When Ji Han and his men traveled to the Three Kingdoms crew

Chapter 712: For the Emperor's Uncle's Sake, I'll Let You Go for the Time Being

"Oh? You want me to take back my order?"

Liu Xie looked at Xiang Lang with a puzzled look on his face. He never expected that the other party would not want the armor that he gave away for free. If an ordinary court official dared to talk to him like this, he would definitely raise his eyebrows and fly into a rage. How dare you think I am a vegetable market? How dare you bargain with me? !

But Xiang Lang is different. Who is Xiang Lang? Xiang Lang is not only a wise minister who responded to the dream, but also a close friend of Xu Shu, who in turn is a close friend of Zhuge Liang.

Isn't this the same as our own family?
How can you just give your family members the cold shoulder?

"No, Shangshu Xiang, why are you doing this? This is the first place! Why are you asking me to take back my order? Do you think highly of the first place in the imperial examination?"

Xiang Lang said in panic: "Your Majesty, I deeply appreciate your kindness, and so do my two nephews. It's not that we look down on the first-class, but my two nephews are not interested in it!"

"Oh? If this is not their ambition, then what are they aiming for?"

"My son Tiao believes that only by leaving Chang'an and serving in various prefectures and counties can he gain more knowledge and hone himself."

Liu Xie couldn't help but nod his head after hearing this. This reminded him of Deng Ai. Deng Ai was a man of extraordinary talent, but he was too eager for quick success and instant benefits under the emperor's feet. Not only did he monopolize power, but he also kept close to villains and stayed away from wise men. It would be a disaster if he entered the temple.

"As for my son, my beloved son"

When Xiang Chong was mentioned, Xiang Lang could not help but pause. This made Liu Xie even more curious, as Liu Chan had mentioned Xiang Chong before. Xiang Chong was one of the twenty-eight wise ministers who were enshrined with his uncle Zhuge Liang!
Xiang Lang gave Liu Xie an apologetic smile, as if his next words might offend someone, which made Liu Xie even more curious. He wanted to urge him, "Minister Xiang, why are you keeping me in suspense?!"

"My son Chong wants to follow the example of Dingyuan Hou and Zhongjun, join the army and serve the Han Dynasty."

After hearing this, Liu Xie was stunned at first, and then a touch of ecstasy surged in his heart. He laughed and said, "Haha, good, good, good, you are worthy of being one of the twenty-eight wise ministers. Shangshu Xiang, you have brought me good news, great news! I agree! How about this, let Xiang Chong serve as the personal guard of General Zuo!"

Now it was Xiang Lang's turn to be stunned. All the words in his heart were stuck in his throat. No, he hadn't even said a word yet, so how come the emperor had implemented his plan?

Seeing Xiang Lang's dumbfounded look, Liu Xie's smile became even wider, with a burning look in his eyes. He said with a smile: "Minister Xiang, your son will surely become a famous general in the future!"

Famous general?

Xiang Lang was shocked and looked at Liu Xie in surprise. No, why would His Majesty be so confident? Could it be that His Majesty was also a wise minister who responded to the dream?

As soon as this thought came into his mind, Xiang Lang wanted to slap himself.

What does it mean that Your Majesty is also a wise minister who responded to dreams?

I think it was the Prime Minister who told His Majesty
His thoughts lasted only a moment, and Xiang Lang, who came to his senses, repeatedly thanked the emperor for his grace. Liu Xie supported Xiang Lang and said, "Please get up quickly, Minister Xiang. You have trained a good general for the Han Dynasty. I just did what I should do." Then Liu Xie ordered people to send Xiang Lang out of the palace.

The next day's meeting
Liu Xie sat on the throne in high spirits, with a bright smile on his face, as bright as a gambler who won millions of dollars with one penny. It was not until Liu Bei beside him coughed lightly that Liu Xie put away his smile and put on a serious face.

Liu Xie's unusual attitude puzzled the officials of the six ministries and nine ministries. What happened to His Majesty? Could it be that there was good news from the Tianzhu front again?

Liu Xie's strange behavior continued until the end of the court meeting. Liu Xie still looked energetic and listened attentively, as if the person sitting on the throne was not the current emperor, but the deceased emperor.

It's really strange.

What made the ministers feel even more strange was what happened next. When the envoy announced that Ma Su, the top scorer in the first class, was coming to pay homage to the emperor, Liu Xie, the emperor, looked downcast and an expression of disgust appeared on his face.

Ah? Isn't Ma Su the younger brother of Ma Liang, an official in the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace? How could Ma Liang's younger brother, who had proved his talent by getting first place in the first class, be disliked by the Emperor? This had never happened before. Could it be that the Emperor had a grudge against Ma Liang? No, no, Ma Liang had attended the Emperor's family banquet, so it didn't make sense for him to have a grudge. Could it be that Ma Liang had a grudge against Ma Su?
"Ahem." Liu Bei coughed again. Reminded, Liu Xie immediately put away his disgusted expression and looked at Ma Su expressionlessly, "Who are you?"

"Ma Su and Ma Youchang from Xiangyang, Jingzhou, come to see Your Majesty!"

Liu Xie nodded slightly and threw one question after another to Ma Su according to the past procedure. The difficulty of the questions increased from low to high, from local areas to the court, from the Han Dynasty to foreign countries.

Ma Su's answer could not be said to be bad. All the officials' eyes lit up when they heard it. This man was worthy of being Ma Liang's younger brother and worthy of the title of child prodigy. He was indeed extraordinary!
Based on this man's intelligence, shouldn't Ma Su be demoted to the richest county around Chang'an?

But His Majesty's attitude towards this person
When the ministers thought of Liu Xie's attitude just now, they were not sure where Liu Xie would arrange Ma Su to work.

However, Liu Xie affirmed Ma Su's answer. Although his words revealed his dislike for Ma Su, he still let Ma Su serve as the chief clerk in the richest county according to the rules.

For some reason, all the ministers breathed a sigh of relief and thought: Your Majesty is wise after all. It seems that the cheating in the imperial examination was caused by Jia Xu.

Many officials on the scene cast fearful glances at Jia Xu, but Jia Xu remained calm and composed as if he hadn't noticed anything. As the saying goes, too much debt doesn't weigh you down, and too many lice don't worry you down. So whoever takes the blame doesn't count.

Just when the officials thought that today's court meeting had ended perfectly as usual, something unexpected happened.

Ma Su, standing in the palace, shook his head. All the officials were shocked. No, is Ma Youchang crazy? The current emperor is not the previous emperor. If he refuses His Majesty at the court meeting, it will really anger His Majesty!
As expected, Liu Xie raised his eyebrows and looked at Ma Su with a sharp look. His face turned livid, and his anger immediately jumped out from the bottom of his heart. He clenched his fists and looked more and more unkind. Ma Su, Ma Zhao Kuo, what do you mean? How dare you embarrass me in public? ! If it weren't for the words of the emperor's uncle, the prime minister, let alone asking you questions and letting you be the chief clerk, I would have ordered you to be kicked out of the palace long ago! I didn't expect you to be so shameless. Okay, I will do it now.
"Your Majesty, why don't you let Ma Youchang finish what he's saying first?"

Just as Liu Xie was about to reward Ma Su with fifty military sticks, Liu Bei's voice happened to sound in his ears.

Liu Xie looked at Liu Bei and then at Ma Su, and finally loosened his fist. "Forget it, for the sake of my uncle, I will listen carefully to what you have to say!"
(End of this chapter)