Jia Xu

[FuguNabe]

I personally respect Jia Xu and rank him amongst the best advisors from the 3K period. The guy didn't make mistakes with his advise which were all situationally sound. His ploy to make Ma Chao and Han Sui mistrust each other was superb. His ability for self-preservation is godly. Comment all you want on his questionable morals but survival means everything and the man knows how to worm himself to a favourable position due his abilities as a great advisor.

[XxCrimsonSovereignxX]

Jia Xu, is my favorite advisor out of all, Wei had a slight advantage with Jia Xu on their side.

[Shadowlink]

"in the 13th year of Jian’an (AD 208), Cao Cao conquered Jing Province, and planned to advance downriver on the Yangtze. Jia Xu advised against this, saying, “Illustrious sir, you have just defeated the Yuan’s, and recently you subdued the region south of the Han River (III). Your great name is known near and far, and your military force is burgeoning. If you would take the wealth of Jing Province to reward the officers and soldiers, and console the commoners and give them security of land and employment, then the Southlands will bow in submission to us without us having to mobilize our men.” Cao Cao did not agree with him, and his military action was in vain[QUOTE]From Jia xu Bio.

" (10) Wei Epitome: Since he benefited from what Jia Xu said to the Grand Progenitor, he made Jia Xu the first to occupy the highest rank as soon as he ascended the throne.

Supplemental Biography of Xun Xu: When the position of Minister Over the Masses of Jin was vacated, Emperor Wu [Sima Yan] asked Xun Xu who would be a suitable candidate for the position. The reply was, “The Three Lords are the ones upon whom the masses hold their regard, and thus it is most crucial to employ the right man for the job. In the past, when Emperor Wen of Wei employed Jia Xu as one of the Three Lords,"

[Alicanto]

I'm not sure it is fair to blame Jia Xu for serving Dong Zhuo. What was his background? Surely, many people who ended up serving Dong Zhuo did so because they were serving in the imperial army and Dong Zhuo happened to become their superior. Many of them might not even have a viable alternative career path available at all. There are so many other people who can be described as serving Dong Zhuo in some role at some point. This includes Wang Yun, Huangfu Song, Zhang Liao among others. Perhaps, Jia Xu shouldn't be held to a higher standard than others just because he's not a friend of the noble hero Guan Yu. Him getting in the same camp with Li Jue and Guo Si rather than with Wang Yun and Lü Bu was more of a coincidence than anything else and the way he acted was reasonable. Overall, I don't think a good case can be made for him being evil or disloyal.

[ky9ersfan]

Love this thread, awesome read. I am a big fan of Jia Xu and Zhang Xiu. I think he was a survivor, that gave the best advise, at the most appropriate moment. He valued authority, and served those with true power. Jia Xu was a master strategist, that had a talent for maximising the effectiveness of the forces he had at his disposal. My favorite part with him, is where he bests Cao Cao's forces a few times defending Wan, proving himself to be a real talent, and a quality addition when they later surrendered to Cao Cao.