There is a god in the sky

Chapter 386 Li Ge's Advice

With the eldest princess in charge of the overall situation in the palace, nothing went wrong.

Empress Tong was taken back to Kunning Palace, where she died one night from excessive grief.

Of course, this is just the official explanation.

Apart from Consort De, there was no other high-ranking concubine in the harem who could manage affairs.

Consort De had been ill since the Emperor's death, and apart from appearing a few times during the mourning period, she had been recuperating in her palace.

After the emperor's funeral, she immediately proposed to go to a nunnery to practice Buddhism and to copy the Rebirth Sutra for the emperor and empress.

The eldest princess offered some words of advice, and then personally escorted her to the royal nunnery.

From then on, the palace became the domain of the eldest princess and the King of Zheng.

In her youth, the eldest princess was a decisive and capable woman, skilled in both martial arts and governance.

The late emperor once joked that if his eldest daughter had been a boy, she could have been made crown prince much earlier.

Therefore, when she helped the emperor ascend the throne, the court quickly stabilized.

Now, she is going to help her own brother seize the throne.

The crown prince was dead, none of the princes were particularly outstanding, and the court officials were terrified by the Prince of Zheng's iron-fisted methods.

So far, at least, no minister has dared to voice any opposition.

Li Ge presented the new jade seal to King Zheng.

"Your Highness, look, this is the most realistic one ever made, it's so lifelike it could be mistaken for the real thing."

King Zheng has lost a lot of weight these days, and his chin has become pointed.

During the period of national mourning, he ate only one meal a day, abstaining from all meat and fish. He was either kneeling before the emperor's coffin and weeping or working tirelessly to arrange the funeral.

Everyone who sees this will say: King Zheng is truly filial!

Even though everyone knows that his filial piety is just an act, they can't find a single fault with it.

King Zheng laughed, holding up the brand-new jade seal. "Excellent! Very excellent! When I ascend the throne, I will reward you handsomely!"

"These are things that a servant should do."

After Li Ge finished admiring the jade seal, he said, "Your Highness, the public opinion outside has been largely calmed down. The people are praising you as a loyal and righteous son who values ​​affection and respects his elder brother. If we raise the matter of ascending the throne now, the court officials should not object."

"Heh, do you think I'm afraid of their opposition? They just don't want to kill anyone at my brother's funeral."

"Yes, Your Highness is kind and benevolent."

King Zheng had heard plenty of flattery, but Li Ge was quite different.

He appears aloof and refined, and the words he speaks always seem very credible.

No wonder the Crown Prince and Empress trusted him so much.

Rather than saying he successfully usurped the throne, it's more accurate to say that Li Ge paved the way for him.

Of course, the eldest princess also gave a push from behind, clearing many obstacles for King Zheng.

"Tomorrow is the day when the national mourning period ends. I will summon all civil and military officials to an audience. Who do you think should draft this imperial edict of succession?"

After a moment's thought, Li Ge suggested a few candidates.

“Kuang Mingtang, Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat; Chen Yuzhi, Minister of Rites; and Yuan, Compiler of the Hanlin Academy.”

Li Ge originally wanted to say he was the head of the Hanlin Academy, but then he remembered that Li Ge was already dead, killed by Prince Zheng.

Although Yuan Shenxing did not hold a high official position, there were not many first- or second-rank officials still alive in the court, and not many people had a grudge against him.

Yuan Shenxing had not offended him, but he was quite influential in the court. If he took a chance, he might be able to take over as the head of the academy.

If he's willing to take on this task, then he can't be blamed for his eventual downfall.

"I would recommend Xiao Zhengyang more. He is the leader of the Qingliu faction, the Xiao family has been a family of scholars for generations, and he has a son who is praised by everyone as a brilliant detective. Isn't he more suitable than the others?"

Li Ge hesitated before answering, "Lord Xiao is suitable in terms of status, but his character is not as upright as the others, so I'm afraid he will be hard to convince people."

Li Ge told Prince Zheng that Xiao Ji had opposed the Crown Prince from the beginning and had helped Shen Lan file a complaint with the Emperor. Therefore, the Xiao family was considered to be at odds with the Crown Prince from the very beginning.

If the Xiao family were to step forward and openly proclaim the decree of the King of Zheng at this moment, the people of the world would surely believe that the Xiao family had long been bought off by the King of Zheng.

"Why not?" King Zheng grinned wickedly. "Let the world think that the Xiao family is my people, isn't that good?"

"This……"

"Go and summon the Xiao family father and son to the palace. I want to have a talk with them."

"Yes."

Unable to dissuade him, Li Ge could only try to find a way out of the palace along the way.

If the Xiao family were to write this edict, they would be firmly branded with the mark of the Prince of Zheng, and even if things succeeded, the Xiao family would be nailed to the pillar of shame.

But King Zheng clearly wanted to win over the Xiao family.

These days, Mr. Xiao has been staying at home with his wife.

Autumn has arrived, and Madam Xiao may give birth at any time. Master Xiao is worried about her, and since he doesn't have to go to the yamen anymore, he can stay at home with his wife.

"Master, someone from the palace has arrived." The steward rushed into the backyard.

Master Xiao asked unhurriedly, "Whose orders are you on?"

"The one who came was a very young chief eunuch. He said he was on the orders of Prince Zheng to invite you and the young master to the palace."

"It seems the time for a decision has come."

Madam Xiao asked worriedly, "Master, is it very dangerous? I heard that Prince Zheng killed many officials."

"The victor is king and the loser is a bandit. Now, the King of Zheng is the inevitable force of the times, and those who oppose him will naturally come to no good end."

"But the identity of the King of Zheng is not legitimate enough."

“If the Crown Prince were still alive, his status would indeed be inappropriate, but now that the other princes do not dare to stand up and compete with him, his status is beyond reproach.”

After all, King Zheng was once the legitimate son of the Empress.

"By the way, where is Xiao Ji?" Master Xiao asked the steward.

"The eldest young master is not in the manor. We have already sent someone to invite him. The eunuch who delivered the imperial decree has been arranged to have tea in the flower hall."

"Let's go, I'll go and meet him."

Xiao Zhengyang guessed that the visitor was Li Ge, but he did not expect that Li Ge would be so polite and courteous to him.

Judging solely from his appearance and manners, one would never guess that he was a treacherous and cunning person.

"You're too kind, Manager Li." Xiao Zhengyang sat down only after he bowed.

Li Ge got straight to the point: "The reason why Prince Zheng invited Lord Xiao to the palace this time is to ask you to draft an edict of succession for the late emperor."

Xiao Zhengyang's brows furrowed deeply, his face filled with resentment.

Li Ge then said, "It would be best if you, sir, did not agree."

"Oh? Doesn't Steward Li want to see King Zheng ascend the throne?"

Li Ge shook his head slightly and answered ambiguously: "The ascension of King Zheng to the throne at this time is inevitable, but those who supported him the earliest will certainly be condemned."

The Xiao family has a clean and upright family tradition, so they naturally avoid such matters if possible.

What if there's no way to avoid it?

"If there is no way to avoid it, then... better to die than to die. I think Editor Yuan is a very suitable candidate."

Xiao Zhengyang was furious when he heard that he wanted to shift the blame onto his friend.

"You're asking me to stab my friend in the back? I won't do that."

"Lord Xiao, please don't worry. This matter is not good for the Xiao family, but it may not be bad for Editor Yuan."

Xiao Zhengyang refused to listen, declaring that whoever wrote the edict for Prince Zheng was his lackey.

Although no one in the court dares to oppose King Zheng, there are also few who genuinely support him.

Nobody wanted to become King Zheng's man so quickly.

"Brother Yuan will not agree."

Li Ge, full of patience, suggested, "You can ask him for his opinion. Anyway, we still have to wait for Lord Xiao, so there's plenty of time."

Xiao Zhengyang knew that he was helping him. Although he and Yuan Shenxing had been friends for many years, he had recently realized that he did not fully understand him.

"Okay, please wait a moment, sir."