Volume 4 is in the ascendant Chapter 453 New Play
The reason why Bai Tu mentioned Lu Ling was naturally because he had discussed it with Lu Kang before. As for Cao Pi... Lu Kang was not very satisfied with him, but he was not dissatisfied either.
Cao Pi's identity was destined to not have any great development if he stayed in the State of Chu.
But at the same time, Cao Pi's family background was impeccable - no matter how much criticism Cao Cao had received because of his family background, he was from the royal family of Wei!
His appearance and knowledge were both above average, otherwise he would not have been able to defeat Cao Zhi, who was loved by Cao Cao because of his talent, in the battle for the throne.
If you don't consider his future, he is indeed a good son-in-law.
And... there is still room for us to fight!
What if Cao Pi returns to Wei in the future?
Lu Kang was very confident in the State of Chu, but he no longer had confidence in his own health. This year, Lu Kang was already seventy-seven years old, which was extremely rare in history!
The Lu family is definitely in the same boat with the State of Chu, but if there is a chance, it would be nice to become a relative of the future King of Wei. At least... if the State of Wei surrenders in the future, it would be half a bargaining chip for the Lu family.
It’s not all fantasy…
If Cao Pi was really very accepting of the State of Chu and married into the Lu family, if there was an opportunity in the future, it is very likely that the State of Chu itself would support Cao Pi to inherit the throne of King of Wei - similar things happened countless times in the pre-Qin period.
To take a step back, Cao Pi had just been a mascot in the State of Chu. If Cao Cao died in the future and Chu and Wei went to war, they could just use Cao Pi's name!
Although it was just a banner, how could he not be granted the title of county marquis afterwards? If the effect was excellent, many Wei officials would be won over, and perhaps the title could be "hereditary without interruption".
Lu Kang estimated that Cao Pi's lower and upper limits were very high, but the upper limit was not easy to reach. However, he agreed quite readily.
If it is really the "lower limit" state, it at least means that Cao Pi cannot leave the State of Chu, which means that his granddaughter does not have to marry far away, and... at least the sister-brother relationship between Cao Pi and Princess Xiahou exists.
The reason why Bai Tu chose the Lu family was because the Lu family was big enough and staunchly pro-Chu. Countless Lu family members had already shared honor and disgrace with the Chu court, so it was impossible for them to be won over by the Wei State.
Of course, Bai Tu didn’t ask them to get engaged on the spot. It depended on how they got along.
The State of Chu was still advocating "late marriage" - that is, getting married at the age of 20. Bai Tu couldn't control others, so how could he not control his own brother-in-law?
"Also... when you are on duty in Jiangshanyuan, don't always do things perfunctorily!" Bai Tu saw that Cao Pi was still picky, so as his brother-in-law, he said with a stern face.
Cao Pi looked at him even more angrily...
I'm a hostage, and you still expect me to really exercise my power of supervision? I don't want to avoid suspicion, but I also want to stay alive!
"Ahem, actually, I originally wanted to let you take a look at the six departments... the five departments, to see what you are good at, and then you can study hard and then take a position in the core of the five departments." Bai Tu said in an understanding tone.
Cao Pi also understood that the one missing must be the "Ministry of Works"!
But even so, it was still a surprise for him.
At this point, Cao Pi also thought about the situation where he could not return to Wei State, and even used the various conveniences of Jinling to try to convince himself...
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Cao Pi said awkwardly.
"You're welcome, we're family!" Bai Tu looked around and said after making sure that Lu Lingqi was not there.
If Lu Lingqi was here...she would at most just roll her eyes, but Bai Tu felt guilty instinctively.
"Go have fun! Tell your sister to come over...I'll talk to her about the new script." Bai Tu tried to use a businesslike tone.
Considering Bai Tu's promise, Cao Pi pretended not to hear him saying that he was a child, and went back to call Xiahou Juan with a smile.
Xiahou Juan specifically asked Cao Pi what Bai Tu had said to him - Xiahou Juan didn't know before what Bai Tu had arranged for Cao Pi.
I just hinted to Bai Tu that Cao Pi is already not young anymore.
After hearing Cao Pi's answer, Xiahou Juan's eyes lit up and she walked towards Bai Tu with a smile.
Cao Pi thought that Xiahou Juan cared about him, and felt touched. Xiahou Juan also felt that Bai Tu cared about him, and felt touched...
"The Lu family's legitimate daughter...thank you very much!" Xiahou Juan said, trying not to appear awkward.
"Tsk tsk, how could our great talent be so worldly? She said she would sing praises of love and free love!" Bai Tu criticized in a non-seriously.
"No, you asked me to write all of that..." Xiahou Juan muttered.
"But they really need to get along with each other. We can't just randomly match them up," Bai Tu emphasized.
It is true that Bai Tu had personally drawn up the outline and asked Xiahou Juan to write two plays praising love. One of them was adapted from the story of Jiao Zhongqing, and Bai Tu specially restored it into a masterpiece - writing the ending in the poem "The Peacock Flies Southeast".
"Are you sure there won't be any trouble after the performance?" Xiahou Juan mentioned this matter and asked another question specifically.
In Bai Tu's opinion, the scale of the two dramas is actually very small, but... they both have some meanings that go against moral ethics!
Bai Tu was indeed a little hesitant. The Ministry of Rites would definitely approve it, but would it be too strong?
Bai Tu also did not want to appear too overbearing and destroy the environment of "Chu Learning".
Zhang Chunhua, who was still sitting with Bai Tu, guessed what Bai Tu was thinking and gave him a solution: "Your Majesty, why don't you spread the word in advance that this was written by the King of Chu and that Princess Xiahou only embellished it a little."
After listening to Zhang Chunhua's words, Xiahou Juan and Bai Tu thought about it for a moment and understood what she meant.
He didn't admit it openly, but secretly fanned the flames and made his stance clear, making those who wanted to say something feel timid, and at the same time... it didn't make Bai Tu appear overbearing.
Bai Tu nodded and said, "Good idea! Please help me arrange it later."
Even if there really is an old scholar, there will be more exciting things waiting for them later. Bai Tu has a "premonition" that Wang Su's archaeological work will soon produce results.
"I have also read the script of 'The Peacock Flies Southeast'. Your Majesty is wise, and the ending is very clever!" Zhang Chunhua specially added a sentence.
Although the names of the characters were changed, this story was widely circulated in the State of Chu, and the true ending was actually circulated among the people. It’s just that the ending of the play used the ending of the Yuefu poem "written by Bai Tu".
"Oh? Do you also think that the ending in the poem is appropriate?" Bai Tu asked back.
"Yes, the poem depicts the ending of Jia Hong and his wife turning into peacocks after their death. Not only does it use a tragic form to make it more touching, but more importantly, the ending depicted in the poem is an ending without the king, which can make the people feel that without the king and the Chu State, everyone will be in dire straits.
It not only made the people feel the king's wisdom and the importance of the State of Chu, but also criticized the incompetence and darkness of the old system. It was really a stroke of genius!" Zhang Chunhua said with admiration.
"Y-yeah...hahaha." Bai Tu laughed, trying not to be embarrassed.
In fact, Bai Tu himself didn’t think of so much, he just wanted to pay tribute to the original work...
Zhang Chunhua secretly curled her lips - men are so easy to coax! It seems that I have mastered the teacher's rhetoric to the point of 50%...
