Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 672 Oh? Such a coincidence!

"Oh dear... what is Daosheng doing?"

Emperor Jingtai, lying on the low bed with his legs crossed, ate the fruit that had been presented as tribute from Guangnan while asking the chief eunuch beside him, "I was quite shocked by the Legalists at the morning court session today. I didn't experience the last round of attacks because I was fighting outside, but this time I finally saw the whole picture."

From the perspective of a feudal emperor, Anzi's death was not unjust. Such actions were actually shaking the foundation of his rule, because the Legalist concept was that the law was above people, which was undoubtedly an epic weakening of imperial power.

But Emperor Jingtai has now come to a realization: he doesn't truly love the idea of ​​an emperor's reign lasting forever; what he loves more is a transcendence of material desires. He doesn't actually possess the ability to be an emperor, and the imperial power he holds has already been significantly weakened.

When my father divided the imperial power in two, the answer was already in the riddle itself. Rather than saying that I became emperor because I was my father's son, it would be more accurate to say that my father had already given the real throne to someone else.

But isn't this a good thing? It really is.

At least Emperor Jingtai now has both prestige and substance. He quelled internal rebellions, pacified the Western Regions, stabilized the grasslands, and recovered lost territories. All the credit goes to Emperor Jingtai. The people love him, the officials respect him, and history remembers him.

Honestly, throughout history, how many emperors have acted like this? Probably no one.

When he first ascended the throne, countless people told him that Xia Daosheng was a suspicious person and that his cronies should be guarded against. Emperor Jingtai was anxious about this for a while, but later he completely gave up the struggle because he realized through many things that he was no match for him and believed that his father's judgment would not be wrong in the end.

Since lying down, Emperor Jingtai has been able to vent his anger and feel more at ease. More importantly, he has everything he wanted. Why bother with military and political power? He can get everything with just a word.

To be honest, he wasn't like those perverted rulers of the former Liang and Qi dynasties. He didn't have any abnormal hobbies, nor was he particularly lecherous. He simply enjoyed good food, writing poetry and songs, and listening to music in brothels. His dream was to roam the world, experiencing life's joys and sorrows, and his greatest hope was for a peaceful world where everyone could sing and dance in harmony, living a life of happiness and contentment.

If he were really made emperor, things would get really messy...

"Your Majesty, Attendant Zhang has arrived."

"Let him in."

Just then, Old Zhang strolled in, carrying a basket. Emperor Jingtai glanced at the basket and said, "How did you get it? These lychees from Lingnan are treasures. I was planning to have Daosheng try them. You've been with me in the capital every day, so you've eaten all sorts of delicious food. You don't need to eat this kind of lychee."

"I came here because I was worried His Majesty would get scolded." Old Zhang put the lychees aside: "If you give this to him, he'll come over with a basket and scold you for three days straight."

Emperor Jingtai shuddered: "Really?"

"What should Your Majesty do?" Old Zhang laughed. "Does Your Majesty know that it is currently the Qingming Festival, and the lychees in Guangzhou are not yet ripe? For lychees to ripen, they must come from Annam. Annam is more than 3,800 li away from Jinling. How many horses would have to run themselves to death to get such fresh lychees, and how much manpower and resources would be wasted? Yes, these are indeed the people's heartfelt gifts to express their gratitude to Your Majesty, but each lychee contains the flesh and blood of the people. Are you really going to send them to him to eat?"

Emperor Jingtai was taken aback and sat up straight: "That's right! You're right!? That was close. So, what should we do with these lychees?"

Old Zhang glanced at the basket of lychees: "We'll eat them here, we can't just leave them here."

"Correct!"

Then the two of them ate all the remaining 32 catties of lychees, and what followed... was an inhumane journey of getting a sore throat.

I have pimples on my face, mouth ulcers, nosebleeds, and difficulty defecating...

"Zhang."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Old Zhang had paper stuffed in his nose and was bleeding profusely, making him look extremely disheveled, but he still agreed to Emperor Jingtai's request.

"Which poem did you write back in Yangzhou? I remember it was excellent, but Daosheng overshadowed it."

"I don't remember. He wrote it for me, and I just memorized it."

"Oh! You've deceived the emperor!"

"Why don't you just kill me?" Old Zhang leaned back, rubbing his head. "I don't need to sit here with you eating those thirty-two pounds of lychees."

Emperor Jingtai was also on the verge of death. He got up and rubbed his stomach: "Come, come with me out of the palace to digest." The two of them strolled out of the palace. Neither of them could eat anything. They just wanted to wander around, to see the beautiful scenery of the empty mountains after the rain, and to see the energetic young women.

“That girl is good.” Emperor Jingtai pointed to a young woman not far away: “Look at her, slim waist, big hips, broad shoulders and a wide back, she looks like she’s perfect for a home.”

"Your Majesty, from a professional perspective, your aesthetic sense is probably not very good."

"Fine, I'll give you three feet of white silk to hang yourself when we get back." Emperor Jingtai rolled his eyes: "Wait, why did you say I'm not quite up to par?"

"Because it was a man."

"Damn it... I don't believe it."

After saying this, Emperor Jingtai got up and went straight over. He arrived in front of the woman he thought was his younger sister, patted her on the shoulder, and said, "This young lady..."

Who knew that when the man turned around, he saw a bearded man with a full beard chewing on a steamed bun.

"You're a man!? You're a man, why are you wearing pigtails?"

The Hu man was quite confused: "Young master, I am a Hu person, and this is how it is where the Hu people are."

Emperor Jingtai walked back dejectedly, while Old Zhang laughed so hard he trembled. Emperor Jingtai asked curiously, "How did you know he was a Hu (non-Han Chinese)? From behind, he looked like a strong woman."

"For women, look at their waist; for men, look at their shoulders. You'll get the hang of it after a while. I'm an artist by trade, you know."

Old Zhang was about to describe to Emperor Jingtai in detail the method of distinguishing male and female bone structures when he suddenly froze, staring straight ahead.

"Speak up, are you having a seizure?"

Emperor Jingtai asked curiously, but Old Zhang tugged at his hand, saying, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, look over there."

Looking in the direction he was pointing, one could see a man wearing a narrow-sleeved red short jacket and a woman in green trousers walking and chatting, with the woman holding some kind of food in her hand.

"What's wrong? They're just a married couple."

"What couple? That's Daosheng."

"Hmm!?" Emperor Jingtai also sat up straight: "Daosheng? Is that Daosheng in red?"

"Correct."

"Let's go!" Emperor Jingtai stood up. "Let's go see what he's up to."

Xia Lin was unaware that she was being followed. It was almost lunchtime, and since food supplies had become plentiful, the three-meal-a-day system had been mandated by the government, and most people had gradually become accustomed to it. As a result, lunch had become a highly sought-after new industry.

Today, Xia Lin is going to eat the legendary Northwest mutton with a large knife.

"Tell me, besides this, what other must-eat foods are there in Jinling City?" Hongyuan asked with a grin. "Take me to try them all."

"Of course we do, after all, even we idiots need to eat."

As they were talking, Hong Yuan suddenly frowned: "There are two strange people who have been following us. I wasn't sure before, but now I am. Should we take them out?"

"Who?"

Xia Lin turned around and saw two idiots sitting at the table, covering their faces with fans.

(End of this chapter)