Sima Zhao was still cursing furiously.
"Why didn't anyone warn me at the time?"
"Only when I received their memorials did I realize that brat's sinister intentions!"
"He wasn't trying to praise us to our destruction. He was trying to incite the ministers!"
"So Great Wei isn't his, then? How dare he wreak such havoc?"
Looking at Jia Chong, who stood before him without a word, Sima Zhao stopped just in time.
Of course Sima Zhao knew why his subordinates, including Lord Jia before him, had not told him.
Advancement in noble rank did them no harm.
Who wouldn't want their title raised another level?
Even Lord Jia standing before him was no exception.
Ultimately, these people were outsiders. They would never care about such things, and saying more would accomplish nothing.
Jia Chong said, "General, those rebels in Yuan City are beneath notice. The Grand General has surely purged them already."
"Zhuge Dan lacks Guanqiu Jian's courage. The Grand General is close to him, so winning him over shouldn't be difficult."
"Once Zhuge Dan's reply arrives, the Grand General can return to the Imperial Court and set about dealing with Guanqiu Jian."
"It won't take long. The Grand General will probably return this month."
"Before the Grand General returns, we must at least keep the Imperial Court stable. I believe we could select a worthy man to serve as His Majesty's teacher, so His Majesty can devote himself to studying rather than spend every day idle..."
"Since the Grand General entrusted you with the affairs of Luoyang, there is no need to hesitate. Go ahead and make the arrangements. The Grand General won't blame us."
After hearing Jia Chong's advice, Sima Zhao hesitated, then asked, "Perhaps Lord Zheng, the Minister of Works, could serve as His Majesty's teacher?"
Zheng Chong was highly learned. Moreover, he was absolutely neutral, a recluse within the Imperial Court.
He never took part in political struggles of this sort, and his reputation was good. He was a very suitable choice to serve as the emperor's teacher.
Historically, Sima Shi had also chosen him to instruct Cao Mao, yet in the end, he had brought Cao Mao no tangible benefit.
He had always remained neutral, becoming an unwitting accomplice of the Sima Family.
But Jia Chong hastily rejected the suggestion.
"Absolutely not!"
"General, you may not know this, but His Majesty has been mentioning Lord Zheng constantly these past few days. He has studied the Book of Documents since childhood and greatly admires him. He told those around him that he hoped to use this man to establish contact with young scholars, win over the students of the Imperial Academy, and secure their service..."
Sima Zhao's eyes widened.
"Of course, he might also have said this deliberately because he doesn't want Minister of Works Zheng to become his teacher."
"Nevertheless, Minister of Works Zheng carries far too much weight among young scholars. Countless scholars come to listen whenever he lectures on the Book of Documents, and they all consider themselves his pupils. We absolutely cannot give the emperor any opportunity to draw closer to them."
"Ever since he entered the imperial palace, he has been making acquaintances everywhere and winning over its people. They now treat him with great respect. When they speak of the emperor in private, they often express sympathy for him, and toward the Si... ahem. In any case, I believe it would be better not to let him become the emperor's teacher."
Sima Zhao was stunned. "Winning over people in the imperial palace? Who has he won over? The General Who Guards and Protects? The General of the Guards? The Palace Commandant? Or some Attendant Cavalry officer? Someone from the Yellow Gate?"
"Er... none of those. Just some Palace Eunuchs, Imperial Guards, Armored Guards..."
"What?"
Sima Zhao froze for a moment, then threw back his head and laughed.
"Has His Majesty become this foolish? I heard that he used to court Wanderers and merchants in Yuan City. Now he's in the imperial palace, exalted as emperor, and he's actually courting Palace Eunuchs? Hahahaha!"
Sima Zhao laughed so hard he could not close his mouth.
Men of their lofty standing never concealed their contempt for those beneath them.
Throughout the imperial palace, apart from the Attendant Cavalry officers and high officials whose posts were filled by sons of the nobility, everyone else was little different from pigs and dogs in Sima Zhao's eyes.
Jia Chong did not laugh along. Instead, he said with great seriousness, "General! We cannot take this lightly!"
"These people may be lowly, but they are the ones closest to the emperor. If they all pledge allegiance to him, even commandants and generals might not be able to order them about in the future... therefore, I believe we should constantly replace those around the emperor..."
"Lord Jia, would these people really risk the extermination of their clans to follow a young child in rebellion against us?"
Sima Zhao glanced at Jia Chong.
Jia Chong sensed Sima Zhao's impatience.
He knew that if he continued pressing the matter, Sima Zhao would probably still heed his counsel. Though Sima Zhao fell short of his elder brother, he could still listen to advice.
But why should he do that?
This wasn't his own family's business.
Jia Chong hastily put on a smile. "The emperor has made me overly suspicious these past few days. You, General, remain steady and composed. I fall far short of you!"
Only then did Sima Zhao nod in satisfaction, bringing the conversation back to Zheng Chong.
"Still, there is some truth in what you said."
"Zheng Chong... indeed, he isn't quite suitable. Hmm, let's have Wang Xiang serve as the emperor's teacher."
"After all, he rendered meritorious service in deciding whom to enthrone this time..."
Sima Zhao's expression grew solemn, and he said earnestly, "Lord Jia, the emperor getting close to those petty people is no great matter. There is no need to worry."
"What concerns me is His Majesty associating too closely with certain Attendant Cavalry officers."
Jia Chong immediately looked troubled. Scratching his head, he said, "His Majesty has indeed become excessively close to two Attendant Cavalry officers."
"Who?"
A flash of murderous intent suddenly crossed Sima Zhao's eyes.
"Attendant Cavalry officers Sima Yan and Sima Wang..."
"Hmm???"
At that moment, the two men were sitting beside Cao Mao in the Western Hall.
Besides Palace Eunuchs, the imperial palace also had Attendant Cavalry officers and Attendants.
Most held these positions concurrently with other offices. Sima Wang, for instance, served as General of the Guards while also holding an Attendant Cavalry post, while Sima Yan held an Attendant Cavalry post alongside his office as Commandant of Chariots.
The same applied to Attendants. The title meant that a minister was entitled to see the emperor directly without waiting to be summoned. Gao Rou, for example, was Minister over the Masses and concurrently an Attendant.
Some received these additional titles so they could remain beside the emperor and build their credentials. Others needed them because they held military posts within the imperial palace, while some merely wanted the convenience of coming and going freely.
In any case, possessing an Attendant Cavalry or Attendant title allowed a man to remain at the emperor's side.
Holding Sima Yan with one hand and Sima Wang with the other, Cao Mao gazed at them with eyes full of affection.
"Anshi... although I have left the place I knew so well, your presence keeps me from feeling disheartened."
"I originally wanted to make you a duke, but the Grand Commandant wouldn't allow it."
Sima Yan said with a wry smile, "What merits have I earned to deserve a dukedom?"
"You have no idea. These past few days, the ministers have been sending my father memorial after memorial, asking him to accept the rewards."
"My father talks about it all day long."
Cao Mao was delighted.
That's exactly what I wanted!
Your daddy here might not know how to be an enlightened ruler, but how could I not know how to be a foolish one?
There were so many "wise and enlightened monarchs" in later ages worth learning from.
So many fine policies with which to show my abilities.
Tax exemptions for scholars, no executions for scholar-officials, splitting official posts into ever finer divisions, favoring civil officials over military men... huh, why did they all seem to come from the same dynasty?
Never mind which dynasty they came from. Picking any one of these policies at random would be enough to make me a villain condemned for all eternity.
Of course, Cao Mao had not lost his mind to that extent. If he actually implemented those policies, there would probably be no need for the Five Hu-China would destroy itself.
Still, judiciously extracting their essence to use against the Sima Family was a very good idea.
The scholar-officials of today's great clans were no longer the scholar-officials of Great Han.
The scholar-officials of the Western Han could cast aside their offices and titles, take up their swords, and head to the battlefield to cut men down. They cared about righteousness throughout the realm.
The scholar-officials of the Eastern Han could abandon wealth and glory, swing their swords, and cut down their enemies. They cared about personal honor.
But today's scholar-officials? Ha. Their eyes had room for nothing but their own interests.
No matter how vile a policy was, as long as it benefited them, even a villain condemned for all eternity could become the greatest emperor of all time.
If it offered them no benefit, even the greatest emperor of all time could become a villain condemned for all eternity.
Emperors who offended the scholar-officials rarely enjoyed good reputations. But once you won their favor, no matter how many mistakes you made, you became the greatest emperor of all time in their mouths.
Sima Wang sat uneasily across from Cao Mao.
Watching Cao Mao furtively stroke Sima Yan's long hair every now and then, he felt a chill in his heart.
When had these two become so close???
No!!
I have to leave!!
Before you continue