Killing Dong Zhuo and his generals didn't mean the end of this coup, but rather the beginning.
The 50,000 garrison troops of Chang 'an City were leaderless, and the 5,000 elite soldiers guarding the palace would not listen to anyone's orders. Dong Zhuo and the other officials also needed to be dealt with. After calming down, the struggle for power was something that Lu Bu had to consider.
However, the most important thing now was to go out of the city and gather the troops of Xu Huang and Zhang Xiu. Quickly bring them into the city. Controlling the city's defenses was the key.
He ordered Dian Wei to return to the Fuma's residence to guard it. Lu Bu brought a few personal guards to the eastern city gate. Fortunately, he had already removed the token from Dong Zhuo's body and was free to travel.
After a day of rushing, Zhang Xiu's 50,000 infantrymen finally arrived at Xu Huang's camp and had a simple meal. Lu Bu brought them to Chang 'an in a hurry. However, they did not call back the cavalry outside the other three gates. They would wait until they controlled the entire outer city.
After entering the city, Lu Bu immediately took over the city defense, leaving five thousand men to guard the east gate. He immediately led all his men to charge at the other three gates and wait for them to be under control. Only then did Lu Bu call back the other three groups of cavalry. He gathered all the troops and led Niu Fu's city guards to the barracks in the city, leaving behind teams of guards along the way. When they arrived at the military camp, the soldiers inside were still asleep when they were disarmed.
There were only 20,000 soldiers in the camp. Adding on the 20,000 soldiers guarding the city, there was still a large space left in the camp, and 20,000 people were left to guard it. What Lu Bu needed to consider now was the ten thousand soldiers in the inner city.
There had always been a rule that the inner city would not open at night without the emperor's order. This wasn't something that could be opened with Dong Zhuo's token alone. It also required his warrant.
Fortunately, the commander of the inner city's city defense was fawning over Lu Bu, allowing him to escape easily. However, it would not be easy to bring 20,000 cavalrymen and 10,000 infantrymen into the city.
Lu Bu decided to enter the inner city first and find the city defense commander. "The Grand Preceptor has received a secret report that someone is plotting a rebellion. He has ordered me to lead troops into the inner city to strengthen the defense." Now that the soldiers are outside, quickly arrange for them to enter the city. Also, don't alarm the people.”
"Wen Hou, do you have the Grand Preceptor's orders? If there's no transfer order, I'll have to ask General Niu.”The commander said awkwardly.
"Would the Grand Preceptor write a transfer order for such a secretive matter? He was afraid that you would delay, so he gave his official seal to me. Will you be responsible if things are delayed?”Lu Bu said solemnly as he took out the seal he had found on Dong Zhuo.
The city defense commander did not dare to take on this responsibility. He quickly gave the order to quietly open the city gate and lower the suspension bridge.
Lu Bu called the soldiers into the city and immediately disarmed the guards. Then, he asked Xu Huang to escort the city defense commander to the other three gates.
Lu Bu could not enter the palace, so he could only wait until dawn. Right now, they were in control of the inner city. He had to monitor the homes of those ministers to prevent them from causing trouble. As for Dong Zhuo and his subordinates, Lu Bu had Zhang Xiu lead 5,000 cavalry to raid their homes.
They couldn't attack the Imperial Palace now, lest they were driven into a corner and hurt the Emperor. That wouldn't be good. He could only wait until morning before taking action. He ordered 10,000 men to be stationed in the streets around the palace, leaving only 5,000 men at the main gate. He was prepared to go home and find Liu Jian to contact those loyal ministers of the royal family and prepare to take back the imperial power.
Hearing Lu Bu's words, Liu Jian was naturally very happy. He immediately got up from his bed and prepared to go to the homes of those ministers to call them over. Worried about her safety, Lu Bu asked Dian Wei to bring his personal guards to protect her before returning to the backyard.
None of his wives had slept and were anxiously waiting for him to come back. Seeing him enter the door, she came up. Although she knew that he wasn't injured, she still couldn't help but ask.
Seeing that it was already past midnight, Lu Bu hurriedly coaxed them into the bedroom. The sky was about to brighten, and he still had many things to do. The three of them reluctantly left him. Lu Bu also took advantage of this free time to go to Liu Jian's bedroom to rest. This day was not an ordinary day.
When the servant girl came to inform him that Liu Jian had returned. Lu Bu stood up and walked out.
In the middle hall, Ma Richan, Yang Biao, Cai Yong, Wang Yun, Minister of State Zhong Fu, Grand Servant Lu Kui, and Zhou Huan of Dahonglu were all seated. When they saw him, only Cai Yong and Ma Richan greeted him. The others ignored him. Although Liu Jian had invited them over, he did not tell them what was going on.
Lu Bu sat down at the head of the table and told him what he was sitting on today. He then took out Dong Zhuo's seal.
Everyone looked at Ma Richan. He was the most respected person here. Ma Richan took the seal and played with it for a while before saying,""It's not that we don't believe you, General, but this is a serious matter. Do you have any other evidence?”
"Dong Zhuo's body is still outside the city. It can be transported into the city tomorrow morning." Lu Bu chuckled. Now, I have control of the entire Chang 'an Fortress. The only thing left is the Imperial Palace. He had called everyone here to discuss how to seize the Imperial Palace.”Lu Bu did not transport Dong Zhuo's body into the city. Instead, he left it outside the city and had Yi Ji guard it. For this reason, Lu Bu had specially left him 3,000 cavalry.
As soon as he finished speaking, Cai Yong also said,"I can testify. Wen Hou killed Niu Fu and his subordinates in my house.”
Although Cai Yong was highly valued by Dong Zhuo, he didn't seek refuge with him. Everyone present knew this very well. He was an extremely upright person, and his words carried a lot of weight.
Sure enough, as soon as he opened his mouth, Wang Yun asked first,""If that's the case, why didn't Wen Hou inform me two months ago?”He was still complaining about how Lu Bu had forcefully taken Diao Chan away.
Lu Bu shook his head and said,"It's not that I don't trust Situ, but I'm afraid that the servants in the residence won't keep their mouths shut."”
The moment he said this, four people immediately blushed. They thought of the failed assassination attempt in Luoyang. Not only did they fail, but they also implicated Huangfu Song, Zhu Juan, and Lu Zhi. When they were retreating from Luoyang, they were secretly killed by Li Ru.
" Cough!" Ma Richan coughed lightly and said," General, tell us. How do you want us to cooperate with you?"”
The rest of the people also echoed.
"I don't need you to do anything," replied Lu Bu. Tomorrow at court, you'd better have an argument at the entrance of the palace. The guards definitely won't dare to expel you. I'll take the opportunity to bring soldiers over to suppress you and enter the Imperial Palace. Then, we'll work together from the inside and take over the Imperial Palace in one fell swoop. In this way, Chang 'an can be pacified. Then, they could announce Dong Zhuo's crimes. I've also captured the 40 or so people who sided with him. We can convict them together tomorrow.”
"Then can the emperor's safety be guaranteed?”The Grand Servant Lu Kui was still more concerned about the Emperor, afraid that the rebels would hurt him.
"Don't worry, the reason why I want to bring troops into the palace is to protect the emperor. Otherwise, I would have forcefully entered.”Lu Bu said calmly. Now, everything was under his control. The reason why he had to deal with so many officials was to let them see his strength, so that they would not point fingers.
"Alright, then let's take a gamble.”Taichang Qing Zhong Fu had a strong personality and said.
Seeing that things had come to this, Ma Richan agreed on behalf of the others. No matter what, he still killed Dong Zhuo. As for Lu Bu's rise, there was no other way. Fortunately, he wasn't as domineering as Dong Zhuo, and he was a relative of the royal family, so he was easier to control.
Everyone discussed for a while. Seeing that the sky was already bright, they left the Fuma residence together.
Although there was a bloody storm last night, it did not alarm too many people. Every time the inner city was under martial law, Zhang Xiu's capture was also sent off by horse carriage. Therefore, many officials were ready to go to court at dawn.
Although Lu Bu's cavalrymen were around the palace, they were not very close. They were all hidden in the nearby streets, and only the five thousand cavalrymen remained in front of the palace. The commandant who guarded the palace had also come to question them, and the answer he received was that they had indeed helped them guard the palace. Seeing that they were Lu Bu's army, he could not say anything and could only return to the palace. He secretly increased the guards at the palace gates.
After a bitter night, they did not encounter any accidents. The commandant left the guard work to his subordinates and went back to sleep. With Dong Zhuo as an example, he naturally did not lag behind. He had already secretly captured five or six palace maids and placed them in his residence. Now was the perfect time to go back to Lehe.
Just as the commandant left with a lewd smile, Ma Richan and the other seven's carriages drove into the palace from all directions. After they left the Fuma's residence, they dispersed. Otherwise, anyone would be able to tell that there was a problem.
Everything went according to plan. Apart from Lu Bu's 500 men who had encountered some obstacles when they entered the palace, everything else had gone smoothly.
Lu Bu deliberately did not follow Ma Richan and the others in. Instead, he brought Dian Wei and a dozen personal guards to stay at the palace gates. His cavalry had been waiting for a long time. Although they had dismounted, their offensive power was not to be underestimated. They had been trained according to Lu Bu's method. Now, he only needed to wait for Ma Richan and the others to bring his 500 personal guards to the Emperor's bedchamber and send the news. Then, he could make his move.
Most of the officials saw Lu Bu suddenly standing outside the Imperial Palace, holding the halberd in his hand, looking like a tiger eyeing its prey. Thinking that something big had happened, they didn't dare to dawdle and quickly entered the temporary resting courtyard. Although he realized that he had lost many colleagues, he did not dare to ask. They all sat on the soft couch and rested.
When almost everyone had arrived, Lu Bu heard three whistling arrows from the palace. He no longer pretended to be cool. He raised his halberd and directly stabbed at the palace gate guards waiting beside him. Then, he sent a signal to Zhang Xiu, who was waiting in the distance. He immediately led 5,000 soldiers and charged towards the palace.
At this moment, the hundred or so guards in front of the palace gate were still unsure of what had happened. They all looked at Lu Bu in surprise.
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