Great Xia: At the start, summon the Net of Heaven to suppress the martial arts world.

Emperor Xia knew Xia Taige's temperament and knew that he would not act recklessly in this regard, so he immediately agreed!

"Approved. Do you have someone in mind for the next Chief of Staff?"

"Your Majesty, I have brought the candidate for the next Director of the Bureau. His name is Donghuang Taiyi, and he is waiting outside the palace to be summoned!"

Upon hearing this, Emperor Xia looked deeply at Xia Taige and slowly agreed.

Upon seeing that the Xia Emperor had agreed, Wei Yong, who was standing to the side, immediately shouted:

"Summon Emperor Taiyi of the Eastern Palace to an audience!"

As the greeting was given, a person dressed in a black robe and wearing a black mask slowly walked in from outside the door.

Calmly and composedly, he walked slowly forward under the gazes of the ministers and nodded to Xia Taige.

When Wei Yong saw Donghuang Taiyi on the stage, his body suddenly trembled inexplicably.

In an instant, Wei Yong seemed to see a great terror slowly approaching him.

At the same time, within the royal tomb, an old, cloudy pair of eyes opened and cast their gaze upon the main hall, seemingly ignoring the obstruction in between!

Donghuang Taiyi seemed to sense something, but ignored it!

On the stage, Emperor Xia noticed that Wei Yong was not in a good state and turned to look at Xia Taige.

Xia Taige gestured and quickly called out softly.

"Donghuang!"

Upon hearing this, Donghuang Taiyi slowly turned his gaze to Emperor Xia and nodded slightly in greeting.

"Donghuang Taiyi greets the Emperor of Great Xia!"

On the stage, Emperor Xia seemed to realize that Donghuang Taiyi was different from others, but he didn't argue with him. He simply frowned, nodded, and then spoke:

"Since the Crown Prince has given such a strong recommendation, the position of Director of the Zhenwu Division will be handed over to you in the future!"

"I hope that Your Excellency will provide good assistance to the Crown Prince in the future!"

The ministers and princes below the stage were all incredulous at the sight of this absurd scene!

It's rather absurd to hand over a substantive position of the third rank to someone you've never even met!

It's not just this one thing; everything that happened today feels like a dream!

It is even more absurd that a position of such importance to the nation's foundation could be so easily established, with ceremonies and sacrifices canceled!

Such a bizarre scene left those in the hall bewildered and unwilling to step forward, so the entire hall fell eerily silent!

Donghuang Taiyi nodded and replied calmly, "I hope the Emperor of Great Xia can rest assured, it is simply my duty!"

With the appointment of the head of the Zhenwu Division, the morning court session resumed as usual!

Throughout the morning court session, Xia Taige, though somewhat confused, managed to endure it in a daze until the session ended!

After the court session, as soon as I stepped out of the main gate of the Qin Zheng Hall, I saw a palace maid approaching.

"Your Highness, the Empress has summoned you!"

Upon hearing this, Xia Taige gestured for Donghuang Taiyi to leave first, and then followed the palace maid to Yong'an Palace alone.

As soon as Xia Taige stepped into Yong'an Palace, she saw Yan Shi flipping through a book in her hands, nodding and shaking her head from time to time!

Upon seeing this, Xia Taige bowed and greeted him.

"Your subject greets Your Majesty!"

"Get up! Go forward and see if there's anyone you like!"

Xia Taige looked puzzled, but still stepped forward to take a look!

The entire book was filled with pictures of beautiful women, each with their family background and origins explained in the accompanying notes!

"Mother, what is this?" Xia Taige asked cautiously.

"I'm choosing a crown princess for you, isn't that obvious enough?"

Yan didn't even look up, and gave a casual reply.

"Princess?"

"Mother, aren't we being a little too hasty?"

Xia Taige was surprised. He had just been made crown prince a few hours ago, and now he was going to choose a consort?

"This is your father's decree. After discussing it with you yesterday, he came to me to discuss the matter of you taking a concubine!"

"Once the Crown Princess is chosen, you can settle down and won't have to go to brothels and entertainment venues all the time!"

As she spoke, Yan glared at Xia Taige.

Clearly, they were already dissatisfied with Xia Taige's constant visits to brothels and other such places!

Helpless, Xia Taige could only respond with an awkward smile:

"Please, Your Majesty, make all the decisions."

Xia Taige had no resistance to the selection of concubines and did not utter any foolish words about freedom of marriage!

The books that appear in the hands of the Yan family must be daughters of noble families.

They have a certain guarantee in terms of knowledge, intelligence, and upbringing.

Unlike in her previous life when Xia Taige watched TV dramas and felt that women were different because of their fearless character, she married a peasant woman, which completely refreshed Xia Taige's worldview!

It's not that farm girls are bad, it's just that the two women's social statuses are worlds apart.

They won't even be able to have a conversation in the future, so there's no need to say more about their character, intelligence, and upbringing.

How can we get along in the long run when we have different values?

"Since you've let the Empress Dowager make the decision, you'll have to bear the consequences yourself if you're dissatisfied later, understand?"

"With Mother's discerning eye, how could I possibly be dissatisfied!" Xia Taige said obsequiously to Lady Yan.

How about this one?

"Lin Ying, the granddaughter of the Prime Minister, is as beautiful as a flower, upright and proper, and possesses both beauty and talent. What do you think?"

As for the Crown Princess, Lady Yan already had someone in mind.

First and foremost, it is certain that the four great families have been excluded from involvement, as have those who were disloyal to the royal family.

After eliminating a series of options, and looking at them all, the granddaughter of Grand Secretary Lin Dongshi is still the most suitable!

Lin Dongshi is now the head of the civil service, yet he is not power-hungry, understands the times, and has no connection with the four major families or powerful clans, making him the most suitable candidate!

"Your Majesty, please make the decision. There is no need to ask for my opinion!" Xia Taige's eyes lit up when he saw Lin Ying's portrait, and he was satisfied!

"In that case, I will choose one for you. This afternoon, I will send someone to summon him to the palace so that I can have a good look at him!"

After Yan made her decision, she looked up at Xia Taige, who was staring intently at her.

Only when Xia Taige felt a chill run down his spine did he finally speak:

"Now that you have distinguished yourself and become the Crown Prince, the matter of vying for the throne should be put aside for now!"

"Your older brother is bound to feel a little disappointed. You should be careful when you see him in the future."

"You and your elder brother are both the apple of your mother's eye. Your mother does not want to see you two brothers kill each other!"

"Now that the situation is settled, your mother will later suggest to your father that your eldest brother go to his fiefdom and leave the capital!"

Xia Taige was both amused and exasperated upon hearing this, but seeing how solemn Yan was, he also straightened up and promised Yan:

"Please rest assured, Mother, I hold no grudge against my elder brother whatsoever!"

"Your son's becoming the Crown Prince today is simply the result of a joint decision between your son and your father."

"My eldest brother and the others are destined to have no chance of becoming the crown prince. I have never regarded my many brothers as rivals. They have never been my rivals!"

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will never harm my brothers in order to consolidate my position as emperor!"

"Therefore, there's no need to banish my elder brother from the capital and send him to his fiefdom to suffer, nor to make Mother suffer the pain of unrequited love. It's alright!"

Xia Taige gently comforted Yan Shi and made a solemn promise to her.