Chapter 584

Zhao Baohé and Tongchén saw Dawang with tears welling up; the troublemaking Dawang they were used to, no matter where he dug pits, it didn't affect his standing in their hearts.

As soon as Dawang saw Xie Yuan, he instinctively threw away the tool in his hand, patted his paw as if nothing had happened, then shouted loudly, "Sir~!" and rushed toward Xie Yuan.

Enthusiastic and lively.

"Sir, you've finally come! I've been bullied badly in Everlasting Peace, and no one shares my heart~"

Xie Yuan: ……

But seeing Dawang still so lively and energetic, I do feel somewhat relieved.

Dawang then turned to Lu Tong, "Minister of Justice, you too must stand up for me~"

Lu Tong: ……

This… this is somewhat different from what we've heard!

Dawang saw them and forgot about destroying the Establishing Regulations Palace, going to catch up instead.

"Hurry to my study!"

As Lu Tong left, he glanced back at the two half-dug pits, then looked up at the majestic main hall of the Establishing Regulations Palace; this place, a three‑hundred‑year‑old imperial holy hall, now inexplicably gained a hint of vitality with those two pits.

Alright, it's just that Dawang dug two pits on the head of Old Jin.

Dawang was pleased that Xie Yuan had brought Xie Tu along, though he'd forgotten to mention it at the time. He thought the Northern Border weekly should also be moved to Everlasting Peace; some things aren't suitable for plain notices, so a newspaper is still needed as a voice.

Xie Tu had come of his own accord.

"If His Highness isn't in Youzhou, our newspaper has nothing to report," Xie Tu said frankly.

When Da Wang is in Youzhou, he can supply a story for the newspaper each day; when he's absent, Xie Tu, aside from chronicling Da Wang's martial feats and lauding his benevolence, truly has no idea what else to fill the remaining pages with. Da Wang, hearing this, was mightily pleased—indeed, he declared that nowhere could get along without him!

After consulting, Xie Tu and Xie Yuan decided to keep half the staff at each position in the newspaper office to maintain basic operations, while bringing all the remaining personnel to Chang'an. This newspaper must follow Da Wang wherever he goes.

After finishing his report on northern frontier affairs, Xie Yuan finally got to the point: "Your Highness, I see you have temporarily settled down; I wonder when you intend to ascend the throne?"

These days Da Wang has relished the sweetness of being an invisible emperor who need not attend to affairs; he truly is not in a hurry. Simply enjoying privileges without bearing responsibilities—such a good thing had best be prolonged indefinitely!

"Not in a hurry. I still have a bunch of things to do!"

"For example?"

Da Wang extended a claw and said, "For example, the auction at the Futu Tower, the household registration clearance in Luoyang and surrounding areas, and I even plan to go undercover in the Imperial Guard for a few days… Anyway, I can't free up any time right now."

"Please forgive my frankness, but these are not matters for Your Highness to attend to."

Da Wang: "Well… there are still plenty more!"

Under the gaze of several people, Da Wang muttered lowly, "The monthly salaries of all offices in Chang'an are two months in arrears; shouldn't I pay them before ascending the throne?"

Xie Yuan:...

"Your Highness!"

Da Wang quickly compromised, he also knew these weren't valid excuses. "Alright, alright, you go ahead and prepare; anyway, it won't delay my doing these things."

Seeing Xie Yuan's expression ease, Da Wang raised his neck and added, "When I ascend the throne, I'll have to change the era name, right? I won't take responsibility for any accounts incurred before the day of my enthronement!"

Da Wang had made up his mind to settle the accounts, and Xie Yuan also thought it was no big deal. "Then it's settled: we'll wait till tomorrow's court assembly, consult the Minister of Rites and the Director of the Imperial Clan to work out a specific date, then draft an era name—anyway, Your Highness needs to ascend the throne as soon as possible."

Da Wang exclaimed in shock, "Ah? I still have to attend court? I've never done that before!"

The people from the northern frontier:...

After all this time, what on earth have you been doing in Chang'an?!

However, they weren't confused for long; after leaving the palace they quickly learned of Da Wang's great achievements in Chang'an.

Da Wang is a penny-pincher; originally, the mansions held by the court and those seized from individuals purged during the Guanglie Dynasty all ended up in his grasp. Now that Xie Yuan and the others have arrived, Da Wang immediately bestowed residences upon them.

As for Xie Yuan, Da Wang intends to appoint him Chancellor. In the Great Jin dynasty, the Chancellor is the head of all officials; Xie Chancellor's résumé is simply insufficient, so he plans to overturn it—just fine. As for Lu Tong, he remains Minister of Justice.

Xie Yuan and Lu Tong each received a grand residence in Chang'an's Eastern Ward; as long as they didn't have to put up cash, Da Wang was quite generous.

Lu Tong passed his own home without entering, following Xie Yuan and Xie Tu to the Xie manor. Under the pretense of discussing important matters, he was actually laughing uncontrollably at Da Wang's extortion scheme, "... If we tally it up, His Highness's coffers are looking pretty healthy now; the expenses of this southern trip surely won't go unrecovered, right?"

Xie Yuan fell silent for a moment, then said, "... After years of turmoil caused by the Taihe emperor's uncle and nephew, the rotten shell of the Great Jin has collapsed. Your Highness... it hasn't been easy either."

Lu Tong shook his head, "Isn't this just indulgence?"

Xie Yuan remained silent; after discussing other matters, he suddenly said, "Your Highness's move has thoroughly offended both the Du and the Wei clans."

Lu Tong knew what he meant and sneered, "In the face of the Xie and Lu clans, what are the Du and Wei clans even worth?!"

Xie Yuan:...

"Alright, that makes sense."

"Didn't they come here precisely for this?"