The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 533 Different from the past

A man staggered on the road.

He was disheveled, his face was red and his eyes were blurry.

You can tell at a glance that he has taken the powder.

Seeing his appearance, passers-by on the road looked at him with astonishment and contempt in their eyes.

The contempt wasn't even concealed.

But this man ignored these gazes and just walked on the road in a daze. He didn't know how long he had been walking. He seemed to feel tired and finally stopped.

He looked around blankly.

Finally, he saw a tavern in the distance.

There was no sign hanging in the tavern, and no one even dared to stay here to drink.

This is because Cao Wei has a strict prohibition on alcohol! Drinking is not allowed!
Cao Wei's prohibition on alcohol sounds ridiculous.

Especially the prohibition of alcohol in the late Wei Dynasty.

Oh, by the way, the Shu Kingdom also had a prohibition on alcohol.

In this age of drunkards, there are prohibitions on alcohol in government offices everywhere.

This is actually easy to understand. The prohibition of alcohol was to restrict the people. Cao Cao issued the prohibition, but banquets were held every day and fine wine was drunk every day.

This was even more true for the aristocratic families, as each of them was a top-notch drunkard. Taking medicine and drinking alcohol were two major characteristics of the Wei and Jin dynasties.

At this point, the prohibition on alcohol became a piece of waste paper, but business continued. It was only because Cao Mao had rectified the administration of officials and made the law stronger again that those selling alcohol took down their signs, dared not shout, and did not dare to keep people here to drink. People usually just bought and left.

Therefore, the taverns at that time were different from those in later generations. There would not be a situation where a group of people stayed in the tavern to drink and have fun.

This is illegal.

The man slowly walked to the front of the tavern and looked at the person in front of him with a dull look.

"And bring me a pot of sage."

During the time of Cao Cao, he could drink it himself and the people he liked could drink it, but no one else could drink it.

Therefore, people could only drink in secret. In order not to be caught by the court, they used some code words to refer to the wine.

Ordinary wine is called sage, and wine that tastes very good is called saint.

Later, although Prohibition became a blank slate, this elegant name was retained.

The shopkeeper didn't look like an ordinary man either. He was big and strong, wearing nice clothes. He looked at the drunkard in front of him for a moment, then shook his head and said indifferently, "No."

In the past, if a shop owner saw someone taking powder like this coming to his shop, he would give him a few more pots even if it was for free.

But things are different now.

Since Cao Mao took power, the number of people in mourning began to decrease instantly, because Cao Mao had ordered that officials were not allowed to serve in mourning, and scholars who served in mourning were not allowed to serve in the government.

The government also began to publicize it with all its might, turning this elegant event into a beastly act.

According to the official saying: Those who serve the people are neither fathers nor sons, they have no etiquette or laws, their morals are degraded, and they behave like beasts.

With the promotion of the Ministry of Rites, this elegant event is no longer so elegant.

In order to please the emperor who was in power, the major families also strictly required their children to stop disbanding.

Those who still dare to go out on the streets like this are most likely those who have given up on themselves and have no clan. It is not a wise choice to deal with such people.

The man woke up instantly.

He stared at the shopkeeper in front of him, "What do you mean?!"

"Don't you think I can't pay for the drinks?"

"It's meaningless. I won't sell my wine to a beast who takes loose stools."

The shopkeeper turned around to leave, but the man yelled and stepped forward to grab the shopkeeper.

The shop owner just felt unlucky.

Judging from the man's clothes, he is extremely dirty. He is not young anymore, with white hair and beard, and it is difficult to do anything to him.

If I sell the wine and take the medicine, if something goes wrong, I will be implicated.

Just as the two were arguing, a group of people came from a distance.

People who were also there to buy wine quickly gathered around when they saw this scene.

These people are all young scholars.

"Shopkeeper, why are you so rude to an old man?!"

"This man has taken the medicine, and I don't want to sell him wine!"

The shopkeeper hurriedly explained.

The scholars fell silent, looked at each other for a few seconds, and then looked at the old man.

"My dear father-in-law, if you take the powder, it's best not to drink alcohol. It will cause a fever. Oh, I've never taken the powder, but I've heard that drinking alcohol after taking the powder can easily cause a fever."

Some scholars began to persuade him patiently.

The old man waved his hand and cursed, "I drink when I want to. How can you, a young man like you, lecture me?"

The man fell silent, and another scholar said angrily, "Today, all ambitious people are working for unification and a peaceful world. You are so old, yet you are still here serving your sentence. What qualifications do you have to lecture us?"

The old man was speechless and his face turned red.

And more and more people gathered to watch.

They asked about what had happened and laughed at the old man when they learned about him.

"They are just old beasts!" "How humiliated were we by those who served us in the past?"

"Look at how miserable he is now!"

The people have the most complaints about these people, and these lunatics are undoubtedly the most terrifying to the people.

But nowadays, or in today's Luoyang, the people are really not afraid that you will jump out and bully them!
The government sent more and more soldiers to inspect the area. They didn't care whether you were from a big or small family. If you dared to cause trouble, it would be a political achievement for them.

Cao Mao's prestige grew stronger and stronger, and the execution ability of grassroots officials was guaranteed.

What they represent is the imperial power, all the big families should stand aside!
Sure enough, they gathered here and soon attracted a group of patrolling soldiers, who quickly came here.

When the shopkeeper saw the soldier, he pointed at an old man nearby and said, "He's the one who took the medicine and caused trouble! He insisted on buying wine from me, but all I sell is medicine, not wine."

The soldiers looked at the old man and without any further ado, they dragged him out.

Everyone cheered, and some even clapped.

The old man struggled and cursed loudly, but it was of no use.

Yang Zong sat in the dark prison. He didn't know how long he had been there. Finally, he woke up and looked ahead blankly.

When he looked up, he saw a familiar person sitting opposite him, looking at him calmly.

Yang Zong rubbed his eyes.

How come today's break lasted so long?
"Mr. Yang, are you awake?"

The person sitting in front of him was Cao Mao.

Cao Mao shook his head at this moment, "Why would you choose to be a beast instead of a good person?"

Only at this moment did Yang Zong confirm that what was happening before him was not an illusion, but that the emperor really appeared before him.

He wanted to stand up and salute, but he was too weak and fell to the ground.

Cao Mao did not help him up.

He just looked at Yang Zong calmly.

"Mr. Yang, the world has begun to change."

"Back when we were still in Yuan City, we were so weak. It was because of our discussion with you that I made up my mind to change this absurd era."

"Now, I am almost halfway successful."

"You once said that nothing would succeed and everything was meaningless. I think that the fact that you were captured here is very meaningful."

"What does Yang Gong think?"

Yang Zong was stunned for a long time, then moved his lips and said, "Your Majesty."

"Not everything is meaningless. Sima Yi swore an oath at Luoshui and killed Cao Shuang. Now, he has also received retribution. Perhaps you have also seen it."

"I have issued an edict to withdraw all rewards and posthumous titles bestowed upon him. From now on, there will be no Duke Xuanwen in the world, only the treacherous minister Sima Yi. I have also ordered his tomb to be dug up and his substandard coffin to be destroyed. He will be buried with commoner rites. Of course, I will also leave his body exposed in the wild for three days."

"This is all retribution for what he did to others!"

“Now, all of this falls on his head!”

"Evil deeds will be punished. Those who set their minds to accomplish something will definitely achieve their goal!"

"Yang Gong gave up everything and felt that nothing could be accomplished. It was because you gave up too early."

The more Cao Mao spoke, the more excited he became.

Suddenly, he stopped and looked at Yang Zong beside him.

"What does Yang Gong think?"

Yang Zong was speechless at this moment, and two lines of tears rolled down from the corners of his eyes.

Cao Mao stood up, ignored him and left.

Cao Mao walked out of the prison and got into a carriage surrounded by many soldiers. Zhang Hua hurriedly got in as well.

Sitting in the carriage, Zhang Hua said, "Your Majesty, how is it going? Have you persuaded him to work for you?"

"We'll know that when he comes out."

Cao Mao said calmly, "Yang Zong is a man of wisdom and military knowledge, but I am still short of manpower."

Zhang Hua nodded to show his understanding.

During this period, Cao Mao began to employ a large number of talents from Shu.

Dong Jue was directly arranged by Cao Mao into the Secretariat and became the deputy of Lu Zhi of the Ministry of Revenue.

This shocked the ministers, who all felt that this was a bit risky.

Although they have surrendered, they were enemies not long ago. How can they be used directly?
But Cao Mao told them: Since they have chosen to surrender, they are family members and there is no need to treat them with disrespect because of past events.

Don't use the suspect, but don't use it.

Fan Jian was immediately sent to the Secretariat by Cao Mao, and Cao Mao also assigned many other surrendered ministers according to their talents and personalities.

For example, Qiao Zhou was suitable to study with Wang Su.

Under Liu Chan, Qiao Zhou could only persuade the enemy to surrender, but under Cao Mao, he was an academic pioneer. Cao Mao even wanted Qiao Zhou to be in charge of school affairs.

You know, Qiao Zhou had a lot of students, and he was really good at training them.

He has taught many talented people.

Everyone has their own areas of expertise.

The key is whether they can be placed in the most appropriate place.

(End of this chapter)