I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 264: Say her name and scare you

"What the hell?"

Liu Ju felt numb all over, and a surge of anger rose in his heart for no reason. He glared at Guo Xuanzi who was looking down at him.

Old witch, fine, fine, you're going to use this to test the cadres?!
Which cadre cannot withstand such a test? Could it be that you tested Liu Che in this way in history? And you accepted someone like Liu Che? Is his teeth so good?

It seems that you didn't listen to any of the conditions I proposed!
You don't even have this much sincerity, do you still want me to cooperate and get things done? !
But it turned out that Guo Xuanzi no longer had his previous indifference. He had opened his eyes wide and looked at the woman in the middle of the living room with surprise, as if he was also caught off guard.

"What's that expression on her face?"

Seeing this, Liu Ju became confused again. Is he pretending in front of me?
He unconsciously remembered something:

Earlier, when he had just entered the territory of Guangchuan State and met Liu Qi's envoy, he had deliberately tried to test Guo Xuanzi, asking him whether there was any aura in Xindu County that resonated with that of him, the Solitary Luan Demon.

At that time, Guo Xuanzi’s answer was no, and he also told him that the lucky star should not be here.

Why did the “lucky star” suddenly appear now?

And it was done in such a perfunctory manner, turning it into a scene like a toad crawling on one's feet - it doesn't bite but is disgusting?
Wouldn't this be equivalent to overturning Guo Xuanzi's image of a god who was perfect in everything? Would it still show that she was an accurate shooter?
And for this kind of deception of the emperor.

No matter Guo Xuanzi or his accomplices behind the scenes, they should all attach great importance to it and will try their best to ensure that everything goes well in all aspects. Even if all his conditions cannot be met, it should not be difficult to choose a beautiful woman who is acceptable, instead of letting themselves suffer a huge psychological gap after seeing the "lucky star" and thus resisting it, right?

Don't say it's him.

Should we ask Emperor Wu of Han whether he would have the heart to force him to marry this woman if he brought such a "lucky lady" back home, and make her the Crown Princess in the future, or even the Empress of the Han Dynasty who would rule the country?

Again.

Liu Qi was exposed too easily, giving people the feeling that he had no plan at all, even no brains. Logically speaking, shouldn't he try his best to distance himself from such a thing?

and so……

Just as I was thinking about it.

"Your Highness, since I received the imperial edict from His Majesty, I have ordered people to make inquiries in Guangchuan. Finally, my efforts paid off. It is also thanks to Your Highness' great fortune that I quickly found this extraordinary woman who meets the requirements."

Liu Qi didn't understand what was going on yet, and continued to introduce it to Liu Ju with a smile on his face, even with a hint of seeking credit in his tone.

"So I immediately summoned her to the palace and treated her well, waiting for Your Highness to come on tour at this time, so that I could give Your Highness a big surprise to repay Your Majesty's great grace."

"Thank you for your hard work..."

Liu Ju quietly suppressed the fire of ignorance in his heart, deliberately looked at the woman in the hall and asked,
"What's your name, where are you from, and what does your family do?"

The woman looked a little nervous, lowered her head and answered with a trembling voice:

"To answer your Highness, my surname is Zhang, my name is Jiaque, and I am from Li County, Guangchuan State. My ancestors were butchers for two generations... Your Highness, I am really a lucky person. Can I marry into the palace and become a concubine?"

It seems that this woman knows nothing at all.

Not to mention that Liu Ju would never marry her, even if he did, he would not marry her into the palace, but only into the prince's mansion.

However, her family background as a butcher is quite consistent with her body shape. Nowadays, ordinary families usually cannot afford to raise such a plump figure.

The most important thing is that this girl has nothing to do with the conditions he proposed in front of Guo Xuanzi in the Greenhouse Hall, and it can be said that they have nothing to do with her at all.

Liu Ju asked again tentatively:

"Then your hands..."

"I have been like this since I was young, and many people in the county know it."

As she spoke, the woman raised her hand a little higher, as if she was afraid that Liu Ju couldn't see clearly.

While talking.

Guo Xuanzi finally couldn't help but speak up, and said in a firm tone:

"Your Highness, this woman is not a lucky star. She does not have the appearance of a lucky star, and she does not have the aura that resonates with Your Highness."

"Old woman, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want!"

Before Liu Ju could speak, Liu Qi became anxious and looked at Guo Xuanzi with a frown.
"I went to look for the person strictly in accordance with the requirements of your majesty's edict. After finding him, I personally compared him before I dared to bring him to present to your highness. How can you just say that he is not the one?"

Liu Qi had long wanted to ask what Guo Xuanzi's identity was.

However, Guo Xuanzi was always very low-key. When he and a group of local officials and prominent families welcomed Liu Ju, Guo Xuanzi did not show up at all. He only attended the dinner with Liu Ju.

In addition, Liu Qi was a marquis, and apart from the crown prince Liu Ju, there were few people in the world more noble than him. Naturally, there was no need for him to take the initiative to inquire about the identities of these accompanying personnel.

But now, he wanted to ask about Guo Xuanzi's identity, and also wanted to ask, "What level and identity are you? How can you have the right to speak here?"

"..."

However, Guo Xuanzi still had the demeanor of a hermit and did not respond to Liu Qi's questioning. He just closed his eyes again like an old monk in meditation.

As Liu Che's special commissioner, she did have a veto in this matter.

On the contrary, talking too much can easily lower your status.

"you!"

Liu Qi became even angrier when he saw her attitude.

Just as I was about to say something else, I heard Liu Ju ask curiously:

"Cousin, I wonder what exactly my father's imperial edict asked of Lady Fuxing?" "I always carry the edict with me."

Liu Qi then glared at Guo Xuanzi again, took out a scroll from his bosom and presented it to Liu Ju, still chattering,
"Your Highness, please take a good look at this person that I have worked so hard to find. Why does he not meet the requirements of a lucky star noble lady? Could I have deceived your Majesty and your Highness?"

Liu Ju took it, unfolded it and glanced at the contents of the imperial edict, and immediately understood what was going on.

If anyone is to be blamed for this, it is Liu Che.

Because Liu Che may have been concerned about the royal family's reputation, or perhaps he had other ideas and did not want to go into too much detail about the matter, the edict was indeed somewhat vague.

The gist of the decree is:

Liu Ju recently met Gaomei God (the god in charge of fertility) in his dream. Gaomei God told him that he was destined to have a lucky benefactor, a remarkable woman who had clenched her hands into fists since birth and only Liu Ju could open them. If he married her, he would give birth to a rare son. He asked the princes of Yan and Zhao to help find her.

There is no mention of the solitary phoenix evil spirit, nor of the jade hook held in the hand of the extraordinary woman. It is even more impossible to mention the presence of good fortune and the presence of star officials in the annual luck.

Liu Che's move was somewhat like an attempt to cover up his own mistakes.

Even if he did not mention the matter of Gu Luan Sha in the imperial edict, it had already spread in Chang'an, and one day it would spread to the land of Yan and Zhao. Maybe people here knew about it now, but no one dared to talk about it in front of Liu Ju.

However, there was no mention of the jade hook, which was a pretty good idea.

This seems to have an anti-counterfeiting effect, so that no one would forge the imperial edict based on it.

Not mentioning the time limit for the visit of the lucky star officials of the year and the fortune, it can prevent those who are interested from deliberately delaying and doing bad things even if they find the "lucky star and noble person", thus delaying Liu Ju's life-long event and cutting off his offspring as a prince.

So, this was really not an arrangement by Guo Xuanzi and his accomplices behind the scenes, but just an unexpected coincidence?

I thought so in my heart.

Liu Ju returned the imperial edict to Liu Qi, and then went straight to the woman named "Zhang Jiaque".

"Your Highness..."

Zhang Jiaque became even more nervous and quickly lowered his head even lower, but his clenched fists were still raised high, as if he was afraid that he couldn't see it.

Liu Ju looked carefully at her short, thick hands.

I just discovered that although her ten fingers were intact, some parts were obviously deformed and adhered, and the gaps between her fingers were also large, so you could tell at a glance whether she had something clenched in her palms.

Obviously, there was nothing inside, let alone any jade hook.

However, it can also be seen from these details that this was not Liu Qi's intentional design. This girl may indeed suffer from a disease such as polio, and her hands were born like this.

It was obvious that Liu Ju could not pry open such a hand unless he broke her bones.

Therefore, Liu Qi and Guo Xuanzi had no relationship at all. This was just a farce caused by Liu Che's vague edict.

It seems that the previous idea of ​​killing two birds with one stone may not be realized...

"..."

Liu Ju felt helpless and amused in his heart. When he turned around to look at Guo Xuanzi, he saw that she had opened half of her eyes at some point and was secretly looking at him.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration came to my mind.

He hesitated for a moment and did not immediately comment on the girl. Instead, he grinned at Liu Qi beside him:

"Cousin, you don't know the identity of this old woman yet, right?"

"What identity?"

Liu Qi said puzzledly.

"Speaking of her name will scare you."

Liu Ju said solemnly,
"She is the granddaughter of Xu Fu, the number one goddess of physiognomy in the Han Dynasty. Her name is Guo Xuanzi. She inherited Xu Fu's physiognomy skills and is always accurate in reading people's faces. My father is very respectful to her. He not only calls her a goddess, but also has been enshrining her in Ganquan Palace to practice physiognomy."

"Xu Fu?"

Liu Qi seemed to have never heard of Guo Xuanzi's name, but he was very familiar with Xu Fu. His expression changed when he looked at Guo Xuanzi.

"But the goddess who predicted the fate of Emperor Xiaowen and was made a marquis by Emperor Gaozu has betrayed me?"

"Exactly."

Liu Ju nodded.

"Oh my, my apologies, I was disrespectful just now, please don't take it to heart, Lord Guo."

Liu Qi obviously could not escape the limitations of the times. He immediately smiled apologetically and bowed to Guo Xuanzi to apologize.
"So, Lord Guo should be here to help His Highness find the lucky star. Since Lord Guo says it's not the case, then it's definitely not the case."

"It's alright, Prince Guangchuan, there's no need to be so polite."

Guo Xuanzi put on airs again, closed his eyes and nodded lightly.

"Don't worry, cousin. How could a hermit like Guo Xuanzi care about such a small matter? Besides, you have good intentions. Even if you found the wrong person, I appreciate your kindness."

Liu Ju then continued with a smile,

"But I don't like to owe favors to others. If I owe a favor, I have to repay it on the spot. Otherwise, I won't be able to sleep well."

"I heard that my cousin had a baby boy recently. I didn't have time to prepare any gifts. Why don't I ask Lord Guo to meet your son as a token of my gratitude?"

(End of this chapter)