Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Outside the south gate of Deyang City, all those who came to greet the emperor watched his departing figure.

Apart from exchanging a few words with Huang Quan, the emperor did not speak to anyone after dismounting. Instead, he walked directly into the city with Huang Quan without even giving the order for everyone to rise.

As is widely known, the emperor came to power because of the death of Man Chong.

The military is the most solemn place, where military law is unforgiving and cannot be ignored. The loss of the commander-in-chief during a major battle has put everyone on edge, waiting for the emperor to arrive to restore order and formulate strategies. At this moment, the emperor's solemn demeanor only heightened everyone's tension.

Wang Su observed all of this, falling a few steps behind, and only after seeing the emperor and Huang Quan enter the city gate did he address the kneeling generals who were welcoming them:

"Generals, please rise. His Majesty has been concerned about the situation here every day since we traveled from Jiange to Deyang. He did not mean to neglect you."

“This…” Cao Tai, who was at the front, hesitated for a moment: “Lord Wang, how can you rise without His Majesty’s order?”

Wang Su calmly replied, “As a cabinet minister, any criticism should be directed at me, not at the generals. Quickly follow His Majesty into the city to pay our respects to Lord Man. What kind of decorum is it for us all to kneel outside the city!”

"Thank you, Attendant-in-Ordinary Wang." Cao Tai responded, slowly rising and adjusting the belt of his armor.

The other generals also stood up.

Apart from the Right Guard General Xiahou Xian's troops and the East Pacification General Cao Zhao's troops, which were stationed at the front line where they were confronting the Shu army, all the other generals were here.

Among them were General Guo Huai, who had come from the north via the Micang Road, General Bei Yan, who had been sent to conquer Shu, General Jiang Wei, who had originally served under Man Chong and whose cavalry was not suitable for a direct confrontation, and General Cao Tai, who had set out after the fall of Jiameng Pass, General Hu Zun, General Sun Li, General Wang Chang, and General Cao Ping, who had just arrived.

Looking back several decades, the current Wei forces in Deyang City, while not the most luxurious, are still considered top-notch.

The position of head coach is currently vacant.

The emperor himself came and summoned Lu Xun, thus making up for the last shortcoming in the successful conquest of Shu.

After capturing Deyang, Man Chong drove all the city's inhabitants out of the city, demolished all the houses inside, reinforced the city walls, and built temporary camps, turning this small town in Dongguanghan County on the banks of the Fu River into a military city.

The old Deyang County government was located in the very center of the city, which was later converted into the residence of Man Chong. Man Chong's coffin is currently placed here.

With the commander-in-chief gone, no one, including Huang Quan, dared to act without an imperial decree.

Before Man Chong's memorial tablet, Cao Rui stood with his hands clasped, remaining silent for a quarter of an hour, before turning to look at Huang Quan:

"Huang Qing."

"Your subject is here." Huang Quan was taken aback, but nodded in response.

Cao Rui said in a calm and gentle voice, "I have been on the throne for more than ten years, and many ministers and generals have passed away. Although the court has titles and rewards to classify people, I have another set of standards in my heart."

"The most outstanding ministers in my heart are people like Lord Dong and General Man."

"Dong Gongming is wise in strategy, assists the emperor, and understands people's hearts. I regard him as my teacher." "General Man is loyal, hardworking, and virtuous. I don't need to say more about my opinion of him. The fact that I entrusted 100,000 troops to General Man is proof of this."

"Only these two are first-rate as subjects; all others are incomparable."

Cao Rui looked at Huang Quan's slightly lowered gaze, chuckled, and then revealed a hint of sadness: "There are many loyal and capable ministers in the court. Does Minister Huang know why I have promoted General Man so highly?"

Huang Quan didn't dare to breathe loudly: "Your Majesty, I am foolish and do not know your holy intentions."

Cao Rui said, “The likes of the former Grand Marshal and the Prince of Hejian are not of the highest caliber in terms of command, but they are relatives of the Cao clan, and I must use them. Zhang He, Qian Zhao, and Xu Chu are all henchmen; as generals, their duty is to use force. As for Wei Shangye and Guanqiu Jian, I know they are extremely loyal to me, but the world is peaceful, and I do not need them to die for me. Even Lu Xun, who made great contributions and was enfeoffed as a king, cannot be counted. With or without them, the pacification of the world by Wei will only be a matter of time, not much difference.”

"General Man's most commendable quality is his courage to take on responsibilities! It's not the kind of courage that ordinary people think of, but rather the kind that, whenever the monarch needs him, will do it no matter how difficult it is, no matter how others criticize him, no matter how tired he is, no matter how his colleagues ridicule him! He is a man of great courage, loyalty, and supreme courage!"

Upon hearing this, Huang Quan immediately knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "I know my abilities are dull, and in order not to cause any mishap to Your Majesty's great cause of conquering Shu, I made this excuse. Please punish me, Your Majesty!"

“Punishment? What punishment?” Cao Rui shook his head: “Before something is done, who can guarantee that it will be done well? Before the Battle of Guandu, was Emperor Wu sure that he would defeat Yuan Shao? When Wu and Shu fought for Yiling, Lu Xun had no experience as a commander, so how could he be sure that he would succeed?”

"In truth, with such a superior army, I am pleased to see Minister Huang take on this important task and oversee the conquest of Shu. If I only wanted you to be in charge of logistics, why would I grant you the authority to act on behalf of the emperor? Why would I not send the Minister of the Imperial Guard to the eastern route and send you to the northern route?"

"If you could shoulder this heavy responsibility and annihilate Shu in one battle, I would love to see another king emerge in Wei, and another capable minister who excels in both civil and military affairs... But since you are unwilling to do so, there is nothing I can say..."

"Your Majesty!" Huang Quan knelt on the ground, bursting into tears, and kowtowed repeatedly: "It is my fault, it is my fault, it is my fault!"

Cao Rui took a deep breath, bent down to help Huang Quan up, and then sighed softly, "Before General Man's coffin, my emotions were in turmoil, and I lost my composure a little. In terms of both sentiment and reason, Minister Huang has done nothing wrong; on the contrary, it was a prudent and mature act. Minister Huang has done nothing wrong!"

"Your Majesty!" Huang Quan took a half step back and bowed deeply: "It is I who have disappointed Your Majesty."

"Let's not talk about this anymore," Cao Rui shook his head: "Our relationship as ruler and subject remains the same as yesterday, nothing has changed."

"Yes." Huang Quan pursed his lips and bowed his head in response.

Cao Rui turned around and looked back. Four cabinet ministers and a group of generals were standing outside the mourning hall, waiting for fear of disturbing the conversation between the emperor and Minister Huang.

"Come in, all of you! Join me in paying homage to Lord Man!"

"As you command." The crowd filed in, and under the direction of Huang Quan, whose eyes were red-rimmed, they bowed to Man Chong in front of the emperor.

After the formalities were completed, Cao Rui looked around and said in a deep voice, "Minister Huang's words were excellent! Lord Man's death in service to the king is a model for the world. I am deeply grateful, and today, in front of all the generals, I announce the posthumous honors bestowed upon Lord Man!"

"His posthumous title was Wenzhong, and he was posthumously granted the rank of Minister of the Three Kingdoms, and a fief of 3,800 households, in addition to his previous fiefs totaling 10,000 households!"

"Immediately order Man Wei, the eldest son of Man Gong, to come to Deyang to escort the coffin back to Luoyang!" (End of Chapter)