Volume 3: The Land of Jingchu Chapter 211 Nine Gifts
"Boda, Zhu Zhi from the General of Chariots and Cavalry's Mansion is back, and he brought Zhang Xiu's advisers with him. It seems... Nanyang may have sided with Jiangdong! What should we do?" Cao Pi asked Sima Lang anxiously.
After all, Cao Pi was only a thirteen-year-old boy. He usually relied on his acting skills to get by. When it came time to make a decision, he was inevitably flustered.
Because Cao Pi and Sima Lang were in Jinling, they could not get the news from the Prime Minister's Mansion - Cao Cao could not have traveled thousands of miles to deliver such important news to Jinling...
Otherwise, Cao Pi and Sima Lang might not get it, but it would be intercepted by Bai Tu first!
It was for this reason that Cao Cao gave Cao Pi and Sima Lang a great deal of decision-making power on the battlefield, which also tested Sima Lang's judgment.
"My lord, there is no need to worry. Lord Bai has already dispatched troops to the west. Obviously, the primary target is Jingzhou. Moreover, Nanyang has just been annexed. After Yuan Shu's remaining troops learn the news, they will definitely march to Rangcheng. Zhang Xiu does not have the spare energy to go north. In fact... whether Zhang Xiu joins the Cavalry Department or the Prime Minister's Office, there will be no difference in the short term." Sima Lang said.
Will Zhang Xiu's defection to the General of Chariots and Cavalry's Office have a big impact on the Prime Minister's Office?
Of course it’s big!
Now Cao Cao hopes to maintain a certain tacit understanding with Bai Tu, one enters Jingzhou, the other decides Hebei...
Wancheng is located at the gateway between Nanyang and the Central Plains, and can attack Yingchuan at any time.
If Wancheng sided with Bai Tu, it would create a situation where Bai Tu could teach Cao Cao a lesson at any time, but Cao Cao could not fight back. This was no longer a "tacit understanding", but rather an expectation of unilateral tolerance from Bai Tu.
However, Cao Pi can be anxious, but Sima Lang must be able to sit still. Although what he just said was comforting, it is not without reason.
The remaining troops of Yuan Shu stationed along the upper reaches of the Huai River are now in the most tense situation - they are sandwiched between the east and west sides by Bai Tu.
Once they take the initiative to use military force, Wancheng will definitely be unable to look north in a short period of time.
“But if Bai Tu takes Jingzhou first…” Cao Pi is not that easy to appease.
"No, that is something that the lord and Xun Lingjun have to consider. What we really need to do now is to allow the lord to fight Yuan Shao without any scruples...even if it is just a signal of goodwill and cooperation." Sima Lang said.
"What should we do then?" Cao Pi asked proactively.
"Tomorrow... I will go to meet Lord Bai alone. You should stay in the post house for the time being, in case Lord Bai refuses and you have no way out." Sima Lang said.
The next day, Sima Lang took the initiative to ask for a meeting, bringing the friendship and "suggestions" from the Prime Minister's Office.
…
"General? Where does Prime Minister Cao want to place Yuan Shao? Moreover... even if he is an official appointed by the court, he must have been granted the title by the court. Why do you need to tell me now?" Bai Tu asked Sima Lang in front of him.
That’s right, what Sima Lang just told Bai Tu was that the Prime Minister hoped Bai Tu could be promoted to the rank of General - nominally higher than the General of Chariots and Cavalry, but in reality... now they are all playing their own games.
The Jian'an era had already been used for the fourth year, and the prestige of the Han Dynasty had become increasingly superficial. Whether it was the General of Chariots and Cavalry or the General-in-Chief, only their own people could be ordered around.
However, the current general is Yuan Shao. If Bai Tu takes the position of general at this time, it would be equivalent to openly turning against Yuan Shao.
"The Prime Minister was worried that Bai Gongqian would not accept it, so he ordered the outsiders to investigate first." Sima Lang said.
"This great general...can he mobilize the troops from Xu Du?" Bai Tu asked directly.
"Xudu is under the command of the Prime Minister, so there is no need for the general."
Without saying anything, the look in Bai Tu's eyes when he looked at Sima Lang made the latter know that he was saying "Since it's useless, why should I suffer?"
"The general is in charge of all the troops in the world..."
Sima Lang was halfway through his speech when he saw Bai Tu's contemptuous look, but he continued: "The Prime Minister is willing to share the horses of Bingzhou with Lord Bai to jointly support the Han Dynasty."
Divide the horses of Bingzhou?
Bai Tu is indeed short of horses. Now that Yuan Shao has unified Hebei, he controls the largest source of horses in China. It is not easy to get horses even in the Central Plains, let alone Yangzhou?
As for the Dian horses in Yizhou... although they are smaller in size, more suitable for carrying weight and not good at charging, Bai Tu can still deal with them. However, there is Liu Biao in the middle, so Bai Tu can only exchange some of them sporadically using "salt permits".
Before Gan Ning opens up the sea route to Liaodong, cavalry will always be Baitu's weak point!
However, is Sima Lang's blank check credible now?
After Yuan Shao is defeated, will Cao Cao still be so easy to talk to?
Besides... Gan Ning's fleet has already begun exploring the sea route, and Bai Tu is optimistic about this.
Bai Tu took a sip of tea and said nothing.
"Mr. Bai served as Prime Minister of Yangzhou and pacified the rebel Yuan Shikai. His contributions have benefited the country and the people... The Prime Minister has long had an idea and wanted to request that Mr. Bai be awarded the Nine Gifts!" Sima Lang said while gritting his teeth.
Seeing Bai Tu's situation, Sima Lang had no choice but to say something practical.
"Nine Gifts... This isn't a good idea, right? I would definitely refuse it if it happens once or twice." Bai Tu said righteously.
Seeing this, Sima Lang's mouth twitched and he said, "Of course it won't be...one or two times."
Bai Tu nodded then. As a gentleman, he still had to do the "three refusal and three declines".
For Bai Tu, admitting the position of "General" was a matter of course, as it meant completely finalizing the alliance with Cao Cao and taking the initiative to provoke Yuan Shao as a "token of surrender."
The reason why Bai Tu could ask for benefits was because Bai Tu took the initiative in this alliance...
However, it was impossible to really expect Cao Cao to cede two counties to him. The previous talk about sharing the horses of Bingzhou was just a casual remark. Bai Tu estimated that Sima Lang himself did not take it seriously.
In comparison, the Nine Gifts are just right...
It will not make Cao Cao feel distressed, and it will also give Bai Tu the motivation to accept it!
What are the Nine Gifts? It is a kind of ceremonial vessel recorded in the Book of Rites, which is bestowed by the emperor on the princes. Adding the Nine Gifts is such a ceremony.
"The Book of Rites" mainly writes about the ritual system of the pre-Qin period. The "Emperor" and "princes" here naturally refer to the Emperor of Zhou and the princes of various countries, which are the same as the unified emperor of the Han Dynasty. Although they have the same name, they are actually completely different systems.
In fact, it is impossible to verify who granted the Nine Gifts in the pre-Qin period. According to legend, Duke Zhou was granted the Nine Gifts, but... In the unified Han Dynasty, the study of the Nine Gifts was only for academic purposes. How could the emperor of a unified country grant the Nine Gifts to others?
Of course, nothing is absolute. Under normal circumstances, there would not be any such thing as granting the Nine Gifts, but... for example, in the year 200, Wang Mang was awarded the Nine Gifts!
In the history without the white map effect, Cao Cao was granted the Nine Gifts, Sun Quan was granted the Nine Gifts, Sima Zhao was granted the Nine Gifts, Huan Xuan was granted the Nine Gifts, and the founding emperors of the four Southern Dynasties all received the Nine Gifts from the previous dynasties, including Li Yuan, Wang Shichong, Gao Huan...
Looking around, everyone is a loyal minister!
There is only one Wang Mang now, so it is not too sensitive. In addition, for Bai Tu, unlike the "general", "granting the nine gifts" is related to practical benefits.
The general is still a Han minister. At present, apart from offending Yuan Shao, the general has almost no role, and is even nominally lower than the prime minister who is a combination of the three officials.
However, after the ceremony of "adding the nine gifts", it became a matter of debate as to whether the relationship between the Han emperor and Bai Tu was that of a monarch and his subject, or a court-going relationship like that between the Zhou emperor and the princes.
In the short term, Bai Tu would certainly still "support the Han Dynasty". After giving in several times and being unable to bear the hospitality of the Han Dynasty, when he accepted the Nine Gifts, Bai Tu would (find a ghostwriter) write a fu expressing this position. However, Cao Cao's advantage in controlling the court would be greatly reduced for Bai Tu.
Therefore, in March of the fourth year of Jian'an, Bai Tu took the position of general and spoke in unison with the court to accuse Yuan Shao of misconduct!
At the same time, an imperial edict that caused great controversy not only in the court but also in the Prime Minister's Office was finally issued - granting Bai Tu the title of Marquis of Chu and adding the Nine Gifts.
Although Bai Tu published the "Rejection of the Nine Gifts" at the first opportunity and declined the court's kindness, but... anyone with a discerning eye knows that after two or three times of trouble and three to five months, it will eventually be implemented!
Not only in the court, some officials criticized this action indirectly, but Xun Yu also claimed to be sick for several days because of it.
Xun Yu was nominally the "Minister of the Chancellery" and a court official of the Han Dynasty, but everyone knew that he was also the chief counselor of the Prime Minister's Office.
Xun Yu showed great resistance to the granting of the Nine Gifts. It was not until a few days later, when Cao Cao personally visited him at his house and had a long talk, that Xun Yu returned to "work."
In history when there was no white rabbit effect, Xun Yu also had a conflict of opinion with Cao Cao and his staff group over the issue of Cao Cao granting the Nine Gifts. Eventually, after receiving an empty food box from Cao Cao, Xun Yu committed suicide by taking poison.
As Cao Cao's chief strategist, was Xun Yu actually loyal to the Han Dynasty? Didn't anyone realize that even when Cao Cao had become increasingly disrespectful to the Han Emperor and even killed the pregnant Concubine Dong, Xun Yu still thought Cao Cao was a loyal minister?
Was he so slow that he only realized Cao Cao's ambition when he was awarded the Nine Gifts?
Of course not!
Xun Yu did not trust the imperial court, the ministers, or even the Han emperor, but believed in Cao Cao.
But at the same time, he hoped that Cao Cao could only be the prime minister, and even hoped that there would be a capable person in every generation to "undermine" the Han emperor and maintain the longevity of the Han Dynasty.
The Han Dynasty was the first unified and long-lived dynasty. Bai Tu looked at the Han Dynasty as just one of countless feudal dynasties, but Xun Yu saw the Han Dynasty as the only one.
Therefore, he did not want the change of dynasties to become a habit, but hoped that the Han Dynasty would last forever and that the capable would rule the country...
Rather than saying that he was loyal to the Han Dynasty, it would be more accurate to say that Xun Yu had conflicts in political ideas with those who advocated usurping the throne.
However... in the context of a hereditary monarchy, the appeal of the emperor's position is ultimately much greater than that of a powerful prime minister, and the meritorious officials in the prime minister's office are far from comparable to the meritorious officials who founded the country.
Xun Yu's political views made him an isolated figure in Cao Cao's camp. Even other members of the Xun family and other people who were recommended by him to power, such as Zhong Yao and Chen Qun, were against him at this time.
In addition, Cao Cao was actively attacking Liu Biao at the time, and Xun Yu was in charge of the rear, so the two of them had little communication. Under such circumstances, Xun Yu, who was hated and slandered by everyone, inevitably had his image deteriorated in Cao Cao's mind, and eventually died in an empty food box.
And now, Cao Cao took the initiative to add the Nine Gifts to Bai Tu, which undoubtedly made Xun Yu see some bad signs.
However, after all, it was not Cao Cao himself who bestowed the Nine Gifts, and Xun Yu and Cao Cao were now on good terms with each other. Except for a small core group, most of the other civil and military officials in the Prime Minister's Office were still trembling under the shadow of Yuan Shao. No one regarded Xun Yu as a stumbling block, so Xun Yu finally chose to reconcile.
However, Xun Yu was very dissatisfied with Sima Lang's self-assertion - Cao Cao certainly would not tell him that this was one of the candidate conditions Cao Cao himself gave him before Sima Lang left.
At the same time, for the default white map, Xun Yu has also turned to the black road, and he and Guo Jia suddenly have a common language...
