I, the military god of the Tang Dynasty, have risen since I destroyed the Turks

Chapter 759 Power Struggle, Political Layout
In the imperial study, the scent of agarwood wafts through the air.

Li Zheng slammed the memorial on the table, making the teacup clink. The memorial was densely signed by dozens of aristocratic families, and the content directly pointed out that the new policies he promoted "disrupted the ancestral system and brought disaster to the country and the people."

"What a 'joint petition'!" Li Zheng sneered, his eyes flashing coldly, "This is to force the emperor to abdicate!"

Hou Junji, the Minister of War, stood at the bottom, beads of sweat oozing from his forehead. He had followed Li Zheng for many years, but he had never seen this gentle emperor show such an expression. His usually elegant and handsome face now showed a frightening and fierce look.

"Your Majesty, calm down." Hou Junji considered his words carefully. "The power of the aristocratic families is intertwined. More than half of the officials in the court are related to them by marriage. If we confront them head-on..."

"What if we fight head-on?" Li Zheng stood up suddenly, and the cuffs of his dragon robe swept across the table, knocking over an inkstone. Ink splashed on the memorials, staining the names of those aristocratic families.

Shang Kexi, the Minister of Finance, saw this and quickly stepped forward to advise: "Your Majesty, please think twice! These noble families control nearly half of the land in the country and control the grain transport, salt and iron. If they unite to resist the new policy, I am afraid..."

"What are you afraid of?" Li Zheng interrupted him, his voice as cold as ice, "Are you afraid that my throne will be unstable?"

Shang Kexi was so choked that he couldn't speak. He could only lower his head and take a step back.

Li Zheng walked around the table and went to the window. Outside the window was a series of palaces, and further away was the bustling streets of the capital. The setting sun dyed the entire imperial city bloody.

"Do you know?" Li Zheng suddenly spoke in a low voice, "I had a dream last night. I dreamed that my prince was surrounded by a group of jackals. Those jackals had human faces and were dressed in the clothes of aristocratic families. They smiled and said they wanted to teach the prince 'the way of being a king'"

He turned around, his eyes flashing dangerously: "Then, they broke the prince's fingers one by one in front of me!"

Hou Junji and Shang Kexi took a breath of cold air at the same time.

"Your Majesty, this is just a dream," Hou Junji tried to comfort.

"No!" Li Zheng said sternly, "This is not a dream, this is a warning! Those aristocratic families want to control my kingdom and manipulate my children! Do they think I will tolerate them like the last emperor did?"

He slammed the window frame so hard that it made a buzzing sound. "I will let all the scholars in the world know that I am not afraid of the aristocratic families!"

Shang Kexi said worriedly: "Your Majesty, those noble families are intertwined. If you want to touch them, I'm afraid you will anger the entire noble family group."

"Hahaha!" Li Zheng suddenly laughed out loud, but there was no joy in his laughter, only a piercing chill. "I don't want to cause trouble, but if someone bullies me, even if it's the king of heaven, I will beat him to pieces with one punch!"

He walked back to the table, grabbed the memorial stained with ink, and threw it hard on the ground: "My children are all my children. Whoever dares to harm them, I will kill him!"

Hou Junji and Shang Kexi were shocked by this sudden outburst. They had never seen Li Zheng lose his composure like this, and had never heard him say such harsh words.

Li Zheng took a deep breath and calmed down a little, but the fierceness in his eyes did not diminish: "Those noble families want to force me? But I just won't give in! Just watch, I want them to kneel at my feet and beg for mercy!"

A burst of hurried footsteps came from outside the palace, interrupting Li Zheng's words. The eunuch chief Wang Deshun ran in in a panic and knelt on the ground: "Your Majesty, it's bad! The heads of the seven major families, including the Cui family, the Lu family, and the Zheng family, and dozens of officials are kneeling outside the Qianqing Gate, demanding to see Your Majesty!"

Hou Junji's face changed drastically: "They are trying to force me to abdicate!"

Li Zheng smiled, and that smile was so cold that it made people feel scared: "You came just in time. It saves me from having to look for them one by one." He straightened his dragon robe, "Pass the order, tomorrow morning, I want to personally meet these 'loyal ministers and generals'!"

Wang Deshun raised his head and asked cautiously, "Your Majesty, what about today..."

"Today?" Li Zheng narrowed his eyes, "Tell them that I am not feeling well and ask them to kneel down and wait!" After Wang Deshun left, Li Zheng turned to the two trusted ministers: "Hou Qing, immediately mobilize the imperial guards to strengthen the guard of the imperial city, especially the residences of the prince and princess. Shang Qing, you prepare a list overnight and list all the officials in the court who have close ties with the aristocratic families."

"Your Majesty, what do you want?" Hou Junji asked tentatively.

Li Zheng's eyes flashed with coldness: "I want to see how many people in this court are loyal to me, and how many are running dogs of the aristocratic families!"

As night fell, Li Zheng stood alone on the high platform of the Qianqing Palace, looking down at the representatives of the noble families who were still kneeling outside the palace gate in the distance. The night wind blew his dragon robe, making a rustling sound.

"Your Majesty, it's late at night and the dew is heavy. Please take care of yourself." A gentle female voice came from behind. Li Zheng turned around and saw Queen Su Wanqing walking towards him in a cloak.

Li Zheng's expression eased a little: "Why is the Queen here?"

Su Wanqing walked up to him and followed his gaze toward the palace gate: "I heard that your majesty was very angry today, and I am worried that your majesty has become ill from anger."

Li Zheng sighed and held the Queen's hand: "I am not angry, I am heartbroken. These aristocratic families eat the emperor's salary but are not loyal to him. Which of the new policies I have implemented is not for the people of the world? But they only care about their own interests!"

Su Wanqing said softly: "Your Majesty has wanted to eliminate the aristocratic families for a long time, but this matter needs to be done slowly and not too hastily."

"Slowly?" Li Zheng shook his head. "I don't have time anymore. Their joint petition this time is ostensibly to oppose the new policy, but in reality it is to test my bottom line. If I take one step back, they will take ten steps forward! In the end, I, the emperor, will become their puppet!"

He pointed at the vaguely visible figures outside the palace gate and said, "Look, they dare to kneel outside the palace gate to put pressure on me now. Tomorrow they will dare to force me to abolish the new policy in the court! What about the day after tomorrow? Will they force me to abolish the crown prince?"

Su Wanqing's face turned pale: "How dare they!"

"Of course they dare!" Li Zheng sneered, "Didn't they successfully depose a crown prince when the previous emperor was alive?"

Su Wanqing tightly grasped Li Zheng's arm: "Then our child..."

Li Zheng held the queen in his arms and said firmly, "Don't worry, with me here, no one can touch our child. I want to let those noble families know that the people in this world are named Li, not Cui, Lu, or Zheng!"

The next morning, bells and drums rang, and all officials entered the court.

Li Zheng sat on the dragon chair, looking expressionlessly at the court officials who filed in. He noticed that the atmosphere in the court was particularly solemn today, and the officials gathered in twos and threes to talk in low voices, and only hurried back to their seats when they saw him coming.

"If you have something to report, come and present it. If you don't, leave the court!" the eunuch in charge of ceremonies sang loudly.

As soon as he finished speaking, an old minister in a purple robe and jade belt strode out. It was Cui Yan, the head of the Cui family, the current Minister of Rites and the leader of the aristocratic family group.

"I have a report to make!" Cui Yan's voice was loud and resonant in the hall.

A hint of coldness flashed in Li Zheng's eyes, but his expression remained calm: "My dear Cui, please speak."

Cui Yan held up a memorial and said loudly: "Since your majesty ascended the throne, you have implemented new policies and reformed the old system. Although your intentions were good, you acted too hastily, causing unrest in the world. Now, thirty-six noble families have jointly submitted a memorial, begging your majesty to suspend the new policies to calm the people!"

There was an uproar in the hall.

(End of this chapter)