The Battle of Hanzhong was defeated, and the expedition to Jiangdong ended in failure.

And thinking that I am already over sixty years old,

There was an unknown fire in Prime Minister Cao Cao's mind that seemed to be igniting.

And this ambition is gradually spreading deep in his heart,

As early as last winter, when Cao Cao was about to launch his army to march south, Dong Zhao, a close confidant of the shogunate under his command, had guessed his mood and had already secretly contacted the courtiers in Xudu.

After several rounds of cleaning,

Most of Xu's old officials who were loyal to the Han Dynasty were lost.

Most of the people who are still stable in the court are willing to support the Cao family. As for the few loyal ministers of the Han Dynasty, they are just like rats escaping in a hurry. It is not easy to protect themselves. Faced with the determination to go further

, it’s like using a mantis’ arm as a chariot!

Most of the years passed by,

Dong Zhao had already persuaded the ministers in the court to support the official position of prime minister. Cao Cao, who was ranked as a duke, went one step further and was awarded the title of king.

On this day,

The morning sun gradually rises slowly from the east.

The light gradually shines on the ground, and the sound of roosters crows.

This will also herald the official start of a vibrant day.

In the city of Xudu,

Ministers in red court uniforms rode in their cars to the palace gate.

That moment when the sun shines brightly,

Outside the palace gate, the crowd was already shouting.

Each of the ministers whispered to each other.

Having already received Dong Zhao's advance visit, they seemed to have a clear mind, knowing exactly what would happen in today's regular court meeting?

Everyone got out of the car one after another, verified their identities and walked towards the court room.

Just on the steps outside the main hall,

At this time, a man was dressed neatly, his face showed a bit of majesty, and he shouted loudly like a bell.

This is the salute officer before the ministers enter the palace. Their duty is to inform each minister of their name and official position when they enter the palace, supervise that they take off their shoes and walk slowly with small steps to maintain respect for the emperor.

After entering the palace gate,

All the ministers followed the etiquette and walked much more slowly. They walked with small, fast steps. They rushed to the side of the saluting officer, waited for him to notify them of their names and official positions, and then took off their shoes at the prescribed position and entered the palace.

But among them, there is one person who is incompatible with them!

One person arrived outside the palace gate in a car, and then ran straight in with long strides.

This person is only about seven feet tall, but he is wearing a bright red brocade robe and a cape behind him. He has a heroic spirit all over his body.

Although he is short in height, it is difficult to conceal his power.

Especially when he ran all the way up the steps and reached the side of the salute officer, he was not restricted from taking off his shoes at all. He swaggered into the hall with a sword hanging from his waist.

Seeing this, the surrounding ministers did not dare to have any extra thoughts in their hearts.

The salute officer also shook his head slightly, and when he left, he announced loudly, "Welcome to the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty, Duke Wei."

This person is naturally Cao Cao, the most powerful minister in the court today.

As early as when he was called a duke, the emperor Liu Xie issued an edict: "Wei Gong goes to the palace. I specifically allow him to enter the court without any hesitation, praise and worship without name, and go to the palace with swords and shoes!"

It is precisely because of the gift of the emperor.

Today's Cao Cao naturally does not have to follow the etiquette and rush into the hall majestically like the ministers.

I don't know how long it lasted,

When the sky is bright, the morning sun rays from outside the hall are faintly shining in.

The ministers then walked to the corresponding mats on both sides of the hall and sat down one after another.

After a while, the emperor Liu Xie, who was wearing a red dragon robe, walked out of the back hall. With a handsome face, he slowly walked behind the dragon case and sat down slowly.

"Do you, my beloved lord, have any intention to tell you?"

Liu Xie looked down at the ministers on both sides and shouted loudly.

Only when these words were spoken did it indicate that the court meeting had officially begun.

The words are over.

All the ministers looked at each other, and then all looked at the same place.

Dong Zhao, who was sitting on the left side, looked around and saw everyone's eyes slowly looking over. His face showed no emotion at all and was still very calm. Then he slowly stood up, walked to the middle of the hall and cupped his hands and said:

"Your Majesty, I have my heart to tell you!"

"If you have anything to do with me, dear, please come quickly."

As soon as he said these words, Dong Zhao did not hesitate and directly asked for orders, "Your Majesty, I would like to ask you to be the prime minister and increase your rank."

"Um?"

After saying this, Liu Xie suddenly felt a little ominous in his heart again.

Promotion of official rank?

Cao Cao has already reached the rank of Prime Minister and the title of Duke, so how can he be further ennobled?

In the next step, the only way to change the dynasty is to be a prince or even replace one's own position as emperor.

Suddenly, Liu Xie recalled that when Cao Cao returned from the western expedition to Hanzhong last year, some ministers in the court also proposed to confer him the title of prince king.

However, at that time, several loyal officials of the Han Dynasty strongly opposed it.

This matter did not work just now and was suppressed.

But after this incident, the veteran who spoke out died suddenly and mysteriously at home, and his family members were sent out of the capital.

Who in the court has such great ability to do this has long been known.

Now that Dong Zhao mentioned the matter of "promoting officials and becoming nobles" again, Liu Xie's mind instantly became clear.

"Is this finally coming?"

He kept thinking silently in his heart.

This is self-evident!

It is nothing more than forcing himself to make the prime minister king.

But can he object?

Liu Xie asked himself that although he was the emperor, he had never truly held power since he succeeded to the throne.

The old man Dong Zhuo is like a jackal,

After Dong Zhuo died, Wang Yun and others, represented by the nobles, took control of the government.

Then, Dong Pifu's old troops gathered a large army to counterattack Chang'an, and once again used themselves as puppets.

Under their dependence, the fashionable and young emperor Liu Xie lived an inhuman life, like a nightmare.

With great difficulty, he escaped from the devil's cave under the planning of some loyal officials and retreated all the way to Luoyang, the eastern capital.

Although the situation was very difficult at that time, my livelihood was still difficult.

But this was the first time Liu Xie had a taste of control.

Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. As Cao Cao led his troops to defeat the surrounding rebels one after another, he had already become a target in his hands.

The only choice was to move the capital to Xuchang and make it the capital.

To this day,

Liu Xie went through ten or twenty years.

He witnessed Cao Cao's life from first respecting himself to gradually becoming more ambitious and treating himself as a puppet.

Dong Cheng’s case, Fu Hou’s case, Xun Yu’s case, Cui Yan’s case...

The old officials of the Han Dynasty were purged again and again...

Now that things have happened, among the ministers present, how many of them are still leaning toward themselves and the Han Dynasty?

After hearing Dong Zhao’s words,

Liu Xie's eyes had both the expected clarity and a hint of loneliness.
Chapter completed!