A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

In the following period, Emperor Wu of Han officially allowed Liu Ju to fulfill the duties of the crown prince and begin to be involved in court affairs.

He, on the other hand, focused on the big picture and began to keep an eye on disaster relief efforts and people's livelihoods in various regions.

He wanted to maximize his achievements before settling his life's work.

Under Emperor Wu of Han's strict supervision and the Wei family's all-out disaster relief efforts, although the disaster affected a vast area, the number of ordinary people who died as a result was not large.

This is relatively rare throughout history.

After the locust plague subsided, Emperor Wu of Han began to open his national treasury and embark on a massive infrastructure development project.

The whole world is filled with a vibrant and energetic atmosphere.

Of course, these were not forced labor services, but paid ones.

Or perhaps the very things that were built brought tangible benefits to the people.

They constructed water conservancy projects, built roads and bridges, and reformed officialdom.

We must do everything we can to improve the happiness of the people.

It made the people feel as if they had returned to the era of Emperor Wen of Han.

Some people who were born during the reign of Emperor Wen of Han and died during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han couldn't help but sigh that they lived in the best of times.

Better to be a dog in times of peace than a human in times of chaos.

They lived their entire lives in a peaceful country.

Although there were continuous wars in the later period, the impact on the people of the world was almost negligible.

Or rather, it only brings them benefits and no harm.

Because the Han Dynasty's territorial expansion always ended in victory, it brought many opportunities for ordinary people to rise in rank.

Moreover, due to the abundance of the national treasury, no additional taxes were levied on Xia because of the war.

Such a war would not lead to popular resentment.

The 47th year of Emperor Wu of Han's reign.

The fifth prince, Liu Bo, took out the wooden hairpin that his mother had left behind and went to Emperor Wu of Han with it.

"I beg Your Majesty to allow me to go out and take up my fief."

Emperor Wu of Han stroked the wooden hairpin in front of him, recalling the woman who was so beautiful that she could topple kingdoms.

That was his favorite thing during that period.

Don't talk about how long this period is, just tell me if that period was his favorite time.

For a period of time, he would always be infatuated with that one and only woman.

And they put themselves in his shoes and considered his needs in every way.

This was true of Empress Wei Zifu, and it was also true of Lady Li, and later, it was true of Lady Gouyi.

This wooden hairpin was specially left behind by Lady Li before her death; it was a token of her love with Emperor Wu of Han.

The reason she didn't want Emperor Wu of Han to see her haggard appearance before she died was so that she could leave her most beautiful image in his heart.

In this way, when his son took out the wooden hairpin, Emperor Wu of Han would surely feel compassion.

If it weren't for the fact that Crown Prince Liu Ju was in charge during the witchcraft saga, Liu Bo would have taken out this hairpin at that time to save Li Guangli's family.

By the time Liu Bo realized what was happening, Li Guangli and the others had already been killed for treason.

Liu Ju's decisiveness shocked everyone who knew him.

This hairpin was never used.

The situation in Chang'an is now settled, and he has no chance left.

This wooden hairpin will become unusable if we don't use it soon.

Therefore, Liu Bo wanted to use this hairpin to save his life.

Emperor Wu of Han indeed softened his heart and granted Liu Bo's request. He enfeoffed Liu Bo as the King of Changyi and ordered him to immediately go to his fiefdom.

Out of brotherly affection, Liu Ju did not stop him and generously let him leave.

However, at this time, someone advised him to be wary.

Harmfulness is not allowed, and defensiveness is indispensable.

This person was Huo Guang, the younger brother of Huo Qubing.

He was also a rising star who emerged in the court during the last few years of Emperor Wu of Han's life.

Huo Guang entered the imperial court through his relationship with Huo Qubing and demonstrated remarkable governing abilities.

She quickly gained the trust of Crown Prince Liu Ju, thus becoming an important figure in the Eastern Palace.

Historically, Huo Guang was also very loyal to Liu Ju.

This can be seen from the fact that Liu Ju's son was able to ascend the throne after Emperor Zhao.

If it weren't for Huo Guang, how could Liu Ju, the son of the deposed crown prince, have possibly ascended the throne?!

However, Huo Guang's descendants were utterly useless. After Huo Guang's death, they dared to do anything, relying on the family's power.

They thought that it was because Huo Guang was alive that they had brought disaster upon themselves, which led to the extermination of the Huo family.

Even so, Emperor Xuan of Han did not implicate Huo Guang, but still acknowledged Huo Guang's contributions and allowed him to be buried in Maoling.

Later, when the list of eleven meritorious ministers and prime ministers was compiled at the Qilin Pavilion, Huo Guang was still listed as the first.

This demonstrates Huo Guang's ability and his loyalty to Liu Ju.

With Huo Guang's abilities, he could naturally see Liu Ju's reluctance.

So he told Liu the story.

"No one knows if any remnants of the witchcraft from back then are still alive. If some are, they might be willing to harm those around Your Highness at any cost, especially the Empress and the young princes. You'll regret it!"

Liu Ju was persuaded by Huo Guang's words and arranged for Liu Bo to become his own prime minister.

The only requirement was that Liu Bo be monitored and not mistreated.

The 49th year of Emperor Wu of Han.

Emperor Wu of Han led his officials in performing the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai once again.

During the Fengshan ceremony to worship Heaven, Emperor Wu of Han, in the name of the Human Emperor, recounted the merits and demerits of his life.

He hoped to ascend to heaven after death.

He already sensed that his days were numbered and he was entering the twilight of his life, yet Emperor Wu of Han still longed for immortality.

He had already realized that there were flaws in what Wei Sheng said, but he was unwilling to believe it now.

He simply wanted to believe it was all true.

This would allow him to remain the Heavenly Emperor in the celestial realm based on his achievements in this life.

Winter of the 49th year of Emperor Wu of Han.

This emperor, who left a significant mark on history, finally reached the end of his life.

This emperor spent most of his life expanding his territory, from the far north to the frozen north, to the island of Wa (Japan) in the east, to the Western Regions in the west, and to the Baiyue region in the south.

This expanded the territory of the entire Han Dynasty by one circle.

They successfully drove the Xiongnu from the north to the extremely cold far north and conquered the vast grasslands.

To spread the might of the Han Dynasty throughout the known world.

It is worth mentioning that at this time in the Han Dynasty, Southeast Asia was still a truly wild and undeveloped region.

Everywhere is tropical rainforest, sparsely populated, and devoid of civilization.

The Han Dynasty occupied almost all civilized areas in the Central Plains, achieving great glory.

During his reign, the people did not become impoverished due to the successive wars; on the contrary, the constant wars broke down class barriers.

The witchcraft accusation did not lead to such a great tragedy, erasing the two biggest stains on Emperor Wu of Han in the original history.

Before his death, Emperor Wu of Han summoned Wei Zhong, Wei Zhen, and Wei Sheng to his side.

Looking at the three ministers before him, Emperor Wu of Han felt a surge of murderous intent.

Although Liu Ju also had some courage, he was far inferior to him.

He was somewhat unsure whether Liu Ju could control the Wei family.

If not, he'd better take the entire Wei family with him before he dies.

Leave Liu Ju with a clean-cut, burly man.

As if sensing Emperor Wu of Han's murderous intent, Wei Zhong stepped forward.