Li Su set the gold and pearls together with the jade belt in front of his host. "What are these for?" Lü Bu asked in surprise. Li Su had him dismiss his attendants. "His Excellency Dong Zhuo himself," Su began, "commissioned me to offer these to you, tokens of his long-standing admiration for your reputation. The horse is also his gift." "How can I reciprocate such affection?" Lü Bu asked. "If someone as ordinary as myself," Li Su answered, "can rise to commander of the Imperial Tiger Escort, then there will be no bounds to the rewards for someone like you." "Alas," Lü Bu responded, "I haven't a speck of merit to offer as an introduction." "To the contrary," returned Li Su, "it lies in the slightest turn of your hand. But I fear you would be reluctant to ..." Lü Bu mused a long while before saying, "I should like to kill Ding Yuan and take his men with me into Dong Zhuo's service. What do you think?" "Worthy brother," said Li Su, "there could be no greater service. But time is precious. Act without delay." They arranged for Lü Bu to join Dong Zhuo the next day. Then Li Su took his leave.
Late that night during the second watch Lü Bu, armed with a knife, stole into Ding Yuan's tent and found him reading by candlelight. "What brings you here, my son?" asked Ding Yuan. "I am my own man," answered Bu, "and proud of it. I am no 'son' of yours." "Why have you turned against me?" Ding Yuan pleaded. Lü Bu, already moving on him, cut off his head and shouted to the attendants, "Ding Yuan is dead! I have killed him for his inhumanity. Those for me, stay. Those opposed, leave." Most of the troops dispersed.
The next day Lü Bu brought Ding Yuan's head to Li Su, and Li Su brought Lü Bu to Dong Zhuo. With great satisfaction Dong Zhuo ordered wine and invited Lü Bu to drink. He said, kneeling, "To have you here is to me like rain to the parched seedling." Lü Bu then raised Dong Zhuo, urged him to his seat, and prostrated himself in turn. "If you will have me, I beg to honor you as a foster father." Dong Zhuo presented Lü Bu with gleaming metal armor and a richly damasked battle gown. After drinking heartily, the two parted.
Dong Zhuo's authority increased after Lü Bu's arrival. Zhuo took personal command of the Forward Army and conferred on his brother, Dong Min, the title general of the Left and made him lord of Hu. He appointed Lü Bu cavalry commander11 and Imperial Corps commander, and enfeoffed him with a capital precinct.
Li Ru urged Dong Zhuo to arrange as quickly as possible for the deposing of Emperor Shao and the enthroning of the prince of Chenliu. Dong Zhuo convened a banquet in the imperial quarters for the lords and noblemen and ordered Lü Bu to stand by with one thousand soldiers. That day Imperial Guardian Yuan Wei and the entire official corps were in attendance. After several rounds of wine, Dong Zhuo, hand on sword, spoke: "The present sovereign is inept and feeble, unfit to serve the ancestral temple. I mean to follow the hallowed precedents of Yi Yin and Huo Guang and place the prince of Chenliu upon the throne of Han. The present Emperor will become the prince of Hongnong. Those who resist will be killed."
The officials were too astounded to respond. But Yuan Shao, commandant of the Central Army, rose to his feet and declared, "The present sovereign has held the throne but briefly. There are no defects in his character, no lapses in his conduct. Removing the Empress's son and enthroning a concubine's—what do you call that if not treason?" "This matter of state is mine to decide," Dong Zhuo said angrily. "Who dares defy me? Do you think this sword not sharp enough?" Yuan Shao, too, bared his sword. "This one may prove as sharp," he retorted. The two warriors confronted each other before the guests. Indeed:
Ding Yuan stood for honor and lost his life;
Yuan Shao challenged Dong Zhuo and stood in peril.
And what was Yuan Shao's fate?
Read on.
4
The Installation of the Chenliu Prince; Emperor Shao Is Deposed;
A Plot Against Traitor Dong; Cao Cao Presents a Jeweled Knife
Dong Zhuo started for Yuan Shao, but Li Ru checked him: "Things are not yet under control. You must not kill rashly." Thus Yuan Shao left, sword still in hand, after bidding the assembled officials farewell. He hung his credentials on the east gate and fled to the province of Ji. "Your nephew has been most uncivil to us," Zhuo said to Imperial Guardian Yuan Wei, "but in deference to you I forgive him. Where do you stand on the succession?" "With you, Grand Commandant," was the reply. "Then let martial law deal with those who defy us!" Dong Zhuo declared. Shaken and fearful, the assembly responded, "We shall obey."
After the banquet Dong Zhuo asked Privy Counselor Zhou Bi and Commandant Wu Qiong how to deal with Yuan Shao. "He left in a terrible rage," said Zhou Bi. "But if you try to arrest him, the situation could turn against you. Don't forget, the Yuan clan has held high office for four generations. The empire abounds with their followers and former subordinates, powerful men who would gather their forces at his call. And then if other gallant heroes rally to his cause, the whole region east of Huashan Mountain will no longer be yours. Pardon Yuan Shao and give him an imperial district. He will be glad to be exonerated, and you will buy security." "Yuan Shao," added Wu Qiong, "loves to contemplate action but lacks resolution. He's not a problem. Do give him a governorship, if only to keep people's confidence." Dong Zhuo agreed and that same day had Shao appointed governor of Bohai.
On the first day of the ninth month the Emperor was invited to ascend the Hall of Praiseworthy Virtue before a grand convocation of civil and military officials. Dong Zhuo drew his sword and addressed them: "The Son of Heaven is too feeble in mind and in body to sustain his reign. I have a statement to make." At Zhuo's order Li Ru read it:
Although the late Majestic Emperor Ling the Filial departed all too soon, there were high expectations in the land when the present Emperor assumed the throne. But Heaven did not endow him with the steady and serious character, the deportment and demeanor to command respect. His inattention and nonchalance during the mourning period exhibit his meagre virtue. All this has been detrimental to the throne itself. Queen Mother He has failed to give proper guidance, leaving government administration untended and disordered. The violent death of Queen Mother Dong has left public opinion confused. The mainstays of our social order, the very bonds between Heaven and earth, have fallen slack.
The prince of Chenliu is rich in sagely virtue and strictly devoted to proper rule. Throughout the mourning he was distraught with grief. His words were unfailingly apt, and all the world knows his excellent name. It is thus fitting and proper for him to receive the boundless patrimony of the Han as legitimate heir for all time. Thus: the sovereign is hereby deposed and reduced to prince of Hongnong. The queen mother will be relieved of all administrative duties. We enthrone the prince of Chenliu, in response to Heaven, in concurrence with men, and to satisfy the people's expectations.
When Li Ru had finished reading, Dong Zhuo sharply ordered the attendants to lead the Emperor down from the hall and to remove his seal and cord. They told him to face north and on bended knees declare his intention to serve and to obey. The queen mother was ordered to remove her royal costume and await instructions. Mother and son wept bitterly, and the assembly of officials moaned. But from below one official cried out indignantly, "Traitor Dong Zhuo. Dare you abuse Heaven itself? Then let my blood bear witness." He shook his pointed ivory tablet and attacked Dong Zhuo, at whose angry command the guards seized the man, Imperial Secretary Ding Guan. Dong Zhuo ordered him removed and beheaded. To the moment of his death his oaths streamed forth; neither his spirit nor his expression altered. In later times men still sighed for his sacrifice, as these lines attest:
The traitor's plot to change a sovereign
Would soon consign to dust the shrines of Han.
A courtful of courtiers helpless in Dong Zhuo's hand,
And no one but Ding Guan to take a stand!
Dong Zhuo invited the prince of Chenliu to ascend, and the assembly voiced its congratulations. Dong Zhuo ordered Queen Mother He and the former emperor, now prince of Hongnong, together with the imperial consort, Lady Tang, immured in the Palace of Eternal Peace. No access to the
m was permitted. Alas for the Emperor Shao, enthroned in the fourth month and deposed in the ninth.
The new Emperor, prince of Chenliu, Liu Xie (styled Bohe), second son of Emperor Ling, became known to history as Emperor Xian. He was nine years old, five years younger than his deposed brother. A new reign period, Beginning Peace (Chu Ping, a.d. 190-93), was proclaimed. Dong Zhuo became prime minister.1 But he did not use his own name when saluting the sovereign nor comport himself reverently by scurrying in his presence, nor did he remove his boots and sword before the throne as required. The pres-tige and wealth he amassed raised him above all. Li Ru urged Dong Zhuo to broaden his support by elevating a few eminent men, Cai Yong in particular. Accordingly, Dong Zhuo summoned Cai Yong, but he refused to appear until threats of death to himself and his clan forced the scholar to present himself. Dong Zhuo was so pleased that he advanced Cai Yong three times within the month, finally making him privy counselor. Such was the kindness and generosity Cai Yong enjoyed.
Meanwhile the former Emperor Shao, his mother, and his consort—all imprisoned in the Palace of Eternal Peace—were allotted but meagre shares of food and clothing. Emperor Shao's tears were never dry. One day he happened to notice a pair of swallows flying in the courtyard and intoned these lines:
Fresh vernal grasses tint the morning haze;
Homing swallows lace the sky in pairs;
The River Luo, a stretch of darker green—
People cry in wonder at the scene.
But out beyond the depths of yonder clouds
Stand palaces and courts that once were ours.
Who will stand for loyalty, take honor's part,
And ease the heavy wrongs upon my heart?
A spy, who kept the deposed Emperor under constant surveillance, reported to Dong Zhuo the words he heard sung. "Well, if grievance is his theme, we have our excuse," said Dong Zhuo and commanded Li Ru to take ten armed men and murder the Emperor.
The Emperor, Empress He, and Consort Tang were in an upper story of the palace when Li Ru was announced. The Emperor panicked. Li Ru offered him a cup of poisoned wine.2 The Emperor wanted to know the occasion for the toast. "The prime minister drinks your health to greet the spring season," replied Li Ru. "If it is 'our health,'" said the queen mother, "you may drink first." "You won't drink it?" Li Ru said impatiently and ordered his men to show their knives and silken cords. "If the toast is refused, these will have to do," he added. Consort Tang fell to her knees and said, "Let this humble woman drink instead. Only, my lord, preserve the mother and the son." "And who are you to offer yourself in a prince's place?" snarled Li Ru, holding out the wine to the queen mother. "You drink first," he said. She cursed He Jin for having ruined the family by letting traitors into the capital.3 Li Ru pressed the cup on the Emperor. "Allow me to bid my mother good-bye," he said. Then he sang with deep feeling:
Earth tops Heaven; sun and moon change places.
Once I had a kingdom; now, a border town.
Robbed of life; by subjects overthrown.
All is lost; tears in vain flow on.
In turn the consort also sang:
Majestic Heaven falls; mother earth sinks down.
Given in marriage, I follow where he goes.
Two different paths—life and death here part.
So swift the course, and sorrow-filled my heart.
After the song the two embraced and wept. "The prime minister awaits our report," said Li Ru cruelly. "You are delaying things. Who do you think is coming to save you?" At that, the queen mother cried, "The traitor Dong drives us to our doom. But Heaven will never sanction it. Your entire clan will perish for aiding this criminal." Li Ru laid hands on the queen mother and thrust her out of a window. Then he barked the order to strangle the consort and force the wine down Emperor Shao's throat. His work finished, Li Ru reported to Dong Zhuo, who ordered the three buried outside the city wall.
Dong Zhuo now began to indulge himself freely, debauching the imperial concubines and sleeping in the Emperor's bed. One day he took some troops to the city of Yang, a place outside Luoyang. It was the second month when the villagers, men and women, were celebrating the spring thanksgiving festival in honor of their local god. Dong Zhuo ordered his troops to surround the crowd and behead all the men. He seized the women and the goods that the people had with them and loaded everything onto his carts, tying to the sides the severed heads—more than one thousand. As the train reentered the capital Dong Zhuo announced that he was returning from a great victory over some bandits. The heads were burned at the city gate; the women and valuables were distributed among the army.4
The commandant of the Exemplary Cavalry, Wu Fu (styled Deyu), indignant at Dong Zhuo's cruelties, put a vest of armor and a knife under his court dress in order to assassinate him. When Dong Zhuo entered the court, Wu Fu greeted him outside the ministerial chambers and then lunged at him with the knife. Dong Zhuo, a powerful man, caught Wu Fu with both hands, and Lü Bu stepped in at once and forced him to the ground. "Who is behind this treason?" cried Dong Zhuo. Wu Fu stared boldly and shouted: "You are not my sovereign. I am not your subject. What 'treason' are you talking about? Your crimes tower to Heaven, and the whole world longs to see you dead. My one regret is that I cannot have you pulled apart by horses—like any traitor—to satisfy the realm." In a fury Dong Zhuo had Wu Fu dragged out and carved up. The curses streamed from his lips till the moment of death. A verse of later times praised him:
If you must tell of loyalty,
Tell of Wu Fu's to the Han.
His courage mounted to the skies
When down below was none.
He struck at Dong Zhuo in the court;
His fame is with us still.
Forever and ever he's won the name
Of a man of iron will.
Thereafter armed guards constantly attended Dong Zhuo.
At this time Yuan Shao was governor of Bohai. Informed of Dong Zhuo's abuses, he wrote secretly to Minister of the Interior Wang Yun:
This traitor wronged Heaven itself when he dethroned the Emperor, more than one can bear to say. Yet you have indulged his outrageous conduct as if you have heard nothing. Does this befit a subject who owes the dynasty his utmost loyalty? I am calling up and training soldiers to clear the royal house of villains, but I am not yet ready to act. If you share my views, be alert for any opportunity. I stand at your beck and call, awaiting your command.
After reading the letter, Wang Yun racked his brains for a plan. One day he came upon a group of former courtiers awaiting audience and said to them, "Today is my birthday. I should like to invite you to a little gathering at my humble home this evening." "We will come, of course, to wish you long life," the courtiers replied.
That evening the elder lords and ministers arrived for the banquet Wang Yun had prepared in the rear chamber. The wine had gone round several times when Wang Yun covered his face and burst into tears. "Why this show of sorrow on a day of celebration?" asked the startled guests. "Today is not really my birthday," answered Wang Yun. "I said so only because I had something to tell you and wanted to avoid suspicion. Dong Zhuo has wronged the Emperor and abused his power. The dynastic shrines stand in peril. When I think how the founder of the Han overthrew the Qin, destroyed Chu, and gathered the empire into his hands, I cannot believe that the succession is to die out at the hands of a Dong Zhuo. That is why I cry!" The officials wept with him.
One of the guests, however, was rubbing his hands and laughing loudly. "This courtful of nobles can weep till morning and round to the next evening, too. But can you weep Dong Zhuo to death?" Wang Yun eyed the speaker, Cao Cao, commandant of the Valiant Cavaliers. In a tone of annoyance, Wang Yun said, "Your ancestors also held office under the Han. Why do you laugh when you should be thinking of how to settle the score for the dynasty?" "What makes me laugh," Cao went on, "is simply that not one of you gentlemen seems to have any idea how to get rid of Dong Zhuo. Despite my lack of ability, I would like nothing better than to cut off
his head and hang it at the gates to the capital—to redeem ourselves in the eyes of the empire."
Rising from his mat in a gesture of respect, Wang Yun said, "Mengde, what is your worthy plan?" "Recently," Cao replied, "I demeaned myself and entered Dong Zhuo's service only for the chance to move against him. Since he has come to trust me, there are times I can get near him. I believe you have a knife with seven jewels. If you let me borrow it, I will go into his chamber and stab him—for I am prepared to die without regret." "Mengde, if you really mean to do this, the empire will be in your debt," Wang Yun responded. He personally poured out and offered him wine, which Cao Cao drained as his pledge; then Wang Yun gave him the precious dagger. Cao concealed it on his person. When he had finished drinking, Cao took leave his leave. The courtiers adjourned soon afterwards.
The next day Cao Cao, the jeweled knife at his side, arrived at the prime minister's chambers and was shown into his private quarters. Dong Zhuo was seated on a platform, Lü Bu beside him. "You're late today," said Zhuo. "My horse was slow," Cao replied. "We have some fine ones from my district," said Dong Zhuo. "Fengxian will go and bring one in for you." Lü Bu went out and Cao Cao said to himself, "How much this traitor deserves to die!" But he resisted the impulse to stab him then and there, fearing Dong Zhuo's enormous physical strength.
Dong Zhuo, a large, heavy man, could not comfortably sit for long, so he stretched himself out facing the rear wall. Again Cao Cao thought, "This traitor is done for," and was about to strike when Dong Zhuo suddenly looked into the metal reflector sewn on his clothing and saw the weapon drawn. "What are you up to, Mengde?" he asked, turning quickly round again. At that moment Lü Bu returned with the horse, and Cao dropped shakily to his knees, proferring the knife with both hands. "I wanted to offer this treasure in gratitude to Your Excellency," he said.5 Dong Zhuo took the knife. It was about a foot long and had seven jewels set in the handle and a finely honed point—truly a priceless gift. Dong Zhuo passed it to Lü Bu, as Cao Cao untied the scabbard and handed it over. Then Dong Zhuo led Cao out to see the horse. "Let me ride," Cao proposed. Dong Zhuo gave him saddle and bridle. Cao guided the horse out of Dong Zhuo's quarters, laid on the whip and headed southeast.
Three Kingdoms Page 6
