Chapter 70 Wang Family

Chapter 70 Wang Family
It was already May of the first year of Yong'an (304), the fourth month since peace was restored in Luoyang.

As soon as Wang Yan returned home from court, he met Wang Dao, Wang Cheng and Wang Dun.

He didn't say much, just nodded and led them into the secret room of the study.

“Hehe, no matter how hard it gets, no matter how things change, in the end, they will still come to me, haha.” Wang Yan knelt behind the desk proudly, shaking his head.

To be fair, Wang Yan, 49 years old this year, is already the top star in Dajin.

In the era of the great development of metaphysics, there were numerous gatherings and debates.

Whoever makes a big splash in these occasions will gradually become famous and have "fans" who will beg him to comment and support them.

If you are not famous enough as a single person, it doesn’t matter, you can still debut as a group.

The "Five Talents of Jiangdong" is a good example.

There was even a group that debuted as "Twenty-Four Friends of Jingu Garden".

Wang Yan didn't need to go to so much trouble.

He has been the most popular since the death of the previous top star Pei Wei.

Sima Ying recommended him as Shangshu Zuo Pushe - coincidentally, this was exactly the position Pei Wei sat in at the end of the Yuankang period.

If Sima Yue was in power, he would also be needed to decorate the court and attract scholars from all over the world to serve as officials.

The more scholars came, the greater Sima Yue's influence became and the more stable his power became.

I really can never lose, haha.

Really, Wang Yan couldn't figure out how he could lose.

Wang Cheng, Wang Dao and Wang Dun couldn't help laughing when they saw their cousin so happy, and they felt much more relaxed.

"Maohong." Wang Yan first looked at Wang Dao and asked, "Is there really no way to deal with such a small city like Xuzhou?"

Wang Dao felt a little ashamed and said, "Sikong has been trying to win over Dongping Wang Meng recently, so he might not move his position. I'm afraid it won't work if I try hard in Sikong's mansion. Why not see what's going on in Yefu?"

"You are very honest." Wang Yan chuckled.

"I dare not ruin the family business for a little face." Director Wang said.

"Hmm..." Wang Yan stood up and walked slowly, saying, "The Crown Prince recommended me as Shangshu Zuo Pushe, actually he wanted me to help him in the court. But he didn't trust me much, and it's a bit difficult to seize an important town like Xuzhou. The Prince of Dongping has never expressed his stance on whose side he stands, and Chengdu and Donghai are competing to win him over, so no one dares to touch him easily."

Under what circumstances would a fence-sitter have united front value?
Answer: The forces of all parties are roughly balanced, and no one person has an absolute advantage.

To put it bluntly, the war a few months ago was not fought clearly, cleanly, or thoroughly.

Sima Yue took over part of Sima Yi's inheritance and won over several clan members of Sima Kui's line, making his influence quite considerable.

The King of Chengdu fought very badly on the battlefield, and his final victory was due to Sima Yue's betrayal. It was a lucky victory, which meant that he was doomed to fail in swallowing Luoyang in one gulp and completely wipe out the local forces in Luoyang that were united around Sima Yue.

There is only one way to resolve this embarrassing situation: fight another battle, let the winner take everything, and the loser exhaust all capital.

Will the situation go in this direction? At present, it seems so.

"Brother, do you have any strategy?" Wang Dao asked sincerely.

Wang Yan shook his head and said, "Let's wait and see. If Sima Yue and Sima Ying fight, who will Sima Mao support? If he stands on the wrong side, we will have a chance to take him down when the matter is settled later."

Director Wang nodded silently.

Sima Mao was an old wily man who never took sides easily. He would jump out when the situation was clear and flatter the winner to keep his position.

If Sima Mao chooses the right side again this time, things will be troublesome.

Thinking of this, Director Wang felt a little annoyed. This period of time is too sensitive. A year ago, Xuzhou was not so difficult to capture. But at that time, the Wang family had no say.

"Actually, I still hope that Sima Yue can win." Wang Yan suddenly said, attracting the attention of the three people.

“Nothing else…” Seeing the three people looking at him intently, Wang Yan laughed, turned around gracefully, and stretched himself: “If Sima Yue wins, it will be easier for me to be promoted to an official position.”

Wang Dao and the other two all laughed.

The governor of Xuzhou was formerly called the governor of Qingxu. He was stationed in Xiapi and recruited a large number of scholars from Qingzhou and Xuzhou as his staff when he opened his government. Therefore, the connection between Qingzhou and Xuzhou was relatively close, and people at that time often mentioned the two places at the same time as a geographical unit.

The aristocratic families in the two places often intermarry and have a good relationship.

Therefore, Wang Yan really hoped that Sima Yue would win, so that Qingxu Shiren would have a better chance.

"Do you think I'm too arrogant?" Seeing the three brothers laughing non-stop, Wang Yan also laughed, then pointed at Wang Dun and said, "Chu Zhong, don't worry, I'll get you the governor of Qingzhou sooner or later."

"Then wait for good news." Wang Dun laughed. Wang Yan looked at Wang Cheng again, with a look of approval in his eyes, and said, "Pingzi, I will find Jingzhou for you, but you still need to wait."

"Yeah." Wang Cheng responded obediently.

He was actually raised by Wang Yan and his wife. He obeyed his elder brother's words and even had a kind of admiration for him.

"Liu Hong is very old and won't live long. After he dies, I will let you be the governor or prefect of Jingzhou," said Wang Yan.

Liu Hong is the current governor and prefect of Jingzhou. He is 69 years old this year. I heard that he is not in good health and is nearing the end of his life.

"Aren't there Tao Kan and Tao Shiheng?" Wang Cheng asked.

Tao Kan made outstanding contributions in suppressing Zhang Chang's refugee army, and Liu Hong admired him very much and even trained him as his successor.

"Tao Kan?" Wang Yan laughed heartily and said, "When Tao Kan was working in the fields at home, his mother cut off her long hair and sold it to earn money to entertain guests. He fawned so much just for a postal inspector. Is this kind of poor kid qualified to be the governor of Jingzhou?"

Although Tao Kan's family was poor, like Wang Hu, they also had a good family background: humble and plain.

His father, Tao Dan, was General Yangwu during the reign of Sun Wu.

After the fall of the Eastern Wu, the people of Wu generally had a hard time, but with the help of his father, Tao Kan was still able to work as a minor official in the county. His life was average, but definitely better than that of ordinary people.

Of course, this kind of background means nothing in the eyes of the Langya Wang family, the most powerful family in the north.

Wang Yan is now in high spirits, so it is normal for him to ridicule the poor family in private in front of his family.

Director Wang found his brother's unbridled laughter a bit irritating.

My brother seems to be the same as Sima Ying, a little arrogant.

Wang Yan didn't care what his brothers thought. He was very happy and pleased now. He acted like he was giving orders to the world: "Jingzhou has the solidity of the Yangtze and Han Rivers, and Qingzhou has the danger of facing the sea. You will serve as prefects, and I will stay in Luoyang. It is enough for three caves. Now the royal family will be humiliated, so I let you brothers live in the land of Qi and Chu. You can build hegemony outside and support the imperial family inside. You should keep it in mind."

"We will always remember your hard work, brother." Wang Dun and Wang Cheng said in unison.

Director Wang felt a little unnatural.

Why did you only mention Qingzhou and Jingzhou, but not Xuzhou? And not me?

"Maohong, Xuzhou is located at the crossroads of Jianghuai, and is also very critical." Wang Yan did not forget Wang Dao, turned his head and looked at him, saying: "You must understand my painstaking efforts."

Wang Dao's depression was relieved a little, but he couldn't help asking: "Brother, your plan is indeed complete, but why is it all in the Central Plains? I heard that someone wants to cross the river to the south and become an official in Wu. Why don't you plan to go to Yangzhou?"

"Sixty to seventy percent of the country's essence is in the Central Plains." Wang Yan replied: "Besides, the tombs of our ancestors are all here. Are we going to abandon them and flee to Jiangdong?"

Director Wang was speechless.

My brother's confidence was too strong, and his behavior was very different from that of the scholars who fled south one after another to escape disaster.

Judging from the layout, Qingzhou, Xuzhou and Jingzhou surround Luoyang from three directions, while at the same time being far away from the center of the vortex.

"We can build hegemony externally and support the imperial family internally" - indeed, this is the strategic layout of his elder brother. He made preparations for both situations, and he finally wanted to conquer the Central Plains.

"Brother, you are right." Seeing that Wang Yan was still looking at him, Wang Dao stood up helplessly and bowed to apologize.

"Forget it." Wang Yan waved his hand and said, "If Xuzhou advances, we can take the Central Plains, and if we retreat, we can protect Jiangdong. Since you are interested in Wu, then work hard and don't let the Pei family kid take it away."

"Governors and military governors, we will always be able to capture something," said Wang Dao.

Wang Yan nodded, and then asked, "When is the King of Donghai going to take action?"

Director Wang was a little hesitant.

Wang Yan snorted coldly and said, "We are all family, what can't we say? Pingzi, will you tell the Crown Prince?"

"No." Wang Cheng said with a smile.

He was a secretary in the court of King Chengdu. He came to Luoyang on business and would return to Yecheng in two days.

Wang Dao had no choice but to say, "Hurry up and start. Wang Hu, the Sima of Qianxiu's shogunate, was not satisfied with his job. He went to Yecheng twice and was repeatedly ridiculed. He felt regretful and planned to return to the position of Sikong."

Wang Yan heard this and shook his head and sighed: "It's not surprising that these military strategists have no integrity."

Wang Dao agreed.

"Assist the King of Donghai well. When the opportunity arises, I will help you." Wang Yan said.

"Okay." Director Wang agreed without hesitation.

(End of this chapter)