Although there were still some stubborn conservatives in the Southern Shu court who held reservations and objections to Su Yi, who had the bloodline of the Eastern Yue royal family, succeeding to the throne of Southern Shu, they also knew that Su Yi's succession to the throne was an unchangeable fact.
After all, even a powerful and influential family like the Lin family, with over a century of history and an unshakeable foundation in the Southern Shu Kingdom, couldn't shake their position in the slightest. How could they possibly imagine that a few weak voices of opposition could change the overall situation?
Moreover, Emperor Gaozong had no heirs, and during that fierce power struggle, he eliminated all members of the imperial family with direct bloodlines. Now, the remaining members of the imperial family are just some insignificant relatives of the emperor.
Among the many relatives of the emperor, Su Yi, as Emperor Gaozong's grandson, was the most suitable candidate. Since Emperor Gaozong was willing to abdicate the throne, what more could they say?
In the end, Su Yi successfully ascended the throne of the Southern Shu Kingdom, taking the title of Emperor Shuntian.
However, Emperor Su Yi did not choose to live in the palace. After finishing his official duties each day, no matter how late it was, he would still return to the Princess's residence.
Although this was quite against the rules, everyone understood that Su Yi did this because his beloved lived in the Princess's residence.
As the emperor, Su Yi now bears a heavier burden than ever before.
His first task after ascending the throne was to carry out a thorough purge in the Southern Shu court.
The Lin family's rebellion involves a wide range of people, not just the Lin family. Moreover, the forces behind them have been entrenched in the Southern Shu court for over a century, and it would be very difficult to eliminate them all in a short period of time.
Although the Moon Shadow Guards had done their utmost to eliminate the remaining remnants of the Lin family army, this was merely a military sweep.
This time, Su Yi was determined not to let anyone involved in the rebellion go unpunished. He entrusted this task to Xie Jiang to handle personally.
Even though Lin Zhengyong had many connections and followers when he was alive, everyone could see clearly what Su Yi's tough and decisive methods meant, and they were filled with fear, no longer daring to act recklessly as before.
Among the Lin family's accomplices in their rebellion, the unassuming Lu Changwei was one of Lin Zhengyong's most capable assistants.
Compared to dealing with the Lin family, eliminating the Lu family seems relatively easier. After all, the Lin family had always been the Lu family's backer, but now that the Lin family has fallen, the Lu family alone cannot cause much trouble.
Xie Jiang found numerous letters in Lu's mansion, alleging collusion with the Lin family in a rebellion. The mansion also contained a large number of wives and concubines, and a courtyard specifically used to store his gold and silver treasures received as bribes. Given the sheer quantity, it's clear Lu Changwei had amassed considerable wealth over the years. Any punishment he receives would be entirely justified.
Subsequently, Xie Jiang reported Lu Changwei's crime of colluding with Lin Zhengyong to rebel to Su Yi, who then personally convicted him.
Finally, Lu Changwei's crimes were embezzlement and colluding with Lin Zhengyong to participate in a rebellion. His entire family was implicated, with all the adult men being killed and the women being forced into slavery.
Besides the Lu family, many other high-ranking officials with significant power were also implicated.
The evidence of the crimes committed by these officials was conclusive, and all of it was submitted to Su Yi for judgment and decision.
Those whose crimes were so grave that they warranted the death penalty and implicated many others were all taken to the Meridian Gate and executed as a warning to others. Su Yi's reputation for infamy was truly awe-inspiring.
The court officials of Southern Shu witnessed the series of swift and decisive measures taken by Su Yi after his ascension to the throne, and were filled with fear, no longer daring to act rashly.
This brief rebellion did not cause much disruption or impact on the lives of the people in southern Sichuan.
From then on, under Su Yi's rule, the people lived in peace, the national situation remained stable and peaceful for the time being, and everything seemed to return to normal.
It was dinnertime when Su Yi, contrary to his usual behavior, returned to the Princess's residence.
At this moment, Su Muxue was having dinner with Mu Jin when she suddenly saw Su Yi walk into the dining hall, and a sense of surprise welled up in her heart.
It's important to know that since Su Yi inherited the throne of Southern Shu, he has been busy until very late every day before returning to the Princess's residence. Su Muxue and Mu Jin haven't seen him for several days.
Upon seeing Su Yi appear before her, Su Muxue couldn't help but tease, "Oh~ What a rare sight today! What wind blew my busy emperor brother back?"
Su Muxue's tone was somewhat teasing, but Su Yi wasn't annoyed. He smiled and sat down at the dining table.
"What? Do I need your permission to come back?"
Su Muxue quickly pretended to be afraid of overstepping her bounds and bowed, saying, "This humble woman dares not. Please forgive me, Your Majesty, for disturbing my innocent and careless words."
"Children's words are innocent? I think your brain is insulting to children."
Mu Jin watched the brother and sister teasing each other back and forth, and couldn't help but smile.
The maidservant served Su Yi a bowl and chopsticks and then left. Su Yi ate his meal while asking Mu Jin questions.
"How have you been at the manor these past few days?"
Before Mu Jin could speak, Su Muxue hurriedly answered.
“Ah Jin and I have been so busy these past few days dealing with the visiting cards from those noble ladies that we wanted to leave the palace to find some peace and quiet, but even trying to get through the back door is blocked by those ladies. If this continues, we won’t be able to live like this in the future.”
Hearing this, Su Yi was quite surprised and asked, "Such a thing actually happened?"
“That’s for sure!” Su Muxue said, glancing at Mu Jin, and then added, “They’re all very shrewd. Who doesn’t know to try to curry favor with our future Empress of Southern Shu, Mu Jin, beforehand?”
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