Chapter 175: Test
"I can fight when I come, and I can win when I fight. Just this one thing makes me better than countless emperors." Sima Yi sighed.
"So what?" asked Sima Shi.
"So?" Sima Yi explained: "Although the theories Your Majesty mentioned have been mentioned before, Your Majesty was able to integrate them and link the world's situation in the past thirty years by integrating the north and the south. It can be said that it is accurate and correct."
"Rest and recuperate, save people's energy, and reduce consumption." Sima Yi picked up the wick and blew on the flame with his mouth: "This is the right principle in the world."
"Your Majesty is only in his twenties, yet you are able to see the general trend of the world so clearly. How could you make the same mistake as the last emperor?"
Sima Shi continued, "So father thinks that it is only a matter of time for Your Majesty to conquer Wu and Shu? It is destined to succeed?"
Sima Yi glanced at his son and shook his head, saying, "I think it will happen sooner or later, so I agree that 'the destiny is with Wei'."
After a while, Sima Yi coughed lightly and said, "How can there be anything in this world that is 100% certain to happen? Let's wait and see."
Sima Shi wanted to ask more, but was interrupted by Sima Yi: "Ziyuan, I have already told the general that you should go find Xiahou Xuan tomorrow morning and go to the general's mansion together. The general wants to test your knowledge."
It seems that my marriage is about to be decided?
Sima Shi said goodbye to his father and walked back to his room in the mansion, but his mind was carefully recalling the sight of Xiahou Hui at the gate of Imperial College that day.
The intelligence and spirit she showed when discussing "The Doctrine of the Mean" was different from that of ordinary women, and this is what really impressed Sima Shi.
As for her appearance, it goes without saying that she had bright eyes and white teeth, but the details of her appearance seemed a little vague. However, I still remember that Xiahou Hui's appearance was first-class.
We’ll talk about it tomorrow!
The next morning, Sima Shi led a blue horse out of the side door of Sikong Mansion and went to Xiahou Xuan's house alone.
"Please inform Xiahou Taichu and tell him that Sima Ziyuan is here to look for him." Sima Shi said indifferently to the gatekeeper of Xiahou Mansion.
"Excuse me, please wait a moment." The doorman bowed and quickly turned back to go in. It would be difficult for a doorman in a noble family in Luoyang to be a good doorman if he didn't remember people's faces and didn't know current affairs. His master was on good terms with the eldest son of the Sikong family, and several people in charge of the mansion knew about it.
"Brother Ziyuan, what do you want to talk to me about?" Xiahou Xuan walked out of the house, looked at Sima Shi and asked with a smile.
Xiahou Xuan was not only eight feet tall and handsome, but also wore a purple ribbon and gold seal on his waist. Sima Shi was attracted by Xiahou Xuan's seal at first sight. Xiahou Xuan never wore it when he was studying at the Imperial Academy.
Although Sima Shi has a father who was promoted to Sikong last year, he himself currently holds no official position and is just a commoner.
On the other hand, Xiahou Xuan inherited the title of Marquis of Changling from his father Xiahou Shang, and became a county marquis at a young age. Moreover, after returning to the Imperial College after the Southern Expedition, he did not remove the additional title of Sanqi Shilang.
"Taichu, I really have something to ask you today." Sima Shi said with a smile, "I came to see you today because of my father and the general. I would like to ask Taichu to take me to the general's mansion to pay a visit."
How smart is Xiahou Xuan?
As soon as Sima Shi said the three words "General", Xiahou Xuan immediately understood that this was aimed at his sister!
After Xiahou Xuan returned to Luoyang with the emperor, he also consulted his mother at home. Xiahou Xuan's mother was also undecided and wanted to ask her brother, Cao Zhen, the general of Wei, to make the decision.
Although his mother and uncle both had this idea, Xiahou Xuan thought about it and finally had some indescribable feelings before the event.
It’s not unwillingness.
It was a strange and slightly resistant feeling when someone was looking to marry the sister I had watched grow up.
Xiahou Xuan took a deep breath and glanced at Sima Shi: "Brother Ziyuan, please wait a moment. I will be back soon."
After Xiahou Xuan turned around and entered the mansion, he was surprised to see his sister standing in the courtyard. His father Xiahou Shang was no longer around, and there were not many people in the family, so his mother had told Xiahou Hui about this matter a few days ago.
Xiahou Hui had met Sima Shi. Although she knew in her heart that Sima Shi was not as outstanding as her brother, the eldest son of the Sikong family was not bad at all!
Xiahou Hui said with a smile on her face: "Where are you going, brother?"
Xiahou Xuan said with a straight face: "Let's go to my uncle's house."
"Go early and come back early." Xiahou Hui smiled lightly.
Xiahou Xuan continued to walk into his room without saying a word, and lay on the couch in a daze for a few moments before sitting up and tidying up his appearance before slowly walking out of the house.
After leaving the mansion, Xiahou Xuan jumped on his horse, shook the reins gently, and started heading towards the general's mansion.
Sima Shi saw Xiahou Xuan's stern face, which was completely different from the one he had half a quarter of an hour ago. Sima Shi had never seen Xiahou Xuan in such a state before, and while he was surprised, he also mounted his horse and chased after him.
The General's Mansion.
Xiahou Xuan was Cao Zhen's nephew, so he naturally didn't need to inform him. He led Sima Shi and the other two in. Although Xiahou Xuan's face was still not very good, it was much better than when he just came out of his own house. Although Sima Shi was also a smart person, he didn't have a sister after all, so he didn't figure out the trick until he was halfway through.
The General's Mansion is not just the residence of Cao Zhen's family, but more like the center for the Wei Dynasty to handle military affairs.
Grand Marshal Cao Xiu and Grand General Cao Zhen, these two Cao clan members were the highest-ranking military officers in Wei. Compared to the Grand Marshal who was stationed in Yangzhou all year round and was in charge of the conquest of Wu, the Grand General Cao Zhen was stationed in Luoyang and supervised the military affairs inside and outside the country, and his power and responsibilities seemed to be heavier.
The General's Mansion covers a large area, of which Cao Zhen and his family only live in a small part. Xiahou Xuan is familiar with the place and leads Sima Shi to the main hall in the backyard.
On weekdays in the imperial palace, although Cao Zhen threw many military affairs to Dong Zhao to handle, and then passed them on to the General's Mansion after his own review, it was still complicated and tiring overall.
Today is a rare day off, and Cao Zhen was practicing spearmanship in the yard in the morning.
When Cao Zhen was young, he was also a strong and brave general. When he led the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, he had the courage to ride a horse and shoot a tiger. Now that he is a little older, he is still diligent in practicing martial arts.
In fact, the weapons used by the generals who could fight in battle were no more than spears, halberds, and swords. Cao Zhen was originally a cavalry general, so he was better at using spears, and he used halberds, which were infantry weapons, much less.
Cao Zhen saw Xiahou Xuan coming, and when he saw Xiahou Xuan leading a group of people, he understood. But Cao Zhen did not stop dancing with his spear, and continued for half an incense stick of time.
After he bent his waist, turned around and stabbed the spear backwards, Cao Zhen slowly stopped his stance, stood for a moment to catch his breath, then put the iron spear on the rack and turned to look at the two of them.
When Sima Shi saw Cao Zhen looking at him, he immediately bowed respectfully and said, "I am Sima Ziyuan, and I am here to see the general."
"Sima Ziyuan? Sikong asked you to come and ask for my Hui'er's hand in marriage?" Cao Zhen asked calmly.
This is the general! If it comes to power in the Wei Dynasty, my father's position as Sikong is still incomparable to the general. Hearing Cao Zhen's slightly questioning tone, even with Sima Shi's good mentality, he became uneasy at this time.
"Reporting to the general, it is me." Sima Shi still said respectfully.
"Sikong family's eldest son, I won't ask him about his classics, but I think he's still good enough." Cao Zhen nodded: "Ziyuan, have you learned swordsmanship?"
Sword? Sima Shi was slightly surprised. Could it be that he was going to test his martial arts skills today?
Sima Shi immediately nodded and said, "General, I am practicing swordsmanship, but I am not proficient in saber techniques."
"Practicing swordsmanship is fine." Cao Zhen said to Xiahou Xuan, "Taichu! Call Zhaobo for me."
Zhaobo is Cao Shuang, the eldest son of Cao Zhen, and also the cousin of Xiahou Xuan.
Xiahou Xuan roughly guessed what his uncle meant, nodded in agreement, and walked towards Cao Shuang's room.
Sima Shi began to wonder. Didn't the general want to test me? Why did he call Cao Shuang here?
At this time, apart from a few guards, there were only Cao Zhen and Sima Shi in the courtyard.
Cao Zhen looked Sima Shi up and down and said, "Ziyuan, you have been studying in the Imperial Academy for half a year. How is the Imperial Academy doing now?"
Sima Shi bowed and replied, "Since October last year, the Imperial College has recruited a total of 500 students, including 50 A-level students and 450 B-level and C-level students. Your Majesty has visited the Imperial College twice to teach and answer questions for us students."
The major events that happened in the Imperial Academy had already been reported to Cao Zhen by the military officer in the palace. Cao Zhen was just trying to understand Sima Shi's character by asking him some questions.
"Did Ziyuan understand what Your Majesty said yesterday about the general situation of the world?" Cao Zhen continued to ask.
"General, I understand what you said," Sima Shi replied.
"Your Majesty, the essence of yesterday's lecture was actually about the general situation of the world. Let's not talk about such a big situation today. Ziyuan, if you were the governor of a county, what would you do?"
Sima Shi thought for a moment and said, "General, if I were a prefect of a county, I would do only three things: first, encourage people to engage in agriculture and sericulture, cherish the people's strength; second, clarify the laws and regulations, remove bad officials; third, investigate and judge cases, and govern according to the law."
Cao Zhen nodded slightly: "Ziyuan is roughly right, but it is still slightly off."
Sima Shi was slightly surprised and bowed: "Please enlighten me, General."
Cao Zhen said in a deep voice: "The so-called prefect of a county is actually just a shepherd of the people on behalf of God. The affairs of a county are small, but the affairs of the world are big."
"Everyone can do ordinary things. But as a county governor, at a critical moment, when the court needs food and grass, I will do everything I can to collect food; when the court needs soldiers and civilians, I will do my best to mobilize the people."
"To fulfill the duties of a county, one must complete the tasks entrusted by the court. This is the most important thing for a county governor."
Cao Zhen heard footsteps and looked sideways. Cao Shuang and Xiahou Xuan were walking towards him quickly.
Cao Zhen said to his son, "Zhao Bo, come and compete with Sima Ziyuan in swordsmanship!"
(End of this chapter)
