Chapter 16: Flying West in the Sun Huang Quan held the reins, trying to control the speed of the brown horse under him, and followed Cao Rui not far behind. "I have been in the Shizhong Temple for a long time in recent years and have read a lot of Wei classics. I would like to try to sort them out for Your Majesty." Cao Rui nodded and motioned Huang Quan to continue. Huang Quan had been sitting on the bench in the Shizhong Temple for several years. Now that Cao Rui had come to consult him, Huang Quan saw that it was a good time for him to be reinstated, so he did not dare to neglect it at all. Huang Quan cleared his throat and said, "Chen Qun was born in Yingchuan Chen family. In his early years, Liu Bei was the governor of Yuzhou, and Chen Qun served as Liu Bei's deputy driver." "Later, Chen Qun fled with his father to Xuzhou, and for unknown reasons he joined Lu Bu's army. After Emperor Wu defeated Lu Bu, he appointed Chen Qun as a clerk in the Western Division of the Sikong Palace." Cao Rui asked, "Chen Qun had just met Taizu and he was already appointed as a clerk in the Western Cao? Chen Qun was less than 30 years old at the time, right? What talents did he have?" Huang Quan sneered and said, "The job of the Xicao official is to recruit talents for the Sikong Mansion. Chen Qun was born in a noble family in Yingchuan, and he had a father like Chen Ji. This was Chen Qun's talent at the time." Chen Ji was a well-known scholar in the country. When He Jin was the general, he asked his subordinates to recommend famous scholars in the country, and Chen Ji ranked first. Cao Rui saw that Huang Quan, who came from a humble family, looked down on the noble families: "I understand, General, please continue."
Huang Quan continued, "Chen Qun later participated in the military affairs of the prime minister, and then served as the chief censor. After Cui Yan and Mao Jie died one after another, Chen Qun took charge of the prime minister's east and west divisions and controlled the personnel appointments and dismissals of the Wei Dynasty." Cao Rui asked: "The Chief Censor is in charge of the state's criminal laws and regulations, so how can he be in charge of personnel matters?" Huang Quan glanced at Cao Rui and said, "Chen Qun is on good terms with the late emperor, so he is naturally selected for the country." Cao Rui curled his lips. It was obvious that after Cao Pi succeeded in his bid for the throne, he placed his staunch supporter Chen Qun in the position of East and West Cao Yuan, making it easier for Cao Pi to place his own people there. Seeing that Cao Rui had no intention of stopping, Huang Quan continued, "After the late emperor ascended the throne, he appointed Chen Qun as the Minister of State Affairs. During the third expedition against Wu, which was last year, the late emperor was no longer in good health." "When we arrived in Huainan, the late emperor appointed Chen Qun as the commander of the central army to take charge of the late emperor's protection. After the late emperor returned to Luoyang, he appointed Chen Qun as the general of the garrison army. I don't need to elaborate on what happened next." Cao Rui heard it clearly. Chen Qun was born into a prominent family, so he got a good official position when he first entered the government. Because of his good official position and family background, he was very close to the previous emperor Cao Pi. In addition, he was also a capable person, so he was promoted step by step. The perfect template of Yingchuan scholar. Because he had a very good relationship with Cao Pi, when Cao Pi was ill, he took over the power of Cao Pi's guard. In fact, it is no wonder that Cao Pi wanted to befriend Chen Qun. In the late Han Dynasty, there were two types of top celebrities in the world. One is like Yuan Shao. He has three generations of high-ranking officials, his ancestors were all high-ranking officials, his students and former officials are all over the world, and he can get around and make a living wherever he goes. The other type is Chen Qun's grandfather, Chen Shi. During the Party and Faction Persecution, Chen Shi was persecuted by eunuchs and went to prison without hesitation, which made him even more famous. After being released from prison, Chen Shi returned to Yingchuan. At that time, Zhang Rang, the head of the Ten Eunuchs, had his father die and be buried in Yingchuan, but no other famous scholar was willing to go to pay his respects except Chen Shi. Only Chen Shi went. Therefore, Zhang Rang was grateful for Chen Shi's kindness and protected many Yingchuan scholars who were on good terms with Chen Shi. What is Yingchuan's timely rain, the famous scholar Hu Baoyi! As the grandson of such a man, who wouldn't want to make friends with him and become famous? No wonder Cao Pi and Chen Qun became good friends. Cao Rui looked at Huang Quan and said, "General Huang, you will be my permanent attendant from now on. You and Liu Ye and Xin Pi will always be by my side. I hope you will give me advice on matters of state." The world is no longer the same as it was during the Battle of Yiling. This appointment is a great favor to Huang Quan, who is currently sitting on the bench.
Huang Quan suddenly grabbed the reins, dismounted and bowed: "Your Majesty, Huang Quan, I accept your command and thank you for your grace." …… Thousands of miles away in Chengdu, the sky was clear at this time. Liu Chan and Zhuge Liang, the emperor and minister, certainly could not have imagined that Huang Quan, who had once rebelled against Shu Han, would once again be given the important position of Emperor of Wei. Ma Su hurried in, waving documents as he walked: "Prime Minister, great joy, great joy." Zhuge Liang glanced at Ma Su and slowly put down the ink pen he was writing with. "You Chang, what's the matter?" The excitement on Ma Su's face was about to overflow: "Prime Minister, Emperor Cao Pi of Wei has died, and the young master Cao Rui has ascended the throne. Cao Xiu, Cao Zhen, Chen Qun, and Sima Yi are left to assist in the administration." Zhuge Liang gently waved his feather fan and said, "Is Cao Pi really dead? The man who usurped the Han Dynasty finally got his retribution." Ma Su nodded repeatedly: "Cao Cao died only a few years ago, and Cao Pi died too. I think the people of Wei must have been in a panic for a long time." Zhuge Liang shook his head gently: "Youchang, this is different from the past. When Cao Cao died, the whole world was indeed shocked and people were depressed. But now the Wei Kingdom has been established for six years, and people inside and outside the country have already made up their minds. I am afraid it is not that simple." Ma Su saw that Zhuge Liang was not in high spirits, so he did not dare to say anything more and suppressed his excitement. "Prime Minister, you have been preparing for the Northern Expedition for a year. Now that the Wei Kingdom is in mourning, do you need to move this forward?" Zhuge Liang said calmly: "It is time to move it forward, but the exact time needs to be considered." "Since we pacified Nanzhong last year, our Han army went out in March and returned to Chengdu in December." "The missing soldiers have not yet been replenished. Armor, horses, and military equipment will take time." "Based on the current pace, it will probably take about a year." Ma Su nodded and then asked Zhuge Liang for advice. After Ma Su's brother Ma Liang died in the service of the king, Ma Su became Zhuge Liang's successor minister. "Prime Minister, Cao Rui is already in his twenties when he ascended the throne. Why did Cao Pi assign him four assistant ministers? This is probably a little unreasonable." Zhuge Liang smiled and said, "Youchang, do you know what is common sense for a crown prince?" Ma Su shook his head. Zhuge Liang continued, "The crown prince is the heir to a country, and the key is the word 'crown'. Have you ever heard that Cao Pi appointed Cao Rui as the crown prince?" Ma Su replied: "Appointing a crown prince is a major national event. I have never heard of Cao Pi appointing Cao Rui as crown prince." Zhuge Liang said, "That's it. Cao Rui has been in the East Palace for a long time and has little experience in governing the country. He also has no direct descendants of literary ministers to support him." "Regardless of how talented Cao Rui is, without the assistance of his ministers, he would not be able to hold on to this position." Ma Su suddenly realized: "What the Prime Minister said is absolutely right. If we don't appoint important officials to warn the world, if Cao Pi can usurp the world, can't others do the same?" Seeing that Ma Su had understood, Zhuge Liang raised his feather fan and pointed at the document in Ma Su's hand: "I will not read this document. You Chang, quickly send it to the palace and tell His Majesty that this document can be taken to offer sacrifices to the late emperor." Ma Su bowed and slowly walked out of the lobby of the Prime Minister's Mansion.
Zhuge Liang also walked slowly into the courtyard. The sunlight slowly fell to the west. At this moment, Zhuge Liang wished he had a long rope to tie up the sun that was flying westward. Cao Cao died, and Cao Pi also died. Among the people of Cao Wei, how many can still remember the Han Dynasty? (End of this chapter)