with determination until he reached the highest level. Gazing at the majestic Taihe Palace gate before him, Li Chen ignored the calls from behind and pushed the door open and entered directly.The pala...Sorry, I'm late.

Fu Yuzhi spoke, immediately exposing a very embarrassing weakness of the Donggong faction.

At this time, within the Donggong faction, there were core members from various departments, as well as influential ministers like Xu Changqing and Zhao Heshan. Powerful figures held real authority, and at the top was a high-ranking official like Su Zhen'ting.

But…on the upper level, only Su Zhen Ting was there.

As Minister of Revenue, Xu Changqing was completely outmatched by Fu Yuzhi, the Prefectural Commandant of the Ministry of Officials.

To put it bluntly, you don't even deserve to have a conversation.

Xu Changqing, in front of Fu Yuzhi, had to perform a proper bow and address her as "my lord."

Su Zhetong's position and prestige were enough to crush Fu Yuzhi, but... if Su Zhetong came out at this time, who would stop Zhao Xuanji once he spoke

Before, Li Chen had always been in the capital. As the Regent of the Crown Prince, he could make everyone at court bow their heads. But now that Li Chen was away, his absence exposed the weakness of the Donggong (Eastern Palace) foundation within the imperial court's true power structure based on official rank.

This is determined by one's foundation.

The Donggong faction may be powerful, but it's still too young.

Today's overwhelming influence and prestige are all built upon Li Chen's unwavering support.

But for example, an official at Fu Yu-zhi's level cannot be promoted by Li Chen's word alone, nor can someone be arbitrarily promoted and accumulate the corresponding prestige within a short period of time.

Ranks, one imperial decree could elevate.

But prestige, requires one's day-to-day efforts, to accumulate over time.

This is also why Li Chen has always been unable to take Xu Changqing, Zhao Heshan and others further.

The foundation is too weak, and the prestige is insufficient.

Su Zhen-ting also realized this problem.

Just as he had to stand up and speak, an aged figure slowly walked in from outside the hall.

At this moment, the court meeting is already underway. If it were an ordinary person, they would absolutely be unable to enter the Taihe Hall in front of the heavily guarded Imperial Guards. However, this figure, within the vast territory of the Qin Empire, there are very few places he cannot go.

Among the sages of the world, there is Dantai Jing.

At the same time, he was also the minister of the Ministry of Central Secretariat during this dynasty.

Holding a high rank, a true official of distinction.

The appearance of Dantai Jingzhi surprised many people.

Although Dàntái Jìngzhī was brought into the imperial service by the prince, besides a few important occasions where he implicitly stated his position, Dàntái Jìngzhī never interfered in politics or got involved in the struggles between Zhào Xuánjī and the East Palace. As an outsider, this was something everyone took for granted.

So, this time at the meeting, everyone assumed that Dàntái Jìngzhī wouldn't be coming.

But he still came.

Does this mean that Dantai Jing is about to speak up

Zhao Xuanji slightly frowned, watching the elderly Dantang Jing walk into the hall.

At this moment, Zhao Xuanji is a little bored.

Although Dantai Jing appears to be uninvolved in any imperial politics, his stance is actually inclined towards the Eastern Palace.

Several key pronouncements helped the Crown Prince immensely and foiled many of Zhao Xuanji's plans.

His appearance today will undoubtedly bring him trouble.

However, behind Dantai Jing stood the foremost scholars of the land. This force was one that no one dared to ignore, let alone offend.

Fellow colleagues, I apologize for my tardiness. My old bones move slowly, and despite my haste, I arrived late. However, I could hear your heated debate from outside the hall and am grateful to still be in time.

Dàntái Jìng entered the hall and raised his hand to bow to the officials around him.

All the officials present hurriedly returned his greeting.

Listening to Dantai Jing's words, Zhao Xuanji's expression gradually turned cold. Fu Yuzhi's face also didn't look good. On the contrary, Su Zhendong and Xu Changqing and others looked pleased.th your life for military merit, you deserve to be respected by everyone."A lot of things in this world work the same way: if you want more reward, you have to pay a higher price or take on more risk,...