Chapter 313 The Gathering of Ten Warlords – Part Three

Chapter 313 – The Gathering of Ten Warlords – Part Three

Though Cao Cao did not like it when Tong reminded everybody about his unethical politic moves, he swallowed his pride and smiled back.

"Our pasts may have caused us a couple of misunderstanding. We're here to repel the Xiongnu barbarian tribes. Let's focus on the crisis at hand and unite as one."

All minor lords admired how mature Cao Cao was. They nodded and spoke in approval to change the subject.

"Lord Zhang, let's forget about our pasts and focus on the Xiongnu. Didn't you invite us here to fight them together?"

"Yes. Let's bygone be bygone. All of us here dipped our hands in the dirty water here and there, including you. Let's not throw dirty water at each other and cooperate."

"Indeed. Lord Zhang, Lord Yuan, let's not fight each other here and look at the big picture. If we don't drive the Xiongnu away from our land now, our 400 years dynasty will end in our generation."

Kong Zhou, Qiao Mao, and Zhang Miao wanted them to stop fighting temporarily. Gongsun Zan and Kong Rong frowned as they concerned about Tong's move.

However, Lu Zhi, Xun Yu, and Jia Xu did not comment as they knew why Tong poked the hornet nests.

Tong raised his hand up to gesture that he had something to speak. All lords quieted down to listen.

"You have misunderstood me. I'm not pointing out the current noble status to provoke anyone. Instead, I'm trying to explain why I have the full right to be the grand commander of this coalition. Within a few minutes, another guest will arrive here to explain to you why. I hope that you can wait a bit."

While smiling, Tong typed into the clan chat.

Tong: "Lady He, please."

A minute after the declaration and the message, ten female servants escort a red decorated carriage, carried by eight strong men, arrived at the front of the tent.

A female escort presented a token to the trembling guards, which terrified them further. He screamed and announced their entrance in a panic.

"H-H-Her Majesty Empress He and His Highness Prince Liu have arrived!"

Everybody in the tent was petrified. Aside from Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Gongsun Zan, and Kong Rong, most of them did not know that they were still alive.

Liu Bei also opened his eyes wide, jumping in exhilarating that the Han Dynasty royalties were still alive. As long as he could prove that he carried the bloodline of Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Han Dynasty, he could raise his noble rank and obtain high status.

Kong Rong expected this to happen when Wang Xiu reported to him that He Xing picked Tong as her prince consort. He bitterly smiled and sighed a relief as the Han Dynasty would not die in his generation.

'Allying with Zhang Tong is the right choice. With Zhang Tong and He Xing combination, this chaos will end soon.'

Cao Cao gulped down and closed his eyes in preparation. He did not expect Tong to drag the former empress into this alliance meeting, but he understood now why Tong brought up their past evil deeds.

'A blunder for me, but it's better for the country. With He Xing here, no one will dare to defy her authority, and we'll be able to fight as one. I can see several moves that she can use in the aftermath using Zhang Tong as her proxy. Well, I fail to unite the land as one, but having her manipulating Zhang Tong or the other way around is better than my long-term unification plan. With her here, there is still a chance for the Han Dynasty!'

Cao Cao reopened his eyes, and his face regained its color. In his mind, he changed his goals and policies from the total unification under his rule into the pacification of all land. As long as people could enjoy peace, he did not mind being a loser.

'There is still hope. I don't need to take the helm.'

As if he had moved a mountain out of his chest, Cao Cao laughed and smiled.

On the other hand, Yuan Shao's face paled as he was afraid that she might retaliate against him because of his past action.

Pu Jing glanced at the direction of the oncoming empress. His face was still indifferent as ever.

'A brilliant move. Killing several birds in one stone. Now, anyone who defies Zhang Tong will be marked as rebels. This unification plan of Cao Cao is over.'

Behind Liu Bei, Jiang Man bit his fingernail.

'Liu Bei is going to join Zhang Tong at this rate! Should I activate my skill and kill them here? No, I have to destroy that Xiongnu Army first. Once everyone gets to Luo Yang, they will begin fighting each other like in historical events. There is still hope.'

He Xing in a decorated white dress held the right hand of Liu Xie, who was five-year-old this year. They ambled inside the tent together while everyone else kowtowed and placed their forehead on the ground.

"Long Live Her Majesty. May you be blessed and live a long and prosperous life for a thousand year!"

A corner of He Xing's mouth curved upward as she found the nostalgia greeting funny. After joining Tong's clan, she obtained extra lifespans, which she could literally live that long. Furthermore, her aging stopped when she joined the clan, and she could maintain her youth forever.

'Come to think of it. All emperors sought eternal youth and immortality. Yet, I've obtained it instead of them in the middle of my life crisis. Like Tong has said, life is a tragedy to those who feel, and a comedy to those who think.'

In a good mood, she walked next to Tong, who was the only one standing.

"It's nice to see all of our retainers gathering to fight the foreign invaders. Although there were many unfortunate conflicts and misunderstanding in the past, we hope that you can temporarily forget our differences and work together."

Listening to the empress, everybody sighed in relief. With her current attitude, no one would dare to cause a scene.

"We understand, your majesty!"

Meanwhile, Liu Xie throttled inside the tent. He looked around with his innocent eyes.

Seeing that nothing was interesting, he turned around to his mother. When Liu Xie saw the face of Tong, who was looking back at him with a smile, Liu Xie cried out in joy.

"Papa!"

Everybody in the tent flinched. The officials were not stupid enough to catch what their relationship was.

'Yup, it's a check-mate,' Cao Cao snickered in his mind.

'Well played, Zhang Tong. In this world, it's your win,' Pu Jing also ran out of ideas to make Cao Cao an emperor. It was impossible for them now with Tong's relationship with the royalties.

Cheng Yu did not speak or think. He simply smiled and bowed his head as if nothing had happened.

Liu Bei, however, had menacing eyes, glaring at Liu Xie and Tong.

'How dare you! You opportunist bastard! How dare you seduce her majesty! You are just a silver pant son of a rebel. How dare you take her majesty!?'

His hatred intensified as Liu Bei thought that Tong had already consummated with He Xing.

Unbeknownst to the motive of all retainers, He Xing grinned. However, her eyes fixated at the seat where Yuan Shao was sitting.

"Long traveling is tiring for my son. May we have a seat, Yuan Benchu?"

Yuan Shao jolted in fear. He crept back and withdrew from his seat since he had no choice. Tian Feng and Wen Chou also retreated back to the side of the tent, allowing their lord to escape from the predicament.

Yuan Shao gritted his teeth in anger, "The seat is yours, your majesty."

At first, Yuan Shao wanted to shame Tong in front of everyone to pay back and satisfy his ego. Yet, in the end, he had to attend the meeting without a proper seat.

Though soldiers from the outside brought him another set of short table, carpet, and a cushion, he was frustrated that he lost his position of the leading coalition because of the girl he had planned to enslave.

"Very well. Tong, my dear. Come sit with me."

The word "My dear" from He Xing had many meanings to all lords. It concluded that who had the highest status among them all.

Also, it solidified Tong's stance in the Han Court. No one could deny his command now.

Meanwhile, Tong nodded and held his hand with Liu Xie. They walked together like a family and sat on the main seat in the middle end of the tent.

Xun Yu and Jia Xu stood behind Tong without uttering a word. It was unnecessary for them to talk now anyway since they had completed their plan.

Tong was now the supreme commander of the alliance by default. Should anyone defy his order, they would be equally challenging the empress herself and be flagged as rebels of the Han Dynasty. Then, all their nine generations would be executed by the officials.

Upon sitting, He Xing declared, "First, I need all of you to know that Zhang Tong is my current prince consort. He will take charge of the Han Court while Liu Xie has not matured enough to succeed the throne. Do you best to support him!"

"We understand, your majesty!"

No one dared to object He Xing's declaration.

"I'll leave the command of the armies to you, my dear."

Tong nodded while he was holding Liu Xie on his laps, hugging him. Meanwhile, Liu Xie laughed and played with the command seal on the table without caring about the eyes of others.

Ignoring his fatherly image, Tong cleared his throat.

"All lords are now presented. I'll begin the briefing. We'll start with the distribution of the troops and placement of our ally armies."

…

Tong did not hide anything about his legions placement. He revealed that another 100,000 soldiers were standing by on the northern shore of the Yellow River, getting ready to pincer attack Luo Yang City at any moment.

The mixed southern armies of Sun Jian, Liu Biao, and Yuan Shu, who did not participate in this meeting, also gathered 110,000 men. They would attack the southern pass of Hongnong to flank the Xiongnu Army.

As for the main assault troops, it would be them. The total of 260,000 mixed forces was in charge of crossing Hulao Gate and confronting the main army of Xiongnu.

…

The placement and the scale of this battle gave the minor lords a cold sweat.

Cao Cao, Gongsun Zan, and Yuan Shao had a deep frown on their face. They had concerns.

Tian Feng stepped forward first to comment on this arrangement.

"I disagree with this policy and your entire plan. It's clear that your main forces located on the north bank of the Yellow River while the armies here will draw the attention from the Xiongnu. When the fight breaks out, the coalition armies at our location will suffer the most casualty. But in the meantime, your troops will only face a small detached force of Xiongnu, and you will reap the rewards from plundering their cities before we can even cross the Hulao Gate. I don't know what the others think, but to me, you're using us as baits."

Tian Feng attempted to pry open a crack of this coalition right away.