Upon hearing Wang Han say that he disliked Liu Bei and did not want Liu Bei to live, Lü Bu immediately said, "I am willing to go and get Liu Bei's head for you, sir."
Cao Cao pondered Wang Han's words. Compared to teaching Liu Bei, himself, and other warlords, Wang Han clearly understood the hearts of the people better and had a longer-term vision. Now, Wang Han wanted to improve the status of women, which would obviously have a significant effect or benefit in the future; he just couldn't figure out exactly what that effect or benefit would be.
“Why go through all this trouble to kill him?” Wang Han shook his head and said, “Tomorrow I will send out invitations to all the lords to come to Shangdang in two months. However, the location has now been changed to Luoyang (formerly occupied by Cao Cao, now belonging to Wang Han) for the meeting. I will also distribute the guns to the lords. That will be the most suitable time to kill him.”
“My lord, do you intend to distribute the rifles to the various warlords?” Upon hearing Wang Han’s words, Cao Cao stopped thinking and quickly said, “This is absolutely unacceptable. The various warlords are ambitious. If we give them the rifles, they might turn around and use them against us. Such a powerful weapon should be firmly kept in our own hands.”
"Yes and no," Wang Han shook his head and said, "The guns are indeed guns, but they are not the rifles used by the rifle regiment. They are a different kind of gun called a musket. The musket is much inferior to the rifle in terms of performance and conditions in all aspects. Our army will not lose its advantage because of this. Moreover, how can I not make two preparations when facing these ambitious warlords? I dare to give them muskets, so I naturally have a backup plan. Your worries are unnecessary."
Hearing this, Cao Cao felt much relieved, but he also became curious. Although the muskets Wang Han mentioned were far inferior to rifles, they still strengthened the power of the warlords. Why did Wang Han do this, and what benefits did he gain from it? He didn't understand many of Wang Han's actions and decisions, but they all seemed to hold a hidden meaning.
"Will Liu Bei come?" Lü Bu asked.
Cao Cao nodded affirmatively and said, "Others may not, but Liu Bei will definitely come."
………………………………………………
The next day, Wang Han had Xi Zhicai write invitations and send them to all the major and minor warlords. The invitations stated that Wang Han had important matters to discuss with them in Luoyang and required their personal attendance. Furthermore, Wang Han intended to distribute firearms to each warlord. (This had been discussed with them before when Wang Han sealed away the muskets.)
Upon receiving the news, the various lords were excited to obtain the firearms from the Marquis of Dingshan, but they were also puzzled, wondering what the Marquis of Dingshan wanted the lords to gather for discussion, and why he would distribute such a powerful weapon as a gun to the various lords.
Upon receiving the invitation, although they were puzzled, even worried that it was a trap set by Marquis Dingshan to wipe them out in one fell swoop (although it wasn't Wang Han's Bingzhou, they already knew about Cao Cao's allegiance to Wang Han), most of the warlords still decided to go to Luoyang in person. Even if they didn't go, it would be easy for Wang Han to take their territory, and if it wasn't a trap, they didn't want to miss the opportunity to acquire firearms and fall behind the other warlords. They figured it was better to go and see what Wang Han was really up to.
Of course, some feared this was a trap set by Marquis Dingshan, and made various excuses to avoid it, sending only their generals and strategists. Yuan Shu was one of them. However, unlike in history, Yuan Shu did not obtain the imperial seal, and with Wang Han still overshadowing all the other warlords, he neither declared himself emperor nor died of debauchery.
…………………………………………
A month passed quickly, and all the daring lords arrived at Shangdang City in Bingzhou.
After years of warfare and mutual annexation, among the remaining powerful warlords, Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, Gongsun Zan, Ma Teng, and Sun Ce all came. Only Yuan Shu, Zhang Xiu, and Liu Yan did not come.
Even more of the smaller warlords who lived in the narrow spaces between the major warlords came. As expected, Liu Bei brought Zhang Fei and Guan Yu with him to Bingzhou. Some of those who had not received invitations also came.
In the imperial palace of Luoyang, Wang Han specially prepared a council hall, which was also the original court hall where the emperor held court. Wang Han not only moved the dragon throne away, but also placed a huge round table and stools in the middle of the hall, and placed a large number of tables and stools on both sides.
On the day of the meeting, the feudal lords followed Xi Zhicai to the court. Seeing the missing dragon throne and the large round table in the center, the feudal lords were not only surprised but also terrified. How could Marquis Dingshan have such audacity to turn the court into such a mess? They quickly began to think about what Marquis Dingshan was up to.
"Gentlemen, please be seated," said Xi Zhicai, who was in charge of the reception. "Our lord will be here shortly."
Upon hearing this, the feudal lords could only suppress their doubts and choose a seat at the round table. However, no one sat in the easternmost seat. Instead, Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan sat next to the easternmost seat, while the minor feudal lords and their subordinates were seated at the tables on either side.
"Why can't my elder brother sit at the round table?" Zhang Fei's loud voice suddenly rang out in the court, successfully attracting everyone's attention. Everyone turned to look at him.
"That scholar, my elder brother Rende, why can't he sit at the round table?" Zhang Fei said indignantly to Xi Zhicai. "Even if he can't sit in the main seat, my elder brother should sit next to him."
"Third brother, the seats over there are also very good. Let's sit there," Liu Bei quickly tried to stop Zhang Fei from continuing. The lords seated at the round table all controlled at least one continent, and were considered powerful; he himself only controlled one city. Besides, this was a council meeting held by the Marquis of Dingshan, and the seating was arranged by him. If a misunderstanding arose here, damaging the Marquis's reputation, it would also harm the prestige he had painstakingly earned among the people. It was best for them to keep a low profile. (Liu Bei only acquired Zhuge Liang in 207 AD. It was now the end of 197 AD, and Zhuge Liang was only seventeen or eighteen years old.)
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