Jinting Han people

Chapter 478 The Real Sima Clan
Under the azure winter sky, the moonlight shone like a jade hook.

Liu Xian closed his eyes slightly, trying to recall what Sima Yue looked like many years ago, but quickly failed. At that time, he and Sima Yue were just casual acquaintances, having only met a few times at literary gatherings. He only vaguely remembered that the other was a steady and kind young man with an extremely calm tone; no one disliked him.

But he never imagined that such a shy person, whose face he couldn't even remember, would be the arrogant and unrestrained person in front of him. He was like a pile of stones under a snow-capped mountain, seemingly inconspicuous in winter, but when the sun rises and the snow melts, people are surprised to find that he is an enormous and undeniable force.

Liu Xian held the wine glass in his hand, took a few breaths to relax, looked at Sima Yue again, and said, "You were able to hide for so long? It's unbelievable."

“Nothing is unimaginable; it’s all about human effort.” Sima Yue sighed. “I’ve endured for too long. Sometimes I wonder what I’m doing and whether I’ll ever see this day. But our Sima family has endured all this way. Only those who are most patient can win the final victory.”

Liu Xian had no time to listen to Sima Yue's reflections. For him, one question had been answered, but a new one had arisen. He couldn't help but ask:
"But since you have made such a great contribution in pacifying the King of Chu, you should be credited with the greatest achievement. Why didn't the Empress Dowager publicize it for you?"

"Of course I declined. If I hadn't, I would have become the target of everyone's criticism." Sima Yue looked at the wine in his cup and reminisced about the past. "However, the Empress was very generous. Afterwards, she found a reason to grant me the title of Prince of Donghai, making me the first prince among us remote collateral branches to be granted a title on my own."

Sima Yue's title of prince was indeed an exception. He was originally the heir apparent of the Gaomi Kingdom. Logically, he should have waited until the death of the old Gaomi king before succeeding to the throne. However, he was the first member of the royal family among his generation to be granted a princely title on his own merit, which caused quite a stir at the time. Little did anyone know that the truth behind it was like this.

"But you betrayed the Demon Queen. Couldn't the Demon Queen satisfy you?"

"Since you're already calling her a demon queen, what's the point of betrayal?" Sima Yue patted his sleeves and said with amusement, "Why don't you tell the Grand Commandant that after killing the King of Chu, my true identity is actually a member of the Crown Prince's faction?"

"You're a member of the Crown Prince faction?" Upon hearing this, Liu Xian's first reaction was actually to laugh. As one of the core members of the Crown Prince faction, how could he not know about Sima Yue? Sima Yu had never mentioned him to him during his lifetime.

Wait a minute, Liu Xian suddenly remembered something, and it was as if he had swallowed a fly, causing his smile to come to an abrupt halt. He asked Sima Yue incredulously again, "You are the Crown Prince's hidden pawn?!"

When Sima Yu was plotting the assassination, he told Liu Xian that he had a deadly hidden move. If used, it would completely shatter the balance with the Empress Dowager, forcing Jia Nanfeng to step down even if it meant armed conflict. However, until Sima Yu was deposed, Liu Xian never knew where this hidden move was. But after hearing Sima Yue's account, he immediately understood the whole story. If Sima Yue was the Crown Prince's hidden move, then everything made sense!

The Prince of Donghai readily admitted it, saying, "My friendship with the Crown Prince predates that of the Grand Commandant. When Emperor Wu was still alive, my father and I were already in the Crown Prince's faction. When the current emperor ascended the throne, after the downfall of the Three Yangs, my father became the new Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince. Therefore, the Crown Prince asked me to be his spy, to infiltrate the Empress Dowager's inner circle, and to wait for the opportunity to deliver the final blow."

Liu Xian was speechless. He leaned back for a while before speaking again. This time, he didn't ask Sima Yue why he betrayed him, but instead asked, "Why does the Crown Prince trust you so much? I don't understand."

"Because I am a close friend of Wang Yifu (Wang Yan), it was I who acted as matchmaker, arranging for Wang Yifu to marry his daughter to the Crown Prince. It was also I who facilitated Wang Chuzhong's entry into the Eastern Palace. Although I am not in the Eastern Palace, I have contributed a great deal to it, and the Crown Prince cannot help but rely on me."

Sima Yue took another sip of wine and began to comment on Sima Yu. He said, "His Highness the Crown Prince is also a smart man. He knows how to keep a low profile and how to protect himself. It's a pity that he has reached this position, which means he is destined to have no good end."

"The Empress Dowager, the King of Zhao, the King of Qi, the King of Huainan—so many people are eyeing him! Alas, if I help him, won't they kill me?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Xian could roughly understand how Sima Yue had been biding his time. A familiar figure gradually emerged: Wang Yan. Wang Yan was the one who openly shone in the political arena, while Sima Yue was the one secretly orchestrating the schemes. The two, one in the open and one in the shadows, complemented each other perfectly.

"But I still don't understand why Wang Yifu trusts you so much?" Liu Xian said, "Wang Yifu is the Crown Prince's father-in-law, what does that have to do with you?"

“He and I are sworn brothers.” Sima Yue gave a concise answer: “I promised him that after the matter was accomplished, our two families would share the world.”

Dividing the world together? Liu Xian was shocked again: What a grand promise! Since the Han Dynasty, where has there been such a precedent? No wonder Wang Yan was tempted, and even refused to be the Crown Prince's father-in-law.

"So, you and Wang Yan were manipulating the Imperial Guards behind the scenes, repeatedly trying to gain favor among the princes?"

"Of course, those days were so enjoyable!" Sima Yue gestured in the air, "First, he sided with the wicked queen to frame the crown prince, then he sided with the King of Zhao to besiege the wicked queen. On one hand, he supported the King of Huainan to raise an army, and on the other hand, he instigated the King of Zhao to support him. He was promoted every time he succeeded."

"The only regrettable thing is that we planned to strike at Sun Xiu from within when he lost power. Unexpectedly, Sun Xiu led his troops to Yanshi to their deaths, which resulted in us losing some merit. After the King of Zhao was killed, our position became less secure."

“Oh, we did go a bit too far during that period. Later, when the King of Qi took power, he saw through some of our tricks and suppressed Wang Yifu. This forced me to resort to many unusable methods.”

What followed was an event that Liu Xian personally experienced. During Sima Jiong's rule, the repeated public opinion storms in Luoyang, as well as the rebellion of the Prince of Donglai that he had investigated, now seemed to be orchestrated by Sima Yue.

He first contacted the Prince of Hejian, repeatedly pressured the Prince of Qi, helped Li Han escape, forged a secret edict, and forced Sima Yi and Sima Jiong to fight each other. After Sima Yi became regent, he instigated the Prince of Chengdu to kill the Prince of Changsha. Sima Yue was like a ball, taking sides with whoever was weaker, and then instigating endless infighting until he completely squandered the court's prestige.

Most importantly, he also stirred up trouble between himself and Sima Yi.

"So, in the Battle of Mangshan, you deliberately created a weakness, allowing Lu Ji to attack the Emperor's main force?" "Yes." Sima Yue knew what he wanted to ask and explained bluntly, "Later at Hulao Pass, the spy you discovered was actually sent by me. It was to arouse your suspicion, and also the General of the Cavalry's suspicion. Then I made two preparations. First, I revealed your plan to Lu Ji. If he could kill you, that would be best. If not, I would apologize to the General of the Cavalry, saying that I wanted to eliminate traitors for the country, and ask the General of the Cavalry to help me."

"The General of the Cavalry is of the Sima clan, but you are not. Even if I act first and report later, the General of the Cavalry can only side with me, not with you. As long as the two of you are suspicious of each other, I can do as I please."

Upon hearing this, Liu Xian was unsure how to feel. He sneered, "So, it seems that Sikong is truly omnipotent and omniscient!"

"You flatter me! You flatter me!" This was Sima Yue's proudest moment. He pinched two fingers together and gestured to Liu Xian, "Grand Commandant, you've praised me too highly. In fact, they would have fought even without me. My role was just that little."

"Everyone in the world has ambition; no one is an exception. If we bystanders quietly encourage them, they will do what they originally wanted to do. If the world didn't want to fight for power, what use would I be?"

"To put it nicely, I was the one who fueled the fire; to put it bluntly, would everyone have stopped killing without me? Of course not! Right? I was just guiding the situation to my advantage as much as possible."

Upon hearing this conclusion, Liu Xian agreed with Sima Yue's view. In this world, it's actually very easy for anyone to do evil if they want to. Sima Yue has been plotting for so many years, and the number of royal family members he has killed sounds terrifying. But upon closer reflection, isn't Zhang Fang's behavior in Luoyang over the past month or so far far more destructive than Sima Yue's?
But Liu Xian still felt a genuine sense of horror and disgust towards the person in front of him, even more so than towards Sun Xiu and Jia Mi.

Sima Yue's schemes sound complicated, but in reality, the most important thing to maintain a low profile among the crowd is to suppress oneself and pretend to be someone else for decades.

This differs from the forbearance of most politicians, such as Emperor Gaozu of Han (Liu Bang), who suppressed his hatred for his enemy Yong Chi and enfeoffed him as a marquis to appease the people. This is a compromise and restraint that politicians must make between their own desires and reality in order to establish a new country and order.

Sima Yue's patience, however, was entirely different. He was like a fully drawn bow; the reason he suppressed and changed his nature was so that he could release it more freely and unrestrainedly.

The difference between these two is sometimes difficult to discern. There's a saying, "One who stays near vermilion gets stained red, and one who stays near ink gets stained black," meaning that people's hearts are easily changed. If someone pretends for too long, they might actually change their true nature. If someone compromises with reality for too long, they might not be able to bear the pain and go insane. But whether it's change or madness, a person's emotions are always real.

Although politicians often talk about so-called "sophistication" in an attempt to establish authority and project an image of unfathomable superiority, the truth becomes clear over time: they simply wear a stern face and speak as little as possible. Yet, their every gesture easily reveals their likes and dislikes.

The most typical example is none other than the First Emperor. He seemed to be working diligently to unify the country, but once he conquered Handan, the capital of Zhao, the first thing he did was to compile a list of his childhood enemies from Zhao.

In comparison, Sima Yue's pretense and patience were nothing short of superhuman. He endured for nearly twenty years, playing the role of a mere figurehead, completely concealing his burning ambition.

But this was precisely Sima Yi's forte. Before he turned seventy, who didn't believe Sima Yi was a true loyal minister of Wei? Jiang Ji, Chen Tai, and others who launched the Incident at Gaoping Tombs with him—hadn't they all served him for decades? They all believed Sima Yi was genuinely there to restore order. Little did they know they had never truly known their opponent.

Later generations often use the oath at the Luo River to ridicule Sima Yi's treachery, which is certainly important, but not that important. What's most important is that Sima Yi shattered people's understanding of patience—it turns out that someone can truly endure for seventy years, concealing their true nature. From then on, the entire logic of interpersonal relationships changed.

After encountering so many people and events, Liu Xian had yet to meet anyone with the patience and concealment that Emperor Xuan of Han was known for. Even a genius like Sun Xiu, who was capable of evil, could not hide his chaotic nature. This made Liu Xian wonder if such patience truly existed.

But now, Liu Xian has finally met such a person. Although Sima Yue is not even half as good as Sima Yi in terms of patience and personal ability, the Prince of Donghai has indeed received the true teachings. He is indeed more qualified than the other members of the Jin imperial family to call himself a true member of the Sima clan.

Fortunately, Liu Xian thought to himself, it's not too late to know now.

Almost half an hour had passed since the coup, and footsteps could be heard outside the courtyard. A man hurried past the armored soldiers and walked to Sima Yue's side, whispering something in his ear. Liu Xian recognized the man as Ji Han, a cousin of Ji Shao.

Sima Yue nodded, then glanced at Liu Xian and said in a moderate voice, "Has everyone been notified? Good, I'll be there in a bit. As long as this is done, everything will be fine."

Ji Han nodded and quickly walked away. Then Sima Yue turned back and smiled, "Grand Commandant, it seems that Heaven is still looking out for me. So far, everything has gone smoothly."

The King of Donghai had hoped to see some loss of composure on Liu Xian's face, but he was quickly disappointed. At first, Liu Xian's expression was somewhat unusual, but as they talked more, the fluctuations in Liu Xian's expression became less and less, making it impossible to guess what he was thinking.

Sima Yue stared at Liu Xian for a while, then finally gave up observing him, shook his head and laughed, "I really can't see through the Grand Commandant. Of all the people in the world, the Grand Commandant is the only one I can't see through."

"The reason I'm willing to talk so much with the Grand Commandant is to see what he's thinking. Now that you've fought your way out of the city, why do you want to come back? In this situation, if I were in your shoes, I would never come back."

“But it doesn’t matter.” Sima Yue finished his last drink and smiled at Liu Xian. “Originally, I wanted to use the life of the General of the Cavalry as a final stepping stone, but now that the Grand Commandant has joined us, it’s better, not worse.”

"Next, I will use the Grand Commandant's name, under the pretext of mourning for the General of Chariots and Cavalry, to summon all the officers and soldiers in the city here and wipe them out in one fell swoop. Grand Commandant, do not panic, tonight on the road to the Yellow Springs, many will come to keep you company."

(End of this chapter)