I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 4: The magistrate has the air of Emperor Gaozu!

"I have met Magistrate Liu."

When Lady Lu approached Liu Miao, she was poised and graceful.

Even now, Liu Miao's gaze had not left the large gold plate around Lu's neck...

This scene once again drew laughter from the surrounding scholars.

"Just one glance from you has made me think of you day and night!"

"It seems that we have helped accomplish a good thing today!"

"..."

Seeing the change in the atmosphere around him, Liu Miao burst into laughter, showing no embarrassment whatsoever, only the joy of surviving a disaster!
I just walked right on the edge of a cliff!
If we allow the matter of taking a concubine to be abandoned, I'm afraid it will alienate us from the scholars of Jiangdong!
Although it might be an exaggeration for him to sing "Jianjia" so loudly, and it might even affect his reputation, it is obviously insignificant compared to winning back the scholars of Jiangdong!

Liu Miao remained unperturbed by the teasing of the surrounding guests, his expression unchanged.
When others saw this, they all thought Liu Miao was shameless and immediately started teasing him again.

Only Lu Yi seemed to notice something unusual in his eyes and began to observe Liu Miao carefully.

The matter of taking a concubine has been settled.

The ritual of pitch-pot must continue!
Liu Miao was not skilled in archery, and his mood had been fluctuating, so he only managed to hit one arrow!
Fortunately, for some reason, Lu Yi on the other side also failed to hit the target with a single arrow today, allowing Liu Miao to win by sheer luck!
"Concession! Concession!"

Afterwards, more guests came to play the game of pitch-pot, while Liu Miao kept drinking. In the end, he had to be helped by a waiter to stand up and take his leave!
……

"Boyan, what is your opinion of this Prefect Liu?"

After Liu Miao left, amidst the mess of cups and plates, Lu Kang sat on the steps and asked Lu Yi a question.

"When I first saw him worrying about the country, I thought he was someone I could entrust with my life. But his behavior just now seemed rather frivolous. I don't know what his true nature is."

Lu Kang felt a little awkward at this moment.

Liu Miao's behavior at the banquet was so drastic that he was unsure of what kind of person Liu Miao really was.

Whether it's a real dragon or a python wearing antlers to attract attention, it's really hard to tell!

Lu Yi did not rush to answer Lu Kang, but instead asked Lu Kang a question in return—

"What is the purpose of this banquet hosted by our ancestor today?"

Lu Kang knew that Lu Yi was intelligent from a young age, so he spoke frankly with him.

"Liu Miao and Liu Zhongshan were sent by their elder brother to Chang'an to pay homage to the emperor. I also happened to send a candidate for the civil service to the court to offer tribute, and the emperor just happened to promote him to the position of governor of Jiujiang. So he and my envoy came from Jingzhou by waterway. Naturally, I had to do my duty as the host."

There was a pause.

"But I have no relation to him, so there is no need for me to hold a special welcome party for him."

"My test this time was actually for Yuan Shao's sake!"

Lu Yi was puzzled.

"How did our ancestor get involved with Yuan Shao, who lives a thousand miles away?"

Lu Kang chuckled awkwardly, "Boyan, Yuan Shao isn't a thousand miles away!"

"On the contrary, Yuan Shao is practically omnipresent!"

"Do you know just how high Yuan Shao's prestige has reached now?"

"Just a month ago, Yuan Shao appointed Zhou Ang from Kuaiji as the governor of Jiujiang!"

"!!!"

Lu Yi's eyes twitched, as if he couldn't believe it!
"The Emperor is still alive! The court is still in power! Prefect Liu is the one appointed by the court as the Prefect of Jiujiang! How dare Yuan Shao overstep his bounds?"

"What's there to be afraid of?" Lu Kang shook his head, indicating that Lu Yi was still too young and unaware of the complexities of the world.

"Now that the imperial court is in decline, the Guandong region relies on the two Yuans. Yuan Shao and Yuan Gonglu both dared to call on the warlords to attack the capital. What else would they not dare to do?"

"Let alone a prefect, Yuan Shao seized Ji Province without authorization and falsely claimed the title of Chariot and Cavalry. Who did he answer to? Now the whole country is full of Yuan's disciples and former officials. Almost half of the country is now surnamed Yuan. What big deal is it for Yuan Shao to appoint a prefect of Jiujiang?"

Although Lu Kang spoke in a relaxed tone, Lu Yi could still hear the resentment and anger in his grandfather's voice.

His great-grandfather, Lu Kang, was loyal to the imperial court throughout his life.

Now, however, the Yuan family is in power, and there are even two governors of Jiujiang at the same time!

One Jiujiang! Two prefects! Isn't this a betrayal of the Han Dynasty, of the Han authority, and of the Han laws? What exactly does Yuan Shao want to do?
Lu Yi could feel Lu Kang's heart breaking, but there was nothing he could do but step forward and gently pat Lu Kang's back to help him calm his anger.

"So, the reason why Zu has set up this banquet today is to test Lord Liu, to see if he is a promising talent and whether he can compete with the Yuan family?"

Lu Kang looked at Lu Yi with satisfaction.

"Boyan is indeed exceptionally intelligent."

"But Liu Zhongshan was really too unbearable at the banquet today. I'm afraid he doesn't have the courage to stand up to the Yuan family."

Upon hearing Lu Kang's assessment of Liu Miao, Lu Yi remained silent.

Seeing that Lu Yi remained silent, Lu Kang knew that his intelligent great-grandson must have some different views!

"Boyan, just say whatever comes to mind."

Lu Yi stood up and cupped his hands in greeting to Lu Kang.

"Didn't you notice, Ancestor, that the contrast between Liu Shijun's banquet today and the one before was too great?"

"Dragons can be large or small, can rise or hide; when large, they stir up clouds and mist, when small, they conceal their form; when rising, they soar through the universe, when hiding, they lurk within the waves."

"Today's banquet is related to my grandson, so I have been observing Lord Liu the whole time."

"The beginning of Liu Shijun's change of heart stemmed from his grandfather mentioning his mother's marriage."

When Lu Yi got to this point, he still shook his neck a couple of times, somewhat awkwardly.

"Liu Shijun remained calm and composed until he saw his mother. Suddenly, he changed his behavior and sang 'Jianjia' loudly, which was a sign of his desire for his mate."

"The guests at the time all mocked Magistrate Liu for being lustful at first sight, but his grandson observed Magistrate Liu afterward and found that he acted like a gentleman and never looked at his mother again, clearly following the principle of not looking at what is improper."

"If Lord Liu were truly a lecherous man, how could the contrast be so stark?"

Lu Kang suddenly widened his eyes: "Boyan, you mean..."

"In the subsequent Pitch-pot ceremony, Grandfather should have been able to see that it was his grandson who was letting Liu Shijun win, and Liu Shijun himself must have known this as well."

"But even though Lord Liu only hit the target once, he was still beaming with joy, which shows how thick-skinned he was (Jiangdong dialect, thick-skinned)... Afterwards, he continued to drink and make merry, without any embarrassment, treating others as if they were nothing, truly unmoved by honor or disgrace!"

Lu Yi did not express his own judgment, but simply recounted what he had seen to Lu Kang.

"Among people like him, my grandson has only seen one in all the history books."

"who?"

"Emperor Gaozu of Han!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Note 1:

Shu's cousin Shao appointed Zhou Ang of Kuaiji as the governor of Jiujiang. Shao and Shu were at odds, so Shu sent Ben to attack and defeat Ang at Yinling. Shu then recommended Ben to be the governor of Yuzhou, and he was later transferred to the position of commandant of Danyang and acting general who pacified the mountain tribes. —Records of the Three Kingdoms, Book of Wu, Biographies of Imperial Clan, Volume 6.

(End of this chapter)