It is always a little dim indoors in the early winter morning.

The heavy curtain was lifted by two palace maids, and the emperor walked out.

"Your Majesty." Several eunuchs stepped forward.

The emperor raised his hand to cover his mouth and coughed twice.

"Your Majesty, please take the medicine before leaving." A delicate voice called out from behind.

The emperor waved his hands.

"It's okay, it's not too late to eat after morning." He said, and walked straight out without looking back or looking around.

The eunuchs looked at each other, feeling terrified and uneasy.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please be careful."

"Your Majesty, the Queen Mother heard that Your Majesty was late for court, and she was worried that something might have happened to Your Majesty, so she asked us to come and take a look."

They said hurriedly.

The emperor smiled kindly.

"It's my fault too. I didn't want to worry my mother, so I didn't tell her." He said, "When you report to the Queen Mother later, don't tell her. Just say that I got up late and it was my fault. I won't be lazy next time."

The eunuchs looked excited.

"Your Majesty, you are really wronging yourself." They said with emotion, bowed respectfully and stepped back.

Of course they would not really fail to tell the Empress Dowager that the Emperor was ill. To go against the Empress Dowager's wishes would not be a fault but a great achievement.

Watching these eunuchs leave, the emperor's face immediately sank and he turned around and said "Pah" to the side.

The eunuchs on both sides lowered their heads and pretended not to see anything.

After the Prince of Qi ascended the throne, the eunuchs and maids in the palace were not replaced, so they were basically all the Queen Mother's people, but things always change.

After all, the empress dowager was getting old, and the emperor had already secured his throne. Especially after the emperor established the new Bureau of Investigation and Criminal Justice, more and more eunuchs no longer obeyed the empress dowager.

The emperor walked into the Qinzheng Hall, and the officials who had been waiting for a long time filed in. The emperor saw Ning Yunzhao at first sight. Among the older officials, the young man brought a different kind of vitality, especially the undisguised respect for the emperor on his face.

The emperor had certainly seen fawning officials before, but he did not think that Ning Yunzhao was the same as those people.

Those flatteries were only for his status as an emperor, while Ning Yunzhao's respect was for him as a person. Since he was temporarily appointed as the emperor's attendant, he had more contacts with him, especially in government affairs.

Logically, Ning Yunzhao should have avoided the question or kept silent out of fear, but he did not do so. When the emperor asked him questions, he would think seriously and answer frankly.

"I think Your Majesty is right," he said.

If the answer was just like that, then there would be no difference from other flattering officials, but Ning Yunzhao would still seriously explain why he thought it was right.

"If it were me, I would do the same," he would say at the end.

Such words always feel like praising oneself more than praising the emperor.

But the emperor did not think there was anything wrong with it, because Ning Yunzhao was a talented person from the Ning family and had been a child prodigy since childhood. Such a young man must be proud.

It was this pride that made him different from those fawning officials; his approval of the emperor was more like a hero's admiration for each other.

Praise others as you would yourself; this is true and unquestionable praise and recognition.

This recognition made the emperor feel very grateful. Although no one said anything when he sat in this position, the emperor could see the contempt in the eyes of these officials.

Compared with the prince who was brought up by the late emperor and taught by the best Confucian scholars, he is nothing but trash in the eyes of these officials.

However, he is not really stupid, he has just been pretending to be stupid for decades.

Those who look down on him are stupid.

So it really makes people feel good to see a young man who is not stupid among this group of stupid people. The emperor glanced across the court and sat down, watching the civil and military officials bowing and greeting and shouting "Long live the emperor". Then he felt even better when he saw that there was one less official standing.

Duke Cheng was indeed a very capable man. This capable and prestigious man with a large army was the confidant of the late crown prince. The late crown prince had died, but he had a son, and Duke Cheng was very friendly to this son.

Ever since that day when he heard that Duke Cheng had entered Prince Huai's palace and visited Prince Huai in person, he had woken up several times from dreams in which Duke Cheng had brought Prince Huai to force him to give up the throne.

Letting Prince Huai die would solve the problem once and for all, but Prince Huai cannot die now, so Duke Cheng must be made to pose no threat.

A tiger with its teeth pulled out becomes just a mouse; there is nothing to be afraid of.

Although attending court was too tiring, life was getting better and better, the emperor coughed lightly twice.

"My dears, I've kept you waiting for a long time," he said, with a hint of self-blame.

The officials bowed and saluted.

"Your Majesty, Duke Cheng's second resignation letter has been delivered." An official stepped out and said, holding out a memorial.

The emperor nodded and looked at the memorial with a hesitant expression.

Normally, if an official asked to resign, the emperor would have to refuse. Then the official would write again, and after three times, the emperor would approve it. This would save enough face for both the emperor and his subject.

But this time...

The emperor didn't want to play this game anymore. He had already shown enough kindness and there was no need to put himself in a difficult position any further.

"Sure." He said calmly.

"Your Majesty is wise."

Huang Cheng was about to speak when someone else got there first.

He looked at Ning Yunzhao and his temper also faded.

Let him be, this kind of flattery is also welcome at this time.

It seems I was wrong. I thought this guy was on the same side as Duke Cheng, but now it seems that they both love themselves more.

"As you wish." Huang Cheng and other officials bowed and saluted, then responded in unison.

…

"Nothing is left." Chen Qi came back from the street, rubbing his hands to dispel the cold and said, "Except for the title of Duke Cheng, all other official positions are gone."

Normally, if the military power was removed, at least a vacant position in the Ministry of War or some other department should be given to him. But this time the court was very decisive and removed him completely, without giving him any face at all.

"This will let the world know that Duke Cheng's resignation is not a normal one, but a resignation for a crime." Shopkeeper Liu said with a frown.

Chen Qi nodded.

"It has been said that Duke Cheng is greedy for military merit and power and intends to provoke another war between the two countries," he said, "so Your Majesty has no choice but to dismiss him."

"Then the people may be dissatisfied with Duke Cheng." said Shopkeeper Liu.

The common people do not understand any great principles. They only know that war is a terrible thing and they just want to live in peace. Those who intend to destroy their peace are bad people.

Chen Qi smiled bitterly.

"I'm not just afraid." He said, waving his hands. "I'm really dissatisfied. Nowadays, there are many people criticizing Duke Cheng on the streets."

As he spoke, he glanced at Miss Jun beside him.

"They say that Duke Cheng is not that powerful. It was Miss Jun who contributed to the fight against the Jin people, and Deshengchang also contributed money and effort. He actually did nothing."

Things change so fast. I just resigned and the situation took a sharp turn for the worse.

Miss Jun stood up.

"I'll go to the Duke's Mansion to see what the Duke has planned." She said.

When Miss Jun arrived at the Duke's Mansion, Duke Cheng and his wife were packing their luggage. They were leaving the capital and returning to Duke Cheng's hometown. Zhu Zan had already told her, but when she saw this scene, she still felt very complicated.

Just leaving like this?

Just let it go like this?

"Isn't this expected?" Duke Cheng smiled gently at the outside world's discussions about Miss Yu Jun. "When I decided to make your contribution public, I knew this day would come."

Dividing the credit will inevitably become a handle for questioning the credit.

But he just did nothing? Is he allowed to do this?

"No, you are wrong. I am the only one who is questioning you, but my achievements are still there." Duke Cheng said with a smile, pointing at her, "and they will be even greater."

Miss Jun also looked at herself.

"All the credit will go to me," she said.

"Yes, this is still a good thing." said Duke Cheng.

Is this a good thing?

Miss Jun smiled bitterly.

This was to weaken Duke Cheng's reputation, divert people's attention, and make people more convinced of Duke Cheng's fraud.

"This is a good thing for you, Miss Jun. You need this fame." Duke Cheng said, "The more the better."

Yes, she needs fame, fame that can attract everyone's attention.

But this fame is a matter of both sides...

"It's better than both of us dying." Duke Cheng said with a smile.

That's true, Miss Jun smiled bitterly.

"But your majesty will not let me live long," she said.

Duke Cheng smiled.

"That should be enough for what you have to do," he said.

Miss Jun was slightly startled.

What is she going to do? What does Cheng Guogong know?

Zhu Zan said that he would not tell anyone, including his parents, that she was Chu Jiuling.

What does Duke Cheng mean by this?