The main hall of Wanshou Palace has nine bays across its facade and is very magnificent.

However, Xie Yu had no intention of stealing the spotlight from her son today.

Looking at his son wearing a dragon robe, it was as if he were seeing himself when he was young.

But he is more composed than he was when he was young, and he is not as timid as he was when he was young.

Despite various reasons, Xie Yu saw that she had come a good way.

Those who accompanied the new emperor were mainly members of the royal family and important officials.

Some people are weighing the merits of this father and son from the imperial family.

Although the emperor is the rightful ruler, the retired emperor's actual influence is not insignificant.

If they have a conflict, it will be troublesome for everyone.

Xie Yu has given a clear order that he must attend events such as the Grand Court Assembly and the Sacrifice to Heaven, but he will definitely not attend the Morning Court.

If there is anything, I will go to the Zichen Palace.

Or, in terms of etiquette, one might visit Hanyuan Hall, but not the main hall; Zichen Hall is also called the inner hall.

The location of Wanshou Palace is somewhat special, being within the inner palace. Therefore, it was not convenient for officials to see the retired emperor.

Although the harem is very large, it is entirely possible to designate a path, such as the imperial road, so that others can avoid it when needed.

If you are in Yongshou Palace in the future, walk from Yichun Garden.

Xie Zhou faced his father, the emperor, with mixed feelings.

I don't know how I ended up going down such a mess in my past life, but now that I have my father, it feels different.

It's not that he's so old and still lazing around; it's just that he has mixed feelings.

At least his wife hopes everyone is still here; if Dong and Cui are doing well, it would be fine if they were both here.

Now, Xie Zhou sat respectfully beside his father and proposed, "The Prince of Song will no longer bow to his son."

Xie Yu nodded. It wouldn't be appropriate for the Prince of Song to pay homage to him again, as he was a great-grandfather.

The King of Song was very grateful: "May I abdicate?"

Xie Zhou discussed with his father, the Emperor, and said, "It's alright. The King of Song has been concerned about the Great Zhao and the Xie family for many years."

Xie Yu nodded: "The title shall be inherited by the heir apparent. The title of King Song shall be discussed by the court officials."

The King of Song declined, saying, "I am old and dare not claim the title of honor. I can only serve my elderly mother."

The King of Wu advised, "If we should have honorific titles, our ancestors should have them too."

The King of Song quickly declined. His mother, if honored any further, would have to be addressed as Empress Dowager or Grandmother.

Prince Shen thought, "How about making her the Dowager Consort Xuanyi?"

Xie Yu nodded: "King Song is honored as King Xuan of Song, and he is devoted to the care of Consort Xuanyi."

Honorific titles and posthumous titles are not the same thing. Furthermore, he would visit the ancestor every five days and then return to report to the Holy Emperor.

King Xuan of Song accepted it. In any case, he would spend his old age peacefully at home with his mother.

His son is almost fifty years old; he can't be the heir apparent forever.

It will be a while before the heir apparent of the Song Dynasty inherits the title.

Xie Zhou then turned his attention to the King of Wu: "My uncle Chang Chao and others do not bow to me."

Xie Yu approved.

The King of Wu declined.

Xie Zhou said sincerely, "The court still needs to rely on you, Uncle, and you should be granted the Nine Bestowments."

The King of Wu hastily declined! The Nine Bestowments were not a good thing, and besides, he wanted to go back to retire.

Finally, the King of Wu said, "Once the world is at peace, I am willing to accept it."

How do we determine if the world is at peace?

At the moment, at least the Kingdom of Dashi must be destroyed. By then, the King of Wu will be old and, having received the Nine Bestowments, will retire at home.

This was established as an honor for the King of Wu.

There's no rush for anything else; right now, I need to go to the Xuanzheng Hall for court.

Xie Yu watched his son leave, leaving his eldest grandson behind.

Little Xie Yi is only three years old; he won't be able to attend court for another ten years.

Anxingfang.

While everyone was still enjoying themselves, news from the palace quickly arrived.

Everyone was shocked. The King of Wu was granted the Nine Bestowments?

Chen Zhen was speechless. This wasn't a test; the new emperor was just as bold as Consort Huan.

The King of Wu will definitely be posthumously granted the title of Emperor. Although he never sat on the throne, being granted the title of Emperor is still quite impressive.

A young man came over and gossiped with a few young ladies: "Gong Shanyuan's younger brother has made something of himself."

Everyone knows Gong Shanyuan, but no one knows her brother.

The young man expressed his admiration: "Gong Shanyuan's father met a woman who forced his first wife to death and sold Gong Shanyuan and her brother. Unexpectedly, the two siblings were both very capable, and it seems that Gong Zhi is going to be appointed as the Left Guard Commander."

Chen Zhen said, "How could someone be appointed as an official in the Eastern Palace? You must have misheard."

The boy said, "It seems that the Charity Department is also under the jurisdiction of the Eastern Palace. If the area they travel to is wider, they will need to be protected."

The group looked at each other in bewilderment.

Someone interjected, "Is the Charity Department trying to expand? If it increases the rate of health care, it might take a different form."

Monitoring. And Gong Shanyuan has consistently played this role.

Gong Shanyuan is genuinely committed to charity work and has no intention of interfering with government affairs.

It wouldn't be easy for anyone to deceive her, even if she dressed up nicely and furnished her home, it would be difficult to build a house immediately. The land, chickens, ducks, geese, etc., could all be discerned with a little effort.

Unlike the imperial envoy, she had time to travel around; that was her duty.

There may be some downsides to Gong Zhi following his sister, but there are also some good things.

Since going to many different places does pose a risk, a younger brother would definitely be more attentive in protecting his child.

The Ministry of Health uses the same system as the Department of Charity, so doing charity work still involves the Department of Charity, and there will be no confusion.

Chen Zhen thought of something else.

Young people like Gong Zhi are quite good, aren't they? Shall we go check him out?

A good man has to act fast, otherwise he'll be snatched away again.

The Qian family blocked the main gate, but the people inside refused to use it. If pushed too far, they could even dig a tunnel.

The Nan family dared not surround the house anymore, because the yamen officials had to come and ask Madam Qian to leave.

Qian was pushed to the limit. What was she doing putting on airs when she was just a simple village woman?

Some people joked, "Madame Anle probably doesn't know anything about it."

The people guarding the house are Lady Huan's men. It's normal that Lady Huan dislikes the Nan family and wouldn't pass on the news to Lady Anle.

Ms. Qian was even more anxious. But she couldn't very well shout inside.

Some people commented, "How could the Empress treat her birth mother like this..."

Several servants then attacked and beat the man.

Spreading rumors? Give him a beating and throw him in the yamen. He needs another beating.

Madam Qian was extremely anxious, but finally the maidservant saw Miss Chen.

Chen Zhen went home.

Even the maids of the Nan family couldn't get the gates of the Jianping Marquis's mansion to open when they called out to them.

Marquis Jianping is currently busy attending court in the palace.

When the officials stood in the Xuanzheng Hall, they realized that although the emperor had changed, it seemed that he had not.

The new emperor didn't do much of anything new; he remained as composed as ever. And right now, there are genuinely many things that need to be addressed, not just something to make up the occasion.

It's an urgent dispatch from 600 li away!

This isn't just a casual remark; it's not good news either.

An official rushed in to report: "The Wunu Kingdom, in alliance with the Manu Kingdom, is suspected of sending an additional 300,000 troops to the border."

One of the military officers immediately asked in confusion: "The Kingdom of Manu and the Kingdom of Wunu have always been at odds."

Lü Liang said, "The Manu Kingdom is bitterly cold. If the Wunu Kingdom offers them fertile land, they will definitely come."

The civil official worried: "I have heard that the people of Manu are untamed and wild, and that tigers and leopards even fight alongside them."

Lü Liang said, "I have never seen them, but I have heard that they have a wolf army that is extremely brave. The Wunu Kingdom fears them like tigers."

Three hundred thousand troops alone is no small matter.

If the Manu Kingdom really gets involved, the situation will become complicated.

Xie Zhou did not rush to conclusions.

However, Da Zhao still knew too little about the surrounding area.

Knowing yourself and your enemy is the key to victory in every battle. If you don't understand the situation, how can you be confident?