Become a king right from the start, beginning with receiving rewards from all the heavens.

Upon hearing Xia Zhaoyan's words, the Eastern King's eyelids twitched violently!

I have a very bad feeling!

At this moment, no one knew that the Xia Emperor was extremely happy.

Finally, someone from the Demon Suppression Division is going to jump out and criticize the suppression of the Demon Suppression Division.

The military apparatus of the mighty Great Xia Dynasty has always been outside the control of the imperial court since its establishment.

It can be said that the most concentrated places for the nobles of the Great Xia Dynasty were in the military.

The other one is the Demon Suppression Division!

For tens of thousands of years, the lineage of the Demon Suppression Duke has used marriage alliances and the combination of interests to ensure that the entire noble class supports the Demon Suppression Division.

Otherwise, given the strength of the imperial court and the royal family, how could they allow the Demon Suppression Division to remain under the control of the Demon Suppression Duke's faction?

In most cases, the upper echelons of the Great Xia Dynasty primarily resolve issues through political means, and large-scale armed conflicts are extremely rare.

Even the royal family doesn't really want to see this kind of internal armed conflict!

After all, the strength of the entire noble class is one of the important foundations of the Great Xia Dynasty.

Clearly, the royal family and the court needed nobles.

However, they could not tolerate a violent government institution that had been controlled by the nobility for so long.

Since he ascended the throne—no, since every Xia emperor ascended the throne—he has been trying to figure out how to take back control of the Demon Suppression Division from Xun Gui.

Today, he finally saw a glimmer of hope.

So, he couldn't wait to speak.

"What suggestions does Your Majesty have? Tell me your plans and I will consider them!"

Listen to this! They're not even offering any suggestions to others!

It means he thought it was useful, so he agreed on the spot!

Xia Zhaoyan naturally understood the meaning behind his father's words, so he spoke directly.

"Father, since the Demon Suppression Division has been plagued by a shortage of manpower all this time..."

"Then I suggest that from now on, the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Six Doors, and the Heavenly Punishment Bureau shall all assume the power to suppress the supernatural."

"Firstly, to share the burden of the Demon Suppression Division; secondly, to prevent people like Li Chengyuan from raising monsters in their residences!"

The true intentions were revealed when the map was unrolled, which is the second reason why Xia Zhaoyan targeted the Demon Suppression Division!

Because he wanted to seize the power of the Demon Suppression Division, even if he couldn't deprive them of their power to suppress the supernatural.

But the Heavenly Punishment Division must also have the power to suppress the supernatural!

Goodness, many people below were practically ready to raise both hands in agreement.

Among the officials, Grand Tutor Xing Wudi, Grand Protector Hong Liuxian, and Grand Preceptor Bai Wujin exchanged glances, each seeing the answer they sought in the other's eyes.

So, just as the court was in shock, the three of them stepped forward at the same time.

It instantly attracted the attention of all the civil and military officials, and the sight of the three highest officials standing up together was extremely rare.

In terms of stance and ideology, the three officials are basically not on good terms with each other.

"Your Majesty, I agree with Prince Ren's proposal!" Xing Wudi bowed and said. Xia Zhaoyan turned his head and glanced at the other party. The old man was much more pleasing to the eye this time.

"Your Majesty, I also agree with Prince Ren's proposal!" This was said by Grand Tutor Hong Liuxian.

"Your Majesty, I agree as well!" This was Grand Tutor Bai Wujin.

After the three men stepped forward to agree, the princes and the five crown princes almost simultaneously bowed and shouted.

"Father, I agree as well!"

"Father..."

The officials below, seeing this, thought, "Good heavens, this is it! So many people have stepped forward to form an alliance against the Demon Suppression Division."

What's there to be afraid of? Let's do it! Today, we're going to take on the Demon Suppression Division.

However, everyone seems to have forgotten that today was originally supposed to be the day to challenge the Heavenly Punishment Division...

The Eastern King was dumbfounded, and his whole body trembled slightly!

Compared to Renwang and Qiongwang's open and aboveboard scheme to suppress the Demon Suppression Division, the schemes I previously devised are utterly insignificant.

This guy is too good at seizing opportunities; given the slightest chance, he can turn the tide in a situation that is unfavorable to him.

Moreover, it turned into a situation that was detrimental to others!

To be honest, at this moment, the Eastern King felt a trace of fear towards his younger brother for the first time!

Seeing this, Xia Hongwu was overjoyed. "Good, good, this is the moment I've been waiting for."

"Since everyone agrees with Prince Ren's proposal, then I hereby declare:"

"From this day forward, the Heavenly Punishment Bureau, the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and the Six Doors—the three major institutions—possess the power to suppress the supernatural!"

To suppress the Demon Suppression Division, we must proceed gradually, step by step.

It is impossible to regain control of the Demon Suppression Division based solely on this pretext today.

This was clear not only to Xia Zhaoyan, but also to all the officials, and even more so to the Xia Emperor.

However, since the Demon Suppression Division has lost its sole power to suppress the supernatural, it will inevitably lose a significant portion of its profits in the future.

It's important to understand that the supernatural is not only an enemy of humanity, but also a resource for cultivators!

Otherwise, why would the nobility be so unwilling to relinquish their control over the Demon Suppression Division?

In the past, only the Demon Suppression Division had the authority to deal with any strange occurrences within the Great Xia territory.

Now that this breach has been opened, the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Six Doors are naturally delighted.

The officials were also pleased, as their interests lay with the court, not with the Xun Gui faction.

The stronger the imperial court, the more benefits they can obtain.

If the imperial court could completely control the Demon Suppression Division, it would be equivalent to the official class taking away a huge piece of fat meat from the noble class.

This gave the nobility no time to react, which is one of their drawbacks. How could their representatives in the court withstand such a powerful force?

...

After the court assembly ended, news of what had happened in the court that day spread throughout the entire imperial city in an instant.

Back in the palace, Xia Zhaoyan was unaware that his father, the emperor, was discussing him with someone.

In the Hall of State Affairs, the chief eunuch Lu Nanyue spoke cautiously.

"Your Majesty, today a crack has been torn in the body of the Demon Suppression Division, but you don't seem very happy about it?"

Xia Hongwu shook his head. "The current situation of the Demon Suppression Division is certainly something for me to be pleased about."

"But what I'm thinking about right now is Prince Ren!"

"Your Majesty," the chief eunuch murmured, "why is this?"

...

"Eunuch Lu, why do you think Prince Ren was so confident in granting me such demanding requests in court?"

This was something that not only the officials couldn't understand, but also something that Emperor Xia himself couldn't understand.

After a brief silence, Lu Nanyue said, "Your Majesty, judging from Prince Ren's behavior today, he does indeed want to participate in the struggle for the throne."

"Yes, I only had doubts before, but today I am very certain," Xia Hongwu said with some emotion.

She had always wanted to get her son out of the vortex of the struggle for the throne and give him a peaceful and quiet life.

But that kid insisted on jumping in no matter what. Didn't he know his disadvantage?

Without the support of his maternal clan, without the support of officials, and without the support of martial arts forces, what gives him the right to stand on?

"Why did I give him such a difficult task? It was to force him to give up the struggle for the throne."

"But he resolutely accepted that demand, and his behavior today doesn't seem to suggest that he was blinded by the lust for power!"

...

"Your Majesty, there is a saying among the common people: children and grandchildren have their own blessings."

"Perhaps His Highness Prince Ren is unwilling to give up; only after hitting a wall will he know when to quit!"

Hearing Lu Nanyue's words, Xia Hongwu felt no calm at all.

He had a gut feeling that the kid definitely had some hidden trump card!

What kind of trump card could give him such great confidence?