The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 104 A Teacher's Kindness and Cautious Authority

"There are indeed a few more things," Guan Yu nodded.

"Have you heard that the false emperor Cao Pi sent envoys to bestow upon Sun Quan the title of King of Wu of the false dynasty, and also claimed that he wanted to appoint Your Majesty as King of Shu and your uncle as King of Jing?"

Miwei nodded.

This news arrived only slightly after Cao Pi usurped the Han throne.

However, unlike the "abdication" which involved a formal imperial edict, this one was different.

Of these three claims of being granted the title of king, only Sun Quan had a clear envoy, namely Xing Zhen, the Grand Master of Ceremonies appointed by Cao Pi.

The other two are both rumors circulating among the public.

Its purpose is self-evident.

This was intended to test the attitudes of the people of the two states and, incidentally, to sow discord among the various factions.

Guan Yu: "It has long been a well-known fact that the Sun family is two-faced."

“My uncle personally oversaw the defense of Xiangyang, while Zhang Junsi, Liao Yuanjian, Ma Jichang, Deng Bomiao, and others were each stationed in their respective counties and were on high alert. In addition, Generals Wu and Chen were leading the navy south across the Yangtze River. Thus, the Sun family had no opportunity to take advantage of the situation.”

"What we are worried about now is the 'King of Jing' that Cao Pi has been talking about."

Seeing that Yang Yi was about to speak, Guan Yu raised his hand to stop him, and said:
"Your Majesty will not doubt me."

"Even old friends like Yide, Zizhong, and Kongming would not have any doubts."

"However, we must be wary of the saying that 'three men can make a tiger.'"

As he spoke, Guan Yu personally took out an exquisite lacquer box from under his seat.

Upon opening the box, a white jade seal inlaid with gold was revealed inside.

Beside it was a thick bamboo slip.

Then Guan Yu introduced:
"Last year, when the army besieged Xiangyang and Fancheng, two men from Xiangyang, Zhang Jia and Wang Xiu, presented this jade seal, saying that it was hidden in the Han River and its divine light appeared on its own, which was an auspicious sign that the mandate of heaven had returned to the source of the Han River."

“If you present this seal and the letter from the people of Jingzhou urging you to ascend the throne to the King, then these mere rumors will be dispelled without any further explanation.”

Mi Wei immediately understood.

Judging by the timeline, Liu Bei should be reaching that point by now.

The earlier insistence in Shu that Liu Xie was dead, and the nationwide mourning, was itself a prelude to this step.

After all, if the "Son of Heaven" doesn't die, wouldn't Liu Bei's claim to the throne be considered usurpation?
Of course, Mi Wei, being a person from later generations, didn't have this kind of dilemma.

Although Liu Xie was still physically alive.

But as the emperor of the Han Dynasty, he had already died in society.

Since Cao Pi was the first to tear off the fig leaf that made the Later Han dynasty exist in name only,

Then don't blame others for vying for the emperor's power and fame.

In other words.

The true Three Kingdoms era has arrived.

In fact, Mi Zhu's letter urging Mi Wei to enter Sichuan as soon as possible was related to this.

A new dynasty is about to be established, and a new emperor will ascend the throne.

Many people have followed Liu Bei for one or two decades, braving wind and rain, all for this moment.

If you're not rushing to join the fun in Sichuan now, how unwilling are you to make progress?

Miwei certainly wants to improve.

After more than a year of experience, he has developed new plans for his future.

He summarized it in one sentence:

The pursuit of a high-class life often begins with the most basic work.

Why does Lao Liu keep overestimating my Miwei lately?

It's because he's never seen me do things firsthand, and he's always been fooled by the old guys. So, distance makes the heart grow fonder?
This time, we'll go to Sichuan, stand right in front of him, and do things right under his nose!

I refuse to believe this can be overestimated!

At this moment, Guan Yu saw that Mi Wei had put away the imperial seal and the letter to the people, so he continued:
"The second thing."

“Ah Xing has been recuperating for nearly a year and has recovered. The King, remembering my merits, has bestowed a marriage upon the princess.”

“I have already given him the cap and the courtesy name ‘Anguo’.”

"He's accompanying you to Sichuan this time to broaden his horizons. He won't lose face in front of the officials there!"

Mi Wei smiled and agreed.

But Guan Yu's next words made him unable to laugh:
"Speaking of marriage, you are not young anymore, and Zizhong has written several times to urge you to get married."

"Why not let Ji Ji go to Shu with her brother?"

"Ah Xing will arrange the marriage on behalf of your father, and you two can get married in Sichuan. That way, your father won't mistakenly think your uncle is unwilling to marry off his daughter!" "Ha..."

Yang Yi, who was standing next to him, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Then, before Guan Yu could glare, he preemptively said:

"Judging by your age, Mr. Mi will be coming of age next year. I wonder if you have already chosen a courtesy name?"

Miwei responded:
"The lord wrote that His Majesty personally gave me a courtesy name."

"Oh, what character is it?" Guan and Yang immediately became interested.

Mi Wei: "It is the two characters 'Shi Shan' (師善), meaning 'teacher' and 'goodness' (善), meaning loyalty and kindness."

Yang Yi's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he was about to explain.

But noticing Guan Yu's thoughtful expression, he quickly changed his words:

"The clerk vaguely remembered that the two characters 'Shi Shan' came from the Zuo Zhuan of the Spring and Autumn Annals, but he really forgot which volume it was."

"Your Excellency is well-versed in the Zuo Zhuan; I wonder if you could enlighten me?"

Seeing this, Mi Wei thought to himself that Yang Yi had also made progress.

Sure enough, as long as he had a superior who could keep him firmly in a position of power and allow him to fully utilize his talents, Yang Weigong was able to perform steadily.

At this moment, Guan Yu, reminded by him, pondered for a moment, and then suddenly smiled and said:
The phrase "Shi Shan" comes from the story of Zi Chan not destroying the village school of the people of Zheng in the 31st year of Duke Xiang of Zuo.

“In the past, when the people of Zheng had free time, they would go to the village school to discuss the good and bad of the government.”

"Some say that the village school was destroyed to silence the slanderous words."

Zichan replied: “What he does well, I will do; what he dislikes, I will correct. He is my teacher.”

"It is also said: I have heard that loyalty and kindness can reduce resentment, but I have never heard of using power to prevent resentment."

Guan Yu paused, stroked his beard, and said:
"A teacher who is kind yet cautious in his authority can be considered benevolent. Excellent calligraphy!"

“Indeed, it is excellent calligraphy!” Yang Yi clapped his hands in response.

“When I was in Shu, I heard that the King often gave instructions to the Crown Prince, saying, ‘Do not do evil because it is small, and do not neglect good because it is small.’”

"The King bestowed this word 'goodness' upon Commandant Mi, which shows that he has high expectations of him!"

Mi Wei silently recited "distance makes the heart grow fonder" three times in his heart, and then smiled in response.

"Do not do evil because it is insignificant, and do not neglect good because it is insignificant..."

Guan Yu pondered for a moment.

Only when the two looked up did he raise his head and say with a sigh:
"Your Majesty's words are not only a hope for Awei, but also a warning to us all."

"Over the years, the Cao family has not implemented benevolent policies in Jingbei, which has led to the loss of popular support and their forced retreat to the north in disarray."

"Although we have now captured Xiangfan, if we do not learn from this experience, I fear we will be the ones to flee in defeat next year."

"I hope that you and my fellow disciples will work together with me and not repeat the mistakes of the Cao family!"

The two quickly clasped their hands in agreement.

……

After that, Guan Yu and Mi Wei discussed some minor personnel appointments.

As previously mentioned to Kou Feng, with the northward push of the battle line against Cao Wei to Xiangfan, the strategic importance of the Shicheng area of ​​Jiangxia Commandery has declined.

With Prefect Deng Zhi in charge, the Han River can be protected, and there is no need to appoint another official with a salary of 2,000 shi.

After Mi Wei entered Shu, he would surely be given another important position.

Even if he were to return to Jingzhou, he would only be assigned to a post on the front lines of the Northern Expedition.

Of course, Shicheng Shipyard was an important asset for the Han River Navy, so a chief official in charge of the ships still needed to be appointed.

Guan Yu planned to be promoted from under Mi Wei's command.

Mi Wei carefully compared the talents and personalities of each person and ultimately recommended Xi Hong, who was loyal, brave, and meticulous.

Later, on Mi Wei's advice, Guan Yu promoted Xiang Chong, who had performed well in the previous Northern Expedition, to the position of Sima, and separately commanded a troop to garrison Yancheng.

As a connecting point between Guanping in Fancheng and Koufeng in Dengcheng, it jointly controls the Yu River.

Both men were grateful to Mi Wei for his recommendation, which need not be elaborated upon.

In short, after everything was taken care of.

Mi Wei, accompanied by his scribe Pan Mi and cavalry leader Zhan Sifu, joined Guan Xing and his sister. The group then embarked on their official travels by boat up the Han River to the west, just before the end of the year.

This year was the 25th year of Jian'an reign of Emperor Liu Xie.

This year was the first year of the Yankang era of Cao Pi, the King of Wei.

This year was the first year of the Huangchu era of Emperor Cao Pi of Wei.

(End of this chapter)