Hearing Hu Xiaotian's name, Xue Daohong felt anger surge in his heart. He gritted his teeth. "That bastard Hu Xiaotian has defied me time and again. I won't spare him!" He paced back and forth a few steps. "Rather than attack Xingzhou, we should take Eastern Liang Commandery in one stroke and recover the Eastern Luo Granary."
Li Chenzhou hardly knew whether to laugh or cry. Had Xue Daohong lived in comfort for so long that even his mind had grown muddled? How could Guo Guangbi of Xingzhou possibly compare with Hu Xiaotian's current strength? Destroying Hu Xiaotian was easy to talk about, but extraordinarily difficult to accomplish.
"Didn't Great Kang ask us to join forces with them to put pressure on Hu Xiaotian?" Xue Daohong said. "They must hate him to the marrow of their bones as well. In that case, why not propose an alliance with Great Kang and remove this thorn in our eye, this splinter in our flesh, as soon as possible?"
A wry smile appeared at the corner of Li Chenzhou's mouth. Clearly, Xue Daohong's mind really was not on affairs of state. He said tactfully, "I'm only afraid Great Kang might refuse."
"Why would they refuse?" Xue Daohong said. "We destroy Hu Xiaotian and divide his territory along the Yong River. If anything, Great Kang would gain more from the arrangement. Both sides benefit and get what they need, with no harm to others or injury to ourselves. They could only wish for such a thing!"
"Your Majesty, the relationship between Hu Xiaotian and Great Kang is ambiguous," Li Chenzhou said. "After all, he was once betrothed to Princess Yongyang." He could hardly say outright that Xue Daohong's view of the situation was too simplistic, so he could only offer this tactful reminder.
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