The prince was forced to speak.
"Brother Huang prefers lotus root, doesn't he just love its cleanliness?"
"But has your brother ever really recognized it? No, you haven't!"
"Because your eyes have never looked through its exterior to see its interior."
"Your love is hypocritical, your love is too fake, just like your unsavory comments just now, pitiful, pathetic, and ridiculous!"
The prince turned pale.
"My younger brother also loves lotus, but he loves it differently from the imperial brother!" Li Zhao refused to give in, his voice became passionate, and said: "Just as the world loves peonies so much, I only love the lotus that emerges from the mud and remains unstained, and washes the clear ripples. It is not demonic, straight in the middle and straight on the outside, not creeping or branching, the fragrance is clear from a distance, and the pavilions are clean and planted, you can look at it from a distance but don't play with it!"
boom--
Even the bastard prince and princess have read a lot of books.
Their own cultural literacy is really not bad, so when they heard it, they felt their scalp numb.
A series of surprised eyes fell on Li Zhao.
Of course they knew that the prince's evaluation was a bit too false.
But no one expected that Li Zhao would fight back in public, making him unable to step down.
Emperor Wu, who was sitting at the top, widened his eyes and stared at his rebellious little son who didn't like studying.
The words he just said were like muffled thunder exploding in his ears.
"I only love the lotus that comes out of the mud but is not stained, and touches the clear ripples without being evil..." Emperor Wu murmured subconsciously.
"This is the lotus I love. May I ask, brother, what does the emperor love? And what does he judge...?" Li Zhao looked at the prince.
The prince's lips trembled slightly, but he couldn't say a word.
He subconsciously looked at his father, only to find that his father was looking at him with a look that he couldn't describe but felt uneasy in his heart.
At this moment he knew that he had lost.
It’s not that we lost in the debate, but that we lost in the overall situation.
"Whether something is good or bad cannot be determined by its origins alone, nor can it be determined by its appearance alone!" Li Zhao clasped his fists and saluted the prince: "When looking at anything, you should look directly at the true nature of the thing. It’s the heart that matters, what do you think, brother Huang?”
The prince's body trembled again, and all the princes lowered their heads, fear surging in their eyes.
Is he implying that the father sees the true nature of the prince?
Emperor Wu looked at his son with interest. To be honest, he had not seen this child in five years and was very unfamiliar.
When he saw him today, he felt that there seemed to be an extra layer of fog around this child.
Lao Jiu has always disliked reading, being naughty, fooling around, and getting into trouble, but today he actually said such a shocking and good article, which really surprised him.
He looked at the prince again. Previously, because of Lao Jiu's harsh comparison, he felt that the prince was perfect and impeccable.
But today's food insights made him a little unhappy.
"Zhao'er, this article just now... seems to be unfinished, right?" Emperor Wu said.
Everyone raised their heads and stared at Li Zhao.
Is this really what Li Zhao did?
impossible?
Does he have this kind of strength?
Then he can become a great scholar in the dynasty.
"Ah? What article?" Li Zhao blinked and refused to admit it.
Emperor Wu was furious when he saw Li Zhao looking so mean, and stared at Li Zhao unkindly.
Zhao'er clearly blurted out the article just now, which shows that he already had the draft in his mind. If the prince hadn't forced him into a hurry today, he might have continued to hide it!
Emperor Wu leaned on his chair and stared at the two brothers, but he began to think about it in his heart.
Could it be that... Zhaoer was just pretending before?
Is the purpose just to hide yourself?
"Your food is good today, tell me what reward you want." Emperor Wu changed the topic and asked instead of sticking to the previous topic.
"Father, is it true that any reward is acceptable?" Li Zhao asked, and the prince and others' hearts beat faster.
"certainly!"
Emperor Wu's expression remained unchanged, and it was hard to tell what he was thinking.
But people who are familiar with him already understand that the tone of Emperor Wu's words has obviously changed.
"If the father really wants to reward his son, then... let his son go to the fiefdom and just do it." Li Zhao looked at Emperor Wu and said sincerely.
Uh-huh!
The prince and others all raised their heads and looked at Li Zhao with shock on their faces.
Go to... the fiefdom?
What's going on?
Emperor Wu's movement of serving tea paused. He had just been prepared for Li Zhao's lion to open his mouth, but he didn't expect that Li Zhao actually wanted this reward?
After the prince of Wu Kingdom reaches the age of eighteen, he will be granted the title.
However, the princes of the Wu Kingdom will try their best to stay in the capital and hold them off for as long as possible.
He himself also survived the struggle to seize the throne, and he knew that only by staying in the capital would he have a chance. If he went to the fiefdom, he would basically give up the opportunity to seize the throne.
"You... are going to a fiefdom?" Emperor Wu admitted that he couldn't understand his son.
Li Zhao looked at Emperor Wu with a magnanimous expression and said, "Yes! Although I still have two years left before I can be sealed, I will have to go sooner or later, right?"
"Since we have to go sooner or later, why can't we go now?"
The prince and other princes felt as if they had seen a ghost.
How could anyone be willing to go to the fiefdom in advance?
Not talking about seizing the direct descendants, just talking about the living environment and living environment, the difference is more than one or two grades.
Is King You crazy?
Even the prince was confused.
He has always believed that the biggest threat to his ascension to the throne is his biological brother, although he has not shown the slightest idea of seizing the throne.
If Li Zhao really had no intention of taking the throne and went to a fiefdom, then his position as prince would be half assured.
Emperor Wu felt that his brain couldn't keep up with this guy's thinking, so he put down the tea cup and said, "Are you serious?"
"My son is serious!"
"reason?"
"Uh... I'm afraid of death! I have no intention of participating in the fight for the heir, do you believe it?"
Emperor Wu's face turned dark. Do you believe it or not?
Obviously, the prince and others did not believe this.
"Well, actually I think... the brothels in the capital are just like this. The girls and courtesans are tired of playing with each other. The Wu Kingdom is so big and there are so many good-looking girls... They must still be waiting for Erchen to come and be lucky. , ah no, it’s salvation..."
"Evil beast, seeking death!"
Li Zhao was speechless. He never expected that no one would believe him when he told the true reasons, but when he told lies, everyone would believe him?
The royal brothers all showed expressions of "Sure enough," which made Li Zhao very hurt!
How much does the original owner like to look for flowers and ask willows?
After knowing that Li Zhao had no intention of staying in Kyoto, both the prince and the princes showed joy.
It is no longer a secret in Kyoto that Lao Jiu travels between brothels and pavilions all year round. He spends at least ten months of the year there. If he says that he doesn't like this, no one will believe him.
Therefore, no one really doubts that this is the reason why he wants to escape Kyoto.
Of course, more importantly, if Lao Jiu leaves, everyone will have one less opponent.
Even though Lao Jiu has no intention of fighting for power, he has a special status. He is the biological brother of the prince's mother.
What if the prince wins him over?
Although this may be trivial, it is necessary.
The prince is actually also on guard against Li Zhao. If Li Zhao leaves the center of power in Kyoto, then he, the prince, will have an even greater advantage.
Of course, although the crown prince and the other princes were overjoyed, they would never show it here.
"Father!" The second prince stood up.
Emperor Wu looked at the second prince coldly.
