Starting as pearl divers, they have endless jobs.

Chapter 71 The autumn wind is chilly; it's time to put on an extra layer (Seeking first subscription)
Time flies like an arrow; five years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Over the past five years, the former territory of Daliang has undergone tremendous changes.

Chen Ye took charge of Luoyang, reformed the bureaucracy, replaced those outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant officials, and promoted a large number of capable and motivated young men from humble backgrounds.

Meanwhile, Chen Ye launched several military campaigns, completely wiping out the last few organized rebel forces within the territory of Daliang.

During this period, Chen Ye suffered countless assassination attempts, but after becoming a National Guardian Dragon General, even the top masters in the martial arts world were nothing more than that in Chen Ye's eyes. Therefore, not only was he unharmed, but he also launched a powerful attack and wiped out all these so-called masters and the sects behind them.

In particular, several martial arts sects that intended to rebel were completely wiped out and became history.

This caused a stir of fear among all the martial arts practitioners in Daliang.

It should be noted that among the sects that were wiped out were major clans with hundreds of years of history, yet they still could not escape the fate of destruction.

For a time, the martial arts world of the Great Liang Dynasty fell silent, and some timid sects simply closed their doors and dared not appear in the world again.

However, some self-proclaimed righteous people have expressed their dissatisfaction with this, believing that it will inevitably lead to the collapse of social order.

After all, without their chivalrous acts, bullies would run rampant.

The result was far beyond their expectations.

Because Chen Ye promoted water conservancy, encouraged agriculture and sericulture, reduced taxes and levies, and distributed the land he had taken back from powerful families to displaced people, giving them a means to settle down and make a living.

Under this series of appeasement and conciliatory measures, the entire ancient land of Daliang is thriving, with everything being rebuilt and a prosperous scene unfolding.

Although remnants of the previous dynasty still linger in some remote corners, they have lost their popular support.

Nowadays, when ordinary people discover traces of these people, their first thought is not to cover them up, but to immediately report them to the authorities.

This left the former powerful figures completely baffled, and they even cursed these people as traitors, never considering how they had exploited these people to the bone, forcing them to the brink of death.

In addition, Chen Ye formulated detailed public security regulations and strictly enforced them.

As a result, there will be fewer bullies and even fewer thieves. After all, who would be willing to take huge risks to do bad things when they can live a good life through legitimate means?

Therefore, after these so-called righteous paths of the martial arts world disappeared, ordinary people's lives actually got better and better.

In fact, Chen Ye didn't think he had done anything extraordinary.

His strategy was largely the same as when he was emperor in his previous life: cracking down on local powerful families, curbing land annexation, and distributing the benefits to the vast majority of the lower classes.

But it's such a simple principle that many people can't put into practice their whole lives.

At this point, Chen Ye had firmly secured his position as the military governor of Daliang, and his prestige was at its zenith. The people all respectfully called him "King Liang, the Thousand-Year-Old King".

However, the court's suspicions were growing day by day. After all, a king of a different surname was holding military power on the frontier and was also very popular with the people. This was like a sword hanging over their heads.

Fortunately, the Meng family made great efforts to mediate in the court, and Chen Ye's annual tax payments far exceeded the quota, which temporarily suppressed the emperor's suspicions.

But no one expected that on this very day, earth-shattering news would come from Kyoto.

Emperor Dayong, who had just turned fifty, suddenly passed away!
When Chen Ye received the secret report sent back by his spies in the capital, he immediately realized the seriousness of the situation.

Because the death of the Emperor Dayong was too suspicious.

The night before, the emperor had chosen a newly entered and favored concubine. After drinking a bowl of ginseng and bird's nest soup in the morning, the emperor suddenly suffered from abdominal pain. By the time the imperial physicians arrived, the emperor was already unconscious in bed, his jaw clenched, and medicine was ineffective. He passed away just after noon.

Because his death was so sudden, he didn't even have time to appoint a crown prince.

After all, this Emperor Dayong is only fifty years old this year. Although he is not in his prime, he is well-maintained and far from the point where it is necessary to establish a crown prince.

Therefore, the political landscape of the Great Yong Dynasty is currently turbulent and unpredictable. All the princes qualified to vie for the throne have entered the arena and are fiercely competing before their fathers' coffins. This intelligence is very detailed, and even highlights several princes who may inherit the throne: the fourth prince, the seventh prince, and the ninth prince.

This was also thanks to Chen Ye's continuous efforts over the past five years to plant spies in the officialdom of the capital of Dayong. After all, he couldn't rely on the Meng family forever; he had to have his own information channels.

After pondering for a moment, Chen Ye immediately ordered someone to summon Wang Xing.

"Greetings, Your Highness!" Wang Xing knelt down on both knees and prostrated himself on the ground as soon as he entered the hall, his attitude extremely respectful.

This is also because Chen Ye's aura is growing stronger every day. Sometimes, just a glance from him is enough to make people's hearts tremble and dare not look him in the eye.

Chen Ye gave the secret report to Wang Xing, whose expression changed drastically after reading it.

"Your Highness, when did this happen?"

"It's only been two days since the incident," Chen Ye said.

"Then, Your Highness, what do you mean...?" Wang Xing asked cautiously, trying to decipher Chen Ye's intentions.

"Although the old emperor was quite suspicious of me, he was tolerant after all, so we, as ruler and subject, lived in peace. But now that the old emperor has passed away, we don't know who will succeed him, so we must make plans as soon as possible," Chen Ye said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Wang Xing's eyes lit up, and he gritted his teeth, "I understand, I'll go prepare now and then rebel against them."

Chen Ye was both amused and exasperated. "Who said I was going to rebel?"

"Huh?" Wang Xing was taken aback. "Didn't you just say we should make plans early?"

Chen Ye shook his head. "When I said to make plans early, I didn't mean we should rebel now. After all, the current situation is unknown, so it's best to wait and see. It's best to wait until they decide the winner before making any plans."

Chen Ye knew that with the current strength of the Great Liang, it was not impossible for them to rebel, but they would have to be fully prepared.

Especially the Meng family.

The attitude of this family, which has produced many famous generals, will directly affect the final outcome of this matter.

If the enemy remains loyal to the Great Yong Dynasty, and given Meng Yi's prestige, he were to return to command again, it would inevitably be a bitter battle.

"However, it's still good to be prepared, just in case things get chaotic at the last minute," Chen Ye said, changing the subject with a meaningful remark.

"Understood!" Wang Xing finally understood Chen Ye's meaning and then left excitedly.

Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the capital of Dayong was heavy and somber. The old emperor had been dead for five days, but the new emperor could not be determined for a long time, and officials from various factions were arguing fiercely at the court meeting.

In addition, troop movements around the capital were becoming increasingly frequent, and many people knew that a major upheaval was imminent.

As expected, on the night of the sixth day, the Imperial Guards suddenly surrounded the main hall where the late emperor's coffin was kept, and then the fourth prince was escorted inside.

What happened inside remains unknown to outsiders, but when the fourth prince emerged again, he was already the new emperor of the Great Yong Dynasty.

The news spread quickly, and Chen Ye naturally learned of it immediately.

He looked at the two secret reports in his hand, one from his own informant and the other from the Meng family.

The content is basically the same, except that the Meng family's secret report has a few more sentences about the fourth prince.

He is cunning, ambitious, and definitely not a good person; we must be very careful.

After reading it, Chen Ye remained expressionless. He simply got up and went to the window of the main hall, looking at the bleak wind and rain outside, and fell into deep thought.

It's already late autumn, and the autumn wind is chilly and biting, so it's definitely time to put on an extra layer of clothing.

(End of this chapter)