Wei Ni

For several days, Xiahou Hui had nothing to do in the Central Guard Army Office.

Chen Qian and Yu Song, who had roughly sorted out their responsibilities, managed the daily affairs in an orderly manner, allowing him to have some free time every day.

As for Wei Zhen, the matter was postponed.

Following the instructions of the clerk in the Secretariat, Xiahou Hui asked his subordinates to convey in the visiting card that Emperor Cao Rui wanted them to meet the emperor together.

Wei Zhen’s reply was also very quick.

The next morning, he had someone deliver a receipt, claiming that the emperor had also informed him of the matter, but he was indeed very busy these days, and Han Hu told the emperor that due to other considerations, the announcement of the resumption of the investigation of the scholars' families would be postponed to mid-March, so he asked Xiahou Hui to wait for a while and return the appointment when he had free time.

In response to this, Xiahou Hui held his breath and waited.

Although Wei Zhen's ambiguous words made him feel that things might have changed. After all, Cao Rui, who was still worried about the investigation of the scholars' families, took the initiative to postpone the matter.

But Wei Zhen didn't say anything, and it was impossible for him to go looking for Cao Rui, so he could only wait.

During this period, he also visited the Secretariat twice.

Liu Fang and Sun Zi also followed the emperor's instructions and copied some important miscellaneous affairs for him to review.

However, it was all chatter about the upcoming change of era name.

Such as suggestions on the new year name, what measures should be taken after the change of the era name to endorse the legal system of the Wei State, and some praising the merits, etc.

This made Xiahou Hui speechless.

We can't blame Liu Fang and Sun Zi for anything. After all, the Mandate of Heaven and the legal system are indeed very important.

The only thing that could arouse his interest was that some officials had submitted memorials to the emperor, admonishing him that the three officials were officials who sat and discussed the truth, and that they should not be vacant. Now that the positions of Si Tu and Si Kong were vacant, we should select talented people to fill them.

This was also the only private document he wrote.

Because this memorial reminded him that Grand Marshal Sima Yi was about to return to the court.

Therefore, his suggestion was "I, your servant Hui, think that it is advisable to listen to it. The Three Dukes are responsible for harmonizing yin and yang, and this cannot be left out."

With Cao Rui's intelligence, he would surely be able to figure out what he meant - Sima Yi, who was "the hope of the whole court", was about to come back, so he had to select senior and important ministers to serve as the Minister of Civil Affairs and the Minister of Works to check and balance him!

In addition, a small matter worth mentioning is that someone has been promoting his good name recently.

The reason was that those officers in the central army who had asked to resign due to illness or request to be transferred to other places some time ago, under the suggestion of Cao Rui, were granted their wishes by the officials with extremely high efficiency.

Vacant positions are gradually being filled.

The eleven generals and officers who had been evaluated by Xiahou Hui were all given actual powers as Cao Rui had said.

Zhu Shu, a meritorious man who had been suppressed for several years and felt frustrated, was later promoted to the position of Right Prime Minister, a subordinate of the General of the Tiger Guards.

Although the salary was not high, the duties were to serve as a guard and attendant, and there was also the opportunity to lead troops to follow the emperor in person. Only close and noble relatives could hold this position.

In a sense, he had caught the emperor's eye.

There is no need to worry about not having the opportunity to transfer in the future, and when you are sent out, you will start with 2,000 stones.

There is just one bad thing, the Tiger Guards General is under the command of Guanglu Xun.

He still refused to accept Jiang Ji's control.

But he was also very satisfied.

On the day he received the transfer order, he held a banquet to entertain relatives, friends and colleagues who came to congratulate him, and said a lot of "drunk words" under the influence of alcohol.

For example, he spoke with shame about how he sent a lot of money to the An Ning Ting Marquis' Mansion after Xiahou Hui took up the position of Central Guard General, but then ran back to get it in disgrace - this was praising Xiahou Hui for recruiting people based on their talents, and was a subtle satire on Jiang Ji for recruiting people based on their wealth.

For example, he talked about how he had been holding an empty title in the central army and had been idle for five or six years, but now that the emperor valued him, he swore to be loyal to his duty and die in repayment - this was an accusation that he had been oppressed by Xiahou Xian for several years, and finally waited for Xiahou Hui to take office, and then he soon saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

There are also some scattered nonsense.

Anyway, ever since he held this banquet, the meritorious young men have been spreading a saying among themselves: "Xiahou is always Xiahou, but Xiahou is not Xiahou."

It points out very bluntly that Xiahou Xian cannot be compared with Xiahou Hui.

It is said that when Xiahou Xian, who served as the governor of Henan, heard this, he immediately drew his sword and smashed the screen and table into pieces, just like his great-grandfather Xiahou Dun, who was called "Blind Xiahou" and became furious when he looked in the mirror and smashed it to pieces.

However, Xiahou Dun was sad about his lost appearance, while Xiahou Xian was angry about his damaged reputation.

When Xiahou Hui learned about it, he just smiled.

But his elder brother Xiahou Heng was different. He directly asked someone to pay attention to Xiahou Xian's whereabouts.

as predicted.

It was soon discovered that Xiahou Xian visited Cao Zhao and Cao Shuang successively within one day.

The difference is that when he came out of Cao Zhao's house, he was expressionless and in a hurry; but when he left Cao Shuang's house, he held hands with Cao Shuang who came out to see him off for a long time and said goodbye.

As for Qin Lang
He still refuses visitors and lives in seclusion.

In the midst of the chaos, spring arrived in March. Emperor Cao Rui came to court and issued an edict, changing the fifth year of Taihe to the first year of Yuan Jingchu, and changing the calendar to the fourth month of the first summer. Because Wei was blessed with earth virtue, the color of clothing was yellow and the sacrifices were white, so the Taihe calendar was changed to the Jingchu calendar.

All the states and counties and governors successively submitted memorials to congratulate Wei on its achievements, and Sima Yi, the Grand Marshal who was still in Chang'an, was no exception.

The difference is that it was his eldest son Sima Shi who submitted the memorial on his behalf.

This is also a common thing.

Since Sima Shi's official career was restricted, he stayed with his father for at least six months a year, not only taking care of trivial chores on his behalf, but also participating in military decision-making.

It can be said that Sima Yi’s training of his eldest son was not through words and deeds, but rather he treated him as a deputy or aide.

"Your Majesty, seeing how much you trust this boy, does Ziyuan still insist on his old opinion?"

After casually glancing at the memorial praising the emperor's merits, Sima Yi directly sent someone to send it out with his seal. Then he found a copy from the pile of documents and handed it to Sima Shi who was sitting beside him.

Sima Shi did not answer immediately.

After taking the silk book and reading it, it turned out to be a transfer order from the capital Luoyang: many generals and officers of the central army in Luoyang were transferred to Yongliang to take up posts.

Jiang Ji had already mentioned this matter in a letter.

Because these people got to their positions by bribing Jiang Ji, and now they want to be transferred to other places, the person who asked for help is also Jiang Ji.

It is better to do something familiar than to do something new.

Jiang Ji, who had already been transferred to Guanglu Xun, didn't want to pay attention to it at first.

After all, this matter had caused a lot of uproar in the capital, and Emperor Cao Rui was watching, so he didn't want to get involved in this mess.

However, the elders of these people kept coming to them to plead their case, and out of consideration for their relationship (they had given too much), they wrote letters to Sima Yi, asking him if he could spare a few unnecessary jobs for them in Yongliang.

Sima Yi, who had a close personal relationship with Jiang Ji, did not stand idly by.

It's just a favor anyway.

Last year, Emperor Cao Rui allowed him to resign from his post as Governor of Yongliang. Now he is in charge of deploying defenses in various places and dividing the troops among various departments!
He reported the merits and hard work of some generals and asked the emperor to transfer them to other duties; then he promoted the deputy positions in order, and the vacancies would naturally be filled. After some operations, the emperor transferred the incompetent people in the central army, and Jiang Ji was able to retain his face, and everyone was happy.

No wonder he is so famous in the court and the country.

And when he asked Sima Shi now, it was because he remembered that Sima Shi had regarded Xiahou Hui as his future opponent a long time ago.

Now that Xiahou Huijian is in the emperor's favor and his power is beginning to show, do you still want to insist on opposing him?
"Father, the emperor has always been in the emperor's heart, and it is not just today that he has started to do so."

After glancing at the transfer order, Sima Shi replied, "Besides, whether I will oppose him or not is not up to me to decide, but is determined by the circumstances. I believe that my father is well aware of this, so why bother testing me with words!"

"Hahaha~"

Sima Yi, who was exposed, stroked his beard and said happily, "I have nothing to do, so I enjoy joking."

He was indeed testing his words in order to boost Sima Shi's fighting spirit.

Just as Sima Shi said, Xiahou Hui was cultivated by Cao Rui as a pillar of the Cao Wei country. As the heir of "the hope of the court and the people", how could he not be pushed by others to compete with Xiahou Hui?

Especially since he is about to return to the center of the power vortex.

From now on, no matter what happens in the court, the court officials will keep a close eye on it and pay attention to his opinions.

The honor of fame and position is also a burden that he must bear.

Of course, he cannot easily express his opinion on many things.

In order to avoid being used by court officials, he passively became an advocate.

Just as Jiang Ji claimed in his early memorials that Liu Fang and Sun Zi had too much power and that there should be no "exclusive" power in the government, some people are now impeaching Liu and Sun for usurping power and are still adding Jiang Ji's words to their memorials.

Furthermore, if there really was something that required a statement, he couldn't just lose his status and go into battle bare-handed to compete with Xiahou Hui, a junior, right?
Sima Shi is a very good spokesperson.

Scholars without official positions could be more casual when discussing state affairs; and all court officials knew that Sima Shi's opinions were his own.

"Besides, Father may have neglected something."

Sima Shi did not laugh, but continued to speak seriously, "Time flies, day and night. It has been several decades since Emperor Wu started his campaign to defeat Dong Zhuo and start his business. The old friend is gone, and the name has been divided. The Xiahou of today is no longer the Xiahou of the past!"

"My son, be careful with your words."

Sima Yi put away his smile, gave a light rebuke, and then retorted, "The Xiahou and Cao clans have been relatives for generations, sharing weal and woe. Moreover, the great generals of the royal family have died, and the governors of Qiao and Pei are in a period of transition. Your Majesty is a wise ruler, how can you allow the Xiahou clan to be divided into the present and the past!"

"Indeed, the situation is just as my father said."

This time, Sima Shi smiled and said, "Father, have you forgotten that the two Xiahous in the past both made great contributions to the country, but one was enshrined in the Taizu Temple in the first year of Qinglong, and the other is still the 'General Baidi'? And let me ask you, father, is there any time when the 'General Baidi' will be more ashamed?"

Of course it is impossible. To clear Xiahou Yuan's name is to accuse Emperor Wu of his faults.
It is unreasonable for the successor emperor not to avoid mentioning the name of Emperor Wu.

Sima Yi drooped his eyelids and did not answer, making the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes more obvious due to his smile.

"In my opinion, Xiahou Zhi's power is not to be feared. His majesty's favor is increasing, and his power is rising day by day, but he has not yet reached his limit. If he does, it will be like 'the sun will set when it is at noon, and the moon will be eclipsed when it is full'. On the other hand, I am still a commoner, and I can act freely in everything without any constraints. How can I be defeated!" (End of this chapter)