Wei Ni

Although he intended to use the excuse of reading a book to rest in the house for a while, Xiahou Hui still followed Ding Mi to the mountain after receiving Ding Mi's well-reasoned invitation.

He is really a little tired.

After rushing non-stop from Yecheng to Liaoxi, Ding Mi and others arrived ahead of time and rested for more than ten days!

As for him, he also traveled to Wuzhong, Feiru, Guzhu City and other places, dealing with ruffians, powerful families and court officials, and was truly exhausted both physically and mentally.

Not to mention, Gongsun Yi mentioned it last night, claiming that he would send cavalry to the bases of Zhang Hu and Qian Hong today to inform them that he had arrived in Linyu County.

Calculating the time, Zhang Hu and Qian Hong would arrive at the latest around noon the next day.

Today was the only day he had free time.

He walked out of the military camp slowly, waved his hand to tell Lu Fan and other soldiers not to follow him and went on with their own work. Xiahou Hui and Ding Mi climbed the mountain side by side.

In late autumn, the Jieshi Mountain is shrouded in clouds and mist.

Going up along the narrow path, you will see strange rocks rising up from the sky, dotted with green pines and cypresses. The sound of a trickling mountain spring flowing from somewhere can be faintly heard, accompanied by the roaring of animals, making the place seem very quiet and remote.

No deer can be seen in the deep forest, only the echoing sounds of birds can be heard lingering among the mountains.

This made Xiahou Hui, who was originally uninterested, walk more briskly.

But they didn't reach the summit.

The fog was so heavy in the early morning of late autumn that no one knew whether there were any poisonous insects among the dead leaves that fell on the ground. So the two of them simply found a slightly flat stone halfway up the mountain to sit down and overlook the vast ocean.

Sometimes we have to admit that the feeling of standing on a high place and overlooking the world can really make one's mind broaden and feel heroic.

Even though Ding Mi had climbed to the top of Jieshi Mountain a few days ago, when he looked at the vast waves again, he couldn't help but recite Emperor Wu Cao Cao's "Viewing the Sea" with his head shaking.

Xiahou Hui was much calmer.

Feeling the sea breeze pulling at his clothes and hair, and seeing the waves crashing against the shore, he was worried about whether he would encounter a typhoon when transporting food and fodder by sea during the expedition to Liaodong.
He even wondered if Ding Mi had similar concerns when he dragged him to climb the mountain.

"Zhi Quan, during the first few days since I arrived here, I have talked with many of the White Horse Yicong and learned something."

After a while, Ding Mi finally spoke up and told the story of the Xianbei Duan Rilujuan wandering in Banhaidao and settling in Changli, a former Liaodong vassal state. He also carefully described Duan Rilujuan's origin and his forbearance as a spittoon.

"You are willing to be a spittoon~"

After hearing this, Xiahou Hui immediately sighed.

When he simulated the scene of the human spittoon in his mind, he couldn't help but feel a chill all over his body. He stopped thinking and said, "Yan Jing said that he felt that such a person should not be kept, right?" After that, without waiting for Ding Mi to answer, he continued, "The next day Zhang Gongben and Qian Shiyi came over. I asked them to lead the troops to kill him."

Uh!
Are you so decisive?
Shouldn't you wait until I finish explaining the necessity of killing Duan Rilujuan, the benefits to be gained, and how to deal with the aftermath, etc. before making a decision?
Ding Mi, who had been preparing a draft all night, was speechless when he heard this.

Xiahou Hui was especially unaware. When he saw him in shock, he asked back with a puzzled look on his face, "Why didn't Yan Jing say anything? Does he think that our army should persuade him to surrender instead of killing him? If so, Yan Jing was not thoughtful enough. Such a resolute person will never be willing to be inferior to others. If our army recruits him to join us, it will be to indulge him to grow stronger, which will definitely cause troubles on the border in the future."

What are you guessing about!

I didn't say I wanted to surrender.
Ding Mi replied with some helplessness in his heart, shook his head and denied it, without too much explanation, but changed the subject, "According to Zhiquan, such people should not be kept. Well, Zhiquan, what do you think of Gongsun Du's merits and demerits?"

Gongsun Du?
He has been dead for more than 20 years, why are you still mentioning him?
Xiahou Hui, who was somewhat confused, recalled his conversation with the governor Fu Rong. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Although he was violent and unruly, he also made contributions to the Central Plains dynasty. Confucius once said, 'Without Guan Zhong, I would have been wearing loose hair and left-side robes.' This is just like what Gongsun Du did to Liaodong. At that time, the Han Dynasty was in disgrace, the prefectures and counties lost their authority, the Central Plains was in turmoil, warlords fought for power, and the border areas of Liaodong were infested with barbarians. If it weren't for Gongsun Du's efforts to protect the land and intimidate Haidong, I'm afraid there would be no Han clothes in Liaodong today."

"Without Guan Zhong, I would have had my hair loose and my clothes on the left. This is absolutely true!"

After clapping his hands and praising him, Ding Mi quickly put forward his thoughts, "Zhi Quan has been entrusted by the emperor to attack Liaodong. I think that military struggle is only superficial. How to stabilize the people after the war, how to prevent Liaodong from being invaded by foreigners like when Gongsun Du was still alive, and how to feed back to the Central Plains are the top priorities."

Post-war disposal
Xiahou Hui did not comment, but smiled and said, "The war has not started yet, it is too early to talk about this. Besides, if Yan Jing has any thoughts, he should wait until my brother comes to Liaoxi, and then discuss it with him."

What can I say to Xiahou Ba! Well, from the fact that Xiahou Ba led the Huyue Camp with 3,000 soldiers and 2,000 Yecheng garrison soldiers, it can be inferred that he is the candidate to guard Liaodong in the future. This is something that everyone who knows about the war against Liaodong can guess.

Ding Mi is no exception.

Therefore, he also knew that Xiahou Hui had misunderstood and did not think about the right to speak in the court at all.

"Zhi Quan's words are not true."

After a brief thought, he replied, "As the saying goes, preparation is the key to success. The war has not yet begun, but Zhiquan, as the commander-in-chief, must be prepared. Moreover, what I meant was not just how to ensure that Zhongquan can safely guard Liaodong, but also how to help Zhiquan make achievements in the government in the future."

Having said this, he was afraid that Xiahou Hui still didn't understand, so he lowered his voice and added, "Zhi Quan, military merit is the foundation of one's career, and the ability to govern the local area and seek benefits for the country is the fundamental to keep the emperor's attention and change the views of the officials in the court."

That's it!

Are you suggesting that I consolidate my power?
This time, Xiahou Hui understood. He nodded slightly, stroking his beard and pondering.

To be honest, he really hadn't thought about the pros and cons.

In his mind, he had always been limited to military merit, thinking that he could rely on his military ability to gain the respect and power of Emperor Cao Rui, and then use it to defend the Wei Dynasty.

To put it bluntly, as a child of Qiaopei, his mindset was rigid. He only wanted to be a general and control the military power, but he had no awareness of being a prime minister.

Or, it could be said that it was due to the clear division of labor between the internal and external parties when Cao Cao, the King of Wei, started his business in his early years. The Lai clan and the old friends from Qiaopei were in charge of the military, while the scholars from Yingchuan were in charge of government affairs. As a result, there was never a practice of the children of Qiaopei becoming prime ministers in the Wei State.

Even among the four ministers of state of Wei, Cao Pi, Cao Xiu had always been in charge of the military power outside, and Cao Zhen, who stayed in Luoyang, was only in charge of the central army to stabilize the situation, and basically did not exceed his authority to interfere in the political power of Chen Qun and Sima Yi.

Of course, just because Cao Xiu and Cao Zhen do not interfere does not mean that Xiahou Hui has to stick to the old rules.

After all, Sima Yi was transferred to be the governor of Jingxiang and Yongliang; Man Chong, who was also a scholar, was also the governor of Huainan. Why couldn't the children of Qiaopei heroes enter the central government?

"I know what Yan Jing means."

Xiahou Hui pondered for a long time, then smiled and said, "But this matter needs to be discussed with Envoy Guanqiu. Yan Jing may not know that Envoy Guanqiu has treated me very well~"

After that, he told Ding Mi what had happened in the past few days, and especially emphasized the Bai tribe of Xianbei.

As for the matter of persuading the remaining pro-Yuan Wuhuan tribes to surrender, it can be seen from the fact that the Bai tribe of Xianbei had already been scheduled to conscript 2,000 cavalry to participate in the war that Guanqiu Jian must have given some thought to the remaining pro-Yuan Wuhuan tribes; and Guanqiu Jian also served as the commander of the Wuhuan Guard. Xiahou Hui's previous advice to Emperor Cao Rui and his later dispatch of Zuo Junbo to persuade them to surrender were considered to be extending his hand into Guanqiu Jian's authority.

Interfering with other people's authority is the most taboo thing in officialdom.

However, when faced with Xiahou Hui's interference, Guanqiu Jian was not angry. Instead, he generously granted the power of Liaoxi County, which was truly a very kind act.

In this case, Xiahou Hui should return the favor.

When Ding Mi mentioned that he could demonstrate his talent by submitting a memorial to the imperial court on matters such as the post-war pacification and governance of Liaodong, he also thought of bringing Guanqiu Jian along. Moreover, if his second brother Xiahou Ba wanted to guard Liaodong in the future, he would also need the help of Guanqiu Jian, who was the General of Liao, the Governor of Youzhou, and the Protector of Wuhuan.
After hearing his words, Ding Mi's immediate reaction was relief.

He felt that Xiahou Hui had finally made some progress on the road to power! He had even thought of sharing the profits to win over local officials as an external force in the government in the future!
Therefore, he couldn't help but relax his brows, stroked his beard repeatedly, and said with an extremely gratified tone, "Zhi Quan is right! Right! Guan Qiu Shijun has many duties and is a minister in the emperor's palace. We should discuss the matter with him."

I was just thinking of returning a favor, why did you mention Guanqiu Jian's numerous positions?
Xiahou Hui felt that his meaning had been misunderstood, and was about to say something, but was interrupted by Ding Mi.

"Well, as Zhiquan said, it's too early to talk about this now. When Guanqiu Envoy comes to Liaoxi in the future, we can discuss this matter together." He stood up and walked down the mountain, waving his hand to signal Xiahou Hui to go with him, "Let's go, Zhiquan, let's go back."

Gone home?
No, you dragged me to climb the mountain early in the morning, and now you’re going home?
Even if the post-war measures need to be discussed with Guanqiu Jian, now that we have brought it up, wouldn't it be better for you and I to talk about it and speak with one voice first?
He stood up speechlessly, and Xiahou Hui quickly followed him, saying in a dissatisfied tone, "Since you're already out and talking about Liaodong, why don't you finish what you're saying?"

"Haha~"

Ding Mi didn't care. He smiled a few times and made up an excuse, "The fog is too heavy here. My clothes are a little wet. Besides, Zhiquan doesn't have the interest to climb mountains or go to the sea. Let's go back early. We can talk about it another day."

According to your personality, you always have nothing to say, why do you want to change the subject now?
Although Xiahou Hui stopped talking, he was thinking about it in his heart. (End of this chapter)