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

It begins with an emblem and ends with the reign title.

These experiences alone gave Chu Ling a relatively clear understanding of the high-ranking civil officials in the central government of the Great Yu Dynasty.

These high-ranking civil servants are all seasoned politicians!

At least in their eyes, all he, the successor emperor, needed to do was live well. As for everything else, with the three empresses and the rest of the family around, the Great Yu would certainly not have any problems.

Perhaps because Chu Ling is young, or perhaps because he is a son of a concubine, if Chu Ling wants to secure his position as emperor, he must obey orders without question!

An emperor should do what an emperor should do; otherwise, what is the point of having ministers?

However, on the path of power, only one person is destined to hold the highest position; too many will cause trouble, especially since there are currently three in the Great Yu Dynasty.

"Your subject... Xu Chu, Left Chancellor of the Central Secretariat, pays respects to the succeeding Emperor!"

"Your subject... Wang Rui, Right Chancellor of the Central Secretariat, pays respects to the succeeding Emperor!"

"Your subject... the Grand Councilor of the Secretariat, Qi Shiqi, pays his respects to the succeeding Emperor!"

"Your subject... Yang Bin, Left Vice Minister of the Secretariat..."

"Your subject... Fang Zhe, Right Vice Minister of the Secretariat..."

"Your subject... Sun Miao, Attendant-in-Ordinary of the Secretariat..."

"Your subject... Cao Zhi, Attendant-in-Ordinary of the Secretariat..."

"Your subject... Xiao Jing, a Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate..."

Sitting on the throne, Chu Ling looked at the ministers of the Secretariat and the Chancellery bowing and paying their respects before the emperor, and immediately understood that the purpose of presenting the draft reign title for selection during this audience with the emperor was actually to let him know about the situation of the Secretariat and the Chancellery. They were probably afraid that something might go wrong during the enthronement ceremony.

Thinking about all this, Chu Ling pondered one question: Was this the intention of the Secretariat and the Chancellery, or the intention of the three empresses?

"The successor emperor."

Seeing that Chu Ling remained silent, Li Zhong glanced at the officials who were bowing and gently reminded Chu Ling.

"No gifts."

Chu Ling composed himself and reached out to Xu Chu and his group.

"Your humble servants kowtow in gratitude for Heaven's grace!"

Xu Chu and his entourage bowed again in unison.

This Xiao Jing is quite young, probably only in his thirties, yet he has already risen to the position of Attendant Gentleman of the Palace. He seems to be no ordinary person.

Looking at the group of ministers in front of him, Chu Ling was drawn to one person: Xiao Jing, a Gentleman Attendant of the Secretariat, who stood out conspicuously among the group of old men.

We need to find an opportunity to investigate Xiao Jing's background.

In that instant, Chu Ling made a decision. Being young is great, but with so many people above him keeping an eye on him and controlling him, no one would want to stay like this forever, right?

However, Chu Ling also knew that this matter could not be rushed and had to be done slowly. He was still too young at the moment, which was his disadvantage, but also his advantage!

Chu Ling was able to patiently wait for an opportunity.

If it doesn't work in one year, then try two.

If it doesn't work in two years, then three.

But what about the three mountains weighing on his head? Chu Ling is a year older, and they are a year older too; similarly, the same applies to the high-ranking civil and military officials in the outer court.

"Reporting to the succeeding emperor, the Secretariat has initially proposed the reign title, which has been reviewed and approved by the Chancellery. The memorial requesting the reign title is now presented to the emperor for selection."

While Chu Ling was pondering these things, Xu Chu stepped forward, picked up a memorial, and bowed to Chu Ling, saying, "The enthronement ceremony is imminent. The successor emperor must announce the new era name in order to stabilize the hearts of the people."

"Send it over."

Chu Ling said calmly.

"Here!"

Li Zhong, who was serving nearby, first bowed his head in response, and then quickly walked towards Xu Chu, preparing to forward the memorial to the emperor for his perusal.

But before Li Zhong could even reach him, Xu Chu spoke up again.

"This matter is of great importance. The succeeding emperor is young. We humbly request that the succeeding emperor grant permission to present this memorial to the three palaces for his perusal." As soon as Xu Chu finished speaking, Li Zhong stopped in his tracks, and the look in his eyes as he looked at Xu Chu changed.

At the same time, some of the people who came to pay their respects to the emperor, including Wang Rui and Qi Sheng, changed their expressions. Clearly, they were unaware of Xu Chu's actions beforehand.

There's something going on here.

Seeing the scene before him, Chu Ling was not angry at Xu Chu's actions. He observed the group of ministers behind Xu Chu, and his intuition told him that Xu Chu must have had a purpose in doing so.

Whom are they trying to test?

Testing me?

Or is it the third time?

No, Empress Dowager Xu Zhen is Xu Chu's daughter. Even if it was a test, it would probably be the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress being tested. So what was his purpose in doing this?

Could it be related to the fire at Daxing Hall?

Completely isolated from the outside world, Chu Ling had no idea what was happening outside the Daxing Palace, leaving him with no basis for his judgment.

"Prime Minister, what is the meaning of this?"

Xiao Jing frowned and looked at Xu Chu, saying, "The selection of an era name is a major matter. According to regulations, it must be presented to the Emperor. Even if the successor Emperor is young and the three empresses need to make a decision, at least the successor Emperor should be allowed to review it before any further discussion!"

"What Attendant Xiao said is quite right."

Xu Chu then said, "It was my oversight, Prime Minister." At this point, a scene that shocked everyone occurred.

"Your Majesty, I am old and senile, and I fear I am not up to the task."

Xu Chu then took out another memorial, bowed to Chu Ling, and said, "Just now I actually overstepped my bounds. The position of Left Chancellor of the Secretariat is extremely important. I am no longer able to fulfill this duty. Therefore, I hereby request permission from the Successor Emperor to resign. I humbly request the Successor Emperor's approval!"

After saying this, Xu Chu actually knelt down on the ground.

"Zuo Xiangguo!"

"The Left Prime Minister!"

This sudden turn of events caused all the officials in the hall to change their expressions slightly, including Xiao Jing, the Attendant Gentleman of the Palace who stood up to question Xu Chu.

What's going on here now?

Chu Ling, who was completely unaware of what was going on, knew that things were not as simple as they seemed when he saw the scene before him. His enthronement ceremony was about to take place, and now the Left Prime Minister of the Central Secretariat had resigned. What a huge uproar this would cause if it got out.

What was his purpose in doing this?

Chu Ling wouldn't be fooled by Xu Chu's rhetoric. The man before him was not only the Left Chancellor of the Secretariat, nor only the biological father of the current Empress Dowager, but more importantly, he was the only civil official in the Great Yu Dynasty to be granted the title of Duke!

This is a veteran official who has served three dynasties.

The one who was granted the title of Duke was Emperor Taizu Gao.

If Xu Chu is senile, then all these people in front of him must be idiots.

"Hmm... Li Zhong, what should I do about this?"

Under these circumstances, Chu Ling sneered inwardly, then looked at the astonished Li Zhong and asked, "Should I grant the Left Prime Minister's request to resign?"

"This servant girl~"

Li Zhong was even more alarmed now; how could he possibly interfere in such a matter?

"Your Majesty, this matter is of great importance and requires the decision of the three empresses."

At this moment, Xiao Jing, with a complicated expression, glanced at Xu Chu and then bowed to Chu Ling, saying, "I request that the successor emperor review the memorial regarding the reign title first."

"We will follow Xiao Qing's opinion."

Chu Ling smiled and looked at Xiao Jing, saying, "As for that memorial, I will not read it. Let the Empress Dowager read it first. I am tired. All of you may leave."

"The Heir Apparent!"

"Your Majesty, please leave!"

Sounds echoed throughout the hall, but for Chu Ling, he became increasingly curious about this Xiao Jing. It seemed that he valued the patriarchal system and etiquette, which might be a good thing for him.