Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

"Tang Zi?" Cao Zhen turned his head and looked at Dong Zhao. "Mr. Dong, I have been in Guanxi for a long time before, and I don't know much about these details. Is there really such a person?"

"Yes." Dong Zhao replied, "The military intelligence that the Secretary of the Central Secretariat Yin Shuping brought back from Wuchang mentioned Tang Zi, saying that he was a general in the Wu navy."

Sima Yi also stroked his beard and said, "I also remember this man's name. In the sixth year of Huangchu, the Licheng County soldier Cai Fang rebelled, and the governor of Donghai, Xu Zhi, was killed. The late emperor then sent the cavalry lieutenant Ren Fu and the infantry lieutenant Duan Zhao to fight against the rebellion, and finally put down the Donghai rebellion."

"At that time, Duan Zhao reported to the late emperor that Tang Zi later fled to the sea and disappeared. I think he can be matched with him."

Cao Zhen nodded and said, "Zi Yang is right. There is no such coincidence in the world. The Wu army would never attack Licheng for no reason. It must be related to Tang Zi."

"If I remember correctly, this is the first time that the Wu army has invaded Wei from the sea. We must not be careless. It is also the first time that Wei has fought back. The outcome of this battle is of great importance." Cao Zhen looked around and said, "You should all come with me to see His Majesty."

"Okay." Dong Zhao responded, stroking his beard.

Chen Jiao also spoke up, "What the general said is absolutely right."

Sima Yi also nodded.

The four ministers and Liu Ye walked out of the cabinet together and headed towards the study room not far away. General Cao Zhen, who was walking in front of them, looked up and saw two horsemen, Zhong Yu and Zhuge Xu, standing on both sides of the study door with their hands behind their backs, as if they were guarding the door, which was different from usual times.

That means there is someone in the study.

After approaching, Cao Zhen asked casually: "Uncle Zhi, is His Majesty in the study?"

"General, His Majesty is inside." Zhong Yu replied with a bow.

Cao Zhen stroked his beard and nodded, "Well, Uncle Zhi, go and tell him right away that the ministers and the Privy Council have something to ask His Majesty."

Unexpectedly, Zhong Yu showed a hint of hesitation on his face: "General, His Majesty is reading in the study. If it's not urgent, why not wait for a while?"

Cao Zhen raised his eyebrows, looked inside the closed door, and said nothing. Dong Zhao and Sima Yi were also silent.

But Chen Jiao asked, "Minister Zhong, the Wu army is invading Donghai County from the sea. This military situation is critical and needs to be dealt with quickly. Let's report it."

"Mr. Chen, please wait a moment." Zhong Yu exchanged a glance with Zhuge Xu, bowed slightly to Chen Jiao, knocked on the door carefully and entered, leaving Zhuge Xu to continue guarding outside the door.

Inside the study, Cao Rui was talking with Guan Lu, a scholar from Chongwen Temple. When he saw Zhong Yu coming in, Cao Rui just stretched out his hand and pointed, indicating that Zhong Yu should stand by the door.

"Is there any way to correct this matter? Is it feasible to think of some way to resolve it?" Cao Rui continued to ask Guan Lu.

"Yes, there is, but there is no other way except moving the grave. The methods of ghosts and gods are not trustworthy and may cause criticism." Guan Lu said in a firm tone.

Cao Rui remained silent.

At the beginning of last year, Guanqiu Xing, who had served as the governor of Jingzhou, died in Luoyang and was buried in Heyin County south of the Yellow River. Guanqiu Xing was a marquis of Wei and had served as the governor of a state. In addition, his son Guanqiu Jian also held an important position, so his funeral was considered grand.

Heyin is not far from Luoyang. Guan Lu passed by Heyin last winter and happened to pass by the tomb of Guanqiu Xing. Looking at the geography of the tomb, he felt something was wrong. He returned to Luoyang and wrote a letter to the emperor who was far away in Luoyang to explain the matter. Cao Rui then issued an oral order, ordering Guan Lu to come to Shouchun in person to explain the matter.

According to Guan Lu, Guanqiu Xing's tomb was an extremely dangerous place that would bring disaster to his descendants. The Black Tortoise hid its head, the Azure Dragon had no feet, the White Tiger held the corpse, and the Vermillion Bird wept. The four dangers were ready, and the clan should be exterminated.

Who is the descendant of Guanqiu Xing? Of course, it is Guanqiu Jian.

Although Cao Rui was not superstitious and did not believe in gods and ghosts, just like the common concept in later generations, one can choose not to believe in gods and ghosts, but if someone said that someone's ancestral tomb was not chosen well and would bring disaster to their descendants, they would still be skeptical.

Feng Shui is not the same as religion.

But the key to the key is that this matter is related to Guanqiu Jian. Others may not know it, but Cao Rui knows it in his heart. Guanqiu Jian in history did not have a good ending. After his failed uprising against the Sima clan, he died and his family was destroyed, just as Guan Lu said.

Cao Rui would definitely not let Guanqiu Jian go through this misfortune again. Even if it was just to eliminate the psychological suggestion, Cao Rui would definitely solve this problem. It was just a piece of cake.

Cao Rui hesitated for a few moments and ordered: "Since relocating the tomb can solve the problem, I will leave this matter to you. Master Guan, after you return to Luoyang, go to Beimang to find a good tomb and report to me. I will then arrange this matter."

"I will obey your majesty's order." Guan Lu bowed and said, "However, according to the terrain of Beimang, what kind of tomb would your majesty like to choose for the Guanqiu family?"

Cao Rui looked at Guan Lu, who explained, "Your Majesty, just tell me the general idea, and I will choose according to your Majesty's wishes."

"Just choose a good tomb suitable for a duke." Cao Rui said calmly: "You have done a good job in Chongwen Temple in the past two years. When this matter is completed, you can go to the Ministry of Rites of the Shangshutai to take up a real position as a Langguan. You can still hold the position of Bachelor of Chongwen Temple concurrently."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!" Guan Lu knelt on the ground and bowed deeply.

"Okay, let's go back to Luoyang. Don't make this public." Cao Rui gave a few instructions and looked up at Zhong Yu: "Uncle Zhi, send Guan Xueshi out of the palace."

"Your Majesty, the ministers and Liu Shumi are waiting outside the study. They said they have military intelligence to report." Zhong Yu bowed and saluted. "Your Majesty, the ministers and Liu Shumi are waiting outside the study. They said they have military intelligence to report."

Cao Rui waved his hand: "Let them come in together."

"Yes."

Guan Lu followed Zhong Yu out of the study, which surprised the ministers waiting outside. After Guan Lu bowed to several important ministers, he walked out quickly.

Cao Zhen looked at Dong Zhao and asked in a low voice, "Is this the Taoist priest Guan Lu from Chongwen Temple?"

Dong Zhao nodded slightly.

"Why is this person here?" Cao Zhen asked again. Dong Zhao sneered and said, "I know as much as the general. You should go ask His Majesty yourself."

Several people entered and bowed and took their seats. Cao Zhen asked:
"Your Majesty, was the man who just left the study Guan Lu? Why is he here?"

Cao Rui picked up a handwritten paper book from the table with both hands: "Guan Lu came to Shouchun to present a book to me. He wrote it for two years and finally finished it last month, so I asked him to come and give it to me."

"I wonder what great achievements Guan Lu has made?" Sima Yi blurted out.

Cao Rui smiled and said, "Guan Lu doesn't understand ordinary classics very well, but he is good at divination and is well versed in the Book of Changes, so I asked him to write a book explaining the Book of Changes and divination."

"There are sixty-four hexagrams in the Book of Changes. The method of divination and the interpretation of each hexagram are based on facts and are not random. I have ordered Guan Lu to record his knowledge of divination and interpretation of hexagrams in a book. It is all in this book, The Secret of Zhouyi Spiritual Communication."

"Sikong can take a look."

Cao Rui raised the book in his hand. Sima Yi had no choice but to step forward, bow and take it. After glancing through it for a few seconds, he handed it to Chen Jiao.

Liu Ye said, "Your Majesty, the Wu navy sailed north across the sea and invaded Licheng and Quxian in Donghai County four days ago. There are at least four to five thousand enemy soldiers, but we don't know exactly how many there are. Xuzhou Governor Xue Ti has led five thousand prefecture soldiers from Xiapi to Tancheng, the capital of Donghai County."

According to the court's laws, the provincial governor was only responsible for civil affairs, and the military was under the jurisdiction of the county commander. However, when encountering bandits or foreign enemies, they could independently carry out defense. Xue Ti led 5,000 soldiers to Donghai County this time in accordance with this rule.

After hearing this, Cao Rui sneered, "Wu soldiers are coming from the sea? I haven't caused any trouble for Sun Quan yet, but Sun Quan is provoking me again. Have Wu soldiers ever come to attack from the sea before?"

Liu Ye replied: "Your Majesty, this is the first time that the Wu army has attacked from the sea. There is no precedent."

Cao Rui asked again: "Has the Wei Dynasty ever fought against an enemy from the sea before?"

Liu Ye cupped his hands and said, "I have never experienced an invasion like the Wu Kingdom before. The only similarities are two things."

"First, in the early years of Jian'an, Gongsun Kang of Liaodong sent General Liu Yi to attack Qingzhou by sea and seized the coastal areas of Qingzhou's Donglai and Beihai counties. Later, in the tenth year of Jian'an, Emperor Wu sent Zhang Liao to defeat the bandits and recover the lost territory."

"Second, in the 11th year of Jian'an, the three generals Zhang He, Le Jin, and Li Dian conquered the Qingzhou pirate Guan Cheng and drove him off the land. Guan Cheng was said to have lived on an island and never returned."

Liu Ye cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, throughout history, the Wei Dynasty has only fought against enemies from the sea or bandits in these two cases. After the Huangchu and Taihe years, such incidents have never occurred again."

Cao Rui knocked on the table and said, "Since Xue Ti has already led the troops from Xia Pi, five thousand infantrymen plus the two thousand infantrymen from Donghai County should be enough to deal with one or two. How about sending some cavalrymen from Shouchun?"

Cao Zhen bowed and asked, "As for cavalry, the Central Army of Wei has all followed Your Majesty to Shouchun. I think sending 3,000 or 5,000 cavalry is enough, and there is no point in sending more."

Dong Zhao said, "Your Majesty, I don't think it's necessary to mobilize the central army for such a situation. It would be enough to order General Huya Xiahouxian to lead the Yangzhou cavalry to resist the enemy."

"I think it is enough to let him lead 5,000 cavalry."

Cao Rui nodded: "Then let's do as Mr. Dong said."

Liu Ye said, "Your Majesty, I just told the general and Mr. Dong about a guess in my mind. The Minister of the Central Secretariat Yin once said that Wu had a general named Tang Zi, who was a fugitive during the rebellion in Licheng County in the sixth year of Huangchu. The Wu army's invasion of Licheng this time is such a coincidence, it must be related to this person."

"Who cares if it's Tang Zi or anyone else? Even if Sun Quan himself comes, what does it matter?" Cao Rui snorted coldly: "But since Sun Quan came across the sea to attack for the first time, there will definitely be a second and third time. There is no reason to guard against thieves for a thousand days."

"Gentlemen, how should we deal with this?"

Cao Zhen said, "Your Majesty, the troops of Xuzhou are currently in Pengcheng and Xiapi. The cities of Donghai County and Guangling except Huaiyin are all unguarded. I think it would be better to station troops in the coastal cities of Xuzhou to prevent the danger of Licheng and Quxian from happening again."

"I don't think so." Chen Jiao said with a bow, and everyone's eyes were on him.

Cao Rui became interested and asked with a smile, "What suggestions do you have, Mr. Chen?"

This was also Chen Jiao's first speech during the political discussion in the study after he entered the cabinet.

Chen Jiao said, "Your Majesty, I am from Guangling, and I have known pirates since I was young. If pirates invade from the sea, it is of little use to just station garrisons in the city. If the pirates rise in large numbers, the troops in the city cannot go out, and can only sit and watch the pirates plunder the countryside and the people."

"What should we do then?" Cao Zhen looked at Chen Jiao solemnly.

"The general's idea is correct. This is how we should defend the river, but it is not applicable at the seaside." Chen Jiao bowed slightly to Cao Zhen, then looked at the emperor:

"Your Majesty, if you want to keep the enemy at bay for a long time, I think there are only two ways."

"Tell me!" Cao Rui pointed.

Chen Jiao said: "Either we move all the people living on the coast to the inland, so that the pirates coming from the sea cannot plunder. Or we send the navy to actively fight them at sea, so that they dare not come again!"

"The Wei navy can sail to Japan, so it shouldn't be difficult to drive away the Wu ships from the coast of Xuzhou."

"Mr. Liu, how many naval forces can be deployed?" Cao Rui looked at Liu Ye. Such specific details should be asked to Liu Ye, who was in charge of all matters of the Privy Council. Cao Zhen and Dong Zhao might not be clear about these technical details.

Liu Ye thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, I think it would be better to send 20 Type B warships, which would require about 3,000 sailors. The sea is wide, unlike the big rivers, so it is difficult to encounter and engage in boarding battle. We should just try to ram and drive it away."

Cao Rui nodded slightly: "Okay, that's the number. Send an order, order General Cao Zhi to lead the navy to sail eastward along the Huai River today, and order General Xiahou Xian to lead the cavalry to set off in two hours. There must be no mistakes!"

"As ordered!" Liu Ye bowed and all the ministers stood up and saluted. (End of this chapter)