92 Chapter 92
◎Father. ◎
Countdown to Reincarnation (4)
Fusu: I don’t know what’s going on. Nothing special has happened recently.
Fusu: @Li Ying, have you ever asked the underworld?
Liu Ju: I was also very ordinary at that time.
Li Ying: I asked, but my leader only told me that I passed your task and asked me to continue with Prince Wei's task.
Li Chengqian: Your underworld is so irresponsible
Fusu: Now that we are here, let us make the best of it, @Liu Ju.
Liu Ju: Thank you very much.
Li Chengqian: If you stick your head out, you'll get a knife. If you hide your head, you'll get a knife too. It's only a matter of time.
Liu Ju: Thank you.
Li Ying: Underworld complaint hotline: 6XXXXX
Li Ying: @Li Chengqian
Li Chengqian: [rolling eyes]
Fusu: ...
…
After finally dealing with his mother at noon, Liu Ju received an invitation from his father in the afternoon.
The eunuch beside Liu Che came over and delivered the order: "Your Majesty, please go to the Xuanshi Hall."
Liu Ju rubbed his eyebrows. Couldn't he be left alone for a moment today?
Although he complained a lot, Liu Ju did not slow down at all in his actions. He went back to his bedroom to change his clothes, and then went to the Xuanshi Hall.
Xuanshi Hall is also located in the Weiyang Palace, closer to the Weiyang Front Hall. Starting from the Prince's Palace, it is farther away than the Jiaofang Hall.
Filial piety was emphasized in the Western Han Dynasty. In his previous life, Liu Ju would walk the road from the Prince's Palace to the Xuanshi Hall twice every day as long as Liu Che was in the Weiyang Palace.
Even after two thousand years, Liu Ju was still so familiar with this road that he wouldn't make the mistake even with his eyes closed.
At noon, the empress entertained guests in the Pepper Room, and in the afternoon, the emperor was not alone in the Xuanshi Hall.
When Liu Ju entered, Wei Qing and Huo Qubing were looking at a map and discussing military affairs with Liu Che.
The war between the Han and the Xiongnu had not yet ended. Next year, Huo Qubing would open up the Hexi Corridor.
"Ju'er, why are you standing here in a daze?" Liu Che came over at some point. He smiled and rubbed Liu Ju's head, then picked him up.
Liu Ju: “!!!”
Forget about the female official next to his mother, but in terms of his physical age, he is already seven years old. How can he not be old enough to be carried by his parents?
"...Aunt, I can walk by myself." Liu Ju said.
"Yesterday you were still clinging to me and acting coquettishly, saying that your legs hurt. Today you ran to the Pepper Palace and came here again. I guess your legs must be sore from exhaustion." Liu Che rubbed his forehead against Liu Ju's, affectionately and lovingly.
Such an attitude made Liu Ju suddenly not know how to react. When had he and his father ever had such a warm father-son moment?
Yes, his father loved him so much during his youth.
Liu Ju thought that he should have forgotten these old events, but in fact, as long as he thought about it, he could still remember them vividly.
Wei Qing glanced at Liu Ju and said, "Your Highness looks a little tired."
Huo Qubing also looked up at Liu Ju, but he didn't say anything.
Unlike the unruly and flamboyant young general imagined by later generations, Huo Qubing...from the outside, he was a real cool guy.
Liu Ju came out of his memories and looked at Huo Qubing with interest. Was it the arrogance of a young man, or was he pretending to be mature?
Huo Qubing was about to look away when he received Liu Ju's curious and inquiring gaze. He asked calmly, "Why are you looking at me like that, Your Highness?"
When Huo Qubing was young, he served as a minister to Emperor Wu of Han and often came and went in the palace. He was also the nephew of the queen and often met Liu Ju, so naturally they were very familiar with each other.
In fact, although Liu Ju's memory was vague, he seemed to have loved to pester Huo Qubing for a long time in his childhood.
Little children like to play with older children, especially when the older children are particularly outstanding and unique.
But for older children, this kind of liking did not make them happy - Huo Qubing really did not like the job of taking care of children.
But in the complex Wei family system, Huo Qubing was the eldest of the third generation of children, so in many unavoidable occasions, he was forced to take care of children for many years.
It was not until last year that Huo Qubing was promoted to the rank of Piao Yao Commandant and followed his uncle Wei Qing into battle, where he became famous and was awarded the title of Marquis Guanjun. His career as a child-rearing officer finally came to an end.
After this year, Huo Qubing would open up the Hexi Corridor, seal the Wolf's Lair, and achieve immortal merits. He would be promoted to the Grand Marshal and General of the Cavalry. Even the three dukes and nine ministers who were old enough to be his grandfather would have to bow to him when they saw him, and those of his peers could only look up to him, so no one dared to let him take care of their children.
——Except his own son Huo Xian.
Liu Ju said, "I just looked in the mirror, and now I'm looking at my cousin again, and I realize that I look a lot like him."
"Hmm?" Liu Che became interested. He glanced at Liu Ju's face, then at Huo Qubing's face. He put Liu Ju down and beckoned, "Qubing, come here."
Huo Qubing didn't want to squat with his cousin who was the crown prince and let his uncle who was the emperor compare their appearances. It was too childish.
But since His Majesty had spoken, and Huo Qubing always listened to His Majesty, he could only squat over and make his expressionless face level with Liu Ju's chubby face.
Liu Che studied them for a moment, then asked Wei Qing to come over and take a look. "Zhongqing... huh?" He had made another discovery. "It's not just these two children who look alike. Zhongqing also bears resemblance to them. Your eyebrows and eyes look like they were carved from the same mold."
Wei Qing smiled and said, "Probably like my late mother."
After all, if the three of them traced their ancestry back to Wei Qing, they could only be related to his mother. In short, this similarity was not due to the surname Wei.
Liu Che thought for a moment and nodded, "Although Zifu's eyebrows and eyes are softer, they are no different from yours."
Liu Ju touched Huo Qubing's knee and said, "Cousin, please stand up. Your legs will become numb if you squat for too long."
Liu Che laughed heartily upon hearing this: "Do you think he is you? I think it is your leg that hurts."
As he spoke, Liu Che reached out and grabbed Huo Qubing's arm, motioning him to stand up. Huo Qubing certainly would not rely on the emperor's help. He stood up steadily with just a little effort of his own.
Liu Che bent down and said with a smile: "Look at your cousin, Ju'er. He is very different from when he was serving as an attendant to me."
Having said this, he stood up and ordered the eunuch beside him: "Go and get the bow that the Shaofu sent the other day and give it to the Champion Marquis."
The eunuch took the order and left.
Faced with the reward that suddenly fell on his head, Huo Qubing thanked it very calmly. After all, he was very experienced in this.
His Majesty is like this. When he likes someone, he will give that person rewards for no apparent reason.
This was something that not only Huo Qubing but also Wei Qing who was present had a deep understanding of.
Sure enough, Liu Che's next words were: "Zhongqing, I have two ginsengs in my storeroom, take them back."
Wei Qing smiled and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty. I dare you not to reward me with medicine next time."
Liu Che smiled and said, "Once the imperial physician says you are back to health, I will naturally allow you to stop taking medicine. Zhongqing, take good care of yourself. I still hope that you can help me expand my territory and capture the Xiongnu Chanyu."
Wei Qing bowed and said, "I will definitely live up to your Majesty's expectations."
Liu Ju was still standing beside Huo Qubing. He looked up at him and said, feigning ignorance, "Aunt, from now on, I will also learn horse riding and archery well. Can I follow my uncle into the battlefield like my cousin?"
"No," Liu Che flatly refused, "I haven't personally led an expedition yet, so you are not allowed to go."
As he said this, he smiled again with his eyebrows curved, and it was obvious that this was a joke.
Huo Qubing said, "Your Majesty, it is not difficult to lead the army in person. All we need to do is wait for my uncle and I to pacify the southern desert."
Ah... Liu Ju thought that his father had such an experience of leading a military expedition in his previous life, but at that time the young general who made the bold statement today had already been buried in Maoling Mausoleum, and the one accompanying his father was the general who was now smiling somewhat helplessly.
Liu Che obviously admired Huo Qubing's bold words and was also inspired by his heroic spirit. He immediately thought of planning the battle situation with the two generals in front of the map. Fortunately, Wei Qing reminded him that it was time for dinner, so they should forget about the adults and not let the prince starve.
"I forgot." Liu Che said with a smile, "Serve the meal."
People seem to have a stereotype about Emperor Wu of Han, always thinking that he was a moody person, but in fact, he had a good temper from his youth until his old age.
——Although the prime ministers and princes during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han included Zhang Tang and Sima Qian...
——They may not agree, but, at least in Liu Ju's opinion, his father's temper is really good now.
——At least much better than Fusu’s father.
After the meal, Wei Qing and Huo Qubing took their leave, leaving Liu Ju alone with his father.
To be honest, Liu Ju was a little resistant.
After all, Liu Ju's impression of his father was that of an old man with a strange and changeable temperament, not the young man he is now who is full of vigor and good-tempered.
He needs some time to adjust.
But Liu Che obviously could not guess what his son was thinking. He specially called Liu Ju over. In addition to having dinner, he also wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with his son who had just been promoted to the crown prince, and to ask whether he could adapt to leaving his mother and living alone in the crown prince's palace.
Liu Ju: “…”
There's nothing to get used to, he's not really a seven-year-old child.
But this answer was obviously not acceptable. However, Liu Ju had been the crown prince for thirty years. Even though the young Emperor Wu of Han was difficult to fool, he still managed to fool him successfully based on his understanding of his father and his experience in dealing with his mother in the morning.
In addition to expressing his concern for his son's life, Liu Che also made arrangements for his studies.
As soon as Liu Ju was born, Emperor Wu of Han asked someone to write "Ode to the Birth of the Crown Prince", which was equivalent to announcing to the world that his eldest son was the crown prince. However, Liu Ju was still young at that time and could not receive the education of a crown prince.
Now that Liu Ju was the officially appointed crown prince, Liu Che decided to assign all his teachers, officials, etc.
Just like what Emperor Xiaojing did for him when he was made the crown prince, now Liu Che wants to give it all to his crown prince.
Liu Ju's eyes flickered slightly, and he lowered his eyes to hide all his emotions.
When it comes to being a father, the best thing Liu Che could think of was his father's words and deeds. When Liu Che became a father, he imitated everything his father did. He wanted his prince to become like him.
...What a pity, Liu Ju thought, what a pity.
There were probably two moments in Liu Che's life when he loved his son the most. One was now, when he appointed Liu Ju as the crown prince, and the other was in the future when he built the Sizi Terrace.
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