Three months later.
Xiang An's guess had been accurate. The people spreading rumors that he had killed Ziying were indeed among those he had suspected.
Peng Yue. Xiang An fixed his sights on that name.
"The rumors originated around Liaodong." Xiang Jing pointed at the map and tapped three locations. "But those three kings over there... Second Brother, you probably know what's going on."
"Mhm." Xiang An folded his arms and nodded with a deeply furrowed brow.
Naturally, he knew what had happened in the territory of old Qi. The old Tian Family had plenty of grievances with Western Chu. When Xiang Yu divided the realm, he had deliberately split old Qi into three and granted it to three kings, intending to stir up infighting on the peninsula so they would have no energy to turn their attention toward Western Chu. But now, it seemed—
"The three kings of the peninsula don't seem to hold much authority." Zi Juan sat on a stool with one leg crossed over the other, her delicate brows slightly knitted as she stared at the map, seemingly deep in thought.
"The Central Plains are vast, but there are only so many generals and leaders people are willing to follow." Xiang An shook his head, lifted his bowl, and took a sip of water, his manner casual. "The Eighteen Kings sound impressive, but very few can truly control their own territories. Besides, unless someone is blind, they can clearly see that Big Brother's enfeoffment was meant to fan the flames. He might as well have issued 'Start fighting' as an order."
"If I remember correctly, Tian An, King of Jibei, should be Tian Jia's son, right?" Zi Juan thought for a moment and asked uncertainly.
Tian Jia had been the beginning of the rift between Xiang