Joy of Life: Me, the Second Prince? Summon Yuan Tiangang!

Since that night, the winds in Kyoto seemed to have changed overnight.

In the past, the Second Prince Li Chengze would often claim illness or use the excuse of "catching a cold" to avoid attending court, but for the first time ever, he began to appear in the Taiji Hall on time every day.

Although he still looked like he hadn't woken up properly, stood slouching with his hands tucked into his sleeves, and occasionally yawned, he would even secretly take out a couple of candied fruits from his sleeves and put them in his mouth while others stood at attention listening to the sacred teachings.

But everyone keenly sensed that something was different.

Those eyes, always half-closed and seemingly indifferent to everything, now occasionally opened and closed, revealing a chilling glint. It was the gaze of a hunter scrutinizing its prey, tinged with a hint of mockery, yet sharp as a knife.

……

On this day, the atmosphere in the imperial court was solemn.

Floods struck Jiangnan, causing dikes to breach and leaving tens of thousands of people homeless. The Minister of Works knelt on the ground, trembling, as impeachment memorials flew towards his desk like snowflakes.

"Your Highness, what do you think of this matter?" Emperor Qing sat high on the dragon throne, his tone revealing neither joy nor anger, his gaze fixed on Crown Prince Li Chengqian, who stood to his left.

Crown Prince Li Chengqian took a deep breath, stepped forward to pay his respects, and appeared solemn, clearly having prepared his speech beforehand: "Your Majesty, I believe that the most urgent task is to order the Ministry of Revenue to allocate funds for disaster relief, and at the same time, to dispatch an imperial envoy to Jiangnan to thoroughly investigate the case of embezzlement by the Ministry of Works in repairing the dikes, and to severely punish those responsible according to the law, so as to set an example. This is a wise and prudent suggestion for governing the country, and it must be done step by step, without being too hasty, lest it incite a popular uprising."

These words were perfectly proper and without fault, a typical example of the way of a benevolent ruler.

Many senior officials in the court nodded in approval.

"Following the established procedures?"

A soft laugh suddenly rang out in the hall.

Li Chengze strolled slowly out of the queue. He didn't bow immediately, but instead picked his ear with his little finger, as if he had heard a joke.

"What brilliant idea does Second Brother have?" The Crown Prince frowned, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.

Li Chengze glanced at him, a mocking smile playing on his lips: "Your Highness is benevolent, but the phrase 'following the proper procedures' is perfectly fine under normal circumstances. However, with the devastating floods in Jiangnan, people are resorting to cannibalism. By the time your Ministry of Revenue allocates the funds, after layers of embezzlement, how much will the disaster victims actually receive? By the time you, the Imperial Envoy, finish investigating the case, it will be too late."

"Then what do you intend to do?" The Crown Prince asked, his face darkening slightly as he suppressed his anger.

Li Chengze turned around, casually cupped his hands in greeting to Emperor Qing, but his voice suddenly rose, each word like the clang of iron:

"Your Majesty, I believe that in times of chaos, harsh measures are necessary! The Ministry of Revenue's allocation of funds is too slow; it would be better to issue an imperial edict ordering the Governor-General of Jiangnan to open the granaries and distribute grain on the spot! As for the silver..."

He paused, a bloodthirsty glint flashing in his eyes, and glanced at the Minister of Works kneeling on the ground, causing the man to tremble in fear.

"Jiangnan is prosperous, and those corrupt officials must be rolling in money. Issue an order that all officials involved should not be escorted back to the capital. The Censorate should cooperate in confiscating their property on the spot! The confiscated silver should be used directly for dike repair and disaster relief! This is called—taking from the people and using it for the people."

These words caused an uproar in the room!

This is downright robber logic! But at this moment, this robber logic exudes a chilling aura of power and efficiency.

"Second Prince! This is against the law! Confiscating property without trial is tantamount to undermining the foundation of the nation!" A censor immediately jumped out to rebuke.

Enjoy reading thousands of great books, including "Joy of Life: I, the Second Prince? Summon Yuan Tiangang!"

Li Chengze glanced at him sideways and sneered, "Law? The people are all dead, are you talking about law with ghosts? Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. Why is this gentleman so agitated? Could it be that you have relatives among the corrupt officials in Jiangnan?"

"You...you're spouting nonsense!" The censor was so angry that his beard trembled.

Just then, the Vice Minister of Rites, who had been silent all along—a person secretly placed there by the Eldest Princess—suddenly stepped forward and loudly proclaimed, "I second your proposal! Although His Highness's plan is radical, it can solve the immediate crisis and is a great act of benevolence and righteousness to save the people from their suffering!"

Following this, several other officials stepped forward to echo the sentiment.

The Crown Prince's face turned deathly pale at the sight. He hadn't expected his usually lazy second brother to be so aggressive once he showed his fangs, and he certainly hadn't expected so many people in the court to support such a "heretical" strategy.

He felt an unprecedented pressure, as if a mountain was pressing down on him.

Emperor Qing sat high above, taking in all of this.

He looked at his second son, who stood in the center of the hall, still with an improper posture, yet whose words were sharp and whose aura was overwhelming. A look of satisfaction slowly appeared deep in his eyes.

This is what he wanted.

The crown prince has had it too easy, to the point of being somewhat weak and naive.

Only such a sharp whetstone could sharpen the prince's sword to be faster and brighter.

"alright."

Emperor Qing spoke calmly, and the hall fell silent instantly.

"What the second prince said, though somewhat extreme, is not without reason." Emperor Qing tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest of his dragon throne. "Issue an edict ordering the Governor-General of Jiangnan to open the granaries and distribute grain. As for confiscating property... the Censorate shall be in charge, acting in accordance with the law, and handling this as a special case."

This is tantamount to adopting Li Chengze's suggestion in a roundabout way!

"Father is wise!" Li Chengze bowed with a grin, and as he returned to the ranks, he lowered his voice and said in a tone only the two of them could hear as he passed the Crown Prince:

"Your Highness, the chairs in the court are comfortable to sit on, but if you don't sit steadily, you might fall and hurt yourself."

The prince clenched his fist tightly in his sleeve, his nails almost digging into his flesh. Looking at Li Chengze's arrogant back, he felt both anger and fear.

Meanwhile, the ministers who had already pledged allegiance to the Second Prince's faction were overjoyed!

What used to bother them most was that this young master, though favored, had no fighting spirit and only wanted to read and grow flowers all day. Now that he had finally agreed to take the game and even managed to defeat the Crown Prince in his first move, how could they not be excited?

This is no longer the lazy prince we knew! This is clearly a tiger that has finally awakened!

[Ding! The host has displayed remarkable talent in the imperial court, suppressing the crown prince and shocking the court officials.]

[Reputation Points Gained: 50,000!]

Hearing the system notification in his mind, Li Chengze squatted down in his spot, secretly stuffing a grape into his mouth under the cover of his wide sleeves, his smile deepening.

It's still faster to gain reputation points in the imperial court.

Inside the imperial study, the fragrance of sandalwood wafted through the air, yet it could not conceal the chilling imperial aura emanating from it.

Emperor Qing removed the heavy dragon robe he wore in the court and changed into a loose and casual white robe, his hair also loosely draped down his back.

Instead of reviewing the memorials, he sat cross-legged on the couch, holding a rough whetstone he had found somewhere, and was intently polishing a fine iron arrowhead.

"Sizzle—sizzle—"