Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Inside the Shouchun Palace, in the study.

Having returned to Shouchun, Cao Rui, as always, leaned back in his recliner and closed his eyes to rest.

At this moment, in the study, General Cao Zhen, Minister Chen Qun, Privy Council members Dong Zhao and Liu Ye, Minister of the Imperial Secretariat Sima Yi and Huang Quan, and the four Attendants-in-Ordinary Pei, Xu, Wang and Lu from the Cabinet, as well as Imperial Censor Chen Jiao and Governor of Yangzhou Jiang Ji, a total of twelve people, were seated on both sides.

These people were the true high-ranking officials and nobles of the Great Wei Dynasty. Wherever they were with the emperor, that was the capital city that truly controlled the fate of the world.

Sima Yi stood before the throne and spoke eloquently.

"Based on the above, considering the four aspects of territory, population, governance, and terrain, I believe that two temporary prefectures, Southern Jingzhou and Southern Yangzhou, should be established to stabilize the region when attacking Wu."

As Sima Yi finished speaking, he put away the document he was holding, stood respectfully with his hands clasped, and looked at the emperor.

Cao Rui then slowly sat up straight, reached out and pressed down, gesturing for Sima Yi to sit down.

“What Sikong said is correct,” Cao Rui said. “Since the first year of Taihe, there have been three similar examples in the Great Wei that can be used as a reference.”

"In the first year of Taihe, Wancheng was captured. There were no people there, so the court ordered Jia Liangdao to take charge of the military and political affairs there. In the second year of Taihe, Hanzhong was captured, and the tens of thousands of remaining people there were moved to Guanzhong. Guo Boji was ordered to guard the three places of Mianyang, Nanzheng and Yangping on the west side of Hanzhong."

"After the suppression of Gongsun's rebellion in the fourth year of the Taihe era, the court established Yingzhou there, appointing Wang Wenshu as the governor of Yingzhou and Wang Yuanbo as the prefect of Yingzhou. Over the years, the situation there has become increasingly stable. Later, Wu Bonan became the supervisor of Yingzhou and Liu Wengong became the prefect of Yingzhou. Yingzhou gradually became known as Anping."

“But attacking Wu is different!” Cao Rui glanced around, meeting the gazes of everyone who was looking at him, and then said, “Sun Quan has ruled for more than 30 years, from Xiling to Wu County, from Dantu to Rinan, covering more than a thousand miles in all directions. It is vast and fertile. If war breaks out, it will take at least half a year, and at most several years, which is not as easy as pacifying Liaodong in a month or so.”

"The Minister of Works has given me a good suggestion. Military measures and political affairs must be addressed simultaneously to ensure success."

Cao Rui looked at Sima Yi, who bowed slightly before sitting down.

"Minister Pei," Cao Rui pointed at Pei Qian, "the cabinet has already drafted a memorial; let's discuss it with the ministers."

"As you command." Pei Qian nodded solemnly, then stood up.

Sima Yi's eyes widened slightly. He had proposed the idea of ​​dividing the provinces into separate regions, but how had the cabinet interfered?!

The suggestion to exile his own younger brother, Sima Shuda, and Xiahou Zhongquan to Yingzhou was put forward by the cabinet, and Sima Yi kept this in mind and hated it to the core.

Gao Rou was a reasonable person. She reduced the sentences of Sima Fu and Xiahou Ba, and she had already agreed with Xu Miao. However, the cabinet ruined the good thing and sentenced both of them to exile in Liaodong.

Fortunately, Wu Zhou and Wu Bonan, the military commanders of Yingzhou, had recommended him themselves, and Liu Jing had always been friendly to him. Both of them were known for their tact and understanding. Otherwise, if he, as the Minister of Works and the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, had paid attention to such trivial matters, it might have attracted some negative attention.

Pei Qian said, "The cabinet suggests that the court should take this opportunity to integrate the administrative divisions of various prefectures and counties, and further subdivide the proposed plans for Southern Jingzhou and Southern Yangzhou from the Ministry of Personnel, so as to ensure smooth military and political affairs and to align with the major policies of the country."

"The three commanderies of Weixing, Shangyong, and Xincheng were combined into Weixing Commandery. The northern part of the former Jiangxia Commandery was divided into the new Jiangxia Commandery. The six commanderies of Weixing, Nanxiang, Nanyang, Xiangyang, Nan Commandery, and Jiangxia were under the jurisdiction of the Jingzhou Governor's Office, with the capital of the province in Xiangyang."

Pei Qian had barely finished speaking when everyone's expressions turned serious. Administrative divisions were a matter of national importance; clearly, this meant dividing Jingzhou north of the Yangtze River. What about Jingnan and Yangzhou? According to the administrative divisions of the Later Han Dynasty, Yangzhou's territory was much larger than Jingzhou's!

Pei Qian slowly and deliberately explained: "The four prefectures of Wuling, Changsha, Lingling, and Guiyang are under the jurisdiction of the Xiangzhou Prefecture, with the prefecture capital at Linxiang."

“The Jiangxia Commandery south of the Yangtze River was divided into the Wuchang Commandery, and the Kuaiji Commandery south of Linhai and Zhang'an was divided into the Zhang'an and Jian'an Commanderies. The six commanderies of Wuchang, Yuzhang, Poyang, Luling, Zhang'an and Jian'an were placed under the jurisdiction of the Jiangzhou Inspectorate, with the capital of the prefecture in Nanchang.”

"The area north of Yiyang, Anfeng, and Lu'an was combined into Huaixi Commandery, and the remaining areas of Qichun and Lujiang were combined into Lujiang Commandery. The six commanderies of Huaixi, Huainan, Lujiang, Danyang, Wu, and Kuaiji were combined into Yangzhou, with its capital at Jianye."

"The administrative divisions of Jiaozhou will remain unchanged."

Pei Qian bowed to Cao Rui and said, "Your Majesty, I have finished my report."

Sima Yi, who proposed dividing the provinces, was also secretly alarmed.

The second cabinet was clearly different from the first. It was common knowledge that the new cabinet was a secretariat directly under the emperor, with only the power to summarize and evaluate. For such a matter to be proposed by the cabinet clearly indicated the emperor's own will! Who, besides His Majesty himself, would be so bold as to divide the prefectures and counties like a piece of cake? Even Sima Yi only dared to propose the idea of ​​Southern Jingzhou and Southern Yangzhou; he would never have gone so far as to specify which prefecture would belong to which prefecture, and even decide on the name and capital of each prefecture!
Seeing that everyone's eyes were on him, Cao Rui did not make any excuses, but nodded and said directly:

"This matter was first proposed by the Minister of Works, and I put forward further ideas, which were then divided into specific divisions by the cabinet." Cao Rui acknowledged the matter without hesitation: "In my opinion, the redivision of the Wu territory into provinces is a correction to the measures taken since the Later Han Dynasty."

“Since the end of the Han Dynasty, the north and south have been separated and confronted by the Han River, the Yangtze River, and the Huai River. In other words, the power of the south has gradually increased, while the power of the north is waiting to be restored. The old division has become seriously outdated. You have all seen the maps of the Later Han Dynasty. After leaving the jurisdiction of the Governor of Henan, you go through Jingzhou and directly reach the Nanhai Commandery of Jiaozhou.”

"The jurisdictions of Jingzhou and Yangzhou are so vast that they can no longer keep up with the ever-changing state of the nation. Of course, today I am discussing the attack on Wu with you all, and this is only a matter of dividing up the prefectures and counties of Wu. When we attack Shu in the future, given the vastness of Yizhou, we may have to redistribute some of the Shu territory as well." "Do any of you have any objections?"

"I agree with this proposal," said Dong Zhao, Grand Commandant and Privy Councilor, who was the first to express his agreement.

"I second that proposal," said General Cao Zhen, bowing respectfully.

Seeing that the emperor had not followed his plan but had mentioned his hard work in initiating it, Sima Yi had no reason to refuse and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty is wise."

The remaining officials all expressed their agreement.

Cao Rui nodded: "I also think this division is quite appropriate. Today, right here in the study, let's, as ruler and subject, also finalize the positions in these areas."

"Jiang Qing." Cao Rui pointed at Jiang Ji: "You are the governor of Yangzhou, and have been here for many years. I have always trusted your talent and character. The three prefectures of Wu, Danyang, and Kuaiji have long been under the rule of the Sun family. To rectify the chaos and restore order, I am returning the post of governor of Yangzhou to you. Can you handle it?"

Jiang Ji solemnly rose, walked into the center of the study, bowed deeply to Cao Rui, and said, "Your Majesty, I can do it. Please observe my performance!"

"Flat body."

"General," Cao Rui looked at Cao Zhen, "the Wu region is far apart to the east and west, while Jiangzhou is located in between. I wish to appoint you, General, as the Governor of Jiangzhou, so that you may quell the Wu bandits and roam freely across the north and south of the Yangtze River. Are you willing to share my burdens, General?"

"Your Majesty, rest assured, this matter is entrusted to me." Cao Zhen cupped his hands in greeting.

"Pei Qing, please make a note for me." Cao Rui said calmly, "Since the death of the former governor of Jingzhou, Guanqiu Xing, the affairs of Jingzhou have been simple, so a governor has not been appointed for the time being. This time, the division has been redivided, and Xin Pi, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat and General Who Assists Wei, will be appointed as the governor of Jingzhou."

"Do any of you gentlemen have different opinions?"

Everyone naturally agreed.

Everyone knows Xin Pi's usefulness. He is in charge of logistics in Fancheng. Whether he is a prefect or not is probably just a wartime honorary title, which is not very useful to him. It is neither important nor unimportant.

"General Man Chong, who was to be the General Who Conquers the South, was appointed Governor of Xiangzhou. Guanqiu Jian, the Commander of the Central Army, was appointed General of the Army and Governor of Jiaozhou."

"Have you noted it down? Let's draft the decree accordingly," Cao Rui said calmly.

“I have memorized everything,” Pei Qian said.

Dong Zhao smiled slightly, slumped in his chair, and closed his eyes to rest. Cao Zhen sat to the side, deep in thought, while the other officials also had their own considerations.

There's not much to say about the appointments of Jiang Ji and Xin Pi.

Man Chong was appointed to Xiangzhou, Cao Zhen to Jiangzhou, and Guanqiu Jian to Jiaozhou. In a sense, this is somewhat similar to the official system of the Wu Kingdom. Sun Quan granted his generals nominal titles such as Governor of Youzhou, Governor of Qingzhou, and Governor of Xuzhou, which, although intended to motivate his subjects and encourage them to lead troops to conquer those places, were all too clear to be true and unrealistic.

But the governorships of these three men were tantamount to telling them to lead the army to conquer this place!
The emperor's decision to leave Guanqiu Jian in Guangling and further promote him to General of the Vanguard clearly indicates his intentions. The last person to be promoted from General of the Central Army to General of the Vanguard was the late Grand Marshal Cao Xiu (Cao Wenlie)!
Clearly, it was a foregone conclusion that the Yangzhou army would split into two routes, with Cao Zhen leading the route to Ruxu and Guanqiu Jian leading the route to Guangling.

Of the royal titles His Majesty promised in the seventh year of the Huangchu era, have three already been bestowed upon Cao Zhen, Man Chong, and Guanqiu Jian?

As the times changed and circumstances shifted, eight years ago no one could have imagined that Man Chong and Guanqiu Jian would become the leaders of a team.

Although Guanqiu Jian was relatively young, not yet forty, there were frequent wars during the Taihe era. Guanqiu Jian accompanied the emperor in his campaigns, and his achievements were remarkable.

The emperor hadn't mentioned this matter for many years, but no one had forgotten it... Moreover, given the example of Cao Zhi, the Prince of Yongqiu, who, despite being a member of the imperial clan, was now serving as a naval commander, it was possible that being granted the title of prince would not prevent him from holding an official position in the court.

So, to whom will the only remaining title of king, reserved for the person in charge of logistics, be given?

This is yet another uncertain number.

After reviewing with his ministers the order of the troops to be deployed, which had been agreed upon with Man Chong in Jingzhou, the ministers took their leave from the study and walked out one by one.

The emperor had been away for over a month, and everyone's minds were in turmoil. But when the emperor returned to the imperial palace, after less than two hours of discussion, everyone's hearts were at peace.

Amidst the peace, there was a mixture of tension and excitement anticipating a major battle. (End of Chapter)