"Your Majesty, why does he seem a little reluctant to me?"
"How could that be?"
"Didn't you see how happily he was smiling when he left?"
Cao Mao said with a smile.
The two sat in Taiji Hall. Cao Mao suddenly asked, "Have you still been going to curse your grandfather these past few days?"
"Oh, no. Second Father called me over and gave me a scolding. He told me not to make trouble."
The Second Father Sima Yan spoke of was Sima Gan, who had remained in Luoyang.
Cao Mao nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "What about your maternal grandfather?"
"Huh? I have to curse him too? That wouldn't be right, would it?"
"Who told you to curse him? I'm asking whether you have any news of him!"
Sima Yan shook his head. "Not yet. Traveling isn't easy, and there are rebels on the roads. Who knows when he'll arrive?"
Cao Mao nodded. "I see."
Sima Yan looked at Cao Mao beside him, hesitating to speak.
"What is it?"
"Quite a few scholars have been cursing Your Majesty lately. They say you're close to eunuchs, neglect your studies, and crave pleasure... all sorts of things."
Sima Yan recounted the recent changes in Luoyang. Once their shackles had been broken, the scholars had begun venting furiously. After cursing their own relatives, they had turned their spearheads toward the emperor.
They wanted to build their reputations by opposing the emperor.
Cao Mao laughed. Wasn't this precisely the routine of the late Ming ministers?
Deliberately angering the emperor to fashion an image of loyal service and seize the chance to make a name for themselves?
Sima Yan was deeply puzzled. "Your Majesty, aren't you afraid that once you rule in person, the ministers will submit memorials of remonstrance like mad and keep you