The Bad Guys: Playing the Fake Li Xingyun at the Beginning

The imperial court brought up old accounts, and he had to clean up after his previous actions. In order to apologize, he confined himself to the Prince of Jin's mansion. After all, his previous actions were untenable. It would be fine if Li Xingyun did not ascend the throne, but he still had the final say on what would happen to the imperial court.

But now that Li Xingyun has ascended the throne, it is legitimate for him to bring up old scores. Even if he has the merit of following the emperor, so what? The emperor has the righteousness in his hands. As long as he has the people under his command and the reason in his hand, he can do whatever he wants to you.

Li Siyuan did this on the one hand to avoid impeachment from court officials, and on the other hand to take a small step back and show weakness to Li Xingyun.

Chapter 111 Temporary concession

Yes, it is indeed a sign of weakness.

Li Siyuan had done such things countless times. He did so when Li Keyong was still alive, and he also did so when Li Cunxu became emperor.

Now that Li Xingyun is the emperor, it’s not a bad idea for him to show weakness and give in.

Although he had many people in the court, Li Xingyun took the righteousness and acted according to the emperor's orders, which caused him to suffer a lot of losses. This situation could not be reversed by just one or two officials.

The most important thing is that behind the emperor is the evil commander Yuan Tiangang. He doesn't care about Li Xingyun, a mere man without any troops or power.

No matter how powerful one is, without an army to rely on, he is just a paper emperor.

Since he cannot compete with him in the court, he should take a step back, protect himself and preserve his strength. In this way, he will neither do any good nor make any mistakes, and relying on his merit of following the emperor, he can still do well.

"Brother, do we really have to give in to that kid? This will only boost his morale and destroy our own prestige! He is just a young boy, a puppet emperor. There is no need for us to give in." Li Cunzhi raised his eyebrows like a sword, very unhappy.

Li Siyuan sighed and patted his shoulder again, "You think the situation in the court is too simple."

"In the past, Li Cunxu was killed by the Mirror Heart Demon. Before I could eliminate his followers, Li Xingyun came to Luoyang. More importantly, Yuan Tiangang also came. I am not afraid of Li Xingyun, but I am afraid of Yuan Tiangang behind him!"

Hearing the three words "Yuan Tiangang", Li Cunzhi couldn't help but fall silent.

Who in the world wouldn't be afraid of this old monster who has lived for three hundred years!

Not to mention, he also has the world's number one secret organization, the Bad People, under his command. In the battle of Bianliang in the past, the huge Xuanming Sect became a branch of the Bad People overnight. Who in the world would not be terrified!

Even the Xuanming Sect founded by the Underworld Emperor Zhu Yougui has been infiltrated so badly. Who can guarantee that his subordinates are not bad people? When this matter got out, Li Siyuan also began to become suspicious and suspected that his brothers were also bad people.

However, until now, he had only investigated secretly and did not dare to expose it. Firstly, he was afraid that everyone in Tongwenguan would be insecure and the emperor's heart would not be with him. Secondly, he was afraid of offending Yuan Tiangang.

The scene in Luoyang was still fresh in his memory. The strong feeling of oppression suffocated Li Siyuan.

"Brother, is there really no way?" Li Cunzhi clenched his fists, looking unwilling.

Li Siyuan sneered, his eyes showing both mockery and fear, "Yuan Tiangang suppressed the princes of the world for three hundred years. Although he maintained the Tang Dynasty court, he also became the source of disaster for the Tang Dynasty."

"As the saying goes, there is no construction without destruction. It is because of him that the Tang Dynasty has been half dead. No matter how powerful he is, he is just a minister, not a monarch. No matter how many bad people there are, they are just a spy organization and cannot be put on the stage."

"If Yuan Tiangang really had the ability to turn the tide, how could the Tang Dynasty be destroyed by the traitor Zhu Wen? His comeback was only a last resort."

"Seventh Brother, you and I both know that the Tang Dynasty has long been destroyed. The military governors of various places have their own troops and are independent. A Li emperor and a bad guy cannot gather people's hearts and rebuild the Tang Dynasty. If people's hearts are scattered, it is not that easy to rebuild them."

"At worst, we brothers can retreat back to Hedong and become our own local emperors, leaving Luoyang to them to deal with it." After Li Siyuan finished his long speech, he expressed his unhappiness and his expression returned to normal.

"Brother, what you said makes sense. Even if we give the court to that young boy, what tricks can he play?" Li Cunzhi also figured out the key and stopped worrying about it.

However, Li Siyuan clenched his hands tightly in his sleeves, unwillingly saying, "Li Xingyun, I'll let you be proud for a while. It's too early for you to become the emperor! You can't deal with those military governors with empty words."

……

Imperial City, Qianqiu Palace.

Su Ming sat on the soft couch, staring at the chessboard in front of him. Opposite him, the empress was dressed in white scholar's clothing, with a slender waist that could be held in one hand, and a delicate face that was strong yet heroic, appearing to be elegant and graceful.

"Empress, it's your turn." He gently placed a piece down and urged with a smile.

"Your Majesty, why are you in such a hurry?" Seeing where Su Ming made his move, the empress' pupils shrank slightly, as if she was a little surprised. Then she started to think seriously. When she made her next move and picked up the tea, she found that it had gone cold.

"Empress, are you sure you want to leave here?" Su Ming held the teacup in his hand, smiling but with a hint of narrowness in his eyes.

Looking at the chessboard, the empress checked it carefully for a moment, confirmed that it was correct, then looked up at him and wrinkled her nose, "Play it here, no regrets!" Her voice was clear and accurate, with confidence and strength.

Su Ming laughed loudly, dropped a piece casually, and shook his head, "What a pity, what a pity."

The piece he casually placed broke the Empress's long-planned back-up plan. Not only that, he also took the initiative, counterattacked, and entangled her dragon.

"Hmph, I won't play anymore. I give up." After seeing this move, the empress knew that there was no way to turn the situation around, so she simply gave in and admitted defeat.

"Prince Xue has been playing against me for so long, but his winnings are getting less and less. Empress, you must not follow in his footsteps." Su Ming put down the teacup and refilled tea for both of them.

"Don't worry, I can definitely beat you." Although the empress lost the game, she was very relaxed. The corners of her lips slightly raised, revealing a faint smile.

Her beautiful eyebrows and pink lips, like a blooming orchid, aroused Su Ming's infinite tenderness. She was the empress who would never admit defeat, heroic and valiant, yet also had a lovable side.

At this moment, a man walked out from the back hall, came to Su Ming's side and whispered softly. The empress was not surprised and just drank her tea.

After listening to the report, he nodded and signaled him to leave.

"Those children from aristocratic families are finally taking action."

The empress also became interested, but she hadn't seen those aristocratic families in action for a long time. When the situation in Luoyang was tense and the flags on the city walls were changing, the power of the aristocratic families in the court was wiped out. When the emperor ascended the throne, they did not show up. Why did they jump out now?

"At this time, they are taking action for the talent show?"

Su Ming shook his head, "No, they are not here for the draft, but for the imperial examination."

Imperial examination?

The empress was very confused, but then she felt relieved when she thought of the new imperial examination rules that had just been issued by the court. Once the new imperial examination rules were issued, the advantages that children of aristocratic families like them would no longer exist, and they would no longer have privileges like before, so it was not surprising that they were so nervous.

"They are just sunset flowers now, they can't cause any waves. The imperial examination is to select talents for the country, they have no say in it."

Su Ming agreed with her point of view, "However, this matter will eventually come down to the talent show."

Chapter 112 Aristocratic Family Sends Their Daughter

This sentence made the empress confused. She glanced at Su Ming as if asking a question.

Su Ming smiled faintly and explained, "The power of the aristocratic families has been swept away by Li Siyuan, and they have long lost their foothold in the court. The swallows that used to fly in front of the halls of the rich and powerful now fly into the homes of ordinary people. They are no longer the aristocratic families of the founding period of the Tang Dynasty."

"Without money, food and territory, they are just ordinary wealthy families who pass down poetry and literature. The military governors of various places are constantly attacking each other. How can they, the wealthy families, have the qualifications to please both sides? They either fight each other and become the military governors of a region, or they are treated like fat sheep and slaughtered by the military governors."

"It has been more than 200 years since the An-Shi Rebellion. Their strong cultural heritage has been completely eroded in this war that has lasted for more than a hundred years. All they have left are poetry and books."

"They can't shake the court, let alone my determination. The only place they can interfere is in the selection of candidates."

With just a few words, Su Ming uncovered all the details of these aristocratic families. At this time, the empress looked at him talking eloquently with confidence and aloofness, her beautiful eyes full of admiration and tenderness.

Power is an aphrodisiac for men, and men who control power are also an aphrodisiac for women.

The empress is a royal noble, but she is also a woman. Women admire the strong, this is a nature rooted in their blood. In the past, when the Three Kingdoms were fighting for supremacy, she refused to admit defeat.

But now, facing Su Ming, she fell.

If she liked the real Li Xingyun because of his life-saving grace and his loyal love for Ji Ruxue, then the emperor's way shown by Su Ming was his conquest of her.

Soon, the empress gathered her thoughts and buried everything in her heart. Now was not the time to think about these things. "You mean, they will send women to the harem?"

"Yes, in the past, I was worried that these aristocratic families would not take me seriously. Now the court is going to reopen the imperial examinations and select officials. This is an opportunity for talented people in the world, and it is also an opportunity for them.

Although the aristocratic families have a deep heritage of poetry and literature, they only have a small number of members. Facing the huge number of children from poor families, their advantage is limited to this.

In the future, with an endless stream of poor students pouring into the court, will these aristocratic families still be able to occupy the court safely?

This world lacks everything except people. The vision and inheritance of the aristocratic families are strong, but there are also noble sons among the poor, and my imperial examination will not only test the Four Books and Five Classics. "After saying this, Su Ming gave her a meaningful look.

The reason why the Song Dynasty dared to control the military with civil power was because there was a constant supply of fresh blood from the grassroots to serve as officials. Compared with military strength, Su Ming asked himself if he was as good as those military governors.

Now, he could only find another way. First, he had to reform the court system, take control of the core areas of the court, and then step by step prepare for war.

Of course, this is the path for the future. Everything he does now is to protect himself, not only for the princes and people of the world to see, but also for Yuan Tiangang to see.

Although he became the emperor, Su Ming would not forget that fake is fake after all. If he wanted to make it real, he had to pass Yuan Tiangang's test, let him see the real hope of reviving the Tang Dynasty, and let him understand that Li Xingyun was not reliable at all, and he was the only one who could restore the Tang Dynasty.

The simplest way is to kill Li Xingyun. Without Li Xingyun, he can only rely on himself.

But this road is destined to fail, and Yuan Tiangang will not give him this opportunity.

Su Ming had only one other way left, which was to show his own value. Yuan Tiangang had made many attempts to revive the Tang Dynasty, but a minister was still a minister after all. Many emperors of the Li Tang Dynasty were useless. Even though Yuan Tiangang had a hundred clever plans, those useless people simply refused to listen, which led to the current situation.

Since his debut, Yuan Tiangang has never given him any advice. Apart from his bloodline and Li Xingyun's identity, the current situation of the court was built up bit by bit by him.

However, this may not be enough to make Yuan Tiangang change his mind.

On the other hand, he also had to be prepared to fall out with Yuan Tiangang. No matter how busy he was with government affairs every day, Su Ming never stopped practicing.

To this day, his skills have reached the peak of the Great Heaven Realm. He has also practiced Xiantian Qi, Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, Lingbo Weibu and Xiao Li Flying Dagger. Even Li Siyuan is no match for him.

It can be said that his current combat power is second only to one person. Except for Yuan Tiangang, he is not inferior to anyone. However, no one can predict Yuan Tiangang's attitude for sure. Who knows what he is thinking and whether he will deal with himself.

However, some things cannot be rushed, so he can only prepare slowly and wait for the opportunity.

……

Inside the room, the children from different families were arguing endlessly, and none of them could come to a conclusion yet.

Some people wanted to incite the scholars and force the court to make concessions, but their idea was rejected as soon as it was proposed. They were able to incite because there were interests involved. The court's reforms clearly gave the majority of scholars fairer treatment.

Although the imperial examination had not yet begun, the reputation of the imperial court was gradually improving, and even the emperor was known as a wise ruler.

Those scholars are scholars after all, how could they be so easily instigated?

Some people also suggested whether they could get the test questions in advance through channels so that they could prepare in advance. Everyone agreed with this point and they were willing to prepare in advance if possible.

But no one wanted to compete fairly with those scholars in the imperial examinations. The noble families had been taking shortcuts for so many years, and they thought that competing fairly with those scholars was an insult to themselves.

As descendants of the five surnames and seven noble families, the blood they inherited gave them a natural sense of superiority over those poor people at the bottom of society. Even if the power of the noble families declined, the things in their bones could not be changed in a short time.

"How about we send a message to the family and ask the elders to send the girls in their families to participate in the harem selection?" Someone suddenly said this.

Suddenly, everyone was silent and moved.

The imperial court's reform of the imperial examination not only brought fairness to scholars from poor families, but also changed the content of the imperial examination. It was no longer limited to the Four Books and Five Classics and Confucian scriptures, but also involved subjects such as water conservancy, farming, arithmetic, law, etc.

The reform of the content of the imperial examination was leaked as early as when the court was about to announce the imperial examination. The time was very short. Even if they had a tradition in their family, they would not be able to learn it in a short time. In a sense, everyone was standing on the same starting line.

If they cannot gain a foothold in the court, they will not be able to withstand the impact of the poor families at the bottom. Compared with taking the imperial examination, sending their daughters is undoubtedly a very profitable thing.

It's no wonder that you're marrying off a daughter, let alone marrying her to the emperor.

Originally, the imperial court had the intention of winning over these high-ranking families when selecting concubines. Now, it was just perfect to go with the flow and kill two birds with one stone.

Chapter 113 Don't Push Him

The major families of the Five Surnames and Seven Ancestral Families suffered heavy losses within hundreds of years. For example, the Zheng family of Xingyang and the Cui family of Qinghe had long since declined and their inheritance was no longer there.

The Wang family of Taiyuan was exploited by various military governors in Taiyuan, Hedong, and suffered terribly.

It can be said that apart from the heritage of poetry and literature passed down from generation to generation, the only thing left of these aristocratic families is their great reputation.

Before this, they were hesitant and did not decide to participate in the selection because of the endless infighting in the court, with the emperor and the Prince of Jin fighting openly and secretly.