The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 413 It’s Delicious
Sima Zhao's memorial directly cut off the ministers' way to advise and remonstrate.

This court meeting lost its meaning to the ministers.

When the court meeting ended and the ministers left silently, Sima Zhao did not rush to leave.

At the signal of several eunuchs, Sima Zhao quickly caught up with the emperor and walked beside Cao Mao.

Sima Zhao was really scared this time.

Even his elder brother did not dare to attack the soldiers on the road.

When Sima Shi executed Xiahou Xuan and others, the scholars in Luoyang gathered to oppose it, but Sima Shi chose to ignore them.

But the emperor directly sent people to chop them down, and according to the content of their advice, he was planning to eliminate them directly in the name of attacking General Wei.

Sima Zhao felt horrified. What kind of person had his family supported in the first place?

At this moment, Sima Zhao became much more polite when facing Cao Mao.

He now somewhat understood why his brother had told him to follow the emperor wholeheartedly and leave the opportunity to future generations.

As long as this guy is alive, it is unlikely that I will succeed.

If my brother knew what he did today, he would probably be shocked.

Cao Mao was very satisfied with Sima Zhao's performance today. He said kindly, "General Wei, thank you for your trouble these days."

"I'm so relieved!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Although Sima Zhao was panicked in his heart, he still maintained the demeanor of a celebrity on the surface.

He said lightly, "Your Majesty, there is no need to do this. This is what I should do."

Cao Mao liked Sima Zhao just like this. Even though his mind was in a mess, he appeared to be as calm as an old dog.

In Cao Mao's view, Sima Zhao was deliberately imitating his brother and father, trying to achieve the state of remaining calm.

However, when I copied a tiger, I only copied their appearance, but I didn’t learn any of their cunningness!

Cao Mao could not see the changes in Sima Shi's expression, nor could he predict his movements, but when it came to Sima Zhao, his guesses were always correct.

Cao Mao also learned a lot from Sima Shi. The most important thing was to make others confused about his work style and to use quick attacks to defeat slow ones.

He said, "General Wei, someone has recommended General Sima Wang to be the Governor of Liang Province."

"I thought about it for a long time and decided to agree."

"Sima Wang will definitely be able to achieve great things in Liangzhou."

Sima Zhao was shocked. He subconsciously wanted to thank the emperor, but suddenly he remembered the disintegration of the Sima family, and he just shook his head.

Cao Mao continued, "General Wei, I am now punishing the treacherous villains of this world. Some of them have committed many evil deeds in the past, and it has been discovered that they are members of the Sima family. I think that if the general were still alive, he would certainly not forgive such people. What do you think I should do?"

Sima Zhao hurriedly said, "He must be killed!"

Cao Mao was even more satisfied. "General Wei, the governance of the world still depends on your assistance. I will let you deal with these people. The general should deal with them impartially and not show partiality."

"only!!!"

In the following days, what happened in the temple gradually spread to various places, causing a huge impact.

The areas that had already been in conflict because of the Qingzhou incident suddenly became even more unstable. A few days later, small-scale rebellions broke out in Yuzhou and Yanzhou, led by a few county officials and magistrates.

Of course, these people's uprising could not cause any trouble at all.

But soon, a wave of resignations appeared in various places. A large number of officials chose to resign and leave in the name of the lack of justice in the court to express their dissatisfaction.

This trend is getting more and more intense, and it even has some of the characteristics of the late Han Dynasty.

During the Party and Faction Rebellion in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, many ministers felt ashamed of not being dismissed by the emperor, so they took the initiative to write to the emperor, requesting to be dismissed as well.

In fact, the current disasters in the world were already obvious in the late Han Dynasty.

Whether it was the generals in power or the scholars running rampant, idle talk becoming popular, inaction, corruption and bribery, many of the evil deeds that can be seen today can also be seen in the Later Han Dynasty.

However, it may be more intense at this moment. After all, these evil deeds are also progressing.

However, it wasn't all bad.

After He Zeng's killing spree, the officials instantly found the morality they had lost.

Countless books of sages and countless benevolent policies could not change them, but a steel knife could easily accomplish many things.

The officials in Luoyang suddenly became honest. No one dared to accept gifts, and no one gave gifts.

Administrative efficiency also increased rapidly within a few days, and the news gradually spread to local areas. Many corrupt officials fled for fear of punishment, and the rest of the people also became alert, fearing that the next step would be to target them.

This is much more effective than the inspections by the eunuchs.

The people at the bottom of society probably felt it most clearly. When they discovered that they would not be extorted by soldiers or gatekeepers when entering and leaving the city gates, they were stunned.

What happened? Why didn't the official even accept the money?
But this is a good thing for the people.

In the past, they were exploited for everything they did. They had to pay to enter and exit the city gate, to buy farm tools, and to raise poultry at home. They even had to pay for their own dead leaves that fell outside.
The wealthy and powerful families need a luxurious life, and their luxury comes from layers of exploitation. If the gifts they receive are restored step by step, they will eventually be blamed on these helpless people.

The people who discovered the changes were naturally very happy. At this time, officials from all over the country also received reports and began to order low-level officials to post notices in various places to inform the people.

To put it simply: the current emperor has learned that there are evildoers among the people and has sent people to investigate thoroughly. If there are local officials who commit crimes, the people can directly sue the governor's office, and the governors of various places cannot refuse.

Anyone who reports corrupt officials will be rewarded handsomely.

Such notices began to appear everywhere, appearing at an increasingly rapid rate.

The people who learned about this cheered. They might not have had the courage to sue the officials, but this notice made them understand why those officials had changed so much.

At this moment, Cao Mao's reputation among the scholars had fallen to the bottom, but it had risen to an extremely high level among the common people.

The people of the Wei Dynasty were very simple. They were the same as the people of the Han Dynasty, the people of the Tang Dynasty, and even the people two thousand years later.

They are not as stupid and blind as carnivores think. They can distinguish between good and evil in their hearts.

Even if their knowledge and experience limit them, their hearts can feel.

When the carriage stopped beside the restaurant, Cao Mao got off skillfully and walked into the courtyard accompanied by Cheng Ji and Sima Yan.

"The gentleman is here!"

The errand boy did not hide anymore at this moment. Although he was still a little uneasy, his father-in-law hurried out, bowed to greet him, and then warmly asked Cao Mao and others to sit down.

The diners around were still a little uneasy at this moment, but they did not go to the extent of running away or being afraid to eat.

The old man also smiled and said, "Don't worry, everyone. This gentleman is a true gentleman!"

Cao Mao had become acquainted with the old man. He looked around and said, "Business has been good lately. The shop is always full every day."

The old man grinned. "In the past, we didn't dare go out on the streets. We were either blackmailed or met with those who served the people. But now it's different. Do you know? His Majesty has issued a notice to strictly investigate evil thieves who bully the people!"

"Those who were serving the punishment suddenly disappeared, and no officials came to me to ask for money anymore."

As my father-in-law said this, his eyes were full of longing.

A merchant nearby also laughed and chimed in, "I've said it before, His Majesty is a wise man. I once met him in Hebei, and he urged us to do more good deeds and appease the people on his behalf!"

"Didn't the reputation of the Hebei righteous merchants spread far and wide?"

After hearing what the merchant said, Cao Mao looked at him for a long time and asked, "Have you ever seen the emperor?"

"Yeah, I've only met him once from a distance."

"So what does he look like?"

When Cao Mao asked this, everyone became curious and looked at the merchant.

The merchant gestured, "Your Majesty, that's a strange figure. He's enormous, three heads taller than me. His arms are as thick as this tree, and he could lift seven or eight people in one hand. He's like a towering figure. His face gleams silver."

The merchant spoke seriously, Cheng Ji lowered his head, and only his shoulders trembled.

Sima Yan looked at Cao Mao beside him, then looked at the merchant, his eyes full of confusion.

Cao Mao suddenly realized, "So this is what it looks like."

The merchant suddenly sighed, "Holy Emperor! We were recently ordered not to leave without paying enough money. Yesterday, the officials returned all the money they had demanded, saying it was a miscalculation."

"From now on, when we travel to other places, we shouldn't have to worry about being robbed on the road."

"Don't be afraid. Who would dare to do that now? A few days ago, I saw with my own eyes the Luoyang magistrate being dragged out by armored soldiers. He was beaten severely and cried for mercy, but he was dragged away directly! I heard that they were trying to seize farmland."

"Well done!"

"After ascending the throne, this Holy Emperor first defeated the Shu and Wu bandits, and now he has defeated these treacherous bandits as well."

Cao Mao lowered his head and ate his meal calmly, allowing them to discuss. Sima Yan looked a little dazed. As he listened to everyone's discussion, he suddenly felt a little complicated.

The ministers always said: I am afraid that if the government implements bad policies, it will lose the support of the people.

But from what these people say, it seems that Your Majesty has not lost the support of the people.

Not only did he not lose, he seemed to have won the hearts of the people.

He looked at Cao Mao again, and Cao Mao looked up in surprise, "An Shi, what are you standing there for? Come on, eat! This wheat rice won't taste good if it gets cold. This is the best one around here!"

Sima Yan hesitated for a moment, picked up the bowl in front of him, and sat aside in a proper manner.

He looked at the people around him and started to eat like them.

This was the first time Sima Yan had eaten such a meal.

"Brother-in-law."

"Ok?"

“The food here is actually really delicious.”

Cao Mao glanced at him, then looked at the shopkeeper with a smile.

"Father, give this fellow another bowl!"

P.S.: Twelve thousand words in one day is really a bit unbearable. My eyes are blurry. When I was checking for typos, I wrote "士人" as "十人". I read it over and over again but couldn't spot it... My fault, my fault. I'm very sorry. I will check the article again and again.

(End of this chapter)