The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 303 How could it be?

"You guys are here!"

Queen Mother Guo looked at the three fellow clansmen who came in with a smile, and finally a look of relief appeared on her face.

During these days, the emperor has become more and more contemptuous of himself.

He came to pay his respects less and less frequently, only once a day, and after less than half an hour, he would find an excuse to say that he had something important to attend to and hurriedly leave Zhaoyang Palace.

It's not like I haven't seen Emperor Ming and King Qi governing the world. How could they be as busy as he said?
It's obvious that he doesn't want to stay by my side.

I defeated Sima Shi for him and won over all the ministers. Now that he is in power, he begins to neglect me. If this continues, will he still have me in his eyes in the future?
Empress Dowager Guo also disliked these fellow tribesmen. After all, when she wanted to drag them to deal with Sima Shi, they stood on Sima Shi's side.

However, now, in order to prevent the emperor from looking down on her, she can only ask these people to come to Zhaoyang Palace.

She knew that Cao Mao didn't like these people, so she wanted to show the emperor that if he looked down on her again, she would have to use these people. If you go back to the past, you might not even be able to see her if you want to!
However, the three people who walked into Zhaoyang Palace had different expressions.

Guo Li and Guo Zhi looked at each other.

As an outstanding aristocratic family of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, they have always been good at judging the situation.

They have very flexible positions and can change them at any time for their own interests.

At the same time, they will wholeheartedly follow the Holy King who governs the world. Well, whoever is beneficial to them is the Holy King.

The holy king in the past was Sima Shi, and they followed Sima Shi to suppress the queen mother.

And the Holy King today is Cao Mao.

Cao Mao had just taken power, but judging from the Sili region, his position was already unshakable.

Both Chen Qian and Zheng Mao stood on the emperor's side and dealt a heavy blow to the officials in the court in a short period of time.

Almost all the central troops stood on the emperor's side.

People like Xun Yi and Cui Zan were able to raise some objections to the emperor's words and even dared to compete with the emperor in secret.

Of course, when they have recovered their strength in the future, it is not ruled out that they will once again write a letter to the emperor as they did to Sima Shi, requesting him to accept benevolent policies.

But no matter what the situation is, it has nothing to do with the three people from the Guo family.

Their current situation is no exaggeration to say that they are like dogs that have lost their home.

After all their official titles were dismissed, the ministers began to purge them. The descendants of the Guo family fell from power one after another and declined rapidly at an incredible speed.

Of course, no matter how poor they are, they are still a big family and they will definitely have no worries about food and clothing.

However, after experiencing the most glorious years of their lives, they seem reluctant to stay at home and live the life of a wealthy man.

What's more, Guo Zhang came to them from time to time, vaguely showing the idea of cooperating with them.

Guo Li immediately became interested and wanted to meet the empress dowager.

After receiving the imperial edict, he was full of energy again. He called Guo Zhang and went to meet the empress dowager.

But when he saw Cheng Ji, Guo Li felt something was wrong.

He decisively chose to admit defeat and went to pay a visit to His Majesty the Emperor in time.

Sure enough, the empress dowager is still the empress dowager of the past, but the emperor is no longer the emperor of the past.

His cold expression and the murderous intent when he looked at him reminded Guo Li of Sima Shi. The Shangshu Guo Zhang, who was so complacent in front of him, became so obedient, which gave Guo Li a great shock.

Fortunately, the emperor did not want to kill them.

The emperor’s meaning is very clear. If you want to be an official, you can do so, but it depends on your performance.

So what else can they choose?

"Meet the Queen Mother!"

The three of them came together to pay their respects.

Empress Dowager Guo slightly suppressed her smile and said, "You made a serious mistake back then. I shouldn't have summoned you."

"I just heard that you haven't been doing well recently, so I'm giving you a chance to mend your ways."

Empress Dowager Guo raised her head, waiting for these people to kneel down and worship her in fear and trepidation.

Since defeating Sima Shi, Empress Dowager Guo seemed to be completely torn apart.

I was very confident when I just woke up, remembering how I dealt with Sima Shi.

At noon, he began to worry again, feeling that Cao Mao had neglected him.

By the afternoon, I started to get scared, wondering if I was already useless.

Before going to bed, he began to think about the ministers bowing their heads to him, and felt that he was not useless.

This is how her day went.

At this moment, Empress Dowager Guo was still in a state of mixed feelings between confidence and worry.

The sight of all the officials in the court bowing to her was still vivid in her mind. Empress Dowager Guo needed this feeling of being respected.

But she waited for a while and didn't hear any thanks from these people.

Empress Dowager Guo was a little surprised and looked at the three people again.

Guo Li and Guo Zhi remained silent. Only Guo Jian could not bear it any longer. He said, "Empress Dowager."

"We made a serious mistake, we all know it and are willing to accept the punishment, you don't have to worry."

Empress Dowager Guo's beautiful eyes widened. "Why is this development not right? I've given you a chance to mend your ways, so why aren't you willing to accept it?"

Do you really think such an opportunity will come at any time?
She asked angrily, "Why, do you want to look down on me?!"

Guo Zhi cleared her throat and said seriously, "I dare not, Queen Mother. It's just that we made a big mistake in the past. Following the general was not good for Your Majesty. We are fully aware of our mistakes and have no complaints about our current situation."

"Then what are you guys doing here?!"

"How dare I not come when the Queen Mother summons me?"

Upon hearing this answer, Empress Dowager Guo was furious. "Do you really think I'm easy to bully?! This opportunity only comes once. If you don't respond today, even if you beg me for forgiveness later, I won't even look at you!"

Guo Li and Guo Zhi continued to remain silent.

Whether this is reformation or not is not for you to decide now.

If the Empress Dowager were to suddenly confer titles on them, they would be frightened, for the titles bestowed by the Empress Dowager would now be a death warrant.
They don't want to provoke the emperor.

The person who can make them "reform" is in Taiji Hall, not in Zhaoyang Hall.

Seeing that they still remained silent, Empress Dowager Guo's anger reached its peak. She wanted to drive these people away immediately, but for some reason, she resisted the urge.

"I'll give you one last chance."

Guo Zhi finally couldn't bear it anymore.

He raised his head and said seriously, "Empress Dowager, Emperor Wen once said: The harem is not allowed to interfere in government affairs."

"We have committed grave errors and have been dismissed by Your Majesty. We sincerely accept your dismissal. Your Majesty is a man of great talent and wisdom, truly a sage king capable of governing the empire. As the Queen Mother, you should stay in the harem, ensuring that Your Majesty has no worries and can govern the empire with peace of mind. In this way, you will become a virtuous Queen Mother."

"Yet you have summoned us now, offering to pardon our crimes and reinstate us as officials. Isn't this disrespecting the current Holy King?"

"Your Majesty is extremely respectful to you, and everyone has seen it."

"He comes to see you every day, and tributes from all over the country are brought to you first. When he heard that Weiwei Xin Chang had presented Your Majesty with a priceless jade, Your Majesty presented it to you that very day. This news spread throughout Luoyang, and everyone was deeply moved by Your Majesty's filial piety."

"Even we, the people of our generation, are ashamed of our past disrespectful behavior toward His Majesty and dare not go to see him."

"At that time, the traitors were powerful and wanted to harm you. It was Your Majesty who turned the tide and punished the traitors."

"The Queen Mother must be extremely pleased to have such a son."

"Now, why would you do such a thing behind His Majesty's back?!"

Guo Zhi's tone became faster and faster, and her voice became louder and louder, as if she wanted the people outside the door to hear clearly.

At this moment, he seemed to have turned back into the Sima Shi era, loudly scolding the empress dowager.

The Queen Mother was stunned.

She had heard this before.

When Sima Shi said he wanted to depose and enthrone the emperor and asked me to issue an edict.

Guo Zhi once said something almost identical, "With such loyal ministers, what are you worried about? You should be relieved!"

The same thing happened again in front of Empress Dowager Guo.

Empress Dowager Guo just pointed at Guo Zhi in front of her and was speechless.

How dare you treat me like this?!

I defeated Sima Shi!
All the ministers kneel before me!

you! !

Empress Dowager Guo screamed, "Come here, take this thief down!"

Immediately, soldiers rushed into the hall and surrounded the three men.

Guo Zhi was not afraid. He said seriously, "I am telling the truth. Even if the Queen Mother wants to kill me for this, I will never change my words!"

"Get out! Get out!!"

The Queen Mother shouted, and the soldiers pushed the three men away.

After the three of them left, Queen Mother Guo slowly sat back in her seat. Her whole body was trembling, and she didn't know whether it was because of fear or anger.

How dare they not be afraid of me?

All the ministers have already knelt before me!
Empress Dowager Guo suddenly looked at Mr. Guo standing beside her and shouted angrily, "Go, go, call Xun Yi, Cui Zan, and Guo Zhang to me. Have them come to Zhaoyang Palace to pay their respects to me now!"

Mr. Guo quickly obeyed the order and left the place in a hurry.

He couldn't help but feel emotional in his heart.

This empress dowager has never been able to see herself clearly. She just summoned people from the Guo family, and now she is going to summon important officials from the Secretariat.

The ministers of the Secretariat must be crazy to come together to pay homage to the Queen Mother at this time.

Of course, Mr. Guo had no power to refuse. Since the Queen Mother had given the order, he had to carry it out himself.

Anyway, His Majesty has told me a long time ago, so I just have to do it.

Sure enough, things turned out just as Mr. Guo had expected. When the three ministers learned that the Queen Mother had summoned them, they flatly refused.

Xun Yi first asked whether the emperor was in Zhaoyang Palace. When he learned that he was not, he immediately refused. Cui Zan never met him in person, and Guo Zhang was almost angry and said he would not meet him.

When Mr. Guo brought the news to the Queen Mother, her face was full of disbelief.

How did that happen?
(End of this chapter)