Chapter 1508: The Slacking Imperial Uncle Li

On the first day back in the capital, Emperor Liu seemed somewhat melancholic, wandering through the splendor of the Eastern Capital's imperial city, tracing the traces of the past, immersed in nostalgia and reflection over old times, his emotions unable to settle for a long while.

It was not until the second day that he returned to normal. Though at the time of departure he had been full of love for the people and mouthfuls of high-sounding rhetoric, upon actually arriving in Kaifeng, Emperor Liu still halted his eastward inspection tour.

In the two days before the Mid-Autumn Festival, he merely toured various places, full of leisure and idleness, symbolically inquiring about the disaster areas and relief efforts. In fact, all major and minor matters were handled by ministers such as Zhao Pu and Lü Yin, and Emperor Liu's days were not much different from when he was in Luoyang.

On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, following the usual custom, Emperor Liu ordered a grand imperial banquet. Perhaps because the guest list was incomplete, the venue was not set in Chongyuan Hall, the main hall of the Kaifeng imperial city, but rather in Qionglin Garden.

As the only royal garden that Emperor Liu had undertaken major renovations on during his time in Kaifeng, it had once become a place of literary elegance for entertaining each cohort of jinshi graduates. After the court moved west, it had fallen into quiet desolation, and only now had it regained its vitality once more.

Though the Empress, the Crown Prince, and a great many dukes and ministers were absent, the quality of those attending had not diminished much—this was still a gathering of the Great Han's elite, filled with the aura of power and wealth.

The master of ceremonies presiding over the banquet was still the Imperial Uncle and Chancellor Li Ye. Over these past few years, Li Ye had thoroughly become a core member of the court's power center. After failing in his struggles for greater authority, he had gradually accepted his position and devoted himself wholeheartedly to serving Emperor Liu.

In recent years, Li Ye had not been without effort—he had several times seen opportunities to pull down powerful chancellors like Zhao Pu and Song Qi and take their places, and had employed various schemes toward that end.

But the results were often unsatisfactory; all his maneuvers proved to be futile struggles. In terms of political cunning and administrative ability, Li Ye was a level below his competitors. His only advantage, perhaps, lay in his status.

Yet at the same time, that status seemed to be an invisible constraint. If he wanted to break through, his greatest reliance was Emperor Liu, and only Emperor Liu. But ironically, it was precisely Emperor Liu who restricted him—as if he were placed in a cage of power, lifted high yet bound all over, struggling ceaselessly.

After several more years of this, Li Ye had indeed been somewhat beaten down. He was not a man of strong will, and rising stronger from setbacks was not in his character.

And perhaps the more he came to recognize reality, in the past year or so Li Ye had begun to give up. In handling various affairs of the court, he gradually displayed a lying-flat attitude, appearing indifferent to everything.

One must understand that from his youth, Li Ye had been a man who loved to stir things up. Over twenty years ago, relying on Empress Dowager Li's favor, he had even dared to brazenly interfere in Emperor Liu's affairs.

In the Puzhou case back then, in order to enhance his own authority, he had not hesitated to strike at Guo Rong. One must know that at that time, Guo Rong had the support of Emperor Liu and Guo Wei, and there was no grudge between Li Ye and Guo Rong—but Li Ye did it anyway. It could be called bold, or it could be called foolish, but either way it demonstrated Li Ye's initiative.

Even after returning from successive local postings and being disciplined several times by Emperor Liu, upon becoming chancellor he still maintained his aggressiveness, actively participating in court affairs, seizing every opportunity, and striving to assert his presence.

Over the years, Li Ye had indeed accomplished some things, especially in anti-corruption efforts. But Li Ye's purpose was not to purify officialdom—it was to enhance his authority and make others fear him. He also enjoyed the feeling of holding power in his hands, and the fearful gazes of others often brought him pleasure.

Yet now, whether because he had aged or because he had been suppressed too harshly, Li Ye's initiative had quietly vanished. Take for instance the impeachment crisis Zhao Pu faced recently—in the past, even if Li Ye did not personally enter the fray, he would have secretly maneuvered behind the scenes to see if there was an opportunity to pull Zhao Pu down.

But not this time. Li Ye did not participate at all, made no statements, offered no comments—he simply acted as if nothing had happened. His whole person was slack and weary, and he had begun to grow indifferent to governance.

Such a stark contrast naturally drew Emperor Liu's attention. Of course, Emperor Liu did not rashly say anything, merely observing silently and pondering.

Could it be that this young uncle-in-law had been suppressed too harshly by him and had been broken?

Even at the Mid-Autumn banquet, serving as master of ceremonies, Li Ye appeared listless. The clinking of cups and passing of goblets held no interest for him, and he was no longer active in socializing.

Watching Li Ye sitting there drinking alone, Emperor Liu finally took the initiative to ask: "Uncle, on this Mid-Autumn night, with the hall full of joyful gathering and everyone in high spirits, why do you look so glum?"

Li Ye was leaning slightly to the side, almost propped against the food table, his drunken eyes half-lidded. Suddenly hearing Emperor Liu's question, he started, and even knocked over his wine cup, spilling drink all over himself.

After frantically wiping himself off, he finally rose and clasped his hands in salute: "Your Majesty, forgive me—your servant has lost his composure!"

"No matter!" Emperor Liu looked at the somewhat disheveled Li Ye, waved his hand, and said with a light laugh: "It seems Uncle is not unhappy—just a little carried away!"

"Your Majesty jests!" Li Ye said, his expression and posture both appearing very deferential.

This once again stirred Emperor Liu's curiosity, his gaze heavy with scrutiny as he looked at him and said: "Uncle, you're not quite doing your job as master of ceremonies. You should be urging people to drink, letting all the officials and ministers enjoy themselves!"

"Yes!" Hearing this, Li Ye gave a slight start and hastily said: "Your servant was merely feeling a bit unwell and slackened slightly. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

In just a few words, Li Ye had already begged forgiveness twice. Such behavior was far too great a contrast with the past. When had Emperor Liu ever seen Li Ye so humble—or rather, so dejected?

Frowning slightly, Emperor Liu's tone remained gentle as he said: "If you are unwell, then drink less wine. Uncle should take care of himself!"

"Thank you for Your Majesty's concern!" Li Ye said.

Still, he raised a full cup and personally toasted Emperor Liu before turning back to sit down. Throughout it all, Emperor Liu observed Li Ye's behavior. His own uncle truly seemed to be sliding into degeneracy—that complexion indeed looked unhealthy, with the appearance of one who had overindulged in wine and women.

Once his attention shifted away from power and court affairs, Li Ye devoted more energy to personal pleasures. If there was a minister among the dukes and officials who indulged in luxury and extravagance, Li Ye was certainly the "outstanding one" among them.

In just the past year, Li Ye had taken four concubines, with revelry every night—quite a heavy burden for the Imperial Uncle, who was past fifty.

Such a transformation left even Emperor Liu full of doubt and greatly surprised. From Emperor Liu's perspective, this uncle was not the type to degenerate so. Given his love of stirring things up, this change was simply too great.

At the same time, Emperor Liu could not help but privately ponder how to treat this uncle in the future. Li Ye was a catfish he had placed in the center of power, a counterbalance to the other chancellors. Now that this catfish was half-dead, occupying his position without fulfilling his duties—was there still any need to keep him in the chancellorship?

There was a dark thought: placing Li Ye in the Hall of State Affairs was precisely so he would stir up trouble. Now that he no longer stirred things up, Emperor Liu felt unaccustomed instead...