Wei Ni

How can a fish stuck in an ox's hoof last long?
Even if they are not killed by the midday sun, they will die when the water level dries up in a few days.

Linghu Yu knew the answer, and he also knew that the "fish" that Xiahou Hui mentioned for no reason was actually the homonym of his own name.

Therefore, when he first heard it, his inner reaction was that Xiahou Hui was implicitly conveying the message that Emperor Cao Rui was hinting at him to commit suicide so that he could take all the blame for the collapse of the Luoyang Diannong Department.

After all, Emperor Cao Rui has restarted the investigation!

This means that the emperor was very dissatisfied with the results of the previous investigation and could not accept that the main reason for the starvation and freezing to death of scholars was that the palace labor was too frequent and the farming season was repeatedly delayed.

Therefore, he had to commit suicide out of fear of punishment to cover up the truth and allow this investigation to have a happy ending for everyone.

Everyone is happy.

As long as he died with all the blame on his shoulders, the previous Generals of Agriculture would be acquitted; those powerful families who had embezzled the land would also be relieved because the witness was dead; and the officials in the temple could use his death as an excuse to persuade Emperor Cao Rui to issue an edict to close the case, in order to bring peace to the country and the people's hearts.

With such great benefits, who would not expect him to die?
He was just a General of Agriculture. It didn't matter whether he was wronged or not. What mattered was that his death was more valuable.

Not to mention that he himself is guilty.
On the road to power, justice does not lie in the hearts of the people, but right and wrong lies only in the circumstances.

Hey~
Linghu Yu, who was able to be reinstated after being imprisoned, was too familiar with the dirty tricks of power politics. So after analyzing himself in his mind, he felt that his fate was already determined.

He tried hard to suppress the unrest in his heart and made himself as calm as possible so as to answer Xiahou Hui's questions.

A gentleman shall not take off his hat even after his death.

He did not dare to compare himself to Zilu, but he also could not let others talk about him being terrified and sad when he was dying and having no character of a scholar.

Call ~
After exhaling a breath, he glanced around at his colleagues who were quietly waiting for his answer. When he opened his mouth to speak, he quickly closed it again.

Because in this moment, he suddenly discovered something strange.

If Xiahou Hui was conveying the emperor's hint for him to commit suicide, he should have said it in private. How could he be asked in public?

When questioned, he committed suicide.
After the people present spread the story, even a fool would know that it was Emperor Cao Rui who ordered it, right?

Although Xiahou Hui was known as a reckless man in the court, he would not disregard the emperor's dignity. At least his aide Ding Mi would not let such a thing happen.

So, he was asking me if I was willing to cooperate?
A fish caught in an ox's hoof cannot last long.

But if someone was willing to give it a hand and throw the fish into the ditch, the fish would have escaped!
That must be the case!
Thinking of this, Linghu Yu, as if welcoming a ray of light in the darkness, stopped being silent and replied loudly, "General Xiahou, I think that whether the fish can stay in the cow's hoof for a long time does not depend on the fish, but on whether the person who sees the fish has good intentions."

"Hahaha~ This is a great idea."

Suddenly, Xiahou Hui laughed heartily, praised, then dismounted and walked into the office.

It also made Linghu Yu feel relieved.

He knew he was right.

Emperor Cao Rui had no intention of killing him, and he temporarily let Xiahou Hui go.

It's just temporary.

He must definitely bear the blame for the collapse of the Luoyang Diannong Department.

But the outcome of the punishment, such as death, exile a thousand miles away, dismissal, demotion, reprimand, etc., all depended on Xiahou Hui's decision when he submitted the memorial to the court for final decision; it could also be said that it depended on the degree of his cooperation.

This is what is meant by "I am the fish and others are the butchers".

He hurriedly followed them into the office. After Xiahou Hui and others took their seats one after another, Linghu Yu consciously began to report the details to the Luoyang Department of Agriculture, such as the number of households of scholars, the number of oxen and military farms, the cattle and sheep raised, and the production of grain, fodder, mulberry and cloth over the years.

He first talked about the situation when Wang Chang was in office, and then talked about the actual situation when he first took office and now.

He gave the most detailed account of the specific reasons for the sharp decline in the number of scholar households.

The actual number of soldiers' families who had fled, palace servants who had died, those who had followed the army to the battlefield and never returned, those who had been injured, sick, starved or frozen, those who had been demanding money from the powerful and wealthy, and those who had been secretly hiding were all reported without any reservations.

It can be said that if these contents were passed on to the Chief Justice Gao Rou, the prisons in Luoyang City would be overcrowded.

Therefore, Ding Mi, who was in charge of recording matters this time, would occasionally droop his brows, put down his pen and take a nap to rest; Shi Er, who had to report all matters, big or small, to the emperor in secret, would hide among his many followers and write quietly.

Xiahou Hui listened quietly, with no change in expression. Only when Linghu Yu paused occasionally did he nod slightly to signal him to continue.

It’s not that he doesn’t want to get to the bottom of it.

But he knew very clearly that even if he presented this shocking confession to the emperor, he would not be able to convince Cao Rui to investigate further.

The essence of power lies in exploitation.

The Wei Kingdom was born from the ruins of the Han Dynasty. The emperors of the Wei Dynasty were the highest beneficiaries of power and the heaviest exploiters. Therefore, in order to stabilize the country, he had to let others have a share and choose to turn a blind eye to things that did not affect the interests of the Wei Dynasty. Otherwise, why did the Wei Dynasty let these former ministers of the Han Dynasty willingly endorse the legitimacy of the Wei Dynasty?

Big fish eat small fish, small fish eat shrimp. The privileged class will never die, and exploitation will always exist.

The only difference is the method.

Xiahou Hui, who has lived two lives, is very clear about this.

So he would not do anything in vain, but just wanted to make the world a better place as much as possible.

After all, when people are sick, they just need to take medicine; but when the world is sick, people need to be eaten.

"General Xiahou, I have explained the details of the Luoyang Diannong Department. If there is anything you don't understand, please let me know and I will explain it in detail."

After a long pause, Linghu Yu finished his words and ended with this sentence.

"Well, thank you."

After thinking about it for a while, Xiahou Hui smiled and stood up. "There is nothing I don't understand. However, there is one thing I need General Linghu's help with."

"Yes, General, please give me your instructions."

Seeing Xiahou Hui's smile, Linghu Yu felt relieved and quickly bowed, saying, "It is my duty to do this."

"Wait a moment."

After instructing Ding Mi, Yu Song and others to sort out the documents for record, Xiahou Hui walked out of the office and called Linghu Yu, "General Linghu, please accompany me to Henan City and bring the register of the scholars. There are a few scholars who have fled there, about 40 or 50 families."

There are actually forty or fifty dead families in Henan City?

How come I don’t know about such a huge amount! ?

Hearing this, Linghu Yu's eyes were a little dazed.

When Xiahou Hui, who had already walked out of the office, turned back and urged him with his eyes, he finally reacted and suddenly realized something. He hurriedly took the registration book and followed.

Henan City is very close to the Luoyang Diannong Department, so it is impossible for it to hide the fleeing scholars.

Therefore, the "lost household" mentioned by Xiahou Hui refers to the tenant of that small farm.

Although he was very busy and anxious these days, Linghu Yu still knew about the abnormal treatment of Guanjin Marquis Guo Biao to this small manor. And out of confusion, he sent a confidant to the mansion to ask about it.

The reason for his worry was not because he had any friendship with Guo Biao, and Empress Dowager Guo had passed away long ago, but because Guo Biao's move would lead to uncertain consequences.

To put it bluntly, he was worried that this small farm would give Xiahou Hui a reason to start a war, which would in turn affect the consequences of the handling of the officials of the Luoyang Department of Agriculture.

No matter what, Xiahou Hui had allowed 700 infantry and cavalry to rest for several days, and his meaning was very clear.

Isn't Guo Biao's lack of tact a deliberate provocation?
Judging from Xiahou Hui's personality, this matter would not be able to end well; and as the General of Agriculture, he would inevitably be implicated!

Linghu Yu, who had just left the government office and jumped on his horse, hesitated for a moment, but eventually drove his horse to Xiahou Hui's side and said softly, "General Xiahou, I have some understanding of the situation in Henan City. For example, the small farm owned by Guanjin Marquis has been sold in the past few days."

Sold?!
No, Xiahou Xian is so stupid to buy it at this critical juncture?
Xiahou Hui pulled the reins slightly, slowed down his horse, and asked with a smile, "Oh? Since General Linghu knows, why not tell us about it? It's just a good way to chat and relieve boredom."

"only."

Linghu Yu responded and spoke in a low voice.

That day, his confidant went to inquire and brought back Guo Biao's reply that a broker had come to his house to make connections, claiming that someone was willing to pay several times the price to buy the land of this small farm including the tenants.

At that time, Guo Biao found this quite strange.

Who in Luoyang city didn't know about the investigation of the scholars' families and that this manor was about to be taken back?
But even though he was puzzled, he did not think much about it in the face of huge benefits, and he transferred the manor very readily. As for who the broker was and who bought the manor, Guo Biao did not say, and Linghu Yu's confidants were not qualified to ask.

"General, I have been quite busy these days, so I have not paid attention to this matter."

After Linghu Yu finished speaking, he hesitated for a moment before continuing, "However, I have some close friends in the capital. Yesterday, one of them sent his followers to talk about some trivial matters, and also mentioned this small farm. The people who claimed to have purchased this small farm did not seem to be wealthy merchants or dignitaries, nor were they just one person, but some soldiers in the central army. Well, they were some soldiers who retired due to injuries."

The soldiers in the central army were retreating due to injuries!
It seems that Xiahou Xian still recruits some talented people.

As soon as he heard it, Xiahou Hui understood it in his heart, and he also knew the viciousness of Xiahou Xian's trick.

Because Wei State did not provide good pensions for disabled retired soldiers, many of them were struggling to make ends meet. If he took back these fields directly, it would undermine his prestige in the army.

That's right, it won't induce mutiny or anything else, but it will make the soldiers in the central army feel cold towards Xiahou Hui - as long as the disabled retired soldiers cry and talk about the difficulties of their livelihood when the small manor is taken back, it will be enough to make all the soldiers feel the same and feel sympathetic. (End of this chapter)