The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 309 Demonstrating Sincerity to the World
A few days ago.

"The weakness of Hanoi County lies here!"

Five hundred li east of Anyi, Mi Wei pointed sharply at the map, his expression resolute.

Upon hearing this, those around them stepped forward to look.

Apart from Jiang Wei, who had already grasped the truth, and Deng Ai, who was not present.

Most people don't understand its meaning.

In the end, it was Yang Xi, the chief secretary who was unfamiliar with military affairs, who reacted the fastest, staring in disbelief:
"General, are you perhaps planning to kidnap, uh... welcome back, uh... rescue the Duke of Shanyang?"

Yang Xi changed his wording twice in just one sentence, which was extremely awkward.

But it was precisely because of this awkwardness that others gradually came to their senses.

Then she showed the exact same surprised expression as him.

no way.

After all, that person's identity is too special and too sensitive.

The so-called Lord of Shanyang.

This naturally refers to Liu Xie, the "Emperor Xiaomin," who is now a thing of the past.

In the later generations of Mi Wei, he was more often referred to as Emperor Xian of Han, which was taken from the posthumous title "Xiaoxian" given to him by Cao Wei.

When Cao Pi usurped the Han throne, Liu Bei countered by holding a national mourning ceremony for Liu Xie as a member of the imperial clan, thus gaining legitimacy to become emperor.

However, as time went on, and given that Cao Pi had previously asked Liu Xie for help in dealing with the propaganda campaign stirred up by Mi Wei in Nanyang, the situation became more complicated.

Now, the fact that Liu Xie is not dead is a matter of fact.

I know what I should know and what I shouldn't know.

But knowing is one thing.

Actually getting the person back is another matter entirely.

Yang Xi stated frankly:
“Our dynasty now has a different calendar. If we bring this man back to the interior, there will be disputes over the ancestral temple in the future. Wouldn’t that shake the foundation of the country?”

Those around him nodded in agreement, indicating that they shared the same concerns.

Since Mi Wei took the initiative to propose this plan, he must have already had a draft in mind:

"When I kidnapped and rescued Minister Yang Wenxian in Nanyang, I learned from him that the Duke of Shanyang had left an edict in a belt for the late emperor, asking him to establish a new dynasty and restore the Han Dynasty."

"With Lord Yang and the imperial edict as proof, surely Lord Shanyang wouldn't go back on his word?"

Upon hearing this, everyone thought to themselves, "If we really manage to kidnap that person, how could he possibly deny it?"
If he truly had backbone, why would he have cooperated with Cao Pi in such a shameful abdication?

The ruler should die for the state!

Even though Yang Biao was in his seventies or eighties, he still knew to formally decline Cao Pi's invitation to become one of the Three Dukes.

Who did Liu Xie reject?

Who can he refuse?

Surely it's not like what some later literary masters described, where someone made a decision against their ancestors because they were on good terms with Cao Cao in their early years and were captivated by his personal charm.
Everyone present, except for Ju Fu who arrived late, had personally experienced Yang Biao's story.

Many people immediately stopped objecting.

After all, if Liu Xie were willing to cooperate in publicizing the "Imperial Edict in the Belt".

One sentence from him is worth ten sentences from Yang Biao.

Even if all else fails, his sudden change of tactics would be enough to undermine the legitimacy of Cao Wei's usurpation of the Han throne in terms of public opinion.

This subsequently garnered more scholars to serve the Shu Han dynasty.

This is a real boost to national strength.

And this is a question concerning "righteousness" and "destiny".

The "name" in the so-called "name and reality".

Those who don't care naturally don't care.

And what you care about, you will definitely care about very much.

on the other hand.

This is precisely because Liu Xie still retains important attributes as a tool.

For Cao Wei, it was naturally something they could not easily lose.

Otherwise, why would Cao Pi have placed him under house arrest in Zhuolu City, Shanyang County, Henan Commandery, while simultaneously granting him numerous preferential treatments?
Is it really possible for a ruler and his ministers to have a harmonious relationship?

With Deng Ai absent this time, Jiang Wei stepped forward without hesitation to volunteer:
"Wei has personally gone to Zhuolu City to scout out the enemy's situation. The Wei army's deployment there is more defensive than defensive. If we launch a swift attack, we might be able to take it in one battle!"

Mi Wei nodded secretly, but did not rush to hand over the military tally.

He glanced at Yang Xi, who had suddenly fallen silent, and instructed everyone to go and prepare.

Then leave the former alone:
"Wenran seems to still have doubts?"

Yang Xi hesitated for a moment before speaking:

"If the late emperor were still alive, with his great talent and ambition, then the so-called Duke of Shanyang would have returned."

“But now…” Mi Wei understood.

After a moment's thought, I asked myself:
"If that person looks more like a ruler and knows better how to win people's hearts, will Wenran waver in the future?"

"Of course not!" Yang Xi hurriedly waved his hand and said.

"We have been deeply favored by the late emperor and are eager to repay his kindness. How could we be wavering because of a mere ruler of a fallen kingdom?"

"What I am worried about is that petty people in the court and the countryside will take the opportunity to cause trouble, such as Liao Gongyuan and Li Zhengfang, who are arrogant and unruly. We must be wary of them!"

After saying that, I realized I had gone a bit too far.

His tone softened, and he bowed, saying:
"But this will eventually become a problem, but it doesn't stop the general from attacking where the enemy must defend right now."

"We can discuss this after this battle!"

Mi Wei smiled and shook his head, saying:
"There's no need to wait until after this battle; we can agree on it now!"

"I do currently intend to attack Wei and then come to their aid."

"But I do indeed intend to bring him back to the court safely and make it public."

Yang Xi was taken aback: "Why?"

Actually, he had some rather extreme speculations in his mind just now.

For example, after the war, once Liu Xie had completely lost his usefulness, they could send assassins to eliminate any future troubles.

Another example is to let the other side "sacrifice" themselves in the chaos of war.

But to his utter surprise, Mi Wei actually intended to bring the man back to Chang'an alive.

“To show sincerity,” Mi Wei replied.

"Why do arrogant and rebellious people cause trouble? It is because there is deception between superiors and subordinates, and people's hearts are bound to be suspicious."

"Previously, it concerned a major military matter in Hedong, and the Prime Minister was unable to explain it, so he allowed villains to stir up trouble."

"Afterwards, I submitted a memorial to His Majesty to implement the salt reform and distribute salt to benefit the people. Only then did those people have no leverage to rely on, and they finally quieted down."

"But the benefits of salt can only resolve doubts temporarily and can only silence those who seek profit."

"Given time, the argument that powerful ministers control the channels of communication will make a comeback."

"Does Wenran know why?"

Yang Xi vaguely understood something.

However, saying some things directly might be seen as criticizing the emperor.

Mi Wei also had to face the constraints of this monarch-subject ethics.

Fortunately, he had an extra protective charm left by Liu Bei:
"On his deathbed, the late emperor entrusted important matters to Prime Minister Tuo and Miwei, and left a message saying that the current emperor is more than capable of maintaining the status quo, but lacks the courage and ambition to achieve great things."

"It is also said that the Prime Minister's talent is ten times that of Cao Pi."

"Isn't this a situation where the ruler is weak and the minister is strong?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Xi thought to himself, "Since His Majesty has entrusted state affairs to both of them at the same time, why would he praise the Prime Minister alone and not mention General Wei at all?"
It must be that the latter is humble and deliberately omitted half of the sentence.

With a slight thought, Yang Xi understood Mi Wei's meaning.

He continued:
"Furthermore, the lack of a respected elder within the imperial clan means that the suspicion of powerful ministers oppressing weak rulers is like the weeds in a rice paddy—it can never be eradicated!"

"Indeed: Wildfire cannot burn it all, the spring breeze brings it back to life!" Mi Wei said, gently tapping the military tally with his finger.

"After all, there are only a few people in the world who understand the special treatment the late emperor and the prime minister received as well as you and me."

"If one doesn't understand the true feelings and sentiments behind the scenes, and only looks at the political landscape, isn't it just like the situation between Cao Cao and Emperor Min, Wang Mang and Emperor Ping, and Huo Guang and Emperor Zhao and Marquis Haihun?"

"Think about it again, many years from now, when you and I die of old age, those who know about this will no longer exist, and future generations will only be able to recall the past in the annals of history."

"If the historians of that time had not been rigorous in their research and had written distorted accounts, who knows if people would have misunderstood this once-in-a-lifetime encounter between the ruler and his minister?"

"Who knows if someone might misinterpret it for the sake of sensationalism?"

Yang Xi was stunned when he heard this.

I was amazed that Mi Wei could casually recite such a philosophical little poem.
He then wondered if Mi Wei was warning him not to fabricate history when writing it in private.

Fortunately, Miwei only made a small complaint before getting back to the main topic:
"That is precisely why I want to keep that elder of the royal family here."

"With such a person in office, it is enough to silence the gossip of the world, restore the Prime Minister's innocence, restore the integrity of the government, and reduce the suspicion among the people."

"Even if we think about it from the perspective of the treacherous nature of human hearts, with this person around, those petty people who try to incite the Prime Minister to follow the example of Huo, Wang, and Cao will have more to think about, won't they?"

"This is how we show sincerity to the people of the world."

Upon hearing this, Yang Xi was completely convinced and had no more doubts.

But Miwei noticed a detail.

Throughout the entire process, the other party never doubted whether Zhuge Liang possessed the magnanimity to show sincerity to the world.

Like most people in later generations.

Thinking about it this way, the so-called sensationalist writers are ultimately just a minority.

(End of this chapter)