Chapter 21

Recently, the atmosphere among the various factions at court meetings has become increasingly delicate; whenever Li Jue and Guo Si argue on the throne, Liu Bei is always the first to step forward and rebuke Guo Si.

The veteran Han ministers, who had previously tended to band together like a twisted rope, each stepped forward to say a few words when Guo Si tried to retort and curse, leaving Guo Si very passive on the throne.

Li Jue, seeing all this, grew increasingly smug, feeling that he had finally become a righteous figure and earned the support of the ministers. Coupled with Jia Xu's advice and Liu Bei's timely "filial respect," Li Jue became even more convinced that Guo Si, the little mouse‑faced fellow, was no good and had to be dealt with swiftly.

Guo Si sat on the main seat with a sullen expression; his subordinates dared not speak, glancing at one another.

"At present Li Jue and Liu Bei seem to have teamed up; I wonder if anyone has any good suggestions."

One of Guo Si's generals stepped forward from the crowd and bowed, replying

"Lord, do not worry. Our primary task is to eliminate Liu Bei; currently Liu Bei controls the forces defending the Twelve Gates, so removing him would make our actions easier. As for General Li Jue, he commands many troops; if Li Jue were to act, we might not be able to control the situation. Therefore, I humbly suggest that you first kill Liu Bei, while we bide time with Li Jue!"

"Heroes see alike; I also wish to eliminate that Liu Bei fellow, who has a pair of wind‑catching big ears and looks like no good sort. So, what good ideas do you have?"

The young general sweated profusely in his heart, thinking, "Lord, are you really that handsome?" Yet he still dared not utter the words.

"Lord, why not invite Li Jue and Liu Bei to a banquet together, ostensibly to apologize and make amends, and then poison that Liu Bei fellow during the feast? What do you think?"

"Brilliant! You're not bad, you have brains. Once Liu Bei is removed, I'll also get you an imperial uncle title, huh?"

Guo Si's men are all rotten fish and bad shrimp; letting them charge into a mindless fight is one thing, but having them devise schemes—such poison‑making would be the highest they could achieve.

Time passed quickly; in a span of about ten days, after Guo Si apologized to Liu Bei and Li Jue and sent a large batch of gifts, Li Jue outwardly chose to graciously forgive Guo Si, while secretly preparing to double‑cross him.

Meanwhile, Liu Bei had already ordered Zhao Yun to escort Mi Zhen and the other members of the Mi clan to Xuzhou, and after Zhao Yun returned to Xuzhou, Liu Bei had the Snow Dragon Cavalry summoned.

Recently, Liu Bei mobilized more than ten thousand loyalist troops to guard the Twelve Gates, and Yang Feng's Imperial Guards also numbered heavily; if Guo Si and Li Jue were to clash, the palace's security forces should be sufficient.

Thus Liu Bei and Li Jue went together to the banquet; Jia Xu's scouts had already uncovered Guo Si's scheme, so Liu Bei and Jia Xu discussed how to divert the disaster eastward.

Guo Si had someone coat Liu Bei's cup with a lot of poison, but they failed to notice that a hand had swapped the cups placed before Li Jue and Liu Bei.

During the banquet, Guo Si attentively offered wine to Li Jue and Liu Bei, continuously speaking flattering words.

At the same time, the sly Guo Si kept secretly watching Liu Bei's reaction, feeling quite smug inside!

"Liu Big‑ear, just take that cup and drink it well; I've specially obtained a slow‑acting poison for you. You, Liu Big‑ear, once you go out I'll have you collapse on the road!"

As the cups clinked and time passed, Guo Si grew a bit anxious; if this big‑ear were to die at his own place, Li Jue and those veteran Han ministers would surely tear him apart.

So Guo Si pretended to be unable to hold his liquor, prompting Li Jue to mock him, after which the guests dispersed from the banquet.

On the road, Liu Bei kept talking with Li Jue and, accompanied by a large guard detail, escorted Li Jue to his residence, which left Li Jue feeling somewhat moved.

He thought he had always been ostracized, labeled a Western Liang rebel, and could never have such a confidant who understands his hardships!

When they reached the gate of Li's residence, Liu Bei kept stalling with conversation, while Li Jue gradually felt an unbearable stomach pain and suddenly vomited a mouthful of fresh blood.

Liu Bei hurried forward to help Li Jue up; the others gathered around, and Liu Bei pretended to lift Li Jue's eyelid to look.

"Grand Marshal, he's been poisoned! That Guo Si scoundrel poisoned the Grand Marshal!"

The crowd fell into chaos, and Liu Bei shouted loudly,

"Bring some excrement water to treat the Grand Marshal! You lot, gather all the commanders under the Grand Marshal; we will find justice for him!"

Soon Jia Xu and his men arrived upon hearing the commotion, and Jia Xu silently exchanged nods with Liu Bei.

After a large ladle of fecal juice was poured into Li Jue's mouth, he vomited wildly; then the palace physicians were summoned for diagnosis. Li Jue's poisoning was not severe, and Liu Bei's ladle of fecal juice can be said to have done a great service!

Originally, Liu Bei was too lazy to concern himself with Li Jue's life or death, but later needed him to deal with Guo Si; otherwise the chaotic troops might all defect to Guo Si's foolish side.

Li Jue lay on the bed, his complexion pale, while the women of his household wept in a heap; Liu Bei and Jia Xu lingered at the doorway, peeking in, and at daybreak, after Li Jue regained consciousness, he ordered Liu Bei and Jia Xu to be brought inside.

"This time we owe it to Xuan De for the rescue; that Guo A Duo scoundrel has baselessly harmed me! We must eliminate this villain, otherwise how can our Han court have any stability?"

Jia Xu and Liu Bei repeatedly agreed, and then Li Jue ordered the generals to mobilize the main troops; all actions would henceforth be led by Liu Bei and Jia Xu.

Meanwhile, Guo Si was smugly awaiting news of Liu Bei's death from the poison, when reports arrived that the Grand Marshal had been poisoned and fell unconscious; Guo Si was stunned in place.

"It was Liu Big‑ear whom I secretly poisoned!"

Then Guo Si acted decisively, ordering his troops to light the campfires and planning to storm Li Jue's residence, intending to eliminate them all.

In Chang'an, the combined forces of Li Jue and Guo Si numbered over one hundred thousand; now a great battle was about to erupt, another scene of carnage.

The Western Liang Army already had lax discipline, and Li Jue and Guo Si were like bandits; thus after each major battle the Western Liang Army would loot the civilians, leaving the populace in constant misery.

We'll see how Liu Bei will deal with Guo Aduo's rebellion this time.