The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 224: Like a duck in water
When Zhong Hui heard Cao Mao's straightforward refusal, there was no dissatisfaction in his eyes.

His eyes suddenly brightened and he stared at Cao Mao's face.

The whole person was immersed in some kind of indescribable excitement.

"No worries about food and clothing, no worries about the old and the young, no enemies outside and no worries inside."

"A prosperous age! This is a prosperous age!"

"This is an unprecedented prosperous era! A true man can do this!!"

If Cao Mao was unwilling to join forces with the Sima family because of personal grudges, Zhong Hui would definitely turn against him. He would not be a sage king!
However, when Cao Mao mentioned a more challenging goal, and even looked down on Sima Zhao's goal and was unwilling to join forces with him, Zhong Hui just thought, what a sage king!
Zhong Hui has never been a player who is afraid of difficulty. The higher the difficulty, the more excited he is. After all, only by completing such a great task can he become a top talent that will never be seen again in history.

Cao Mao's ambition was a much more difficult challenge than pacifying the aristocratic families and unifying the world, and this was exactly in line with Zhong Hui's idea.

Zhong Hui immediately changed his tone and said, "Your Majesty, there is no need to join forces!"

"Sima Zhao is a weakling, lacking the talent of his brother! How can such a man be worthy of joining forces with us? The two of us are enough!"

Cao Mao looked at Zhong Hui seriously and said, "Shi Ji, are you willing to assist me in achieving this great era?"

"I will definitely assist Your Majesty with all my strength!!"

Zhong Hui bowed again to greet him.

Cao Mao's decision to accept Zhong Hui was not a sudden decision, but something he had been thinking about for some time.

Using a bell is a very dangerous thing. It is like driving a tiger to clear the way ahead. Once there is no way forward, or if you are too weak to hold the rope, the tiger will immediately attack you.

However, Cao Mao really needs such a fierce tiger now.

This is a powerful, ferocious tiger that will not be intimidated!
Cao Mao helped Zhong Hui up again, and this time, a smile finally appeared on his face.

"Shiji, my next thought is to release the royal family."

"imperial clan?"

Zhong Hui was stunned for a moment, then laughed. "Yes, the royal families in various places have been oppressed for a long time. If Your Majesty can change their plight, even if it fails, as long as the word spreads that Your Majesty has this intention, these royal families will follow you as their leader."

"Those old ministers from the royal family who assisted the king are still alive. We can call them over and have them fight against Sima Fu, Gao Rou and the others."

"Then gradually lift the restrictions on the princes and allow them to compete with the aristocratic families for power in their local areas."

"We can also promote some intelligent members of the royal family to serve as officials in the imperial court and local governments."

Zhong Hui spoke quickly, suddenly looking up, and said, "Your Majesty, if you want to handle such a matter, you must have a very capable Zongzheng."

"From gradually approaching the imprisonment to finally re-employing the princes, this requires tremendous pressure, which is not something that ordinary people can do."

Cao Mao nodded and said helplessly, "I think so too, but I really can't find a suitable candidate at the moment."

"Someone recommended King Pengcheng."

"The King of Pengcheng is good enough to take the blame, but he can't get anything done."

Zhong Hui looked around and then pointed at Wei Shu, "Your Majesty, you can send this man to the Imperial Guards as the Imperial Carriage Commander right now."

Cao Mao was stunned. He was talking about Zong Zheng, so why did he bring up Wei Wei?

Zhong Hui continued, "I think this man is unassuming on the outside but talented on the inside, cautious and wise. He can be entrusted with a great responsibility, but he lacks experience. He can first serve in the Weiwei Department, and after two years he can become the Zongzheng."

Cao Mao nodded.

"As for now, there is also a good candidate."

"Oh?"

"I am willing to do it for you."

Zhong Hui said seriously, "As the Chief of the Imperial Clan, I will help Your Majesty resolve this matter. If I fail, I will repay Your Majesty with my own death!"

"Oh, why do you say that?! How can Shiji fail in his work?"

Cao Mao hurriedly helped him up.

He had never really considered Zhong Hui at first. After all, although Zhong Hui was very young, no one cared about that. And although his achievements were not as good, the position of Zong Zheng was not very important either. It was a thankless job, so the ministers would not resist it that much.

And Zhong Hui's personality, well, is indeed suitable for doing this.

Cao Mao didn't even have to worry too much.

"Okay, it's settled!"

The two of them immediately reached an agreement on the matter. Zhong Hui was a little happy, with a smile on his face. He hurried closer.

"general."

Zhong Hui quickly changed his words, "Your Majesty, the position of the general should be considered sooner rather than later."

Zhong Hui hadn't been so happy for a long time since Sima Shi became seriously ill. Sima Zhao was reluctant to listen to him, and he had to coax and deceive those fools to listen. It was nothing like now, where the emperor agreed immediately as soon as he opened his mouth.

This made him feel like he was back beside Sima Shi, and he almost called the emperor "General" just now.

Cao Mao certainly didn't care about this. He smiled and asked, "Then who does Shi Ji think should take the position? Will it be Sima Zhao again?"

"Him? Without his father and brother, he could only be a minister. What virtue does he have to be qualified to be a general?"

Zhong Hui's face was filled with disdain. He asked, "Your Majesty, have you ever considered sending Guanqiu Jian to Luoyang to serve as the Grand General?"

Cao Mao narrowed his eyes, as if he had found the right way to use Zhong Hui. He nodded and said, "Yes, Shi Ji, do you think it's inappropriate?"

Zhong Hui burst into laughter, his eyes almost showing his pride.

"Your Majesty, do you know why the Sima family's plan failed?"

"Because of its insufficient foundation?"

"Your Majesty, there is some truth in what you say. It's actually because the other ministers look down on them. We are all ministers in the same court, so why can you become the king?"

"The same is true of Guanqiu Jian. Although he was a skilled warrior, his reputation was not enough to shock the world. I won't mention Hu Zun, Wang Chang, Zhuge Dan, and Chen Ben, but could a General of Chariots and Cavalry obey him?"

"Once Guanqiu Jian enters the imperial court, the generals there might start thinking of rebellion. No matter how powerful Guanqiu Jian is, he's no match for them. Apart from anything else, Zhuge Dan will certainly rebel, as he's never been subservient to Guanqiu Jian."

"Similarly, no matter which foreign general Your Majesty summons to serve as the Grand General, it will cause dissatisfaction among the others."

"Therefore, Guanqiu Jian cannot be summoned."

Cao Mao pretended to understand something and said, "So that's how it is."

In fact, Cao Mao knew all this very well in his heart, but at this moment, he could only be ignorant.

He knew how to use Zhong Hui. He had to give him the opportunity to display his talents and the opportunity to show off. He couldn't be too stupid, but he couldn't steal his limelight either.

Cao Mao became more and more proficient and asked the other people again whether they were qualified. Sure enough, Zhong Hui refuted them one by one.

Cao Mao hesitated, "What should I do then?"

"Your Majesty, this position of Grand General is like bait. All the generals in the world want it. So Your Majesty, there is no need to rush to confer this position. Keep it for now."

"When the generals from all over the country learn of the general's death, they will definitely not act like they are now."

"In fact, the general's strategy was a quick move. He took advantage of the information gap between the two sides and directly pushed Sima Zhao to the position of general."

"Once the foreign generals learn the truth, they won't dare to do such a thing again."

"Of course, they won't admit it either. After all, so many great families have died."

Zhong Hui smiled and said, "We can appoint Sima Zhao as General of the Guards and let him command the generals from all over the country. This will appease him first and prepare him to take over the entire Sima family in the future."

"The position of Grand General will be vacant for now. Your Majesty only needs to send people to various places to let them know the situation in the court, and then make the decision to select the right person to be promoted to Grand General. They will help you with the rest."

"The position of Grand General will at least allow these people to fight for Your Majesty for a few years."

Cao Mao nodded and accepted Zhong Hui's proposal again.

"What about the candidate for Shangshu Ling? Lu Yu is definitely not suitable. Should Sima Fu be appointed?"

Zhong Hui sneered, "Sima Fu is a coward with no ambition. He's not worthy of being entrusted with important matters. Furthermore, he will undoubtedly collude with the aristocratic families and side with the ministers. He will definitely not be close to Your Majesty."

"This is something the general arranged, and no one can shake him."

"Who should take on this role then?"

"Zheng Chong."

"what??"

Cao Mao was stunned. This time it was no longer a pretense. Cao Mao really had not thought about this answer.

Zhong Hui said seriously, "There are three most prestigious old ministers in the court: Gao Rou, Sima Fu, and Zheng Chong."

"Your Majesty cannot use Sima Fu or Gao Rou now, so naturally you must use Zheng Chong."

Only then did Cao Mao remember the invisible man.

This person was able to live in seclusion in the temple, which showed his remarkable ability. If Zhong Hui had not mentioned it, Cao Mao would have almost forgotten that there was a big shot in the temple.

Zhong Hui continued, "This man was born into a poor family, a true humble one, with no connections to the great families. He was completely absorbed in the study of the classics and possessed excellent personal ethics. In all his years as an official, he had never offended anyone. He had spent many years in the Secretariat, so he wouldn't be completely ignorant of state affairs."

"The ministers can accept him, and he poses no danger to Your Majesty."

"His passive attitude can also prevent the ministers from using the Secretariat to complete all their plans too quickly."

Zhong Hui spoke faster and faster, and his eyes became brighter and brighter.

"That old villain Gao Rou cannot be moved for now. We must keep him here to check and balance the ministers. After all, none of us want to see the three dynasties united as one."

"And the Ministry of Personnel will use Huabiao and Zheng Xiaotong to check and balance the other ministers."

"When the general was still here, the Minister of the Interior wasn't a very important position, but now that the general is gone, the importance of the Ministry of Personnel will immediately increase."

"This is the power around Your Majesty, and it must be controlled by Your Majesty himself."

Zhong Hui analyzed the situation for Cao Mao and quickly made arrangements.

Cao Mao looked at Zhong Hui in front of him again.

The feeling of not having to use my brain is really wonderful!!

(End of this chapter)