After the Crown Prince said this, the ministers fell silent.

The emperor on the high throne laughed.

He was laughing loudly, and you could tell he was in a very good mood.

He patted the dragon throne and said, "I think the Crown Prince is right. It was indeed us who first proposed peace talks with Da Jing. However, our condition for peace talks was that we drove the Da Jing army back."

The Southern Dynasty is not without any fighting power, nor does it mean that the Great Jing can ride roughshod over us.

Therefore, I also think that Princess Ningding did the right thing. Today I will draft a letter of state and send it to Emperor Dajing by express courier.

Tell the Emperor of Dajing that he must treat my Princess Zhaoqing well.

This is not only what I, as a father, should do, but also the attitude that a ruler of a country should adopt.

As for…”

The emperor's gaze swept over the ministers who had just spoken, finally settling on Minister Jin. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he said, "You really don't learn your lesson... The injury you sustained from being kicked by Princess Ningding has only been healed for a few days, and you've already forgotten the pain."

Minister Jin's expression changed, and he lowered his head in a somewhat fearful manner.

The emperor did not stop, and continued, "You may think that you were kicked out by Princess Ningding because she was audacious and did not respect the court officials or me."

But I'll make it very clear to you today: ultimately, it's because I can't stand you. Otherwise, do you really think Princess Ningding could act so arrogantly and bully me?

The emperor's voice grew colder and colder, like ice daggers striking the ministers in the hall.

The hall was deathly silent; all the ministers bowed their heads, not daring to speak.

The emperor paused for a moment, then continued, "Gentlemen, please remember that ceding the territory north of the Muyang River, making peace with the Great Jing, and sending a princess as a dowry are already shameful acts that will be recorded in history."

"Future books will criticize me, and they will criticize you all."

The emperor's gaze swept across the court, and every minister felt the invisible pressure.

"I hope you can understand that what we need is not peace, but to strengthen ourselves and protect the country."

Only in this way can we prevent similar humiliations from happening again.

The emperor's voice was filled with determination and resolve.

The courtiers all knelt down and shouted in unison, "Your Majesty is wise!"

The emperor waved his hand dismissively. Whether he was wise or not was not for them to decide. He continued, "Peace talks have never been the outcome I desired."

When I achieved a great victory in the north, I took the initiative to request a ceasefire and negotiate peace with the Great Jing Dynasty. This was not so that you could comfortably grovel before the surrounding countries in the court and beg for peace without any dignity.

I am buying you time, buying the people time, buying the Southern Dynasty time, so that we can rise again!

Instead of being so spineless as they are now!

The emperor grew angrier as he spoke, his face so dark it seemed as if water could drip from it, his chest heaving violently as he glared angrily at the officials before him.

He suddenly reached out, grabbed the memorial in front of him, and slammed it at Minister Jin, roaring, "Look at these memorials you've submitted! What kind of nonsense are they!"

Minister Jin was so frightened that his face turned pale and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, but he dared not dodge and could only let the memorials fall on him.

The emperor's gaze swept over the crowd, his eyes flashing with anger, and his voice grew increasingly stern.

“Powerful clans and tyrannical families illegally occupy land and conceal population, seriously affecting national tax revenue and social stability, yet you show no concern whatsoever;

Private salt and iron mining is rampant in the south, causing serious losses to national fiscal revenue, yet you turn a blind eye to it;

The Western Regions have repeatedly provoked our border and threatened border security, yet you have remained indifferent.

Instead, you are so concerned about the trivial things my daughter did in the north; this is putting the cart before the horse!

By the end, the emperor was practically roaring, which made the entire palace vibrate.

The officials all lowered their heads, not daring to meet the emperor's gaze, their hearts filled with fear.

They knew that the emperor's anger had reached its peak, and if they could not provide a reasonable explanation, many people would likely suffer as a result.

The emperor's anger flared up. He stood up, pointed at Minister Jin, and continued to berate him, "The most despicable one is you, Minister Jin! As the Minister of Personnel, last year the national treasury's revenue and expenditure were extremely unbalanced, with a serious deficit. There were many large expenditures that even you yourself couldn't explain..."

The money allocated for disaster relief in the south was less than the money spent on building palaces for the emperor's travels.

That's outrageous!

Approvals that should be approved are not approved, while those that shouldn't be approved are approved indiscriminately; not a single penny is used wisely.

What a mess...

"If it weren't for the fact that your father-in-law is my imperial uncle, I would have stripped you of your official hat long ago!"

The emperor seemed to have reached his limit. "At this point, anyone with a brain should keep a low profile and restrain themselves. But you, instead of restraining yourself, have become even more outrageous."

You keep harping on Princess Ningding, saying she's willful, unruly, and lacks any manners or upbringing a proper woman should have.

But don't forget, the reason you can still stand here criticizing Ning Ding is largely because of her; otherwise, you'd probably be a victim of the Great Jing army's blade right now!

Minister Jin was so humiliated that he dared not move or utter a word. He knelt tremblingly, head bowed, filled with fear.

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"

The ministers also knelt down and shouted in unison.

"Calm down?"

"How can I calm down?"

"With fools like you before me, how can I possibly calm down?"

"Someone come here!"

The emperor shouted loudly outside the palace, "Drag those few who just spoke without thinking! Give them twenty strokes of the cane!"

This was the first time since the emperor ascended the throne that he had ordered a minister to be flogged in court, indicating that he was truly furious.

Several people, including Minister Jin, were elderly officials who could not withstand twenty strokes of the cane and repeatedly cried out, "Your Majesty, spare our lives!"

The cries were too shrill and too undignified.

The emperor on his high throne remained unmoved, watching them being dragged away, and then coldly uttered, "Do you still remember how Princess Ningding looked when I flogged her in court?"

oh…

When Princess Ningding was flogged in court, she showed no backbone, didn't utter a sound, and walked with her head held high and chest out to receive her punishment.

The emperor scoffed, "Think about Princess Ningding, and then look at them. Humph~ They're not even as good as a fourteen-year-old girl."

"Shameful!!"