Dou Wu, Chen Fan, and the Qingliu Group members all looked smugly at Wang Fu, Hou Lan, and the others who had unpleasant expressions.
The emperor punished the eunuchs with a cane and met with many scholars from prominent families, which made them realize that the emperor seemed to be intentionally suppressing the eunuchs and getting closer to the scholars.
The emperor's attitude, however, would largely determine the life or death of both sides.
Chen Fan, also in the group, was full of anticipation. He had already read the letter Liu Mi had sent him, in which Liu Mi recounted what he had seen and heard in Hejian, as well as the emperor's actions, and his words were full of praise and admiration for the emperor.
Whenever he thought of this, Chen Fan, an old man who had served two dynasties and experienced the disaster of the partisan purge, knew deeply that the Han Dynasty urgently needed a wise and virtuous emperor to set things right and bring peace to the world.
Now that the emperor they had been hoping for had appeared, Chen Fan, Li Ying, and their former protégés and officials would never allow a tragedy like that of Emperor Zhi to occur again.
Just as the team was approaching Luoyang, Liu Hong's action surprised everyone.
Liu Hong abandoned the carriage, put on military attire, and had a fine horse brought to him. He then rode the horse toward Luoyang.
The guards beside Liu Hong suddenly tensed up, ready to watch out for the horses suddenly bolting.
Liu Hong's horsemanship may not be very skilled, but he is quite steady on horseback, which greatly impressed the soldiers of the Imperial Guards and Tiger Guards who were watching.
The emperor, dressed in military attire, rode forward on horseback; this journey was an act of valuing military men.
In an instant, the soldiers imagined the emperor leading them to conquer all directions, achieve great deeds, and recreate the glory of Emperor Wu of Han.
Outside Luoyang City
Suddenly, a loud cheer erupted from the quiet crowd.
As the cheers grew louder and louder as they approached, the civil and military officials who came to greet him looked at each other in surprise. None of them had expected that this young emperor arriving in Luoyang would be able to create such a spectacle.
"I have heard that when the emperor was in Hejian, he always encouraged farming, treated the people well, and befriended scholars from all over the country. He was also very learned and his reputation spread far and wide."
"Yes, even Mr. Ciming praised the emperor when he was still a marquis, saying that he was virtuous and had a broad mind!"
"The Emperor is benevolent and virtuous, and upright by nature. He will not allow himself to be manipulated by those eunuchs. Our Han Dynasty is blessed!"
Just as the officials were discussing among themselves, the dust in front of them gradually cleared, and the emperor's procession appeared before them.
The emperor they were waiting for, dressed in military attire, with an imperial sword at his waist, rode a strong horse and slowly approached them.
Behind the emperor, countless scholars and common people followed, creating a magnificent spectacle, like a vast army.
This left the officials and soldiers who came to greet them completely dumbfounded.
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