The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 659: Divide Their Hearts

In the Taiji Hall, Cao Mao sat in the upper seat, and the ministers from the State of Wu sat in front of him.

Sun Hao, the Marquis of Guiming, was also among them, sitting next to Cao Mao.

There was fine wine in front of everyone, but no one dared to eat it except Sun Hao.

For the ministers of the State of Wu, banquets often bring with them some not-so-pleasant memories.

Cao Mao looked at the crowd and said with a smile: "You have nothing to fear in my presence. Those who can drink may drink, and those who cannot drink are not guilty."

Everyone's face turned red.

Wan Yu couldn't help but speak up, "My lord has already surrendered, Your Majesty, why is he still humiliating him like this?"

The people sitting next to Cao Mao now are all the heavyweight ministers who survived the Wu State. Among them are the three important ministers such as Meng Zong, Ding Gu, He Shao and others, as well as important ministers such as General Teng Mu of the Guards, General Liu Zan of the Cavalry, Grand Herald Zhang Yan, Prime Minister Wan Yu, and General Ding Zhong of the Five Officials.

There were also many generals including Liu Jun, Xiu Ze, Gu Rong, and Bu Chan.

As for those young people, they were not yet qualified to sit in front of Cao Mao.

When Cao Mao heard Wan Yu's words, he immediately laughed and said, "How can it be considered an insult when I invite you all to drink?"

"Could Lord Wan explain something to me?"

Wan Yu opened his mouth several times, but was completely unable to refute.

Sun Hao was just drinking by himself and had no intention of getting involved in these things.

Cao Mao said seriously: "You have all been in Luoyang for some time. Many ministers have written to me, saying that you can be imprisoned in Luoyang or Yecheng and asked not to go out again."

The faces of the ministers were indeed somewhat angry.

Cao Mao then said, "I immediately ordered the punishment of these ministers. I care about the world. Since ancient times, emperors have always valued the Central Plains and neglected the four corners. I alone love them all equally!"

"Having received the Mandate of Heaven, one becomes a minister of the Emperor. There is no distinction between high and low, nor is there any principle of honor and disgrace."

"When I was in the north, I often heard about the famous scholars and heroes in the south. After this battle, the Grand Marshal and the General were full of praise for the heroes of the south, and I agree with them."

"What I celebrate today is not the acquisition of Wu territory, but the acquisition of Wu's talents!"

"You are far away in the south, and you may not know me, but I know you."

"Prime Minister Wan Yu, though of humble origin, was able to persuade the King of Wu to reduce corvée labor and taxes, and to advise him to appoint only virtuous people. This shows that he understands the art of government and possesses the virtues of a gentleman."

"Please take up your duties with the Censorate for the time being. If I have done anything inappropriate, you can speak frankly and remonstrate with me, just as you did when you first advised the Lord of Wu. I will not blame you."

Wan Yu, who had been feeling very aggrieved, now looked bewildered.

Ah? ?

Wan Yu held a high official position, serving as prime minister in the State of Wu, but his status was very low.

One reason is that his background is too humble.

His family couldn't even be considered landlords, but just a wealthy family, similar to Wang Jing in Wei State. However, Wang Jing was at least a disciple of a big family and was promoted by the Cui family. Others didn't dare to do anything to him for the sake of the Cui family, but Wan Yu was not in the same category at all.

In the Wu Kingdom, where the problem of large clans was the most serious, Wan Yu would be ridiculed wherever he went because of his background.

In addition, he had no qualifications. In the eyes of the Wu ministers, he was just a favorite of the emperor who had risen to the throne by flattery, just like Zhong Hui looked at Zhang Hua.

Everyone thought he was a useless fool, but he was lucky enough to meet Sun Hao, and his career soared after Sun Hao became successful.

Therefore, even after becoming prime minister, Wan Yu was still looked down upon by many ministers.

According to historical records, Sun Hao often ordered his servants to mock ministers while they were drunk at banquets, and he enjoyed it.

At that time, Wang Fan mocked Wan Yu: "Fish usually live in water. If they are forced to jump out, they will die. This is because everyone has their own suitable position and cannot be forced to change. You, Wan Yu, came from a humble background, originally a sheep eating grass. Now you are wearing a tiger's skin and relying on the emperor's favor to rise to a position higher than the Three Dukes. How can you repay such a kindness?"

Wan Yu was very angry and said that under the rule of the Holy King, there had never been incompetent officials, and there had never been a lame horse in front of Zaofu's house. You are slandering the emperor by saying this!
Later, Wang Fan died.
Wan Yu made great contributions when Sun Hao came to power, and Sun Hao was really good to his ministers. The ministers did not dare to blame Sun Hao and could only vent their anger on him.

But Cao Mao felt that this guy was not an incompetent person.

This guy made great contributions to Sun Hao's rise to power. Moreover, when he was alive, Sun Hao's policies were still beneficial to the country and people would listen to his advice. It was not until Wan Yu gave too many advices and was killed by Sun Hao that Sun Hao began to make all-round efforts without any blind spots. The people at the bottom also felt Sun Hao's great kindness.

Cao Mao felt that this guy was a talented person who could be cultivated. Moreover, because of his family background, he was not very close to the other officials of Wu State, so he could use him to control the other officials of Wu State.

At the same time, the other people in Wu saw that even someone like Wan Yu was so highly valued, so they naturally wanted to seek a future with Cao Mao.

Cao Mao looked at Wan Yu calmly, waiting for his reply.

Wan Yu finally realized what was happening, stood up, and bowed to Cao Mao, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty. I am just an ordinary person, how can I possibly deserve such kindness from Your Majesty?"

"Hahaha, Lord Wan, there's no need to be so modest. Just focus on state affairs from now on!"

Cao Mao waved his hand and then looked at the others. Wan Yu's face was filled with emotion. This kind of attention was something he had never felt before in Wu. He hurriedly bowed again and sat down.

By this time, the fear on the faces of the Wu ministers was gone, and instead there was some anticipation.

Cao Mao asked again, "Where is Meng Gong, the one who cried until bamboo shoots grew?"

One of them hurriedly stood up and greeted Cao Mao.

This man was called Meng Zong. He served as Sikong under Sun Hao and was an important official of the Three Dukes level.

He was initially promoted by Lu Xun, and the story Cao Mao mentioned was also related to him.

Well, after all, he is a child of a wealthy family and is born to be filial. If someone's mother likes to eat fish, he can use his body temperature to melt the ice water and catch fish for his mother.

Meng Zong is even more powerful.

His mother likes to eat bamboo shoots!

But it was not the season for bamboo shoots to grow, so Meng Zong knelt in the woods and cried. He used his tears to make bamboo shoots grow, which he took back to his mother to eat.

This story sounds very credible and true. It is definitely not made up to gain fame. It is very consistent with the style of today's wealthy families.

Although there is such an allusion, not everyone is qualified to have such an allusion.

These big families would often only invest in those smart young people who were worthy of the investment, use their family resources to make up such stories for them, and then invite a famous person to promote them.

The famous scholar invited by Meng Zong's family was Lu Xun.

This also shows that this guy does have some talent.

Most of these people who come from big families are responsible for revitalizing their clans, so they cannot die for their loyalty. Of course, there are people like Lou Xuan who disregard their clans, but they are a minority after all.

Meng Zong's attitude at this moment was very respectful. He was even more respectful to Cao Mao than he was to Sun Hao before.

Cao Mao smiled and said, "I have long heard of your reputation for filial piety, and today I finally get to meet you. Lord Meng is a kind and filial man. I would like to keep you by my side as a cavalry officer, so that you can discuss important matters with me at any time. What do you think?"

Meng Zong was one of the Three Dukes in the State of Wu, but when he arrived in the State of Wei, his status suddenly dropped to that of a Cavalryman, but he did not feel the slightest bit of resentment.

It's good enough not to lose your head, and being with the emperor is not a bad thing. It can better protect the clan.

He quickly bowed and thanked him.

Cao Mao looked at the other ministers again.

Cao Mao rewarded them one by one, even the generals were not left out.

Even Sun Hao's father-in-law was given a sinecure by Cao Mao.

For a moment, the atmosphere of the entire banquet became somewhat different, and joy appeared on the faces of the ministers.

Sun Hao felt increasingly annoyed, but he didn't dare to say anything more.

Although Sun Hao was prone to madness at times, he would never do anything to seek his own death.

He killed innocent people indiscriminately, but would not attack the generals with heavy troops. He was arrogant and reckless, but surrendered immediately after being captured.

It can be seen from this that Sun Hao is just emotionally unstable and tyrannical, but his brain is not useless.

Cao Mao arranged this banquet very smoothly. When the banquet was over and everyone said goodbye and left one by one, these ministers kept calling him "Your Majesty" and there was no longer any sign of estrangement.

Zhang Hua walked in with a smile, "Your Majesty, considering Sun Hao's past behavior, Your Majesty is simply a benevolent monarch in their hearts."

"Why, don't you think I am?"

"Hahaha, I lost my words!"

Cao Mao sighed deeply at this moment, "What a pity that the most powerful one could not be recovered. Although Lu Kang no longer seeks death, he is unwilling to serve me either."

Zhang Hua continued, "Your Majesty, since this man has no intention of dying, then there is an opportunity to sway him. A man like him, who has received your great favor, will not easily die if he cannot repay your kindness."

Many ministers died for the Wu Kingdom, and Lu Kang has not truly surrendered until now. Many people think that Lu Kang is just pursuing fame, but Cao Mao believes that Lu Kang is truly loyal to the Wu Kingdom. Historically, his two sons died for the Wu Kingdom and never retreated. The other two sons were saved because they were young.

Even if he did it just for fame, looking at his behavior throughout his life, he was completely worthy of the State of Wu. His father and his sons were also worthy of the State of Wu.

This also further strengthened Cao Mao's determination to get Lu Kang.

Now that the officials of Wu have been appeased and dispersed to various places so that they can gradually integrate into Wei, Sun Hao's status as the representative of Wu will be weakened. At that time, perhaps Lu Kang will also bow his head.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. Maoxian, how is the situation with Pei Xiu?"

(End of this chapter)