Chapter Summaries

Jia Xu presented Gongsun Zan with the blood-written Girdle Edict and persuaded him to invade Ji Province to rescue the Son of Heaven. In Ye City, Xun Chen gathered Ji Province's aristocratic clans to discuss how to respond to Yuan Xi's violent purges, but had not yet revealed his plan.

• Jia Xu read the Girdle Edict to Gongsun Zan, who accepted it as a call to rescue the Son of Heaven from Ye City.
• Gongsun Zan pledged thirty thousand troops to attack Ji Province, and Jia Xu outlined three strategies for defeating it.
• Jia Xu told Zhao Yun that the Son of Heaven had praised him, and Zhao Yun vowed to fight to rescue the emperor and restore the Han.
• In Ye City, clan leaders gathered at the Xun residence, where Ju Zong asked Xun Chen how they should respond to Yuan Xi's bloody purges.
• Xun Chen surveyed the anxious gathering but kept his plan to himself.

As rumors that Yuan Xi had killed his brother and imprisoned Yuan Shao spread through Ye City, Xun Chen urged the great clans to seek the Son of Heaven’s protection. Half a month later, Gongsun Zan invaded Ji Province with thirty thousand troops, forcing Yuan Xi’s advisers to demand that he release Yuan Shao or let them lead the defense.

• Xun Chen outlined three choices for the great clans: rescue Yuan Shao, pledge allegiance to Yuan Xi, or seek the Son of Heaven’s protection; the clans favored appealing to the Son of Heaven.
• Xun Chen agreed to request an audience with the Son of Heaven, privately hoping to bring several Ji Province clans over to his side.
• Yuan Xi regretted sparing the families of Xin Ping, Feng Ji, and Guo Tu after Xin Pi’s revelations fueled rumors about him and Yuan Shao.
• Yuan Xi received an urgent dispatch reporting that Gongsun Zan had invaded with thirty thousand troops and summoned Ju Shou, Shen Pei, and Tian Feng to advise him.
• Shen Pei and Tian Feng blamed Jia Xu for informing Gongsun Zan of Ji Province’s internal troubles, while Ju Shou warned that their earlier plans did not address the invasion.
• Ju Shou and Shen Pei urged Yuan Xi to release Yuan Shao or allow them to leave the city and command the defense against Gongsun Zan.

Yuan Xi rejected his advisers’ pleas to free Yuan Shao and sent Yan Liang to face Gongsun Zan’s army, unknowingly stepping into Jia Xu’s scheme. Ju Shou, Shen Pei, and Tian Feng enlisted Madam Liu to seek help from the City Defense Army, while Yuan Xi prepared to request an official post.

• Yuan Xi refused to release Yuan Shao or yield power, and Ju Shou urged him to send Yan Liang out against Gongsun Zan.
• Ju Shou, Shen Pei, and Tian Feng saw Yuan Shao confined in a guarded courtyard and could not reach him.
• Ju Shou realized Madam Liu could carry a message outside the residence, and the three persuaded her to rescue Yuan Shao by seeking the City Defense Army’s help.
• Madam Liu agreed to act when Yuan Xi next left for the Palace, after Ju Shou reassured her that they would plead for Yuan Xi’s safety.
• Yuan Xi appointed Yan Liang commander and sent him with Han Meng and Chunyu Qiong to meet Gongsun Zan’s army, while planning to request an official post.

Yuan Xi’s attempt to win Liu Xie’s favor with gifts failed, while Madam Liu exposed his imprisonment of Yuan Shao to the City Defense Army. As troops mobilized and allies chose sides, Xu You offered to help Yuan Xi escape through the East Gate.

• Yuan Xi ordered the Grand General’s Residence sealed, then went alone to the palace with ten carriages of treasures to seek Liu Xie’s favor and an official appointment, but Liu Xie offered only an indifferent acknowledgment.
• Madam Liu defied the guards, carried Ju Shou and the others’ seals and letters to the gate generals, and told Xu You that Yuan Xi had imprisoned Yuan Shao.
• Xu You agreed to let the gate generals move against the residence while he went to the palace, and the West Gate’s defending general decided to side with Yuan Xi and sent his deputy to warn him.
• Xu You enlisted Zhang He and Gao Lan at the palace, while Yuan Xi left empty-handed and learned that the City Defense Army had been alerted.
• Xu You caught up with Yuan Xi and offered to take him to the East Gate to escape, claiming he had pretended to seek his arrest so he could leave and warn him.

Xu You convinced Yuan Xi to use the Imperial Guards Army against Yuan Shao, and Yuan Xi seized Zhang He's Tiger Tally to lead the guards toward the Grand General's Residence. The chapter ended with the City Defense Army surrounding the residence and accusing the Tiger Character Battalion of rebellion.

• Xu You urged Yuan Xi to claim he was rescuing the Son of Heaven and promised to draw Zhang He and Gao Lan away from the Imperial Guards Army.
• Yuan Xi agreed to Xu You's plan and resolved to kill Yuan Shao, believing Xu You wanted revenge for Shen Pei's execution of his family.
• Xu You lured Zhang He and Gao Lan away from the Northern Office, and Yuan Xi took Zhang He's Tiger Tally and commanded the Imperial Guards Army to march against Yuan Shao.
• Xu You revealed that Zhang He and Gao Lan had cooperated in the plan, then the two generals hurried back to protect the Son of Heaven.
• The City Defense Army surrounded the Grand General's Residence, and its South Gate commander accused the Tiger Character Battalion of rebellion and demanded its surrender.

Ju Shou, Shen Pei, and Tian Feng freed Yuan Shao, who refused to flee and went outside to reclaim Ye City. Yuan Xi arrived with the Imperial Guards and accused his father of holding the Son of Heaven hostage, leaving Yuan Shao facing the prospect of being branded a traitor.

• The South Gate commander led the City Defense Army against the Grand General's Residence, while the West Gate commander betrayed them and attacked from behind.
• Ju Shou, Shen Pei, and Tian Feng armed themselves, killed the five guards holding Yuan Shao, and freed him.
• Yuan Shao rejected Shen Pei's suggestion to flee Ye City and went to the gates to reclaim his authority.
• Yuan Shao appeared and stopped the fighting, prompting the South and North Gate commanders to report that Yuan Xi had deceived them.
• Yuan Xi arrived with more than a thousand Imperial Guards and accused Yuan Shao of holding the Son of Heaven hostage and rebelling against his sovereign.

Yuan Xi attacked Yuan Shao in Ye City while claiming to act for the Han, forcing Yuan Shao and his advisers to flee. Yuan Xi publicly severed their father-son bond, then faced the grief and anger of Madam Liu.

• Yuan Xi accused Yuan Shao of holding the Son of Heaven hostage and ordered the Imperial Guards Army to attack him.
• Yuan Shao's forces clashed with the Imperial Guards, and Ju Shou and Shen Pei urged Yuan Shao to flee Ye City.
• Yuan Shao escaped toward the North Gate while the South Gate commander stayed behind to cover his retreat.
• Yuan Xi killed the South Gate commander, then publicly declared that he would treat Yuan Shao as an enemy and pursue him on the battlefield.
• Madam Liu confronted Yuan Xi and fainted from grief, and Yuan Xi ordered his men to take her back to the residence.

Yuan Xi returned to the Palace after driving Yuan Shao from Ye City, hoping the Son of Heaven would reward him with an official post so he could raise an army. The Son of Heaven refused to see him, and Xu You hinted that the refusal came from fear rather than personal animosity.

• Liu Xie reprimanded Xu You, Zhang He, and Gao Lan for deploying the Imperial Guards without permission, but allowed them to atone through meritorious service.
• Yuan Xi returned with the Imperial Guards, and Zhang He and Gao Lan confronted him over the stolen Tiger Tally and forged decree.
• Yuan Xi explained that Yuan Shao had fled Ye City and returned the Tiger Tally; Zhang He spared him and took the troops away.
• Yuan Xi told Xu You that he wanted an official post so he could recruit an army, but Xu You warned that Liu Xie would not receive him.
• Gao Lan ordered Yuan Xi to leave, and Xu You stopped him from forcing his way into the Palace, explaining that Liu Xie dared not see him.

Yuan Xi accepted Xu You’s advice to spend the Yuan Clan’s wealth recruiting volunteers, while Liu Xie consolidated control of Ye City and planned to bring Zhang Liao’s ten thousand troops through Qing Province. The chapter left Liu Xie preparing to use Kong Rong’s uprising to distract Yuan Tan and secure the route for Zhang Liao.

• Xu You persuaded Yuan Xi to recruit Yi Cong with the Yuan Clan’s fortune, and Yuan Xi hurried away to raise troops and defend Ye City.
• Liu Xie celebrated his freedom from Yuan Shao’s control with Guo Jia, Zhang He, and Gao Lan, then heard that Xun Chen was waiting to present him with a gift.
• Guo Jia and Xu You advised Liu Xie to use Yuan Xi to eliminate Yuan Shao’s remaining supporters and bring the General of Agile Cavalry’s army into Ye City.
• Liu Xie ordered Xu You to deliver a letter to Yuan Shao, seek the death of one of Yuan Shao’s chief advisers, and later join Cao Cao as an inside agent.
• Liu Xie tasked Zhang He and Gao Lan with taking control of Ye City and ordered Zhang Liao to bring ten thousand troops from Yang Province.
• Liu Xie planned to order Kong Rong to rise in Beihai Commandery, distracting Yuan Tan so Zhang Liao could cross Qing Province to Ye City.

Xun Chen offered Liu Xie the support of Ji Province’s aristocratic clans, but Liu Xie exposed the Xun Clan’s past and revealed his own plans for defeating Yuan Shao and restoring the Han. Xun Chen began to reconsider whom he should serve, while Yuan Shao regrouped with Yan Liang and prepared to march back to Ye City.

• Xun Chen presented Liu Xie with a list of aristocratic clans pledging their support, and Liu Xie questioned why the Xun Clan was absent.
• Liu Xie accused Xun Chen’s elder brother, Xun Yu, of helping Cao Cao control the emperor, forcing Xun Chen to admit his fear.
• Xun Chen began outlining five dangers, but Liu Xie dismissed his concern that Yuan Shao could retake Ye City and revealed that he had engineered the crisis with Gongsun Zan and Yuan Xi.
• Liu Xie described his plans to unify the realm and urged Xun Chen to recruit Xun Yu and Xun You, leaving Xun Chen weighing whether to join him.
• Yuan Shao joined Yan Liang in Hejian Commandery, ordered him to muster the army, and vowed to return to Ye City and kill Yuan Xi.

Yuan Shao chose to keep fighting Gongsun Zan rather than return to Ye City, while Ju Shou warned that Liu Xie was secretly ambitious. Xu You arrived with a letter from Liu Xie, strengthening Yuan Shao’s belief in the emperor’s loyalty, as Ju Shou grew suspicious of Xu You’s escape from Ye City.

• Ju Shou and Shen Pei persuaded Yuan Shao to postpone dealing with Yuan Xi until after he had repelled Gongsun Zan.
• Ju Shou warned Yuan Shao that Liu Xie was plotting to become the true Son of Heaven, but Yuan Shao doubted his accusations.
• Xu You arrived in Lecheng and explained that he had escaped Ye City after Yuan Xi drugged Zhang He and Gao Lan and seized the Tiger Tally.
• Xu You delivered Liu Xie’s letter asking Yuan Shao to return to Ye City, and Yuan Shao told him to reassure the emperor that he would come back after defeating Gongsun Zan.
• Ju Shou questioned how Xu You had evaded Yuan Xi’s search and escaped Ye City, and Xu You said Liu Xie had sheltered him in the Imperial Palace.

After Liu Xie’s plans triggered upheaval in Ye City, Yuan Shao’s reputation collapsed and Cao Cao and Lü Bu considered how to exploit the crisis. The chapter left Zhang Liao ordered to reinforce Ye City while Kong Rong hesitated over whether to follow Liu Xie’s imperial decree and attack Yuan Tan.

• Ju Shou probed Xu You about Zhang He, Gao Lan, and the Son of Heaven, prompting Xu You to decide that Ju Shou had to be eliminated.
• News of Yuan Xi’s revolt and Yuan Shao’s flight from Ye City spread across the realm, damaging Yuan Shao’s and the Yuan Clan’s reputations.
• Cao Cao considered joining Gongsun Zan’s attack on Ji Province, but Xun You warned that Yuan Tan could invade Yan or Yu Province, so Cao Cao held back.
• Lü Bu proposed attacking Yuan Shao himself, but Chen Gong persuaded him to follow Liu Xie’s plan and send Zhang Liao with ten thousand troops to defend Ye City.
• Kong Rong received Liu Xie’s imperial decree and hesitated over whether to attack Yuan Tan and risk recognizing the emperor installed in Ye City.

Kong Rong accepted Liu Xie’s request to raise troops in Beihai and entrusted his five thousand soldiers to Taishi Ci. In Yi City, Gongsun Zan’s campaign against Yuan Shao remained precarious, while Gongsun Xu’s captured refined salt led Jia Xu to identify the Mi Clan as its source.

• Kong Rong told Taishi Ci that Liu Xie had secretly orchestrated Yuan Shao’s fall and asked for troops to help Lü Bu move through the region.
• Taishi Ci urged Kong Rong to follow his heart, and Kong Rong handed him the military tally and command of five thousand troops.
• Gongsun Zan worried that his dwindling reserves could not sustain a war of attrition with Yuan Shao before winter.
• Gongsun Xu brought Gongsun Zan more than a hundred jin of refined salt seized from foreign tribes.
• Jia Xu identified the salt as a product of the Mi Clan’s new method, and Gongsun Zan ordered Gongsun Xu to invite the caravan’s steward for questioning without mistreating anyone.
• Gongsun Xu left to fetch the steward and returned half an hour later.

Gongsun Zan learned that the Mi Clan Caravan was secretly buying warhorses for Liu Bei’s campaign in Yang Province and offered to supply them instead. After agreeing to sell thousands of horses, he saw the deal as a way to fund his campaign against Yuan Shao.

• Gongsun Zan confronted the Mi Family steward over selling refined salt to foreign tribes, then heard the caravan was buying horses for Liu Bei’s cavalry.
• Gongsun Zan offered to sell the Mi Family warhorses at a lower price than the tribes, and the steward agreed to buy five thousand, with purchases eventually reaching ten thousand.
• Gongsun Zan arranged to deliver three thousand horses first and the remainder within six months, and the Mi Family steward accepted his price without bargaining.
• Gongsun Zan escorted the steward out with an honor guard and told Jia Xu that the horse trade would fund his war against Yuan Shao.
• Gongsun Zan hurried off to send men beyond the passes to seize horses for the first transaction.

Jia Xu coordinated the Mi Family’s support for Gongsun Zan while Liu Xie strengthened his control of Ye City and prepared to expand into Ji and Qing Provinces. Liu Xie ordered Xu You to kill Ju Shou, and the chapter ended with Yuan Tan besieging Shouguang after Taishi Ci captured four cities.

• Jia Xu told the Mi Family Steward to send the warhorses to Duke Wen and hold back the new weapons until Gongsun Zan was close to collapse.
• Zhang He reported that he and Gao Lan had recruited four thousand soldiers and brought Ye City’s defenses under Liu Xie’s control.
• Guo Jia told Liu Xie that Kong Rong had raised troops with Taishi Ci, who captured three cities before Yuan Tan sent forces to suppress the rebellion.
• Guo Jia reported that Yuan Xi had recruited three thousand men and purged Yuan Shao’s loyalists, while Ju Shou had begun suspecting Xu You and the generals.
• Liu Xie ordered Xu You to kill Ju Shou, declaring that he would become the true Son of Heaven.
• Yuan Tan arrived with twenty thousand troops to besiege Shouguang and wondered how Taishi Ci had captured four cities in ten days.

Yuan Tan withdrew from Shouguang to stop Zhang Liao’s army from advancing through Qing Province, while Taishi Ci harried his retreat and defeated Cen Bi’s detachment. Eight days later, Yuan Xi inspected three thousand yi cong at Ye City’s training grounds.

• Yuan Tan offered Taishi Ci a general’s position and an army if he surrendered, but a scout reported that Zhang Liao had entered Qing Province with over ten thousand troops.
• Yuan Tan abandoned his siege of Shouguang and hurried toward Linzi to stop Zhang Liao from reaching Ji Province.
• Taishi Ci led three thousand soldiers in repeated attacks on Yuan Tan’s rear, then fought the five thousand troops Cen Bi had been left to command.
• Taishi Ci killed Cen Bi in a single exchange, routed his troops, and continued pursuing Yuan Tan’s army.
• Eight days later, Yuan Xi inspected three thousand yi cong at Ye City and approved of their progress.

Zhang Liao arrived in Ye City with ten thousand elite troops, confirming that the city had passed from Yuan Shao’s control to the Son of Heaven. Liu Xie welcomed Zhang Liao, approved Guo Jia’s plan to strengthen imperial prestige, and Xun Chen urged Ye City’s great clans to declare their loyalty.

• Yuan Xi saw Zhang Liao’s black-armored army approach Ye City and ordered his frightened Yi Cong to clear the South Gate.
• Zhang Liao led his troops into Ye City, and Yuan Xi realized that Yuan Shao’s era in the city was over.
• Liu Xie welcomed Zhang Liao and learned that his ten thousand troops included elite soldiers equipped with new armor and weapons.
• Guo Jia proposed a grand ceremony at the Imperial Ancestral Temple to strengthen Liu Xie’s prestige, and Liu Xie ordered him to organize it.
• Representatives of Ye City’s great clans sought Xun Chen’s advice, and he told them to show their loyalty to the Son of Heaven or risk consequences.

Xun Chen persuaded the clan representatives in Ye City to support the Son of Heaven, while Yuan Shao learned that Zhang Liao had occupied the city and mistakenly believed Lü Bu’s plans would ultimately benefit him. The chapter left Yuan Shao confident as he prepared to focus on repelling Gongsun Zan.

• Xun Chen told the clan representatives to contribute to the Son of Heaven’s upcoming ceremonies, and his arguments convinced them to abandon hopes of Yuan Shao’s return.
• Yuan Shao learned that Kong Rong had raised troops and Zhang Liao had entered Ye City with ten thousand soldiers, then raged over losing the city.
• Ju Shou suspected the Son of Heaven had coordinated the events, but Xu You persuaded Yuan Shao that Lü Bu intended to seize Ji Province for himself.
• Yuan Shao read Liu Xie’s secret letter revealing Lü Bu’s plan to help the Son of Heaven take Ye City, and concluded the troops would instead serve his own interests.
• Yuan Shao destroyed the letter and resolved to repel Gongsun Zan before reclaiming Ye City.

Liu Xie received the great clans’ offerings and ordered Zhang Liao to rescue Kong Rong after Yuan Tan drove him from Qing Province. Zhang Liao arrived with three thousand troops as Taishi Ci’s battered force faced Yuan Tan’s six thousand, and Yuan Tan challenged whether Zhang Liao had an imperial decree.

• Xun Chen presented Liu Xie with the great clans’ lavish offerings, and Liu Xie warned him to persuade Xun Yu and Xun You to leave Cao Cao’s service.
• Guo Jia reported that Yuan Tan had driven Kong Rong and Taishi Ci from Beihai, so Liu Xie ordered Zhang Liao to escort Kong Rong safely to Ye City.
• Yuan Tan pursued Taishi Ci and Kong Rong across Ji Province with six thousand troops, while Taishi Ci’s force dwindled to fewer than a thousand.
• Taishi Ci prepared to stay behind so Kong Rong could escape, but a large army bearing the Zhang banner appeared ahead.
• Zhang Liao announced that he had come by the Son of Heaven’s decree to escort Kong Rong, and Yuan Tan challenged him to produce the decree.

Zhang Liao escorted Kong Rong safely to Ye City, where Liu Xie asked him to preside over a Heaven-Sacrifice Ceremony and appointed Taishi Ci to a general’s post. Preparations were completed, and Liu Xie dressed for the ceremony as the appointed day arrived.

• Zhang Liao’s three thousand soldiers forced Yuan Tan to withdraw, then escorted Kong Rong toward Ye City.
• Liu Xie welcomed Kong Rong in Ye City and asked him to oversee the Heaven-Sacrifice Ceremony, though Kong Rong declined the post of Grand Minister of Ceremonies.
• Liu Xie appointed Taishi Ci General Who Soars Like an Eagle, and Kong Rong accepted the decree on his behalf.
• Kong Rong helped organize the ceremony, while Ye City’s authorities strengthened defenses and prepared for the arriving crowds.
• Liu Xie put on the Son of Heaven’s ceremonial robes and crown, and Zhen Mi reminded him that it was nearly time to leave for the Imperial Ancestral Temple.