The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 23 Emperor Wu of Jin

Cao Mao never thought that he could win over anyone through words.

For a puppet emperor with no foundation, let alone subduing Sima Yan and Guo Jian, he might not even be able to subdue a county magistrate.

He tried to please everyone who came to him and greeted them with a smile, just to increase his chances of winning in future struggles.

In the face of severe insecurity, Cao Mao would not miss any opportunity to strengthen himself, even if it was just to make the other party feel more favorable towards him, even if this favorable impression was of no help.

According to Yang Zong's words, Cao Mao was just being so hungry that he didn't care what he ate.

It's no different from him winning over those wanderers, adopting retainers, and colluding with merchants.

Sima Shi would not care about his behavior at all. Everything he did must be extremely ridiculous in Sima Shi's eyes.

But this was the best Cao Mao could do.

The arrival of Guo Jian and Sima Yan was indeed an unexpected surprise.

If it was Guo De or Sima Zhao who came, Cao Mao would definitely have voluntarily gotten on the car and rushed to Luoyang.

As a thug within the clan, Guo Jian is not suitable for political struggles, and the young Sima Yan is still in his middle school stage. Even the future Sima Yan is not that smart, and is even a little stupid.

Only when facing such equally matched opponents could Cao Mao appease them in time and use them to complete his plans.

"Anshi, try it, these are all the delicacies of my Yuancheng!"

Cao Mao personally handed the barbecue to Sima Yan and was about to feed it to him.

Sima Yan just felt uneasy.

The person in front of me is too enthusiastic towards me!
Cao Mao moved again and approached Sima Yan again.

Sima Yan moved away calmly.

"Your Majesty, we can eat this barbecue back in Luoyang. Since you have the ambition to unify the world, why don't you want to go to Luoyang?"

"Your Majesty has inherited the throne, and with the assistance of many wise and virtuous people in the court, you will surely be able to achieve your ambition of unifying the world!"

"I originally had no intention of inheriting the throne, but now that Anshi has spoken, how can I refuse again?"

Cao Mao looked at Sima Yan with eyes full of tenderness.

"However, there is one thing that An Shi must obey me. When we go to Luoyang, you must lead the Imperial Court and stay by my side day and night, solving my problems and assisting me in handling government affairs!"

Sima Yan said blankly: "It's up to my uncle to decide."

"No problem! I'll go see the general and tell him about this!"

Guo Mao stared at Sima Yan in front of him, and became more and more satisfied the more he looked.

What a wonderful person.

If he could stay by his side all day, firstly, the Sima family could relax their vigilance, after all, they had their people around them; secondly, if they encountered a situation where both sides were to fight to the death, he could use him as a scapegoat.

If I really want to fail, I will kill Sima Yan first.

If Sima Yan died, Sima You would be the only one who could inherit the throne.

Sima Shi had no son, so Sima Zhao adopted his second legitimate son Sima You as Sima Shi's son.

Compared with Sima Yan, Sima You was more strategic. At least he would not establish another Jia Nanfeng and cause China to suffer such a catastrophe.

Compared to other people in his family, Sima Yan was actually a surprisingly good person. He rarely killed people and liked to listen to other people's advice.

However, he was not a qualified emperor because he listened to all kinds of advice. If he had many wise ministers around him, he would be like Yao and Shun. If he had many bad people around him, he would be like Jie and Zhou.

Among the many founding emperors of China, his ability is at the bottom.

With him by his side, Cao Mao had nothing to worry about.

Looking at his reassurance, Cao Mao became more and more pleased.

Sima Yan was speechless. This excessive enthusiasm made him not know what to do. After all, he was just a teenager who had not yet come of age and was only five years older than Cao Mao.

"Come on, Anshi, I'll take you to meet my family's elders!"

Cao Mao pulled Sima Yan again and walked towards the back hall.

When Guo Jian saw Sima Yan, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He thought that the people who came were from the Sima family. If it was just the young boy in front of him, there would be no need for him to be too scared.

"Uncle! This is Anshi, my best friend!"

Cao Mao introduced enthusiastically.

Sima Yan widened his eyes. He really wanted to explain, "I just met him today."

Guo Jian returned to his original appearance, stroking his beard with great pride.

Sima Yan hurriedly met Guo Jian and told him the purpose of his visit.

Cao Mao quickly said, "Uncle, we can't delay any longer. Otherwise, the general will definitely blame you, which is something I don't want to see."

Guo Jian pursed his lips and looked at Sima Yan. "Anshi, go find your grandfather and ask him to come and welcome the emperor tomorrow!"

Sima Yan agreed.

Guo Jian probably didn't want to say anything more in front of Sima Yan, so he asked the two to leave on the pretext of resting.

"Anshi, don't rush to see the prince. I will take you to see the great sage in my palace! Defense Assistant Commander Guo Jun, he is a world-renowned gentleman, in fact, he is also my uncle."

Cao Mao took Sima Yan to meet everyone in the mansion, including Yang Zong.

However, Yang Zong was in an excited state at the moment. He was shirtless, took off his shoes, and was circling around the big tree in the hall. He was muttering to himself and dancing with his hands. It was obvious that he had taken drugs.

Sima Yan was dumbfounded. The small city of Yuan was truly full of talented people!

Cao Mao kept chattering all the way.

"An Shi, what virtue and ability do I, Cao Mao, possess to be valued by so many wise men in the court?"

"I don't understand any strategies for governing a country, but fortunately, I have a wise man like you to assist me!"

"We hit it off right away, and I'll trust you with important matters from now on!"

Sima Yan was frightened and just shrank his head, mumbling several times.

"Your Majesty, without further delay, I shall proceed to Grandfather's place to prepare for the reception tomorrow."

"Okay! Anshi, I'll take you there!"

“No need!! Your Majesty, please stay!!”

"You're welcome, Anshi! Someone, get the car ready!"

Cao Mao still sent Sima Yan to the mansion where Wang Su was. Sima Yan got out of the car, saluted Cao Mao respectfully, then turned and walked towards the mansion, walking faster and faster, and finally rushed into the mansion as if escaping.

Cao Mao watched him enter the mansion reluctantly before returning home.

"inflammation!"

Wang Su looked at his grandson in front of him with a smile, completely different from his usual serious and rigid demeanor.

Sima You and Sima Yan were both grandsons of Wang Su, and between the two, Wang Su liked Sima Yan more.

Compared with Sima You, Sima Yan was more sincere and friendly to his friends and relatives.

This is his strength and also his biggest weakness.

Wang Su was about to ask about his parents' situation when he noticed that Sima Yan's forehead was covered in sweat and he looked a little uneasy.

He asked suspiciously, "What happened?"

"No hindrance, no hindrance."

"His Majesty has already agreed. We can go to greet him tomorrow."

Hearing this, Wang Su was not happy at all.

When Wang Su thought of Cao Mao, he gnashed his teeth in hatred.

He now has no good feelings towards this trouble-making young emperor.

"In my opinion, Your Majesty is arrogant and lawless, and he is rude and domineering. He is not the kind of wise ruler. If you support him, I am afraid that he will cause disaster."

Sima Yan scratched his head and said, "Your Majesty is very warm to people."

"Oh, don't be deceived by this person."

"When we return to Luoyang, I will report this to the General. The second son of the Guo family is a fool and has colluded with evil. We must be on our guard!"

In front of Sima Yan, Wang Su had no intention of hiding anything and directly expressed his thoughts.

Sima Yan obviously didn't understand any of this and just looked at his grandfather blankly.

Wang Su knew that he had said too much, so he asked about Sima Yan's family situation.

The two exchanged a few pleasantries before Wang Su warned, "Don't tell anyone else what I've said to you."

"Also, starting tomorrow, you will no longer have any contact with His Majesty."

"After returning to Luoyang, stay away from him and don't get close to him."

"You are a kind person with a simple heart, but you must not be deceived by him."

Wang Su rubbed his forehead and said tiredly, "Fortunately, these things are over. I will meet him tomorrow and take him to Luoyang. I will rest for a while."

Wang Su said this, but he didn't feel as relieved as he said.

He always felt that the guy would not give in so easily.

He had a bad feeling in his heart.

I hope I am overthinking it.

(End of this chapter)