Chapter 157 Waiting for price
Now that both matters had been settled, Cao Zhen was ready to get up and leave, returning to his general's mansion.
It doesn't mean that Cao Zhen has to go back to handle official duties, but that he has to go back to summon the officials and soldiers to calculate their merits.
When the emperor was in Shouchun, he only praised the generals of the central army. The specific rewards for military merits had to wait until he returned to Luoyang to be announced.
However, the merits of the Central Army have been roughly determined. As a general, would Cao Zhen's report of the merits to His Majesty be rejected?
The sooner it is decided, the less anxious the soldiers will be.
Cao Zhen had been in the army for more than twenty years, and he knew exactly what the soldiers, both great and small, were thinking.
"Brother Zidan, please wait a moment." Sima Yi called out to Cao Zhen and stood up from his seat.
Cao Zhen turned around and glanced at Sima Yi. Recently Sima Yi had been calling himself "General", why did he call him Brother Zidan again?
"Zhongda, what else do you want?" Cao Zhen asked.
Sima Yi walked up to Cao Zhen with a smile on his face, and as he and Cao Zhen walked out the door, he whispered, "Brother Zidan, what do you think of my Ziyuan?"
Cao Zhen looked at Sima Yi and said, "Your Sima Ziyuan? He is a young talent. Isn't he studying in the Imperial College now?"
"Haha, Brother Zidan is right, he is indeed a young talent." Sima Yi said as he walked, "Doesn't Xiahou Boren have a daughter named Xiahou Hui? My Ziyuan is almost twenty years old, and Xiahou Hui is also at the right age..."
Cao Zhen patted Sima Yi's shoulder vigorously and said with a look of feigned anger: "How good of you Sima Zhongda! You actually have your eyes on my sister's daughter!"
"What are you talking about!" Sima Yi pushed Cao Zhen's hand away calmly, rubbed his shoulder and said, "Xiahou Boren is gone, and Xiahou Xuan is still young. Shouldn't we listen to your uncle's opinion on this matter of marriage?"
"Listen to my advice? No, forget it!" Cao Zhen turned around and walked out: "You want to marry Hui'er without any words?"
"Hey, Brother Zidan, wait a moment." Sima Yi hurried over and said, "Why are you just talking nonsense? Ziyuan is my eldest son. My property as Marquis of Wuyang will belong to Ziyuan in the future."
"Don't the Xiahou and Cao families have any assets? Why do they want to take yours?" Cao Zhen stopped and stared at Sima Yi and said, "Let's not talk about others first. Can your Sima Ziyuan compare to my nephew Xiahou Xuan?"
"How can I not compare?" Sima Yi just said this and immediately felt that he had gone a bit too far.
"Humph," Cao Zhen sneered, "In terms of family background, Hui'er's family is not inferior to your Sima family. In terms of talent, who among people of similar age in Luozhong can compare to Xiahou Xuan? In terms of appearance, I don't need to say anything about that, right?"
"Ah..." Sima Yi shook his head and sighed. Putting aside his family background and talent, even in terms of appearance, Xiahou Xuan was eight feet tall, and was called a 'jade tree', 'bright as the sun and the moon in one's arms'.
In the three things Cao Zhen just mentioned, family background, talent, and appearance, his son indeed had no advantages.
Sima Yi looked at Cao Zhen sincerely and said, "If my son is not good enough, which young man in Luozhong can surpass Xiahou Xuan in all three aspects? There is no such person."
"Brother Zidan, I heard that Ziyuan and Hui'er were once seen at the gate of the Imperial College, and they were led by Xiahou Xuan."
Cao Zhen looked at Sima Yi suspiciously: "What do you mean?"
Sima Yi explained: "My Ziyuan is a top-notch young man in Luozhong in terms of family background and talent. Brother Zidan, why don't you ask Xiahou Xuan and Xiahou Hui themselves about this matter?"
Cao Zhen shook his head and said, "No! I'll make the decision on behalf of her mother. Hui'er is still young, and as her uncle, I have to find a suitable family for Hui'er."
Sima Yi sighed and said, "Brother Zidan, oh brother Zidan, I think this could be a good thing, why don't you agree?"
Cao Zhen thought for a moment and said, "I have only met your son twice. Xiahou Xuan has become a cavalryman, and your son is still studying in the Imperial Academy. How can I be assured of his future?"
Sima Yi stamped his feet and said, "Brother Zidan, please don't embarrass me! As the son of the Sikong family, are you still worried about not being able to enter the government?"
Cao Zhen looked around and said, "How about this, Zhongda. After a few days when Xiahou Xuan returns to Luoyang, you can ask your Ziyuan to come to me with Xiahou Xuan. I will test him in person, and then I can make the final decision on this matter."
Sima Yi finally smiled: "Of course there is no problem. Just do as Brother Zidan says!"
At this time, in Xincheng County, thousands of miles away, there was a person who was also struggling.
Wei, Jingzhou, Xincheng County, Shangyong City.
Shangyong City is surrounded by water on three sides, and has always been known to be easy to defend but difficult to attack. However, due to its remote location, far away from the border defense areas of Wei and Shu, it became a place where Wei and Shu repeatedly fought.
Meng Da was dressed in a robe made of Shu brocade. He was pacing back and forth in the lobby of the prefectural mansion, remaining silent and refusing to utter a single word.
Deng Xian, Meng Da's confidant and nephew, who was kneeling nearby, was anxiously watching his own governor pacing back and forth in the hall.
"What do you think, uncle?" Deng Xian asked anxiously.
"Why are you in such a hurry? Keep calm!" Meng Da stopped and looked at Deng Xian, then walked back to the yard and walked around.
Deng Xian sighed, then shook his head while sitting at the table.
After a moment, Deng Xian stood up and chased after him as if he had made up his mind. He walked to Meng Da's side and bowed, saying, "Uncle, why haven't you made up your mind yet? Whether you are willing or not, I can give the messenger an answer."
Meng Da glared at Deng Xian and said, "I've already made up my mind." Deng Xian's voice was trembling as he said, "Is my uncle going to join Zhuge Liang?"
"Why would you join Zhuge Liang? Are you stupid?" Meng Da said with a smile on his face, "Zhuge Liang is a man of many words but few deeds. He wants to turn me against you with just a letter. Dream on!"
Deng Xian asked in confusion, "What did Prime Minister Zhuge write in his letter?"
Meng Da snorted coldly: "Zhuge Liang advised me in his letter that the former emperor who was friendly to me had passed away, and ministers such as Huan Jie and Xiahou Shang had also died one after another, saying that I would definitely be excluded in the State of Wei."
"He also said that he was 'looking eastward' in Shu, hoping for my return." Meng Da looked at his nephew: "Shu Ping, you said he wanted to persuade me to rebel against Wei with just a letter, what was he thinking!"
Deng Xian was just anxious and impatient, and he had never been inclined towards Wei or Shu. Hearing what Meng Da said, he laughed for a moment: "I'm afraid Zhuge Liang doesn't know that his uncle was promoted last month!"
"He must not know." Meng Da said with a smile: "General Anxi, Marquis of Zhenning Township. He is only Marquis of Wuxiang, how can he give me the title of Marquis of a county?"
Deng Xian said: "My uncle is absolutely right. His Majesty is really good to my uncle. He promoted him to a higher position and gave him a special reward of a set of drums and trumpets."
"Your Majesty still remembers what happened to Liu Feng for your uncle."
Meng Da nodded in satisfaction: "Shu Ping, do you know? The saying 'If the ruler regards his subjects as his own hands and feet, then the subjects will regard the ruler as their own heart and soul', is referring to me, the late emperor and Your Majesty, as the same!"
Deng Xian smiled and said, "After all, it is my uncle's talent that has made him famous in both Wei and Shu. Otherwise, why would Your Majesty place such high regard on my uncle?"
"Yes, both talent and bearing are essential." Meng Da said with certainty: "Your Majesty is so kind to me, I will definitely not let you down."
"Deng Xian." Meng Da looked at his nephew next to him.
"I am here." Deng Xian knew that when his uncle called his name, it meant that he had official business or important matters to attend to.
"Deliver Zhuge Liang's letter to..." Meng Da said halfway and began to hesitate again.
"Where to send it?" Deng Xian asked puzzledly.
Meng Da began to pace in the yard again.
Deng Xian was puzzled. He stood there and watched his uncle walk around twice. Then he made up his mind and stamped his feet and said, "Send Zhuge Liang's letter to Luoyang! Wait, I will write a letter to your majesty in person to explain this matter."
Deng Xian asked, "Why didn't my uncle send me to Xiangyang?"
Meng Da rolled his eyes at Deng Xian and said, "That's rude! You have to address me as the governor when discussing official business!"
Deng Xian lowered his head, complained inwardly for a few moments, then he cupped his hands and said, "Sir, according to the system, I have to send him to Xinye, right?"
Meng Da said: "Are you familiar with Chen Qun and Pei Qian? What if these two people harm me? Of course, I will send them directly to Luoyang."
"It just so happens that I heard that Your Majesty returned victorious from his personal expedition to the Eastern Wu. I will personally write a congratulatory letter to present to Your Majesty."
Deng Xian didn't say anything, just waited quietly for Meng Da to finish speaking.
Seeing that Deng Xian did not respond, Meng Da immediately asked, "Is there anything else that can be sent from the palace? I want to prepare some tribute and send it to Your Majesty along with the messenger."
Deng Xian thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, can you appreciate the things in the palace? They are nothing more than jade, silk, Sichuan brocade, and spices."
Meng Da said: "Your Majesty is rich, how can you be interested in the gift I give you? It is just a token of my appreciation!"
"Go pack the gifts now. Pick out the good, expensive ones. Don't be stingy at this time. Wrap them up well after you've made your selection and bring them to me."
"Yes, sir." After receiving the order, Deng Xian bowed and took his leave.
After Deng Xian left, Meng Da returned to the hall and began to read Zhuge Liang's letters again.
After reading for a long time, Meng Da took out a bamboo slip and copied Zhuge Liang's letter to him word for word. After hiding it in a box, he wrapped up Zhuge Liang's handwritten letter.
As he thought about it, he nodded and whispered to himself: "If the king regards his subjects as his own hands and feet, then the subjects will regard the king as their own heart and soul. This time I have made great contributions. If there is a chance, I will go to Luoyang to pay homage to Your Majesty in person."
"As for Zhuge Liang's envoy...let him go back to Chengdu first and give him some excuses."
Let’s not talk about Meng Da who was planning his future in Shangyong City.
After staying in Chenliu for a few days, the emperor went to Xuchang City, an important city of the Wei Dynasty.
After staying in Xuchang for several days, he left Xuchang and headed northeast, returning to Luoyang via Sishui Pass and Xuanmen Pass.
When Cao Rui returned to Luoyang, it was exactly the first day of March.
(End of this chapter)
