The emperor faked his death? Never mind, I will ascend the throne directly!

On August 18th of the first year of Chengping (the reign was changed to "Chengping" after Li Chengfeng succeeded to the throne), at the hour of Yin, almost all the ministers who needed to attend the court had arrived outside Donghua Gate.

They gathered in groups of three or four to discuss what the emperor would say at his first morning court session after returning from praying for blessings.

"Our Majesty said he was going to Zhenguo Temple to pray for blessings, but why did I hear that His Majesty was going to Jiangnan Prefecture?" A minister looked puzzled and patted his colleague next to him.

"You don't know that the flood in Jiangnan Prefecture was severe this time, and His Majesty went to check the disaster relief situation in person." The colleague told the inside story he knew.

"I heard that Your Majesty's trip to the south of the Yangtze River was quite successful. I believe you will reward us according to our merits, right?" An official in a scarlet robe stroked his beard and joined the conversation with a smile.

"Haha, Master Zhang, that's wrong," another official raised his index finger and shook it, slowly retorting, "Your Majesty's incognito visit this time is to understand the people's sentiments. How could he be so focused on rewarding merit?"

As he spoke, a shrewd look flashed in his eyes, "In my humble opinion, Your Majesty will definitely make some adjustments to the administration in Jiangnan this time." As he spoke, a barely perceptible smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Well, both of you have a point," a young official interjected, cupping his hands and speaking respectfully. "However, I believe that Your Majesty's greatest achievement during this trip to Jiangnan was probably the capture of a gang of pirates from Jiangnan Prefecture."

"Oh? What do you mean?" The two officials looked at the young official at the same time, their eyes full of curiosity.

The young official smiled mysteriously and lowered his voice, saying, "I heard that Feng Meng was originally the leader of the Jiangnan Prefecture's pirates. Later, for some reason, he accepted Your Majesty's offer of amnesty."

"Our Majesty was able to return safely this time thanks to the protection of these pirates." He said, his eyes full of longing.

...

They waited until the hour of Mao, then heard three whip sounds, and the heavy palace gate slowly opened.

All officials straightened their official uniforms, passed through the palace gate, and divided into two columns according to the rule of civil officials on the left and military officials on the right, and entered the Golden Throne Hall.

After the ministers had lined up according to their ranks, the chief eunuch shouted, "Your Majesty has arrived!"

Then Li Chengfeng was seen wearing a dragon robe and a court crown. He walked steadily to the dragon throne, glanced at the ministers, and slowly sat down.

All civil and military officials knelt down and shouted "Long live the emperor".

"Everyone, please stand up." Li Chengfeng raised his hand to signal. After all the officials stood up, he did not speak immediately. Instead, he glanced calmly at everyone in the hall. An invisible pressure enveloped the entire Golden Palace.

After a brief silence, Li Chengfeng said loudly, "During this trip to Jiangnan, I have toured various places, observed the people's sentiments, and gained quite a bit."

He paused, his tone tinged with admiration, "Jiangnan is a land of abundant natural resources and talented people, but..." He changed his tone and frowned slightly, "The government is corrupt, and people's livelihood is in decline. It's heartbreaking!"

The atmosphere in the hall suddenly changed. The officials looked at each other, and the whispers gradually disappeared, replaced by a suffocating silence.

Li Chengfeng ignored the reactions of the officials and directly ordered Xiao Liuzi to read the imperial edict.

Little Liuzi stood on the imperial platform, slowly unfolded the imperial edict, and read aloud: "By the will of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims: Lu Wen, the former governor of Zezhou, has benefited the region, is loyal, brave, and courageous, and has rendered meritorious service in protecting the Emperor. I hereby appoint him as the prefect of Jiangnan Prefecture. This is my decree!"

As soon as he finished speaking, all the officials were shocked. This was the first time in Daqian that someone had been promoted so quickly!

An old official with white hair and beard stepped out tremblingly, cupping his hands and saying, "Your Majesty, although Lu Wen has made some contributions, he is still young. I'm afraid it will be difficult for the people to accept his sudden promotion to the position of prefect of Jiangnan!"

As the old minister spoke, he secretly observed Li Chengfeng's expression, with a hint of temptation in his tone.

Hearing this, Li Chengfeng's expression remained unchanged and he smiled faintly: "Oh? Then according to your opinion, how should we reward Lu Wen appropriately?" As he spoke, his fingers tapped lightly on the table, making a crisp sound.

Beads of sweat oozed from the old minister's forehead. He swallowed hard and said, "I think Lu Wen can be appointed as the governor of Zezhou at most as a reward. As for the post of prefect of Jiangnan, we need to consider it carefully."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Chengfeng showed a sneer at the corner of his mouth, and then clapped his hands.

Two guards came in, carrying a wooden frame covered with a red cloth and placed it steadily in the center of the hall.

"Since you, my dear ministers, have doubts about Lu Wen's achievements," Li Chengfeng said in a cold tone with a hint of sarcasm, "then I will let you all see the true extent of Lu Wen's contributions!"

As he spoke, he stood up, walked to the wooden rack, and suddenly lifted the red cloth.

On the wooden shelf were several thick account books, as well as some letters and banknotes, which were the evidence of corruption by the corrupt officials in Jiangnan Prefecture, as well as the evidence of Zheng Yingtong and Wei Du selling official positions and titles.

"These," Li Chengfeng said firmly, pointing at the evidence on the wooden shelf, "were all obtained by Lu Wen through painstaking investigations, risking his life!"

His eyes were like torches as he scanned the people in the hall. "Now that the evidence is solid, with witnesses and evidence in hand, the decision to appoint Lu Wen as the prefect of Jiangnan cannot be changed!"

Seeing this, the old minister's face suddenly changed. His lips trembled and he wanted to say something, but he couldn't say anything.

He fell to his knees with a thud, shouting, "Your Majesty, spare my life. I know I was wrong!"

However, Li Chengfeng remained unmoved.

He snorted coldly and waved his hand. Two royal guards immediately stepped forward and dragged the old minister away.

The hall was completely silent, and all officials were silent.

Li Chengfeng looked around and said in a deep voice, "None of the owners of these account books can be spared. They will be immediately dismissed from their posts, investigated, and their property confiscated and their entire families exterminated!"

His tone was cold and full of unquestionable authority.

This was the countermeasure he discussed with Chen Tingshu and Song Weiyu. There were too many corrupt officials in Jiangnan Prefecture. Li Chengfeng would directly and ruthlessly deal with them, not giving them the chance to resist, and he could also use this to intimidate all officials.

Upon seeing this, He Sheng stepped forward respectfully and said, "Your Majesty, I am willing to personally go to Jiangnan Prefecture and lead the team to investigate and confiscate corrupt officials, thoroughly eliminate these black sheep, and uphold the laws of the country!"

Li Chengfeng nodded slightly with approval, "Okay, I approve. He Sheng, you must deliver all the confiscated items directly to the national treasury. They must not pass through other people's hands!"

"As you wish!" He Sheng agreed in a firm voice, then walked out of the Golden Palace with high spirits.

Li Chengfeng watched He Sheng leave, then turned around and ordered people to continue reading out the charges against Zheng Yingtong and Wei Du.

Looking around, he said in a low and powerful voice, "Not only are these two people corrupt, they also maintain private armies and forge weapons privately. Their crimes are unforgivable!"

"However," Li Chengfeng looked at the ministers below and kept them in suspense.

"Fortunately, their weapons foundry has been discovered, and we have a map of their private soldiers stationed there. Now that the evidence is irrefutable, I order you to swiftly arrest Zheng Yingtong and Wei Du!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the hall became increasingly tense. All the ministers felt their hearts tighten and then looked at each other in confusion.