Chapter 235

Chapter 235

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Volume 7: Eight Hundred Qin Rivers, Occupying Guanzhong Chapter 235: Hunting in Hanzhong

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Can a Strategist Not Ascend the Throne?

Chapter 235: Hunting in Hanzhong

Disloyal intentions?

Liu Yu was quite familiar with his subordinate Qi Zhou. In most cases, he would not make a hasty judgment.

Sending him to Yizhou was also due to his steady personality.

But now he says Liu Yan has disloyal intentions…

This seems like a serious accusation!

Qi Zhou added, “To be precise, he has ambitions for the Son of Heaven’s position.”

Liu Yu’s expression turned serious, “Do you know the responsibility you bear for saying this?”

Qi Zhou nodded, “I know, but this is what I personally witnessed during my trip to Yizhou.”

From Mianzhu to Hanzhong, and then to Chang’an, he pondered over what he saw and heard.

Li Meng, sent by Qiao Yan to assist him, showed no signs of trouble, just an average teammate who didn’t drag them down. So, there’s no truth to the rumor that Qiao Yan regretted giving the Grand General position to Liu Yan and thus targeted him.

The two fires, though unexpected, were explainable.

The first fire was set by an old acquaintance of Ren Qi, seeking justice by burning the Yizhou government storehouse, trying to draw attention to Liu Yan’s illegal carriages.

Unfortunately, the fire scene was off-limits, and Qi Zhou didn’t initially realize the hidden truth.

Under pressure, they had to give a more direct hint—the letter they received.

They were also informed of another message.

Dong Fu, who followed Liu Yan into Shu, prophesied that “Yizhou has the aura of the Son of Heaven,” which made Liu Yan abandon Jiaozhou for Yizhou.

This means Liu Yan’s desire to become the Han emperor dates back many years.

Perhaps the first fire alerted Liu Yan, leading him to burn Dong Fu’s former residence to prevent other secrets from being discovered.

When they arrived in Mianzhu, the place that might have held clues was already in ruins.

To Qi Zhou, this act was like hiding a silver ingot in plain sight.

But it’s not surprising that Liu Yan would hastily burn the house.

Being superstitious, he might have thought Dong Fu recorded Liu Yan’s secrets before his death, hidden somewhere undiscoverable.

If his descendants faced trouble, they could use this to blackmail Liu Yan.

What if they couldn’t find it?

With the envoys likely to find out, it was better to burn it all!

Unfortunately, the suspicious storehouse fire and the burned house were enough to raise alarms.

Of course, this wasn’t enough.

Qi Zhou’s observations were just speculations; more evidence was needed.

Fortunately, since the informant mentioned Dong Fu, they could ask about Liu Yan’s time as Yizhou Governor.

Many officials in Chang’an were former Luoyang residents.

After hearing Qi Zhou’s account, Liu Yu summoned a few people.

“Dong Fu?” Chen Ji was momentarily stunned when Liu Yu asked about him but recalled Luoyang’s situation and said, “Yes, I know him.”

“He was recommended by Grand General He to Emperor Xiaoling. Being recommended earlier, he was directly appointed as a Palace Attendant, unlike us who sought refuge under the Grand General.”

“Due to his responsibilities, he was close to Liu Junlang, then the Minister of Ceremonies.”

After some thought, he replied, “I can’t say if he influenced Liu Junlang’s decision, but his initial choice was indeed Jiaozhou. This… those in Luoyang at the time can attest.”

Before the Yellow Turban Rebellion, when the Zhang brothers were executed and Qiao Yan arrived in Luoyang with Bi Lan, this change had already occurred, known only to a few who were well-informed about court changes.

Chen Ji was one, as was Yang Zan, who came to Chang’an with Xun Shuang and Huang Wan.

“But judging Liu Yizhou based on this decision change seems too hasty,” Yang Zan added while vouching for Chen Ji. “Yizhou indeed needed a governor more than Jiaozhou at the time.”

The oppressive Yizhou Governor Xi Jian was killed by Ma Xiang and others, urgently needing a central figure to quell rebellions. Thus, even without the “Son of Heaven’s aura” prophecy, Yizhou was more suitable than Jiaozhou.

“No, there’s another piece of evidence,” someone interjected as they entered the hall, bowing to Liu Yu.

It was Xianyu Yin, a subordinate official in the Minor Palace.

After Qi Zhou informed Liu Yu of Liu Yan’s potential usurpation, Liu Yu first consulted his old subordinates from Youzhou.

Xianyu Yin, brother of the current Commandant Xianyu Fu, served under Liu Yu.

After considering his contacts, he summoned Yizhou craftsmen who had worked on Liu Yan’s carriages.

Following the chaos in Chang’an, many people fled to Yizhou, leading to the formation of the Dongzhou Army under Liu Yan, composed of people from Jing Province and Guanzhong.

But after the Dong Zhuo Rebellion was quelled in August last year, with the need to restore order and build palaces and tools, they recruited many from Chang’an.

Some Yizhou residents, hearing of Chang’an’s prosperity and longing for the emperor’s rule, chose to move to Guanzhong for the benefits of settling in Chang’an.

Among them were craftsmen who had worked on Liu Yan’s carriages.

The construction of Liu Yan’s thousand carriages occurred during the chaos after Emperor Ling’s death.

At that time, he didn’t anticipate threats from Chang’an or that his actions, shielded by mountains, would reach the wrong ears.

He certainly didn’t expect the craftsmen to be in Chang’an and found at this time.

When the craftsmen drew the carriage designs from memory, the onlookers’ expressions darkened.

These were indeed imperial carriage designs!

If it were just one or two, it might be excusable, but according to the craftsmen, Liu Yan had at least a hundred such carriages made.

This meant—he truly saw himself as the emperor of Yizhou!

Does he still hold such thoughts?

The answer seems clear.

If he had realized his mistake, these carriages would have been destroyed, not burned in his mansion the night before he became Grand General.

He clearly still harbors hope!

Qi Zhou asked Liu Yu, “Your Majesty, what should we do now?”

Even if Liu Yu initially didn’t want to be emperor, he is now.

In his position, he must act accordingly.

At most, as he said when he ascended the throne, if Liu Xie is found, he can abdicate.

But with Liu Xie missing, Liu Yu must cooperate with Qiao Yan, one stabilizing the center, the other sweeping the land, to quell the rebels.

In this judgment, Liu Yan’s ambition to become emperor makes him their opponent.

But now that the Grand General position is in his hands, how should they handle this and face Liu Yan?

They can’t just ignore him, right…

“Advisor Li’s performance was truly impressive.”

Qiao Yan, looking at Li Ru and hearing his report, couldn’t help but feel impressed.

She had once shot Li Ru off his horse…








It was indeed a very correct decision to make Dong Zhuo lose this strategist.

If the other party’s ability to collect information and mislead others had been utilized when Dong Zhuo was in Chang’an, it would have been almost impossible for Qiao Yan to make Jia Xu flip-flop in the middle, let alone arrange the whereabouts of the Son of Heaven after conquering Chang’an.

It’s also fortunate that Li Ru was not a general who would die for Dong Zhuo, and he chose a good time to come out of seclusion.

Qiao Yan then asked, “However, Mr. Wenyou, aren’t you worried that Zhao Wei might choose a method other than setting fire to the government storehouse?”

Li Ru smiled confidently, “Then, my lord, what more suitable method do you think he has besides letting us discover Liu Yan’s disloyalty and destroying the evidence? Killing us, the envoys?”

“That would indeed be a way out for him, but I think my lord had already left some people behind when you sent merchants to Yizhou earlier. Since you dared to let my disciple go along, you must have considered her safety. In the most extreme case, I can also take advantage of this to retreat unscathed.”

“Assassinating envoys is such a blatant display of disloyalty, which is also a basis for my lord to hold them accountable.”

He paused and concluded, “So whether Zhao Wei uses brute force or a relatively smarter method does not affect the outcome itself.”

Qiao Yan asked helplessly, “According to your words, are you going to teach your disciple or to bring a talisman for protection?”

Li Ru replied frankly, “My lord’s concern for your niece is also a piece of information I collected and used flexibly.”

This was of course a lesson he taught to Qiao Ting.

In summary, whether for the purpose of teaching or completing Qiao Yan’s task, Li Ru’s performance was brilliant.

It was precisely because he had a little but not too much presence in the mission team that when Qi Zhou brought the news to Liu Yu, Liu Yu chose to find more solid evidence first rather than having Li Ru repeat what he saw with Qi Zhou.

This greatly reduced the possibility of him being exposed after appearing in public.

As for whether these scattered pieces of information could make Liu Yu make a definitive judgment on Liu Yan, it was only a matter of time.

Liu Yan indeed had such disloyal thoughts and acted on them. Considering that Yizhou is a neighbor of Guanzhong, it would not be impossible for them to supplement the evidence after having a cognitive tendency.

Qiao Yan didn’t mind giving the position of Grand General to Liu Yan first, so why would she mind waiting a little longer until she got the position of Grand Marshal.

After all, it is only the second month of the first year of Jian’an.

But now it seems that Liu Yu’s generals are not very capable in marching and fighting, but they are quite efficient in finding out Liu Yan’s disloyalty.

Qiao Yan even had to praise them.

Just two days after Qi Zhou and Li Ru returned to Chang’an, Liu Yu had already spoken with Chen Ji and others about the unexpected discovery during their mission to Yizhou.

Everyone in the court looked at each other in dismay.

No one expected this mission to Yizhou to end in such a way.

The position of Grand General was given to Liu Yan, but can this way of expressing cooperation with Yizhou really be considered successful?

When Qiao Yan gave up the position of Grand General that day, she also said that Liu Yan in Yizhou had the idea of separatist rule, and removing his position as Grand Marshal was to prevent him from acting too ostentatiously and to limit him a bit.

But who would have thought that Liu Yan not only had the idea of separatist rule but also wanted to benefit from the central war.

Seeing Qiao Yan’s calm face and not showing anger towards Liu Yan at this time, everyone couldn’t help but think that she might have already been prepared for such a situation.

After all, as early as eight years ago, she had already written the Discourse on Feudalism.

Today, as the Governor of Bingzhou, she is willing to stay in the position of General of Agile Cavalry, while the Governor of Yizhou is building the imperial carriage that only the Son of Heaven can use, planning the possibility of being promoted from Governor to Son of Heaven, which seems to be a response to her argument that year.

Liu Yu asked, “Do any of you have any thoughts to share?”

When Qi Zhou asked him what to do, Liu Yu also felt it was tricky.

The area under Liu Yan’s jurisdiction in Yizhou is vast, and there are many people. When there is a Qinling barrier between the two sides, it is not difficult to achieve a peaceful coexistence, but entering a full-scale war is very costly for everyone.

Moreover, there is only a little more than a month left before spring plowing, and the negative effects of a large number of personnel transfers will inevitably be further exacerbated.

In addition, once they hold Liu Yan accountable for this matter, will Liu Biao, who is also nearby, react?

After all, he is a member of the Han royal family.

Will Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan in the east take the opportunity to attack Bingzhou?

This will inevitably lead to a situation where one cannot take care of both.

As a result, Liu Yu thought hard for a long time, only to feel that the current situation has become a dilemma.

The title of Grand General has also become a temporary appointment that cannot be taken back.

He thought so, and so did everyone else.

As a result, the hall fell into a moment of silence.

It was Huang Wan who broke the silence first: “I wonder if Liu Yan can be sure that we know he has ulterior motives?”

As Zhao Wei knew, Huang Wan and Liu Yan are actually cousins.

But when Huang Wan called Liu Yan by his name, everyone heard his subtext.

His current position is the court of Chang’an, and he does not need to consider his cousin relationship with Liu Yan.

Rather than remaining silent at this time to avoid suspicion, it is better to say what needs to be said clearly.

He added, “Since this judgment has been made and the matter is in front of us, it must be resolved. There is no reason to pretend that nothing happened.”

This made his position even clearer.

If we really have to fight, then fight.

After all, Liu Yu has just represented the orthodoxy and must not let Liu Yan have any out-of-line actions at this time.

“But is the current situation suitable for turning against Yizhou?” Wang Yun couldn’t help but ask back, “Defending against an invasion from Yizhou from Guanzhong is relatively easy. After all, we have only given a position of Grand General that cannot really mobilize the soldiers of the world. We can just treat it as non-existent. Our number one enemy is still Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan, or the court in Ye City, after all, Liu Yan cannot simply declare himself emperor with only Yizhou under his control.”

To put it bluntly, does Liu Yan have ulterior motives now? Yes.

Can he put it into practice? Probably not.

At most, the act of conferring the position of Grand General to him makes people feel a bit uncomfortable.

But before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Lu Zhi.

Lu Zhi said solemnly, “No, you can’t say that. Since Liu Yan has burned down Dong Fu’s former residence to cover up his intention to occupy the position of the Son of Heaven, it can be seen that he has already speculated on the envoys’ movements. At this time, just setting up defenses against him and pretending that nothing is wrong will only encourage his wolfish ambitions.”

“Exactly!” Qiao Yan raised her eyes and responded.

She has always been decisive and firm in her stance.

In the resounding “Exactly,” everyone could understand her position.

She stepped forward, and the stern look in her eyes made it easy to guess that after facing this sudden situation, she had already detached herself from her previous hesitation and made an assessment in her heart.

She then said, “The scholars from Dongzhou and Yizhou under Liu Yan’s command have conflicts with each other and are in opposition. However, with Liu Yan above, the ebb and flow of power are controlled by the Governor. Sooner or later, the soldiers of Yizhou and Dongzhou will all belong to him. Once he uses the power of a wealthy and populous country and combines it with the planning of intelligent scholars, he will surely become a disaster for us. This matter seems harmless in the short term, but it cannot be taken lightly.”

“In my opinion, although it is not appropriate to remove his position as Grand General at this time, making Ye City laugh at us, we can still give Liu Yan a warning before spring plowing.”

This means we are going to fight!

She has been fighting for a long time, and everyone believes in her judgment.

But what people didn’t expect was that in her subsequent words, it seemed that she was not going to attack Yizhou, or rather, not to go to war with Liu Yan.

She bowed to Liu Yu and said, “Please, Your Majesty, grant me and Liu Yizhou each an imperial edict.”

“Zhang Lu of Hanzhong has not repented since being driven out of Wudu County. He is hiding in Hanzhong, gathering followers of the Taishi Path and secretly causing trouble. Now that the Son of Heaven in Chang’an has just been established, there is a great amnesty for the world, but he has disturbed the people’s livelihood and reversed yin and yang, which is unforgivable.”

“Therefore—”

“The Son of Heaven decrees that the Grand General and the General of Agile Cavalry will hunt together in Hanzhong!”