Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Chapter 84: Kindness and Virtue
When discussing why a country can exist for a long time and be supported, the word "gratitude" is what is needed.

The so-called "virtue" is to comfort the people and punish the criminals, to pacify the world, to protect the country and love the people. If a country can bring a stable life to the people and can continue to ensure the normal operation of society without chaos, this is the virtue of a country.

The so-called "favor", such as "receiving favor from the country for generations" and "receiving favor from the emperor many times", means that the country provides positions for officials and nobles and a stage for individuals to rise. This is the favor of a country.

The two Han dynasties lasted for 400 years, and the accumulated virtue could indeed produce many elites who died for the Han Dynasty. But what about Wei? It's not even the seventh year of Huangchu yet, how much virtue can Cao Wei accumulate?

Then it can only be a matter of gratitude.

When Cao Pi was crowned the King of Wei and the Emperor of Wei, he had twice granted large-scale rewards to his officials. Now that Cao Rui wanted to continue to make officials and generals serve him, did he need to provide one-on-one ideological guidance or influence them with his personal charm? Of course, promotion would be faster.

However, if there is a rank order for promotion, then the closest ministers to the emperor will definitely have priority. Everyone is equal, and there will always be someone who is more equal.

The so-called close ministers were the four attendants Liu Ye, Xin Pi, Huang Quan, Chen Jiao, and the two secretaries Liu Fang and Sun Zi.

Among these six people, Liu Ye and Sun Zi, who were originally only Guannei Marquis, became Ting Marquis, while Xin Pi, Huang Quan, Chen Jiao and Liu Fang, who were originally Ting Marquis, were promoted to the next level and became Xiang Marquis.

The original title was promoted to a higher level, and everyone was happy.

Even Zhong Yu, who was now fourteen and almost fifteen years old, was awarded the title of marquis.

This is the benefit of being a close minister to the emperor.

Many of the ministers in the outer court, from the three dukes and nine ministers to the generals stationed in various places, also had their titles or fiefs increased. Even Meng Da and Meng Zidu, who were in Xincheng County in the southwest, were promoted from Tinghou to Xianghou, and were given the title of Anxi General, which was taken from Xiahou Mao.

When the emperor ordered promotions and rewards, everyone was naturally happy.

At this time in Luoyang, the biggest news besides the reward was that the emperor would be going on a southern tour in ten days.

Since it is a southern tour, although the location is not specified, according to the practice of Cao Cao and Cao Pi, most of the possible locations are Xuchang, Chenliu and Qiao County.

Although many people in Luoyang City did not understand what the emperor's tour meant, they thought that the emperor just left the capital Luoyang and went somewhere else for a stroll, just like the people going to the neighboring counties to travel and do business.

But any knowledgeable civilian official knew that the emperor's tour was very different. Especially in this era, the central army had to accompany the emperor on tour.

There are 50,000 troops in Luoyang and its vicinity. Such a large army size cannot be concealed, whether it is logistics deployment or military march. Anyone who is interested can observe the situation of the central army when the emperor is on tour, and roughly know whether the emperor is really "on tour" or taking the opportunity to carry out some military action.

This is a tradition!

During the reign of Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang once used the opportunity of going on tour to manipulate military and national affairs. At that time, someone wrote a letter to accuse Han Xin of wanting to rebel, so Chen Ping suggested that Liu Bang "fake a tour to Yunmeng" and summon Han Xin to his side under the pretext of going on tour so that he could arrest him.

Who can tell what the emperor will do during his southern tour this time?

The grand court meeting on the first day of December was held in the morning. The emperor appointed so many officials at the meeting, which was the most explosive news in Luoyang in recent days. By the afternoon, it was spread everywhere.

If it's a state secret it would be fine if it was kept secret, but after being appointed an official by the emperor, why aren't people allowed to speak out about it?

Sima Shi, the eldest son of Sima Yi, who had already entered the Imperial Academy to study, finished a day's lessons and was preparing to go home when he heard people on the road say that his father had become one of the Three Dukes.

What good news is this? Has our Sima family become a royal family from now on?

Sima Shi felt like he was about to float. After receiving a lot of compliments and courtesies, Sima Shi just returned to his home and hurried to his father's study.

Sima Shi pushed the door open and looked at his father who was sitting behind the desk reading documents.

Sima Shi grinned and said, "I, your son, congratulate you on your promotion to the rank of Three Dukes. How do you feel now, father?"

Sima Yi had always been very strict in managing his household. Only his eldest son Sima Shi was allowed to enter the study without knocking. Even his wife Zhang Chunhua and his second son Sima Zhao were not allowed to do so.

Sima Yi did not raise his head when he heard this. Instead, he continued to look at the document with a slight smile on his face: "Ziyuan is back. Did you hear the news at the Imperial Academy?"

Sima Shi closed the door of the study and sat down. "I didn't hear it in the Imperial College, but heard it on the street. People who knew me on the street said that my father became a high-ranking official at such a young age, and he was a real pillar of the country and a meritorious official."

Sima Yi smiled and looked up at his son: "I am a high official, what does it have to do with them? These people just want to flatter you and make friends with you."

"Ziyuan, people should act in accordance with the doctrine of the mean. Has the doctrine of the mean ever been taught in the Imperial Academy?"

Sima Shi replied: "Of course I have. The so-called moderation is to be impartial, neither too much nor too little."

"Father told me to act in a moderate way, which means I should neither resist others' flattery nor show that I like others' flattery, and I should act according to the original norms." Sima Yi nodded slightly: "In this case, your father does not need to remind you too much."

"Oh, there is one more thing." Sima Yi said, "Your uncle has been sent to Liangzhou by His Majesty to assist the newly appointed Liangzhou Governor Xiahou Ba in governing Liangzhou, and he is also stationed in Wuwei."

Sima Shi exclaimed: "Does the emperor want to harm my uncle? Why did he send my uncle to such a remote place?"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Sima Yi said in a slightly reprimanding tone: "Liangzhou is in need of people right now. Your Majesty has given the order. How can a minister refuse the appointment just because it is far away from the Central Plains?"

"Besides, your uncle has been sitting in the Ministry of Riders for several months doing nothing, and he has lost a lot of weight. Now that he has been appointed as the Commandant of the Ministry of Finance, he is quite happy."

Sima Shi asked in confusion: "Since the word 'Duzhi Xiaowei' has the word 'Xiaowei' in it, then it means the rank is 2,000 dan?"

Sima Yi nodded slightly.

"Two thousand shi, that's fine." Sima Shi moved his shoulders and said, "But what does this Duzhi Xiaowei mean?"

Sima Yi replied: "Liangzhou is located in the border area, and the counties are remote and difficult to coordinate. The duties of the Duzhi Xiaowei are, on the one hand, to assist the Liangzhou governor in managing civil affairs, and on the other hand, to manage trade with the Western Regions."

"Liangzhou is a vast territory, and has long been outside the jurisdiction of the Central Plains. If your uncle goes to Wuwei, I think it will be easy for him to achieve success."

Sima Shi frowned slightly: "Trade with the Western Regions? Wasn't the Wuzhu coin banned by the previous emperor? How can we have money to trade?"

Sima Yi said: "Can the imperial court completely ban it just because it says so? Liangzhou has a few Luoyang officials, should we use them?"

Sima Yi paused and continued, "Ziyuan, your father has always asked you to study the classics, but now it seems that you should also learn some common affairs. For example, in the trade in Liangzhou, the five-zhu coin is naturally used. In addition to money, silk is also quite commonly used."

"Let me tell you a few more words. Since the frequent Qiang rebellions in the Western Han Dynasty, trade between the Central Plains and the Western Regions has been cut off. After the Western Regions were reopened a few years ago, the trade route was reopened, but the scale was not very large. People from the Western Regions either traded in Dunhuang or went as far as Wuwei, the capital of Liangzhou, to trade. Few people could go to Chang'an and Luoyang like in the Western Han Dynasty."

"Moreover, Liangzhou's trade is not only with people from the Western Regions, but also involves exchanging Liangzhou's gold, jade, precious goods, horses, and medicinal materials for brocade, silk, and other goods from the Central Plains. In addition, Liangzhou has many salt ponds, and there is also trade between the prefecture and the various Qiang tribes."

Born into a family of scholars, Sima Shi did not value money and goods since he was a child. He just thought that his father was popularizing knowledge for him. After hearing Sima Yi's words, Sima Shi nodded and said, "My son knows. It's good that my uncle is free in Liangzhou."

Sima Shi said: "Speaking of Liangzhou, I did meet a few classmates from Liangzhou in the Imperial College. Most of them were from big families in Liangzhou, and one of them was even accepted as a disciple by Zheng Cheng."

"Zheng Cheng?" Sima Yi asked, "Is it the Zheng Cheng who was born in the Eastern Palace and is the nephew of Zheng Xuan? Why did he want to accept a disciple?"

Sima Shi shook his head slightly. "Dr. Zheng is in charge of the Imperial College. How would I know why he accepted a disciple? But this man is from Tianshui County. He feels quite different from the Henan scholars. Not only does he have a slightly different accent, but he is also said to have served as a soldier in the county."

Tianshui County...Longyou...Liangzhou...

Sima Yi didn't care much at first, but when Sima Shi mentioned Tianshui, some small details seemed to be connected.

Sima Yi asked: "When did Zheng Cheng accept a disciple?"

Sima Shi replied, "It was yesterday. Although this Liangzhou man studied very hard, he did not socialize with other scholars very often, and my son was not familiar with him. I don't know how Doctor Zheng chose him."

However, at this time, Sima Yi was not thinking about this lucky scholar who was accepted as a disciple by Zheng Cheng.

The emperor had just appointed the governor of Yongliang and the governor of Liangzhou, and issued an edict to the Secretariat on a series of policies to win over Longyou. All of these were visible to Sima Yi, the title of Shangshushi.

Now, Zheng Cheng is taking the unprecedented step of personally accepting disciples.

Your Majesty has thought so carefully. Is he planning to make a plan for Yongliang? Who gave Your Majesty this idea?

As he was thinking, Sima Yi turned around and looked at Sima Shi.

"Ziyuan, the affairs of the Imperial College were handled by Grand Tutor Zhong, Zheng Cheng, and Gao Tanglong at the time. Your father is not familiar with the affairs of the Imperial College. Now it seems that the Imperial College will also be taken seriously by Your Majesty."

"Go to the Imperial College tomorrow and find out about the students in various places in the Imperial College. Come back and tell me."

Sima Shi replied: "Father, I remember that a month ago, I heard someone say that if I excelled in the Imperial College, the court would arrange my future."

Does the Imperial Academy select officials?
Sima Yi took a deep breath. He was increasingly confused about what the emperor was thinking. Or rather, he had never figured it out.

(End of this chapter)