Can I...?

Liu Sumeng took a seat on an old splintered stool he found opposite of the overgrown garden and basked in the heat of the sun.

Just like this, he could enter meditation. But instead, his mind lingered on old memories, new thoughts.

Years ago, Emperor Taixu stood in the vast lotus garden and watched cranes dip their necks down into the pond. It was summer but he remembered it being cold. The emperor had his back to him and Liu Sumeng did not summon the strength to sit up from the bench inside the quaint pavilion.

Emperor Taixu called him many things, from Sumeng to General Liu, to silly and stupid. When he was angry he'd even call him Consort, or worse, wife. But if there was one name that Liu Sumeng hated being called the most. It was, "Liu Chao."

Liu Sumeng jolted upright, fixing the robes that had gone askew. His response was brisk, "What?"