Three Kingdoms: I, Ma Su, just want to die

Chapter 706: Cao Wei Moves the Capital
Cao Fang didn't actually know much about Cao Mao. He only knew that he was the eldest son of the King of Donghai and his title was Gaogui Xianggong, which was almost nothing special.

If Cao Mao hadn't come to play with him this time, Cao Fang wouldn't even know what he looked like.

He looked around and found that there were no close ministers nearby, then he carefully opened the piece of silk that was soaked with sweat.

Because this piece of silk was almost soaked with sweat, the handwriting on it became very blurred. However, after some identification, Cao Fang was still able to see the general meaning.

Cao Mao revealed the current situation in Hebei to Cao Fang in a silk document. Xiahou Ba had returned to Hebei and was working with Xiahou Xuan to resist the Sima clan, making it impossible for them to stabilize the entire Hebei province.

The Han army in the south had already annexed the Eastern Wu and was about to head north to Hebei. Cao Fang only needed to be patient for a while. Whether Xiahou Ba recovered Yecheng or the Han army went north, it was better than being a puppet in the hands of the Sima family.

After all, he was treated with courtesy by Ji Han and was not ordered around by Sima.

Because Cao Mao was only a member of the Cao clan and was not taken seriously, he could indeed obtain information from outside. Cao Fang's eyes flashed at this, and then he walked to the table and set the entire silk on fire.

Now that Sima family's spies have taken control of the entire palace, Cao Fang had to be careful.

"Either I will be a puppet of the Sima family or a prisoner of Western Shu... This is my fate." After carefully handling the evidence, Cao Fang let out a long sigh, with a hint of helplessness in his eyes.

When he first became the crown prince, he thought he would at least be the ruler of the Central Plains. After all, the territory of Wei was still vast, Cao Rui was still young, and the title of crown prince of Cao Wei was quite valuable.

Unexpectedly, in just a few years, the seemingly impregnable rule of the Wei Dynasty in the Central Plains collapsed. Not long after he fled to Hebei, the Sima family staged a coup and seized power, and he, the emperor, became a complete puppet.

Now he not only has no real power, but also lives in fear every day. Moreover, being a puppet with no hope at all is really a cruel torture.

But even so, the news Cao Mao gave him did not make Cao Fang happy. Now he found that he had two choices: either to be a prisoner of Western Shu or to be a puppet of the Sima family.

Well... there's a high probability that he will be both for a period of time.

Isn't there an option that would allow me to regain power?

Cao Fang felt helpless about the future, but he could only accept this reality.

Let's just leave it at that, I'll take it one step at a time. I've become a puppet, how can life get any worse?

However, reality is sometimes so incredible. Whenever you think you have reached the bottom, life will show you its bottomless bottom.

Not long after Cao Fang accepted the reality, the Prime Minister Sima Zhao summoned a court meeting in the name of the emperor. At the meeting, Sima Zhao officially announced to the court officials that the capital would be moved to Yijing.

This incident immediately caused an uproar in the entire court. Not to mention the big families who were dissatisfied with the Sima family, even Gao Rou, an ally of the Sima family, found it difficult to accept.

Everyone is not stupid, and they can see what the Sima family is trying to do. It is nothing more than planning to move the emperor to Liaodong and then continue the meaningless resistance.

This is unacceptable to these wealthy and pampered family heads. I have already fled from Luoyang to Yecheng, do you still want to force me to go to the wild land of Liaodong?
The reason they still stayed with Cao Wei was that they could not accept the rules of Ji Han. Once they surrendered, most of their property would probably become spoils of war for the Shu army.

But if you abandon everything in Hebei and follow this broken court to Liaodong, wouldn't you still have to abandon all your property? It would be better to surrender to Ji Han, at least you wouldn't have to starve in Ji Han like you did in Liaodong. As a result, the entire court aroused unimaginable opposition from Sima Zhao. From the Sikong to the Jiuqing, all officials were unanimously opposed to moving the capital.

Even if they waited in Yecheng for the Han army to capture them, it would be better to go to Liaodong where people would starve to death without compensation! Given the poor environment, they would probably die on the way before they even arrived.

In response to this, Sima Zhao's brows immediately furrowed and he spoke angrily.

"Are you still harboring illusions about West Shu's surrender? Given your deep hatred for West Shu, do you think the Shu army will let you go if they attack?"

"Now that the Eastern Wu has been destroyed, the entire Yangzhou has been purged by the Western Shu. Look at what Ma Su has done to those people who used to bully others in the court of the Eastern Wu?"

"If we move the capital to Yijing now, relying on Liaodong's resources and the dangerous roads, we can still resist Xishu and gain a chance to catch our breath. If we stay in Yecheng, do you think Ma Su will let you live?"

"If you don't want to go, I won't force you. I will escort Your Majesty to retreat to Yijing, and you can just wait in Yecheng for the Shu army to come and take your lives!"

After Sima Zhao finished speaking, the person he wanted to talk to the most was Cao Fang. He really wanted to say, in fact, I don't want to go to that freezing cold place either...

But after thinking about Sima Zhao's intention, Cao Fang closed his mouth again.

Cao Fang remained silent, and Sima Zhao's threats were clearly effective. Many court officials who were firmly opposed to the plan also began to hesitate and weigh the pros and cons.

The bad situation in Liaodong was true, but Ma Su's imminent massacre was obviously not false. Especially after Ma Su presided over the Heyin Incident, he was not severely punished by Guanxi, which further demonstrated the attitude of the court of the late Han Dynasty.

These big families in Kanto are actually not as important as imagined.

Therefore, they were completely unsure of Ji Han's attitude. If they surrendered rashly, the fate of the Dongwu nobles would be imminent.

As a result, the court quickly fell into silence. After a long silence, some people began to support Sima Zhao's plan to move the capital.

Of course, all this had nothing to do with Zhong Hui behind Sima Zhao. At this moment, Zhong Hui was looking at this group of officials who were greedy for life and afraid of death with contempt.

They are indeed a bunch of cowards. They become so cowardly after just a little scare.

"Shi Ji, record this court meeting and don't let these people regret it." At this time, Sima Zhao turned around and said to Zhong Hui.

"Get them all on board and implement the relocation of the capital as soon as possible... We don't have much time."

"Yes, sir!" Zhong Hui nodded, lowered his head and bowed to receive the order.

However, when Zhong Hui lowered his eyes, the mockery disappeared completely, but became even stronger.

And behind this banter, there is a subtle hint of... murderous intent.

(End of this chapter)