"Father..."
Sima Wang stared blankly at his aged father, who had undergone punishment, and tears immediately slid down his face.
Sima Fu, once a great and virtuous minister renowned throughout the realm, now had his head shaved and his frame wasted away. His face bore none of its former dignity. Judging by his appearance alone, he was truly pitiable.
Yet at the sight of his son before him, Sima Fu breathed a sigh of relief.
"You're back. It's good that you're back. It's good that you're back."
Sima Fu had truly feared that his son would defect to the Shu Kingdom in a fit of anger.
Although Sima Fu had been punished, that had nothing to do with Sima Wang. Even if Cao Mao wanted to implicate his children, Sima Wang would not be affected, for he had been adopted into another household long ago.
Of all his blood relatives, Sima Fu valued Sima Wang the most.
Among the sons of the Sima Family, Sima Wang ranked in the top three in personal ability. He was clearly inferior to Sima Shi, but compared with Sima Jun, Sima Zhao, and the others, he would not be at any marked disadvantage.
Oh, that meant Sima Wang at this point in time.
Historically, Sima Wang had guarded Yongliang for eight years, with respectable achievements in both civil administration and military service. Later, he had also proved quite effective in resisting the Wu Kingdom.
But after becoming Minister over the Masses, he had suddenly developed a love of money and become extremely miserly, the complete opposite of his former generous and kindly disposition.
It was as though he had inherited not only He Zeng's office as Minister over the Masses, but also He Zeng's greedy, money-loving nature.
By the time Sima Wang died, the