General, please be a loyal minister!

Liu Ci's enthronement ceremony was grand and grand, and the whole city celebrated together.

Han Zhao, who sneaked out from the banquet in the palace, bumped into Cheng Ju, who also sneaked out to drink in a secluded place.

Cheng Ju leaned on the railing, and spoke to Han Zhao who was passing by: "Mr. Gu, have you heard of the Three Wonders of Dongdu?"

Before Han Zhao could answer, he continued on his own: "The peonies in Qinanting, the fine wine in Guiyuan Township, the romance in Yuebailou...everything is worthy of its reputation, and you should not miss any of them."

After speaking, he smiled at Han Zhao: "If Mr. Gu is fine, why don't you come and sit down."

Han Zhao sat down, and just as he raised his hand to get the flagon, Cheng Ju took the flagon away.

"Excuse me for not being able to invite Mr. to drink this wine."

Han Zhao was not angry, but withdrew his hand and asked, "What kind of wine is this?"

Cheng Ju replied, "Thousands of years old."

Han Zhao shook his head: "I haven't heard of it."

Cheng Ju bent his eyes: "This is actually an anagram."

Han Zhao asked again, "What do you mean?"

Cheng Ju replied: "I want to be with someone forever."

Han Zhao was taken aback for a moment, and instantly understood what Cheng Ju meant.

The literati's confession is really tactful and tender, but when the answer is revealed, it makes people's heart skip a beat.

Han Zhao lowered his eyes and asked, "What does it feel like to like someone?" Although he didn't care on the surface, Han Zhao still very much minded being told by his disciples that he didn't understand love.

Looking back on the past, only three women left indelible marks in Han Zhao's heart, mother, sister-in-law, and Zhaoyang.

Needless to say, mother, Zhaoyang Han Zhao is more moved and grateful. Only sister-in-law, she is a collection of mother and woman in Han Zhao's heart, and is all Han Zhao's beautiful imagination about women, but that is love?

Han Zhao didn't understand.

After living two lifetimes, he actually wanted to ask a young man about his feelings, he was a little bit dumbfounded.

Cheng Ju turned his head and thought for a while: "The wind is gentle, the moon is soft... Tomorrow is worth looking forward to."

Han Zhao still couldn't understand what Cheng Ju described in his words. He didn't understand why liking someone would change Fengyue.

Cheng Ju saw Han Zhao's confusion, smiled slightly, and elaborated: "When Senior Brother was here, I only knew that I liked Senior Brother. As long as I was with him, I was full of joy. But how much do I like it? I said Unclear. No one else has made me feel similar, so there is nothing to compare."

"But when the senior is gone, the world suddenly——is empty, very empty."

"People in the world use two words to describe this feeling - loneliness."

"My real name is Cheng Jue, but Master Ye, who is the master of my brother, made a fortune for me, saying that the word Jue was not good, that there was something missing in the name, and there was something missing in the fate, so the master changed my name to Ju. Then I changed my name. It may not be necessary to change fate, and the consummation that Ju seeks is still impossible after all." Speaking of this, Cheng Ju raised the jug, closed his eyes and poured wine into his mouth.

I thought that as long as I had enough patience, the senior would understand his intentions one day, but the age is endless and people have their own ends, and the world does not wait for others after all.

After half a pot of wine, Cheng Ju let out a long sigh: "Mr. Han, your life is only a hundred years, so don't be too harsh on yourself."

Cheng Ju didn't know why Han Zhao asked about his feelings, but this was the only advice he could give Han Zhao as a bystander. Han Zhao was too tired to live.

Han Zhao was speechless. He had been said to be unreasonable countless times, but he just made what he thought was the best choice.

He's used to this and doesn't know where to start.

When the banquet was over, the full moon had entered the sky.The sound of the rumbling carriage caught up with Han Zhao who was walking alone on the long street.

The curtain of the car was lifted, and Liu Ji, who was dressed in a boguan costume, stretched out a hand: "Mr. Gu! It's cold and the road is cold, my king will give you a ride."

Han Zhao took that hand and was pulled into the carriage.

"Master's hands are so cold." Liu Ji handed the stove aside to Han Zhao. He was so angry that he couldn't use the stove even after burning it.

When handing over the hand stove, Liu Ji's fingertips accidentally touched Han Zhao. He seemed to have been electrocuted, and when he pulled it back, the hand stove was brought down. It was Han Zhao's sharp eyesight and quick hands that held it up so that it didn't fall over.

Han Zhao asked Liu Ji slightly dissatisfied: "What's wrong with you? Will I bite?"

Liu Ji replied sadly, "Master said that he doesn't like being touched."

Han Zhao was taken aback, remembering what he said in the barracks more than a month ago, thinking about these days, Liu Ji seemed to be deliberately avoiding unnecessary contact with him.

Han Zhao's original intention was to tell Liu Ji not to be fussy about him, but he didn't expect Liu Ji to be so cautious.

Sure enough, was he being too harsh on Liu Ji?

Han Zhao pressed the corner of his mouth slightly, turned his head, and changed his words: "I'm not a big girl, what can't I touch? The original intention of those words is to teach you not to be too big or too young."

Liu Ji looked at Han Zhao in surprise, but Han Zhao didn't respond to his gaze. He restrained his exaggerated expression, lowered his eyes, and slightly curved his mouth.

This topic ended in silence. Liu Ji lifted the curtain and looked outside the car, sighing: "When the weather gets warmer, we will set off for Zhaodi. There, Master will be free."

Han Zhao turned his head and replied, "I'm not going to Zhao, I want to stay in Dongdu."

Liu Ji looked at Han Zhao with a serious expression, "Why?"

Han Zhaodao: "I have other things waiting for me to do, just arrange an official position in Dongdu for me."

Liu Ji asked: "Is there anything I can't help Master?"

Han Zhao took a deep look at him and said, "Be your King Zhao well."

Unwilling, Liu Ji wanted to say something, but the carriage stopped.

Han Zhao was surprised, here?Is it too fast?The city is not out.

He opened the curtain and found that he had only reached the east city.

Han Zhao turned his head and asked Liu Ji, "What are you doing here?"

Liu Ji smiled slightly: "I want to take you somewhere."

Confused, Han Zhao followed Liu Ji out of the car.

It is not Zhao Wangfu in front of him, but next door.The gate of this mansion was empty, and Han Zhao could not see where it was.

Liu Ji took the lantern handed by his entourage, and led Han Zhao through the door.

The inside of the mansion was pitch black, with only the cold moon shining alone, it seemed that no one lived there.

Although spring has begun in the eastern capital, there is still a thin layer of snow that has not yet melted, and the cold air at night penetrates the cloak, which is quite freezing.Han Zhao didn't understand why Liu Ji brought him here in the middle of the night, so he asked, "You brought me—"

Halfway through speaking, Han Zhao paused. After passing through the porch, his vision suddenly opened up. Under the full moonlight, a green plum forest was quietly blooming.

"I wanted to bring master to see it every two days, but the subordinates who took care of here said that the green plum blossoms were in bloom, so they brought master here." Liu Ji turned around with a smile, but found that Han Zhao didn't pay attention to what he was saying, just watched Looking at the green plum trees in the yard, I was in a daze.

Han Zhao was in a daze. When he first saw the scene in front of him, he seemed to have returned to the former Han Mansion, but this is impossible. It has long been a market, and the old appearance can no longer be seen.

Liu Ji led Han Zhao into the green plum forest, and at the same time explained: "In the old days, Mrs. Xiaowuhou loved green plums, and Xiaowuhou planted a large area of ​​green plums for her in the eastern capital where every inch of land was precious—these trees are Xiaowu. It was transplanted when Hou was demolished.”

Han Zhao suddenly turned his head and looked at Liu Ji: "What did you say?"

Liu Ji repeated: "These green plum trees were planted by Xiaowu Hou Handu by his beloved wife, and they are more than 100 years old."

According to historical records, Xiaowuhou Han Jun, styled fair, was the son of Ding Guogong Han Dong, an official to the prime minister, and was demoted after suffering a crime, and died of illness in Yuzhou.

He has two sons, the eldest son Ming, and the second son Zhao——

This second son, Zhao, is the one standing here now.

For a moment, Han Zhao didn't know what expression to put on for this unexpected encounter. He thought that everything related to the past had long been lost in time, and there was nothing left, but unexpectedly, he could still see some wreckage.

He walked through the green plum grove, saw one tree after another, and the falling snow and snow swirled on him from time to time, he didn't seem to notice it.Most of them are not a hundred years old, but there are a few of them, which have a familiar atmosphere.

He saw a very special green plum tree. The tree looked very old, with mottled skin, twisted branches, and a large hole in the trunk.

The moment Han Zhao saw the hole, his nerves seemed to be beaten hard, and his whole body was numb.

He stared straight at the hole, carefully stretched out his hand, and poked into the tree hole. It was empty and there was nothing there, but when he touched the inner wall of the tree trunk, Han Zhao trembled all over and began to tremble.

The youthful but firm voice of his elder brother seemed to be heard in his ears again: "Mother is alive in heaven, she will definitely take good care of my younger brother tomorrow, so that he won't be wronged in the slightest."

In an instant, it was like a switch was turned on, and childhood memories flooded back, and with the desolate present world as the curtain, they were re-enacted in Han Zhao's mind——

The mother's gentle comfort, the father's strict but earnest teaching, and the laughing and fighting with the elder brother...

Han Zhao was dizzy and out of breath. He leaned on the tree trunk and knelt down, lowering his head to hide the tears on his face.

This sudden change frightened Liu Ji. He quickly stepped forward and knelt down beside Han Zhao: "Master, what's wrong with you?"

Han Zhao buried his head and said, "I'm fine, fine."

But the crying that he was trying to suppress couldn't make people think that he was very good.

Liu Ji was really anxious, and wanted to forcibly lift Han Zhao's face, but Han Zhao suddenly grabbed his hand, pulled him into his arms, and hugged him.

Liu Ji was at a loss, and called out in a low voice, "Master..."

Han Zhao didn't respond, but hugged Liu Ji tightly, gritted his teeth, and tried to close the memory box again.

"Don't blame me, Liu Ji." The fragile whisper was like a dream, it was not like an order, but more like a pleading.

Han Zhao is not fearless, he is afraid too much, he is afraid of losing the person he cares about, he is afraid of being hurt by the person he cares about, he is afraid of having to hurt the person he cares about...

Time only taught him to be stingy with his feelings, he doesn't care if he doesn't pay, and he won't get hurt if he doesn't care.

My grandfather fought all his life to expand the territory for Taizu, but he was neglected; his father put down his family's happiness to help Emperor Rong to calm down the court, but was demoted;

The three generations of the Liu family ruined the three generations of the Han family.Han Zhaoben no longer wanted to trust the Liu family, but fate forcibly tied him to Liu Ji.

Liu Ji is not Liu Xuan, he is not kind by nature, Han Zhao can't believe that he is different from other Liu family members, he can only believe that Liu Ji will treat him differently.

This whisper, which seemed to be an auditory hallucination, made Liu Ji stunned.

He didn't know what went wrong, he didn't know why the strong and forbearing master suddenly lost his composure, like a sad and fragile child.

He cautiously stretched out his arms to embrace Han Zhao, and after confirming that he really touched Han Zhao, he tightened his arms and twisted Han Zhao into his arms. He clasped Han Zhao's head, making their heads hug stick.

"In this life, if Liu Ji does something wrong to Master, he will be struck by lightning."

"Remember what you said, Liu Ji." This sentence is a warning.If Liu Ji also disappoints him, Han Zhao doesn't know what he will do.

Liu Ji didn't answer with words, he just hugged Han Zhao harder, accepting and helping to cover up his fragility.

The crack in the heart wall that was smashed by the old things of relatives did not exist for a long time. From the time Han Zhao saw the tree hole to the time when he regained his calm, it took only half a cup of tea.After his mood stabilized, he relaxed his arms, and finally drew a trace of warmth from Liu Ji's arms, Han Zhao stood up and turned around.

The cloak that was originally scattered on the ground was gathered back on his body, covering all emotions.

Han Zhao took a deep breath, and said to Liu Ji as calmly as possible: "Rest early, I'm going back."

Liu Ji persuaded: "It's inconvenient to go out of the city late at night, so master stay here."

"No." Leaving those words behind, Han Zhao fled in despair.

Liu Ji chased him out of the yard, but Han Zhao had already borrowed the guard's horse and went away with a whip.

After pondering for a while, Liu Ji turned back to the yard and went straight to the green plum tree that made Han Zhao lose his composure. He followed Han Zhao's example and put his hand into the tree hole——

It started with a mottled scratch, like an engraved symbol, but because of the age, it has already been completely deformed with the growth of the tree, and it is impossible to guess the willingness.

After a while, Liu Ji withdrew his hand, took a deep look at the green plum tree, turned his head and left the yard.