"Congratulations, Merton. You have a successor!"
"Many thanks, many thanks!"
Although Meton held a family banquet, there were still many people who came. Everyone knew that Li Shimin would definitely attend Meton and Princess Changle's first son's one month birthday banquet. All those who were related to the imperial family came, unwilling to miss the chance to meet Li Shimin. Even if Zhangsun Wuji and Mo Jiazi didn't get along, he was Changle's uncle after all, but he still came. After all, Empress Zhangsun's face was there. However, Zhangsun Chong tactfully didn't appear.
Not long later, a group of imperial relatives came to the Mo Estate. Meton didn't know before counting, but when he counted, he was shocked. Li Shimin had actually used marriage as a chess piece.
He was probably the one with the lowest rank as the emperor's son-in-law, and Li Shimin hadn't taken a fancy to him at that time. He had even snatched the position of emperor's son-in-law.
"Brat Mo finally has a descendant. The Old Man can be at ease now." Qin Qiong hadn't arrived yet, but his voice had already reached Meton's ears.
Meton turned his head to look. Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, and Yuchi Jingde came together. He hurriedly went up to greet them, "Uncle Qin, Uncle Cheng, Uncle Yuchi."
"You've returned safely, and you're also blessed with a son. Such a double blessing is truly a joyous occasion for a family of generals." Cheng Yaojin laughed.
Yuchi Jingde wasn't good with words, so he solemnly patted Meton's shoulder. His gratification was evident in his words.
"Uncles, you flatter me. Please come in." Meton said modestly, extending his hand to invite the three into the Mo Estate.
"The emperor and empress have arrived!"
Just as Qin Qiong and the others were about to enter, there was a sudden announcement. They saw Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun come together.
"Greetings to the emperor and empress!"
Everyone came forward to greet him. The focus of the Mo clan immediately shifted from Meton to Li Shimin.
Li Shimin was beaming with joy as he warmly greeted all the officials. Seeing that Li Shimin had stolen the limelight, he naturally did not dare to complain. He turned around and gestured to Wu Meiniang, who had quietly come behind him, saying, "Let's start the banquet!"
As the guests took their seats, the one-month-old banquet began. Plates of delicious delicacies were served. Since the brick road was built, goods from all over the country were transported to Chang 'an. Although the price had increased several times, it greatly enriched the lives of the people of the Tang dynasty.
Wu Meiniang had indeed put a lot of effort into organizing the banquet. The ingredients used for Mo Tan's one-month-old birthday banquet were all first-class treasures. Coupled with the superb culinary skills of Uncle Yu and his son, even Li Shimin was full of praise.
After three rounds of wine, it was naturally time for the main character of the day to appear. When Meton carried his son out, the banquet was pushed to the climax.
The eldest son of the Mo clan and the eldest grandson of the royal family. No matter which identity he had, this baby would be extraordinary from the moment he was born, let alone Mo Tan who had two identities in one body.
"Mo Tan, this is a good name! His life will be peaceful and honest. "Li Shimin took his grandson and smiled from ear to ear.
"Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty!" Meton thanked him repeatedly. Although there was another meaning to Mo Tan in his heart, only he could understand it. There was no need to say it out loud.
"Your Majesty's words are like gold and jade. This child will definitely be extraordinary in the future." Everyone echoed.
Everyone knew that as long as Mo Tan grew up healthily, his life would definitely be smooth sailing. He would not lack any wealth.
Zhangsun Wuji also looked at Mo Tan kindly. Speaking of which, this child was somewhat related to him by blood. He said casually, "Four years ago, when the princess of Jinsha was born, Merton asked for a million hectares of desert as his fief. Four years later, the Maowusu Desert became an oasis. It could be said to be a shocking event. I wonder what reward Merton is going to ask for for the eldest grandson of the royal family today?"
Once Zhangsun Wuji said that, all the royal family members immediately echoed. When Mo Jiazi's million hectares of fief was revealed, it caused an uproar. No matter if it was the scale of the fief or the location of the fief, it was unprecedented. However, no one had any objections to such a strange fief. The Mo Clan gained a reputation, and the royal family gained actual benefits. One must know that Mo Jiazi had invested a considerable amount of wealth in the desert to turn it into an oasis. This was a win-win situation, and everyone was happy to see it happen.
Mo Jiazi had spent so much effort to nurture the eldest daughter of the Mo Clan. Wouldn't the eldest son of the Mo Clan be even better? Everyone couldn't help but secretly look forward to Mo Jiazi's shocking event again.
However, Meton shook his head and said, "I do not intend to ask for any reward for Mo Tan."
"Ah!"
Everyone was instantly shocked. Mo Jiazi's actions were indeed shocking. This was not because of how shocking Mo Jiazi's request was, but because there was no request.
"Why is that? Mo Tan is my biological grandson. How can I be stingy? "Li Shimin couldn't help but ask in surprise.
Meton cupped his hands and said, "The Minister naturally will not doubt Your Majesty's love for Mo Tan. However, Mo Tan is a boy. He should not be given such an honor so early. This is not a blessing for him, but a heavy burden that will destroy him in the end."
"Since Merton thinks that these honors are burdens, then why was Princess Mo Sha given such an honor from a young age?" Zhangsun Wuji asked the question that was on everyone's mind.
"Because Mo Sha is a girl, and Mo Tan is a boy!" Meton didn't evade the question, but gave the answer directly.
Everyone frowned. What kind of reason was this? Could it be that a girl could have such an honor, but a boy couldn't? It should be known that most people favored boys over girls, and wished to give all the good things to their sons. However, Mo Jiazi was the exact opposite. He favored girls over boys, and only gave the benefits to his daughters, but not to his sons.
Meton explained, "This Mo's view on raising children is to raise a son in poverty and raise a daughter in wealth. That is why I treat daughters and sons differently."
"Raise a son in poverty and raise a daughter in wealth?" Everyone couldn't help but be stunned. They didn't understand what Meton meant.
Meton laughed and said, "Raising a son in poverty is because as a boy, he will have to start a family in the future. If he is allowed to live a carefree life, he will be like a flower in a glass greenhouse, unable to withstand the wind, frost, rain, and snow. If it is light, he will not be able to recover from a setback, and his life will be mediocre. If it is heavy, he will become an arrogant hedonistic son, and lose all his family fortune in the end."
Everyone nodded silently in their hearts. As aristocrats, they had seen too many families rise and fall, and it was all caused by the failure of their descendants. These disappointing descendants all had a common problem, and that was that they were spoiled since they were young.
Zhangsun Wuji felt a pain in his heart. He realized that he had made a grave mistake, and that was to raise Zhangsun Chong into a flower in a greenhouse. Zhangsun Chong could be said to be the most noble person other than the princes. His father was the current Prime Minister, and his aunt was Empress Zhangsun. Since he was born, he had a golden spoon in his mouth, and his life had always been smooth sailing. If there were no accidents, Zhangsun Chong should have lived a smooth life. However, unfortunately, he met Mo Jiazi and suffered the biggest setback in his life, and since then, he was unable to recover.
All along, he thought that it was Meton who caused Zhangsun Chong to be like this. Now that he heard Meton's theory of raising a son in poverty, he suddenly realized that the one who caused Zhangsun Chong to be unable to recover was himself.
"Then what about the daughter in wealth?" Li Shimin asked curiously.
Meton laughed and said, "Raising a daughter in wealth is naturally to cultivate her temperament, broaden her horizons, and enhance her knowledge and taste. A girl needs to see more of the world, otherwise, she will be coaxed away by a little sweet talk in the future."
"Coaxed away by a little sweet talk in the future!" Li Shimin's heart instantly felt sour. His own Princess Changle was also coaxed away by this brat.
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