"Oh, this brat is actually quite clever?" Zhu Yuanzhang blurted out in a fit of rage, and the crowd below the stage looked extremely strange, yet dared not offer any words of advice.
If the emperors of the Zhu family dynasty were bastards, then Your Majesty, aren't you the ancestor of those bastards—the old dog?
"Your Majesty's words imply doubt about me!"
No one expected that Liu Xian's expression would suddenly change. She suppressed her smile and looked coldly at Zhu Yuanzhang, the outline of snake scales faintly appearing on her extremely fair face.
It seems that if the emperor says something that displeases her, she will throw a huge tantrum.
Everyone found it unbelievable. No one doubted that Liu Xian had the power to overturn the table, yet he was so angry over a single slightly offensive remark.
From the perspective of these politically savvy individuals, it's not worth it at all, and they seem to lack any sense of decency.
A commotion arose from the audience, but Zhu Yuanzhang quickly calmed down and said a few conciliatory words without changing his expression. Only when he saw Liu Xian slowly lean back on the throne did he feel half relieved.
The system does not understand why the host suddenly became angry.
"Human nature is to bully the kind-hearted. Since Liu Xian seemed to be easy to communicate and trade with before, some people will think about making the demon immortal take another step back and become more in line with their desires."
Their constant probing is so annoying, I might as well take this opportunity to vent my anger and dispel their ideas.
Ling Xiao casually explained her motives to the system, but of course, there was another reason: she wanted to take the initiative.
After a while, Liu Xian glanced at Zhu Yuanzhang with a lingering look, and said in a seemingly serious but actually feigned tone:
"As the Grand Preceptor of the Ming Dynasty, I naturally have my heart set on the Ming Dynasty. Otherwise, how would the Ming Dynasty have drawn resources from all over the world to sustain itself without me all these years?"
"The fate of the Ming Dynasty is also closely related to me, so unless absolutely necessary, I will only think of the Ming Dynasty's prosperity. This time, when I peek into the future, I will not mislead you."
No one asked what this confident demon immortal would do if things came to a last resort.
Nobody wants to think about it.
When the atmosphere becomes tense, someone helpful will naturally step in to smooth things over.
Zhu Di, without hesitation, bowed respectfully to Liu Xian, then looked up with a helpless and distressed expression.
"Liu Xian, look, it's not that we didn't believe you, but we just couldn't imagine that an emperor who was obsessed with Taoism was actually an extremely intelligent person."
The fairy seemed pleased, and looked him up and down with a smile, saying:
"Why wouldn't you believe it? When it comes to the ability to be an emperor, everyone here combined can't compare to him."
Like a stone thrown into a still pond, Liu Xian's words caused a great stir. Zhu Yuanzhang spoke with great conviction, but remained skeptical, saying:
"He actually has this ability?"
"certainly."
Liu Xian said, "From being the son of a mere vassal king, he was adopted by the main branch to inherit the throne. At this time, he was already a young boy. He had no power to rely on, no contact with the ministers, and the late emperor was his cousin."
It could be said that apart from a formal title, he had nothing.
"Guess when this Daoist Emperor seized power?"
Zhu Yuanzhang also felt that the situation faced by this younger generation was very tricky. It was not that becoming emperor meant having the power of an emperor; it depended on the individual's circumstances and methods.
He couldn't help but wonder what he would do in his situation. A moment later—
To hell with it, why should I even think about this? Does anyone in the court dare to bare their teeth at me right now?
So Zhu Yuanzhang pointed at the crown prince and said, "Biao'er, it's up to you to do it."
Zhu Biao was taken aback, then stepped forward to think for a short while before speaking:
"Now that we have the title, we can proceed slowly and methodically. We can figure out the situation inside and outside the palace and proceed step by step."
Zhu Yuanzhang didn't say anything, then pointed at Zhu Di and asked him to answer. Zhu Di wasn't intimidated and immediately spoke:
“My thoughts are different from my elder brother’s. Once we have the title, we won’t be so restrained. We’ll first clean up the guards in the Prince’s Palace. After we officially ascend the throne, we can place our own people into the army and then we can act freely.”
The court officials could also see that although the two men were taking different approaches, one slow and the other fast, their methods were equally impressive.
Some people prefer the Crown Prince's gentle style, believing it to be the true demeanor of an emperor. Others, however, favor the Prince of Yan, believing that securing military power is the best way to ensure his rule.
Zhu Yuanzhang waved for his two sons to leave, thinking their answers were both good, but he wondered how the exceptionally intelligent emperor of later generations would have handled it.
"You're all wrong. This emperor had already figured out what he was going to do even before he ascended the throne."
"First, he rushed from his fiefdom to the capital to ascend the throne, but he stopped at the palace gate and challenged his ministers—since he succeeded to the throne as the heir apparent, he could not use the rites of the crown prince."
"To put it bluntly, this emperor wants to continue the throne but not to have an heir!"
With a loud bang, Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes widened. What did "succession without succession" mean? It meant that he would be the emperor but would not adopt a son; his parents would still be his parents.
This move was so unexpected, Old Zhu murmured:
"How dare he do this? Isn't he afraid that the court officials will simply not elect him as emperor? Damn it, he truly lives up to his reputation as my son; his brain is so sharp."
Zhu Yuanzhang quickly realized that he dared not replace the court officials.
The journey from the vassal state to the capital was so long that officials and even common people along the way had all paid their respects to him and knew that he was the emperor.
If we suddenly change it now, it might cause chaos in the world.
But even if that's the case, how could one risk losing the throne without extraordinary courage?
Upon hearing his father admit that the child was his, Zhu Di dared not speak out in anger, and when things were not going well, he would keep saying that the child was born to the fourth prince.
Heh, I saw through it long ago.
"This time, Emperor Daojun won, and he ascended the throne with the rites of a successor emperor."
Having won the battle, he did not stop there. Instead, he ordered that his deceased father be posthumously honored as emperor and that his mother be made empress dowager and brought to the palace to be cared for.
"The Emperor Daojun was clever in that he used the name of filial piety to divide the court officials into two factions and found the faction that was inclined to him."
This debate over etiquette lasted for several years.
After it was over, Emperor Daojun had firmly grasped control of the entire court.
Liu Xian casually recounted the actions of the Dao Emperor.
The officials in the court were all astonished. This man had really mastered the art of wielding imperial power, taking an unconventional approach, and yet he had succeeded.
Fortunately, they didn't encounter such an emperor. No, this emperor now is not someone to be trifled with either; he'll skin them alive!
After letting them have their moment of shock, Ling Xiao briefly recounted the first half of Jiajing's life, describing him as a wise and discerning ruler who was strict in governing officials and lenient in governing the people.
The more she said, the more uneasy Zhu Yuanzhang became, despite his joy.
This sounds like a wise ruler, so why did his reputation turn out so bad in the end? Old Zhu thought to himself, "This is similar to a certain Emperor Xuanzong."
Zhu Di also had an ominous premonition and anxiously wanted to know how he had later favored Taoism and managed to obtain the title of "Taoist Emperor".
Ling Xiao was just about to emphasize this point; she wanted to describe it in detail to attack the Daoist sect.
Then Liu Xian said quietly:
"This intelligent emperor was almost strangled to death by a group of ordinary palace maids with their belts."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
