Chapter 40: Who Was the Assassin

After exchanging a glance with Sun Ce, Liu Xie finally spoke up. This did not mean he had lost his nerve; rather, if neither of them said a word, the atmosphere would soon become unbearably awkward.

“I saved your life. Now that you’ve arrived in Wu Commandery, shouldn’t you at least thank me for it?” Liu Xie’s words were casual, yet unmistakably pointed. Having spoken his piece, he leaned back against the bench, awaiting Sun Ce’s response.

“Your Majesty, though in recent years you seemed to be held hostage in Xuchang by Cao Cao, it appears the world has greatly underestimated you. If not for Your Majesty’s intervention, I might indeed have perished by an assassin’s hand. Yet there are many things about this matter I still do not understand. I have been investigating for some time, but have discovered nothing.” Sun Ce acknowledged that Liu Xie had saved his life, but at the same time threw a question back at him: how had Liu Xie known, and who was truly behind the incident?

This was of utmost importance to Sun Ce. In recent years, he had subdued all of Jiangdong with thunderous force, making no small number of enemies. Yet he could not think of anyone with the power to orchestrate such an attack against him. The three assassins, though disguised as hunters, were clearly highly skilled—he had perhaps five men of such caliber under his command, and rarely deployed them lightly.

From this, it was clear the mastermind behind the assassination possessed power equal to or greater than any in Jiangdong. Several names floated through Sun Ce’s mind, but he could not be certain. Moreover, since Liu Xie’s warning had come to him by letter, Sun Ce could not reveal the truth to his advisors or generals until he understood the cause. Thus, upon seeing Liu Xie, this was the matter he most wished to clarify.

“If you could have uncovered the truth with your own investigation, I would not have sent that letter,” Liu Xie replied. “Sooner or later, I would have told you, but I made my conditions plain in the letter. I wonder—have you considered them?”

At this, Sun Ce’s face betrayed both astonishment and resignation. Liu Xie was nothing like he had imagined. He had thought Liu Xie a dull young man, grown foolish after years of seclusion in Xuchang’s palace.

But after verifying the truth of Liu Xie’s warning, he had begun to see him as a prudent and cunning youth who hid his talents well. Now, sitting opposite him, Liu Xie seemed instead like a scion of some great aristocratic family—frank, unpredictable, and speaking as if he held sway over many things.

“May I ask, Your Majesty, how you learned I had brought two women from the Qiao family? Your reach seems rather long. Both are ordinary women from Jiangdong—and surely your harem is not lacking, is it?”

Of course, Sun Ce knew the condition Liu Xie referred to was the one set forth in his letter: if Liu Xie’s warning proved true and saved his life, the two Qiao sisters would belong to him. Now that it had indeed turned out as Liu Xie had predicted, the fact remained that though Sun Ce had once held the emperor as a hostage, the emperor’s arrival had seen him lose two peerless beauties. It was hardly the sort of thing the Little Conqueror of Jiangdong would want spread about.

“Women—if I gave you a hundred, each more beautiful than the last, would that be too many? Of course, you could treat me as Cao Cao does: use me as you will, whether as man or emperor, for all the trappings of my station are now here. But do you truly believe that, with just me in your grasp, you could stand against the ultimate victor between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao? Or against Liu Biao, Ma Teng, and the yet uncommitted warlords of the Central Plains? Is Jiangdong’s foundation truly enough?” As Liu Xie finished, a certain forcefulness crept into his words. Once he left Xuchang, he had made a rule for himself: wherever he went, he would never cower—he would simply press on.

At this, Sun Ce was momentarily lost for words. Indeed, in Jiangdong, he had been unstoppable, crushing all opposition, but only because his adversaries had not been so formidable. If he wished to lead his men beyond Jiangdong, even Liu Biao alone might prove too strong.

“Two mere women are not worth reluctance. Since Your Majesty has decided to move the capital to Wu Commandery, I shall receive you with all the proper rites. But before that, I ask you to tell me who sent those assassins!”

This time, there was a trace of sincerity in Sun Ce’s eyes—at least he no longer looked down from on high.

“Two years ago, you sent Zhang Hong to Xuchang, ostensibly to show your respect to me and Cao Cao. Do you think that excuse could keep Zhang Hong in Xuchang for two years without arousing the suspicion of Cao Cao’s so-called genius strategists?”

“Are you saying those assassins were sent by Cao Cao? Hmph! He’s lived long enough to know there are lines even warlords must not cross. If he did such a thing, he would only be inviting the same fate upon himself!”

At these words, Sun Ce’s true nature emerged at last; his eyes flared with anger. He was clearly furious at Cao Cao for so blatantly breaking the unspoken rules of their world. He had, after all, only narrowly escaped death; had it not been for Liu Xie’s warning letter, even Sun Ce himself could not say what the outcome would have been.

“People say you, Sun Bofu, are hot-tempered. It seems they are right. Once you send me the two Qiao sisters, I must examine them most thoroughly…” Liu Xie jested, but seeing Sun Ce on the verge of exploding, he hurriedly changed the subject.

“If you blame Cao Cao, you’re mistaken. I’ve known him for years; he values his life far more than you do and would never be the first to provoke such an incident.”

“Then was it or was it not Cao Cao?” Sun Ce was clearly bewildered by Liu Xie’s words, unsure if he meant Cao Cao or not.

“Now, I suspect Cao Cao is only just learning of this. When Guo Jia arranged this matter, Cao Cao surely knew nothing of it. For this, Guo Jia may well have shortened his own life. Still, as you are unharmed, perhaps it was fate’s own blessing.”

Though it was not a direct answer, Sun Ce understood what he needed from Liu Xie’s explanation.

“Guo Jia… As Cao Cao’s advisor, how could he dare act of his own accord?”