Chapter 657: Cao Rui’s choice

Chapter 657 Cao Rui’s choice

Jia Kui defended Jia Shi in time, and Man Chong followed closely behind him, bringing food to the army that fled to Jia Shi. Only then did Cao Xiu have the opportunity to regroup the defeated army.

Wu's army chased the enemy north this time, killing and capturing more than 10,000 people, 10,000 oxen, horses, mules and donkeys, and countless military equipment. It was considered a rare victory.

Lu Xun learned that Jia Shi had been captured by the Wei army and Cao Wei's reinforcements had arrived, so he immediately retreated as soon as it was ready and slowly retreated.

After Cao Xiu led his troops back to Shouchun, he made two statements: one was to apologize, and the other was to impeach Jia Kui.

Not to be outdone, Jia Kui also impeached Cao Xiu for underestimating the enemy and advancing rashly, which led to the defeat of Youshiting.

 Cao Rui became extremely irritable when he learned that Shi Ting was defeated in the first battle. Now that he received the memorial from the two men, he wanted to throw the memorial to the ground on the spot.

Originally, I thought that the three-pronged attack on Wu would be carried out in parallel, and there would be support from Wu's country, so there would be frequent successes.

Unexpectedly, Da Sima on the east road was ambushed because of the internal response and he pretended to surrender.

Jia Kui and Man Chong in the middle attacked Jiangxia first, but then had to change their route and go to rescue Da Sima.

Only Sima Yi on the west route was more cautious. After learning that Sima was defeated, he quickly stopped his march and held a stalemate with Wu Lu at the border between the two countries.

Later, he was ordered to retreat, and then he led the entire army back to Xiangyang.

Cao Rui was sitting in his seat, his face suddenly gloomy and clear, and the hand holding the memorial was trembling slightly.

Within one year, a disastrous defeat and a major defeat, he could already imagine what kind of situation he was about to face.

The only good thing is that this time he does not have to bear the responsibility for the defeat.

But he had to find someone who would bear the responsibility so as to silence the ministers.

Obviously, this person can only choose between Cao Xiu and Jia Kui.

At this moment, the chamberlain announced, "Your Majesty, the Captain of Changshui is here to see you."

 Cao Rui woke up from his meditation and said, "Let him come in."

The chamberlain then preached, "In front of the Captain of Changshui."

Changshui Captain Duan Mo, who was waiting outside, quickly responded, "Wei."

Then he took off his shoes and stepped forward, saluted and said, "I, Duan Mo, see your majesty. May your majesty live long and have long-lasting happiness."

Cao Rui nodded, "Get up."

Then he said, "Give me a seat."

After Duan Mo thanked him, he carefully knelt down and sat down.

“Captain Duan, how is the case you were asked to investigate a few days ago going?”

Cao Rui asked.

Duan Mo quickly replied, "Your Majesty, I have already found out. The matter of Xiahou Mao's complaint and slander was actually framed."

Cao Rui looked calm, "Who framed Xiahou Mao?"

Xiahou Mao's loss of grain and grass in Kongguan once made Cao Rui furious and wanted to kill him on the spot.

It was just that the war was going on at that time, and his father Xiahou Dun had served Emperor Wu in his early years and had contributed to bringing peace to the world, so Cao Rui temporarily imprisoned him.

Later, Longyou fell, Cao Rui returned to Luoyang, and at the same time took Xiahou Mao back.

It's just that after returning to Luoyang, Cao Rui's desire to kill Xiahou Mao was not as strong as in Guanzhong.

The reason is very simple. Taking advantage of the defeat of Longyou, the aristocratic family began to take action.

Cao Rui is in urgent need of support.

The Xiahou family is related by marriage to the Cao family, and they are still the staunchest supporters of the Cao family.

Unexpectedly, something went wrong again at this time.

Cao Rui's aunt, Xiahou Mao's wife, Princess Qinghe, reported to the emperor that Xiahou Mao had complained and slandered the emperor before. Xiahou Mao's brothers can testify to this.

Cao Rui was furious when he heard this.

Xiahou Xuan's actions have already caused him to have certain doubts about the Xiahou Shang lineage of the Xiahou family. Now that he heard Xiahou Mao say disrespectful words, he was furious.

It is common for powerful people to violate discipline. Xiahou Mao's misappropriation of grain stored in Guanzhong was just a coincidence and was not considered as intentional aid to the enemy.

But if you dare to slander the emperor, it is a matter of political attitude. Political issues are always a big problem!

Is it possible that Xiahou Dun’s branch also wants to separate from me?

Fortunately, at the last moment, Captain Duan Mo of Changshui spoke up and said: "Princess Qingshui and Xia Houmao are not at odds. I'm afraid there is something hidden in this. Why don't Your Majesty find out the facts first before making a decision?"

 Cao Rui finally realized that he still needed the support of the Xiahou family. If he killed Xiahou Mao, the representative of the Xiahou family in a rage at this time, it would be very wrong.

So Cao Rui ordered Duan Mo to investigate the matter.

Duan Mo came here this time to talk about the results of the investigation.

"Xiahou Mao kept many concubines, and Princess Qinghe was at odds with him. And Xiahou Mao's brothers did not follow the etiquette. Xiahou Mao had reprimanded them many times, so his brothers felt resentful."

"This matter is the conspiracy between Princess Qinghe and Xiahou Mao's brothers to falsely accuse Xiahou Mao'er."

 Cao Rui had already read the file, and when he heard Duan Mo's words, he felt a little more irritated.

There are three most important branches of the Xiahou family.

Needless to say, Xia Houxuan of Xiahou Shang's branch took the lead in opposing his appointment of Mao as the queen and looked down upon the queen's younger brother.

When he returned to Luoyang from Guanzhong, he was among the people who took the lead in criticizing Longyou's loss.

Cao Rui gritted his teeth when he thought of this.

Xia Houyuan's branch has many descendants, seven in total, and many of them are outstanding.

Unexpectedly, the two most talented people both died young.

The third son, Xiahou, was said to have military talents. He shot a tiger when he was 16 years old, but he died at the age of 18.

The fifth son, Xia Hou Rong, was young but talented. He was able to write and read scriptures at the age of seven, and had a photographic memory. When he was 13 years old, he went to Hanzhong with his father. When Xia Hou Yuan was defeated, Xia Hou Rong drew his sword and went into battle, and was killed together with his father.

It is really sad that these two sons died early.

The second son Xiahou Ba is now a partial general. The fourth son Xiahou Wei, the sixth son Xiahou Hui, and the seventh son Xiahou He are all famous for their talents.

It’s just that these four people are too junior in qualifications and are not yet able to take on big responsibilities.

Xia Houheng, the eldest son who inherited the title, was not even as famous as his younger brothers, let alone talented.

How can you take on the leadership of the Xiahou family in this way?

As for the Xiahou Dun branch, Xiahou Mao married Princess Qinghe because of his good relationship with the late emperor. He was appointed general of Anxi, granted the title of marquis, and upholds integrity. Compared with his brother Xiahou Chong, who only inherited the title, his status is nowhere high.

Looking at his two younger brothers, they are even capable of framing their elder brothers. They are simply worse than animals. What else can they be expected to do?

So the only hope is really Xia Houmao.

Cao Rui suddenly felt very tired when he thought of this.

The Cao family, the pillars of the two great kingdoms, both suffered disastrous defeats within a year.

The Xiahou family, who were originally the most reliable, now can only come up with one Xiahou Mao.

"Since Xiahou Mao is not guilty of disrespect, let him go."

Cao Rui waved his hand.

Until one day, a chamberlain came. Fortunately, he was empty-handed and said that he would take him to see His Majesty.

When Xia Houmao was brought to the east hall of Tai Chi Hall, he didn't even have the courage to raise his head. He just knocked his head heavily on the back of his folded hands.

“Get up.”

Cao Rui's voice above was a little distant, and he seemed a little tired.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Xia Houmao stood up tremblingly, lowered his head, and stood there timidly, not even daring to look around.

"I have found out that the crime of disrespect was caused by someone who framed you, so you do not need to bear this charge. But the reason why the framed person blamed you is too absurd."

Cao Rui sneered, his face full of sarcasm, "The Xiahou family is the most noble family in the Wei Dynasty. I didn't expect that something like this happened. It's time to straighten out the family tradition."

Xia Houmao lowered his head and listened quietly, not daring to make a sound.

"However, for the sake of the late General Xiahou, I will spare you the death penalty for the matter of storing grain in Guanzhong. However, it is unavoidable to suffer a living crime. All your family property has been used to buy military grain and compensate for the grain stored in Guanzhong. Do you have any opinions?"

When Xia Houmao heard this, he quickly bowed and said, "For me to be lucky enough to be spared my life is already a great kindness from Your Majesty. How can I dare to be greedy again?"

Cao Rui nodded, "Okay, since you know how to advance and retreat, I will give you another chance. Let me ask you, do you often have money and food exchanges with that Guandong family?"

When Xia Houmao heard this, his legs went weak.

"Your Majesty...Your Majesty, that, that is all because I want to replenish the food reserves in Guanzhong, so I followed them, they..."

His teeth were chattering, and he couldn't speak clearly, "They... agreed to buy a batch of grain. You must have no intention of making friends, Your Majesty!"

Xia Houmao was sweating profusely when he remembered that he had taken the woolen cloth from Longyou, doubled it and sold it to the Guandong family. I heard that the woolen cloth from Longyou was produced in Hanzhong, Shu Kingdom?

“Then you mean to say that you can get food from the Guandong family?”

Cao Rui frowned when he saw Xiahou Dun's appearance. After all, Xiahou Dun was Emperor Wu's most capable right-hand man during his lifetime. How could he have such a son?

Xia Houmao feels that this is a choice.

“I can…can’t…Chen, I can give it a try, but I don’t know if I can…”

“Is it possible or not?”

Cao Rui couldn't bear it anymore and asked impatiently.

Xia Houmao gritted his teeth and said, "I did trade grain with them before, and we also agreed to buy a batch of grain from them this year."

His transactions with the Guandong family, as long as he is careful, he will definitely be able to find out.

So it’s impossible to hide it, so it’s better to admit it directly.

In fact, the relationship between Xia Houmao and the Guandong family is much closer than Cao Rui imagined. After all, things like woolen sweaters are not in high demand in the Guandong family.

There is no cotton these days, and it happens to be the Little Ice Age. Even the Huaihe River is covered with snow and ice, not to mention the areas north of the Huaihe River?

So as long as Xiahou Mao can get woolen sweaters, the Guandong family can bring him food at any time.

“Are they willing to sell grain to you?”

Cao Rui stood up and asked again.

"yes."

Xia Houmao felt that his underwear had become damp. He knew that he had made the right bet this time.

“Okay! Let me ask you again, if I ask you to go to Governor Xu Qing’s Second Prefecture, will you be willing?”

The emperor suddenly asked a question that shocked Xiahou Mao.

He raised his head in disbelief.

The governor of Xu Qingzhou?

Isn’t that more powerful than the governor of Guanzhong?

 Cao Rui did not go to see Xiahou Mao, but walked back and forth, minding his own business and said, "The Xiahou family and the Cao family are related by marriage. The great Wei Dynasty can establish a country, and your Xiahou family has made great contributions."

“It is not an exaggeration to say that the two families are related by blood. As long as the Wei Dynasty is alive, your Xiahou family will still be the most important pillar of the country.”

"Now is the time when the country needs the help of the Xiahou family." Cao Rui stopped and looked at Xiahou Mao, "You have friendship with the Guandong family, so I want to send you to governor Xu Qing and the second state. Do you understand what I mean? ?”

Xia Houmao was so moved that he lay down on the ground and kowtowed again, "Your Majesty is so generous, how dare I not die in service? I will definitely persuade the Guandong family to put the overall situation first, and do nothing that will cause pain to those who are close to you and pleasure to those who are enemies." "

Cao Rui nodded with satisfaction.

If Xiahou Mao really appeases the aristocratic families in Xu Qing and Erzhou, then he would be worthy of sparing his life.

Thinking of this, Cao Rui took a file from the case and handed it to Xia Houmao, "This is the case file to examine your disrespect. Now I will hand it over to you."

"As for Princess Qinghe's disrespectful report against you, I will ask the chamberlain to give her instructions so that she will not easily believe the words of villains in the future."

“I thank your Majesty!”

Xiahou Mao shouted in tears.

The emperor's approach was obviously to knock Princess Qinghe into trouble and make her calm down.

At the same time, it also shows that Princess Qinghe can no longer control herself.

Thinking of this, Xia Houmao, who had tears on his face, suddenly had a thought. Doesn't that mean that if he keeps a concubine again, Princess Qinghe can only watch?

No one expected that Xiahou Mao, who was escorted back to Luoyang from Guanzhong, not only did not die in the end, but was moved from General Anxi to General Zhendong, and was appointed governor of Xu Qingzhou.

The emperor's decision was beyond everyone's expectations.

When Xiahou Mao returned to the house, he immediately ordered his two younger brothers to be tied up. He also invited Princess Qinghe, and in front of her, Xiahou Zizang and Xiahou Zijiang were beaten until their skin was torn apart and their flesh was dripping with blood. Next breath.

Then it was announced that the two of them would be banned for a year. If anyone dared to take a step outside the door of the house, his legs would be broken.

Although Xia Houmao had no military strategy, he could manage his family's industry to a prosperous future, so how could he be useless?

Now seeing all the property accumulated over the years being taken away, he really wanted to strangle this vicious woman who wanted to trap her husband to death.

Looking at Princess Qinghe's extremely pale face and frightened eyes, Xia Houmao felt happy in his heart.

“If anyone breaks etiquette in the future, don’t blame me for being cruel!”

After Xia Houmao said a harsh word, he immediately asked people to pack his luggage. The time was very tight and he had to set off within three days.

 After Cao Rui appointed Xiahou Mao as the governor of Xu and Qingzhou, he also made the Yu family, who had just returned to Luoyang from Yecheng, a noble concubine, the first person under the queen.

At the same time, an edict was issued to commend Zhu Ling and Wang Ling, praising them for their bravery and strategy in the battle of Shiting, and for planning to encircle Wu Lu. If Wu Lu had not sent reinforcements, Wu Lu's general Quan Cong would have returned without his life.

As for the mutual impeachment between Jia Kui and Cao Xiu, Cao Rui judged that neither of them was at fault.

Even sent Yang Ji, the commander of the Cavalry School, to Yangzhou to count Cao Xiu's previous achievements, comfort him, and reward him with more solemn honors.

When Jia Kui heard about this, he couldn't help but feel angry: Although the emperor said that neither of them was at fault, he later sent someone to reward Cao Xiu. Doesn't this mean that he was at fault?

In this way, even if he did not receive any punishment, he was actually responsible for the defeat of Shiting.

Jia Kui already had a strong temper, and Yuzhou was on the border of Yangzhou. Over the years, Cao Xiu often used his power to provoke him.

Now that something like this happened again, Jia Kui couldn't swallow it and fell ill all of a sudden.

He lay on the couch and said to his son Jia Chong, "If this had happened during the Jian'an period, Emperor Wu would only punish Cao Xiu."

“If it had happened in the early days of Huang Chu, Emperor Wen would have only admitted that it was his own mistake.”

“When His Majesty came to power, Cao Xiu was rewarded. Alas, after three generations, the decline of the Cao family has already been seen!”

Jia Chong was speechless when he heard what his father said.

(End of this chapter)

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