Chapter 183: Sima Yi's vain promotion to Grand Tutor
Inside the Imperial City-style Qiandian Hall in Luoyang.
Emperor Cao Fang looked at the memorial in his hand that was sent by Ding Mi, the minister of Sanqi, and written by General Cao Shuang. This was exactly the memorial written by Cao Xi for his elder brother.
"The great general Shaoling Hou Shuang paid homage:
After the death of my father, I served for three dynasties. I entered the tomb to be the butler and became a general. The late emperor regarded me as an orphan in my heart, so he rewarded me and promoted me, and made me a soldier and a guard. Now I advance without loyalty and accumulation, and I retreat without a lamb. Jie. The late emperor's holy body was not hesitant. Although his ministers were running around, attending to illnesses and taking medicine, they never responded with sincerity and sincerity. Both Wei and Taiwei Yi received the imperial edict, and they were ashamed and fearful, and reported it to others.
I heard that Yu and Shun prefaced the virtuous people, put Ji and Qi first, and commended meritorious deeds in Tang Dynasty. With Yi and Lu as the leaders, they reviewed and selected the good and the bad, and...
This minister is secretly and secretly appointed, he is the head of the court, he cares about his inferiority, he is ashamed and vigilant, he dares to exhaust his foolish feelings, and he writes truthfully.
The three great Taoists in the world are virtue, nobility, and teeth. The Taiwei is originally high-minded and upright, and he is in the position of a superior. His reputation is enough to control the people, and his righteousness is enough to lead his subordinates. The second is to still stand up for the merits of the conquest, to travel far and near, to travel thousands of miles, to personally receive the imperial edict, to be bright with the royal family, to be directed internally and externally, to the third. In addition, to be a senior citizen, to regulate the country, and to practice government affairs; when discussing virtue, it is too good to be Jifu, Fan Zhong; his class work is better than that of Fang Shu and Zhao Hu; for all these people, Taiwei has both.
If I hold an empty reputation and stand at his right, people in the world will say that I am using the royal family for personal gain, knowing how to advance but not knowing how to retreat.
Your Majesty, Qi Yi, is a master of discipline and discipline. If there is any suggestion of censoring ministers, I think it is appropriate for him to appoint Yi as the Grand Tutor. He will show your Majesty's wisdom in promoting the virtuous, and show his strength in both civil and military affairs. In this way, he will protect the foolish ministers from slander. There is a vacancy in Taiwei, and I am afraid that I will recommend Man Boning, the general who conquered the East, to take over the defense of Yangzhou. I can teach Wang Ling, the governor, and make Sun Li the governor. Zhuge Dan can take the post of General Wu and go to Yangzhou. I am afraid, so I bow to your majesty again. forward."
[Note 1: Pei annotated the original text of the Three Kingdoms. In order to give readers a general understanding, the author has modified, deleted and added.]
After reading the memorial, Cao Fang roughly understood what Cao Shuang meant.
He said to Ding Mi, the minister of Sanqi who was standing next to him:
"I already know the general's intention. If you love me, you can go to the Chancellor's Desk and convey my oral edict to Liu Fang, the supervisor of the Zhongshu. The Zhongshu ordered Sun Zi to draft the edict on my behalf and promote him to the rank of Taifu. As for the Taifu, As for the post of Wei, I will teach Changyi Marquis Manboning to take over. The defense of Yangzhou will be handed over to Wang Yanyun, the governor of Yangzhou, and I will teach Sun Deda to take over. Zhuge Gongxiu will be appointed as General Zhaowu and go to Yangzhou."
"I obey the decree." Ding Mi saluted and left the palace, then headed all the way to the south of the Chancellor's desk.
Although Liu Fang and Sun Zi were somewhat reluctant, due to the pressure from the general and the emperor, they did not dare not to comply with the matter.
In the blink of an eye, it was already the day of Ding Chou's great court meeting.
In the Taiji Hall, the young emperor was wearing a slightly loose dragon robe, a heavy crown on his head, the Emperor's Sword hanging from his waist, holding a big jade gui, and he was sitting on the throne with the support of an attendant.
After the officials shouted, Zhang Dang, the chief minister, took out an imperial edict and read it loudly:
"The edict said: The Taiwei was upright and loyal to three generations. He captured Mengda in the south, defeated the Shu captives in the west, and destroyed Gongsun Yuan in the east. His achievements were overwhelming. In the past Zhou Dynasty, he was an official who protected Fu, and in the recent Han Dynasty, Xianzong favored Deng Yu, so he was superior. Long and Jun Yi, there must be honorable people. He takes the Taiwei as the Taifu, and he is responsible for commanding the troops and supervising all military affairs as before. The general who conquered the east has made outstanding achievements and worked hard on the border. Now he is recruited into the court as the Taiwei. In addition, General Wang Ling is appointed as the Taiwei. General of the Conquest of the East, Governor of Yangzhou, Sun Li, the Shangshu, as the Governor of Yangzhou, and Zhuge Dan as General Zhaowu, went to Yangzhou together. I admire this."
After the imperial edict Zhang Dang read out the edict, before everyone in the edict had time to express their gratitude, Zhang Dang took out the second edict at the instruction of the emperor:
"General Shaoling Marquis Cao Shuang and Taifu Wuyang Marquis Sima Yi accept the order!"
"Long live my emperor!" Cao Shuang and Sima Yi came out of their duties and knelt down, bowing their heads to listen to the order.
"The edict says: General Cao Shuang was entrusted by the late emperor to assist me. Now he has been promoted to the rank of servant, and has been given the title of Marquis of Wu'an. He has a household of 12,000 households. He has been specially given swords and shoes to go to the palace. He will not rush to the court and will not be praised.
.The Grand Tutor has been deeply entrusted with the important role of Fubi and has made outstanding achievements. He is also specially given swords and shoes to go to the palace. He will not be followed when he enters the court, and he will not be praised and worshiped. I admire this!"
"I would like to thank Your Majesty for your kindness!"
After hearing these two imperial edicts, the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty had different reactions.
The people of General Cao Shuang's party were naturally very happy to see Cao Shuang conferring a title on Marquis Wanhu, going to the palace with swords and shoes, entering the court without paying homage, and paying tribute without recognition. Naturally, the veterans of Sima Yi's party were very angry when they heard that Cao Shuang was conferred a title on Marquis Wu'an.
Unfair.
Since ancient times, among those who have taken Wu'an as their title, who is not a god of war with outstanding military exploits on the battlefield?
Qin Dynasty had Wu'an Lord Bai Qi, Zhao had Wu'an Lord Li Mu, Chu had Wu'an Lord Xiang Yan... But who is Cao Shuang, and he dared to let your Majesty make him the Marquis of Wu'an?
Cao Shuang turned a blind eye to the disdainful looks of the old ministers and happily accepted the order to thank him. Sima Yi, who was promoted to Tai Tu, remained expressionless and seemed very calm.
————
Although Cao Shuang and Sima Yi still respected each other and were harmonious on the surface, privately they had begun a fierce power struggle. Of course, the emperor Cao Fang, who was only eight years old but smart, could not see this and was kept in the dark for the time being.
.
In the east hall of the General's Mansion, Cao Xi, his fourth brother Cao Xun, and his fifth brother Cao Yan were called here together. They were discussing something with their eldest brother Cao Shuang.
"Third brother, fourth brother." Cao Shuang patted the shoulders of the two increasingly mature brothers and said earnestly: "Since the death of my father, you and I have been valued by the late emperor and have been in charge of the palace. Now, the eldest brother needs your help.
The time has come."
"Brother, please tell me, as long as Xi can do his best, he is willing to go through fire and water for eldest brother!" Cao Xi thought of his late father and couldn't help feeling sad.
"Third brother, you know that the government is now in dire straits. The eldest brother is competing with Sima Yi for many gaps in the court. The defense of the palace is of great importance. However, the eldest brother is really short of candidates to take charge of the imperial army. I originally wanted to arrange for Xi Di
You came to take this responsibility, but it is a pity that Sima Yi took advantage of it first and arranged for General Jiang Ji to be the leading general of the Central Army. Fortunately, there are still vacancies in the Central Base Camp and the post of General Wuwei that the eldest brother held previously. Xi Di, Xun
Brother, you can take over the imperial army, and you can also be my right-hand man, leaving Jiang Ji, the leader, without an army to lead!"
The leading general controlled the three major battalions of Zhongba, Wuwei, and the Five Schools. Cao Shuang's arrangement really completely emptied Jiang Ji's military power.
"Since eldest brother has made arrangements, brothers should do their best to assist eldest brother!"
Cao Shuang listened to the two brothers' statements and nodded. He thought in his mind that the old man Jiang Ji had been in the position of general of the army for too long, and that boy Xia Houxuan was a close friend of his third brother, and he was also a close friend.
The most talented of the cousins could replace Jiang Ji as the Central Guard.
However, as a result, the military affairs in Taichu were busy, and there was one less regular knight attendant to accompany His Majesty in the palace at all times. Moreover, I heard that Sima Yi had recently appointed his son Sima Zhao as a regular knight servant. If he did not have one,
If there are people to check and balance, if Sima Zhao, Zhong Yu, Sima Jun and others are allowed to control the young His Majesty, the consequences will be really disastrous.
Just when he was hesitating, he suddenly saw his sixth brother Cao Yan standing aside.
He said to Cao Yan: "Brother Yan, you have always only liked to write and write. My elder brother can't let you take charge of the army. It just so happens that there is still a shortage of casual knights around your majesty. You can help my elder brother keep an eye on that Sima Zhao."
, don’t let him control Your Majesty!”
"I understand, brother."
Cao Shuang thought again of Zhong Yu, the opponent placed beside the emperor, as well as Sima Fu, Zhao Yan, Lu Yu, and Wang Guan, the stumbling blocks in the pavilion.
Sima Fu is Sima Yi's biological brother, and he has always done things in a flawless manner. There is nothing I can do against him for the time being. However, I still have ways to transfer Zhong Yu, Zhao Yan, Lu Yu, and Wang Guan out of Taige.
However, I am suffering from a temporary lack of manpower and there are no suitable people to fill these vacancies. It seems that I can only recruit talents quickly and then take control of the Taiwan Pavilion.
Thinking that everything was finally arranged, Cao Shuang breathed a sigh of relief. So far, he was very satisfied with his arrangements.
"You brothers, you can't stop talking about things, come and have dinner!" Cao Shuang's wife Liu and his sister-in-law Wei Yuan arranged for their servants to prepare lunch, but they couldn't wait for a long time, so they guessed
They must be discussing matters in the east hall again.
"Sister-in-law, did you ask the cook to make that mutton pancake today? I'm so greedy." Cao Yan became excited when he heard that his sister-in-law Liu had arranged lunch.
"You kid, you just know how to eat!" Cao Xi smiled and poked his sixth brother on the forehead. Seeing the happy family in front of him, he couldn't help but think of his seventh brother.
He has seven brothers in total, and the seventh brother Cao Ai is the youngest. However, he has been in poor health since he was a child, so his father contacted the Taoist priests at Longhu Mountain in the south of the Yangtze River and sent him thousands of miles away when the seventh brother was three years old.
The remote Longhu Mountain is where you can rest and study.
At this time, more than twenty years have passed. Apart from exchanging letters, the brothers have never seen each other again. Even the seventh brother could not come back in the year when his father passed away.
I wonder how the seventh brother is doing now...
"Husband, what are you thinking about?" Wei Yuan saw Cao Xi in a daze and asked with concern.
Cao Xi put away his misty thoughts and said with a smile:
"It's nothing, I just suddenly missed my seventh brother."
————
Soon after, Cao Xi and Cao Xun were promoted by their eldest brothers to the positions of General of the Middle Base and General of the Military Guard, respectively, and they were assigned to the Fifth School Camp, in charge of the Middle Base Camp and the Wuwei Camp of the Forbidden Army respectively.
camp.
The guard general Jiang Ji was also transferred to the leading general, but this leading general no longer had any troops to lead, because the command of the 30,000 forbidden troops in the three major battalions had all been transferred to the middle base general Cao Xi and the military guard general Cao Xi.
Training, the leaders of the five schools and the institute were divided up.
He originally had the position of General Guard, who oversaw the imperial army, the president's generals, and had the power to elect military attachés. He was also replaced by the newly appointed Central Guard Xia Houxuan.
[Note 2: During the Han, Three Kingdoms, and Jin Dynasties, the Central Guard Army was the subordinate deputy of the Central Leading Army. He was responsible for supervising the imperial army, president of the generals, and the election of military attachés. One officer had three positions, and he had great power. 】
Cao Yan also became the emperor's regular knight attendant. The rest of the brothers, except for the younger brother Cao Ai, who was frail and sick since childhood and was sent to the Longhu Mountain in the south of the Yangtze River to rest and study.
You can go in and out of the forbidden gate for a while, and no noble favors can be brought to court here.
At this time, the power of the imperial guards in the palace was basically controlled by Cao Shuang.
In the temple, due to the death of Pei Qian's father and the resignation of Ding You, Sima Yi's younger brother Sima Fu was able to take up the post of Shangshu Ling. There were also Liu Fang, the eunuch of the Zhongshu Ling, and Sun Zi, the Zhongshu Ling, plus the chief minister.
Cao Shangshu, Lu Yu, Lu Zijia, who has the power to elect and remove civil servants, as well as Zhao Yan, Wang Guan and other ministers, Taige is temporarily firmly in the hands of the Sima family.
Not only that, Tingwei Gaorou, Tingwei Zheng Sima Qi controlled the judicial power, and Sili Xiaowei Xu Miao also had the power to impeach hundreds of officials, which was enough to make the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty fearful. Therefore, the power of the government was still firmly held by the Sima family.
firmly in control.
As for the casual knights around the emperor, Cao Shuang's faction currently includes Cao Yan and Wei Lie, while Sima Yi's faction includes Dingling Marquis Zhong Yu and Sima Zhao. The two parties are fairly evenly matched in strength.
Fu Gu and Xun Yi, who had been recruited as vassals by Sima Yi before, were recommended to serve as ministers of Huangmen, following Zhong Yu and Sima Zhao to stay by the emperor's side to advise and serve.
At this moment, the balance of power is still balanced, and General Cao Shuang is beginning to think deeply and prepare to take control of the Taige government.
