HLnovel Chapter 206: Becoming emperor was not a foolish act, but the only way!
Chapter 206: Becoming emperor was not a foolish act, but the only way!
"My lord, you haven't eaten or slept for a day and a night, your health is about to collapse."
Ji Ling's voice rang out from outside the study.
Yuan Shu opened his bloodshot eyes wide and said in a hoarse voice:
"It's alright. Bring Yan Xiang and Yang Hong here. I have important matters to discuss with them."
Ji Ling sighed and quickly carried out Yuan Shu's orders.
So far, apart from that sorceress, Yuan Shu has only revealed his desire to become emperor to Ji Ling.
In front of other civil and military officials, it was merely a superficial test.
Now, Yuan Shu wants to confront his opponent and wants to hear the advice of Yang Hong and Yan Xiang.
Soon, Yang Hong and Yan Xiang arrived together.
"My lord, you..."
Both of them were startled by Yuan Shu's somewhat frightening appearance as a living dead.
After a day and a night without eating or sleeping, without brushing his teeth or washing his face, where is his former elegant demeanor?
Yuan Shu laughed:
"It's alright. I'll go and rest after I've finished talking with you two."
Upon hearing this, Yang Hong and Yan Xiang straightened up simultaneously.
Unexpectedly, Yuan Shu then threw them a trump card!
"You two, I want to become emperor."
Yuan Shu calmly uttered these defiant words.
Yan Xiang stood there stunned for a full two and a half minutes before asking again, still unsure:
"My lord, do you mean you'd like to drink honey water?"
Yuan Shu spoke again:
"Yan Xiang, I want to become emperor."
Yan Xiang was struck dumb.
Yang Hong, standing to the side, calmly asked:
"My lord, are you really sure?"
"If you were to declare yourself emperor, you would become the number one traitor to the Han dynasty, and your infamy would far surpass that of Zhang Jiao and Dong Zhuo!"
Yuan Shu laughed:
“If I am a traitor, then all the noble families under heaven are traitors, and the Han Dynasty was destroyed by my family.”
"Their sanctimonious appearances are truly disgusting."
"Besides, if I were to become emperor, I wouldn't be stingy with them."
"The sooner you support me, the greater the rewards you will receive."
Yang Hong shook his head.
He had a thousand words welling up in his heart, but he didn't know where to begin.
Is the Han Dynasty, this dilapidated ship, about to sink?
This question is meaningless.
Because everyone knew that the Liu Han imperial family was destined to perish.
The important question is, who will replace the Liu Han imperial family?
Who will fire the first shot?
Back then, Liu Xiu wasn't the only one opposing Wang Mang.
But Liu Xiu emerged as the ultimate winner, establishing the Han dynasty for the second time with the help of the three major shareholders behind him.
This time, the Liu Han imperial family did not have a capable person like Liu Xiu.
The only one who bore a resemblance to Liu Yan, having seen through the complexities of the Han Dynasty, chose to shut himself away and play by himself.
He passed away not long ago.
Liu Biao does have a chance of making it to the finals.
But compared to the powerful Yuan brothers, why would an ambitious aristocratic family, especially one of the three major shareholders, choose Liu Biao, an old man who was over fifty and approaching sixty?
Of course, this doesn't mean that no one would choose Liu Biao.
However, far fewer people chose Liu Biao than Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu.
Yuan Shu's declaration of himself as emperor was a violation of the rules of the game, a premature showdown.
People who break the rules of the game...
The previous one was Dong Zhuo;
The one before that was Wang Mang!
But Dong Zhuo's approach was already outdated.
It was a state that wanted to follow the path of the pre-Qin era, but ultimately it was not the Qin state that had built up the strength of six generations of Qin, and its enemies were much stronger than the six eastern states that were gradually declining.
Wang Mang is a case study that Yuan Shu could learn from.
But Wang Mang himself came from a powerful family, and he seized power as a maternal relative, taking control of the entire Han Dynasty.
The core reason for Wang Mang's defeat was that he failed to properly distribute the benefits, leading to a collective rebellion by his shareholders.
Other reasons are secondary.
Is Yuan Shu's current situation comparable to Wang Mang's?
It is clearly inferior.
Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Liu Biao, Gongsun Zan, and Liu Zhang were all powerful warlords who controlled at least one province.
It's far too early for Yuan Shu to talk about declaring himself emperor before he's even defeated them.
But at this moment, Yang Hong knew that Yuan Shu had summoned them here because he had already envisioned many possible scenarios after Yuan Shu declared himself emperor.
Unable to persuade Yuan Shu, Yang Hong still asked tearfully:
"My lord, is there really no other way but to declare yourself emperor?"
Yuan Shu threw his head back and laughed loudly, knocking over the empty bowls beside him.
"I was born in the wrong era."
“In the past, I always thought that my fourth uncle was very weak.”
"My Yuan family is already so powerful, why should we still be so respectful to the two previous emperors (referring to Liu Zhi and Liu Hong)?"
"Later I learned that my fourth uncle was the real madman!"
"Killing Xun Yi, eliminating Dou Wu, feeding Dong Zhuo, raising Ding Yuan, breaking the Party Prohibitions, forcing the Ju family, destroying the imperial relatives, and sweeping away the eunuchs; all of these were the work of Fourth Uncle!"
"Don't even mention me, even if I were to join forces with Yuan Benchu, I still wouldn't be as capable as Fourth Uncle!"
"He was the man who fought against two emperors, wore them down, and brought my Yuan family to its peak!"
"How could I possibly think someone like that is weak?"
Yuan Shu chuckled self-deprecatingly.
Suddenly, he changed the subject and said:
"What a pity, Fourth Uncle has fallen!"
“All his methods, except for killing Xun Yi, were lawful and followed the rules.”
"When faced with someone as unruly as Dong Zhuo, even Fourth Uncle couldn't do anything about it."
"His death, however, gave me and Yuan Shao an opportunity."
"Otherwise, the opportunity should have gone to the elder brother!"
Yuan Shu laughed even more maniacally.
Yang Hong remained silent.
Having followed Yuan Shu for so long, he naturally knew some of the Yuan family's secrets.
Yuan Wei's three biological sons died before the Yellow Turban Rebellion, and none of them lived past the age of twenty.
Left with no other choice, Yuan Wei adopted Yuan Ji, the eldest son of his second brother Yuan Feng, as his adopted son.
The meaning is very clear: the next head of the Yuan family will be Yuan Ji!
As a result, Yuan Ji and Yuan Wei died together at the hands of Dong Zhuo.
Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu's opportunity has arrived.
With such a vast family fortune, of course we must fight for it!
Reflecting on his fourth uncle's experiences, Yuan Shu believed that his fourth uncle was very capable, but was also bound by rules.
If it weren't for Dong Zhuo, that unruly person, disrupting the rhythm...
Perhaps, everything will unfold as Uncle Si predicted.
And Yuan Shu.
In direct competition, it is now very difficult to surpass Yuan Shao's advantage.
Only by taking unconventional approaches and breaking the rules can victory be achieved!
Declaring himself emperor is the only way.
Otherwise, Yuan Shu knew perfectly well that he would have no further opportunities in the future.
……