The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 409: Fight evil with evil!

"Hahaha, congratulations to Lord Sikong!!"

The ministers bowed to He Zeng with a smile.

He Zeng sat in the upper seat with a smile on his face, his eyes full of kindness, and greeted the ministers who came to congratulate him one by one.

At this moment, they still didn't know what was happening with General Wei. They all came here to celebrate He Zeng's promotion.

Even Zheng Chong came to congratulate.

Zheng Chong, who usually looks sad and worried, now looks smiling and even takes the initiative to greet people.

After being dismissed, Zheng Chong felt particularly relieved.

He had wanted to resign for a long time. When he was Sima Shi, he wanted to leave the court. What he pursued was the kind of life advocated by the Seven Sages, that is, hiding in the mountains and becoming a hermit.

This is because Zheng Chong is a cautious person and he is unwilling to get involved in the struggles in the court.

Many times he had no choice but to become an invisible man and live in seclusion in the temple.

Finally, from now on, I am no longer the mastermind, no longer a pillar, and I can go back to do the things I want to do.

It is not good?

Zheng Chong was ready to leave, but his ministers came to invite him to go with them. Zheng Chong thought about it and decided to go one last time before leaving.

However, most of the people who come here are from aristocratic families in the temple.

None of the ministers sent by the emperor came.

Except for Xun Yi, none of the ministers from the Secretariat came.

Because the other ministers were all from the emperor's faction, and these people were personally selected by Cao Mao, they were not very willing to mix with people like He Zeng.

Apart from the Secretariat, eunuchs such as Huabiao and Zhang Hua had not come.

The same is true for them.

On the contrary, almost all the members of the aristocratic family faction headed by Xun Yi were present.

Of course, it was impossible for the emperor's top confidants and ministers to come, such as Wang Su, Wang Chang, Sima Zhao, Zhuge Dan and others.

He Zeng looked at the ministers in front of him with a happy smile on his face.

Obviously, although his position was appointed by the emperor himself, he did not receive the recognition of the emperor's faction.

After all, it is not easy to join the emperor's faction. You either have to take a firm stand, or have enough merits, or have talent or morality.

Even Xun Xu failed to join this faction, let alone He Zeng.

But He Zeng didn't care about this. He just looked at the ministers standing among them. At this moment, they seemed to be shining with dazzling light.

"Congratulations, Mr. He."

Xun Yi looked somewhat reluctant.

Although Xun Yi was the undisputed leader of the aristocratic family, he still hoped to obtain the position of Three Dukes. He originally thought that he could get it after Zheng Chong left.

He didn't expect that He Zeng would intervene.

Xun Yi originally didn't want to come, but for the interests of his faction, he still showed up here.

He Zeng is a very famous and experienced person, and now he is one of the Three Dukes.

Among the three kilometers nowadays, no one is from an aristocratic family; all of them are the emperor's confidants.

Originally, Zheng Chong could barely be considered one of their people, but now He Zeng was not accepted by the emperor's faction. Xun Yi also wanted to pull him into his own faction to fight against the emperor's faction together with him.

Therefore, Xun Yi had no choice but to compromise and come forward on his own initiative.

But after he bowed, He Zeng's reaction was very cold. He just nodded and looked at the minister beside him.

Xun Yi was a little angry about this and felt humiliated.

But he couldn't turn around and leave.

"Hahaha, Mr. He, with you as the Third Lord, why should we worry about not accomplishing great things?"

At this moment, the Imperial Household Official Tao Qiuyi started chatting with He Zeng very enthusiastically.

Taoqiu's surname is Taoqiu, and his given name is Taoqiu.

He is of the same clan as the famous scholar Tao Qiuhong.

His family background is not too prominent, but not too low either. He doesn't like to get involved in fights and is always a restrained and calm person.

However, he agreed with Wang Xiang's theory.
Tao Qiuyi's words seemed to have a deeper meaning, and He Zeng laughed.

"You're right. With you here, there's no need to worry about not accomplishing anything great."

He Zeng started chatting with them, and many people joined in their conversation.

Xun Yi was completely ignored. He lowered himself several times to listen, but was pulled away by others who deliberately changed the subject.

Xun Yi felt a little strange.

Why do these people look so familiar?
I don't see them interacting much on weekdays?
Could it be that they had already formed an alliance, with He Zeng at the head, to kick him out?

Xun Yi was shocked and confused at this moment.

Xun Xi's power comes from his clan and relatives. Xun Xi's clan is extremely large and can be regarded as one of the few large families that can keep up with the Sima family. They also have a lot of relatives.

Chen Tai is a relative of Xun Xi, Zhong Hui is a relative of Xun Xi, Wang Chang is a relative of Xun Xi, and Guanqiu Jian is a relative of Xun Xi. Yes, that's right, Guanqiu Jian is also one of Xun Xi's relatives.

Guanqiu Dian married Xun Xi's adopted daughter, Xun Shi. Xun Xi was Guanqiu Dian's legitimate uncle. In history, after Guanqiu Jian was defeated, Xun Xi was almost arrested as well.

At this moment, he suddenly felt something was wrong. Soon, the banquet began.

He Zeng sat in the upper seat, looking at everyone with a smile.

After the musicians played, He Zeng asked them all to leave and then cleared his throat.

"My dear friends, I have no talent, yet I have received the grace of Your Majesty and have become one of the Three Dukes."

“This is something I never thought about before.”

"With my incomplete strategies and unremarkable political achievements, I certainly cannot be ranked among the Three Dukes and become the leader of the ministers. However, since Your Majesty trusts me and has bestowed such a gift upon me, I cannot refuse."

"I think that since I have become one of the Three Dukes, I must repay His Majesty's kindness with all my strength and die for His Majesty!"

He Zeng's words were recognized by the ministers, and everyone nodded with a smile.

He Zeng then clapped his hands. Suddenly, many soldiers rushed in from outside. These people were armed with powerful crossbows and directly controlled the entire banquet.

In an instant, the mansion was in chaos. The ministers looked at the soldiers in astonishment and the powerful crossbows in their hands, not knowing what to do.

"Mr. He?! What are you going to do?!"

Xun Yi immediately stood up and asked loudly.

He Zeng waved his hand and said, "Don't panic, this is what happened."

"I heard that the Grand Coachman Tao Qiuyi fabricated a story about auspicious signs in Xuchang, hoping to trick Your Majesty into going there. They then secretly plotted to enthrone the Prince of Qi as emperor. I was able to serve as one of the Three Dukes this time because I promptly informed Your Majesty of this incident, thwarting their plot and apprehending the traitor who forged the auspicious sign."

When He Zeng said this, the ministers were in an uproar again.

Xun Yi looked at Tao Qiuyi in disbelief.

At this moment, Tao Qiu was first stunned, and then angry.

He stood up suddenly, "He Zeng! You shameless bastard!"

Before he could finish his words, the soldiers rushed up and pinned him to the ground.

He Zeng ignored his words and then looked at those people. The soldiers immediately rushed out and dragged out several ministers and tied them up.

He Zeng shook his head, "Those who plot rebellion are just scoundrels."

"Your Majesty is a sage king. Since he took power, he has rectified the administration, appeased the people, rewarded the soldiers, and defeated Shu and Wu in succession, capturing and executing people alive. Yet, you have turned a blind eye to all this and even dared to collude with Shu to murder the king. How shameless is this?"

"You bastard!!"

Tao Qiu roared.

He Zeng looked at the people around him.

"There are many people involved in this matter. They have no regard for the people of the world and dared to do such a rebellious thing. It is really chilling."

"Especially the bandit leader Tao Qiuyi, a descendant of a prominent family and an official, yet he is so disloyal, unfilial, and unkind. Today, I must teach you a lesson on behalf of your ancestors!"

"Someone, take this guy's clothes off, bring him in here, and beat him up!"

He Zeng gave an order and soldiers came up and took off Tao Qiuyi's clothes. Tao Qiu was furious and put up a desperate resistance. However, he was no match for these soldiers and was soon stripped of his clothes. He was thrown into the middle in a very humiliating manner. Then soldiers holding wooden sticks started beating him.

Seeing this situation, the ministers suddenly became restless.

"Mr. He! Even if he were a traitor, he wouldn't dare humiliate me like this. This case should be investigated according to the law, and I should handle it."

Cui Zan stood up immediately.

He was not in the same party as Tao Qiu. He just couldn't stand He Zeng's behavior of treating scholars in this way. Even the Ten Attendants would not humiliate a scholar like this. If someone made a mistake, just kill him. Why do this?
He Zeng looked at him coldly, then said, "This man sympathizes with the rebels, and may be an accomplice of the rebels. Capture him as well!"

The soldiers rushed out immediately, and Cui Zan was horrified.

"How dare you do this? I am the Chief Justice!"

"I'm Sikong. If I suspect you of a crime, you're guilty. If you dare to say anything more, you'll be treated like Tao Qiuyi!"

At this moment, Cui Zan didn't dare to say anything more.

At his age, if he suffered such humiliation again, he would really have no face to live.

Tao Qiuyi was pressed to the ground, and the wooden stick kept hitting him, each time with full force. At first, Tao Qiuyi could still curse a few words, but gradually, he stopped moving and lay on the ground without any reaction.

Xun Yi wanted to speak, but he didn't dare to.

He Zeng is crazy. He even dares to arrest Cui Zan. Will he be arrested too if he asks for help?

Finally, a minister spoke up, "Mr. He, if you hit him again, he will die."

He Zeng just looked at him coldly without saying anything.

The ministers were horrified, and they suddenly realized that He Zeng's purpose was to kill Tao Qiuyi.

Tao Qiuyi was still being beaten. The ministers were now certain that he was dead. His body had been beaten beyond recognition. The ministers could not bear to watch it any longer. Their faces turned pale and they wanted to escape.

No one knew how long the fight lasted, but He Zeng finally persuaded the soldiers to stop.

Those soldiers were panting and had no strength left.

The ministers breathed a sigh of relief.

He Zeng said, "Next."

At this moment, Xun Yi understood that it was impossible for him to win over He Zeng. This man did not belong to the emperor faction, nor to the aristocratic family faction. He had opened up a new faction.

Mad Dog Faction.

(End of this chapter)