Young Master Liu was warming his hands on the stove while reading the battle report documents sent by Song Yu.
Song Yu was sitting on a chair nearby, drinking tea, and looked at Liu Mingzhi sitting by the stove, his eyes flickering.
My nephew looks more and more like Ruizong Li Zheng in the past.
I don’t know if Liu Mingzhi has this attitude in his heart, or because he misses his father Li Zheng too much.
Song Yu always felt that every move Liu Dashao made now seemed to have the shadow of Ruizong Li Zheng.
The more he looks at it, the more he looks like Ruizong when he was young.
The smile on Liu Mingzhi's face became more and more obvious. After reading the last word in the battle report, Liu Mingzhi closed the document in his hand heavily.
“Okay, great!
Shuai Zhang, Marshal Nangong and the others did not disappoint me. In one month, they captured 10 or 20 barbarian cities from the two countries, defeating the enemy garrison and retreating steadily, completely defeated.
It can be said that the results are outstanding and the hard work is highly rewarded!
Judging from the distance and time it took for the battle reports to be sent back to the capital from the two countries, the two armies should have attacked the enemy's royal city by now, right?
Hi, maybe I am taking it for granted. The closer we get to the royal city, the tighter the enemy's defense will be.
The territories of the two countries are not too small, how could it be possible to capture them so quickly!
But I think that by next spring, I should be able to receive the good news that they are successful.
There is a great dragon in the sky, and God bless the great dragon!"
“It’s all thanks to His Majesty’s great blessing that the Western Expedition Army can achieve successive victories and become invincible!”
Liu Mingzhi casually placed the document on the table, picked up the teacup and took a sip of the tea.
“Uncle, there are no outsiders in the palace, so you don’t need to call me your nephew, because it sounds harsh to me.
Just like before, you can call it Zhi'er, or you can call it Ming Zhi.
From now on, in private, we will not care about the relationship between monarch and minister."
“This... I don’t dare, the courtesy cannot be discarded!”
“Uncle! Don’t let Confucianism influence your thoughts. The essence of Confucianism can be retained, but the dross must be removed.
Haier can be regarded as a half-reader, and he is well aware of the pros and cons of the articles in books.
When my father was still alive, he often said that we people should not kneel down every now and then. If we do, we should be punished by death.
The bones of our Han family members have been wiped out.
When he was in power, he once said to me: If all the sons of the Han family become groveling, we, the imperial officials, will have a great responsibility!
If we, the court officials, are like this, we will make the state officials follow our example, and the same will be true for the people.
In the end, the pride of our people, Dalong, will be gone.
Therefore, although Confucian articles have their essence, they should not be relied upon exclusively.
Because the child, like the father, does not hope that one day, my eldest son, I, will become the kind of weakling who only obeys and grovels."
“Yes, yes, sir... I understand!”
Liu Mingzhi put down his teacup, turned around and walked towards the main hall of the royal study. Looking at the portrait of Li Zheng on the incense table, Liu Mingzhi's eyes became sad.
“In the blink of an eye, my father has been in power for six years.
But his instructive words back then are still fresh in my memory, and now that I occasionally think of them, they are still so inspiring.
When I think back to the words I promised him at the Royal Garden Observation Deck on the eve of his departure, I feel sour in my heart.
I, Liu Mingzhi, am worthy of the Dalong Li Dynasty, worthy of the Dalong Kingdom, but I am worthy of my father.
If my eldest brother Li Baiyu was still alive, I think I would definitely...forget it, he has passed away, and it would be a bit ridiculous to act like a daughter again."
Under Song Yu’s complex gaze, Liu Mingzhi picked up three sticks of incense, lit them against the candles, and inserted them into the incense burner with a respectful expression.
Silently knelt on the futon and kowtowed to Li Zheng's portrait a few times before standing up.
“Today is the eighth day of November, and it will be December 18th in a little more than a month.
December 18th is the death anniversary of my father. If he knows that I have managed Dalong to such a prosperous state, he will hate me for taking away his Li family's inheritance.
But in such a prosperous age, I should be a little pleased!"
Liu Mingzhi patted the dust on his hands and walked towards the Long Case with a calm expression.
“How is the fighting at the border in the North? Is there any battle report coming?”
“Not yet. There is heavy snow in the north. Even if there is a new outcome in the war, whether it is golden eagles, falcons, or fast horses delivering messages, they will be hindered.
Perhaps the battle reports from the North will not be sent back to the capital until the New Year's holiday!"
“It’s true, no matter how urgent I am, I still have to go through a process.
As for the battle report sent back by Zhang Shuai and Nangong Shuai, you should take it to the cabinet for processing, hand it over to Xia Shoufu for approval, directly skip the Ten Kings Palace, and order the Ministry of Rites to inform the world.
Our Western Expeditionary Army has achieved brilliant results and has received many good reports. How can I be the only one who knows such news?
Such a major event that affects the whole world must be celebrated by the whole world so that the people can be proud of it."
“I understand, and your Majesty can rest assured that before the New Year’s holiday, I will definitely coordinate with the Ministry of Rites to spread this battle report to all the prefectures in Dalong, so that all the people will know it.”
“Okay, you and Qin Shangshu can take care of this matter!
By the way, how is that guy Fei Xiong doing as the general supervisor in the Ministry of War?"
“It’s still the same as before, sitting around the front of the dragon chariot that he made all day long and forgetting to eat and sleep. The skilled craftsmen who were in charge saw how confused he was all day long and wanted to help him.
But the words he spoke were so confusing that even the craftsmen who wanted to help were unable to do so."
Liu Mingzhi frowned slightly and murmured softly: "One person is short-term, two people are long-term.
It seems that Feixiong alone is not the answer to Dalong's industrial revolution.
Perhaps it’s time for me to set up some colleges on the study of things to achieve knowledge!
In this way, we can create a precedent for industry, and at the same time, we can use these colleges to weigh the momentum of Confucianism.
Especially in the future, there may be a situation where everything is of inferior quality, but only education is of high quality.”
“Ah? What did you say, Your Majesty? I didn’t hear you clearly!”
“Nothing, nothing, I just thought of some interesting things.
Not worth mentioning to my uncle.
Uncle, let’s go to the Qinzheng Palace together. Just as you are going to the cabinet, I will leave the palace and go to the prison to see how Fei Xiong is doing.”
As soon as Song Yu heard that he was about to leave the imperial study, his expression straightened and he turned slightly: "Your Majesty, please!"
“By the way, uncle, please help me keep an eye on the young beauties in the capital who have not yet left the imperial court, and also let the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty pay attention to them.
Feixiong is already in his early twenties and is still unmarried.
Wanyan has been anxious for a long time and has mentioned Feixiong’s marriage to me more than once.
It is not a solution for him to always focus on investigating things.
Although he didn’t take the initiative to mention it, as a brother-in-law, I couldn’t help but be concerned about it.
If you know that there is a suitable girl who is a good match for Fei Xiong, ask your eldest brother to go to your house and talk to Wanyuan and ask her to find a matchmaker to arrange a meeting with the girl.
Let’s settle this matter as soon as possible.”
"Okay, I know, I will go visit my old friend after the court is over!"
While talking, the two of them left the Qinzheng Hall, and Song Yu saluted Liu Mingzhi.
"Your Majesty, please go to the general as a prisoner first. The old minister has been transferred to the cabinet!"
“Okay, see you later.”
Watching Song Yu's figure go away, Mr. Liu stretched his neck and walked towards the palace gate.
“Dad! Why are you willing to enter the palace today?”
"Um?"
Liu Mingzhi turned around and saw his second-in-command, Liu Chengzhi, running towards him with a surprised look on his face, holding a few books in his nest.
Looking at Liu Chengzhi who was almost as tall as his shoulders, Liu Mingzhi smiled and nodded: "I have something small to come to the palace to see. Are you finished with the affairs of the Ten Kings Palace?"
“It’s freezing cold, so few documents can be delivered to the capital in time, and even fewer of them are Class A and Class B.
The child took a look at the sky and was ready to go home."
Liu Mingzhi nodded clearly: "I see, let's go and leave the palace with dad."
“Yes, dad please come first!”
"Hey? Why are you alone? Where are your sister Yiyi, eldest brother, Yaoyao, Chenggan, Yue'er and the others?"
“I was dragged out of the palace by my sister Yue’er an hour ago. She said she wanted to walk around the streets and buy some fabrics, jewelry and other things for my mother-in-law and aunts!”
Liu Mingzhi shook his head helplessly: "This girl is so old and still restless.
What book do you have in your arm?”
“The Analects of Confucius and Mencius’ Doctrine of the Mean”
Liu Mingzhi suddenly stopped and looked at Liu Chengzhi, his second son, with a slight frown.
“Gudu! Dad, what’s wrong with you?
Why are you looking at me like this? I haven’t done anything wrong recently, right?”
Liu Mingzhi raised his hand and took out the three books under Liu Chengzhi's arm, and flipped through them casually. He looked at Liu Chengzhi calmly, looking at him with panic and heartstrings. He didn't know that reading these books was against his father's will. Which one is taboo?
“Do you read these books in your spare time after you are busy with government affairs?”
“Yes, it’s not just these three books, there are also books such as University Hanshu.”
Liu Mingzhi pursed his lips and returned the three books to Liu Chengzhi: "This is not a book you should read often!"
“Ah? But we brothers and sisters spend our time reading these books on weekdays!”
“They can ride the wind, make the moon, or look at the moon. They can look at it or not.
As for you, it’s best to read less of these books.”
“Then…what kind of book should the child read?”
“Han Feizi, Sun Tzu’s Art of War, Taigong’s Art of War… all of these are acceptable.
However, as a father, I suggest you start with the Historical Records of Tai Shigong and the Records of the Dragon Dynasty.
Especially in these books, the personal experiences and life records of emperors of all dynasties should be studied carefully.
These are the books you should read!”
Liu Mingzhi patted Liu Chengzhi on the shoulder gently, and with a dark look, he turned around and rushed towards the palace gate!
"These books, your eldest brother Chengfeng, your third brother Chenggan, Yiyi, Yue'er... they can read them or not.
As for you, I hope you can read more.
Whether you watch it or not is up to you!
On the twenty-sixth of this month, a group of death row prisoners who have committed many crimes will be executed without waiting until the autumn of next year.
You should inform the Ministry of Punishment that you will be the supervisor of this execution!"