Thief Emperor

Chapter 1031 The Greatest Enemy in Life
For two hours, His Majesty the Emperor, who was usually busy every day, did not leave the Ganlu Hall for a moment. He simply sat in the main seat, flipping through documents and reviewing memorials, occasionally looking up at His Highness the Crown Prince, who was doing his homework.

About an hour and a half later, His Highness the Crown Prince wiped the sweat from his brow, picked up the article he had written, blew on the ink to dry it, and handed it to His Majesty the Emperor. He first looked at Li Yun's face, and then cautiously said, "Father, I have finished writing."

Emperor Li had naturally noticed his eldest son's actions, and he nodded silently, saying, "Put it down."

His Highness the Crown Prince did as he was told and put it down.

Emperor Li looked at his son, subconsciously wanting to ask the Crown Prince how he viewed the new learning and the current practical approach to governance, but the words remained unspoken.

Some things can only be understood through personal experience.

Li Yun's deep-rooted pragmatic ideas stem from his firsthand observations and experiences, and his ability to approach the transformation of this era from a higher perspective.

However, in this era, only Li Yun had these ideas, and it would take a long time to see the effects of the national policies.

Given his current status, no matter what he says, the Crown Prince can only nod along and will not have any thoughts or actions to refute him.

If you keep nagging, it might incite rebellion in these children, which would cause even more trouble in the future.

After wiping the sweat from his brow and leaving the Ganlu Hall, the Crown Prince looked at the examination paper before him and hesitated for a moment.

After a long while, he opened the Crown Prince's exam paper and read it carefully from beginning to end.

This year's practical exam questions test the ways of a county official.

Starting from the fourth year of Zhangwu, the practical questions in the imperial examinations became quite specific, no longer just a few vague passages, nor did they test any abstract principles of governance, such as the principles of county magistrates. In short, it was about how to govern a county well and make it prosperous if you were to become a county magistrate.

For the past three years, the questions have all been practical, and Emperor Li himself has set the questions.

Li Yun looked down from the top, but felt inexplicably nervous.

He worried that if his son didn't answer well, it would mean that the crown prince hadn't paid much attention to the new learning over the years.

But at the same time, he was also a little worried that his son's answer was too good.

Because there was a gap of two or three days between when he received the question and when it was delivered to the exam hall.

Two or three days is enough time for someone to leak the exam questions to His Highness the Crown Prince, and the person who leaked the questions might even be his longtime political partner.

Despite his many worries, Emperor Li's will was stronger than ever before, and he quickly read through the entire exam paper.

That's a very good answer.

It's not bad, but it's not particularly good either. There are two or three things that are not quite right, but they are all minor issues.

After reading it, Emperor Li was delighted for a long time. He even went to the weapon rack in the Ganlu Hall, took down his spear, and fiddled with it for a while.

After a while, he asked Gu Chang to bring him a cup of wine, which he then drank down.

After finishing the cup of wine, Emperor Li looked at the Crown Prince's answer sheet again and couldn't help but smile.

After laughing, His Majesty the Emperor suddenly frowned and watched it a third time.

The balance was just right, not too much or too little, exactly to his satisfaction.

Emperor Li sat silently for a long time, then took out a glass mirror and carefully examined himself in the mirror.

The emperor in the mirror, compared to Chief Li of the Cangshan stronghold, has become much more majestic. He still looks just like he did back then, but if you look closely, you can see that there are a few stray white hairs at his temples.

Wearing a black and dark gold imperial robe, paired with a purple and gold crown, he exudes the aura of an emperor.

He stood up and looked intently at himself in the mirror. At that moment, the black-clad Li Yun in the mirror seemed to have truly transformed into a black dragon, quietly watching and scrutinizing Emperor Li from the other side of the mirror.

"He has been emperor for almost ten years."

Emperor Li put down the mirror and murmured, "There are too many things to think about every day, too many scheming and intrigue. Perhaps I have really become suspicious."

He looked down at his hands and muttered to himself, "Perhaps I shouldn't use such complicated thoughts to judge my family."

He muttered to himself for a while, then finally walked to the weapon rack once more, took down the large black spear, and walked out of Ganlu Hall with it. As he reached the door, the eunuch Gu Chang looked at Li Yun, a smile on his face, and asked, "Is Your Majesty going to practice martial arts?"

Since the establishment of the Wu Palace, Gu Chang has been following Li Yun for more than ten years. He knows Emperor Li quite well, especially since the founding of the country. Although His Majesty still practices martial arts frequently, he only practices spear fighting when he is in a good mood.

Emperor Li nodded and said calmly, "I'm in a good mood today."

"Have someone go and invite Instructor Pei over. Tell him I'm itching for a sparring match and need someone to practice with."

Gu Chang quickly bowed his head and responded, then ran down to fetch Pei Zhuang, the instructor of the Imperial Guards.

About half an hour later, Pei Zhuang arrived at the place where the emperor practiced martial arts in the Imperial Garden. Just as he arrived, the emperor's spear technique came to an end. With a shout, the emperor's spear flew out of his hand and hit the wooden figure squarely.

The spearhead was driven deep into the wooden figure's chest, while the butt of the spear trembled incessantly, emitting a buzzing sound.

Pei Zhuang couldn't help but exclaim "Bravo!" He stepped forward, clasped his hands in a salute to the Emperor, and said with a smile, "Your Majesty has already wielded the Dragon Spear with unparalleled skill."

"Especially this Flying Dragon move."

Pei Zhuang walked up to the wooden figure, grabbed the spear with one hand, and pulled it out with a little force. He then held it in both hands and presented it to Emperor Li.

His Majesty the Emperor caught the spear with one hand, tossed it casually, and pinned it to the ground. Then he looked at Pei Zhuang and said with a smile, "No spear practice today."

Pei Zhuang looked up at Li Yun, somewhat confused.

Li Yun pulled him down to sit beside him and said with a smile, "Brother Pei should know that my extraordinary strength is not only due to my natural abilities, but also to the breathing technique I learned in my youth. Now, this breathing technique has gradually become second nature."

He looked at Pei Zhuang and continued, "I'm almost forty this year. For the first thirty years, I used external martial arts, relying on my thick skin and strong body to win. Now that I'm this age and in this position, I rarely fight with anyone anymore."

He said with a smile, "So, if you want to learn about internal martial arts in the future, Brother Pei should be an expert in this field. I invited Brother Pei here today because I wanted to ask him for some guidance on internal martial arts."

Pei Zhuang was a martial arts fanatic who had practiced various martial arts since childhood, cultivating both internal and external skills. Upon hearing the emperor's words, he had no other thoughts and simply smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I have indeed learned a lot of internal martial arts techniques over the years. Your Majesty's breathing method is actually a part of internal martial arts. However, the master back then probably did not teach Your Majesty the corresponding techniques."

Pei Zhuang stroked his chin and continued, "Since Your Majesty wishes to learn, I will teach Your Majesty a few styles of boxing. As for the styles of boxing that correspond to Your Majesty's breathing techniques, I will have to go and find them."

"Or, I may spend a few years reversing this style of boxing."

Li Yun smiled and said, "In that case, I'll trouble you, Brother Pei."

"Your Majesty is too kind."

Pei Zhuang said solemnly, "I am where I am today because of Your Majesty's support. Back when I was a servant in the Pei family, only Your Majesty respected me."

"It is only because my skills are meager and of no benefit to the country that I cannot help Your Majesty. If I can be of even the slightest help to Your Majesty in the path of martial arts, it would be the greatest fortune of my life."

Emperor Li patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile, "I have loved martial arts all my life, and it is my good fortune to have met Brother Pei."

Pei Zhuang quickly lowered his head and said he dared not, then began to teach His Majesty the Emperor internal martial arts.

Li Yun himself had a very solid foundation, and with the breathing techniques he had practiced since childhood, he had grasped some of the basics in just one hour.

After Pei Zhuang took his leave, Emperor Li returned to Ganlu Palace. He then walked around practicing boxing until he was sweating. He returned to his seat, wiped the sweat from his forehead, looked at the Crown Prince's exam paper in front of him, remained silent for a long time, and then slowly shook his head.

"A father and son should not doubt each other, and a father should not doubt you."

Emperor Li looked up at the window and said quietly, "You can't see into someone's heart. No one can see through a person's thoughts. My son and I should just do our own thing."

Emperor Li slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

"Chen Guang, you are truly my greatest enemy."

He looked outside the hall. It was already dark, and the moonlight, like water, bathed the Ganlu Hall.

No one can withstand it.

(End of this chapter)