Cao Rui may not care about other things like hypocrisy, clever tongue, and so on.
After all, as the emperor, he knew that he could shout slogans, but if he really wanted to govern the world, all kinds of talents would be useful, and that would be called governing the country.
Not to mention that Liu Bang valued talent rather than virtue at that time, even Emperor Wu didn't have an order to seek talents?
Does it mean that a talented person must be virtuous?
But the sentence "stealing the power of the emperor's eight handles" deeply stimulated Cao Rui.
Among the eight handles, one is called Jue to control his nobility, the second is called Lu to control his wealth, the third is called to control his luck, and the fourth is called Place to control his behavior.
The fifth is birth to control its blessings, the sixth is seizing to control its poverty, the seventh is abolishing to control its sins, and the eighth is punishing to control its faults.
Those "young" party members not only praised and criticized others, but even the emperor himself was criticized by them more than once.
They are not "stealing the power of the Eight-Handed Emperor", they are "stealing the power of the Eight-Handed Emperor" and want to be superior to the Emperor!
In addition to this sentence, the next sentence also made Cao Rui restless:
"Going in and out of forbidden areas of the government, exchanging letters and messages to find out news."
The so-called forbidden land of the government, in addition to the various ministries and offices, there is another place, also called the forbidden land.
It's called palace ban.
So Cao Rui directly agreed with Dong Zhao's statement without even thinking about it:
The change of Pu Mi was caused by Sui Jiao. Since the war, the study of Confucian classics has been abolished, and later generations have no choice but to talk about it.
Those who have learned a lot about the classics before being appointed as herdsmen. Those who take the doctoral examination and promote them to high positions are urgently needed; those who are flashy and do not follow the true principles of Taoism should be dismissed!
Then he designated those "young party members" as "flashy friends", and the most famous among them, such as Zhuge Dan, Deng Yang and others, were all dismissed from office.
The Hussar General's Mansion was originally one of the most illustrious mansions in Luoyang City.
Although Sima Yi was not in Luoyang, the eldest son Sima Shi had extensive exchanges with young talents from the Wei state.
Master Sima even held a banquet at his house and chatted with young famous writers from Luoyang all night long.
This grand occasion continued until the day when Cao Rui issued an edict to investigate the "flashy clique".
When the news came that one of his former friends had been investigated and deposed, Master Sima felt as if he had fallen into a valley of ice.
The Hussar General's Mansion occupies a huge area, and the Sima family is originally from the Hedong family and has a profound heritage.
The arrangement of the backyard of the house is quite exquisite. When spring comes, the branches and flowers in the courtyard are in bud, and the weeds on the ground have already poked their heads out, creating a green patchwork.
Master Sima sat blankly in the house, the vibrant courtyard not attracting him at all.
His eyes were covered with red bloodshot eyes, his face was deathly gray, and his lips were chapped.
Although he was wrapped in a fur coat, his body under the fur coat was still trembling from time to time in a way that was visible to the naked eye.
I don’t know if it’s because I’m scared, or because I feel it’s still a bit cold in early spring.
There was no one else in the house, and even the servants were kicked out by him, preventing anyone from entering.
He doesn't want to see anyone or hear anything right now.
He just wants to be quiet.
Jingjing didn't want him, so there were footsteps at the door, and someone broke in without fear of his orders.
Master Sima trembled and turned around with a panic expression.
He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the person coming was his junior prince Xia Houhui.
"What are you doing here?"
Master Sima asked in a hissing voice.
"I heard from my servants that Alang hasn't eaten all day, so I brought him some food."
Xia Houhui put the things next to Master Sima and said softly.
Xia Houhui is Xia Houxuan's sister, and Xia Houxuan is one of the leaders of the "Flashy Clique".
After Cao Rui ascended the throne, he did not establish the Yu family as his queen, but instead established the Mao family as his concubine.
The Mao family came from a humble background, and Queen Mao's younger brother Mao Zeng was known for his vulgar words and deeds.
Compared with the elegant young master Xia Houxuan whose appearance is "as bright as the sun and the moon in one's arms", he is even worse.
But Cao Rui wanted Xia Houxuan and Mao Zeng to sit side by side.
This move was to improve the status of the Mao family, but it also made Xia Houxuan feel humiliated.
Xia Houxuan showed displeasure on the spot.
Cao Rui was not very big-hearted, so he naturally held a grudge when he saw this, and later found an excuse to demote him to Yulin Supervisor.
Now Xia Houxuan is at the forefront again, and he is among the first people to be deposed.
Something happened to his brother Xia Houxuan, and now his brother Alang is waiting for death again.
Xia Houhui was under tremendous pressure, which was slightly less than that of Sima Division.
But she was still able to bite the seed, and after comforting her daughters, she came over to comfort Master Sima.
"Eat whatever you want. Look at me like this, do I think I can eat?"
Master Sima said loudly and irritably, as if this could vent his fear.
Xia Houzheng frowned, looking at Master Sima's decadent appearance, but he said slowly:
"Alang is the eldest son of the Sima family, and my uncle is a hussar general and an auxiliary minister appointed by the late emperor. Why are you worried? Why can't you sleep and eat well?"
"Can the assistant minister resist the emperor's orders?"
As soon as Master Sima said these words, he knew that he had made a mistake.
He raised his head and looked at Xia Houhui, just in time to see the other person's fleeting expression.
Master Sima was still young after all. When he said this, he explained in a loud voice: "Xi Jun, what I mean is that no matter how high your official position is, you still have to obey your orders..."
"I know."
Xia Houhui picked up the bowl and handed it to Master Sima, "Fortunately, there are only you and me here. But Alang is outside, so you should be more careful."
Seeing Xia Houzheng's calm expression and tone, Master Sima relaxed slightly and lowered his head to take a sip of rice porridge.
"I remember, didn't my uncle send someone to send a letter specifically to A Lang?"
When Xia Houhui saw that Master Sima was finally willing to eat, he asked again.
Master Sima was startled. He remembered that the letter told him to study steadily and also said something about temporary setbacks. His hands suddenly trembled.
With a clatter, the bowl in his hand fell to the ground. The porridge in the bowl spilled onto his clothes, and then dripped onto the ground.
He looked at Xia Houhui in horror, his lips moved, but before he could speak, he heard the sound of rapid footsteps again outside.
"Mr. Lang, the palace sent someone to lead the imperial army to the house!"
When Master Sima heard this, his face, which had no color at all, turned extremely pale.
His body swayed and he almost fainted.
Xia Houhui quickly supported him and said in a low voice: "Alang, since uncle has ensured that you are fine, then it must be fine."
"Let's go to the front first and see why the people in the palace are here."
Master Sima woke up with a start, and with Xia Houhui's help, he was able to stand up.
He walked to the door with some staggering steps, held on to the doorframe, and then turned back to look at Xia Houhui.
Xia Houhui also said that he was worried, and looked at him with comforting and encouraging eyes.
Master Sima forced a smile, then asked his servants to support him and walked to the front courtyard.
At this time, if the palace sends someone here, it will naturally not do anything good.
The chamberlain passed down the emperor's oral instructions, saying that Master Sima had too close contacts with the flashy cronies, especially Xia Houxuan and He Yan, who were the leaders of the clique.
Among them, Xiahou Xuan was an in-law, and He Yan once praised him highly, so he asked people to take Master Sima back to ask for details.
Master Sima didn't even have a chance to say any last words to his family before he was taken away by the wolf-like tiger-like Imperial Army.
Sima Yi was not in Luoyang, so news could not be exchanged in time.
The eldest son of the family was taken away, and the second son, Sima Zhao, was still young. The Hussars General's family suddenly lost its backbone, and people were in panic.
Some of the concubines and maids in the house were timid and could not help crying.
The servants are like headless rats, running around everywhere.
The mansion of the Xuan He Cavalry General suddenly became chaotic.
"He's not dead yet! There's a mourning cry!"
Just when everyone in the house was mourning for their heir, a sharp shout rang out.
A woman of about forty led the palace servants, and first had all the main and small doors of the Hussar General's palace tightly closed, and then gathered all the servants together.
The woman with stern eyes and resolute face was none other than Sima Yi's wife Zhang Chunhua.
She heard someone crying in the crowd, and pointed to the direction of the crying: "Tie her up!"
The strong servant woman rushed over and grabbed one of Sima Yi's concubines.
"Keep your mouth shut. Anyone who dares to cry again will be beaten to death with a stick!"
Zhang Chunhua looked around everyone again, but no one dared to speak out again.
"The Hussars General is the auxiliary minister. Now he is highly valued by your majesty and leads the army. My son was just called by your majesty for questioning."
"Everything is fine in the house, the sky has not fallen, why are you crying?!"
Zhang Chunhua said sternly, "As long as His Majesty does not issue an order for a day, Sima's Mansion will still be the General's Mansion of the Hussars."
"From today on, everything in the house will remain as usual except that we will no longer welcome guests. If anyone dares to disturb the people of the house again, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Zhang Chunhua gave him a lecture and then ordered people to inspect the house more intensively.
Finally, he called his son Sima Zhao, as well as his daughter-in-law, granddaughter, etc. to comfort them one by one.
The house is temporarily stable, but the investigation of "flashy cliques" outside is getting louder and louder.
Not only were those young scholars who liked to socialize with each other were investigated, but Cao Rui also hired Sima Zhi, who was dismissed from office because he offended too many powerful people because of his impartiality in law enforcement.
Let him crack down on lawlessness in Luoyang and implement the new laws enacted last year.
For a time, the members of the Flamboyant Party, who law enforcement officers did not dare to offend in the past, no longer dared to allow their slaves to violate the law, and even they themselves did not dare to show their faces again.
Luoyang's atmosphere has become pure. Not only are many of the Cao Wei elders who hold real power in the court satisfied, but also the people of Luoyang are applauded and praised.
At the same time, the newly enacted laws were no longer blocked and were implemented smoothly.
Master Sima, who was brought into the palace for questioning, was locked in a quiet room for several days, and the chamberlain sent him a message, asking him to reflect here.
It wasn't until the storm outside began to subside that the first person came to see him.
The person who came was none other than Dong Zhao, who took the lead and advised Cao Rui to investigate the "flashy clique".
"I've met Dong Weiwei."
Master Sima, who had not been washed for several days, was a bit unkempt. When he saw Dong Zhao, he quickly got up and saluted.
Although Dong Zhao was acting as a Situ, his real official position was Weiwei, so Sima Shi was called this.
Dong Zhao helped Sima Shi up and said in a friendly tone: "General Hussar and I were officials in the same dynasty, and we also experienced three dynasties together."
"We keep in touch a lot, just call me Shibo."
Master Sima has been under house arrest these days and has not received any news from the outside. He is panicking. How can he dare to accept this when he hears this?
"Sit down first and then talk."
Seeing his appearance, Dong Zhao had to comfort him and sit down first.
Then he took out a letter from his sleeve and handed it over.
Master Sima took it and saw the familiar font on the envelope, and finally couldn't control his emotions.
His lips were trembling, and he asked in a trembling voice: "May I ask Mr. Dong, if my master is still well?"
When Dong Zhao heard Sima Shi's question, he nodded approvingly.
Under such circumstances, Sima Ziyuan asked this question, which shows that his heart is not as simple as it seems on the surface.
Because as long as Sima Zhongda is still the hussar general, then Sima Ziyuan himself will be fine.
"The flashy cronies your Majesty is investigating this time are all young hypocrites. The Hussars General is a veteran minister in the court and an auxiliary minister appointed by the late emperor. What does this matter have to do with him? So of course everything is fine.
"
When Master Sima heard the news, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. As if all the strength in his body had been drained, he slumped to the ground.
"My good nephew is still young, and it is understandable that he mistakenly associates with bad people. Your Majesty allows you to reflect in a quiet room for your own good."
Dong Zhao consoled him.
"Yes, yes, Master understands."
Master Sima hurriedly said, "After this incident, Master will definitely draw a clear line between himself and those flashy people and never interact with us again."
"That's good, that's good."
Dong Zhao nodded repeatedly, "It seems that my nephew has really reflected on these days. I will report to Your Majesty tomorrow and let you return home."
"Thank you Mr. Dong."
"I said, I have a good relationship with the General Hussar, just call me Shibo."
Dong Zhao looked at Master Sima and said something meaningful.
"Thank you, Uncle Shi."
Master Sima understood immediately.
"After you return home, please remember what you said today and never interact with those flashy cronies again."
Dong Zhao finally lowered his voice and reminded in the voice of only two people, "Even if they are in-laws, it is not allowed."
Master Sima trembled and looked at Dong Zhao in disbelief.
Dong Zhao's eyes were cold and deep.
Master Sima moved his lips, and finally responded: "My nephew, I understand."
Dong Zhao nodded with satisfaction, "Only in this way can we ensure that you will not be implicated."
Then he turned around and walked out.
Master Sima was once again alone in the quiet room.
He sat there blankly, thinking of Xia Houhui who had given birth to five daughters for him, with a look of pain on his face.
After an unknown amount of time, his eyes fell on the letter he had been holding in his hand, and a look of hope suddenly appeared in his eyes.
His hands were trembling and he tore open the seal in a panic, and unfolded the letter with trembling hands.
With just a glance, Master Sima's eyes once again turned from hope to despair.
There was only one line in the letter: Listen to Dong Weiwei's instructions.
"No, it's impossible..."
Master Sima murmured to himself, as if he didn't believe it, but also seemed to refuse to believe it.
However, recalling what the adults said to him in the past, Sima Shi found that the adults seemed to have known that such a day would come.
So, is all this actually arranged?
Recalling the last words Dong Zhao said before leaving, Master Sima suddenly shuddered again.
Could it be that His Majesty's hatred for Xia Houxuan has reached this point?
Thinking of this possibility, Master Sima began to show hesitation on his face.
Then she thought of her reaction when Xia Houhui overheard her mistake.
There are also letters from adults that she knows.
Thinking of a terrible consequence, Master Sima, who was still feeling a little cold, suddenly broke out in sweat.