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

Song Zelin bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, the price of rice in the capital is about two ounces of silver per dou."

"What about the grain prices in Xijing?"

Li Chengfeng nodded and asked again.

Song Zelin was slightly stunned, as if he didn't expect Li Chengfeng to suddenly ask about the price of grain in Xijing.

He paused for a moment and replied, "Xijing is a major grain-producing area. Logically, grain prices should be lower than in the capital. However, as far as I know, the price of rice in Xijing is even higher than in the capital. A dou of rice costs four taels of silver, or even more."

"Oh? Is that so?"

Li Chengfeng pretended to be surprised, but threw the question to the ministers in the court.

"Xijing produces a lot of grain, but the price is incredibly high. My dear ministers, why do you think this is so?"

There was silence in the court.

Everyone looked at each other in shock, but no one answered.

It was no secret that the King of Pingxi secretly raised the price of grain, buying low and selling high.

When the late emperor was alive, he turned a blind eye to his outstanding military achievements.

Now that the new emperor has brought up the old story again, could it be...

"Your Majesty, Xijing is where the Pingxi Army is stationed. There are many soldiers and horses, and every move requires food and money."

"I think this grain price is reasonable!"

After a long time, several ministers came out and explained with courage.

They all came from the Xijing area and had benefited from Liu Zhenshan to some extent.

During festivals and holidays, she received many gifts from Liu Zhenshan, and could be considered his "protective umbrella" in Beijing!

Once the blame is really put on them and Li Chengfeng conducts a thorough investigation, they will be in big trouble!

The rest of the court officials remained silent, looking at each other with indifference, as if the matter had nothing to do with them.

The King of Pingxi commands a large army and is known as the "King of One Word." If a real fight breaks out, it's hard to say who will be the winner!

"In this case, I am ignorant."

Li Chengfeng narrowed his eyes slightly, glanced at the court officials, and spoke in an inexplicable tone.

"Forget it. I'll let you think about it carefully for a few days and discuss it another day!"

Afterwards, he dealt with a few minor matters that did not matter to him, and then announced his retirement early.

...

Half an incense stick later, we arrived at the residence of the Left Prime Minister.

"His Majesty?"

Song Zelin, who was handling household chores in the main hall, suddenly changed his expression. After seeing who was coming, he quickly stood up.

In the main hall, Song Zelin ordered the servants to serve hot tea and dismissed the attendants.

When they were the only three left in the room, Song Zelin spoke, "Your Majesty, did everything go smoothly on your trip to Xijing?"

Li Chengfeng picked up the teacup and blew gently on the floating tea leaves, but did not drink it. Instead, he put the teacup back on the table with a slight sound.

"My trip to Xijing this time can be said to have yielded a great harvest."

He paused and continued, "Prime Minister, do you know what the people of Xijing are like now?"

Upon hearing this, Song Zelin knew that what Li Chengfeng saw during this inspection was the suffering of the people.

But before he could respond, Li Chengfeng told Song Zelin everything he saw and heard during his trip to Xijing.

From the empty grain bags in the hands of the people, to the officers and soldiers showing off their military power, to the extravagant scene in the Prince of Pingxi's Palace, and the staggering taxes.

"One stone per person! This is simply appalling! This Liu Zhenshan really thinks my kingdom is his own little piece of land!"

Li Chengfeng slammed his palm on the table, causing the water in the teacup to splash out.

"Your Majesty, calm down."

Seeing this, Song Zelin hurriedly advised, "The Prince of Pingxi has his own army and is far away from the capital. It will not be easy to move him."

"I have made up my mind. This scourge must be eradicated as soon as possible!"

Song Zelin sighed and explained the reason: "Your Majesty, you have just ascended the throne, and your foundation is not yet stable."

"Although the Prince of Pingxi is far away in Xijing, he has many spies in the court. If we are not careful, we will alert the enemy. This old minister is worried..."

He paused, pondered, and then spoke again: "If we force him to rebel, we might not be able to react in time."

Li Chengfeng did not take up the conversation.

Seeing that the atmosphere was a little tense, Song Yuwei said, "Dad, do you remember the Xijing Poetry Festival a few days ago?"

Only after hearing his daughter mention it did Song Zelin remember to ask.

"Of course I remember, but what happened?"

"Your Majesty wrote a poem at the poetry gathering that surpassed all the others. Even the young master of the Sima family was so overwhelmed by your majesty that he couldn't even raise his head."

Song Zelin didn't understand why his daughter suddenly brought up the poetry meeting, so he pressed on, "What poem is it?"

Song Yuwei then recounted in detail what happened at the poetry gathering, including how Li Chengfeng cleverly dealt with Sima Xin's difficulties and the magnificent poem.

"When autumn comes and September th, I will kill the flowers after they bloom."

Song Zelin repeated these two lines of poetry over and over again, and felt a surge of blood in his heart.

What a courage!

This is not just a poem, it is also an emperor's declaration. This is the true demeanor of an emperor!

He felt a spontaneous admiration for Li Chengfeng, stood up excitedly, and bowed deeply to Li Chengfeng.

"Your Majesty is wise! I, an old minister... had no idea of ​​your great ambitions! I am willing to serve you with all my heart, eradicate the treacherous and corrupt, and restore order to the world!"

Li Chengfeng hurriedly helped him up and sighed, "Prime Minister, you must not do this. I ascended the throne at a young age, and the situation at court is complicated. I am grateful for your dedicated assistance."

"But now that the threat to Xijing has been dealt with, I have made up my mind. There is no need for you, Prime Minister, to persuade me. I know what to do."

Hearing this, Song Zelin didn't say much, and only mentioned another matter to Li Chengfeng: "Your Majesty, a few days ago, an official from Xijing came to the capital, saying that he wanted to impeach Liu Zhenshan, the King of Pingxi. I wonder if Your Majesty is aware of this matter?"

Li Chengfeng asked Song Zelin to sit down. Upon hearing this, he suddenly looked up and asked, "Impeach Liu Zhenshan?"

"Exactly. This man's name is Zhang Chong, and he's a magistrate in Xijing Prefecture."

"He brought a lot of evidence that Liu Zhenshan was corrupt and abused his power, exploiting the people."

Li Chengfeng's fingers tapped the tabletop lightly, making a rhythmic sound. "This is quite interesting. A magistrate of Xijing Prefecture actually dared to go beyond his authority and report and impeach a local vassal king. I want to see him."

"Your Majesty, Zhang Chong is unable to come to see you now. He has been..."

"How has it been?"

Li Chengfeng's tone suddenly turned cold. Could it be that he died in prison?

"He has been... has been taken to prison."

Song Zelin said, "At the morning court session, as soon as he produced the evidence, he was arrested on the spot by Prince Pingxi's followers on charges of 'falsely accusing an imperial official' and 'disrupting the government'."

False accusation? Disrupting the imperial court? The more Li Chengfeng listened, the more ridiculous it seemed.

"What a Liu Zhenshan! He has such a long arm! Does he even want to control my court?"

He stood up suddenly, his eyes sparkling in the candlelight.

"Let's go! I want to see for myself just how heinous this so-called 'false accusation' is!"

Song Zelin frowned, his worry evident: "Your Majesty, Liu Chong is currently being pushed to the forefront of public opinion. I am worried..."

"What are you worried about? Are you worried that Liu Zhenshan will send someone to assassinate you?"

A cold light flashed in the emperor's eyes: "If he really has the courage, I will reward him handsomely!"

Song Zelin knew that he couldn't persuade Li Chengfeng, so he had no choice but to follow behind him, praying secretly in his heart that nothing would go wrong on this trip to the Heavenly Prison.