Chapter 18
After Liu Ju left, Liu Che opened the bamboo slips again, but it was not the record of Lei being followed by Chen Ci and Liu Ling, but a half-written appointment letter he had previously found.
According to his original plan, he would send people to Huainan to interrogate Liu Qian, and of course take the opportunity to investigate whether Huainan had other intentions.
But now Liu Che felt that people still had to be sent, but the plan of who to send and how to send them needed to be changed.
The next day, there was a lot of noise at the court meeting, and people argued endlessly about what Liu Qian had done.
Some people say that Liu Qian was narrow-minded and used despicable means, and even obstructed the execution of the emperor's edict. This is a serious crime and he should be severely punished.
Some proposed execution, some proposed abolishing the title of Prince of Huainan, and some proposed taking Liu Qian to the capital for trial.
Some people also said that there was a reason for the incident. Lei Bei was just a humble disciple. How could he hurt Liu Qian if he was a master swordsman, a hundred times stronger than Liu Qian? Unless he did it on purpose, it was clear that he was not a good person.
Assassinating the prince of a vassal state is a serious crime, and the prince should be punished. The so-called stopping him from joining the army is nothing more than the fear that his character will cause chaos in the military camp and ruin your majesty's plan to resist the Huns.
After days of heated arguments, the situation in Huainan and Liu Qian remained unresolved. Finally, Emperor Liu Che had no choice but to compromise, appointing Lieutenant Yin Hong to go to Huainan to interrogate Liu Qian before making a final decision.
When the news came, Liu Ling whispered softly: "Yin Hong."
She had been in the capital for many years and had some understanding of the court officials. If Liu Che sent someone else, she might worry that Huainan would not be able to hold out. However, Yin Hong was a man who knew how to protect himself and would not interfere too deeply. He was also a man who could use both intimidation and bribery.
She breathed a sigh of relief: "Now we have passed most of this level."
As for the remaining half, we just need Huainan to be safe.
The maid consoled her, "When the princess went to rescue Lei Bei, I had already ordered everyone to split up and act separately. Calculating the date, I think the king has already received the news and will definitely know how to respond. He won't act rashly."
After a pause, the maid continued, "I also sent a letter to Sangzhi, telling her to go to Nanyue if the plan fails."
Liu Ling nodded. After all, he had been with her for more than ten years. Even if he was not particularly smart, he was loyal and reliable.
Sangzhi is her confidant, and she has also deployed people in Nanyue. These are all carefully prepared by her, but not for herself.
Thinking of this, a childish face appeared in Liu Ling's mind, and his expression gradually softened.
The maid brought the medicine: "Princess, please drink it. Your health is the most important thing."
There was actually no serious problem with her body. She just knelt for a few hours outside the Xuanshi Hall that day under the scorching sun and suffered from heatstroke. She would be fine after two days of rest, but Liu Ling was in a bad mood and felt humiliated and a little depressed.
If she were a princess, would Liu Che treat her like this? Or if she were from Guantao or Pingyang?
As your majesty's elder sister and a close nephew of Wei Zifu, Pingyang, though not present at court, had a significant voice in many matters, retaining a significant influence. Guantao even participated in the change of the crown prince. Without Guantao, Liu Che's ascension to the throne is uncertain.
These two were her role models. Even though Guantao had fallen, it had once been at the height of its power. Even now, in its declining state, it still held the prestigious status of Grand Princess, a position that no one could underestimate.
But she was different from Guantao, and Liu Qian was no match for her. If Huainan could succeed, she was confident that she could sideline Liu Qian and seize power.
Liu Ling's eyes flickered, and he became more determined in his goal.
But the maid's next words were like a bucket of cold water, extinguishing most of the raging fire in her heart: "Did the princess obtain the secret letter? Has Lei been confessed?"
Liu Ling's expression instantly turned cold: "He didn't say."
"No?"
The maid frowned. "Lei Bei has kept our secret, but he's unwilling to disclose everything. What does that mean? Is he planning to keep the secret letter and threaten us again and again?"
At this point, the maid's face suddenly changed. "He has always been in love with the princess. Will he threaten the princess to be with him..."
A chilling sound emanated from Liu Ling's nose: "Are you worthy of this just because of the thunder quilt?"
She doesn't mind using her charm and advantages to achieve certain goals, but that doesn't mean she wants to go any further with them.
So what if Lei Bei had great swordsmanship and skill? She had certain requirements for men. Status, position, and looks were all essential. Beyond that, whether he was useful to her or not also mattered.
More importantly, she needs to be happy.
If she is happy and willing, she can pick a good one. This can not only seduce the other party for planning, but also satisfy her own physical needs. Why not do it?
But if she doesn't want to, no matter who the other person is, if he dares to touch her, she will chop off his hand.
However, Liu Ling felt that Lei Bei didn't have the guts to do that. She guessed that Lei Bei was afraid that if he handed over the secret letter, he would lose his support and wanted to keep it for self-protection in case of need.
Even so, Liu Ling was still very angry. This meant that although Lei Bei was unwilling to let her die, he was not completely unfaithful to her.
Men, ah.
******
In contrast to Liu Ling's melancholy, the palace was completely calm, as if nothing had happened. Everyone went about their daily lives, eating and drinking, chatting and laughing as usual, in a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere.
Especially Liu Ju, as a child, these things had nothing to do with him. He should have been the happiest, most comfortable and most at ease, but there were people who didn't want him to have an easy life.
Liu Ju looked at the Left Supervisor of the Supreme Court who was standing below him, then looked at the files on the desk in front of him and began to question his life.
Father, what he said the other day was just talk, why did he actually mean it? There's something wrong with him, has he forgotten how old he is?
I kindly reminded my dad, but he gave me a bunch of homework, and a bunch of difficult questions. I'm wondering what kind of trick is this. It's a human thing. Liu Rushi is really miserable. I suggest Liu Xiaozhu change his name to Liu Xiaogou. He's really a dog.
This wasn't just about giving him homework; he also wanted to hire child laborers as his social slaves. While it's clear that Liu Che likely wanted to cultivate Liu Ju, that doesn't hide the fact that he wanted him to be his social slave. Think about it later, Liu Ju's epitaph reads: Died at the age of thirty-eight, a social slave for thirty-two years.
—Ah, that's even more breathtaking. Hahaha, after all, the dog is still Liu Xiaozhu Dog. Liu Xiaogou is a truly worthy name, I second that.
——Please don’t make the characters in the TV series more realistic than Liu Xiaozhu, thank you.
Liu Ju: ...He died at the age of thirty-eight? He lowered his head and calculated his current age. Hmm, there's still a long time to go. So don't worry about it. Besides, it's not necessarily true.
As for the name Liu Xiaogou, he had no comment. But when it came to calling his father a dog, Liu Ju agreed wholeheartedly. Ugh, my father is not a human being!
He looked up at Zuo Jian, who was also looking at Liu Ju at the top. Feelings of helplessness, confusion, and bewilderment flashed through his mind one by one.
When the imperial edict was first received, Zuo Jian was completely bewildered. He asked Zhang Tang several times to confirm that he had heard it correctly. He took a deep breath and asked helplessly, "Your Highness, do you want to read it yourself, or do you want me to read it to you?"
Liu Ju decisively put down the bamboo slips he had just picked up and spread his hands: "You read it."
Left Supervisor: ...
The left supervisor could only open the bamboo slips and start reading. As a result, one of them read until his mouth was dry and the other listened until he felt dizzy.
By the time the fourth file was explained, the sun was setting. The Left Supervisor breathed a sigh of relief, and suddenly became aware of the sighs of relief around him. He turned his head to meet Liu Ju's gaze, and they both saw five words in each other's eyes: It's finally over.
Then they looked away in tacit understanding.
Liu Ju cursed inwardly: "Father, look at what you've done. Every word you open tortures both your son and your subjects. As expected, Old Zhou has exposed himself. This isn't a top-tier exploiter; this is a god-tier exploiter. Even the title of top-tier doesn't suit you."
Of course, the Left Supervisor was unaware of his criticism. As soon as he left Feixiang Palace, he went to Zhang Tang to report back and raised his own question: "Zhang Tingwei, Your Highness is only five or six years old. The criminal case files are so difficult to understand. How can a child like him understand them?
"I have never heard Your Highness have any contact with this before. Why are you suddenly interested? Your Majesty, what exactly does this mean? What should I do? I would like to ask for the advice of the Chief Justice."
Zhang Tang put down the bamboo slips in his hand and said, "I'll just say one thing. Think about it. Who said that His Highness is interested in criminal investigations?"
The Left Supervisor suddenly realized it was His Majesty. He frowned, "But from what I've observed today, Your Majesty doesn't seem to like it very much."
Zhang Tang shook his head. "Whether His Majesty really likes it or not is not important. What's important is that Your Majesty thinks he likes it, or rather, that Your Majesty thinks he can like it, can read it, can..."
He paused, his eyes flickering for a moment, and continued, "We can assist in the explanation."
The Left Supervisor was stunned, his heart trembling: "Your Majesty's move... Could it be that Your Majesty wants to establish the Grand Prince..."
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but Zhang Tang's warning look made him swallow them back. Zuo Jian's heart shuddered, and he wiped the nonexistent sweat from his forehead: "Your subordinate... Your subordinate understands."
How could they guess His Majesty's thoughts at will? But thinking about the Queen who had been in the emperor's favor for more than ten years, thinking about General Wei, thinking about Marquis Guanjun, and now this sudden and unreasonable decree, Zuo Jian vaguely felt that he had seen the truth.
If so, this is a great job.
Liu Ju was completely clueless about Zuo Jian's imaginary thoughts. He slept soundly, dreamless, and much of the previous day's melancholy faded. Just as he finished washing up, Feng He heard that Mr. Shi Qing had sent someone to apologize, saying he had something else to do and couldn't attend the regular literature class.
Shi Qing was Liu Ju's teacher. Liu Ju was a brilliant child, and his education began very early. His first teacher was not Shi Qing, but Shi Qing's father, Shi Fen. When Shi Fen passed away last year, Emperor Wu of Han asked Shi Qing to take over.
Hearing this, Liu Ju was very happy. Who wouldn't want to rest?
He rested his chin on his hand, thinking about what to play, and even thinking about pulling Shi Yi over. Just as the thought came to his mind, Shi Yi had already entered the house, holding something in his hand: "It's a nice day today, do you want to go to the pond garden to release the silk birds?"
The so-called silk bird, similar to the wooden bird, was made of fine silk and bamboo branches. Liu Ju vaguely remembered that in TV dramas, they were called kites. They moved with the wind, which was quite appropriate.
Liu Ju looked at the silk bird in her hand and asked, "Did you make this new one?"
Shi Yi raised his eyebrows. "Yes. The previous one was scratched. This one is still in the shape of a swallow, but it's more refined than the previous one. I even painted part of it myself. Does it look good?"
Swallow shape, shape?
Liu Ju paused, suddenly remembering that if Kongming lanterns could be made in a variety of colors and patterns, so could kites. Of course, kites couldn't fly as high as Kongming lanterns, and they were fixed in place, having to be pulled by silk strings. If the strings broke, they would quickly fall even with the wind, making them completely difficult to control.
Especially since Kongming lanterns can be seen from all over Chang'an City, but kites can only be seen from nearby areas, which is quite restrictive. But what if that person lives next to the Weiyang Palace?
Liu Ju looked at the kite and fell into deep thought.
Shi Yi frowned unhappily: "I'm talking to you, are you going or not? If you don't go, I'll go by myself."
Liu Ju came back to his senses in a second: "Go!"
He didn't care, his father would naturally take care of these things. Why did the child care so much? Wouldn't he be tired?
So Liu Ju went out with his head held high, and happily flew kites with Shi Yi.
The two of them ran wildly, sending the kite soaring high. They were having a great time when Feng He hurried in to report, "Your Highness, the Left Supervisor of the Imperial Court has arrived. He said he just happened to be entering the palace and learned that Your Highness doesn't have to study the usual lessons today. In that case, the criminal case files can be read earlier."
Liu Ju: ...
You are sick, you are sick, absolutely sick. Can you please be more considerate?
Liu Ju stamped his feet and said, "I'm not going. Let him go."
Feng He was embarrassed: "The Left Supervisor just went to meet with His Majesty and reported to His Majesty the specific matters and plans for reading the files to His Majesty, and also gave His Majesty the files to be read today for his review."
Liu Ju: ...Ahhh, how annoying!
Zuo Jian, oh Zuo Jian, is your brain squeezed by the door? We are usually victims. Can’t we just go through the motions? Why do we have to be so diligent and serious?
Hate it, hate it, it’s so annoying!
The Left Supervisor hates him, the Emperor hates him, and everyone else hates him.
Woo woo woo, baby is sad, baby is unhappy, baby is crying!
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