Although Zhao Po Nu did not see Lu Xuan's divine soldiers, he knew some details, such as Liu Tan personally guarding the mine and the explosion that was enough to make people's legs go weak and tremble.

Zhao Po Nu didn't know what exactly caused the explosion, but he guessed it was related to the mine because he saw Liu Tan bringing a catapult and a large amount of honeycomb coal.

After listening to this, everyone suddenly understood why those who had recently ordered honeycomb coal had their deposits refunded and were also given double compensation.

Liu Che looked at Zhao Po Nu and said, "How did Wu Shilu cross the long trench? Tell me yourself."

Zhao Po Nu shuddered and fell to the ground crying, "I am ashamed of your Majesty's trust!"

Liu Che said in a deep voice: "Speak!"

Zhao Po Nu originally still had some hope in his heart, but when Liu Che spoke, he dared not hide it.

It's just that he took the blame that originally belonged to Zhao Anguo onto himself in order to save his son's life.

Liu Che was not surprised at all after hearing this. It must be said that he knew Zhao Po Nu and Liu Tan very well.

It is obvious that Liu Tan is covering up for others when he is so eager to take the responsibility.

Liu Che stood up and said, "Take him away."

He left after he finished speaking, without getting angry or saying anything more.

However, even so, one can smell the scent of impending storm.

Zhao Po Nu felt a chill in his heart. If Liu Che got angry and punished him on the spot, there would still be a glimmer of hope. However, this attitude meant that he didn't want to say more, or even look at them father and son again.

After Liu Che left, Liu Ju had to stay and clean up the mess.

As Liu Che walked outside, he became increasingly angry. Halfway through, he suddenly stopped, turned around, and said, "Go tell the court that Zhao Po Nu was defeated and fled, and also led the Xiongnu into the pass. His crime is one level higher, and his entire clan will be exterminated."

After hearing this, Bu Fan felt relieved. If Liu Che had kept silent, it would have implicated more than just one or two people, and anyone related would have been doomed. Now that he had spoken, it meant that only Zhao Po Nu and his son would be held accountable, and the others who were not closely related would not be held accountable.

Liu Che killed many lives with just his words, but there was still a fire burning in his heart.

As soon as he returned to Weiyang Palace, he heard the news that the Queen was visiting.

If it were a normal day, he probably wouldn't meet Chen Ajiao, but when he thought that Liu Tan must have written a letter to Chen Ajiao, he changed his mind and said, "Let her in."

Chen Ajiao walked in with a sullen face, but she didn't start questioning loudly. Instead, she asked, "How is Tan'er doing now?"

Liu Che glanced at her lightly: "What's wrong with you? It's nice to talk."

In fact, he was not sure either. He had not received any news for such a long time, so he thought there was no big danger. He just didn't know if anyone was injured.

The handwriting in those letters seemed to be fine, but I don't know if he tried to hide it.

Chen Ajiao raised her voice slightly: "What am I like? My son's life or death is uncertain, what else can I do?"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Liu Che frowned. "How can a mother curse her own son like this?"

Liu Che did not mock Chen Ajiao for not being Liu Tan's biological mother. In fact, in this palace, even the biological mother could not do better than Chen Ajiao.

Chen Ajiao's eyes reddened: "Liu Che, look at who you chose! You might as well let Tan'er do it instead of letting them go!"

Liu Che asked in return: "What's wrong with the person I chose?"

Chen Ajiao never knew what politeness meant. She opened her mouth and said, "How dare you ask? You sent Gongsun Ao, and half of Shuofang City was destroyed. You sent Zhao Po Nu, and the mine was destroyed. I don't know if Tan'er was injured! Who are you going to choose next time? Is the Northern Border Kingdom so annoying to you?"

Liu Che was so embarrassed that he couldn't say a word. Feeling guilty, he sighed and said, "If there was Wei Qing..."

He stopped talking halfway through, and Chen Ajiao no longer had such a big reaction when she heard the name. Why would she still hold a grudge when the person was gone?

She wiped her eyes with a handkerchief and said, "I know you want to say that if Wei Qing and Huo Qubing were here, this wouldn't happen, but who among the people you chose has such ability? They're not as good as Tan'er!"

Liu Che had an idea. He actually always knew that Liu Tan was not good at leading troops in battle, and he didn't even know much about military tactics. However, in fact, he had never been defeated.

Each of his military achievements was real. He destroyed the Jie Kingdom quickly and efficiently, and also drove the Huns back southward.

By the time Liu Che reached this age, he had already deeply understood that sometimes what people value most is not ability, but luck.

Thinking of this, he suddenly asked, "Then I will hand over Shousuan City to Tan'er."

Chen Ajiao was muttering to herself, but after hearing this, she suddenly stopped talking for a while before saying, "Then...isn't that place closer to the Xiongnu? No, it's too dangerous."

Liu Che squinted at her and said, "Didn't you say Gongsun Ao is incompetent? Then we can only leave it to Tan'er?"

Chen Ajiao said anxiously: "Then find someone who can go there!"

Liu Che sneered, "Didn't you say that the others are no match for Tan'er?"

Chen Ajiao's eyes widened: "That's no reason for you to throw your son over there to deal with the Huns!"

Liu Che said, "Then ask him if he wants it?"

This time it was Chen Ajiao's turn who was speechless. Based on her understanding of Liu Tan, Liu Tan would definitely agree happily.

Liu Che, having argued with Chen Ajiao, had won back a city, and suddenly felt refreshed. He sat down and said, "I surrendered the city to Tan'er, but I didn't ask him to go there. He's still in his palace. Why are you so worried?"

Chen Ajiao also came back to her senses at this time. After a long silence, she said, "Okay, you said it!"

Just as she was about to leave, she suddenly turned around and said, "I heard that Tan'er lost a lot of money this time..."

Before she could finish, Liu Che said, "I know what's going on."

Only then did Chen Ajiao leave with satisfaction.

Liu Che's anger was slightly relieved by her disturbance, and he thought it would be better to hand over the Surrender City to Liu Tan.

If the Huns attacked again and he was unaware of it, even Liu Che would be scared.

At this time, Liu Tan did not know that the whole Chang'an was concerned about his health. He was leaning over the desk, writing a letter to Liu Che.

The content of the letter was about Wusun, and Lu Xuan's contributions were also mentioned.

Although Huo Guang shamelessly asked him to conceal Lu Xuan's contribution, Liu Tan always felt that it was inappropriate. After thinking about it, he finally informed Liu Che.

Since it was not a formal memorial, how to deal with it depended on Emperor Liu Che.

The rest was about the Jimizhou affairs. His political EQ was not enough, but his knowledge reserves were sufficient. Anyway, no one expected him to come up with a perfect proposal right away, so he just had to write down the key points.

The most important thing about the羈州 he proposed was that the emperor and the leaders of the羈州 were in a monarch-subject relationship, and the characteristics of the羈州 were "hereditary officials, hereditary land, and hereditary citizens." As long as these two points were grasped, the rest could be done by adapting to local customs.

When he had almost finished writing, he looked up and saw Lu Xuan working on paperwork at a desk two meters away from him.

Liu Tan thought about it and felt something was amiss. Was this a confirmed relationship between him and Lu Xuan? Before the relationship was confirmed, Lu Xuan had always wanted to be around him whenever she could. Why was she starting to distance herself after the relationship was confirmed?

Seeing that Lu Xuan's work seemed to have come to an end, Liu Tan said, "Ah Xuan, I brought a ferruginous beast from Chang'an. It's really cute. Do you want to come with me to take a look?"

Although he didn't go out, his palace was big enough to serve as a date venue.

Lu Xuan put down the paperwork in his hand and noticed that Liu Tan had only written half of one. He asked, "Are you tired? If you are, take a break. The Iron-Eating Beast can read it anytime."

Liu Tan was fed up. He threw down his pen and asked seriously, "Lu Xuan, do you know how to fall in love?"

Lu Xuan was stunned for a moment, a look of confusion on his face. Although he didn't understand what love was, he was keenly aware that Liu Tan was unhappy. He immediately changed the subject and said, "Well, I've never seen an iron-eating beast before, and I'd really like to see one."

Liu Tan raised an eyebrow. Seeing him so quickly, Lu Xuan added, "But no matter how cute he is, he's definitely not as cute as you."