Liu Ju rarely saw Liu Che express his emotions so openly since he was a child. The first time he remembered was when Huo Qubing, Marquis of Jinghuan, died, and the second time was when Wei Qing, Marquis of Changping, died.

But those two times he felt melancholy and sadness from Liu Che, and this time... it was probably anger.

Liu Ju was also very angry. He realized something when he saw Liu Tan rambling and saying whatever he wanted in the letter.

It was a common occurrence for Liu Tan to write to him to complain, and he was very justified in doing so. If a person suddenly seemed to be at peace in a letter, it meant that something must have happened.

After reading the letter, Liu Che looked up at Liu Chuan and said, "Go and make arrangements. The Northern Kingdom has won a great victory. We captured 3,000 enemy soldiers, killed nearly 10,000, and recovered over 17,000 of our own troops. Although the King of the Northern Kingdom is not here, we still need to have a celebration banquet."

Liu Ju was slightly stunned, then immediately realized that the great victory was real, but the focus of the celebration banquet should be on the last sentence.

Liu Ju immediately went to make some arrangements, while Liu Che read the memorial and letter together. After a while, he snorted, "You little bastard, you've grown so independent that you dare to only report good news and not bad news."

Liu Tan did not write much about Zhao Po Nu in his memorial, but simply gave a plain account, as if he were an emotionless data machine. Only his final apology was sincere.

However, Liu Che's focus was different from his. He could see at a glance that there were some things hidden in it.

He did not write about how Zhao Po Nu became separated from his troops or how Liu Tan defeated them.

Liu Che's first reaction was that Liu Tan was protecting Zhao Po Nu. He always knew that Liu Tan had a good impression of military generals with military merits. He didn't even force Gongsun Ao too much. Maybe this time he was covering up for Zhao Po Nu.

Just as Liu Che was guessing, Bu Fan said beside him, "Your Majesty, Princess Dangli requests an audience."

Liu Che raised his head, his brows relaxed: "Dangli? Why is she here? Let her in."

Liu Che was very pleased that his daughter had come out of the shadow of the past, especially as Princess Li had become more and more bright and lively like she was in the past.

But when he saw Princess Dangli come in with an anxious look on her face, he couldn't help but lean forward slightly and ask, "Why are you so anxious?"

"Father, has something happened with Ah Tan?" Princess Dangli said, a little flustered for once. "The people he sent just told me that there might be a shortage of honeycomb coal this winter, and they want a double refund on the deposit. What's going on?"

Liu Che's face turned very humble in an instant, and even though Princess Dangli was always casual in front of him, she couldn't help but remain silent at this moment.

Liu Che quickly adjusted his expression and said to Princess Dangli, "Just do whatever Tan'er asks you to do. Don't worry, is there enough money?"

Princess Dangli shook her head. "Ah Tan didn't ask me to pay. He sent someone to deliver this year's profits from the candy shop. It's not only enough for the deposit, but also includes my share of the profits."

Just as Princess Dangli finished speaking, Liu Ju came rushing over and called out to Princess Dangli, "Sister."

Then he turned to look at Liu Che and said, "Father, my brother just gave me some money, saying it was the dividend from this year's copper mine."

Princess Dangli exclaimed, "He also sent you money?"

Liu Ju was stunned for a moment, his expression not looking good. He looked at Liu Che anxiously: "Father, is my brother..."

He didn't say the second half of the sentence. Giving away money in such a hurry didn't seem like a good sign no matter how you looked at it.

Even though Liu Che couldn't help but tremble slightly, he still tried to comfort his children and said, "Huo Guang wrote me a letter. There's nothing wrong with it. It shouldn't be a big deal. Let's go back first."

Princess Dangli pursed her lips and left with a heart full of anxiety.

Just as Liu Ju was about to say something, he heard Liu Che say, "I remember that Tan'er's coal mine is southwest of Shuofang City."

Liu Ju nodded: "Yes."

Liu Che unraveled the mystery: "The honeycomb coal supply is out of stock, there's something wrong with the mines, and the Xiongnu... have penetrated this far?"

Liu Ju calmed himself down and said, "Father, I will go to Shuofang!"

Liu Che didn't say anything. He looked down at the document, especially the last two lines. Even though he told himself again and again that nothing should have happened to Liu Tan, when the two matters of dividing the money and apologizing were put together, it also took on a somewhat ominous meaning.

The Supreme father and son did not speak for a while, but they quickly arranged for people to find out the current situation of Shuofang City. Of course, the focus was on the health of the King of the North.

Originally, this matter should have been kept secret, but when Princess Li went out to notify each family to refund their deposits, even if she didn't say anything, people who got a little bit of information couldn't help but think about it.

Suddenly, the discussion about the health of the King of the North in Chang'an became a must-talk topic whenever anyone met someone. Even though no one dared to say it too clearly, the implicit discussion was still widely spread.

Under this circumstance, Liu Che had to attend the celebration banquet in order to cover up the fact that Changqian was lost.

At the celebration banquet, the emperor and the crown prince looked no different from usual, but careful people could always see a hint of heaviness in their eyes.

For a moment, everyone at the banquet was filled with a flurry of glances. Now that everyone knew that it was Wu Shilu who had defeated the King of the Northern Territory, they had originally thought that another battlefield genius had emerged from the Han Dynasty. Could it be that... this person was also...

Coincidentally, the person escorting Zhao Po Nu was one step slower than the person Liu Tan sent to deliver the letter.

While the celebration banquet was underway, Liu Che received the news. At that moment, the smile on his face almost disappeared. He placed the wine on the imperial table and said casually, "Take him to the Heavenly Prison first."

The palace servant took the order and left, but returned a short while later: "Your Majesty, Zhao Po Nu said that His Royal Highness the King of the Northern Territory asked him to bring a few words to Your Majesty."

Liu Che's eyes flashed: "Bring him up!"

The original intention of the banquet was to show the festive atmosphere, but when everyone saw that the Supreme Father and Son did not want to talk about it, they did not dare to show it.

However, this superficial liveliness gradually dissipated with the arrival of Zhao Po Nu.

Zhao Po Nu looked disheveled and out of place in the bustling hall. He had not expected that the nobles were actually having a banquet at that moment.

When he walked in, all kinds of eyes were cast on him, some were surprised, some were dissatisfied, and some were disappointed, but what frightened him the most was the emotionless coldness in the emperor's eyes.

Zhao Po Nu knelt down and said, "I, the guilty minister Zhao Po Nu, pay my respects to Your Majesty."

Liu Che asked directly, "What did the King of the Northern Territory tell you to say?"

Zhao Po Nu's heart trembled, and he fell to the ground and said, "Your Highness said that he was not talented enough to emulate Wei Huo, but he would never let the Xiongnu set foot in the Central Plains. It's just...it's just...he died on the battlefield, a worthy death."

After Zhao Po Nu finished speaking, the Weiyang Palace fell silent.

When everyone recalled their previous speculations and heard these ominous words that sounded like a last will, they couldn't help but feel a sense of tragedy in their hearts.

Liu Che asked in a low voice, "King of the Northern Territory...how is he now?"