The playboy county magistrate

The emperor's words were forceful and resounding, echoing throughout the entire hall.

"You show no remorse, nor do you examine your own crimes. Instead, you band together to cause chaos, distorting the truth and turning right into wrong. How absurd it is to slander meritorious officials, obstruct national policies, and attempt to disrupt the court with personal feelings!"

The once imposing old ministers instantly turned pale, bowed their heads, and fell silent, their previous arrogance completely gone.

They gambled on the emperor's fear of powerful ministers and on the monarch's fear of those with great merit.

But to everyone's surprise, the Emperor trusted him completely from beginning to end and supported him wholeheartedly.

Before anyone could react, the emperor spoke again, shocking the entire hall:

"All military and administrative affairs of the cabinet will be handled by Li Xuanzhi!"

This is not the power of a regent minister; it is equivalent to ruling on behalf of the emperor and holding supreme power over the court and the country!

Throughout the history of the Great Yong Dynasty and subsequent dynasties, no minister has ever enjoyed such extreme trust and delegation of power from the emperor, nor possessed such unhindered and absolute authority.

The powerful families who had initially been hesitant and secretly hoping for a lucky break were now in utter despair.

The veteran officials who had jointly signed the petition felt their legs go weak and knelt down to kowtow. They no longer had any confidence to fight back, only fear in their hearts.

"Your Majesty, we...we know we were wrong! We spoke recklessly and misled Your Majesty; we beg Your Majesty's forgiveness!"

The emperor's gaze was cold and sharp as he calmly pronounced his verdict:

"Colluding to frame meritorious officials and obstructing national policy deserves severe punishment. However, considering your advanced age, you are spared imprisonment. All of you are stripped of your sinecure positions and salaries, sent home to reflect on your mistakes, and forever barred from interfering in politics!"

Only Li Xuanzhi felt increasingly uneasy.

There has never been a subject who reached the level of Li Xuanzhi throughout history.

But most emperors who reached his level were either usurped or murdered.

Why did the emperor trust him so much?

While Li Xuanzhi was flattered, he was also deeply shaken, feeling as if something major was about to happen that was beyond his control.

"Disperse. Everyone, mind your own business. Xuanzhi, you stay here and come with me for a stroll in the Imperial Garden."

Li Xuanzhi agreed. After all the officials in the court had left the main hall, the emperor slowly rose from the dragon throne, took the handkerchief handed to him by the chief eunuch, covered his mouth, and coughed violently.

Li Xuanzhi, with his sharp eyes, naturally did not miss the blood on the handkerchief.

"Come, let's take a stroll together."

The emperor gently patted Li Xuanzhi on the shoulder, then turned and gave instructions to the chief eunuch.

"Go to the Empress and bring the Crown Prince to the Imperial Garden to find me."

Since the emperor didn't mention any health issues, Li Xuanzhi naturally pretended not to have noticed anything unusual.

The emperor and his minister slowly walked towards the pavilion in the imperial garden, chatting casually.

When the emperor got tired of walking around and rested at the Thousand Carp Pond, the crown prince was finally brought over by the chief eunuch.

"Father."

The crown prince is only five years old this year.

Royal rules were strict; children had to be taken out of their mother's palace after they turned six.

"Xuanzhi, I think it's better to entrust the Crown Prince's education to you. Tomorrow, have your wife come to the palace. The Empress needs some simple preparations. Tomorrow, have the Crown Prince stay at your residence with your wife for a while."

"I will send the people responsible for protecting the Crown Prince to your residence shortly. You don't need to worry about the Crown Prince's daily expenses; I will have them delivered to him as well."

When the emperor finished speaking, he coughed violently again.

Without the timely handkerchief handed to him by the chief eunuch, Li Xuanzhi couldn't pretend to be blind to the emperor's pathetic state of coughing up blood.

"Your Majesty! What's wrong?"

The emperor smiled and waved his hand, "It's nothing. It's just that a few crazy women in the harem wanted to clear the way for their children. I just happened to get caught in their trap. It's a small matter."

As the emperor finished speaking, the chief eunuch's eyes reddened first.

Only then did Li Xuanzhi realize that it was just a minor incident of accidentally contracting the virus.

Since ancient times, the education of a crown prince has been guided by many sages and great scholars. No matter what, a five-year-old child would never be sent to a minister's home for education.

Unless the emperor accidentally contracted the poison and the source could not be found, the emperor was worried that someone would harm the crown prince.

Looking across the court, there are very few people the emperor can trust completely. Even fewer are young and energetic enough to watch the crown prince grow step by step.

Li Xuanzhi thought to himself: What's the difference between this and going through the entrustment process in advance?

The Crown Prince is the future emperor of the Great Yong Dynasty. Are we just going to hand him over like this? Aren't we afraid Li Xuanzhi will rebel?

"Your wife's family is quite well-off, and Minister Pei is certainly learned. I trust him with the Crown Prince's studies. As for you..."

The emperor smiled and gently shook his head. "I didn't know that you, with your mediocre knowledge of the Four Books and Five Classics, could handle things in such a varied way and think so unconventionally. But that's a good thing; you're not bound by rigid rules and regulations, and you can always find different solutions."

"The Crown Prince will be emperor someday, he can't be a bookworm. He can learn some skills by your side, but I hope you won't hold back and will teach the Crown Prince as much as you can, so that the Great Yong can become stronger in the future."

"Rest assured, I will leave a secret decree. Once the Crown Prince has gained sufficient power, no one can easily touch you unless they find concrete evidence that you have betrayed the Great Yong."

"I want you to know that the Great Yong will treat all virtuous and capable ministers well and will never do anything like discarding a useful tool after it has served its purpose or killing a discarded tool, which would damage the foundation of the Great Yong. No one would do such a thing."

Throughout history, how many virtuous ministers have been feared and eliminated by emperors?

The current emperor's favoritism towards Li Xuanzhi does not mean that the next emperor will do the same.

Li Xuanzhi was well aware of the purpose behind the emperor's offer of such a guarantee.

"Thanks to Your Majesty's trust, I have taken the liberty of accepting the important task of instructing the Crown Prince."

The emperor smiled and nodded, but his face grew even paler.

"Your Highness, from now on, you must be sensible while following your teacher, understand?"

It's no wonder he was raised by royalty; he's so different from ordinary children, so mature for his age.

"Father, everything you do is for your son's sake, and I will naturally not let you down."

The Crown Prince, being very polite, performed a standard apprenticeship ceremony to Li Xuanzhi before slowly rising and reaching out to hold onto the hem of Li Xuanzhi's robe.

"May I spend one last night with my father and mother tonight? I'm afraid my mother will cry."

Li Xuanzhi smiled, patted the Crown Prince's shoulder, and nodded slightly in agreement.

The Empress was alone in her palace, absentmindedly looking at the account books in her hands, her gaze occasionally drifting to the doorway.

She knew in her heart that the emperor had made his choice, and her son would be leaving the palace for a long time.

"Your Majesty, no matter what, Lord Li and Madam Pei are both very good people, and they certainly won't mistreat our Crown Prince."