If you're made a fake emperor, why did you change the country's name?

The imperial edict was issued, and the capital city was in an uproar.

The city gate was surrounded by a dense crowd.

"Did you hear the news that the Daily News just reported?"

"Of course I listened to it, I listen to it every day now, but I regret listening to it today."

"Yeah, it can't be true, can it?"

Just as everyone was discussing the matter, the crowd was suddenly forcibly separated by soldiers.

On the main road, a group of messengers on horseback galloped by. After verifying their credentials at the city gate, they immediately mounted their horses and sped off in all directions.

Upon seeing this, the crowd erupted in uproar.

"It's over... the messengers have all left the city, it's true!"

"The emperor has truly lost! Those powerful clans are utterly despicable!"

"Yes, life was finally starting to look up, how could it... end like this?"

The people were filled with sorrow.

Having experienced so much, they had long seen through the true colors of the powerful families and sincerely hoped that the young emperor would win so that they could live a truly good life.

But now, through the news from the Daily News Pavilion, they learned immediately everything that was happening in the court.

Your Majesty was forced to hand over the throne by those people using an absurd reason.

Among the crowd, a few inconspicuous men, after confirming that the messenger had left the capital, quietly withdrew from the crowd and hurried towards their respective residences in the city.

All of this was observed by Zhao Yu, who was on the city wall.

He stood atop the high city tower, looking down as the two groups of people inside and outside the city gate dispersed, a smile playing on his lips.

Wei An stood behind him, his face full of worry.

"Your Majesty, is this empire... really being given to them like this?"

Zhao Yu turned around, gently patted his shoulder, and spoke with a faint smile.

"manage?"

"What kind of world do people who have one foot in the grave have to govern?"

Wei An was shocked and greatly alarmed.

Does His Majesty possess a means to turn defeat into victory?

Zhao Yu didn't offer any further explanation, but simply left him with a meaningful look from behind.

"Return to the quiet study."

"Yes!" Wei An snapped out of his daze and quickly responded and followed.

...................

Quiet study.

The fragrance of sandalwood wafts through the air.

Qiu Ping had been waiting there for a while. When he saw Zhao Yu appear at the door, he quickly went up to report.

"His Majesty!"

But before he could report, an urgent shout came from behind him, interrupting his report.

Prime Minister Wang Zhang strode in, his robes slightly disheveled. He bowed deeply to Zhao Yu, his tone full of worry.

"Your Majesty, given the current situation, I beg you to be patient and endure this hardship for a while. This old minister... this old minister will do everything in his power to reclaim this empire for Your Majesty!"

Zhao Yu smiled, his face showing no trace of the dejection he had displayed in court.

He walked to the head seat and waved to Wang Zhang.

"Prime Minister Wang, please sit."

"Just listen from the sidelines."

Wang Zhang was taken aback, not understanding why, but still sat down on the chair next to him as instructed.

Zhao Yu then looked at Qiu Ping.

"Speak."

"Yes, Your Majesty. Everything has been done as you requested."

Qiu Ping bowed as he reported, his voice steady, yet every word was startling.

"On the surface, the messenger, traveling at an urgent speed of eight hundred li, delivered an imperial edict allowing the major aristocratic families to establish their own territories and govern accordingly."

"Secretly, they all had the secret edict of the 'Minor Grace Edict' in hand. They were just waiting for the previous imperial edict to be announced, and then the secret edict would be immediately relayed to the entire city."

The Edict of Grace?

Wang and Zhang were filled with doubt. What did this secret edict mean?

Qiu Ping paused for a moment, then continued.

"The secret decree states that illegitimate sons of noble families are permitted to exercise the right to execute without prior approval in place of the legitimate sons if there is irrefutable evidence of the legitimate sons rebelling against the emperor, oppressing the people, or committing other acts of violence.

boom!

A thunderclap exploded in Wang Zhang's mind.

He suddenly stood up from the chair, his whole body stiffening.

A minor decree of grace?

Execute first, report later?

He was an incredibly quick-witted person, and he figured out the crux of the matter almost instantly.

These days, powerful clans are fighting each other. Besides the common people, there is another group that hates powerful clans the most—the illegitimate sons!

If a powerful family is displeased, they will be dragged out and reprimanded. He has heard of several cases of humiliation where illegitimate sons were not treated as human beings.

It can be said that the hatred of the illegitimate sons towards the legitimate line reached its peak!

Now, the first step of establishing a system of demarcation and governance has laid the foundation for the direct descendants to seize military power from them.

The second secret decree, however, gave them a powerful tool to legitimately seize all the power of their direct descendants!

If they disobey the order, their trusted subordinates will seize military power from them within two days.

By imperial decree, they will be able to rise up and become landlords!

How could they not kill them?

Wang and Zhang dared not imagine what kind of bloody storm would rage across the land after this decree was issued.

That would be a bloodbath within the powerful clans.

Wei An, who was standing to the side, was so shocked that he subconsciously swallowed and his back was instantly soaked with cold sweat.

His awe of the young emperor before him deepened even further.

Wang and Zhang were, after all, capable ministers who governed the country. After the initial shock, they immediately realized the loopholes in the system.

He hurriedly stepped forward.

"Your Majesty! This plan is brilliant, but... but now that the tiger is gone, the wolf has appeared!"

"These illegitimate sons are ultimately from noble families, and their nature will likely be exactly the same as those legitimate sons. At that time, the Great Liang will simply be replaced by a different group of people eroding its foundation; its stability will remain shaky!"

Zhao Yu waved his hand, signaling him to calm down.

He didn't answer, but instead turned his gaze toward the study doorway.

Just then, an announcement came from outside the door.

"Your Majesty, Generals Gan Qing and Meng request an audience."

"Announce."

Soon, Gan Qing, leaning on his crane-head cane, entered with the help of a servant.

Beside him stood Meng Qianshan, clad in armor and walking with a steady gait.

The two, one a scholar and the other a warrior, bowed simultaneously.

"This humble servant greets Your Majesty."

"No need for such formalities."

Zhao Yu raised his hand and got straight to the point.

"How's the task I assigned you going?"

Gan Qing, old and frail, bowed his head and reported.

"Your Majesty, of the sons of the Gan family, both legitimate and illegitimate, whom you summoned late last night, nine out of ten have now arrived at the capital."

"The old minister arranged for everyone to reside in different residences."

Meng Qianshan also stepped forward, his voice loud and clear.

"Your Majesty, I have just received a report that the junior officer of the Imperial Guard has successfully taken over all the troops under the Gan family's control."

"Once the internal strife among the other families ends, our army will be able to intervene as quickly as possible and take control of the situation."

Zhao Yu nodded.

"In this way, one-third of the cities of Daliang will be safe and sound."

He stood up, walked to a huge map, and gently traced his finger across it.

"As for the remaining medium and large cities, I have already used military tally to mobilize the Zhennan Army to wait for orders thirty miles outside the imperial city."

"Once the chaos in the city ends, they will set off immediately to take over the remaining cities one by one."

"With the major cities secured, the remaining insignificant smaller cities won't last long."

Quiet.

The only sound in the quiet study was the breathing of everyone.

Wang Zhang stood there, staring at the young figure in front of the map, completely stunned and speechless.

From feigning weakness in the imperial court, to issuing both overt and covert imperial edicts, and then to summoning hostages and mobilizing troops...

This is a series of interconnected steps, with each step leading to the next three.

It's more than perfect.

This is simply manipulating the hearts and minds of the people, as well as military strategy and tactics, with complete control.

He had initially thought it was a violent storm, and that the world was about to collapse.

Unexpectedly, it was all just a controllable, massive wave that the young emperor himself stirred up in order to completely cleanse the remaining poison of the previous dynasty.