Having children earns benefit, start competing for dominance in the world by marrying a wife

After the female guard sent by Lu Chen had left, Li Rui immediately instructed his servants to notify the Capital city officials who were still at the door and hadn't left, asking them to enter the hall together.

Upon hearing that Li Rui, the former third-ranked official of the North Country's court, wanted to see them, the Capital city officials were extremely pleased.

They were not fools and naturally understood that Li Rui's earlier claim of being ill was an excuse not to see them. Now that Li Rui wanted to see them, it was clear he had come around.

Soon, a group of officials from the Capital city arrived at the meeting hall of Li Mansion.

Once everyone had entered the reception hall, Li Rui spoke up directly,"This official knows why you have come to Li Mansion today. But before that, let me be frank, you should take back all the gifts you brought with you later."

"Yan County is not like the Capital city; it's easy to run into trouble with casual gift-giving here."

Hearing this, the officials were momentarily stunned, but having been in the civil service for many years, they quickly grasped Li Rui's meaning.

Li Rui continued,"Our Emperor is unlike any previous Emperor. To establish a firm footing in Yan County, you must quickly understand what kind of person the Emperor needs."

"If you have any questions, you can raise them now. This official can answer all of them today. However, after today, you cannot run to Li Mansion as you did today."

Hearing Li Rui speak so directly, an official from the Capital city immediately said,"Lord Li, this subordinate has a question and would like to seek advice from Lord Li."

Li Rui said,"If there's anything you don't understand, ask away."

The official asked,"Is it true that holding court sessions once every seven days will not affect the passage of state affairs?"

Li Rui replied,"No, it won't. Although court sessions occur once every seven days, the Emperor certainly does not do nothing in these seven days. The Emperor will handle all sorts of state affairs in the Imperial Study Room."

"The reason the Emperor changed court sessions to once every seven days is that the Emperor is aware that some ministers always raise trivial matters at the morning sessions, turning the court into a pointless exercise and wasting half a day's time, which significantly impacts the efficiency of officials."

"Without morning sessions, officials need to go to their respective workplaces at work hours, which in fact increases work efficiency."

Another official asked,"If there are no morning sessions, how will we know if the Emperor has any urgent matters?"

Li Rui responded,"Do you think the Emperor decided to hold court sessions once every seven days for no reason? During court sessions, the Emperor will arrange all the work for the coming seven days. If there's an emergency, the Emperor will naturally send someone to inform the senior departments, and then the senior departments will issue orders to their subordinates."

Li Rui glanced over the officials in the hall and continued,"Our Emperor values practical achievements and greatly dislikes bringing everything to the court for discussion. In the future, remember not to bring anything unrelated to state affairs to court."

"Especially matters of the Harem, which are the Emperor's family affairs—take great care not to touch upon them. Moreover, the Ministry of Rites in the new court is essentially a retirement department. If any of you end up there, you only need to follow the Emperor's arrangements. Don't incessantly talk about ritual and propriety; the Emperor dislikes nothing more than those who preach about moral principles but are idle in their duties."

Upon hearing this, one official was displeased and immediately said,"Lord Li, the son of Heaven has no personal matters; thus, the affairs of the Harem should also be considered state affairs."

Li Rui glanced at the man and then said,"This official is just reminding you. If you all do not heed my advice and something happens, don't blame this official."

Li Rui's tone was stern, and the man refrained from saying more.

Li Rui carried on,"There's another most crucial point: do not think about engaging in bribery. The Emperor has an institution specifically monitoring officials, called the Brocade Guard. The Brocade Guard is ubiquitous; whatever you do, the Emperor will know immediately."

Hearing Li Rui say this, the officials finally understood why he had asked them to take their gifts back.

At this moment, an official cautiously asked, "Lord Li, does this mean that whatever you tell us today will soon be known by His Majesty as well?"

Upon hearing this question, Li Rui laughed and then said, "His Majesty was already aware of your visit to the Li Mansion. What do you think was the reason I originally did not want to see you, but then suddenly decided I would?"

This...

The officials instantly understood Li Rui's implication—could it be that Li Rui speaking to them in this manner was by the palace's wishes?

No wonder Li Rui's words sounded like he was admonishing them; it turned out that these were the things the Emperor wanted to say to them, and Li Rui was merely conveying the Emperor's intentions.

Following that, Li Rui discussed with the officials present the government structure of Yan County and also talked about how the officials there were previously treated.

After listening to Li Rui, the officials from the Capital city gained a rough understanding of Yan County's bureaucratic scene and Lu Chen's style of conducting affairs.

...

Lu Chen and Zhuge Zhongguang discussed for nearly a day before finally deciding on the list of official appointments for the new court.

In the evening, Lu Chen initially planned to visit Yelv Nanyan, but he suddenly remembered something, and so he turned and went to the residence of Wu Junwan instead.

Currently, Wu Junwan and Murong Xue'er were living together, after all, neither of them had formally married Lu Chen nor did they have an official status.

And despite their frequent bickering, Murong Xue'er and Wu Junwan had many common topics; both were connected to the Yue Emperor and were Lu Chen's women. Whether they discussed the Emperor or Lu Chen, they could always find common ground.

Now, as the sunset in the west, the red glow of the twilight shone upon the voluptuous and perfect figure of Wu Junwan, the scene like a beautiful painting.

Wu Junwan stood in the pavilion, while Murong Xue'er stood by her side. At this moment, Wu Junwan said, "Why don't you go to the Imperial Study Room and find that man?"

Murong Xue'er replied, "Isn't Princess Junwan also not going?"

Wu Junwan spoke indifferently, "This palace is now busy with many duties, unlike you who have nothing to do all day, spending every day in your room painting and thinking of men."

Ever since Lu Chen left the North Country, Murong Xue'er would often paint portraits of him in her room, longing for him as she gazed at the paintings.

Hearing Wu Junwan's words, Murong Xue'er raised her eyebrows slightly, then said, "Your Highness, peeping at others' belongings is not a good habit."

Just as Wu Junwan was about to say something, a familiar voice came from not far away, "Peeping at others' belongings is indeed not a good habit. Junwan, you must not do this again in the future."

Upon hearing this voice, the two women were momentarily stunned. As they regained their composure and looked toward the direction of the voice, they indeed saw that bad man who haunted their dreams and captivated their souls.

At that moment, Wu Junwan said, "Your Majesty, how come you are here today? Are you not afraid that the wives and concubines of the Harem will be jealous?"

After all, Wu Junwan and Murong Xue'er still lacked any formal status, and they had followed Lu Chen later in the game. Strictly speaking, it was not yet their turn. Yet, here was Lu Chen seeking them out on just the third day.

Upon hearing Wu Junwan's question, Lu Chen performed his Shadow Shifting, appearing directly behind the two women, and then spread his arms, wrapping them around the soft waists of the two.

"I've come here, of course, because I missed my Wanyan and Xue'er."