Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 364 He deserves to die!

Liu Bian and Cheng Yu talked for a long time until Gao Wang led the eunuchs and palace maids in carrying dishes, at which point their conversation came to a temporary end.

The dishes were all served in small bronze tripods, which was the highest-level ceremony of the Tai Lao Banquet.

Gao Wang stepped forward lightly, bowed slightly to Cheng Yu, and said with a smile, "The state has long instructed that lunch should be prepared with the highest honors and Cheng Yu should be entertained alone."

Cheng Yu had enjoyed countless grand banquets while he was in the Crown Prince's residence, and after the Emperor ascended the throne, these former officials from the Prince's residence had enjoyed countless grand banquets at the Yuntai Pavilion. Naturally, they recognized the standard of the lunch in front of them.

However, Cheng Yu immediately stood up, looking embarrassed. He bowed to Liu Bian and declined, saying, "Your Majesty, I am a guilty man who came here to plead guilty. Now I have not been punished, but instead have been treated with the honor of a grand banquet. I am truly ashamed to accept this and fear that it may cause controversy."

Liu Bian raised an eyebrow, a hint of undeniable authority flashing in his eyes. He lightly tapped the table and said in a deep voice, "Thunder and rain, all are bestowed by me. Who dares to object?"

Upon hearing this, Cheng Yu paused, then bowed down once more.

Although he didn't say anything more, his furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and the look of difficulty on his face clearly turned into gratitude.

“However, Zhongde, this kind of thing must not happen again.” Liu Bian’s voice deepened slightly as he still gave Cheng Yu a few words of advice, saying, “It is only because I know you are loyal and diligent and have no ill intentions. If it were anyone else, I would have taken their head long ago.”

Cheng Yu claimed to "acknowledge his guilt," but his tense shoulders visibly relaxed as he slowly sat down and began to enjoy the grand feast.

How could he not know that, given the emperor's temperament, as long as his favor with the emperor did not wane, any criticism from the outside world would be nothing more than the barking of dogs?

Previously, the emperor only punished him by suspending him from his post to reflect on his actions, which was a benevolent act of not wanting his subjects to take the blame for the emperor. However, deep down, Cheng Yu was not without worry that this favor would diminish as a result.

After all, deceiving the emperor and concealing the truth is an undeniable fact.

If you only offer support without criticism, it creates distance and shows you're not considered one of our own.

The former Marquis of Champion was deeply loved by Emperor Xiaowu, but wasn't he also severely beaten and scolded while covering up the crime of killing Li Gan?

The emperor's words of reprimand only confirm that he is still regarded as a trusted and favored minister.

With this thought, Cheng Yu's last trace of unease finally subsided.

However, as Liu Bian ate the hot food from the bronze cauldron, his gaze involuntarily fell on the small bronze cauldron on the table, which was continuously heated by charcoal fire underneath. A look of understanding flashed in his eyes.

Liu Bian raised his eyes, glanced at Gao Wang meaningfully, and smiled slightly, shaking his head at him.

The outside world is not like the capital.

In Luoyang, the procurement process in the palace was not complicated. The system minimized the number of people involved, and the procurement channels remained unchanged for many years. With strict supervision, there was no need to be so nervous.

But once they leave Beijing, these vegetables and meats will pass through many hands, and it's hard to guarantee that no problem will occur at any stage.

Therefore, Liu Bian's food and drink had to undergo extremely strict inspections. Even his drinking water was never used again once it was out of sight. During the march, his water bag was kept by Gao Wang and was never allowed to be touched by a third party.

While the city was indeed safe, the cost was that Emperor Liu Bian ate cold food almost every day.

If it were just flatbread or roasted meat, that would be fine; he could simply heat it up by the campfire and have a hot meal.

However, if it requires heating in a pot or pan, then you can only eat cold food.

The process of testing the food for poison takes at least half an hour, and by the time everything is ready, the food has already cooled down.

If the imperial chefs were to reheat the food in pots and pans, there would be an opportunity to poison it, requiring a second poison test. Liu Bian had already been unhappy several times because he could only eat cold food.

Unexpectedly, Gao Wang gave him a pleasant surprise today.

By keeping the food in the bronze cauldron warm over a charcoal fire, the emperor was spared the hardship of eating cold food.

Although it is a small matter, it reveals Gao Wang's thoughtfulness and meticulousness.

Gao Wang saw the look the emperor gave him and immediately understood that the emperor had received his intentions.

However, the emperor disliked others serving him food and did not need anyone to serve him. So he quietly made a gesture and led a group of eunuchs and palace maids away.

Just outside the palace gates, Gao Wang and his adopted son Gao Cheng walked to a secluded palace alley. Gao Cheng hesitated several times before finally lowering his voice and saying, "Father, please forgive my foolishness... Your actions today..." "You want to say that I was too rash, is that it?" Gao Wang narrowed his eyes, already seeing through his thoughts, and couldn't help but glance at Gao Cheng, a dangerous look of a half-smile appearing on his face.

Gao Cheng was so frightened that he immediately knelt down and kowtowed, hurriedly explaining, "How dare I blame my godfather! I was just... just worried that my godfather would be punished for this..."

Gao Wang watched as he slammed his forehead heavily against the bluestone slab with each word he spoke, and said in a calm tone, "If you are serving a new master, it is indeed reckless to act on your own."

“But given the nature of the state, it will certainly treat a favored minister like Minister Cheng, who has worked so hard and shared the burdens of the country, with the highest honors. The only uncertainty is how long the state will discuss this with Minister Cheng.” Gao Wang did not let Gao Cheng rise, watching as the man continued to kowtow, bloodstains appearing on his forehead, his expression growing increasingly indifferent. He said, “Even if Minister Cheng leaves before lunchtime, those summoned afterward will all be important court officials. And even if the state no longer summons its ministers, after the state has taken power and quelled the rebellion, shouldn’t it be worthy of a grand feast to celebrate?”

Seeing that Gao Cheng's kowtowing movements were getting slower and slower, his body was starting to sway, and the bloodstains on the ground were becoming more and more obvious, Gao Wang slowly squatted down, put one hand on his shoulder, and stopped his mechanical movements.

Gao Cheng felt the force on his shoulder and knew that his adoptive father had spared him. He forced a miserable smile and said weakly, "Adoptive father is indeed very thoughtful. Son... son is really stupid and incompetent."

Gao Wang smiled, reached out and patted his bloodied cheek, not caring about the bloodstains on his palm, and said slowly, "Xiao Chengzi, I have known the country and its servants for more than ten years. To say something outrageous, no one in the world understands the country's thoughts better than me, and no one is closer to the country than me, not even the Emperor Emeritus and Empress Emeritus!"

For some reason, Gao Wang's last two sentences made Gao Cheng feel uneasy for no apparent reason.

Even if such words are true, to say them like this...

While Gao Cheng was still in shock and doubt, his head, which was already becoming increasingly dizzy due to blood loss and the blows, was suddenly struck hard.

Gao Wang suddenly grabbed his hair and slammed his head hard against the blood-stained ground.

"You are indeed dull-witted, so dull-witted that you think you are clever."

After speaking, Gao Wang, not knowing whether Gao Cheng was alive or not, and not caring whether Gao Cheng was still conscious, stood up expressionlessly, walked out of the alley, and casually waved to a white-haired eunuch waiting outside the alley.

"Old rules."

"Yes!" The white-haired eunuch immediately understood and beckoned two junior eunuchs to handle the matter.

This white-haired eunuch was a generation older than Zhang Rang in terms of seniority. He was an old man in the palace who specialized in doing dirty work and handling these shady and unsavory matters.

Throughout the palace, the ranks of the noble and the lowly changed, but his position remained constant.

Gao Wang watched the white-haired eunuch's departing figure and sighed deeply.

Gao Wang has followed the emperor for many years, and he has been quietly growing up, especially during the more than three years that the emperor has been acting as regent as the crown prince.

Senior figures like Zhang Rang, Zhao Zhong, and Guo Sheng voluntarily stepped down to make way for him, but they also generously shared their past skills and insights with him.

As his horizons broadened and his experience grew, he long understood when to try to guess what his superiors wanted, when to play dumb, and even when... to kill.

Or rather, what kind of people cannot be kept?

He was a man of high rank, holding the official position of Zhongchangshi and the fief of a thousand households, the Marquis of Jianzhang Township. He was not so narrow-minded as to become enraged and even take the life of his adopted son over a single question.

However, if you really felt it was inappropriate, why didn't you mention it when preparing the grand feast?
Why did he have to wait until the banquet had already been presented to the Emperor before offering his "kind reminder"?
How can such intentions be considered benevolent?
There are tens of thousands of palace eunuchs, but only one in ten thousand are qualified to see the emperor's face.

Following his adoptive father, Gao Cheng not only enjoyed wealth and luxury, but also climbed step by step to a position that others could only dream of for decades, thus gaining the opportunity to meet the emperor.

To receive such grace, yet not know how to be grateful, and instead harbor ulterior motives... what is the point of keeping such a person around?

As for the adopted son?

Inside the palace, it's all about mutual exploitation.

In most cases, the adoptive father is merely a stepping stone for the adopted son, and the adopted son is just a front man for the adoptive father.

truth?

What a luxury!

(2615 words)
(End of this chapter)