As soon as Liu Ju saw his bewildered expression, he knew that he definitely didn't take it seriously. He immediately reached out and pointed at him, not knowing what to say: "You, if you keep going like this, you might get scammed and not even know what's going on."
A trap? Liu Tan's mind raced. Although his processing speed wasn't as fast as Liu Che and Liu Ju's, he still managed to remember a little after being reminded.
He raised his eyebrows and asked, "Is it Liu Quma?"
"That's him. You asked me to investigate his dealings with the King of Changyi, and I actually have some clues. How did you know he was hanging out with the King of Changyi?"
Liu Tan paused. How could he explain this? Was he supposed to say that this was what was recorded in the history books?
Of course he couldn't say that, so he made up a story on the spot: "Your Highness asked me if I had offended him. I haven't offended many people, except for the King of Qi and the Queen Mother of Qi, that is, the King of Changyi. The King of Qi and his followers were completely purged in the past, and no one dares to touch them now, so it could be the King of Changyi."
Liu Ju was surprised: "Guess?"
Liu Tan said seriously, "It's a guess, but it's also mostly a judgment, because apart from them, I can't think of anyone else who would cause me trouble?"
If the princes did not do anything excessive, the ministers would not interfere. For example, Liu Qumao's father, Liu Sheng, was greedy for wine and lustful. He was surrounded by beauties and left many sons. Did the ministers interfere?
Frankly speaking, as long as they don't rebel, no one will even look at the princes with character problems.
If you target them, you will probably be suspected by those above you: What do you want to do by paying so much attention to the princes?
Therefore, the princes of the Liu family are a hot potato, and no one wants to touch them.
Liu Tan is not only a hot potato but also a thorny one. If you want to deal with him, you have to take the risk of carrying the responsibility of the God. Recently, he used benefits to tie Princess Yangxin and Princess Dangli, two princesses favored by Liu Che, to his chariot. Huo Guang is his prime minister, which means that both the Wei and Huo families are his allies.
In this situation, would it be troublesome for him? Wouldn't that be asking for trouble?
Apart from Liu Bo, with whom he had an irreconcilable feud, he could not think of anyone else.
However, in history, Liu Qumao chose Liu Bo because Lady Li was favored, and even Lady Li's brothers were favored. Liu Qumao thought that King Changyi had a bright future, so he switched sides. Now the Li family has been wiped out before they have become a force to be reckoned with. King Changyi... is definitely not as favored as Liu Tan at the moment, so why did he choose Liu Bo?
Liu Tan was confused and asked directly.
Liu Que said, "There's a reason for this. You know the situation of Liu Qumao's father, Liu Sheng, the King of Zhongshan. He had many sons, and Liu Qumao wasn't very prominent among them. He even... almost died at one point."
Liu Tan was shocked: "Ah? He is a prince after all, how could..."
He was halfway through his words when he met Liu Ju's gaze and suddenly realized - if it were just the princes, of course they could survive, but the problem was that since the implementation of the Enfeoffment Order, all the princes of the vassal states have become competitors of the crown prince, and they will divide the original fiefdoms into smaller and smaller pieces.
By then, although the prince will inherit the throne, his fiefdom will be reduced. Which prince would be happy?
Even brothers may turn against each other because of this, let alone anything else.
Liu Tan speculated and thought it might be something done by Liu Bo, the King of Changyi. However, he was a little confused and said, "Zhongshan State and Changyi State...are they quite far apart?"
If Liu Tan had not wasted his time learning geography, there would have been at least two counties between Zhongshan State and Changyi State. In those days, two counties were basically the distance between the north and the south as it is in later generations.
In this situation, how did Liu Bo help Liu Qumao?
Liu Ju took a sip of honey water to moisten his throat and continued, "Liu Qumao couldn't survive in Zhongshan State, so he simply gave up his inheritance and fled Zhongshan State under the pretext of traveling. However, he didn't take much money with him when he left. When he arrived in Changyi State, he almost starved to death. With nowhere else to go, he took a letter to find Liu Bo, who took him in and gave him food. From then on, Liu Qumao stayed with Liu Bo. Later, Liu Bo recommended Liu Qumao to Chang'an for other reasons. After all, his surname was Liu, so my father did him the honor of meeting him. After that... you know it yourself without me saying anything."
After hearing this, Liu Tan understood. It turned out that it was a life-saving favor. No wonder Liu Qumao was so devoted to Liu Bo.
However, it seems that Liu Qumao still has some moral integrity.
Nowadays, people are still in a rather vague state about the word loyalty. There are loyal people, but social advocacy is not so strong. As for loyalty to the emperor and patriotism... Confucianism needs further development.
Therefore, it is rare for someone like Liu Qumao, who holds a high position, to not forget his old friends.
If Liu Qumao had not set his sights on him, Liu Tan would have praised this man.
Liu Tan suddenly laughed and said, "He's not targeting me at all. His target is you."
Liu Ju remained noncommittal: "At least for now, he seems to be more interested in you."
The reason was very sufficient. Liu Qumao probably didn't want to go to the trouble of overthrowing the prince and letting Liu Tan take advantage of it. Then he thought that Liu Tan might be easier to deal with than the prince, so he chose him.
Liu Tan tilted his head, thought for a moment, and asked, "Your Highness, where do you think he will start?"
Liu Ju was immediately furious after hearing this: "Do you need me to figure this out for you? Can you please use your little brain?"
Liu Tan said innocently, "This is not my style."
When it comes to scientific research, Liu Tan has the audacity to say that he is the best in the world, but if he is asked to get involved in politics, he might as well find a rope and hang himself.
Liu Ju gritted his teeth and cursed, "Little bastard."
Liu Tan: "Well, Your Highness, it's ok to scold me, but don't scold my father."
Liu Ju began to roll up his sleeves, and Liu Tan immediately jumped up and said, "Your Highness, show some grace!"
There was no point in saying anything. Liu Ju came over and grabbed the little bastard who was trying to run away, pinched his face with both hands and started stretching him horizontally.
Liu Tan fluttered his hands and said, "Let go, let go!"
The two brothers made a big fuss and finally went back to their respective places. Liu Ju rubbed his neck which was accidentally scratched by Liu Tan, while Liu Tan squatted there rubbing his face in grievance.
Liu Ju said angrily, "If he really wants to kill you, he'll most likely target you with bribes and taxes. You better be careful."
Liu Tan: "Dim sum? What kind of dim sum?"
Liu Ju: ...
My hands itch, what should I do?
Liu Tan coughed lightly and said, "Well, I know what's going on. Putting aside the issue of tribute, what else can he do about taxes?"
Liu Que said, "You have quite a few businesses now, but I don't think they'll generate much income in the short term. Yet, you appear to have a lot of money. Next year, they'll definitely have to deal with taxation. Even if they're making it up, they'll still put a mark on it while you're not in Chang'an."
Liu Tan was a little confused: "He's already showing his hand now, why wait until next year?"
Liu Ju had a blank expression on his face: "What else? Do you think this is a fight between two parties, and we'll just kill them on the spot and that's it?"
Liu Tan touched his nose and thought that was true. A few years in a political struggle was considered short. Most of the time, it would take more than ten years or even decades to determine the winner.
Liu Ju patiently continued to instruct his brother, "Even if he's causing trouble for you, it's not because he wants to use this incident to completely destroy your chances of recovery. Instead, he's trying to accumulate things. Do you know what it means when people say something can melt gold? Do you know what it means when small things add up to a lot? That's why, since you've been away from the capital for so long, he's been using all sorts of things to ruin your reputation. He's been saying to the Emperor that you're unworthy of his position. Over time..."
Liu Tan understood immediately, but what good was it? His absence from Chang'an was a major problem.
But he soon figured it out. Even if he was in Chang'an, so what? If the Prime Minister said something privately to the Emperor, would the Emperor tell him?
Thinking of this, Liu Tan said calmly, "Then I'll leave this person to your Highness to deal with."
Liu Ju: ????
Did the dog hear all the things I said?
Seeing him about to roll up his sleeves again, Liu Tan quickly said, "All I can do is send some gifts from time to time to show my filial piety. There's not much else I can do."
The most important thing is that if he falls, Liu Qumao will gain greater confidence and will naturally turn his guns to Liu Ju.
Liu Ju said bitterly, "Can't you come back once a year? It's better than not coming back at all!"
Liu Tan always felt that Liu Chuan had been talking for a long time just waiting for him here?
He quickly said, "It's not that I don't want to come back, but I've been coming back too often. I guess many people will be jealous again. Ahem, Your Highness, have you forgotten King Xiao of Liang..."
Liu Ju said unhappily, "You don't need to remind me."
Liu Tan said: "So..."
Liu Ju held his forehead with one hand and said, "I know, I know. Just be careful. As for the rest... Father will not sit idly by and watch you being bullied."
Liu Tan was immediately delighted. Professional matters should be left to professionals. He was not good at political struggles. Instead of gritting his teeth and confronting Liu Qumao, it would be better to let the prince go. He would cheer for the prince from the side and provide some output from time to time. This was the most comfortable state.
Liu Ju had no choice but to accept the fact that his brother was "hopeless". Just as he was about to ask something else, he suddenly saw the eunuch who was serving beside him come over and say, "Your Highness, the Emperor has arrived."
Liu Ju and Liu Tan quickly jumped up and lined up to go out and greet their father.
As he walked out, Liu Ju was still a little puzzled: "Why did the emperor come here suddenly? I just came back from Weiyang Palace."
Liu Ju strode over and saw his two sons standing obediently in the distance, one in front of the other. Before Liu Ju and Liu Tan could even start talking, he asked, "I heard you two were fighting?"
Liu Ju and Liu Tan: ?????
The two brothers looked at each other blankly, then one saw the red mark on the other's neck, and the other saw the red mark on the other's face that had not yet faded: !!!!!!!!!
Liu Ju quickly said, "No, it's just my son and my younger brother jokingly."
Liu Tan nodded frantically. Liu Che's eagle eyes darted back and forth between the two of them. After a long while, he slowly nodded and looked at Liu Tan: "Are you willing to come out?"
Liu Ju covered his mouth and shook his shoulders, obviously laughing.
Liu Tan was helpless: "I just feel it's cold outside and don't want to run around."
Liu Che led his son to the main hall of the Crown Prince's Palace and asked, "So you came here to fight with your brother?"
Liu Tan said, "I didn't fight with the prince!"
Liu Ju also realized it at this time: "Then why did you come here in such a cold weather?"
"I..." Liu Tan was stunned for a moment. Oh, right, what was he doing?
Oh, the toilet.
Tsk, how come he almost forgot about the toilet again.
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