Chương 398: Liu Yu Abdicates in Resignation

"My lord! Great news! A piece of extraordinary joy! News has arrived from the north!"

Liu Yu's hand trembled, spilling half of his robe with cold tea. Without bothering to wipe it away, he quickly reached for the military report:

"What's the rush! Speak slowly! What's the good news?"

The guard, panting heavily, was so excited he could barely speak:

"It's... it's His Highness Prince Yan! His Highness Prince Yan quelled Dong Zhuo, united the allied warlords, and conquered the nine provinces of You, Ji, Bing, Liang, Sili, Yan, Yu, Qing, and Xu! The entire northern part of the Han Dynasty is now in His Highness Prince Yan's hands!"

He swallowed hard and continued, "Now Luoyang is peaceful and the people live in contentment. Even Guanzhong, which was previously ravaged by Dong Zhuo, has been governed by His Highness the Prince of Yan to the point that no one picks up lost items on the road!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yu froze on the spot, his hand crumpling the military report in his hand.

He quickly read the military report three times, word by word.

The more I looked at it, the more my hands trembled; the more I looked, the brighter my eyes became.

Upon reaching the end, he suddenly slapped his thigh and burst into laughter, his mustache standing on end.

"Excellent! Excellent! That's wonderful! My nephew Bo Lue, you're truly amazing!"

He paced back and forth in the study, becoming more and more energetic with each step, and the little bit of gloom in his heart instantly vanished.

All my head is: Good heavens! My nephew is incredibly skilled in combat! That old scoundrel Dong Zhuo has wreaked havoc on the court, and the allied warlords are all plotting their own schemes; none of them are capable of handling things. In the end, we still have to rely on our own Liu family!

After so much chaos and suffering for so long, there is finally hope! The Han Dynasty is about to be revived!

He became increasingly agitated as he thought about it, and turned to shout towards the door:

"Someone bring pen and ink! Top-quality champion paper! Quickly!"

The chief clerk, hearing the commotion, entered and, seeing his lord seemingly engrossed in some kind of euphoria, asked in bewilderment:

"My lord, what... are you trying to write?"

"Write a letter to the Prince of Yan!" Liu Yu rolled up his sleeves, sat down at his desk, and waited for the servants to lay out the paper and grind the ink. He picked up his brush and began to write without the slightest hesitation, "I want to cede Jingzhou to His Highness the Prince of Yan!"

The chief clerk was stunned on the spot and quickly stepped forward to advise:

"My lord! My lord, please reconsider! You have managed Jingzhou for so many years; the people are loyal, the army is well-trained, and the provisions are plentiful. How can you just give it up like that? Even if you want to submit to the King of Yan, there's no need to relinquish the position of Governor of Jingzhou so directly!"

"What do you know?"

Liu Yu didn't even raise his head, his brush moving swiftly as he wrote, saying, "Why am I guarding Jingzhou? It's not for my own official position, not to become a local tyrant, but to protect the people of this region, to protect the land of our Han Dynasty!"

He raised his head, looked at the chief clerk, and said with piercing eyes, "Now my virtuous nephew Liu Ce has the ability, the benevolence, and the strength to quell this chaotic world, to restore the Han Dynasty, and to bring peace and stability to all the people of the world!"

"This old man of mine, guarding Jingzhou, can only protect this one region at most. But if you hand Jingzhou over to me, he can bring prosperity to the whole world! Don't I understand this?"

His words were powerful and resounding.

After hearing this, the chief secretary was speechless and could only stand aside and watch.

The letter was finished in no time.

The entire piece is written in plain language, without a trace of empty formality; it's all heartfelt and honest advice.

"To my esteemed nephew Liu Ce: " Uncle heard that you wiped out Dong Zhuo and subdued the northern provinces, and I was so happy that I couldn't sleep all night!

It is a blessing for the Han Dynasty and for all the people of the world that our Liu family has produced such a capable child as you!

Uncle, I don't have any great abilities. I can only protect the people of Jingzhou from the ravages of war. I don't have the ability to lead the Han Dynasty to prosperity.

Now that you have the ability and the responsibility, I'll hand over the position of Governor of Jingzhou to you!

On the day the letter arrives, the household registration, grain supplies, treasury, and troops of Jingzhou will all be prepared perfectly for you.

"Just send someone to take over, and I'll lend a hand and keep an eye on things. I won't hesitate! As long as the Han Dynasty can be revitalized and the people can live a good life, I'd be willing to give up Jingzhou, or even just be your gatekeeper!"

After Liu Yu finished writing, he read it again and was satisfied before picking up the seal of the Governor of Jingzhou and firmly stamping it on.

Blow the ink dry, fold it neatly, and stuff it into the envelope.

He then summoned his most trusted commander of the personal guards and solemnly handed him the letter:

"You personally lead your men to Luoyang at top speed and deliver this letter to His Highness the Prince of Yan. There can be no delay whatsoever! Be careful on the road and avoid any mishaps!"

"Yes, Your Majesty! I obey your command!" The commander of the personal guards took the letter, bowed to accept the order, turned around and went out to arrange the troops, and rushed to Luoyang overnight.

After the guards left, the chief clerk, seeing Liu Yu's relaxed expression, couldn't help but ask:

"My lord, you've given up Jingzhou. What will we do now?"

Liu Yu laughed heartily and waved his hand, saying:

"What to do? It's easy! Once my nephew sends someone to take over Jingzhou, I'll relinquish this burden. I can either retire to Luoyang or farm and read books in Jingzhou, living a peaceful and quiet old age! If I can witness the revival of the Han Dynasty, my life will have been worthwhile!"

...

August of the first year of the Chuping era.

That day, Liu Ce was in the backyard of the Prince of Yan's mansion in Luoyang, talking with Yin Ying and Feng Yu.

Yin Ying was embroidering flowers, while Feng Yu watched from the side, occasionally asking a question.

Liu Ce sat in the rocking chair next to him, crossed his legs, eating watermelon, looking completely relaxed.

"Husband, how do you think my magpie embroidery is?" Yin Ying held up the embroidery hoop to show him.

Liu Ce leaned closer to take a look: "Hmm, not bad, very lifelike. It's just that this magpie's belly is a bit big; has it eaten too much?"

Yin Ying laughed and playfully punched him: "No way! It's clearly embroidered beautifully!"

Feng Yu smiled and said, "Sister's embroidery is so good, much better than mine."

The three were chatting and laughing when they heard footsteps outside.

Lu Bing hurried in and bowed, saying, "My lord, an urgent report from Jingzhou."

Liu Ce put down the watermelon, wiped his hands, and followed Lu Bing to the study.

Upon arriving at the study, Lu Bing handed him a letter: "My lord, this is a personal letter from Liu Yu, the governor of Jingzhou."

Liu Ce took the letter, opened it, and immediately smiled.

The letter clearly stated that Liu Yu intended to cede Jingzhou to him, and that he should send someone to take over. The household registers, provisions, treasuries, and troops were all prepared and awaiting his arrival.

After reading it, Liu Ce couldn't help but burst out laughing:

"Good, good! My uncle is quite good!"

He handed the letter to Lu Bing: "Take a look."

After reading it, Lu Bing smiled and said, "My lord, this is a tremendous piece of good news. Jingzhou is wealthy, populous, and strategically located. Once we take Jingzhou, only Yangzhou, Yizhou, and Jiaozhou will remain to the south."

Liu Ce nodded and immediately said, "Gather everyone in the council hall for a meeting!"

Before long, the council chamber was filled with people.

Li Jing, Guo Jia, Xi Zhicai, Jia Xu, Cheng Yu, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Zhang Liao, Lü Bu... all of them were full of energy, waiting for Liu Ce to speak.

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(The area of Liu Ce's controlled territory is shown in the figure:)