Chapter 19

"Congratulations on capturing this villain, Mengde!" Li You led Liu Bei and his troops to the city gate to welcome Cao Cao, Sun Jian, Gong Sun Zan, and Ma Teng. This time, they had gained a lot, not only capturing Dong Zhuo but also accepting the surrender of his strategists and generals like Li Ru, and seizing the gold and jewels that Dong Zhuo had collected through his efforts.

"Without Wenjie, how could we have achieved this victory!" Everyone returned the salute, and this statement was indeed reasonable. Since the battle at Fanshui Pass, from slaying Hua Xiong, capturing Fanshui Pass, defeating Lu Bu, breaking through Hulao Pass, and advancing to Luoyang, every battle had relied on the performance of Li You's troops to achieve victory; without him, the situation would have been very different!

"Where is His Majesty?" Liu Bei could hardly wait to meet Emperor Xian.

"Please have His Majesty return to the palace early. I have prepared a banquet in the palace to welcome and wash away the dust of His Majesty! To celebrate the victory of all of you!" Li You was not particularly interested in Emperor Xian.

Back in the palace, after everyone bathed and changed clothes, a grand banquet was set up in the main hall. Emperor Xian sat on the dragon throne, and the ministers paid their respects in turn. When it was Li You's turn, he secretly observed Emperor Xian, who looked uneasy on the throne, lacking the aura of an emperor. Li You sighed inwardly, thinking that the Liu family's rule would not last much longer.

The grand banquet began, and everyone's demeanor varied. Cao Cao was worried about the aftermath and kept looking at the gathered warlords. Liu Bei and Emperor Xian recognized each other as uncle and nephew, solidifying his title as the Imperial Uncle, with tears streaming down his face. Sun Jian, having achieved great success, felt that the Sun family's prosperity was within reach, and his excitement was evident. Ma Teng and Gong Sun Zan displayed their boldness, drinking cup after cup of fine wine. Only Li You was thinking about when he could return to the main world, maintaining a calm expression.

After the banquet, Emperor Xian returned to his sleeping quarters, and the others gathered at Cao Cao's residence to discuss the aftermath. "Although Dong Zhuo has been eliminated, Yuan Shao and others are still outside Luoyang, and the Yellow Turbans are still causing chaos in various regions! What good strategies do you have?" Cao Cao looked at Li You and asked.

"Currently, Dong Zhuo's chaotic troops have not been completely subdued and need to be pacified as soon as possible! Mengde can petition the emperor to appoint Li Ru, ordering him to lead part of the chaotic troops back to Liang. Place Li Cui and Guo Si under Mengde's command, and send people to persuade the generals like Niu Fu, who are entrenched in Chang'an, to submit!" Li You first spoke about how to deal with Dong Zhuo's former subordinates. It was not realistic to completely eliminate them; for now, only the leaders should be punished, and the coerced followers should be spared. Once the political situation stabilized, further actions could be taken.

"Li Ru, Niu Fu, Li Cui, and Guo Si can be temporarily spared! Dong Zhuo is a heinous criminal and must be executed to pacify the hearts of the people!" Sun Jian, who hated evil, had wanted to kill Dong Zhuo on the way. According to his nature, Li Ru and others should also be executed, but he knew that if these people were dealt with, the Liang troops would surely fall into chaos, so he could only keep this in mind.

And Li You also thought this way, which is why he did not suggest assigning Li Cui and Guo Si to their three commands. "Wentai, rest assured. Tomorrow, we will petition the emperor to order the execution of Dong Zhuo by dismemberment!" Cao Cao was also afraid that something might go wrong, and if someone rescued Dong Zhuo, it would be disastrous. Therefore, he arranged for the Xiahou brothers to personally guard Dong Zhuo.

"As for Yuan Shao and others, whose intentions vary, they can be divided and conquered! For scholars like Kong Rong, they can be summoned to serve in the court! The imperial relative Liu Dai can be generously rewarded to win his loyalty; Tao Qian and Qiao Mao, who have limited abilities and are not a threat, can have their children and nephews appointed to court positions; as for the Yuan brothers..." Li You spoke about his suggestions for dealing with them. "These two are quite ambitious. One can be rewarded, and the other can be reprimanded. They already have many disagreements, and such treatment will make them wary of each other. We can then defeat them one by one."

To be honest, most of the other warlords were mediocre. As long as Cao Cao and his allies controlled the political situation in Luoyang, these people would not cause much trouble.

After discussing these matters, it was time to reward the contributors. After some negotiation, due to Li You's concessions and support, Cao Cao received the largest share, staying in Luoyang to manage the court, while Liu Bei, Sun Jian, Gong Sun Zan, and Ma Teng each received their own rewards. They would lead troops to suppress the remaining Yellow Turban rebels and any other warlords who might cause trouble.

Li You, on the other hand, only asked for a prestigious but leisurely position, which was a fair reward for the body he had taken over from Han Fu. If not for Li You, Han Fu would soon be stripped of Ji Province by Yuan Shao and then commit suicide. Now, as long as he did not do something foolish, with the merits and connections left by Li You, Cao Cao would certainly take care of his later years.

The next day, they petitioned Emperor Xian for an imperial edict to publicly execute Dong Zhuo by dismemberment, and each of Dong Zhuo's remaining generals received their own rewards. Their hearts, which had been on edge, finally settled.

Envoys with the imperial edict were sent to the camps of the various warlords, and most of them were satisfied with the edict's arrangements. Kong Rong immediately packed his things to go to Luoyang to meet Emperor Xian, Liu Dai bowed in the direction of Luoyang to thank the emperor, and Tao Qian and Qiao Mao began to worry about which of their children should receive such good fortune.

Only the Yuan brothers were dissatisfied, but the other warlords were either preparing to go to Luoyang to thank the emperor or planning to leave. With their limited strength, they could not compete with Cao Cao in the city. Moreover, with the court's incitement, they had a big argument and then led their troops back to Bohai and Nanyang, respectively.

In Luoyang, Cao Cao and the newly surrendered strategists like Xun Yu, Jia Xu, and Xun You worked hard to clean up the mess. Liu Bei, Ma Teng, Gong Sun Zan, and Sun Jian each prepared their troops to head in different directions to suppress the remaining Yellow Turban rebels. Only Li You wandered around leisurely, visiting all the places where he might find special items, such as the tombs of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, and the old site of Zhou Yafu's camp, but unfortunately, he found nothing.

Before long, the day for him to return to the main world was approaching. He paid his final visit to Cao Cao, "Mengde, I am now a civil official and should not continue to lead troops. I entrust my troops and Pan Feng to you!"

Cao Cao's current troops were still somewhat insufficient, so Li You decided to hand over his troops to him. After all, leaving them to Han Fu would be of no use and might even bring him unnecessary trouble.

Cao Cao was initially very surprised, but under Li You's insistence, he accepted the troops. Li You decided to do a good deed to the end and wrote a letter to Qu Yi, who was left to guard Ji Province, asking him to submit to Cao Cao. Whether Qu Yi would listen was up to his fate!

Cao Cao repeatedly thanked him, and any remaining concerns about Han Fu were dispelled. He took Li You's words about the limited time seriously!

With his original army of several tens of thousands, plus the surrendered troops of Lu Bu, Li Cui, and Guo Si, and now the addition of Han Fu's troops, along with the strategists Xun Yu, Xun You, Guo Jia, Jia Xu, and Xi Zhicai, and the moral high ground of controlling the emperor, Cao Cao had become the most powerful warlord.