Yes, Cao Zhen sent troops without authorization.
Even after Cao Zhen led his troops out of Tongguan, he wrote to Cao Rui again, informing the Emperor of Wei of his actions in sending troops to counterattack Guanzhong.
To be honest, when Cao Rui received this notice, he was really angry and anxious! ! !
How dare he mobilize his troops without an edict! ! ! !
It has only been three years since Cao Rui ascended the throne, a time when his prestige was low. Now, as a clan general, Cao Zhen has actually done something that can be called "rebellion". If Cao Rui is not angry, then there is a real problem. .
But Cao Rui's political IQ is really not low. In some aspects, he is even a little higher than his father. He knows that if he pursues Cao Zhen's rebellious behavior at this time, he might really be able to force Cao Zhen to death. Inverted.
Cao Zhen's surname is Cao. This surname has advantages and disadvantages.
The good thing is that clan generals are bound to protect the Wei court. If the Wei court is gone, the prosperity of these clan generals will also be affected.
But the disadvantage is that the clan generals who protect the court may not necessarily protect the emperor Wu as many of his descendants, and Cao Rui does not necessarily have to be the emperor.
Especially for a special clan general like Cao Zhen who had experienced two dynasties and had military power and the status of an auxiliary minister, Cao Rui really did not dare to directly issue an edict to accuse him.
In addition, Cao Zhen has been in the army for more than 20 years and has a high prestige in the army. In the court, there are many close followers of Cao Zhen. If Cao Zhen is really forced to rebel, the turmoil in the court will not be of any benefit to Cao Rui.
Even Cao Rui's confidant Qin Lang persuaded Cao Wei that he needed to reconsider the matter from the overall situation.
Especially Qin Lang reminded Cao Rui. Strictly speaking, Cao Zhen can't be completely regarded as sending troops without an imperial edict.
As early as the spring of the third year of Taihe, when the imperial meeting decided on the grand strategy of counterattacking Guanzhong, Cao Rui worshiped Cao Zhen as the general and gave Cao Zhen the power to preside over the entire counterattack strategy.
Cao Zhen, a great general, has the power to mobilize the world's troops, and with the power of holiday, he can send troops whenever he chooses, and there is no need to report to the court.
Cao Rui wanted to punish Cao Zhen for the reason of sending troops without an imperial edict. From a rational point of view, it is reasonable, but from a legal point of view, it is untenable.
The most terrible thing is that at that time, in order to show his trust in Cao Zhen and to win over the hearts of the veterans in the court, Cao Rui also said to Cao Zhen at the court meeting that "things in the northwest will be decided by the general." "The words were heard by all the civil and military officials in the court.
If Cao Zhen really wants to use this as an argument, saying "fighting opportunities must not be lost" or something like that, Cao Rui can only punish Cao Zhen symbolically at most, and cannot go too far.
After Qin Lang reminded him, Cao Rui finally remembered that there was such a thing. He felt so regretful that his intestines were almost green.
Seeing that Cao Rui had slowly calmed down and turned from anger to regret, Qin Lang continued to persuade Cao Rui tactfully.
Cao Zhen's troops have already left. Not to mention that they can't be chased back. Even if they can be chased back, it will be difficult to chase them. It will affect the morale of the army.
It is better to think of a way to deal with it, to ensure the logistics of Cao Zhen's army, and not to let Cao Zhen's army encounter any mistakes.
And this proposal finally reminded Cao Rui.
Cao Rui has already seen the memorandum sent by Cao Zhen before. It's not that he doesn't want to reply to Cao Zhen, but he needs to consider the situation, ask the important officials in the center of the court, make a decision, and then reply to Cao Zhen. Who knows that Cao Zhen is so calm? Don't be angry, you actually made the move of sending troops without permission.
Yes, now Cao Rui has also changed his thinking. He no longer dwells on whether Cao Zhen sent troops without an order, but defines Cao Zhen's behavior as sending troops without permission, so that he can proceed to the next step.
Cao Zhen immediately issued an edict and ordered Liu Ye, Dong Zhao, and Chen Jiao to enter the palace to discuss the matter secretly.
The reason why these three people were summoned is because all three of them are veterans from Emperor Wu's time. They are all in high positions now. It is impossible and unnecessary to have too much involvement with Cao Zhen.
Only these three people can give Cao Rui the most appropriate advice.
When these three people were summoned by Cao Rui and learned about Cao Zhen's "sent out troops without permission", they all felt like a mirror.
The emperor has already characterized Cao Zhen's behavior, so instead of asking the three of them to help figure out how to deal with Cao Zhen, he should let a few of his own people help come up with ideas on how to deal with the aftermath.
Chen Jiao, the most senior, spoke up and said, "I believe that what the general has done is inconsistent with etiquette and should be severely punished. However, now that the general is leading troops outside, we must not be distracted. We must wait until the general returns to the court before punishing him."
The meaning of Chen Jiao's words is already obvious.
Things have already come to this, and the soldiers have been sent out. If they can't be called back, they should let Cao Zhen fight first. After the fight is over, they can settle the score when they come back.
If he wins the battle, he will receive a small punishment but a big warning. In the future, he will gradually take back the military power in Cao Zhen's hands and give Cao Zhen a dignified and wealthy old age.
If you lose, you should be punished as you want without having to worry too much.
Even with Chen Jiao's character and temper, if he had sent troops without permission and lost the battle, he would have just found a tree with a crooked neck and hanged himself. How could he have the dignity to come back? !
As soon as Chen Jiao's words came out, it basically set the tone for this secret discussion. Liu Ye and Dong Zhao also agreed that for the time being, Cao Zhen would lead the army in the battle, and the court would do the logistics support work, and everything would wait until Cao Zhen came back from the battle. Say it again.
However, Liu Ye and Dong Zhao also have different views on this security work.
Routine logistical support, such as the provision of food and military supplies and the provision of detailed intelligence, must all be done around the expedition army. After all, it is their own army. No one wants their own army to lose the war due to insufficient food and grass or intelligence problems.
However, Cao Zhen and his command and decision-making staff cannot just let him play freely.
Judging from Cao Zhen's behavior of sending troops without authorization and Cao Zhen's attitude towards Sima Yi, it is difficult to say whether Cao Zhen will execute the original plan during this counterattack.
Sending troops without authorization shows that Cao Zhen's mentality is now messed up. It is a taboo for military strategists to lead troops in battle with a mentality that is eager for success. Cao Zhen cannot be allowed to use this mentality to fight against the Shu thieves.
In particular, Zhang Xi, the governor of Yongzhou among the Shu thieves, is a cautious and resourceful person. When facing such a person, you must first ensure that you cannot be anxious or make mistakes, otherwise, you will be sent to your door to be beaten.
Cao Zhen's current mentality is definitely no match for Zhang Yuanchang. There must be someone who can check and balance Cao Zhen and rein in Cao Zhen's restless mentality.
As for Cao Zhen's attitude towards Sima Yi, it can be seen from the letter he sent to Cao Rui that he was very dissatisfied with Sima Yi. This also led to whether Cao Zhen would march according to the previously discussed strategy, or Put a question mark on it.
Nothing else. Although the actual strategy in the counterattack was discussed together by everyone, including Cao Zhen, Sima Yi, Liu Ye, Xia Houshang and others, the overall framework was proposed by Sima Yi alone.
In other words, the actual implementation plan of this counterattack was proposed by Sima Yi and helped to be completed by others. It is reasonable to say that the combat plan was proposed by Sima Yi.
With Cao Zhen's current impatience, coupled with his resentful attitude towards Sima Yi, it is not impossible for him to temporarily change the strategic plan on his own if he does not want to use the original plan proposed by Sima Yi.
This is a big no-no.
Not to mention that all the previous preparations may have been in vain because of this, let’s just say that Cao Zhen was not underestimated by everyone present. The main reason was that everyone present believed that if Cao Zhen relied solely on his own abilities and strategies, he would not be the Zhang Yuanchang. opponent.
Although it is very depressing, there is no one in the Cao Wei court who can deal with Zhang Xi, but it is definitely not Cao Zhen.
Therefore, both Liu Ye and Dong Zhao suggested that Cao Rui send a suitable person to Cao Zhen's camp, on the one hand to stabilize Cao Zhen's mentality, and on the other hand, to urge Cao Zhen to implement the counterattack strategy according to the original plan.
And this candidate is not easy to find.
First of all, Cao Zhen needs to be suppressed to a certain extent.
Such a person must be a veteran, or even preferably a veteran from the time of Emperor Wu.
Cao Zhen, although he is a bit arrogant among his peers, he still respects his veterans very much.
Secondly, this veteran must know the importance and propriety. He must not be the kind of person with an upright personality. He must have enough skills to persuade Cao Zhen to accept his opinions. He must also not be the kind of person who relies on his seniority to give random orders and disrupt the army's battle. Array deployment.
Third, it is best for this veteran minister to have a good personal relationship with Cao Zhen and be easily accepted by Cao Zhen.
After such a calculation, the civil and military personnel of the Manchu Dynasty screened, and only one person was left who met the conditions.
The newly appointed Wei Situ, Wang Lang and Wang Jingxing.
Wang Lang was a veteran of Cao Cao's time and a great scholar in the world with outstanding reputation.
Wang Lang is also very knowledgeable about current affairs and people's hearts. He has always been very popular in the Wei Dynasty and has good relations with major aristocratic families and the Cao family.
Wang Lang's son Wang Su was still a close friend of Cao Zhen, and the two had a close personal relationship.
And the most important thing is that Wang Lang has extremely high literary attainments, but he has no military knowledge and will never give advice in areas that he is not good at.
All the conditions are met, and he is simply the most suitable candidate to persuade Cao Zhen.
The only thing that worries everyone, including Cao Rui, is that Wang Lang is seventy-six years old this year.
It's really a bit inhumane to let a seventy-six-year-old man go on an expedition!
Cao Rui originally didn't want the old man to have to go through the hardships of the military at his age. If he wanted to find someone else, he had to look around, but he really couldn't find a suitable candidate.
Helpless, Cao Rui could only order Wang Lang to enter the palace, explain the current situation to him, and let Wang Lang make his own decision.
If he is willing to go, Cao Rui will send him. If he is unwilling to go, Cao Rui will not force him.
After all, he is really too old, so Cao Rui is not so heartbroken.
It can be said that Cao Rui asked Wang Lang for his opinion sincerely.
But when Wang Lang faced Cao Rui's inquiry, he couldn't help but think about it.
After Cao Rui succeeded to the throne, he immediately promoted Wang Lang to Situ. This was one of the three princes, and he was an extremely respected minister.
Cao Rui was kind to Wang Lang.
But now, as the emperor, Cao Rui has difficulties that need to be solved by his ministers. As Wang Lang, as a minister of Wei, can he say anything to refuse? !
If he refuses, although the emperor clearly says that he will not force it, who knows what he thinks in his heart.
If you accept it, even if this old man dies in a royal affair, the future of future generations will be guaranteed.
The old man is now sixty-seven years old. How many more years can he live? !
With such a good thing coming from heaven, it would be a shame if Wang Lang refused! ! !
(End of chapter)
