The Rebellious Officials and Traitors of the Late Han Dynasty

Chapter 329 Zhuge's Wisdom
Yi Ji led the angel to the inn. The hall was silent and the atmosphere suddenly became solemn.

"Zirou, get ready. The day after tomorrow, Cong'er and I will carry Jingsheng's coffin to Shanyang." Madam Cai said to Kuai Liang with a cold face. She didn't even look at Cai Mao.

"Yes." Although Kuai Liang wanted to stop him, he wisely didn't say anything at this time.

The Han Dynasty governed the world with filial piety. Lady Cai and Liu Cong carried Liu Biao's coffin back to his hometown in Shanyang. No one could stop them, otherwise they would be despised by famous people all over the world.

"Humph."

Mrs. Cai glanced at everyone in the hall and snorted coldly, her words full of contempt.

Although everyone was angry, no one dared to say anything.

The atmosphere improved only after Mrs. Cai left.

"What does Qin Shou think of the court? What position does he place the emperor in? The emperor is just a plaything in his hands. The imperial edict is like waste paper in his hands. Brother, you cannot accept this imperial edict."

Zhang Fei stood up and spoke loudly.

Although he became the prefect of Jiangxia according to the imperial edict, he knew that the most unlucky person here was Liu Bei. He should have been in charge of Jingzhou, but now he was the prefect of Yangzhou, although he was given the title of General Zhendong and was also granted the title of marquis.

But how can it be compared with Jingzhou?

But his words did not resonate with others in the hall. Cai Mao became the General Zhennan, Kuai Liang became the Governor of Jingzhou, Kuai Yue became the prefect, and the Ma, Huang, Pang and other families all benefited from it.

Moreover, the benefits these people received far exceeded what Liu Bei could give. As long as they were not fools, they could make the right choice.

Even Zhuge Liang sighed, thinking that Qin Shou had given him too much.

Zhuge Liang glanced at everyone and sighed inwardly. These aristocratic families were indeed unreliable. Any random trick could ruin the original agreement.

They never thought about why they were promoted without any merit to the court. The final reason was that Qin Shou wanted to alienate Jingzhou and make it fall apart so that he could easily take Jingzhou.

"Qin Shou is known to be brave and Jia Wenhe is insidious. I only realized how powerful they are after seeing them today. Just one imperial edict made me suspicious. The Cavalry Army wants to defeat us one by one. He is not only targeting us, but also Cao Cao from Jiangdong." Zhuge Liang sighed.

Everyone nodded. Whether it was Zhang Fei, the governor of Jiangxia, or Liu Bei, the general who guarded the east, they were all targeting Cao Cao. The purpose of their move was to let Jingzhou and Cao Cao fight each other. In this way, the Cavalry Army could reap the benefits.

"Alas, my Han dynasty is in misfortune. Your Majesty is suffering in Chang'an right now. As a relative of the Han dynasty, I am really ashamed of my ancestors for being unable to do anything about it."

Liu Bei shed tears and wiped his eyes from time to time.

"Brother, we are all ministers of the Han Dynasty and should serve the court. Qin Shou's orders are rebellious and we cannot obey them." Guan Yu said solemnly.

The hall became silent again. Zhuge Liang glanced at everyone and saw that Cai Mao and others looked strange. He knew what everyone was thinking.

Everybody wants to gain benefits, at least nominal benefits, if nothing else.

What benefit could they get from Liu Bei becoming the governor of Jingzhou? It was just to maintain their original interests, not like now, where they could be the general of Zhennan or the governor.

Jiangxia was the Huang family's territory, and even Huang Chengyan had no say in giving Jiangxia to Zhang Fei. Nanjun was the Cai family's base camp, where they had run the business for many years. How could they give it to Guan Yu?
The only thing that no one wanted was Yuzhang County, but Yuzhang County belonged to Yangzhou. Although it had not been occupied by Cao Cao yet, it theoretically belonged to Cao Cao.

If Liu Bei became the governor of Yuzhang and the general of Zhendong, Cao Cao would definitely be wary of him.

"Mr. Shuijing, Pang Tong and Ma have all been summoned by the court. I'll go to see Ma first." Cai Mao suddenly said.

"I'll go see Mr. Shuijing. Yidu, you go see Pang Tong." Kuai Liang also called Kuai Yue and said. "Yes." Kuai Yue didn't dare to neglect and quickly agreed.

The three men bowed to Liu Bei and walked out of the hall. Seeing this, the others did not dare to stay and said goodbye and left.

For a moment, only Liu Bei and his confidants were present in the hall.

"Hmph, these selfish guys deserve to die." Zhang Fei became furious upon seeing this.

"Yide, don't be rude."

Liu Bei glared at him in dissatisfaction, then looked at Zhuge Liang and said, "Military Advisor, what should we do now? Please give me some advice."

Zhuge Liang was waving the feather fan in his hand. Zhang Fei took a look and felt disdainful. It was such a cold day, but he was still fanning himself with the feather fan. He was not afraid of the cold.

"My lord, Chong'er was born outside. Qin Shou's strategy is to make the three of us fight each other, but we are outsiders after all. Cai Mao and Kuai will deal with us first. They want to drive us out."

"Liu Qi is the governor of Jingzhou, while Kuai Liang is the governor and Cai Mao is the general who guards the south. In their eyes, the two of them are the next masters of Jingzhou. If you stay in Jingzhou, you will be their target."

"Jiangxia is Huang Zu's territory, and Nanjun is Cai Mao's territory. They are both important towns in Jingzhou. It is impossible for them to hand over the two counties to you. If you stay here, you will be resisted by the Jingzhou families. The only way is to jump out and go to Yuzhang."

"Once you leave, the Cai and Kuai families will fight for you sooner or later. At that time, one of them will definitely invite you to return to Jingzhou. This will be your chance."

As expected of Zhuge Liang, he quickly found a solution.

First jump out and go to Yuzhang to wipe out the Shanyue people and accumulate strength, then wait for an opportunity to spy on Jingzhou, and wait until the Cai and Kuai families are fighting each other, then enter Jingzhou.

I think that the noble families in Jingzhou at that time would definitely welcome Liu Bei's arrival.

"Yuzhang is located in Yangzhou. Although Cao Cao has not occupied it yet, it is still owned by Cao Cao. If we go to Yuzhang, I am afraid it will cause misunderstanding by Cao Cao."

Liu Bei still listened to Zhuge Liang.

Since he couldn't get Jingzhou, he chose Yuzhang rather than Xinye. After all, there was a county there, which was enough for his own development.

"After Yuan Shao's defeat, Cao Cao could not stand alone, and he has not yet pacified Sun Quan, so he is unable to get involved in Jingzhou. So he needs to find an ally. My lord is the best candidate. Liang has discussed this with Man Boying last time."

"So, my lord, you can send someone to see Cao Cao and ask him to borrow Yuzhang temporarily, and return it after you get other territories. I believe he will agree for the sake of the overall situation. In fact, my lord is sending someone to discuss this at this time, which is a face-saving move for him. Cao Cao will definitely agree."

Zhuge Liang said with confidence.

"Then follow Kong Ming's plan."

Liu Bei was overjoyed and said, "Then make preparations and go to Yuzhang. As for who to send to meet Cao Cao."

"My lord, I am going to Moling in person," Zhuge Liang said solemnly.

"Well, that's fine! I can only feel at ease if the military advisor goes there. Zilong will follow the military advisor and protect his safety. If anything happens, the military advisor can make the decision." Liu Bei responded immediately.

"Thank you, Lord."

Zhuge Liang was moved and responded quickly.

(End of this chapter)