Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

If every minister has a certain inherent nature, then Jiang Ji's inherent nature is arrogance and conceit.

During Cao Pi's Huangchu era, Jiang Ji gradually gained prominence and distinguished himself, making two great contributions in Yangzhou. During the Taihe era, Jiang Ji was appointed governor of Yangzhou and was granted the title of duke. For someone like him who prided himself on his talent, official positions and titles were, in his view, the rewards he deserved for his hard work and achievements.

Under this mindset, Jiang Ji had little gratitude towards the court or the emperor. He usually got along well with Sima Yi and others. On the one hand, Jiang Ji believed that most officials in the court, except for Sima Yi, were foolish and stupid. On the other hand, Jiang Ji was narrow-minded and greedy, and was not liked by scholars. Sima Yi completely disregarded these shortcomings of Jiang Ji.

Over the decades, their relationship grew stronger and stronger, almost like that of allies.

Only now did Jiang Ji truly respect and even revere the emperor. He finally understood why the emperor had been able to stabilize the court and implement benevolent policies over the past ten years, and why he had driven the court to complete the great campaign against Wu.

Your Majesty is the true emperor, the true Son of Heaven!

"Your subject obeys the decree." Jiang Ji's voice trembled slightly as he slowly stood up, bowing his head and not daring to answer.

Cao Rui said, "Minister Jiang, tell me the truth, how do you intend to use this money that you brought to Luoyang?"

“Your Majesty,” Jiang Ji said in a low voice, “I originally intended to divide this money into dozens of portions and give them to the high-ranking officials in Luoyang to cultivate good relations with them.”

Cao Rui calmly asked, "Who will receive them all? Or rather, who will not receive them?"

Jiang Ji said, "I originally intended to send more to the cabinet ministers, less to the ministers and privy councilors, and even less to the nine ministers."

Cao Rui patted Jiang Ji on the shoulder, turned around and walked behind the desk: "There's no need to send them any more. I don't want your money. It was sent to you by the powerful families of Wu, not to me or these officials. Tomorrow, take this money from the Imperial Treasury and use it however you like. Just don't send any more to the officials!"

"I dare not keep it privately; it is best to leave it at the Imperial Household Department." Jiang Ji bowed again.

Cao Rui waved his hand impatiently: "I told you to take it, so take it. It's just a little money. I'm rich beyond measure, what do I need your money for?"

"To tell you the truth, I have also thought about these things carefully."

"During the Taihe era of the Great Wei Dynasty, the army attacked Hanzhong, Liaodong, and Wancheng. These were all impoverished places. Whether it was the generals in command or ordinary soldiers, the money they received came from the rewards of the imperial court. During the Huangchu era, the imperial court made few progress. Apart from the King of Hejian making a fortune by selling cattle, sheep, and servants when he quelled the rebellion of the Hu people in Hexi, there were no other examples."

“Going back further, apart from the Cao and Xiahou generals who made some money when they pacified Hebei and the Central Plains, the rest of the generals lived in poverty. According to the custom of the Han Dynasty, the commander-in-chief was to take the money obtained from the conquest or the suppression of rebellions first... In recent years, the nobles and relatives in Luoyang have also been trying to make money. I am the emperor and I cannot block their path to wealth. As long as they do not exploit the people, that is fine.”

"Minister Jiang, I'll say it again: tomorrow, send someone to collect your money and do with it as you see fit. Around the beginning of next year, once the court's finances are a little better, I will issue an edict to slightly increase officials' salaries. Since the Jian'an Rebellion, court officials have only received a quarter or a fifth of their salaries. After taking Wu, the finances will be much better; this matter should be handled accordingly."

"Furthermore, in the second half of the year, I will have the Ministry of Personnel include corruption in its performance evaluations. You've done it ahead of time, so I won't hold it against you." Cao Rui shook his head and laughed. "Besides, in the war against Wu, you weren't the only one who profited. I got some, the Prince of Hejian got some, and many generals from top to bottom got some. Minister Jiang, I'm only giving you this one chance; there won't be a second one!"

"Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace!" Jiang Jishen bowed deeply. "I assure Your Majesty that I will never again covet even a single copper coin!"

"Take care of yourself," Cao Rui said calmly, then said to Wang Xiong, "It's almost noon. Minister Wang, order the imperial chefs to prepare the meal. You two, Minister Jiang, and I will eat together in the study."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I will go and inform them immediately." Wang Xiong rose and left.

Eating and chatting go hand in hand, and Jiang Ji continued to introduce Cao Rui to the situation of the three southern counties of Yangzhou, which are the core counties of Danyang, Wu, and Kuaiji in Wu.

In short, conquering Wu was easy, but governing Wu was difficult.

In the ninth year of the Taihe era, the families of Wu officials who had surrendered, such as Gu Yong and Kan Ze, were all moved to the north. The magistrates and county heads of all counties in Wu were replaced by officials originally from Wei. Indeed, as Cao Rui had previously stated, all positions with a salary of 500 shi or more were replaced by officials from the north.

However, these official positions such as prefects, magistrates, county heads, and military commanders were merely the skeleton; the countless clerks in various regions were the real flesh and blood that carried out the court's governance. Even a capable minister like Jiang Ji, stationed in Jiangning, had to face the objective fact that those below the rank of 500 shi were all former officials of the Wu Kingdom.

Regarding the copper mine issue, Jiang Ji admitted that he had been too hasty. However, apart from appointing these former officials from the Wu Kingdom, Jiang Ji himself did not know how to mine, and the mines under the Directorate of Works were not enough to mine, so he could not send anyone to Danyang County for the time being.

Cao Rui took all of this into account and compared it with Xiahou Xuan's detailed and lengthy memorial. He found that, apart from the murdered official Du Li's personal abuse of punishment, the rest of the situation in Yangzhou was not much different from what Jiang Ji had said.

These kinds of trivial and insignificant matters can only be resolved gradually over time; there's no point in rushing them.

After lunch, Cao Rui stood up and said, "Two Attendants, and Minister Jiang, the three of you will accompany me to the Imperial Academy. It has been several years since I last visited the Imperial Academy."

"By the way, everyone change into casual clothes." "Your Majesty, we obey." The three responded in unison.

After tidying up briefly, Cao Rui, accompanied by Wang Xiong, Cui Lin, and Jiang Ji, the governor of Yangzhou, rode in the same carriage. The carriage slowly drove out of the south gate of the North Palace, with two groups of light cavalry flanking it from the front and back.

This was Jiang Ji's first time traveling in the same carriage as His Majesty, and he was understandably a little nervous. During a casual conversation with Cao Rui, Jiang Ji asked:
"I have heard that Your Majesty has visited the Imperial Academy many times before, and consulted on governance at the Imperial Academy in accordance with the rites of the village schools. Is it the same when you go there today?"

Cao Rui smiled and said, "This matter was prepared by me at the behest of Attendant Cui. Let him speak."

"Yes." Cui Lin cupped his hands in greeting, and then slowly explained to Jiang Ji: "Lord Jiang, you may not know this, but when the Imperial Academy was first re-established, students often discussed classics, literature, poetry, and people's livelihood. It wasn't until three years ago, in the seventh year of Taihe, that this gradually became a formality."

"If students are particularly interested in a certain matter, and gather more than twenty people, they can apply to Dr. Zheng to discuss it publicly with their classmates in the Jixian Hall, and have the doctors of the Imperial Academy comment on it, thus emulating the wisdom of the sages. His Majesty has brought us to the Imperial Academy today to see the scholars' discussion."

Jiang Ji suddenly realized: "Sage... I see. Attendant Cui, I vaguely remember that Emperor Guangwu of Han held a memorial meeting at the White Tiger Temple in Luoyang. Was it modeled after this?"

“That’s somewhat true,” Cui Lin replied. “During the reign of Emperor Xuan of the Former Han Dynasty, Emperor Xuan summoned great Confucian scholars to the Shiqu Pavilion north of Weiyang Palace to discuss the differences between the Five Classics. After the discussion, the great Confucian scholars jointly wrote 137 memorials. However, one such event in the Later Han Dynasty did not take place during the reign of Emperor Guangwu, but rather during the reign of Emperor Zhang. He summoned all the high officials, scholars, advisors, and students to the Baihu Pavilion, where the General of the Five Offices asked questions, the Attendant-in-Ordinary presented his findings, and Emperor Zhang personally determined the correctness of the interpretations of the classics.”

"I see." Jiang Ji smiled awkwardly: "Your Majesty, I lived in a chaotic world when I was young, and my studies were not thorough. I apologize for making a fool of myself."

Cao Rui, however, seemed unconcerned: "Times have changed. Back then, the people were displaced and the world was in turmoil. How much use was studying the classics then? But now the world is at peace, so studying the classics is still worthwhile."

"Minister Jiang, I remember your son's name is Jiang Xiu?"

Jiang Ji nodded: "Yes, I am now seventeen years old and studying at home in Shouchun."

"Let him come to the Imperial Academy in the autumn," Cao Rui said calmly. "The scenery in Luoyang is better than in Huainan. Let him meet the many talented scholars at the Imperial Academy."

Jiang Ji bowed and agreed: "Your subject understands. Your subject will summon him to Luoyang immediately so that he can experience the culture of Luoyang as soon as possible."

When the imperial carriage arrived at the gate of the Imperial Academy, Cao Rui signaled the Tiger Guards responsible for guarding the area to stop outside. He then led Wang, Cui, and Jiang into the Imperial Academy, where Zheng Cheng had been waiting for some time.

"Your Majesty, the students' discussion is about to begin. Please come this way."

"Okay." Cao Rui nodded with a smile.

The five of them entered together. The vast Imperial Academy was nearly empty at this time. All the students and young scholars from Luoyang who had come to audit the classes were already seated in the Jixian Hall.

Zheng led Cao Rui and the others to sit on a slightly higher seat to the side and back, watching from afar as students began to go on stage.

"Dr. Zheng, what are the students discussing today?" Jiang Ji asked Zheng Cheng in a low voice.

Zheng Cheng said softly, "Can the people of the Yue Mountains be treated the same as the people of the Great Wei?"

"Thank you for your guidance, Dr. Zheng." Jiang Ji bowed slightly.

"It's alright," Zheng Cheng nodded.

The emperor and his entourage listened with great interest, but Jiang Ji only felt a dryness in his mouth. Wasn't the question of whether the Yue people were equivalent to the people of the Great Wei just a reference to his own affair in Yangzhou?

Although judging from His Majesty's attitude today, I should be spared any major trouble—His Majesty's leniency is limited to the matter of money, and he hasn't mentioned anything else—if the Imperial Academy students really come to some conclusion, showing compassion and regarding the Yue people as citizens of the Great Wei, wouldn't the blame on me be even heavier?
Fortunately, Du Li, the clerk, had already been killed by Xiahou Xuan.

Jiang Ji's thoughts kept wandering. One moment he was thinking about how to deal with the money, and the next he was worried about whether Li Ying, the Prefect, would take care of the affairs in the prefecture for him.

If the Yue people really treat the people of Wei the same way, then it will be Yangzhou and me who will be busy... If the winds in Luoyang change again, will I be implicated in other crimes?

Just as Jiang Ji was lost in thought, a round of applause rang out in the Jixian Hall, pulling him back to reality. A scholar stepped down from the platform, followed by another.

The visitor was none other than Jia Chong. (End of Chapter)