The first year of Kaibao entered the leap twelfth month, which made the end of the year seem very long. After entering the second twelfth lunar month of this year, Emperor Liu's mood improved a lot. He was used to the turmoil of the world and had nothing to worry about.
Of course, it was also because two things happened that made Liu Chengyou happy. One was that another child was born in the palace. Beauty Qin, who had been in the palace for two years, gave birth to the emperor's thirteenth son. Secondly, the seriously ill Duke of Wei, Murong Yanzhao, was gradually improving. Emperor Liu was pleased to hear this and specially summoned him and Li Gu to the palace. The emperor and his ministers gathered together for a small banquet happily.
Facts have proved that Emperor Liu is really not a person who can remain calm and cultivate his moral character for a long time. After a long time, he suddenly felt boring. Being freed from the heavy affairs of the government changed the previous living conditions of long hours and nights. Although Emperor Liu felt a lot more relaxed, the price of leisure was that it gradually turned into emptiness.
Emperor Liu is not a person who has much interest in life. He does not have too much love for things. He does not have high requirements for food, clothing, housing and transportation. Studying and practicing martial arts are just an adjustment. It is also a kind of torture for him to devote himself to it for a long time.
As for beauty, although the beauties in the harem are very tempting, after noticing the decline in physical fitness, they also consciously control the frequency of sexual intercourse.
As for other entertainment activities, he had tried them, but they were all superficial and nothing that particularly interested him. In terms of faith, Emperor Liu was even less important. He neither believed in Buddhism nor practiced Taoism. Confucian etiquette was just a tool for ruling...
In fact, in the eyes of many people, it was Emperor Liu's character that allowed him to maintain his focus on national affairs and military affairs for a long time. It was indeed a great blessing for the people of the country that the emperor did not indulge in selfish matters.
After feeling boring and boring, Emperor Liu's mind changed again, and his attention to the country and military affairs also increased. However, there was no rash "comeback".
He began to frequently go to the three halls to read the compilation of "National History" and "Records", discuss political strategies with historians and scholars, and personally intervene in the revision of "Han Huidian". At the same time, he continued to read case files from various ministries and departments. , I also took the time to review the secret files of the Wude Department and the Imperial City Department...
With the adjustment of these things, Emperor Liu's "emptiness" was relieved. In fact, his performance and mentality can be described in one sentence: A real man cannot be without power for a day.
On the surface, although I feel tired and want to rest due to the heavy workload of the government, once I relax and there is nothing else to fill it, it is naturally difficult to adapt.
As for delegating power, Emperor Liu can never do it completely. Everything must be under his control of the country. If something makes him feel that it is out of his control, then the dormant Emperor Liu may be able to do it again. Will show his fangs.
"Guan family, King Dongping wants to see you!"
"Xuan!"
When he learned that Zhao Kuangzan was coming to the court, Emperor Liu was practicing archery. One arrow hit the target steadily and was not far from the bull's eye. This gave Emperor Liu the illusion that if he continued practicing, his archery skills might be perfect.
Of course, an illusion is always just an illusion. Shooting fixed targets is so strenuous, let alone moving targets, let alone mounted shooting...
Emperor Liu took an arrow, continued to take aim, adjusted his breathing, released it, the string trembled, and the arrow shot straight to the target.
"Good archery skills!" Zhao Kuangzan's admiration came to his ears, and he almost applauded.
Turning his head to look, he saw Dongping King Zhao Kuang, dressed in a white python robe, walking towards him slowly with an obviously flattering smile on his face. Although Emperor Liu knew it was a compliment, he was still in a good mood and said to the guard on the side: "Prepare bows and arrows for King Dongping. I am in a good mood. Let us compete with each other!"
"Your Majesty is a great shooter, I am ashamed of myself!" Zhao Kuangzan said modestly, but he still naturally took off his outer robe and took the carved bow.
"If you praise me again, I will blush! But we have agreed not to give in!" Emperor Liu laughed and praised Zhao Kuang.
Zhao Kuangzan was considered to be the queen of the generals after all, and he practiced riding and shooting a lot on weekdays. Liu Chengyou couldn't be his opponent in these two attacks. In addition, he had something to say, and after ten arrows, he was completely defeated.
However, maybe Emperor Liu's shooting skills really improved, and Zhao Kuangzan "barely" won.
Shaking off his sore hands and sitting on the chair next to him, Yantuo quickly took a mink fur and put it on him to avoid catching cold. He signaled Zhao Kuang to agree to sit down and took a sip of hot wine. Emperor Liu then asked, "What is the business of Zhao Qing coming here?"
Zhao Kuangzan now holds the position of Minister of Rites, which is considered a more important position than a noble title, but this does not hinder his status in the court. There were some things that did not require him to come and report to the emperor, but he still came at the right time. The focus was not on reporting matters, but on strengthening the connection and emotional connection with the emperor.
Of course, now that he is here, he still has something to report. Zhao Kuangzan said: "The envoy from Korea was found and rescued by Dengzhou fishermen. Now he has arrived in Tokyo!"
It turned out that King Wang Zhao of Goryeo had once again sent an envoy to the court. This time the envoy was very large, with nearly two hundred people. They brought a large amount of treasures and local products, and also sent some nobles and young officials, and several others. Goryeo beauty.
In addition to paying tribute and strengthening ties with the Han Dynasty, it was also to please the court and the emperor, and at the same time, it also meant to continue to learn the system and culture of the Central Plains.
In recent years, relying on the good relationship with the court, the King of Goryeo has achieved great results in domestic reforms, strengthened the royal power, and earned sufficient benefits. Coupled with increasingly close economic ties, the relationship between the two countries is in a sweet period...
However, this envoy was destined to have bad luck. During the journey across the sea, he encountered a shipwreck, the ship capsized, and almost no survivors. What Zhao Kuangzan reported was that the only survivor, Shi Zan, luckily fell to the island and was rescued by fishermen who went out to sea.
This shipwreck was also a disaster for the Goryeo Kingdom. Not only was a large amount of tribute money lost, but more importantly, among the lost members of the mission, there were too many young talents from Goryeo, whom Wang Zhao had high hopes for. , the future of the Goryeo Kingdom...
In this regard, Emperor Liu had some dark thoughts in his heart, which was reflected in a slightly unkind smile on his face as he waved his hands: "The sea is vast, deep and ruthless, and I don't want to see such a disaster happen. The loss of the envoy is extremely lamentable, and the court should also express its gratitude. The envoy who survived went through a life and death crisis, and it was not easy. The Ministry of Rites took good care of him. In addition, an envoy was also arranged to go to Goryeo to offer condolences in return. Bar!"
"Yes!" Zhao Kuangzan responded with his hands raised.
"In addition, Ding'an State has sent envoys to the court again, and I hope they can be included!" Zhao Kuangzan said.
"Huh?" Emperor Liu keenly sensed something was wrong and said, "They are far away in the Northeast, their hometown on the Bohai Sea. How can they be included? What is happening behind the scenes?"
"Your Majesty is wise!" Zhao Kuang praised him, and then explained: "According to the envoy, they are small in territory, with few people, poor country, and weak army. They are no longer able to be independent. Recently, the military threat from the Liao Kingdom has become more serious, and they may be worried about annihilation. . What they are asking is for a small number of nobles to move out and come over the sea to surrender!"
"Isn't this fantastic?" Emperor Liu couldn't help but shook his head, pondered for a while, and put forward one point: "Since they have the desire to abandon the country, they obviously feel the crisis. Could it be that the Liao Kingdom really wants to use troops to destroy it?"
Zhao Kuangzan then continued: "I believe that this possibility is not impossible. Although Ding'an State is a small country composed of a group of remnants, it is located in the rear and is not subject to its rule. If we want to eliminate the hidden dangers behind it, it is difficult to avoid using troops. With the strength of the Khitan people, it is not difficult to destroy just a few of them and secure the country!"
"Since people have asked for help in Tokyo, as a big country, naturally they cannot ignore it and should shoulder their responsibilities!" Emperor Liu expressed his attitude and turned to ask Zhao Kuangzan: "How do you think the court should respond?"
Zhao Kuangzan obviously made a good draft and reported: "The two countries are separated by mountains and seas, and there are Khitans blocking each other, so it is obviously unrealistic to attach them to each other. I believe that the Ding'an Kingdom's occupation of the Bohai Sea area is more important because it has Goryeo on its back. Now the Goryeo envoy is in Beijing , Mo Ruo could think of a way to deal with Korea..."
After listening to his suggestion, Emperor Liu immediately came to his senses and smiled at Zhao Kuangzan: "Okay! That's it! Zhao Qing will coordinate this matter!"
"yes!"
