The magistrate's residence in Gong'an County.
A renovated side hall.
Under the curious gaze of Ma Liang, the stunned disbelief of Mi Fang, and the barely contained amusement of everyone else, the familiar curtain of light slowly unfolded in midair.
The music was the same.
The voice was the same.
And so was the opening bravado.
[Video Host – Wen Mang]
"Gentlemen. Ladies. Brothers and sisters.
I'm Wen Mang. No small talk today. We go straight into it.
One Commandery Against the World — Might That Shakes All Under Heaven."
Lines of text flooded the screen like a breached dike.
Ma Liang froze for the briefest instant before Jiang Wan yanked him back to his senses. He immediately lowered his head, brush flying as he copied without pause.
Live Comment Barrage
IronFan88: This time it's finally 'Might Shakes Huaxia,' right?
SecondLordEnjoyer: When I was young, I only knew the Second Lord was loyal. Now I know he was terrifying.
WeiDefenseMain: Watching Cao Ren get beaten into turtle defense never gets old.
SpeedCrier: I'm already crying. Thought this was Shu-Han's birth. Turns out it's the funeral bell.
HistoryGoblin: Funeral bell for Shu-Han? No. This is the Eastern Han's death knell.
PigTeammateDetector: Xiangfan proves Liu Bei was a god-tier pig teammate.
BackstabWatcher: Didn't help and sent people to sabotage. More than once.
TempleTierList: Second Lord had talent and vision. Big Brother had talent. Vision sold separately.
Li Shimin: This battle had at least ten percent of my Mingshui River energy.
Liu Bei's face darkened.
"…Why do I feel like most of this is scolding me?"
He slapped the armrest.
"If Yunzhang guarded Jing Province, I would only entrust it to men I knew inside and out. How is that sabotage? And Meng Da aside, didn't I send Feng'er to fix it?"
He stopped short.
The words execute Liu Feng still refused to leave his mouth.
After a long, angry snort, Liu Bei forced himself to calm down.
At least they still called him "Big Brother."
Zhuge Liang, meanwhile, was fixated on a single phrase drifting across the light.
"The beginning of Shu-Han."
Just how far had Yunzhang pushed things, he wondered, for later generations to see this moment as a founding event?
Mi Fang leaned closer to his brother and whispered nervously, "Brother, who are these people? And why does one of them dare to speak like an emperor?"
Mi Zhu did not look at him.
"Watch carefully. Think carefully. Then bury everything you see today deep inside your stomach."
The warning was deadly serious.
Outside the hall, Chen Dao and his personal guards stood like iron statues. This was a secret that could never spread.
[Wen Mang – Voiceover]
"As we've said before, the Xiangfan region was a political minefield.
Zhang Liao's victory at Xiaoyao Ford wasn't just a military miracle. It reshaped the political landscape."
"Year 213.
The records say Emperor Xian granted Cao Cao the title of Duke of Wei, along with the Nine Bestowments."
A brief pause.
"But let's be honest. That was self-coronation."
"Year 216.
One year after Zhang Liao shattered a hundred thousand and Zhang Lu surrendered, Cao Cao became King of Wei."
The hall went deathly silent.
Above all other kings.
No need to call himself a subject.
No kneeling when receiving edicts.
Sacrifices to Heaven and Earth as an emperor.
Ancestral temples built to Han imperial standards.
Crack.
The teacup shattered in Liu Bei's grip.
His eyes turned red.
No one needed this explained. The Han was already hollow.
"Sun Quan ruined the Han," Zhuge Liang said quietly. "At that moment, our lord had just secured Yi Province. Hanzhong had surrendered. Liang Province was stable."
"And Jiangdong?" he continued. "Broken by Zhang Liao's eight hundred."
"The prestige of Red Cliffs," someone murmured, "lost in a single stroke."
Everyone nodded.
Zhuge Liang stepped forward to steady Liu Bei. Yet in his heart, he lingered on the emperor's posthumous title.
Xian. Intelligent. Discerning.
Was that really all?
Mi Fang stood frozen, completely lost. Mi Zhu leaned close, whispering explanations line by line.
[Wen Mang – Voiceover]
"Because of Xiaoyao Ford, Cao Cao tried Jiangdong again in 217.
Jiangdong had already lost its nerve.
The campaign was effortless.
Sun Quan surrendered."
A ripple of shock passed through the hall.
"Records of Jin say: Sun Quan sent envoys to beg for surrender.
Wu Records say: Sun Quan dispatched Xu Xiang to submit."
"Cao Cao wasn't here to conquer. Just to flex. So he left."
"But that same year, in October, Cao Cao took the twelve imperial tassels, rode the golden-rooted chariot, drove six horses, and named Cao Pi Crown Prince of Wei."
He concluded calmly.
"The Eastern Han was officially a corpse."
Liu Bei shut his eyes.
Zhang Fei slammed the table. "Dog. Traitor. Usurper."
The room exhaled.
Liu Bei raised a hand weakly. "The restoration of the Han rests on us alone."
Zhuge Liang nodded. "Cao Cao is satisfied. Jiangdong is terrified. They won't think of Hefei again."
"If they want to move north," Guan Yu said coldly, "they either take unstable waterways, or…"
"Retake Jiangling," Zhuge Liang finished. "Cut Jing from Yi. Face north toward Xu."
Guan Yu snorted. "Let them try."
No one disagreed.
Mi Fang swallowed, then spoke hesitantly. "Why doesn't Jiangdong march by land?"
Mi Zhu covered his eyes.
Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Huang Zhong exchanged looks.
Zhao Yun answered gently. "Marching by land means abandoning naval advantage. And Jianghuai is already dead."
He counted on his fingers.
"Civil war. Cao Cao's southern campaigns. Repeated massacres. Forced relocations."
"No people. No grain."
Zhang Fei grinned savagely. "If Jiangdong marches there, they starve."
Mi Fang finally shut up.
Mi Zhu sighed. "Zifang. One day, travel with me. See the Han for yourself."
[Wen Mang – Voiceover]
"After the Xiang River Treaty, relations shattered.
The Second Lord had only thirty thousand troops.
North: Cao Ren.
East: Sun Wu."
"But Zhang Liao had already shown him Jiangdong's fatal flaw."
"Soldier quality."
"And so Guan Yu found his answer."
"A fortress Jiangdong couldn't take in ten years."