Luo Xianzhi's campaign to sow discord would not stop there, of course. For most monarchs, making the two sides suspicious of one another would have been enough, but Murong Ke had left safeguards behind in Yan State. Suspicion, coupled with achievements that overshadowed the sovereign, had already sent Yan sliding into an abyss from which there was no return. If Luo Xianzhi wanted to hasten that descent, he needed to add another handful of fuel to the Emperor of Yan's fire.
And people to add that fuel were all too easy to find. For every person in Yan who supported Murong Chui, there was another who hated and envied him. These people were remarkably easy to buy. A few words from them at the emperor's side would be worth more than a thousand troops and ten thousand horses.
Xie Daoyun had witnessed everything Luo Xianzhi did. Curious, she asked, "Husband, why did you have people advise the Emperor of Yan not to doubt Murong Chui's loyalty? That doesn't seem like something you should be doing."
Indeed.
Instead of continuing to slander Murong Chui, he was going to great lengths to explain things on his behalf. That was not what Luo Xianzhi should have been doing.
Luo Xianzhi set down his book, considered for a moment, then asked, "My wife, if you want to destroy someone, the worst method is to offer slander outright. That is direct confrontation. Everyone knows you have spoken ill of him. If you fail to eliminate your enemy, what follows will be the fiercest retaliation, and others will grow wary of you.
"No one likes someone who speaks ill of people behind their backs. It is immoral, unbecoming of a gentleman. Only petty men do such things.
"If the emperor is wise enough, slander like this