"In a certain sense, from beginning to end, everything they did was for the Central Plains—for the safety of the Central Plains." Liu Ji walked back from the window and took the seat of honor in the hall. Looking at the distracted Zhang Liang and bewildered Xiao He, he said, "This is the conclusion I reached after considering their conduct over the years."
"And as for why they went their separate ways, the answer is actually quite clear."
"Even when striving toward the same destination, there will always be many different paths. And once the paths differ..."
Liu Ji did not voice the rest, but Zhang Liang and Xiao He had already understood.
"Your Majesty means Xiang Yu's massacres of entire cities?" Xiao He raised his head to look at Liu Ji, his face thoughtful.
"Exactly. Xiang An is more benevolent than we imagined, so he could not tolerate Xiang Yu's policy of massacring cities."
Liu Ji's voice carried a note of emotion. "Thinking back on everything that happened, the grievances between him and his elder brother must have accumulated considerably."
"The burial alive of two hundred thousand Qin soldiers at the Zhang River, multiple massacres of cities, and choosing to divide up the realm when he could have ended the conflicts of the realm..." Liu Ji rubbed his chin. "Zifang, Old Xiao, after I was enfeoffed in Ba-Shu, you both knew how furious I was. But I was also pondering something."
"The realm was within Xiang Yu's grasp. Judging from his past actions, he truly did care about the safety of the Central Plains. So why did he give up the position of sovereign over all under heaven?"
"If he had not divided up the realm, I, Liu Ji, likely would not even have had the chance to resist