We'll have you impersonate the Crown Prince and create a prosperous era for the Great Qian Dyna

The next day.

The imperial court.

Zhou Tiancheng yawned as he walked in.

He is much more popular now than before.

When civil and military officials saw him, they no longer acted indifferently; instead, they greeted him with flattery.

Zhou Tiancheng nodded slightly, but he didn't give anyone a friendly look except for a few people.

the reason is simple.

He didn't know whether these people were good or bad, and rashly befriending them might implicate him.

"Hmm, it would be great if someone could help me with a background check for them."

With these thoughts in mind, Zhou Tiancheng walked to the front of the hall.

To his surprise, Zhou Tianze also bowed to him.

This, however, made Zhou Tiancheng a little wary.

You have to understand how arrogant Zhou Tianze used to be. In private, he would call him "fake prince" all the time, and he didn't treat him like an older brother at all.

What's going on now?

The sun rose in the west?

Zhou Tiancheng looked at Zhou Tianze suspiciously for a moment, then stood still next to the Crown Prince's seat.

Zhou Rui arrived late at this point.

After completing a set of procedures, they began to inquire about national affairs.

Officials then began to report.

There were no major disasters, such as drought or flood. It was just that the rainfall was a little too much or a little too little, which led to poor harvests. They requested that Zhou Ruineng reduce taxes.

Or perhaps an official in one place has been dismissed, or an official in another place has broken the law, which involves personnel reshuffling.

These are all matters for minor officials, but the Ministry of Personnel can only transfer people if Zhou Rui approves.

But gradually, the meaning of the court assembly changed.

Someone stepped forward directly.

"Your Majesty, His Highness the Crown Prince has written a storybook, which has attracted a lot of attention. Now, many outlaws have emerged, each giving themselves nicknames, and there have even been attempts to assassinate government officials."

"We cannot sit idly by and wait for our doom; we must take preventative measures."

"I believe that instead of arresting people, it would be better to let the bandits control the bandits, and our court can send people to keep them under control."

Once someone starts something, someone else steps in to take over.

"I think it would be better to have the Ministry of Rites take the lead in convening a martial arts conference to bring all these unruly outlaws under control."

"They might be useful in the future."

Zhou Tiancheng vaguely sensed something was wrong, but his political acumen wasn't that sharp yet.

Even when he tried to clear his name, it was just a flash of inspiration; he never thought of using banditry to control public opinion.

Seeing that the imperial court intended to interfere with the banditry, Zhou Tiancheng merely frowned and said nothing more.

On the contrary, Zhou Rui immediately looked at his crown prince. Seeing that Zhou Tiancheng did not react, Zhou Rui sighed.

This silly kid, his political sense is a bit dull.

He frowned slightly, then spoke quickly.

"The affairs of the bandits are ultimately minor matters; there's no need to make such a fuss."

Zhou Tianze was born immediately.

"Father, since ancient times, knights have used their martial arts to break the law. If they are not strictly controlled, they will cause great disaster sooner or later. It would be better to let the court take action and follow the trend."

"I have also read your storybook, Your Majesty, and it is indeed very well written."

"But the worst thing is that someone might read the storybook and think they can become a great hero, doing things they think are right and causing losses to the Great Qian Dynasty. In that case, it would be a case of losing more than they gain."

Zhou Rui turned to look at Zhou Tianze, his gaze growing increasingly indifferent.

He sighed, and this time he didn't refuse directly. Instead, he turned to look at Zhou Tiancheng.

"Your Highness, what is your opinion on this matter?"

Zhou Tiancheng was stunned.

They're just bandits, what's the big deal?

If they want to meddle, let them meddle.

But when he saw Zhou Rui's deep gaze, he immediately realized that something was wrong.

Could there be something fishy going on here?

That's public opinion.

Is someone trying to control public opinion?

Zhou Tiancheng then realized what was happening, and his eyes lit up as he came up with an idea.

"Father, I believe that since you are the number one person in the world, you are also the number one person in the Green Forest. No matter how despicable the people in the Green Forest are, they are still members of the world."

"In that case, why not let Father Emperor take charge of this martial arts tournament?"

"Your subject believes that Chief Eunuch Huang is capable of undertaking this important task."

Zhou Rui smiled with relief.

Look, these are his two sons.

The third brother wanted to have everything.

Where is the Crown Prince?

He doesn't want to compete for anything, but whenever there's a benefit to be gained, he pushes it towards the emperor.

Tell me, who does he like more, the Crown Prince or someone else?

But the problem is, Huang Chen is really not suitable!

The Imperial Guard was responsible for the situation in Kyoto, but extending that responsibility to the entire Daqian Dynasty would be quite difficult.

"Your Highness, would you be interested in managing this so-called martial arts world for me?"

Zhou Rui spoke up directly.

Qin Zhiang narrowed his eyes instantly.

Zhou Tianze was younger, and his expression was more direct, extremely ugly.

It took him a full breath to recover.

On the contrary, Zhou Tiancheng didn't have much interest in the martial arts world and hesitated before making excuses.

"Father, this is a bit inappropriate."

"Those bandits are all lawbreakers. Even if I try to control them, I definitely won't be able to. It might even implicate me, and others will say that I'm bad at disciplining them."

"It's better to just ignore it."

After thinking about it carefully, Zhou Rui realized that this made sense.

The Crown Prince's reputation has finally improved. If those bandits cause trouble and all the killings are attributed to him, it would indeed be a loss.

He nodded slightly.

"Since the Ministry of Rites wants to take the lead, then let the Ministry of Rites do it."

"But remember this: if those bandits cause any trouble, your Ministry of Rites won't escape responsibility!"

As he said this, Zhou Rui gave Qin Zhiang a gloomy look.

Qin Zhi'ang remained unmoved and bowed respectfully to himself.

"Your subject obeys the imperial decree and will certainly keep this bandit group under the control of the court, and will never allow them to cause trouble."

Zhou Rui snorted.

He did want to remove Qin Zhi'ang from power, but he never expected that this scoundrel not only embezzled money himself, but also had connections with the imperial family and powerful clans.

Now Zhou Rui is feeling somewhat constrained.

He withdrew his gaze somewhat displeased and looked at the assembled officials.

"If there's anything else, please say it all at once."

Upon hearing this, Qin Zhiang glanced at Zhou Tianze.

Zhou Tianze understood immediately, stood up, and clasped his hands in greeting.

"Father, it is time to address the five charges I made against the Crown Prince yesterday."

Zhou Rui's expression worsened.

That brat hasn't given up yet!

But he wouldn't go back on his word, giving Zhou Tianze this opportunity for a confrontation.

"Your Highness, your third brother is accusing you. What are you standing there for?"

Zhou Tiancheng walked out somewhat helplessly.

"Since Father has spoken, Third Prince, I'll confront you here and now. I want to know what gives you the confidence to accuse me!"