The Great Wu Imperial Palace.

Wu Yunyin sat high in the imperial court, and even the wide dragon robe could not conceal her graceful figure.

Song Xuan sat to the side, his eyes filled with greed.

Although the two were already married, they had never consummated their marriage. He had longed for it for a long time, but Wu Yunyin had always refused him with excuses.

Only he knew that Wu Yunyin married him in the first place to spite Chen Zhennan.

Immediately, a man stepped forward, looked at Wu Yunyin, and said, "Your Majesty, I have a report to submit. A peasant uprising has broken out in the Lingnan region and is now sweeping across the land. I urge Your Majesty to quickly dispatch troops to suppress it!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yunyin above frowned deeply.

"A rebellion in Lingnan? That's the most prosperous region in our Great Wu. How could they possibly rebel?"

Lingnan was the place where I first met Chen Zhennan.

The two lived there together for many years, and Chen Zhennan also recruited local militia there to help him gain power.

After the overthrow of the previous dynasty, the Lingnan region developed rapidly under Chen Zhennan's leadership, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that it was the richest region in Dawu.

Although I don't want to admit it, that's the truth.

Wu Yunyin really couldn't understand why they would rebel. Could it be that some corrupt official was forcing the people?

Then, the official pondered for a moment, gritted his teeth, and said, "They rebelled because they were dissatisfied with the charges the court had leveled against the Prince of Zhennan. They wanted to seek justice for him!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yunyin's face instantly turned ashen, and the surrounding civil and military officials couldn't help but gasp.

They had long anticipated the formidable reputation of the Prince of Zhennan, but they never imagined it would reach this level.

The people rebelled to prove his innocence—this was something that had never happened before in any dynasty or throughout history!

Wu Yunyin gritted her teeth, her beautiful eyes blazing with fury.

She never expected that Chen Zhennan had such a trick up his sleeve.

Is this forcing her to admit her mistake?

"Send troops to suppress them immediately. All land under heaven belongs to the king. If they don't believe my words, then they are not subjects of my Great Wu!"

Wu Yunyin's voice was icy, and her eyes revealed a chilling killing intent.

All the civil and military officials dared not speak out against their anger.

How could these civilians be killed?

If they were killed, wouldn't that prove that the imperial court had truly wronged Chen Zhennan?

But who dares to say that?

Who can say for sure!

Yesterday's officials exemplified the spirit of speaking frankly and offering advice.

The heads hanging high on the city wall are an example!

"Your Majesty is wise! Perhaps their rebellion was instigated by Chen Zhennan. Only by killing those treacherous people can we completely eradicate the root of his rebellion and establish your authority!"

Song Xuan, who was standing to the side, immediately praised it.

Wu Yunyin didn't speak, but that was indeed her thought.

Lingnan is Chen Zhennan's home. Now that he has just left, a rebellion has broken out. Wu Yunyin would never believe that he was not behind it.

Chen Zhennan is just a subject; how could he possibly have the support of the people?

Even when his own father's country was destroyed, the people didn't seem to react much.

"How is the preparation of military funds for the attack on Great Yan progressing?"

Wu Yunyin looked at the assembled civil and military officials and asked a question.

Upon hearing this, the civil and military officials immediately exchanged glances, none of them daring to respond.

"Bang!"

Wu Yunyin slammed her hand on the table and stood up abruptly, saying, "I asked about the progress of the military pay preparations. Are you all deaf? Where is the Minister of Revenue?!"

"Your Majesty... the Minister of Revenue committed suicide yesterday."

An official spoke in a low voice.

Wu Yunyin was slightly taken aback, only then remembering that the Minister of Revenue was among those ministers who had offered their advice yesterday.

"Bring me the account books; I want to review them myself."

With a wave of her sleeve, Wu Yunyin quickly had a eunuch hand over the account book.

Opening the ledger and flipping through a few pages, Wu Yunyin immediately frowned.

"How is it possible that the expenses of the regional princes alone amount to tens of millions of taels of silver a year?"

"Your Majesty, the princes of the vassal states have many heirs, and the Prince of Zhennan previously promised the princes of various regions that his stipends would be increased."

High salaries are necessary to prevent corruption; only by keeping the local lords well-fed can they refrain from oppressing the people.

At the time, the civil and military officials also agreed with Chen Zhennan's approach.

After all, who wouldn't want a raise?

"This is utterly absurd! I knew it! Why is the treasury of my Great Wu so empty? It turns out we're using silver to support these useless people."

Wu Yunyin's voice was icy cold.

At this moment, she felt utter contempt.

It is said that Chen Zhennan is a genius, a top figure in both military campaigns and handling state affairs.

I used to think that way too, but now it seems that's not the case at all!

Not only did they not reduce the power of the feudal lords, but they also spent the national treasury's money to support them. How is this any different from raising a tiger to cause trouble?

Thinking of this, she immediately looked at everyone and said, "I want to reduce the power of the vassal states!"

I'll never rest until I say something shocking!

Upon hearing this, all the civil and military officials were stunned.

Now, a hundred dynasties are vying for supremacy, enemy states are eyeing us covetously, and there are internal rebellions and uprisings.

Is it time to weaken the power of the feudal lords?

What's the difference between this and cutting off your own arm?

"Your Majesty, this is absolutely not allowed! Reducing the power of the vassal kings now would be tantamount to forcing them to rebel, which would be detrimental to our Great Wu!"

"Right now, we should make better use of the vassal kings to guard the borders and maintain a balance with other countries. If we force them to rebel, our Wu Dynasty will be finished!"

“The Prince of Zhennan did consider reducing the power of the vassal states before, but with our current national strength, there is simply no way to do so.”

One of the ministers finally couldn't stand it any longer and immediately spoke up.

If Wu Yunyin continues to act recklessly, their Great Wu will truly be doomed.

When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken; these officials will definitely not escape either!

Upon hearing this, Wu Yunyin flew into a rage and said, "Do you think my overall perspective is inferior to that of Chen Zhennan?"

Dragons have scales that cannot be touched; to touch them is certain death.

Now, the name Chen Zhennan is Wu Yunyin's Achilles' heel.

"Your Majesty, I had absolutely no such intention!"

The old minister knelt on the ground and immediately burst into tears.

"Drag him out and slap him!"

With a wave of her long sleeves, Wu Yunyin was determined not to allow anyone to question her decision.

She is determined to be better than Chen Zhennan!

"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"

The old minister pleaded desperately, but was still dragged out of the court alive.

At this moment, the civil and military officials standing by seemed to already see the future of the Wu Kingdom falling apart.

But at this moment, no one dared to step forward and offer any advice.

"Issue my decree: immediately reduce the power of the vassal states!"

...

Inside the palace of the Great Yan Dynasty.

Upon hearing this news, Chen Zhennan couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

"She is still too young and eager to prove that her abilities are no less than mine. Now that she is trying to reduce the power of the princes, what difference is there between her and digging her own grave?"

"Yunyang, your Great Yan's chances of winning have now increased by 30%!"