The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 396: Don’t Let Me Down
"His Majesty!"

The next day, Hu Zun came early to pay a visit to the emperor.

Yesterday's banquet was for others to see, and the two of them tacitly did not discuss other important matters.

Cao Mao directly pulled Hu Zun into the West Hall. The others stayed outside, and Zhang Hua blocked the door.

This was the first time the two of them had spent time together in private.

This time, Cao Mao did not say so many polite words. His attitude was casual, but he seemed closer. He asked someone to get his favorite tea and wanted to have a long talk with Hu Zun.

At this moment, Hu Zun was looking at the emperor in front of him again, and he seemed a little hesitant.

"Your Majesty, I come from a frontier background. Although I have a basic understanding of the classics, I have been in the army for decades, so my words are inevitably crude and blunt. I cannot be like Zhuge Dan. If I have been disrespectful in any way, I hope Your Majesty will not blame me."

Hu Zun was giving Cao Mao a shot of prevention.

Hu Zun and Zhuge Dan are indeed two completely different types of people. Zhuge Dan loves fame and always looks righteous and awe-inspiring, which fits the ministers' definition of a Confucian general. As for Hu Zun, he also fits the ministers' definition of a frontier warrior.

Hu Zun knew his own character and was afraid that if he spoke too excitedly, the emperor would misunderstand him.

Cao Mao laughed and said, "General, just keep your words. I also made friends with heroes in Yuancheng. But now, in this palace, I dare not say a single vulgar word. I love people like General Hu who are so straightforward!"

When Hu Zun heard Cao Mao's answer, he immediately felt more confident.

Well, since Your Majesty has said so, I will speak frankly.

"Your Majesty, are you prepared to pardon Cao Fang?"

Hu Zun started by talking about the most sensitive topic at the moment, a topic that even Zhang Hua didn't dare to discuss easily. However, Cao Mao smiled and nodded, "That's right."

"Why? As long as he's alive, he's a threat to Your Majesty."

“Many reasons.”

"Putting aside the royal family, we also have to consider the General of Chariots and Cavalry."

"The General of Chariots and Cavalry is loyal to the Emperor Ming. If the Prince of Qi were to die at my hands, he might not write a letter to curse me, but he would certainly feel guilty and uneasy."

“How can I make things difficult for those who truly follow me?”

Hu Zun was speechless for a long time. He is truly an emperor worthy of assisting.

So Hu Zun skipped this question and talked about the situation in Qingzhou.

"Your Majesty, Qingzhou did not suffer a major disaster. In fact, only the city walls were damaged, while the rest of the houses and roads were almost intact."

"Those generals knew right from wrong and were afraid to fight against the Heavenly Soldiers, so they surrendered one after another!"

"I have arrested all the officials in Qingzhou. There is no one who is not plotting rebellion. Those who are not plotting rebellion have been killed by Sun Yu."

Hu Zun spoke loudly, and suddenly, his voice became softer.

"However, the powerful families in Qingzhou have suffered severe damage and have almost been completely eliminated by me."

Cao Mao's eyes lit up. "Oh? Sun Yu's rebels actually dared to plunder these powerful families?"

Hu Zun nodded hurriedly. "Yes, yes. These people would rather die than submit, so Sun Yu looted their property, burned their land deeds, and killed their clansmen. But, Your Majesty, don't worry. I have captured the rebels, and they have confessed to their actions."

"We have avenged them!"

As Hu Zun was talking, he couldn't help laughing.

Cao Mao nodded, "He deserves to be killed."

"These wicked birdmen, I wish I could kick their heads like Cuju!"

Hu Zun deeply agreed!

Hu Zun said again, "Your Majesty, when the general ordered me to take action in Xuzhou, I immediately slaughtered all the powerful families in Xuzhou who were always trying to please me. I also wiped out all the powerful families. As a result, Xuzhou is now in great order this year!"

"This time, I have taken care of Qingzhou as well. Now, Qingzhou and Xuzhou are like newly plowed land. As long as someone can cultivate it carefully, the harvest will surely be huge!"

Cao Mao looked at Hu Zun suddenly, and then he clapped his hands.

"Good General! You did what I wanted to do but couldn't order!"

Cao Mao really didn't expect that Hu Zun could think of these things. He knew that Hu Zun, a big family on the frontier, had some conflicts with the big families in the Central Plains.

However, he didn't expect Hu Zun to dare to do such a thing.

Hu Zun was actually taking a risk. After all, he was just guessing the emperor's behavior and didn't know what the emperor was thinking. But under Cao Mao's step-by-step guidance, he directly told the emperor what he had done, and the emperor indeed supported him.

Hu Zun's face was full of smiles.

"General, I originally wanted to serve you as the Grand General, but now that the Grand General has just passed away, and there are still many of his cronies in the court, this position is truly dangerous and I'm afraid it will disrupt the current deployment."

"General Hu, I wish to appoint you as General of the Cavalry, grant you the title of Grand Marshal, and make you the Governor of Qingxu."

"I wonder if the General could take the position temporarily?"

Cao Mao's words had reached such an extent that Hu Zun naturally bowed to Cao Mao with tears of gratitude. He could not pretend to be hypocritical like Zhuge Dan, otherwise he would have to refuse. However, Hu Zun did not decline and accepted the order on the spot.

If he refused now, it would be seen as disrespecting the position of General of the Cavalry. Moreover, His Majesty had given him the title of Grand General of the Cavalry. With this title, Hu Zun's status was higher than Guanqiu Jian and equal to Sima Zhao. Hu Zun was older, more experienced, and had more military achievements than Guanqiu Jian. Moreover, he had quelled the Qingzhou rebellion within the past month and was already well-known. It would be inappropriate to put him behind Guanqiu Jian.

Hu Zun didn't feel too sorry about this appointment, as he really wanted to be a general.

However, Hu Zun also knew that it was not easy to get to this position. Even if the emperor nodded, the ministers might not agree.

Moreover, the position of general was established when the emperor was young and unable to govern the country. He was used to govern the country on behalf of the young emperor. The current emperor is in charge of the government. If you establish a general again, won’t the temple be in chaos again?
But Hu Zun was quite confident in himself. He had already seen many achievements coming his way. If he could continue to make contributions, becoming a general would not be a dream.

Hu Zun immediately spoke up, "Your Majesty, the Qingxu officials have suffered heavy casualties. Hu Wei and Li Xi are already incredibly busy. If the court can't send personnel to assist them in time, I'm afraid there will be problems with this year's autumn harvest."

Hu Zun spoke very seriously, and Cao Mao nodded slowly.

"General Hu is right. I will make good arrangements for this selection."

"Ahem, actually, Your Majesty, I have thought of some candidates, but I don't know if they are suitable."

Hu Zun suddenly took out a list from his sleeve and put it in Cao Mao's hand.

Cao Mao opened it with surprise, and immediately found a lot of familiar names, all of whom were local officials with outstanding political achievements and good moral standards.

Cao Mao burst into laughter.

"Mr. Hu, it seems you've been selecting people for a long time!"

"such a pity."

Cao Mao shook his head and suddenly took out another letter from his sleeve.

"Look, this was sent by General Zhenbei yesterday!"

Hu Zun hurriedly opened the letter, but found that the contents of the letters were surprisingly similar. They all asked for people, complained, and even the people they wanted were similar.

Hu Zun quickly read through it and immediately flew into a rage, "How could this guy still want an official from Xuzhou?!"

Cao Mao sat in the upper seat with a smile on his face. He didn't care at all about the behavior of the two governors. He was not afraid that the governors would interfere in local affairs, but he was afraid that the governors would not interfere.

Ordinary provincial governors really can't scare those local tough guys. Only the governors who have tens of thousands of elite soldiers and can kill so many heads of big families can make them shut up.

Hu Zun and Yang Hu were both very concerned about local governance and carefully inspected officials from various places, which made Cao Mao very satisfied.

Zhang Hua stood at the door and looked at Hu Zun who was pestering the emperor about the issue of the prefect, and a smile appeared on his face.

These two people are like a true king and his subject.

Sima Yi was cunning, Sima Shi was ruthless, and Sima Zhao was reckless. Under their command, it was difficult to feel the sense of mutual trust between the monarch and his subjects.

Zhang Hua was thinking when he suddenly heard the hurried and heavy footsteps.

Zhang Hua didn't even need to look back to know who was coming.

In the entire palace, there was only one person who dared to walk at such a reckless pace.

Zhang Hua turned around.

That’s right, the person coming is Zhong Shiji.

Zhong Hui's face looked very ugly, and he was holding something in his hand, which looked like a letter.

"Is Your Majesty in the hall?"

"Yes, but His Majesty is discussing important matters with General Hu, so you are not allowed to enter."

Zhang Hua was standing in front of the door, and Zhong Hui had no intention of forcing his way in. When he heard that the person inside was Hu Zun, Zhong Hui lost interest in going in.

Zhong Hui still prefers elegant generals like Zhuge Dan and Jiang Wei. He doesn't like generals who are too crude.

For example, Hu Zun and Deng Ai.

Of course, it may also have something to do with their appearance.

When Hu Zun came out, he ran into Zhong Hui. Hu Zun was quite curious about Zhong Hui. He looked him up and down and said, "It was not easy for your brother to raise you. Don't let him down!"

Hearing this, Zhong Hui's face became even uglier.

Hu Zun left the place in a swagger.

"His Majesty!!"

Zhong Hui hurried into the hall and stuffed the list in his hand directly into Cao Mao's hand. "Why do you want my brother to be in charge of my affairs?!"

"He's always had a prejudice against me and has always been trying to sabotage my plans. This time, he's doing it even more so. You shouldn't have let him know about this and shouldn't have let him leave the mansion!!"

Zhong Hui was extremely angry at this moment. He had almost completed his work, but his brother suddenly jumped out and ruined it.

If someone else had done this, Zhong Hui would have already started planning to kill his entire clan.

It’s a pity that this is his own brother.

(End of this chapter)