My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 279: If it wasn't you who leaked it, could it be Zhuge Liang who opened his eyes to the sky? (Three more chapters!)

The banquet at Han Song's house where Yi Ji distributed "local specialties from the business trip" ended in a bad mood because Liu Xian pointed out some rumors circulating in Xiangyang recently.

Before leaving, Han Song still felt a little apologetic. He pulled Yi Ji aside and explained privately, "Don't take it to heart, Ji Bo. I believe that the lord will not listen to these unfounded slanders. Our army is weak and our troops are not enough to quickly defeat Zhang Xian.

Being able to get the current conditions from the General of Chariots and Cavalry, Ji Bo has made great contributions. Even if the lord has some doubts for a while, after Lai Gong and Wu Ju take office, everything will go smoothly, and the lord will fully appreciate Ji Bo's difficulty, and then all the rumors will be broken by themselves! "

On the surface, Yi Ji didn't know what to say, so he just pretended to accept Han Song's consolation, saying that it was over and he had a clear conscience and that he had nothing to fear.

But after returning home, Yi Ji became angrier and angrier, and he thought about it all night long.

"Who is spreading this rumor? This person must not want the Lord to reconcile with Lord Xuande, or he is dissatisfied with the conditions I negotiated, or he hopes that the Lord will not use me when negotiating with the princes.

Could it be Liu Xian? But he doesn't seem to be that cunning. When he mentioned this rumor at Han Song's house today, he was very natural. If he spread it, he wouldn't have to show it off in front of me.

If it wasn't Liu Xian, who else could it be? We can only look for someone in Jingzhou who has a grudge against Lord Xuande. Could it be Cai Mao or Zhang Yun?"

After much deliberation, Yi Ji finally decided that this possibility was the greatest. Cai Mao and Zhang Yun had a feud with Liu Bei's camp since the Huang Zu Rebellion. Later, Liu Bei released Su Fei and other captives, and Cai Mao helped Zhang Yun expand his power, which disappointed many people.

Later on, he used the closure of the Yangtze River to seek personal gain, and many other attempts to benefit himself by pretending to be on guard against Liu Bei.

Yi Ji believed that Cai Mao himself must know that Liu Bei could not hide his actions. If Liu Bei became more powerful in the future and was able to influence and infiltrate Jingzhou, the Cai family would definitely suffer, so the Cai family had to take the initiative to destroy the relationship between the two sides!

After thinking he had figured out all the causes and consequences, Yi Ji finally made a decision to retreat in order to advance.

After all, he believed that there was no problem with his moral integrity, and since he became friends with Liu Bei, he had never betrayed Liu Biao's interests. How could he be attacked like this and have no reaction?

The next day, he took the initiative to ask for a meeting with Liu Biao.

Liu Biao was quite satisfied with Yi Ji's work recently, so he readily took some time after lunch and before lunch break to meet with him.

Yi Ji wasted no time. When he saw Liu Biao, he bowed solemnly and said righteously:

"My lord, I came here to ask you to remove me from my position as the deputy governor of Jingzhou. From now on, the affairs of Jingzhou's external contacts with the princes will have to be shared by Zongshi and Degao."

Liu Biao didn't know what was going on. He was shocked when he heard this: "Why did Ji Bo say that?"

Yi Ji came prepared and took out a gift list: "My lord, why do you ask when you already know the answer? There are many rumors in Xiangyang that I accepted huge gifts and bribes from Lord Xuande during the previous negotiations and betrayed my lord's interests.

Ji did not dare to say that he did not accept any gifts at all, but some Wuchang specialties. I thought it was a courtesy and I was afraid that the other party would worry too much, so I accepted them. After returning, I distributed them to my colleagues as a token of my appreciation. The rest can also be accounted for and sealed and handed over today. "

Liu Biao looked confused and didn't make any reply for a long time, which made Yi Ji feel a little embarrassed.

"No way? Could it be that the lord hasn't heard of these rumors yet? Didn't the people around him tell him? How could the lord be so uninformed?"

Just when Yi Ji was puzzled, Liu Biao finally reacted. He quickly called Wang Wei, the guard, and asked seriously, "Have you heard any rumors that are unfavorable to Mr. Jibo recently?"

Wang Wei thought for a moment and said, "Indeed... I have heard a little about it."

Liu Biao's face turned grim: "Why don't you report it? Didn't I tell you that no matter what rumors there are, they must be reported as soon as possible? I will judge right and wrong!"

Wang Wei looked embarrassed. "I was planning to report it the day before yesterday, but General Cai talked to me and said that Mr. Ji Bo was the lord's confidant. This rumor must be nonsense. It's better not to make the lord upset. I think what he said makes sense. I also saw that the lord has been having a minor illness these days, and I can't bear to see the lord worry..."

After hearing this excuse, Liu Biao became even angrier and was convinced that it was Cai Mao who was behind it.

The last time Cai Mao came to him and spoke ill of Yi Ji and sabotaged the negotiations, he had already reprimanded him, and he said he was convinced and would no longer sabotage the peace talks. Unexpectedly, he was still spreading rumors that were unfavorable to Yi Ji behind his back!

Moreover, Wang Wei has confirmed that the rumor is indeed true, and the content of the rumor is almost identical to what Cai Mao said about Yi Ji more than half a month ago.

Although the words are different, the meaning is similar.

From this point of view, it is increasingly certain that this rumor was spread by Cai Mao!
"This bastard has disrupted the morale of my army and disturbed my reputation. If he continues to act recklessly like this, Lai Gong and Wu Ju will get wind of it. Wouldn't they be in danger? Bring Cai Mao to me immediately!" Liu Biao was filled with rage and shouted at someone to capture Cai Mao. While shouting, his eyes went dark and he collapsed and fainted.

Yi Ji and Wang Wei were shocked, so Wang Wei had to pass on the order and have the maids nearby come over to rub Liu Biao's chest and back. After a long time, Liu Biao finally coughed up a mouthful of phlegm and woke up.

Cai Shi also heard that Liu Biao fainted from anger, and hurried over from the back house. She asked the servants and maids nearby, and she secretly hated her husband for his inability to make him like this. After a while, Cai Mao was brought by Wang Wei. This time, Wang Wei was not very polite to Cai Mao, obviously because Liu Biao fainted from anger.

Cai Mao also heard about the situation. He did not dare to resist at all and was mentally prepared to be scolded by his brother-in-law.

"You did a good thing! Tell me, did you let people spread those words attacking Ji Bo in Xiangyang? Ji Bo is my confidant, and it's okay if he heard these things. I have a spiritual connection with him. I know he will not betray me, and he also knows that I will not doubt him.

But if these rumors that undermine the peace talks are heard by Lai Gong and Wu Ju in the future, won’t they be suspicious? Won’t they worry that I will become suspicious of them over time? Sooner or later, you will piss me off to death!"

Cai Mao was also very aggrieved when he heard about it. He criticized Yi Ji behind closed doors in front of Liu Biao that day, but he forgot about it afterwards. The rumors outside were not spread by him!
It was also because of this that he was nervous when he heard about this rumor in Xiangyang a few days ago, and he also warned Wang Wei not to gossip. Wang Wei had the responsibility to help Liu Biao get to know the people's sentiments. As long as he was bribed not to say anything, Liu Biao would not hear these rumors because he usually did not go out and did not come into contact with the people in the market.

Unexpectedly, in the end, it was Yi Ji himself who came to resign, leading to a complete showdown.

"Brother-in-law... My Lord, it was really not me who asked people to spread the news this time. I don't know why there are such rumors among the people..." Cai Mao confessed with a sad face.

"Who else could it be if not you? When you came to me for advice that day, I specially dismissed everyone around me. Those words came out of your mouth and entered my ears, and no one else heard them! The rumors in the streets today are almost the same as what you said that day. If it's not you, it can't be me!"

Cai Mao was completely dumbfounded.

Yes, only he and Liu Biao knew those words, one said it and the other listened. If he is not a traitor, then is Liu Biao a traitor?

This...even Cai Mao himself couldn't understand it.

But he really had no choice but to find an excuse to shirk responsibility, so he made up a story: "Maybe... maybe this is another trick of Zhuge Liang! Yes, it must be Zhuge Liang who can predict what I said to the lord, and then he deliberately let people spread it to confuse us and make us suspicious of each other!"

Liu Biao was so angry that he laughed: "Hahahaha... You mean, Zhuge Liang could guess from a distance of thousands of miles away what you would say to me behind closed doors on a certain day of a certain month, and could also guess that what you said would definitely not be accepted by me, so you would bear a grudge, and then deliberately leaked these words just to frame you?
Do you think Zhuge Liang has the same clairvoyance as Taiyi and Beichen? You are so stubborn! Get out of here! You have to put an end to this rumor in Xiangyang City immediately! Otherwise, you will be punished for both crimes!"

After scolding Cai Mao and sending him out to clean up the mess, Liu Biao calmed down a little, and with a sad tone, he took Yi Ji's hand and patted it:
"Don't worry, Ji Bo. The truth has been revealed. You should just do your job as your deputy. A gentleman does not employ a person he doubts, and does not doubt a person he employs. I will leave the matter of contacting my dear brother Xuande to you.

But now that something like this has happened, I hope it doesn’t get to the ears of Lai Gong and Wu Ju.”

Seeing that the misunderstanding was resolved, Yi Ji did not want to make the matter worse, so he listened to Liu Biao's advice. He also quickly put himself in Liu Biao's shoes and gave him some advice, suggesting:

"My lord, in order to reassure Lai and Wu, it would be better to let them step up the implementation of the tasks that the lord has previously assigned to them after they take office.

As long as they are still willing to work for the lord, it means they have not been affected. The lord will reward and comfort them after they have made meritorious contributions, and they will not worry about being implicated and suspected by Ji. "

Liu Biao nodded repeatedly after hearing this and said, "That is indeed true. When the time comes, I will send someone to urge Lai and Wu to take over the property left by Jin Xuan and other thieves and confiscate it in Jiangling. Once this matter is done, I will immediately reward them handsomely and give them the title of Guannei Hou!"

Under normal circumstances, it is impossible to make someone a Marquis of Guannei for the good job of investigating and confiscating counter-revolutionary assets.

But now is not a normal situation, Liu Biao needs a few tentative tasks as a touchstone for whether he can control the situation and whether he can control the parachuted officials. At this time, giving huge benefits out of the ordinary is also an expedient measure.

Liu Biao's urgent order was delivered quickly, at an expedited rate of several hundred miles a day.

Finally, it was delivered the day after Lai Gong and Wu Ju arrived in Jiangling.

At that time, Lai Gong and Wu Ju were planning to change ships in Jiangling, cross the Yangtze River to the south, land in Chanling, and then take up their posts.

After receiving the additional order from their lord, the two were also confused: Why did their lord change his mind again? He seemed to be even more anxious than when he left.

But the two of them didn't think much about it. They just did the task Liu Biao asked them to do.

But time is so urgent, and I don’t know whether Zhang Fei will interfere.

Whether the local officials of Wuling and Lingling will cooperate.

They did not bring any troops with them when they took over the job, so they were very slow in taking over the work.

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Three updates!

(End of this chapter)