Chapter 256

Who married the big-boned, tall, and sturdy elder sister?

It was the man standing before him.

Almost immediately,

The Emperor thought of this gossip.

He dealt with countless affairs of state,

Encountering too many things to remember.

Few things could stick in his memory.

And as he aged, he became increasingly capricious.

It was only in his tenth year that he truly began to rule as Emperor.

For the first ten years, he worked diligently,

Consolidating his position, engaging in battles of wit with court officials,

Managing external affairs, and ensuring internal unity.

His heart was set on the welfare of the common people.

After the tenth year,

Everything changed.

One day, as if enlightened,

He realized - he was the Emperor after all, why toil so diligently every day?

If he wanted to eat something good, officials would submit a complaint.

If he wanted to sleep with a woman, officials would present memorials of admonition.

He'd given them too much face.

The Emperor began a life of debauchery, continuously lowering his standards.

And he discovered that no one could truly control him.

He lived according to his whims.

The five years from the tenth to the fifteenth year were when the Emperor fell fastest.

They were also the years when Chu Kingdom saw the most deaths.

The years of greatest turmoil.

It was only after he nearly brought about his own demise that he became somewhat restrained.

After the fifteenth year, he began a journey of health cultivation.

He became much more steady.

Of course, during those five years as a decadent ruler, he had done it all.

Even more outrageous things.

Fortunately, the throne hadn't changed hands.

After embarking on the path of health cultivation, he wasn't as outrageous as before, but once a person becomes unrestrained and relaxed, it's actually hard to rein themselves in most of the time.

Anyway, he developed various hobbies.

He was interested in everything except state affairs.

Of course, in reality, he became even more suspicious.

Since that time he nearly died, he became deeply paranoid about everyone.

But for those he didn't suspect, he was extremely generous.

The Emperor burst into laughter upon hearing this.

He laughed so hard that tears squeezed out of his eyes.

It had been a long time since he'd encountered something so amusing.

Someone squeezed to the front, not to accuse anyone, not to leave their name in history, but simply to see what he looked like, to boast to his wife and children when he returned.

What an official with no ambition.

But the Emperor remembered him.

His wife must be the elder sister from the same village that Wenxin admired.

Losing to such a man was not unjust.

Not only was he good-looking, but he also constantly thought of his wife and children.

"Both of you, rise," the Emperor said with a smile.

Just a moment ago, he had dismissed a prime minister, ordered the Crown Prince to reflect behind closed doors, silencing all court officials. Now he was speaking kindly and gently to an official from the countryside. The other officials didn't know what was going on.

But with the example of Prime Minister Wang just before, no one dared to say or ask anything.

They just listened as the Emperor conversed amiably with that official.

Who knew where this brash newcomer came from, speaking so bluntly it was offensive.

He was just like Meng Qingshe.

Meng Qingshe had a good father, but what did he have?

As court was dismissed, everyone looked back at him.

Holy crap.

He had his face.

That face was cheating.

When everyone arrived for morning court, they were all preoccupied with their own thoughts and didn't pay attention to how others looked.

As court was dismissed, when everyone was curious about his appearance.

They looked again.

A face blessed by heaven.

All the officials felt a sense of injustice and misfortune.

Years of hard study and effort to become an official, in the end, couldn't compare to a face.

Everyone else was leaving.

But the eunuch actually stopped Meng Qingshe and that countryside official.

"Lord Meng, Lord Jiang, please stay."

Meng Qingshe looked dejected. He knew standing too far forward was no good. He was in a hurry to get home to see his grandsons.

Those two grandsons of his were so adorable, they had smiled at him yesterday, smiling for a long time.

But now he was being kept back, kept in the court hall while everyone else had left.

"Don't worry, son-in-law. Stay with me, it'll be fine. The Emperor isn't fierce, at most he's a bit long-winded," Meng Qingshe advised, worried his son-in-law might be nervous.

The eunuch: ... I may not have a penis, but I'm not deaf.

Jiang Changtian nodded obediently, smiling even more harmlessly.

They followed the eunuch all the way forward.

The palace walls were magnificent, the sunshine brilliant.

The morning sun shone on the big trees, casting shadows on the red walls. It was a beautiful day.