From today on, Youweiju of Goguryeo, Titai of Buyeo, and Choushu of Baekje will become vassal states under the formal rule of the Great Wei.
After the three of them stood up and saluted, You Weiju's eyes turned and he asked first: "Your Majesty, the three 'covenants' just mentioned said that if there are any disputes, they must be resolved by the governor of Yingzhou. But we don't know who the governor of Yingzhou is."
"Wang Xiong, Wang Yuanbo, the former governor of Youzhou." Sima Yi looked at You Weiju and interrupted, "You Weiju, do you know Wang Yuanbo?"
You Weiju immediately bowed and said, "Envoy Wang was in Youzhou for several years. He was fair and just. I have heard of his great name in the country. Thank you for your advice, Sikong."
Cao Rui sat on the stage and looked at them with a smile: "In that case, the three of you will rest here for a few days. After the official decree is issued in three days, you will receive the seal, ribbon, crown and uniform, and then you can return to your own country."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward." You Weiju and the other three bowed together.
Cao Rui nodded slightly and looked at Nan Shengmi from the side. The hairstyle of the Japanese people in this era was really strange. The top of the head was parted in the middle and the hair was not shaved. The excess hair was piled on both sides, which was quite eye-catching.
"Nan Shengmi, you are here today as an envoy of Japan, and you have witnessed me conferring titles and signing treaties with the three countries at the same time. It is a great pity for your country that Himiko herself did not come."
Nan Shengmi was a Japanese envoy, and he was very clever. He bowed and saluted after hearing this: "I am a countryman from Japan. I am so lucky to see your Majesty today! If your Majesty has any wishes, I will convey them to the Queen after I return to Japan!"
"You are quite sensible." Cao Rui laughed dumbly: "How about this, you will receive some rewards from the Minister of Works later, and then set off to return to Japan in three days. The Great Wei inherits the Mandate of Heaven of the Han Dynasty, and Japan is also my vassal state."
"Tell Himiko that it's time to change her old seal."
Nan Shengmi immediately responded: "I have heard your Majesty's wishes and will convey them to the Queen."
After telling everyone what needed to be said, Cao Rui gave Sima Yi a slight look, and Sima Yi understood. He led the four people to kowtow again, and then slowly retreated.
After the few people left, Man Chong glanced at the figure gradually disappearing outside the hall door, then looked at the emperor, bowed and asked:
"Your Majesty, the three articles of agreement with Goguryeo, Buyeo, and Baekje were already finalized yesterday. But your Majesty's words just now seemed to be reminding the Japanese to come to the court?"
The unfinished meaning of this sentence is why the emperor attaches so much importance to Wakoku? This time, Wakoku only has one envoy, who was sent to Daifang County and was dragged here by Hechu. It seems that he should not participate in the ceremony of the kings of the other three countries to meet the emperor.
Cao Rui asked, "How much do you know about Japan, General Man?"
"Your Majesty..." Man Chong wanted to answer, but after searching his memory, he found that he had no impression of Japan at all.
"Your humble servant really does not know the details of Japan," Man Chong said with a bow.
Cao Rui nodded and looked at Man Chong and the other ministers in the hall: "Besides Minister Lu who has read the record of Emperor Guangwu conferring the title on the Kingdom of Wa, does anyone else know more?"
All the ministers in the hall shook their heads to show that they did not know.
Even Liu Ye, who had been in Youzhou for more than two years, did not know anything about this. It was not their fault. The Great Wei had already reached its limit in terms of knowing and contacting Goguryeo, Buyeo, and Baekje. They would not even pay any attention to Wa, which was far east of the sea.
Cao Rui said calmly: "If you don't know, I happen to know something."
Man Chong cupped his hands and said, "I hope your Majesty will give me your instructions."
Cao Rui nodded: "The so-called Wa Kingdom is actually an island country on the sea east of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. There are several large islands and countless small islands. Nan Shengmi just said that decades ago, Wa Kingdom was in constant conflict among the small countries, so Himiko was elected as the king."
"Do you know the radius of Japan's territory?"
Man Chong, Liu Ye and others all shook their heads.
Cao Rui said: "I don't know exactly how large it is. But what I do know is that the land there should be larger than that of Sili, and equally suitable for farming!"
Not only Man Chong was puzzled, but even Liu Ye did not understand: "Could it be that Your Majesty wants to follow the example of Emperor Wu of Han who took over Korea as a county and also bring Japan under his rule? However, much of the land in Wei is barren, and much of the land in Guanzhong, Henan, and Hebei has not yet been fully cultivated."
"I am afraid this will be a waste of time and effort."
Cao Rui shook his head: "Da Wei has a lot of land but few people now. What about 20 years, 50 years, or 1,000 years? Will there still be a lot of people and little land?"
Sima Yi, who had just entered the room, was quite helpless when he heard the emperor's words. Why did he bring up the matter a thousand years later? This was a bit too much.
Cao Rui continued, "Minister Lu also mentioned it just now. Over a hundred years ago, Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty conferred the title of King of Wa on the king. This also became evidence that Wa could become a vassal of the Wei Dynasty."
"I have no intention of annihilating Wa, nor do I intend to send troops. With the current national strength of Wei, it is not possible. But can we do something to leave a general basis for the future? We can confer titles now, and in five or ten years, can we move some civilians and Qiang people to Wa to farm?"
"I can see it!"
Although Liu Ye did not understand the profound meaning of "since ancient times" in Japan, he lost the intention to make suggestions after hearing the words "now conferring the title". It was just a matter of engraving a seal, sending a set of crowns and clothes, and giving some rewards. It would not cost much money, so there was nothing worth advising.
Liu Ye had made up his mind and said, "Your Majesty is far-sighted. I am ashamed."
Man Chong also bowed.
Cao Rui waved his hand and said, "It's okay. There has always been no secret between me and you, the monarch and my subjects, on state affairs. For many things, it is not enough to think about them in terms of five or ten years. We should think about them in terms of a hundred or a thousand years. This is what you, the pillars of the country, should do." All the ministers saluted together and said they would accept his instruction.
Cao Rui stood up and said, "Let's leave it at that for today. Minister Xu will send someone to urge Wang Chang and Wang Xiong to leave as soon as possible."
"As you wish." Man Chong replied.
……
At the same time, in the Qinzhou provincial capital, in Qishan City, Tianshui County.
Deng Ai came here from Chencang to inspect grain and stopped by to visit Chen Jiao, the governor of Qinzhou.
"Is it the scholar who has arrived?" Chen Jiao stood up from his seat in the main hall of the Governor's Mansion and said with a smile, "Please take a seat."
"Greetings, Lord Chen." Deng Ai bowed and saluted.
Chen Jiao has been doing very well in Qinzhou over the past two years, and even his temperament has become much calmer and amiable.
This is inevitable.
Before Chen Jiao was appointed by the emperor as the governor of Qinzhou, he served as the minister of state beside the emperor. Before that, he served as the minister of state or minister in Luozhong.
Although he holds a high position and holds great power, he is also subject to many restrictions. In addition, he is under the feet of the emperor, so it is inevitable that he is not able to do things smoothly.
But when Chen Jiao became the governor of Qinzhou, he was like a blank slate. He could shape the policies, the selection of officials, and the management according to his own wishes.
During the Huangchu period, the Inspectors were mainly responsible for supervision, but during the Taihe period of the current emperor, the Inspectors' power to govern and administer the country was further expanded. This rich life experience of governing a state is far beyond what an official position in Luozhong can provide.
Chen Jiao waved his hand and said, "Come here, serve some bamboo juice to General Deng."
Deng Ai, who had just sat down, was about to bow and express his gratitude when he saw this, but Chen Jiao waved his hand and gestured for him to sit down.
"Shi Zai, is everything going well for the general in Chencang?" Chen Jiao asked kindly.
Deng Ai replied: "If Lord Chen asks about the general's health, the general is naturally in good health. But if Lord Chen wants to ask about official business, Chen Cang has a lot of troubles."
"Is it still about food?" Chen Jiao asked back.
"That's right." Deng Ai pursed his lips and said, "I came down to visit Mr. Chen this time, and I still have two things I want to ask Mr. Chen for help with."
Chen Jiao nodded: "What's the matter, Shi Zai? Just tell me!"
Deng Ai said: "The first thing is to forward the decree of His Majesty to Luoyang Wei Pushe Office."
"The Imperial College students who graduated in the first year of Taihe and began to serve as military farm officials in Longyou in the second year have now come to return to the court to be appointed officials. These Imperial College students are all under the jurisdiction of Lord Chen, so Lord Chen still needs to take care of this matter."
Chen Jiao thought for a moment, stroked his beard and sighed, "If I were to withdraw all these 100 students from the Imperial College at once, I would be reluctant to do so."
Deng Ai asked with a smile, "Could it be that these students of the Imperial Academy are so capable that Lord Chen is reluctant to let them go?"
Chen Jiao said: "How should I put it? They were not very capable at the beginning. Some learned quickly, and some learned slowly. But once they learned what they should do, they worked harder than the officials who were older than them."
Deng Ai interjected, "They haven't learned to be as cunning and treacherous as the common mediocre officials."
"Perhaps he hasn't learned it yet, or he knows that his future is not here, and he doesn't want to lose his credibility." Chen Jiao also laughed out loud: "In short, when Qinzhou was evaluated last year, the five best military farm officials were selected, and they were all from the Imperial Academy."
"Let me think about it. These five people are Fu Xun's nephew Fu Gu, Zhuge Xu of the Langya Zhuge clan, my eldest son Chen Ben, Yu Dun's son Yu Jun, and Li Xi, Li Wei's son."
Deng Ai also bowed tactfully and said, "Mr. Chen's eldest son is indeed very knowledgeable and capable. I have also heard of his name in Chencang."
Chen Jiao laughed a few times: "I heard that Shi Zai had a stutter at first, how come he has become more and more eloquent in the past two years?"
"I dare not, I just admire Mr. Chen's family style." Deng Ai bowed quickly.
Chen Jiao said, "I was just joking with Shi Zai. Wait for another half a month or so, until August 1st, when these imperial students will return to Luoyang together."
Deng Ai thought for a moment and suddenly interrupted, "Mr. Chen, I wonder if the General's Office can recruit some of them during the journey? These Imperial College students are both talented and good at practical work, and they are just right for helping me manage food and grass."
Chen Jiao stared at Deng Ai for a few seconds, and after confirming that Deng Ai was not joking, he shook his head and replied, "It was His Majesty who specifically asked them to return to Luoyang. How can I stop them?"
"In my opinion, Shi Zai should not persuade the general to recruit people. Send as many people as come from Luoyang back to Luoyang. Let the people in Luozhong worry about how to assign these imperial students." (End of this chapter)
