Inside the bedroom, Minister Li held a pen in his right hand, his face calm, waiting for the emperor to name the crown prince before he began to write the edict of succession.
At this moment, he felt no emotion in his heart.
Because the most exciting moment has long passed.
At this moment, he just wanted to perform at his best, write the most magnificent edict of succession, and leave a strong and colorful mark on his life resume.
The Duke of Zhuguo waited beside the emperor and asked, "Your Majesty, which prince do you plan to appoint as the crown prince?"
The emperor's eyes were cloudy. "Among my sons, is there anyone worthy of being the crown prince?"
The Duke of Zhuguo said, "They are princes, so they are qualified to be crown princes."
"Just because he's a prince, he can become the crown prince. It's really too easy for them."
The Duke of Zhuguo didn't know how to respond to this.
How much the emperor hates his own son.
The emperor said, "Every one of them is an unfilial descendant, with wicked ambitions, unfit to be king. But because they are princes, they must inherit the throne. I have no choice but to pass the throne to them. How unwilling it is."
The Duke hesitated for a moment, "Your Majesty, calm down! The princes are actually good people. They just make mistakes occasionally. Just teach them well."
The emperor snorted coldly, "I only regret not killing them earlier. Now they are causing me trouble."
The Duke of Zhuguo was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
The emperor was complaining and venting at the same time.
The emperor was not willing to give up the throne.
Now, when the emperor had to appoint a crown prince, his mood became extremely irritable.
In the eyes of the emperor, the crown prince is his enemy, who is specifically trying to steal everything from him.
Everything he owns will be inherited by the crown prince.
I really can't accept it.
An unwilling emperor would naturally make people suffer.
The emperor said angrily, "I don't want to appoint a crown prince."
"Your Majesty, please don't joke around. The court officials are still waiting outside. If Your Majesty changes his mind now, everyone will start rioting again."
The Duke of Zhuguo coaxed the emperor like he was coaxing a child.
The emperor's eyes were red, "I am about to lose everything, and you won't allow me to be willful for once."
"Your Majesty has already acted capriciously once. You should know the serious consequences without me reminding you. Your Majesty must not act capriciously a second time. The Great Zhou cannot withstand repeated destruction. Nor can the people's hearts withstand repeated turmoil. I earnestly implore Your Majesty to issue an imperial decree of succession today."
The Duke of Zhuguo refused to allow the emperor to act arbitrarily.
The emperor's gaze was like a knife, stabbing at the face of the Duke of Zhuguo.
The Duke of Zhuguo was fearless and faced the emperor's wrath head-on.
"Very good, very good!" The emperor gritted his teeth, "I will issue an edict of succession right now. I will appoint Prince Ning Liu Huang as the crown prince."
It turned out to be Prince Ning.
Among all the princes, the tallest one among the short ones is the one who makes Prince Ning the most suitable to be the crown prince.
The Duke of Zhuguo bowed and said, "On behalf of the millions of people, I thank Your Majesty."
The emperor's eyes were red. "I have given away everything. I am now a lonely man with nothing. What is the point of living?"
Duke Zhuguo winked at Li Shizhong and told him to write the edict of succession and not to pay attention to the emperor's complaints.
Minister Li nodded and started writing.
The Duke of Zhuguo began to appease the emperor, "This is the inheritance of the throne, not plunder. Just as the previous emperor passed the throne to your majesty. Your majesty, why do you have to dwell on this?"
The emperor snorted coldly, "You are indifferent to this matter, so you can speak so easily. Ask the emperors of all dynasties: when they appointed a crown prince, did they feel relieved or heartbroken? I feel extremely sad at this moment. Everything I have worked hard for decades to accumulate will be passed on to an unfilial son. It is really annoying."
"Although Prince Ning is not a man of great talent, he is still a worthy heir. Your Majesty should have more confidence in Prince Ning."
The emperor sneered, "Prince Ning is unfilial, am I wrong?"
The Duke of Zhuguo said expressionlessly, "A crown prince cannot be unfilial. Since he is the crown prince, he must be filial."
The emperor was upset and suffered 100,000 points of damage.
He was the one who appointed the crown prince, and he is the only one who has to swallow this bitter pill.
"The matter of appointing a crown prince can be announced to the world. However, regarding the appointment of Prince Ning as the crown prince, I hope you two will keep it a secret and don't make it public for now."
The Duke of Zhuguo frowned, "Your Majesty, do you mean a secret decree?"
The emperor nodded.
The Duke of Zhuguo immediately objected, "It's inappropriate. When people are in a state of panic, we can't leave a secret decree, or it might cause unrest. Since Prince Ning has been appointed as the crown prince, we should announce it to the world to stabilize people's hearts."
The emperor was furious, "Don't you listen to my words?"
"I am thinking about the country and people of the Great Zhou. The crown prince also needs time to prepare for handling state affairs in the future. Issuing a secret decree will not be conducive to the crown prince taking over the government."
Zhuguo Gong refuted with confidence that he would never allow the emperor to act arbitrarily.
"The edict has been completed, please review it, Your Majesty." Minister Li put down the brush in his hand and was very satisfied with the edict of succession.
He came to the bed and unfolded the imperial edict so that the emperor could read it.
The emperor opened his eyes wide, read the edict word by word, and then said "hmm".
The choice of words and sentences is excellent, concise yet gorgeous.
Sure enough, he is more suitable for writing the edict of succession than that old man from the Sun family.
The emperor nodded and said, "Use the seal."
Upon receiving the order, Chen Dachang brought the emperor's seal and the imperial seal and stamped them on the edict of succession.
From this moment on, Prince Ning was the legal crown prince.
Unless the emperor issues another decree to depose the crown prince, no one can shake Prince Ning's position.
Chen Dachang felt emotional. With so many people vying for the throne, he never expected that Prince Ning would be the one who had the last laugh.
At the beginning, Prince Ning's conditions for winning the throne were not outstanding, and his mother's family was not as powerful as the Xue family.
In fact, King Zhao was very powerful.
It's a pity that he was so determined to commit suicide by forcing the emperor to abdicate and rebelling. In the end, he got himself killed.
Of course, King Zhao is not dead yet, but he is not far from death.
The imperial edict of succession was put away, placed in a box, and placed next to the emperor's pillow.
The emperor snorted twice, showing great disgust.
The crown prince has been appointed, and even if he is the emperor, he cannot depose him at will. The opinions of the court officials must still be respected.
That's why the emperor despises it so much.
From this moment on, Prince Ning became the person the emperor hated the most, no doubt about it.
The Duke of Zhuguo said, "I will announce this to the world and calm the people's hearts."
"Can't the decree be issued secretly?" the emperor asked with narrowed eyes.
The Duke of Zhuguo shook his head. "It can't be a secret decree, nor is it necessary. Your Majesty is unable to manage affairs right now, and the court is overwhelmed with affairs. It's a good opportunity for Prince Ning to learn how to act as regent and handle state affairs."
The emperor glared at them, "Are you so impatient to have the crown prince replace me? Why don't you just poison me to death tomorrow?"
The Duke of Zhuguo secretly rolled his eyes and said, "Your Majesty, you worry too much. Your Majesty, take good care of your health and don't let your imagination run wild. There is no poisoned wine, and no one will poison your Majesty. We all hope that your Majesty will live a long life."
Money is being spent like water on the renovations of the three main palaces. The Ministry of Revenue is also experiencing famine. There is no money left to arrange for Your Majesty's funeral at this time."
"You, you thief." The emperor scolded the Duke of Zhuguo angrily.
The Duke of Zhuguo said in a serious tone, "I am merely speaking the truth. No one wants Your Majesty to encounter an accident at this time. It is much cheaper for Your Majesty to take herbal medicine than to arrange for a funeral."
Moreover, most of the palace expenses are borne by the Ministry of Revenue. However, the Ministry of Revenue has to pay for your Majesty's funeral. I'm afraid the officials in the Ministry of Revenue will cry to death in the Golden Throne Hall."
These words, if said in ordinary days, can be regarded as treason. What about death or funeral arrangements? It is simply audacious.
However, saying it now is perfectly normal.
The emperor snorted twice to express his dissatisfaction, but his expression calmed down and his mood turned from anger to joy.
The emperor said to the Duke of Zhuguo, "I will not argue with you. Tell the Ministry of Revenue to prepare money. My funeral arrangements must be carried out with great fanfare."
The Duke of Zhuguo lowered his eyes. "Your Majesty should be restrained and frugal. How can you ask the court to make such a lavish arrangement for your funeral?"
Even if you are a little more frugal, the emperor's funeral would cost two or three hundred thousand taels.
It would be impossible to hold a grand funeral without 500,000 or 600,000 taels of silver.
Five or six hundred thousand taels can solve so many problems.
The emperor enjoyed the wealth of the world during his lifetime, but still had to suffer after his death. It was really disgusting.
It’s better to live two more years and let the Ministry of Revenue save more money.
The emperor snorted, "I am about to die, and I must make great arrangements for my funeral. This matter is not negotiable unless a secret decree is left."
The Duke of Zhuguo looked helpless. "Forget it, forget it. Your Majesty will do as you wish. Your Majesty's funeral will be handled with great fanfare. If the Ministry of Revenue has no money, we can borrow from the Ministry of the Treasury."
The emperor frowned, "The Shaofu has no money either."
The Duke of Zhuguo mercilessly exposed the emperor's lies, "If the Minister of the Household has no money, then everyone in the world will be poor, and no one will dare to claim to be rich. Your Majesty, gold, silver and treasures cannot be brought into this world and cannot be taken away from this world. Why are you so obsessed with them?"
The emperor was furious. "That's all my private money. No one is allowed to touch it without my permission."
Zhu Guogong said expressionlessly: "It's just a loan, and I have to pay it back."
"The Ministry of Revenue is so poor that rats are running around in its warehouses. I'm afraid I won't be able to pay back the money I borrowed for 10 to 20 years. I've lost a lot."
The Duke of Zhuguo really wanted to remind the emperor that in ten or twenty years, he would be too dead to die.
Why!
As a minister, he was very upset when he met an emperor who was greedy for money.
"Your Majesty, please rest and recuperate."
Duke Zhuguo didn't want to continue chatting with the emperor because he was tired.
Minister Li saw the opportunity and left the bedroom, announcing that the decree of succession had been issued, appointing Prince Ning Liu Huang as the crown prince.
The ministers exchanged glances and saw similar things in each other's eyes: It was indeed King Ning.
With so many princes competing for the position, Prince Ning was the tallest among the short ones, so he was barely suitable.
The emperor and everyone thought the same thing.
Of course, some people are not convinced.
What virtue and ability did Prince Ning have to be appointed as the crown prince?
"Minister Li, has His Majesty really appointed Prince Ning as the crown prince?"
"I personally wrote the imperial edict and used the seal myself, how could it be fake? You may not trust me, but you can at least trust the Duke of Zhuguo."
"Why didn't the Duke of Zhuguo come out?"
"The Minister of State accompanied His Majesty in a conversation and told the Ministry of Revenue to deposit the money. His Majesty wants to make grand arrangements for his funeral."
When the Minister of Revenue heard this, he felt his blood rushing to his head and he was about to faint.
"Your Majesty really wants to make a grand funeral arrangements?"
"Your Excellency can go in now. They are discussing something inside."
The Minister of Revenue did not hesitate any longer and rushed directly towards the bedroom.
Other court officials also rushed in.
You bastard, you don't want to watch such excitement.
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