101 Chapter 101
◎Leave the palace.◎
The next day, at the Marquis of Guanjun’s Mansion.
Huo Qubing was not the kind of person who would dismiss guests for no reason. This time the reason was ostensibly the Dragon Boat Festival, and he wanted to exorcise evil spirits and escape the heat. But the real reason was that his wife was pregnant, and he was so happy that he had to celebrate to feel at ease.
Wei Qing hadn't met him yesterday, and only came today to say he had invited Liu Ju. Huo Qubing's face immediately darkened: "Uncle, you clearly knew this brat would say something nonsense if he were here, yet you still invited him..."
My subordinates certainly don't have the courage to tease me, but as for my uncle, it's okay to tease him in private.
But Liu Ju was not like that. Huo Qubing felt that the image he had always created was shaky in front of his cousin, the crown prince.
He must see Liu Ju less often!
Wei Qing smiled and said, "Ju'er is not an ignorant child. He will give you face in front of outsiders."
Huo Qubing said, "It would be better if he could speak less when he is not in front of outsiders."
Wei Qing smiled and said, "That's why I asked Ju'er to come over."
Huo Qubing: "..."
Huo Qubing complained, "I knew it. My uncle wanted to see me make a fool of myself."
"It's obvious that they think you're cute." Wei Qing gave face to the Marquis of Guanjun. Seeing that there was no one around, he raised his hand and pinched the Marquis of Guanjun's cheek, just like Huo Qubing did when he was a child.
Huo Qubing: "..."
"uncle……"
He had barely begun to speak when the housekeeper arrived to announce, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has arrived."
Wei Qing and Huo Qubing went out to greet him, but unexpectedly saw an unexpected figure. Huo Qubing immediately looked at the housekeeper.
The housekeeper said with a bitter face, "Your Majesty forbids me to speak."
Liu Che walked over slowly, holding Liu Ju's hand, and said with a smile, "Zhongqing, Qubing, what are you planning to do today?"
Wei Qing and Huo Qubing bowed in greeting, and Huo Qubing then said, "Cuju... I remember your Majesty doesn't play that, right?"
Liu Che showed no sign of being put off. He looked at Wei Qing and asked, "Zhongqing, you don't want to play either?" Seeing Wei Qing nod, Liu Che continued, "Zhongqing, please come watch with me. It's just right. I want to take this opportunity to see the champion marquis and soldiers of the Han Dynasty."
Wei Qing bowed and said, "As you command."
Liu Ju was making eye contact with Huo Qubing to apologize. No matter how much Huo Qubing respected the Emperor, it was indeed a very annoying thing to have to deal with his boss in such a private occasion where one should be relaxing.
But when Huo Qubing heard that His Majesty intended to see how they performed, his eyes lit up. He put everything else behind him and started planning his tactics in his mind.
Because of his age, Liu Ju could only be a spectator, but since his audience seat was very close to the emperor, he gained a lot.
In addition to talking about Cuju and soldiers, Liu Che and Wei Qing also chatted about what happened yesterday.
The King of Huainan, who had been committed to rebellion, was planning to rebel again. This time it was mentioned in the confession of the grandson of the current King of Huainan, Liu An. The evidence was conclusive, and Emperor Wu of Han had already sent the Chief Justice Zhang Tang to arrest the Crown Prince of Huainan.
The rebellion of Liu An, King of Huainan, was like a joke. It had been planned for many years, but it was discovered before it even started.
When Liu Ju later read history books, he only remembered one sentence about this incident: "While Wei Qing was in power, Huainan's plot was shelved."
Liu Che did not care much about the rebellion of King Huainan. It only made him more convinced that the vassal states were indeed a group of troubles and that the implementation of the Enfeoffment Order was too correct.
When the Cuju game was over, Liu Che came forward without any airs. In addition to praising the champion, the rest of the people also received praise from His Majesty the Emperor.
Liu Ju looked at these young men full of youthful vigor. Because of the words of His Majesty, all of them had flushed faces and were extremely excited. They probably wanted to ride on horses to the grassland right now and kill a few Huns for His Majesty.
After boosting morale, His Majesty the Emperor went to the front hall and started the dinner.
Liu Ju felt that the enjoyment of delicious food could be postponed for a while, as iron should be used to make weapons and horse harnesses first, so he did not take out the iron pot or cooking utensils.
The dishes at the Marquis Guanjun's mansion are naturally not bad. Even if they are not as good as those in the palace, they are still among the best in the world.
The most delicious thing these days is barbecue. Liu Ju was really hungry, so he ate a lot with a big appetite.
Liu Che saw this and smiled, "It's time to go to Ganquan Palace to escape the summer heat. There's a hunting ground there. My dear, I'll take you hunting then."
Ganquan Palace...this is a place with a story.
Liu Ju smiled and said, "Thank you, old man!" He turned to look at Huo Qubing, "Cousin, are you going too?"
Liu Che waved his hand and said with a smile: "Go! Everyone go! Your uncle will go too!"
Huo Qubing said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
After putting his hand down, Huo Qubing secretly glared at Liu Ju, and then he received an even brighter smile in response.
Huo Qubing: "..."
After dinner, Huo Qubing found a moment when Liu Che and Wei Qing were talking, and gestured to Liu Ju to go out and talk.
Liu Ju nodded and tiptoed out the door, unaware that Liu Che was watching him from behind with amusement, whispering to Wei Qing, "What are these two brothers up to?"
Wei Qing smiled and said, "Qubing seems to have matured a bit in the past two years. Lately, he's been playing with Ju'er and he seems to be a little like a child again."
Liu Che thought about what Huo Qubing looked like when he was less than ten years old, nodded and smiled, "Yes, it's interesting, then let them play."
Wei Qing deeply agreed.
Outside, Huo Qubing asked, "Zi'er, how did His Majesty come here with you?"
Liu Ju sighed and said, "Cousin, His Majesty is expressing his love for you and your uncle, do you know that?"
"Of course I know," Huo Qubing said, "but I thought you wouldn't tell His Majesty about this."
Liu Ju said, "Cousin, I'm not that stingy. His Majesty loves you and your uncle, and he loves me too!" He smiled and said, "His Majesty is the Son of Heaven. I can't forbid him from loving others just because he's my grandfather, can I?"
Huo Qubing looked at him and said, "It's quite normal to have such thoughts."
Liu Ju was surprised and asked, "Hey? Cousin, when you say that, have you ever felt this way?"
Huo Qubing pursed his lips and said uncomfortably, "That was all when I was a kid."
Liu Ju said excitedly: "Cousin, please share it with me. Look, I told you everything!"
Huo Qubing couldn't persuade him, so he confessed: "It happened when I was a child, when Kang'er was just born. I think someone said a few gossips about me, and I was quite afraid... that my uncle would not love me anymore."
At this point, he shrugged, very proud, but trying his best to look nonchalant: "But later I realized that my uncle loves me, of course it's because I'm good. Otherwise, why don't I see him love other nephews?"
Liu Ju deliberately said, "My uncle loves me too."
Huo Qubing snorted, "My uncle loves me more."
Liu Ju smiled and said, "Indeed."
"Besides, this is something I only cared about when I was a child." Huo Qubing emphasized, "I'm an adult now, and I don't need anyone to love me to prove anything. Huo Qubing is Huo Qubing."
Melancholy and lack of love do not suit Huo Qubing. Liu Ju thought that when Wei Kang was born, he had just reached puberty, so he was so sensitive. Now that he has grown up, he inevitably feels that he was too pretentious back then, so he is embarrassed to mention it.
Liu Ju stroked his chin and muttered to himself, "I've been away from puberty for over two thousand years, why am I still so pretentious?"
It is really unmanly to worry about whether my father loves me all day long.
Especially for a man who is already a grandfather, this is an unreasonable behavior. Liu Ju often reflects on himself, and then... starts to care about it.
Huo Qubing didn't hear what he said clearly, and frowned and said, "What do you mean two thousand years?"
"I mean..." Liu Ju raised his head and suddenly thought of something, "Cousin, did you know that you actually have a biological father?"
Liu Ju remembered that the very next year, Huo Qubing would go to visit Huo Zhongru and then bring Huo Guang back to Chang'an.
Huo Qubing didn't care much about his biological father and said casually, "Maybe, I haven't heard anyone mention it."
Huo Zhongru is certainly not important, but Huo Guang is still very important.
If everything still has to follow the trajectory of the previous life in the end, after His Majesty the Emperor, the Han Dynasty cannot be without Huo Guang.
"Why don't you go ask your aunt?" Liu Ju suggested.
Liu Ju didn't know why Huo Qubing went to visit Huo Zhongru in his previous life, or where he heard about this person. In order to prevent the flapping of butterfly wings from changing Huo Guang's life and affecting the future of the Han Dynasty, he thought he had to remind Huo Qubing.
Huo Qubing asked curiously, "Why did you suddenly mention this person? Do you know who my biological father is?"
"How is that possible?" Liu Ju said, "Isn't this the way we Han people value filial piety? You're almost a father, and I'm afraid someone will suddenly remember this and use it to blame you."
Huo Qubing frowned.
Liu Ju continued, "Cousin, do you remember what happened last year? Didn't Ning Cheng come over and tell my uncle to send a gift to Madam Wang's family?"
Huo Qubing certainly knew about that incident. He rolled his eyes upon hearing this and said, "It's incomprehensible."
Wei Qing was able to enjoy a fief of 10,000 households and have his three sons be made marquises only because he had a sister who was the queen. Even if everyone in the Han Dynasty agreed with this view, the Huns would have to crawl out from underground and vote against it.
Liu Ju laughed twice. The political game behind this had been analyzed for more than two thousand years, and there were all kinds of opinions. He didn't understand what his father's real thoughts were after he knew about this.
But in short, in the many years that followed, Liu Che did not reduce his trust in Wei Qing, nor did he shake Liu Ju's position as crown prince.
What is even more interesting is that the general took out half of the reward gold to celebrate people’s birthdays.
Liu Ju still cannot understand the general's train of thought. Is this the difference between a genius and an ordinary person?
Liu Ju said: "It's not easy to be the empress's family member, and it's even harder to be the prince's relative."
Huo Qubing paused, then said calmly and openly, "Your Highness, you know that the General and I are, first and foremost, loyal to Your Majesty."
Liu Ju looked up and smiled, "I know."
"Marquis Guanjun, you know..." Liu Ju also said, "The Crown Prince is not only the son of His Majesty, but also His Majesty's minister. His first priority is naturally loyalty to His Majesty."
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