The Great Han Dynasty has 57 dialects

  The next day, Lü Lu entered the palace again to request an audience with Empress Lü.

  "It's no wonder the nephews are upset. To be honest," his expression was somewhat strange, "yesterday, someone suddenly burst into the Lyu mansion and scolded my two brothers, saying that we were biased and credulous, and had actually brought harm to the country."

  "The state's great affairs, how can they be decided by a single madman's reckless remarks?" Lü Zhi was furious and scolded, "The Four Sages of Mount Shang are renowned for their virtue, and were recommended by the Marquis of Liu. They possess the wisdom to govern the country. How could such a madman speak so presumptuously? You should have thrown him out, but instead you've been swayed by his words?"

  "Yes, yes." Lü Lü responded in a low voice and finally said, "It's not that we don't know what's important or not, it's just that the person is really not an ordinary eccentric."

  "Who is it?" Lü Cuī asked strangely.

  Lü Lù whispered a name in her ear.

  "It was him..." Lyu Hou said, her voice trailing off.

  She hesitated for a moment, looked up and asked "Ying Er, this concerns you yourself, what do you think?"

  "My son," Liu Ying thought for a moment and raised his head, "I want to go to the Lu Mansion myself to take a look. What reason does that person have?"

  Four spirited horses drew a brand new carriage slowly into Beidi.

  When the carriage stopped in front of the Xianghou Mansion, the onlookers murmured "oh" and nodded their heads, "So it's someone from the Lü family, no wonder they have an extraordinary air about them."

  The Lü clan is the imperial family of the current empress, and the emperor's wife's brother. From the time of Emperor Gaozu's uprising, they have been following the dragon, and with the establishment of the Han dynasty, the eldest son of the Lü family, Zhou Lühou, also died. In retrospect, it was still Emperor Gaozu who owed a debt to the Lü family. Therefore, he enfeoffed the second son of the Lü family, Ruzi, as Marquis of Jiancheng, Changsun Tai as Marquis of Lü, and the second grandson, Shang, as Marquis of Jiao. At that time, in the city of Chang'an, the Lü family's prestige was unmatched.

  At this moment, the main gate of the Lyu Mansion slowly opened, and the clever and capable general manager of the Lyu Mansion hurried out to greet him at the carriage door, bowing low and saying, "Young Master is safe, the masters in the house will come out to welcome you immediately."

  "Alright." The young man in black clothes got off the carriage, took a look at the lineup in front of the Lyu's mansion gate, and smiled, "I'm just visiting relatives, no need to be so vigilant. And there's no need to open the main gate either, I don't want the whole city of Chang'an to know yet."

  Lü Zongguan smiled and said, "Yes." However, he still didn't dare to slack off. He personally bent down to welcome the young man from the side door, passing by the waterside pavilion, walking through the winding corridors, and from a distance, he could hear the sound of heated debate coming from the main hall opposite.

  "Four old gentlemen from Shangshan and the fifth young master of the Hou Mansion in Mingyuan Pavilion are all inside, does Young Master want to go in?" asked Lu Zongguan respectfully.

  "No." The young man hesitated for a moment, shook his head, "I'll just go listen in the next room."

  "It's fine for me to come here, you can go down now." Lü Lu walked over from the other side of the stage, smiling lightly, and was about to bow when the young man stretched out his hand to stop him. "I didn't come today to receive your empty courtesy," he said with a smile. "Let's get down to business."

  He followed Lü Lu into a side room in the main hall, and Lü Lu asked him to go to the wooden painting on the wall opposite the partition. When he opened his eyes, the scene above the main hall was visible at a glance.

  The hall was very spacious, with Duke Lü sitting at the top. On his left side stood a white-haired old man from Shang Mountain, while on his right side stood a young man wearing blue clothes, standing with his hands behind his back and looking arrogant.

  "If this person were just an ordinary scholar, he would have been beaten out of here by the brothers for his reckless and absurd words." Lü Lu explained softly on the side, "But since he is the younger brother of the Marquis of Mingji Pavilion, considering that there may be other reasons, I reported it to the Empress and the Crown Prince, please decide."

  "Uh-huh." Liu Ying nodded and smiled, "Let's hear what he has to say then."

  On the upper seat, Lü Tai, the Marquis of Lü, coughed lightly and asked Xu Xiang, "Lord Xu, did you succeed in this trip according to the method shown by the Hou of Ming Ji Pavilion?" His eyes inadvertently revealed a hint of expectation.

  However, Xu Xiang shook his head and said, "No. My sister has been traveling the world with her husband, and I haven't seen them for a long time."

  After the painting, Lü Lù caught a glimpse of a hint of disappointment in the eyes of the young man in black clothes beside him, which was similar to that of Lü Tai on the stage.

  "That," Lü Tai slightly pulled down his smile, bowed respectfully to the four old men and said, "All four of you are sages, praised by both His Majesty and Zou Bo. Your views on governance are all mature and steady. Since you have already said that the Crown Prince is not suitable for expedition against Ying Bu, why did Xu Gongzi dare to recklessly speak nonsense in my Lü manor?"

  "Is it absurd or wise words," Xu Xiang looked up and smiled, "Let me make it clear in front of the prince."

  Lv Tai looked up at the edge of the bed and said lightly, "I am the prince's cousin, so I naturally think for the prince with all my heart. ——If you can convince me, I will naturally ask to see the prince for you."

  Xu Xiang smiled leisurely and cupped his hands in respect, bowing to the four white-haired elderly men, "I am not talented, if I have offended you in any way, please forgive me, sirs."

  Si Hao's expression was unpleasant, and he barely returned a courtesy. The youngest, Xia Huang Gong Cui Guang, stroked his beard and said, "Young Master Xu, I know that young people are full of vigor. But the Crown Prince is the foundation of the country, you should understand that the son of a noble family does not sit with his legs hanging down."

  "Our great Han Emperor is still a body of ten thousand gold," Xǔ Xiāng retorted, "Isn't it also from the battlefield that this great Han Empire was fought out? Why can Your Majesty lead the army, but not the Crown Prince?"

  Xia Huang Gong retorted, "That's different. Your Majesty was born brave and skilled in battle, but the Crown Prince has never experienced war."

  "No one is born a warrior," Xu Xiang puffed out his chest and spoke eloquently, "When the Marquis of Huaiyin suffered humiliation, who could have predicted that he would become our great Han war god? Our great Han dynasty was founded relying on many brave generals. If the crown prince cannot even lead troops to victory, what can he rely on to command respect from others?"

  "But when the Marquis of Huaiyin was at the height of his power, no one expected that he would die in the depths of the Chang Le Palace, and his entire clan would be exterminated." Wu Shi coldly observed from the side, inserting a sentence, "Young Master Xu, the world is unpredictable, this is just how it is. The Crown Prince cannot rely on luck to get by. You should know that as the Crown Prince, even if he wins this battle, His Majesty will have no merit to reward him with. But if he loses, his position as heir will be precarious. At this time, His Majesty is already old, and King Zhao is still young. In my humble opinion, for the sake of the Crown Prince, it's not about seeking merit, but rather avoiding mistakes."

  "Wrong," Xǔ Xiāng said loudly. "In my humble opinion, for the Crown Prince at this time, having no merit is a fault in itself." His voice was clear and resonant, ringing out loud and clear.

  He stunned everyone with one word, smiled slightly, and walked back and forth in the hall. "Your Majesty favors the youngest son, which is well-known to all. If the Crown Prince has no merits or demerits for a long time, Your Majesty will think that the Crown Prince is not worthy of the heavy responsibility of the country, and his mind to replace the Crown Prince will become more determined. King Zhao is still young this year and is just a child. But King Zhao will grow up day by day. At that time, whether there will be another Zhou Chang who would rather die than obey the imperial edict?"

  "The four gentlemen only saw that if the Crown Prince loses this battle, his position as heir will inevitably be shaken. They didn't think that if the Crown Prince wins, then everyone in the world will see that he is a qualified crown prince, and even the Emperor cannot easily shake his position again. People say, there's no such thing as being on guard for a thousand days, only being a thief for a thousand days makes sense? Instead of guarding against Zhao Wang, it's better to solidify one's own position. And fighting against Ying Bu is precisely the Crown Prince's best opportunity."

  "Ying Bu is brave and good at fighting, but the prince is still young," said Mr. Nangong Zuo calmly. "Who doesn't know that if the prince wins, everything will be fine? But in reality, the prince's victories are rare, and the Han Dynasty has many capable generals. The question is, can the young prince command them at will?"

  "Now that he is a prince, he cannot command his generals; how can he control his ministers when he ascends to the throne?" Xǔ Xiāng said loudly.

  These words were asked with an ulterior motive, and Judge Lu's face suddenly changed color in the courtroom.

  Xu Xiang didn't give him a chance to react, and continued in one breath, "In my humble opinion, the Crown Prince's expedition against Ying Bu has four reasons why it will certainly succeed; Ying Bu's rebellion against Han has four reasons why it will certainly fail."

  "What's going on?" Lü Tai asked with a changed expression.

  "The Crown Prince is carrying out the Emperor's order to punish the rebels, while Ying Bu is a vassal king who has broken his oath and rebelled against Han. This is the trend, which makes it certain that the Crown Prince will win for the first time; Ying Bu must lose for the second time. The Crown Prince has mobilized the entire country's strength to attack Huainan, with the support of other vassals, while Ying Bu uses only one state's strength to resist the Han army, and his followers are deserting him. This is the moral law, which makes it certain that the Crown Prince will win for the second time; Ying Bu must lose for the second time. Ying Bu is old and weak, while the Crown Prince is young and strong, this is the power, which makes it certain that the Crown Prince will win for the third time; Ying Bu must lose for the third time. The world has just been pacified, and people's hearts are tired of war, they will certainly side with Han and despise Ying Bu, this is the people's heart, which makes it certain that the Crown Prince will win for the fourth time; Ying Bu must lose for the fourth time."

  Xu Xiang's voice fell to the ground with a loud clang, and he suddenly turned around and bowed down. His face was raised high, facing the direction of the ear room, his eyes were piercing and aggressive, and he asked sharply, "The prince has four victories, why can't he come out to fight, but instead let his father lead the expedition in person despite being ill?"

  Inside and outside the hall suddenly became quiet, still hearing the remaining sound of Xu Xiang's question. Suddenly, a faint laugh was heard in the ear house, and a young man in a black robe came out, helping Xu Xiang up, saying, "Your words, whether right or wrong, are all what I have been thinking about. I dare not accept your courtesy."

  "Sir," he walked up to Dongyuan Gong Bing, bowed with shame and said, "Ying invited sir to come out of the mountain, originally to assist Ying, but now..."

  "The crown prince has already made up his mind, hasn't he?" Tang Bing of Dongyuan Garden interrupted.

  He looked at the young man in front of him, his eyes calm and with a hint of a smile, without any sense of embarrassment or discomfort. "I'm old. So I tend to be cautious and stable, but you're young. Young people are always eager to try new things, they want to fly. This is not right or wrong, Your Highness doesn't have to feel like you've lost face in front of us."

  "The Crown Prince has such a mind and spirit is good. Also," Tang Bing said with a loud laugh, "How can the heir of our great Han dynasty be someone who doesn't even have the courage to face battle?"

  He laughed and left, Lü Tai looked at the backs of the four old men, shook his head slightly, "I have always thought that Shangshan Si Hao was a virtuous person beyond the dust, now it seems that they are nothing more than this."

  "Brother-in-law shouldn't say that." Liu Ying slightly shook her head, "Their intentions are all good. Brother-in-law must not treat them coldly in the future either."

  Lü Tai did not think so, but still agreed. "Your Highness," he looked at this noble cousin, "have you really decided to fight this battle?"

  "Uh-huh." Liu Ying nodded, a hint of determination flashing in her eyes.

  "But Aunt will worry."

  "I know." Liu Ying smiled calmly, "But I can't always stand behind Mother's back and not come out on my own."

  Presenting chapters as gifts.

  I actually wanted to come up with five reasons and list them out in one go, but I could only think of four in the end. Oh well.

  Here is the translation:

  "Here comes another war plot which I'm not good at. Let's just get it over with as soon as possible."

  Historically, Liu Bang passed away in the 12th year of the Han Dynasty. The time is almost up.

  Then I must say like countless authors that whether a book is packaged as a monthly subscription or a single order is not decided by the author, but arranged by the starting point.

  So far, I am just like everyone else, and I don't know whether this "Dahan Yanyua" is a package deal or a single subscription.

  Kiss everyone.

  P.S. If there are such fragmented thoughts in the future chapters, I will check the word count or use the modification function to add them. I won't let everyone pay more for these fragmented thoughts.