Chapter 138: The Emperor’s Grave Illness

"Reporting to my lord, although this wooden kite looks ordinary, the craftsmanship involved is far too complex for an ordinary craftsman. Currently, only Elder Mo and I can build it in the entire Youzhou, and Elder Mo's apprentice, Mo Yu, can barely manage it halfway. It would already be a stretch to produce ten of them in a year," Machun said with a hint of helplessness.

"Only ten?" Liu Yao murmured to himself. "Elder Mo, Deheng, the two of you just need to do your best."

"Thank you, my lord."

While Liu Yao and Machun were talking, the young girl Liu Xin finally had her fill of fun and landed safely. The heart that Liu Yao had been keeping in his mouth finally settled back down.

"Royal brother, royal brother, this wooden kite is so much fun! Give it to me," Liu Xin said as she stepped down from the wooden kite and ran over to Liu Yao's side.

"No way!" Liu Yao refused without the slightest hesitation. It wasn't that he was stingy with the wooden kite; it was simply that Liu Xin was far too wild and lacked any semblance of a princess's demeanor. If she were playing right under his nose, that would be one thing, but if she slipped out of his sight, heaven knows what kind of trouble she might stir up.

"Royal brother, don't you love me anymore?" Upon hearing this, Liu Xin's eyes immediately misted over with tears, looking as though she were about to burst into crying at any moment.

Seeing this, Liu Yao couldn't help but helplessly massage his forehead, feeling quite depressed. Every single time, this girl Liu Xin resorted to this exact trick, yet Liu Yao could never find a way to refuse, falling for it every single time. Naturally, this time was no exception.

"Alright then! But giving it to you outright is out of the question. You can only play with it right under my nose, or under the watchful eyes of Yan'er and Chan'er," Liu Yao said helplessly. There might be times when he was away from Youzhou, but with Cai Yan keeping an eye on Liu Xin, Liu Yao could rest easy.

"That's wonderful!" In an instant, the tears in Liu Xin's eyes dried up completely as she cheered and leaped with joy. She also knew that this was already Liu Yao's bottom line and couldn't be pushed any further. Besides, as long as she was allowed to play, that was enough; everything else paled in comparison.

Seeing this, Liu Yao wore an expression that said he had expected it all along, and with a straight face, he said, "Don't get too happy just yet. There are conditions attached if you want to play."

"Ah? What conditions? It's not another..." Liu Xin said weakly. Over the past few days, Liu Yao hadn't spared her from reading, and he had constantly had Cai Yan tutor her in order to temper her unruly temperament. However, judging by the current state of affairs, it hadn't had the slightest effect, which left Liu Yao feeling thoroughly exasperated.

"That's right. For every single book you finish reading, you get one chance to play. Otherwise, you can forget about it entirely," Liu Yao said with a stern expression. This was the only method Liu Yao could think of to force Liu Xin to read more, otherwise how on earth would this girl ever find a husband in the future? Yet Liu Yao completely forgot that Liu Xin was a princess of the realm; if she truly wished to marry, the suitors lining up would probably stretch all the way from Youzhou to Jizhou.

However, since Liu Yao had taken on the role of her older brother, he would never allow Liu Xin to become a pawn in political marriages. Fighting on the battlefield was a man's duty, and trading women for temporary peace was a peace not worth having. Only someone whom Liu Xin genuinely liked and whom Liu Yao himself could approve of would ever be qualified to become his brother-in-law.

"Oh..." Liu Xin muttered, looking thoroughly reluctant and crestfallen.

Seeing this, Liu Yao amusedly ruffled Liu Xin's hair and said nothing more. After all, Liu Xin was still a child and lacked the mature mindset of an adult like Liu Yao. Once she grew a bit older, she would surely understand. Concluding this excursion with the wooden kite, Liu Yao brought Liu Xin and Shi Ah back to the General's Manor, where plenty of official duties awaited his attention.

The year 187 AD passed swiftly. In this year, in order to expand the culture of the Youzhou Academy, Liu Yao authored several books himself. One of them was titled *Arithmetic*, the main content of which introduced concepts up to the multiplication table. Upon its release, this book immediately won the favor of numerous arithmetic enthusiasts, particularly among accountants. It allowed the Fire Cloud Chamber of Commerce under Liu Yao's command to balance every single account with crystal clarity, completely free of the previous clutter and disarray.

Another book was *Astronomy*, in which Liu Yao recorded all his knowledge concerning the universe and the starry skies. For instance, it explained that the sun is a gaseous celestial body, that the earth we tread upon is an elliptical sphere rather than the flat rectangle people imagined, that the moon is a satellite of the earth, and detailed the eight planets of the solar system, among other things.

A third book, *Geography*, explained that the earth is not merely the patch of land beneath our feet; across the distant oceans lie other continents, and the total area of the seas far surpasses that of the land by more than double. It also noted that on a continent thousands of miles away from the Han Empire, there existed crops such as potatoes and corn, whose yield per mu far exceeded that of contemporary sorghum by severalfold, along with various other geographic revelations.

Furthermore, he issued a public proclamation declaring that anyone capable of bringing back crops like potatoes and corn to the Han Empire would be rewarded with ten thousand catties of gold. Of course, this last sentence was merely rhetorical, as the Han Empire's current maritime technology was completely inadequate for such a feat—something that would ultimately have to await future efforts by Liu Yao himself.

The appearance of these books instantly created a massive sensation throughout Youzhou. Many people sighed in realization that they had been like frogs at the bottom of a well, viewing the leopard through a tube. It turned out the world was vast beyond imagination, and for a time, a wave of exploration swept across Youzhou. Consequently, the reputations of both Liu Yao and the Youzhou Academy soared even higher.

Also during this year, Zhang Chun—who historically had allied with fellow townsman Zhang Ju to launch a rebellion due to a falling out with Zhang Wen during the latter's punitive campaign against Hansui—did not rise in armed revolt. This spared Liu Yao a great deal of trouble, especially since Yuyang had long since fallen under Liu Yao's firm control. Moreover, with the common folk of Youzhou enjoying abundant food and clothing, who would be foolish enough to risk their necks in rebellion? Consequently, neither Liu Yao nor anyone else had any idea where Zhang Chun and Zhang Ju had vanished to.

As for the Wuhuan and Xianbei tribes, under the interception of Liu Yao's troops stationed along the borders, they never dared to set foot across the Han boundary even half a step. They had been thoroughly beaten into submission by the Youzhou army. However, to pacify external threats, one must first secure the domestic front; the present moment was not yet an opportune time to completely annihilate the Wuhuan and Xianbei.

In the year 188 AD, General-in-Chief He Jin, seeking to consolidate his own power, submitted a proposal to Emperor Ling of Han to establish the Xiyuan Army. Emperor Ling readily granted permission upon seeing this; however, Emperor Ling simultaneously made a subtle maneuver, ensuring that supreme authority remained in the hands of the eunuch Jian Suo, to the extent that even General-in-Chief He Jin was subjected to his command and dispatch. It was a classic case of trying to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice used as bait.

In the year 189 AD, due to Emperor Ling's prolonged indulgence in wine and women, he gradually fell gravely ill while Dong Dongzhuo and Huangfu Song were suppressing the rebellion of Wang Guo. Upon hearing that Emperor Ling was on his deathbed, Dong Zhuo stationed his troops in Hedong, holding heavy military power and sitting idly to await developments. For a time, the entire capital of Luoyang fell into utter chaos, with panic gripping every heart. This was because Emperor Ling was about to pass away, yet no crown prince had yet been designated.

No matter how the imperial ministers pressed the matter of the heir apparent, Emperor Ling offered only a single reply: "I am doing perfectly fine; what need is there for any crown prince?" With that, he dismissed everyone.

In the eyes of the ministers, Emperor Ling was nearing his end, which was why he uttered such delirious nonsense. Yet everyone knew that a violent upheaval within the imperial court was about to begin.

Almost overnight, the court split into three distinct factions. The first faction was the conservative block led by Lu Zhi, Huangfu Song, and Zhu Jun. They argued that according to imperial ancestral tradition, the succession should favor the elder rather than the younger, and advocated summoning the First Imperial Prince, Liu Yao, back to Luoyang to establish him as crown prince. However, their voices carried the least political weight.

The second faction was led by General-in-Chief He Jin and the prominent noble clan leader Yuan Feng. They maintained that the First Imperial Prince was excessively tyrannical and prone to slaughter, making him unsuitable to be crown prince, and thus pushed for the Second Imperial Prince, Liu Bian, to be named heir.

As for the third faction, it was naturally spearheaded by the Ten Eunuchs. Since Liu Yao had long since gravely offended Zhang Rang, Zhang Rang certainly would not assist him, and He Jin's faction was likewise the sworn enemy of the Ten Eunuchs. Consequently, they threw their support behind the Third Imperial Prince, Liu Xie, for the succession.

In an instant, the imperial court plunged into chaos, filled with sharp barbs and verbal skirmishes that would soon enough escalate into literal swords and spears.