Chapter 62, Chapter Ten: A Nighttime Talk

Upon arriving in Chang'an, Liu Jun was overwhelmed with numerous matters to attend to. He intended to take his leave and return to his residence to discuss matters with his advisors and staff. However, Sima Ye, emboldened by alcohol, forced him to stay. Liu Jun then had to help Sima Ye deal with Suo Hou, and reluctantly entrusted the affairs of the staff to Lu Jing, asking him to handle them first.

"You do seem to cherish the past." Sima Ye looked at the guards around him and recognized several of them. Apart from Lu Jing, he also recognized Yin Xiaocheng and a few others.

Liu Jun smiled and said, "New clothes are worse than old ones, but old friends are worse than new ones."

“Then there are those who remain friends even after a lifetime of marriage, and those who become old friends at first sight.” Sima Ye rubbed his forehead. “The Suo clan is rampant. I only ask to assume personal rule as soon as possible, and then I will depose her.”

"I never imagined that my Great Jin would also have a legacy of love from the Southern Garden," Liu Jun said, his first time stepping into the emperor's palace. Looking at the furnishings, which were quite similar to those in his previous life, he was filled with mixed emotions. "For Your Majesty's status, it is rather simple. Once the Central Plains are pacified, I will definitely submit a memorial to request the position of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel to repair Your Majesty's palace."

Sima Ye, however, seemed not to have heard the last sentence. He stared intently at the belt hook where the sword had originally hung at his waist and laughed, "What do you mean by 'the love left behind in the Southern Garden'? I only know the deep affection for the old sword."

In Liu Jun's memory, he was always either gloomy and miserable, crying and sobbing, or swallowing his anger. Before that, when the world was at peace, he was innocent, naive and cute. He never expected that he could joke so freely now. He couldn't help but look at him with new eyes. "I thought His Majesty was pretending to be drunk, but now it seems that he is just pretending to be crazy."

Sima Ye smiled and ordered a clever little palace maid, "Guan Tong, fetch bedding for Attendant Liu."

"That's quite a unique name."

Sima Ye sighed, “In the past, we lacked food and clothing, so how could we afford to support palace maids? Fortunately, after you took Liangzhou, you frequently sent tributes to the court, and the harvest improved. So I selected a few orphaned girls to serve as palace maids. Besides Guan Tong, there are Fang Xu, Shi Hong, and Yuan Guang.”

Liu Jun glanced at them briefly and saw that they were all immature young girls. "Your Majesty has a refined taste."

The palace servants helped them wash up, and the two lay down on the couch. Liu Jun pressed his temples, looking tired.

"You must have had a long and tiring journey. I had the kitchen prepare this feast as a small reward, but first there was Suo Lin, and then the Suo family. Not only did it spoil your mood, but it didn't even allow you to eat your fill," Sima Ye said apologetically.

Liu Jun shook his head, "Your Majesty, you are too kind. Chang'an is short of food and clothing. To be able to prepare today's feast, you must have been very frugal on ordinary days. I have failed Your Majesty's good intentions."

Sima Ye sat up again, letting his long hair fall loose. "My appearance is not neat, please don't mind."

Seeing his long hair disheveled on the bed, Liu Jun suddenly thought of Sima Yan and couldn't help but reach out and brush it aside, startling Sima Ye, who turned to look at him, "Hairy hair!"

Withdrawing his hand without changing expression, Liu Jun looked at him with his arm bent, feeling that he was really like a young beast. He wondered if the Sima brothers, Sima Shi and Sima Zhao, had thought of him in the same way back then. But he made up a lie, "There was a flying insect just now, and I brushed it away for Your Majesty."

Sima Ye was somewhat suspicious, but didn't take it to heart. "By the way, I heard from Taizhen that you've already undergone your coming-of-age ceremony. Has your father given you a courtesy name?"

“It is indeed Yanshi,” Liu Jun smiled. “He heard that I used this nickname before, so he followed my wishes.”

“Yanshi,” Sima Ye said happily, “My courtesy name is Yanqi, which sounds like a pair of brothers. Very good, very good.”

Liu Jun laughed along, "It's just a pity that there are few people in this world who can address Your Majesty by your courtesy name, as there are no clear distinctions between ruler and subject."

Sima Ye slowly lay down, "If we are surrounded by trusted confidants, then we can address each other by our courtesy names."

Liu Jun forced himself to stay awake and replied, "Yes."

"How much longer do you have in your mourning period?" Sima Ye nudged him. "You only have concubines now, no wife. Countless powerful families have their eyes on you. So, do you want to become the Imperial Son-in-Law?"

Liu Jun suddenly opened his eyes, all sleepiness instantly gone. "How could a commoner like me dare to presume to be worthy of the imperial daughter?"

“Last month, I bestowed upon Your Excellency the title of Minister of Works, and from now on you will undoubtedly be the most important person in the court,” Sima Ye said with a gleam in his eyes. “A descendant of the Han imperial family, the governor of a province, the son of a duke or marquis, and the honor of being a court attendant—looking across the entire land, there is no unmarried young master more esteemed than you, so why be so modest?”

Liu Jun frowned. He did not reject the idea of ​​a marriage alliance with the Sima clan, but rather than marrying a princess, he hoped that in the future, following the precedent set by Emperor Xian (Liu Xie) and Empress Xianmu (Cao Jie), a woman from the clan could be selected to enter the palace as empress.

"To be honest, Your Majesty, although my mother has been bedridden for a long time, she still insisted on arranging a marriage for me despite her illness," Liu Jun lied without blinking. "I'm afraid I will have to disappoint Your Majesty's kindness."

Sima Ye looked somewhat regretful, "It's a pity that I still have several younger sisters who are unmarried..."

Liu Jun then realized that these women from the imperial clan had probably sought refuge with Consort Du. He figured that Consort Du must have been influencing Sima Ye a lot, so he asked directly, "Your Majesty is so concerned, is she a close friend of Consort Du?"

"How did you know?" Sima Ye smiled awkwardly. "Indeed, you've been a child prodigy since you were young, how could I possibly hide it from you?"

"I believe the Suo family is intolerant of people. If Your Majesty truly cherishes Consort Du, you should not show her too much favoritism, lest you suffer at her hands," Liu Jun advised.

Sima Ye frowned. "How did the news get to you like this? I have never shown her any favoritism; this is utter nonsense."

Liu Jun didn't really care about his harem affairs, but considering that she was Du Yu's granddaughter and there might be an opportunity to take advantage of her, he patiently listened.

“Actually, she had been married,” Sima Ye’s first sentence was astonishing. “But only half a year after her marriage, the Yongjia Rebellion broke out. When she was fleeing, she encountered refugees and her whole family was in danger. Her husband actually gave her to the leader of the refugees and fled to Jiankang with his old mother and his wealth.”

Liu Jun said disdainfully, "Such a despicable person is not worthy of being a son."

"She suffered endless humiliation at the hands of the refugee leader. There were many women like her there, and many of them committed suicide because they could not bear the humiliation. But she never gave up and eventually gained the refugee leader's trust. She was not only able to protect herself but also help others," Sima Ye sighed. "Fortunately, her group of refugees was later defeated by Governor Guo's army, which saved her. After that, she went to Chang'an and lived with other noble ladies."

"Courageous and intelligent, she is truly an extraordinary woman." Liu Jun sincerely exclaimed, "Whether she remarries or submits to another, it doesn't matter. Don't you see that Empress Dowager Wang, the mother of Emperor Wu of Han, remarried? How much more so in a chaotic world? She was originally chosen to be the empress, but unfortunately Suo Lin interfered."

“Yes, Empress Yang, the wife of Emperor Hui, also became Liu Yao’s wife?” Sima Ye shook his head. “I am weak-willed, while Sister Du is persevering and has the help of the Du family of Jingzhao.”

Liu Jun lowered his eyes and said in a low voice, "When the Suo family loses its support in the future, we can establish another empress. Your Majesty, please do not worry."

Sima Ye understood the implication in their words, and the two exchanged a smile.

After Sima Ye fell into a deep sleep, Liu Jun turned over, carefully avoiding pressing down on his hair.

The Suo family is nothing but a clown; the real enemies are Sima Rui in the south, Shi Le in the north, and Li Xiong in the west.

In the future, when he personally leads the expedition and Sima Ye is stationed in the capital, Lady Du can also assist him.

I'm afraid that if she gets too big, she might become an obstacle to my future...

Liu Jun gave a mocking smile, closed his eyes, and went to sleep.