Wei Ni

There are many people who curry favor with the powerful at the feet of the emperor and in the capital.

Anyone who is promoted and holds power will inevitably be visited by many people and receive a lot of money.

Xiahou Hui, who officially took office as the Central Guard General, was no exception.

The difference is that when he served successively as Palace Attendant and General of the Garrison, he had a reputation for refusing requests and not accepting bribes. Therefore, some opportunistic people actually sent letters of request and valuables to the An Ning Ting Marquis' Mansion.

Originally, with Xiahou Heng's wisdom gained from his years in the court, he would not allow these opportunists to take advantage of him.

But there is no way to resist these people's superior skills.

They actually claimed that these properties were transferred to Xiahou He's wife's family.

By the time Xiahou Heng realized something was wrong, the side room in the mansion was already filled with gold, jade, and mountains of silk.

Well, there are endless ways to make progress.

Huan Fan had once served as the commander of the Central Army and had some old officials in the Central Army. Xiahou He's wife was from the Huan family, so these people used this as an excuse to curry favor with him.

For this reason, the innocent Xiahou He once again relived the "earnest" teachings of his elder brother who was like a father.

He was also sent to find Xiahou Hui, and was warned not to return home until the matter was properly resolved.

Therefore, when Xiahou Hui returned from the office, he found that his seventh brother had been waiting for him for a long time. As soon as he saw him, he took him to the study without saying a word and told him the whole story half helplessly and half accusingly.

It also made Xiahou Hui couldn't help laughing.

If he hadn't seen Xiahou He's face full of resentment, he would have wanted to make a joke, saying "the husband is not in power" or "he can't even manage his servants well".

"Sixth brother, let Xiao Quji go back with me."

After saying this, Xiahou He tugged at his court robe and made a request, "It will take more than a day to return the money and treasures, but when I was driven out by my elder brother, I didn't have time to bring a change of court robes. You can't let me enter the palace without changing court robes for several days, right? If I bring Xiao Quji with me, my elder brother won't refuse to let me in."

"It's getting dark and cold, so don't let Xiao Quji go out."

Xiahou Hui laughed for a while and waved his hand, "But please be patient, this matter was caused by me, and I will not sit idly by and watch you get angry with my elder brother. Well, when you go back, tell my elder brother this."

Xiahou Hui’s method was very simple.

The order was to ask Xiahou He to collect all the visiting cards from those who had given gifts after returning and write replies to them one by one.

The content is the same.

Just say that he has already forwarded the letter of request to Xiahou Hui.

Xiahou Hui also responded, asking these people to take the money back the next day. Otherwise, he would have his troops parade through the streets and publicize it to return it to them.

Uh!
Just tear your face off without showing any mercy!
Xiahou He was speechless for a moment.

But he had to admit that this simple and crude method was the most effective.

As soon as those people received the letter, they would definitely send someone to take the property back in a hurry, otherwise they would lose face and become the topic of gossip in the market.

"Sixth brother, isn't this a bit too much?"

After hesitating for a moment, he could not help but advise, "Serving in the same court, harmony is the most important thing. And it is the trend of the world to curry favor with the powerful. They have no evil intentions. Why do you have to push them too far, Sixth Brother?"

How can I show any mercy to a group of people who are trying to bribe me to ruin my reputation!

Besides, I can’t lose the reputation of being a “reckless man”!
Xiahou Hui was unmoved and asked, "Does Yiquan have a better idea? Or do you plan to stay with me first? Don't worry, if I ask Uncle Sun to go find my elder brother, he will definitely help you bring back the court robes."

this.
just forget it.

The longer those treasures stay in An Ning Ting Hou Mansion, the more dissatisfied my brother will be with me.

"Oh, forget it. Sixth brother, I'm going home first."

Xiahou He was silent for a long time, but finally he sighed and turned around and left.

Xiahou Hui raised his eyebrows and was about to speak out to give more instructions, but he heard Xiahou He add, "Also, I will let the servants spread this matter, so that no one will come to ask for favors from you in the future."

It also made Xiahou Hui relax his brows. He stroked his beard and watched his departing back, his eyes full of relief.

This younger brother of his is not lacking in talent and intelligence, but he is still young and not ruthless enough.

A few days later, it was February.

Although the sky was still gray, the snow on the road had melted and some green appeared on some tree branches.

Spring returns to the earth and everything revives.

Xiahou Hui, wearing a military cap and a crimson and green-ribbon court gown, was waiting outside Sima Gate.

After being stripped of his official position as Jieshi Zhong, he no longer had the convenience of entering and leaving the palace without notifying the public.

However, these are only temporary.

The division of responsibilities between the Zhonglingjun and the Zhonghujun in the jurisdiction of the imperial palace was based on the Sima Gate.

Now the post of the Central Commander was vacant, and the reason he came to the palace was that the emperor Cao Rui had summoned him to ask him about how to reorganize the Central Army in Luoyang. In other words, it was a disguised signal to let him temporarily exercise the power of the Central Commander, and he would be able to enter and leave Sima Gate freely in the future.

Of course, the prerequisite is that Xiahou Hui's performance report must satisfy the emperor.

After a while, an attendant came out and led him into the palace, and then went straight to the Lingzhi Pond. When he arrived, he bowed and said, "Please wait for a moment, Your Majesty has just woken up from a nap and will be here in a moment."

"Okay, thank you." "I dare not."

It's still early in the morning, so the emperor is taking a nap?
Normally, shouldn't the government be in Dongtang at this time?
Xiahou Hui looked up at the sky and confirmed the time was correct, feeling a little confused.

Well, it seems that Yiquan mentioned that since the beginning of the new year, the emperor would occasionally summon He Yan, concubines and others to drink and have fun all night long.

How indulgent!

They all began to slack off in their government affairs.

Looking at the birds leisurely enjoying themselves on the surface of the Ganoderma Lucidum Pond, Xiahou Hui couldn't help but frown.

He was worried that Emperor Cao Rui, who was becoming more and more self-indulgent, might even begin to lose interest in rectifying the government.

"Zhi Quan is so worried, what is he worried about?"

Just as he was immersed in his thoughts, Emperor Cao Rui, who had come over at some point, suddenly spoke up and jokingly said, "Are you regretting the money you returned a few days ago?"

Hearing the sudden voice, Xiahou Hui, who was awakened by the noise, bowed quickly.

"Your Majesty, I am General Hui, the Central Guard, and I pay my respects to you."

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"No thanks, no need for extravagance."

"only."

After he stood up, Xiahou Hui discovered that Emperor Cao Rui had come on foot, and his guards, attendants and eunuchs were all hanging far behind him. No wonder he didn't notice it.

He also discovered that Emperor Cao Rui, with whom he had not met up close for several months, seemed thinner than before, his complexion was somewhat dull, and there was a faint gray-black circle under his sleepy eyes, but he was still in good spirits.

The mood is also good.

After Xiahou Hui stood up, he asked again with a smile, "Why is Zhiquan in a bad mood?"

In response, Xiahou Hui spread his hands, pretending to be heartbroken, and boldly asked back, "Your Majesty, since you already know the reason, why do you ask me, Hui Zai?"

"You brat! Hahaha~"

As expected, Cao Rui cursed and then burst into laughter.

"Let's go."

After laughing, he walked into the fishing platform and waved to Xiahou Hui to follow.

As the two of them got closer, Xiahou Hui paused slightly.

He could smell the faint smell of alcohol and rouge on the emperor's clothes. This made it clear why he had taken a nap so early in the morning.

After walking through the pavilion, people took seats according to their status on the fishing platform.

Emperor Cao Rui still looked very casual, but the smile on his face was gone. "Let's talk. Zhiquan has been in office for nearly ten days. What do you have to say to me?"

"only."

After bowing his head in response, Xiahou Hui said softly, "Your Majesty, since I took office, I have only sorted out the general affairs of my duties and familiarized myself with the resumes and achievements of the officers at all levels of the Central Army. It can be roughly concluded that most of the officers in the Central Army are competent."

That means there is still a small number of people who are incompetent?

"Ah."

Cao Rui responded with a slight nasal sound and waited quietly for what to come.

"Your Majesty, I have only been in office for a short time. It would be unfair to judge me or demote me now."

Seeing this, Xiahou Hui continued, "However, within a month at most, I will be able to make sure that there is no unqualified officer among the lower-ranking officers in the central army!"

"Oh?"

This time, Cao Rui showed a hint of interest and asked, "What does Zhiquan plan to do?"

"Nothing more, seeing is believing."

Xiahou Hui said in a clear voice, "From the next day, I will stay overnight in each camp in turn, and order the officers and soldiers of each department to practice martial arts, so as to observe their military appearance and the spirit of their soldiers. I will also ask the Sima and the Zhonglang to privately visit the clerks in the government offices, and secretly send troops to ask the soldiers who have been injured and retreated from the central army. I will hear whether the officers and soldiers have treated the soldiers harshly or neglected illegal activities when they were on duty. The two will complement each other, and then we can judge."

"Zhi Quan has been in the army for a long time, and he can personally observe and distinguish the good from the bad."

After stroking his beard for a while, Emperor Cao Rui nodded slightly, "However, I heard about the past affairs of the generals and subordinates, and Zhiquan's troops are not up to the task, so don't do it. After 20 days, someone will find Zhiquan and tell him the result."

Is this person the school official in the dark?
Xiahou Hui felt a little frightened and quickly bowed his head to say yes, not daring to ask any more questions.

After thinking for a while, he changed the subject and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that an elite army can be obtained by enforcing discipline and clearly distinguishing rewards and punishments; and to obtain a fierce army, the generals and subordinates must be able to convince the people and the soldiers must be willing to die for them. Therefore, when selecting low-level military officers, merit is secondary and talent is primary; background is not important, only talent is selected. If there are those who have great merits but are incompetent, they will be recommended for transfer and sent to other places. However, this move goes against the previous selection system and is suspected of excluding dissidents, so I dare to ask Your Majesty to fill the vacancy of the Central Commander as soon as possible to supervise."

Are you sincerely asking for supervision?
Or take this opportunity to ask me if I can give up my power?

The hand stroking his beard paused slightly, and a gleam of brilliance flashed across the eyes of the emperor Cao Rui. The suspicion and mistrust that had been passed down from Cao Cao, the Emperor of Wei, revived in his heart at this moment.

But, not bad.

After just a moment, he smiled and nodded, saying earnestly, "No problem. Zhiquan, just let it go. I trust you."

Not only did he feel that Xiahou Hui was trustworthy, but also because he secretly had control over the School Affairs Office.

Furthermore, he suddenly remembered that Xiahou Hui was a knife. Even if he had selfish motives to eliminate dissidents, he would not be able to cause any waves. (End of this chapter)