Thief Emperor

Chapter 1024 The Prince’s Wedding
As the saying goes, if something is good at the top, it will be very bad at the bottom.

As long as the leader likes it, ordinary subordinates will not care about their own personal intentions; they will only flatter the leader, and the leader's liking is their own liking.

Over time, all the officials in the court will become the emperor's favorites.

The King of Chu favored slender waists, and many starved to death in the palace.

The emperor favored honest and upright officials, and before long, the robes of court officials were all patched up.

The emperor favors filial sons; before long, every official in the court might be lying on ice to catch carp.

This is the truth.

Once Emperor Li begins to use administrative power to support one group of people while suppressing another, even if the emperor says nothing, these people can quickly sense the political climate in the court and the emperor's likes and dislikes through some movements in the court.

Emperor Li rubbed his temples, looked up at Xu Ang, fell silent, and then said calmly, "In any case, the new learning must be promoted, but it must be integrated with the old learning. I do not necessarily want everyone to pursue merit or profit."

"But the imperial court must achieve results and pursue profits."

Emperor Li's expression was solemn: "For the court, even the smallest profits are enough to save countless lives."

Since ascending the throne, Li Yun has been reforming the court.

What he pursued was, in fact, the integration of new and old learning.

If the whole society is driven by self-interest, it is definitely not good. Over time, the whole society will become too indifferent.

Therefore, moral education in society and the administrative pursuits of the imperial court should be separated and not confused.

For Li Yun, it didn't matter much whether the learning in the court was new or old. What mattered was that he wanted to imprint the concepts of "practicality" or "being pragmatic" in the new dynasty's court and pass them down from generation to generation.

Governing a country requires a firm grasp of the essentials, and even more so, it requires more than empty talk and theoretical discussions.

Xu Ang bowed deeply to Li Yun and said, "I will follow Your Majesty for the rest of my life, even unto death."

Emperor Li stood up and returned the greeting with clasped hands: "Brother Ziwang, you have worked hard."

Xu Ang bowed once more, then carefully withdrew from the Ganlu Hall.

After he left, there was no one else in Ganlu Hall. Emperor Li sat on the soft couch, looking around. The hall was now empty.

He looked down and flipped through a document. After reading a few pages, he found it completely uninteresting. He looked around again, but still saw no one.

A sense of loneliness immediately welled up in my heart.

Emperor Li took several long breaths to catch his breath, then clenched his fists and gasped for air.

"Our dynasty has enjoyed a hundred or so years of prosperity since its founding, why offend people like this?"

"Why not blend in with the crowd and share peace with the court officials?"

Why go through all this trouble?

"The great cause is accomplished. We can live a carefree and happy life for several decades. In the future, we will still be recorded in history as a wise and virtuous ruler. Isn't that wonderful?"

One voice after another echoed in his mind, and upon closer listening, they were all his own.

Finally, a voice rang in his ears.

"If you keep offending people like this, you'll really be all alone."

"From now on, there won't even be anyone who calls you Erlang anymore."

Emperor Li suddenly turned around and looked behind him, only to find no one there.

He closed his eyes, and after a long while, he opened them again. His hands, hidden beneath his sleeves, clenched tightly as he murmured, "Something has to be done, something has to be done."

"Prove that I was here..."

As he spoke, Emperor Li looked up at the window, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

"If you block my way again, I'll kill you all..."

…………

The Crown Prince's wedding ceremony has finally begun.

It was a very lively day.

All the civil and military officials, including members of the imperial family and nobles, were present to celebrate this grand event.

This was also a day of great significance for the Tang Dynasty.

His Highness the Crown Prince's wedding signifies that this nascent dynasty now has an adult heir, meaning that even if Emperor Li were to suddenly pass away, this new dynasty could smoothly pass on its throne without much trouble.

The Emperor and Empress were also busy all day long. Only after the ceremony was completed did Li Yun return to Taiji Palace with the Empress. A banquet was held at Taiji Palace to entertain some important officials and nobles.

Among them were members of the royal family, including the King of Jin and the King of Chu.

Inside the Taiji Palace, Emperor Li held Empress Xue's hand, exchanged a few jokes, then pointed to the assembled officials and said with a smile, "It won't be long before Yun'er becomes a grandmother."

The two had been married for many years, and even in private, they mostly addressed each other as husband and wife. The title "Yun'er" had not been used for many years. When the Empress heard this, she looked up at Emperor Li and felt a little embarrassed.

"If I'm a grandmother, shouldn't my husband be a grandfather too?"

"You're about to become a grandfather, and you still don't act properly."

Li Yun smiled and was about to speak to her when the Empress ignored him and turned away, saying, "I'm going to have a banquet with those noblewomen. Your Majesty, please drink with them." With that, the Empress gracefully departed.

Emperor Li watched her retreating figure, first chuckled, then returned to his seat, looked at his relatives, brothers, and old ministers, raised his cup and said, "Today is a joyous occasion. We are all old acquaintances. Let us raise our cups."

"You won't come home until you're drunk!"

Since His Majesty the Emperor had spoken, no one dared to refuse. Before long, amidst the clinking of cups, everyone had drunk several large cups.

Many people had already drunk too much and were dizzy, lying under the table.

Emperor Li looked at the drunken crowd, grinned, and didn't bother with them. He simply picked up a pot of wine and walked out of the Taiji Palace.

A night breeze blew by, and Li Yun tilted his head back and took a swig, then looked up at the bright moon in the sky.

Seeing that he had drunk too much, the Prince of Chu, the Prince of Jin, and the Prince of Yue followed. The Prince of Jin nudged the Prince of Yue, who swallowed hard, carefully stepped forward, walked behind Li Yun, and whispered, "Father, are you alright?"

Li Yun was indeed seven or eight parts drunk at this moment. He glanced back at his son, then at his two brothers standing a little further away, and frowned deeply: "Why did you all follow me out?"

His Highness the King of Yue said with a wry smile, "Uncle King of Jin is afraid you've had too much to drink."

"So what if you drank too much?"

Emperor Li was very displeased and waved his hand, saying, "Go away, kid, go away."

"Don't spoil your father's drinking mood."

After saying that, he tilted his head back and took another sip of wine.

Although His Highness the Prince of Yue resembled Emperor Li and was usually quite impulsive, that was only in front of outsiders. In front of his father, especially after witnessing his father's martial prowess, he became as docile as a cat. Upon hearing this, he was startled and quickly ran back to the Prince of Jin and the Prince of Chu.

Prince Li Zheng of Jin and Prince Li Feng of Chu exchanged a glance. Prince Li Feng sighed and said, "You grew up with him since you were little. You may leave."

"Let him rest early, so he doesn't ruin his health by drinking too much."

Prince Jin had no choice but to step forward, walk to Li Yun's side, take his arm, and say, "Second Brother, you've had too much to drink."

"Let me help you to rest."

Li Yun had finished his pot of wine and tossed it aside. With blurry, drunken eyes, he looked at Li Zheng beside him and mumbled, "Skinny... Skinny monkey?"

He stammered, "You... what are you doing here?"

It had been so many years since anyone had addressed Prince Jin in that way. Prince Jin himself was stunned for a moment before he reacted and said with a wry smile, "My second brother's family is having a celebration today. Didn't you ask me to come here for the feast, second brother?"

Li Yun was too strong; Li Zheng couldn't support him at all, nor could he even interfere with his movements. Emperor Li held onto the railing with both hands, looking up at the bright moon in the sky: "I'm not drunk."

"You...you go home, no...don't worry about me."

Li Zheng had no choice but to follow Li Yun, holding onto the railing and looking up at the moon. He turned to Li Yun and asked, "Second Brother, you've already become Emperor, is there anything troubling you?"

"too much."

Li Yun exhaled a breath of alcohol and glanced at Li Zheng: "Too much."

He shook his head and said, "It's not as good as... not as enjoyable as before."

Prince Jin quickly tugged at his arm, signaling him to stop talking.

Seeing that Li Yun remained silent, Prince Jin smiled wryly and said, "Let's go, let's go. I'll help you to sleep. After a good night's rest, you'll feel better tomorrow."

"Ah."

Li Yun wasn't the type to cause trouble, so he nodded in agreement. However, Li Zheng was too weak to support him, and the two stumbled a few steps.

Prince Jin quickly turned around and waved. Prince Yue then ran forward and helped his father up.

Stumbling and staggering, they finally arrived at the imperial bedchamber. Emperor Li lay sprawled on the bed, still dazed with drunkenness, muttering, "Skinny monkey, skinny monkey..."

His Highness the King of Yue was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, not knowing what his father was talking about.

Prince Jin coughed and said, "Second Prince, you should go further away."

"Skinny monkey, you...you've gotten bold."

Before His Highness the Prince of Yue could answer, Emperor Li, lying on the bed with his eyes closed, uttered, "Second...Second Brother isn't calling anymore..."

"I'm not calling you Erlang."

Prince Jin gave a wry smile and quickly explained, stepping forward to ask, "Second Brother, what did you call me for?"

"Tomorrow, tomorrow."

"Jin..."

Emperor Li closed his eyes and managed to utter a complete sentence with great difficulty.

"Jin Zhuozhong was appointed as...the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works."

Prince Jin was stunned for a moment before taking Li Yun's hand and saying, "I understand, I understand."

He sighed.

"How did you get so drunk? And you're still thinking about these things?"

(End of this chapter)