The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 254 Emperor Wu’s Armor
"Bang~~~"

The wooden stick came towards him, and Cheng Ji hurriedly raised the stick to block it. After just one touch, Cheng Ji felt a little sore in his hands.

But the next moment, Cao Mao raised his upper body and kicked Cheng Ji in the chest. Cheng Ji groaned, took several steps back and almost fell to the ground.

Cheng Ji raised his head and looked at Cao Mao with complicated eyes.

This isn't right.

When we were in Yuancheng, I was able to beat him so hard that he had no chance to fight back.

It’s only been a short time. I dare not be distracted when practicing with him. If I am distracted, I will suffer.

Is this the so-called Son of Heaven?

Is God blessing everything you do?

Cheng Ji was shocked.

Cao Mao was panting. This time, he finally did not hide and used all his strength to fight Cheng Ji.

He no longer suffered losses and finally became equal in combat power to Cheng Ji.

Cao Mao felt extremely happy.

Under such high pressure, Cao Mao never dared to waste time. He worked hard to improve himself every day in all aspects, and he was willing to do anything to improve himself.

Finally, his martial arts skills improved to the point where he could fight back against Cheng Ji.

One day, I will drive a chariot, holding a spear, and pierce those rebels!
Cao Mao laughed, "Hahaha, I've only been learning from Cheng Jun for half a year, and it's more effective than practicing for five or six years!"

"I still have to thank Cheng Jun for his dedicated teaching. Otherwise, how could I have the martial arts skills I have today?"

Cheng Ji no longer dared to be arrogant, and his expression became more restrained. "Your Majesty is too kind. Your Majesty is very talented and intelligent. He is truly a man of great talent. In time, he will surely become as accomplished in both civil and military affairs as Emperor Wen!"

In fact, the emperors of the Cao family in recent generations were all good at martial arts. There is no need to say much about Cao Cao. He once killed rebels with a sword and also had a record of assassinating Zhang Rang and escaping unscathed. Cao Pi was even more amazing. He could shoot with both hands and had extraordinary martial arts skills.

But his martial arts are the most superb.

Cao Pi was good at swordsmanship. He once had a banquet with General Liu Xun, the General of Suppressing the Lu, and General Deng Zhan, the General of Fenwei. Deng Zhan was good at swordsmanship and could even catch a blade with his bare hands. He was very famous. Cao Pi discussed swordsmanship with him and denied his opponent's swordsmanship theory.

Both of them were drunk at this moment, and they immediately decided to have a competition.

As a result, Cao Pi won four consecutive victories, making Deng Zhan blush and admit defeat.

Although many of Emperor Wen's policies have brought great harm to the current Wei Dynasty, he himself is considered to be both civil and military, and is not particularly bad.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that according to Cao Pi, he learned swordsmanship from Shi A from Henan, and this Shi A learned swordsmanship from Wang Yue.

Cao Mao put away the stick, called Cheng Ji, and the two went to the West Hall to eat together.

Even while eating, Cao Mao was still talking with Cheng Ji about the theoretical knowledge of martial arts.

Cheng Ji thought that only such diligence could enable His Majesty to make such rapid progress.

Just as the two were talking, Zhang Hua walked in hurriedly.

"Your Majesty, Lord Hua requests an audience."

Cao Mao was stunned. He didn't summon him, so why did he come here on his own?

"Invite him in."

Zhang Hua left here again.

This Huabiao is now the only minister in the court who openly expresses support for the emperor. It is strange to say that as ministers, they should assist the emperor, but these ministers only dare to say so in private.

For example, Wang Xiang and Sima Fu were loyal ministers only when they were alone with Cao Mao.

When they go outside, they are still loyal ministers, but their personality has changed from "only obey the emperor's orders" to "we are all doing this for the emperor's good."

The Shizhong that Huabiao held was actually not a small official. Although he followed the emperor and sounded no different from those Langguan, he was the predecessor of the Menxia Province.

Officials like Huangmen, Sanqi, Jieshizhong, Jianyi Dafu, and Jiujiulang were all led by Shizhong.

But there is one thing: when the imperial power is weak, the power of the Shizhong is greatly reduced. Decision-making is not done by the emperor at all. The general has his own think tank, so it is not the Shizhong's turn at all.

Hua Biao showed his loyalty at this moment, but Cao Mao did not completely trust him.

The main reason is that this person is timid. Once he encounters a major crisis, it is possible that he will change sides immediately.

But if Cao Mao wanted to take charge of the government, he had to rely on the Shizhong, and through the official titles such as Shizhong and Sanqi, he could form his own think tank, take charge of secrets, and confront the Shangshu Tai.

During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the prototype of the three-province and six-department system had already appeared. The Zhongshutai governed by Meng Kang was later known as the Zhongshu Province. The emperor's personal officials led by the Shizhong became the Menxia Province, the Shangshutai became the Shangshu Province, and the six ministries were under the name of the Shangshu Province. There were already many Shangshu and various Caos in the Shangshu Province. These people were in charge of different areas, and the Minister of Personnel had already appeared.

Cao Mao's two current attendants were Hua Biao and Zheng Xiaotong.

These two people are neither good nor bad. They can be considered as the minions of the ministers, nor can they be considered as his own confidants.

Putting aside the Huabiao, Zheng Xiaotong was a traditional scholar-official. As the grandson of Zheng Xuan, he was a natural follower of ritual and law, and a vested interest in contemporary Confucian classics.

He was not too close to his ministers, nor was he too loyal to himself.

Cao Mao still wanted to change people. In his opinion, the most suitable person to serve as the Shizhong at the moment was Zhong Hui.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to let him serve as the head of his personal think tank and then gather celebrities into his palace?
However, we still have to wait for Zhong Hui to take care of the affairs of the royal family.

When Hua Biao walked into the West Hall, his face was pale. Cao Mao was shocked. "Mr. Hua, what happened? Are you okay?"

Hua Biao said seriously: "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!"

Cao Mao quickly asked him to sit aside and asked, "What happened?"

"The Shangshutai issued an order today to dismiss me from my post and sent the Zhongshulang to read the decree. Fortunately, my son informed me in time, and I left through the back door and came here!"

Cao Mao's eyes widened. "Are they going to remove you?"

"How did your son find out?"

"I heard from the Zhongshulang that the Shangshutai has written a letter accusing Duke Zheng and me of five major crimes, as well as the inaction of many eunuchs, and wants to dismiss me and others."

Huabiao looked a little frightened.

Cao Mao's expression suddenly became serious.

Is the Shangshutai preparing to take action against me?

why?

Could the threat he posed be greater than that posed by Sima Zhao?

Cao Mao thought about what had happened during this period of time. If Zhong Hui did not do anything impromptu, it was probably because of his good teacher.

After all, what he had done recently was just to force the teacher to take action.

Well, did this incident irritate him? Or was it someone who instigated it?
To accomplish such a big thing, many giants in the court must work together. If one person is missing, it will not be possible.

He dismissed the Minister of the Interior and replaced his own eunuchs. Was he trying to confine himself completely in the palace?
A nameless anger burned in Cao Mao's chest.

He suddenly realized that maybe he had given in too many times, which made these ministers think that he was so easy to bully?
Sima Zhao is outside, in charge of most of the military power and the troops of foreign generals. Since you don't dare to deal with him, you are looking for trouble with me, right?
Hua Biao asked anxiously, "Your Majesty, what should we do now?"

Zhang Hua also frowned at this moment, as he also realized that the Secretariat was preparing to take action against the emperor.

He immediately said, "Your Majesty, this is probably just a preemptive move by the Secretariat. First, they will replace the Minister of Internal Affairs, then replace the eunuchs, and finally force General Yang to leave, so as to completely control the palace."

"The traitors in the court must have joined forces at this moment."

"They can ignore Sima Zhao outside, but they want to attack Your Majesty first. They want to completely control the court before Sima Zhao can return to the army."

"Your Majesty, please send someone to contact the Supreme Court and the Central Guard General Sima Gan immediately to let them know about this!"

"Sima Zhao will certainly not sit idly by and watch these traitors act recklessly."

Huabiao finally breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Zhang Hua's words.

This sounds like a good idea. If Sima Zhao had stepped forward in time, he could have stopped the ministers.

Cao Mao laughed.

"Mr. Zhang has a good plan."

"Win over Sima Zhao to deal with the ministers, and then use the ministers to curb Sima Zhao."

Cao Mao murmured, and he slowly stood up. "The ministers are pressing us step by step. We can only keep thinking of ways to break their plans."

"Back when I was in the court, I saw through the true nature of these people."

"A bunch of cowardly, cunning villains, a bunch of thieves, how dare you do this?!"

Zhang Hua and Hua Biao looked at the furious emperor with a bit of worry in their hearts. Zhang Hua was the first to speak, "Your Majesty! Don't be impatient!"

"It's especially important to remain patient at times like these. They are simply forcing Your Majesty to reveal a flaw. The situation right now isn't that critical yet, and it can still be resolved."

"Sima Gan is still in Luoyang, and Gao Rou and his ilk don't have the final say in the court."

"Your Majesty, please be patient for a moment!"

Zhang Hua's face was filled with pain. "I understand your Majesty's grievances. I am incompetent and have caused your Majesty to suffer such humiliation!"

"Your Majesty, please be patient. I will certainly assist you and eradicate all the traitors in the world!"

Cao Mao instantly suppressed the anger on his face. He looked at the two ministers in front of him and hurriedly helped them up.

"Haha, a real man can bend and stretch. Even the Marquis of Huaiyin could endure the humiliation of being kicked in the crotch. What's this now?"

"Don't worry, I'm definitely not a reckless person."

“I just can’t stand the behavior of these people.”

Cao Mao's expression returned to its harmless appearance, but the murderous intent in his eyes did not disappear.

In the future, he will have to adjust his attitude towards these ministers. Repeated concessions have only made them more rampant, and they must be taught a lesson.

The armor left by Emperor Wu is in the ancestral temple.

This time, we must teach the ministers a lesson and let them know what kind of people we are!
Nai Gong is not King Cao Fang of Qi!

Nai Gong is not Shanyang Gong Liu Xie!
Nai Gong is definitely not Cao Huan, the Prince of Chenliu!

I am Cao Mao!

(End of this chapter)