Tiger Guards

Chapter 597 Sitting on the sidelines
Just as the Xu Du court was arguing over the selection of a prime minister, Liu Bei's messenger Meng Guang had already accompanied Xu Ci to Xiangyang.

When Liu Biao presented Liu Bei's handwritten letter, he remained completely unfazed.

If it weren't for the torrential rains in the Jianghan Plain, which caused both drought and flooding leading to a severe crop failure in the Nanyang region, the court under Lü Bu's leadership at the time would very likely have targeted him first.

Although this incident has passed, the sense of crisis it instilled in Liu Biao and the people of Jingzhou is hard to dispel.

After reading Liu Bei's letter, Liu Biao did not express his opinion directly, but instead forwarded it to others.

The Chief Clerk Kuai Liang, General Cai Mao, Attendant Fu Xun, Clerk Wang Can, along with Liu Biao's eldest son Liu Qi, nephew Liu Hu, and nephew Zhang Yun, circulated the document together.

The expressions of the people changed in different ways. In the letter, Liu Bei referred to himself as his younger brother and described in detail the difficulties the court was facing. He believed that the survival of the Han dynasty depended on whether it could withstand Zhao Ji's spying.

Today, only Liu Jingsheng, a model scholar and General Zhennan, can rally heroes to fight against traitors and safeguard the state and ancestral temples.

Otherwise, if the Zhao family could sweep away the Xianbei, they could naturally take similar actions against the Liu families throughout the land.

Therefore, in Liu Bei's letter, he had already determined that this was a critical moment for the survival of the Han dynasty and the Liu family.

We should set aside personal grudges and stand together to face the national crisis.

After Kuai Liang and Zhang Yun finished reading, they said, "My lord, as far as I know, the court has been praising the Grand Marshal's loyalty and bravery in recent years. Now the Grand Marshal has wiped out the various Hu tribes and captured and killed no less than a million people. Such achievements are unparalleled in the world. The Grand General has only just entered Luozhong, so why has the court sent out such a strange letter, accusing the Grand Marshal of plotting a rebellion?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Biao nodded slightly: "I also find it strange, but I cannot speak of it openly. The officials and people of Xiangyang are aware of the difficulties the court is facing, but the Grand Marshal is in a very high position and cannot bestow rewards due to the oath of the White Horse."

As Liu Biao was speaking, he went to see Meng Guang, who bowed and listened attentively.

Liu Biao smiled slightly: "In the past, Emperor Gaozu disregarded past grievances and remembered Xiang Bo's merits, so he bestowed upon him the surname Liu and granted him a marquisate as a reward. Now, the matter in the court is merely bestowing the surname Grand Marshal and granting him a kingship. I do not believe that none of the civil and military talents in the court could have come up with such a thing."

Upon hearing this, Meng Guang bowed again and replied, "Reporting to General Zhennan, the court has sent many envoys to the Grand Marshal's army to offer their condolences. However, the Grand Marshal's troops are swift and the envoys could not catch up with them. Since the envoys have not returned, the court cannot discern the Grand Marshal's intentions, and therefore cannot bestow rewards upon him, not because it is unwilling to do so."

After a slight pause, Meng Guang continued, "As the Left Minister of Works, the Grand Marshal is in charge of the court. Although there is a rule of avoiding suspicion when bestowing rewards and honors, he has repeatedly evaded them. How can the General alone make such an important decision? Furthermore, there is a report from Luoyang that the Grand Marshal's fierce generals Gan Ning, Han Meng, and Wei Xing have been acting strangely. That is why the General led his troops to Luoyang to intimidate Gan Ning and the other generals."

Upon hearing Gan Ning's name, Liu Biao's face twitched slightly.

Now that things have come to this, it's too late to regret it. He never expected that this traitor who fled back from Yizhou could be so skilled in battle, defeating the generals of Hebei who dared not fight back.

At Liu Biao's level, he didn't care about winning or losing a battle; what he cared about was whether the battle was exciting.

A battle where one's own general can execute brilliant maneuvers might only yield a few thousand men or a few counties on the battlefield; but under Liu Biao's political maneuvering, much more can be gained outside the battlefield.

If Gan Ning can lead his troops back to Jingzhou now, then the four counties in southern Jingzhou will no longer dare to provoke Liu Biao.

Zhang Xian, Huan Jie, and their group of Nanyang and Jingnan people were sold off cheaply by Lü Bu, and now they are either in exile in Jiaozhou or have taken refuge in Yizhou.

The people of Jingnan were no longer arrogant. Forced by circumstances, they finally bowed to Liu Biao, but their bowing was not thorough enough.

If a general from another province, skilled in naval warfare, were to submit to Liu Biao, and if Gan Ning were to garrison Baqiu near Dongting Lake, he could control the three rivers.

Even if Gan Ning's army does not move, the four counties of Jingnan will be much more compliant.

Liu Biao had almost forgotten the name Gan Ning, which had made him unhappy and filled him with regret. Now that Meng Guang had mentioned it, and mentioned it repeatedly, Liu Biao's expression worsened.

When Meng Guang criticized Grand Marshal Zhao Ji for losing face in governing, Liu Hu and Liu Qi, who admired Zhao Ji, both looked at Meng Guang with sidelong glances.

Even Wang Can looked at Meng Guang with a different gaze.

But no one stepped forward to criticize, because Meng Guang represented Liu Bei, who could currently vaguely represent the court. Seeing the tense atmosphere, Cai Mao stood up and said, "This is a matter of great importance to the nation. My humble state is unaware of the truth and right and wrong in the court. I request that the envoy wait a few days until my state has investigated the matter before making a decision."

Meng Guang, who studied the Gongyang Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals, was about to stand up and argue when Xu Ci from Nanyang, who was sitting with him, reached out and tugged at Meng Guang's wide sleeve. Meng Guang was about to break free, but thinking of his friendship with Xu Ci on the way from Xudu to Xiangyang, he held back, though his face looked very bad.

Xu Ci stood up again and pulled Meng Guang to his feet. Meng Guang reluctantly bowed and said, "This subject takes his leave."

Liu Biao nodded, and Kuai Liang gestured for Xu Ci to take Meng Guang away. The others also bowed to see Meng Guang off.

After seeing Meng Guang off, Xu Ci quickly returned.

Inside the hall, without Meng Guang, Liu Biao's posture became more casual, and he asked Xu Ci, "Who is Liu Xuande? Lü Bu invited him to the court to assist in governing, so how come he did such a thing so soon after Lü Bu left?"

Xu Ci composed himself and replied, "The Grand Marshal's position is so high that no further titles can be bestowed upon him; this is common knowledge among the officials and people of Xudu. Although the General-in-Chief and the Grand Marshal are not on good terms, the General-in-Chief, being from a border region, is quite grateful to the Grand Marshal for pacifying the various barbarian tribes. Therefore, he is unwilling to be an enemy of the Grand Marshal, which is why he brought Lord Xuande to Xudu, entrusted him with the affairs of the court and the state, and led his army into Luoyang, with the intention of mediating."

"Does Lü Bu want to mediate the dispute?"

Liu Biao asked in a deep voice, finding it absurd. After Lü Bu massacred the powerful clans in Nanyang, he implemented military farming, clearly indicating that he was poised to launch a full-scale attack on Jingzhou after the military farming had yielded a good harvest.

How could such a belligerent and arrogant person now want to mediate the dispute between Zhao Ji and the court?
Xu Ci replied simply, "That's right, this is a fact acknowledged by all discerning people in Xudu. Some may be disappointed in the General, while others admire his chivalrous and decisive character."

Lü Bu relinquished power in Xuchang to Liu Bei, with whom he had little connection, which could naturally be considered a display of chivalry and unbridled behavior.

Liu Biao was speechless for a moment. If he were in Lü Bu's shoes, he would rather hang himself in power than make the same decision.

If he does that, these people in front of him, such as Kuai Liang, Cai Mao, Wang Can, and Fu Xun, will definitely abandon him without hesitation.

After a moment's thought, Liu Biao said, "Since I took office in Jingzhou, I have eliminated internal strife and protected the people, which is no easy task in this chaotic world. Although the disputes in the court are related to the survival of the country, I do not want the three million men and women of Jingzhou to be caught in the flames of war."

Cai Mao was the first to express his opinion: "Our lord is benevolent and virtuous."

Kuai Liang followed up, saying, "The situation is unclear now. I urge my lord to prepare for war to guard against unforeseen circumstances. In this way, when the time comes, there will be a chance to advance or retreat."

Fu Xun remained silent. Although he came from a prominent family in the north and disliked the Grand Marshal's massacre of the Taiyuan gentry, he was still grateful to the Grand Marshal deep in his heart.

Wang Can remained silent; unless Liu Biao explicitly asked, Wang Can would not give a clear answer.

He is Cai Yong's successor and the contemporary leader of Cai Yong's school of thought.

The fact that the Grand Marshal and Cai Zhaoji had an illegitimate child had long been a popular and interesting story in Xiangyang, so Wang Can naturally favored Zhao Ji.

His father, Wang Qian, was the chief secretary of General He Jin, and later he also followed Dong Zhuo.

For Wang Can, who had experienced the westward relocation to Chang'an, the survival of the Han dynasty was really not a big deal. The death of hundreds of thousands or even millions of people for it was not worth it.

Liu Biao's nephew, Zhang Yun, showed no emotion; whatever his uncle wanted to do, he would do.

Liu Qi and Liu Hu, these two cousins, didn't care about the fate of the Han Dynasty... As a remote member of the imperial clan, the survival of the imperial family really had little to do with them.

After arriving in Jingzhou from Shanyang, survival became the most important issue for their large family.

Moreover, even if they were willing to shed their last drop of blood for the Han dynasty, if the people of Jingzhou did not want to shed blood, then the people of Jingzhou would help Zhao Ji or others to drain their blood, leaving not a single drop behind!

As for the army that Xu Ci promised to Liu Bei... the envoy was out in the field, so he had the freedom to spout nonsense.

(End of this chapter)