Having many children brings many blessings; the struggle for power begins with marriage.

After the female guard sent by Lu Chen left, Li Rui immediately ordered his servants to notify the officials from the capital who were still at the gate and had not yet left, so that they could all come into the hall together.

Upon hearing that Li Rui, the former third-in-command of the Northern Kingdom's court, wanted to see them, the officials in the capital were overjoyed.

They weren't fools; they naturally understood that Li Rui's earlier claim of being sick meant he didn't want to see them, and now that he wanted to see them, it was clear he had come to his senses.

Soon, a group of officials from the capital arrived at the reception hall of the Li residence.

After everyone entered the reception hall, Li Rui immediately said, "I know why you have come to the Li residence today, but before that, I would like to say something: you should take all the gifts you brought back with you later."

"Yancheng is different from the capital. Giving gifts casually in Yancheng can easily lead to trouble."

Hearing this, everyone was stunned for a moment, but having been in officialdom for so many years, they quickly understood what Li Rui meant.

Li Rui continued, "Our Emperor is different from any previous emperor. To gain a foothold in Yancheng, we must quickly figure out what kind of people His Majesty needs."

"If you have any questions, you can ask them now, and I will answer them one by one today. However, after today, you will not be able to rush to the Li residence in one go like today."

Upon hearing Li Rui's direct words, an official from the capital immediately said, "Lord Li, I have a question I would like to ask you."

Li Rui said, "If there's anything you don't understand, just ask."

The man asked, "Your Majesty has set court sessions every seven days. Won't this really affect the smooth operation of government affairs?"

Li Rui replied, "No, although the court assembly is held once every seven days, His Majesty does not do nothing during these seven days. His Majesty handles all kinds of government affairs in the Imperial Study."

"The reason Your Majesty changed the court sessions to once every seven days is mainly because Your Majesty knows that some ministers always bring up trivial matters during the morning court sessions. As a result, attending court sessions is not only meaningless, but also wastes half a day, seriously affecting the efficiency of the officials."

"If there were no morning court sessions, officials would have to go to their workplaces when it was time to work, which would actually improve work efficiency."

Another official asked, "If there's no morning court session, how will we know if His Majesty needs anything?"

Li Rui said, "Why do you think His Majesty holds court every seven days? During the court meeting, His Majesty will arrange all the work for the next seven days. If anything happens unexpectedly, His Majesty will naturally send someone to notify the higher-level departments, and then the higher-level departments will issue orders to the lower-level departments."

Li Rui glanced at the officials in the hall and continued, "Our Emperor is a man who values ​​practical matters and dislikes bringing everything to court. From now on, you must remember that anything unrelated to national affairs should not be discussed in court."

"Especially matters concerning the harem are His Majesty's family affairs, so please do not interfere. Also, the Ministry of Rites of the new dynasty is a retirement department. If any of you join the Ministry of Rites in the future, just follow His Majesty's instructions. Don't keep talking about etiquette all day long. His Majesty dislikes people who talk a lot about propriety and morality but do nothing."

Upon hearing this, one official was displeased and immediately said, "Lord Li, the emperor has no family matters; matters of the harem should also be matters of state."

Li Rui glanced at the man and then said, "I am just reminding you. If you don't listen to me and something happens, don't blame me."

Li Rui's tone was harsh, and the man didn't say anything more.

Li Rui continued, "And the most important point is that none of you should think about bribery. His Majesty has a special agency to monitor all officials called the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The Embroidered Uniform Guard is all-pervasive, and His Majesty will know immediately whatever you do."

After hearing Li Rui's explanation, the officials finally understood why he had asked them to take the gifts back.

At this moment, an official cautiously asked, "Lord Li, does this mean that His Majesty will soon know what you told us today?"

Upon hearing this question, Li Rui chuckled and then said, "His Majesty already knew about your visit to the Li residence. Do you think that's why I initially refused to see you, but suddenly decided to meet with you?"

This……

Everyone instantly understood Li Rui's meaning. So, the reason Li Rui was telling them all this was because of that person in the palace?

No wonder Li Rui's words sounded like a warning to them; it turned out that these were all things the emperor wanted to say to them, and Li Rui was merely conveying the emperor's message.

Li Rui then spoke with the officials present about the structure of the officialdom in Yancheng and explained the treatment that officials in Yancheng had received in the past.

After listening to Li Rui's words, the officials in the capital gained a general understanding of the officialdom in Yancheng and Lu Chen's style of doing things.

……

Lu Chen and Zhuge Chongguang discussed for almost a day before finalizing the list of officials to be appointed in the new court.

As evening approached, Lu Chen originally planned to go to Yelü Nanyan's place, but he suddenly remembered something and turned around and went to Wu Yunwan's place instead.

Wu Junwan is still living with Murong Xue'er, since neither of them has officially married Lu Chen and has no official status.

And despite their constant bickering, Murong Xue'er and Wu Junwan actually have a lot in common. They are both connected to Emperor Yue and are also Lu Chen's women. Whether they're talking about Emperor Yue or Lu Chen, they can always find common ground.

As the sun set, its red glow illuminated Wu Junwan's voluptuous and perfect figure, creating a scene as beautiful as a painting.

Wu Yunwan stood in the pavilion, while Murong Xue'er stood beside her. Wu Yunwan then said, "Why don't you go to the Imperial Study to find that person?"

Murong Xue'er said, "Didn't the Eldest Princess also not go?"

Wu Yunwan said calmly, "I am very busy with affairs these days, unlike you who have nothing to do all day and spend your time painting in your room and thinking about men."

Since Lu Chen left the Northern Kingdom, Murong Xue'er often draws portraits of Lu Chen in her room, reminiscing about him while looking at the paintings.

Upon hearing Wu Yunwan's words, Murong Xue'er raised her eyebrows slightly and then said, "Your Highness, peeking at other people's things is not a good habit."

Just as Wu Junwan was about to say something, a familiar voice suddenly came from not far away, "Peeping at other people's things is definitely not a good habit, Junwan, you can't do that in the future."

Upon hearing the voice, the two women were slightly startled. After regaining their senses, they both looked in the direction from which the voice came and, sure enough, saw the bad man who haunted their dreams.

Wu Yunwan then said, "Why did Your Majesty come here today? Aren't you afraid that your wives and concubines in the harem will be jealous?"

Wu Yunwan and Murong Xue'er didn't have any official status yet, and they only started dating Lu Chen later. According to the waiting list, it wasn't their turn yet, but Lu Chen came to find them on the third day.

Upon hearing Wu Yunwan's question, Lu Chen teleported behind the two women, then opened his arms and embraced their soft waists.

"I came here, of course, because I miss my Wanwan and Xue'er." (End of Chapter)