Chapter 149 Liu Laowu, moved by his son's success

Liu Laowu has been traveling all the way, and he has basically seen and understood the local customs, people's conditions and situation in Liaodong.

Now he plans to reveal his identity and go to Liu Fu's palace for a visit.

Upon approaching the guard, Liu Laowu inquired:

Is your prince at the manor now?

When the guard heard someone asking about the prince, and looked at the old man, he immediately realized that although the old man looked like an old farmer, his behavior and mannerisms were not at all like someone who toiled in the fields all year round.

Knowing that Liu Laowu might be of noble status, the guard immediately cupped his hands and said:

"May I ask who you are? My lord is not currently in the palace. If you wish to see him, you will have to wait a few more days before he returns."

Liu Laowu immediately pressed for an answer:

"Where did that little rascal go? Why won't he be back for several more days?"

Upon seeing the displeasure on the guard's face, the second son-in-law beside Liu Laowu immediately took out something from his hand and waved it in front of the guard.

"Young man, we've come from the Imperial Palace to see your lord."

The guard took it and saw that it was actually a gold medal bestowed by the emperor, and immediately knelt down.

Liu Laowu immediately chuckled and helped the guard up again, taking his arm and saying with a smile:

"It's alright, it's alright. You didn't know who we were before, and it's fine now that you do."

As Liu Laowu spoke, he re-examined the young man before him. Seeing the resentful expressions on the guards' faces, Liu Laowu seemed to realize something and then asked:

"Young man, are you unhappy with this old man? Or did I say something to offend you?"

Several guards immediately shook their heads and waved their hands:

"No, no, I wouldn't dare."

One advantage of Liu Laowu being emperor was that he could listen to some truths and could get others to speak the truth without getting angry. Immediately, Liu Laowu spoke frankly to them:

"Alright, alright, stop holding back, just say what you want to say. We won't blame you, so feel free to speak your mind."

After Liu Laowu said this, the other guards looked at each other, but their expressions were still somewhat timid and they dared not speak.

Only one of the bolder young men stepped forward and expressed his dissatisfaction with Liu Laowu's earlier remarks:

“The Eighth Prince is our benefactor. Although you are old, you cannot speak arrogantly out of respect for your age. We will not allow outsiders to slander our Eighth Prince, look down on him, or make any criticisms of him. No matter how high your rank or how powerful you are, I will still say this. If you are not satisfied, you can kill me.”

"oh?"

Liu Laowu never expected that a mere guard would speak to him like that. He knew that what he had taken out was an imperial gold medal bestowed by the emperor himself, and that standing here now was as if the emperor himself were present.

But he also admired the young man's courage. To protect Liu Fu, this powerless and insignificant guard dared to defy him, a high-ranking official from the capital. He certainly had some guts.

Meanwhile, Liu Laowu was also secretly thinking about how many good deeds Liu Fu had done in Liaodong that made the people of Liaodong so grateful to them that they dared to risk their lives to protect him.

You have to understand that the young man didn't have to do that. He could have pretended not to hear if he had said something harsh, but he stood up for Liu Fu. That takes a lot of courage.

Because if he were to accidentally encounter someone who wasn't as magnanimous as he was, the young man's words might very well have angered them, potentially leading to a fatal disaster.

"Very good, I admire your courage."

Liu Laowu stopped hiding anything. When talking to such a genuine person, one must also be genuine.

"I am that little brat's father. I am Liu Laowu, the emperor of the Later Han Dynasty. You must have heard of this person who ascended the throne as emperor at the beginning of this year. That's right, it's me."

"I've come to see my son, eldest son. Show this young man our imperial seal. Summon the person in charge of the palace. Where is the prime minister? Where is he?"

Upon seeing Liu Laowu produce the imperial seal, confirming his status as emperor, almost everyone in the palace knelt down.

"I deserve to die. I never expected His Majesty the Emperor to arrive. To offend His Majesty is truly a crime deserving of death. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Liu Laowu chuckled, and the moment he brought up his imperial identity, he immediately subdued everyone present.

Soon, Zhuge Liang, Xun Yu, and Hai Rui all put down what they were doing and came to the palace gate.

"Your Majesty, we pay our respects."

"Your Majesty has arrived, and we, your humble servants, have failed to greet you properly; we are truly guilty of a capital offense."

Liu Laowu didn't take the matter to heart, but quickly helped everyone up.

"No crime, no crime, you've done nothing wrong. We're here incognito, isn't it perfectly normal that you didn't know we were coming? Ignorance is no excuse."

Liu Laowu became more and more excited as he spoke, and looking at the people around him, he immediately asked:

"We just want to ask which one is Mr. Zhuge? Which one is Mr. Xun Yu? Which one is Mr. Fang Xuanling? And where is Mr. Xiao He now?"

Having traveled incognito on this journey, Liu Laowu was extremely eager to meet these people; they were all talented individuals, truly exceptional talents!

Everyone was taken aback when they heard what Liu Laowu said.

Zhuge Liang was the first to step forward:

"Your subject Zhuge Liang greets Your Majesty the Emperor."

"Oh, you must be Mr. Zhuge! Oh dear, please accept my bow."

"Oh, so you are Mr. Xun Yu. Well, let me pay my respects to you as well."

As he spoke, Liu Laowu glanced at Hai Rui, who stood ramrod straight to the side like a bamboo pole, and an image immediately flashed into his mind:

"You're quite thin, but you look exactly like Hai Rui, an upright and honest official. On our incognito visit, all we've heard are people praising you, saying you're impartial, selfless, outspoken, and have done many great things!"

After meeting all these people, Liu Laowu arrived at the main hall of the palace, and upon seeing them, he couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

"Sigh, the main hall where our Eighth Prince goes to court looks a bit too shabby."

Upon hearing Liu Laowu's words, Hai Rui stepped forward and affirmed Liu Fu's statement:

"My king is diligent and frugal, Your Majesty. Please don't laugh at him anymore. He is doing all this for the country and the people."

Liu Laowu was filled with emotion. After seeing and stopping along the way, he had now arrived at the Liu family's palace and seen how frugal and thrifty it was. All the anger and jealousy he had felt towards Liu Fu had vanished.

Instead, only one emotion remained: being moved.

I was truly moved!

All Liu Laowu wants now is for Liu Fu to come back soon so that the father and son can have a good chat over drinks.

Moreover, Liu Laowu secretly thought that handing over the throne of the Later Han Dynasty to Lao Ba would definitely be the best thing he was doing right now...