The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 372 The Second Iron Law of the Crown Prince's Regentship
Emperor Qianxi claimed to be praying for peace and blessings, but he was fully aware of every little thing happening in the capital.

He did not stop Longkodo from requesting an audience.

However, when Longkodo met him, Emperor Qianxi was wearing a plain-colored Taoist robe, which gave people a feeling of being pure and detached from worldly desires.

Upon seeing Longkodo, Emperor Qianxi reprimanded him with a stern face: "Didn't I tell you long ago? If there's anything, go directly to the Crown Prince."

"You dare to disturb my prayers for the late emperor! Your audacity is outrageous! This is truly unforgivable!"

Upon hearing Emperor Qianxi's rebuke, Longkodo felt more at ease than afraid.

He knew this emperor too well—if Emperor Qianxi didn't like someone, he wouldn't even bother to speak.

Sometimes, they might even flatter you to death.

The more they scold you, the more they treat you like one of their own.

In this situation, if Emperor Qianxi hadn't intentionally let him in, he wouldn't even have been able to get in.

"Your Majesty, I did not wish to disturb you, but this matter is of great importance. I cannot rest easy without reporting to Your Majesty personally!"

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty, I was just being overly cautious."

Upon hearing Longkodo's words, Emperor Qianxi waved his hand, his tone softening somewhat: "Alright, don't try to outsmart me. Remember this, don't do it again."

At this point, he fell silent and looked directly at Longkodo.

The meaning is clear: what's the matter? Speak quickly.

Longkodo quickly replied, "Your Majesty, this servant has come to report on the matter of arresting the officials who beat Tian Wenjing to death."

"This matter is too complicated, and this servant dares not make a decision on his own."

"I also consulted the Crown Prince, and he said that everything should be done in accordance with the law!"

At this point, Longkodo hesitated for a moment and said, "This servant originally wanted to ask for a written edict, but the Crown Prince said that if there is a law, then we should follow the law and there is no need to do anything unnecessary."

Upon hearing the Crown Prince's actions, Emperor Qianxi's lips curled into a slight smile.

The Crown Prince did not give direct instructions, but instead said, "Act according to the law." From this point alone, Emperor Qianxi felt that the Crown Prince was wise in his handling of the matter and that he had made a good move.

If he were to interfere too much, he would prematurely put himself in the spotlight and lose his advantage of being able to attack or defend at any time.

"I have said that during my prayers, all matters outside must be handled according to the Crown Prince's will."

"Longkodo, do you remember this?"

Upon hearing Emperor Qianxi's words, Longkodo quickly replied, "This servant will remember."

He said this, but in his heart he was determined: not a single thing that needed to be reported to Emperor Qianxi could be omitted!
Just as he was about to take his leave, Liang Jiugong walked in carrying a memorial.

He glanced at Longkodo, then respectfully presented the memorial in his hand to Emperor Qianxi, saying, "Your Majesty, please read it."

When Emperor Qianxi took it, he found it was a memorial sent by the Crown Prince.

This is exactly what Longkodo just reported.

Emperor Qianxi couldn't help but smile slightly—

The fact that the Crown Prince reported this so quickly shows that this rebellious son hasn't become arrogant and still cares about his father.

After a moment's thought, he waved to Longkodo and said, "You may leave."

"In the future, if there is an emergency and you don't have time to report to me, then listen to the Crown Prince."

Upon hearing this, Longkodo was startled.

As Emperor Qianxi's confidant and cousin, he understood all too well the weight of Emperor Qianxi's words.

This is enough to show that Emperor Qianxi had genuine trust in the Crown Prince.

He didn't dare say anything more and hurriedly left.

Just as I stepped out of the hot spring palace, a group of people came towards me.

Longkodo was used to running rampant in the Forbidden City, but here he had to keep a low profile and be extra careful.

After all, none of the people living here are easy to mess with.

When he finally saw who it was, Longkodo secretly rejoiced, feeling that he had made the right decision to keep a low profile this time.

Because the person who came was none other than his father, Tong Guowei.

Longkodo quickly stepped forward and bowed: "Son greets Father!"

Tong Guowei glanced at Longkodo and then said indifferently, "No need for formalities."

He paused, glanced at him again, and said in a nonchalant tone, "You're still a promising student."

If anyone else had said that, Longkodo would have been furious.

After all, he's almost forty, and even his son is getting married.

Saying someone is teachable is an insult.

But since Tong Guowei said that, he could only keep it to himself.

After all, this is his father.

When my father said that I was a promising young man, could he be referring to my report to the Xiaotangshan Imperial Palace?
Longkodo knew what was going on and bowed his head, replying, "Father's teachings are always in my heart."

Tong Guowei nodded and said, "It would be best if you could remember it."

"Remember, in the future, you must be single-minded in everything you do, only then can you achieve stability."

With that, Tong Guowei walked into the palace without looking back.

Dad's words had a hidden meaning!
Longkodo pondered the words "wholeheartedly" carefully, and the more he thought about it, the clearer it became.

This is my father reminding me to just do my job for the emperor honestly and not to try to have my cake and eat it too.

Gee!

My father has a whole repertoire of lecturing me, but the one in the family who truly "plays both sides" and has his cake and eat it too is probably someone else.

Just as he was lost in thought, a military general in armor came running over in a panic.

From the man's somewhat flustered expression, Longkodo immediately sensed that something serious had happened.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have rushed to the hot spring palace. "What happened?" Longkodo asked casually.

The armored man quickly replied, "The Hanlin Academy members are petitioning the emperor to seek justice, and many Imperial Academy students are with them."

"When I arrived, they had already gone to the Meridian Gate."

"Now...we should have arrived by now."

The Hanlin Academy petitioned the emperor, and the Imperial College students voiced their support. The scale of this event was truly impressive!
Longkodo secretly felt fortunate that he had come to the Xiaotangshan Palace; otherwise, this hot potato might have ended up in his hands.

He was about to ask a few more questions when the man in armor had already entered the palace.

Longkodo hesitated for a moment and did not leave immediately.

He felt that such a major event as the imperial audience had occurred, and Emperor Qianxi might summon him for discussion, after all, he was Emperor Qianxi's confidant.

To his surprise, Emperor Qianxi remained completely silent.

It was as if he was truly in seclusion praying for blessings, and he hadn't even heard the news.

After waiting for half an hour, Longkodo had no choice but to get into his carriage and head towards the capital.

He was the head of the Infantry Commander's Office, and it would be unreasonable for him not to be present when such a thing happened in the capital.

The act of civil officials petitioning the emperor has been a headache for the emperor since the previous dynasty.

The emperors of the previous dynasty, whether they were Emperor Daojun or his grandsons, had only two choices when faced with a situation like this: the emperor knocking on the palace gates.

They would either try to persuade the person knocking on the door to leave with kind words.

Or they could directly unleash their powerful weapon—the Imperial Staff!

In Emperor Daojun's view, there was nothing that a beating in court couldn't solve.

If so, then let's have two meals!
Shen Ye had already received the news when the Hanlin Academy members and hundreds of Imperial Academy students joined forces and marched in a grand procession toward the Forbidden City.

He had just finished writing a memorial to the Qianxi Emperor.

The memorial was very simple, consisting of greetings and details of the major and minor matters that the author had handled that day.

This may seem like an ordinary work report, but Shen Ye knew its significance.

This was also an experience from his previous life.

Request instructions in the morning and report back in the evening!
These two points are simple, but if you do them well, you are unlikely to make a mistake. These are the self-preservation rules he summarized in his previous life.

On the surface, Emperor Qianxi was fasting, but in Shen Ye's view, this cheap father wanted to sit back and watch the tigers fight.

As a crown prince who oversees the country, in addition to acting in accordance with regulations, he must also report frequently.

Ideally, you should report everything you did each day, down to the smallest detail, so that your father is aware of everything.

"Have someone send this memorial to His Majesty as quickly as possible."

Shen Ye glanced at the somewhat flustered Zhou Bao and said, "Also, invite Zhang Ying, Li Guangdi, and the others to Yuqing Palace."

Seeing the Crown Prince so calm, Zhou Bao felt reassured.

He agreed and ran out to ask for help.

Zhang Ying, Li Guangdi, and the others arrived quickly. After all, so many things had happened at once, and they were eager to meet with the Crown Prince to discuss what to do.

"Your subject greets Your Highness!" Zhang Ying and the others bowed respectfully.

Shen Ye waved his hand and said, "Grand Scholar Zhang, Master Li, there's no need for such formalities. Zhou Bao, please take a seat."

Zhou Bao quickly moved two embroidered stools over, and after the two thanked him for sitting down, they sat on either side of Shen Ye.

"Grand Secretary Zhang, Master Li, a group of Hanlin Academy scholars are now petitioning the emperor with some Imperial Academy students. What do you two think we should do?"

Before Zhang Ying and Li Guangdi arrived, they had already considered the questions the Crown Prince would ask.

Upon hearing that it was indeed about knocking on the imperial court, both of them were prepared.

However, they were in no hurry to speak, and each wanted to hear the other's opinion first.

Seeing that neither of them spoke, Shen Ye knew what they were thinking, so he directly asked, "Grand Scholar Zhang, what do you think?"

Zhang Ying was called upon, and after a slight hesitation, he said, "Your Highness, I believe this matter should be handled with caution."

"Whether they are Hanlin scholars in the Hanlin Academy or students in the Imperial Academy, they are all pillars of the nation that the court is focusing on cultivating."

"Their visit to the capital this time was not without reason."

In my opinion, the primary approach should be appeasement.

"If Your Highness agrees, this old minister is willing to go out and meet with them to persuade them to go back to their studies."

"I believe their demands should be met appropriately."

Upon hearing this, a cold glint flashed in Shen Ye's eyes.

This Zhang Ying, what she says sounds so nice. What does "appropriate satisfaction" even mean?
If we really give in to him, I'm afraid all those who beat Tian Wenjing to death will be released.

This cunning and sly old man doesn't speak plainly; he's just being vague.

It seems he's trying to deceive everyone and create a fait accompli for himself.

Shen Ye did not comment on Zhang Ying's opinion, but instead asked Li Guangdi, "What does Lord Li think?"

"Your Highness, I believe this matter should not be tolerated."

"We can send the Grand Secretary of the Hanlin Academy and the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy to take their people back."

“Such behavior of constantly coming to the palace to petition is something I cannot tolerate!” Li Guangdi’s words were resolute and forceful.

After a moment's consideration, Shen Ye said to Li Guangdi, "Then summon them both over."

"Furthermore, since these scholars and students from the Imperial Academy have come, I will meet them and hear what they have to say."

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(End of this chapter)