I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 16: A stick is worse than a fire stick

"Your Highness, this..."

Guo Chang couldn't understand the prince in front of him anymore after hearing this, and said helplessly,

"There is no need to swear this oath again. Although I am not a famous scholar or saint, I am definitely worthy of the word integrity. I will never break the oath I have sworn."

"Okay, I'll just trust you this time. I hope you won't let me down."

Liu Ju was obviously not satisfied, but he nodded reluctantly.

However, Guo Chang still had many questions in his mind, and could not help asking again: "But Your Highness, I still don't quite understand. This is obviously a good thing that will benefit future generations. Why do you..."

"I have my own reasons."

Liu Ju immediately interrupted him, but felt that if he didn't give him a reasonable reason, something might happen. So he sighed and said vaguely,
"The imperial family is the most ruthless. As an outsider, you will never understand the affairs of the royal family. It is best not to ask too much."

Guo Chang was thoughtful, and after a moment he seemed to have figured something out. He looked at Liu Ju with sympathy and respect, and finally bowed and said, "I understand. I will do my best to cooperate with Your Highness in flood control, and I will never have second thoughts."

"As long as you understand, go ahead."

Liu Ju didn't know what Guo Chang understood, but as long as he understood it, it was enough.

……

Next, everything went smoothly according to Liu Ju's plan.

Except for Guo Chang, no one knew what would happen next, and everyone was doing their job with all their heart and soul.

The Weiyang Palace had not received any secret reports related to Liu Ju for some time.

If there is no tip-off, nothing happens.

But this made Liu Che feel inexplicably worried:

This rebellious son has been much calmer recently. Could it be that he had a seizure a few days ago?

Now that things have finally recovered, have we started to manage the water in an orderly manner?

Even Liu Che himself did not notice that he had been paying much more attention to Liu Ju recently.

Even though he hadn't heard any news about Liu Ju causing trouble for a while, he still felt a little uncomfortable.

In the past, he could count on one hand the number of times he thought of Liu Ju in a year, and that included the times when Liu Ju came to greet him during the holidays.

"Su Wen, is there still no secret report from Dongjun sent by Du Zhou today?"

Thinking about this, Liu Che suddenly felt upset and threw the half-read memorial in his hand onto the desk.

Su Wen bowed slightly and said, "Your Majesty, I have personally sorted out the reports sent from the Golden Horse Gate, and there is indeed no secret report sent from Dongjun."

"This Du Zhou is still a little lacking in his ability to do things!"

Liu Che showed dissatisfaction on his face and muttered something casually.

Su Wen did not respond, but silently offered a cup of warm tea.

He knew in his heart that Liu Che's casual words were enough to determine Du Zhou's future. It all depended on whether Liu Che's words came from his heart or from his heart.

But at the same time, he had already keenly noticed the changes in Liu Che.

Since sending Liu Ju to control the floods, Liu Che has mentioned Liu Ju directly or indirectly in front of him a total of 142 times, which should be the 143rd time including this time.

If this continues, I'm afraid the number of times he mentioned Liu Ju will soon exceed the number of times he mentioned Liu Ju in the past ten years.

"Du Zhou is unreliable. Send someone else."

Liu Che suddenly had an idea and said, "Tell Chang Rong to go. Don't make a big fuss. Disguise as an ordinary merchant to see what the prince is doing. Regardless of whether there is something going on or not, he must send back a secret report every day."

"Yes, I will do it right away."

Su Wen bowed and replied...the one hundred and forty-fourth time.

...Half an hour later, the eunuch Chang Rong had already left the palace.

If Liu Ju knew that Liu Che had sent another person like this, he would definitely be overjoyed.

Because Chang Rong is also one of his enemies.

According to historical records, Emperor Liu Che was once unwell and sent Chang Rong to summon the crown prince. When Chang Rong came back, he actually told Emperor Liu Che that "the crown prince looked happy."

Upon hearing this, Liu Che was disappointed and silent. But when Liu Ju arrived, he saw that his eyes were red and there were traces of tears on his face.

So Liu Che secretly investigated and found out that it was Chang Rong who deceived his superiors and subordinates, so he executed him.

Such a person who secretly monitors Liu Ju would not say anything good in the secret report, and would definitely become another great help for Liu Ju to achieve his goal...

Chang Rong himself also cherishes this opportunity.

Therefore, it took only five days to reach Qi County west of Puyang, and saw the royal garden, Qi Garden, which was being destroyed by a group of soldiers and servants.

"Qi Garden is a royal garden. How dare the prince be so bold?"

Before Chang Rong came, he did not know that Liu Ju had ordered the felling of the bamboo forest in Qiyuan. When he saw this scene, he was filled with mixed feelings of grief (xi) and anger (chu).

In just a moment, the theme of the first secret report came to his mind, and he wrote a high-scoring essay in his mind.

Just as he was thinking about how to polish his essay to fully express his grief and indignation.

"Get out of the way, a good dog doesn't block the road!"

Suddenly, a shout came from behind, and a man wearing a torn straw hat, a dirty short shirt, and a black sweat towel around his neck came forward waving a small bamboo stick in his hand to drive them away.

"What are you still standing there for? Can't you see that everyone is busy? This is a major flood control issue, a national policy among national policies. If you delay the national policy, you and your family can't afford to lose their lives. Get out of here!"

"?!"

Chang Rong had lived in the palace for a long time and couldn't remember how long it had been since he had suffered such humiliation. He turned his head and was about to lose his temper.

But when he saw the person's face clearly, he froze on the spot, his eyes wide open: "You are...Xu Jin, Uncle Xu Du?"

"Mr. Chang?!"

The man was also stunned for a moment. He rubbed his eyes carefully before finally recognizing the person in front of him. Then he suddenly grabbed Chang Rong's arm and wailed with snot and tears, "Mr. Chang, save me!"

"Wait a minute, tell me first, what's going on?"

Chang Rong was puzzled, and even wanted to laugh. "You are a warrior of the palace, and a dubo who commands hundreds of people. You came to this small county. You are a superior from the capital, and the face of His Majesty. How did you end up like this?"

While speaking, Chang Rong frowned slightly, covered his mouth and nose, and looked Xu Jin up and down.

Smelly, dirty, muddy, dark skin...

Chang Rong really felt a little sympathy for Xu Jin. Isn’t this too tragic?

"Oh, don't mention it, it was all arranged by the prince."

Xu Jin raised his dirty hands and wiped his tears, rubbing his dark face into a mottled mess, looking not much different from the homeless people on the street.

"Prince? How could this be?"

Chang Rong was even more confused and asked,

"Didn't you all get together with the Chief Justice Shi Duzhou?"

"If I remember correctly, His Majesty gave Du Zhou the staff before he left. You just need to obey Du Zhou's orders. Even the Crown Prince can't force you to do these dirty and tiring jobs, right?"

"Du Zhou?"

Xu Jin got angry when he heard the name and threw his straw hat to the ground, "Bah! I get angry when I mention this guy, this bastard is just a bear!"

"He acted like a decent person on his way here, but he was completely subdued by the Crown Prince after just one day. The staff bestowed by His Majesty is no better than a firewood stick in his hands, except for showing off to us!"

(End of this chapter)