Xue Bai ignored him and took out his dagger to cut off the rope.

He asked: "In the end, it was you who ended up like this. Is it worth it?"

Guo Ziyi responded: "There is no telling whether it is worthy or not. Those who are ministers should receive their salary and fight for the ancestral temple."

"It's a battle of interests and a class war between me and them. Who really cares about the ancestral temple? You are the only one who bears the biggest sin because of unrelated things."

Guo Ziyi loosened his ties and calmed down, saying, "I have thought carefully about this battle."

"Yeah?"

"The world cannot be in turmoil again. If I win a battle, Your Majesty should know to restrain himself and stop messing around. If I lose, the noble families will be afraid and will not dare to oppose the imperial decree. Compared with

The ministers who were massacred in Luoyang, thanks to this battle, I was able to save the officials and people of Chang'an."

Xue Bai shook his head and said: "If you are willing to help me, naturally no one will dare to oppose the imperial decree."

Guo Ziyi smiled bitterly and said: "To be honest, I don't support the new law in my heart."

"Then you were not defeated unjustly."

"Your Majesty, this battle was worthwhile." Guo Ziyi said, "After getting rid of us old stubborns, your Majesty will be able to govern the country as he pleases. But I only want one thing from your Majesty."

He didn't wait for Xue Bai to answer, and then said his request.

"After defeating the old minister, Your Majesty no longer has to be angry with the officials. You can implement the new law however you want, and there is no need to change your name. As your Majesty just said, if you don't care about the ancestral temple, why bother to abolish the Li family's ancestral temple?"

"No."

Xue Bai decisively rejected him.

Guo Ziyi then asked: "How do you want to honor your ancestors and which ancestors do you want to worship?"

In the current world, Xue Bai really had no ancestors to worship.

This is also the reason why Li Longji was willing to recognize him.

"I will no longer think of myself as Li Qian, because Li Qian represents weakness."

For Xue Bai, if he chooses to be Li Qian, it will not only be a compromise for the officials, but also a compromise for himself.

The ministers of the family will feel that he can be persuaded again, and he will embark on an easier, but not far, road.

Guo Ziyi sighed: "When your Majesty reaches the age of an old minister, will you still care about whether you are weak or not? That is just the opinion of others."

"That's because I haven't reached Duke Guo's realm yet."

~~

Two days later, Xue Bai returned to Chang'an City.

Surprisingly, there was a war in Ba Shang, but Chang'an City remained calm as usual.

Perhaps it's because the frivolous things that the powerful care about have nothing to do with the lives of ordinary people.

When Xue Bai arrived outside the Daming Palace, he saw a middle-aged man wearing only linen clothes, kneeling on the ground and shivering.

"I am guilty, please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

"Who are you?" Xue Bai called him forward and asked.

"My name is...Li Bin."

Xue Bai said: "You are a descendant of the Li family. Now I tell you that I have usurped the Li family. What are you going to do now?"

Li Bin was stunned for a moment and said: "Your Majesty is joking. I never believe those rebellious people in Luoyang who slander you. They deserve death and death!"

"I'm not kidding, my name is Xue Bai, not Li Qian."

"Your Majesty did have a surname of Xue. If anyone in the world dares to question it, I will be the first to object!"

"Listen clearly, I have usurped your Li family's empire."

"Then...then..." Li Bin had no choice but to hesitate and said: "May I please ask the Li family to abide by your majesty?"

Xue Bai laughed at his shamelessness and waved him away.

Li Bin was pardoned and fled quickly.

The imperial driver then entered the palace directly, and Xue Bai returned to the living room of Penglai Palace. Looking around, he saw that the decorations in the palace were exactly the same as when he left, without any changes.

But he could tell that the carpet had been rewashed, because he remembered that someone in the palace accidentally spilled the ink when he left.

Apparently, someone came in and soiled his carpet. As a result, he washed the carpet because he was afraid of him.

This may be the obedience of those Guanlong nobles who bully the weak and fear the strong.

That night, Du Jin went into the palace to discuss with Xue Bai, and performed the Wanfu ceremony with great joy.

"Congratulations to Your Majesty. Let's see who dares to oppose Your Majesty in the future."

"Don't be deceived by their appearance." Xue Bai said, "You know whether they dare to die or not. They will obey the rules and violate the rules."

"They can even accept your surname as 'Xue'? What else can you do that you dare to do openly and secretly?"

"Too many excuses." Xue Bai said: "They have found too many excuses before they are willing to admit that I am not Li Qian. They are unwilling. If they are asked to pay taxes on their fields in the future, they will only be even more reluctant."

Du Jin whispered: "What do you mean, you haven't killed enough yet?"

"Don't kill for the sake of killing." Xue Bai said, "Check it out to see if they are sincerely surrendering or if they have some other conspiracy behind their backs."

"good."

"Has Yuan Zai checked?"

"Still checking." Du Jin said.

Xue Bai nodded and talked about another thing casually.

"How about giving Jin Niang a title?"

"What?"

"Concubine."

Du Jin was stunned for a moment, and his eyes couldn't help but shine a little.

She opened her mouth as if she was about to agree, but hesitated for a moment and said, "How about your majesty letting me think about it?"

"What worries do you have?" Xue Bai said, "Now you don't have to think about your identity anymore."

"I have done many things for you. Once it comes to light, the courtiers will accuse me of interfering in politics." Du Jin said, "At this time, there is no need to cause unnecessary trouble and wait."

With that said, she leaned into Xue Bai's arms and said, "I'm very happy that you have such a heart."

She was indeed happy, and the night was as tender as water. Although she did not have the name of a noble concubine, she had the reality of being a noble concubine.

…

The next day, Du Jin left the palace. Thinking of Xue Bai's instructions, she immediately asked her spies to inquire about Chang'an officials to see if they had any conspiracy.

In the afternoon, Yuan Zai came to ask for an audience.

Du Jin didn't want to meet him at first, but thinking about Xue Yaoying's incident, he met him anyway.

"I've met Er Niang."

"Are you here for Xue Yaoying?"

"No, I'm here for Li Mi."

Yuan Zai got straight to the point and said: "This morning, the sage issued an order to worship Li Mi as prime minister."

"I know." Du Jin said, "It's expected."

"Li Bi once loyal to Li Heng. Looking at his personality, how can he sincerely assist His Majesty? This person must be acting in an overt and treacherous manner."

Du Jin knew that the reason why Yuan Zai was so anxious was simply because Li Bi had touched his interests.

But when the words "Yang Feng Yin Biao" hit her ears, she thought of something else.

"During the battle with Guo Ziyi, Li Qijun and other officials surrendered due to Li Mi's persuasion." Du Jin said, "Li Mi was in Luoyang before. I had sent people to keep an eye on him. It was unlikely that he had any contact with Li Qijun. He was the only one who accompanied His Majesty.

After the expedition, he fell out of my sight in the army."

Yuan Zai said: "He must be colluding with Li Qiyun."

"On the day Guo Ziyi sent the envoy, Li Mi went to the Qinling Mountains to practice Taoism on the pretext of going to Qinling. Go and find out what he said to the envoy."

This matter is difficult to investigate, because the conversation between Li Mi and Zhang Yong is probably only known to them.

But Yuan Zai did not hesitate and immediately agreed, promising to get to the bottom of the matter.

~~

After Li Mi was re-appointed as prime minister, he quickly demoted a large number of officials who did not support the reform, including those who changed their attitudes and welcomed Xue Bai into Chang'an.

After that, he personally intervened and promoted a large number of officials who had actual achievements and were willing to implement the new policies.

This changed the atmosphere in the court in the fastest possible time.

It was under such circumstances that Li Qijun was demoted from the capital. Before leaving, Li Mi went to practice for him.

Zhang Yong and others were also present. After a few glasses of wine, Li Mi and Li Qijun went to a quiet place to talk privately.
To be continued...