Ding Yun's explanation lasted for a full three days and nights. Fortunately, they were all cultivators, so not sleeping or eating was no issue. Anyone else would have fainted from hunger long ago.
After three days, Shunde had understood all the current flaws. This was thanks to Ding Yun's incisive explanations.
Many of the root causes of the problems were now clear.
With the root causes identified, seeking solutions became much simpler.
Moreover, they possessed absolute military power to suppress the world and absolute capability to monitor it. Even if some individuals devised countermeasures, it would depend on whether their necks were strong enough, how many times they could afford to lose their heads, and whether they feared extermination of their lineage or having no descendants!
However, after concluding these matters, Ding Yun did not immediately depart. Instead, she decided to stay a while longer.
She intended to remain until Shunde had smoothly ascended the throne.
As for how the ascension would proceed smoothly, Ding Yun did not interfere.
She let Shunde and Yong Qing handle it themselves.
Regarding this, Shunde and Yong Qing were not without a plan. They first indirectly took control of the capital by influencing its officials. Then, by promising to help Emperor Xuande extend his lifespan by a hundred years, they had him officially designate Princess Shunde as the Crown Princess and abdicate immediately.
This was to ensure her legitimacy and acquire the title of being rightfully appointed.
The reason why many powerful ministers who usurped the throne resorted to the ritual of abdication was primarily to outwardly demonstrate that their claim to the throne was rightfully passed down from the previous emperor, implying that the emperor himself wished to bestow it, rather than it being seized.
Shunde's approach was also to show that her claim to the throne was legitimately received from her father, the emperor. Whether others acknowledged it or not was irrelevant; as long as her father did, it meant she was the legitimate heir, and any opposition would be considered rebellion, subject to immediate suppression by troops.
What she desired was this mantle of legitimacy.
Otherwise, it would have been easier to simply launch a rebellion.
The abdication process proceeded with remarkable speed. From the designation of Princess Shunde as the Crown Princess to Emperor Xuande's abdication, it took less than ten minutes. This meant that shortly after Emperor Xuande proposed designating Princess Shunde as the Crown Princess, he immediately announced his intention to abdicate in favor of a worthy successor.
The ceremony for designating the Crown Princess was bypassed.
A grand enthronement ceremony was held instead.
Naturally, the court officials did not approve of this move. However, for those officials without military power, their disapproval was of no consequence. Even if some officials chose to obstruct the process by resigning or refusing to act, it did not affect others taking over their positions or the smooth progression of the enthronement ceremony.
On the day of the enthronement ceremony, both Ding Yun and Yong Qing lent their considerable power. To minimize the impact of Shunde's ascension and any public dissent, they dedicated significant effort on the day of her coronation.
They orchestrated auspicious phenomena such as dense auspicious clouds and pervasive spiritual energy.
Of course, these minor omens were the work of Yong Qing.
Ding Yun, however, created far grander spectacles. She specifically conjured several celestial visions visible to people across the entire nation.
For instance, the Ziwei Star (Polaris) shone brilliantly in the daytime sky, transforming into a magnificent purple-gold dragon tens of thousands of feet long, circling the heavens. After traversing the nation, it flew into Shunde at the Altar of Heaven, transforming her attire into the imperial robes of the Ziwei Emperor.
Another vision involved the celestial constellations shimmering, and the phantoms of countless star lords appearing in the sky, all bowing towards Shunde's location, congratulating the Ziwei Emperor upon ascending as the Human Sovereign.
Their voices resonated across all regions of the country, reaching the ears of every citizen.
Furthermore, the phantoms of countless female deities and celestial maidens descended to the mortal realm as streams of light, declaring their willingness to follow the Ziwei Emperor and participate in the grand era of Nuwa, restoring the balance of yin and yang in the human world.
With the appearance of these three celestial visions, visible to all under heaven, Shunde's claim to the throne was effectively secured. Even if some harbored lingering opposition, they would be unable to muster significant resistance, and likely find no one willing to join them.
At this point, Ding Yun was finally at ease.
She transformed into a beam of light and vanished.
She departed from this life-bearing planet and this star system, venturing to other star systems for exploration and observation.
Shunde, meanwhile, remained in her position.
She accepted the congratulations of the populace and the court officials.
She had officially become the new sovereign of this realm, and the most legitimately recognized empress in recorded history.
It was not a consort usurping the throne, but a daughter succeeding it.
Following this, she, with her exceptionally strong hand, directly seized all military and fiscal control of the nation. She implemented reforms while simultaneously suppressing all opposition.
With the blessing of the three celestial visions, Shunde's standing among the populace was no less than that of a founding emperor. In some respects, the people's trust in her even slightly surpassed their trust in founding emperors.
After all, a founding emperor was merely human.
She, however, was virtually designated as a divine being.
Coupled with her formidable martial prowess, the sunlight illuminated her surroundings, and the roots of trees acted as conduits, transmitting information to her, enabling her to monitor the entire realm.
Consequently, during the implementation of reforms, there was no need for gentle persuasion or gradual progress, nor any consideration for compromise. It was a direct, forceful push.
Crushing all dissent and opposition.
The imperial clan opposed the cancellation of special privileges, so all dissenters were demoted to commoners, their lineage records expunged, and those who committed crimes were directly tried. Those who did not oppose, apart from those deserving of capital punishment for their actions, were allowed to retain some assets.
All other land and mineral resources were nationalized.
Officials and aristocratic families opposed the abolition of tax exemptions, so they were all thoroughly investigated according to the regulations of the Hongwu era.
Those found to have engaged in severe corruption were flayed and their bodies stuffed with straw.
For those who held excessive tax-exempt land and failed to pay taxes, their tax-exempt land was confiscated, and they were fined triple the amount.
Furthermore, the crime of possessing assets of unknown origin was incorporated into the performance reviews. Any assets whose origin could not be explained were treated as corruption.
There were also measures such as land re-surveys and the crackdown on local criminal elements. In short, Shunde's reforms were implemented with astonishing speed, ruthlessness, and decisive resolve.
Of course, her reforms were not solely targeted at officials; there were also aspects that benefited them.
For example, their salaries were increased.
The policy of high salaries for incorrupt officials was implemented.
Furthermore, retirement policies were introduced to alleviate their concerns.
Shunde acknowledged that past official salaries were low. Therefore, her reforms did not entirely condemn all officials. Those who, due to meager salaries, could not afford meat for their parents, or lacked the dowry and betrothal gifts for their children's marriages, and were compelled to engage in minor corruption, were all dealt with leniently by Shunde.
However, those from wealthy families who had seized land.
None of them were spared.
After all, there were plenty of people who aspired to become officials. Even if she executed them all, she could replace them with two or three more batches.
However, this was before the implementation of the high-salary-for-incorrupt-officials policy. After its implementation, any corruption exceeding sixty taels would result in flaying and stuffing with straw.
The entire reform process lasted five years. It was only after five years that virtually no dissenting voices remained across the land.
And there were almost no entities above the law.
Following this came the second five-year plan, which focused on elevating the status of women, establishing female academies, and appointing female officials.
The first step was to gradually introduce female officials from the inner palace into the imperial court to participate in court sessions.
This was a top-down approach to guidance and change.
To achieve her goals, Shunde dedicated significant effort over these five years. For instance, she personally funded the establishment of female academies, promulgated laws stipulating equal pay for equal work, with penalties for non-compliance including fines and business suspension, and provided tax incentives to textile industries employing women, encouraging female employment and entrepreneurship.
After five years of such diligent efforts, the overall situation had improved, but it was still far from the goals envisioned by Shunde and Yong Qing.
Therefore, the continuation of their efforts was inevitable.
They continued to implement the third five-year plan, the fourth, and the fifth. After all, she had a very long lifespan.
If five years were not enough, then ten years.
If ten years were not enough, then fifty years.
She had ample time to outlive the old conservatives and wait for the younger generation, who had embraced new ideas, to mature and ultimately change the world.
The only regret was that her initial plan to leave a clone as emperor while her true self roamed freely had been completely abandoned.
After becoming emperor, to avoid being deceived and to prevent incorrect decisions that harmed the people, she was almost entirely hands-on with every matter.
Other emperors might feel overwhelmed by such a workload, but Shunde herself possessed the art of cloning.
Therefore, she directly refined thousands of clones to assist her.
Some drafted memorials, some managed inspections, some conducted discreet inquiries among the populace, and some went undercover to gather intelligence, thereby ensuring that the entire realm remained under her control.
No one could deceive her.
With such a busy schedule, any thoughts of leisurely travel were out of the question.
Fortunately, she was a cultivator. A mortal emperor acting in such a manner would have been exhausted to death even with a hundred lives. However, despite the fatigue, Shunde found satisfaction and joy in seeing the realm at peace and the people living contentedly under her labors, experiencing a sense of fulfillment from her actions benefiting so many.
It remained to be seen how long this initial dedication would last.
After playing in space for over twenty years and confirming that her two daughters were strong enough to be unharmed by anyone, Ding Yun transformed the body of her original self into a Fusang tree and planted it on the sun.
This allowed her to absorb the sun's essence through her roots to strengthen herself, and utilize her leaves to absorb cosmic radiation to nurture the sun.
It also served to protect the entire star system.
As for her soul, it was naturally extracted and returned.