"Is His Majesty perhaps grooming Young Master Cao as his successor?"
This is the sentiment of many, after all, it was destined that Princess Jiujiu Xu would marry Cao Yu.
The prince consort has become prime minister again; this is truly the first time I've ever seen such a thing.
"Attend court!"
Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!
The forms of greeting among civil and military officials were all different.
Civil officials, on the other hand, knelt on the ground with their heads pressed against it.
The military officer, on the other hand, knelt on one knee, clenching one fist and pounding it on the ground, while pressing the other fist tightly against his chest.
After all, their heavy armor restricted them to some extent.
Besides Cao Yu, the only ones present who didn't need to kneel were Xu Tianshui and his Retirement Group.
They simply stood up and bowed slightly to Xu Jiawei.
"My esteemed subjects, rise!"
After receiving the promise, all the civil and military officials stood up, patted their knees, and then stood in neat rows.
Cao Yu sat back down on the sofa; those who receive favoritism are often so fearless.
Xu Jiawei slowly said, "I'm sure everyone knows the newly appointed prime minister, so I won't go into details here."
"Do any of you ministers have anything to report?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than a man stepped forward and announced, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."
"What is it, my dear minister?"
This is a first-rank official He Xukun, but in terms of power, he is inferior to the prime minister.
He Xukun's responsibilities included managing and tracking the empire's finances and taxes, essentially making him the financial manager of a company.
"Your Majesty, military expenditures now account for over 70% of the nation's total expenditures. I fear..."
Xu Jiawei's face also showed a thoughtful expression. "Speak, what are you afraid of?"
"I fear that an imbalance in national spending could lead to unimaginable consequences!"
"Therefore, I would like to propose reducing military spending, and then..."
Before he could finish speaking...
At this moment, Su Wu, the military officer in charge on the other side, also stepped forward to interrupt his speech, and then clasped his fists in salute to He Xukun.
Turning to Xu Jiawei, he said, "Your Majesty, the Sun Moon Empire is constantly making small moves, and there are frequent skirmishes on the border. This is a sign that a major war is brewing."
"Moreover, the old king of the Sun Moon Empire doesn't have much time left, and Xu Tianran, in my opinion, is a treacherous villain with wolfish ambitions. Your Majesty must continue to increase war preparations to prevent any unforeseen circumstances."
He Xukun's expression changed. After all, he didn't get along with most of these military officers, and these rough men had never given him a friendly look. Because of this, He Xukun was also holding a grudge.
But he still seemed somewhat unwilling and continued, "Your Majesty, this..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xu Jiawei frowned and waved his hand to stop him from continuing.
"Alright, my dear minister, there's no need to worry about this. This was my idea."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Seeing that Xu Jiawei had spoken, He Xukun could only awkwardly retreat to their original positions.
With so much military spending now underway, the status of these military officers is likely to become even more important in the future.
At this moment, the civil officials present all sensed something unusual.
"Does this mean His Majesty intends to prioritize military prowess over civil administration?"
This is not a good thing for them.
But seeing that He Xukun, a high-ranking official among the civil officials, had been defeated, most of the civil officials no longer dared to mention such matters.
After all, someone had already tested the waters, so naturally no one was foolish enough to step into that pit themselves.
A moment later, Xu Jiawei turned his gaze to Cao Yu and then chuckled softly, " Chancellor Cao, what are your thoughts on this military expenditure?"
Upon hearing this voice, all the civil and military officials turned their gazes toward Cao Yu, while the members of the Retirement Group merely revealed meaningful smiles.
It seems His Majesty wants to test Little Yu, and perhaps also impart some experience to him.
Cao Yu had naturally considered this as well, and stood up without hesitation.
"First of all, I strongly support Your Majesty's approach, after all, a strong military is the true protector of the entire empire."
"Military spending is equivalent to an empire's defense spending, creating an empire's protective umbrella. This is of great help in preventing future invasions by the Sun Moon Empire."
"No empire can be a powerful empire without a strong national defense; without a solid national defense, the security and development of an empire are not guaranteed."
"Truth is always within the range of a cannonball!"
Everyone listened to his words in a daze, and Xu Jiawei and the members of the Retirement Group all looked surprised.
I never expected that this kid, who usually seems so unserious, would actually be quite capable when it really matters.
Cao Yu's words at this moment also won the favor of those military officers.
It seems that Chancellor Cao treats these soldiers very well, and many military officers have developed the idea of befriending him.
The civil officials below, however, seemed quite apprehensive, as it appeared there was a significant difference in their stances regarding the future successor!
This is going to be tricky.
"Yes, Chancellor Cao is absolutely right. Please sit down." Xu Jiawei nodded with a smile, then gestured for Cao Yu to quickly return to his seat.
Then he looked down at the civil and military officials below and gestured to the guards not far away.
The guard, understanding immediately, stepped forward a few paces and then loudly proclaimed, "Speak quickly if you have something to say, otherwise, court is dismissed!"
"Your subject has a report to submit!"
Shen Cheng, a second-rank official, stepped forward at this moment. He and Cao Yu were old acquaintances, and they treated each other with great friendliness.
"Your Majesty, in a remote border town near the Star Dou Great Forest in the southwest of the Empire, groups of Soul Beast frequently appear."
"It's already approaching autumn and winter, a time when those Soul Beast are short of food, so many people living there have lost their lives as a result."
"The casualty figures are rising steadily. Currently, over 100 people have died, 56 are seriously injured, and more than 70 are still missing."
Every autumn and winter, towns near the Star Dou Great Forest often encounter this kind of situation.
Of course, this is also extremely troublesome, mainly because those Soul Beast are very cunning. When troops are sent to suppress them, they escape to the depths of the Star Dou Great Forest, but as soon as the people leave, they come out to cause trouble again.
The situation with the Sun and Sun Moon Empire is becoming increasingly tense, and the empire cannot send more troops to support so many border towns.
After all, this is not the only border town where such incidents of Soul Beast eating people occur every year.
However, with the continuous development of technology, weapons have long been updated and replaced. Nowadays, even ordinary people can use them proficiently after a period of training.
Xu Jiawei was not worried about this, so he ordered, "Allocate enough new weapons to every border town and build fortifications."
"You, Shen Aiqing, will be in charge of this matter."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
(End of this chapter)