Mythical Three Kingdoms-Chapter 642 - 607: Settling the Four Directions

"I’m telling you, you’re all completely unreliable! Here’s what we’ll do: I’ll ask the questions one by one, and you’ll answer them one by one, clear and simple!" Yang Dao stood up abruptly, his palm slamming onto the table as his icy gaze swept over everyone. In an instant, silence fell over the assembly, and Wen Ying, who had been the center of attention, was abruptly stripped of that position.

"First question, what is the ultimate goal of this group!" Yang Dao glanced around at the crowd and asked.

The crowd was taken aback, then burst into a cacophony of answers—some mentioned reclaiming their status in Qingzhou, some about overshadowing Liu Bei, some discussed eliminating Chen Xi, and some talked about gaining more benefits for the group. The responses were a disorganized mess.

[Rabble!] Yang Dao thought with a sneer, confident that Jia Xu had surely planted many of his people among them; otherwise, it couldn’t be this bad. After all, as the Minor Treasurer Historian, he had to interact with people like Li Youu, and Yang Dao had a rough estimate of their abilities.

"Second question, how do we achieve the ultimate goal!" Yang Dao didn’t wait for the group to come to any conclusion, he continued speaking, knowing that most of the people here were as good as dead and there was no need for discretion.

Below, there was a buzzing like flies, offering no united plan. It was evident that those with the capability and vision who were still on Mount Tai had already shifted their allegiance to Liu Bei, and those who were discontent had long since left—what remained of this group was entirely predictable!

Wen Ying’s face now turned from green to white and after a long time, he stood up and patted the table, "Gentlemen, on this matter, I have failed in my duty. Please give me a few days, and I shall provide you all with a satisfactory answer."

But nobody below paid any heed to Wen Ying’s words; the chaos continued unabated. Yang Dao sat there, coldly smiling as he swept his gaze across the room, his eyes briefly lingering on three individuals.

In the end, this supposed secret plot fizzled out to nothing. After the dozen or so representatives left, Yang Dao also walked out with a light chuckle, resolved not to return next time, anticipating that Jia Xu, the head of intelligence, would likely seek him out for a talk.

"Assistant Minister Yang, my master requests your presence," a slim youth intercepted Yang Dao just a few steps away.

"Which way?" Yang Dao asked, composed.

As Yang Dao had predicted, he was brought to Jia Xu’s presence. "Ming Tong, you saw what happened today. What are your thoughts?"

"Rabble," Yang Dao stated calmly, then after a brief moment of thought, he added, "However, this group is likely just a pawn thrown out by the adversary. Judging from what we saw today, they’re all talk; actual execution is out of the question!"

Jia Xu gave Yang Dao a look, "Go back to your work as the Boxian County Magistrate and Minor Treasurer Historian, there’s nothing for you here. You are better suited for domestic affairs."

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Yang Dao rose and gave Jia Xu a bow, then withdrew. He had zero interest in this matter from the start and had been forcibly dragged into it.

"Wen Ru, what do you think?" Jia Xu turned to the screen behind him.

"Is there even a need to check?" Li Youu emerged from behind the screen, "Probably Yuan Benchu’s contingency. But I am the biggest contingency in Yuan Benchu’s game."

"Yuan Benchu is bound to be infuriated to death by you this time," Jia Xu couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly at the thought, it was simply a tragedy!

"If only he could die from his anger," Li Youu said coldly, "I found something strange during the last trade conference; although part of it was due to our non-involvement, the spread was too swift. This time, I will capture all these fellows in one go to see how Yuan Benchu obtained our intelligence!"

In reality, Li Youu didn’t harbor much resentment towards the gentry or nobles. He only felt the urge to kill those who blocked his path, but unfortunately, in most cases, those who stood in Li Youu’s way were from the gentry.

"Wen Ru, Cao Mengde has entered Guanzhong, we’re beyond reach now, do you have any good strategies?" For once, Jia Xu took the initiative to sort out the feudal lords who were causing chaos in the world.

"Indeed, it’s troublesome. Our focus needs to be on Yuan Benchu right now. As for Cao Mengde, I think it’s best to put him aside for now. As for Zhiran and the others, I already have a way to deal with them," Li Youu spoke calmly.

The most reasonable point Jia Xu made was that they were beyond reach, and that was also why it was important for Liu Ye to travel there in person; after all, relying solely on intelligence without fail had its inaccuracies.

"The retreat of those fellows is up to you. I think, just in case, you will also plant our people behind Cao Mengde, who might become more powerful," Jia Xu nodded, trusting in Li Youu’s actions.

"Zhiran and the others have already laid out their path; with just a little direction from me, they will be able to extricate themselves, and Cao Cao wouldn’t oppose the goodwill of the people in Guanzhong Yongliang without reason," Li Youu said with a calm demeanor, his own impression of Li Jue’s performance in Guanzhong was nothing short of stellar.

Of course, Li Youu was also very aware that someone like Li Jue, who could devise such plans for a sage, definitely didn’t have good intentions. Such a sage could thrive anywhere; there was no need to submit to someone who couldn’t become a monarch.

Regardless of the scheming, with such a move in hand, Li Youu had the confidence to completely whitewash Li Jue and the others. Sometimes, what those in power need is just a stepping stone, and as long as they have it, that is enough.

Indeed, Li Jue and his followers were guilty of many grave crimes, but that did not mean they could not be forgiven. No matter whether Emperor Liu Xie was coerced or willing, his decree had been issued, and the liabilities of Li Jue and the others were practically erased. What Li Youu needed to do was to provide Emperor Liu Xie with a stepping stone, allowing Li Jue and his followers to be completely whitewashed.

[Sigh, the trouble now is that I am not quite certain what Cao Cao and his followers really want to do. Even if Zhong Yao, the one giving advice to Li Jue, is Cao Cao’s man, there is still a missing link, no, more than one link is missing!] Li Youu pondered with furrowed brows, aware that Ma Teng and his group were not united with Li Jue, but the Qiang and Hu only followed the strong!

"Wen He, when you have time, pay a little more attention to Yongliang Guanzhong. I’m going out to be Yuan Benchu’s backup," Li Youu said calmly and then, without lingering, walked out.

Jia Xu nodded, indicating that he would keep an eye on Yongliang Guanzhong, although it was just a cursory glance.

For Jia Xu, his interest in the distant Guanzhong paled in comparison to Yuzhou. Compared to the far-off Guanzhong, Yuzhou, a fat piece of meat that has been fattened by a group of people, was growing fatter and was almost ready for slaughter.

By now, Yuzhou was almost completely manipulated by Jia Xu; the most dangerous Zhou Yu had already been confined in Shouchun by the "truthful" rumors passed on by him. As a result, Sun Ce was also affected and unable to leave Shouchun, while all the civil officials and military generals promoted by Sun Ce were being suppressed.

It wasn’t that Sun Ce and Zhou Yu couldn’t resist; it was that Sun Ce was unwilling to conflict with Yuan Shu, and thus Zhou Yu could only be helplessly confined in Shouchun. The whole of Yuzhou, Jingzhou, entered a defense gap the moment Zhou Yu was confined! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)