At the tender age of eight, he was hastily dragged out and made emperor!

Night came silently.

Daxing Hall.

"Your Majesty, sending Han Qing to quell the rebellion, is that perhaps not a good idea?" Li Zhong held a teacup and offered it to Chu Ling, but after a moment's hesitation, he still voiced his concerns, remembering the events of the day at the Grand Court.

"How is it bad?"

Chu Ling did not take it, but gestured for Li Zhong to put it down, and asked with a smile, "This matter has been decided after three rounds of deliberation, and the ministers have seconded it. What are your thoughts?"

Given the established rebellion of the princes and the many things involved behind it, ordering Qi Sheng to lead a team to investigate, ordering Li Ying to patrol the border by imperial decree, and ordering Han Qing to begin suppressing the rebellion were undoubtedly the best choices. This was a decision made after weighing the pros and cons of all parties.

Because of this series of changes, Li Ying, who should have been observing mourning, was granted an imperial edict to discontinue his mourning and inherit the title of Duke of Xun State ahead of schedule. Although his actual position is not yet clear, Li Ying's performance will be reflected in this once the border patrol matter is resolved.

As for the reactions of the civil and military officials in the court, they were not within the consideration of the three empresses and Chu Ling. As the leaders of a power, they should keep the helm in their own hands, rather than being swayed by their subordinates at the slightest disturbance. If that were the case, then who would really be in charge?

Those in positions of power must avoid indecisiveness and even more so, being unable to make up their minds when faced with a situation!

"With Han Qing gone, the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guards will inevitably be vacant."

Under Chu Ling's gaze, Li Zhong said solemnly, "Moreover, Xu Hui has also been transferred away from the Imperial Guard. Judging from the current situation, Marquis Chenyang has the best chance of taking over."

"Isn't this bad?"

Chu Ling maintained his smile and said, "Marquis Chenyang is capable and made great contributions in the Southern Frontier in his early years. Who would object to him taking command of the Imperial Guard in place of Han Qing?"

"And what about the other two?"

As Li Zhong spoke, he glanced at the palace gate and lowered his voice considerably: "Besides, with a rebellion of princes, who can guarantee that there are no spies in the Yu Palace?"

“Your Majesty, if it were any other matter, Marquis Chenyang taking over would be fine. There might be some turmoil, but overall things would be stable. However, Han Qing’s departure is to quell a rebellion. Even if you don’t think about anything else, those two might, including some people in the outer court. Who can guarantee that they won’t say anything else?”

I knew I hadn't misjudged him.

Chu Ling looked Li Zhong up and down, his face unchanged, but in his heart he felt a sense of emotion. What Li Zhong said was from his perspective.

As a group serving the emperor, the most important quality is not ability, but loyalty. If one lacks loyalty, no matter how outstanding one's abilities are, they are useless.

"I still have some concerns."

Li Zhong continued, "Once Han Qingzhen leads the army away from the capital to quell the rebellion, the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guards will be vacant, which will inevitably cause turmoil."

"Therefore, this matter needs to be resolved before Han Qing leaves."

Chu Ling leaned forward, his smile fading, and said, "The current chaos among the princes has been settled by me and the three empresses, but to settle it in the court and throughout the land, we must wait for Qi Sheng and the others to send urgent reports."

"During this period, Han Qing will continue to serve as the commander of the Imperial Guards, but he will be mainly responsible for suppressing rebellions. I'm afraid the three empresses will have concerns about this arrangement."

Ok?

Now Li Zhong was surprised and suspicious, realizing that all of this was part of the new emperor's plan.

"Marquis Chenyang is good, but he is not suitable for this position, and he should not even be in the Imperial Guard."

Chu Ling smiled slightly and said, "I have already decided on where Marquis Chenyang should go. The position of commander of the Shanglin Army is currently vacant. He should go there. If problems arise in the subsequent suppression of the rebellion, the court will not be in a passive position."

Over the past few days, Chu Ling has developed a great interest in Sun Bin. He is clearly a prodigy no less than Sun He, and in some aspects, his calm and reserved personality plays a more significant role than Sun He's.

Although the Sun family respected Sun Li, Sun Li was old, and no one knew how many years he would live. These words may be heartless, but reality is often just that cruel.

Once Sun Li takes office, what will become of the Sun family?

This is a real problem.

With this premise, some things can change.

From Chu Ling's perspective, his relationship with the Third Empress was actually closer to that of Sun Li. After all, he was Sun Li's grandson, regardless of whether he was born of the legitimate wife or not.

Emperor Taizong's only legitimate son died.

Emperor Xuanzong is now a thing of the past.

Currently, the legitimate Emperor Chu Ling is on the throne. Regardless of whether Chu Ling actually holds power, he is the Emperor of Great Yu. For major clans, when faced with crucial decisions, they will inevitably make investments; they cannot put all their eggs in one basket.

In the past, Chu Ling was too inconspicuous, so no one would easily place a bet on him.

But now?

Not the same.

Since Chu Lingyu ascended the throne, he has seized several opportunities and made outstanding performances without exception. So when faced with choices in some things, will people still continue to stick to their past ideas?

Won't! !

Especially when it comes to interests, they would be even less likely to do so.

After breaking the deadlock with the merit guards, Chu Ling is now looking to the nobility, and Sun Bin is undoubtedly the best candidate, because he is a member of the Sun family and the second master of the Sun family!

As for Chu Ling, he is Sun Li's grandson. Chu Ling has a blood relationship with the Sun family, even if it is distant.

"The position of Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guards..."

Li Zhong, recovering from his surprise, looked at Chu Ling and said.

"This matter still needs to be pushed forward."

Chu Ling leaned against the soft cushion and said to Li Zhong, "Have the Plum Blossom Guards move around and ignite the flames of the Princes' Rebellion in the Yu Palace for me. Be swift and decisive. You must carefully select the personnel and make sure no one finds out their tracks."

When are people's hearts most unsettled? When the situation is turbulent.

"I know that since my brother's passing, many people have probably died in the Yu Palace. But is the Yu Palace truly completely clean now?"

Of course, it's not clean yet.

Li Zhong thought to himself, "Money can still tempt people, let alone power. People will be even more eager to do it."

"I have been on this throne for quite some time now."

Chu Ling saw through Li Zhong's thoughts, but he did not point them out. "I understand a principle: any matter that involves too many people will inevitably lead to accidents. The reason is simple: too many people will have too many opinions, not to mention their thoughts."

"Therefore, the Yu Palace needs a truly new order, and so does the Imperial Guard!"

"What are these people of the Three Empresses, what are these people of mine? Let's take advantage of this upheaval and remove them all from the Imperial Guard, then hand over command of the Imperial Guard to loyal old ministers of the Great Yu!"

The opportunity has come, and Chu Ling must seize it.

The chaos among the princes presented Chu Ling with a rare opportunity.

He wants to break some shackles.

Since it is impossible to directly control the Imperial Guards, then it is possible to influence them indirectly. Compared to the Imperial Guards with their mixed factions, a clean Imperial Guards is of particular importance.

If this step can be accomplished, many things will change as a result.

At least the Yu Palace won't be like a sieve anymore!

"Give this letter to Xia Wang."

Chu Ling took out a letter from his pocket and handed it to Li Zhong, saying meaningfully, "I don't care what he wants to do, but if he doesn't do this, then he wants to bring down the Great Yu dynasty. If that happens, all the things he has done in the past as a servant of the imperial family will become the biggest joke."

"The slaves obey the order."

Li Zhong stepped forward and took it, but his heart was filled with ripples.

The awe was greater than before.

The new emperor before him was terrifying; his cunning was so profound that he was impossible to fathom. Yet, amidst his awe, Li Zhong was also deeply excited.

He made the right choice!

Although Li Zhong knew that the new emperor's order for Xia Wang to do something was bound to be dangerous, otherwise he would never have asked him to convey these words.

Seize power amidst the chaos?

In that instant, Li Zhong rejected the idea. If that were true, then the Great Yu Dynasty would be finished. In the current situation, no one is as effective as the three empresses, especially with the Empress Dowager in charge. Whether in the central government or in the local areas, the royal family can still keep many people in check.

If there had been no three empresses, especially no Grand Empress Dowager, then expect even greater chaos to ensue.

Gaining power should be done gradually; one should not seek power for the sake of gaining power.

If you don't consider anything, even if you manage to seize power through chaos, you will eventually lose it again under new chaos, and then you will have no chance to turn things around.

Xia Wang, I hope you are a smart person.

Watching Li Zhong's departing figure, Chu Ling narrowed his eyes slightly. What he wanted to accomplish was indeed risky, but if he succeeded, it would break some existing patterns, and he would be able to take advantage of the situation to do more.

If you hold power but have no trustworthy or capable people around you, it's useless. Therefore, some things must be done in advance.

There was no opportunity before, but now the opportunity has arrived!