Luoyang City through back roads like thieves.

They ran all the way to Chenggao territory before they were able to temporarily shake off any pursuers who might come after them.

They escaped, but then what?

Where to go?

This is the most critical problem right now.

Yuan Shao glanced around the room at everyone, all of whom were his trusted confidants to whom he had entrusted his life.

Feng Ji is calm and resourceful, his face always expressionless; Xu You is witty and unrestrained, his eyes always revealing an idea (good or bad).

Guo Tu was a master strategist, even more adept at using the abacus than a bookkeeper.

Chunyu Qiong was the bravest in the army, with muscles more developed than brains, but his loyalty was beyond question.

Each of them had survived the bloodshed and violence of He Jin's mansion, and now they were all staring at the map on the table, their expressions as solemn as if their mothers had died.

"My lord," Guo Tu spoke first, leaning down and pointing to the location of Ji Province on the map, his voice extremely low, as if he were a thief, "in my opinion, we should head north to Ji Province. Ji Province is a place with rivers and mountains, a population of one million, well-trained soldiers and ample provisions, and is a first-rate strategic location in the world."