Despite his anger, Gu Chaobei was still worried when leaving the palace. Today happened to be market day, and the capital was bustling with people coming and going. The officials he had beaten were all resting at home—what if the scenes Yan’er described didn’t actually exist? What would they do then?

The Emperor had already ordered that after changing into civilian clothes, everyone who knew the Emperor and Empress were leaving the palace must accompany them and not leave their side for even a moment. No one had the opportunity to go out and tip anyone off, including Gu Chaobei.

He could only steel himself and follow along.

The Empress rarely left the palace. Her struggle for court power was merely so she could enjoy wealth and honor within the palace. Her favored ministers fawned over her daily with empty flattery, reporting only good news and never bad, so it was only natural that the Empress would make this wager with the Emperor. She even felt her chances of winning were quite good.

Only Shen Guiyan was fully confident. She told the coachman to head toward the outskirts of the city, then sat in the rear carriage with Gu Chaobei and Prime Minister Gu.

“If we can help His Majesty win, Chaobei’s crisis might just pass,” Prime Minister Gu said softly. “But you’ll certainly have offended the Empress. Yan’er, have you considered the consequences?”

Shen Guiyan lowered her head. “It was Guiyan’s rashness—I hadn’t considered this aspect. But since the ruler is the master of the nation, naturally loyalty to the sovereign comes first. If I must offend the Empress, then Guiyan has no other choice.”

Prime Minister Gu paused, studying her deeply. “You child, I knew you were different from ordinary young ladies… but that’s not necessarily a good thing.”

Gu Chaobei couldn’t help muttering, “I think my wife is just fine. How is it not a good thing?”

“You be quiet,” Prime Minister Gu said, his face darkening again as he looked at his son. “Where do you get off speaking up? If you hadn’t done all those disgraceful things, your father and Guiyan wouldn’t need to run around on your behalf.”

Snorting twice, Gu Chaobei said carelessly, “How was I disgraceful? When I was beating those corrupt officials, you don’t know how many commoners cheered. What they don’t dare to do, I dare. I can only resort to beating them. Otherwise, if it goes to court, officials protect their own—how many officials can actually be prosecuted? Wouldn’t it all be for nothing?”

Prime Minister Gu paused, opening his mouth but finding himself unable to refute.

He was also one of those officials who protected their own that his son spoke of.

“Besides, if I hadn’t worked so hard beating over a dozen corrupt officials, would His Majesty have paid attention?” Gu Chaobei rolled his eyes, leaning against Shen Guiyan while taking the opportunity to be affectionate.

Prime Minister Gu said nothing. After a long while, he finally let out a long sigh.

This foolish child truly thought that just anyone who beat over a dozen officials would get to see the Emperor? The Emperor would be too busy for that every day. This method was far too extreme.

Since things had reached this point, there was nothing more to say. Prime Minister Gu closed his eyes to rest.

“War rages across the land, conscripted men lose their way home, ten thousand homes all turn to dust. Once the realm is settled, rats fill the granaries. When the state rises, the people suffer. When it falls, the people suffer.”

From somewhere along the road, children ran past, singing this folk song in unison.

The carriage ahead stopped. The Emperor lifted the curtain to look outside—it was an ordinary schoolhouse.

A little girl with her hair in horn-shaped buns saw the carriage and hurriedly tried to hide, shouting, “Uncle Wen is here!”

Uncle Wen? The Emperor frowned and waved for the guards to bring the little girl over.

The little girl cried out in panic, struggling but unable to escape, and could only be brought onto the Emperor’s carriage.

“Why did you call out ‘Uncle Wen’?” the Emperor asked.

Sixi bit her lip, looking at the Emperor and the heavily made-up lady beside him for a long while before saying quietly, “People in carriages are the ones who come to frighten the common people. Haven’t you heard? ‘Uncle Wen, riding on connections. With carriages and horses, scaring the refugees.’ My neighbor Uncle Erniu was kicked by his horse and couldn’t get out of bed for half a year, and had nowhere to complain about it.”

The Empress’s expression darkened. She grabbed Sixi and said, “Whose child are you? You’re just a little girl, yet so articulate—were you sent by someone to deliberately slander us?”

Sixi trembled at her frightening demeanor, looking like she was about to cry again. The Emperor quickly took the child into his arms and asked cheerfully, “Little girl, where is your home?”

“My home…” Sixi’s mouth quivered as she said, “Keep going forward, and when you see the fields, that’s where it is.”

“Then will you take us to see your home?” the Emperor asked.

“Okay.” Sixi looked at this kind-faced uncle and burrowed into his embrace, then glanced at the heavily made-up lady beside her.

So scary.

“Since she has a home, we can just go see it. Why must the Empress be angry?” the Emperor said. “If someone is deliberately slandering us, we’ll naturally be able to investigate it.”

The Empress snorted coldly. Looking at Sixi’s dirty appearance, she quickly pulled her sleeves close and sat farther away to avoid getting soiled.

The Emperor continued holding the little girl cheerfully.

Sixi had stayed at the Prime Minister’s residence for several days. Shen Guiyan hadn’t bathed or changed her clothes, letting her maintain her current appearance while teaching her what to say. Children are not easy to convince—moving them to action isn’t so simple. She had originally planned to persuade the Prime Minister or even the Capital Magistrate. But unexpectedly, the first person she needed to persuade turned out to be the Emperor himself.

Fortunately, though this Emperor had been suppressed by the Empress’s power for a long time, he was still a wise ruler. He held Sixi, coaxing her to say everything she wanted to say, and then went to her home.

There had been no preparation beforehand, nor had any commoners been cleared away. The countryside was as it naturally would be, with women still gleaning in the fields. Though the tax collectors had been dealt with by Gu Chaobei, local thugs had temporarily assumed the role of “tax collectors” and continued collecting grain at the village entrance.

“It was clearly agreed that for every ten dan we’d pay four dan in tax. Why are you taking what’s left in my home?” Sixi’s mother was clutching her family’s rice sack. Though she’d been kicked several times, she wouldn’t let go. “We’ve already paid the taxes we owe. You can’t take any more…”

“Filthy wench, do you understand the rules or not?” A thug wearing a tax official’s robe askew kicked Sixi’s mother in the wrist. “When we come here to collect grain, naturally there are new rules. Who knows how much you paid before? If I didn’t see it, it doesn’t count. We’re only taking two dan from you—why are you acting like we’re stealing the lid off your coffin!”

Sixi’s mother wailed in tears. Sixi’s father knelt beside her, kowtowing continuously. “This bit of grain has to feed our family of three for half a year. Sir, please show mercy, please show mercy!”

“Go to hell!” The thug kicked him and spat, then dragged the rice sack away to be weighed.

“Mother!” Sixi saw this from the carriage, her eyes reddening. She broke free from the Emperor’s grasp and rushed down.

The Emperor followed with a dark expression on his face.

Everyone got out of the carriages. Standing there in this rural setting, they were quite conspicuous. The people collecting grain also noticed and, thinking some official had come, the leader hurried over. “Which lord has come to inspect? We’ve collected plenty of grain! Hey, we have as much as you want, my lord.”

The Emperor glanced at him, his smile not reaching his eyes. “I want a hundred dan. Do you have it?”

The thug paused, then slapped his leg. “Yes! This village has little land, but I’ll help you collect from the next village too. But you’re asking for quite a lot—even more than the Chief Official of the Ministry of Revenue. Your position must be higher than his, I imagine?”

A hundred dan of grain was equivalent to a prime minister’s annual salary. This small-time thug casually said he had it. The Emperor laughed lightly and looked toward the Empress.

The Empress said with a stern face, “My husband’s position is naturally higher than a chief official. Let me ask you one more thing—if I collect a hundred dan of grain and move it into my own home, that’s fine too?”

Hearing that the official’s rank was high, the thug grew delighted. His back bent lower, and his eyes became fawningly obsequious. “Of course! This is called tribute. Bring your official seal, and we’ll guarantee to collect it all for you. Whether you want to put it in your home or burn it in one big fire, it’s all up to your pleasure!”

Shen Guiyan stood at the back supporting Gu Chaobei. Hearing these words and seeing the expressions on the Emperor and Empress’s faces, she felt that today was truly this thug’s unlucky day. Who knows how long he’d been acting as a local tyrant, but this time he was finally going to fall.

Sixi helped her parents stand up, looking longingly at the grain that had been bagged, and asked in a small voice, “Mother, is there even less rice now?”

Sixi’s mother said with red-rimmed eyes, holding her, “It’s all right. We’ll… we’ll eat something else.”

That voice made people’s hearts ache. Though the Empress only sought power, she wasn’t heartless. Seeing this scene, she inexplicably thought of her deceased Sixth Prince. For a moment she was furious and shouted, “Arrest these people!”

Sixi’s family was startled. Sixi’s father was just reaching out to protect his wife and daughter when he saw the tax-collecting thugs all pressed to the ground by people who rushed forward.

“Throw them into the imperial prison to await judgment.”

“Yes.”

The thugs were terrified, never having expected it would become serious enough to warrant the imperial prison. Before they could even cry out, they were dragged away.

The commoners waiting to pay their taxes were also dumbfounded.

The Emperor looked at the ragged farmers, then turned to Prime Minister Gu. “Prime Minister, you will remain here to listen to the people’s grievances. You must copy down every word without omission for Us. We and the Empress cannot stay long—we must return to the palace now.”

Prime Minister Gu stepped forward and acknowledged the command, though he hesitated slightly.

The Emperor glanced at the Empress and said, “As for the matter of Colonel Gu, first investigate clearly those he beat. If they are all corrupt officials, then reward Colonel Gu for eliminating harm for the people and promote him to assistant general. If even one among them is innocent, then punish him with ten strokes of the court rod. What does the Empress think?”

Having already lost the wager, what else could she say? The Empress pressed her lips together. “Let it be as Your Majesty says.”

Gu Chaobei was delighted. This was truly smooth sailing—with one casual remark from the Emperor, he might go from an eighth-rank colonel to a fifth-rank assistant general. It was truly like the difference between heaven and the Yellow Springs in a single thought.

Being Emperor really was wonderful.

After this entire group got back in their carriages and left, the commoners finally realized what they had just heard.

“Long live the Emperor!”

Someone didn’t know who shouted first, then an overwhelming chorus of voices came from behind.

The Emperor sat in his carriage, the corners of his mouth turning up, in excellent spirits.

However, the Empress was not doing so well. Once that surge of emotion passed, she felt something was wrong.

Today, it seemed as if someone had been deliberately waiting, setting this trap for her. Now she had lost, and not only would Gu Chaobei not be punished, he would actually be promoted. Even Consort Nian was to be elevated to Imperial Noble Consort.

How could this be?

After thinking about the reason for a while, the Empress understood.

It was all because of one meddlesome person.