This is such a great thing to become an emperor that Hu Zong dare not hesitate or be negligent.
The two first returned to the guesthouse outside Wuchang City, and then the two horses galloped swiftly into the city. Arriving at the palace of King Wu, they hurriedly went to Sun Quan's place, one in front and one behind.
First, Hu Zong went in by himself and spoke with Sun Quan for a few words before obtaining permission and bringing Jiang Wan into the hall.
"Have you been well, Gongye?"
Sun Quan sat solemnly in the center of the hall, his voice deep and magnetic as he greeted Jiang Wan.
Jiang Wan bowed respectfully and said, "The envoy Jiang Wan pays his respects to the great king!"
Sun Quan said, "Gongye only left after the Spring Festival, right? The two gifts I sent to Chengdu and Baishui, have Emperor Han and Zhuge Liang received them?"
Jiang Wan cupped his hands together, "It's kind of Your Highness to remember. The gifts have all been received. I learned from Wei Zé that Your Highness was unwell, and now that I see Your Highness in good health, it is indeed a joyful thing."
Sun Quan did not show the slightest embarrassment and said, "I've heard that the envoy has arrived. My small illness is no longer worth mentioning."
"Gongye, don't tell me empty words in front of me. Tell me straight. What does Zhuge Liang plan to do?"
Jiang Wan cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, the emperor wishes to issue an edict dividing Han and Wu into two separate countries, with no subordination between them, in order to help our ally accomplish the imperial undertaking!"
Although Sun Quan had heard this from Hu Zong long ago, to hear it directly from Jiang Wan felt quite different.
Sun Quan, out of instinct, wanted to negotiate a lower price. He scoffed and replied, "The Sun family has established its dynasty for three generations. I have already been the King of Wu. If I want to proclaim myself as an emperor, it is merely a matter of lifting my hand."
"Moreover, the ministers of the great Wu have repeatedly advised me to ascend to a higher position, but I have refused each time. Why do you need to propose it for me?"
Jiang Wan shook his head and said, "If Your Highness says so, there is nothing I can say."
"Please allow me to worship Your Highness again here."
Sun Quan was slightly puzzled: "What is this about, Gongye?"
Jiang Wan answered with a serious demeanor: "The Wei enemy occupies the north, which is a common hatred of people and gods. Our ministers and officials have long been corrupt in our country."
"Your Majesty and the Chancellor originally thought that the King of Wu is an extraordinary hero who is destined to come from the southeast. He has the ambition and great aspiration to embrace the world. He does not want to sit idly by and watch his troops stagnate, allowing the northern enemy to succeed in their schemes."
"Now, seeing that the King of Wu has no great ambition, I shall return to Chengdu and report to Your Majesty, requesting troops to seal off the Yong'an roads and sever the alliance between Han and Wu."
"Sichuan has its own natural defenses. We shall wait for the right time to observe the changes in China and ask Your Majesty and Wu to work independently!"
After that, Jiang Wan bowed respectfully and slightly retreated three steps, then turned around and walked out of the hall with long strides.
Sun Quan furrowed his brow; he was reluctant to speak out personally to detain him, so he could only watch in the direction of Hu Zong. Unfortunately, Hu Zong was also shaken by Jiang Wan's words and, watching the back of Jiang Wan as he left, lost his composure for a moment and failed to notice Sun Quan's gaze.
Sun Quan coughed lightly and said, "Wei Zé!"
Hu Zong finally looked over, and Sun Quan frowned and gestured towards the outside of the hall, indicating for Hu Zong to quickly bring Jiang Wan back.
Hu Zong understood and ran a few steps forward, pulling at Jiang Wan's robe sleeve, "Brother Gongye, why are you so hasty? Why do you want to leave so abruptly?"
After standing still, Jiang Wan shook his sleeve and said, "Wei Zé brother only asked me to be honest, but Wei Zé brother does not ask me to be honest!"
"If Brother Wei Zé truly has no demands, then it is truly my mistake to have misunderstood Brother Wei Zé!"
Facing Jiang Wan's obvious sarcasm, Hu Zong slightly bowed his hand in apology and then turned his head to look at Sun Quan.
Sun Quan laughed loudly, "Gongye is indeed a bit heated!"
"I just said that to test you, just to see if you are sincere, not to express any opposition."
"Please, let Gongye stay for a while."
Jiang Wan sighed and turned around, walking back to his original position.
Sun Quan said, "I won't say any empty words to Gongye anymore."
"The situations of Wu, Han, and Wei are all different. It has taken me so many years since Cao Zichuan and Liu Xuanzhi to become emperors due to these matters of etiquette and ritual."
"What is the exact thinking of the morning court in Chengdu and the household of Baishui? I hope Gongye can clarify this."
Jiang Wan said, "Last autumn, the Chancellor and Your Majesty agreed that there are three things that can correspond to the King of Wu."
"The first, Your Majesty can issue an edict dividing Han and Wu into two separate countries to help the King of Wu achieve his imperial aspirations."
"The second, abolish the language of Eastern King and Western King, with Emperor Han and Emperor Wu parallel to each other in the world."
"The third, Han and Wu shall keep watch and assist each other, facing north to defeat the Wei rebels, and then divide the world equally."
Sun Quan stood up, responding with a serious expression, "What the Emperor of Han said, I cannot neglect!"
"But how can the division of the world be divided equally?"
Jiang Wan cupped his hands and replied, "Yu, Qing, Xu, and You belong to Wu, while Yun, Ji, Bing, and Liang belong to Han. The territory of the Supervision Region should be divided into two halves, with Hangu Pass as the boundary."
"What does Your Majesty think?"
Sun Quan listened carefully for a moment and then laughed, "That's good. I have no objection to this distribution. However, if the Wei enemy is wiped out, will the world still be divided between two rulers?"
Jiang Wan cupped his hands in response, "There can be no two suns in the sky, nor two sovereigns among the people. If after swallowing up Wei, Your Highness has not recognized the will of heaven, there will inevitably be a war between Han and Wu."
"Ha ha ha." Sun Quan laughed and said, "Gongye really treats me with sincerity."
"I have heard and accepted all that the envoy of Han has said."
"However, this is not something that can be achieved in a short time. In September of this year, please have the envoy of Han come to Wuchang again!"
Jiang Wan took a deep breath and said, "I don't understand why the envoy of Han is coming to Wuchang again?"
Sun Quan replied with a sense of vigor, "This is to fulfill what the envoy of Han has just said!"
Jiang Wan cupped his hands, "Your Highness' words, I have taken down entirely."
"But regarding the attack on Wei, do Your Highness' wishes include this?"
Sun Quang nodded and said, "I can agree to attacking Wei, but I do not want to attack Hefei. Instead, I want to attack Xiangyang! If Gongye cannot make up his mind, he has time to go back to Chengdu and consult!"
Jiang Wan cupped his hands and said, "I will report this to the court upon returning to Chengdu."
The matter of becoming an emperor for both the Eastern Wu and the Shu Han is not a small thing. At present, it is February, and Sun Quan has set aside more than half a year to prepare thoroughly.
Jiang Wan, as an envoy to Wuwu, came with such conditions. The heavy pressure in his heart is not as light as it looks on the surface.
Although both Shu Han and Eastern Wu were defeated by the Wei once, the degree of damage to Shu Han is much greater than that to Wu.
Without mentioning the damaged military forces.
Shu Han was originally a state in Yizhou, and last year, it lost the northern barrier of Hanzhong. It only barely retained more than half of the state's territory. In the past, Liu Zhang in Shu also controlled such a territory.
If it were not for the title of the Han Emperor, one really doesn't know under what pretext it should continue to exist.
Although the Eastern Wu has suffered losses in its military and suffered casualties, the two countries are already engaged in battles on the north bank of the river. Nuanushu has not been damaged, the large river has not been damaged, and Jiangling has not been damaged. The foundation and strategic positions of Wu are still in their hands.
Shu Han's need for Eastern Wu is actually greater than Eastern Wu's need for Shu Han.
Since the most precious thing is this title of the Han Emperor, if one clings to outdated and rigid ideas and refuses to make any compromises, then one will truly take it to the grave.
With Zhuge Liang's intelligence, he naturally saw through this.
Those who can achieve greatness and make great achievements will not be confined by such things.
In the eyes of Zhuge Liang and the officials of Shu Han, if Sun Quan were to declare himself emperor and then launch an attack on Cao Wei, it would be an extremely important matter.
As for recognizing Sun Quan now and defeating Cao Wei, it may not necessarily be recognized after that! The next one would be Sun Quan!
Sun Quan is not stupid, of course, and he also understands this.
All the decisions made by both sides are rational judgments made in response to the realistic situation of the powerful Wei state.
Since Sun Quan has agreed to the September appointment, Jiang Wan has already made up his mind to come to Wuyang again in September.
As for whether to attack Xiangyang or Hefei, how much of a difference can it make to Zhuge Liang? It is not worth mentioning.
......
Cao Ren came to the city where he used to live as a child, Yecheng, and there were still many things he needed to do.
For instance, he received the Cao family relatives living in the city and selected some of them to serve as pages in Luoyang. In the future, he could choose the best ones and grant them official positions.
For example, he received the descendants of the old officials of the Cao Wei during the Jian'an era, including Wang Ning, the elder son of Wang Xiu, and Wang Zhong, his younger son, as well as Wang Yi. Also present were the sons of old officials such as Mao Ji and Liang Miao.
Those with talents beyond ordinary people were all given official positions through favors.
For example, he used the excuse that his body was not suitable for excessive sorrow to dispatch the Superintendent of the Imperial Secretariat, Sima Yi, as a messenger to visit and worship the Maotai Queen's tomb in Yecheng. He also ordered all Zhen's family members in Yecheng to move to Luoyang for residence.
In summary, during the first visit of the Great Wei Emperor to Yecheng, it was a constant round of receiving people. Each day, he had to meet with five or six groups of people.
The work of an emperor can be quite monotonous and boring.
On the afternoon of February 7th, Cao Rui received important officials from the vicinity of Yecheng at the Tongquedai. Among them were Guan Cheng, the Duke of Dantiao Canal, and his son Guan Lu, who was also summoned to attend.
After the Minister of Works Fu Xun arrived in Lipao, as he inspected along the river canal, Guan Cheng inquired about many requests for the transportation of supplies.
Fu Xun was surprised in his heart. According to reason, such confidential matters were not something a mere Qianqi stone official like Guan Cheng should be aware of.
After much inquiry, Guan Cheng only told the emperor about his son Guan Lu's fortune-telling and how it related to the emperor.
Fu Xun was a learned man by nature and had a good understanding of canonical texts and the Book of Changes. Upon hearing Guan Cheng's words, he summoned Guan Lu to ask about the principles in detail and realized that this man was a prodigy. Therefore, in his report sent to Yecheng, he detailed the matters of Guan Cheng and Guan Kui.
Although Cao Rui had always disbelieved such things, he still had a great interest in supernatural phenomena and divination. As an emperor, it was quite monotonous, so seeing extraordinary people and scholars from the countryside was also a rare comfort.
In the Feiguang Hall of the Tongquedai, these thousand-stone officials answered the emperor's questions one by one with caution, not even daring to glance around.
For a thousand-stone official to be summoned by the emperor for an audience is an event that can be boasts about for at least twenty years. It matters little whether the emperor asked one question or two.
After each question was answered correctly, Cao Rui looked at Guan Ke, who was kneeling on the ground, and softly said, "Do you call yourself Guan Lu? Please lift your head and let the emperor take a look at your appearance."
Guan Lu looked up briefly upon hearing the emperor's words, then lowered his head again, too afraid to look directly at the emperor.
Cao Rui turned to Sima Yi and said with a smile, "This man is skilled in divination; I find him quite remarkable."
"Sima Yi, do you think this person is Xu Feng or Dong Fang Shu?" (This chapter ends)
