The Return of the King: A Generation of Prodigies

The court officials who were threatened in public by the emperor were now as quiet as quails, and they had long lost the arrogance they had in front of Shen Tianjiao in the past.

After all, these court officials knew very well what kind of person their emperor was.

Shen Tianjiao is ruthless in her actions, but she only punishes those who have committed serious mistakes and deserve to be punished.

But Li Rui is different. He has never had any principles in doing things and always acts according to his mood at the time.

Shen Tianjiao is just cruel and ruthless, but Li Rui is truly ruthless. If he wants that person to die, then it cannot be just that person who will die, but a whole family or even a whole clan.

Li Rui looked down at the crowd with a sneer on his face. These court officials always bully the weak and fear the strong. If you are easy to talk to, they will try their best to make you unhappy, but if you are not easy to talk to, they will keep their tails between their legs.

"My health still needs to recuperate for a while. During this time, the Empress will act as regent for me. Her words are my words, and her intentions are my intentions. Do you understand, my ministers?"

"Your Highness, I understand. We will obey His Majesty's orders and spare no effort to ensure the eternal survival of the Yunli Kingdom and assist the Empress in handling state affairs."

The one who spoke was Wang Yunzhi. It must be said that this scholar has a good mouth, especially since he is a scholar who knows the current affairs and is a hero.

Prime Minister Wang has already taken the lead in expressing his attitude and loyalty, so who else would dare to go against the times and sing a different tune at this time?

Seeing that the court officials had behaved themselves, Li Rui began to get back to the point.

"I came to Zhenghe Palace today for no other reason than to appoint a crown prince."

As soon as Li Rui said this, the court, which had been quiet just a moment ago, suddenly exploded like a firecracker.

The court officials did not dare to speak loudly, but began to whisper with the people nearby.

The court officials had just seen that Li Rui was in good spirits and thought that he was really unwell and would be fine after resting for a while. Now, they suddenly heard him say that he wanted to appoint a crown prince, which made them start to speculate again.

Li Rui looked at these court officials coldly. These people usually did their best to flatter him, but once something happened to him, these people would be the first to plot against him for their own interests.

"Alright, stop talking. If you have anything to say, just say it openly. There's no need to whisper to each other."

As soon as Li Rui said this, the chattering court officials immediately shut up and dared not say anything more. After all, this Zhenghe Hall had just experienced a bloody massacre a few days ago. Although it had been cleaned up, a faint smell of blood could still be smelled.

Moreover, at least one-third of the family members or clansmen of these court officials died in that bloody massacre.

If they are not honest now, they will inevitably end up like those people.

"What? You won't say anything anymore?" Li Rui looked at the court officials who were keeping their heads down and pretending to be silent. "Then if you won't say anything, then I will. Listen carefully to me."

"I only have a minor illness. I'll be fine after a period of recuperation. I shouldn't die within ten years. I'm sorry to disappoint some of you."

"The reason I'm proposing a crown prince today isn't a whim, nor is it because I'm dying and need to quickly choose an heir to replace me as emperor."

"I made this decision today after careful consideration and after discussing it with the Queen."

"No matter how my health is now, the crown prince will be appointed sooner or later. It is better to appoint him sooner rather than later, so as to prevent some people from plotting to rebel against my authority and covet my throne."

After hearing Li Rui's words, the court officials who had been a little frightened just now felt much more at ease.

Wasn't the bloody massacre that took place in Zhenghe Hall a few days ago because Prince Qing Li Hong had evil intentions and joined forces with some aristocratic families to rebel?

Moreover, the cause of this incident was that Prince Qing Li Hong sent people to assassinate the eldest prince in the street but failed.

It was not surprising that the emperor proposed to establish a crown prince at this time. Perhaps he was stimulated by these two things and wanted to establish a crown prince as soon as possible to reassure the people and prevent some people from following Li Hong's example and rebelling.

"I came to Zhenghe Hall today just to inform you that I am going to appoint a crown prince. Listen carefully, this is a notification, not to seek your opinion."

"Li Muyang, the eldest son of the Queen and I, is exceptionally intelligent and gentle. He is also our only son, so today I will appoint him as the Crown Prince and heir apparent to the Yunli Kingdom."

Li Rui's order, which he issued without consulting any ministers or royal relatives, really shocked everyone again. However, their emperor has always been so arrogant and willful. Although they were shocked, they could accept it.

"Your Majesty, is this decision too hasty?" The speaker was Prince Cheng Li Ji.

Li Rui looked up at Li Ji and asked in a murderous tone, "Why does Prince Cheng have any objections?"

Shen Tianjiao also looked up at Li Ji. In his previous life, he was Li Chen, the son of Prince Chengqin Li Ji. After Li Rui's death, he was enthroned as king and became the next emperor of Yunli Kingdom.

So now Shen Tianjiao has enough reasons to suspect that this Li Ji may very well be the next Li Hong.

It seems that she must make preparations in advance, be prepared for any changes, and be on guard against this Prince Cheng.

"I don't have any objections, but appointing a crown prince is a major matter. Isn't it a bit hasty for Your Majesty to make the decision on his own without consulting with the court officials and relatives?"

Although Li Ji lowered his head, his voice was quite powerful. If you didn't see that he lowered his head and only listened to his voice, you would have thought he was Li Rui's biological father.

"Discuss? Humph! What is there to discuss?" Li Rui had long disliked his uncle. This uncle was even worse than Li Hong in pretending to be a pig and eating the tiger.

Li Rui knew very well what Li Ji was planning. This old fox was about to hit him in the face, but he would never let this old fox succeed.

Li Rui has a wife and a son. Unless he was kicked in the head by a donkey, why would he not make his own son the crown prince and let someone else's child sit on the throne?

He was dying, but he wanted to take this annoying old man with him to the underworld.

"Li Muyang is the eldest son of the Queen and me. I would like to ask Prince Cheng, besides him, who else in this world is qualified to be appointed as the Crown Prince and become the heir to the throne?"

"Is it your son, your grandson, or you, Prince Cheng?"

"How did Li Hong die? Doesn't Prince Cheng know? What? Does Prince Cheng want to follow in his footsteps?"

Li Ji broke out in a cold sweat after being shocked by Li Rui's words. He had hidden himself much better than Li Hong over the years. Did Li Rui mean that he had discovered his ambition?

He saw with his own eyes how miserable Li Hong's death was, and he didn't want to follow in his footsteps and end up with his head and body separated.

"I have absolutely no such intention. Your Majesty, I have always been a responsible official and have never overstepped the boundaries."

"What I said just now was not to say that the eldest prince was not qualified to be appointed as the crown prince, but I felt that such a decision was too hasty."

"After all, the matter of appointing a crown prince is both a family matter and a state matter, so it's better to be cautious."

Li Ji was kneeling on the ground, sweating profusely. He really wanted to slap himself a few times. The first bird to stick its head out gets shot. He had been cautious all his life, so why couldn't he hold back this time?

"Haste? Humph! How is it hasty?" If looks could kill, Li Ji would most likely have been chopped into pieces by now.

"I appoint my own son as the Crown Prince. This is a matter of course. Who else do I need to discuss this with?"

"I have the final say in my family affairs, but this matter is indeed a matter of state."

Li Rui's expression changed, and his eyes swept across the faces of the court officials in front of him one by one, and finally stopped on Wang Yunzhi.

"Then I would like to ask you all, does the eldest son of the Queen and I qualify to be crowned Crown Prince?"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince is welcome." It was Prime Minister Wang who was the first to kneel down and speak before all the other court officials.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince." As soon as Wang Yunzhi said this, all the court officials responded by kneeling down and speaking.

The actions of these court officials at this time have already shown that they recognize Li Muyang's identity as the crown prince, and no one can question the legitimacy of Li Muyang's identity in the future.

Li Muyang is the prince, the heir apparent, and the future king of Yunli Kingdom.

With the respectful welcome of the court officials, Li Muyang was led into the Zhenghe Hall by Zhou Dehai.

Seeing Li Muyang coming in, the eunuch quickly read out the imperial edict of enthronement.

After the imperial edict was read, Li Muyang calmly kowtowed to his father like a little adult to express his gratitude.

"Your Majesty, I accept your command and thank you. Your Majesty, I wish you the best of luck and happiness for your father and mother, for generations to come."

Looking at her calm and polite son, not only Shen Tianjiao felt comforted, but Li Rui also felt comforted.

Yun Li's kingdom finally has a successor, and now he can finally face his ancestors.

"My son, please stand up. From now on, you will be the crown prince of Yunli. You should work hard, be self-disciplined, set an example for the world, and protect the people of the world. Let Yunli enjoy peace and prosperity."

At this moment, Li Rui liked Li Muyang more and more no matter how he looked at him.

"Your Majesty, I will faithfully follow your father's teachings and abide by my own conduct. I will carry forward Yunli's prosperity, ensuring the people live and work in peace and contentment, and I will eliminate powerful enemies abroad, ensuring that the surrounding nations dare not disturb the peace of Yunli."

Since he came in until now, Li Muyang has always maintained his composure, and everything he says and does is in a proper and methodical manner.

Especially what he said in reply to Li Rui just now made most of the court officials look at him with admiration. Their initial contempt turned into awe, and they dared not underestimate Li Muyang anymore.

Li Rui was quite satisfied with Li Muyang's performance. "Well, I am very pleased that my son has such a determination."

"Come, come to your father and mother." Li Rui waved to Li Muyang and asked him to come to him.

Li Muyang stood up and walked to Li Rui and Shen Tianjiao. When he saw Shen Tianjiao, he looked up and smiled. Shen Tianjiao also nodded slightly at him.

Li Rui pulled Li Muyang over and asked him to sit next to him. The court officials below showed even more respect to Li Muyang when they saw him.

After all, none of them had ever seen the prince sitting on the dragon throne with the emperor.

"Now that the crown prince has been appointed, I hope that all the nobles will work together to assist the crown prince and ensure that our Yunli kingdom will remain prosperous and peaceful forever."

Li Rui held Li Muyang's little hand. Everything he did today was to establish authority for his son. The more he elevated Li Muyang's status, the more cautious those court officials would be and the less they would dare to look down on Li Muyang.

"We, the ministers, shall do our utmost to assist His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

The court officials answered in unison, echoing throughout the Zhenghe Hall.

After accepting the congratulations from the court officials, Li Rui turned to look at Li Ji and said with a look of surprise, "As for you, Prince Cheng, you have disrespected the emperor's majesty and shown disrespect to the crown prince. You should have your property confiscated and be exiled."

"However, I, considering the ties of kinship, have pardoned the crime of confiscation of property and exile. Although the death penalty may be pardoned, the punishment of life imprisonment cannot be avoided."

"Uncle Cheng is old now. You should spend your remaining years in the Chengqin Palace. When you have nothing to do, read more and cultivate your character. Don't come out and disturb people."

"As for Uncle Cheng's sons and his adult grandsons, it is time for them to serve their country faithfully. Effective immediately, they will be assigned to serve as officials in other provinces by the Ministry of Personnel."

Li Ji's eyes went dark and he almost fainted. He really didn't expect Li Rui's revenge to come so quickly. He hadn't even left the door of Zhenghe Hall, and the revenge came.

But at this moment, Li Ji could do nothing and say nothing except to express his gratitude. If he dared to say anything more, he might not even be able to leave the gate of Zhenghe Hall.

"I, your Majesty, thank you for your grace, old minister." God knows how Li Ji gritted his teeth and said such insincere words.

Li Rui was quite satisfied with Li Ji's performance. Dealing with Li Ji would not be a matter of one day or one night, and it would take time and effort.

The court officials were even more uneasy about Li Rui's punishment than Li Ji.

In just a short period of time, Li Ji went from being a prince holding real power to a useless person under house arrest. Not only that, even his children and grandchildren were implicated. This really shows how unpredictable life is.

This made many court officials think of the rumors about Li Hong and Concubine Feng.

That was originally a secret of the royal family, but now it seems to be true. The second prince Li Minghua is not the emperor's biological son, but the rebellious son of Li Hong and Concubine Feng.

The emperor already had few offspring, and now with Li Minghua gone, the only one left is Li Muyang, who has become His Royal Highness the Crown Prince today.

It is no wonder that the emperor was so anxious to appoint Li Muyang as the crown prince and doted on him so much. After all, he was the emperor's only son and his status was unmatched.

Of course, Li Rui had no idea what these court officials were thinking at this time. If he knew, he would probably be so angry that he would vomit blood.