With Cao Cao by my side, what do I have to fear from the world?

Chapter 243, Achieving the Middle Way

The news of Cai Mao's arrest spread rapidly throughout Jingzhou. Chen Gong continuously sent people to secretly spread the news, putting maximum pressure on Liu Biao.

The prevailing opinion was that Liu Biao set an example by putting righteousness before family, but Liu Biao was helpless about this, as it was tantamount to forcing him to kill Cai Mao.

On this day, Gan Ning and Chen Gong came to visit Liu Biao. Just as they arrived at the front yard, they saw Lady Cai walking out of the house with tears in her eyes.

Cai Mao was not only beaten up, but also imprisoned. The Cai family was in complete turmoil, and Lady Cai wanted to quarrel with Liu Biao three times a day.

When Madam Cai saw the two men, her resentful and piercing gaze left a deep impression on Gan Ning and his companion.

However, Gan Ning didn't care; a woman wasn't enough to scare him.

Upon meeting Liu Biao, Gan Ning noticed that Liu Biao's complexion was not good; his face was dark and his brows were furrowed, indicating that he had been quite troubled lately.

Gan Ning cupped his hands in greeting and got straight to the point: "Governor Liu, I heard that you have arrested Cai Mao. I have come to inquire about your plans for dealing with him."

Liu Biao was extremely annoyed, but he had no choice but to patiently say, "Please have a seat, both of you. Let's talk this out slowly."

After the guests and hosts were seated, Chen Gong said, "Everyone is watching you now. We also believe that the governor will handle this matter fairly and strictly, which is why we did not report it to the court. However, Xiangyang is not far from Xuchang, so this matter probably cannot be kept secret for long."

Liu Biao hesitated for a moment, then tentatively asked, "In your opinion, how should this be handled?"

Gan Ning snorted coldly, "Is there any need to say that? Cai Mao first roared in the court, and then sent someone to assassinate me. It seems that he does not take the court and His Majesty seriously. I'm afraid he doesn't even take you, Governor, seriously."

Chen Gong nodded and said in agreement, "Yes, if Cai Mao still cared about the governor, he would have told you in advance before doing anything. But he acted on his own. Fortunately, General Gan was lucky. If anything had happened to him, the emperor would have been furious, and the consequences would have been unimaginable."

Gan Ning came to see Liu Biao today to firmly establish the truth about Cai Mao's assassination attempt.

Judging from Liu Biao's tone of voice, he implicitly acknowledged that Cai Mao was responsible for the incident.

Seeing Gan Ning gritting his teeth and glaring fiercely, Liu Biao secretly groaned inwardly.

It seems that trying to downplay the issue and suppress it is no longer an option.

Chen Gong continued, “Governor, if you execute Cai Mao now, you will both comply with the will of the people and demonstrate your loyalty to the court. Of course, I know that Cai Mao is related to you, but precisely because of this, Governor should set an example decisively. If you hesitate and do not deal with it strictly, not only will you disappoint the people who support you, but once His Majesty learns of this, he will also feel that you are intentionally showing favoritism and trying to protect Cai Mao. This would be very detrimental to Governor.”

But what you fear most is exactly what happens. Soon, a servant ran in and reported, "My lord, Prince Chen is requesting an audience."

Gan Ning spread his hands and said helplessly, "It seems that Prince Chen also knows about this matter. Governor, please don't misunderstand, I didn't send anyone to report to the court."

Now that Prince Chen has been appointed as the Minister of the Imperial Clan, Liu Biao, a member of the Han imperial family, felt a chill run down his spine.

Compared to Chen Wang's unwavering loyalty to the court, Liu Biao, also a member of the Han imperial family, felt guilty and ashamed.
Liu Biao hurriedly composed himself and, with a mix of trepidation and excitement, personally went out to greet them.

Upon meeting, Prince Chen raised his voice and said with displeasure, "Jing Sheng, I didn't come here to drink tea and relax. I've been in Runan these past few days. News of what happened in Xiangyang has reached Runan, so I came to see for myself. Cai Mao has quite the audacity to attempt to assassinate the prefect appointed by the court. What? Is he planning a rebellion?"

Since becoming the head of the imperial clan, Prince Chen has been busy traveling around compiling genealogies of Han imperial relatives and searching for scattered members of the imperial clan in various places.

Prince Chen naturally paid close attention to Liu Bei, Liu Biao, and Liu Zhang, who were among the more powerful members of the Han imperial family.

Because Liu Bei was unwilling to stay in Xuchang and insisted on staying in Runan, King Chen was quite angry and had been inspecting Liu Bei's work in Runan recently.

After Chen Wang sat down with his sword and golden horse, he made a startling remark, even more direct than Gan Ning.

"Tell me, when do you plan to execute Cai Mao?"

Gan Ning asked, "How will you deal with Cai Mao?", but when it came to Prince Chen, he asked directly, "When do you plan to execute Cai Mao?"

Liu Biao's lips twitched, and he said with great difficulty, "This... Prince Chen, I need to think about this matter some more."

"What? You still need to consider it?"

Chen Wang's temper flared up at any moment. With a loud bang, he slammed his hand heavily on the table and stood up abruptly.

He glared at Liu Biao and shouted, "What? Do you think you can let Cai Mao go just because he's your brother-in-law?"

Gan Ning snorted and said sarcastically, "I understand now. The governor sees that I only suffered some minor injuries, so he wants to treat this as a common case of provoking trouble."

Liu Biao hurriedly shook his head, "You've misunderstood, I didn't mean that."

Prince Chen was furious. "What do you mean by this or that? Just give me a straight answer. If you don't want to deal with the person, then hand him over to me to be taken back to Xuchang and handed over to His Majesty for judgment."

Liu Biao was startled and quickly tried to appease him, "Prince Chen, please calm down. You have come from afar and must be tired from your journey. Please rest for a few more days and I will give you an answer as soon as possible."

Before King Chen could say anything more, Chen Gong secretly gave him a wink. King Chen snorted and nodded, "Alright then, I'll give you two more days."

Liu Biao then sent Chen Wang and Gan Ning away with great courtesy, as if inviting a deity. Chen Wang temporarily stayed at Gan Ning's governor's mansion.

Gan Ning alone was already a challenge for Liu Biao, and now with the arrival of Prince Chen, Liu Biao is completely cornered.

Liu Biao hurriedly summoned his subordinate Wang Wei and strategist Han Song to discuss the matter.

This time, he did not seek out Kuai Yue and Pang Ji again, because Liu Biao understood that the seven major families of Jingzhou were more or less connected, and it was inconvenient for Kuai Yue and Pang Ji to express their stance at this time.

Wang Wei and Han Song were merely Liu Biao's subordinates and did not belong to any particular family.

"Now that Prince Chen has arrived, he is putting pressure on me in his capacity as the head of the Imperial Clan Court. It seems that this matter cannot be suppressed any longer. What are your thoughts?"

After Liu Biao finished speaking with a sigh, he looked anxiously at the two of them.

Wang Wei was a military general with an upright personality and was quite loyal to Liu Biao. He immediately replied, "My lord, I think there is no room for negotiation on this matter. Since you have already arrested Cai Mao, you should execute him as soon as possible to avoid any unforeseen complications. If you cannot bear to do so, His Majesty will surely be greatly disappointed in you once Prince Chen brings him to Xuchang."

"Although the Cai family has helped you a lot, at this moment, you must not be soft-hearted and lest you be implicated by the Cai family."

Han Song then said, “The affairs of Jingzhou should be resolved by Jingzhou itself. I feel that Jingzhou has become unstable since Gan Ning arrived. My lord, Gan Ning is of humble origin. Not to mention Cai Mao, many people are dissatisfied with Gan Ning’s arrival in Xiangyang. Why don’t you simply report to the court and ask His Majesty to withdraw Gan Ning’s appointment for the sake of Jingzhou’s stability?”

Upon hearing this, Liu Biao's eyes lit up, and he quickly nodded, "If we could transfer Gan Ning away, that would be the best outcome. You're right, if Gan Ning hadn't suddenly come to Xiangyang, this wouldn't have happened."

Han Song's suggestion opened a window of opportunity for Liu Biao. If he could really transfer Gan Ning away, Liu Biao would be willing to execute Cai Mao immediately. If Gan Ning remained in Xiangyang, and this time it was Cai Mao, then next time it would be someone else's turn.

If this continues, Jingzhou will never have a peaceful day!

After much deliberation, Liu Biao made up his mind. He immediately wrote a letter and sent it to Xuchang as quickly as possible.

When Liu Xie received the letter, he was a guest at Xun Yu's house. He had just personally selected a precious sword for Xun Yun at the Treasure Pavilion.

Liu Xie handed the sword to Xun Yun and instructed him, "You can't just study; you also need to be healthy. I have added courses in horseback riding, archery, and swordsmanship to the Imperial Academy. You must study hard; I will check on you when I have time."

Xun Yun was overjoyed to receive the sword and looked extremely excited.

He hurriedly nodded in agreement, "Thank you for bestowing the sword upon me, Your Majesty. I will practice diligently."

Xun Yu waved his hand at his son, "His Majesty is busy with something, you go and play by yourself for a while."

Liu Xie smiled and waved to Xun Yun, who happily hugged his sword and ran away.

After reading the letter, Liu Xie handed it to Xun Yu.

"Liu Biao has finally become smarter and has seen the root of the problem. He wants to bargain with me. He reminded me that Gan Ning has undermined the stability of Jingzhou. If I can transfer Gan Ning away from Xiangyang, he will definitely thoroughly rectify Jingzhou and execute Cai Mao."

Xun Yu was furious after reading the letter. "This is outrageous! How can you bargain over an official position appointed by the court?"

Liu Xie smiled. "Wenruo, in this world, all the rules have been turned upside down. Who is good and who is bad cannot be explained in a few words. Liu Biao is a member of the Han imperial family and should be on the same side as me. He should do whatever I ask without hesitation. But what do you see? He has always regarded Jingzhou as his own and does not want anyone else to interfere, not even me!"

Upon hearing these words, Xun Yu's expression turned very serious.

Liu Xie continued, “Although Cao Cao is somewhat arrogant, he does many things fairly openly. But people like Liu Biao are too hypocritical. They claim to be Han officials and say they are loyal to me, but in reality, they are very selfish. Take Liu Biao for example, he has long regarded Jingzhou as his private territory, and no one can touch it.”

"Then what does Your Majesty intend to do?" Xun Yu asked.

Liu Xie took a few steps in the courtyard and suddenly laughed: "Actually, from the very beginning, I never intended for Gan Ning to serve for too long."

Xun Yu was taken aback. "Your Majesty, what do you mean by that?"

Liu Xie explained, “There is a saying in the Analects that is quite true: ‘Aim high, and you will achieve something; aim for the middle, and you will achieve less; aim low, and you will achieve nothing.’ My appointment of Gan Ning as the governor of Xiangyang is like putting a knife directly into Liu Biao’s heart. He will definitely be dissatisfied. In fact, I have long been prepared to make concessions. I will set a high goal first, and then take a step back. I believe that Liu Biao will be able to accept this.”

"Where did Your Majesty initially desire?"

Liu Xie slowly uttered two words, "Changsha!"

Xun Yu sighed, “Compared to Xiangyang, Changsha is indeed insignificant. Even the entire Jingnan region is not highly valued by Liu Biao.”

Liu Xie nodded. "That's right. So if I transfer Gan Ning away from Xiangyang now, Liu Biao will be more than happy to do so. But if I had directly appointed Gan Ning as the governor of Changsha from the beginning, Liu Biao would still have been very resistant. But now, he's eager for this. As long as Gan Ning can leave Xiangyang, Liu Biao will agree to any conditions."

Over the years, Xun Yu had personally witnessed how Liu Xie turned the tide and gradually took control from Cao Cao.

In Xun Yu's view, Liu Biao was no match for the emperor; the two were simply not in the same league.

Liu Xie immediately replied to Liu Biao, saying that as long as Liu Biao personally executed Cai Mao, he would transfer Gan Ning to be the governor of Changsha.

Liu Biao quickly finished reading the letter and breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't expected that His Majesty would be persuaded to transfer Gan Ning.

The messenger waited a while and then said, "Governor, His Majesty has instructed me to repeat to you that you must personally execute Cai Mao!"

"What?" Liu Biao was taken aback, his eyes widening in surprise.

"His Majesty was afraid you might not have seen clearly, so he asked me to remind you that you must personally execute Cai Mao."

Liu Biao read the letter again, and sure enough, it was written clearly in black and white that Liu Biao himself had to execute Cai Mao.

Liu Biao was stunned! He stood there, completely dumbfounded!

Isn't it?

"His Majesty actually wants me to do it myself?"

Liu Biao thought to himself, "I'm already sixty years old, and I haven't seen blood in so many years. That's my brother-in-law! How can I bring myself to do that?"

Liu Xie was very interested in Zhuge Liang and asked him again about Liu Biao's next reaction.

Incidentally, Liu Xie also sent someone to deliver wedding candy this time.

In a letter written half-jokingly, Liu Xie wrote: "Kongming, I did not send anyone to follow you. The reason I sent you wedding candy is because I believe that you and the woman from the Huang family will definitely have a wonderful marriage. She is the woman destined for you!"

Zhuge Liang couldn't help but laugh. He had imagined Huang Yueying's appearance countless times in his mind, but he had never seen her in person.

However, Zhuge Liang quickly decided that he would go to the Huang family to propose marriage the next day.

With a few quick strokes of his pen, Zhuge Liang finished writing the reply in one go.

Liu Biao was caught in a painful dilemma. Contrary to her usual behavior, Lady Cai did not kneel down to beg for mercy or cry. Instead, she took a sharp dagger and held it to her own white neck in front of Liu Biao.

“If my husband wants to kill my brother Cai Mao, I will die in front of you today. Anyway, the Cai family is finished. Why don’t you just give us a quick death and kill our whole family?”

Liu Biao was terrified and quickly advised, "Put the knife down immediately."

"If my husband does not agree, I will not live on alone!"

Madam Cai was not a weak and tearful woman; she was very opinionated and shrewd.

Her outburst threw Liu Biao into a state of confusion, leaving him at a loss.

(End of this chapter)