All in all, he can still be regarded as Cao Rui's imperial uncle.
It's just that this imperial uncle was the loser in the previous competition for the throne, so his identity is very embarrassing.
However, Cao Wei's policies towards the recent and distant clans of the Cao family were two extremes.
For people like Cao Zhen and Cao Xiu who were not a threat to the throne or were their adopted sons, Cao Pi and Cao Rui had their full trust in them.
Not only can he lead the army, but he can also guard the territory and be given great power.
However, strict precautions were taken against the emperor's uncles and brothers.
Although each has its own fiefdom in name, in fact the fiefdom is a huge cage.
Not only can you leave without authorization, but you must also be cautious in your own home.
Because there are officials sent by the emperor to supervise the house, if you say something wrong or do something wrong, you will be reprimanded by the emperor at least, or you will be demoted or expropriated.
But no matter what, as long as you can live comfortably, you can still have good food and clothing, and your life can go on.
The only exception is Cao Zhi.
Not just because he was the loser in the previous competition for the throne.
Also because his reputation is so great.
Of course, the main reason is because he was the loser in the competition for the throne.
However, it is precisely because Cao Zhi's talent is recognized by the world and his reputation is too great. If he died suddenly for no reason, people in the world would inevitably suspect that the Wei emperor was too narrow-minded.
You can't even tolerate your own brothers, who dares to believe that you can tolerate outsiders?
The Han Emperor who abdicated... maybe he would die suddenly one day, right?
Coupled with the blessing of the Empress Dowager Bian, Cao Pi was not able to kill his brother in the end.
But it won't kill you if you can't kill it, but you can still hit it from time to time.
So over the years, Cao Zhi's fiefdom has been changing. As a member of the royal family, he is like an exiled prisoner, constantly moving around.
After finally surviving until Cao Pi died, Cao Zhi felt that he was finally relieved, so he wrote to Cao Rui many times, hoping to be appointed.
What if Cao Cao finally chose Cao Pi?
Cao Zhi is talented, but a person who is suitable to be a talented person may not be suitable for politics.
If he just calms down, he might be able to live a peaceful life for a few days like other princes.
When Cao Rui saw that his imperial uncle still wanted to serve as an official, he would only think that he was evil-minded.
Regarding the memorial sent by Cao Zhi, Cao Rui ostensibly answered with his own hands: The emperor's uncle's literary talent is very good...
Then he ordered to the left and right: "Go and move my uncle, the emperor, so that he can move more so that he won't have random thoughts all day long."
Cao Zhi moved several times, and finally realized that Cao Pi and Cao Rui, father and son, had never wanted to leave hope for themselves in this life.
People without hope are crazy.
In addition, once Cao Pi left, Cao Zhi became the representative figure of Wei's cultural movement.
When Feng Thief was famous all over the world with several articles, and at a time when the Wei State was retreating continuously, this undoubtedly gave Cao Zhi another talisman.
With no hope in sight, Cao Zhi simply started to spray:
"Yao's teachings were to first get close and then distance, from near to far. King Wen of Zhou punished his widow, and his brothers, to control the family and the country... As for his ministers, human nature was hopeless, and the Ming Dynasty was imprisoned, and the ministers stole and hurt themselves.
.”
"We are close and cannot get married, brothers are arrogant, questions about good and bad times are blocked, and the rites of celebration and condolence are abandoned. The violation of kindness and discipline is worse than that of passers-by; the difference of estrangement is different from that of Hu Yue."
"Now that I have controlled everything, I will never have any hope of going to Hajj. As for paying attention to the emperor's heart and falling in love with Zicha, God knows it clearly."
…
First, he complained about the emperor’s attitude towards his clan members:
Look at the virtuous kings in ancient times, who didn't first get close to his relatives and set an example for them personally, and then he dared to ask the people of the world to act according to the rules.
Look at the way our Wei Dynasty treats its own clan members now. Brothers are cut off from communication, not allowed to greet each other, and can't even communicate about celebrating funerals. It's just as barbaric as those barbarians from Hu Yue!
How can the emperor educate the people of the world like this?
I don’t expect to return to Luoyang now, but I want to say something fair for my people, this is wrong!
Then it discusses the importance of kinship through the deeds of Emperor Wen of Han and Zhu Xuhou, Dongmuhou, King Wen of Zhou and his brothers Guo Zhong and Guo Shu, King Cheng of Zhou and Zhao Gong and Bi Gong.
The so-called Marquis Zhu Xu and Marquis Dongmou are both grandsons of Liu Bang and contributed greatly to quelling the rebellion of the Lu family;
As for Guo Zhong and Uncle Guo, as the younger brothers of King Wen of Zhou, they played a great role in the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty by King Wen of Zhou;
Zhao Gong and Bi Gong were the uncles of King Cheng of Zhou, and they assisted King Cheng of Zhou in establishing the rule of Chengkang.
They are all examples of clan members supporting others.
Finally, Cao Zhi pointed out:
Those who can make the world pay attention are those who are in power. Therefore, the plan can change the master, and the power can intimidate. The powerful and right-wing people are in power, and they are not relatives. Where the power lies, even if it is distant, it will be strong. Where the power is gone, even if it is close, it will be despised.
.
The Tian clan who took Qi was not Lu Zong; the Zhao and Wei who were divided into Jin were not Ji. But your Majesty will check it out.
…
This means that those who can make people in the world obey are those who hold power.
Today's Wei State is ruled by aristocratic families, not our Cao family clan.
If the current situation continues, the power of our Cao family will sooner or later be controlled by the powerful family.
If you don’t believe me, look at the people who carved up the Qi Kingdom. It was the Tian family and not the Lu family; the three families were divided into the Jin Dynasty, and none of them had the surname Ji.
Your Majesty, think about it carefully!
After Cao Rui read it, he threw the memorial to the ground on the spot, saying that I miss you, my mother!
Zhu Xuhou originally wanted to make his brother the emperor, but Dongmou Hou later rebelled. Do you think I didn't know that?
If you can't even suppress Feng Thief's articles, what's the use of having you, a representative of the literary movement, come here?
If Cao Zhi hadn't been involved in this Wei-Shu war, Cao Rui might have thought of throwing Xiahou Ba's blame on Cao Zhi.
But after seeing Cao Rui lose his temper, his face suddenly turned gloomy and clear, looking extremely ugly.
The time when Cao Zhi said these words in the memorial was very well timed.
No matter how hard Cao Rui gritted his teeth, he knew that after the defeat of Xiao Guan, Cao Zhen couldn't afford to fall ill. Looking at the Wei Dynasty, it was indeed as Cao Zhi said, it was inevitable for the powerful families to take power.
Unless I can have the time of 5, 6, 78 to calmly deal with the situation in the country.
From the current perspective, this is almost a wishful thinking.
Sun Quan's position as King of Wu was conferred by the late emperor. Now that he has abandoned the king and proclaimed himself emperor, he has not only slapped the Shu people in the face, but also the face of the Wei state.
If you don’t express anything, then what prestige is there?
I thought that the Shu people would break off relations with the Wu people because of this, and I would have my own plans then.
Unexpectedly, Zhuge Pifu could suppress the objections of the Shu people and even sent people to congratulate Sun Quan.
Thinking of this, Cao Rui cursed again: "Liu Chan, that loser! What is the difference between Zhuge Pifu and usurping the throne? He is actually willing to pretend to be him!"
In addition, Longyou fell into the hands of the Shu people, Liangzhou was cut off, and Guanzhong was threatened.
If the Wei Dynasty ignored this and only focused on running the Central Plains, I am afraid that if we look back a few years later, the Shu people will have arrived in Wanluo!
As an emperor, how could Cao Rui not see this?
This time, he carefully planned for two years to recapture Longyou, just to regain a strategic advantage over the Shu people.
As long as Guanzhong Longyou is used as a barrier and the Shu people are blocked in Hanzhong, Wanluo will have no worries and the Central Plains will be stable.
At that time, whether it is external or internal, you can slowly figure it out.
Unlike now, there are Wu bandits in the south and Shu bandits in the west. There will be no peace for a day.
Besides compromising step by step with the wealthy families in exchange for their support, what else can we do?
Rely on you clan members?
Do you rely on you to defeat the enemy?
At this thought, Cao Rui's eyes flashed and he shouted: "Lian Zhao!"
"Your Majesty, I am here."
Cao Rui gestured to the memorial thrown on the ground and said gloomily:
"I pass on this memorial from the emperor's uncle and say what he said, which touches my heart. The reason why the late emperor did not allow the kings to enter the capital was because the young master was on the throne and the mother was the regent, so as to prevent things from getting worse."
"I have not seen the princes for twelve years now, and I miss you very much. I have specially ordered the princes from all over the country to send their eldest sons to Beijing to comfort my thoughts."
Speaking of this, Cao Rui emphasized:
"Also, relatives and foreign relatives from various places who are in charge of military and political affairs abroad also call back to Beijing to show the joy of royal family ties."
He looked at Lian Zhao, "Especially the Xiahou clan, they are the most important in-laws of our royal family. Anyone who guards more than one county must be invited back."
Lian Zhao quickly responded: "No!"
"Is Cao Rui really going to be fooled?"
Feng Yong was half lying in the carriage, holding the news that had just been sent from Wei State in his hand, with a look of surprise on his face.
After staying in Hanzhong for two or three months, he finally set off back to Longyou.
Qishan Road is the best road out of Hanzhong. In addition, the Han Dynasty has not stopped repairing Qishan Road in recent years.
Nowadays, many postal stations have been built along the entire Qishan Road, making communication between Longyou and Hanzhong faster.
There are even many sections where two cars can merge.
"He doesn't want to be fooled, but even if he knew it was a rumor spread by a big man, he would still hold his nose and admit it, saying that Xiahou Ba was a collaborator."
Zhang Xingyi, who was sitting next to him, had a cunning look on his face, and his big eyes were shining.
"Talk about it."
Feng Yong got up and asked with great interest.
Although he initially wanted to spread rumors, the main purpose was to disgust Cao Rui and Xiahou Ba, and to stir up public opinion.
If you don't occupy the position of public opinion, the enemy will.
It is always right to create more public opinion.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Xingyi guessed that he wanted to mess with Xiahou Ba and actually planned the rumor plan himself.
Feng Yong's attitude towards the women who follow him has always been different.
For example, to Guan Ji, it is similar to Adou: "Xijun is right, Xijun is right!"
For Amei, I tried my best to provide her with a quiet environment so that she could study and do scientific research with peace of mind.
For Li Mu, as wild as your heart is, I will have as big a platform as you can.
As for Zhang Xiaosi, he basically dragged her to do bad things together.
After all, Zhang Xiaosi is good at things like conspiracy.
This time, Zhang Xiaosi once again proved his talent: from Cao Rui's series of actions, it seems that he was really fooled.
Although Zhang Xingyi learned to ride a horse in Longyou in the past few years, riding a horse frequently can easily lead to bandy legs.
Last time she had to rush, so she could only ride with Feng Yong, but this time the trip was easy, so she naturally wanted to take a car.
Sometimes when Feng Yong got tired from riding, he would get into the car and rest for a while, which would make him happy.
The car's shock absorption is very poor, and the road conditions are far inferior to those of later generations' highways. Sitting in the car, it shakes a bit.
But seeing Zhang Xingyi shaking his head as the car shook, he said proudly:
"Since Cao Rui became the false emperor, the two battles at Longyou and Shiting have exhausted all the prestige he had accumulated."
"Coupled with this battle at Xiao Guan, if he doesn't handle it well, he may lose face."
Ordinary people, if they have no prestige and face, have little say at home and will be bullied by others outside.
But if it were the emperor, it would be easy for his ministers to bully him.
If the people in the country can still live their lives, it will be fine. If they cannot live, then someone will talk nonsense and say that there is an "incompetent king" or a "foolish king", and it will be a matter of death.
No matter how wise and decisive you are, you have spent so much money and food, emptied the treasury, and made the people in the country miserable, but you have been defeated for several consecutive years. This is incompetence.
You are so incompetent, and for the sake of the country, is it too much to ask the Queen Mother to appoint a new king?
Not too much at all!
"So Cao Rui must be in urgent need of someone to take the responsibility for his defeat this time..."
"Take the blame?"
"What taking the blame?"
"Oh, it's okay. I mean, the commander of this battle is Cao Zhen. He led an army of 100,000 and was defeated. What can Xiahou Ba do?"
Feng Junhou still didn't quite understand.
"How stupid! After the Battle of Shiting, was Cao Xiu later held accountable?"
Zhang Xingyi curled his lips and said, "Cao Rui not only refused to hold Cao Xiu responsible for the defeat because he considered Cao Xiu a kin, but instead sent people to comfort him. Cao Zhen is also a kin, why should he be held accountable?"
"If we don't ask Cao Xiu's responsibility, the soldiers below may not have complaints; if we hold Cao Zhen accountable now, we will lose the hope of the clan. Cao Rui is crazy and would do such inconsistent things."
"If you don't ask Cao Zhen's responsibility, how can you explain it to the hundreds of thousands of Cao thieves in Guanzhong? Or Cao Rui should take the responsibility himself..."
When Zhang Xingyi said this, Feng Yong completely understood and blurted out: "Either find someone to take it on!"
"That's right!" Zhang Xingyi said with a smile, "Alang has said before that Cao Rui has the most impatient temper and is suspected of overjoying great achievements."
"So according to my concubine, he will definitely not take on this responsibility unless he is forced to do so. And I also said before that if Cao Rui doesn't handle it well, he will lose his face."
"So even if he had the intention, he would not dare to take the responsibility for the defeat easily at this time."
Feng Yong slapped his thigh and laughed:
"It just so happens that Xiahou Ba is an in-law of the Cao family, and this identity is just right. Coupled with the rumors we spread, Cao Rui just followed the trend and put the blame on him."
It's an upright conspiracy. Cao Rui knew there was a problem, but he still endured his nausea and stepped into it.
"In this case, I'm afraid he will still thank us! Si Niang, having you is really like a fish in water for me..."
Looking at Zhang Xiaosi's beautiful face, Feng Junhou couldn't help but move closer, feeling that he really loved this woman.
"Thank you, thank you." Zhang Xingyi used to take the initiative, but now Feng Qinshou rarely takes the initiative, but she is a little shy, "I'm afraid Cao Rui wants to eat you!"