Chapter 62

Under Li Chen's signal, Zhao Wenyuan continued: "Regarding the grand spring hunt ten days from now, your humble servant dares to ask Your Majesty, where do you intend to hold it? So that your humble servant may plan ahead and make proper preparations."

Li Chen indeed knew very little about court affairs, but he did know about this spring hunt.

The so-called spring hunt was the monarch's hunting activity in the wild during the spring.

When the late Emperor went hunting in the past, Li Chen would also participate as an Imperial Prince.

He simply did not want to reveal his full strength, so he would not deliberately pretend to be incompetent.

Because the Imperial Princes were all outstanding, Li Chen only needed to perform averagely, and no one would bother him.

If he deliberately performed very poorly, everyone might suspect he was hiding his true talent.

The Tian Ce Dynasty had a tradition of hunting and rewarding the Top Graduate after the spring examinations.

The spring examinations were imminent; in twelve days, the results would be posted, and the top three would enter the palace examination.

And the Top Graduate would exclusively enjoy the honor of the Emperor's hunting catch.

Expressing the Emperor's deep love and expectations for the Top Graduate's talent was also a traditional fine story of the Tian Ce Dynasty.

Furthermore, this hunt was also a stage for the noble descendants of the Tian Ce Dynasty to showcase their riding and archery skills.

Many Imperial clan descendants, descendants of great meritorious nobles, and elites of powerful families would all participate to show off their skills.

Those who could participate in this hunt were all Imperial clansmen and relatives of the Emperor.

Li Chen could also promote some people who performed well, letting them feel the vastness of the Imperial grace.

Generally speaking, if the Emperor were to participate in such a hunt, he would certainly have to make preparations in advance, so as not to let the Emperor encounter danger during this hunt.

Even if Li Chen was in the Sage Realm, the officials still needed to do their jobs well.

This was also considered one of the Emperor's tasks, so Li Chen chose the Cangmang Mountain Range north of the city as the hunting ground.

With the matter settled, Zhao Wenyuan returned to his position.

Next, the military generals vied to request a northern expedition, one by one kneeling to beg Li Chen to let them go to war.

Li Chen was somewhat speechless; I haven't even sent the war challenge to the Northern Wang Ting, and the other side hasn't responded yet, what are you all rushing for?

A fight was definitely going to happen; regardless of whether the Khan of the Northern Wang Ting agreed or not, they would have to suffer this beating from Li Chen.

It was just that before the fight, many preparations had to be made.

As the saying goes, troops and horses move before food and fodder.

Li Chen had just become Emperor and was not familiar with the military generals, nor did he know who had ability and who did not.

So he simply said: "My ministers are very proactive, and I am very gratified. How about this: in the spring hunt ten days from now, whoever performs well, I will choose that person."

Don't say I didn't give you a chance; now you need to work hard yourselves.

The spring hunt was a surround-hunting event, and to a certain extent, it was also a test of the generals' ability to lead teams and their judgment of complex terrain.

This sentence was indeed able to make the military generals on the scene rub their fists and wipe their palms, wishing they could start the spring hunt immediately to show their strength in front of Li Chen.

Li Chen also did not expect that a casual remark of his would result in the largest spring hunt in the last five hundred years.

Whether they wanted to go on a northern expedition, wanted to curry favor with him, or wanted to kill him, this was undoubtedly the best opportunity.

Today's morning court ended very early; after all, there weren't that many things to do.

When he returned to the Imperial Study to finish the remaining work, he discovered a 'familiar' figure.

This person was dressed in fine clothes, with a dignified yet approachable face, standing outside the door; it was the late Emperor's own younger brother, Prince Jing'an, Li Longyu.

As soon as Li Longyu saw Li Chen, a respectful and cordial smile immediately appeared on his face. He stepped forward quickly, first performing a standard kneeling bow, and said: "Your humble servant pays respects to Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty, long live, long live."

Li Chen raised his hand slightly, signaling Li Longyu to rise, his voice calm and dignified: "Imperial Uncle, no need for formalities. I wonder what brings you here today?"

This guy came uninvited; he probably had something on his mind. Li Chen would first see what he had to say.

Li Longyu stood up, respectfully handed over a post with both hands, and wore a humble smile on his face: "Your Majesty, your humble servant has two matters to report today. First, five days from now is your humble servant's birthday. Your humble servant dares to ask Your Majesty to spare some time to attend, to add to your humble servant's joy. Being able to invite Your Majesty is truly your humble servant's honor.

Second, the matter Your Majesty entrusted to your humble servant a few days ago has been handled. This is also for Your Majesty to review." Li Chen took the post, glanced at it lightly, and then smiled: "For Imperial Uncle's birthday, I shall naturally attend. Moreover, I also want to take this opportunity to see how Imperial Uncle's recent work is progressing."

Hearing Li Chen agree, Li Longyu was grateful again and again, and the smile on his face grew even thicker.

No matter how much these people feared Li Chen, being able to invite Li Chen was undoubtedly the highest honor for them.

An Emperor in the Sage Realm attending one's birthday—how much face would that give one?

It would be enough to brag about for decades.

What? You didn't invite this Sage Realm Emperor to your birthday?

Then I'm sorry, we are not in the same league.

If I can invite him, it proves that my status in this dynasty is higher than yours!

To be honest, in the entire Tian Ce Dynasty, there were very few people qualified to invite Li Chen to a banquet.

It was just being invited to a birthday banquet; wasn't that just visiting relatives? Li Chen felt this was very normal.

This uncle of his had also been quite willing to listen to advice last time, so he could appropriately give him some face.

Entering the Imperial Study, Li Chen subconsciously looked at the desk.

!

Because he had been working hard recently, most of the memorials had been resolved; today there were fewer than ten.

Seeing there were so few, Li Chen finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After finishing, Li Chen walked out of the Imperial Study. He was in a very good mood today and decided to reward himself.

Consequently, he had someone summon Chu Ruoyan to the palace.

At the same time, at the Chu family residence.

Chu Ruoyan was in a training outfit, holding a weapon, her expression somewhat serious.

Because today was the agreed time when Xiao Ming wanted to abduct her.

Her heart was now full of Li Chen, and it was practically a two-way pursuit with Li Chen.

Where would she be willing to go and live on the streets with Xiao Ming?

In any aspect, Xiao Ming was not worthy of being compared to Li Chen.

Moreover, Li Chen was gentle, handsome, extremely strong, and held high power; even if Chu Ruoyan were blind, she would know who to choose.

It was not easy for their relationship to have progressed; it was just a matter of breaking through this thin veil, and she could become an Imperial Consort.

Not to mention that the entire Chu family was hoping for Li Chen to favor her, she herself was looking forward to it.

Judging by the dampness of her bedsheets, she had had quite a few erotic dreams these past few days.

Now she was holding a weapon just to guard against Xiao Ming's 'attack'.

If Xiao Ming dared to appear, she would draw her sword directly and state her intentions.

Even if there was the slightest disturbance in the courtyard, she was very vigilant.

Just at this moment, a burst of footsteps suddenly appeared at the entrance.

Chu Ruoyan immediately drew her sword, giving the maid outside the door a fright.

Seeing it was her own maid, Chu Ruoyan asked: "Why are you in such a hurry?"

The maid calmed her mood and said excitedly: "Miss, His Majesty has summoned you!"

This sentence made Chu Ruoyan overjoyed.

Generally speaking, Li Chen summoned her in the afternoon; it seemed Li Chen finished his work early today.

She immediately closed the door, changed into clothes that could highlight her advantages, then ran out the door and got into the carriage to enter the palace.

Along the way, she was very worried, even constantly looking around, fearing that Xiao Ming would cause trouble at this time.

However, she knew that as long as she entered the palace, she would be safe!

(End of Chapter)