Chapter 19

Liu Bei was about to have dinner when suddenly a subordinate came to report that Jia Xu had come to visit; Liu Bei hurriedly ordered someone to invite Jia Xu in.

Jia Xu entered the room, saw Liu Bei, and laughed heartily, saying:

"My lord, today His Majesty has appointed you as Imperial Uncle; how do you feel?"

Liu Bei waved his hand and pulled Jia Xu to sit down.

"Wen He, don't joke; right now Guo Si is eyeing us like a tiger watches its prey, and His Majesty wants to free himself from their control—what do you think, sir?"

Jia Xu picked up a pair of chopsticks from the table and then, without ceremony, poured himself a cup of wine.

"Now the Han court is weak; I'm sure you can see that. His Majesty is young, and even if Li Jue and Guo Si were gone, new powerful ministers would still arise. Didn't Dong Zhuo and Wang Yun, after monopolizing power, end up committing usurpation? What the world lacks now is a figure like the Duke of Zhou—why don't you become that Duke of Zhou, my lord?"

Jia Xu drank the wine in his cup, his gaze like a torch as he looked at Liu Bei.

"The Duke of Zhou? Forget it, Wen He—I intend to raise an army, and I still need Li Jue's help for that. What do you think?"

Upon hearing the words "Duke of Zhou," Liu Bei thought instead of Cao Cao later on; Cao Cao was also hot-blooded in his youth, but after tasting the flavor of power, who would be willing to give it up?

Moreover, Emperor Xian of Han has long been oppressed, lacking only the most important military force; if one were to wholeheartedly follow him, one would likely end up like a rabbit dead, dog cooked—i. e., meet a tragic fate.

Therefore, Liu Bei never intended from the start to support the Han by following Emperor Xian; besides, he isn't the real Liu Bei, so what psychological burden could he have?

In the end, he still became the Imperial Uncle of the Great Han.

"You want to raise a force in Chang'an? That's easy enough—right now many refugees from elsewhere are pouring into Chang'an, and you, as the Imperial Uncle personally appointed by His Majesty, can readily raise a defensive force. Li Jue won't cause trouble; in fact, he hopes to use your hand to deal with Guo Si. Once those two start fighting, the whole realm will likely fall into turmoil again, so you'd better make plans early."

After they settled on a follow‑up plan, Jia Xu, full of wine and food, left; Liu Bei looked at the empty wine jug and felt a bit disheveled.

"That old fatty, he just came here to mooch drinks, right?"

Afterwards Liu Bei, while it was still not late, personally went to the Mi Family's chamber of commerce; the Mi Family has already closed down many of its properties in Chang'an City. Liu Bei, under the guidance of a servant from the Mi residence, arrived at a courtyard, and that servant then took Liu Bei to the accounting office where Mi Zhen was before leaving.

Meanwhile, Mi Zhen was leading several maidservants and the accounting office in organizing the accounts of the Mi Family merchant guild in Chang'an; the Mi Family is large and prosperous, so sorting out Chang'an's assets clearly is no easy task.

Liu Bei stood at the doorway, watching Mi Zhen in her white dress; her black hair, flowing like a waterfall, swayed with her movements as she flipped through the accounts, and it stirred his heart as well.

Liu Bei was admiring how Mi Zhen's furrowed brow looked lovely when she frowned, but the maid beside her noticed Liu Bei.

"Hey! Who are you, spying on our young lady?"

The little maid's startled cry made everyone look up at Liu Bei; even though he was thick‑skinned, he felt a bit embarrassed for a moment.

Mi Zhen's face bore a faint blush as she lightly tapped the maid's little head.

"Xiao Zi, stop talking nonsense—this is Lord Liu, the Imperial Uncle!"

The girl pouted her lips and muttered:

"Yin Yin has been sneaking looks at you; that gaze is so direct…."

Mi Zhen gave the girl a sideways glance.

"Still talking!"

The girl named Xiao Zi stuck out her tongue, then hurriedly lowered her head to flip through the account book in her hands.

Mi Zhen walked over to Liu Bei and bowed, saying:

"Younger sister pays her respects, Imperial Uncle. Since you have just been promoted and ennobled, it is proper for our Mi Family to host you, but I forgot because I've been alone in the accounting office for too long—Imperial Uncle, please don't hold it against me."

Liu Bei laughed and said:

"Not at all—I should be the one inviting you. Given how chaotic the world is now, such empty formalities are best skipped if possible. You've sent people to look for me several times today; is there something you need?"

Mi Zhen said:

"Um, younger sister has a matter she can't decide on……"

Before her words finished, Mi Zhen's stomach let out a gurgling sound. She instantly blushed, and Liu Bei, with a strange expression, tentatively asked:

"It's so late—you haven't eaten yet, have you?"

Mi Zhen's fair neck and earlobes were now slightly flushed.

"I've been busy checking the accounts all day, so……"

"That won't do—come, I'll take you somewhere!"

After saying that, Liu Bei pulled Mi Zhen's little hand; Mi Zhen was a bit startled by his sudden bold move, her beautiful eyes widening in surprise, but then, as if realizing something, she blushed and did not struggle, letting Liu Bei lead her by her soft little hand as they ran off.

Liu Bei brought Mi Zhen to a pavilion and sat down; then he quietly instructed the nearby guards a few words, and the two guards trotted away from the pavilion.

Soon the two guards quickly fetched from Liu Bei's residence a strangely shaped small bronze pot, along with plenty of rolled beef and lamb and vegetables; Liu Bei rolled up his sleeves and personally tended to these items, while Mi Zhen curiously watched his actions.

Liu Bei lit the charcoal and placed it under the bronze pot; soon the broth at the bottom boiled, the hot pot bubbled and steamed, he slipped a few meat rolls into the pot to cook briefly, then handed a bowl and chopsticks to Mi Zhen and said with a smile:

"Come, try it—this is also my secret recipe."

Mi Zhen tucked the strands of hair blown by the heat behind her, smiled lightly, picked up the chopsticks, and scooped up the meat rolls from the pot.

"Mmm… delicious! It's numbing and spicy…… What is this?"

After tasting it, Mi Zhen exclaimed in delight, and Liu Bei said:

"This is called hot pot; it's most fitting to eat in winter. By the way, you came to see me today—what's the matter?"

"I almost forgot—my elder brother sent a letter from Xuzhou for me to forward, and now the Mi Family's assets have mostly been moved to Xuzhou; Imperial Uncle, take a look and see if there's anything else that needs to be done."

Mi Zhen took out a letter from her sleeve and handed it to Liu Bei; while speaking, she picked up her chopsticks again and continued scooping from the hot pot.

Liu Bei unfolded the letter and glanced at its contents; in Mi Zhu's letter it said that Tao Qian's health was worsening, that Xu Province lacked a person in charge, and he urged Liu Bei to return to Xu Province as soon as possible to plan its development.

Liu Bei put the letter away and asked:

"How much grain does the Mi Family merchant guild currently have in Chang'an? I'd like to purchase a large amount—more is better."

Mi Zhen frowned, thought for a moment, and said:

"The grain left in all of Chang'an is probably only about fifty thousand shi, but we can at any time transfer the stored grain from the Guanzhong shops here—what great undertaking are you planning?"

Unbeknownst to them, their mode of address had subtly changed—becoming less formal and more intimate.

Hmm, I want to raise an army; Li Jue and Guo Si holding all power in Chang'an single-handedly won't do. Fifty thousand shi is roughly enough; the monetary equivalent can be deducted from our two families' dividend shares.