Volume 1: Kyoto Winds and Clouds Chapter 7: Shiyou Guards the Emperor's Invitation
Liu Yan's words made Liu Zhang somewhat surprised. In the past, when reading books, it was said that emperors were very cautious about their relatives, but why did the Han Dynasty's relatives seem to have a lot of power? This is where Liu Zhang didn't understand! The Han Dynasty's prefecture and state system was actually also a feudal system. It's just that the Han Dynasty divided the prefectures and states among the imperial clan members rather than the meritorious officials. That's why there were oaths like "only those of the Liu family can be enfeoffed as kings, only meritorious officials can be enfeoffed as marquises".
In Liu Bang's view, his own family members are more reliable than outsiders! Unfortunately, Liu Bang forgot that people's greed is boundless. After becoming the king, each of the Han imperial relatives wanted to advance further. With the same ancestor and bloodline, why should you be born as the emperor or crown prince, while I can only be a king or marquis and kowtow to others? Ji Yu said in a low voice: "Father, this is the capital city Luoyang. Although we are Han imperial relatives, we cannot be too excessive! What if we offend some powerful officials, it won't be good!"
Liu Yan burst out laughing and said: "Nowadays, the only noble person is Cao Jie! As long as you don't offend Cao Jie, it doesn't matter if you offend others! As for the people of the Cao family, as long as you reveal your identity as a member of the Han imperial clan and my title, most likely they will turn hostility into friendship! Of course, if you encounter someone who is not open-minded, just beat them up, no big deal! I'll just lower this old face to apologize to Cao Jie! In short, don't suffer losses!"
If Dou Wu were still alive, Liu Yan would not have warned his son like this. Because Dou Wu held great power, even if he died, his influence could be passed on to his son, and it was possible that he would usurp the throne. The Han imperial relatives were not worth much in the eyes of a powerful general who held great power. Cao Jie, however, was a eunuch, and even if he had an adopted son, he could not inherit his career. Cao Jie himself became a eunuch and absolutely did not want to let the outstanding young people in his clan also become eunuchs. Those stupid people, if they were brought into the palace, would probably be troublesome! As for finding another eunuch to inherit, that would have nothing to do with his clan. People will eventually die, and in order to ensure that their clan does not fall after death, Cao Jie would try his best to win over capable people and imperial relatives. In Liu Yan's view, he had value in being won over and valued by Cao Jie. Thinking of this, Liu Yan felt a little proud!
Liu Zhang stared at Liu Yan with a black line, and indeed he was a warlord of the late Han Dynasty. Although he was dressed as a scholar, he did not lack a tendency towards violence. However, Liu Zhang looked at his own small arms and legs and said: "Dad, I'm like this, it's already good that I don't get beaten up, how can I beat others?"
"Ah, that's a problem!" Liu Yan only then remembered that his youngest son was only five years old this year, and although he seemed mature for his age, he was still just a child. After some thought, Liu Yan said: "I'll first find you a few bodyguards, and then personally teach you the Six Arts of a Gentleman. My swordsmanship may not be suitable for battlefield slaughter, but it's more than enough for self-defense. With your status, you won't need to go into battle and kill enemies, just guard against someone secretly causing trouble!"
Don't look at Liu Yan as a scholar, the scholars of the Han Dynasty are not comparable to those of the Song and Ming Dynasties. They were proficient in all six arts, and some even had excellent swordsmanship. Being a general on horseback and a minister on foot was the ultimate goal for Han Dynasty scholars, and Liu Yan also had decent sword skills. However, his sword skills would be no match for real warriors or martial artists, that would be suicidal! Nevertheless, Liu Zhang looked down on his father's martial arts, after all, chaotic times were coming, being a bit more formidable was better. If he could become as skilled as Lü Bu, Liu Zhang wouldn't object at all!
"Old man!" Liu Zhang saw Liu Yan standing at the city gate and considered his son's safety, feeling a little moved. However, others' pointing fingers made him very annoyed. He pulled Liu Yan and said, "Old man, can't we discuss these issues when we get home?"
Liu Yan came back to himself, saw that the people around him were looking at him like a country bumpkin, and suddenly felt a little embarrassed. He smiled awkwardly: "Uh! Let's talk about it when we get home!"
"Wow! Luoyang! I, Liu Zhang Liu Jiyu, have arrived!" Liu Zhang shouted loudly like a child and rushed into the city of Luoyang. Although he was originally just a kid! Luoyang is a big city, with many pedestrians on the road. However, Jiyu's loud shout made many people look down on him. But when everyone turned their heads to take a look, they saw that the one who made the sound was just a young child, and whether it was vendors or officials in fine clothes, they all smiled slightly.
"Could the newcomer be Lord Zongzheng?" It had to be said that Cao Jie's arrangements were still very thoughtful. At the city gate, a small yellow gate was already waiting for Liu Yan. In Luoyang, every inch of land is precious, and although Liu Yan was the governor, his family assets were not rich. If he wanted to get a house in Luoyang City, it would be really difficult! However, now Liu Yan didn't have to worry about it anymore, as Cao Jie had already prepared the house, which was located near the imperial palace in Dongshi.
China has always emphasized symmetry, so cities are also divided into east and west. The seat of honor is the north-south direction, with the left side being superior and the right side being inferior, while the south-north direction is considered inferior. According to the seat of honor, the eastern part of the city is also known as Dongshi, which is generally where high-ranking officials reside, while the western part, Xishi, is where ordinary people live! Generally, the execution grounds for high-ranking officials are also located in Xishi, probably to serve as a warning to others.
After entering the city, Liu Yan parted ways with his family. He had to enter the palace to thank the emperor, while Liu Zhang and others followed Xiao Huangmen to a separate courtyard sent by Cao Jie. As it turned out, Cao Jie was quite good at being a host, and the house he sent was very spacious. At first glance, it seemed that it was even bigger than the mansion Liu Yan had built in Nanyang. It's worth noting that in the capital city, the size of the house one lived in depended on their social status. Although Liu Yan was a member of the Han imperial family, as long as he didn't live in a palace with the same specifications as the emperor's, everything else was fine. However, the housing prices in Luoyang were so high that even if Liu Yan wanted to buy such a large house, he couldn't afford it. Nevertheless, this house was bestowed upon him by Cao Jie in the name of the imperial court, and Liu Yan didn't need to be too grateful because after his death, the house would still be taken back by the imperial court.
Moving to a new home is busy, especially such a big house. Although these tasks don't require Ji Yu to do them himself, he needs to watch from the side and tell the servants how to arrange things. Of course, this is also because Liu Zhang is still young and not familiar with the family slaves, otherwise someone would have helped him take care of these things properly.
After being busy for a while, Liu Zhang looked at the time and found that it was already after noon. Although most people in the Han Dynasty only ate two meals a day, Liu Zhang still retained the modern habit of eating three meals a day, sometimes even five meals, including midnight snacks and afternoon tea. If he were to go to school, I wonder if he would come up with an inter-class meal!
Just as Liu Zhang found his mother to ask if it was time for dinner, a servant led in a small yellow gate. The little yellow gate said to Mrs. Liu Yan: "The Empress Dowager has an edict, please ask the Empress Dowager and several princes to enter the palace for a family banquet!" After hearing the message from the little yellow gate, Ji Yu's mother quickly took out some silver coins to reward him, and then let Ji Yu and his three brothers dress up neatly and enter the palace for dinner!
