"We are also deeply sorry for the disappearance of the eldest son... It is difficult to imagine what kind of loss it would be if I, the Wei Dynasty, lost such an outstanding prince like the eldest son... But please don't worry, no matter what the problem is, we will
I will tell you everything I know, and it would be great if I could provide some insignificant help in searching for the traces of the eldest son."
What Sima Yi said was quite official.
While speaking, he did two things.
First, he got in front of Cao Pi, and without anyone noticing, he gently poked Cao Pi's lower back.
Cao Pi, who was still in shock, suddenly woke up... He trembled and quickly returned to his usual... kind of "gloomy", but judging from his face, his expression seemed to be quite sad.
This is the method of communication that Sima Yi and Cao Pi agreed upon long ago.
Because Huang Cheng's arrival was anticipated by Sima Yi.
Knowing that he would be held accountable by relevant personnel later, and that there was a high possibility that they would not be able to communicate in words for a period of time, Sima Yi informed Cao Pi early that once this time came, Cao Pi would only need to explain the situation
The initiative was given to him by Sima Yi. The next thing Cao Pi had to do was to follow the rhetoric they had decided before and answer whatever the other party asked——
Especially regarding the lives of the two soldiers - one was from Cao Renjun, who traveled across mountains and rivers just to ask for help... the other was from Jiang Jijun, who brought Jiang Ji's orders.
The deaths of these two people were fabricated by Sima Yi as the work of bandits, and now their bodies are dumped in the wilderness, perhaps already eaten by wild beasts in the mountains.
As long as Cao Ren insists that he has never seen them, then the conclusion that they are not guilty of ignorance will be unassailable.
The excuse is that the reason why they did not rush to the rescue early or prepare troops and horses in advance was because they did not receive the news.
As for those people who had seen the two messengers in the city, whether they were officials, soldiers or even ordinary people, Sima Yi paid heavily to buy their reputation, and there was basically no loophole in his operation.
Looking at the indifferent Sima Yi and the slightly sad Cao Pi, Huang Cheng's mood became much gloomier.
He remembered what Jiang Jilin said to him before he came, and he was extremely disappointed with the reaction of these two people.
'Sure enough... they have been prepared...'
But even so, Huang Cheng still wanted to ask.
"Okay... you two, I only have two questions. Please answer them truthfully."
Huang Cheng said this, and Sima Yi gave him a "please" gesture, indicating that he could ask questions casually.
"First of all...about the general's defeat, did you receive any news from Governor Jiang Ji before he went to Shouchun?"
"I'm sorry... This is not true. We only learned about this after Governor Jiang Ji came to Shouchun, and at that time..."
Sima Yi immediately replied, and tried to further explain the situation at that time.
However... Huang Cheng raised his hand and pushed forward, with the obvious intention of telling him to stop and continue to look at Cao Pi. Huang Cheng repeated the question just now.
Sima Yi frowned slightly, realizing that this Huang Cheng was not a simple man, but... again, he had already prepared, so he was not worried that Cao Pi would be questioned.
Cao Pi just shook his head and simply replied with two words:
"No."
Huang Cheng nodded and continued to ask without any expression:
"Then I have one more question... Second Young Master..."
Sima Yi, with the old god beside him, could even predict that Huang Cheng's next question would be about the whereabouts of the so-called messenger sent by Jiang Ji.
By this time, the smile on his lips could no longer be concealed.
Even Cao Pi looked fearless, completely unafraid of Huang Cheng's questions.
Also, as long as he insists that he has never seen it, what can the other party do to them?
Huang Cheng took a deep breath and spoke in as calm a tone as possible:
"I wonder if the Second Young Master knows a scholar named Guo Jia?"
"...you...who are you talking about?"
Cao Pi was stunned for a moment, thinking he had heard wrongly.
He turned his head and looked aside, only to find that Sima Yi also had a confused look on his face.
Huang Cheng didn't say anything more, he just asked again:
"Or maybe it's better to ask both of you at the same time...Have you ever known a scholar named Guo Jia?"
"Ahem..."
Sima Yi coughed twice and quietly looked at Huang Cheng's gaze... but saw that the other person's gaze did not waver at all.
This Guo Jia... doesn't look like a character he made up...
Wait a moment…
Guo Jia...why does it sound so familiar...
Sima Yi froze on the spot... his mouth was slightly open, and as his pupils continued to dilate, the dry wheezing in his throat became more obvious.
It was understandable that Cao Pi didn't know Guo Jia, because Cao Pi was not familiar with the people in Youjian Villa. Although he had lived in Yecheng for a long time, Cao Pi only left the Prime Minister's Mansion and started various activities in recent years. Most of his interpersonal relationships were based on inheritance.
Introduction with Sima Yi and Cui Yan.
But for Sima Yi... can he really forget who Guo Jia is?
Since the center of the Wei State was transferred from Xudu to Yecheng in the north, Sima Yi rarely went to Youjian Villa, but... As one of Yi Xiaotian's former students, for the Youjian Villa where his teacher Yi Xiaotian lived,
Few people understand its staffing better than he does.
Not to mention Cai Zhaoji, Diao Chan, Lu Lingqi, Zhen Luo... there are many women in Youjian Villa that Yi Xiaotian likes, there is no doubt about this.
But apart from them... there are a few people who are hard to ignore.
In other words... in terms of running Youjian Villa, there is a person who is no less important than Cai Zhaoji and others.
Guo Jia…Guo Fengxiao.
A poor scholar who married Zhen Jiang, the eldest daughter of the Zhen family in Yecheng, was regarded by many as the Zhen family's son-in-law...
However, he later joined forces with the Yecheng branch of Youjian Villa and the Qingluan Chamber of Commerce founded by Zhen Yan, the current leader of the Zhen family, to open up thousands of miles of northern trade routes from Yecheng to Chang'an in one fell swoop.
In the past, the four families in the north - the Sima family in Hanoi, the Cui family in Qinghe, the Yang family in Hongnong and the Zhen family in Hebei - went hand in hand and could be called the four powerful families.
None of them suppressed the other's limelight. The Sima family and the Yang family relied on the official resources accumulated by their predecessors to dominate the court.
The Cui family of Qinghe became another generation of emerging dignitaries after the rise of the brothers Cui Yan and Cui Lin.
Only the Zhen family, who started out as a businessman, can be said to have the strongest economic strength, but they often have the least say among the families.
Although money can control ghosts and gods, in many cases, money is not everything.
But after a poor scholar named Guo Jia relied on Yi Xiaotian's support to marry the eldest daughter of the Zhen family in Youjian Villa, the Zhen family rose rapidly because of Guo Jia's various operations...
Just like the previous sentence... money is often not everything - unless you have countless amounts of money.
All of this is largely due to Guo Jia.
But...but Huang Cheng suddenly mentioned Guo Jia's name in front of him, which gave Sima Yi a bad feeling.
