Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 6 Prologue 6 The Prince of Gaogui Township, the Son of Heaven

Luoyang Palace faces south and is magnificent in scale; in Shi Gandang's view, it seems to stretch as far as the eye can see.

After announcing their purpose, a young eunuch led Shi Chong and Shi Gandang, who were waiting at the Yunlong Gate, into the Luoyang Palace. They wound their way through the Taiji Hall, passed through the West Gate, and arrived at the armory on the west side of the palace.

Looking out, on the drill ground in front of the armory, hundreds of men of varying builds were practicing. Bare-chested, holding weapons, they stood in formation, looking imposing and powerful.

It exudes a strong masculine vibe!

Beside him stood a young man, who looked to be no more than twenty years old, wearing a black robe with red dragon patterns. He was watching the soldiers performing drills with great interest.

He was Emperor Cao Mao.

A general in armor was serving him respectfully.

This man was none other than Li Zhao, a trusted confidant of Cao Mao and the Minister of the Palace Attendants, who was in charge of commanding the "Emperor's retinue".

Of course, although they are called "Emperor's Retinue," in reality, there are only a few hundred people in total, and they are almost all gathered here now.

Shi Gandang glanced at the confident Cao Mao a few times, becoming more and more convinced that this emperor had a lot of ideas.

They changed the time for court sessions, deployed armored soldiers here, and made no attempt to conceal their observation of drills and exercises here.

Did Cao Mao truly not know that this would leak military secrets? Probably not!

"Your Majesty, please take a look at the General's letter."

Shi Chong stepped forward and handed the silk scroll in his hand to Li Zhao, who was serving nearby. The latter then handed it to Cao Mao and respectfully stepped aside.

"It's quite interesting that my edict actually came from the General's Mansion. I have absolutely no recollection of the edict I issued."

Cao Mao couldn't help but sneer, his handsome face unmoved, but he said nothing more. He directly took out the imperial seal from his robes, stamped it on the silk scroll, and then handed it to Shi Chong.

Finally, his gaze returned to the soldiers who were conducting drills, ignoring the two people beside him as if they were invisible.

"Jiao Bo, a eunuch, has been dismissed, and you are replacing him. Is this also the General's intention?"

Upon noticing that Shi Chong hadn't left immediately, Cao Mao glanced at him and continued to press for answers.

"Your Majesty, I am truly unaware of the Grand General's affairs. Everything is decided by the Grand General and Your Majesty; I have no authority to make the decision."

Shi Chong replied respectfully.

"Hmph, then so be it. I have given my permission. The court assembly will be held in three days."

Although Cao Mao appeared indignant, he did not refuse the so-called "imperial edict" sent by Sima Zhao, and acted swiftly and decisively.

Having Cao Mao stamp the document was a way of giving him face; if he didn't want to be respectable, Sima Zhao would help him maintain that respectability!

The reality of politics is so cold and ruthless, devoid of any warmth.

Seemingly disliking Shi Chong, Cao Mao sighed and instructed Li Zhao, "Arrange for the Yellow Gate Attendant to stay near the Book Room Gate. I am tired and will return to my palace now."

The gate to the Imperial Household Department is next to the Imperial Household Bureau. It is the last gate on the east side of the palace, leading from Luoyang Palace to the main east-west road. Although it is called a "gate", it is actually a structure similar to a city gate, with many rooms for the Imperial Guards to rest.

In short, Cao Mao's arrangement was that he couldn't stand Shi Chong, felt disgusted by him, and wanted him to get as far away as possible.

Otherwise, the main gate of the book room, which allows people to go out and report messages at any time, should not have been used by Shi Chong and his people.

"Wei Chen retire."

Shi Chong bowed respectfully to Cao Mao and withdrew. Even though the emperor did not treat him well, he remained completely unmoved.

In Shi Chong's view, Cao Mao was already a dead man.

Even if one is humiliated by a dead man, there is no need to argue with him, especially since Cao Mao is still the emperor.

Shi Chong and Shi Gandang were led to the gate of the palace. They looked the palace gate up and down, which was not used often. It was indeed very simple and could not be compared with the magnificent Yunlong Gate at all.

This gate separated the imperial palace from the residences of officials to the east, and it was usually closed day and night. Officials had to take a detour to the Changhe Gate to the south to attend court.

The gate of the official residence leads directly to Sima Zhao's residence via the main road, yet Cao Mao assigned Huangmen Lang, appointed by Sima Zhao, to guard it. The deeper meaning behind this is chilling to contemplate.

Just as Shi Gandang was lost in thought, a burly, armored general emerged from the gatehouse and bowed to Shi Chong, saying:
"Shi Huangmen, I am Cheng Cui, and I am here to guard this place on the orders of the Great General."

The General has already told me about your matter. Since the Emperor has arranged for the eunuch to reside here, please stay in my humble abode for now. I will now lead my troops back to the General's residence to report back.

The main gate of this office remains closed year-round, so the Stone Yellow Gate need not worry about the mundane affairs of the palace.

"please!"

Shi Chong calmly extended his hand, asking Cheng Cui to lead the way.

After Shi Chong and his men entered the city gate, Cheng Cui didn't even bother to act. He simply left with his trusted retainers, leaving only a few people to guard the arrow towers on both sides of the city gate.

After dismissing all irrelevant people, Shi Gandang grabbed Shi Chong's sleeve and said with a solemn expression, "The General is trying to play both sides, so that no matter what the Emperor does, he won't lose out! In three days, I'm afraid the mountains will collapse and the earth will split open!"

Shi Chong knelt on the cushion and couldn't help but sigh, "That's right! I dare say you were right. The General did indeed send me to the palace, but I didn't expect him to be so ruthless. If the Emperor starts a rebellion, he will surely kill the two of us first as a sacrifice to his banner!"

If Cao Mao had killed Shi Chong, wouldn't Shi Bao have been determined to follow the Sima family to the bitter end?

Sima Zhao would surely be very happy to see this.

Shi Gandang had a good grasp of human nature, but he never imagined that the Machiavellianism of this era had become so unfathomable.

At this moment, Shi Chong calmed down and analyzed, "There are only three things we can do now. I can report the Grand General to the Emperor, but that would be courting death. If I pretend to be ignorant and sleep here, I will only be able to pray to the gods in three days. If I report to the Grand General that the Emperor is making strange moves, that would be tantamount to admitting that I am useless. Neither way is acceptable. It seems that only your risky move can save us from death."

"What Liu Lang said is true."

Shi Gandang also acknowledged Shi Chong's statement.

Sima Zhao keeping Shi Chong in the palace was a way of signaling to Shi Bao: "Look, I value and trust you very much, right? I'm not worried at all about you or your family informing on me or doing anything. Just focus on serving me."

But for Shi Chong himself, the situation was very bad, because he had already been regarded by Cao Mao as Sima Zhao's trusted confidant!
No one understood better than Shi Gandang what this unyielding emperor was planning.

Before launching an uprising, we should kill one of the Sima family's lackeys as a sacrifice to raise our flag. Killing even one more is a bonus, and we're afraid of killing too few!
What else does Cao Mao have to fear? He's not even afraid of death now!
"Tonight I will go and persuade the emperor."

Seeing that Shi Chongguang kept complaining about not practicing, Shi Gandang volunteered.

"Why don't we go together?"

Shi Chong seemed to sense something was amiss and hesitated.

"If Sixth Brother fails to resolve the issue with the Emperor, there will be no turning back. If I fail to do so, it's not too late for Sixth Brother to step in."

Shi Gandang quickly raised his hand, refusing to let Shi Chong go with him.

Shi Chong was only testing the waters; it was absolutely impossible for him to actually go along.

Now that the emperor knew Cao Mao was determined to die, he was capable of anything.

Killing one of Sima Zhao's "confidants" is no big deal.

"Alright! You can... never mind. The Emperor has a bad temper, so try to say the nice things. Given the current situation of the Cao family, it's hard to say what the Emperor might do. Even a clay figure has some temper."

Shi Chong said somewhat guiltily.

He had vision, but he wasn't as willing to risk his life as Shi Gandang; he didn't want to die such a miserable death.

In terms of status, he was the master, while Shi Gandang could only be considered a servant.

However, Shi Chong was ambitious, and seeing that Shi Gandang lived up to his name, he truly admired and respected him.

Cheng Cui was a rough man. In the gatehouse where he temporarily stayed in the palace, there was only a couch, just big enough for him to lie on his side. There were almost no other furnishings; it was extremely simple.

Shi Chong and Shi Gandang were extremely bored sitting there, and it wasn't convenient for them to wander around. With some time before dark, the two looked at each other, feeling worse than if they were in prison.

Shi Chong suddenly remembered what had happened yesterday, so he asked in a low voice, "Did you see that young lady from the Li family? How was she?"

"I saw her. She has a very dignified appearance and looks like she is both beautiful and intelligent."

Shi Gandang's eyes darted around, and he said somewhat guiltily, "It wasn't just that I saw him; I also said some very outrageous things."

Li Wan's hands were indeed calloused, showing signs of manual labor; such women were extremely rare in official families. Comparing them, Shi Gandang felt that Yang Qian, the female slave he had already taken advantage of, looked more like a noblewoman, with smooth, supple skin. The fact that women from official families were willing to work spoke volumes.

"That's right, this young lady has a good reputation. When choosing a wife, one should choose a virtuous one. Looks are secondary. The most important thing is that she is well-educated, considerate of her husband, and does not cause trouble for the family."

If she hadn't caught the eye of the General's son, suitors would probably have razed the Li family mansion to the ground. These scions of noble families in Luoyang aren't blind.

Not to mention she was Li Yin's only daughter, and Li Yin was specifically responsible for recommending officials for official positions and evaluating them.

Shi Chong praised Li Wan's remarkable qualities while clicking his tongue in admiration. Li Wan's undeniable intelligence and wisdom made the scions of noble families extremely envious.

Once a woman has taken a liking to Sima Yan, who else would dare to propose marriage to her?
If she were just a concubine, it wouldn't matter. After he had his fun, he could just give her to Sima Yan to play with, wouldn't that be the same? But since it involves marriage, the rules become completely different.

No one wanted to take on this hot potato, and they dared not ask Li Yin's only daughter to become their concubine! It wasn't worth risking the fate of their family for a woman.

"You really didn't see anything? For example..."

Shi Chong revealed a lewd expression and gestured with his hand in front of his chest.

Shi Gandang originally wanted to tell Shi Chong about his desire to marry Li Wan, but then he thought that these scions of noble families were all hypocrites and not trustworthy, so he suppressed his thoughts.

Good things come to those who wait, and only after many trials can good things happen. I should just keep working hard. Fortunately, he has already prepared a plan and is taking a gamble.

Shi Gandang sighed softly, but Shi Chong noticed the dejection on his face.

"Sigh, don't even think about a woman like that. After this matter is over, I'll get you a few more beautiful concubines to serve you. They'll be just as good as Yang Qian, and it wouldn't be surprising if they were even better than her."

"For a great man, establishing himself and achieving success is the most important thing. Marriage can wait; there are plenty of concubines, and it won't interfere with continuing the family line."

Like those unscrupulous bosses of later generations, Shi Chong made empty promises.

"Sixth Brother, I was just lamenting the danger that will occur in three days."

Shi Gandang interrupted Shi Chong's incessant chatter.

Otherwise, the topic of conversation later will definitely be about how perky Li Wan's breasts are, how perky her buttocks are, and how slim her waist is.

Shi Gandang already regarded Li Wan as his own possession and could not bear to see others talking about her.

When Shi Chong killed those he considered "not human," he was swift and aloof. But once he considered you someone he could discuss important matters with, he became very talkative and open-hearted.

This is a very real person, both wise and foolish, good and bad, ambitious and base.

Shi Chong exclaimed, "It's unbelievable that the emperor actually thought he could kill the general outside the palace, and that the general actually thought the emperor would do it inside the palace."

He still felt that Cao Mao wouldn't go so far as to say "self-destruction," but it was true that the emperor wanted to kill Sima Zhao.

The two chatted idly until nightfall. When the palace night watchman struck the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), Shi Gandang stood up, holding a torch, and walked out of the house. By then, the sky was full of stars.

Shi Chong came out with him, watched him head towards the emperor's palace, and breathed a sigh of relief.

In fact, Shi Chong felt that if he hadn't participated in this matter, he probably would have experienced neither joy nor sorrow, and nothing would have happened.

But Shi Chong was in a hurry!

A new emperor brings a new court; in this moment of upheaval, everything from the past must be reshuffled.

Shi Chong wanted to take a big gamble! Anyway, he was wearing a "safety rope" so he wouldn't be afraid of falling, unlike Shi Gandang who was running around naked.

If we win this bet, the benefits will be unimaginable!

……

Emperor Cao Mao is not yet twenty years old and has a lot of energy.

Although it was already night, he was still examining the map of Luoyang in the imperial study.

Just as he was engrossed in watching, Li Zhao quietly entered and whispered a few words in Cao Mao's ear.

"That attendant?"

Cao Mao looked surprised.

During the day, he only noticed Shi Chong and did not pay attention to the attendant beside him.

In Cao Mao's view, even if someone were to come, it should be Shi Chong who should come.

"Perhaps Shi Chong was worried about offending His Majesty, so he sent someone to test him. After all, he is Shi Bao's eldest son."

Li Zhao explained from the side.

Cao Mao understood the importance of Shi Bao. He nodded slightly, signaling Li Zhao to lead the attendant into the imperial study.

Before long, Shi Gandang was brought to the palace, and this was the first time he had observed Cao Mao up close.

The Emperor of Wei was now frowning and gloomy, a far cry from the high spirits he had displayed earlier that day when he observed the soldiers' drills at the armory.

Shi Gandang realized something: all that outward glamour was just an act for the people below him.

Indeed, even as the emperor, even as the wise and powerful ruler praised by people like Zhong Hui, Cao Mao was only twenty years old.

He was just a young man, yet he had to fight against an old fox like Sima Zhao.

Only he himself knows the extent of the pressure and hardship he endured.

"Who are you?"

Cao Mao asked, his tone calm and even somewhat indifferent.

"Shi Gandang, adopted son of Shi Bao."

Shi Gandang said in a deep voice.

Upon hearing the words "adopted son," Cao Mao couldn't help but laugh.

He asked with a mocking expression, "Is he an adopted son like Lü Bu?"

In fact, adopted sons have existed since ancient times, and even in the early Three Kingdoms period, they carried considerable weight.

However, with the promotion and popularization of the "hereditary military system," the term "adopted son" acquired more meaning. The number of adopted sons increased, but their significance diminished.

Under the hereditary military system, powerful figures within a general's retinue were often adopted as sons. Some of these adopted sons could even marry the general's daughters or nieces; many generals used this method to consolidate their military power.

The court has changed, the camp has changed, but as long as the troops remain the same, their military power will remain the same.

How can you ensure your retainers are loyal and won't betray you in crucial moments?
Adopting sons is a good solution. For example, many generals from Eastern Wu who defected to Wei brought their troops with them. These troops followed their generals and were not under the control of the court. How many of these were actually adopted sons is hard to say.

Whenever Shi Bao went to war, he always had his adopted sons by his side, charging into battle.

"I have something private to say to Your Majesty, but I don't know..."

Shi Gandang glanced at Li Zhao standing next to him and said.

"This is my trusted confidant, you may speak freely."

Cao Mao resolutely refused.

"Then I have nothing more to say. Some things can only be heard by Your Majesty."

You're going to be dead in three days, what are you putting on airs for? Who do you think you are?

Shi Gandang was also angered and refused to give an inch.

Upon hearing this, Li Zhao gave an awkward smile and then quietly left the imperial study.

"Now you can speak, but my patience is limited, so please make your story short!"

Cao Mao urged impatiently.

(End of this chapter)