Chapter 67

"Thank goodness for that."

Tu Shanjin sighed and continued, "But the Du family is no easy foe to deal with this time. Their influence is deeply entrenched, and they pose a huge threat to Tu Shanjin's imperial power. If we fail, this entire novel world will collapse, and every single person here will die."

"On top of that, Du Luoling is a transmigrator, which is a major hidden danger. System, did you just detect any system-like golden finger on her?"

A moment later, Tu Shanjin let out a breath of relief. "It's good to know she's just an ordinary transmigrator."

Having overheard all this from behind the rockery, Du Luoling's mind was thrown into utter chaos.

All the assumptions she had built up over time were completely shattered in that instant.

She had never expected that the Yan Chi Dynasty, a kingdom that did not appear in any historical records, was actually a world inside a novel.

And Yun Yaoyao, whom she had always mistaken for a fellow transmigrator, turned out to be a book traveler with a golden finger system and correction missions!

Du Luoling had long harbored a quiet sense of superiority as a modern person with advanced education and ideas, but now that she compared herself to Yun Yaoyao who had a system, what was even the point of competing against her?

No wonder Tu Shanjin had been on a roll ever since he met Yun Yaoyao. He not only cleaned up his public image and established himself as a wise ruler among the common people, but also successively rooted out corrupt factions in the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Rites.

Wait, that's not the most important part...

Du Luoling's expression turned serious.

Yun Yaoyao said this novel world would collapse and everyone would die, and that she was here to correct the world. What did that mean?

Du Luoling immediately pricked up her ears and eavesdropped a little longer. Putting all the clues together, she came up with a guess.

Yun Yaoyao's correction mission was none other than stabilizing Tu Shanjin's rule, and using her advanced modern knowledge to enlighten this backward and ignorant feudal ancient dynasty.

Once the correction was complete, the system would send her back home.

The moment she figured this out, the obsession that had been suppressed in Du Luoling's heart for more than a decade sprouted again. She was so excited that her eyes turned red.

If Yun Yaoyao had a way to return to the modern world, then if she defected to Yun Yaoyao and clung tightly to her coattails, maybe she could get to go home too?

Du Luoling held back her excitement and quietly slipped away from the rockery.

The hidden Dragon Shadow Guard who had witnessed this gestured to Tu Shanjin. Tu Shanjin nodded, then stood up and looked at the now empty rockery, a hint of confusion crossing his face.

He could not make heads or tails of the words Yun Yaoyao had taught him at all—words like "novel world", "transmigrator", "system", "golden finger with a system"...

The era Du Luoling came from had developed to such a level?

While he was deep in thought, a sound came from the courtyard gate.

Tu Shanjin smoothed out his expression and looked over. It was Du Luoling, stepping into the courtyard openly this time.

She sat down right in front of him, placed the sachet in her hand on the table, and got straight to the point.

"I thought about it all last night. The odds of me winning against you are slim. My father pressured me to enter the palace to become empress, but compared to the imperial palace where one wrong step could get me killed, I'd much rather stay in Puyang County and live a carefree, indulgent life as the county's princess."

"This sachet was given to me by someone on behalf of Yun Yanyan. It was embroidered by you at the age of 14 for Prince Ze, and your handwriting is on it. If this thing falls into the wrong hands, they can make a huge scandal out of it."

"Now I'm giving it back to you, as a token of our willingness to cooperate for mutual benefit."

Du Luoling had been fiercely confrontational the day before, but now she was being so docile and seeking peace. Yun Yaoyao's plan really worked wonders.

Tu Shanjin calmly put the sachet away and curled his lips into a smirk. "What kind of cooperation do you have in mind?"

Meanwhile, on the streets of Puyang County, Yun Yaoyao, dressed in simple casual clothes, was wandering around the streets with great interest.

Zhou Siren, Di Shunzhi and the others following behind her had no such leisurely mood, and could not help but speak up one after another.

"Your Grace, now that we're at the Princess's Manor, this is the perfect chance to deal with Danling Princess!"

"We're heading back to the capital tomorrow morning. Time is tight, this subordinate suggests we take action as soon as possible!"

"Your Grace..."

Before they could say more, Yun Yaoyao lazily waved the hand holding her folding fan behind her. "I have my own plans. You don't need to worry about the Danling Princess matter."

"Let's get back to the point. Come with me to check on the lives of the local people."

In a flash, Yun Yaoyao arrived at a teahouse.

A place full of idlers sipping tea and killing time was the perfect spot to hear all the latest gossip!

After ordering a few pots of the signature local tea, Yun Yaoyao and the others sat back and enjoyed their drinks.

The three men saw how their sovereign looked completely confident, and their worried hearts settled back down.

As they sipped their tea and chatted, after going over current political affairs, they started showering Yun Yaoyao with praise.

"Your Grace, even this small Puyang County is thriving. It just goes to show how wise our emperor is now, and how the people live in peace and contentment. This subordinate truly sings the praises of the imperial benevolence!" The old slicker Zhou Siren respectfully made a cupped hand gesture towards the mid-air in the direction of the palace.

Di Shunzhi was not about to be outdone. His gaze was fixed on Yun Yaoyao, full of admiration.

"Just now on the street, this subordinate saw a six-year-old child reciting poetry with ease, and behaving with perfect manners and virtue. If even a small county's child can be like this, that means all the children across the entire Yan Chi Dynasty are being nurtured under the emperor's grace. Truly the emperor's light shines over the whole world, and his virtue spreads to every corner of the land!"

The two of them kept spouting over-the-top compliments, and their unreserved praise even made Yun Yaoyao feel a little awkward.

Then the three men all turned to look at the aloof and elegant Lin Qingti, curious to see how he would offer his praise.

Lin Qingti thought for a moment, put down his teacup, and said in a firm, resounding voice, "Abandon old bad ways, employ the able and virtuous, the country is rich and the people at peace, all nations come to pay homage, the realm is unified and stable, generations of people will sing your praises through all time!"

Meeting Yun Yaoyao's moved gaze, Lin Qingti's eyes glistened with tears. "This subordinate has no words to describe the great deeds of our current emperor. I can only be full of gratitude, and hope that with my humble life as a mere scholar, I can serve Your Majesty with all my heart, even unto death!"

Yun Yaoyao was deeply touched. She grabbed Lin Qingti's hands tightly. "The emperor will never fail you..."

This made Zhou Siren and Di Shunzhi so angry their teeth ached.

Praising is fine, but you had to go write a poem? And on top of that, you're crying fake tears! Lord Lin, where did your integrity and noble character go?

Their urge to compete for favor reached its peak. Zhou Siren and Di Shunzhi threw their last bit of reserve to the wind, and also started to cry emotionally, vowing their unwavering loyalty!

Why are the interactions between the ruler and his subjects so sappy and over-the-top? Don't ask. It's just the way things go in the human world.

While the four of them were deep in this heartwarming moment of growing loyalty between sovereign and subordinates, the voice of the storyteller in the middle of the hall drifted over.

"Let me tell you, after Consort Xiang entered the imperial harem, she missed her beloved every single day. The puppet tucked under her pillow was carved by her lover, who broke three of his fingers making it as her coming-of-age gift, wishing her a smile as bright as the puppet's every day. The red string on its hand was a marriage charm her lover prayed for at the temple for three days and three nights, hoping that one day he could marry her."

"But no matter how deep the love between two people, it cannot beat the cruelty of fate. She was sent to the palace, and the man she loved was forced to marry her own younger sister!"

"When they met again, each of them already had someone else by their side. They smiled bitterly, and their hearts ached so much they felt like they were breaking."

The storyteller delivered the tale so tearfully and vividly that it moved everyone to tears. At the most emotional part, he even dabbing at his eyes with a handkerchief in a soft, delicate gesture.

Every last person in the teahouse looked thoroughly moved, murmuring among themselves, and some were even surreptitiously dabbing at their tears.

As Yun Yaoyao listened on, she began to feel that something was off. Why did this story feel so strangely familiar?

She turned to the man at the next table and asked softly, "Brother, this story the storyteller is reciting feels so familiar. Is it a new storybook written by Mister Fugui?"

The man at the next table turned his head at the sound of her voice, spotted Zhou Siren and the rest of their group, and immediately understood what was going on.

Oh, it's that cloying little quartet! They couldn't even heap praise on the emperor without making eyes at each other like love-struck fools and spouting nauseatingly mushy lines, acting as if they were all tangled up in improper same-sex affections.

Gross, honestly.

But when the man caught a clear look at Yun Yaoyao's face, his mind went completely blank, and his breath hitched.

What a tall, elegant, and peerlessly striking young gentleman!

Before he knew it, his mouth was running far ahead of his brain: "Brother, would you like to fry ruju with me?"

Yun Yaoyao's face hardened instantly. "Get lost!"

The tea patron sitting next to that blundering man immediately stepped in to smooth things over. "This gentleman, my friend here sometimes speaks without thinking, he's terribly sorry for the offense."

The ​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‍tea patron then leaned in, looking conspiratorial. "I can answer what you asked, sir."

"What the storyteller is telling isn't a new storybook by Mister Fugui. It's a real tale that everyone in the realm is gossiping about nonstop these days."

"You wouldn't know it, but even though Concubine Sha and His Majesty are seen as a perfect, beloved pair now, before she entered the imperial harem, she had a heart-wrenching, tragic romance with Prince Ze!"

"The two of them were so deeply in love it shook the heavens and moved the earth, blah blah blah..."

The tea patron described the whole thing with such vivid, dramatic flair, it was as if he had been hiding under the bed of all three of them when it all happened. At the height of his excitement, he leaned right next to Yun Yaoyao's ear and snickered.

"If you ask me, the emperor has such a bright green hat on his head he could ride a whole horse across it!"

The second Yun Yaoyao heard that, her expression turned completely icy.

What a vicious smear campaign, what a sinister scheme!

This could drive a wedge between the emperor and Concubine Sha, give court officials a perfect excuse to submit memorials demanding her punishment, erode the emperor's dignity, and trap Concubine Sha in an endless, impossible cycle of proving her innocence for the rest of her life.

Worst of all, once these rumors spread far and wide across the whole realm, no matter how many museums, paper mills, or libraries they built, the first thing anyone would mention when Concubine Sha's name came up would be this salacious, endlessly gossiped about love triangle.

Rumors always cut men far more slack, while women get drenched in filth far easier, getting branded with degrading names like "a beauty who brings ruin to the nation" or "a wanton woman". This plot would completely derail her carefully laid plan to build her up as a revered, untarnished figure!

Tu Shanjin, Tu Shanjin... this single move of yours hits so many targets at once. You really don't hold back.