by Luo Guanzhong
18Dong Zhuo gathered up all of the soldiers that had been under the command of He Jin's brother, and took charge of them. In private, he said to Li Ru, "I want to depose the emperor, and replace him with the Prince of Chenliu, what do you think?" Li Ru replied, "The court is now without a ruler, if you delay and don't take action now, it will result in rebellion later on. Tomorrow, assemble all of the officials in the Garden of Warmth and Brightness, and proclaim the deposing of the emperor. Behead anyone who does not comply. If you do this, the power will be yours to wield on this very day."
19
Zhuo was delighted. The next day, he arranged a large banquet, and invited all of the senior ministers. The senior ministers were all intimidated by Dong Zhuo; who would dare not come? Zhuo waited until all of the officials had arrived before sauntering up to the gates of the garden. He climbed down from his horse and took his seat, still wearing his sword. After several rounds of wine, Zhuo ordered the drinking and merriment be stopped. He said in a stern voice, "I have something to say. Everyone, listen to me and do not speak." Everyone leaned in to listen. Zhuo said, "The Son of Heaven is the ruler of all the people. He cannot make sacrifices at the ancestral temple if he lacks a stately bearing. The current emperor is cowardly and weak. He cannot compare to the Prince of Chenliu, who is smart and loves learning. He has what it takes to succeed the throne. I would like depose the emperor, and replace him with the Prince of Chenliu. What does everyone think?" They all listened to him, but nobody dared utter a sound. One of them pushed away his table, and stood up in front of everybody. He bellowed, "You can't do this! You can't do this! Who are you that you dare speak in such grandiose terms? The Son of Heaven is the son of the legal wife of the deceased emperor. He has yet to make a misstep. How can you cavalierly depose him? Do you want to stage a coup?" Zhuo looked at him; it was Ding Yuan, governor of Jingzhou Province. Zhuo angrily retorted, "Those who obey me shall live, and those who oppose me shall die!" He then took out his sword, and was about to cut down Ding Yuan.
Continued next week. Tomorrow's installment from Lays of Ancient Rome by Macaulay.
This is one of four great novels from China, published when it was the most highly civilization in the world. Map shows China at the time of this story.
Chapter Summary: How Dong Zhuo rebukes Ding Yuan in the Garden of Warmth and Brightness; Li Su wins over Lü Bu with offerings of gold and pearls.
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This translation from Wikipedia. See license CC-BY-SA.
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