My Wife is Unbeatable in the Whole World, Touch Me If You Dare!

...

In July, some events occurred in the court.

The three provinces announced the establishment of a new surveillance system, deploying court inspectors to every state and county.

An inspector's term is three years, and during this period, if an official shows outstanding achievements, they will be immediately promoted after leaving office.

For local officials, the new surveillance system is akin to the sky falling, as it means they can no longer act freely as before; every action will now be under the watchful eyes of the inspectors.

If anything happens during an inspector's tenure, all local officials will see their promotions affected.

Additionally, the Imperial College has begun preparing more official schools. Any child over the age of five can enroll, and the academy not only teaches them to read and write but also provides two free meals a day.

Wealthy families have private tutors and look down on official schools.

However, for poor families, this is good news. Setting aside the reading and writing, with two free meals each day, their children can eat well at the academy, saving one mouth to feed at home and saving on food for a person. How can they pass up such an opportunity?

Although these two matters were much discussed, they were soon overshadowed by another explosive piece of news.

At today's court meeting, King Rui publicly announced his voluntary renunciation of the qualification to be the Regent.

In Daxia, the qualification to be the Regent means the qualification to be the Crown Prince.

Renouncing the regent qualification also means withdrawing from the struggle for the Imperial Throne.

This news quickly shocked the court and the public.

Two years ago, Daxia had eight Prince Regents. In the span of two years, only two remain.

Many people, both in the court and among the public, favored King Rui.

Compared to King Chun and King Gong, who are nearly forty, King Rui is eight years younger. Youth is the greatest advantage.

Previously, King Rui showed an intense desire for the throne, despite his faction being repeatedly struck down by the Minister of Justice, often being framed and used by others, suffering repeated defeats but always rising again...

In the past year or so, King Rui has remained secluded, spending his days with books.

Everyone thought he realized his capabilities were insufficient and intended to study and solidify his knowledge, planning to re-enter the fray with King Gong and King Chun once he was ready.

Therefore, even though he had not achieved much in the past year, there were still officials willing to support him, and strategists remained loyal in his mansion.

Nobody expected him to suddenly announce his withdrawal.

King Gong Mansion.

King Gong was visibly shocked upon hearing this, incredulously asking, "What, King Rui gave up his regent position? Did he really say that?"

An official responded, "This was said by King Rui himself during today's morning court session, in front of all the officials."

King Gong appeared doubtful, muttering, "Retreating to advance, wanting me and Li Xuanjing to fight first, while he takes advantage? He really knows how to play his cards, did he really learn something from all that reading?"

A servant from the King Mansion walked in and said, "Your Highness, King Rui is here."

Raising his eyebrows, King Gong thought for a moment before entering a hall, smiling as he said, "What brings you here today?"

King Rui also smiled and said, "It's been many years since I last came to Brother Wang's residence; everything here feels quite unfamiliar now..."

When King Rui was young, he had the best relationship with King Gong, as King Gong, unlike King Han and King You, had no interest in vying for the throne and maintained good relations with all the princes.

Of course, in hindsight, it was just his façade.

Pretending to be courteous, King Gong said, "You used to come here often as a child. You're always welcome to visit anytime."

King Rui smiled, got straight to the point, and said, "Actually, I came here this time to tell elder brother I am no longer competing for the throne. Whoever among you ascends the throne, just leave me a way to survive..."

After a slight pause, King Gong laughed awkwardly, "What are you talking about? Competing for the throne is one thing, but outside of that, we're still brothers..."

Staring at King Rui, he asked, "Have you really given up being the Regent?"

King Rui nodded and said, "In any case, I can't compete with you all. The sooner I give up, the sooner I can find peace..."

King Gong patted his shoulder and nodded, "It's for the best. The water in the succession battle runs deep, and Li Xuanjing is ruthless and cunning. It's beyond your control, better let your elder brother handle it. If I ascend, I'll grant your lineage's legitimate eldest son the title of first-class king for generations..."

King Rui cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, elder brother..."

Moments later, as he watched King Rui's departing figure, the smile on King Gong's face gradually disappeared.

A figure walked in from outside the hall, glanced back, and uncertainly asked, "Do you believe what King Rui said?"

King Gong stroked the short beard on his chin and said, "Judging by his demeanor, it doesn't seem false. However, the Six Great Families are already serving me; true or false does not matter anymore. If he is truly sensible, what I promised him is not impossible to fulfill..."

Before long, King Rui's carriage stopped outside King Chun Mansion.

The steward of King Chun Mansion greeted him respectfully and said, "Returning to King Rui, King Chun is currently not at the mansion."

Behind King Rui, the man with the gentle but shadowy face asked, "When will King Chun return?"

The mansion steward shook his head and said, "This, I do not know..."

King Rui got back into the carriage, pondered for a moment, and said, "Go to the Ministry of Justice."

Ministry of Justice.

Si Minister's Office.

Li Xuanjing was handling official business behind the desk, while King Chun sat on another chair in the government office, engrossed in a thick cookbook.

A Ministry of Justice official walked in and said, "Lord, King Rui requests to see you."

King Chun put down the cookbook and frowned, saying, "Li Rui, what's he here for?"

Moments later, King Rui walked into the government office, saluted King Chun, and said, "Greetings, elder brother."

King Chun looked at him and asked, "Anything you need?"

King Rui clasped his hands in salutation and said, "I came to tell you, elder brother, that I have given up being Regent and withdrawn from the struggle for the Imperial Throne."

King Chun said indifferently, "If you've given up, then you've given up; why tell me?"

King Rui didn't elaborate and instead approached Li Xuanjing, saluted him, and said, "Lord Li, I was inconsiderate in the past and have offended you greatly. I hope you'll forgive me..."

Li Xuanjing also clasped his hands and said, "Your Highness is too polite."

King Rui's gaze swept over the bookshelf behind Li Xuanjing, his eyes suddenly shone slightly, and he pointed at the row of bookshelves, saying, "Lord Li, may I borrow a book? I will return it once I've finished reading..."

Li Xuanjing did not turn his head and said, "Your Highness may take it yourself."

King Rui quickly walked to the bookshelf; the books there were varied, encompassing many categories, including the commonly seen Confucian, Legalism, Mohist, and Military texts, as well as the less common School of Cross and Vertical and Yin Yang School...

Among them was one about the School of Calligraphy, which he had never seen before.

King Rui pulled this book from the shelf, as if having found a treasure.

Watching King Rui leave, King Chun said with some sentiment, "Within a year, he's changed tremendously. Is this the effect of reading?"

Outside the Ministry of Justice, King Rui boarded the carriage. The man with the gentle but shadowy face was holding the whip and finally asked impatiently, "Your Highness, are you truly not competing anymore?"

King Rui waved his hand and said, "I'm not competing anymore; even if I compete, I cannot win. What's the point of competing?"

He looked at the man with the gentle but shadowy face and said, "If you wish to leave, I will not blame you."

During this time, many people left the King Mansion. Today, after announcing his withdrawal from the Regency, none of the few remaining strategists in the mansion stayed.

The man with the gentle but shadowy face tightened his grip on the whip and said, "I will not leave; no matter what Your Highness does, I will follow you all my life..."

King Rui smiled faintly, did not speak further, and opened the book pages in his hand.

Regarding the School of Calligraphy, he had only seen brief descriptions in some ancient texts.

This book provided extremely detailed descriptions of the School of Calligraphy, precisely the Secret Codex he had longed for. Upon opening the first page, he became completely absorbed, reading voraciously.

Soon, the carriage slowly stopped at the mansion's entrance.

However, King Rui did not disembark for quite some time.

It was an hour later that he disembarked from the carriage somewhat dazed.

Holding the book in his hand, he looked around, and suddenly, he felt the world he knew so well had become somewhat unfamiliar.

If the School of Calligraphy is real, then all of this might be false.

Could it be that this world is indeed fictional, and he, Li Rui, is just a character written by someone else?