Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 17 Dandy
Inside the Xuan Chamber, Liu Che was preparing to have his meal, and the person serving him was naturally his favorite concubine of the past few years, Madam Li.

Liu Che was a man of deep affection but not long-lasting love. When he favored a woman, his favor was beyond measure.

Wei Zifu was an example, and there was also Lady Wang. After her death, Liu Che asked a Taoist priest to summon her spirit. Now, it is Lady Li's turn, so Li Guangli and others began to emerge.

Seeing Huo Xian swaggering into the Xuanshi Hall, Liu Che had chosen to turn a blind eye. And Wei Qing just shook his head slightly, not knowing what to say.

As soon as Huo Xian sat down, Liu Che asked, "I asked you to check on the pot, why are you so busy?"

"Your Majesty, I am the Marquis of Guanjun. I will be the Grand Marshal and the General of Cavalry in the future. How can you let me be a cook all day long?" Huo Xian said with some dissatisfaction, "Your Majesty, I will not go unless you let me leave the palace."

Liu Che picked up his chopsticks and pointed at Huo Xian, "Since you don't want to be a cook, then just watch. You won't get to eat at the meal today!"

Huo Xian didn't care and said, "I'll go find something to eat later. At worst, I can go to my aunt's house. If my aunt doesn't provide meals, I'll go find my cousin. He will definitely not let me starve!"

When Liu Che was defeated and met such a shameless disciple, he was really helpless sometimes.

"Hurry up and serve him food." Liu Che became impatient and said directly, "You, I really can't say anything!"

Huo Xian just chuckled and brought two dishes of stir-fried vegetables in addition to the barbecue. One was fried leek and eggs, the other was stir-fried cabbage and a small bowl of egg custard. The taste was very good.

As the founder of cooking, the several home cooking dishes developed by Huo Xian are still quite popular. Nowadays, many powerful families hope to have a big pot and some secret cooking methods.

Unfortunately, the way to make money was monopolized by Liu Che, and the way to cook was taken away by him. Now there are two restaurants in Chang'an that sell cooking, and many dignitaries and wealthy businessmen come here to eat.

Wei Qing looked increasingly thin, which made Huo Xian worried. The historical Wei Qing might die in the next two or three years, which was really worrying.

"Uncle, please drink less." Huo Xian said, "I have been studying health preservation recently, and I always feel that this is not good for you, uncle."

Liu Che and Wei Qing immediately became serious. In the Han Dynasty, health preservation was very popular. Living longer was everyone's dream. Emperor Liu Che was devoted to seeking immortality. He tried many different methods. Wasn't it just for immortality?

Wei Qing put down his chopsticks and asked, "Oh, how did you study health preservation?"

"Prevent illness before it occurs." Huo Xian spoke directly, "We can't always think about getting sick and then prescribing the right medicine. That's definitely not good. We should think about how to avoid getting sick. This is more important!"

Liu Che immediately understood what Huo Shan meant, and also felt that Huo Shan was not just talking casually about studying health preservation, but was really putting in the effort.

This is also an important idea in the Yellow Emperor's Canon of Internal Medicine, which is the 'ancestor of medicine' and the first health-preserving book. The Yellow Emperor's Canon of Internal Medicine talks about how to cure diseases, but more importantly, it talks about how not to get sick, how to be healthy and live a long life without taking medicine.

For someone like Liu Che, it was definitely necessary to study hard, and he also had some knowledge of the "Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic".

Wei Qing said seriously, "Xian'er, you should study the art of war carefully."

"Uncle, I'm not idle. I'm still learning what I should be learning." Huo Xian also cried out in injustice, "I was learning horse riding and archery when I should be learning it, and I was also learning the art of war when I should be learning it. I just did other things in my spare time, but I didn't forget my work."

Liu Che smiled and said to Wei Qing, "General, don't worry. If he dares not to study, I will be the first to deal with him. Shan'er is quite motivated and studies military tactics and horse riding and archery diligently. But there is only one bad thing about him. Not only does he like to wear gorgeous clothes, but he also likes to satisfy his appetite."

Huo Xian lowered his head and smiled, then continued to eat with relish. His personality was a bit complicated now.

This Marquis of Guanjun, Commandant of the Imperial Chariot, and Minister of the Court were still loved and trusted by the emperor as always, and were still considered by many to be the emperor's number one confidant and close minister.

He must study hard when he should study. At that time, he worked very hard, but he also looked a bit like a dandy. Liu Che couldn't help but complain, "How many times have I told him to learn some music? Look at him, he can only sit still when he is learning the art of war. When I asked him to learn music, he either had a stomachache or a headache, and then he would think of ways to sneak away to ride horses and shoot arrows. If I talk too much, he would say he wants to cook!"

Music is a compulsory course for many dignitaries. The Six Arts of a Gentleman is also a compulsory course for dignitaries.

The so-called Six Arts are rites, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy and mathematics.

The five rituals are divided into five types: the five archery skills of Bai Shi, Can Lian, Yan Zhu, Xiang Chi and Jing Yi; the five Yu Ze refer to the ability to drive a chariot, and the six Shu refer to calligraphy. Shu, that is, numerology.

Liu Che continued to complain, "Among the six arts, he is only moderately good at archery, charioteering, and mathematics. I think this child will most likely become a Mohist or eclecticist in the future."

Wei Qing was a little skeptical. "Your Majesty, although Shan'er is not good at music, I have seen him many times and he also likes to watch singing and dancing. As for the Mohist school, I don't think Shan'er is that good. Every time the court uses troops, he is the most excited and always wants to follow the army."

Liu Che smiled and said, "That's true. He just likes some clever things. The prince's Bowang Garden is full of strange things. No wonder Shan'er likes to go there."

The rejection of all schools of thought and the promotion of Confucianism alone was also an important event during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che. The Mohist school was also constantly suppressed at this time, and in fact, some other schools were also obviously excluded and suppressed.

Wei Qing couldn't help but worry. Crown Prince Liu Ju had kept quite a few retainers in the past two years, and many of them were followers of so-called heterodox schools.

"Your Majesty, General, I am not a Mohist." Huo Xian said directly, "I don't care about Confucianism, Mohism, Gongyang School, Zi Zhang's Confucianism, or Zi Si's Confucianism. It has nothing to do with me. I just want to fight. When I'm not fighting, I eat and drink well. What's wrong with that?"

"Yes, yes, you are right!" Liu Che was both angry and amused. His annoyed look made people laugh. "I said one sentence, and you can think of three. I don't want you to leave the palace, but you find ways to make trouble for me. Is this your way of being a minister?"

Huo Xian immediately put down his bowl and chopsticks, walked around the table and lay down, "Your Majesty, I am innocent! I made an iron pot and learned how to cook, and I will immediately present it to Your Majesty! I have some experience in practicing the way of health preservation, and I will discuss it with Your Majesty immediately! The sun and the moon are my witnesses, no one in the court is more loyal to Your Majesty than me!"

Liu Che was both angry and amused. He couldn't stay angry in front of this funny guy. He was really too cunning.

"You will leave the palace in a few days and visit your uncle often." Liu Che said, "I will not lock you up in the palace. It is not good for you to walk around the palace often at your age. If you want to go hunting, go hunting. If you want to go out for fun, go out for fun. I don't care about you."

Huo Xian's eyes lit up and he was very excited. "Your Majesty, can I leave the palace now?"

Seeing Huo Xian's reaction, Liu Che was so angry that he wanted to hit her. "I have raised you for ten years, and I can't make you acquainted? You lose your composure when I tell you to leave the palace. You don't want to be in my presence?"

Huo Xian quickly shook his head, "Your Majesty, I left the palace to gain experience so that I can serve Your Majesty in the future!"

"Take good care of your men," Liu Che said. "You are not allowed to go to either the Northern Army or the Southern Army too often. But remember, I'll give you five years to train 800 cavalrymen!"

Huo Xian was even more excited. This treatment was the same as Huo Qubing's. These 800 cavalrymen were Huo Xian's team, and this would be the army he would start his career with.

Wei Qing smiled and said, "Your Majesty, it is too lenient to let him train 800 cavalrymen in five years. Although he is not allowed to go to the Southern and Northern armies to select people frequently, he will definitely be able to select some elite soldiers."

"Uncle, that's not right." Huo Xian retorted immediately, "I would definitely choose a young man, thinking that five or ten years is the prime of life."

Liu Che and Wei Qing looked at each other and laughed.

Huo Xian did not have some of Huo Qubing's keen intuition, but this child was also very smart and far-sighted.

Liu Che never concealed his pride and satisfaction in training such a young apprentice. And Wei Qing also felt that the Wei-Huo clan had a successor.

(End of this chapter)