Reborn In The Three Kingdoms - Chapter 984
Chapter 984: 935. Court Act Done
Wu Tai maintained his calm dignity. “If Hengyuan accepts this marriage,” he said, “you will gain a most obedient ally, not merely a nominal one, but an ally who will follow Hengyuan’s decisions, support its actions, and share every resource at its disposal.”
Another ripple tore through the officials.
“He… he said every resource?”
“Natural? Economic? Agricultural?”
“All of it, shared?”
“That’s not an alliance, that’s more of a vassal presenting tribute!”
Wu Tai nodded respectfully.
“Emperor Xian wishes to sustain his dynasty’s existence. If that survival requires serving Hengyuan’s interests, then His Majesty is prepared for that. Hengyuan would receive an ally who asks for no military protection, who makes no demands on your armies. Instead, what we offer is our very substance. The Han is willing to open its storehouses and its lands.”
“All the natural resources of Yi Province, its mines of iron and salt, its fertile river valleys, its forests of sturdy timber, will be made available to Hengyuan. Our economic resources, the wealth of our cities, the output of our artisans… all of it. Emperor Xian is willing to share anything and everything. The Han becomes not a burden, but a… a dedicated provider. Your strength becomes our strength, and in sharing all we have, we hope to make your strength ever greater.”
The shock that followed this declaration was of a different quality than the first. It was not loud, but deep and profound. The officials stared, dumbfounded. It was one thing to propose a political marriage; it was another to effectively offer the complete economic evisceration of one’s own state. This was not an alliance, it was a surrender dressed in wedding finery. It was so generous it was suspicious, so abject it was bewildering.
It was in this moment of stunned silence that Lie Fan finally moved.
He let out a soft, low chuckle that drew every eye. A small, knowing smirk played upon his lips as he shifted on his throne, the dragon embroideries on his robes seeming to shift with him.
He leaned slightly forward.
“Well,” Lie Fan said, his voice rich with amusement and feigned surprise. “I must confess, I did not expect Emperor Xian to value a royal marriage alliance with Hengyuan to such an… extraordinary extent.”
He looked directly at Wu Tai, his eyes glinting with a hidden understanding. “To offer the very marrow from his dynasty’s bones… such commitment is… remarkable.”
The quiet flirtation of humor, rare in the Throne Hall, swept through the space like a warm breeze through cold stone.
Wu Tai allowed himself a small, sincere smile.
Wu Tai, seizing the opening, offered a shallow, practiced bow, a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes gracing his lips. “Your Majesty, Emperor Xian values this bond far more than you might have initially anticipated. He sees in Hengyuan not just a powerful neighbor, but the future. He wishes his daughter, and his dynasty, to be a part of that future.”
Lie Fan’s smile widened, a public display of graciousness. “It seems he does. It truly seems he does.”
But inwardly, his thoughts were cold and clear as mountain ice. ‘If I did not know this was all a stage, if I were not the playwright myself, I might almost believe these pretty, desperate words.’ He marveled at the artistry of it. Fa Zheng, Zhang Song, and Meng Da had crafted this performance perfectly.
They had instructed their puppet to offer everything, because offering everything raised no specific suspicions, it simply painted the picture of a ruler in abject, pathetic surrender. It was a narrative of weakness so complete it disarmed criticism. Why would a dying man scheme when he was already handing over the keys to his kingdom?
‘Truly,’ Lie Fan thought, a sense of grim satisfaction settling in his chest, ‘those three are monstrously talented in their own ways. Fa Zheng’s cunning, Zhang Song’s knowledge of the court’s levers, Meng Da’s ruthless efficiency. Gaining their loyalty and support much earlier in the past, convincing them that the future lay with Hengyuan and not with Liu Zhang who knows nothing and then turned into the decaying Han … that was perhaps one of the most critical moves I ever made. This… all of this… is the harvest of that seed. And we will secure Yi Province without a single Hengyuan soldier having to draw his sword in anger.’
All the while the hall before him was boiling with emotion, questions, doubts, confusions, yet none dared interrupt him.
He tapped one lacquered finger lightly against the arm of his throne.
Once.
Twice.
Then he lifted his chin and spoke.
“You all heard the decree and the envoy’s words,” he said, voice low but carrying effortlessly to every ear. “A royal marriage. An alliance sealed by blood. The Han willing to offer all it possesses.”
The officials stiffened.
Some still looked baffled.
Some cautious.
Some hopeful but confused.
Some deeply suspicious.
Lie Fan let them stew for a breath before continuing.
“Hengyuan gains much,” he said. “And loses little.”
Another ripple through the hall.
He fixed his gaze upon Wu Tai.
“Messenger Wu Tai,” he asked mildly, “does Emperor Xian make this offer freely?”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Wu Tai replied with complete conviction. “His Majesty makes this offer with full awareness and wholehearted sincerity.”
Lie Fan nodded slightly, though inwardly he remembered clearly. Freely? Of course not. It was chosen for him.
The hall awaited his judgment with held breath.
Jia Xu stepped forward again, bowing.
“Your Majesty,” he said with no on realizing he was putting on a theatrical act, “we should consider carefully. The Han’s weakness may be a burden rather than a benefit. This alliance will bind us to their failures as well as their assets.”
Lu Su added, equally full of measured act, “And yet, rejecting the alliance abruptly may push Emperor Xian into Cao Cao’s hands. That would strengthen Wei substantially.”
Another minister murmured, “But if we accept… we place our Crown Prince in a union with a princess of a dying house.”
“He is an imperial prince! Should he be tied to a collapsing dynasty?!”
“That girl will bring nothing but obligations…”
Arguments flickered again, but softly, like embers, not flames.
Lie Fan raised a hand.
The hall stilled instantly.
He rose slowly.
With golden robes cascading down the steps of the dais, he descended one level, not fully approaching the envoy, but enough to strip the moment of distance and make his next words carry a personal weight.
His voice lowered, drawing everyone closer by tone alone.
“Since Emperor Xian offers so much…” he said, “Hengyuan must consider the matter carefully.”
He looked at Wu Tai, eyes steady.
“Tell Emperor Xian that we will deliberate thoroughly and give him a formal answer soon.”
Wu Tai bowed deeply.
“As Your Majesty commands.”
Lie Fan lifted a hand.
The signal was soft but absolute.
Jia Xu and Lu Su stepped beside Wu Tai and motioned for him to follow protocol and withdraw. He and his escort bowed, then were guided respectfully from the hall.
The doors closed behind them.
Silence returned.
Heavy.
Tense.
Everyone waited for their emperor’s true thoughts.
Lie Fan turned lightly, ascended the steps, and reclaimed his throne. The scepter rested against his palm like an extension of his will.
He swept his gaze across the hall.
“Your thoughts,” he declared.
Permission opened like a floodgate.
But this time, the voices were disciplined, directed, focused, and controlled.
Each official presented their argument, risk, reward, strategy, precedent, potential backlash, potential gains. Some advocated caution, some boldness, some neutrality. The debate stretched long and deep, a testament to the magnitude of what had just unfolded.
But through every perspective, every fear, every hope voiced, one truth echoed again and again.
This marriage was not ordinary. It was the Han kneeling. Makrin gtahtcacceptijg it or not means the world changing.
And Lie Fan… he listened of course.
Every word. Every stance. Every concern.
But he already knew, quietly, decisively, what his answer would be.
And more importantly—
He knew why.
He waited until the final official finished speaking.
Then he rose once more.
“The Han seeks survival,” Lie Fan said, voice steady, “and in seeking it, they turn to us. Not Wei. Not any other foreign power.”
The court hung on every syllable.
“This marriage is not merely a bond between royals. It is the Han’s last attempt to choose their own fate.”
A pause.
Then he added, voice dropping into a tone that resonated like a blade drawn in the dark:
“And if the Han chooses to place its fate in our hands—”
He lifted the scepter.
The hall held its breath.
“—then the world will follow.”
The officials bowed deeply, understanding the weight of those words.
The decision would shape the land.
Transform power.
Redefine the era itself.
Lie Fan lowered the scepter.
“Prepare the official response,” he said. “We will speak with the envoy tomorrow.”
As the court bowed and began to withdraw, the Emperor’s eyes narrowed faintly, a quiet fire dancing behind them. The stage Fa Zheng, Zhang Song, and Meng Da had arranged was working beautifully.
The Throne Hall emptied slowly, ministers retreating in tidy lines, robes rustling like waves pulling back from shore. Lie Fan waited until the last echo faded beyond the great doors before drawing a long, steady breath. The vast hall that had moments ago been alive with tension now felt cavernous and strangely still, as though the old stones themselves were holding their breath.
For a few heartbeats, he remained upon the throne, fingers absently tapping against the carved dragon heads at his sides. Then he rose, smoothly, decisively, the golden folds of his imperial robe sliding behind him like a trailing tide.
He turned toward the side entrance.
“Your Majesty,” one of the Yellow Ghost Bodyguards murmured from the shadows nearby, stepping forward just enough to accompany him, “the council awaits in the eastern strategy chamber.”
Lie Fan nodded. The Yellow Ghost Bodyguards fell into silent step behind him, making a line of protection behind him.
They walked through pillared corridors washed with the mellow orange of late afternoon sunlight. Servants and guards along the way dropped into bows as he passed, but Lie Fan barely registered them. His mind was already shifting gears, to strategy, to the next act of the grand theater playing out across the continent.
What had unfolded in the Throne Hall was merely the opening movement.
Now came the real work.
He reached the lacquered double doors leading into the strategy chamber.
Inside, they were already waiting.
Jia Xu stood at the head of the long table, hands folded calmly. Lu Su sat a short distance away, face thoughtful. Xun You, Mi Zhu, Zhuge Liang, and several other key advisers, those currently accompanying the emperor in Xiapi, were positioned along the table. Maps, bamboo slips, inkstones, and bound records lay arranged before them like the pieces of an ever shifting puzzle.
______________________________
Name: Lie Fan
Title: Founding Emperor Of Hengyuan Dynasty
Age: 35 (202 AD)
Level: 16
Next Level: 462,000
Renown: 2325
Cultivation: Yin Yang Separation (level 9)
SP: 1,121,700
ATTRIBUTE POINTS
STR: 966 (+20)
VIT: 623 (+20)
AGI: 623 (+10)
INT: 667
CHR: 98
WIS: 549
WILL: 432
ATR Points: 0