Chapter 25

Chapter 25

The previous rooms were still there, and Yu Chiyi's soldiers were guarding them.

Su Yu felt that the late emperor's old residence was safer than the palace and did not want to cause a commotion by entering the palace after the curfew, so she decided to stay here for the night.

However, before the Yin hour (3-5 AM), her door was knocked with a "thud thud."

Thanks to the early morning court sessions over the past month, Su Yu instinctively opened her eyes upon hearing the knock, quickly dressed, lit a lamp, and opened the door, only to see Cui Xuan's face.

The head of the Cui family had somehow dried his thoroughly soaked clothes in less than a night and had changed back into them. However, his face was flushed, his breathing somewhat rapid, and his phoenix eyes were misty, indicating that he was not in good condition.

Su Yu was momentarily at a loss for words. There was no clock in this room, so she could only look at the dark sky, where only a cold moon was visible, and the morning star had not yet risen. Was it not yet the Yin hour (3-5 AM)?

"Your Majesty need not look at the sky," Cui Xuan immediately responded to her unspoken question. "It is not yet the Yin hour."

Su Yu: "?" Last night, they had clearly agreed, so why was she being woken up before the Yin hour? What grudge did he have against her?

Cui Xuan said with a blank expression, "Since I have promised Your Majesty, I will naturally keep my word. However, the time for today's morning court has not been changed yet. It takes the time it takes to burn an incense stick to get to the palace from here, and after entering the palace, Your Majesty still needs to change clothes and then proceed from the bedchamber to the Hanyuan Hall. If we start at the Yin hour, it will be a bit late."

He slightly lowered his head and noticed that Su Yu's collar was uneven, with two creases, and her hair was somewhat disheveled. Even though it was tied into a high ponytail, how could a strand of hair be left out?

Cui Xuan's brows were nearly knitted into a knot. He resisted the urge to act and took two steps back. "I also need to go back and change clothes, so I won't disturb Your Majesty any longer."

Su Yu, however, grabbed Cui Xuan's hand, and indeed, it was burning hot. She then touched his forehead, which was alarmingly hot.

"Your Majesty?" Cui Xuan's brows were almost forming another knot on top of the existing one, clearly indicating his dislike of being touched by others.

Su Yu wasn't the type to go out of her way to spread warmth like a little sun, but she would not force a minister to work while running a high fever. "Minister Cui, you have a high fever. Take the day off and go home to rest."

As soon as Su Yu let go of Cui Xuan's hand, he quickly took two steps back, maintaining his composure even with a high fever. After catching his breath, he calmly said, "I am fine."

Su Yu looked at him and realized he was naturally stubborn, the kind that even eight horses couldn't drag back. She didn't force him and smiled, saying, "Then let's each go our separate ways."

Cui Xuan suddenly looked over and saw Su Yu's back, her long ponytail bouncing and swaying behind her, looking very unruly—

He always felt there was more to Su Yu's words than met the eye.

Cui Xuan looked up at the sky again, and the morning star appeared in the east. It was the Yin hour.

Cui Xuan needed to return to the Cui family residence before entering the palace, and his time was even more pressing than Su Yu's. Moreover, since he had been brought here by Su Yu yesterday, he had no carriage, making his time even tighter.

He hurried to the gate, and as he crossed the threshold, he saw an unassuming carriage parked in front, with Yu Chiyi sitting in the driver's seat.

Su Yu lifted the carriage curtain, still smiling, unbothered by Cui Xuan's defiance. "Minister Cui, come up. I will take you to the Cui residence first."

Cui Xuan indeed needed a carriage and did not refuse. He performed a standard bow. "I thank Your Majesty."

Once inside the carriage, he found Yu Chiyi was also there.

Su Yu said, "Yu Chiyi also stayed here last night. I must thank Yu Chiyi for carrying you back. Otherwise, with your size, I really couldn't have transported you alone."

Cui Xuan reluctantly said, "...Thank you, Yu Chiyi."

Yu Chiyi gave a forced smile, "Heh, Minister Cui is too polite."

The carriage wasn't large, of the standard specification used by wealthy families. With just Su Yu and Yu Chiyi, it was already somewhat crowded, and with Cui Xuan added, it became even more cramped, inevitably leading to physical contact, which made Cui Xuan very uncomfortable.

Yu Chiyi sneered twice, clearly disdainful of Cui Xuan, a grown man, being concerned about such minor physical contact.

Su Yu, to avoid crowding with Cui Xuan, moved to sit next to Yu Chiyi, but the carriage became unbalanced and nearly tipped over.

Fortunately, Yu Chiyou's skills were excellent, and he managed to pull the horses back.

Yu Chiyou called out from outside, "What happened? Is Your Majesty alright?"

The three inside the carriage: "..."

Yu Chiyi was the first to declare, "Your Majesty knows me well; I'm certainly not heavy!" Your Majesty had seen him half-naked before—it's Cui Xuan who's too delicate!

Cui Xuan, expression cold, moved to the corner. "Your Majesty, please come over here. General Yu is hogging too much space, leaving no room for Your Majesty." It was Yu Chiyi who was too big.

Su Yu: "..." She hadn't realized before, but these two could be quite childish.

After they dropped Cui Xuan off at the Cui residence, Su Yu turned to ask Yu Chiyi, "Is there bad blood between Zhong Yun and Minister Cui?"

They were about the same age, both having grown up in the capital. When she had asked Yu Chiyi about Cui Xuan at Tong Pass, she sensed some animosity between them.

Yu Chiyi: "..." It's best not to let the emperor in on their youthful embarrassments, after all, he has his pride.

Yu Chiyi coughed twice and said, "The Cui Xin I killed at Tong Pass belonged to the Cui family."

Su Yu, reminded by him, recalled that Cui Xin, the former garrison commander at Tong Pass, was from the Cui family. However, Cui Xuan's behavior didn't seem to hold a grudge over this matter. He scrutinized her but without hostility, including towards Yu Chiyi—there was no animosity in his eyes.

To her, Cui Xuan epitomized the prestigious family heads of this era: aloof and decisive. If he considered something feasible, he wouldn't stand in its way, and might even step forward to support it. Moreover, his word carried more weight than even hers as the emperor, such as when he agreed to release the palace concubines and maids, or when he helped recover some of the royal assets.

But a man like Cui Xuan was not someone she could control.

If she had to pick one of the four protagonists to eliminate, her first choice would be Cui Xuan.

Not out of personal preference, but because Cui Xuan's interests clashed most with hers.

Cui Xuan represented the Cui family's defense of the prestigious families' interests. Whether it was agreeing to release the palace concubines and maids or now consenting to change the court meeting time, it was because her actions didn't threaten the core interests of the prestigious families. Even Liu Sanen's killing was viewed as a minor hiccup by these great families.

But if she were to truly threaten the interests of the great families, such as drastically reforming the tax system, the greatest resistance would inevitably come from these prestigious families. Not just resistance, but if the core interests of the great families were harmed, whether she could keep her life would be in question.

There were quite a few emperors who met unnatural ends.

But what could she do?

To avoid rebellion in the future and to not rely on the male protagonists to survive, she must continue in her position as the emperor of Great Qi.

To save the sinking ship of Great Qi, simply bailing out the incoming water isn't enough; she must also patch the holes at the bottom.

But fixing a broken ship is far harder than building a new one.

Su Yu turned to look at Yu Chiyi sitting opposite her, then at the rebellion countdown above his head, and sighed slightly. Sometimes she really envied these male protagonists who could rebel at the drop of a hat. Poor her, a mere cannon fodder, had to work on their goodwill to share a bit of their fortune. If only she were a person of great fortune, she would have rebelled too.

Yu Chiyi felt uneasy under her gaze and proactively said, "Your Majesty, I am really not heavy. With just Your Majesty and me, the carriage would definitely not be unbalanced."

But he glanced at Su Yu's frame and became uncertain. The emperor seemed even thinner than Cui Xuan, so he subtly shifted his body towards the center, his long legs inevitably touching Su Yu's long legs.

Their eyes met, and then they fell into silence.

Su Yu: "..." What's with that guilty look on your face?

Yu Chiyi: "..." It's all solid muscle!

As a military man, he didn't care about these things, so he simply gave up sitting on the cushion and sat cross-legged in the middle.

Su Yu chuckled and said, "I truly envy you."

Yu Chiyi: "?" Envy him for his muscles?

He glanced subtly at Su Yu, thinking her envy was justified, seeing how tall yet slender she was...

Su Yu reached out and poked the countdown to rebellion above Yu Chiyi's head. Her finger naturally passed through it, but Yu Chiyi could feel her hand on his head. His tall frame dared not move, and eventually, her finger landed on his forehead, giving it a light tap.

Yu Chiyi wanted to say that he wasn't a young boy like Yu Chiyou, but then he heard Su Yu sigh deeply. His body stiffened even more. It wasn't that he wouldn't let her poke him, but there was no need to sigh.

He was hesitating whether to offer his forehead for Su Yu to poke again when he heard her ask, "Zhong Yun, among the military officers in the capital, who do you think can take on significant responsibilities?"

At this topic, Yu Chiyi became enthusiastic, immediately losing his discomfort, and his eyes brightened. "Most of the generals from the other fifteen guards in the capital are incompetent, especially the General of the Left Yulin Army, Zheng Maoxing. He can't even withstand one move from me. He's just a playboy from a prestigious family. However, the General of the Left Wuwei Army, the Vice General of the Right Jinwu Guard, and the Military Officers of the Left and Right Qianniu Guards, these four have some skills, especially the Vice General of the Right Jinwu Guard, Xiao Changyan, who can fight with me for at least thirty rounds."

Yu Chiyi generally judged people by his own standards. Among military officers, those who couldn't last ten rounds against him were considered trash, those who could last more than ten rounds were barely acceptable, and those who could last more than thirty rounds were quite good.

"It's just that Xiao Changyan is very close to the Cui family," Yu Chiyi said with some regret.

Su Yu first noticed the name Zheng Maoxing. Xie Yiguan had once mentioned this person, saying he was the son-in-law of Lu Zhenghan's direct grandson. She remembered that Cui Xuan's mother also had the surname Zheng...

So, she asked Yu Chiyi, "What is the relationship between Zheng Maoxing and Minister Cui?"

Yu Chiyi said, "He is the cousin of Cui Xingjian."

Su Yu fell silent. The Cui, Zheng, and Lu families were bound together through marriages. However, the alliance of these three families might not be as solid as a barrel. Yesterday, the girl who tried to force herself on Cui Xuan was also surnamed Zheng, right? Yet, Cui Xuan chose to flee and seek her help rather than comply with Zheng Qiniang's wishes.

So, Cui Xuan did not want to continue this kind of marriage alliance...

Speaking of which, even if Cui Xuan were killed, the Cui family would just push forward a new head. As long as the prestigious families as a whole remained above the emperor, the threat to her would persist. It might be better to take advantage of Cui Xuan's current unwillingness to marry into the Zheng family and stir up trouble within the prestigious families first...

Yu Chiyi looked at Su Yu's sudden smile and, for some reason, felt a chill run down his spine. Was it just an illusion?

Su Yu returned to her palace to change into her court attire and then went to the Hanyuan Hall, where she found Cui Xuan already waiting among the officials.

The Vice Minister of Rites, with his phoenix eyes slightly lowered, looked cold and noble, automatically creating a barrier between himself and those around him. He looked up at Su Yu sitting high on the dragon throne. If it weren't for the slight moisture in his eyes, one wouldn't be able to tell he was running a high fever.

After the morning court began, the officials reported on various matters. There were many significant issues in Great Qi at the moment: the frequently invaded borders, the disobedient Military Governors from various regions, and the bandits who harassed the good people. But for the capital officials, as long as the capital and its surroundings were peaceful, there were no major issues.

What they reported to Su Yu were only trivial matters concerning the capital and its surroundings.

Su Yu was almost falling asleep when she suddenly heard someone mention the rising price of candles. She abruptly opened her eyes and looked towards the court.

The Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments, with his slightly white beard, stood up as the highest official in charge of price regulation in this era, and said, "Last year, the production of white wax insects was scarce, and this year's insects have not yet matured, so we cannot harvest wax. As a result, the stock of white candles is insufficient, and the price in the market has soared from 400 wen per candle to 450 wen, and they are hard to come by."

Everyone's eyes turned towards him. The Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments began to quote classics, starting from the Zhou rites all the way to the founding emperors of Great Qi, making a big circle before finally returning to the topic: "Frugality leads to prosperity. I remember Your Majesty once mentioned changing the morning court to the hour of Si, which would save a large amount of candles."

Su Yu now understood. This Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments was Cui Xuan's plant. He was quite efficient, finding a stand-in in such a short time.

The newly appointed Vice Minister of Rites immediately jumped out, using the same argument Cui Xuan had used to refute Su Yu last time to refute the Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments.

Su Yu, with her peach blossom eyes, smiled and looked at Cui Xuan.

Cui Xuan: "..." He really didn't want to contradict himself, but he also didn't want to owe Su Yu a favor.

Cui Xuan, with a slightly hoarse voice, spoke up, "I believe the Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments makes a valid point."

Everyone's eyes widened, completely surprised that Cui Xuan would stand up to overturn his previous statement and agree with the Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments.

Cui Xuan, under the gaze of everyone, calmly explained two reasons for supporting the change of the court time to the hour of Si: first, because the production of candles had decreased in recent years, and now even students at state-run institutions like the Imperial Academy were short of candles. They should save candles to support these future pillars of the state. Second, considering the working hours of the officials, shifting the entire schedule later would not only help officials work more efficiently but also allow them to better observe the people's conditions. He also suggested delaying the curfew by one hour to match the morning court time, which would also facilitate the transportation of goods into the capital.

It must be said that after Cui Xuan's speech, the matter of postponing the morning court was given a higher significance, as if the officials' disagreement would hinder the stability of the state.

The officials: "..." He really knew how to spin things, both good and bad.

However, Cui Xuan's proposal to delay the curfew won everyone over, and the officials unanimously agreed, except for Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works Zheng Shang, who opposed it. Yet, with both prime ministers praising Cui Xuan's proposal, Zheng Shang's opposition was overruled.

The change in the morning court time went more smoothly than Su Yu had imagined, giving her a deeper understanding of the influence of the prestigious families in the court—no wonder her stepbrother Su Yan, who had ruthlessly killed his relatives, never dared to touch the prestigious families.

As the court session was about to end, Su Yu noticed the hesitant expression on the face of Vice Minister of Revenue Shang Guanyi and called him out: "Vice Minister Shang, do you have something to say?"

Shang Guanyi thought to himself that since it was the emperor who called him, he felt it was his duty to report: "Recently, a group of bandits, about a hundred people, has appeared in Wenshui Town."

In fact, these bandits had been in Wenshui Town for some time, but the previous Vice Minister of Revenue, Lin Ziqing, thought they were too insignificant to pose a real threat, as they had not yet targeted officials, so he ignored them.

"A hundred people..." Su Yu paused thoughtfully and asked Lu Zhenghan, "Elder Lu, what do you think about sending the Left Imperial Guards to Wenshui Town to investigate the bandits?"

Wenshui Town is close to the capital and is a key route from Tong Pass to the capital, so it is reasonable to send the Imperial Guards to investigate.

Lu Zhenghan thought for a moment. After all, it was just a hundred bandits, nothing to fear, and it would be a good opportunity for his grandson-in-law to establish his authority in the military, so he readily agreed to the matter.

Cui Xuan felt that things were not so simple, but he was currently feeling feverish and had no energy to analyze the pros and cons.

"After the court session, Vice Minister Cui, stay behind," Su Yu instructed Cui Xuan.

Lu Zhenghan narrowed his eyes. He knew very well that the Minister of Revenue was Cui Xuan's ally, and Cui Xuan had opposed the new emperor's proposal to change the court time last time, but this time he proactively brought it up, obviously indicating that they had reached some private agreement.

However, as Su Yu had speculated, changing the court time was seen by Lu Zhenghan as against the rules, but it did not affect anyone's interests, especially since Cui Xuan also proposed changing the curfew time, which was beneficial to everyone, so he did not oppose it.

What he was concerned about was when the emperor and Cui Xuan had grown so close?

"Your Majesty, is there something else you need from me?" Cui Xuan asked.

Su Yu smiled and said, "Vice Minister Cui has done a great service for me, and I must properly reward you."

Cui Xuan couldn't help but take another look at the dimples on Su Yu's face, thinking that the emperor's appearance was completely opposite to his mental image of her as a "reckless brute," and wondered what kind of reward Su Yu, with her personality, would give him—

He never expected that Su Yu's reward for him would be a chance to rest in the side hall.

Even someone as unflappable as him was left speechless for a moment.

He knew the emperor loved money, but he didn't expect her to be such a cheapskate.

Su Yu, with a thoughtful smile, said, "I thought that rewarding you with gold and silver would be an insult to Vice Minister Cui."

Cui Xuan: "..." He wasn't above material rewards and still understood the importance of gold and silver.

Su Yu wrung out a towel and handed it to him, then pointed to the bed nearby: "The bedding is newly changed, and even the bed has never been slept in. The towel and the basin are all new, so Vice Minister Cui can use them without worry. If you feel unwell and need to call a doctor, just ring the bell by the bed."

Then she left with a considerate smile.

Cui Xuan indeed disliked showing his vulnerable side and didn't want to face Lady Zheng just yet, but...

Looking down at the towel in his hand, he thought with a blank expression: The emperor's strength is a bit lacking; the towel is as wet as if it hadn't been wrung out...

As Su Yu closed the door, she heard the system notification: "Host, Cui Xuan's favorability has increased to 20!"

Su Yu asked, "What are the current favorability ratings of the four male leads towards me?"

"Host, Yu Chiyi's favorability is 60, Xie Yiguan's favorability is 30, Cui Xuan's favorability is 20, and Liu Wushi's favorability is -50. In just over a month, the host has done very well. Actually, the host only needs to secure one person's loyalty; the favorability of the other male leads doesn't matter even if it's negative," the system emphasized.

Su Yu asked again, "Zheng Maoxing didn't appear in the original novel, so he must be even more of a minor character than Liu Sanen, right?"

"That's correct..." The system felt that this scene seemed somewhat familiar, but it couldn't recall it at the moment.

Su Yu smiled and gestured for Yu Chiyou to come closer, saying, "Ayou, I have an extremely important task for you now."