Yuan Shu was presenting the plan he had meticulously thought through all night to Yuan Wei.
Yuan Wei quietly perused the document. Though his face showed no expression, he was quite satisfied internally. In just one night, Yuan Shu had devised a comprehensive plan from initiation to retreat. Although there were some shortcomings, it covered all aspects, and overall, the flaws did not overshadow the strengths.
As he read, Yuan Wei asked, "How will you persuade Cao Cao?"—How do you plan to convince Cao Cao to join this endeavor?
Yuan Shu replied, "Cao Cao has always been fond of taking risks and craves fame. Therefore, I told him that although the emperor has been deposed, the new emperor will not last long. This move would be no less than a monumental achievement. Cao Cao will surely take the bait."—Even though the young emperor has been deposed, the new emperor won't reign for long. If the young emperor were to return, you, Cao Cao, would be credited with an unparalleled feat!
"Why do you need Cao Cao's involvement?" Yuan Wei continued. If this is such a good opportunity, why don't you handle it yourself instead of involving Cao Cao?
"The palace is chaotic, and time is of the essence. Only Cao Cao can manage it."—Cao Cao has connections within the palace and can locate the deposed emperor. Given the urgency, there's no time to search every palace.
Yuan Wei nodded, agreeing with Yuan Shu's reasoning, and asked, "When will you act?"
"During the evening meal. At that time, many people will be leaving the city, making it easier to hide." In ancient times, people ate two meals a day. The evening meal was around 3 to 5 PM, when people would start leaving the city to avoid being locked in after sunset. This would make it easier to blend into the crowd and conceal their movements.
Yuan Wei put down the scroll, looked at Yuan Shu, and said expressionlessly, "What do you think the chances of success are?"
"If Cao Cao asks, I'll say there's an 80% chance of success," Yuan Shu paused, "but in my heart, I know there's actually no chance at all!"
"Good!" Yuan Wei was not surprised; instead, he smiled slightly. He then pointed out and refined a few minor flaws in Yuan Shu's plan before dismissing him to prepare. He placed Yuan Shu's written plan into a nearby brazier and burned it to ashes.
If Yuan Wei hadn't emphasized the importance of an exit strategy the previous day, Yuan Shu might have genuinely believed they were planning to rescue the deposed emperor. However, upon careful consideration, he realized that Yuan Wei had mostly discussed retreat strategies, saying that success or failure was acceptable, but never mentioned what to do with the emperor. After all, if they were to work with Cao Cao and actually rescue the emperor, how could they split one emperor between them?
Therefore, Yuan Shu concluded that Yuan Wei's intention was merely to make a gesture, not to actually abduct the deposed emperor. This way, the risk would be minimized, and they could still gain prestige from the act.
If the young emperor Liu Bian were truly abducted, Dong Zhuo would surely go mad. But if they merely caused a commotion and the deposed emperor remained unharmed, it wouldn't be a big deal.
Cao Cao would be the perfect scapegoat. Yuan Wei's exact words were, "Let him take charge." If anyone were to be held accountable, naturally, the person in charge would bear the blame. Why would an accomplice be blamed? After all, Cao Cao knew the terrain, had the capability, and had informants in the palace. If anyone accused Yuan Shu of involvement, it would only be because Cao Cao had led him astray and deceived him. Cao Cao would be the true villain...
In the end, Yuan Shu only needed prestige, not a useless deposed emperor. Yuan Shao, who opposed the deposed emperor and resigned from his post, was praised by some scholars as a man of integrity and courage. Now, Yuan Shu was taking an even greater risk by attempting to rescue the deposed emperor from peril. What a touching sentiment and noble virtue!
This way, Yuan Shu's position as the future family head, which had been shaken by Yuan Shao's departure, would be firmly reestablished. Moreover, Yuan Wei had already arranged for Yuan Shu to have ample resources and manpower in Nanyang Commandery, so Yuan Shu wouldn't need to worry.
Furthermore, even if Yuan Wei appeared to support the deposed emperor, other scholars would naturally fill in the gaps—look, both sons of the Yuan family opposed the deposed emperor. One left, and the other even tried to rescue the deposed emperor. How could Grand Tutor Yuan Wei possibly support the deposed emperor? He must have been coerced by Dong Zhuo...
Everything was perfect.
****************
The admission of students to the Imperial University was also a notable event in Luoyang. Stalls were set up early on both sides of the street, and Cao Cao was currently observing the ceremony from one of these stalls.
After all, Cai Yong was his teacher, and since Cai Yong was about to take on new disciples, Cao Cao, as his senior disciple, felt it necessary to attend.
His teacher Cai Yong was quite unpredictable. He had decided to have this disciple participate in the Imperial University ceremony, which was quite interesting. Watching Fei Qian follow the other students and perform the various formal rituals, Cao Cao couldn't help but wonder why Cai Yong hadn't done this when he took him as a disciple.
Cao Cao found Fei Qian amusing, but he didn't realize how difficult it was for Fei Qian to follow the students' rituals.
The movements had to be solemn and precise, walking had to be straight, and during the rituals, one's expression had to be serious—no grimacing, laughing, or playing around.
Accompanied by ceremonial music, they first went to the gate of the university, where they knelt and paid respects to heaven and earth. Then, under the guidance of the university officials, they stood up, formed orderly lines, and walked around the university. They then proceeded to the southwest corner of the university, standing straight at the south of the western steps of the Biyong.
The Biyong was a three-story building built on a circular platform, somewhat resembling the Mingtang built by Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang dynasty in later movies, though not as tall or exaggerated.
The Biyong was square, shaped like the character "亚" (the traditional form of "亚"), and built in the center of a high platform. Surrounding the Biyong were walls, gates, and curved eaves, forming a large square courtyard. A circular moat ran around the platform, symbolizing perfection and the continuous flow of royal teachings.
The entire structure formed a double pattern of a circular moat and a square courtyard, with a circular base and a square building.
On the top level of the Biyong, there were four small square platforms at the corners. A large square room, called the "Tai Shi," was built on the central platform, and four smaller rooms were built on the corner platforms, forming the upper level's five rooms.
On the middle level of the Biyong, there were four halls on each side, named Mingtang, Qingyang, Zongzhang, and Xuantang. The five rooms on the upper level and the four halls formed nine rooms, creating a solemn and majestic structure full of grandeur.
The lower level of the Biyong consisted of steps on all four sides, connecting to bridges that crossed the moat. The southern side had three bridges, while the other sides had two.
The ceremonial official stood in front of the Biyong, facing west, and began a chant. Cai Yong and a group of scholars then emerged from the Biyong and stood south of the eastern steps, facing the students.
The officials then led the students forward one by one to pay their respects to the scholars, presenting them with gifts. The scholars accepted the gifts and offered words of encouragement. Servants carrying wine and gifts would step forward, and after the scholars placed the gifts aside and drank wine with the students, the students would withdraw.
This completed the formal ceremony of the Imperial University students paying respects to their teachers.
Cao Cao was waiting to see Fei Qian come forward last, but suddenly, someone appeared beside him. Turning his head, he saw it was Yuan Shu!
*****
T/N:
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