If he had not met Ju Shou back then, he would probably long since have become a handful of dust, or food on someone else's plate.
Perhaps Ju Shou had never imagined either that the lowly refugee he had brought into Ye City on a whim would cost him his life two and a half years later.
"Weakness and ignorance have never been obstacles to survival."
"Arrogance is."
Countless feelings stirred in Liu Xie's heart.
He had reached this point not because his methods were particularly formidable, nor because he was particularly clever.
His methods and intelligence fell far short of those of Ju Shou, Shen Pei, and the others.
Yet Yuan Shao's and Ju Shou's arrogance had given him an opportunity.
Yuan Shao had never taken him seriously from beginning to end, assigning only two surrendered generals, Zhang He and Gao Lan, to lead the Imperial Guards Army in watching him; although Ju Shou had been somewhat wary of him, he had not regarded him as a genuine threat. In the end, that too was contempt.
Liu Xie would not make their mistake. Once he seized an opportunity, he would show no mercy and leave no openings, even if he had to resort to any means necessary.
Thus, before Ju Shou died, he had squeezed the last scrap of value out of him, making him write a letter urging Yuan Shao to surrender.
This was the greatest respect he could offer this enemy.
Withdrawing his gaze from Ju Shou, Liu Xie instructed Zhang He beside him, "Give his body an honorable burial. Bury him... beside the Ye River."
Zhang He respectfully acknowledged the order.
Liu Xie turned and strode toward Guo Jia and the others, who were waiting a hundred paces away.
His steps were lighter than ever before,