Han officials

Chapter 279 Wei Zhe's Haters [3.5K]

Upon seeing Tao Qian for the first time, Xi Zhicai realized that he indeed didn't have much time left.

Even with an incense burner lit in the bedroom, a strange smell still lingered in the air.

Tao Qian's face was covered with age spots, which seemed to indicate that his body was already decaying.

However, in front of Tao Qian, Xi Zhicai still spoke gently:
"Heaven blesses the virtuous, and fate does not harm them. Tao Gong is virtuous and kind; he will surely recover."

After saying this, Xi Zhicai presented a box of century-old ginseng from Changbai Mountain.

In the midst of chaos, if we were to say what became increasingly valuable in Liaodong, besides warhorses, it would be ginseng.

As the yield of Shangdang ginseng decreases, Buxian Mountain has become the top-grade ginseng in the Han Dynasty.

Tao Qian naturally understood the value of this thing. Even though he knew in his heart that his family was unlikely to survive this calamity, it was still good to keep them alive with ginseng at this critical moment.

He couldn't help but exclaim, "Thank you for your concern, General Wei! You've gone to so much trouble!"

However, his gentleness lasted only a moment.

After Xi Zhicai relayed Wei Zhe's words, the room fell into a long, deathly silence.

Tao Qian naturally understood Wei Zhe's implied meaning, but that was precisely why he hesitated and couldn't make a decision.

After a long while, Tao Qian glanced at Mi Zhu, who was waiting quietly outside the door, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

No one knew his two sons better than him.

Tao Qian knew in his heart that his two sons were just ordinary people of average appearance, with only filial piety to be praised.

In other words, besides being obedient, she has no other redeeming qualities.

If he had any loyal and talented subordinates, it would be fine. Whether his eldest or second son inherited the family business, with the assistance of his former students and officials, they might truly be able to maintain the family's prosperity.

But now? Heh.

After the example of Mi Zhu, Tao Qian completely gave up on this idea.

If the prefectural governors he personally appointed were unreliable, then he could count on the others even less.

If the position of Governor of Xuzhou is kept in the hands of the Tao family, it might actually harm them.

After thinking for a long time, Tao Qian, who was already weak, felt a wave of dizziness.

"Cough cough cough..." After coughing violently a few times, Tao Qian gritted his teeth and insisted, "I wonder... how are the descendants of General Wei? And which young master is he recruiting a companion for this time?"

Upon hearing this, Xi Zhicai knew something was amiss and immediately said in a deep voice:

“My lord now has two sons. In the fifth year of Zhongping, Lady Guan gave birth to the eldest son, Wei Bo, who is now five years old. Last year, Lady Zhen gave birth to the second son, Wei Ke.”

"This tutoring arrangement is for the eldest son, so Master Tao can rest assured."

Tao Qian didn't say anything upon hearing this, but his brows relaxed slightly.

He had considered using this opportunity to form a marriage alliance with the Wei family.

But the question is, with whom?

Wei Zhe already has two wives, so sending a clanswoman over there won't make any difference.

Wei Zhe's two sons are too young, so even if they are engaged, it will take many years before the engagement can be fulfilled.

By then, his remains will probably have rotted away, making any hope of recovery impossible.

After much thought, this plan does seem to be the safest option.

At least it can guarantee that the Tao family will continue to be wealthy and powerful after his death.

Of course, this is all predicated on Wei Zhe actually having the last laugh.

However, Tao Qian was very confident about this, even more so than Wei Zhe himself.

If it weren't for this, he wouldn't have fallen ill from worry, which would have triggered his old ailment.

After another bout of violent coughing, Tao Qian, pale and weak, said:
"The world is in chaos, and the country is on the verge of collapse. General Wei is highly meritorious and virtuous, and should serve the country. My son is incompetent, and the generals are scattered. After my death, General Wei should take charge of all affairs in Xuzhou."

"You need not worry about these matters; I will personally submit a report to the court."

At this point, Tao Qian took another rapid breath.

After finally catching his breath, he waved to Xi Zhicai with trembling hands.

After he reached the bedside, he grasped Xi Zhicai's hand and pleaded:

"...After I die, if my son is unworthy, I beg you to teach him. I entrust this to you."

Looking into Tao Qian's pleading eyes, Xi Zhicai realized that at this moment he was just a father.

Therefore, Xi Zhicai did not hesitate and immediately nodded firmly:
"Rest assured, Lord Tao, though I am not talented, I will certainly live up to your trust."

Upon hearing Xi Zhicai's words, Tao Qian immediately looked at his two sons, Tao Shang and Tao Ying, who were weeping beside him, and said in a weak but firm voice, "Quickly, greet your teacher."

Although the brothers Tao Shang and Tao Ying did not quite understand their father's arrangements, they were filial.

Therefore, the two immediately and honestly performed the apprenticeship ceremony in front of Xi Zhicai.

Upon seeing this scene, a faint smile finally appeared on Tao Qian's pale face.

This can be considered the last safeguard that Tao Qian could plan for his two sons.

To Xi Zhicai's surprise, Tao Qian did not intend to have his two sons become his study companions.

In his words, this opportunity was hard-won, and these two scoundrels really wasted it.

In contrast, although his eldest grandson's talent is not yet apparent, he still has potential to be discovered.

So, in front of Xi Zhicai, Tao Qian made his choice.

However, since this eldest grandson was born out of wedlock, and his mother was only Tao Shang's concubine.

For this reason, Tao Qian even dragged his sick body to call the couple to his bedside and asked Tao Shang to make this concubine his official wife, vowing that he would never divorce her or marry another woman.

The concubine never expected such a good thing to fall from the sky, and immediately burst into tears.

It's unclear whether she was crying tears of joy or sorrow for the impending death of her father-in-law, Tao Qian.

But no matter what, this is all Tao Qian can do.

Whether the Tao family of Danyang can grow and prosper in the future depends on the efforts of their descendants.

...On the other hand, while Tao Qian was planning for his descendants, Chen Gui was doing the same thing.

Chen Gui, courtesy name Hanyu, was a native of Xiapi, Xuzhou.

Unlike the Mi family, a merchant family, the Chen family of Xiapi can be considered the top gentry family in Xuzhou.

Although not as prestigious as the Yuan family of Runan, they were genuine hereditary officials of the second rank.

The rise of the Yuan family of Runan began with Yuan Liang, who studied the "Mengshi Yi" (a classic Chinese text on divination), and the rise of the Chen family of Xiapi was similar.

Chen Gui's grandfather, Chen Tun, was originally a poor man from Xiapi, but he enjoyed a good reputation in his time because of his special study of the classics.

Even though he himself never held an official position, he used his accumulated network of connections to get his son Chen Wei recommended as a filial and incorruptible official, and eventually he became the governor of Guanghan.

As for the third generation of the Chen family of Xiapi, they produced three dukes, including Grand Commandant Chen Qiu.

However, Chen Qiu later secretly conspired with Situ Liu He, Infantry Commandant Liu Na, and Guard Commandant Yang Qiu to kill the eunuchs, but their plot was exposed and they were imprisoned and executed.

Even so, the Chen family of Xiapi still held positions of power in the officialdom with a salary of two thousand shi (a unit of grain).

For example, Chen Gui, a fourth-generation descendant, rose to the position of Chancellor of Pei, and his younger cousin Chen Cong became the Prefect of Ruyin.

His other cousin, Chen Yu, had previously served as the magistrate of Luoyang, and was later appointed by Yuan Shu as the governor of Yangzhou.

If we also include Chen Deng, the fifth-generation agricultural officer, the Chen family of Xiapi was once very prominent.

Sometimes, that's how it is; the rise of one person can lead to the upward mobility of the entire family.

If it weren't for the chaos of the times, the Chen family of Xiapi might have had the opportunity to become four generations of high-ranking officials.

It is precisely because of this that, although Chen Deng was Tao Qian's subordinate, he was not very respectful to Tao Qian in private, and even publicly stated that Tao Qian "favored petty people" and "distanced himself from gentlemen".

Because the Chen family of Xiapi had a great influence in Xuzhou, Tao Qian could only pretend not to know even after hearing about it.

If Chen Deng was like this, one can imagine Chen Gui's attitude.

Even though Chen Gui has now resigned and is no longer the Chancellor of Pei, his pride remains undiminished.

This family background also meant that Chen Gui didn't care who became the ruler of Xuzhou, because he only cared about the clan interests of the Chen family of Xiapi.

Therefore, when Tao Qian was seriously ill, Chen Gui, who was retired at home, soon noticed that something was wrong.

This old fox quickly deduced from the slightest clues that Mi Zhu and Ye Cheng were colluding.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why Xi Zhicai rushed over from Jizhou so soon after Tao Qian fell seriously ill.

Once he understood this, Chen Gui's old face immediately became serious.

Without much hesitation, he summoned his two sons, Chen Deng and Chen Ying, and began to give them instructions.

However, after listening to his father's words, the second son, Chen Ying, looked puzzled and asked:

“Father, the General of the Flying Cavalry commands Hebei and is a powerful ruler of the land. Wouldn’t it be better for Xuzhou to fall under his control?”

Upon hearing this, Chen Gui glared at him with a look of utter disappointment:
"Fool, have you forgotten all the books I used to tell you to read?"

Seeing that his eyes were still blank, Chen Gui was so angry that he immediately hit him hard a few times with his cane.

Although he knew his youngest son was hopeless, Chen Gui still hadn't expected him to be so dull-witted.

Fortunately, the eldest son, Chen Deng, was exceptionally intelligent; otherwise, Chen Gui would have been truly worried about the decline of the Chen family in Xiapi.

After giving Chen Ying a good beating, Chen Gui finally said angrily:
"Wei Gongwei is arrogant and domineering, not a ruler capable of governing chaos. How can he possibly lead Xuzhou?"

Chen Deng, unable to bear seeing his younger brother continue to be beaten, immediately chimed in to explain:
"Have you forgotten the rumors about the land survey in Jizhou last year?"

"Since this person is willing to cause chaos in Ji Province to measure the fields, it shows that this matter is unlikely to be changed."

"If Xuzhou falls under their control, it will likely face the same fate of land expropriation in the future!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Ying finally realized that a powerful ruler and a wise ruler are not the same thing.

After hearing this, Chen Gui glanced at his eldest son, Chen Deng, with satisfaction and nodded.
“Indeed, Yuanlong’s words are exactly what I was worried about.”

"My family, the Chen clan of Xiapi, has worked hard and accumulated wealth over generations to reach this level. How can we possibly give it away to the lowly people!"

It must be admitted that everything has its advantages and disadvantages.

Wei Zhe's implementation of land surveying certainly laid a solid foundation and solved long-standing local problems.

However, he also incurred the resentment of certain groups, even those who were not under Wei Zhe's rule.

For example, Chen Gui actually admired Wei Zhe quite a bit before he was assigned to the land in Ji Province.

Although Wei Zhe abolished the prefectures and counties in Qingzhou and implemented military-agricultural colonies, Chen Gui didn't think much of it and even quite approved of it. After all, Qingzhou had been ravaged by the Yellow Turban rebels for many years and was already a wasteland. Rather than letting the people develop haphazardly, it was better to let the government plan and arrange things uniformly.

However, Chen Gui's attitude changed last August when news of the unrest in Ji Province reached Xu Province.

He almost instantly transformed from a potential supporter of Wei Zhe into a staunch opponent.

Your position determines your perspective; your social class determines your stance.

At least in Chen Gui's case, these two statements are absolutely correct.

Chen Gui, with his white hair and beard, said with a firm expression:

“Yuanlong, take advantage of Tao Gongzu’s serious illness and inability to attend to affairs, and leave today. I will help you cover it up.”

"Where to?" Chen Deng asked, equally puzzled.

“Yanzhou!” Chen Gui explained, “Cao Mengde is a hero of the world. As long as you tell him about the situation in Xuzhou, he will definitely not miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

At this point, Chen Gui couldn't help but stroke his beard and laugh:
"Once Cao Mengde takes Xuzhou, Yuzhou will be surrounded by him, and a proclamation will be enough to pacify it."

"With these three provinces, the fertile lands of the Central Plains will be entirely in his hands. Even if Wei Gongwei controls Hebei, he may not be a match for Cao Mengde."

Of course, this was just the best outcome Chen Gui could imagine.

Even if Cao Cao occupied the three provinces of Yan, Yu, and Xu and was on par with Wei Zhe, he would still be satisfied.

After all, Wei Zhe's power is at its zenith right now, and it would be good enough if he could find an opponent to rival him.

After packing up briefly, he quietly left Donghai County and entered Yanzhou under the cover of his family.

At this moment, Xuzhou can be said to be full of traitors.

It all comes down to whether the Mi family has better judgment or the Chen family has better methods...

(End of this chapter)