Chapter 1896: Andong Is Different!

Since being sent to Andong to take charge of affairs, Liu Xu had further restrained his temperament, never revealing joy or anger on his face. Over the past decade or more, he had even smiled only a few times, but at this very moment, he actually gave Liu Wenyuan a feeling of restless unease.

Slightly startled, Liu Wenyuan still maintained his view with a serious expression: "Perhaps your son's worries are excessive, and my words are somewhat exaggerated! But your son still believes that if Your Majesty's will is carried out to the letter without compromise, then even with the greatness of the Great Han, it is hard to say how long it can hold. In recent years, affairs at court and in the realm have been numerous and tangled—how much energy can be spared for the vassal states beyond?"

Clearly, Liu Wenyuan's argument had been carefully considered. Liu Xu, after pondering for a moment, sighed softly: "You think that you can see these problems, but His Majesty cannot? You consider your vision far-reaching, able to surpass His Majesty's?"

Faced with these two questions from his father, even though Liu Wenyuan was full of confidence, he did not dare to speak rashly.

Seeing him silent, Liu Xu continued: "How much of the world have you experienced, that you dare to speak so grandly here and recklessly discuss great state affairs? Your grandfather has governed the realm for decades. In small matters and minor details, he may be muddled at times, but on major issues of right and wrong, when has he ever been confused?"

"At such an advanced age, it is rare to be muddled!" Such a thought arose in Liu Wenyuan's mind, and he wanted to say it too, but with the lesson just learned, he restrained himself in front of Liu Xu.

Liu Xu paid him no mind and continued on his own: "Some things are not abandoned just because the cost is high, the difficulties great, or the resistance heavy. On the contrary, one must do what one knows may be impossible. Your grandfather, over the past few decades, has done too many things that were opposed by the masses but which he insisted on doing alone—and in the end, he accomplished them all. This enfeoffment, I imagine, will be the same!"

"When Grandfather was in the prime of his life..." Liu Wenyuan still could not hold back and said this half-sentence. As for the latter half, Liu Xu naturally understood it.

Looking at this son, Liu Xu furrowed his brow and said: "The problems that enfeoffment might produce, the consequences it might bring—your grandfather could not have failed to consider them. Yet after deep deliberation, he still decided to push it forward. Have you thought about why?"

Upon hearing the question, Liu Wenyuan lowered his head and thought for a good while, then said somewhat uncertainly: "Could it be to consolidate Second Uncle's position and avoid contention for the succession?"

The words "contention for the succession" were rather jarring to Liu Xu's ears these days, and coming from Liu Wenyuan's mouth, they added even more shock.

Withdrawing his gaze from Liu Wenyuan, Liu Xu's eyes grew somewhat deeper as he said quietly: "If you view the matter this way, then you underestimate your grandfather too much, and you underestimate your second uncle as well. After all these years, I have long since seen it clearly—your second uncle's position is secure. As long as your grandfather's will does not waver, then no one can shake his position.

Being Crown Prince for over thirty years has not been easy. He must neither arouse your grandfather's wariness, nor fail to win the hearts of ministers both inside and outside the court. Your second uncle—beneath that slow and unhurried exterior, he harbors a scheming mind that ordinary people find hard to detect! Whoever underestimates him, heh heh..."

As Liu Xu said this, his tone was filled with deep emotion, and his face was marked with the vicissitudes of years. But he did not dwell in it for long, quickly realizing he had drifted off topic.

Returning to the previous subject, he said to Liu Wenyuan: "If one wanted to avoid contention for the succession, there are plenty of ways. Why adopt a strategy as thankless as enfeoffing distant frontiers and overseas territories? You must not underestimate your grandfather's breadth of vision and ambition!

With my familiarity with your grandfather and my years of studying him, I can only barely guess at his intentions.

On the public side, it is to open up new lands, spread civilization, and create more room for survival for the people of the Great Han; on the private side, it is for the sake of us unworthy descendants, for the development and continuation of our Liu family.

In every dynasty and every generation, there are monarchs who long for longevity and ministers who sing of ten thousand generations, but where is the dynasty that lasts a thousand years?

In the history of China, it is truly too difficult to produce a dynasty lasting a thousand years. If one does not seek change, perhaps the Great Han of today would hardly differ from the Qin, Han, Sui, or Tang.

What your grandfather is doing may well be seeking a transformation—for the rivers and mountains of the Great Han, and for the Liu family's realm, striving for a possibility that no dynasty in history has ever possessed!

There is a theory that the Zhou realm perished when King Ping moved east, and the Spring and Autumn period brought division. Perhaps there is some truth to it, but the descendants of the Ji clan continued all the way to the end of the Warring States..."

After Liu Xu's analysis, it was Liu Wenyuan's turn to be stunned. After a long while, he said with some amazement: "If that is so, Grandfather's considerations are truly too far-reaching..."

"Therefore, some things cannot be viewed with immediate interests or immediate vision!" Liu Xu said with emotion. "The process of doing them is also full of resistance and difficulty. The drawbacks you mentioned may indeed become reality in the future, but as long as your grandfather is still here, what fear is there of a few ripples?"

Liu Wenyuan subconsciously opened his mouth, and judging by the shape of his lips, it seemed he was about to say "But what if Grandfather is no longer here?"

Liu Xu clearly understood it that way too, but this time he was not angry. Instead, he said with melancholy: "Then that becomes a matter for descendants. Your grandfather is a living deity of this age, and he only concerns himself with the affairs of this age..."

"What a pity!" Liu Xu let out another long sigh. "Your grandfather's vision and boldness—few in this world can understand them, and few are willing to follow. In this world, there are always more people who are conservative and unwilling to seek change, including his own biological son, who finds it hard to approve or understand that painstaking intent.

Even I, his eldest son—how can I feel at ease in my heart?"

Having said this, Liu Xu had finally revealed a little of his true feelings before Liu Wenyuan. The hand beneath his robe sleeve unconsciously clenched into a fist.

The Prince of Qin's mansion in the Western Capital was not far from the imperial city, separated only by the Luo River. Crossing the Tianjin Bridge and turning the corner, one arrived directly. By the time the father and son finished their conversation, they had already reached the mansion gate.

Walking side by side back into the mansion, the father and son continued their private talk. The emotions stirred up in the carriage had already calmed down, and Liu Wenyuan began to think in his role as the "King of Andong," asking: "Since you do not have high hopes for the enfeoffments of the South Seas and Anxi, then what about our Andong?"

Andong was the place where Liu Wenyuan had truly trained and grown, and he held deep feelings for it. When he mentioned it, he was filled with pride and confidence.

With a radiant glow between his brows, Liu Wenyuan said: "The South Seas and Anxi—your son is not very familiar with them. Much of the news about them is only hearsay, or from reading the court gazettes. I have not witnessed them with my own eyes, nor set foot there myself. Naturally, I harbor doubts—no, suspicion!

On this point, Grandfather is the same. Even in the prefectures and counties directly governed by the Great Han, there are those who deceive the sovereign, let alone foreign lands thousands of li away across the seas?

Therefore, your son does not place much faith in the news that has come from overseas in recent years!

But Andong is different. This is what Father has painstakingly built through more than ten years of hard work—rising early and sleeping late, braving wind and rain. Every step of its development, your son has witnessed with his own eyes and experienced personally.

Andong is absolutely the most mature and stable of the Great Han's vassal states. Father can certainly guarantee a prosperous and developing Andong, and guarantee a stable northeastern frontier for the Great Han!"

As Liu Wenyuan said these words, his young and handsome face shone with brilliance, full of high spirits and vigor.

Liu Xu looked at his beloved son, and a kind smile gradually spread across his face. He could not help but raise his hand to pat his shoulder and said softly: "With such insight and intelligence as my son possesses, when Andong passes into your hands in the future, I can rest easy!"

These words gave Liu Wenyuan a strange feeling in his heart. Before he could think it through, he saw Liu Xu wave his hand to dismiss him: "It is already past midnight, and I am weary from this day and night. Rest early! In the coming days, who knows what waves may arise..."

With that, he paid no more attention to Liu Wenyuan. Liu Xu, shoulders slightly slumped, walked slowly toward the study. But as he looked at the shadow cast on the ground by the lamplight, he murmured to himself: "I have no chance anymore. You might still have a possibility. Who can say what the future holds?"

"Cough, cough..." In the depths of the night, Liu Xu could not help but cough a few more times.