When Sima Yi, Dong Zhao and Guan Qiu Jian entered the palace, the atmosphere in the palace was obviously solemn.
Chen Qun and Wei Zhen sat below with solemn expressions.
The main counselors during Cao Pi's period were Sima Yi and Chen Qun, and then there were several secondary counselors such as Dong Zhao, Jiang Ji, Liu Ye, Zhu Shuo, and Wu Zhi.
But Zhu Shuo and Wu Zhi were reused just because they were ministers of Cao Pi's East Palace period.
However, the current generation of emperors and ministers have only so much ability. Therefore, after Cao Rui came to power, they were abandoned, leaving only Sima Yi, Chen Qun, Dong Zhao, Jiang Ji, and Liu Ye.
As for Wei Zhen and Guanqiu Jian, they were important ministers who had been with him during the East Palace period. Therefore, Cao Rui's current adviser group consists of the few people Cao Pi left behind before, plus Wei Zhen and Guanqiu Jian.
But now Jiang Ji and Liu Ye are still in Huainan, Liu Ye is the leader of the central army, and Jiang Ji is the protector of the central army, helping the newly appointed hussar general Xia Houyuan to stabilize the situation in Huainan.
So now there are only Sima Yi, Chen Qun and others in the hall, as well as Wei Zhen and Guanqiu Jian, who were newly introduced by Cao Rui as his confidants.
Everyone sat in rows.
Cao Rui's face was ugly. He looked at the people below and said, "You must all know that Shen Chen raided Hedong County from Zuo Fengyi. Now Xu Huang and Zhu Ling are surrounded. Zhao Yun has restrained Zi Dan in Huayin. Hedong is isolated and helpless."
Below, Guanqiu Jian immediately said: "Your Majesty, we should send reinforcements to help."
"Where are the reinforcements coming from?"
Cao Rui said with a frown on his face: "I still plan to rest this year and continue to expand our troops in two years. But now the Han army is in a hurry and has been called up at short notice. I'm afraid that the rebellion will break out before the troops arrive in Luoyang."
"well."
Wei Zhen let out a long sigh and said: "Your Majesty has spent the past six months caressing Xianbei Wuhuan and Gongsun Yuan in the north, and arrived in Liuhan in the south. He wants to rest and recuperate at home. The situation should have been alleviated in another two years, but at this juncture, .”
Sima Yi pondered: "The South should also have guessed that His Majesty is in a difficult situation now, so he wants to rush to send troops. If they can withstand their offensive, the South may no longer be able to make the Northern Expedition in the next few years. This is a crisis , but at the same time, if this crisis can be overcome, His Majesty's situation will be much better."
Cao Rui now wants to recuperate, reduce the burden on the people, and get some food and population from the aristocratic families to temporarily supplement the military. If this continues, it will probably only take a few years for Cao Wei to regain some strength and enter the southern Han Dynasty again. An evenly matched situation.
But the Han Dynasty in the south obviously knew this, so it wanted to take advantage of your illness to kill you, take advantage of the situation when Cao and Wei were idle, the people had not recovered, and the internal situation was still extremely unstable, so they immediately sent troops to attack them, hoping to achieve a final outcome. Effect.
"Then what should I do?"
Cao Rui asked.
Wei Zhen immediately said: "Your Majesty, if you don't issue an edict immediately to recruit talents and soldiers, whoever has more food, grass, soldiers and horses from the major families will be promoted to the top!"
"No!"
Sima Yi almost instinctively wanted to object.
Cao Rui frowned and said, "Does Marquis Wuyang have any clever strategies to alleviate the urgency of the troops approaching the city?"
"Forehead"
Sima Yi was speechless for a moment.
Of course he doesn't think this method is a bad one, but it involves his own interests.
Although the Nine-Rank Zhongzheng System allows small and medium-sized aristocratic families as well as poor families to join the officialdom, in essence it is still a carnival for the nobles of the top aristocratic families.
Top-grade families are almost monopolized by the top aristocratic families, such as the Sima family, the Xun family, the Zhong family, the Chen family, the Wang family, the Cui family, the Lu family, the Zheng family, the Yang family, etc., who are all leaders among them, and they share the high-grade cake.
The remaining middle and lower grades can be picked up by other small and medium-sized aristocratic families.
The Wei Zhen family came from the Yanzhou family. Although they were kind to Cao Cao in their early years, the family's talents were relatively poor and they only selected middle- and low-ranking people. Therefore, they supported Cao Rui in exchange for grain, grass, soldiers and horses.
However, the Sima family has many children in the court, and they have vested interests. Naturally, they do not want other families to become high-class families and steal their seats.
You must know that even with the nine-level Zhongzheng system, Cao Wei was very cautious at the beginning and did not distribute too many. Only families with really good talents and being from a famous family can be selected.
Even for a well-known family like the Guo family of Yingchuan, with the death of Guo Jia and the decline of talents, the family was not selected for the top grade, but fell into the middle grade. The only descendant was Guo Chang, a regular attendant on casual riding.
If Cao Rui chooses to let other small and medium-sized aristocratic families exchange grain, grass, soldiers and horses for rank, then there will inevitably be a large number of small and medium-sized aristocratic families with more talents and more prosperous families taking the position.
Firstly, these people will crowd out the living space of the original high-grade families and seize the official positions that originally belonged to them. Secondly, the reason why the high-grade families are high-grade families and have high status is because they are rare in number and hard-won.
Now that you can buy grain with money, it will undoubtedly cause the gold content of high-grade families to plummet. Just like during the period of Emperor Huan and Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, even the three gongs and nine ministers could be traded, and the ministers naturally became worthless.
Therefore, Sima Yi, as the current leader of the Shangpin family, definitely does not want Cao Rui to make this hole.
But the problem is that Cao Wei is really in trouble now.
If this opening is not made, where will the food and fodder for the troops and horses come from?
Cao Wei has been destroyed, what's the use of thinking about it anymore?
So after hesitating for a moment, Sima Yi still said: "Your Majesty, having heard the pain of Huan Ling selling his official position, you should know that if this is the case, the integrity of the court's legal system will be lost, and the harm will be endless."
Cao Rui said coldly: "Now the court has reached a critical moment. If the great families do not send troops and provide money and food to support the war, and the Wei Dynasty is destroyed, you are not afraid that Liu Han from the south will take over the world. The population and land of the great families like you will be destroyed." Did they confiscate it?"
"this"
Sima Yi smiled bitterly.
This is the fundamental stake of the aristocratic family.
Although Cao Wei was not bound to the aristocratic family like Jiangdong, it was not much different.
At least at present, more than half of the population of Cao Wei is controlled by aristocratic families, and the registered population is less than one-third, which is far inferior to that of the Han Dynasty in the south.
Although the Cao Wei court also took some measures to suppress the development of aristocratic families and wanted to seize land and population from them, the methods were still relatively mild and not as simple and crude as in the south.
Therefore, in terms of family interests, the northern aristocratic families will obviously support Cao Wei more than the southern Han Dynasty.
Then people from high-ranking families like Sima Yi and Chen Qun have to consider a problem.
Should the small and medium-sized aristocratic families be brought into the circle of high-ranking families and turn the originally relatively rare and noble high-ranking families into common goods? Or should the dignity and face of the high-ranking families be preserved to the death, leaving Cao Wei short of soldiers and food, and finally destroyed by the southern Han Dynasty?
The answer is obvious.
If Cao Wei were to perish, then all the ninth-grade Zhongzheng system would have to be abolished, and the top-ranking families would be gone, so how could there be any dignity or face left?
So Sima Yi could only say: "Your Majesty, among the nine ranks, it is a matter of the court's trust in the law. If a large number of aristocratic families join the top-rank families, making top families everywhere, where will the court's trust in the law be? Therefore, I think that on this issue, we should still Be cautious and adopt the method of increasing quota and increasing price."
"oh?"
Cao Rui became interested and asked: "What does Marquis Wuyang mean?"
Sima Yi said: "It can be said that the imperial court is recruiting talents this time, so it has opened up the grades. Those who were originally rated as low-grade can turn in money and food to see if they can be rated as medium-grade. Those who are middle-grade can hand over money and food to see if they can be rated as high-grade. Every time The number of product spots is limited, the one with the highest price will get it, and not only will they have to contribute money and effort, but they will also have to conduct a new family selection."
"not only that."
Chen Qun also took up the conversation and said: "If the grade of the family and talents can be bought with money, then where will the face of the court be concerned? Therefore, if the Xiaxia family wants to become the middle grade, it will have to spend more money and food. Zhongxiahe and If Zhongzhong wants to become a top-grade family, the money he pays must be at least twice as much as the money paid by the top-grade family."
The essence of the nine-grade Zhongzheng system is through selection. The imperial court will appoint Dazhongzheng and Xiaozhongzheng in various states and counties, which are equivalent to assessment officials. After the selection and assessment of the major families, the talents and families are classified into grades.
The meaning of Sima Yi and Chen Qun is very simple, that is, in order to prevent some wealthy small families from directly changing from low-class families to high-class families through spending money, strict selection must be carried out.
First, it can only change from low-grade to medium-grade, and medium-grade to high-grade. Even if a family originally rated as low-middle grade wants to become high-grade, it will have to spend more money.
The second is to negotiate prices through auctions.
In order to compete for the quota of top-grade and middle-grade families, those small and medium-sized aristocratic families may break their heads. This not only saves the face of these high-grade aristocratic families, but also prevents too many small and medium-sized aristocratic families from entering the top-grade families and diluting their gold content.
After hearing this, Cao Rui nodded slightly and thought what they said made sense, so he said, "Well, that's wonderful, then I'll do what you want."
Wei Zhen was a little unhappy beside him. He originally wanted to take this opportunity to turn his family into a top-class family, but after Sima Yi and Chen Qun's manipulation, it would cost an unknown amount of money to grab this place. He was teasing for a moment. Said: "Medium-grade and low-grade families have to spend more money to be promoted to high-grade. I wonder how much food a high-grade family has to pay?"
Sima Yi and Chen Qun's expressions changed slightly.
Their operation exploits small and medium-sized aristocratic families, but small and medium-sized aristocratic families are far inferior to their original high-ranking aristocratic families in terms of scale, financial resources, and land and population. Otherwise, they will not be promoted to high positions when selecting levels.
And all the small aristocratic families have contributed money and efforts, so you, the top aristocratic families who are originally top-notch, and have such a big business, don't you think you have to contribute a penny?
"good."
Cao Rui immediately took over the words and said: "Both the middle-class and low-class families have contributed money, and the high-class families should also contribute money and efforts. Now if the Wei Dynasty does not work together, it may be annihilated. It is crucial for the imperial court to raise scholars. At this time, you all should help each other."
These words are spoken by you, but among this group of people, the Sima family and the Chen family are the top ones, so I am undoubtedly talking to them.
Sima Yi had no choice but to express his position: "After I returned, I immediately repaired the book and returned to Hanoi, and asked my nephew to mobilize some of the clan servants to form soldiers and horses, and bring some food, grass and baggage to Luoyang to obey your Majesty's dispatch."
"I am also willing to share your Majesty's worries. I will also write a letter back to Yingchuan when I return."
Chen Qun responded in the same way.
Hearing them say what they wanted, Cao Rui nodded with satisfaction and said: "Very good, then I'll leave this matter to you two."
Dong Zhao saw that Cao Rui had taken away the food and population from the wealthy family, so he said: "Your Majesty, the most urgent task now is to find a way to lift the siege of Hedong. Now that Shen Chen has suddenly taken action, I'm afraid they have other plans."
"What's the plot?"
Cao Rui asked.
Dong Zhao said: "First, this may be because Shen Chen plans to capture Hedong first, and the South has no immediate intention of the Northern Expedition. After Shen Chen captures Hedong, the South will then start the Northern Expedition. Shen Chen attacks Bingzhou and besieges Luoyang. Zhuge Liang and Guan Yu sent troops from Nanyang and Huainan to attack the hinterland of the Central Plains."
"Um."
Cao Rui nodded.
"Second, it is also possible that the South decided to launch a large-scale Northern Expedition at this time. Shen Chen attacked Hedong first, and then Zhuge Liang and Guan Yu immediately sent troops to Henan."
Dong Zhao said again.
Cao Rui started thinking.
Although it seems that Dong Zhao means the same thing, he actually does not.
The first is that Liu Han did not intend to attack with his entire army. He just wanted to wait for Shen Chen to capture the east of Hedong and the south to rest and recuperate for a while before launching a large-scale northern expedition.
If this is the case, it will be easier to handle. They can concentrate their efforts on dealing with Shen Chen first, and then defend the south after repelling Shen Chen.
The second meaning is that Shen Chen is now sending troops, Zhuge Liang and Guan Yu will send troops next, and the south is preparing for a full-scale northern expedition.
If this is the case, then Cao Wei will face the pressure of a three-line offensive, and they will not be able to support Hedong, because once the soldiers and horses guarding the south are transferred away, Henan will be empty, and Zhuge Liang and Guan Yu will take advantage of it.
Therefore, one of the questions before them now is to first figure out whether the South will attack locally or conduct a comprehensive Northern Expedition.
Sima Yi said: "Your Majesty, I think that whether Shen Chen just wants to take Hedong first or the other party is invading, we cannot immediately dispatch the southern troops to assist Hedong. Because once they are dispatched, even if the other party just wants to take Hedong first, Henan will have fewer troops. The other party will also immediately change their strategy and invade in a large scale, so it is better to be cautious."
"What Zhongda said makes sense."
When Cao Rui heard that Sima Yi had to pay money, food, and population, even his title became much more affectionate, and he nodded in agreement: "But if we don't mobilize troops, by the time all the major families gather their food, grass, soldiers and horses, Hedong may have been attacked by Shen Chen." What should I do if I get down?"
Sima Yi thought about it and said in a deep voice: "Soldiers are valuable and quick. Why don't your Majesty immediately mobilize some cavalry, even if there are only a few thousand or less than ten thousand, to break the enemy's siege from Zhongtiao Mountain to Hedong first, and after repelling Shen Chen, Then return to Henan for defense immediately."
"But before Zhongda said that troops from the south could not be mobilized, let alone a few thousand or less than ten thousand cavalry, what impact could it have on Hedong? Shen Chen's army of one hundred thousand might not be so easy to repel."
Cao Rui retorted.
"His Majesty."
Sima Yi said: "With more troops and fewer troops, we can contain them. The most important thing is that although Nanyang is close, Zhuge Liang can't launch a surprise attack immediately. It only takes a month or two to allow Xu Huang to hold on longer. This is enough. When the major families send their troops, we will have enough troops to deal with it."
"Well"
Cao Rui pondered for a long time and finally said: "Okay, let's do this. Order Sun Li to lead eight thousand cavalry and rush to the aid of Hedong immediately!"