Chapter 517 The First Birthday Ceremony
When Landis lazily delegated the task of character design extraction to Wu Mo and Fei Bai (a second time) —
Fei Bai: As a leader, you must be ambitious!
Wu Mo: So?
Fei Bai: So, since you drew twice, I have to draw twice for you too!
Wu Mo: ...Master will kill us, right? Fei Bai: It's okay, we'll still be good leaders in eighteen years!
Wu Mo: () You have guts! I support you!
Fei Bai: Watch me—
[I've been selected for the "Cat-like Academic Genius" persona]
[Triggering the Easter egg character "Pure White Paper (Memory Seal)"]
Wu Mo: Are you sure you didn't cheat?
Fei Bai: Can things done by the system be called cheating?
Wu Mo: ...Then wish us good luck! I'm in a hurry, I'm going in now ヾ(￣￣) Bye-Bye——
Fei Bai: Hehe, good luck anyway. I'll tell Master it was all your doing - that's how cruel the battles between systems are (￣︶￣)↗
——
As expected of Liu Che, Wei Qing rushed back the day before Liu Ju's first birthday celebration.
As the sun rose, Wei Qing had already changed his black armor into a dark-patterned brocade robe, and the jade belt around his waist was fastened meticulously.
The moment he stepped into the Jiaofang Palace, he saw two figures flash by in the corridor—Huo Qubing tossed Liu Ju high into the air with one hand, and the exquisitely beautiful child giggled as he fell into the air.
"!" Wei Qing's pupils contracted sharply, and the jade pendant at his waist jingled as he rushed forward.
He moved like an arrow across the white marble steps, catching Liu Ju safely in his arms before he fell.
The baby in his arms was unaware of the danger. His tiny teeth, glistening with saliva, gleamed in the morning light, and his soft, sweet "Uncle" made Wei Qing's tense back relax slightly.
"Uncle!" Huo Qubing flicked his sweat-dampened hair, his bronze face revealing two rows of white teeth in a smile. "You're just too timid. I'm taking Ju'er to play 'Flying in the Clouds'!" He winked at Liu Ju. "Ju'er isn't afraid, is he?"
"fly!"
Liu Ju clapped along in agreement, and Huo Qubing reached out to take the clapping, saying, "Cousin will take you flying..."
Wei Qing dodged to the side, the hem of his black robe brushing against Huo Qubing's wrist: "Nonsense! Today is the baby's first birthday celebration, and Ju'er is the Crown Prince, how can we treat this so childishly!"
He carried the child and strode towards the main hall. Watching his back, Huo Qubing shrugged helplessly, thinking that he was too timid.
Suddenly, Liu Ju's round little face peeked out from Wei Qing's shoulder, his big, watery eyes looking at him with reluctance. Huo Qubing immediately smiled, waved his arms at him, and shouted, "Next time, cousin will take Ju'er flying again!"
Upon hearing this, Wei Qing quickened his pace, which made Huo Qubing burst into laughter.
The front hall of Weiyang Palace has been decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers since a month ago. The thirty-six vermilion dragon pillars are wrapped in gold and red silk, and the five-colored brocade tassels hanging from the eaves sway like waves in the wind.
A winding floating bridge was erected overnight over Taiye Pond, and glass cups filled with luminous pearls from the Western Regions reflected in the water, making it shimmer like a galaxy hanging upside down on earth.
As the crown prince of the Han Dynasty, who was born with unusual signs, and the son of Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Ju, who had been on the throne for decades, had his first birthday celebration held with great pomp and circumstance.
The long jade table was laden with a dazzling array of objects: bamboo slips and ink symbolized civil administration, bronze swords and spears demonstrated military prowess, jade discs and silks represented wealth, and farming implements such as plows and hoes represented people's livelihood.
Liu Che personally carried Liu Ju and, under the watchful eyes of everyone, placed him on the long table.
Judging from the grandeur of the ceremony and His Majesty's actions, everyone understands the importance of this Crown Prince. With the precedent set by the Jixia Academy, no one can ignore the extraordinary phenomena at the Crown Prince's birth, nor can anyone treat today's first birthday celebration as just an ordinary custom.
What will he grab?
Liu Che was curious, Wei Zifu was curious, Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, and all the ministers and feudal lords present were curious.
Liu Ju was completely unconcerned about the intense gazes around him. Although he was young, he felt he must be a genius.
He learned the meaning of the first birthday celebration from just a few words from others.
A genius baby will naturally grab something extraordinary!
Therefore, he began to observe carefully, starting from near and moving further away.
First up was a miniature bronze sword. He picked it up with some disdain and examined it. It wasn't even sharpened. Who was this guy looking down on? He'd leave it for now!
Next to the bronze sword was a bamboo slip, which looked really bulky. Writing on this thing required a carving knife, which was too troublesome. Why wasn't there any paper?
What is paper?
Liu Ju sat in front of the bamboo slips for a while, then shook his head. Whatever, it's better than bamboo slips!
Beyond the bamboo slips was a jade disc, quite beautiful, but unfortunately not the He Shi Bi (a famous jade disc), so I didn't want it!
What is the He Shi Bi jade?
Liu Ju sat there in a daze for a while, then thought, "Never mind, it's not important!"
Next to the jade disc was a gleaming golden abacus, the kind of thing that looks perfect for a working-class person.
What exactly is a "working class"?
Liu Ju stared blankly for a while longer.
To outsiders, all of this appeared as the little prince slowly crawling for a while, then resting for a while, then crawling for a while, then resting for a while.
Huo Qubing couldn't help but ask, "Did Ju'er not sleep well last night?"
Liu Che chuckled lightly: "I think he's just being lazy."
Most children, once they can talk, chatter incessantly, even if they can't express themselves clearly. But Ju'er, once he could speak, rarely said a word. He would never utter a sound unless absolutely necessary, spending his days lazily enjoying the care of the palace servants. Sometimes, even Emperor Wu of Han envied his leisurely lifestyle.
Liu Ju, sitting at the long table, seemed to have heard Liu Che's harsh comments. He looked up and glared at him. "Damn father! How could his first birthday celebration gifts be such ordinary things?"
How could someone as extraordinary as him be worthy of such things?
Liu Ju began to look around.
"What exactly is he trying to capture?" Huo Qubing wondered.
Looking at Liu Ju, who had been sitting motionless at the long table for a long time, Liu Che snorted and called out, "No slacking off, hurry up and catch him."
Liu Ju raised his eyes and stared at Liu Che for a moment.
If we could capture an emperor, wouldn't that be more fitting for his status as a genius baby?
So Liu Ju opened his arms to Liu Che.
"What? I won't hug you."
As Liu Che spoke, a smile appeared in his eyes, and he unconsciously took two steps forward.
Just then, a strange phenomenon occurred.
Streaks of light flew from the direction of Jixia Academy and landed beside Liu Ju.
[Ding! Special occasion triggered: "The Chosen One's First Birthday Ceremony," celebrated by all!]
So, the ordinary items on the long table were swept to the ground, leaving only the Confucian bamboo slips gleaming with golden light, the Mohist Grand Master's Token, the Agriculturalist Shennong Token, the Taoist Taiji Diagram, the Military Tiger Tally, and the Prophet's Illusionary Sound Box...
The light flashed, and though it couldn't speak, everyone could see the urgency in its expression: "Choose me quickly!"
Amidst the astonishment, everyone couldn't help but sigh, "The Crown Prince is indeed extraordinary."
I'm even more curious about his choice.
Then, the little prince, propping his chubby chin up, pondered for a while before climbing to the edge of the long table, lifting the silk cloth spread underneath, and taking all the items in one fell swoop.
"..." The Crown Prince is indeed extraordinary!
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