I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 34 Your Temperament Is Inherited from Me

"Zhumu Garden...Zhumu Garden..."

As Liu Ju repeated the name, his mind went blank.

"竺, means to chase, drive away and sort."

"Mu means to admire, love and miss..."

"If you put these two words together and force an interpretation, it does seem to have something to do with the matter of dethronement and enthronement, but if you think about it carefully, it seems a bit far-fetched."

"And it shouldn't be that simple, right?"

"Liu Che was a very talented writer, and several of his fu have been passed down to later generations. Naturally, he couldn't be so straightforward when naming his works, so he had to quote from classics."

"..."

"I can't figure it out. It's too hard to figure out."

"Who cares? Anyway, Liu Che summoned Liu Hong back to Chang'an and gave him a house like mine. This must be a preparation for the dethronement. I will just wait for good news."

Liu Ju shook his brain, which had many dead brain cells, and simply decided not to bother with it anymore.

He only knew that Prince of Qi Liu Hong was only twelve or thirteen years old and was considered Emperor Liu Che's favorite prince.

It's a pity that this child has a bad life.

Not long after he was born, his mother, Lady Wang, who was the most favored mother of Emperor Wu of Han at that time, died of illness.

Liu Hong had no one to rely on in the palace at that time, so he became his follower, hanging around him every day and calling him "brother, brother."

I was pretty nice to him then.

Sometimes when Wei Zifu and Wei Qing gave him something delicious or fun, they would always remember to share some with him.

Later, as I grew up.

After Liu Che named himself the crown prince and found a teacher for him, he naturally had no time to care about Liu Hong.

Later, Huo Qubing led the ministers to petition Emperor Liu Che to confer the title of princes on Liu Hong and two other princes.

According to the etiquette of the Han Dynasty, once a prince was enfeoffed, he had to go to his fiefdom and could not stay in Chang'an. So Liu Hong, who was less than ten years old, went to Qi as the King of Qi.

Since then, Liu Ju never saw the child again.

According to historical records, the child's miserable life was far from over.

Probably three years later, the child would die of illness, and his posthumous title would be “Huai”, meaning kind, benevolent, but short-lived…

If this child can become the crown prince, it will be a good thing for the family.

Moreover, after the child arrived in Chang'an and became the crown prince, he would be able to enjoy the best medical resources of the Han Dynasty. Maybe he would not die so early.

As for this child after he comes into contact with power.

Will there be any changes, or even any bad thoughts about yourself?

This was not something Liu Ju cared about at all.

He only knew that no matter who became the crown prince, he would most likely have some thoughts about him, the deposed crown prince.

Even if he doesn't have it, the people around him will find a way to make it for him.

All he had to do was to become a full-level human as soon as possible, stay away from Chang'an, the vortex of politics and power, hide in a deserted place to make preparations in advance, and live a stable life as a king who neither caused trouble nor was afraid of trouble.

Even if they really couldn't stay in the Han Dynasty, they had to flee to Southeast Asia or the Western Regions.

He still has the capital to be a local emperor...

and so.

If it's this child.

Considering our past brotherhood, shouldn't I help him out and speed up the process of achieving the ultimate goal?

Just as I was thinking about it.

"Squeak-squeak--"

A carriage slowly drove in from outside the palace. When it passed by Liu Ju, several servants hurriedly bowed and saluted: "Your Highness."

"Are the books on the carriage sent to Mr. Dong?"

Liu Ju glanced at the carriage and nodded slightly.

"Exactly."

Several servants just agreed.

A man had already hurried out from the backyard, lying on the carriage, anxiously looking up the bibliography of the bamboo slips, even ignoring Liu Ju next to him. This man was none other than Dong Zhongshu, who "did not disappoint the emperor's grace".

When Liu Ju saw Dong Zhongshu, he had an idea: Isn’t this a walking encyclopedia of Confucianism?
Wouldn't it be easier to ask him about the nitpicking than to figure it out yourself?
Liu Ju then said with a smile: "Mr. Dong, I would like to ask you a question."

"Just ask, Your Highness."

Dong Zhongshu was still lying on the carriage looking at the bamboo slips, saying without turning his head.

It turned out that the old fellow did not fail to see him, but was so absorbed in the books that he completely ignored the proper etiquette.

This can also be considered a kind of "stupidity".

Liu Ju didn't take it to heart and continued, "My father gave me this garden called Bowang Garden, and now he has given the King of Qi another garden named Zhumu Garden. Do you know what the story is from, Mr. Dong?"

"Zhu Muyuan... this is easy."

Dong Zhongshu's eyes never left the bamboo slips in his hand, and he didn't even have time to think. He immediately spoke to himself, "About thirty years ago, the great poet Mei Cheng wrote a poem called "Seven Hairs."

"This poem tells the story of the crown prince of Chu who was too greedy and indulged himself endlessly, and therefore fell ill and sought medical treatment."

"There is a sentence in the poem: 'Running and competing, vying for the first place in taste. The ink is broad and the observation is boundless.'"

"When His Majesty bestowed the Bowang Garden on Your Highness, it was meant to represent a broad vision. Now, He has bestowed the garden on the King of Qi and named it Zhumu Garden. It doesn't seem to be meant to match any meaning, but rather to be deliberately combined with the Bowang Garden."

"However, His Majesty bestowed upon Your Highness the Bowang Garden first and the Zhumu Garden later, which is the opposite of the order of the poems in the Seven Hairs. I don't know why."

After saying this, Dong Zhongshu continued to look at the bamboo slips while climbing down from the carriage.

He just said to a few servants, "Please move these bamboo slips to my room," and then left without even looking up.

Liu Ju instantly understood Liu Che's intention of naming this garden "Zhumu Garden".

Prince of Chu.

Excessive greed.

Enjoy yourself all the time.

Zhumu Garden.

Bowang Garden.

In reverse order...

It’s stable. This time it’s really stable, as stable as Mount Tai!
……

Greenhouse Palace.

"Humph……"

Leaning on the dragon couch, Liu Che still felt like he had a breath of foul air in his heart that he couldn't get out for several days.

Su Wen happened to come back from outside. Liu Che only glanced at him and asked in a dull voice: "Su Wen, have you arranged Liu Hong's affairs?"

"In reply to your majesty, everything has been arranged."

Su Wen lowered his head and replied.

"That's good, go out, I want to be quiet."

Liu Che did not react and waved his hands weakly.

"Liu Ju, Liu Ju, I used to think you were not like me, but now it seems that I was wrong. I didn't expect you to be even more eccentric than I was back then. You even dared to say such disobedient words in front of me. It really pissed me off."

"This time, I deliberately summoned Liu Hong back to Chang'an and gave him a Zhumu Garden."

"You should have sensed the crisis, right?"

"Don't think that just because you did something for me, you can speak freely in front of me!"

"I want to see, is it my deepest cultivation or your strong temper? Will you dare to be so ignorant again in the future?"

"Speaking of which..."

"Dong Zhongshu has been gone for several days. He has been debating with you. Now I have put you in such a crisis. Wei Qing and Wei Zifu must be extremely terrified and will definitely put pressure on you secretly."

"You should have finished writing your confession of guilt in the next few days, right?"

"But I am not that easy to fool. A letter of apology is not enough. Whether Liu Hong will be sent away depends on how you behave in the future."

"This time I want you to remember one thing forever."

"No matter how bad your temper is, it's inherited from me!"

(End of this chapter)