After the New Year, King Liu Xun of Lu sent a gift on behalf of the college.
A clock the size of a round fan.
Liu Zhao was surprised to see
"It's not easy to make a chime clock this small."
King Liu Xun of Lu said: "Not only is it smaller, but it also gives more accurate time, with almost no error."
Gu Jiu picked up the clock. It was exquisite in appearance, decorated with fine mahogany, carved with exotic flowers and plants, and inlaid with various jewels.
At first glance, it looks rich, luxurious and worth a lot of money.
She asked Liu Xun, "How are you going to sell this?"
"The Minister of the Imperial Household is planning to hold a watch appreciation conference and will use the opportunity to launch a table clock. To boost sales, we've commissioned someone to design over a dozen different designs. They can be customized to suit any customer's needs. The starting price is three thousand taels, with no upper limit."
Liu Zhao sighed, "The Polytechnic Institute has received a large sum of money this time. Can it achieve a balance between income and expenditure?"
Gu Jiu shook his head. "I'm afraid not! Clocks are just small items. The Polytechnic Institute needs to research and develop so many things. We can't be satisfied with our current achievements."
"Mr. Ren said the same thing." Liu Xun agreed.
Then Liu Xun took out two wooden boxes and said, "I have brought another gift for my father, the emperor, and my mother, the queen."
"What is it?"
Liu Zhao was curious and opened the wooden box directly.
Huh?
It turned out to be a pocket watch half the size of a palm.
"You actually made a pocket watch?"
"This is a sample my son made. The time on the pocket watch isn't very accurate, so it needs further improvement. Since this is my first time making a pocket watch sample, I feel it's very meaningful, so I brought it here for my father and mother. When I make the finished pocket watches in the future, I'll send two more to my father and mother."
Gu Jiu opened another wooden box, picked up the pocket watch, and said, "There are only two samples, right?"
"There are three in total. The remaining one is kept in the academy for further research."
Gu Jiu laughed. "There are only three pocket watches in the world that are not keeping accurate time. They are also the earliest three pocket watches in the world. Two of them, one is in the hands of the retired emperor, and the other has been in the hands of the empress dowager. After a hundred years, these two pocket watches with inaccurate time will be unique, irreplaceable, and priceless antiques in the world."
That's the reason.
Liu Zhao called Xuan Ge'er over and said, "After your grandmother and I are a hundred years old, these two pocket watches will be given to you for safekeeping. They are one-of-a-kind pocket watches that can only be worn by the Emperor and Empress Dowager."
Xuan Ge'er's eyes immediately turned red and he nodded heavily.
Prince Lu Liu Xun muttered quietly, "Father, what you said is unlucky."
Liu Zhao picked up his pocket watch and tapped it on the head of Liu Xun, the Prince of Lu. "Stop talking nonsense! Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the laws of nature. You're just overthinking things about good and bad luck."
King Liu Xun of Lu felt wronged and asked his mother, the queen, for help.
Gu Jiu's eyebrows curved, and he smiled, "The third brother is here today, just in time to try the new dishes developed by the royal chef."
When he heard that there was food to eat, Liu Xun smiled happily.
He is indeed a foodie, and has been one since he was a child.
Without saying a word, Xuan Ge'er went to the pond and caught two more fish.
Prince Liu Xun of Lu sighed, "Brother Xuan's swimming ability is probably comparable to that of fishermen who grew up by the water."
Gu Jiu said with a smile: "He learned to swim from the fishermen on the waterside. He spends all day catching birds in the mountains and fishing in the rivers. He has a very wild temperament."
Prince Lu Liu Xun whispered, "Brother Xuan has a temper like this, I'm afraid my royal brother can't control him."
Gu Jiu said, "You're worrying for no reason. Although Brother Xuan has a wild temper, he's very measured and knows the rules. He's the type of person who adapts to the occasion. He's naturally multifaceted."
"This is incredible!" Liu Xun, the Prince of Lu, exclaimed, "Compared to Xuan'er, his brothers and sisters are like fools."
"They are all your nephews and nieces, how can you talk to them like that?" Gu Jiu scolded softly.
Liu Xun smiled awkwardly, "My mother has only been in the palace for a short time, so I don't know how strict the old teacher is with my brother's children. They're not as clever as Brother Xuan. But they have a lot of little tricks. I think there's something wrong with the way my sister-in-law disciplines the children. She follows the tradition of the Sun family, forcing them to study every day and leaving them no time to play."
I remember when I was little, although my father and mother gave us a lot of homework, they never restricted our play. The Empress Dowager always said that playing with things can lead to a loss of ambition, but it depends on how we play. My brother was always busy with state affairs and had no time to discipline children. Fortunately, Brother Xuan grew up with my father and mother, so he wasn't disciplined into a wooden child.
"The Queen is quite knowledgeable, how could it be as serious as you say?" Gu Jiu didn't believe it.
King Liu Xun of Lu said, "My son, what you said is just my personal opinion, which may be a bit one-sided."
Gu Jiu, however, took this matter to heart.
She ordered someone to bring an imperial decree back to the palace, sending the emperor's grandson and granddaughter, as well as Liu Xun's two half-grown children, to live in the teahouse for the summer.
Emperor Qian Ming was overjoyed when he received the imperial edict.
He was eager to send the child to the queen mother for discipline.
The Queen Mother was very good at educating children, and these brothers and sisters were a perfect example.
The queen was a little reluctant, but did not stop him.
After traveling south by boat for a month and a half, a group of children of different ages walked into the teahouse.
Gu Jiu was not in a hurry to assign homework, nor was he in a hurry to test the children's character.
Let the children adapt to the environment first, and let Xuan Ge'er take his younger brothers and sisters out to travel around the mountains and rivers and stroll around the streets.
A group of half-grown children who were confined to the palace to study every day, away from their parents, had just arrived. At first, they were afraid of the majesty of their grandparents and could not move freely.
A few days later, these children were like wild horses that had broken free from their reins, and they took the initiative to follow Xuan Ge'er to play wild.
After being outdoors for half a month, Gu Jiu called all the children over, checked their learning progress, and assigned them homework.
As long as you finish your homework on time every day, you can play in the teahouse.
Gu Jiu was used to being a hands-off boss, so he handed over the responsibility of teaching the children to Xuan Ge'er.
With Xuan Ge'er's knowledge, he is more than qualified to be a teacher for this group of children.
Xuan Ge'er gladly accepted the order.
He is not an ordinary teacher.
In addition to teaching book knowledge, he also took his younger brothers and sisters to the fields to plant rice seedlings, to weed the weeds, to the mountains to collect firewood and catch game, and to the river to catch fish and wash the clothes.
Go to the tea mountains to pick tea leaves and go to the market to sell local products.
He also took his younger brothers and sisters to the Jiangnan Academy to spend time there, occupying territory and debating with local students.
Soon, debate became a regular part of their schedule.
The group of children, led by Xuan Ge'er, became a little more wild.
They are all a group of good kids.
Both the Queen and Princess Lu taught very well.
It’s just that the discipline is too strict and the child has lost his liveliness.
Summer is over and it's time for the children to return to the capital.
The group of children all had red eyes and were reluctant to leave.
This summer is the most meaningful summer in their memory and they will never forget it for the rest of their lives.
"We want to stay with our grandparents and fulfill our filial duties."
"You want to stay and play with your grandparents, right?"
Gu Jiu laughed and scratched the children's noses. "Be obedient and follow Eunuch Qian back to the capital. Come back and play next summer."
“Can you really come next year?”
"How can what I said be false?"
After coaxing the children into submission, they were finally sent on board the ship and set off for Beijing.
Qian Fu was responsible for sending these precious children back to Beijing and ensuring their safety.
He also brought a copy of the Empress Dowager's imperial edict.
The imperial decree was simple: Don't confine the children to the palace or the prince's mansion all day. All of them should go to Shanhe Academy, and the young girl should go to the Beijing Women's College to spend more time with her peers.
Private education is very effective in the enlightenment stage.
But when the children have passed the enlightenment stage, they should go to the academy to receive education instead of staying in the palace to be taught by old teachers.
When it comes to educating his children, Emperor Qian Ming Liu Yu absolutely trusts the Empress Dowager.
After receiving the imperial edict, he sent the children to Shanhe Academy and Beijing Women's College respectively.
Liu Xun's two children were also sent to the academy to study.
…
Here is the tea house.
The children were sent away, and the teahouse, which had been noisy for a whole summer, finally quieted down.
Liu Zhao took a sip of tea and felt refreshed all over.
"My old arms and legs are finally free. All those kids together are like a thousand ducks quacking, and they're almost deafening. I'm glad you only keep them for one summer."
Liu Zhao was deeply frightened.
If the children had continued to live in the teahouse, he would have been driven crazy by the noise.
Gu Jiu pursed his lips and smiled, "When children get together, they are bound to make noise. Children have fun all summer long and make a lot of noise, which means they are energetic and healthy, which is a good thing."
"They were all raised wild. The wildest child was Xuan Ge'er."
Xuan Ge'er came back with a stack of newspapers, "Grandfather, let me read the newspapers to you."
"Come over and have some tea to cool off. The autumn heat is really strong. It's still so hot at this time of year."
Liu Zhao, who was complaining about Xuan Ge'er's wild temper one second ago and felt sorry for Xuan Ge'er who had been exposed to the sun outside for half a day the next second, portrayed the duplicity vividly.
Gu Jiu smiled but said nothing.
As autumn goes and winter comes, a new year is about to come.
Liu Zhao was wrapped in a thick blanket, sitting in the study, drowsy.
Even though the heating on the floor was very warm, he still felt cold.
Gu Jiu woke him up, "It's time to take the medicine!"
After Liu Zhao woke up, he was stunned for a while before coming to his senses.
He said self-deprecatingly, "Once winter comes, I can't live without medicine. With my body, I don't think I can hold out for much longer."
Gu Jiu massaged his legs and feet, and rarely did he refute him.
Only after Liu Zhao drank the medicine did he realize its taste.
He asked Gu Jiu, "How much time do I have left to live?"
Gu Jiu remained silent.
Liu Zhao sighed, "Tell me! How much time do I have left? You have to give me some time to arrange my own affairs."
Gu Jiu sighed and held his hand, "Half a year to a year."
"There's still one year left, that's enough!" Liu Zhao laughed. "After one year, I'll have fulfilled my promise to you."
After a pause, he continued, "You've worked hard to take care of this sick old man like me these years. One more year of hard work, and you'll be free."
"Don't talk nonsense." Gu Jiu scolded him softly.
Liu Zhao laughed. "I'm not talking nonsense. I really feel sorry for you. I know how hard you've worked. I see it all. To be honest, sometimes I feel like I'm a burden, always dragging you down."
"You say you're not talking nonsense, but listen to what you're saying, are these human words?" Gu Jiu was very angry.
Liu Zhao pulled Gu Jiu to sit beside him. "I'm very fortunate that I made the decision to abdicate so that I could travel with you, see the scenery of the south of the Yangtze River, cruise along the great rivers, and see the snow in the northern frontier. Even if I die now, I have no regrets. I have done my best for my ancestors, for the Great Zhou, for its people, and I have fulfilled my promise to you. My life is complete."
Gu Jiu leaned on his shoulder and said, "It's quite perfect."
Liu Zhao patted her hand and said, "When spring comes, we'll return to the capital. I'll leave this teahouse to Xuan'er. If he gets upset in the future, he can stay here for a while to relax. You and the imperial physician, please keep me alive until we return to the capital. I can't die here, it would ruin the feng shui of this place and cause more trouble."
"Stop talking nonsense!" Gu Jiu scolded him.
Liu Zhao smiled and said nonchalantly, "What I said is true. I must be buried in the imperial mausoleum. I must die in the capital, in the imperial palace. It would be inappropriate to die anywhere else. Find me a place in Chang'an Palace, and I'll live there."
Gu Jiu's eyes were wet, "You are just trying to piss me off on purpose."
"How dare I anger you? I'm just making arrangements for my funeral. You don't want me to die in a teahouse and then be transported all the way back to the capital, do you?"
Gu Jiu gritted his teeth and was really about to be angry to death.
Liu Zhao didn't care about her expression at all and asked her, "Did you remember what I just said? After this winter, when spring comes, we will set off to return to the capital."
Gu Jiu nodded heavily, "Don't say something like that again in the future."
"I promise."
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