"Where are Xiahou Xian and Guanqiu Jian?" Cao Rui said in a deep voice.
When Xiahou Xian and Guanqiu Jian heard the call, they guessed that they would also be rewarded, given the examples of Cao Zhen and Yang Fu, so they agreed without hesitation.
Cao Rui said: "Xiahou Xian and Guanqiu Jian are both loyal and brave. Xiahou Xian is appointed as General Anbei and sent to Youzhou to assist Youzhou Governor Liu Ye in handling border affairs."
"Appoint Guanqiu Jian as the commander of the central army."
They both thanked him.
Xiahou Xian did not think much about it. He was transferred from being in charge of the core battalion in the central army to being an official titled general. Although he was only a General Anbei, he was also a titled general!
Different from those generals with miscellaneous titles!
Naturally happy.
But Cao Zhen, Sima Yi, Xin Pi and others who had been in the central army and in Luoyang for a long time, subtly sensed something was wrong.
The problem lies in Guanqiu Jian's position.
What is the position of Zhonglingjun? Since the emperor ascended the throne and took away Chen Qun's position of Zhonglingjun, there has been no Zhonglingjun again.
The position of the Central Commander has been vacant for two years. In addition to being responsible for protecting the emperor, the Central Commander also has the power to command part of the Central Army!
Among the four regents, Cao Zhen, Cao Xiu, and Chen Qun all served as Zhong Lingjun or Lingjun Jiangjun. Wei Zhen, Xiahou Shang, and others also served in this position.
In other words, whoever serves as the commander-in-chief is clearly the emperor's confidant, the one who has been personally certified by the emperor.
Now, Your Majesty has given this position, which has been vacant for two years, to Guanqiu Jian, giving him the power to protect the emperor. He has also promoted Xiahou Xian and transferred him to...
Sima Yi thought secretly in his heart, does this mean that the emperor has different opinions on the recent actions and evaluations of Xiahou Xian and Guanqiu Jian?
If Guanqiu Jian is better and Xiahou Xian is not satisfactory, then how did Guanqiu Jian satisfy Your Majesty, and how did Xiahou Xian offend Your Majesty?
Sima Yi was not aware of this.
During the nearly ten days outside Chencang City, every important official had a different reaction to the emperor's illness.
Due to the suddenness of the incident, except for Cao Zhen and Xin Pi who had communicated privately beforehand, the rest of the people responded in various ways based on their own thoughts and instincts.
No one else can know exactly what each person has done. But just now, His Majesty called everyone in, asked them questions one by one, and actually already had all the information about everyone.
In other words, although His Majesty had been lying on the couch for nine days, he had a clearer picture of what everyone had done during these nine days than anyone else present.
Sima Yi was deeply impressed by the emperor's wisdom in controlling his subjects, which seemed almost gifted by heaven.
The late Emperor Cao Pi was not so resourceful. How did he give birth to such a son? It is truly miraculous.
……
As the emperor's health gradually recovered, everything around Chencang City returned to normal.
The only thing that Du Xi and Yang Fu had been arguing about was the military strategy, which was temporarily shelved by the emperor's order. After the new governor of Yongzhou, He Qia, took office, he would study the matter in detail.
On June 23, Cao Rui ordered the central army to return to Luoyang. However, Cao Rui did not ride a horse this time, but sat in a carriage.
On June 29th, the central army arrived outside the city of Chang'an.
During these six days, Cao Rui's physique had almost recovered, thanks to his youth and daily physical exercise. Of course, this was inseparable from Cao Rui's generous resources and medical care as an emperor.
Not everyone is treated like an emperor.
Most of the central army camped outside the city of Chang'an, and only the newly appointed commander of the central army, Guanqiu Jian, led 5,000 cavalry to follow the emperor into the city for protection.
The last time he went to Lueyang, he was in such a hurry that Cao Rui didn’t have time to properly visit the ancient capital of Chang’an.
Now that I have returned from a victorious battle, I feel particularly relaxed and it is inevitable that I want to relax a little.
Cao Rui took his ministers and generals on a tour of Chang'an City. Xin Pi, the Minister of the Court, had been in Chang'an for nearly half a year and was obviously the best candidate for tour guide.
Cao Rui thought for a moment and asked, "I wonder if there are any ancient sites in Chang'an that we can visit? It would be best if they were from the pre-Han period and can be verified."
Xin Pi thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, why don't you go and take a look at the old site of the palace of the previous dynasty?"
"The subtle details of its shape are slightly different from the palace of the Wei Dynasty in Luoyang."
Cao Rui nodded, turned around and looked at everyone on his horse: "What do you think?"
You are the emperor, why are you asking us?
Everyone expressed their agreement, and the scene was very harmonious for a while.
Xin Pi rode his horse beside the emperor, just like a guide, introducing the palaces of the Han Dynasty one by one.
After walking for a long time, Xin Pi pointed to the dilapidated palace in front and said, "Your Majesty, the Jianzhang Palace is in front. Only the Shuangfengque, Shenmingtai, Taiye Lake and other old sites of Jianzhang Palace remain now. The rest were destroyed in the war." "Jianzhang Palace." Cao Rui repeated, and then asked, "When was Jianzhang Palace built? Which Han emperor built it?"
Sima Yi beside him smiled and replied: "Your Majesty, the Jianzhang Palace was built by Emperor Wu of Han. However, during the Wang Mang Rebellion, the Jianzhang Palace was also destroyed in the war."
"The Jianzhang Palace you are seeing now was rebuilt during the Later Han Dynasty, but a lot of it was destroyed in the war. During the Huangchu period, the national finances were poor, so it has never been repaired."
Cao Rui nodded and said, "Not to mention that we have no money, even if we have money, we shouldn't repair it. This is a palace from the Han Dynasty. What's the point of repairing it?"
"It would be better to reclaim more wasteland near the Wei River!"
Sima Yi bowed and smiled, "Your Majesty is wise."
Cao Rui narrowed his eyes and looked forward, pointing to a tall, thick object in front of him that looked like a flagpole and asked, "What is that thing in front?"
Sima Yi had just answered first, so Xin Pi spoke faster and responded neatly, "This is a dew-receiving plate! This is a dew-receiving plate."
"What is the dew-receiving plate?" Cao Rui asked again.
Xin Pi only knew about the Chenglu Pan, but he didn't remember the specific story behind it very clearly.
The same is true of Sima Yi. Although Sima Yi is also knowledgeable, he has always been unwilling to remember these useless allusions. He is a scholar who pays great attention to practicality.
Now it was the turn of Cao Zhi who was following behind. Uncle Cao was better at showing off his knowledge:
"Your Majesty, I know about this dew-carving pan." Cao Zhi said with a smile, "Why don't you come closer so that I can explain it to you in detail."
Cao Rui glanced at Cao Zhi and said with a smile, "Uncle is indeed very knowledgeable! I think when we return to Luoyang, uncle will pass by the Imperial College and ask Dr. Zheng to give you a doctorate as well!"
Cao Zhi smiled awkwardly and said, "I am in Chongwen Temple, not in the Imperial College. What's the point of having a doctorate?"
Cao Rui smiled and said, "Uncle, if everyone in the Imperial College studied classics, wouldn't it be a bit boring? Why do we have to be so utilitarian?"
"If you agree with me, this kind of 'useless' poetry and prose can also be taught in the Imperial Academy! This will show the cultural elegance of the Great Wei."
Cao Zhi smiled and said, "I have thought about this before, but I never dared to bring it up. Now that Your Majesty has spoken, I can go to the Imperial Academy to teach the students how to write poetry."
Cao Rui nodded in agreement and said, "That's right! The Great Wei should not only have martial virtues, but also cultural elegance. I think the Emperor's uncle is the greatest cultural elegance of the Great Wei!"
The emperor was in a very good mood today. Surrounded by the crowd, he chatted with Cao Zhi and praised him in public.
The emperor liked Prince Yongqiu's literary talent, and the court officials knew it. But they were still sightseeing!
Cao Zhi looked at the eyes of the crowd gathered around him, his cheeks slightly hot, and pointed forward and said: "Your Majesty, please come forward!"
"Okay!" Cao Rui tapped the horse's belly lightly, and everyone walked forward again.
As everyone got closer, the full picture of the dew-receiving plate was revealed to Cao Rui.
Cao Rui sat on his horse with his head raised, looking upwards, and making sounds of exclamation.
Coming to this era, Cao Rui hadn't seen anything this tall for a long time. Even compared with the tall buildings in the old cities, it was not much inferior.
The Han Dynasty did like to build various high platforms. In fact, the high platforms were not like the tall buildings of later generations. They were more like a large pyramid-shaped mound with a palace built on top.
Among the former sites of Jianzhang Palace, there are four high platforms that are about ten to twenty meters high.
The height of the dew-receiving plate is above the twenty-zhang-high altar of the gods, and extends another twenty zhang upwards.
Seen from the flat ground, it is a full forty feet high, which is equivalent to twenty or thirty stories high in later generations.
It is indeed admirable.
Cao Zhi said, "Your Majesty, this is the dew-receiving plate built by Emperor Wu of Han. On the altar of the gods, there is a bronze pillar 20 feet high. On it is a bronze statue of an immortal, holding a bronze plate in his hand to receive the sweet dew from heaven."
"Ganlu?" Cao Rui laughed. "It's rare that Emperor Wu of Han has such elegance. Which immortal in heaven would put nectar in his copper plate?"
"Isn't this free time?"
Cao Zhi said: "I only read about this in a book. However, considering Emperor Wu's life span, it is very likely that the immortals did not give him nectar."
"However, Emperor Wu of Han did take the 'nectar' in this dish."
Cao Rui asked: "How did you get the nectar down from the dew-receiving plate, which is so high?"
Cao Zhi smiled awkwardly: "I don't know about this, but the nectar should be taken with jade dust." (End of this chapter)
