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

Chapter 359 Group Holding
The next day.

Sima Yi held a coming-of-age ceremony for his second son, Sima Zhao, who was just over twenty years old, in his residence, and gave him the courtesy name "Zi Shang".

Very few guests came to witness the ceremony.

Aside from old friends like Chen Qun and Wu Zhi, there were only relatives from the same clan and some former officials.

After the ceremony, Sikong Chenqun said he had important matters to attend to and took his leave.

However, he was stopped by his subordinate, Sima Fu, the Minister of Revenue, who was also Sima Yi's third brother:
"There is nothing of great importance in the government today. Why doesn't Minister of Works stay for the banquet before returning home? What if someone in the capital were to slander my brother for neglecting an old friend, saying that our two families are at odds? Wouldn't that be a disaster?"

Chen Qun glanced at Sima Yi and smiled apologetically:
"Zhongda, Shuda, I appreciate your kind invitation."

"But I have an important matter to attend to for the Emperor today, and I cannot delay."

Upon hearing this, Sima Fu glanced at his elder brother, and seeing the latter nod, he stepped aside.

However, Chen Qun walked to the door, then turned back and asked Sima Yi:

"Isn't Zhongda curious about what I do for the Emperor?"

Sima Yi: "I would like to hear the details."

Chen Qun: "This matter is difficult in some ways, but it's actually quite simple, just a matter of a few words."

"The reason is that Lord Hua (Hua Xin) resigned from his position as one of the Three Dukes due to illness, and was willing to give way to Guan Ning and Guan You'an. I have also heard that this person is talented and virtuous, and I recommended him to Your Majesty."

"However, he repeatedly declined, and he had been living in seclusion in Liaodong for many years. I really couldn't do anything about him."

Upon hearing this, Wu Zhi immediately pointed at Sima Yi and sneered at Chen Qun:

"Why does the Minister of Works recommend a recluse from a thousand miles away instead of a great sage right before his eyes? Is it because he fears being slandered for not favoring relatives in recommending worthy people?"

Chen Qun ignored him.

His gaze was fixed solely on Sima Yi.
"I've heard that Zhongda has a good personal relationship with Gongsun Gong, the governor of Liaodong, in Youzhou. Could you please ask him if he could escort Guan You'an to Yecheng?"

"If this matter is accomplished, why would I begrudge a position among the Three Dukes?"

"Let us follow the example of Hua Gong and yield the position to our old friend!"

The room erupted in uproar, and everyone turned to look at Sima Yi.

The latter simply smiled faintly and said:
“Changwen knows me. If Emperor Wu hadn’t forced me so hard back then, I wouldn’t have even wanted to become an official, let alone a high-ranking official.”

Chen Qun chuckled twice.

Sima Yi then said:
"Don't disbelieve the long article."

"After my defeat in Hedong, I became pessimistic about the future. Originally, I only wanted to defend the border for the court in Youzhou and bring peace to the region."

"It's a pity that he didn't know how to restrain himself and was thus feared by the court. Now he has returned in a sorry state and is even more disheartened."

"If you ask me, it would be better to learn from Guan You'an and live in seclusion in Liaodong. Perhaps then you can live out your remaining years in peace with your descendants!"

"Therefore, Changwen doesn't need to tempt me with the position of one of the Three Dukes."

"If you trust me, grant me the imperial staff, and I will personally go to Liaodong to recruit Guan Ning."

"If you don't trust me, I'll write a letter to Gongsun Gong on your behalf, so that I can repay our past friendship."

Upon hearing this, Chen Qun gradually sensed that something was amiss.

But after thinking about it carefully, I still couldn't find a clue.

He frowned and said:
"Has Zhongda truly lost all attachment to power?"

"How could there not be?" Sima Yi smiled wryly.

"But the question is, what is power?"

"Should I stay in Ye City and be hailed as a duke by all, or should I be sent to govern the prefectures and counties of Hebei as a regional governor?"

Before Chen Qun could answer, Sima Yi shook his head and said:
"neither."

"As I just said, after the river flows east, my heart is filled with sorrow."

"These past few years of guarding Youzhou in the north have been less about seizing military power and more about a desperate struggle under immense unease."

"If I truly intended to seize power in Ye City, why would I wait until the Emperor became suspicious before returning south in such a precarious situation?"

"I truly believe from the bottom of my heart that there is no future in staying in Ye City." At this point, Sima Yi had already revealed the truth and violated a taboo.

Chen Qun couldn't help but sigh:
"Why has Zhongda gone to such lengths!"

"In the north, there are still 100,000 brave soldiers, a million righteous men, and a court full of loyal ministers and generals who are devoted to the Wei dynasty!"

"Even if the country is in trouble, it is not necessary to follow the example of Guan You'an and live in seclusion in the mountains and seas thousands of miles away, keeping company with fish and turtles!"

Sima Yi pointed to himself, then to Wu Zhi, whose face looked dejected, and shook his head without saying a word.

After a moment, Chen Qun sat down again, straightened his posture, and asked:
"Zhongda, how many more years do you think Yecheng can hold out?"

Sima Yi replied without hesitation:
"Three to five years."

"If we do not hold onto a single city or place to the death, but instead fight and retreat, climbing up and down in all directions, we may be able to hold out for another seven or eight years... no more than that."

Chen Qun recalled that after Yuan Shao's death, it took Cao Cao seven or eight years to pacify Hebei, so he accepted this explanation.

Asked again:
"If unforeseen events occur in the future, and we find ourselves in a subordinate position, how will we survive and protect our clan?"

Sima Yi: "It's nothing more than sticking together for warmth."

Chen Qun: "With whom should we huddle together? How should we find warmth?"

Sima Yi surveyed the entire room, then pointed towards the door and said:
"Of course, we should huddle together with these loyal ministers and generals who are devoted to the Wei dynasty!"

Upon hearing this, many people in the room burst into laughter.

But Chen Qun did not laugh.

Wu Zhi did not laugh.

Sima Fu did not laugh.
Even Sima Zhao, who was only twenty years old and new to social circles, gradually showed an expression of understanding after a few moments of astonishment.

After a long silence, Chen Qun spoke again, his posture more upright than before:

"If we are forced to do so, in order to protect our clan, we will have no choice but to bear the infamy of disloyalty."

"However, although the powerful neighbor also treated scholars well, he did not treat scholars and commoners equally, and was far less magnanimous than the emperor of our dynasty."

"I have heard that Zhuge Liang governed Guanzhong and Luoyang with harsh laws and severe punishments. In recent years, many people have been dismissed from their posts and punished because of poor public opinion or because they concealed private households..."

Upon hearing Chen Qunyan's words, all the guests in the hall showed expressions of unease.

Even though Sima Yi had expressed pessimism twice before, the crowd shouldn't have been so panicked.

Sima Zhao, being inexperienced in the ways of the world, didn't quite understand the intricacies of the situation, so he was instinctively startled upon seeing the expressions on everyone's faces.

I don't know what I should be afraid of.

Sima Yi did not pay much attention to his second son.

His mind was constantly focused on the reactions of the crowd.

Seeing this situation, he knew that he was probably confident in what he was planning.

So he had his servants close the doors and light candles, and then he spoke frankly to everyone:

"Chen Changwen's concerns are my concerns, and I'm sure they are also the concerns of all of you."

"This is precisely why I am calling on everyone to unite as one."

"The Han emperor does not wish to implement the nine-rank system for officials, and we have surrendered as if we were subjects. What future do we have to speak of?"

"To be honest, on my way back south this time, I thought it over and over again and I believe that although the Liyang Alliance that Cao Zilian and others made in Huainan last year sounds absurd, it was fundamentally the right thing to do."

"In the future, rather than being local officials or powerful figures in the Shu Han dynasty, we would rather be kings or marquises granted land!"

Upon hearing this, Sima Fu and Sima Zhao simultaneously looked at their respective elder brothers and fathers.

The former was slightly taken aback, while the latter was more delighted.

Chen Qun, on the other hand, remained calm and said:

"If one is granted a fiefdom, then whether or not one's rank is determined by local opinion is irrelevant."

"The key question is, would the Emperor of Shu Han agree? Would Zhuge Liang agree? And what about Mi Shishan? Would he agree?"

(End of this chapter)