Wei Ni

A wise man does not deceive himself in the dark.

Xiahou Xuan, who was known for his integrity and refrained from speaking ill of others, pondered for a moment before answering Cao Shuang's question, saying, "Ping Shu is Emperor Wu's adopted son, his wife is a princess, and his family's property is not abundant."

"That scoundrel!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Cao Shuang gritted his teeth and cursed.

He Yan was well aware of his arrogant, deceitful, greedy, and lustful nature after many years of getting to know him, but what he didn't expect was that even after entering the court as a minister, he still didn't know how to restrain himself, and that this had even reached Xiahou Hui's ears!

Did he not realize that in facilitating Xiahou Hui's appointment as Minister of the Imperial Court, he was openly mocked by Xiahou Hui in the imperial court?

I tried my best to keep him in office, but instead of doing my job well to serve the court and consolidate my power, he acted recklessly in office, attracting gossip and criticism, which only made me more criticized for my poor personnel management.

How could this be!

"Ugh!"

Cao Shuang, growing angrier the more he thought about it, looked at Xiahou Xuan, who had been urging him to come and negotiate peace, and sighed sincerely, "Yan is utterly useless, far inferior to Taichu. In the past, I only sent someone to give Taichu an official position, but now I regret it."

“Zhao Bo has gone too far.”

Faced with Cao Shuang's reckless words, Xiahou Xuan quickly advised, "To know one's mistakes and correct them is the greatest virtue. Besides, Ping Shu has not committed any major offense. If Zhao Bo offers some advice the next day, it may not be impossible to restrain him. Moreover, Ping Shu has always regarded himself as Zhao Bo's confidant and has diligently offered Zhao Bo advice and consideration for all matters, big and small. How could Zhao Bo possibly have any opinion on whether I am better or worse than him, or any words of regret?"

"Yes, Taichu is absolutely right. I was just indignant for a moment."

Cao Shuang, who was always open to advice, immediately nodded in agreement and reflected on his own actions.

However, the next day, he specially summoned He Yan and had a heart-to-heart talk with him about what happened the night before and Xiahou Hui's warning. After He Yan restrained his behavior, he even gave him this encouragement.

"Initially, Ping Shu and Tai Chu were both renowned in the capital, admired by scholars throughout the land. Now, even Tai Chu has not dared to deviate from his principles; how can Ping Shu tarnish his reputation and give others ammunition to criticize him? I urge you to strive for this!"

He didn't say anything wrong; his words and tone were full of deep affection.

But He Yan interpreted it all differently: he keenly noticed two points.

Firstly, Xiahou Hui mentioned that he had behaved improperly.

This means that Cao Shuang was unaware of the situation beforehand, and must have confirmed it with Xiahou Xuan's words before giving him this warning today.

Another reason is that Cao Shuang only took Xiahou Xuan with him to negotiate.

Although they were not completely estranged, he was still one of Cao Shuang's trusted confidants. It was one thing that he wasn't included in the future distribution of benefits, but he only found out about it afterward because he was being warned? Moreover, in order to get Xiahou Xuan into the position of Minister, Cao Shuang argued hard during the peace talks and almost had a falling out with Xiahou Hui on the spot.

Put yourself in their shoes~
He had always done his best for Cao Shuang, but the favoritism he received was a bit too much!
He Yan, who accepted the admonition with a look of shame and repeatedly promised that he would restrain his behavior in the future and would never bring any more negative comments to Cao Shuang, was filled with resentment.

He also secretly planted a seed of resentment towards Xiahou Xuan.

Just like when he was entrusted by Cao Shuang to go to Qiao County to find Ding Mi and resolve the rift, but deliberately destroyed it for his own benefit, it was a case of jealousy.

Cao Shuang was unaware of He Yan's psychological decline and changes.

Conversely, He Yan's confident promise satisfied him, allowing him to overlook the matter and begin to ambitiously embrace the benefits of resolving his rift with Xiahou Hui.

It is no coincidence.

The successful peace talks brought Xiahou Hui a sense of joy, like finally seeing a ray of dawn after walking through a long night.

So he suddenly became a heavy drinker.

For several days in a row, day and night, he held banquets in his mansion, inviting guests to enjoy themselves and get drunk together.

The guests during the day were naturally meritorious individuals who had returned from Haidong, such as Zhuge Dan; while those who drank together at night were Ding Mi, Fu Gu, Yu Song, and Jia Chong.

To put it bluntly, he was consolidating the hard-won breakthrough.

For example, he and Ding Mi and others sorted out which official positions in Jizhou and Bingzhou they wanted to obtain and which could be placed in positions, and then privately informed the people they wanted to appoint, and instructed them on what to do after they were appointed to their posts.

It is worth mentioning that he finally brought Wang Jun under his command.

This ambitious and talented man, eager for fame and fortune, resolutely resigned from his official post and went to Liaodong to seek military merit. He was under the command of Xiahou Ba. Upon his return, he carried a letter of recommendation from Xiahou Ba, which was full of praise, and was taken by Zhuge Dan to Xiahou Hui's banquet.

Xiahou Hui made him feel highly valued with just one sentence.

"Why is the governance of scholars so delayed!"

When Zhuge Dan introduced him, he didn't even have time to bow before Xiahou Hui stood up and eagerly took his hand to "question" him.

He was, of course, completely baffled by this.

After Xiahou Hui delivered the letters recommending him to Du Shu, the governor of Hedong, and Meng Kang, the governor of Hongnong, he also mocked himself for his past as the commander of the Central Army. After receiving the letters, he went to Chongwen Temple every day to wait for a "chance encounter" with Wang Jun, but Wang Jun would rather go to Liaodong than even look at him.

Upon hearing this, Wang Jun quickly apologized, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

If he had known earlier that both Du Shu and Meng Kang had recommended him, why would he have bothered going to that harsh and desolate place of Liaodong to seek fame and fortune and hoping to gain the favor of powerful figures? Who in the court and the countryside didn't know that Xiahou Huijian, when he served as the Commander of the Central Army, was favored by the Emperor and was someone the late Emperor had generously cultivated and promoted? So, after leaving his hometown, bidding farewell to his wife and children, and risking his life on the battlefield for over a year, he had come full circle, returning to where he started?
Of course, no path in life is wasted; every step counts.

Before he could even produce Xiahou Ba's letter of recommendation, Xiahou Hui praised his ambition to travel a great distance for fame and fortune, and even asked if he would be willing to be recruited into the General's office as an aide. Did he even need to ask such a question?
Seriously!

Several days later, the imperial court issued an imperial edict.

These are all personnel appointments.

First, citing the need to maintain peace in the north, Qin Lang was relieved of his post as military commander in the Hetao region and transferred to the position of governor of Liangzhou and concurrently appointed as the Protector of the Qiang. The original governor, Xu Miao, was recalled and promoted to the position of Commandant of the Capital Region for his merits in pacifying the local area and suppressing rebellions.

Secondly, citing the reasons of the rebellion against Shu and the disloyalty of the bandit Wu, and their repeated invasions, additional troops were established and commanders were selected to provide support for the front lines.

This arrangement was modeled after that of the late Emperor Cao Rui, with General Guanqiu Jian stationed at Fangcheng Xia Road in Wancheng, Jingzhou, which would allow him to provide support to both Yongliang and Jingxiang.

At that time, General Hui stepped forward and, on the grounds that the rebellious Shu was already weak while the bandit Wu was still strong and frequently invaded Huainan, recommended Cao Zhao to lead the General Who Conquers the Barbarians and to be appointed as the Governor of Yuzhou.

The courtiers all agreed to this, and the emperor approved it.

Immediately afterwards, General Shuang of Chariots and Cavalry stepped forward again, and citing Hui's words, recommended Bi Gui to be appointed as General of the Eastern Central Army and Military Governor of Xuzhou, and placed under the command of General Wang Ling, who was in charge of the Eastern Expedition.

This recommendation caused a moment of deathly silence in the imperial court.

Despite the prior agreement, Xiahou Hui remained silent for a moment before finally agreeing.

“Gui is an old friend of the late emperor when he was still a prince. Although he suffered a defeat in battle in his early years, he was able to persevere and went to the East Sea to fight on the front lines as a commoner. It is not unreasonable for him to be reappointed now.”

With both regents approving, the officials and ministers no longer had any objections.

What they care about more at this moment is that Xiahou Hui and Cao Shuang have reached a reconciliation, which has changed the power structure of the court.

Whether Bi Gui abandoned Cao Zhao and switched sides to join Cao Shuang, or whether Cao Zhao and Cao Shuang rekindled their relationship, was something that Grand Tutor Sima Yi and General Xiahou Hui needed to focus on.

However, Grand Tutor Sima Yi remained silent.

Even when Jiang Ji, who had impeached and dismissed Bi Gui in his early years, glanced at him with a restless look, he seemed oblivious and unmoved.

After the court session ended.

Xiahou Hui, who had returned to the General's Office, sought out Jia Chong to inquire about the matter.

Jia Chong, naturally, dared not speak carelessly about this. He could only cautiously inquire whether he should go and subtly probe Xiahou Xuan. After asking, he added, "The General of Chariots and Cavalry appears humble, but in reality, he is outwardly magnanimous but inwardly jealous and quite stubborn. Since the General has already agreed, asking again would likely be detrimental to the present situation."

That's definitely inappropriate.

Moreover, Xiahou Hui only asked Jia Chong to look at and analyze it; he did not instruct him to question him.

Therefore, after letting Jia Chong do as he pleased, he summoned Han Long, the subordinate in charge of secret military affairs, and ordered him to send someone to keep a close eye on the movements of Cao Zhao and Cao Shuang.

This is not because he is overly controlling or nitpicky.

Rather, it was Cao Zhao's choice that concerned how he would "coexist peacefully" with Cao Shuang, both now and in the future.

The residence of the Marquis of Dongxiang.

The streets outside the gate, which had been deserted for more than two years, have recently begun to see more traffic.

That's because Chen Ben and Chen Qian's mourning period had ended.

Therefore, Minister Chen Jiao lived up to his name, being a righteous minister praised by the late Emperor Cao Rui and widely regarded as a man of integrity by the court and the common people. It was only natural that he would leave a legacy of goodwill to his descendants, and as a result, some well-informed people, relatives, and old friends came to visit him one after another.

However, after returning from mourning, the Chen brothers lived a secluded life, and even their younger brother Chen Zhi, who had not yet entered officialdom, was confined to his home.

It seems that there is a sense of avoiding association with powerful figures before being reinstated in the imperial court, thus giving others grounds for criticism and accusations of being overly eager for a career advancement.

However, the real reason was that the two brothers had different opinions.

As sons of officials living in the capital city of Luoyang, they could not escape the vortex of power in the imperial court.

The two brothers had discussed their future plans more than once, as the mourning period was about to end.

Chen Ben was a man of genuine character, and Chen Qian was resourceful and adept at navigating life.

Based on the previous situation when Chen Jiao was still alive, such matters concerning the family's reputation were usually decided by Chen Qian, while Chen Ben encouraged himself to be friendly and respectful to his elder brother.

But this time it was the opposite.

In Chen Qian's view, his father was known for his outspokenness as an official. He even dared to say to the late Emperor Cao Rui that Sima Yi was "the hope of the court and the people; the fate of the state is unknown." Naturally, he had no close associates in the court.

Therefore, with the late Emperor Cao Rui, our greatest support, now deceased, and amidst the turbulent political landscape of the three regents vying for power, it is best for us to remain silent, prudent, and inactive in order to preserve our own safety.

Before making any plans, one should first plan for oneself.

Since their family was already of high rank, their children had no worries about the future.

But Chen Ben's view was completely different from his. (End of Chapter)