Liu Tan followed Liu Che dejectedly to his bedroom. Chen Ajiao followed silently. Liu Che did not chase her away. After sitting down, he said, "Tell me, what is the Queen Mother of the West? What is the Peach Garden?"

Liu Tan hesitated for a moment between telling him about Journey to the West and admitting his nonsense, then decisively said, "Father, please forgive me. Actually... that tree is just something I imagined. I just made it up to shock the envoys from other countries."

"Made it up?"

Seeing that he had a smile in his eyes and didn't seem to want to pursue the matter, Liu Tan boldly said, "Yes, I made it up."

Liu Che turned to look at Chen Ajiao: "Do you believe it?"

Chen Ajiao said as if it was a matter of course: "Why shouldn't I believe my son?"

Liu Che pointed at Liu Tan and said, "He used to be lazy, ignorant of grains, and stubborn. Now he's grown grapes and made wine. Oh, and he even makes sugar. Both white sugar and rock sugar are unique in the world. If it weren't for some divine intervention, how could he have changed so much in such a short time? Do you really not doubt it, or do you just not want to doubt it?"

Chen Ajiao's expression changed slightly. She knew some of the things that Liu Che knew, but not in such detail.

Anyway, no matter who investigates, the final conclusion is that this child is useless.

But Chen Ajiao only has this one hope. Even if he is of no use, she has to push him out, at least to win a place for herself.

Even Chen Ajiao was thinking about whether to find a teacher to teach the child well. Even if she couldn't compare to Liu Ju, she must be better than Liu Fuling.

Just after meeting for the first time, she felt that the situation of this child was different from what she had sent people to inquire about.

People's eyes don't lie. You can always tell whether someone is truly calm or just pretending. Moreover, the truth will eventually come out after spending a long time together.

However, Liu Tan remained the same from beginning to end for three months.

Of course Chen Ajiao noticed something was wrong. She couldn't understand why the child had changed like this, but she knew that it was good for her.

A quiet, obedient and sensible child always meets her requirements better than a spoiled and extravagant child.

As for Liu Che... since Liu Che didn't say anything, she would pretend not to know.

As a result, she did not expect that Liu Che would reveal almost everything at such a time when no one expected it.

Liu Tan stood below, completely stunned. The alcohol he drank that night turned into cold sweat that flowed down his back.

I was careless, really careless.

He was indeed cautious at the beginning, trying hard to hide himself and not show himself in front of everyone. However, as time went on, Liu Che and Chen Ajiao did not seem to notice anything, and he did not have much contact with Li Xi's family, so he thought he was safe.

Who would have thought that it was not safe at all, it was just that Liu Che had been enduring it, and Chen Ajiao... just seemed to be pretending to be stupid.

Liu Tan sobered up and his brain started working rapidly.

Judging from what Liu Che said, it seemed that he did not suspect that his son had been switched, but instead put all the credit on the gods.

No, that's not right. It shouldn't have been like this at the beginning. Liu Che might have been doubting and observing all the time, so he didn't say it.

However, Liu Tan's casual talk today gave him an answer, making him think that this was the truth behind Liu Tan's change.

Liu Tan was very worried for a moment, as if... he couldn't help but tell the story of Journey to the West.

No, no, no, forget about Journey to the West. The Queen Mother of the West is an ancient deity born on this land. Maybe we can talk about other things, such as the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

The Classic of Mountains and Seas...seems to have been formed between the Warring States Period and the early Western Han Dynasty. It once recorded the Queen Mother of the West, but Liu Che did not know about her.

So the question is, was this mythological story just popular among the people and Liu Che didn't know about it, or was it that the Queen Mother of the West had not appeared at that time?

Liu Tan was a little uncertain. In fact, he would not be surprised even if the person who was supposed to appear did not appear.

This book helped Liu Che gain another son, so what else is impossible?

Liu Tan stood there staring at his parents with wide eyes, looking rather dazed. Liu Che couldn't help but reach out and tapped his forehead and said, "Stop being dazed and talk."

Chen Ajiao also managed to come back to her senses and smiled, "Looking at him like this, how can he look like he was enlightened by a god? If he was enlightened by a god and still so stupid, I'm afraid even the god would regret it."

Unlike Liu Tan's reaction, Chen Ajiao's first reaction was to hide it.

She was very worried that if Liu Che thought Liu Tan had really been enlightened by the gods, he would ask him to seek immortality.

You should know that Liu Che is now more and more eager to seek immortality. Whenever he knows about some spiritual people, he will give them money to let them seek immortality. As a result, many people try to act as alchemists so that one day they can talk to the emperor and get a lot of money.

However, Liu Tan did not need it. Being a prince had destined him to be rich and prosperous in this life. If he was really sent to seek immortality, what was the difference between that and exile?

Liu Che seemed to know what Chen Ajiao was thinking. He chuckled and said nothing, still looking at Liu Tan.

Liu Tan also looked at Liu Che eagerly. Knowing that he probably wouldn't be able to go back without an explanation today, he could only say cautiously, "Actually... I didn't dare to say this before, but these things... were all obtained in my dreams."

Just as Chen Ajiao was about to speak, Liu Che pressed her hand and said, "Don't say anything. Let Tan'er speak for himself. He is my son. How could I wrong him?"

Chen Ajiao didn't believe what Liu Che said at all, and she also wanted Liu Tan not to believe it either. However, Liu Che had already spoken, and she had just had a big fight with Liu Che over the matter of Princess Danyang and almost fell out with him. If it weren't for Liu Tan, it would have been difficult for her to sit here calmly like she was now.

Chen Ajiao looked at Liu Tan with some worry.

After the initial shock, Liu Tan quickly guessed something from the conversation between the emperor and the empress, and he suddenly felt that he had a new way out.

If it really doesn't work, you can go out and seek help from immortals.

He guaranteed that he would be more useful than those scammers. Those scammers would just run away and tell Liu Che that they couldn't find it. Liu Tan was different. Although he couldn't find it either, he could fake miracles, using physics and chemistry in turn. There would always be one thing that could deceive Liu Che.

With Liu Che's level of scientific knowledge, or rather, with current scientific knowledge, it would not be easy to expose him.

In this way, he could travel around, or even live by the sea. In short, anywhere is better than the palace.

Thinking of this, Liu Tan became more motivated. However, he had just said that he had dreamed this, so he couldn't go back on his word. He said, "It was three dreams. The first one was about a man claiming to be Shennong. He told me that Central Plains grapes and Western Region grapes were originally from the same source, so we could combine them. I tried it and it turned out to be true."

Liu Che said sharply, "Shennong? Emperor Yan?"

Liu Tan shook his head: "I don't know, but I just believed what he said."

Unfortunately, in ancient times, the word "shi" did not represent a surname, but represented a god. Only gods could be called "Shi". If it was a surname, it would be much simpler, and it would not be necessary to say that the other person was Yan Emperor.

Unfortunately, in such a hurry, he could only choose Shennong. As for the community god... forget it. He still remembered the fallen grape trellis. The last time was a false alarm, but if he made up a story casually, who knew if the grape trellis or something else would come after him next time.

Liu Che said thoughtfully, "What does it mean that Shennong appeared in my dream?"

Chen Ajiao said casually, "What else could it mean? Since they come from the same source, does that mean the Western Regions should also be our Han territory? Otherwise, why would crops thousands of miles apart come from the same source?"

Liu Tan was shocked after hearing this. He was planning to shake his head and say he knew nothing about it, but he didn't expect this person to come up with such a creative idea.

But Liu Che liked to hear this kind of talk, so he laughed and said, "This explanation does work, but unfortunately... the Western Regions are now occupied by a group of Xiongnu."

A gloomy look flashed across Chen Ajiao's eyes. "Not only that, but they also forced us to marry into the Wusun clan."

Princess Danyang was married off to a foreign prince. Chen Ajiao hated Liu Che and Lady Gouyi, but what she hated the most was the Huns. If the Huns had not been pressing forward step by step, how could Liu Che, who had originally said that he would never marry off a foreign prince, make such a choice?

Thinking back to when Wei Huo died, Chen Ajiao was relieved. With Wei Qing and Huo Qubing around, Liu Ju's position was as solid as a rock. It would be too difficult to challenge him, and even Liu Tan would be in danger.

Now that these two people are gone, Liu Tan has a chance.

But now Chen Ajiao thinks, if these two are still alive, would the Han Dynasty still need to make peace with the Wusun?

For a moment, Chen Ajiao's mood became complicated.

Liu Che looked at her after hearing her words, but did not continue the topic. He just continued to ask Liu Tan: "What about the second dream?"

Liu Tan continued to make up stories: "The second dream was of Fuxi. He said that he hadn't tasted fine wine for a long time, and the wine offered was not good enough, so he gave me a new method."

Liu Che immediately said seriously: "That's right, this thing should first be offered as a filial tribute to the gods of heaven and earth and our ancestors."

After that, Liu Che asked again: "Which god gave you the third dream?"

Liu Tan blinked and said, "This time it wasn't a deity, but a young lady in white. She said she was originally flawless and exquisitely white, but was tainted by color and couldn't reveal her true nature. So she taught me how to make white sugar and rock sugar."

After hearing this, Liu Che laughed and said, "This time it's a goddess, not bad. What do they look like?"

Liu Tan said confidently, "I don't know. When they came to me in my dreams, their faces were covered with a layer of mist and I couldn't see clearly!"

He was already exhausted both physically and mentally at this point. He had originally thought that he could finally rest after the state banquet was finally over, but he was dragged here for interrogation. After the sugar supply in his brain was finally insufficient, he had already entered a desperate state.

Whatever he wants, Liu Che can't force him to tell what he looks like. Is it wrong for gods to not show their faces easily? There's nothing wrong with that!

Liu Che choked, but Liu Tan's words made perfect sense. He had nothing else to say, only chuckled and said, "Two of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors appeared in your dreams, and Lady Tang also appeared in your dreams herself. You must be loved by them."

After hearing this, Liu Tan's desire to survive instantly increased. He said in a very servile manner, "These gods have long been extinct. The gods who sent us dreams are probably just their residual souls. My father is the ruler of the world and has the power of Hess. I'm afraid they can't withstand it."

Liu Che raised his eyebrows and said, "You are quite sweet-talking. Okay, I will give you a credit for this time. What reward do you want?"

Liu Tan asked carefully, "Is anything okay?"

Liu Che was about to nod when he suddenly remembered that Liu Tan might plead for Princess Danyang. He gave Liu Tan a warning look and said, "This opportunity is rare. You'd better think it over carefully."

Liu Tan took a deep breath and said, "I have thought it through. I would like to ask the Emperor for permission to personally escort Danyang to Wusun."