Han Ji

Chapter 153 A Shocking Scheme

The stone steps were cold, and the echoes of her footsteps reverberated in the narrow passage. Qian Zhao walked quickly, her hand gripping the rolled-up notebook tightly, her knuckles turning white.

Liu Bei's study.

On the table lay the scroll of "Map of Yizhou Prefectures and Counties," next to an oil lamp with its wick held high, the flame flickering and casting the mountains and passes on the map in varying shades of light and shadow.

When Qian Zhao came in, he was looking at the location of Mianzhu, which is northwest of Chengdu, on the upper reaches of the Tuo River. It is a salt-producing area with many displaced people.

"Big Brother." Qian Zhao knelt on one knee and presented the record.

Liu Bei nodded and began to take notes.

The paper was hemp paper, the ink was freshly ground, and the handwriting was neat. He read slowly, sentence by sentence, sometimes pausing to point to a spot on the map with his finger before continuing.

The study was extremely quiet, with only the faint crackling of the burning lamp wick and the rustling of turning pages.

Qian Zhao remained kneeling, looking at Liu Bei.

He saw Liu Bei's brows slowly furrow, becoming more and more pronounced. He saw his lips pressed into a thin line, the corners of his mouth turning down. He saw his fingers tapping lightly on the edge of the table, the rhythm quickening.

Finally, Liu Bei finished looking at the pieces.

He put down the pen, looked up, and closed his eyes.

After a long while, he opened his eyes, which were bloodshot.

"Zijing," his voice was a little hoarse, "hang up the map."

Qian Zhao stood up, took down the old map from the wall, and replaced it with the new "Map of Yizhou Counties and Prefectures." The map was very large, taking up most of the wall. Liu Bei walked to the map and pointed southwards, starting from Hanzhong.

"Liu Jun first met Ma Xiang last July." He stopped his finger on Mianzhu, "to give him money, 500,000."

The second time was in September, when they sent weapons: thirty ring-pommel swords and twenty bows. The third time is now in December, when they sent scriptures, along with the phrase: "They will rebel in May."

He turned around and looked at Qian Zhao.

"Liu Yan seems determined to seize the position of Governor of Yi Province. He's waiting for the court to bestow upon him the imperial insignia. Once it arrives, he'll have Minister Ma set it ablaze." He paused. "But why May?"

Qian Zhao thought for a moment: "May... is the flood season. The Tuo River will be swollen, making roads difficult to travel. It will be inconvenient to mobilize government troops."

"Not just that." Liu Bei shook his head, his finger tracing back towards Luoyang. "The court is considering appointing Liu Yan as the governor of Yizhou. From the proposal to the issuance of the edict, it will take at least three months. It's the twelfth lunar month now; if all goes smoothly, the imperial edict should arrive in February. But Liu Yan is delaying it, dragging it out until May. Why?"

He couldn't answer the question.

Liu Bei walked back to his desk, picked up his pen, and wrote on the blank bamboo slips: "First, buy time so that Ma Xiang can prepare more thoroughly and the fire can spread further."

"Second, drag it out, let the conflict between Xi Jian and the powerful deepen and burn more intensely."

"three...

"

His pen paused.

A thought struck my mind like lightning.

He suddenly looked up, then at Mianzhu on the map, then at Chengdu, and then at Jingzhou to the east.

"He's waiting for another spark," he murmured.

Qian Zhao asked, puzzled, "Big brother?"

Liu Bei didn't answer. He put down his pen, walked to the window, and opened it. A cold wind rushed in, rustling the pages on the desk. It was already dawn, the snow had stopped, but the clouds were thick, and the world was a gray-white expanse.

"Zijing," he said, his back to Qian Zhao, "tell me, what was Liu Yan most afraid of when he entered Shu?"

Qian Zhao thought for a moment: "I'm afraid... Xi Jian won't obey orders? I'm afraid the powerful and influential will not submit?"

"That's not right." Liu Bei turned around, his eyes gleaming. "What he fears most is that someone will arrive in Yizhou before him, quell the rebellion first, and win over the hearts of the people first. Then his position as Governor of Yizhou will become nothing more than a figurehead."

He walked back to the map and pointed heavily at Mianzhu.

"Ma Xiang's fire can't be too small, or it won't burn Xi Jian and the powerful. Nor can it be too big, or someone else might extinguish it first." He paused. "So he has to control the fire. To control the fire, he has to control when to light it."

"May..." Qian Zhao suddenly realized, "May is the flood season, the roads are cut off, and outsiders cannot enter Yizhou. Even if someone wants to quell the rebellion first, they cannot cross the river or climb the mountains. They can only wait, wait for Liu Yan to enter Shu legitimately as an imperial envoy with the imperial staff."

"That's right." Liu Bei traced the Yangtze River with his finger. "Entering Shu from Jingzhou, passing through the Three Gorges, is when the water is at its most turbulent. Entering Shu from Hanzhong, taking the Micang Road and Jinniu Road, is also when flash floods occur in May, destroying the plank roads. Entering Shu from Guanzhong, taking the Chencang Road, is also when the Qiang rebellion is at its peak in May, making the roads unsafe."

He withdrew his hand and clenched it into a fist.

"Liu Yan had planned everything perfectly. He was waiting for the perfect opportunity: the court would grant him official status, the opportune moment would provide him with protection, and Prime Minister Ma would give him the spark. All he needed to do was enter Yizhou, extinguish the flames, consolidate power, and purge those who knew the truth..."

He paused, then lowered his voice.

"Then, he will secure his position as Governor of Yizhou."

The study fell silent again.

The oil lamp was about to go out; the flame had shrunk to the size of a bean, struggling to flicker.

Qian Zhao felt a chill creep up from her feet.

Ma Xiang will die, Liu Jun will die, and everyone who knows about this plot will die.

Liu Yan will not leave any survivors.

"Big brother," Qian Zhao's throat was dry, "what...what do we do?"

Liu Bei did not answer immediately.

He walked to the desk, looked at the rolled-up transcript for a long time. Then he reached out, rolled up the transcript, tied it with hemp rope, and handed it to Qian Zhao.

"Burn it," he said. "Don't let anyone except our brothers know about this."

Qian Zhao accepted it.

"About Liu Jun..."

"He must die." Liu Bei paused. "Also, have his four followers been interrogated?"

"They were all investigated, but they were all minor figures who didn't know much."

"Get rid of it," Liu Bei said calmly. "Make sure it's clean."

Qian Zhao felt a chill run down her spine, but nodded: "Yes."

As Qian Zhao turned to leave, Liu Bei said something else.

"Zijing"

"exist."

Liu Bei looked at him with a complicated expression.

"We were lucky to intercept Liu Jun," he said slowly. "If you hadn't patrolled the border so carefully, if the snow hadn't been so heavy that day, if Liu Jun hadn't been in such a hurry to return to Luoyang... we wouldn't have been able to break this deadlock."

A chill ran down my spine.

Yes, almost.

They almost stayed in Hanzhong, focusing on farming and training their troops, waiting for the day they heard of the chaos in Yizhou, that Liu Yan would enter Shu to quell the rebellion, and then... well, that was it. Liu Yan consolidated his power in Yizhou, and his next target was Hanzhong. How could he allow someone else to sleep soundly beside him?

"Big brother," Qian Zhao gritted his teeth, "now that we know, we can't let him succeed."

"Of course." Liu Bei smiled, a cold smile. "If he wants to light a fire, we'll help him light it, but when and how we light it is up to us."

Qian Zhao's eyes lit up.

"What my brother means is..."

"No rush," Liu Bei waved his hand. "Go take care of your business. I... need to think about it."

He clasped his hands in a fist salute and left the study.

The door closed, and the footsteps faded into the distance.

Liu Bei sat alone at his desk. The oil lamp finally went out, a wisp of smoke rising and dissipating into the air. Morning light filtered through the window paper, hazy and dim, illuminating half of his face.

He reached under the table and pulled out a small wooden box containing the jade unicorn that Su Gu had given him. He opened it, took out the unicorn, and held it in his hand.

The jade has a warm and smooth texture, but it feels icy cold to the touch right now.

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