Chapter 39: Cai Guiren

  Looking at the food in front of him, Liu Xuan only ate two mouthfuls, then looked at Cai Yan sitting diagonally across from him.

  Perhaps seeing him stop, Cai Yan also stopped immediately, sitting upright and staring at him, her eyes showing no fear, but ultimately unable to hide a hint of desolation.

  Liu Xuan naturally knew the reason, but it seemed not quite suitable to discuss this topic at this time. Sitting there silently would be even more embarrassing, so he had to think of something to say and casually find some words to speak.

  "Why aren't you eating?"

  "I thought to wait for your return and dine together." Cai Yan's response seemed to reveal a hint of warmth, but her words were measured and proper, likely due to her upbringing from a young age.

  Cai Yong was a great Confucian scholar of his time, and he was extremely strict with the education of his children. Although Cai Yan was only sixteen years old, which would still be considered a child in Liu Xuan's familiar era, her demeanor and speech were quite mature and steady. If Liu Xuan had to describe her, Cai Yan was indeed very much like the legendary "young lady from a noble family".

  It's precisely because of this that Liu Xuan has always found it difficult to communicate freely with Cai Yan, he didn't want it to be so, after all Cai Yan will be the mistress of his rear palace (not using a certain word, because this emperor's exclusive institution was starred out), he is busy outside till day and night are confused, also hoping that when returning to his own world he can live a bit more relaxed.

  It's just that Cai Yan is like this, giving him a feeling of being at a loss for what to do. Plus, he can't bring himself to take advantage of someone her age, so the two of them have been awkward with each other since getting married, muddling through life in a daze.

  He stuffed two more mouthfuls into his mouth, and as for the food at this time, Liu Xuan couldn't say he had any particular fondness for it. The flavor was monotonous, and the cooking method was also relatively simple, mostly just boiling in a cauldron. After having eaten all sorts of exotic dishes made from rare and precious spirit-imbued fruits and beasts, he naturally didn't have much interest in these bland and tasteless things.

  Adding that now entering the dragon egg period, the demand for food is even lower - not eating anything doesn't matter, Liu Xuan can already achieve Bigu.

  These things were roughly known only by Cao Pi's closest relatives, and Cai Yan was naturally unaware of them.

  As for waiting for Liu Xuan to return today, it's also because she felt the emperor's attitude towards her was neither cold nor hot. More importantly, after entering the palace, those elderly female officials taught her things that the emperor had never done to her before. She, who had already made up for a large set of corresponding knowledge, naturally understood what this meant.

  "Isn't it that the Emperor doesn't like himself? Bringing him into the palace is just to stabilize the situation in the imperial court?"

  Cai Yan is not a foolish woman, and to some extent, she is one of the smartest women of this era. She has inferred the general situation of things in the imperial court from just her father's occasional words.

  Dong Zhuo monopolized power, and the old ministers of the previous dynasty had the heart to confront Dong Zhuo, but they were powerless. The capital's military forces were largely under Dong Zhuo's control, while his own father seemed to have become a buffer between the two.

  "Perhaps Your Majesty chose me because of this very point."

  These days, Liu Xuan has been coming back to rest later and later. If she didn't know that Liu Xuan had only taken her as his one and only concubine, she would have thought that he had other women he liked more by now.

  "Later, when there's no outsider around, so many courtesies are not needed."

  Liu Xuan's sudden words startled Cai Yan, and it took her a moment to react and understand what Liu Xuan meant.

  "This..."

  She has been receiving strict family education since childhood, and etiquette is almost carved into her bones. Now that Liu Xuan asks her not to be so polite, she doesn't know how to respond.

  Cai Yan naturally did not know that Liu Xuan had a lot of etiquette outside, and the etiquette for seeing ordinary ministers was different from that for seeing kings and marquises, and the etiquette for the three dukes was also different. The hierarchy of the Han Dynasty was much more severe than imagined. Although the emperor was at the highest level, he also needed to know the most etiquette - although there were officials who accompanied him on the side, he couldn't ask every time, could he?

  After a whole day, what Liu Xuan missed the most was that kind of free life. Unfortunately, when he returned to his own palace, he faced Cai Yan, such a woman with a polite appearance, and suddenly seemed to have an extra layer of unfamiliarity.

  He didn't like it, and this time there was such a suitable opportunity. If Cai Yan could relax a bit, his future days would be more comfortable.

  At first, he knew that when he ascended to the throne, it was inevitable that he would have to take a consort. He chose Cai Yan for two reasons: one was her reputation, and the other was that she came from a good family background, was well-read and intelligent, making her the best candidate for empress - as the empress is the model for the world, it's only natural that she should have some stature, and it wouldn't do to just pick anyone at random.

  Perhaps Liu Xuan thought too much, because this year's festival wasn't that many words, and Empress He was originally just a daughter of a humble family, didn't she become the empress? What did the officials say? Therefore, the officials of the Han Dynasty actually did not interfere too much with the private life of the royal family. Even if they were as incompetent as Emperor Ling, most of their criticism was about his selling of official positions and titles, using eunuchs to persecute loyal officials, etc., but they didn't care much about Emperor Ling's private life.

  Even if the Emperor of Ling built a swimming pool in Xiyuan, selecting beautiful women over 14 and under 18, wearing thin silk to play and have fun inside, no high-ranking officials would dare to comment on this matter. It can be seen that the private affairs of the Han imperial family are not for officials to meddle with.

  There are examples, such as Qin Shi Huang who built a wine pool but rarely used it himself. On the other hand, Emperor Wu of Han, a wise and just ruler, renovated it and often made merry within.

  There are many similar examples, and Liu Xuan also understood these things only after this period, so when choosing a concubine, he personally named Cai Yan. However, looking at it now, this choice is not that good.

  "Your servant..." Cai Yan started to speak, but soon realized it was inappropriate and stopped: "I..." Unfortunately, after trying again, she still felt awkward, her small face twisted into a knot, which made Liu Xuan find very amusing.

  Realizing that Cai Yan's personality was like this, it would be harder to get her to let go than killing her. She waved her hand: "Let's just forget I said anything."

  In a word, it was discovered that Cai Yan was silent there, but he didn't know that his words had too much killing power on Cai Yan, and thought that he would make the emperor more unhappy, and became more worried about his future in the palace.

  Liu Xuan didn't know how to comfort her, and seeing the atmosphere not only didn't improve but instead became even more terrible, in the end he had no choice but to bring up the main topic.

  "These past few days, in the palace, carefully gathered and put away, some important things were kept close at hand."

  Cai Ye heard Liu Xuan's words, and only then did she temporarily put aside the worries in her mind. She raised her head, looking at Liu Xuan with a puzzled expression, not understanding the meaning behind these instructions.

  "It won't be long before I leave Luoyang!"

  "Leave?" Cai Yan was taken aback, and then her face changed drastically. She had vaguely sensed something earlier, but only now did she react: "Could it be..."

  "It's not that bad!" Seeing Cai Yan's expression, Liu Xuan knew that this woman had guessed something, but she thought in the wrong direction. However, even so, it can be seen that Cai Yan's intelligence is indeed extraordinary, possibly better than many men.

  He paused, collected his thoughts: "Dong Zhuo is in control of the government, but at present he is engaged in a great war with the lords of Guandong. This is an opportunity for me and the officials to leave Luoyang and shake off Dong Zhuo's control."

  These words were naturally used to deal with others, and for Liu Xuan, Dong Zhuo was not a problem at all. Even if he were right in front of him now, he could still kill him directly. The trouble is only afterwards, but in order to make things slightly easier later on, it's better to do more things first.

  After hearing Liu Xuan's explanation, Cai Yan also understood the key point.

  Liu Xuan is the emperor, and it's only natural that he wouldn't want to be controlled by Dong Zhuo all the time. It's normal for an emperor to want to take back power, especially when Dong Zhuo is being so overbearing and many people in the court are dissatisfied. Now that a chance has been given, he must seize it firmly.

  Cai Ye didn't ask about the possibility of success or anything like that, but instead directly asked what needed to be arranged. This made Liu Xuan raise an eyebrow.

  "Never mind about the rest, just bring some of your important things."

  As the Son of Heaven, even if nothing was brought with him, once Chang'an is stabilized, there will be no lack. The important things are just the six seals for the Son of Heaven to handle government affairs.

  The Six Seals are not the Heirloom Seal of the Realm, the Heirloom Seal of the Realm is just a symbol of food, and when issuing an edict, it's not that one being used, but these six seals.

  These six seals are the Emperor's Seal of Authority, the Emperor's Seal, the Emperor's Trust Seal, the Son of Heaven's Seal of Authority, the Son of Heaven's Seal, and the Son of Heaven's Trust Seal. These six seals have different functions, originally managed by specialized officials, but since Liu Xuan ascended to the throne, he has kept them with him at all times.

  Apart from having more confidence in himself, the Six Seals have been passed down for a long time and were used by the Emperor, so there is some dragon energy attached to them. Liu Xuan carries it with him all the time, just to absorb the dragon energy on it.

  This discovery also made Liu Xuan pay attention to the transmission of the jade seal, after all, the transmission of the jade seal is a symbol of inheritance, symbolizing the orthodox of the world, and the dragon energy attached to it will be even more remarkable. It can't be found for now, but it will eventually return to his hands, and he doesn't know how much it will improve his cultivation in the future.

  At the same time, Liu Xuan also discovered that these six seals were excellent materials for refining treasures. The material itself was not ordinary and had been tempered by the dragon energy of two dynasties. If refinement was successful, it might be a surprise.

  After chatting with Cai Yan for a while, it was already past midnight. If they didn't rest now, they might as well not sleep and prepare for the early morning court instead.

  Liu Xuan looked at Cai Yan, who had been exhausted for a long time: "Take a rest, if you don't take good care of yourself these days, you'll run out of energy and it won't be good."

  Cai Ye nodded, she also knew that this matter was related to who would be in charge of the world in the future, and at a young age, it was impossible not to feel anxious, but seeing Liu Xuan's calm expression right next to her, she gradually calmed down.

  "He's so calm, does he think this is bound to succeed and there's nothing to worry about?"