Chapter 13

"I want to hire a bodyguard," Liu Bian said with a trembling voice, "Someone told me that I can hire a powerful person to protect me here."

"Protect you?" Zhou Yang asked with some confusion. He could only go to other worlds during the three-day shopping period each month. How could he protect him?

"That person said that as long as I offer a fief, I can get the protection of a world-class expert," Liu Bian quickly explained.

"What's going on with the system?" Zhou Yang asked the system.

"All the ministers and land in the world belong to the king. Once Liu Bian offers a fief, during his reign, that fief will be under the control of the host, allowing entry into that world."

"I see." Zhou Yang was somewhat excited. It seemed that in the future, he would have to deal more with emperors. However, before that, he must ensure the young emperor's safety, or if Dong Zhuo kills him, the fief would be completely nullified.

The late Han and Three Kingdoms period can be considered one of the most tumultuous periods in Chinese history.

Feudal lords vied for supremacy, wise men engaged in intellectual battles, and mighty generals abounded, elevating the late Han's swan song to its peak.

Among all historical periods, Zhou Yang's favorite was the late Han and Three Kingdoms. He had read many fan novels about this period.

Thinking about the imminent arrival in this world, Zhou Yang's excitement was evident.

"I want to use the entire Western Liang to hire a powerful bodyguard," the young emperor said fearfully, trembling at the thought of Dong Zhuo's terrifying figure.

In the late Han and Three Kingdoms, he had no say, but here, any promise he made would be binding.

By offering the entire Liang Province to Dong Zhuo, Liu Bian felt a small surge of excitement.

"Political and military control of Western Liang, duration: during Liu Bian's reign, estimated value: 500 value points."

The moment the young emperor spoke, a stream of information entered Zhou Yang's mind. As long as Liu Bian was still on the throne, Western Liang would be his. Even if others opposed, once he entered Western Liang, it would naturally be considered his fief.

After sending Chen Feng away, Zhou Yang happily accompanied Liu Bian to the late Han and Three Kingdoms.

The moment they stepped out of the room, a dark tunnel appeared before them. Whether it was an instant or a long time, Zhou Yang felt as if he was in a semi-sleep state. The next moment, he found himself in a magnificent pavilion, surrounded by several palace maids.

"Pay homage to His Majesty, pay homage to the National Master." The palace maids were momentarily dazed by the sudden appearance of the emperor and the National Master. They quickly knelt down.

"Rise." The young emperor was somewhat excited, waving his hand. Since Dong Zhuo entered the capital, he had been living in constant fear. Now, with a deity personally protecting him, he no longer had to worry about his safety.

Zhou Yang was speechless. The system had assigned him the role of National Master. Historically, most National Masters were corrupt officials. However, he was quickly drawn to the kneeling palace maids.

Zhou Yang couldn't help but sigh. The life of an emperor was indeed luxurious. Each palace maid, in the modern world, would be a class beauty, adored by many, but here, they were just minor palace maids.

Meeting Zhou Yang's gaze, the palace maids blushed. The National Master, second only to the emperor and above ten thousand others, with the fief of Western Liang, if he were to favor them...

"Your Majesty, what month is it now?" Zhou Yang pulled out his phone, ignoring the shock of those around him, and opened the pre-downloaded Three Kingdoms app.

It recorded that Emperor Shao of Han, Liu Bian, ascended the throne in April and was deposed in September, and was soon after killed.

"National Master, it is September," Liu Bian said.

"Your Majesty, the Grand Commandant requests your presence." Before Zhou Yang could react, several black-armored, saber-wielding Western Liang soldiers approached, expressionless.

Damn! Damn! Damn!

Zhou Yang felt extremely unlucky. If the young emperor were deposed, the fief would be nullified. If Dong Zhuo had just entered the capital, he could have used the emperor's name to gather the Eight Commandants of the Western Garden, but now, all the troops in Luoyang were under Dong Zhuo's control.

Although his martial arts had reached the peak of the Later Heaven stage, if a thousand arrows were fired at him, Zhou Yang would have to flee in disgrace.

"What to do?" Zhou Yang was anxious, but there was no time to think of a plan.

"We can only take one step at a time." Zhou Yang followed the young emperor, his brows furrowed.

"You, you there, come here." At a turning point, Zhou Yang waved to an unfamiliar eunuch.

"Eunuch, go and summon the Yellow Gate Attendant Xun Yu and Cao Cao. Have them come to the palace." Zhou Yang didn't care if the eunuch knew these two. He had no plan, so he had to find smart people to think of one.

The eunuch, delighted at the prospect of being favored by the National Master, ran out of the palace.

******

In the Jia De Hall, civil and military officials gathered.

Grand Commandant Dong Zhuo sat high above, his presence awe-inspiring. Below, Grand Tutor Yuan Wei, Grand Minister Wang Yun, and a host of officials trembled as they looked at Dong Zhuo.

"His Majesty has arrived!"

Zhou Yang followed the young emperor into the hall and saw a stunning beauty sitting on the dragon throne.

Beautiful, incredibly beautiful.

She was slender and graceful, with flowing hair, a delicate face, and dressed in a black phoenix robe that tightly hugged her curvaceous figure. Her every smile and frown exuded nobility and elegance, and her slightly furrowed brows made her even more endearing.

Empress He, a woman from a wealthy family in Nanyang, looked at Liu Bian with anxious eyes as he entered.

"Mother." Liu Bian smiled at Empress He and sat on the dragon throne.

Empress He caressed Liu Bian's head, her eyes filled with sorrow. Today, they were likely to face a dire fate.

Zhou Yang, regaining his composure, walked to the front of the civil officials and stood there. Immediately, numerous mocking gazes fell upon him. They knew that Liu Bian would be deposed today, and Zhou Yang, personally appointed as the National Master by Liu Bian, would be a target for Dong Zhuo.

Ignoring these gazes, Zhou Yang quickly assessed the situation. There were no soldiers in the hall. After a few months of ruthless killings, Dong Zhuo had completely controlled the court, leaving only a group of officials who feared for their lives and sought to preserve themselves. Even for such a significant event as deposing the emperor, only a few additional guards were added outside.

His immediate opponents were three: Dong Zhuo, a somewhat sullen-looking scholar to his left, and a warrior holding a halberd to his right.

If he guessed correctly, the warrior with the halberd was most likely Lü Bu, and the scholar was most likely Dong Zhuo's son-in-law and military advisor of the Western Liang army, Li Ru.

Dong Zhuo's sharp gaze swept the hall, lingering briefly on Zhou Yang before moving on. He stood up and roared, "The emperor is weak and incapable of ruling the world..."

The civil and military officials below all lowered their heads, expressionless.

Bang!

Dong Zhuo's words were cut short when a black shadow leaped from below, a large foot aimed at his face. A powerful force surged from his chest, and the next moment, he saw darkness and lost consciousness.

"Rogue!" The man standing next to Dong Zhuo, a tall, stern-faced warrior holding a halberd, glared at the black shadow. However, before he could react, the black shadow darted to the side, and another person was kicked away.

In the blink of an eye, the officials below had not yet reacted when they saw the mighty Dong Zhuo and Li Ru lying on the ground, spitting blood, seemingly on the verge of death.

The black shadow finally stopped. When they saw the face of the black shadow, everyone was stunned. The National Master, whom they had overlooked, turned out to be a world-class expert. If not for today's court session, everyone would have forgotten that the Han dynasty had a National Master.

All eyes turned to Zhou Yang, standing in the center of the hall.