I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 513: The most hidden counter-espionage plot?
the other side.

"My son, I obey."

Liu Ju bowed and responded to Liu Che's order to investigate the matter thoroughly. Then he raised his head and said in embarrassment,
"However, Father, I currently have no idea about the ins and outs of this matter and the background of the matter. Father, you have also asked me not to make it public. If I investigate this matter, it is like not letting me cook without rice... Even if it is your will, I will do my best to do it, but I can't say how long it will take to find out the truth."

"In addition, the greedy palace maid is now dead, and the two chefs who may have been involved in this incident have also committed suicide. It is obvious that someone behind the scenes has cut off the clues."

"So the longer this matter is delayed, the more time the people behind the scenes will have to cover it up, and it will definitely be more difficult to investigate."

"If I fail to find out the truth, I will have to bear with you, Father."

At this moment Liu Ju had already understood the role Liu Che played in this matter.

Since he found me, he was not just pretending, but really wanted to find out the real culprit behind the scenes... It is natural to see that no matter what Liu Che did, he had no intention of killing Huo Shan.

That being the case, Liu Ju would not have to worry about resistance from Liu Che in the short term, and would receive his full support in the future.

After hearing Liu Ju's words, Liu Che gave him a sanitary eye and scolded him:
"Tell me, what conditions do you want me to agree to?"

It’s a pleasure to talk to smart people!

Liu Ju immediately lowered his head and said:

"I can cook without fire, but I cannot cook without rice."

"Therefore, I need you to tell me the truth about all matters related to Huo Xian in this Fengshan ceremony."

"From what we know so far, it is not difficult to see that the real target of this incident is actually Huo Xian. Everything has a cause and effect, and the person behind the scenes is no exception. Therefore, I think there must be some clues hidden in the recent events. We only need to unravel these things and find the clues hidden in them to restore the truth of the incident."

"?"

Hearing this, Liu Che immediately frowned again and looked Liu Ju up and down.

"Do you already know something?"

"Why does Father say that?"

Liu Ju pretended to be confused again.

In fact, he knew very little, and many things were speculations based on the information provided by Li Xiushan and his understanding of history, and could not be used as evidence.

Although this era does not have a complete set of judicial procedures like later generations, there is no need to insist too much on procedural justice.

But before having a full understanding and proof of the matter, Liu Ju would not start a killing spree based on mere speculation.

Liu Che ignored him and continued to examine him, laughing coldly:

"It doesn't matter if you know. Everything I do is for the sake of the country, for the benefit of my descendants, and for the people. It's just that some things are not convenient to put on the table."

"If you already know, then don't ask me even though you already know the answer. What good will it do you to force me to admit it myself?"

"If you don't know, go find Huo Guang and tell him that I told him so. He will tell you everything and do his best to help you investigate this matter."

"This……"

Liu Ju was stunned by Liu Che's attitude.

Could it be that Huo Guang knew from the beginning what Liu Che was going to do on the top of Mount Tai, and that was why he always avoided him and also prevented Huo Shan from having any contact with him?

So what was the purpose of that seemingly ghost-worshipping ceremony?

Why could Liu Che be so calm, and why was Huo Guang willing to keep it a secret for Liu Che?
Although he is now a full-level human, he always feels that Liu Che and Huo Guang are not much worse. Their scheming is so deep that even he cannot figure it out.

But this seems understandable.

Compared to Liu Che and Huo Guang, he may just be more omnipotent. One of these two people can become an emperor of all ages, and the other can become the leader of the eleven heroes of the Qilin Pavilion. They are definitely not just for show in some aspects. You must not underestimate them just because you are a full-level human.

If I had to say where the biggest gap between them and me lies, it would probably be the cognitive limitations spanning two thousand years, right?

"promise."

Having said that, Liu Ju naturally had no reason to continue testing Liu Che here, so he bowed and walked out with a heart full of doubts.

"This rebellious son..."

Looking at Liu Ju's back, Liu Che shook his head slightly, a gratified smile quietly appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"You are still so bold that you even dare to interrogate me. But you have grown a lot and have learned to beat around the bush when talking to me and not to anger me easily."

"I think he must have understood that only by knowing how to be reverent can one maintain his throne."

"After all, even I have to compromise sometimes..."

……

"Your Highness, this matter must be reported to His Majesty in person. Otherwise, I know nothing. Please forgive me for not being able to tell you anything!"

When Huo Guang saw Liu Ju asking him to "tell the truth" right away when they met, he was surprised at first, then suspicion appeared in his eyes. After hesitating for a long time, he still refused to say a word to Liu Ju.

After all, the situation is very serious now.

As the most famous "God of Sin" in the Han Dynasty, Huo Guang would never easily take the risk of being deceived by Liu Ju.

Liu Ju had expected this, patted Huo Guang on the shoulder, then found a comfortable place to sit down, and said with a smile:

"My cousin is still the same as always... In that case, please go and ask my father for instructions first. I will eat some oranges and wait for you here."

As he spoke, Liu Ju took out an orange from the pile of oranges neatly arranged on the table, peeled it and ate it.

Oranges are considered the seasonal fruit of this season, but the oranges of this era have not yet been cultivated and improved. The skin is thicker than that of later generations, and the taste is sourer than that of later generations.

But this is not important, as it can supplement vitamin C anyway.

The important thing is that Liu Ju didn't take the orange on top, but pulled one out from the bottom, causing the neatly arranged mountain of oranges to collapse, and several oranges rolled to the ground.

"!"

Huo Guang's back teeth creaked noticeably, and his brows knitted uncontrollably, but he still forced himself to bow and leave:

"Please wait a moment, Your Highness. I will go first."

As Emperor Liu Che's imperial carriage commander, he had been living in Emperor Liu Che's palace since the Fengshan ceremony.

If I ask to see Liu Che at this moment, it will only take a few minutes.

However, Huo Guang left a little slower than usual. When he opened the door, he looked back at Liu Ju, who was lying on the couch, eating oranges leisurely, grimacing because of the sour taste. Then he walked out and closed the door. Then about a cup of tea passed.

"Squeak!"

The door was opened again, and Huo Guang walked in again, saying:
"Since it is your majesty's order, I shall obey."

He didn't even go to ask Liu Che for instructions. He just went out and asked the guards and attendants outside to confirm that Liu Ju had just come out from Liu Che. Then he delayed outside for a while, pretending to have asked Liu Che for instructions, and then came back.

No one knew how to serve under Emperor Wu of Han better than he did.

He definitely could not ask Liu Che for instructions on this matter. Otherwise, why would Liu Che let Liu Ju ask him? Wasn't it because he didn't want to admit something in person in front of Liu Ju?

And if he went to ask for instructions again, what would be the difference between that and forcing Liu Che to admit it in person in front of Liu Ju?

What's more, Liu Ju had just come out from Liu Che and came to him without any hesitation, and Liu Che did not stop him. This in itself verified Liu Ju's words.

Simultaneously.

The same reason was why he delayed outside for a while longer and acted as if he had really gone to ask Liu Che for instructions.

Just based on Liu Che's decision, he could be sure that Liu Ju was stable, as stable as Mount Tai!
Otherwise, how could Liu Ju be allowed to know this secret?

This undoubtedly means that he regards Liu Ju as his most important person. After all, even Su Wen doesn't know about this!

Therefore, now Liu Ju can be regarded as the future emperor.

And what he just did was "deceiving the king"!
Although Liu Ju always called him his cousin, his many years of experience in the court told him that one should never treat the emperor as a relative or close friend, otherwise disaster would not be far away...So even if it was such a trivial matter, he had to prevent it from happening and never leave Liu Ju with the impression that he had "deceived the emperor".

"Hiss—it's so sour!"

Liu Ju finally sat up, put down the oranges in his hand, and rearranged the orange mountain that he had just collapsed. He said seriously,
"Appreciate further details."

"promise……"

Huo Guang's heart tightened when he saw this, and he unconsciously bowed and said "yes" as he did in front of Liu Che.

He was completely confused as to whether Liu Ju's action just now was unintentional or intentional.

If Liu Che had done the same thing, it would have been a serious warning. If someone didn't understand it, they would just have to wait for themselves to collapse like that orange hill.

As for Liu Ju...

Huo Guang secretly glanced at Liu Ju from the corner of his eye, and cold sweat quietly seeped out of his vest without him knowing when.

The character of "Gou Sheng" makes him unable to ignore or not respect... Is he now entering the fatal stage of working with two masters?
……

"Is this really a longevity ceremony?"

Liu Ju had only heard half of what Huo Guang said when he already knew the whole story.

It was basically consistent with his previous guess. Liu Che really listened to the nonsense of the Nanyue wizard. When he failed to ascend to heaven by riding a dragon, he held such a longevity ceremony for Huo Shan.

However, what Liu Ju had not guessed before was that Huo Guang had known about this matter long ago.

After all, Liu Che had his own bottom line. After he came up with this idea, he privately summoned Huo Guang into the palace and only took action after obtaining the consent of his uncle Huo Shan.

Of course, with Huo Guang's "sagely" character.

Even if Liu Che asked him to kneel in front of him and say "I ask you a favor", there was no way he would not agree.

But for Huo Xian, the uncle Huo Guang was too unqualified. I wonder if Huo Qubing will shoot a few arrows at this brother who was entrusted with his care after he goes to the underworld...

This also explains why the Wei family was almost wiped out in the "Witchcraft Disaster" in history.

However, the Huo family, which had the same origin as the Wei family, was not affected at all, which was why Huo Guang even became the head of the regents in the end.

It is definitely not just because Huo Guang is usually low-key and cautious, it may also be related to this incident.

After all, thinking about this matter in reverse, if Huo Shan died suddenly and inexplicably shortly after Liu Che borrowed his life, and the cause of death could not be determined, then Liu Che would most likely believe that it was because he had borrowed Huo Shan's life.

In this way, as long as Liu Che still had a bottom line in his heart, he owed the Huo family a huge favor.

Naturally, the Huo family will not be treated unfairly in the future... In this way, Huo Guang also seems to be suspected of killing Huo Shan, because those who benefit the most are suspicious!
"Your Majesty has explained to me that holding such a ceremony would only borrow twenty years of life at most. Huo Xian is still young, and even if he loses twenty years of life, he will still have several dozen years left if nothing unexpected happens."

Huo Guang showed a trace of shame on his face, but he still said firmly,

"Besides, twenty years of life may not be enough for Huo Xian to accomplish anything great. But for a wise ruler like Your Majesty, if he can really extend his life by twenty years, it will be of great benefit to the Han Dynasty, the people, and Huo Xian."

"Your Majesty did not force me. I support this matter not out of selfishness, fear, or blind loyalty, but for the sake of the overall situation."

"Even if I were to choose again, I would make the same decision."

"Your Highness, please understand!"

At this moment, Liu Ju actually heard true admiration in Huo Guang's tone. No matter what selfish motives Huo Guang had, it did not affect his admiration for Liu Che.

Of course, Liu Che in his early years was indeed worthy of his admiration.

Although Sima Qian made many comments on Liu Che's later years in "Records of the Grand Historian", one of his sentences can also summarize Liu Che's wisdom.

Even when Liu Che was alive, there were many people criticizing him for "competing with the people for profit", but Sima Qian used one sentence to describe the true situation of Liu Che's early years:

——"The people do not need to pay more taxes, and the world will be rich!"

It is true that many fiscal policies were formulated by Sang Hongyang, but the person who really made the final decision was Liu Che.

Liu Ju had commented on those fiscal policies before. He always insisted on calling the so-called "competing with the people for profit" "competing with merchants for profit", "competing with officials for profit", "competing with princes for profit" and "competing with prominent families for profit".

The policies of counting and reporting the amount of silk, state-run salt and iron, equal distribution of taxes and stabilization of prices, and the allocation of public land to the people... None of these policies were aimed at the people. They never increased the corvée and taxes of the people. Instead, they seriously implemented some measures that benefited the people.

In essence, he has always been playing Landlord and rebelling against himself.

"So in your opinion, if someone wants to kill Huo Xian, who is the most suspicious?"

Liu Ju pondered and asked again.

"Forgive me for offending you, but the most suspects in this matter are Your Highness and the other princes. Most of them are already adults. If Your Majesty really has the method to prolong their life, Your Highness and the other princes will probably be princes for the rest of their lives."

Huo Guang's next words provided Liu Ju with a new idea.

"So according to common sense, the people who least want Your Majesty to borrow his life must be Your Highness and the other princes..."

(End of this chapter)