The Chongde Hall was brightly lit, almost as bright as day, and Dong Zhao's stunned expression was seen by all the important officials sitting in the front row.
Add a burden? What burden?
Dong Zhao instantly thought of the meaningful words His Majesty said when he met him in the north of the city this afternoon. However, His Majesty's thoughts were never so easy to understand, and he was no exception.
Dong Zhao put down the wine jar in his hand, bowed and looked at the emperor who was sitting at the top of the hall, and said: "I am a little drunk and dull, I hope your majesty will give me some advice."
Dong Zhao claimed to be stupid, but in Cao Rui's eyes, Dong Zhao was very clear-headed.
While the two were talking, the ministers in the hall put down their wine jars and bamboo chopsticks one after another. Banquets in the palace were more ritual than practical. Everyone wished they could sit at the table with eight ears and looked in the direction of the emperor.
As ministers of the Western Pavilion and also elderly officials, Dong Zhao and Sima Yi were on the left and right, and their seats were closest to the emperor.
Cao Rui slowly stood up from behind the table, adjusted his belt with his hand, pointed at Dong Zhao again, looked at the ministers and said: "Today I have held a banquet in Chongde Hall, and all the ministers are in the hall. Everyone says that good officials should be good officials, but Mr. Dong is the first important official to resign from me since the first year of Taihe. Not only did I reject this petition, I also fined him a year's salary."
"I have been the emperor for four years, and half of that time I have been on the battlefield. I am still so tired, and you ministers want to throw away your burdens and stop doing your work. Do you think I can agree?"
"Sikong!" Cao Rui looked at Sima Yi and said, "Tell me what kind of person Dong Gong is. Should I agree to his request?"
It had been four years since the reign of Emperor Taihe, and Sima Yi was no longer surprised to be questioned by the emperor in court meetings or other public occasions. As the Minister of Works with a salary of 10,000 stones, he held the highest position among all the officials in the palace and was closest to the emperor.
Sima Yi stood up and saluted, saying, "Mr. Dong is seventy-five this year, and he is still working hard for state affairs in the West Pavilion. He is truly a loyal and devoted minister."
Cao Rui chuckled and looked at Wei Zhen again: "Master Wei, come and tell me!"
Wei Zhen looked embarrassed, and stood up after two seconds. He bowed and then said, "Your Majesty has drunk too much today. Mr. Dong is old and an important official. I ask Your Majesty to discuss this later."
Only Wei Zhen dared to say that the emperor was drunk. Dong Zhao really didn't know what the emperor meant today. He stood behind the table with his hands behind his back, looking down at the reflection of the lights on the floor tiles in the hall. He felt a little nervous and a little indifferent. In short, he couldn't explain it clearly.
"Master Wei, what do you think I'm talking about?" Cao Rui smiled and waved his hands. "Among all the official positions in the court, only the three highest positions are held by officials with high moral integrity. But what exactly is considered moral integrity? Is there any common sense? Can anyone tell me what a virtuous official is?"
Sima Yi unconsciously shrank back a bit, even wanting to hide. But since he had already stood up, it would be inappropriate for him to sit down again, lest he, one of the Three Dukes, be asked again by His Majesty. It would be inappropriate for him to answer the question about his official position himself.
Liu Ye, who had been observing for a long time, immediately stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I don't know how many virtues a minister can have. But if I only say one thing, I think that being loyal to the king is virtue, there is no other way!"
It must be said that among all the court officials, Liu Ye was the best at grasping the opportunity and guessing the emperor's intentions. Not to mention that the emperor had already told him and Xin Pi about this matter when they were in Quanzhou.
Xin Pi saw Liu Ye stand up, but he lowered his head. People have different personalities, and he would not do what Liu Ye did, nor was he willing to do it.
"What a loyal servant to the king!"
Cao Rui said: "If we talk about being loyal to the king, there is one person in the palace today who is the best among all the ministers!"
Cao Rui glanced at Dong Zhao, who remained silent, and continued, "In the first year of Jian'an, he suggested to Emperor Wu that the Han Emperor be moved to Xu County. In the third year of Jian'an, he was the governor of Henan, and later served as the governor of Jizhou and Xuzhou. In the twelfth year of Jian'an, he suggested to Emperor Wu that the five-rank nobility system be restored..."
Dong Zhao stood there without changing his expression, took a deep breath, and his wrinkled hands began to tremble slightly uncontrollably. His nose felt sour, and he actually felt a rare sense of nostalgia and sadness.
Dong Zhao had served the Wei royal family for nearly forty years and had waited for this day for too long.
Has someone finally commented on my life's merits and demerits?
How could the officials not know who the emperor was talking about? Upon hearing this, they all looked at Dong Zhao, with either admiration or envy in their eyes, and some even had a hint of sadness.
As he was talking, Cao Rui actually walked slowly towards Dong Zhao, holding a wine jar:
"In the 17th year of Jian'an, he was the first to call Emperor Wu a duke, and also the first to call Emperor Wu a king. During the Taihe years, he managed the military and political affairs in the court and made many special achievements. All these things are too numerous to mention. How can I not be grateful for the fact that the Great Wei has come to this day?"
"Mr. Dong, drink up!" Cao Rui looked at Dong Zhao with a smile: "With Mr. Dong by my side, how can I allow you to resign?"
"His Majesty!"
An indescribable feeling filled Dong Zhao's heart. Dong Zhao signaled the palace maids serving the banquet to step back, filled the wine jar with slightly trembling hands, agreed with the emperor, and drank it all in.
At this moment, apart from the emperor and Dong Zhao, no one in the hall spoke.
Cao Rui said softly: "Grand Marshal Hua is old and virtuous, so he should be promoted to Grand Tutor. Weiwei Dong Zhao has been virtuous to the Wei Dynasty, so he should be made Grand Marshal."
Taiwei? The Taiwei, the head of the Three Dukes? When Dong Zhao was talking to the emperor about the difference between name and reality in the armory, he had thought about the various outcomes of his future. But among all the possibilities, Dong Zhao had never guessed the position of Taiwei.
It's time and fate. Since this is our destiny, how can we shirk it?
Dong Zhao walked into the hall without hesitation, bowed down, and even his movements became much more agile:
"Your Majesty, I, Dong Zhao, accept your order and thank you for your grace! I am so lucky to be promoted by Your Majesty for my humble contribution!"
Cao Rui helped Dong Zhao up and said, "I would like to show the world Mr. Dong's decades of experience. I and the court will never forget the contributions of loyal ministers! Mr. Dong, get up quickly!"
"Your Majesty is wise!" Liu Ye bowed in the direction of the emperor.
With Liu Ye taking the lead, the ministers in the hall also saluted. Dong Zhao was already over seventy years old, so what could he do as the Grand Commandant, the head of the Three Dukes?
According to common sense, Dong Zhao should have been given a Three Dukes title during the Huangchu period for his meritorious service. However, just as there are clean scholars and meritorious scholars among scholars, there are loyal officials and treacherous officials among court officials.
For many officials at that time, it was not difficult to accept the idea of Wei replacing Han. The Mandate of Heaven was with Wei, and they just had to pay homage to the new emperor. However, most of the mainstream officials despised Dong Zhao, who artificially promoted this event and made great contributions to it.
In short, I admit that I can, but I’m afraid of dirtying my hands.
As time went by, as old officials passed away, the winds in the court changed again and again. It was indeed a bit unfair to assign Dong Zhao a powerless position.
The reason for appointing Dong Zhao as the Grand Marshal now is completely different from the reason for appointing Chen Qun and Sima Yi in the past.
Chen Qun and Sima Yi were both among the late emperor's 'Four Friends' and were important ministers entrusted with the care of the emperor's son. This kind of relationship is rare and cannot be achieved by other ministers.
But Dong Zhao is completely different from the other two.
To the ministers, such a generous emperor was like a saint. He valued his meritorious officials so much that things that were once considered negative more than ten years ago could be brought up for discussion. If one day he could also reach the state of "old age and great virtue", would it be possible for him to become one of the Three Dukes?
Following the right person!
Everyone praised him, Sima Yi was no exception. But Sima Yi was thinking, why not fill them in order? Hua Taiwei became Hua Taifu, Chen Situ became Chen Taiwei, Sima Sikong became Sima Situ!
Although the emperor seemed a little drunk, everyone knew that this decision must have been planned for a long time and was not made on a whim. There was no difference between announcing it at a banquet and announcing it at a court meeting.
Afterwards, Cao Rui raised his glass again and asked his ministers to toast the newly appointed General Dong, and the scene became lively again.
The banquet was gradually coming to an end. Everyone knew that the position of Weiwei left vacant after Dong Zhao's promotion would be filled at the court meeting tomorrow. Xin Pi waited for a long time, but the emperor never announced his appointment at the banquet, and he couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.
After the ministers left, only Liu Ye noticed Xin Pi's fluctuating emotions. Under the influence of alcohol, he patted Xin Pi on the shoulder to comfort him.
Cao Rui sat in a huge carriage with intricate decorations, swaying as he set off from the Chongde Hall and headed towards the bedroom.
The carriage curtain was opened, and the eunuch Bi Jin knelt beside the driver, fanning the inside with a long-handled feather fan:
"Your Majesty, would you like to arrange for the concubines to sleep with you tonight?"
Cao Rui opened his half-closed eyes, glanced at Bi Jin, and said with a smile: "You old slave, I have been working hard outside for more than half a year, don't you want me to take a break?"
Bi Jin laughed a little and said in a flattering voice, "I am sorry for being so rude. Then I won't notify the harem tonight?"
Cao Rui touched his chin, as if he had thought of something: "Come closer, I will teach you a method."
Bi Jin didn't dare to enter the carriage. He tried to move his upper body closer to the inside of the carriage, and even the tall hat on his head became tilted. The scene was quite funny.
"Tomorrow you will go to the Shaofu and ask him to make a lottery box. The shape should be like a pitching pot, but it should be smaller. Then carve the names of the concubines in the palace on the lottery. If I want to visit you but can't decide, I can just draw a lot from it and choose the one I want."
"How about my method?"
Bi Jin rolled his eyes, smiled flatteringly and nodded repeatedly: "Your Majesty is wise, Your Majesty is wise! If there is this method, I only need to present the lottery box to Your Majesty, and Your Majesty will be able to choose the candidate!"
"So tonight...?"
Cao Rui rolled his eyes at Bi Jin and said, "I said I wanted to take a break. Do you think I was joking with you?"
"Let's go to Lady Su. I originally wanted to visit her tomorrow. The night is long. I think it would be hard for her to endure knowing that I returned to the palace but didn't come to see her. I will go and keep her company. Let's go!"
"As you command!" (End of this chapter)
