136 Chapter 136
◎Father and son. ◎
The shadow play was finally successfully performed in the Weiyang Palace. Various mythological stories were interpreted vividly. It is hard to say how the emperor felt, but the concubines, princesses and princes were very happy. Palace life was rather boring, and it was nice to have some entertainment activities to kill time.
After being poisoned by shadow puppetry, His Majesty the Emperor decided to put Yuefu on the agenda.
The person who was most happy about this matter was Lady Li, as this was exactly in line with Li Yannian's strengths. Her brother could at least move up from being an actor who only pleased the emperor.
When Liu Ju accidentally met her in the Pepper Room or the Xuanshi Hall, he found that the sadness that always appeared between her eyebrows had faded a lot.
Liu Ju couldn't help but start to sympathize with her. No matter how much he cared about her or put in any effort, she couldn't stop her brothers from committing suicide.
While he was busy with Yuefu, foreign envoys continued to arrive in Chang'an City. His Majesty the Emperor was busy all spring. When he finally had a chance to catch his breath, Bowang Garden was completed, so Liu Che took the prince to Shanglin Garden for a visit and relaxation.
Shanglin Garden has mountains, water, rare and exotic animals, and it is very enjoyable to play there. However, His Majesty the Emperor is very picky, and no matter how beautiful the scenery is, it will be boring to him.
It just so happened that Marquis Changping and Marquis Guanjun were also in Shanglin Garden, so Liu Ju suggested that they play mahjong together, and Liu Che reluctantly agreed.
Wei Qing and Huo Qubing had heard of this little game that spread from the Weiyang Palace and was said to be similar to Liubo, except that Liubo only required two people, while Mahjong required four.
When the Emperor saw that the two Grand Marshals knew nothing about mahjong, he immediately became interested. He taught them the rules with great enthusiasm and played a few games with them together with the Crown Prince.
Then, Marquis Changping won eight games in a row.
Liu Che: “…”
Liu Ju: “…”
Huo Qubing: "..."
Wei Qing smiled innocently: "I don't understand either."
Huo Qubing said: "I have written down all the cards, but the good cards always go to my uncle."
Liu Ju said in a daze: "This is terrible."
Liu Che was puzzled and asked, "What's wrong?"
Liu Ju said, "My uncle is so lucky. People will say that all his great achievements were due to divine intervention, and all his efforts will be wiped out."
Wei Qing shook his head and said seriously, "It's not God's help, but the blessing of Your Majesty's mighty power."
Huo Qubing nodded and said, "Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, so you can be said to be blessed by Heaven."
Wei Qing exclaimed, "Qubing is right."
Liu Ju tilted his head and said, "Ah Weng, it seems like my uncle and cousin are trying to flatter you, even though I know they are sincere."
Liu Che was feeling incredibly comfortable with the two Grand Marshals flattering him, and he didn't mind losing eight games in a row. However, upon hearing Liu Ju's words, he hesitated to speak, but he still asked, "What do you mean by flattery? It doesn't sound good to me..."
"It's... a common way of saying flattery," Liu Ju explained. "But my uncle and cousin aren't flattering you, Grandfather. They say that because they love you."
Liu Che couldn't help laughing out loud: "It was a good sentence, but now that you explain it like this, it doesn't make sense to me anymore."
"Zhongqing, Qubing, look at this brat. He has ruined your reputation. I will hand him over to you tomorrow and teach him a lesson!" Liu Che pointed at Liu Ju and said to Wei and Huo with a smile.
Without waiting for them to speak, Liu Ju said with a smile: "No, my uncle and cousin love me and are reluctant to teach me a lesson."
Wei Qing smiled and said, "If your Majesty issues an order, I will be reluctant but have to obey."
Huo Qubing also smiled, which was rare for him: "I feel the same way."
"In that case..." Liu Che raised his eyebrows and looked at the prince slowly, "I will..."
"Aunt, I was wrong." Liu Ju wisely admitted defeat immediately.
Liu Che asked with a smile: "Where did you go wrong?"
Liu Ju thought seriously for a moment and hesitated, "My mistake was not joining my uncle and cousin in flattering Grandfather?"
Liu Che: “…”
"I will personally teach you a lesson today!" His Majesty the Emperor slammed the table and reached out to grab the prince, but the daring prince was well prepared and immediately slipped away.
"Stop!" Liu Che pointed at the man and shouted.
Liu Ju ran and said, "Grandfather, please don't punish me!"
The father and son of the Tian family staged a chase, and Guanjun Hou came over to study his uncle's hand for a while.
Military generals always have a lot of calluses on their hands, and Wei Qing and Huo Qubing are no exception.
Wei Qing smiled and said, "I'm lucky today, but tomorrow it might be your turn to be lucky."
Huo Qubing asked, "My uncle has actually started to believe in this as well."
"I don't believe it." Wei Qing said flatly.
Just as Huo Qubing was about to speak again, the Emperor came in carrying the Crown Prince. Liu Ju looked unhappy, obviously having suffered a loss.
As soon as he saw them, Liu Ju said, "Uncle, cousin, your father-in-law is using his numbers to bully the few, and his victory is not fair."
Liu Che laughed and said, "How can it be said that the victory was not fair? As the military strategy says, if there are ten of them, surround them; if there are five, attack them. I have clearly commanded well."
Liu Ju was dissatisfied and said, "Aunt, you are quibbling!"
Liu Che knocked his head, snorted, and said, "What did you say? I haven't figured out how to punish you yet."
Liu Ju immediately changed his tone: "Grandpa, you are a master at using troops. I admire you wholeheartedly. I will definitely learn military tactics from you in the future!"
Liu Che rubbed the prince's head with satisfaction: "That's pretty good."
Huo Qubing couldn't help but look at his uncle. Is it really okay for the prince to learn military tactics from His Majesty?
Wei Qing smiled faintly. What's the problem? The prince is not going to fight in person.
That's right. Huo Qubing was relieved.
…
When Bowang Garden was first established, the prince had to take time to meet those who came to visit because of its reputation.
Liu Ju was still young, but the title of crown prince still attracted many talented and knowledgeable people. Of course, there were also many scammers.
Liars are always very bold. They dare to deceive not only the prince but also the emperor, so Liu Ju did not find it strange.
Liu Ju would arrange a position for the useful people who could stay in the Prince's Palace. As for those who could be recommended to the Emperor, Liu Ju would not shy away from giving them a green channel and let Liu Che personally evaluate them.
As for scammers, scammers have their uses.
Since they dared to deceive the prince, they must have some skills, even if it was just magic tricks, they could make people laugh. After Liu Ju examined them one by one, he assigned them suitable roles.
His Majesty the Emperor watched from the sidelines without intervening, but his attitude seemed to be one of great satisfaction.
After feeling assured about the Crown Prince, His Majesty the Emperor let him go and play freely. Of course, the Crown Prince would still be dragged along to play with him.
Liu Ju really didn't understand how his father, who was almost forty years old, could be so energetic?
At least when Liu Ju was in his thirties in his previous life, he didn't have so much energy to jump around every day.
Oh, Liu Ju thought about it and realized that the reason he had no mood to play in his previous life was because of his father.
Thinking of this, Liu Ju reached out and poked his father's fishing rod, and let go of a fish that had just been hooked.
Huo Guang, who was attending nearby, saw this scene and couldn't help but widen his eyes.
Liu Che was stunned for a moment before he reacted and scolded the prince: "Liu Ju!"
Calling him by his full name is enough to show that His Majesty the Emperor is angry.
The prince had already hidden behind the Marquis of Changping: "Uncle, save me!"
"Your uncle can't save you!" His Majesty the Emperor said angrily, "Even if my uncle came, he couldn't save you either!"
Liu Ju said, "That's possible, Uncle. It's so scary when your uncle comes."
Liu Che: “…”
Wei Qing almost laughed, but he held it back.
"Yesterday I told you that the Crown Prince had made considerable progress recently and could select talented individuals for me, allowing me to entrust the country with confidence!" Liu Che rubbed his temples, his hands on his hips, and cursed angrily, "But what have you done today! Lawless! And you even dared to hide behind your uncle! Hurry and come here!"
Liu Ju lingered and approached his father, stood on tiptoe and rubbed his forehead, hesitantly saying, "Don't be angry, old man. I was just joking with you."
"What are you kidding!" Liu Che shouted, "I only caught this one fish in two days."
Ah, it turned out to be the anger of the fishing air force. Liu Ju suddenly realized that he was not with his father yesterday and did not know that the emperor had no catch all day.
That was indeed a bit excessive. Liu Ju reflected on it for a moment and said, "I'm sorry, Aung, I was wrong."
Liu Che snorted.
Wei Qing looked around, then at Huo Guang, and realized that he was the only one who could help His Majesty down.
Wei Qing had no choice but to stand up and go to the emperor's side to persuade him: "His Highness has admitted his mistake. Your Majesty, please forgive him this time."
His Majesty the Emperor nodded reluctantly, reached out and tapped the prince's forehead, and said, "For your uncle's sake, I will not punish you this time."
Liu Ju hurriedly smiled and said, "Thank you, old man!" He turned to Wei Qing and said, "Thank you, uncle!"
Liu Ju pulled his father's arm again and said in a flattering manner, "Aunt, to make amends for your sin, I'll have someone make you some snacks to go with your wine!"
The Crown Prince never cooked, but the recipes he wrote always turned out very well. His Majesty was well aware of this. Upon hearing this, he forgot his previous slight unpleasantness and immediately asked, "What new ideas do you have?"
Liu Ju smiled and said, "Ah Weng, can I keep this a secret?"
"Okay." Liu Che nodded happily, "But what will you do if I'm not satisfied?"
"We'll do whatever Grandfather says." Liu Ju looked very confident.
Liu Che clapped his hands and said, "Okay, Zhongqing, you come and be a witness."
Wei Qing was a little helpless, but still bowed and said, "Yes."
After that, Liu Ju went to prepare his mysterious dish. His Majesty the Emperor still spent part of his time handling government affairs and part of his time relaxing and entertaining.
Liu Ju was also called to accompany his father for a day of fishing. Fortunately, His Majesty the Emperor had a good harvest.
——As for whether there is any inside story, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is not in a position to disclose it.
During these days in Shanglinyuan, Liu Ju had a very happy time because he was relaxing and spending time with his father.
But soon, joy turned into sorrow.
Liu Ju was woken up in the middle of the night and was still not fully aware of the situation when he learned that the emperor had suddenly run a fever.
Liu Ju asked again: "What's wrong, Your Majesty?"
The eunuch was about to cry: "Your Highness, His Majesty has a high fever and can't be woken up!"
This is an era where fever can kill people.
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