Chapter 591 - 334: Claiming Hegemony
Chapter 591: Chapter 334: Claiming Hegemony
"Item by item, case by case, it’s enough for you and everyone in the Jing State Liu Family’s nine generations to lose their heads!"
Li Huai’gu was dumbfounded. What was he hearing? He doubted his own ears.
Colluding with the Barbarian Race, illegally selling military weapons, spreading the epidemic poison... Liu Hong did all these things? The Governor of Shu State did this?
Liu Hong’s expression remained unchanged. He nodded, then shook his head, saying, "Marquis Xiao is mostly correct, but there are some errors and omissions.
"The person secretly selling ironware and ore was Zhu Hao of the Capital Commandery. I merely added fuel to the flames.
"Colluding with the Barbarian Race... If Marquis Xiao is referring to Asutai, the youngest son of the Barbarian Race’s Left King Mu Hage, then you should be thanking me instead."
Elder Master Xiao laughed out of extreme anger. "You let him go, and you expect this old man to thank you?
"What a joke!"
Liu Hong nodded solemnly. "The person who let him go wasn’t me, but someone else.
"It was ’Dragon Tiger’ Liu Wu.
"The very same Liu Wu who has repeatedly helped your Xiao Family."
Elder Master Xiao frowned slightly, looking at him with icy eyes. "Are you courting death?"
Seeing his expression, Liu Hong knew the Marquis thought he was sowing discord, so he patiently explained, "It was indeed the work of the ’Dragon Tiger.’
"In fact, after the barbarian slave uprising in the East Market, several of my subordinates did take Asutai away.
"But before they could transfer him out, that Liu Wu beat us to it and snatched him away.
"After that, a long time passed. It wasn’t until the day before your Eldest Miss met with a mishap that he delivered Asutai to me."
Seeing that Elder Master Xiao didn’t interrupt, Liu Hong continued, "Later, when Liu Wu went to rescue Miss Wan’er, he brought Lv Jiunan along.
"At that time, Lv Jiunan wasn’t dead yet."
Hearing this, Elder Master Xiao couldn’t help but recall the night Xiao Wan’er had her accident, when Liu Wu appeared at the Qingjing Residence. That day, Liu Wu had produced some evidence directly pointing at Liu Hong—claiming he was colluding with the Barbarian Race, the Poshisu Country, and others.
So, Liu Wu had interrogated Asutai and Lv Jiunan to get all this? But why did he let Asutai go?
Seeming to guess his thoughts, Liu Hong smiled and said, "Why did Liu Wu return the person to me?
"The reason is quite simple.
"He wanted to use this to solidify the suspicion that I was connected to the Barbarian Race, forcing me to take a desperate risk."
Pausing for a moment, a trace of bitterness finally appeared on Liu Hong’s face. "The reality was just as he calculated. I panicked.
"Anxious to succeed and eager to cover everything up, I had the Five Poison Sect make a move, which coincidentally aligned with the arrival of the refugees from Guang’an County and other areas.
"Who could have known that the outcome... would backfire so completely.
"Not only was the epidemic poison neutralized by Liu Wu, but even my arrangements against the Ji State Trading Company were seen through one by one. In the end, I lost everything."
During these recent days, Liu Hong hadn’t attended to Government Office affairs. He had dedicated all his mind to finding out the reason why his plans had failed. He wanted to know where things went wrong and where someone had found a loophole to exploit.
After much deliberation, he surprisingly discovered that the situation had taken a sharp downturn after the Mid-Autumn Festival. More accurately, it started after Lv Jiunan arrived in Shu State, and Liu Taofang was framed by Lin Huai’an of the Ji State Trading Company.
That was the first time in all these years that Liu Hong had acted without regard for the bigger picture, all to clear away hidden dangers for his own son. As a result, it left a fatal hidden danger for himself.
Lin Huai’an’s death had directly affected Zhu Hao’s trade with King Landu, causing internal problems within the Ji State Trading Company. Lin Zhenghong, who replaced him, lacked the brains, finesse, and seniority to maintain the situation in Shu State, allowing Liu Wu to exploit the gaps. Then Lv Jiunan, Asutai, Du Cang, Zeng Zhifeng, and the Five Poison Sect suffered accidents one after another, leading to the complete collapse of an otherwise excellent situation.
When Liu Hong figured all this out, besides lamenting that he wasn’t ruthless enough, he also attributed it to the Xiao Family’s good luck. If Liu Wu hadn’t intervened, how could his years of planning have failed?
And then there were those incompetent bunglers on the Ancient Tea-Horse Road—the horse bandits. If they hadn’t abducted Asutai and brought him to Shu State, forcing Lv Jiunan to personally come to Shu State, how could the subsequent events have happened?
Listening to Liu Hong’s words, Li Huai’gu’s face no longer showed shock, but extreme horror. He looked at Liu Hong in disbelief, never expecting that this Governor—a high-ranking Imperial Court official holding absolute power in Shu State—would commit such wicked deeds.
Li Huai’gu stood up abruptly and questioned, "Wh-why?
"Liu, Liu Hong, Liu Gongmo, wh-why did you do all that?!
"Do you know, do you have any idea how many people would have died if you had succeeded?!"
Liu Hong paused upon hearing this, turned his head to look at him, and said noncommittally, "Have you forgotten what I just told you?
"People of our generation achieve greatness in times of turmoil and chaos. Otherwise, living a mediocre life, one is nothing more than a dog in times of peace.
"What I did was merely add fuel to the fire in Shu State, burning a hole so those foreign enemies could find an opportunity to strike.
"That way, both I and Marquis Xiao would have a place to unleash our abilities."
Finishing his sentence, Liu Hong paused and looked at Li Huai’gu with a half-smile. "And you, the Third Place Scholar, would also have the chance to showcase your talents, wouldn’t you?"
Li Huai’gu’s face instantly flushed red. "No, incorrect, that’s not it!
"This is simply twisted logic and heresy!
"You... you are committing high treason!
"To think you call yourself a scholar, bah! I-I am ashamed to be associated with you!"
Being cursed at like this, Liu Hong’s expression actually became even more tranquil. He didn’t bother to explain further, turning instead to Elder Master Xiao.
"Actually, aside from these, I have done a few other major things."
Elder Master Xiao’s expression was equally ugly. The way he looked at Liu Hong was like looking at a madman. He hadn’t planned to waste any more words on him, intending to just let him die.