The Son of Heaven watched with a smile on his face as Liu Xiu dipped the stone seal in a red ink-filled box, and then printed it on the pair of words he had just written. The bright red inscription is like a fire, which suddenly lights up the vitality flowing between black and white, and becomes an indispensable part of the whole work.

"Good!" The Son of Heaven praised it, stood up, and looked down at the work on the case.

"Your Majesty, you can see the beauty and ugliness more when you hang it." Liu Xiu said with a smile.

"Really?" The Son of Heaven was in high spirits and immediately asked Jian Shuo to lift the paper. Splashing ink on the snow-white paper is already a refreshing and pleasing enjoyment, and now Liu Xiu has put a small seal on it, just like painting a character to point out his eyes, and suddenly have a soul, the whole work has been upgraded to a realm, with a sense of rebirth, for the son of heaven who has always loved literature and art, this discovery is no less than enjoying a big meal.

Standing in front of the work, the Son of Heaven tasted it for a while, and the more he looked at it, the more happy he felt.

"Deran, when I set up Hongdu Xue, you can go to Hongdu Xue to make a sacrificial bar." The Son of Heaven was a little pale, and an unhealthy red appeared on his face: "Although you have talent in fighting, you are a real genius in painting and calligraphy." ”

Liu Xiu hurriedly said a few words of modesty, as the saying goes, he is familiar with 300 Tang poems, and he will steal them if he can't chant poems. Although I dare not say that I am a genius in this aspect of painting, I have carefully studied so many fine works in order to falsify, and I am not a genius but also a genius.

The Son of Heaven said regretfully: "It's a pity that the seal you gave me was damaged by me, and I asked Shang Fang to copy one, but not only could I not find a similar jade material, but their printing skills are far from yours. ”

"Your Majesty, whether it is a jade seal or a gold seal, their seal is nothing more than cutting or chiseling, and it is impossible to make such a seal. Your Majesty does not need to regret it, just wait for the ministers to seal another seal for Your Majesty. ”

"This ...... Is it difficult, and it doesn't take time? ”

Liu Xiu smiled, "This is the same as using soldiers, it takes time to plan and prepare before the war, and it is really necessary to use the hands to control the seal, just like waving troops to attack, the victory or defeat is just a blink of an eye." ”

"Really?" The Son of Heaven was very curious. The seal of the Han Dynasty has been changed from a cast seal to a chisel seal, which is much faster, but it is not overnight, Liu Xiu said that the seal is only in the blink of an eye, even if it is a metaphor, it is too exaggerated.

"Your Majesty, this material is very soft and easy to use, and the scribes can do it." Liu Xiu picked up the seal that was already a little damaged, took a book knife from the side, and with a little force, he drew a trace. When the Son of Heaven heard this, he was very happy: "So, I can also cure the seal by myself?" ”

"You can use this kind of stone." Liu Xiu handed the stone and the book knife to the Son of Heaven, and watched him try it twice, dancing happily, he couldn't help but be a little funny.

"Interesting, interesting." The Son of Heaven said in a loud voice: "Between square inches, there are thousands of weather, which is really interesting." ”

"Your Majesty, although there is a big weather in the square inch, it is also a small difference, and it is a thousand miles away, so you must not be careless."

The Son of Heaven turned his head, glanced at him, and couldn't help but smile: "You are getting more and more sour now, and you have stayed with Cai Yong for too long, right?" He paused, and then said in a wordy voice: "But you know how to advance and retreat, and you know how to make trade-offs, and you haven't reached the point of incorrigibility." ”

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the compliment, the minister is very honored."

The Son of Heaven shook his head happily, "You, you, where is it a great honor, it is simply willing to be gluttonous, and it is well deserved." ”

Liu Xiu laughed twice.

"What have you been doing lately, I haven't seen you come into the palace to talk to me." The Son of Heaven leaned on the throne a little tiredly, pinched his eyebrows, and Jian Shuo hurriedly rushed over, pinching the shoulders of the Son of Heaven with appropriate weight. When Liu Xiu saw it, he bowed down and bowed: "Your Majesty, can the minister pinch a few times for Your Majesty?" ”

"You're going to do the same thing?" The Son of Heaven glanced at him and said half-jokingly.

"The minister learned some massage techniques from Mrs. Lu, and now he is itching." Liu Xiu rubbed his hands exaggeratedly, looking impatient. The Son of Heaven couldn't help but want to laugh again, waved his hand, and motioned for Jian Shuo to get out of the way. Liu Xiu moved behind the Son of Heaven, put his hands on the shoulders of the Son of Heaven, and couldn't help but say a little sadly: "Your Majesty, you have lost a lot of weight recently, you have to take care of your body." ”

The Son of Heaven was gloomy and didn't speak, but sighed faintly, but there was more warmth in his eyes.

Liu Xiu gently pinched it, the shoulders of the Son of Heaven were very thin, and he didn't have the strong muscles that he should have at his age, and what his hand touched was only the bones hidden under the thin skin, and he didn't even dare to let him work too hard, for fear that he would be pinched by accident. He glanced at it and found that there was actually a white hair on the sideburns of the Son of Heaven, and when he looked closely, he found two more.

Liu Xiu couldn't help but regret a little, he didn't know how old the Son of Heaven died in history, according to the situation of Emperor Han Xian's early accession to the throne, it should not be considered a long life, but he always felt that if he hadn't led Zhang Jiao to Luoyang and didn't let him teach the Son of Heaven any side door and left room techniques, the Son of Heaven would not have gray hair at such a young age.

Liu Xiu pressed and pinched, the Son of Heaven slowly relaxed, his eyelids fought a little, until Liu Xiu let go of his hand, he still closed his eyes slightly, curled up on the throne, looking very relaxed. After a while, he opened his eyes and said nostalgically: "Deran, I have discovered another skill of yours, and this massage technique is also quite powerful, better than Jian Shuo." ”

Jian Shuo stepped forward with a bitter face, "Your Majesty, isn't that minister going to be unemployed again." ”

The Son of Heaven laughed out loud and glared at Jian Shuo: "You're worried too much, he will come to take your job?" ”

Jian Shuo was relieved and smiled: "The minister is relieved." ”

The Son of Heaven was in a good mood, and he was amused by him, and asked about Liu Xiu's recent situation. Liu Xiu said, I have been busy with the wedding recently, His Majesty gave me Cao Jie's house, I am busy moving, the house is not small, I have to clean it up. In addition, I was learning the room technique with Mrs. Lu, and the technique of massaging His Majesty just now was a kind of room surgery.

The Son of Heaven was very curious, "Isn't the atrial technique...... How can there be massage techniques? ”

Liu Xiu estimated that the Son of Heaven would ask this, in the mind of the Son of Heaven, the technique in the room was probably nothing more than a posture such as a dragon flipping and a tiger step, techniques such as nine shallow and one deep, and he probably would not be interested in those techniques with health care functions, even if Zhang Jiao had taught him, as long as he saw the beauty undressing, he probably forgot about it.

He briefly told the Son of Heaven about the content of the Fang Zhongshu taught by the Lu family, and the Son of Heaven listened quietly, not committal, nor did he say whether he knew it or not, nor did he say whether what Liu Xiu said was right, but his sparse eyebrows trembled, and he seemed to be thoughtful.

"Yuan Shao has returned to Luoyang." The Son of Heaven said suddenly, his voice hoarse, hiding an indescribable bitterness, and he couldn't see the ease and comfort on his face. Zang Min drew up a strategy for the northern expedition, but he played a trick, saying that he could not bear such a big war alone. I had no choice but to listen to Xun Shuang's recommendation and summon Yuan Shao back. He looked at Liu Xiu with some shame and hesitated for a moment: "You also know, if you don't use Yuan Shao, I won't be able to raise those money and food." ”

Liu Xiu nodded quietly: "Your Majesty, the minister knows Your Majesty's difficulties, and I can't share your worries for Your Majesty, and the minister is very ashamed." ”

"That's good." The Son of Heaven said slowly, and in an instant, he seemed to be much older, but his eyes added some vitality. "If I want to reorganize the government, I must first solve the threat in the north, so no matter how difficult it is, I will fight this battle. As long as I win this battle, even if it is broken, it is not too late for me to clean it up slowly. ”

Liu Xiu sighed secretly and cleaned up slowly? I'm afraid it's out of control. You just want to take advantage of the Yuan family's desire to take the position, use their strength to fight this battle, and then follow Liu Bang's old trick of dealing with Han Xin and others, the cunning rabbit dies, and the lackeys cook. But you think too simply, will the Yuan family be so stupid, if they win, their strength will be even stronger, how can they still be at your disposal.

"Yuan Shao said that he only needs 50,000 soldiers and 2 billion money." The Son of Heaven looked at the blue-black roof and continued: "Situ Fu assured me that after this year's tax is paid and the necessary expenses are removed, there will be one billion dollars left, and the remaining billion dollars will be figured out by Yuan Kui himself. He was silent for a moment and smiled bitterly: "Am I too pitiful, what Situ can do, I can't do." He turned his gaze to Liu Xiu: "Do you think Yuan Shao can do it?" ”

Liu Xiu frowned, and said suspiciously: "Yuan Shao's ability, I don't have any doubts, but the minister is a little puzzled, two billion money is only enough for half a year's expenses of 50,000 troops at most, can he guarantee to defeat the Xianbei people in half a year?" ”

The Son of Heaven smiled silently, "I know that this is not the truth, but since he said that two billion is enough, it is enough, anyway, the lack of money is up to them to figure out by themselves, I only have this billion, and there is no more." You tell me, is 50,000 people enough, Yuan Shao can do it, is there a chance in this battle, can it be fought? ”

Liu Xiu thought cautiously for a long time, "If there are 50,000 fully equipped cavalry, and there is enough grain and grass to carry the baggage, with Yuan Shao's ability, as long as there is no accident, even if you can't win, you shouldn't be defeated." ”

The Son of Heaven's eyes flashed: "That is, can you fight?" ”

Liu Xiu smiled bitterly, and said in his heart I said it so bluntly, you still don't give up, in fact, the meaning of wanting to fight is already very clear, and I just want to hear two words of support to strengthen my courage. But is this so easy to say, 50,000 troops are enough, Yuan Shao's ability is not bad, if the Yuan family goes all out and can come up with enough money to support this war, it can only guarantee that there will be no fiasco. After all, you are fighting out of the fortress, and you must seize the opponent's main force to fight a decisive battle, if the other party is as far away as before, do not fight with you, and wait for you to run out of food and grass and then find an opportunity to pursue, then what should you do? It's a blessing not to be defeated.

"Your Majesty, military affairs are the duty of the Tai Lieutenant, why doesn't Your Majesty ask the opinion of the Tai Wei Mansion?"

The Son of Heaven became a little impatient: "I will ask your opinion now." ”

Liu Xiu was helpless, and carefully weighed it for a long time, "The minister thinks that there may be 20% of the people who win the battle, and 50% of the people who work for nothing." ”

The Son of Heaven nodded and didn't say anything more. Waiting for Liu Xiu to leave the palace, the Son of Heaven was speechless for a long time, and finally sighed: "It's a pity that I can't get enough money and food, otherwise, let him go on the expedition may have a better chance of winning." ”

Jian Shuo arched his hands and stood behind the Son of Heaven like a pillar, motionless.

…… Wang Yue was wearing a common short coat, holding a sword, and walked slowly among the crowds, his haggard eyes seemed to sweep aimlessly over the faces of the Xiangshi. He had been walking around the Jiuyang Pavilion for five or six days, and still hadn't found the shadow of the middle-aged scholar. The appearance of that Xiangshi is very distinctive, if he sees it, he will definitely not be mistaken, but he clearly remembers that he has never seen a middle-aged Xiangshi with a scab on his chin in the past few days.

He saw the Xiangshi in Yuanling, and at that time he thought that this Xiangshi was suspicious, because the walking posture of the Xiangshi told him that this Xiangshi's skills were very good, and later the Xiangshi knocked down the two Tiger Benlang and fled, proving his premonition. It's just that he didn't think that this Xiangshi was not just a martial artist, and from what he knew now, it should not be accidental that this Xiangshi appeared in the Yuanling.

Wang Yue didn't want to guess too many things, and after all these years in the palace, he knew that it was a very dangerous habit to talk a little. The Son of Heaven asked him to arrest this person, and he took this person back, and as for the rest, he didn't want to ask too much.

However, the air flutter for several days in a row made his mood become a little anxious after many years of training, and he wondered if the Xiangshi had sensed the danger and flew away, if so, there was no point in him waiting any longer. He wasn't afraid to wait, but he knew that the Son of Heaven couldn't wait, and the Son of Heaven's temper had been very bad lately.

"Xu Tiekou, I haven't seen you for a long time, where have you been in the past few days." A loud voice sounded behind Wang Yue, and then the owner of the loud voice pushed Wang Yue away, strode towards a middle-aged man who was walking forward, stretched out his hand and broke the man's shoulder, and laughed: "Haha, where is your?" ”

"Why are you so loud?" The middle-aged man pushed him away impatiently.

Wang Yue's eyes narrowed suddenly, he could see from the man's action of pushing away his companion just now that his skills were very good, and his reaction was also very fast, if it wasn't for the familiar voice, his hand should have been directly crossed to the opponent's neck, and the hidden left elbow would also slam the opponent's chest at the same time.

What's more, the moment he turned his face, Wang Yue could see half of his face on the right side, although he couldn't see if there was a scab on his left chin, but Wang Yue had memorized this face in his heart these days, and he recognized him at once.

Wang Yue looked away in an instant, looked casually at a fruit seller next to him, took out a few five baht coins, bought a handful of dates and ate them with relish, just avoiding the man's puzzled eyes.

"Where are you going?" The man asked first.

"I heard that Bei Zhonglang is going to be Princess Shang, there may be a flowing water seat, I want to help with some chores and see if there is a chance to eat something." Although the man with a loud voice had already restrained, his voice was still very loud, "The wine served this time is all good wine from Bingzhou, and it is very strong." Do you want to go together? ”

"I still have some business, I'm afraid I won't be able to go." The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment, and then said very easily.

Wang Yue sneered, while eating dates, he followed unhurriedly, touched the hilt of the sword quietly, and walked north along the moat with the man from a distance. Leaving the bustling Jiuyang Pavilion, the man's footsteps were obviously faster, he seemed to feel something, looked back from time to time, but did not stop at his feet, walked faster and faster, and gradually pulled Wang Yue farther and farther.

Wang Yue was still not in a hurry, finished eating the last date, wiped his mouth, and then sped up his pace to follow. The man stood suddenly, glanced back, swept around, his eyes fell straight on Wang Yue's face, his eyes were startled, and then he showed a smug smile, turned around and left. Not far behind him, there is Guangyang Gate, inside Guangyang Gate is the gold market, there are many people, as long as he enters the gold market, it will not be easy for Wang Yue to track him.

Wang Yue saw that the man was about to enter the city, and suddenly raised his voice and shouted: "Xu Tiekou, don't you tie your hands yet?" ”

"Haha, the first swordsman of the Jingshi, you can catch up with me." Xu Tiekou laughed proudly, and as soon as the words came out, he suddenly felt a tightness in his back, and a lock of sword wind broke through the air. Xu Tiekou was taken aback, he didn't care about talking to Wang Yue, he roared, twisted his body and took a wrong step, let go of the sword behind his back, and at the same time pulled out the ring knife on his waist, and the long knife slashed the neck of the sneak attacker with the sound of the wind.

It was a dark-skinned young man, about twenty years ago, facing Xu Tiekou's ring knife, he was not flustered, his wrist flicked, and the long sword piercing the air stabbed Xu Tiekou's wrist, if Xu Tiekou did not move, he would certainly be cut by this knife, but Xu Tiekou's arm was also useless.

This young man looks very generous, but when he makes a move, it is actually a ruthless move that hurts both sides. Xu Tiekou raised his eyebrows, and the ring knife in the middle of the cut changed direction, slashing at the long sword in the young man's hand, the young man smiled slightly, shook his wrist again, and the long sword drew a half-arc, let go of the ring knife, and stabbed Xu Tiekou's face door.

In a matter of moments, the two fought each other. Taking advantage of this gap, Wang Yue had already arrived, with a clear roar, the long sword was like the wind, and the famous stunt Thirteen Swords of the Rapid Wind shot electrically. As soon as he made a move, Xu Tiekou didn't even have time to speak, he held his breath, and the ring knife flew left and right, desperately parrying.

With a "ding" sound, the ring knife fell to the ground, and Wang Yue's long sword had pierced his palm, and then the sword light flashed and stopped in front of his throat. Xu Tiekou gasped for breath, looked at Wang Yue's calm face, suddenly roared angrily, and pounced on Wang Yue, as if he wanted to commit suicide. Wang Yue was taken aback, and subconsciously withdrew his sword, and Xu Tiekou took advantage of the situation to rush towards the moat next to him.

Seeing that Xu Tiekou was about to jump into the moat, a figure jumped out, and a sword hole emptied Xu Tiekou's thigh. Xu Tiekou screamed, fell to the ground, rolled on the ground with his injured leg, and wailed loudly.

"Don't roll, you won't be able to get into the river." The young man carried the bloody sword and smiled: "If you don't want to eat another sword, you can honestly follow us, and maybe you can live a few more days." ”

Xu Tiekou's wailing stopped abruptly, he raised his face and glanced at the young man: "Good intentions! Good means! Who you are, give your name. ”

"Henan Shia."

Xu Tiekou's face darkened, he glanced at Wang Yue, who came over slowly, and smiled bitterly: "Xu Mou is really honored to actually work with the two most famous swordsmen in Jingshi to shoot together." ”

"You don't want to come here for these useless things." Shi A smiled, stepped forward, and suddenly kicked Xu Tiekou's head, and Xu Tiekou fainted on the spot. "We are arresting you by edict, and we are not competing with you, so we don't need to talk about any rules."

Wang Yue frowned, feeling that Shi Ah had done something too much, but when he thought of Xu Tiekou's desperate fight just now and narrowly escaped from his sword, he had no choice but to acquiesce to Shi A's more thoughtful approach. He stepped forward, stretched out his hand, and removed Xu Tiekou's chin, and then said lightly: "Don't give him a chance to chew his tongue and kill himself." ”

Shi A's eyes flashed, and he arched his hand respectfully: "Thank you for the master's teachings." ”

...... "caught?" Liu Xiu looked at Jian Shuo with a smile on his face in surprise, and asked with a smile while letting him in.

"Got it." Jian Shuo was in a very good mood, looked at the brand-new furnishings in the room, and said with a smile: "Although Xu Tiekou is powerful, how can Wang Yue's master and apprentice let him escape." But the shaft is indeed cunning, and the on his chin is actually fake, but the position is different each time. We all misremembered, the time of Yuan Ling, his scab was on the other side. ”

Liu Xiu was very surprised, this guy is a habitual offender, although this disguise technique is simple, but it is very effective, whoever sees such a person, will definitely focus on his scum, and will not pay attention to what is special about his face, if it is not for meeting him such a painting master, it is really not easy to remember his true face.

"Your Majesty asked me to tell you that this thief was instructed by someone to deliberately talk nonsense to divide His Majesty and your lordship, he never believed it, and I hope you don't have a psychological burden." Jian Shuo smiled and pointed to the people behind him who were carrying a few boxes and said, "You see, the things that Your Majesty rewarded you with are all imperial objects made by Shang Fang, my lord, this is a great grace." ”

Liu Xiu nodded again and again, and personally invited Jian Shuo to the court. first thanked the Son of Heaven for his trust, and then thanked Jian Shuo for his hard work, and then specially took out a pair of stone printing materials and stuffed them into Jian Shuo's hands, and squeezed his eyes tacitly. Jian Shuo's heart was full of joy, the Son of Heaven was obsessed with carving his own seals in the past two days, and the printing material that Liu Xiuxian had been ground to only half of it in a few days. It's just that this kind of beautiful stone has never been seen in Jingshi, Liu Xiu gave him his treasured stone, this gift can be regarded as quite valuable, and quite timely.

"Did you ask who instigated it?" Liu Xiu pretended to be very casual and asked, "Is it ...... The one? ”

Jian Shuo shook his head and smiled mysteriously: "I don't know, don't guess." ”

Liu Xiu comprehended, nodded again and again, and asked people to pass the wine. Jian Shuo picked up the wine glass, took a shallow sip, and said repeatedly: "It's really good wine, but I have to rush back to the palace to report to Your Majesty, don't dare to drink more, otherwise it will not be good to make a mistake." ”

"It's really admirable for your majesty to share your worries." Liu Xiu said, and then asked people to bring two urns of Fen wine, which Jian Shuo took back and drank slowly.

"Yes, yes, adults are not far behind." Jian Shuo smiled and said goodbye with the wine urn, just bumped into Cao Ying head-on, his eyes immediately became extremely ruthless, and he passed by Cao Ying without saying a word. Cao Ying looked at Jian Shuo's back and rubbed his hands: "Deran, even I am reluctant to give an urn to try those good wines, but this eunuch is holding an urn in one hand, which is not polite at all." ”

Liu Xiu smiled: "You're too busy, I don't have any wine to catch you, it's not easy for me to see you." ”

(To be continued)