Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 169 Rewards based on merit
In his study, Shi Shouxin took out a large wooden box from the cabinet.

It was covered in dust and hadn't been touched in a long time.

He opened the wooden box, inside was a uniquely styled xylophone. It was more suitable to play on a table, but it could also be played while cuddling. It was different from the guqin that was popular at the time, being smaller and easier to carry.

"Is this a zither made by Ji Kang? Is it genuine or a replica?"

Feng Niang, who was standing nearby, exclaimed in surprise. She leaned over and looked at it from left to right before sighing, "It's not a replica! It's really made by Ji Kang!"

"More than that, he delivered it himself. He came, put down the instrument, and left without saying a word."

Shi Shouxin couldn't help but make a sarcastic remark.

Before he set off for Shu, Ji Kang secretly came here one day, left the wooden box at the door, and then got into a carriage and ran away, as if he was afraid that Shi Shouxin would see him.

However, besides the zither, there was also an apology letter inside the wooden box.

Ji Kang, unaware of the truth, helped Lü An falsely accuse Shi Shouxin. The latter, disregarding past grievances, rescued him. Ji Kang was no fool; after making inquiries from various sources, he naturally knew how Shi Shouxin had escaped.

Afterwards, I was naturally filled with shame.

So this shy scholar, like a thief, "threw" his guqin, which he often played, to the side of the road, right in front of Shi Shouxin's house, and ran away.

"Ji Kang is such a strange person. Can't he just speak properly?"

Fengniang made a comment, but didn't say anything more.

"You're all grown up now, how about you marry him?"

Shi Shouxin looked at Fengniang, then pointed at Xigou and asked.

Upon hearing this, Xigou immediately knelt down and refused, saying, "My lord, how can I take your woman? Fengniang will be yours when she grows up. How can I lay a finger on her? This is an affront to the proper order of things!"

"Look how cautious he is, and how loyal he is to the head of the family. He will definitely not treat you unfairly."

Shi Shouxin looked at Fengniang and smiled.

"Since you say so, my lord, then I have nothing more to say. Let's arrange it this way, alas!"

Fengniang reluctantly agreed, surprisingly without refusing.

Ever since the incident where she was almost buried alive, she developed a deep-seated fear of so-called privileged children.

"Ah Lang, isn't this... a little bit bad?"

The dog looked troubled; he seemed quite unwilling.

"Aren't you happy? When Fengniang grows up, her appearance will be extraordinary."

Shi Shouxin asked with a puzzled look.

"Such a beauty, I can't keep her in the future. Even if I marry her, I'll just be supporting someone else's wife."

It would have been better not to do it in the first place.

The greyhound sighed, knowing very well its own limitations.

Shi Shouxin was stunned. After thinking carefully about what Xigou said, he realized that it was indeed true.

Fengniang, that little brat, hasn't fully developed her figure yet, so she's bound to be hated by everyone. But once she blossoms into a great beauty, how could someone like Xigou possibly stay?

Even if Shi Shouxin was of noble character and did not attempt to rob, wouldn't others have had ulterior motives?

Then it will be another undeserved disaster. This is the meaning of the saying "A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime."

"You're right, I didn't think it through."

Shi Shouxin nodded, not feeling offended at all. Feng Niang, standing to the side, remained silent, but her expression was rather unpleasant.

Just then, someone knocked on the door outside the courtyard. The sound was rhythmic and unhurried, showing the cautiousness of the person knocking.

Shi Shouxin walked out of his study, opened the courtyard gate, and saw a young Imperial Guard officer standing outside, with a carriage behind him.

"Sima Shi, the Prince of Jin requests your presence."

The man spoke respectfully and gestured for Shi Shouxin to proceed.

"I am no longer a Sima, I am now a commoner. What brings the Prince of Jin to me?"

Shi Shouxin asked with a smile.

The imperial guard officer said, "Sima Shi is joking. You are now the Sima in the residence of the second son of the Prince of Jin. Today's visit to the Prince of Jin's residence is to bestow upon you an official title."

Huh? When did I become Sima You's man?
Shi Shouxin looked puzzled but said nothing. He simply bowed to the officer and then got into the carriage.

"Are you one of the King of Qi's men?"

After getting on the bus, Shi Shouxin looked at the man and asked him a question.

"King of Qi... probably, but it will be a few months before he is called King of Qi."

"This humble servant is currently the captain of the guards at the residence of the second son of the Prince of Jin, and is currently on official business in the Imperial Guard."

This officer was clearly a confidant of Sima You, but he was very cautious in his speech.

When summoning someone to collect the reward, Sima You always sent his trusted confidants to fetch him. It's clear that Sima You cared deeply about Shi Shouxin, personally handling everything for him.

Along the way, Shi Shouxin kept inquiring about the reward, but the officer kept changing the subject and remained tight-lipped.

Upon arriving at the familiar Prince Jin's residence, formerly the Grand General's mansion, Shi Shouxin was led to the study. As for the Imperial Guard officer, he was simply escorted to the gate of Prince Jin's residence and then left.

Upon entering the study, Shi Shouxin immediately saw Sima Zhao busy plotting his usurpation of the throne. It must be said, Sima Zhao was indeed quite diligent in his pursuit of his own ambitions.

Outsiders might say that Sima Zhao was of average appearance and not particularly intelligent, or that the Sima family's usurpation of the throne was despicable.

However, it is absolutely wrong to say that Sima Zhao was a lazy ruler. In Shi Shouxin's eyes, this Prince of Jin was very diligent. Every time they met, he saw Sima Zhao handling official business.

"Please sit down, no need for formalities."

Sima Zhao pointed to the soft cushion in front of him and said.

After taking his seat, Shi Shouxin bowed and asked, "I wonder what I, a humble commoner, can do to help since the Prince of Jin has invited me today?"

He kept referring to himself as a commoner, which surprised Sima Zhao at first. Then he waved his hand and said, "I have summoned you to the Prince of Jin's residence today to bestow an official title upon you."

really!

Shi Shouxin's heart tightened; the Imperial Guard officer had indeed not lied.

"The Governor of Qingzhou, granted the authority to act on behalf of the emperor, and appointed General Who Conquers the Barbarians, to garrison Linzi. What do you think?"

Sima Zhao inquired.

This was a grand gesture that Shi Shouxin hadn't anticipated. He had thought that being a "single-chariot prefect" was already quite impressive, but he never expected that it would also include a legitimate general title and the authority to act on behalf of the emperor!
The term "single-chariot governor" refers to a governor who only has the title of governor but not the title of general.

Without the title of general, but only the title of governor, it's easy to guess what will happen when he arrives in the local area; he will definitely be a crippled ruler.

Of course, this arrangement is not too outrageous. After all, Shi Shouxin almost single-handedly stopped Zhong Hui's rebellion in Shu.

He deserves this reward for his merits. It's also a case of Sima Zhao spending a fortune to buy his bones, a show for outsiders.

In short, all that's missing now is a military governor of Qing and Xu provinces!

Shi Shouxin went to Qingzhou, but he still had to obey the orders of the Qingxu Governor. However, such a thing was practically impossible unless there was a war.

However, the Sima family must have had conditions for offering such a large sum of money.

Shi Shouxin said with trepidation, "The Prince of Jin has shown me great kindness, and I have no way to repay it."

"I haven't finished speaking yet."

Sima Zhao waved his hand and continued:
"My second son, Tao Fu, will soon become the Prince of Qi. In addition to the official position he holds, you will also serve as the Sima (military officer) of the Prince of Qi's residence. I will appoint another Chief Secretary of the Prince of Qi's residence, and you will go together to Qingzhou to prepare for the Prince of Qi's future appointment."

Building a palace, training an army, settling tenants, and supervising production on the estate were all necessary tasks.

"I have only one request: when Tao Fu goes to Qingzhou to take up his post, he must be comfortable and need not worry about managing the fiefdom. Understand?"

Sima Zhao asked with a serious expression.

Governors and the like are officials of the imperial court.

The Sima of the Prince of Qi's Mansion was Sima You's private official position.

In this era, it is possible for one person to hold both positions simultaneously.

The era of hegemonic power established by Cao Cao involved sending officials from his own prefecture to govern local areas. This model continued until the Sui and Tang dynasties.

For example, a Minister of Personnel appointed by the imperial court could also be the Chief Clerk of a powerful minister's household; the two roles are not contradictory. One serves the puppet emperor, and the other serves the powerful minister; the two complement each other perfectly.

Upon hearing what Sima Zhao said, Shi Shouxin immediately understood. No wonder Sima Zhao gave him such generous treatment; it turned out he wanted him to pave the way for his son and do the hard labor!

The establishment of a fiefdom would certainly require a lot of resources and manpower, all of which Shi Shouxin would need to plunder and manage locally! Even if the imperial court were to provide funds, how much could it possibly give? Any shortfall would have to be found by Shi Shouxin himself!

Anyway, this job is definitely going to be a thankless task.

But the die was cast, and now that things had come to this point, Sima Zhao had offered a carrot first. Even if Shi Shouxin was now forced to do the work of a donkey, he had no choice but to accept it.

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will do my best."

Shi Shouxin bowed to Sima Zhao and said.

Seeing that Shi Shouxin was very cooperative, Sima Zhao smiled and waved his hand gently, saying, "You don't need to be nervous. Your troops will go to your post together. The King of Qi has a private army of 12,000 men. I will assign 5,000 of them to your trusted men. Do a good job for Tao Fu."

Of the 12,000 troops, 5,000 were from Shi Shouxin's hereditary military unit, a considerable sum indeed.

However, upon closer reflection, it's not really a big deal.

In Sima Zhao's view, no general is truly without selfish motives. No matter who is put in charge, absolute loyalty is impossible.

After all, that's how the Sima family rose to power.

Therefore, it's not a big deal that Sima You has a slightly larger force. Shi Shouxin's five thousand men can't cause much trouble, especially since they're only a nominal force of five thousand, not at full strength!
Locally, no matter what administrative task needs to be accomplished, it cannot be done without a capable army; even repairing a river embankment requires the army to be mobilized for corvée labor.

When you're letting a horse run, you also have to let it eat grass! Otherwise, things will definitely not get done well.

"On behalf of the soldiers, I thank Prince Jin!"

Shi Shouxin bowed again, and the weight that had been hanging over his heart finally lifted.

"One more thing."

Sima Zhao nodded and continued:
"I heard that your wife is in Taishan County. I know why she is there and not in Luoyang. It is because of An Shi. The responsibility does not lie with you."

When you go to take up your post, and pass through Taishan County, please bring your wife to Linzi and settle her down.

By the way, Princess Jin also needs to go to Taishan County to take care of some business. Could you escort her to Fenggao County in Taishan County while you're there?

As for the soldiers and officers receiving their rewards, they can wait for news in Qingzhou. There's no need to take the rewards with them on the road, wasting resources and manpower.

Upon hearing this, Shi Shouxin immediately understood that the Princess Consort of Jin intended to confront Yang Huiyu about Sima You's return to the clan. However, he was completely powerless to offer any advice or help in this matter.

To avoid suspicion, he would not even meet with Yang Huiyu.

Sima Zhao's words were a veiled attack, indicating that he "knew everything" about the sordid affair between Shi Shouxin and Sima Yan, but simply chose not to pursue it.

"Please rest assured, Prince Jin, I will definitely protect Princess Jin."

Shi Shouxin bowed and greeted them.

Sima Zhao shook his head: "The Princess Consort of Jin has dedicated personnel to protect her. You and your troops are just to clear the way ahead. There's no need for you to do anything more. The so-called protection is just to guard against large groups of mountain bandits robbing the road."

Sima Zhao was aware of this level of precaution. The Prince of Jin's mansion had its own private army, consisting entirely of household slaves from top to bottom, whom Wang Yuanji could easily command.

If Shi Shouxin were to send troops to protect her, who knows what his men might do to Wang Yuanji?

Shi Shouxin was obedient and sensible, but the local tyrants from Hanzhong under his command didn't care whose benefactors they were! Who knew if one of them would act recklessly!

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will definitely restrain my troops and ensure that the Princess will not be disturbed."

Shi Shouxin was so frightened that he quickly bowed and apologized, secretly lamenting his misfortune.

Sima Zhao was overthinking things. He was trying to avoid a woman like Wang Yuanji, so how could he possibly "disturb" her?

He thanked Sima Zhao profusely before leaving the study. Once outside, he discovered his back was completely soaked with cold sweat.

As I walked out of the Prince of Jin's residence, I saw that imperial guard officer again; he seemed to have been waiting for a long time.

"Sir Shi, this way please, I'll take you home."

Seeing his polite demeanor, Shi Shouxin smiled and asked, "Are you also going to Qingzhou?"

"Sima Shi has keen insight; I, your humble servant, also wish to accompany you to your post."

(End of this chapter)