This was often how people made their choices. Faced with a certain plain life or an extraordinary life with risks, the more experienced a person was, the more likely they would choose the former.
Cai Mao had a strong feeling that although King Dong Hai did not give any answer previously, the King of Dong Hai definitely wanted him to join him now.
At this moment, Cai Mao realized that he was a bargaining chip. Sometimes, a bargaining chip that had lost its military strength was easier to accept. Cai Mao suddenly thought it through.
Cai Mao's judgment was accurate. Yang Rui naturally wanted to see this happen. If Jing Province was completely unified under Liu Qi's prestige, wouldn't it be like an iron plate again?
The result was just as Liu Qi expected. Yang Rui only included Nanyang and Yuzhou into his sphere of influence and then sincerely helped Liu Qi ascend to the throne.
Nanyang and Yuzhou were like Yang Rui's back garden. He could take them down at any time. Why would he treat them as bargaining chips for others to reward him?
Therefore, Yang Rui certainly would not watch Liu Qi expand in Jing Province and waste all his previous plans. Wouldn't that be equivalent to wasting all his efforts?
However, Yang Rui also felt a little uncomfortable. Previously, he and the others did not expect Liu Qi to have such great power. Perhaps they overlooked some details, such as Liu Qi attacking Xiangyang City in their name. Therefore, Yang Rui verbally reached an agreement with him to help Liu Qi ascend to the throne.
A man cannot stand without trust. If Cai Mao, Liu Cong, and the others came to join him and he immediately agreed, he would naturally break his promise and become a laughing stock in the world. It would be disadvantageous for similar situations in the future.
After this incident, who would dare to trust Yang Rui again?
Most importantly, Yang Rui had even publicly supported Jing Province's eldest son, Liu Qi, to inherit the position of Cheng Province's Governor through an imperial edict and troops. If he immediately stood against Liu Qi now, it would be the same as slapping himself in the face.
Of course, when Cai Mao and Liu Cong came to join him, Yang Rui had to accept them to the greatest extent. This could also show his attitude and leave a way out for others. It was beneficial to encourage others to join him in the future when similar situations occurred.
Moreover, after Liu Cong and Cai Mao came to join him, Yang Rui could openly oppose Liu Qi and bring Jing Province into the sphere of influence of several parties.
Therefore, Yang Rui was conflicted on how to deal with this matter. Even if Cheng Yu, Guo Jia, Sun Qian, Xun You, and the others were smart enough to consider Yang Rui's feelings, they could not come up with a good solution..
The best way to deal with this kind of contradictory situation was to take a long-term view and let time dilute the public's perception. First, take in Liu Cong and Cai Mao. Then, at a certain time, take in Liu Qi's mistake and support Liu Cong to set things right.
However, what Yang Rui needed the most right now was efficiency. He needed to resolve the matter of Jing Province as soon as possible and be free to deal with the Japanese civilization as soon as possible. At the same time, if Liu Qi took over as the Governor of Jing Province, he would not be able to get rid of him for too long.
While Yang Rui was in a dilemma, this thorny problem was easily resolved by Jia Xu. Cai Mao and Liu Cong joined Yang Rui. When they passed by Wu Sheng Pass, Jia Xu had already observed carefully and made a decision on the spot.
Under Jia Xu's encouragement, Cai Mao and Liu Cong borrowed 50000 Ninth Grade elite soldiers from Zhang Xiu and immediately turned back to Xiangyang City, ready to offer Yang Rui their loyalty.
Jia Xu was very good at using this tactic. When Cai Mao and Liu Cong did as Jia Xu said and reached the north gate of Xiangyang City at noon, the gate was indeed wide open. Liu Qi's troops were organizing people to repair it.
Moreover, the gate was taken down, and the drawbridge was replaced by wooden planks. They were also repairing it. Cai Mao could not close the gate even if he wanted to. Liu Cong's seventy to eighty thousand men charged into Xiangyang City.
Almost half of the people in Xiangyang City had left to chase after Liu Cong's retreating troops. There were only eighty to ninety thousand men left to defend the city. Faced with Liu Cong's elite soldiers who suddenly charged into the city and were several grades higher, Liu Qi's troops were completely defeated in less than an hour.
The landowning households also played a part in this. Many of them did not manage to escape in time and were facing a possible purge by Liu Qi. When they saw Cai Mao and Liu Cong return, they naturally regrouped.
Unfortunately, Liu Qi did not get to show his might again. He died a pitiful death. He was hacked to death by Liu Cong and Cai Mao's men!
With Cai Mao's support, Liu Cong retook Xiangyang City and his position as the Governor of Jingzhou. At the same time, both Liu Cong and Cai Mao were shocked by the strength of the King of Donghai's forces and Jia Xu's accurate predictions.
"Wenhe is truly a genius! He must be put to great use … "
After Yang Rui learned about the relevant situation, he was also shocked. It was a long time before he said such a sentence.
These twists and turns were like a prearranged show. There were many things that Yang Rui did not understand, but Liu Cong and Cai Mao actually did it according to Jia Xu's instructions.
"I'm not as talented as Wenhe. I think Wenhe must have concluded that Liu Qi had used up all his strength and achieved something he never dared to dream of, so he must have slacked off. That's why Liu Cong and Cai Mao came back.
Wen He's use of borrowing a knife to kill people was even more perfect. Using Liu Cong and Cai Mao's fame, he solved a big problem for his lord. I'm not as talented as Wenhe … "
There were many things that Yang Rui could not see clearly, but someone in the "General Staff Headquarters" had already sorted out the situation. Guo Jia praised Jia Xu and admitted that he was not as good as Jia Xu several times.
"Haha! Haha … Wenhe is a great talent, Wenhe is a great talent! But if Feng Xiaoru and the others were at Wu Sheng Pass, they would be able to see it more clearly. Hahaha … "
After Guo Jia's explanation, Yang Rui could be considered to have heard most of it. He couldn't help but admire Jia Xu greatly. He didn't forget to praise the few people present and then laughed for a while.
Yang Rui was overjoyed. Jia Xu had easily solved the problem of Jingzhou. Yang Rui was naturally delighted.
In Xiangyang, Liu Cong and Cai Mao's feelings were even more penetrating. As people who had personally experienced it, they were terrified every time they thought about the King of Donghai's army and Jia Xu's plan. Thus, after some discussion, the two dispelled all other thoughts and were prepared to throw themselves to Yang Rui.
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