He opened and closed his lips and said, “Your Majesty, you cannot dispatch troops to attack Shi Le.”
“Why not? He’s going to rebel. Shi Le is brutal and untrustworthy.” The young Emperor said, “Previously it was because we were pressured by the Xiongnu, so the Grand General temporarily accepted Shi Le’s surrender. But now the Xiongnu have been pacified, and we completely have the ability to kill Shi Le.”
Xun Fan felt a breath stuck in his chest, unable to speak for a long time.
In his anger, he changed the subject and asked, “Who told Your Majesty to oppose Ming Yu and Ji Yuan serving as Director of the Secretariat and Attendant of the Chancellery?”
“Third Uncle, and Vice Minister Meng Yang. Oh yes, and also the Grand General’s grand-uncle Zhao Hu.” The young Emperor lowered his voice. “Even that Old Master Zhao said that if Ming Yu and Ji Yuan become chief officials, my days ahead will be even more difficult.”
Xun Fan sighed and said, “Your Majesty should not listen to them in the future.”
“Zhao Hu wants the Grand General to employ more Zhao clan members, so he opposes Ji Yuan and Ming Yu.” He said, “Ji Yuan appears easygoing on the surface but acts as forcefully as the Grand General. Though Zhao Hu is the Zhao clan’s senior patriarch, he never gains anything from him.”
“Not to mention Ming Yu. Last month, Ming Yu proposed that the Grand General forcibly confiscate Zhao Hu’s property, arguing that he accumulated wealth by borrowing power and should hand over half his family assets to the Grand General.”
Of course, the excuse Ming Yu found for Zhao Hanzhang sounded nice—called it investment profit-sharing.
He believed that since Zhao Hanzhang’s authority had been borrowed, Zhao Hu should give her a portion of his family assets as a return.
This proposal made Zhao Hu nearly smoke with rage. Recently, whenever he and Ming Yu didn’t meet it was fine, but once they met, it was like the tip of a needle against wheat—sharp confrontation.
Ming Yu believed Zhao Hu was competing with the people for profit and lacked insight. If other merchants made this much money borrowing Zhao Hanzhang’s authority, they would have obediently sent gifts to Zhao Hanzhang long ago. Only he was so stingy, arrogantly believing he made money through his own abilities.
Ahem, inserting a comment here: Zhao Hanzhang believed that Zhao Hu’s ability to make money did indeed rely on his own skills.
But Zhao Hu didn’t perceive Zhao Hanzhang’s inner thoughts. He only felt that Ming Yu was targeting him at Zhao Hanzhang’s implicit suggestion, so recently, Zhao Hu had unilaterally broken off relations with Zhao Hanzhang.
“As for Meng Yang…” Xun Fan paused before saying, “Among the people under heaven, everyone’s interests differ, especially among aristocratic families.”
He continued, “Emperor Shizu governed the realm together with the aristocratic families, which led to the rise of powerful clans. But the Grand General has abandoned the Nine-Rank System and created the Merit Recruitment Examination, disregarding family background and only considering talent and virtue. Who knows how many people she has secretly offended.”
“It’s just that she holds military power, and previously the realm was in chaos, so no one opposed. But now the Xiongnu have been pacified and the northern regions are stable. Future court struggles will only become more intense and obvious. Your Majesty is already in a precarious position and really shouldn’t participate in this.”
The young Emperor’s spine went cold. He nodded repeatedly, then asked, “What about Third Uncle?”
Xun Fan fell silent. After a long while, he sighed deeply and said, “Your third uncle still harbors delusions, wanting to befriend court ministers to prepare for your future assumption of power, but…”
The young Emperor fell silent.
Xun Fan looked at him and asked quietly, “Does Your Majesty wish to assume power?”
The young Emperor thought of the memorials piled on the desk and shook his head in terror.
Xun Fan also said, “Since Empress Jia’s misgovernment, even imperial family members have been treated like grass. Emperor Hui and the previous emperor both died unnatural deaths. Of the imperial bloodline, only you and the Prince of Yuzhang remain. In this old minister’s view, dynastic change is a common occurrence in the world. Your Majesty lacks the ambition and ability to be emperor. Why not yield? This would spare the realm from conflict and preserve yourself and the Prince of Yuzhang.”
Xun Fan had once harbored ambitions too. After all, the young Emperor was legitimate, and Zhao Hanzhang currently seemed to respect him.
But after Xun Xiu’s rebellion, seeing the young Emperor so panicked, Xun Fan knew that with him as emperor, the realm would inevitably fall into great chaos again one day.
Even if Zhao Hanzhang didn’t cause disorder, the Prince of Langya in Jiangdong would disrupt the state. And at that time, with the young Emperor’s weakness, he definitely couldn’t hold the empire.
At that moment, Xun Fan changed his mind.
The Jin imperial house was important, but the realm was more important.
The previous situation of great chaos under heaven could not be repeated. Let it be this way—first stabilize the realm, and at an appropriate time in the future, cede the empire to Zhao Hanzhang.
The young Emperor originally didn’t want to be emperor. Although he had been tempted these past days, dreaming at night of great conquests and becoming a wise ruler passed down through the ages, after waking from his dreams he immediately stomped those thoughts into the mud because… it was really too difficult, too exhausting…
The young Emperor was under great pressure at this time. With Xun Fan’s help, he stayed up until the third watch and finally reviewed all the memorials once, but could only approve fifty to sixty percent. The remaining memorials involved matters too serious—not only he, but even Xun Fan found it difficult to make decisions.
For example, the memorial accusing Shi Le of rebellion—Xun Fan said they absolutely could not punish Shi Le or dispatch troops to Youzhou, but must appease Shi Le and prevent him from rebelling.
The young Emperor… couldn’t write a letter of appeasement, so he could only set it aside.
When he groggily followed Xun Fan’s suggestions and wrote his recommendations on the last memorial, his eyelids could barely stay open.
Xun Fan had just taken the memorial to check when he lurched forward and collapsed completely onto the desk.
Xun Fan was startled. Seeing this, he sighed, put down the memorial, first carried him to the bed and covered him with a quilt. Looking at the young Emperor who was restless even in sleep, he couldn’t help but sigh heavily.
The emperors of Jin and the emperors of Wei went to two extremes. Back then, if Sima Zhao had possessed Zhao Hanzhang’s current magnanimity, Emperor Cao Mao of Wei wouldn’t have died.
And if the young Emperor had Cao Mao’s spirit and intelligence, he might truly be able to stabilize the Jin imperial house and achieve a fine story of sovereign and minister with Zhao Hanzhang.
Xun Fan sighed heavily again, turned to collect the memorials, then slept on the footstool beside the young Emperor’s bed.
It seemed he had barely fallen asleep when roosters crowed for the second time outside. Xun Fan was old and a light sleeper, so he woke almost immediately.
Attendant Dong also carefully entered from outside. Seeing him, he bowed and said, “Grand Tutor, His Majesty should rise now.”
Having just had a heart-to-heart talk with the young Emperor yesterday, Xun Fan’s heart was soft today. He wanted to let the young Emperor sleep a bit longer, so he said, “My lesson today isn’t urgent, so let His Majesty sleep a while longer.”
Attendant Dong looked conflicted. “But the Junior Preceptor sent someone with a message saying His Majesty must memorize the official system before going to Luoyang. He will come today to teach and examine. There isn’t much time before dawn.”
The Junior Preceptor was Xun Zu.
Zhao Hanzhang was very generous with the young Emperor’s two maternal uncles, never preventing them from meeting. Xun Fan was the Grand Tutor, and Xun Zu was the Junior Preceptor—the two taught the young Emperor together.
This was also one of the reasons Jin ministers changed their impression of Zhao Hanzhang. She had sent those who could cultivate the Emperor’s power and confidants to his side—what a loyal minister!
Thinking of Xun Zu’s strictness and scheming, Xun Fan couldn’t help but frown, but he still agreed.
So the young Emperor, who had barely fallen asleep, was dug out of bed by Attendant Dong. He was carried by the attendants to wash up, and when they dressed him, his eyes were still closed.
When he was led outside, the cold wind blew, and only then did he reluctantly open his eyes. Looking at the册 册册 (booklet) stuffed into his hands, tears immediately fell. He cried, “I’m so tired. I want to sleep. I don’t want to be emperor anymore. I don’t want to be emperor anymore…”
Why did he have to study the official system? Zhao Hanzhang could issue an edict changing the Six Departments from Six Offices with one paper—what was the use of him memorizing it? What if she changed the official system again the next day? Would he have to memorize it all over again?
Third Uncle was unreliable. He still preferred Second Uncle.
Wuwuwu, he didn’t want to study anymore, and he didn’t want to approve memorials. Won’t someone save him…
—