"Your Majesty said I was just parroting what others say," she replied coldly, clenching her fists in anger and biting her teeth, afraid of losing control.

Bai Yue was startled. "How can Your Majesty speak of the Empress in such a way? It shows a complete disregard for the Empress's hard work."

The Empress sneered, "He forced me to take sides, yet he thought I was an ungrateful wretch. Now that the Empress Dowager has left the palace, he naturally won't take me seriously anymore."

Upon hearing this, Bai Yue didn't know what to say to comfort her.

In the harem, anyone with ambition would make a move, but one person was different from the others: Hao Shumei. She did not seek to become the next empress dowager, nor did she seek to wield power over the harem; all she wanted was Zhao Bi.

But what did she hear? Zhao Bi was a homosexual?

When a woman gets angry, it's like being struck by lightning.

Hao Shumei left the palace overnight and went straight to the Fourth Prince's residence. She had been there before, and Zhao Bi's confidants all recognized her, so they naturally let her pass.

When she saw Zhen Qizhong, she laughed three times and turned to leave.

Things were developing too fast. Zhao Bi's trusted confidant in the capital sent a message by carrier pigeon asking Zhao Bi for a countermeasure. Zhao Bi, who was far away in Chu, did not see Wei Tingsi. He was told that Wei Tingsi was recuperating from his injuries and would not see anyone.

Before he could seize power, trouble was brewing in his own backyard. Although Emperor Mingde did not react and indicated that he believed in him and not the rumors, there were too many competitors, and he dared not gamble.

So he secretly returned to Beijing that very night.

Before he returned to the capital, Wei Tingsi, who had been missing for a long time, finally reappeared.

"Where did you go?" Zhao Shu asked, somewhat annoyed.

He placed a matchlock gun in front of Zhao Shu, then pulled her into his arms, saying, "I'm off to take care of something important."

The moment Zhao Shu saw the matchlock gun, she frowned. She broke free from his embrace, picked up the matchlock gun from the table, and asked, "Did it come from Japan?"

"Yes, but this thing is not from Japan. It came from the distant other side of the ocean. There is also a kind of cannon called the Frankish cannon. Prince Jing has such a thing."

Zhao Shu knew about the flank gun. In Chinese history, around the first year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty, the Spanish introduced matchlock guns to Japan, thus ending Japan's era of cold weapons. In the third year of the Jiajing reign, the Ming court obtained the manufacturing methods of new cannons from Spain and Portugal and used them in war.

By the Wanli era, the Franco-Germain-Dazs had evolved into various types, including repeating, small, and lightweight models, making it the most advanced weapon in the world at the time.

In this comparison of time, Dayong today is indeed lagging behind the civilization of three dynasties in Chinese history, still at the stage of civilization before the An Lushan Rebellion.

However, since such advanced weapons have been discovered, we naturally cannot turn them away.

In her past life, she had never heard of such advanced weapons. Why did they suddenly appear now? But thinking about it, it makes sense. In her past life, her vision was narrow and her perspective was limited to the inner quarters of the household. It was understandable that she didn't know about this. Just like in modern times, many people don't know what advanced weapons the country has. The real trump card is not easily revealed to the world.

“Then, relatively speaking, Zhao Bi also has it,” Zhao Shu analyzed. “Didn’t they kill those merchants last time? How come there are still these things?”

“How could something that can bring huge benefits be easily erased? The musket you envisioned and designed last time, although more advanced in technology than the Franz cannon, is ultimately only suitable for individual combat, while heavy weapons have greater destructive power.”

Zhao Shu nodded, exhaled a breath of stale air, and felt somewhat powerless. She couldn't offer any more advice regarding the shortcomings in technology.

After thinking for a moment, he asked, "What about the birthday gift I gave to the Emperor last time? Did you make it?"

Wei Tingsi nodded, then shook his head. "It's been done, but sometimes the success rate isn't high."

"As long as it works, that's good. Any new thing becomes more practical and useful over time. Okay, you brought this to me, so you have some plans, right?"

Wei Tingsi tapped her nose. "Well, with one incident after another, Zhao Bi might be driven to desperation. You should leave the capital for a while; things are about to get unsettled."

Zhao Shu nodded. "Is this your plan?"

"Yes, I know you think so too. The sinners of history always need to be filled by someone, and Zhao Bi is quite good."

Foolish people make themselves the subject of much criticism, while wise people make themselves the subject of eternal praise.

Of course, Zhao Bi was not stupid, but he couldn't compete with someone who was more capable than him.

“I’m not leaving. I’m staying with him. Besides, if Zhao Bi dares to lay a finger on me, I’ll take him down.”

She didn't leave for two reasons. First, she didn't want to miss this historic moment. Only when Zhao Bi died would her fate truly change. She dared not entrust her affairs to others or be careless.

She needed to see Zhao Bi die and be utterly disgraced to quell her fear and hatred.

Those who wronged her in the past were so fearless simply because Zhao Bi had become emperor. Only by destroying Zhao Bi and having the crown prince become emperor could she truly feel at ease.

Seeing the fierce look in her eyes, Wei Tingsi felt a pang of tenderness and pulled her into his arms, patting her head. "Okay, no matter where you are, I will protect you, so don't worry."

"Yes." Zhao Shu smiled knowingly, accepting his kindness.

The following day, a wave of suppression against Zhao Bi indeed swept through the court. However, those behind these ministers forgot one thing: if Emperor Mingde demoted Zhao Bi because of this, wouldn't that be admitting to this royal scandal?

He could tolerate Yi De's actions, so Zhao Bi's matter was not a big deal. Naturally, he would deny it to the death to prove his innocence.

"You study the classics to understand principles and righteousness. You have studied diligently for years and risen to high positions, yet you follow the crowd and parrot others. I am deeply disheartened. You were all recommended to the court by virtuous and respected people, yet you cannot distinguish right from wrong and listen to the words of the common people. You are utterly lacking in the qualities of a virtuous minister. Guards, convey my decree: from this day forward, the imperial examination system will be reorganized. Anyone who enters officialdom must go through the imperial examination. The recommendation system will be abolished."

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