The Last Days of the Han (Three Kingdoms AAR)

[Zamarak500]

233-235: REBUILDING THE DYNASTY​

Hu Zan had passed away, but his last gift to the Chen was tremendous. His victory against Xibaxiong had led to a peace with the Xianbei Confederacy, one that would finally hold long enough for the Dynasty to recover. Still, his presence was greatly missed at court, with the Emperor mourning the loss of his mentor. Hu Zan had actively routed for the military career a young Xiao Tung when his own father didn’t believe in him. Now that he was Emperor Wu, he felt like he owed a lot to the late general, which is why he was honored as a hero in the Capital. With an imperial decree, Emperor Wu posthumously made Hu Zan the General who Guards the Dynasty. He also considered promoting him from marquis to duke, but this idea was abandoned at the insistence of Xiao Bin. While the Chancellor was all too happy to exploit the legacy of his personal enemy now that he was dead, he worried that this would be used as an excuse to strengthen the Hu Clan.

And the Hu Clan was certainly vocal about continuing Hu Zan’s legacy. His third son and heir Hu Jingxuan, the new Marquis of Donghai, petitioned the court to be appointed as the new Grand Commandant. After all, he had passed court exams and was known to be both brave and courageous. He was liked enough at court that the idea was entertained, if only out of consideration for his father. For his part, Hu Zan had hinted on a few occasions that he wanted his protégé Xue Tang to be his political heir, with some arguing that he should be promoted to replace his mentor. And then there was still Ba Daiping alive and well. He was the last of the old guard, the commanders who had made their careers in the late Han. Out of the three generals who had successfully pushed back the Liang invasion, he was the only one who remained. Adding to that his previous experience as Grand Commandant and his known desire to recover the officer, and it was easy to see why many considered him the obvious choice.

But these three candidates would see their chances dashed by the Chancellor Xiao Bin, who used his influence over his brother to remove these potential threats to his authority. His refusal of the first two was easily explainable by his deep hatred for Hu Zan. Promoting the man’s son was not something that he would allow, not in a million years. Same for Hu Zan’s protégé. He heard his brother talk about Xue Tang, and he became worried that this would become another Hu Zan, moving Emperor Wu away from court and toward dangerous ideas like empowering the military. But Ba Daiping had been a rival of Hu Zan and had no ties to the late general. He was probably the best man for the job. But Xiao Bin also remembered that Ba Daiping had led an uprising against the Chen Dynasty. This might have been tolerated in time of war, but now that peace had returned to the Chen he was not going to accept the rise of a chief traitor.

In the end, Emperor Wu settled on a compromise candidate that was satisfying for everyone. The new Grand Commandant would be Xue Fang, the elderly father of Xue Tang. Xue Fang had proven over the recent campaign to be an excellent commander and a wise man at that. He was loyal to the Dynasty and lacked the political affiliation at court, even as his son had been Hu Zan’s protégé. The old man was a respected general, related to an ally of Hu Zan, but also neutral when it came to the current politics of the Chen court. Having been wounded during the last battle with the Xianbei invaders, Xue Fang would also need to lead from the rear, thus leaving the glory and direct command to others, which suited the generals just fine. Emperor Wu promoted Xue Fang to Grand Commandant and also decided to make him the Marquis of Yan to reward his long military career in the Han and the Chen.

Surprising everyone, Xue Fang first action as Grand Commandant was to advise for a new campaign. But not against the Xianbei Confederacy, as they desperately needed that peace to hold out as long as possible. Instead, the Grand Commandant petitioned that the Chen Dynasty use the current civil war in the Liang to expand by attacking the rebellious general Zhao Yun, who was trying to overthrow Emperor Wen of Liang. Many argued that the Dynasty needed to recuperate, and others pointed out how Prince Xiao Dang was married to Zhao Yun’s daughter. But Emperor Wu and the generals could see that this was a golden opportunity. The Emperor cautiously ordered some plans to be drawn out for a potential campaign. But this would be for nothing, as Zhao Yun died in January 234, with his son quickly working out a peace with the Liang court.

And besides, the man who had suggested the campaign in the first place was dead by that point. Xue Fang had passed away on the 1st of January 234, dying from the wound he had suffered against the Xianbeis. His death relaunched the debate of who would be the next Grand Commandant. While an old officer took over the duties for a month or two, in the end Emperor Wu decided to trust his late mentor’s judgement and appointed Xue Tang to the office. Hu Zan’s protégé had already been allowed to inherit the title of his father and was now the Marquis of Yan. He was ambitious and wanted to finish what Hu Zan had started, though he lacked the political skills or the charisma to be on the same level as his mentor. It didn’t stop Xiao Bin from criticizing the appointment however, as he had hoped that the death of Hu Zan would finally mean the end of his influence over the Emperor. Apparently, the great general still held some sway even after his passing.

Not wanting to get all the attention on his first day, Xue Tang did not do the same as his father, instead agreeing with the court that the Chen Dynasty needed time to rebuild. The Chen Dynasty had spent the last half a decade fighting revolts from the inside and invaders from the outside. It was time to rebuild, to ensure that things didn’t fall apart the second another invasion came their way. The generals went to their commanderies or were sent on the border to fortify while Xiao Bin and the rest of the council worked on a policy to rebuild the Chen. With Hu Zan gone, the Chancellor was given a lot more opportunities to put his mark on the decisions, and Emperor Wu was all too happy to listen to his brother’s advice. The only issues on which they clashed was the military (which Emperor Wu favored far too much for Xiao Bin’s tastes) and the legal reforms of their father (Emperor Wu found them too ruthless while Xiao Bin supported them).

But the efforts to rebuild the Chen would not come fast enough. Sick of the instabilities that had gripped the Chen over the years, a group of peasants revolted in March in a county close to the Imperial Capital of Chenguo and decided to try and break free from the Chen. The peasant leader selfishly wondered why his family hadn’t been compensated for the many wars that had happened, even though his farm had been destroyed by one of the earliest revolts and had been rebuilt since. The problem was that he had managed to assemble around four thousand troops and were prepared to march on Chenguo.

The idea of seeing a peasant army sacking the Imperial Capital was not a happy one, which prompted Emperor Wu to take personal command of the response. While he took command of the army, he still wanted his wife and allies to be safe. He went so far as to temporarily recall the Crown Prince Xiao Gong to the Capital so that he could help oversee the defenses. This would give him some good experience and would be an excellent test of character. And it would also give Changle a chance to see him again. She had not seen much of her sons now that most of them served in provincial posts away from court (Xiao Dang had been appointed Administrator of Donglai Commandery following the death of the insane Yi Shing). Xiao Gong thus returned to Chenguo where the dull prince received a warm welcome from his relatives.

The peasant army only approached the Imperial Capital by the end of June, at which point Emperor Wu had an army ready to face them. Sadly, none of his generals had been able to link up with him to join this battle in front of Chenguo. Only one man managed to race in time to join the fray with troops, his surprise appearance allowing him to launch a daring assault on the rebel flanks. This was none other than Prince Xiao Dang, coming to his brother’s rescue in his hour of need. This was surprising, especially considering how Xiao Dang had previously joined a rebellion against his brother. Thanks to this unexpected arrival, the forces of the Emperor were able to easily dispatch these rebels and end the revolt in one swoop. Emperor Wu, unwilling to punish the people further, made sure to limit taxes in the rebellious region for the following year (though Xiao Bin and the Excellency of Works would make sure to compensate for it in the ensuing years).

Following this victory, Xiao Dang and Emperor Wu had their first face to face discussion since the brothers found themselves on opposing sides of a civil war. While the Emperor still felt slighted and betrayed by his brother, he decided that this show of dedication earned Xiao Dang a second chance. His brother would be allowed to prove that he was loyal, that he could serve the Chen Dynasty. All Xiao Dang had ever wanted was to regain his position as Excellency of Works, which he had held at the dawn of Emperor Cheng’s reign. And after decades of trying, he finally achieved his goal by showing dedication to his brother. With Xiao Bin also backing the idea of bringing their brother in (as Xiao Dang was known to be an excellent administrator), the fourth son of Emperor Cheng was made Excellency of Works in July 234.

One person was vehemently against the appointment however, and that was Crown Princess Ding. She argued that her husband deserved the promotion as a reward for his defense of the Capital. He was the Crown Prince, and she was the Crown Princess! Their place was in Chenguo, not in some provincial post away from the Capital! She had only just settled in the Crown Prince’s palace! Her insistence made Xiao Bin suspicious of the ambitious crown princess, who obviously sought more power for herself through her husband. Thankfully, Crown Prince Gong had proven quite unimpressive outside of his military duties, and Emperor Wu needed no convincing when it came to sending his son back to his county to gain more experience. Even Changle agreed with the decision, though in her case it was due to her disdain for her daughter-in-law’s openly anti-barbarian rhetoric. If Crown Princess Ding wanted access to the Inner Court, then she made no effort to gain any friends in it.

The appointment of Xiao Dang as Excellency of Works would prove a boon for the Dynasty. He was proving to arguably be the best holder of the office since the founding of the Chen. He was hardworking and stubborn when it came to completing his projects, always seeking ways to make them work even when some argued that they should be abandoned. He was also quite fair and just in his handling of his subordinates, a sense of fairness that did not turn to cruel justice like it did with their father. With Xiao Bin already proving an amazing Chancellor, Emperor Wu found himself backed by two excellent brothers. The popular monarch was himself growing more competent when it came to his administrative duties. Plus, he was already an amazing commander in his own rights, thus earning him the loyalty of the military. This state of affairs would be the status quo of Emperor Wu’s policy when it came to handling the various factions. His family stayed at court, and his generals stayed on the field. Never was one side to gain power in the other, thus avoiding that one group gained too much power or influence as to threaten the Emperor. It was a balance that Emperor Wu would prove able to keep.

Toward the end of the year, the Chen Dynasty was presented with an unexpected opportunity for expansion. The Liang Dynasty was in the middle of another civil war, though it was clear that Emperor Wen would be the one to come out on top. The rebel Huo Du, who was bordering the territories of the Chen Dynasty, decided to ensure his survival by offering his loyalty to another emperor. Emperor Wu was quite pleased when envoys arrived to Chenguo requesting that Huo Du be allowed to join the Chen Dynasty, the true heir to the Han. While Xiao Bin had some fears that this might lead to open conflict with the Liang, the three brothers agreed that they could not miss this opportunity. Emperor Wu gladly accepted this submission, sending his general Liu Derun with a contingent of Chen troops to reinforce Yangling Commandery.

Thankfully, the Liang Dynasty did not do anything about this annexation, leaving the Chen to acquire these new territories without any troubles. But there was still one issue that did flare up: Huo Du’s titles. Under the Liang Dynasty, Huo Du had been given the title of Marquis of Yangling, which he still claimed for himself. But the fact was that this was a title given by the Liang emperor. As the official policy of the Chen Dynasty was that the Liang emperors were illegitimate usurpers, this title could not be recognized by the court in Chenguo. Even as Huo Du insisted that he was still a marquis, even as the court called him “Administrator of Yangling Commandery” in the official letters. Xiao Bin eventually offered a solution to this, with Huo Du being received in Chenguo and promoted to the title of Marquis of Yangling by Emperor Wu. This way Huo Du would be able to be a marquis again, except that this time the title would come from the Chen, not the Liang. This left the new subordinate dissatisfied, as he felt he was given something he already owned, but no more issue came from it.

By the end of December, the rebuilding of the Chen was proving so effective that Emperor Wu was considering military expansion, going as far as asking his Grand Commandant Xue Tang for potential campaign plans. Conquest of territories was certainly out of the question at the moment. While the Liang Dynasty was internally weakened, Xue Tang did not believe the Chen Dynasty strong enough to make a move against it. As for the Xianbei, Xue Tang did not believe that breaking the peace with Xibaxiong would accomplish anything other than dooming the Chen. And in the south, most of the barbarians paid tribute to Chenguo, thus making their conquest useless. Well, not all of them. Chief Yan Baotun of Qiantang refused to accept Chen authority. Clearly, this was something that needed to be fixed. The Xiao brothers sent envoys to the barbarian chieftain demanding tribute. When Yan Baotun refused them, Emperor Wu declared war on him, a decision he took on the last day of 234.

Trusting thar Xiao Bin could handle the affairs of the court in his absence, Emperor Wu took personal command of this expedition, though he would not go alone. By his sides were two generals that were quickly rising within the Chen military, a clear sign that unlike the Liang, the Chen did have a next generation of officers to rely on once the old men had all died. The first one was obviously the ever-loyal Liu Derun, whose devotion to the Chen Dynasty had been felt ever since he abandoned his titles out of loyalty to Emperor Cheng. He was kind, humble and sociable, all things that endeared him to Emperor Wu. With them was the new Marquis of Donghai Hu Jingxuan. The son of Hu Zan was finally given an opportunity to make a name for himself instead of coasting on his father’s reputation, a chance he was not going to waste.

The high morale and good spirit that surrounded this campaign were hampered when Emperor Wu received news from his youngest son Xiao Zenguang. Toward the end of 234, the third prince had followed in his brother’s footsteps by being appointed to a provincial post to gain some experience in government. Emperor Wu had high hopes for Xiao Zenguang, who was an honest and hardworking young man with a kind heart and a mind dedicated to studying. But in early 234, the prince’s longtime weakened health proved to be early symptoms of leprosy. Realizing what this meant, and fearful that this might spread to others, Xiao Zenguang would from now on isolate himself from political life. In his letter to his parents, he thanked them for their love and warned them that he would do his upmost to never meet them again.

This news was heartbreaking to the Empress, who tried against good sense to go meet her poor son, who was only 17. Emperor Wu, himself saddened at the cruel fate Heaven had placed on his youngest son, had to put guards in front of the Empress’s palace for the rest of the campaign to stop Changle from going to their son’s side. Already Xiao Dan was struck with bouts of madness, and now his youngest was a leper. In a private letter to Xiao Bin, Emperor Wu asked his brother what he had done for Heaven to turn on him like that. Their father had been a monster, and still his sons were all competent men without issues. Yet he acted rightfully, and even punished him. Wasn’t the Son of Heaven supposed to be good? However, Emperor Wu was not aware of Xiao Cang’s own mental problems, which seemed to indicate at the very least his family was prone to mental illness.

Familial tragedies could not get in the way of the campaign. Well, campaign might be a bit of a stretch. Yan Baotun decided to go on the offensive, with his troops entering the Chen Dynasty at the start of 235. He hoped to raid enough of towns and cause enough chaos that the Emperor would decide that this was not worth it. But the barbarian chieftain never had any chance. His army barely had two thousand warriors in it. When the imperial forces showed up with four times his numbers in March, he was easily defeated on the battlefield. Fearful of what this Imperial Army would do if they came to his territories, Yan Baotun immediately agreed to become a tributary of the Chen Dynasty, thus ending this whole war after a single battle four months in. The Chen Dynasty was certainly growing in power and influence, and Emperor Wu was confident that this would only continue in the years to come.

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PS: Sorry for the month long pause. I just really needed that time to study, cause I suck at learning language and I need to learn two of them for my doctorate. Anyway, I'm back for the holidays, so I should be able to post way more often.

 

[Bibliophile]

Not going to lie, the way the Chen Dynasty and Emperor Wu was being talked up this update, I expected something to happen to one or both of them. Glad that’s not the case; but I’m still wary for the next Chen focused update.

Also my heart broke for Xiao Zenguang. Having to separate yourself from family that you love, even when you know it’s for their own health and safety, has to be hard. I can’t blame Changle for wanting to see him, nor can I blame Emperor Wu for his feelings of how unfair fate was to his son.

 

[Zamarak500]

Also my heart broke for Xiao Zenguang. Having to separate yourself from family that you love, even when you know it’s for their own health and safety, has to be hard. I can’t blame Changle for wanting to see him, nor can I blame Emperor Wu for his feelings of how unfair fate was to his son.

Emperor Wu honestly has it rough when it comes to his personal life, all the way back with the way his wife was bullied for being a barbarian, to the way his father clearly looked at him as a disappointment, then the role he played in ruining Xiao Cang's life, and now all the problems his sons have. Poor guy.

On a more pragmatic point of view, the court must also be a bit worried about succession. Emperor Cheng had many competent and or popular sons that could take over the Chen Dynasty once he died. With maybe the exception of Xiao Hanhe (who I feel would have turned into something akin to Emperor Wen), they could have all done a good job.

That's not really the case with Emperor Wu. His Crown Prince is notably lacking in evrything outside of his military skills and has a weak personality. Then you have Xiao Dan, who is has too many mental problems to be considered. In many ways, Xiao Zenguang was probably seen as the best replacement for the Crown Prince, a well rounded, likeable and studious prince. They probably hoped that he would learn and improve during his time in the provinces. And then he got leprosy. With these three as the potential successors, you can't help but worry about the future of the Chen Dynasty.

 

[HistoryDude]

The Chen have achieved a victory over the Liang! They are more stable.

I wonder if a new dynasty can emerge from the Liang's weakness?

 

[Zamarak500]

235: THE ORIGINAL HEIR​

Once upon a time, there was a young prince named Yao Xiu. He was destined to great things, supposed to inherit the Dynasty built by his father. The Crown Prince knew how to navigate court politics and had learn enough in military affairs that he eventually expected his father to hand him a command. But as his relationship with Emperor Anwu deteriorated, Yao Xiu became more and more paranoid. Many conspired to pass the Mandate to his younger brother instead, and he started to plot in order to keep control over his inheritance. But his plots were eventually foiled, in part because his mother just couldn’t stay in line! She costed him everything! His father (and to a lesser extent his brother) then worked to have him removed from his rightful position as the heir, after which he was banished on the coast to one of the newly conquered counties of Yang Province, all the while his younger brother Yao Yuan became the new crown prince.

But instead of lamenting his misfortune, Yao Xiu endeavored to work hard and prove that he was the right choice as an heir. His time as a magistrate in Yang Province garnered praises throughout the Dynasty, and his time in the south helped him grow as a person. Before he had been nothing more than a plotter. Now he was proving to be a competent administrator, a learned man and an excellent politician. Had time been on his side, Yao Xiu was convinced that he would have eventually been able to regain his position as the heir. But Heaven clearly had other plans, as his father died in 225 and Yao Yuan ascended to the throne as Emperor Wen. His brother had wisely appointed him as Governor of Liang Province, their father’s homeland, and had made him the Crown Prince. Yao Xiu once again gained a path to the throne.

Yao Xiu then spent the following decade being lauded as the best governor in the Liang Dynasty. The Crown Prince never faced revolts or problems within his province, unlike the rest of the governors under Emperor Wen. He was also tasked with building the Imperial Tomb for their father, a task that he was never able to finish due to the disastrous handling of the Dynasty’s finances by his brother. He would have liked to help his brother with this, just like he would have preferred that Emperor Wen listen to him instead of his father-in-law Mo Jie, who had dangerous ideas that would weaken the Liang Dynasty. But Emperor Wen was clearly fearful of his brother, even though Yao Xiu would have been happy to protect his eventual throne from brutes like Xu Chu and Zhao Yun. But it didn’t matter if his brother didn’t want him. He would get the throne eventually. And the fact that he had a son while his brother didn’t mean that the future rulers of the Liang would be from his line.

Then Yao Xiu was notified that the Emperor was sick and requested his presence in Chang’an immediately. Taking a decent escort with him, the Crown Prince hastened to the Imperial Capital. He would have raced there with a small entourage had he not been worried with the Pan Clan. The courtier who had told him of his brother’s declining health also warned the Crown Prince that they had tried to stop the news from leaving the Capital, clearly in an attempt to stop him from coming. This would mark the first blow in the conflict between Yao Xiu and the Pan Clan. He had already been opposed to their growing influence at court, but now they were trying to deny him his inheritance. Empress Pan especially seemed a dangerous force at court, one that might be willing to hinder him at every turn. He needed to be careful.

He became ever more suspicious when a messenger from the Capital met him on the way, telling him that the Emperor had recuperated and that the Crown Prince could return to his province. Suspicious of this order, Yao Xiu expressed his relief, but insisted that he wanted to congratulate his brother on his quick recovery. When the messenger tried to dissuade him, he insisted, wanting to at least pay homage to the funerary tablets of Empress Dowager Liang, his brother’s late mother. The messenger could do little but agree. Yao Xiu had the messenger imprisoned, unwilling to let him slip out and warn the court of his incoming arrival. The Pan Clan might then decide to ambush him. All his suspicions were proven right, as upon reaching Chang’an he learned that his brother had died two weeks ago.

The issue was that the Capital was now under the control of Empress Pan and her brother, and they made it clear that they wouldn’t open the gates of the city unless Yao Xiu made some serious concessions. Pan Zhiyuan would stay as Chancellor and the now former Empress Pan would be allowed to continue residing in the Empress’s palace, thus allowing her to keep some of her prestige and influence over the inner court. These demands were a far stretch from Yao Xiu’s plan to have both of them banished to southern Yi Province where they belonged.

The Crown Prince now had to consider his options. The fact was that the Pan Clan had no candidate to back, no one else to put on the throne. The only other candidate was Yao Xiu’s son Yao Hao, who was safely under his care. Even if the city was somehow still loyal to them, he was the only one who could become emperor. It was likely that the provinces would side with him, and he could already put the Capital under siege if he wanted to. But Chang’an had a reputation of being impregnable, which would mean a long-protracted siege. Starting your reign by besieging your own capital did not look good. It would certainly hurt the prestige of the Dynasty. And while he was besieging the city, the Liang would be left vulnerable. Some governors might decide to use this to break away, or the Chen might move to invade while the Imperial Army was distracted.

He needed a quick enthronement, or the Liang Dynasty would suffer. Grudgingly, with his teeth clenched, Yao Xiu agreed to the Pan siblings’ demands. The gates were opened to the Crown Prince and a ceremony was hastily organized. Entering Chang’an for the first time in more than a decade, Yao Xiu finally fulfilled his ambitions, becoming the third emperor of the Liang Dynasty in late January 235. He would eventually receive the posthumous name of Emperor Yuan of Liang (梁元帝; Liáng Yuán Dì; “The Primal Emperor of Liang”). His first decrees as Emperor were to elevate his wife Mo Xiaowen to the rank of Empress and his son Yao Hao to the position of Crown Prince. However, he did not posthumously promote the late Empress Cheng to Empress Dowager, still blaming his mother for costing him the succession in 220.

Immediately after his ascension, the newly enthroned Emperor tried to renege on his promises and move against the former Empress. The fact that the former Empress resided in the Empress’s palace was an insult to the Emperor, and more importantly for him, it was an insult to his wife. Empress Mo was forced to reside in another palace, usually used by the favorite concubine of an emperor. It needed repairs, which had been put off during the reign of Emperor Wen because he simply did not have the money to handle these kinds of things. His wife was also refusing to live in a concubine’s palace. She was the daughter of the great Mo Jie, the Empress of the Liang Dynasty, the mother of the Crown Prince! She should be sleeping in the Empress’s palace. So why was this woman who should have no influence living in her home?

Emperor Yuan wanted to remove the late Empress Pan to another palace, and so he tried to turn the court and ask for support in removing Pan Xiaoji. He maneuvered in order to have some old law drawn up that would conveniently allow him to remove the designation of the Empress’s palace from that said palace, at least long enough for him to remove her from the palace (and if possible, the Capital). But to his surprise, the court opposed his move, with petitions asking him to honor his word. This forced Emperor Yuan to face the harsh fact that he was facing a court alien to him. It was no longer the court that he had left, which included many officials that supported him and his cause. He had spent more than a decade away from Chang’an, which had given the Pan Clan more than enough time to build themselves a network of allies and supporters. For the time being, they held sway at court, not him. His first attempt to oppose the former empress had failed.

When the former Empress came a few days later asking for her salary to keep her lifestyle in the Empress’s palace, Emperor Yuan flatly refused. She would not get a single coin from the treasury. If she wanted to entertain her luxurious lifestyle, then the Pan Clan would have to pay for it. There was once again a small uproar, with some officials worried that they might see their salaries also be freeze for their support of the Pan Clan. Their idiotic reaction baffled the Emperor. He wasn’t just doing out of pettiness. The finances were such a mess that he couldn’t go around spending it frivolously. He needed that money to rebuild the Liang Dynasty after the recent civil wars. Couldn’t these idiots not see that he was trying to save them all?

Clearly, Emperor Yuan needed new allies, as most of the current officials were either useless, corrupt, or far too aligned with the Pan Clan to be trustworthy. Like his brother, Emperor Yuan decided to find allies among his family and relatives. Huang Dunli, his nephew who served as the Grand Commandant of the Imperial Army, quickly caught his attention. Huang Dunli might not be well liked at court, but he was a competent military general. The Emperor correctly guessed that while Huang Dunli was loyal to the Liang due to the advantage his relationship with the Imperial Clan gave him, he didn’t have any particular loyalty within the empire as long as it benefited him. Using this to his advantage, Emperor Yuan gained his nephew support by appointing him Administrator of Longxi Commandery in Liang Province. And just like that, he secured himself the head of the imperial military.

Just as Emperor Wen had relied on the Pan Clan for support, Emperor Yuan decided to seek help from the Mo Clan against his enemies. He thus decided to appoint Mo Duo, the adopted son of Mo Jie, as an Imperial Councilor. By this point, the second Marquis of Yong had completely abandoned his barbarian ways and lived as a provincial Chinese nobleman enjoying the good life, which would have made his adoptive father turn in his grave. Mo Duo accepted the position (it was not like he could say no), but he would wisely never take his place at court. Partially because he liked his good provincial life, but more importantly because he understood that his presence would simply be used against Emperor Yuan. He spent enough time with Mo Jie to realize that being seen as a barbarian lover only helped your enemies. So while Mo Duo would advise and help his brother-in-law, he would stay away from court to avoid creating a scandal.

Besides, the Emperor already had a scandal on his hand. Once again following in his father’s footsteps, Emperor Yuan found himself with his eldest daughter pregnant with a child out of wedlock after an affair with an official (who currently served in Bing Province under Xuan Mei). The Emperor had tried to keep her in Liang Province, but convinced that Bing Province would send envoys to her father’s enthronement, Yao Lin made her way to the Capital, where she gave birth to a bastard son in February. This was just as much of a scandal as it was when Yao Ki had a bastard son with Hu Cheer in 207, made worse by the fact that the lover was nowhere to be found. At least with Hu Cheer the father knew who to assassinate for this humiliation. Emperor Yuan, not wanting to see this turn into a bigger problem, quietly had Princess Lin married to Qu Dunli, son of Qu Duyi, one of Liu Siyuan’s main generals. Unlike her aunt before her, Yao Lin did not protest one bit, as her new husband was posted on the northern border… in Bing Province, where her lover also resided.

While politics at court were difficult for the new emperor, he immediately started to improve the affairs of the Dynasty. The coffers had been badly managed under Emperor Wen, with the Emperor either not collecting the taxes right or spending it all away on useless affairs, like paying for peace with the Chen Dynasty. Emperor Yuan started to work with the Excellency of Works Xu Ziying (son of Xu Shu), who he wanted to help him improve things. Already, Emperor Yuan had managed to fill the imperial coffers with his own, having amassed a large sum of coins in Liang Province, which proved enough to temporarily help stabilize the Dynasty. Impressed, and realizing that there might be advantages to getting in the Emperor’s good graces, Xu Ziying and Emperor Yuan started to work on the taxations and building projects that were needed to restore the Dynasty to its former heights.

Emperor Yuan’s ultimate goal was to throw away the disruptive reforms of his father-in-law as well as the edicts introduced to counter them, but that would mean asking the Chancellor for help with all these laws, and he was not going to lower himself to groveling in front of his enemies. Instead, he turned to the Grand Tutor Bu Jing. Bu Jing had always been suspicious of the rise of the Pan Clan and thought them a threat to the stability of the Liang. He also knew the Son of Heaven from his time in Yang Province, and he knew that backing the Emperor was the right choice. While Bu Jing had previously been a supporter of Mo Jie’s reforms, he knew that Emperor Yuan was the best choice between the ones offered to him at this time. And while the Emperor didn’t like the reforms on paper, he had no issue with their goals of improving the lives of the peasantry. Bu Jing thus hoped that by helping the Emperor, he would be able to bring some reforms to ease the burden of the people as Mo Jie had wanted, but without shifting the power dynamic so much that Emperor Yuan opposed these ideas.

Emperor Yuan had also been quick to order the rebel Wei Yan to be dealt with. He had previously refused to pay his taxes to Chang’an during the reign of his brother and now stood as an independent warlord. Upon ascending to the throne, he wrote to Governor Bei Tiao of Jing Province (the successor of Qin Qiao) asking him to launch an expedition against the rebel. He even sent gold to the province to ensure that it was done, knowing that some monetary incentive would help motivate the local officials. Manyl administrators, using the provincial troops made available by Mo Jie’s reforms, started to assault Wei Yan’s territories. This would prove a working tactic, as the rebellious general would lose all his territories by the end of the year.

And all that after only two months on the throne. Emperor Yuan could only smile, convinced that things would continue to go well for him. But his eyes were not just focused on the inside of his Dynasty. He also looked at the recovering Chen Dynasty of Emperor Wu. And while he didn’t admit it, Emperor Yuan was jealous of the success of his imperial rival. Emperor Wu had pushed back against the forces of their brother-in-law Xibaxiong, achieving a legendary victory and forcing the undefeated Xianbeis to negotiate. He was rebuilding his state and now had just achieve a victory against barbarians. This frustrated Emperor Yuan. Surely, everything this pretender could do, he could do too. After all, he was the Son of Heaven!

Not wanting to be upstaged by the Chen emperor, Emperor Yuan began to look for a target for his own campaign. In the end, his sight fell on a Shanyue chieftain in Yang Province who still remained free even as his territories were surrounded by Liang territories. Chief Zu Shang had raided the province on a few occasions during the reign of Emperor Wen, giving Emperor Yuan the perfect excuse to invade. But unlike Emperor Wu, he was not seeking a tributary. He wanted to conquer these territories, permanently. Emperor Yuan thus announced this campaign at the end of March. And surprisingly, he announced that he would lead it in person, just as Emperor Wu did. He hoped that this campaign would gain him enough political capital to finally move against the Pan Clan and assert his dominance at court. Soon, the Liang would return to the great empire it had been when it was founded. And when all his enemies had been removed and his position secured… well, there will only be one target left, right?

 

[Bibliophile]

Wow we got another update rather quickly. Also all hail Emperor Yuan. May you successfully remove the thorn in your side known as the Pan clan.

And when all his enemies had been removed and his position secured… well, there will only be one target left, right?

Well that’s certainly foreboding. The final clash between empires might be approaching sooner than I thought. Whatever the outcome, a dream (and probably several beloved characters) will die.

 

[Ixarys]

Both dynasties are sharpening their swords, hmm?

 

[Zamarak500]

235-236: A WAR FOR REPUTATION​

April 235 would mark the beginning of Emperor Yuan’s first campaign. As much as he believed himself to be his father’s rightful successor and how much he studied warfare, the fact was that at 31 years old this would be his first real military experience. By that point, Emperor Anwu had spent years as a general and warlord, winning at least a dozen battles against various rebels and enemies. But circumstances were different. The father had been raised in a time of chaos and constant warfare, while the son had been raised within the safety of the father’s conquests. But even so, he was confident that he would triumph and that this campaign would fulfil its goal. He would show that he was a conqueror, that he could expand the Dynasty, that his view of the future was the right one. And once he returned victorious, he would surely have enough support to remove those damn Pan siblings from court.

Emperor Yuan met with his nephew Huang Dunli to prepare a plan for the campaign. While he would be commanding it himself, he had ample time to prepare with his Grand Commandant while the full might of the Liang Imperial Army assembled. It would take months before the troops were readied, which left the Emperor the opportunity to handle affairs before he had to leave, including how he would handle this campaign. The plan that they worked on together was simple: victory by sheer numbers. Emperor Yuan wanted to show the strength of the Liang Dynasty, which had been put into question throughout the reign of his brother. Huang Dunli was a bit annoy by the amount of troops that the Emperor wanted to send, in part due to the lack of plunder it would leave for him, but Emperor Yuan promised to pay his nephew for the expedition in order to keep his loyalty.

Of course, the Pan Clan was aware of what the Emperor was trying to do. The former Empress Pan knew that Emperor Yuan was out to get them ever since his attempt to go after her presence in the Empress’s palace. While she had yet to figure out exactly how he was planning the use the war to further his goals, she knew that he would use this campaign in some way. Their position was incredibly precarious since the death of Emperor Wen, and every month their control over court would be slipping. While she still had influence and allies that allowed her to control the court, the fact was that she currently had little to offer to her supporters. All she could do was hinder the Emperor, not reward her followers. Emperor Yuan could give them titles and offices, while she could not, as shown with Huang Dunli. She needed to sabotage this campaign as much as possible, or this might prove to be the end for her.

The feud between the two sides wasn’t helped by the fact that Emperor Yuan started to plot the murder of Chancellor Pan Zhiyuan in May. While the former empress was clearly the brain behind the Pan Clan’s influence at court, the fact was that without her brother she would find herself extremely diminished. It was a world of men, and without one to be her puppet she would be far more easily pushed aside. After all, there was a reason why she wanted Pan Zhiyuan to stay Chancellor. Sadly for the Emperor, his efforts in this were hampered by the Excellency of Masses Lu Yu, who had aligned with the Pan Clan and proved difficult to get around. His plots to get rid of this troublesome Chancellor thus came to nothing, at least for now.

At the very least, Emperor Yuan broke the last lingering link between the Imperial Clan and the Pan Clan to make things clear to everyone where he stood. Emperor Wen had agreed to a betrothal between their sister Princess Chuntao and Pan Shilang, a son of Pan Zhiyuan. This alliance was supposed to cement the Pan Clan as the great allies of the Liang Dynasty and ensure that they continued to work hard to protect Emperor Wen. But the situation had completely changed now that Emperor Yuan was in charge. Emperor Yuan informed his sister that she would instead be married to a young officer currently operating in the south of Jing Province, who he hoped to eventually bring to Chang’an as a member of his officer corps. While the princess mostly shrugged, the Pan Clan was furious at this, seeing another source of legitimacy being cut off from under them.

But Emperor Yuan also had to worry about two troublesome governors that were causing him headaches. The first one was, unsurprisingly, Governor Xuan Mei of Bing Province, son of the infamous Xuan Su. As always, his ambitions to expand his control were at the center of this whole affair. After his last failure to seize You Province, he had finally turned his sight elsewhere, only to decide that it would be a great idea to annex Shang Commandery, controlled by a son of the late Grand Commandant Yang Xiu. When Emperor Yuan came to power, this war was still going on, eventually catching his attention. Now, Xuan Mei had some arguments to support his actions, most notably that Shang Commandery had historically been part of Bing Province and had only been split off due to its illegal conquest by Yang Xiu. Emperor Anwu had been willing to allow it in order to make Yang Xiu a counterweight to Xuan Su’s influence, but now both men were gone. Surely this could be tolerated, right? But Emperor Yuan didn’t want any internal civil war, and unlike his brother he would be firm about it. In May, he censored Xuan Mei, thus kicking him out of the Imperial Bureaucracy.

Then came the case of Governor Han Gongxin of Ji Province, who had been only recently appointed to replace Zhao Gongxiu after his suspicious death. During his time in the Capital, Han Gongxin had earned a reputation for being a lecherous fellow, often hanging with women or girls to an inappropriate degree. It seemed that this might have included Princess Yao Yian, the eldest daughter of Emperor Wen and born from one of his concubines. Now, Emperor Yuan had never met his niece before becoming emperor, but that didn’t stop him from being disgusted that she had gotten pregnant at the young age of 12 by a man 23 years older. It could have been avoided had Han Gongxin claimed his innocence, with Emperor Yuan willing to swipe this whole affair under the rug. But no, the governor claimed loudly and proudly that it was his child, even legitimizing the bastard when the boy was born in June. Emperor Yuan was quick to censor Han Gongxin the moment the bastard saw the light of day.

Censoring problematic governors wasn’t something new, having been most famously used by Emperor Wen against Zhao Yun before he revolted. But Emperor Yuan didn’t see this in the same way as his brother. Emperor Wen had done this as a punishment… and then left Zhao Yun to his own affairs, never removing him from office. It had been a half-measure because the Emperor didn’t want to go the full way. Meanwhile, Emperor Yuan had no problem removing these governors from the get go, but he instead shrewdly offered them a way out. The censorship doomed their career, and should they continue in their wayward ways they would be removed once he returned from campaign. However, should they change and prove loyal and useful to the Emperor, he would be willing to reconfirm them in the Imperial Bureaucracy. This was a last chance he was offering them, hoping to find them begging to support him and help him in any way possible.

The troops had finally assembled toward the end of the summer. Emperor Yuan then made his way south with a large enough escort, once again convinced that the Pan Clan would try to ambush him and kill him. Among the officers that accompanied him, two of them stood out as the main commanders of this campaign. The first was Zhang Ling, a general of experience known for his kindness, courage, humility and love of hunting. He had notably served in the ill-fated invasion of the Chen Dynasty, where like every other officer he had been soundly defeated by the Chen generals. The other commander was Lü Sun, son of the warlord Lü Bu. He had escaped to Liang Province when his father’s territories were seized by Gongsun Zan. He thanked the man who hosted his fleeing family by pledging his life to the Yao Imperial Clan as a general, thus following in his father’s footsteps. He also, in a weird twist of fate, married Jiang Xiaofan, daughter of Chancellor Jiang Xian of the Han, one of the key conspirators in the murder of his adoptive grandfather Dong Zhuo. These two men represented a shift toward a new generation of officers competent enough to defend the Liang Dynasty, a renewal that was finally taking place after a clear lack of talent during the later reign of Emperor Wen.

On his way south, Emperor Yuan stopped to speak with his brother-in-law Mo Duo, who was then serving as a provincial magistrate on the border with the Chen Dynasty. The two spent this small time together discussing how to remove the Pan Clan from Chang’an. For all his love of the Chinese lifestyle, Mo Duo never got why they cared so much about protocols, ceremonies and etiquettes. He understood all this subtlety, but he just didn’t care much for it, especially in this case. Emperor Yuan and the former empress were just dancing around each other, waiting to make moves so hidden that no one would even notice them taking place. Mo Duo simply said “Just kill them. Remove them permanently. It will cause problems, but them you will be able to deal with these problems freely.” Emperor Yuan shrugged off this barbaric approach to his situation, though he kept the advice at the back of his mind for the rest of the campaign.

As they made their way south during the autumn and winter, Emperor Yuan was notified that a revolt among the barbarian tribes had taken place. Xuan Mei’s attempt to conquer Shang Commandery had left the mountainous region between Liang and Bing Provinces full of peasants fleeing the war. The local barbarians didn’t like these interlopers, With the provincial militias used to fight Xuan Mei’s war instead of handling the crisis, the barbarians rose up and pushed the peasants out. When the court heard of this, the barbarians were deemed rebels and enemies of the Liang Dynasty for taking up arms. While Emperor Yuan agreed that these barbarians were indeed rebels, he cursed the Pan Clan for being so tactless when it came to other cultures. Clearly, they had inherited these views from their famed father. With the Imperial Army fully committed to the southern campaign, the Court would have to wait for the troops to come back north before the revolt could be handled.

At first, things seemed to be going well. The march south did lead to some desertion, but nothing more than what was usually seen. Those caught were punished, and things went back to normal. The barbarian enemies didn’t even try to fight them, seemingly aware of the foolishness of such an act. Emperor Yuan could only smile, convinced that this would be an easy campaign that he could capitalize upon. Then things started to go wrong. The Pan Clan did everything to disrupt the campaign, cause supply issues, with some being missing, delayed or simply the wrong kind. This obviously led to more desertion, enough so that it started to be a problem for Emperor Yuan.

And then there was general Zhang Ling. It turned out that he felt more loyal to the Pan Clan than to Emperor Yuan, who he feared would be a cruel and ruthless ruler like his father before him. Zhang Ling was convinced that the Liang Dynasty needed a softer hand, and the Pan Clan seemed like a moderating influence at court. So he helped the supply problems, sent the wrong orders to his subordinates or made some critical mistakes that any competent officer would have easily avoided. And then Zhang Ling often got into public disputes with other officers, like Lü Sun or Huang Dunli. He was sabotaging the campaign, and had he not been necessary to complete it, Emperor Yuan would have probably had him executed for his actions. But Zhang Ling would have never endangered the lives of his men, which is probably why he was not immediately punished.

And then the spring came, which meant the beginning of tropical diseases in the south. Many of the soldiers, unaccustomed to life in the southern part of China, quickly fell ill to diseases. Epidemic spread through the camps, and by the time summer came the soldiers were already dropping like flies. Disease had always been a problem for armies invading from the north, but the supply issues only aggravated the situation. And obviously, the local barbarians did nothing to help the massive invading army camping on their lands. They poisoned the Chinese soldiers as often as they could or did night raids to attack the camps.

In the end, the war was concluded in June 236 after months of pain and suffering. Of the 30,000 men that had made their way south, half had died due to attrition or disease. This campaign was supposed to show the greatness and the might of the Liang Dynasty. Instead, it had been a massive disaster, even if it had achieved its goal of conquering territories. And Emperor Yuan knew who to blame for this mess: the Pan siblings. They had been hindering his campaign and caused this debacle. And now his plan to return a conquering hero and use his newfound fame to remove them was ruined! Angry and frustrated, he decided that he should just take the advice of Mo Duo. Enough was enough. It certainly lacked class, but by now it was necessary. He had troops, which he could use to march on his own Capital, perform a self-coup and remove his enemies permanently. Emperor Yuan thus ordered his army back home, ready to do what needed to be done.

 

[Bibliophile]

So the emperor plans to straight up kill those meddlesome Pans. A part of me wonders how this will go wrong.

 

[HistoryDude]

Well, the Liang has managed to expand, but there is quite a lot of internal trouble.

I agree with the Mo Clan - just kill them already!

I suspect that a civil war between the Pan Clan and the Imperial Throne is quickly becoming inevitable... which would be amazing for the Chen!

 

[streaker77]

Finally caught up! Emperor Wen is dead and the Liang have a new emperor, Yao Xiu, now emperor Yuan has grown a lot in the years from his amateurish plotting and his decision to remain loyal to his brother (due to their friendship) has paid off bigtime, if he has suceeded as emperor of the Liang following his fathers death instead of Wu, I dont think his reign would have been much better and would have been doomed to failure, but now he gets to ascend as emperor with well over a decade of being a respected govenor and all the experience that came with that, ascending to the throne already having a male error is a positive also. Emperor Yuans paranoia will likely end up being a boon as opposed to his brothers cowardice as he still has the spine to firmly demand vassals stop their wars.

Still not perfect circumstances to ascend to, Yuan is a foreigner and an outsider in the capitol, it will take time to clear the muck that his weak brother allowed to accumulate in the capitol, the courtiers clearly are used to being able to manipulate the emperor and the asencison of Yuan provides a compliciation to this. If Yuan is too have any semblance of control in the capitol he must expel the Pan squatters, by casket or exile.

As for Emperor Wu, things seem to be going well, but I have a feeling if the Chen are to have any hope of surpassing the Liang as the true power, it must happen in Wu's own lifetime and soon at that, things are going well for the Chen, but it wouldnt surprise me that upon Wu's death if a weak Wen type emperor took power, the best chance for stabillity and the Chen to continue to ascend is if Xiao Dang, Wus brother suceeds him.

 

[Zamarak500]

235-236: THE GREAT XIAO IMPERIAL CLAN​

Emperor Wu had returned from his little war against the barbarian chieftain Yan Baotun, who had wisely chosen to surrender and submit to the authority of the Chen Dynasty as a tributary. This was a nice little success for his reinvigorated dynasty. The Chen Dynasty was finally recovering under his leadership (and his brothers’ stewardship). This successful little campaign was nothing more than a proof of that. Soon, the Chen Dynasty would be strong enough to do some real expansion. But for the time being, Emperor Wu would have to put asides his ambitions against the Liang and his desire for revenge against Xibaxiong. For now, he needed to make sure that the Chen Dynasty prospered under his rule.

This was especially important as news were coming from the Liang Dynasty about a change of regime. Emperor Wen had died after a decade long reign that notably saw them invade the Chen Dynasty, an invasion that was luckily pushed back by the efforts of Din Zhiguo, Hu Zan and Ba Daiping. Now there was a new emperor in Chang’an, Emperor Yuan of Liang. The Chen Dynasty had heard of the disgraced prince on a few occasions, from his failure to be appointed crown prince to his surprising success as a official in Yang Province. And now it seemed that he had been promoted from Governor of Liang Province to Emperor. It was to be expected that this new emperor would prove a lot more competent than the previous one, and far more active. This was proven when Emperor Yuan launched an expedition south only two months into his reign. The trio of Xiao brothers would need to keep an eye on their new enemy.

But Emperor Wu found himself quite occupied, as his new tributary immediately asked his new overlord for help. It turned out that while he was fighting the Chen military, a distant cousin had decided to launch an expedition to seize the territories of Yan Baotun. Once upon a time, the region had been held by the Yan Clan, eventually splitting between two brothers who themselves divided their lands between their sons and grandsons. Those brothers were the grandfathers of Yan Baotun and his invading cousin Yan Ma, who used Yan Baotun’s absence to make his move. Yan Ma hoped to first conquer these territories, after which he would move to reconquer the whole of the territories held by the Yan Clan. Considering that the majority of the Yan chieftains paid tribute to the Chen Dynasty, this was an unacceptable outcome to Emperor Wu, who had no choice but to come to his tributary’s rescue.

While he sent back some of the generals he had by his side, he made sure to keep the competent Liu Derun to assist him. The Emperor had grown quite fund of this commander. While he was a scion of the Han, Liu Derun was arguably the most loyal subject of the Chen after the Imperial Clansmen themselves. They were of the same generation, and the two of them had a kind soul and more than enough bravery. The two got along so much that Emperor Wu entertained the idea of appointing him as Grand Commandant, though he eventually decided against it. Why replace Xue Tang on a whim when he was doing such a good job?

The Emperor was also continuously kept updated by Xiao Bin about the goings on at court. Emperor Wu’s trust in his brother was big enough that the Chancellor was allowed a lot more leeway than what was usual for the office. For example, he suggested that the new Marquis of Yangling Hu Duo, who had recently defected to the Chen Dynasty, be allowed to serve as an Imperial Councilor. While the appointment took place in May, the Emperor was only warned later about it, though he agreed with the decision when he was made aware of it. Xiao Bin knew that with the right arguments, he could act as nothing less than a regent, though he still needed his brother’s agreement of course.

In this case, he justified the appointment of Hu Duo by the amount of information this man could provide about the Liang Dynasty. The Marquis of Yangling was not the first defector from the Liang to join the Chen court, far from it. However, Hu Duo was the only one of them to have served in the highest echelons on the Liang bureaucracy. He had been the Excellency of Works under both Emperor Anwu and Emperor Wen, allowing him to see documents and learn information that the Chen Dynasty always dreamt of capturing. Hu Duo’s time in the Liang Dynasty made him a goldmine of knowledge that could give them the edge over their rival dynasty, especially if the Chen ever decided to invade the Liang in the near future.

During the late summer, Emperor Wu and Liu Derun launched an assault against the forces of Yan Ma. The barbarian leader clearly did not expect the Chen Emperor to care enough to come down and rescue his new tributary. Taken aback by the arrival of the Imperial Army, Yan Ma tried to open channels with the Emperor, even suggesting that he would be willing to become a tributary of the Chen Dynasty after reunifying the lands of the Yan Clan. But Emperor Wu didn’t want to take the risk. For all he knew, Yan Ma would simply renege on the agreement once he had achieved his goal and the Imperial Army had retreated back home. Emperor Wu instead ordered an assault that led to the complete annihilation of Yan Ma’s forces. However, the barbarian leader escape. While Emperor Wu would return home after this victory, Liu Derun would spend the rest of the year hunting down Yan Ma in the barbarian lands, eventually catching him in December 235 and ending this conflict.

Emperor Wu returned to a hero’s welcome. The people were all too happy to cheer for the Emperor, the man who was helping the Dynasty recover and who protected the people. The laws under his reign had been far fairer to the people, mostly because Emperor Wu had decided to roll back the cruel law code of his father to return to the one used during the late Han Dynasty. Xiao Bin hadn’t protested, and Xiao Dang hadn’t cared one-bit which code was used. Talking of Xiao Dang, he had proven admirable in his duties as Excellency of Works. By the end of the year, the reconstruction projects launched after the wars with the Xianbei Confederacy had been a success under his stewardship. He was so determined to see it through that he was now arguing to have the project expanded, believing that they could improve the defenses on the borders and create even greater monuments to the glory of the Chen. However, in this he was blocked by Xiao Bin, who was hesitant to throw that much money into one project.

But tensions also existed within the Imperial Family at a personal level, most notably between the Emperor and his empress. In a sad twist of fate, their once unshakable relationship had deteriorated ever since Emperor Wu succeeded his father a decade ago. Once he became the Son of Heaven, Emperor Wu became careful of his reputation and grew ever more prideful, which left him a lot less willing to appear as a man who followed his barbarian wife. But more than anything, the tensions between the imperial couple were caused by the wars with Changle’s brother Xibaxiong. The Despoiler was easily the most hated figure in the Chen Dynasty, which had led to a new rise of anti-barbarian sentiment at court. Meanwhile, the Empress had advised her husband to simply surrender to her brother, convinced that he was invincible. The Emperor felt slighted, convinced that Changle sided with her brother over her husband.

And things didn’t get better from that point on. Emperor Wu was finally convinced by the court to take Chinese concubines after his brother Xiao Bin argued for it (the prince being a lot less sympathetic to barbarians than his brother). While the goal had never been to produce a more Chinese heir, as Crown Prince Gong was already an adult, it still meant that the Emperor would spend time with other women than his wife. And these relationships had resulted in new children, ones that weren’t born from the Empress. In 232, a concubine gave birth to a princess named Xiao Yuguang. In 234, another girl was born to a different concubine, the child being named Xiao Bai. Seeing these children live in the Imperial Palace was difficult for Changle, especially as her own daughters were being married away and her sons were sent to provincial posts outside of the Capital.

The start of 236 also saw the Xiao Imperial Clan be shaken by a series of changes. First of all was the happy news that Crown princess Ding had produced another son, named Xiao Zhou. With two grandsons, it seemed that the imperial succession was all but ensured, which was a joyful occasion for anyone at court. Emperor Wu even invited his son back to Chenguo to celebrate, with a feast in the honor of his new grandson. Of course, this led to awkward moments between the family, with exchanges between the Crown Princess and the Empress being especially terrible for everyone present. The absence of the Crown Prince’s brothers was also noticed, which only soured the mood.

Crown Princess Ding once again used this opportunity to plead that her husband needed to be recalled to the Capital. She hated the campaign life and wanted to come to Chenguo, where she would live a wealthy and debauch lifestyle, just as she had always dreamt. She was married to the Crown Prince and would eventually be the empress, so surely, she deserved a great life. But this was once again denied by the Emperor, who still hoped that his son could become a better administrator by staying away from Chenguo. Xiao Bin also used this opportunity to push the idea that Xiao Gong really needed concubine. It was a repeat of what had been argued when Emperor Wu was the crown prince, as no one really wanted to see Crown Princess Ding become empress, considering her terrible personality. Xiao Bin hoped to push her aside once Xiao Gong produced a son from another woman. Sadly for his plans, the Crown Princess proved hawkish against any lady sent in the Crown Prince’s direction, allowing her to keep a firm grip on her husband.

In late February, the Imperial Clan was notified that Prince Xiao Hanhe had died from dysentery at the age of 40. The death of Emperor Cheng’s second son marked the first time that one of the five brothers had passed away (Xiao Cang, while insane and destitute, was still alive). The three brothers didn’t exactly know how to handle this news. On the one hand, their brother was dead. But then again, this was Xiao Hanhe. Their half-brother was the only one not sharing the same mother. This had always proved a wall between them, which Xiao Hanhe felt for his entire life. But the biggest issue in the relationship was the way Xiao Hanhe had tried to act against Emperor Wu on a few occasions, with a revolt even fighting to put him on the throne. Because of this, the prince had spent the last years of his life as a powerless provincial official, with Xiao Bin making sure that he never got close to true power (though he was allowed to live a comfortable lifestyle worthy of his rank). Even if their relationship had always been complicated, Emperor Wu still made sure that Xiao Hanhe’s sons were cared for, with the eldest Xiao Fangji was made a county magistrate a month later.

Another issue that surprisingly popped up was that of Liu Kun, the son of the late warlord Liu Siyuan and the former Chancellor of the Han Dynasty. He had been brought in the Chen territories when Yang Weili defected, but had mostly been left to himself since the strategist’s death. Two decades later, the Xiao brothers now asked themselves the question: what to do with him? Xiao Bin argued that he had to be put to death. Even if he had only been a child at the time, the man had held considerable power at one point. Even worse, Yang Weili had suggested that Liu Kun be made emperor of a restored Han Dynasty as his death wish. The fact that this had even been considered made Liu Kun a menace, a possible rallying point for Han loyalists. But Emperor Wu refused to take this course of action. The Han was long gone, replaced by the Chen. Even the members of the Liu Clan accepted this fact now. Instead, Emperor Wu appointed Liu Kun the new Magistrate of Nanpingyang, allowing the man to have a career within the Chen bureaucracy.

When it came to the advisors of Emperor Wu, there was one that simply was not on par with the rest. Bei Mia had sadly struggled in his duties as Excellency of the Masses just as much as he did as Excellency of Works for Emperor Cheng. Emperor Wu would have eventually fired him had he not died in the middle of 236. To replace him, the Emperor turned to a newly titled marquis named Ren Duo. No, this Ren Duo was not related to the Ren Duo who was also Excellency of the Masses under Emperor Cheng, the one who controlled court and was hated by everyone. He had in fact stayed out of politics during the apex of that Ren Duo’s power out of fear of being associated with the man. Nor was he related to the Ren Duo who was Excellency of the Masses in the Liang Dynasty, the one who was the main opponent of Mo Jie’s reforms. This was a completely different Ren Duo, one that would prove just as efficient in his duties as the other two.

And so the rest of 236 went without any issue. The Chen Dynasty was recuperating, growing, improving. Things were going perfectly with Xiao Bin and Xiao Dang to assist Emperor Wu in the management of the Dynasty. In fact, the Chen had recuperated enough that it could be considered at full strength. Emperor Wu spent the last months of 236 constantly discussing with his Grand Commandant Xue Tang. With the Imperial Army at its greatest heights, it was time to go on the offensive. There was one thing that was on the Emperor’s mind, one thing that he wanted dealt with. And Xue Tang was all too happy to be the one to offer him a solution.

 

[Bibliophile]

Always sad to see the deterioration of Emperor Wu and Changle’s marriage. Not a lot happened in this chapter; but that ending promises interesting things.

 

[Zamarak500]

236-237: SHOWDOWN​

Emperor Yuan had decided that it was finally time to get rid of the Pan Clan. At the start of his reign, he had made the mistake of assuming that the court would side with him since he was the Son of Heaven. Realizing his error, he then adopted the far more successful policy of winning the support of the court through political achievements. This had allowed him to notably win some goodwill from the Excellency of Works and the support of the Grand Tutor. But the southern campaign was supposed to be the crowning jewel of this plan, giving him enough prestige to remove his enemies at court without causing a fuss. But the logistical debacle that this had been doomed any gains the campaign could have given him.

So now he decided for the more direct and violent solution of using his army to slaughter his enemies for good. He kept the Imperial Army together under the excuse of needing it to deal with the barbarian revolt in the north. He then explained that he wanted the troops to parade in Chang’an to celebrate their recent victory. But the Emperor remained aloof about the details, unwilling to trust anyone with his real plan until they were close enough to the Imperial Capital. He had only confided in a small cadre of personal loyalists, with the majority of the officers unaware of what was coming. Emperor Yuan planned to keep them in the dark until it was time, at which point he would organise a hunt as an excuse to privately fill them in on his planned coup against the Pan Clan.

But even his precautions were not enough. The Pan siblings had either been informed of what was coming or guessed it when news came that the army was coming toward Chang’an. Fearful that the court might turn on them if they learned that the Emperor was coming to kill them and their allies, the Pan siblings kept the news to their own circle of supporters, stopping it from spreading outside of their own clique. Pan Zhiyuan, who was technically in control of the court with the Emperor absent, panicked and fell back into alcohol. It seemed the only thing that made his inevitable doom even slightly bearable. At this point, they might as well give up. Maybe if they begged enough, Emperor Yuan would allow them to live a life of exile? Comfortable house arrest in the middle of nowhere isolated from any distraction suddenly sounded nice. Maybe their father Pan Zheng was onto something.

But the former Empress Pan didn’t want to sit and wait for their doom. She also rejected her brother’s idea of groveling in front of the Emperor. And when Pan Zhiyuan dared to suggest the cowardly idea of fleeing to the Chen Dynasty, she slapped him and told him that they needed to stand tall and be brave in the face of such challenge. Surely, there was something they could do, anything they could do to save themselves! They were against the wall, and Pan Xiaoji struggled to find a way to turn the table. But at this point, she was willing to try anything, no matter how rash and dangerous. She was willing to bet everything, because if she didn’t, she was going to lose everything.

In mid-July, with Chang’an in the distance, Emperor Yuan organized a hunt with his officers, supposedly to celebrate their successes and boost morale. No one suspected his true intentions, as Emperor Yuan was an avid hunter in his free time. And at first, he did take to enjoy the event, though he never lost focus on his goals. Arrows were shot as the hunter sought their prey. One arrow certainly hit its target. It went through the neck, throwing him off his horse. Emperor Yuan could only gurgle as he bled and died on the ground, never seeing his assassin once. He died at the age of 33, having ruled the Liang Dynasty for only eighteen months. In that short time, he had successfully started to solve the financial crisis left by his brother, had extended the empire’s borders and was in the process of reaffirming imperial authority over the now highly autonomous governors. And then he died in a hunting accident at the behest of the Pan Clan, not that this was ever proven.

The Pan siblings didn’t help themselves when they pointed the finger far too fast at Empress Mo. Her plan having worked, the former Empress Pan needed something to take the fall, and removing the Empress would certainly work in her favor. She had prepared documents for this next phase of their plan, and quickly had her brother present them in front of the Imperial Court. In these forgeries, Emperor Yuan expressed fear that his wife might poison him, and he was instead considering setting her aside to marry the former empress. While marrying your sister-in-law was somewhat taboo, it wasn’t like emperors doing strange marriages was a novelty. After all, Emperor Qianfei of Han (206-217) had been married to a member of his own Clan, so this couldn’t be that bad. Fearing for his life, Emperor Yuan was thus on his way to the Capital to solve this, even writing a letter to have the former empress adopt the Crown Prince as her own son. This was pure nonsense, and most of the court knew it. But most of the court was also loyal to the Pan Clan. So when Chancellor Pan Zhiyuan ordered the imprisonment of Empress Mo, no one stopped the guards as they dragged the screaming mother to the dungeons. Empress Mo had not even been told of her husband’s death until the guards rushed her room and arrested her. In tears, she asks that she at least be allowed to break the news to the Crown Prince. This was refused.

And just like that, the Pan Clan had removed the only person with a strong claim for control over the Crown Prince. The only other challenger would be his uncle, Mo Duo the Marquis of Kong. But he was far away from Chang’an, and no one would realistically support this barbarian for the regency anyway. Just as quickly as they had seized the initiative, the Pan siblings installed Crown Prince Yao Hao on the throne as the fourth emperor of the Liang Dynasty. He was only three years old and had no understanding whatsoever of what was happening, only asking when his father would return home or where his mother was. His questions were ignored as the court petitioned the throne to elevate the former empress to the rank of Empress Dowager. After all, she was now the mother of the new emperor, if only on paper. This was quickly accepted, and the new Empress Dowager Pan was quickly selected as the regent for the young emperor until he was of age, with Chancellor Pan Zhiyuan assisting her in the affairs of the court. The Pan siblings could be proud of themselves. They had not only avoided their downfall, but also managed to gain control over the new Emperor for the next thirteen years, maybe more if they could secure a stronger grip over him.

Immediately, the new regency ordered the troops to return to their barracks and recuperate. They didn’t want the Imperial Army to march on the Imperial Capital. This sort of scenario had happened too often for the regents not to see the threat. The former Han capital of Luoyang was a clear reminder of that: Dong Zhuo’s conquest of the city, Duan Wei’s coup against Dong Huang, Yuan Shu, Liu Siyuan’s generals, Emperor Anwu… All these names simply presented proof of the threat that an army could pose to the Capital, even if Chang’an was famously far harder to seize than Luoyang. Huang Dunli, the Grand Commandant and cousin of Emperor Yao Hao, was quick to suggest that the generals do just that. He saw an opportunity to get rich, seize the Capital and replace the Pan Clan with themselves. This was their chance!

But Huang Dunli had never been popular with the generals, and even less with the troops. His cruelty and his greed made him no friends. For his plan to be accepted, he would need the support of at least one of the two main commanders of the expedition south. Neither wanted to associate with him. Zhang Ling was always out of the question, due to his loyalty to the Pan Clan. The man was even an experienced hunter, which left many suspicious that he might have been involved in Emperor Yuan’s death. Huang Dunli’s only hope was thus Lü Sun, son of Lü Bu. But Lü Sun was loyal to the Imperial Clan first and foremost. While he didn’t believe one word of what the Pan Clan said about Emperor Yuan’s plans, he trusted the Grand Commandant even less. At least the Pan Clan wouldn’t try to usurp the throne, which wasn’t guaranteed with Huang Dunli. The Pan Clan might be scheming interlopers, but they were now the government of the new Emperor. And as a general loyal to the Liang, he would obey their orders. The army dispersed, and Huang Dunli was forced to abandon his new ambitions.

Of course, this little incident was reported to the Empress Dowager, who decided in August to replace some of the main advisors to the young emperor with more… acceptable individuals. First and foremost, Huang Dunli had to go. At the end of the day, his loyalty was dubious and his intentions self-serving. He could not be trusted to keep the Imperial Army under the control of the Pan Clan. Huang Dunli was thus removed as Grand Commandant. Instead, they chose an officer named Leng Ju, whose main qualifier was his complete lack of ambition, though in his defense he was an excellent general of good moral fibber. He tried to refuse the appointment, seeing himself unworthy of it. But the Palace insisted, and Leng Ju packed his bags for Chang’an. While his appointment was accepted by everyone as a good choice, he was also the only one managing the defense of the border between Liang and Bing Provinces.

Another man who needed to be pushed aside was the Emperor’s uncle, Mo Duo. The barbarian was away from the Imperial Capital and an outsider, but he was also a threat to their position. And they were right to be worried, as the Marquis of Kong was quick to sent official complains about the treatment of his sister. This surprised many, who did not expect the man to care about the family he was adopted into. Mo Duo demanded that his sister be released. He was clearly angling to get the regency for the Mo Clan, which would have been the case in normal circumstances. For this reason, the Empress Dowager was quick to have him removed as an Imperial Councillor, and even used the authority of the new Emperor to threaten Mo Duo with potential censorship if he continued to act out.

Of course, not everyone was replaced, if only to keep appearances. The Excellency of Works Xu Ziying and the Gran Tutor Bu Jing, both aligned with Emperor Yuan, were kept in their offices. But more importantly, the influential Lu Yu remained as Excellency of the Masses. The old man had always been a circumstantial ally of the Pan siblings, heir goals often aligning enough to ensure their cooperation. His tacit approval of their actions was one of the main reasons that their coup following Emperor Yuan’s death was not opposed by anyone at court. But Lu Yu was no longer as active as he was when he opposed Mo Jie and his supporters. He was depressed at the state of turmoil that had befell the Liang Dynasty, stressed by the work this meant for him, wounded in a recent accident, and was simply so tired. Because of this, the Pan siblings were able to take the lead where he would have normally been the dominant force in their partnership.

But while the Pan siblings had complete dominance at court, they were barely tolerated outside of Chang’an. The Mojieist reforms under Emperor Wen had given the governors a lot more freedom to act as they pleased, with most of them all too happy to use everything in their books to snub the Imperial Court now that the Pan Clan had taken over. Which is why the Empress Dowager was quick to jump on the opportunity to make an ally when Governor Ding Hou proved willing to associate with them. He suggested a betrothal between the Emperor’s sister, Princess Yao Yinge, and his son Ding Pang. This would, at least on paper, bind the Ding Clan to the Imperial Clan. And considering how the Ding Clan had often produced great military men (Ding Hou, his father Ding Zhichao, his grandfather Ding Kai and even his distant cousin Ding Zhiguo in the Chen Dynasty), this was an opportunity for the Pan siblings to secure military support to their regime.

This was especially welcomed as not all the governors were proving loyal. Unsurprisingly, the Xuan Clan of Bing Province began to move in the shadows the second the Court showed weakness. Xuan Mei was also quite tied into the Imperial Clan through marriages and betrothal. But in his case, he was considering leveraging this to gain power in the government. In fact, Xuan Mei was in contact with Mo Duo, who had convinced Xuan Mei that they could work together to overthrow the Pan Clan an seize control of the Emperor for themselves, thus fulfilling what Emperor Yuan would have truly wanted. Now, had this been Xuan Su Mo Duo was dealing with, the man would have used this opportunity to remove the Pan Clan before turning on Mo Duo and seize the whole empire for himself. But Xuan Mei was not his father, and he was satisfied with the prospect of gaining prominence at court, hoping that this would finally help him seize control of You Province. And with Ding Hou now aligned with the Pan Clan, there was no way Xuan Mei would stay idle and accept the new regime.

But with all this happening, there was one problem that the Pan Clan seemed to have ignored: there was still a barbarian revolt going on. It had started as Emperor Yuan was going south on campaign, leaving the Imperial Army unavailable to deal with the problem. The late Son of Heaven had planned to deal with this after his victory, but he reported this to later when the issue of the Pan Clan became pressing. He then died, and the Pan Clan chose to return the Imperial Army to their barracks and spread out to avoid them marching on Chang’an. Except that the barbarians were still rising up, and having even grown in strength as they were left unchecked. Xuan Mei was the only one to send any troops against them, and the small force he sent was soundly defeated. The new Grand Commandant Leng Ju had been in charge of the defense on the border between Liang and Bing until he was recalled, thus allowing the barbarians to do as they pleased. This revolt was a blight on the current regency, one that was starting to undermine what authority they had outside of Chang’an.

Sadly, this wasn’t the only issue. Yi Province was currently administrated by Governor Cao Shuji (no relation to Cao Cao). Cao Shuji had been the last appointment made under Emperor Wen’s regime before his death, which meant that the choice of governor had really been made by the Pan siblings. Cao Shuji was a meek man who was far too trustworthy of others. This made him a stooge that believe the Pan Clan’s version of things and a potential ally. But his trusting nature also led him to believe people with devious intention. Because of this, he spent all his province’s resources on a series of ploys to rid him of his wealth. Instead of admitting his mistake, he tried to recuperate his losses by minting more coins and reinforce his authority over the rest of the province. This did not go well, and by November 236 Yi Province was engulfed into a civil war, with Cao Shuji writing frantic letters to Chang’an asking for help.

The Imperial Court did order the Imperial Army to march at once, but not to help Coa Shuji or deal with the revolt. Instead, they were to go on the northern border to end the raids that had been going since the middle of the year. Smelling blood, Xibaxiong the Despoiler had decided to test the waters by launching raids in You Province. The Khagan of the Xianbei Confederacy had led some of them himself, and by now almost 10,000 Xianbei horsemen were pillaging through the province. Even if he had once served in the Liang military under his father-in-law Emperor Anwu, Xibaxiong had no more attachment to the Liang Dynasty than he had for the Chen. Considering the conquests that he had achieved against the Chen Dynasty, the Imperial Court was understandably worried about these incursions. They wanted to send their weakened yet formidable army now before Xiabaxiong to move from petty raids to an actual invasion.

This was the problems facing the Liang Dynasty as 237 started. A child emperor was dominated by the Pan Clan, which controlled the Imperial Court. However, they had difficulties controlling the rest of the empire, where their authority was tolerated at best. A barbarian revolt was raging unopposed in the north-west while Yi Province was engulfed into a civil war not seen since the one that led Emperor Anwu to seize the province. The threat of Xibaxiong was becoming ever more present as he realized the weakness of the Liang Dynasty. And if this was not enough, Mo Duo and Xuan Mei were plotting to make a move against the Pan siblings, with everyone holding their breath to see when the confrontation would take place, and who would come out on top. All trivial matters when on the 9th of January 237 the Chen Dynasty made its move to reunify China under the rule of Emperor Wu.

 

[streaker77]

Spoiler

I was pretty stunned when I saw Emperor Yuan had been assasinated, here I was thinking he was going to prove a counter to Emperor Wu's growing power and stabalize the Liang. Was it actually the Pan siblings who murdered him (in the game) do you know?

I had a feeling another showdown between the Chen and Liang was imminent, but I didnt quite see the Chen going into it with such a great advantage, the Liang are truly on the backfoot, and unless emperor Anwu is rising from the grave, this could spell doom for them.

 

[HistoryDude]

Well, it looks like the Pan Clan massively screwed up.

It's a shame that there is trouble in paradise for the Chen. I wonder if they can get an alliance with the barbarians against the Liang? It'd be an alliance of convenience, sure, but it could happen!

I wonder which governors will defect to the Chen or attempt to begin their own dynasties...

 

[Bibliophile]

Once again, the Liang seems to be suffering the slow decline that plagued the Han. The Pan clan has essentially neutered the power of the emperor; and given the governors even less incentive to obey orders from the capital. Not to mention all the trouble with barbarians. Even if the Liang survives this war with the Chen, I fear that it is still doomed to the same shattering that befell the Han.

Things have really gone downhill without Anwu. The emperor after him was a pushover; and the competent one that followed the pushover was undermined by enemies from within, quite possibly even killed by those who cared more for their own power than the Empire’s stability.

 

[Zamarak500]

Spoiler

I was pretty stunned when I saw Emperor Yuan had been assasinated, here I was thinking he was going to prove a counter to Emperor Wu's growing power and stabalize the Liang. Was it actually the Pan siblings who murdered him (in the game) do you know?

I had a feeling another showdown between the Chen and Liang was imminent, but I didnt quite see the Chen going into it with such a great advantage, the Liang are truly on the backfoot, and unless emperor Anwu is rising from the grave, this could spell doom for them.

I honestly can't remember. If I remember correctly, I think in game it was the Pan Clan, but none of the relevant one, instead being done by a sister of the main Pan siblings, a sister who never appeared in the story once. Would need to check to be sure however.

It's a shame that there is trouble in paradise for the Chen. I wonder if they can get an alliance with the barbarians against the Liang? It'd be an alliance of convenience, sure, but it could happen!

We'll have to see, though I have a hard time imagining Emperor Wu and Xibaxiong wanting to cooperate in any way, considering how much they hate each others.

Once again, the Liang seems to be suffering the slow decline that plagued the Han. The Pan clan has essentially neutered the power of the emperor; and given the governors even less incentive to obey orders from the capital. Not to mention all the trouble with barbarians. Even if the Liang survives this war with the Chen, I fear that it is still doomed to the same shattering that befell the Han.

Things have really gone downhill without Anwu. The emperor after him was a pushover; and the competent one that followed the pushover was undermined by enemies from within, quite possibly even killed by those who cared more for their own power than the Empire’s stability.

Emperor Yuan was really the best shot at the Liang Dynasty. Had he slaughtered the Pan Clan, he would probaly have been able to at least stabilise things in Chang'an, if not in the provinces. He certainly had more authority and legitimacy than "Dowager Empress" Pan.

 

[Zamarak500]

237: CROSSING THE YELLOW RIVER​

The last words Xue Tang heard from Hu Zan were “I leave the rest to you”, and the Grand Commandant of the Chen Imperial Army had no intention of failing his mentor. Years ago, Hu Zan had written a potential invasion plan of the Liang Dynasty, a two prompts attack that would in theory allow the Chen to destroy a weakened Liang Dynasty and conquered large territories in Ji, Sili and Jing Provinces. However, the civil wars and attacks against the Chen had always stopped Hu Zan from suggesting these plans, and he died before he could ever push the idea of an invasion of the Liang. But things had changed since Hu Zan had died. The Chen Dynasty was stronger than ever while the Liang was falling apart. There were some worries with the ascension of Emperor Yuan, but his death and the subsequent chaos had proven that their dynasty rival was shakier than ever. Now he would fulfil what his mentor had started and help expand the Chen.

Emperor Wu had been seeking a new campaign to show the might of the Chen, and Xue Tang was quick to bring forward the plans to invade the Liang Dynasty. The Emperor did not expect this suggestion, as his mind was still focused on the losses suffered at the hand of Xibaxiong the Despoiler. But then again, the chance to expand the Chen Dynasty was too good to pass up. The usurpers in Chang’an could finally be reminded who was the true Son of Heaven. The coffers were full, the troops were well trained and the Emperor had the support of both the elite and the people. It seemed like the time was right to invade. On the 9th of January 237, Emperor Wu declared war against the Liang Dynasty. He did not try to steal a few counties or a province. He wanted it all. To end the Liang Dynasty, to unify China. This would be the final war of their rivalry, and he would be the one to come out of it victorious.

A first army would be sent west across the Yellow River to quickly take the Liang Dynasty by surprise. While Emperor Wu wanted to take command of this army, he was not yet ready to leave the Imperial Capital. His brothers also insisted that he only leaved Chenguo once it was certain that the troops had secured their position on the other side of the Yellow River, being unwilling to let their imperial brother walk into a death trap. Instead, the critical duties of commanding this first strike went to the most senior general of the Chen Dynasty: Ba Daiping. The man who had both led a revolt against Emperor Wu and helped pushed back the Liang and the Xianbei was still breathing. He stood as an old reminder of a time of heroes that was quickly fading away. Hu Zan, Ding Zhiguo, Chen Tiao, Ma Chao, Dian Wei… All these men had died, leaving Ba Daiping a decade or two older than his fellow generals. It seemed only fair to leave this critical part of the campaign to the most experienced of them all. And besides, this would also be a good consolation prize for not being appointed Grand Commandant.

A second army would be sent into Ji Province. The goal was to conquer enough towns to connect the territories of Yuan Rei with the rest of the Chen Dynasty, as they had been cut off since the Xianbei conquests. Yuan Rei himself would help in this campaign, sending help to potential Chen supporters in Ji and You Provinces. For the commander of this second army, Emperor Wu picked his favorite general Liu Derun, who he trusted to accomplish this mission. In fact, the Emperor trusted Liu Derun so much that he arranged a marriage between the general’s daughter and his nephew Xiao Ji (son of Xiao Dang). Now Liu Derun was linked to the Xiao Imperial Clan through marriage, a great reward for his two decades of loyalty.

In the Liang Dynasty, Empress Dowager Pan was panicking at the news that the Chen Dynasty was invading. This was terrible news at a time when she couldn’t afford any. Even worse, it meant that she would need to recall one of their best generals: the unreliable Huang Dunli, cousin of the child emperor. Huang Dunli had previously wished to march against Chang’an to remove the Pan Clan and seize power for himself. Yet now they were going to entrust him with that same power to act against them. While Huang Dunli had no intention to coup the Pan Clan with the threat of the Chen looming, he still reveled in the current irony. He was made the General who Supports the Empire and ordered to take command of an army.

First, he would need to deal with the barbarian revolt that had been going for more than a year now. Leaving this alone while the Chen Dynasty invaded was a terrible idea. Huang Dunli was thus ordered to go kill the rebels and bring back news of a victory. Just to be safe, the court flanked him with the same two generals that had refused to help him in his coup the previous year. Zhang Ling was still too loyal to the Pan Clan to help Huang Dunli if the general tried something. Still, his loyalty was beginning to waver as he witnessed the failure of Empress Dowager Pan to keep the Dynasty together. As for Lü Sun, his upmost loyalty to the Yao Imperial Clan made him the perfect general in this hour of need. If someone was going to remain loyal until the end, it was Lü Sun.

But the war had only been going for two months that things already turned worst for the Liang Dynasty. Governor Han Gongxin “the Lewd”, who was in charge of Ji Province, managed to make things easier for the Chen invaders through his indiscretions. He had slept with the sister of one peasant named Jiazhen, a woman who was serving as a maid in his mansion. He then proceeded to kick her out once he was bored with her. Outraged at the way his sister had been treated, Jiazhen entered in contact with agents of the Chen. Through Yuan Rei, he was able to acquire weapons and tools, which allowed him to rise in revolt against the Liang Dynasty in March. Not only was he fighting to remove the corrupt governor, but his followers were brandishing Chen banners as they marched throughout Ji Province.

To handle this revolt, the Empress Dowager called upon her ally Governor Ding Hou of You Province. He already had imperial troops at his disposal, which had been sent to handle the Xianbei raids a few months back. Ding Hou having just allied himself with the Capital, he now needed to do everything in his power to protect the Liang Dynasty. He would make it down to Ji Province in only a month, and by the end of April the revolt would be suppressed. This was a good thing for the Liang Dynasty, as they couldn’t afford to let this sort of uprising continue. At the same time, Huang Dunli finally put an end to the barbarian revolt on the border between Liang and Bing Province. While these two revolts left the Liang Dynasty weakened and shaken, it was now free to fight with the Chen Dynasty without any threat.

Well, there was still the looming danger of Xibaxiong. Tensions between the Liang Dynasty and the Xianbei Confederacy turned for the worse in March as Yao Xiangjun, the Khatun of the Confederacy and daughter of Emperor Anwu, died while pregnant at the age of 42. The death of the princess ended any hope of an alliance with Xibaxiong, as he no longer had any lingering ties with the southerners. Thankfully for the Liang Court, the Despoiler had other issues to deal with. His tributary state of Youbeiping, serving as an eastern buffer between the Xianbei and the Chinese Dynasties, was about to be conquered. The conqueror was Tian Jifu, who was trying to reclaim his father’s old territories. Tian Chou had been a general under Lü Bu and then Gongsun Zan, though he turned against the later and was killed in the revolt that broke Gongsun Zan’s territories. His son Tian Zhiguo had lost his lands to a Tengri revolt, and now decades later Tian Jifu was coming back to seize them. And the worst part was that he was winning.

It was in May that the first battle of the war took place. The Liang Dynasty had some troops on the border, but this was only a few thousand troops. They had found it difficult to organize a competent defense, in big part because their commander was butting head with the local magistrate, Marquis Mo Duo of Kong. The reason why their commander got into fights with Mo Duo was because he was named Duan Sili. Duan Sili was the grandson of the corrupt scholar Duan Zuo, Mo Jie’s longtime rival. Sadly, their disputes continued through their descendants, which only hindered the situation. As Mo Duo was an opponent of the Pan regency, Duan Sili was a fervent follower of the Empress Dowager. This was just how things went between these two clans. Not that Ba Daiping cared one bit about these familial rivalries when he rooted the Liang army, killing or capturing more than two thirds of the three thousand men under Duan Sili’s command.

By now it was the end of the Spring. The bulk of the Liang army, being done with the revolts, now moved toward the Yellow River. However, the Chen troops had also made their crossing by that point, with everyone waiting for the arrival of the Emperor. Emperor Wu had ordered Ba Daiping to go take command of the army in Ji Province while he and Xue Tang went to lead the army in the Central Plains. This way Emperor Wu would be the one to make his way west toward Chang’an. Still, there was a few details he wanted to handle before he left, which is why he made his way to court in haste that day. He decided to take a shortcut through the imperial garden, which was the perfect place for an ambush. As the Emperor made his way through the plants, three men armed with swords waited in the shadows. Once their target got close enough, they jumped out of their hiding spot and surged at the Son of Heaven. Emperor Wu never saw them coming.

But his guards did.

The assassins were apprehended by the security, thus narrowly saving the life of their sovereign. The shocked Emperor was brought to safety, after which the guards were quick to warn the Chancellor of what had happened. Xiao Bin quickly launched an investigation over this incident. Who had the guts to assassinate their Emperor just as he was about to embark on his greatest campaign? Who had the access to do so? Xiao Bin as quick to survey everyone, even the Empress and the rest of the Imperial Clan. In the end, he privately brought his findings to his brothers Emperor Wu and Prince Xiao Dang, as this was not something he thought wise to reveal in public. The mastermind behind this failed assassination was none other than Crown Princess Ding, the daughter-in-law of Emperor Wu. It seemed that she was too impatient about her husband inheritance of the Dynasty. She decided to hasten the Emperor’s demise to speed up her ascension as Empress.

Emperor Wu was quite shaken by this revelation. His own daughter-in-law tried to kill him, and for what? She wasn’t missing in wealth. Her husband would have hopefully been recalled to Chenguo soon to perform his duties as Crown Prince once he proved competent enough. Was she that wicked that she couldn’t wait a few years? Xiao Dang was quick to suggest that she be deposed and killed for her crimes. She did not deserve to remain Crown Princess, and there was no way they would allow her to become empress. Xiao Bin offered the more subtle solution of poison. That way this scandal wouldn’t taint the current campaign. Emperor Wu, while horrified at the Crown Princess’s actions, couldn’t bring himself to do the same to her. He instead had her summoned and gave her a stern warning in private, after which he had his brothers bury the whole affair as to not distract the court from the campaign. Surprisingly, it would work, as Crown Princess Ding would never try to kill Emperor Wu after this (though the Crown Prince and Crown Princess would find themselves bared from the Capital, making it difficult to plot another assassination).

By that point, two revolts had exploded in You Province that threatened Liang authority in the north. The first one was a larger and more organized attempt by local officials to bring the province under the control of the Chen Dynasty. Even Ding Hou’s uncle joined this revolt, maybe hoping that he could be appointed Governor of You Province by Emperor Wu should their plan be a success. But there was also another revolt, this one led by barbarians. Their goal was to overthrow Ding Hou and bring in a more tolerant governor that would be willing to grant concessions to the barbarians of the north. Needless to say, Xuan Mei was quick to offer his candidacy to these rebels. This left Ding Hou in the uncomfortable position of having to lead the Imperial Troops against the Chen while being unable to do anything about the situation in his province.

Meanwhile, Empress Dowager Pan decided to levy new taxes to ensure the recruitment of new troops. She needed that money to boost the weakened Liang military. Except that these taxes only made her more hated. Even worse, two officials simply refused to pay any taxes to Chang’an. Magistrate Li Cai of Shangdang refused to obey any order from Chang’an until the Pan Clan was removed and someone competent was put in charge. He still remained nominally loyal to the Liang, but he would no longer take orders from the court. And then there was Administrator Zhang Yao of Nanhai. Behind far away in the south of China, he simply decided that he would not pay the taxes and went his own way, setting himself as an independent warlord. Unlike Li Cai, he no longer recognized the emperor in Chang’an, and was now hoping that he could rule Nanhai independently if he pledged himself to the Chen.

It was in August that took place the two first great battles of the war. In Ji Province, Ding Hou left his subordinates command the army against Ba Daiping and Liu Derun, as he was far too busy worrying about the rebellions at home. This gave the Chen generals the lead when it came to fighting the enemy, as unlike the Liang commanders they were fully committed to this campaign. They knew that it was their meeting with destiny, their chance at writing their names in the history books. The Chen had a disadvantage of around 2000 troops, yet they were able to win on the field of battle. This was humiliating for the Liang Dynasty, and Ding Hou was forced to order the retreat of his much-diminished army. Even though he was wounded, Ba Daiping refused to let the enemy escape his grasp. The Emperor needed them destroyed, and so they would be. In front of a cheering crowd, the general ordered a pursuit of the fleeing Liang army.

At the exact same moment, Emperor Wu was fighting Huang Dunli and the Liang Imperial forces. On paper, this was the best army that the Liang could deploy. It even included the elite barbarian cavalry established during the reign of Emperor Anwu. But the fact was that this elite force had been left to rot since that time. Sadly, it had reached its peak when it was led by Xianbei officers like Xibaxiong. Now the Xianbei decided to try their luck at home, considering how much plunder they could make under the Despoiler. Instead, the recruits were from various barbarian groups throughout the Empire, some of which were not nomad horsemen. This meant that these troops didn’t get along, did not always have the proper training and often did not get along between themselves. And that said nothing of their dubious loyalty to the xenophobic regime of the Pan Clan.

Huang Dunli still chose to command this elite force as he charged at the Chen troops. He expected the Emperor to flee at this powerful sight. But Emperor Wu kept his calm and ensured that his troops held. He eventually managed to surround the barbarian horsemen, thanks to reinforcements from Xue Tang after he managed to rout Zhang Ling. These arriving troops slaughtered many of the barbarians, with the rest fleeing in panic. Almost being caught and killed by Chen troops would traumatize Huang Dunli to the point that he fled his post after the battle and went back to his commandery, where he would hide for the rest of the war. This left Lü Sun to hold and regroup what was left of the troops. While he failed to achieve a miracle victory, he was at least able to ensure that they weren’t all killed, making him the only Liang officer to come out of these two battles looking competent. In the end, Emperor Wu came out with a victory, and more importantly, with the path to his first target free of opposition.

Ba Daiping finally managed to catch up with the enemy in October. Once again the enemy had the numerical advantage, though it didn’t matter considering the situation. Their high morale from their previous victory only improved their chance, especially as the Liang military was getting demoralized after its two recent defeats. The army in Ji Province actually met with the fleeing Huang Dunli, who abandoned everything to save his life and advised everyone to do the same. How were you supposed to motivate the troops to fight after that? Ba Daiping and Liu Derun were easily able to defeat the Liang army, though this battle was far quicker and lighter in casualties than their previous engagement.

Unknown to everyone, this would be the last victory that Ba Daiping brought to the Chen Dynasty. The wound he got during the first battle became infected, eventually killing him at the age of 65 on the 7th of October, 237. His career was long and illustrious, if somewhat controversial. He started as one of the great generals of Qing Province, being one of the pillars of Tan Shenquan control over the region. But in 219 he advised the governor to surrender to Emperor Cheng, He then surprisingly stayed loyal to the Chen against his former liege when Tan Shenquan revolted. In the end though, he always sought to prove his worth by becoming Grand Commandant, something that he temporarily achieved when Hu Zan was captured by the Xianbeis in 233. He also led an uprising against the Dynasty, something that Emperor Wu and Prince Xiao Bin never forgave him for. But at the end of the day, he was the last great general of a bygone era, the last to have been alive to see the Yellow Turban Rebellion (he was 12 at the time). Now the future of the Chen would be in the hands of younger men who never saw what a truly united China looked like. Hopefully, they would get to see it one day.

The losses of the Liang Dynasty convinced Mo Duo and his allies that it was time to make their move against the Pan Clan. Clearly, the Dynasty needed better leadership, or at the very least the Emperor needed to be protected from bad influences. Of course, the linchpin of this plot was Governor Xuan Mei of Bing Province, as he was the only one with the manpower to actually make the coup happen. Mo Duo was starting to ready his allies and prepared to make his move.

Sadly for the conspirators, this turned out to be a repeat of Emperor Yuan’s plan to deal with the Pan Clan. Empress Dowager Pan was made aware of the situation and decided to remove the threat of Xuan Mei. Posing as agents sent by the conspirators, assassins were able to get into the mansion of the Governor, where they had him discretely poisoned. The hunchback Xuan Mei was 33 years old and had spent his whole time as governor trying to seize control of You Province to restore the territories of his father. Unlike Xuan Su, Xuan Mei had no adult son, nor was he able to manipulate the system to get one of his relatives as governor. The Pan siblings had finally broken the Xuan Clan’s control over Bing Province, which even Emperor Anwu had failed to do.

Not that this changed anything to their situation, as Emperor Wu finished the year by achieving one of his main goals for this campaign. In December 237, almost a year after the start of this war, Emperor Wu entered the city of Luoyang. The former capital of the Eastern Han Dynasty had surrendered after a light siege, the garrison quickly deciding to switch side. Capturing this important symbol was a massive victory for Emperor Wu, and he paraded the streets to a surprisingly welcoming crowd. He was the first emperor to enter the city since Emperor Qianfei’s last ditched attempt to save the Han two decades ago. And this time, it seemed that the emperor who entered was not going to be pushed out.

With this conquest, Emperor Wu spread an imperial decree that once again reaffirmed the Chen Dynasty as the rightful heir of the Han, with the Liang being only usurpers. In the euphoria of the moment, he even considered making Luoyang the new capital of the Chen. He wrote about this idea to Xiao Bin and Xiao Dang, who were currently in Chenguo managing the empire in his absence. They vehemently opposed the move. Xiao Bin pointed out that moving the Capital was a massive endeavor, one that required the entire work of the bureaucracy. With the war unfinished, it would not be safe to take such a decision. It might even put the court in danger. However, the brothers also had personal stakes in this. Their domains were close to Chenguo, so moving the Capital would mean having Emperor Wu get out of their zone of influence. The Emperor, always trusting of Xiao Bin, followed his advice.

The recent defeats, coupled with the conquest of Luoyang, drew a clear picture that was not in the favor of the Liang Dynasty. Many started to whisper that the Liang might have lost the Mandate of Heaven, if they ever had it in the first place. Maybe what Emperor Wu was saying was right. Maybe the Chen had been the true heir to the Mandate all along. The Liang military was fleeing while the Chen continued to advance. Revolts had already risen up on a few occasions to support the Chen Dynasty, all while some officials now refused to take orders from Chang’an. Many started to predict that it would take a miracle to save the Liang, as nothing seemed able to oppose the Chen Army. Well, nothing in the Liang Dynasty, that is.

 

[Ixarys]

"It’s all downhill from here", Liang Dynasty Edition.

And oh no, the Despoiler truly hates his brother-in-la, uh. Not a bad move, since a reunited China under Chen might take back the coastal lands he conquered.