Originally, Li Jue and Guo Si shared a close bond. They were both native to Liang Province and had served under Dong Zhuo for many years. When defeated Lü Bu using the guerrilla tactics of Peng Yue, and captured Chang’an, they seized control of the Han court. Li Jue often hosted grand banquets for Guo Si, who would drink to excess and be invited to spend the night in Li Jue’s residence—a gesture of deep trust and camaraderie.
Their relationship resembled that of brothers, united in power and purpose after seizing control of the Han court.
The shadow of Fan Chou’s death
However, the unjust murder of Fan Chou at Li Jue’s banquet sent shockwaves through the ranks of the Liangzhou warlords. Among them, Guo Si, who had fought side by side with Fan Chou, was deeply shaken.
He began to fear that he might be next. If Li Jue could kill a loyal and victorious general like Fan Chou over mere suspicion, then no one was safe—not even his closest ally.
This incident planted the first seed of distrust between Li Jue and Guo Si, eroding the foundation of their once-unbreakable alliance.
The wife’s jealousy
Guo Si’s wife, fearing for her own position, began to stir discord. Jealous and paranoid, she worried that Li Jue might gift one of his concubines to Guo Si, diminishing her influence.
When Li Jue sent a meal to Guo Si’s residence, his wife seized the opportunity. She declared the food poisoned. His wife took fermented black beans and falsely claimed they were poison, picking them out to show Guo Si saying:
“One henhouse cannot hold two roosters. I do not understand why the general places such trust in Li Jue.”
Her words were a dagger to Guo Si’s confidence.
The divisive scheme and the wife’s jealousy
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it was Yang Biao, a court official, who devised a divisive scheme. He exploited the intense jealousy of Guo Si’s wife to sow discord between Guo Si and Li Jue.
Yang Biao then addressed the sovereign: “Your humble servant has a plan to turn the two traitors against each other and then summon Cao Cao to purge their faction and secure the court.” “What kind of plan?” the Emperor asked. “Your servant has heard,” Biao continued, “that Guo Si has a jealous wife. We can use her to sow dissension between Li Jue and her husband.” The Emperor secretly authorized Yang Biao to put his plan into action.
— Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Chapter 13
Yang Biao sent his wife to carry out the divisive scheme. Yang Biao’s wife sought out Guo Si’s wife and falsely accused Guo Si of having an affair with Li Jue’s wife.
Availing himself of some pretext, Yang Biao arranged for his wife to visit Guo Si’s home. There Lady Yang found occasion to say to Lady Guo, “I have heard that your husband is involved in an intimate relationship with the wife of Regent-General Li Jue. If General Li finds out, he will murder your husband. Madame would be well advised to prevent him from meeting Lady Li again.” “That explains why he’s been away nights,” Guo Si’s wife, taken aback, exclaimed. “He has actually been engaged in a scandal! If not for you, Lady Yang, I would never have found out. But I shall surely put an end to it.” Lady Yang rose to take her leave, and Lady Guo again expressed her thanks.
— Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Chapter 13
Guo Si’s wife was afraid that if Li Jue found out about the alleged affair between Guo Si and Li Jue’s wife, Li Jue would kill Guo Si, and even herself and other family members. Therefore, she dissuaded Guo Si from going to Li Jue’s house anymore, in order to cut off his relationship with Li Jue’s wife.
A few days later as Guo Si was preparing to go to Li Jue’s home for his usual evening visit, Lady Guo said to him, “There’s no telling about Li Jue, you know. Now, especially, there may not be room for two ambitious men in one court. If he were to poison you, what would become of me?” Guo Si dismissed his wife’s objections; but she persisted, and he remained at home.
— Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Chapter 13
On one occasion, Li Jue held a feast and invited Guo Si, but Guo Si did not attend. So Li Jue sent someone to deliver dishes and wine to Guo Si’s home. Taking this opportunity, Guo Si’s wife poisoned the dishes, then fed them to a dog—which died immediately after eating. From this point on, Guo Si was deceived into believing that Li Jue intended to poison him.
Li Jue had the banquet delivered to Guo’s home instead. Lady Guo slipped some poison into the food before it was served. As Guo Si began to eat, his wife stopped him, saying, “One cannot simply take what comes in from outside.” She gave a little to their dog, who fell over dead. After that incident Guo Si never trusted Li Jue.
— Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Chapter 13
The banquet that broke the bond
Not long after, Li Jue hosted another banquet and invited Guo Si. As before, Guo Si drank heavily and began to lose consciousness.
But then—a flash of memory. He recalled his wife’s warning. He remembered Fan Chou’s fate—killed while drunk at a feast meant to honor him.
Overcome with fear, Guo Si fled the banquet without farewell, rushing back to his quarters. There, he became convinced that Li Jue had tried to drug or poison him.
From that moment, Guo Si believed his life was in danger.
As recorded in Romance of the Three Kingdoms and other historical books, on one occasion, Guo Si went to Li Jue’s house to attend a feast. Coincidentally, Guo Si felt a slight stomach discomfort that day. After returning home, Guo Si’s wife falsely claimed that the dishes at Li Jue’s house had been poisoned. She then made Guo Si drink dung juice to induce vomiting.
Another day, Li Jue persuaded Guo Si to come home with him after court. They ate and drank until late. Guo Si went home drunk and coincidentally was seized with stomach cramps. “You’ve been poisoned!” cried Lady Guo, and she forced an emetic on him. He felt better after vomiting.
— Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Chapter 13
The road to war
Convinced that Li Jue would eventually move against him, Guo Si took preemptive action. He began mobilizing his troops, fortifying his positions, and preparing for open conflict.
The alliance that had once toppled Lü Bu and seized Chang’an was now on the brink of civil war.
What had begun as a bond of loyalty and shared ambition had collapsed under the weight of jealousy, paranoia, and manipulation.
The collapse of the Liangzhou rule
The breakdown of trust between Li Jue and Guo Si marked the beginning of the end for their control over the Han court.
Once united against external enemies, they now turned on each other—not over ideology or strategy, but over fear and suspicion.
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, this episode illustrates a recurring theme:
Power built on violence and betrayal is inherently unstable.
Even the closest allies can become mortal enemies when distrust takes root.
The murder of Fan Chou and the whispers of a jealous wife were not just personal tragedies—they were the first tremors of a coming earthquake that would soon shatter Chang’an and force Emperor Xian to flee for his life.
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