Chapter 84 When it’s time to break, it’s time to break
After a day's march, Liu Qi arrived at Nanxiang County.

Nanxiang County is where the Danshui River and Xishui River converge and flow southward, and is located on the west bank.

The county governor Yi Ji led his people to meet him and dispatched 500 county soldiers to the bank of Danshui to assist Liu Qi in guarding the captured Qingzhou soldiers.

In Nanxiang City, after a simple celebratory banquet, Yi Ji and Liu Qi, who had a good alcohol tolerance, sobered up and chatted in a quiet room.

Like the officials of Nanxiang County, Yi Ji felt sincerely happy and fortunate for the great victory at Bowangpo.

The battles on the battlefield have proved that Liu Bei can indeed guard the north gate of Jingzhou. Now he only needs to guard the east gate of Jiangxia.

As for the western gate, it is very easy to defend. Yiling has a natural barrier, there is Jingmen on the south bank of the Yiling area, and there is Huya Mountain on the north bank. They are across the river from each other and are enough to stop the invading enemies from Yizhou.

Live your own peaceful life behind closed doors. If the outside world is unified, you can still enjoy wealth and happiness even if you surrender.

Those who are in power today were all educated during the reign of Emperor Ling.

In these people's minds, unification of the world is a matter of course.

Referring to the two major rebellions at the end of the Qin Dynasty and the Xinmang Dynasty, we subconsciously believe that the contemporary chaos will also end in the contemporary era.

Yi Ji prepared some sour soup for Liu Qi to sober him up, and calmly explained his family's financial situation: "Captain Hei has given you more than 3,000 Qingzhou soldiers. Although our Nanxiang Xinjun is short of food and fodder, it is also approaching the summer harvest, so it is enough to support us until the autumn harvest. When the autumn harvest comes, the food and fodder will be enough to last, and we can recruit 2,000 soldiers from our county."

Liu Qi drank the warm sour soup and looked up at Yi Ji who had an uncertain expression. He couldn't help but think of Black Bear's extremely explicit words.

It was as if the words of an evil ghost, inciting people to fight and kill each other, were lingering in my ears at this moment and were hard to forget.

Frowning slightly, Liu Qi asked, "Sir, do you mean to train a group of 8,000 soldiers and station them in Xiangyang?"

He is the eldest son of Marquis Chengwu, and he is stationed with 8,000 troops near Xiangyang City. Who would dare to let these 8,000 troops starve?

Yi Ji looked him up and down and asked, "What does Captain Hei think?"

"He said that it is a Confucian virtue to conceal the truth among one's relatives. If I killed someone, how could my father report it to the authorities? I think my father would rush back and forth, either burying the body nearby or dumping it far away."

"Father is now in charge of Jingxiang. Even if I am good at military affairs and get defeated by others, father can protect my life. At the very least, he can protect my wife and children from being dragged down."

Liu Qi recounted that when he saw Yi Ji sitting cross-legged with an increasingly upright posture, he immediately sighed, "He wants to use me to wipe out the Cai clan."

Cai Mao's wealth was in front of everyone, and Black Bear had already seen it.

Cai Mao's base camp was on a sandbar on the Han River, specifically about ten miles southeast of Xian Mountain, close to the east bank.

No one cares about Shazhou’s past name anymore. Now it is called Caizhou, which means Cai from the Cai family.

The Cai family lived together as a clan, and the four corners of the manor were even built with bluestone, which was solid and luxurious.

Cai Mao's own manor alone had hundreds of concubines.

There were at least forty or fifty Cai family villas and manors throughout Jingzhou, all of which were dens for amassing gold.

If you want to obtain a large number of craftsmen in Jingzhou, the fastest way is to attack and destroy the Cai family!

Floating wealth, stored grain, technical personnel, farms, mines, pastures, population and so on, everything is available!

Forget about eight thousand people. As long as we swallow up the Cai family in one bite, we can recruit another eight thousand!

Black Bear, a foreigner, learned about the wealth of the Cai State while he was traveling upstream along the Han River.

Outsiders are jealous of him, and as someone who knows the Cai family well, doesn't he have any thoughts?

Yi Ji was also moved, and observing Liu Qi's expression, he asked, "What do you mean, sir?"

Liu Qi lowered his head in shame, and Yi Ji couldn't help but raised his head and let out a long sigh.

Could it be that Liu Qi really had no intention of killing the Cai people?
There is definitely murderous intent, and it's quite strong.

What I’m afraid of is that I won’t be able to clean up the situation.

Even though we are hindering each other now, we can still live a good life as the best in the world.

The emperor in the Xudu Palace may not be as good as the current Liu Qi in terms of enjoyment and freedom.

Liu Qi lived too comfortably and lacked the courage and wisdom to carry out self-revolution.

Even if he had ambitions, these ambitions could not push Liu Qi to challenge and climb to the highest peak of destiny.

We should just get by for now, there are still many years of good life to come.

Even if Jingzhou surrenders, he can still live a rich life.

Looking at the lives of scholars in other areas outside Jingzhou, Liu Qi seemed to be living in heaven.

He just lived a life of idleness and waited for death, and his ending was better than that of most people.

Seeing that Liu Qi was so useless, Yi Ji clenched his fists and punched the rush mat with his right fist: "Sir, what did Captain Hei say again?"

"He also hated my shallowness."

Liu Qi added in a bitter voice: "Captain Hei predicts that my father will live to be seventy."

Liu Biao was sixty years old. If he lived another ten years, there would be too many variables.

To be honest, Yi Ji never thought that Liu Biao could live to be seventy years old.

Liu Biao suffered persecution from the Party and Factions in his youth and also suffered during his exile.

So he got married late, at the age of sixty, and his eldest son Liu Qi was only thirty-two years old.

If Liu Biao lived another ten years, Yi Ji could no longer imagine what would happen.

Human energy is limited. It becomes increasingly scarce as we age, and our judgment also declines.

Liu Biao, who was sixty years old, had lost his ambitions and was a very good person to most people in Jingzhou.

But if he lives to be seventy years old and becomes old and foolish, and is afraid that others will think he is old and foolish, then God knows what incredible things he may do due to his stubbornness.

How wise and powerful was Emperor Xiaowu?
When he gets old, what he does is no different from what Jie and Zhou did.
Yi Ji felt disheartened after a little imagination and lost hope for the future. Liu Cong was already engaged to the daughter of Cai Zan, the younger brother of Cai Mao. Ten years later, what could Liu Qi use to compete with Liu Cong?
Now that we have won a great victory at Bowangpo, the two guest armies, Liu Bei and Black Bear, are becoming increasingly famous.

The troops in Jingzhou may not dare to fight to the death with these two guest armies.

These two foreign armies ended up in Jingzhou in order to fight Cao Cao desperately. Jingzhou protected its territory and its people and waited for the surrender after the unification of the north.

If Cao's army had not been so fierce, why would Jingzhou have joined forces with Yuan Shao to contain Cao Cao?
After all, Cao Cao was a potential target of surrender, and the two guest armies existed specifically to fight Cao's army to the death. They even defeated the 10,000-strong army of Xiahou Dun, a famous general in the Central Plains, with only 4,000 troops.

Black Bear's proposal was very feasible. If Liu Qi marched into Xiangyang and attacked Caizhou directly, he would be able to uproot all the Cai states.

If the troops in Jingzhou dared to counterattack, Liu Qi could call on the two guest armies, Black Bear and Liu Bei, to help suppress the rebellion.

As long as Liu Biao does not stand up to denounce Liu Qi, who would dare to accuse Liu Qi of rebellion?
Yi Ji thought about the officers and generals of various armies, but for a while he couldn't find anyone who dared to fight with Liu Bei and Black Bear.

If we lose this, our whole family will die.

Yi Ji could determine Liu Biao's attitude, which was definitely to wait and see!

It is a compliment to say that a son is like his father. However, if Liu Qi could break free from the shackles and truly possess both civil and military talents, even if his methods were rough and harsh, what would Liu Biao blame him for?
While Yi Ji was speechless, Liu Qi was also unwilling to give up, and asked with a painful look: "If I lead my troops south, will Liu Yuzhou help me?"

"I don't know. I can only conclude that Liu Yuzhou would not dare to embarrass you without the master's permission."

Seeing Liu Qi's expression, Yi Ji said in a hateful voice, "With three thousand Qingzhou soldiers at hand, how could Cai Mao and Kuai Liang ignore them? Do you think Huang She is more reliable than these three thousand Qingzhou soldiers?"

"Huang She and I have known each other for more than ten years. If I don't let him down, how could he let me down? In the future, Jiangxia will still have to rely on Huang She."

Liu Qi expressed his own views: "I will now give you the soldiers of Qingzhou..."

"Son!"

Yi Ji shouted softly, "This soldier belongs to Hei Xiong. He entrusted you to exchange it for Huang She! Huang She did not exchange it empty-handed. How much friendship can he remember from you!"

Staring at Liu Qi's dodging gaze, Yi Ji was disappointed: "The Cai people fear power but not virtue. You hold a large army, they dare not act rashly, and they dare not even disobey you! The opportunity is right in front of us, we should quickly summon Captain Hei to come here and conspire with you!"

Liu Qi lowered his head: "But why would he help me so much?"

Yi Ji stood up and walked around Liu Qi, stretched out his hands to straighten Liu Qi's shoulders, and stared at Liu Qi: "Liu Xuande has the reputation and strength to usurp Jingzhou, but Black Bear doesn't! He helps the young master because he wants to get support from Jingzhou!"

Seeing Liu Qi's expression, Yi Ji was so angry that he breathed heavily. "The people of Nanyang hated the lord for bringing in Yuan Shu. If you are in power, even if you follow the lord's old policy, you can win the hearts of the people of Nanyang and Jingnan! We old men of Shanyang can also rest assured!"

Seeing Liu Qi's tears overflowing, Yi Ji took out his handkerchief to wipe them away and said sternly: "If the mountains in Jingzhou collapse in the future, I will still have a place to stay, but you will not have a good end!"

Liu Qi just choked up and expressed his concerns: "I am afraid that this will fail and bring disaster to my father. My father is old and I really can't bear it."

"Will the Lord be able to bear it when the Cai tribes persecute the young master in the future?"

Yi Ji stared, "My Lord, you are not as clear-sighted as Black Bear! This matter is settled. Even if it fails, with the Lord's mediation, we can withdraw our troops to the south and stick with Black Bear."

Seeing no sign of Liu Qi's dissuasion, Yi Ji turned around, took down his sword from the rack on the wall, and hung it solemnly around his waist.

He bowed his head and tied up his wide sleeves, raised his head and went out to the gate supervisor, chief clerk and Liu Qi's followers who were guarding the gate, saying: "The young master is drunk and can't help missing his mother. Please don't disturb him."

"Here!"

Seven or eight people bowed, and Yi Ji looked at one of Liu Qi's confidants and said, "Go see Wang Wei immediately and tell him that the young master agrees. Invite Captain Hei to come to Nanxiang to discuss matters!"

This attendant from Shanyang named Gao Qian looked Yi Ji up and down with a look of surprise on his face. Seeing Yi Ji's solemn demeanor, he was overjoyed and bowed, "Yes!"

Yi Ji turned his head and looked at the chief clerk Yin Chun: "Prepare cattle and wine, and have a big feast for the officers and soldiers tomorrow!"

Yin Chun also took a deep breath and bowed: "Yes!"

Yi Ji looked at his supervisor, Li Qi from Shanyang. Li Qi was wearing iron-studded armor and stepped forward to bow. "Ming Fu?"

"Tonight, some Qingzhou soldiers are escaping at night. Block the road! Arrest the suspicious persons!"

"Here!"

Li Qi bowed deeply, then turned around to dispatch personnel.

After finishing the military deployment quickly, Yi Ji asked Gong Cao Lou Guang: "Zhongming, now that things have come to this, what are the chances of victory?"

The two men walked slowly in the night. Lou Guang placed his left hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist, frowning as he pondered, "If we win, we will wipe out the various Cais and prepare for war to defeat the traitors. If we lose, we will retreat to the south. What can the various Cais do to you, my lord?"

Lou Guang's tone showed that he looked down on Cai Mao. How could the background and character of a man who had been fawning on a eunuch like Cao Cao since he was a teenager be high?
The key point is that Cai Mao's father was too good at scheming. He was indeed a famous scholar in the area, and he was also married to Zhang Wen of Nanyang. With the help of Nanyang people, he avoided the persecution of the Party and Factions and was able to rise in Nanjun.

Later, Liu Biao entered Xiangyang alone on horseback. Cai Mao and Kuai Liang assisted Liu Biao and used fraudulent means to trick more than 50 clan leaders and beheaded them on the spot.

At that time, those who had fewer than seven or eight hundred soldiers were not qualified to attend the banquet.

One can imagine the true image of Cai Mao, Kuai Liang and Liu Biao in the eyes of the children of the big families in Jingzhou.

Cai Mao's huge industry was accumulated at that time, and every piece of money was bleeding!

Only twelve years have passed, and the nephews and nephews of the commander who were killed that year have grown into adulthood.

In recent years, Liu Biao, out of suspicion, has killed many young talents in various counties.

As long as you refuse to be recruited, you are holding a grudge and rebelling against the Zhennan Shogunate, and you deserve to be killed!

Ordinary scholars from poor families were not qualified to be liquidated by Liu Biao, and the worst that could be killed was the surname of a county.

The number of people killed was so great that even Yi Ji was afraid that he would be held accountable by the people of Jingzhou.

Because of this, Liu Qi did not dare to break the current situation, for fear of causing a bigger storm and tearing everyone apart.

Lou Guang was only in his twenties, and many of his friends died one after another at the hands of Liu Biao. How could he remain indifferent!

If Liu Qi were to take the lead now, Liu Biao would never easily mobilize the troops in southern Jing, and the troops near Xiangyang would not necessarily actively resist.

As long as the Cai clans are defeated, most of the revenge that happened back then will have been avenged.

At least, the stolen property can be taken back.

(End of this chapter)