I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 501 It's witchcraft! It's a curse!
Since coming out of the Greenhouse Hall, Liu Ju has already made a preliminary assessment of Liu Che's current situation.

At this moment, Liu Che's Alzheimer's disease was indeed not serious, but in addition to the amnesia and hysteria that Huo Guang had mentioned in superstition before, he now had symptoms of irritability.

And judging from Liu Che's performance just now, this irritability showed signs of being out of control, at least it was not his intention.

Otherwise, the angry expression would not disappear so quickly, and there would be no resentful and regretful expression after the anger.

In addition, Liu Ju also felt Liu Che's fatherly love from these behaviors.

At least for now, Liu Che hoped to establish a father-son relationship with him, that is, he would call him elder in front of him, make tea for him personally, and try to communicate with him like a father and son, rather than like a subject.

Just now, Liu Che looked like an ordinary left-behind elderly person.

For a moment, Liu Ju felt a little bit of pity in his heart, regretting that he should not have tested his condition in this way and ignoring the fatherly love that he actively offered to him.

He can definitely do better now.

No matter what Liu Che wanted to hear or do, he knew it clearly in his heart. Even if he were asked to replace Su Wen as the Yellow Gate Minister, he might do a better job than Su Wen...

and many more!

Liu Ju suddenly hesitated.

Isn’t this also a way of solving the problem?
Su Wen served as the Imperial Court Minister for his entire life by the side of Emperor Liu Che. He had done many things to deceive his superiors and subordinates. He also often looked for his own faults and fabricated stories to accuse him of something he had never met before. It was certain that Emperor Liu Che had seen through him.

But according to historical records.

Chang Rong, Wang Bi and others who did the same thing were executed early by Emperor Wu of Han.

Su Wen lived a very long life. It was not until long after the "Witchcraft Incident" that Emperor Wu of Han learned more and more, and became increasingly saddened by Liu Ju's innocent death, that he ordered him to be burned to death on Hengqiao.

This seems to indicate that even in Liu Che's later years, he was still affected by Alzheimer's disease.

It's not that Liu Che is completely unreasonable. It's not impossible for him to survive in front of him... Su Wen was able to survive for so long, so he can certainly survive longer now!
What's more, he is completely different now than he was in history.

Now he is the third treasure of the Han Dynasty besides Wei Qing and Huo Qubing.

The fact that Liu Che was able to tolerate Huo Qubing leading his ministers in submitting petitions to the emperor to request the crown prince to be made king and to establish his country, and that he was able to maintain harmony with Wei Qing for so many years, was not only because Huo Qubing died young and Wei Qing always kept a low profile, but there must have also been political pressure.

As a result, unless the two of them committed serious mistakes, Liu Che could not touch them, otherwise there might be disunity within and outside the court.

Now that he had completely expelled the Huns and conquered the Western Regions, he naturally could not be easily touched by Liu Che.

Even Liu Che's decision to reinstate him as the crown prince was based on this consideration. It would be unreasonable not to reinstate him...

and so.

Liu Che has fatherly love.

There is pressure from both the government and the opposition.

I have the ability.

Taking these three factors into consideration, the problem now seems to no longer lie with Liu Che, his father who suffers from Alzheimer's disease.

But on yourself?
Is it because of my preconceived understanding of history that I can never let go of my awe and worry about Liu Che, so that I can't step out of the circle and consider the problem from the perspective of an outsider, causing me to be confused as an authority?

"This……"

Liu Ju stopped and frowned, feeling indescribably complicated.

If we think about it carefully, the root cause of the "Witchcraft Disaster" is not actually entirely on Liu Che.

Putting aside his identity, Liu Che was essentially an old man suffering from Alzheimer's disease in his later years.

At this time, he is more easily deceived, more easily influenced by others' emotions, and more easily induced to be suspicious by others. Sometimes he cannot even control himself. He feels pitiful, lonely and helpless.

But he's just an old man with Alzheimer's.

If it weren't for Jiang Chong, Su Wen, and those wizards and sorcerers who teamed up to deceive, influence, and induce him, the tragedy in history might not have been avoided. After all, even if Liu Che liked to seek immortals and ask ghosts, it was not his main occupation. If no one had guided him, he might not even know what "witchcraft" was.

Therefore, the root cause of the "Witchcraft Disaster" should be Jiang Chong, Su Wen, those wizards and alchemists, and those who secretly manipulated the situation because they were worried that their interests would be damaged in the process of power transition after Liu Che's death.

Liu Che was never his enemy!
Those are the ones who manipulate things!

And his father Emperor Liu Che should be on the same side as him!

Those people not only wanted to kill him, but also wanted to kill Liu Che and then support a puppet to come to power who could ensure their power and status.
And that seems to be the case.

According to historical records, on the eve of the "Witchcraft Incident", when Emperor Liu Che was living in the newly built Jianzhang Palace, he saw a strange man holding a sword entering Zhonghua Longmen. He became suspicious and ordered people to arrest him and find out his identity.

As a result, the man dropped his sword and fled. The guards chased him but failed to capture him, and naturally they did not know his identity.

Liu Che was furious and ordered the execution of the gatekeeper in charge of the palace. He immediately ordered the blockade of Shanglin Garden and even the closure of the Chang'an city gate. He imposed martial law for eleven days and searched for this person, but still found nothing.

It was at this time that Gongsun Jingsheng's misappropriation of the Northern Army's military funds was suddenly exposed. In order to protect his son, Gongsun He asked for permission to capture a wanted knight named Zhu Shi'an to atone for his sins.

After Zhu Shi'an was arrested, he wrote a letter to Emperor Liu Che from prison, revealing that Gongsun Jingsheng had an affair with Princess Yangshi, and had a wizard bury a wooden man on the road leading to Ganquan Palace to curse Emperor Liu Che.

The strange man who has never been caught is obviously a key figure.

Where is Jianzhang Palace?
Since the day it was built, it almost replaced the Weiyang Palace and became the imperial palace of the Han Dynasty!
Not only could strange men with swords come and go freely in this kind of place, but he was also discovered by Emperor Liu Che himself. In the end, he disappeared without a trace despite being caught by many palace guards. Could it be that Jianzhang Palace was a public toilet?

This is obviously a response from both inside and outside.

Liu Ju even had reason to believe that since then, the imperial palace had to some extent been out of Liu Che's control and had become a place where some people could do whatever they wanted.

There was also the incident where Jiang Chong's accomplices Ma Heluo and others later assassinated Emperor Wu of Han.

The imperial palace was not only guarded by warriors at the gate, but also by thousands of imperial guards. However, Ma Heluo was able to easily break into Emperor Liu Che's bedroom with a sharp knife hidden on his body. If Jin Midi had not been more careful or happened to get up at night, the assassination attempt on Emperor Liu Che might have been carried out.

Doesn't this explain the problem?

Those people were targeting not only him, but also Liu Che.

At this moment, Liu Ju finally realized that he should not have regarded Liu Che as an enemy from the beginning.

On the contrary, the emperor and the prince are a community that shares honor and disgrace, and they will face the same enemies in the future!

So he and Liu Che were definitely not each other's hell, but he was!

It turns out that even max-level humans are not immune to this.

The time traveler's preconceived ideas will make him arrogant, and his heart will blind his mind, making him unable to look at problems rationally and unable to see into the essence of things.

He was confused.

If he really hid far away in the Western Regions as he had thought before, and left Liu Che, the poor old man suffering from Alzheimer's disease, to those treacherous people with ulterior motives, or if he treated Liu Che as an enemy and continued to act according to his plan, it would be a real loss for his loved ones and a joy for his enemies.

The current Liu Che, who has entered his old age and suffers from Alzheimer's disease, is the one who needs him to stay by his side the most.

Now he has to do it.

It was by staying by Liu Che's side and fulfilling his filial piety that he became Liu Che's protective umbrella, helping him resist the deception and manipulation of those treacherous officials. Only such filial piety, only true fatherly love and filial piety, is the only way to prevent the "Witchcraft Disaster"!

"Father..."

Liu Ju turned around and looked towards the Greenhouse Palace which was already a hundred steps away.

The warriors and palace attendants were still there, and Su Wen had already entered the hall to serve.

At this moment, Liu Ju felt that this palace was like a prison, and those warriors and palace officials were like jailers...

Imprisoned inside is a aging lion who is becoming increasingly powerless and in whose presence even hyenas dare to act rashly.

If the lion group had not abandoned it, how could the hyena dare?

Why should its mane stand up in fear and anxiety?
Liu Ju raised his foot and walked back to the Greenhouse Hall...

……

Greenhouse Palace.

"Su Wen, has Liu Ju gone far?"

Leaning on the dragon couch, Liu Che was in a low mood and his voice was a little low and hoarse.

Su Wen could tell at a glance that the communication between Liu Che and Liu Ju just now must not have been smooth, and perhaps there were some unpleasantness as before.

But it’s different from before.

This time, Liu Che did not remain angry after Liu Ju left. Instead, he showed an unspeakable sense of loss.

Even though Su Wen had served Liu Che for decades, this situation was extremely rare.

He was a little confused. Ever since he learned that Liu Ju agreed to return to the capital to report and participate in the Fengshan Ceremony with him, hadn't Liu Che been looking forward to this day?

Why did he become like this now that he finally met Liu Ju?
Come to think of it, is it because Liu Ju said something he shouldn’t have said?
But that's not right. When he met Liu Ju this time, he could clearly feel Liu Ju's growth. He shouldn't be so outspoken in front of Liu Che and make Liu Che angry like before, right?

I can’t figure out…what on earth is going on.

So Su Wen answered carefully:
"Your Majesty, His Highness should not have gone far at this time. If Your Majesty has anything else to do, I will go and call His Highness back."

"No need..."

Liu Che waved his hand, turned over and faced the back of the dragon couch.
"I am a little tired. You should leave now. Call me back when the dinner is ready."

"promise."

Su Wen didn't dare to say anything else. He quickly took the blanket beside him and covered Liu Che with it carefully. Then he bowed and retreated silently.

So wait until Su Wen leaves.

Liu Che still kept his eyes open, and glanced at the golden-handled rattan hanging on the wall behind the dragon bed, muttering to himself:

"Have I been too harsh on him and neglectful of his love for him?"

Liu Che was not good at reflection, but at this moment, he was really reflecting on himself.

He thought about what he had missed during Liu Ju's growth.

Although it was he who gave the Bowang Garden to Liu Ju, he had never been there since Liu Ju moved in, until a few years ago when Liu Ju caused the "dike destruction and farmland flooding".

For this reason, Liu Ju has been closer to Wei Zifu and Wei Qing since childhood.

So much so that most of the time, he, the father, was like an outsider... When Liu Ju was young, he would act like a spoiled child in front of Wei Zifu and Wei Qing, but in front of him, he was always uneasy and at a loss.

So, when did he feel that Liu Ju truly regarded him as a father?
Liu Che recalled carefully.

He thought it must be the first time Liu Che said to him, "Father, you are confused."

Indeed, he was very angry at that time and was about to explode with rage, because no one had ever dared to speak to him like that before. This rebellious son was simply so bold!

But now thinking back on it, he didn't feel angry at all.

On the contrary, he felt that Liu Ju dared to act so rashly in front of him because he had him as his father and felt safe enough in front of him...

And how did he respond?
Confinement, imprisonment, house arrest, dethronement of the crown prince...

It was he who pushed his son further and further away step by step, making him more and more afraid of him, gradually eroding the sense of security in his heart, and turning him back to his original self, from a "son" into the "subject" who was distant with him.

Aren’t all the things he did aimed at creating such a “subject”?

"So, I strangled my son to death with my own hands, and in return I got such a 'satisfactory' minister?"

Liu Che suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest, which made his consciousness become blurred.

He vaguely heard someone calling him softly from behind:

"Liu Azhi, Liu Azhi..."

The voice was very familiar. Liu Che turned over suddenly and saw a blurry figure standing in front of the bed with disheveled hair like a demon.

"Ah Jiao Chen?"

Liu Che subconsciously shrank back.

"Haha, Liu Ahzhi, are you also afraid sometimes?"

"Chen Ajiao" laughed crazily, and her words were full of sarcasm.
"My curse has finally come true. Now even your beloved son has disowned you. You are destined to die alone..."

"But you can't blame me for this, you did it yourself. Someone as heartless and ungrateful as you is not worthy of being a loving father and a filial son, hahaha..."

"Do you still remember how many people you have harmed in your life, how many people hate you to the core and curse you behind your back?"

"This is your end. You will end up being nothing more than a poor lonely person. Hahahaha..."

"Shh!"

With a slight sound, Liu Che suddenly drew out the sword hanging on the side of the dragon bed and stabbed at "Chen Ajiao" in front of him with all his strength.
"You are lying. I will kill you. I will kill you!"

The next moment, "Chen Ajiao" disappeared.

"Hu-hu-"

Liu Che was breathing heavily, his veins bulging and cold sweat seeping out of his forehead, but his eyes were filled with unprecedented hostility.
"It's witchcraft, it's a curse!"

"There are still people cursing me, and there are still people who want to harm me!"

"Investigate! I will find them all and tear them into pieces, leaving no one alive!"

(End of this chapter)