Taiheiki

Chapter 310 Avoiding Disaster
"Pfft!" Wu Jing laughed. "Weren't you fine yesterday? How come you can't even see me today? You're clearly faking illness because you were scared by that Kuai Sheng!"

Liu Biao didn't reply, but got up and looked out the window through the curtain: "Whether it's true or not, Runan is no longer a place to stay. I advise you and Gonglu to leave Runan immediately, the sooner the better!"

"You were also intimidated by that Kuai Sheng?" Wu Jing sneered. "This is Runan. The Yuan family has been rooted here for over a hundred years. How could a thousand or so infantry and cavalry from Luoyang possibly deal with them!"

"Whether you listen or not is up to you; I have said my piece!" Liu Biao said coldly, "Get out of the carriage!"

Wu Jing stood up but didn't get out of the car: "Jing Sheng, I remember you looked down on Wei Cong, so why are you speaking up for him now!"

"I do look down on Wei Cong, but that's because he's dishonest, not because he's incompetent. It would be a huge joke if Yuan Gonglu's little tricks could beat Wei Cong! Get out of the car, don't get me into trouble!"

Wu Jing snorted coldly and stepped off the oxcart. The oxcart immediately drove away, leaving only two tracks. Watching the departing cart, Wu Jing stamped his foot and cursed, "Liu Jingsheng, you look down on Wei Cong so much, yet you want to keep yourself out of trouble? You're dreaming! Sooner or later you'll end up with your entire clan being exterminated!"

------------------

Xu Mansion.

"These are the scholars who frequently come to the Monthly Review, and their family backgrounds!" Xu Shao presented a silk scroll with both hands. Kuai Sheng took it, looked at it, and smiled, "Not bad, not bad, thank you for your hard work, my brother!"

Seeing that Kuai Sheng accepted his silk scroll, Xu Shao secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "Actually, I also feel the pain of Young Master Dou's murder. If I can do my part to catch the murderer, that would be the best!"

"Hmm!" Kuai Sheng nodded and put the silk scroll into his sleeve: "Actually, this case isn't difficult to investigate. I already have a pretty good idea of ​​what's going on!"

"Oh?" Xu Shao's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "I wonder who you think it is, brother?"

"I heard about the reputation of Runan for its many scholars when I was in Jingzhou. You could say that Runan is the domain of scholars. Everywhere you look, you see the clans, retainers, and guests of scholars. But it has been thirteen days since Young Master Dou was assassinated. Qian Wen and his men have done their best to investigate and have even put up a reward. They should have had results by now, but so far, there is still no progress. Why is that?"

"This—" Xu Shao was stunned: "I don't know!"

"It's very simple. The culprit behind this is a local scholar from Runan, and one with immense power. That's why there are still no leads. Otherwise, why would no one come forward to claim the million-coin reward?" Kuai Sheng sneered. "Finding the culprit is easy. Just investigate the largest families in Runan one by one, and you'll find them!"

"Brother, you're so cunning!" Xu Shao said with a forced smile, while secretly pondering why Kuai Sheng and he were saying such things. Was it a warning shot? Or some other idea? It didn't matter; this matter was none of his concern, as long as his family was safe. As for other things, that was beyond his control.

“But if we do that, while it’s certainly easier to find the murderer, many people will likely be implicated!” Kuai Sheng sneered. “Not to mention the entire clan, even members of the family, marriage partners, teachers, and friends will suffer. That’s not what the General wants to see!”

"Then, what does my brother mean?"

"It's very simple! I—no, I should say the General's intention is for the scholars of Runan to investigate this case themselves!" Kuai Sheng said. "If that's the case, then it means the scholars of Runan are loyal to the Han Dynasty and the court. The assassination of Young Master Dou was the work of only one or two villains, not just from Runan. In that case, only a few murderers need to be executed. Otherwise—" At this point, Kuai Sheng stopped, his eyes fixed on Xu Shao, his face full of murderous intent.

Upon hearing this, Xu Shao immediately understood Kuai Sheng's meaning and hurriedly said, "Brother, rest assured, I will gather the scholars on the island again tomorrow to discuss the matter of apprehending the murderer. Please convey to the General that Runan belongs to the Great Han Dynasty, and we are naturally loyal to the court, loyal to the Empress Dowager, and loyal to him!"

"Good, good!" Kuai Sheng clapped his hands and laughed, "Brother, you are truly a clever man. If the General knew what you said, he would surely praise you highly. Tomorrow, right? I'll give you ten days. As long as you find clues about the murderer, I'll pretend nothing happened; otherwise, this is the only way!"

----------------

The next day, on the sandbar.

"Isn't today only the fourteenth?" Li Qian asked cautiously. "Isn't the monthly review only held on the first day of each month? Why is Xu Zijiang summoning everyone to the island so many days later?"

"I don't know either!" someone shook their head and said, "Perhaps there's something special going on?"

“Special matter?” A thought suddenly flashed through Li Qian’s mind: “Could it be about the assassination of that young master Dou?” Thinking of this, he instinctively looked around and breathed a sigh of relief when he did not see the armored soldiers with weapons.

Unlike usual, Xu Shao arrived very early. A quarter of an hour before the appointed time, he stepped out of the pavilion to greet and exchange pleasantries with the crowd. Those familiar with him could see the worry in his eyes, which was not surprising. For these local strongmen, Runan held almost no secrets; everyone knew that the envoy from Luoyang, Kuai, was there on the emperor's orders! Such a person was sure to stir up bloodshed wherever he went. However, regardless of what the crowd truly thought, they all outwardly appeared concerned.

"Brother Jingsheng, you've come too!"

"How could I not come when my worthy brother summons me?" Liu Biao smiled and said, "I can see you have something on your mind. If there is anything I can do to help, please speak frankly!"

"Of course, of course!" Xu Shao forced a smile and patted Liu Biao's arm: "Jing Sheng, your presence today is enough to show our hospitality!"

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, seeing that it was almost time, Xu Shao cupped his hands in greeting and returned to the pavilion. He coughed and addressed the crowd loudly, "I have invited you all here today for a matter. At the beginning of this month, as usual, I held a monthly appraisal meeting on the island. In addition to all of you, there was also a distinguished guest from the capital. At that time, that distinguished guest was hot-tempered, and we had a minor verbal altercation, which is quite common. I didn't take it to heart, but I never expected that two days later, that distinguished guest would be assassinated while riding outside the city, which has led to a great disaster!"

At this point, Xu Shao stopped. Those on the sandbar who had attended the previous monthly evaluation naturally knew who the "distinguished guest" Xu Shao was referring to was, and they began to murmur amongst themselves. Someone shouted, "Could it be that Envoy Kuai is blaming Brother Xu for the assassination of Young Master Dou? How can that be? A murder case needs evidence, right? To convict someone without any proof—is there no law left?"

"Yes! Everyone knows who Brother Xu is. That Kuai Sheng dares to act so recklessly just because he's Wei Cong's subordinate. Does he have no sense of propriety? Does he think we in Runan have no one to rely on?" "Exactly! We must make this public and let all the scholars in the world see Wei Cong's true colors!"

Some older, more thoughtful people replied, "This matter is probably not that simple. Wei Cong is currently in a strong position. How can we confront him head-on? It would be better if you left Runan first, found a place to lay low for a while, and came back after things have calmed down!"

"The one who was killed was Wei Cong's brother-in-law, the Empress Dowager's cousin. How can such a thing be kept out of the public eye?"

"Yes, Brother Xu can leave, but his people can't!"

Xu Shao raised his hands and said loudly, "Gentlemen, gentlemen! Things haven't come to the way you think. Envoy Kuai did not blame me for the assassination. He also said that the people who came from that island were also virtuous and upright officials. How could they do such a thing as attacking someone with a hidden arrow?"

Hearing Xu Shao's words, everyone was somewhat surprised. Wei Cong rose from a military man on the border to seize central power through a marriage alliance with the Dou family, which was inherently at odds with the literati. Furthermore, he destroyed the Yuan family of Runan, whose kinship ties with the local literati were unknown, and whose reputation was already tarnished in the eyes of the island's scholars. It was quite strange that Xu Shao would speak well of Wei Cong's subordinates.

"What does Envoy Kuai mean?" someone asked. "Since he says the assassination is none of our business, let him investigate his case and I'll live my life. Let's keep to ourselves and not bother Brother Xu."

"Really? Could it be that since they can't find the murderer, they're trying to frame you and make you take the blame? Brother Xu, you'd better be careful!"

"Yes, Zijiang, you must be very careful!"

"You all worry too much!" Xu Shao said with a wry smile. "Imperial Censor Kuai is shrewd and capable. He already has a rough outline of the assassination plan, but he doesn't want to involve too many people. Fine! I'll tell you his idea and see if it makes sense!" So he recounted the plan that Kuai Sheng had mentioned at his home that day. Everyone's expression changed upon hearing this. Outsiders like Li Qian and Liu Biao were alright, but the locals from Runan were all terrified. Just as Kuai Sheng said, how could they possibly keep such a major event as the assassination of Dou Xuan completely hidden from these local strongmen? If they really started investigating from the homes of wealthy families, which of them didn't have a few illegal or prohibited acts? Add to that their relatives, friends, and mentors, and if they investigated all the way through, it wouldn't be enough to just wipe out one or two families.

"Zijiang, did Imperial Censor Kuai really say that?" an older scholar asked.

“Of course it’s true!” Xu Shao said with a wry smile, “That Imperial Censor Kuai also said that if we can hand over clues about the murderer within ten days, we’ll let the matter rest once the murderer is caught; otherwise, don’t blame him for being ruthless!”

"Within ten days! Hmm, that makes sense!" The scholar nodded. "In my opinion, Censor Kuai is right. It's best to resolve this matter as soon as possible, otherwise, I'm afraid no one will have a good time. It's better for one family to cry than for the whole family to cry!"

"That's right, it's better for one family to cry than for everyone to cry!"

"Yes, since Imperial Censor Kuai has given us face, we should know what's good for us! Everyone should go back and investigate as soon as possible. Ten days—no, ten days is too long. I think we should report the news within three days and settle this matter!"

"Yes, within three days, there's no time to lose, everyone go back!"

Xu Shao had prepared many arguments to persuade everyone to agree, but he didn't expect that everyone would agree so readily before he could even speak. He was very excited and quickly bowed to everyone: "Okay, thank you all. If any of you have any clues, please send them to my house. Thank you for your help!"

After reaching a decision, everyone boarded their boats and returned to shore. Liu Biao also went ashore, his mind heavy with worry. He knew, of course, that if these local bullies of Runan were truly helping Kuai Sheng investigate the case, it was only a matter of time before Yuan Shu and his men were captured. Should he pass this message on to Yuan Shu and his group, urging them to escape as soon as possible? But if he did so, wouldn't he become an accomplice? Wouldn't he be implicated and in trouble? But if he did nothing, wouldn't he be abandoning them to their fate, violating the principles of friendship?

"Jing Sheng!"

"So it's Brother Li!" Liu Biao recognized the long-bearded scholar Li Qian who had been talking to him. The two of them had unknowingly boarded the same boat. He had been preoccupied with his own thoughts and hadn't noticed him.

"These scholars from Runan used to have a lot of complaints about Wei Cong, but now they're helping him so quickly. Isn't that a bit too fast?" Li Qian said with a wry smile.

"It's no wonder they're like this. Their initial criticism of Wei Cong was just a momentary outburst, and they weren't in any real danger. But now it's different. If Kuai Sheng really uses the assassination of Young Master Dou to investigate further, many people here could face the destruction of their families. Who wouldn't care?"

"That's true!" Li Qian laughed. "But in that case, it's the two of us who are uninvolved, since neither of us are from Runan!"

"Yes!" Liu Biao laughed, "After all, whether it's assassination or investigating people, it has nothing to do with us, which is a fortunate thing!"

"Hmm!" Li Qian nodded. "It seems the Monthly Appraisal will be suspended for a while. There's no point in me staying in Runan. I might as well go back to Yanzhou. Jing Sheng, where do you plan to go next?"

"Me?" Liu Biao was taken aback. After thinking for a moment, he replied, "Go to Lujiang!"

"Lujiang?"

"Yes, I have a good friend surnamed Zhou, from the Zhou family of Lujiang. I don't know how he is doing now after this Moth Rebellion, so I want to go and visit him!"

"That's a pity!" Li Qian sighed. "Going to Lujiang is going south. If we went east, we could have traveled together for a while, and he could have extended some hospitality to my family when we passed by!"

"Thank you for your hospitality, Brother Li. I will certainly do my best to bother you next time I pass through Yanzhou!" Liu Biao said with a smile. At this time, the boat had already docked. The two went ashore and said their goodbyes. Liu Biao went to his residence.

When Liu Biao arrived at his residence, he instructed his servants to prepare his luggage for departure.

(End of this chapter)