Wei Ni

Time is of the essence!
My reputation and abilities are inherently inferior to others, and this will only diminish over time. If I were to sit idly by and wait for the right opportunity to arise without taking any action, it would be tantamount to cutting myself off from the court.

This was Cao Shuang's response when Xiahou Xuan tried to dissuade him again.

This not only left Xiahou Xuan with no reason to persuade him, but also earned him strong support from He Yan, who even devised a new plan for him to seize power.

Let's start with the fact that Man Chong is about to return to the court.

Just a few days after Sun Li returned to the capital, Man Chong's memorial requesting to resign and return to the capital due to old age became another matter for Emperor Cao Fang to discuss among the officials.

There's really nothing to discuss about this.

In his memorial, Man Chong not only earnestly claimed that he was old and his eyesight was failing and his energy was insufficient to fulfill the duties of the governor, but also revealed that the court, considering that he was already eighty years old, wished to let him return to see his descendants before he died.

As a veteran official who had served in local posts since the time of Cao Cao, neither Emperor Cao Fang nor the high-ranking officials could refuse his request. It just so happened that the Grand Commandant's office, a largely nominal position, was vacant, making it suitable for him to retire there.

Therefore, what the officials and nobles in the imperial court were really discussing was the deployment of the Huainan front after he returned to the capital.

The selection of Wang Ling as the General Who Conquers the East is unnecessary and requires no further discussion.

The key question is whether Wang Ling should continue to serve concurrently as the governor of Yangzhou, and if not, who should be appointed to the post.

In He Yan's view, Xiahou Hui, who had served in Huainan in his early years, would certainly not sit idly by and watch the power of the Huainan war zone be seized by others.

In particular, given that he had not been on good terms with Wang Ling before, and now that Cao Shuang had recruited Wang Guang as an Attendant Gentleman, he would certainly strive to place his own confidant in the position of Governor of Yangzhou.

Therefore, He Yan suggested that Cao Shuang recommend General Yanglie, Wang Chang, for a new position.

Wang Chang was certainly not a confidant of Cao Shuang, and they had never even had any contact. He was an outsider who was closer to Sima Yi.

Similar to Guo Huai, Wang Chang was a minister in the household of Emperor Wen of Han (Cao Pi) before he became emperor. This led to his association with Sima Yi, one of Emperor Wen's four friends, and they maintained a friendly relationship due to their geographical proximity. For example, when Emperor Ming of Han (Cao Rui) issued an edict to his ministers to recommend virtuous and capable officials, Sima Yi recommended Wang Chang.

He Yan's suggestion was not intended to win over Wang Chang or gain Sima Yi's favor through Cao Shuang's recommendation.

This is impossible.

He just wanted to stir things up and cause Xiahou Hui more trouble.

Wang Chang would be a very suitable candidate.

Firstly, Wang Chang's status, experience, and abilities made him suitable to serve as the governor of Yangzhou.

Furthermore, he and Wang Ling were from the same hometown, and he had treated Wang Ling as an elder brother in his early years. Going to Huainan would not provoke the strong-willed Wang Ling's resentment, and there would be no repeat of Wang Ling's previous framing of Man Chong and impeachment of Wen Qin. From the perspective of maintaining harmony among the generals on the front lines of resisting the Wu rebels, Cao Shuang's recommendation was reasonable, and the officials in the court would also consider it carefully.

Another possibility is that Wang Chang, who was recommended by Sima Yi, could not be elected.

After all, Sima Yi had already commanded the battles in Jingxiang and Yongliang, so how could the officials in the court possibly approve of Wang Chang going to Huainan again?

The Wei dynasty ultimately belonged to the Cao family.

The matter of being in a compromising situation didn't require Sima Yi to refute it; his close ministers proactively refuted it to avoid suspicion on his behalf.

Coincidentally, He Yan wanted the high-ranking officials to refute Cao Shuang's recommendation.

Because if Cao Shuang were to oppose this matter, he could then suggest that Sima Shi be appointed as the Palace Attendant without facing much opposition.

In any case, Cao Shuang was a regent minister, so the officials had to give him some face, right?
Moreover, Sima Yi had already been transferred to the position of Grand Tutor and relinquished the power of holding the position of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat. Cao Shuang proposed that the court grant an official position to his eldest son. Wasn't this an unwritten tacit understanding in the imperial court?

How could the officials and nobles possibly object!

What truly prompted Cao Shuang to heed this suggestion was He Yan's explanation of the reasons, followed by the statement, "Currently, the positions of Commander of the Central Army and Protector of the Central Army are still vacant. If Sima Ziyuan is granted these positions, Zhao Bo may be able to compete for one of these two positions."

Cao Shuang was delighted and encouraged.

He also had the power to command troops and oversee all military affairs, but apart from the three thousand imperial guards within the palace, he could not command any of the central army in Luoyang.

no way.

His prestige in the military was so low that it was practically nonexistent.

Moreover, any troop movement in the central army cannot bypass Xiahou Hui.

Furthermore, before Sima Shi was appointed to the position, there were no suitable candidates to compete for these two official posts.

Given the current situation of a young ruler and a suspicious state, the military power of the central army in Luoyang has become extremely sensitive, meaning that these two positions are not open to anyone other than the sons of the Xiahou, Cao, Qiao, and Pei families.

This is also why, despite the vacancy lasting so long, Minister of Personnel Lu Yu and other officials never proposed that the court select a worthy person to fill the vacancy.

With such restrictions, the only person on Cao Shuang's side who could possibly obtain this position was Xiahou Xuan.

And first of all, the restrictions on official careers must be lifted.

Or rather, even if Xiahou Xuan were to assume one of these two positions, nothing could be done without involving Xiahou Hui.
Why should he waste his energy vying for a nominal position?

But that's not how it works.

If Cao Shuang could control the position of Commander of the Central Army, he would have the opportunity to cultivate his own confidants and followers, gradually gaining control of the military. If he were to become the Commander of the Central Army, he could legitimately accompany the central army from Luoyang on expeditions to reinforce the capital, accumulating merit and prestige within the army. With Longyou secured, he could then aspire to Shu.

If you want to build a tall building, you have to lay a solid foundation first.

As someone who was already at the back of the train and subject to others' control, he naturally understood that doing something would definitely be twice as effective with half the effort.

Soon, with the unanimous approval of the officials in the court, Man Chong was recalled due to old age and promoted to Grand Commandant; Wang Ling succeeded him as General Who Conquers the East. However, on the question of whether he should still concurrently serve as Governor of Yangzhou, the officials in the court had different opinions.

The reason why Wang Ling was allowed to continue to hold the position was that Wei's Yangzhou now only had a few counties, and each county governor was also given the title of general to supervise troops. There was no need to send another governor of Yangzhou with multiple powers to cause more trouble.

Those who disagree have considered things more deeply.

The reason was that although Wang Ling was a man of both literary and military talent, he was about to turn seventy. For the sake of the future stability of the Huainan front, it was appropriate to promote a governor of Yangzhou to go there as soon as possible to familiarize himself with the affairs of Huainan and the soldiers, in preparation for any eventuality.

Both sides had valid points, so the situation remained deadlocked for the time being.

Of the three ministers who could make the decision, Sima Yi, who had been living in seclusion, did not come to the East Hall to participate in the discussion today, and Cao Shuang and Xiahou Hui were also in no hurry to express their opinions.

Cao Shuang acted out of fear and emboldened.

In his view, the consensus reached by the officials was that Wang Ling would not be allowed to hold the position concurrently.

The reason is also very simple.

With a young ruler and a state in turmoil, even Sima Yi voluntarily relinquished his power as Minister of the Imperial Secretariat. How could Wang Ling possibly control both the military and political affairs of Huainan? Even if the court granted him this power, would he dare to accept it?
Xiahou Hui's silence indicated that he didn't care.

Yes, he felt that both situations were acceptable.

Contrary to what others privately speculated that he valued military power in the Huainan War Zone, he actually didn't care at all.

If you gentlemen still think it's best to choose someone to go, as long as the candidate is capable, he intends to follow your advice.

Those in positions of authority should fulfill their responsibilities.

His priority was to ensure the stability of the Wei dynasty, and then everything else.

Now that Cao Zuan and Xu Yun are both in Huainan, if he were to send another trusted confidant there, it could destabilize the Huainan front.

However, if the high-ranking officials prefer that Wang Ling continue to hold the position...
Since Sun Li returned to the capital, no one in the court understood the current situation in Huainan better than him. He knew that Wang Ling was a man with a strong desire for power, but he was still quite competent on the Huainan front, and his concurrent appointment as governor of Yangzhou would also help him better defend against the invasion of the bandit Wu.

And the fact that Wang Ling is currently in charge does not mean that he cannot step down in the future!
When the war in Haidong ended and Guanqiu Jian returned victorious, he used the rewards bestowed upon the generals of Haidong by Emperor Ming and the fact that Guanqiu Jian was capable of serving as governor to transfer him to Yangzhou as a candidate for governor.

With the power to command all military affairs both inside and outside the capital, and the mere position of Governor of Yangzhou, he had no reason to be so eager to install his cronies and ruin the humble persona he had cultivated over the years.

However, what he did not expect was that Cao Shuang would recommend Wang Chang.

When the officials in the court had reached a consensus that it was inappropriate for Wang Ling to concurrently lead the position, Cao Shuang suddenly spoke up, catching everyone off guard.

The officials were surprised because they couldn't immediately understand why Cao Shuang had recommended Wang Chang.

Grand Tutor Sima Yi isn't even participating in today's court meeting, so why is Cao Shuang still mentioning Wang Chang? Does he really think that he can win over those who are on good terms with Sima Yi and use them for his own purposes by simply showing them some goodwill?
Xiahou Hui, however, was more surprised than anything else.

Having long been prepared for Cao Shuang to vie for power, he suddenly realized that Cao Shuang had improved quite quickly and was no longer as naive as before.
"Do any of you gentlemen have any objections to the General of Chariots and Cavalry's proposal?"

After Dongtang fell silent because of Cao Shuang's words, Xiahou Hui, who already knew the outcome, still asked a pointless question as part of the procedure.

That's definitely nonsense.

Under these circumstances, no one would dare to slap Cao Shuang in the face.

Especially since they speculated that Xiahou Hui wanted to send his confidants to Huainan. Therefore, there was no need to get involved in the conflict between the two regents and become Xiahou Hui's pawn, was there?
There was another period of silence.

Xiahou Hui's gaze swept over everyone present, and after confirming that no one was willing to speak, he said, "Since you gentlemen have no objections, then let us present this to His Majesty."

After saying this, he got up and left, leaving everyone bewildered.

Cao Shuang's eyes widened in surprise.

He never expected that Xiahou Hui would second his recommendation!

How could this be?
Things shouldn't have turned out this way!

First, Xu Yun was appointed as the Prefect of Anfeng, and now Wang Chang is appointed as the Governor of Yangzhou. Xiahou Hui approved both appointments without hesitation. What reason does he have to recommend Sima Shi? He also has to save face and consider public opinion. He can't keep recommending people over and over again, can he?

Returning to his residence with this frustration, he summoned He Yan and Xiahou Xuan to discuss the matter.

He Yan was speechless. After regaining his senses, he apologized to Cao Shuang for his improper plan.

Cao Shuang certainly wouldn't blame him.

After their discussions failed and they dispersed, he privately sought out Xiahou Xuan and asked, "In Taichu's opinion, does Zhiquan have no intention of plotting against me?" (End of Chapter)