The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 706 What about me?
Luoyang, Taiji Hall.

With the support of two people, Tuoba Liwei slowly walked into the hall.

On the left side of Cao Mao were sitting the guests from the State of Wei.

Sun Hao, Liu Chan, Huchuquan, and Desert Khan.

Of course, now Desert Khan stood up and bowed to his father very respectfully.

Today, Tuoba Liwei has also become a member of this happy family.

If there are any guests coming in the future, he can sit on Cao Mao's left.

However, there are not many guests who can sit in the restaurant from now on.

Those people are really not qualified.

If the territory of the Tuoba tribe had not been large enough, Tuoba Liwei might not have been qualified to sit down. After all, he had no title at all. He was just a tribal leader, and his status was similar to that of Liu Bao.

And Huochuxuan was the Great Khan of the Xiongnu.

Cao Mao looked at the old man in front of him with a smile on his face.

"Lord Tuoba, I have been waiting for you in Luoyang for a long time. Why are you only here now?"

The many ministers on Cao Mao's right side had proud expressions on their faces.

The Great Wei became increasingly powerful, and was reminiscent of the glory of the time during the reign of Emperor Xiaowu of the Han Dynasty.

Many surrounding forces were defeated one after another, which further highlighted the strength of the Wei Dynasty.

It is really not easy for Tuoba Liwei to reach Luoyang alive at his age.

Guanqiu Jian knew that he was seriously ill, so he specially sent several doctors to follow him. However, along the way, Tuoba Liwei's condition not only did not worsen, but instead improved.

By the time he arrived in Luoyang, his illness had improved a lot.

This made several doctors marvel in amazement.

Tuoba Liwei, who had now lost everything, looked a little decadent and tired as he stood in front of Cao Mao.

In response to Cao Mao's question, he showed no intention of answering.

Cao Mao did not get angry and continued, "I've heard many times before that Tuoba Liwei is a scholar of learning. Could it be that he doesn't know elegant language?"

Desert Khan quickly stood up and said, "Your Majesty, my father is very old and has come from afar. I did not mean to be disrespectful to Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me!"

Tuoba Liwei looked at his son in the distance, then saluted Cao Mao.

"Greetings to Your Majesty."

Cao Mao actually admired this old man very much.

He single-handedly laid the foundation of the Tuoba tribe. Although he did many foolish things when he was old, he knew very well how to educate his sons.

Every one of the sons he taught was very smart, and almost none of them were too weak.

The fate of the entire Tuoba tribe was changed because of this old man.

Cao Mao looked at the other ministers.

"The Grand Marshal has sent troops to suppress the rebellious forces. We have now defeated the Xianbei, and the Tuoba tribe has surrendered. This is truly a blessing for the world. Emperor Wu and Emperor Ming both led their campaigns to suppress the enemies outside the Great Wall. Although they were victorious, they were never able to gain their true submission. Now, I have finally fulfilled their regret!"

"Your Majesty the Holy Spirit!!"

All the ministers hurriedly stood up and bowed to him.

Cao Mao was very happy about this.

It’s not that Cao Mao likes to show off his power and act cool in front of his ministers, but it’s also for the purpose of better implementing the many policies of the court.

Many of Cao Mao's current policies were hardly recognized by the court officials, and he relied on his strong prestige to push them through.

Under such circumstances, the stronger Cao Mao's prestige, the better the effect of policy implementation.

Now that Tuoba Liwei has been captured, Cao Mao's prestige will rise again.

This is also the reason why Cao Mao summoned Li Wei in such a grand manner.

For Cao Mao, Tuoba Liwei really had no other use except to establish his authority.

Well, it might be of some use to Guanqiu Jian, and it would be more convenient for him to deal with the affairs of the Tuoba tribe in the future.

Cao Mao said loudly at this moment: "Since I ascended the throne, I have pacified Yongliang, defeated Shu, destroyed Wu, pacified the Xiongnu, promoted education, and defeated the Xianbei!"

"Peace in the world today is the foundation of a prosperous era! Previously, the thieves in Yanzhou dared to collude with court officials and attempted to create famine to oppose my decree on land rewards!"

"Why are they opposing the land reward order?"

"Hahaha~~~"

Cao Mao suddenly laughed, then stopped laughing and looked at the ministers on both sides. "Of course, you all know it best."

"The ministers all claim to be benevolent, righteous, and moral, but in reality, their families own endless farmland, hundreds of mansions, and countless slaves and tenants!"

"Throughout the dynasties, I have never heard of such a thing!!"

"The officials of the Former Han Dynasty didn't pay taxes either, but they didn't want to establish a country within a country!!"

Cao Mao stood up and looked angrily at the many ministers under his command.

"I know very well how much farmland, slaves, and property you have in your families! I have given you the opportunity and told you what to do."

"If there are still those who don't know how to be content, dare to act recklessly, and dare to oppose my policies, I will definitely exterminate their entire clan, not a single one will be spared!!"

Facing the emperor's harsh rebuke.

All the ministers were panicked.

They didn't know why the emperor, who had been so happy just a moment ago, suddenly became furious. But they all lowered their heads, no one dared to look up at him, or even to refute him.

This was the first time Cao Mao got angry with his ministers during a court meeting.

In the past, Cao Mao always treated his ministers with a smile, and rarely scolded them even when facing those who made mistakes.

But now, he directly scolded his ministers.

Cao Mao looked at the reactions of his ministers calmly, only to see that his important ministers were sweating profusely and trembling.

At this moment, Cao Mao finally calmed down his anger.

He sat back in his seat.

"Let's speak openly today."

"I also know that you have all devotedly assisted me over the years, all because you wanted to achieve great things, leave your names in history, protect future generations, and share the happiness of the country."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with this. Since you've made contributions, you deserve rewards. There's nothing wrong with wanting to protect future generations. However, this can't be based on harming the world."

"Most of the world's taxes go into your hands, and the government doesn't even get half. The people of the world are working in your government, but the government has no one to work for. How absurd!"

"I have already discussed this with the Secretariat and will appropriately increase your salaries so as not to discourage those who have made contributions. However, it is time to curb your greed."

"Now people outside are saying that the emperor is competing with the people for profit."

"You are competing with the government for profit!!"

"From today on, anyone who owns more farmland than specified must pay the full tax. You are not allowed to keep tenants in your home. If you want to employ them, you must follow the regulations!"

"From today on, if anyone is found to have violated the land reward order, or to have attempted to stop it, no matter who it is, no matter how great their previous contributions, I will never forgive them!!"

When Cao Mao said this, several ministers couldn't help but tremble.

The current Cao Mao is truly qualified to say this: whoever of the ministers in the world he wants to die will die.

Even if it was Guanqiu Jian and Hu Zun, if Cao Mao wanted to kill them, they would definitely not survive.

After Cao Mao finished speaking, he sat in the upper seat without saying a word.

All the ministers were still kneeling in front of him. Even Sun Hao, Liu Chan and others had very ugly expressions on their faces. Cao Mao looked a little scary when he was angry.

Liu Chan was so scared that he was sweating profusely. It was the first time he saw the emperor so angry after coming to Luoyang for so long.

After a long time, Cao Mao finally regained his original appearance.

He smiled and said, "Of course, I believe that you are all wise men and will not do anything to disappoint me. Please stand up."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!!"

The ministers then stood up, but the court no longer had the same happy and relaxed atmosphere.

Before the court meeting, the emperor said he wanted to summon the Hu chieftain to demonstrate the emperor's power.

The ministers came to watch the show happily.

Unexpectedly, the emperor's power was displayed to them.

Cao Mao made everything clear at this moment and no longer hid his thoughts. He told the ministers clearly that Nai Gong just couldn't stand your behavior anymore and he was going to deal with you all. So you all had to behave yourself in the future!
Otherwise, don't blame me for turning my back on you.

Watching the court meeting in silence, Cao Mao looked at Wei Shu and said, "Wei Qing, you will read it."

Wei Shu came up and read out the punishment results for the famous scholars of the Yanzhou faction.

All those who came to Luoyang were sentenced to be thrown into the city, that is, to be dragged out and beheaded in public.

While investigating their clan, they discovered several inhuman bastards, some of whom exploited the people, robbed women, and even children. They were directly sentenced to be beheaded.

One large clan after another was implicated, and a total of twenty-one clans were forced to relocate.

When the ministers heard the punishment results, they were horrified.

Cao Mao sat in the upper seat, waiting calmly for Wei Shu to read out all the verdicts.

"Do you have any objections?"

Cao Mao asked at this moment.

He looked at the ministers, then stared at Zhuge Dan, "Lord Zhuge, do you have any objections?!"

Cao Mao's face was somewhat solemn and his voice was somewhat cold.

If it were an ordinary day, Zhuge Dan would certainly come out to show his celebrity style and loyal minister style.

But when he saw the emperor's eyes, Zhuge Dan suddenly gave up the idea.

His intuition told him that if he jumped out and protested now, he might die.
"I have no objection!!"

Zhuge Dan bowed and said.

Cao Mao laughed and said, "That's good. That's all for today's court meeting."

After the court meeting ended, Cao Mao was the first to leave. The ministers respectfully saw the emperor off and then began to breathe heavily. Today's court meeting was something they would definitely not forget for many years to come.

This is really scary.

The ministers who usually gathered together to chat were not interested in saying anything more at this moment.

The emperor played his cards clearly.

The good old days when the powerful families could act with all their might seem to be gone forever.

The ministers left one after another in dismay.

In the end, only Tuoba Liwei was left, looking around in confusion.

What about me???
(End of this chapter)