While Sima Zhao administered state affairs, Cao Mao attempted to gain the favour of the literati in the court through unremarkable meetings to discuss literature with some officials—Sima Zhao's cousin Sima Wang, Wang Chen, Pei Xiu, and Zhong Hui.
Cao Mao also provided Sima Wang with a chariot and five imperial guardsmen as escorts because the latter lived further away from the palace than the others.
[3] After Cao Mao's death, the public called for Jia Chong's execution on the grounds that he had committed regicide.
Sima Zhao forced Empress Dowager Guo to posthumously demote Cao Mao to the status of a commoner, and then ordered Wang Jing and his clan to be executed.
19 days later, Sima Zhao had Cheng Ji and his family executed to appease public anger but Jia Chong was spared.
Sima Zhao successfully retained his power during the incident and eliminated his opponents in the Wei court, leaving only the young Cao Huan as a puppet emperor under his control.
In 280, Sima Yan would order the conquest of Jin's rival state Wu, ending the Three Kingdoms period and unifying China after nearly a century.