Tao Rui opened his eyes and looked at the bright yellow bed curtains. Then he heard a thin male voice whispering outside the curtains, "Your Majesty, are you feeling better?"

Tao Rui covered his head, feeling as if it were being hammered repeatedly. The pain made his face pale. He didn't know what world he was in, and mumbled to the eunuch, "Get out."

"Yes, Your Majesty." The eunuch hesitated for a moment, but still nodded his head and quickly retreated with his men.

Tao Rui immediately sat up, held his breath, and began to absorb spiritual energy.

Fortunately, this world had more spiritual energy than the previous ones. It took him only half an incense stick of time to draw the energy into his body. He controlled the thin streams of spiritual energy to flow into his head, nourishing the headache area. He persisted in this way for two quarters of an hour before the headache finally eased.

Unfortunately, although this world had a bit more spiritual energy, it wasn't much more. It was impossible to expect a significant effect all at once. After he stopped practicing, his head still ached slightly.

The system asked with concern: [Brother Rui, you look very pale. Do you want to practice for a while longer?]

Tao Rui shook his head. "Now's not the time to heal. I've just arrived in this world and am completely clueless. It's more important to quickly understand the original script."

Tao Rui immediately merged the original owner's memories and checked the plot of this world. He almost vomited blood when he saw it!

He had been thinking that since he had studied and worked in his previous life, he would choose the easiest way to complete his tasks in this life and give himself a break. However, the emperor he became was surrounded by dangers and wolves. If he wasn't careful, he could lose his life. Even if he wanted to take a break, he couldn't.

He couldn't help but complain to the system: [Does the Space-Time Bureau know what I'm thinking and is deliberately messing with me?]

The system affirmed: [The Spacetime Bureau will not interfere with the host's mission. The small worlds are all random.]

Tao Rui took a deep breath and carefully sorted out the plot.

The original owner had just turned eighteen, but had already been emperor for eight years. The previous emperor, young and impetuous, had insisted on leading the army in person, but had accidentally died on the battlefield, leaving the court in chaos. The previous emperor left behind only two princes. One was the ten-year-old original owner, born to a concubine, and the other was a three-year-old infant, born to a noble concubine.

The empress dowager at that time chose the original owner to be the emperor, and she herself became the grand empress dowager, ruling the country from behind the curtain. She appointed a powerful official as regent, and in addition, she won over the prime minister and the powerful influence of her own family, and quickly stabilized the court.

The late emperor followed the general to the battlefield. The general was fine, but the late emperor died. Of course, there must be an explanation for this. To protect his family, the general fought the enemy with all his might, and eventually defeated the enemy army, but he also broke a leg and could not walk.

It is not known whether he broke his leg accidentally or on purpose. Anyway, when the Empress Dowager saw his military achievements and injuries, she did not pursue the matter of the late emperor's death in battle. She also rewarded him with ten thousand taels of gold and made him the Duke of Protector of the Country.

The Empress Dowager's move greatly won the hearts of the people. Not only were the soldiers loyal to the Duke of Protector of the Country willing to surrender, but other ministers also stopped making irresponsible remarks and opposed the Empress Dowager's rule behind the scenes.

The war had inflicted heavy losses on both nations, forcing them to recuperate. Consequently, aside from minor border skirmishes, the two nations hadn't fought a single battle in recent years. This gave the Empress Dowager time to develop her power and control the court. Unfortunately, it was easier to summon a deity than to send one away. To secure her throne, she had appointed a regent and enlisted the Prime Minister's assistance.

Later, these two became increasingly powerful, and they ignored her, a woman, and seemed to be trying to undermine the imperial power. For the past eight years, the Empress Dowager had been competing with them, maintaining a delicate balance of power while trying to weaken their influence.

It was not until half a year ago that he took advantage of the situation and got rid of the prime minister.

But the regent was not stupid. Upon seeing this, he asked the original owner to be crowned queen, and the candidate was his daughter.

The Empress Dowager's family was not to be outdone. They felt that they had made great contributions to the royal family and that the original owner's harem should give their daughter an important position.

The Empress Dowager was afraid that if the woman they sent gave birth to a son, they would kill the original owner, make the baby emperor, and control the government. So she tried her best to stop it, and finally, together with her loyal ministers, she reached a consensus with the Regent.

That is, the original owner would not be given the title of empress for the time being, but only concubines, imperial concubines, and a few beauties of lower rank. Promotion would be made in the future based on the situation and the offspring.

Tao Rui traveled here after the selection had concluded, shortly after a dozen women entered the palace. The original owner had never favored a single woman, because the Empress Dowager had died of an acute illness just as these women entered the palace.

The Grand Empress Dowager was sixty years old this year. If she had lived comfortably in wealth and luxury, she could surely have lived for another ten or twenty years. But for the past eight years, she had been consumed by anxiety and fear, calculating day and night, without even a single night of restful sleep. Her health had deteriorated drastically. She had finally overthrown the Prime Minister, exhausting all her energy. Then, under the regent's pressure, she could no longer bear it and died.

The original owner has to observe mourning now. When he went to court today, the Regent said that three years of mourning was too long. The Empress Dowager would definitely not be able to bear it and wanted to change the mourning period to twenty-seven days.

The Empress Dowager had been busy fighting and managing state affairs for years, and hadn't taught the original owner at all. She only found the civil and military tutors to teach him. The original owner was usually under close scrutiny, and when his rebellious spirit came up, he would always take advantage of the opportunity to slack off and indulge in fun, just like those wealthy playboys in the capital.

As soon as the Empress Dowager left, he felt sleepy when attending court. He had no idea of ​​the undercurrents in the court. When he was tired of listening, he said to do as the Regent said. He didn't even know that the Regent had bad intentions. He was very trusting of the Empress Dowager's family, the Chen family, and was very close to them.

Little did he know that the Regent was just waiting for his daughter, Concubine Chen, to give birth to a prince. He would then kill the original owner and support the little prince to ascend the throne. In the future, the whole world would belong to him.

The Chen family saw through the Regent's plan and did not want him to succeed, so they wanted their daughter, Concubine Rong, to give birth to a prince as soon as possible. Then, in order to prevent the Regent's daughter from being favored, they would of course bear the pain of killing the emperor and help their own little prince to ascend the throne.

In the original script, the original owner lived a few more years, purely out of sheer luck. He disliked the girls from either family and was willful, believing he was the emperor and had no one to control him. He refused to see the concubines he disliked. No matter how scheming the court officials were, they couldn't kidnap the original owner and favor anyone else.

The original owner had a great stroke of luck: a concubine in the palace, Chun, was a time-traveling woman, possessing a space and a spiritual spring. Chun was the legitimate granddaughter of the Duke of the Guardian State. When the Empress Dowager was selecting concubines, she wanted to recruit more capable people for the original owner. The Duke of the Guardian State was loyal to the royal family, and his two sons seemed capable, so she chose his granddaughter as a concubine.

However, this little granddaughter was simple-minded. After entering the palace, she became cannon fodder in the struggle between Concubine Chen and Concubine Rong. She fell into the lake and lost her life. When she woke up, she was Cheng Qianqian, a time-traveling girl with the Space Spirit Spring.

Cheng Qianqian is straightforward and has no scheming, but she comes from the 21st century and has seen pigs run even if she has not eaten pork.

After she understood her situation, she began to secretly take revenge on Concubine Chen and Concubine Rong. Since she had taken Concubine Chun's identity, she had to help Concubine Chun get revenge. Of course, she did it secretly, instigating and plotting against them. When she had to do it openly, she asked the original owner to make the decision because she found that the original owner also hated them.

The original owner was a reckless person to begin with, and she thought it would be quite interesting to let her face off against those two people. Since those two people bothered him less often, she readily supported Cheng Qianqian.

Thus, Cheng Qianqian had a golden finger and the emperor's backing, so even though her status was lower, she wasn't at a disadvantage. Many of her novel ideas and thoughts attracted the original owner, who liked to seek her out, and gradually she felt that they had a comradeship.

She also felt that the original owner was in danger, that the government was controlled by the court officials, and she felt very sympathetic towards him. So, slowly, she began to give him her true love, often dripping spiritual spring water into the original owner's tea. Whenever the original owner had a headache, coming to her always made him feel better, and naturally, he began to like coming. Their relationship grew stronger, and Cheng Qianqian used everything she knew and could do to help him.

But Cheng Qianqian didn't know that the original owner had no feelings for her at all. In the heart of the original owner, a dandy who became emperor at the age of ten, he could have any woman in the world he wanted, so it was not easy for him to give his heart to her. If he could say that, only the sister he met when he was seriously ill and raised in the prime minister's house was worthy of his true love.

As early as the selection, the original owner had mentioned that she wanted the granddaughter of Prime Minister Liu, but the Empress Dowager bluffed her way out of it, saying that the Liu family was not of high status. As soon as the Grand Empress Dowager passed away, the original owner brought her into the palace.

He didn't even know that it was the Empress Dowager who overthrew the Prime Minister, and he thought the Prime Minister died of illness. After the Prime Minister died, his sons divided the family property. The most promising one fell off a horse and died, and the remaining few who were not promising lived their own lives and were insignificant.

The girl the original owner loved was named Liu Si. Her father was only a fifth-rank official. With the fall of the prime minister's family and the subsequent division of the family, their lives were difficult. Liu Si was the original owner's perfect love. She was beautiful, and seemed as elegant, well-mannered, and well-educated as she had been in her childhood. The original owner was completely captivated by her and, upon bringing her into the palace, intended to make her his empress.

The original owner was foolish, but Liu Si wasn't. The various misfortunes her family had endured over the years had honed her to a level of scheming. She knew how the original owner liked her, so she kept it that way, feigning vulnerability due to the family's decline, begging the original owner not to make her a high-ranking concubine. She wouldn't be able to compete with the others, and her family would be suppressed by the families of the other concubines.

The original owner listened to her. In his opinion, treating her well in secret was just as good as her. He wanted to let Liu Si enjoy what he enjoyed. No matter how beautiful other women were, could they be as comfortable as Liu Si? So, outwardly, he only conferred the title of beauty on Liu Si.

Later, when Liu Si and other beauties were forced to kneel by Concubine Chen, the original owner angrily wanted to stand up for Liu Si, but Liu Si stopped him, saying that she would be like Concubine Chun, targeted by Concubine Chen and constantly fighting with him. She didn't like that kind of life and just wanted peace and quiet.

So the original owner compensated Liu Si privately, and got inspiration from Liu Si's words, using Chunpin as a shield for Liu Si!

Later, he promoted Concubine Chun to a concubine, and also made Liu Si and several other beauties concubines, seemingly casually, and no one noticed Liu Si. He also often went to Concubine Chun's palace, focusing all his jealousy on Concubine Chun, and then privately went to find Liu Si in the most secretive way.

Later, whenever he felt unwell, he would go to Concubine Chun to feel better, and gradually he discovered that Concubine Chun had a secret. After a few years, he also saw the true colors of the Regent and his men, and began to use Concubine Chun, the Protector of the Country behind her, and her two capable sons. On the surface, he used them as a weapon to attack.

The original owner got some magical water from Concubine Chun and shared it with Liu Si.

He also handed over some of the money-making methods proposed by Concubine Chun to Liu Si's family, and the Liu family slowly rose from humble beginnings. Later, he used the people left by the Empress Dowager and used Concubine Chun to kill Concubine Chen.

The Regent was furious and investigated the matter thoroughly. He traced back to Concubine Chun, but the original owner unreasonably protected her, which led to a confrontation between the Regent and the Duke of Protector. At the same time, everyone knew that Concubine Chun was the emperor's favorite, and Concubine Chun attracted a lot of criticism.

When the Regent was investigating the cause of his daughter's death, he accidentally discovered that one of the imperial physicians was a remnant of the previous dynasty. He had superb medical skills and was the one who caused the original owner to suffer from frequent headaches and bad temper.

These remnants were afraid that if they killed the original owner, the regent would take over again, so they simply let the original owner occupy the throne to cause trouble for the regent, letting them fight each other. The original owner had a headache and a bad temper, and even a good person would become unbearable. When the time was right, they could naturally deal with him at will.

There was also the alchemist favored by the original owner since the death of the Grand Empress Dowager. The pills he used to treat headaches were also poisonous, but they were secret medicines from the previous dynasty, making them difficult to detect. With the imperial physician and the alchemist working together, as long as one of them could stay by the original owner's side, success would come sooner or later.

As a result, Concubine Chun's spiritual spring unexpectedly cured the original owner, and the original owner did not have a violent conflict with the Regent. After the regent found out about the remnants of the previous dynasty, they were all wiped out.

The original owner, however, believed Concubine Chun to be a demon. While seemingly treating her better and better, he actually wished to get rid of her as soon as possible, but before doing so, he would drain her of all her treasures. He also hid Liu Si even further, believing that everyone around him harbored ill intentions. Only Liu Si enjoyed a simple life, seeking neither fame nor wealth, and willingly followed him around as a shadow.

Later, the Protectorate's family fought tooth and nail to overthrow the Regent, and even the Chen family's power was affected. However, the Protectorate didn't get away with it either. Before his death, the Regent falsely accused the Protectorate of treason.

When the original owner saw that all those who deserved to die were dead, he certainly couldn't let the Duke of Protectorate become too powerful, so he turned a blind eye and let the evidence become true, and the entire family of the Duke of Protectorate was executed.

Devastated, Concubine Chun went to the original owner for help, but the original owner had been prepared and had the best imperial guards capture her and imprisoned her in a secret room, forcing her to confess. Concubine Chun's life had been smooth sailing since her time traveling through time. Even if the original owner had used her, she had truly enjoyed all the treatment of a favored concubine, so how could she endure the pain of punishment?

But she was also very stubborn. After she knew she couldn't escape, she committed suicide using the poison that had been hidden in the space. The original owner got nothing.

However, once the original owner truly came to power, she didn't care about this. She held a grand ceremony to crown Liu Si as empress. She also appointed Liu Si's father as prime minister and promoted her brothers to three higher ranks. One of them even took charge of the Imperial Household Department, which meant he could oversee all matters in the palace.

He was lucky enough to gain imperial power, but he didn't know how to be a good emperor. The government quickly became a mess, with corruption from top to bottom, and he was unaware of it. Then Liu Si gave birth to two princes. He favored other concubines, but either they didn't give birth to children or the children died.

He always thought that Liu Si was the purest and most innocent white lotus in the world. In fact, all his children who died young were killed by Liu Si's brother who was in charge of the Imperial Household Department. When Liu Si's eldest prince was five years old, the Liu family had become powerful in the court, and all the men in the family held important official positions in the court, so the original owner was no longer needed.

So Liu Si poisoned the original owner herself. Anyway, the original owner didn't need the eunuchs to test the food she gave him, so it was very easy to poison him.

After the original owner died, he asked her why, believing he treated her better than anyone else. Liu Sicai then explained that their two families were enemies. Before she entered the palace, she had a childhood sweetheart and fiancé, but it was he who broke them up, forcibly took her, and, with his self-righteousness, constantly put her and her family in danger. If she hadn't been so alert and given him a shield, how could they have remained safe until now?

The original owner no longer had the energy to ask another question and died with his eyes open.

Tao Rui wondered if the original owner regretted his actions before his death. If the original owner was the best to Liu Si, then the best people for him in this scenario were the time-traveling woman Cheng Qianqian and the Duke of Huguo and his followers. But then, he forced a confession out of Cheng Qianqian and had the Duke of Huguo and his entire family executed. He deserved his fate. He also messed up government affairs, harming countless people. Now that he was in the Time and Space Bureau's prison, he must have felt the pain of those people.

As for the fact that Liu Si had plotted against him, it was indeed him who broke up the engaged couple, which was a messy account. Other departments would judge this, and it was none of his business. He now had to complete his mission, to make Cheng Qianqian happy and blessed, to bring honor to the Duke of Huguo's family, to bring peace to the world, and to ensure the well-being of the people. And there were also some people who were harmed by the original owner...

Tao Rui rubbed his forehead and felt his head hurt again. This task was much more difficult than in his previous life.

He counted the people who wanted to harm him with the system: [The Prince Regent, the Chen family, Concubine Chen, Concubine Rong, Imperial Physician Li, Taoist Master Xuanji, assassins from the enemy nation... Please remember all of them. I have a headache and I'm dizzy. With so many people trying to harm me, I'm really afraid I'll lose my life one day. Who knows if I'll have the same luck as the original owner?]

[Brother Rui, don't worry. I've got this in mind. I believe in you. You will definitely complete the mission perfectly, just like in your last life.]

[By the way, have you calculated your points from your previous life? Quickly open the Space-Time Bureau Mall. I need to buy something to save my life.]

Tao Rui was never one to be arrogant. After all, he had learned how to survive and be flexible during his first time traveling. In a world like this, of course, saving his life was the most important thing.

In his previous life, his work benefited the country and its people, making him a significant contribution. While in other worlds, such contributions wouldn't have increased his points, wasn't his mission in his previous life to compensate many people? Benefiting the country and its people was linked to the prosperity of the villagers, effectively an upgraded version of his mission. Even if he'd exceeded his mission targets, his points would have quintupled.

Tao Rui browsed the mall, a look of relief on his face. Luckily, he hadn't slacked off in his past life, had studied so diligently, and even given back to his country. Now the rewards were coming. His points, multiplied fivefold, were just enough to buy the most expensive life-saving gadget!

Of course, the more expensive this thing is, the safer it is, and the better the life-saving effect is. This most expensive life-saving artifact is also bound to the soul, and anything that harms his body will rebound.

The rebound is amazing!

That is to say, if an assassin stabs with a sword, there must be a sword that pierces the assassin's body, preventing him from being stabbed; if someone poisons him, there must be no poison in the food he eats, but the person who poisoned him will die from the poison.

Of course, if no one harmed him, and the injury was an accident, like falling off a horse, then he would be fine if he fell to the ground, and the ground would inevitably have some problems without arousing suspicion. Nature hurt him, and the damage rebounded on nature.

Wouldn't this make us invincible in terms of security?

However, high prices have their perks. Sometimes you need to get hurt while completing missions, like on the battlefield. It would be a bit unrealistic to never get hurt, so this life-saving artifact allows you to control the rebound percentage yourself. If you want to get hurt and still survive, just set it to 10% to ensure you don't die, and the pain will be reduced.

After learning about this function, Tao Rui didn't feel the slightest bit of pain about his points being reduced to single digits. He even resolved to earn more points in the future and not even think about taking a vacation. If he hadn't had enough points, he wouldn't know how tiring it would have been to start his life this way. Now that he had a life-saving artifact, things were much easier.

He didn't know what kind of world he would go to in the future, so he still had the chance to earn points. It was better to prepare for a rainy day.

Tao Rui was in high spirits after buying such a wonderful item, and decided to continue practicing. Cheng Qianqian's spiritual spring water could cure his headache, so the spiritual energy he absorbed through practice could also cure it. It would just take a little longer. He checked his body and found that he had been poisoned by Doctor Li for three years, and by Taoist Xuanji for only a few days. It would take about three months of practice to heal.

At this time, the Empress Dowager had just passed away, and the original owner was still a little sad. She often stayed in her own palace, ignoring state affairs. So it was no surprise that Tao Rui didn't go out. He simply sat cross-legged and practiced diligently.

Two hours later, when it was almost dark, the young eunuch quietly walked in and whispered tentatively, "Your Majesty, Taoist Xuanji requests an audience."

Tao Rui opened his eyes, put himself in the shoes of the original owner, and flung aside the bed curtains. "Is Taoist Xuanji here? Quick, change my clothes for me. I'm going to see him right away!"

The young eunuch's name was Deshun. He had been with the original master since childhood, so he naturally followed his temper. With a few eunuchs and palace maids, he quickly dressed Tao Rui in a bright yellow robe. At the same time, he whispered, "Your Majesty, don't worry. I have invited the Taoist priest to a side hall to rest and have served him the finest tea."

Tao Rui frowned and waved his hand, then walked out quickly. "What's the matter with tea? Did he bring the elixir?"

Deshun hurriedly followed and said with a smile: "I saw that Taoist Xuanji brought a wooden box. He must have made another elixir. Now the emperor won't have a headache anymore."

Tao Rui said happily, "Really? Taoist Xuanji arrived just in time. I'm still having a headache right now."

Tao Rui walked into the side hall while talking. He saw that Taoist Xuanji had his eyes slightly closed. He did not stand up to greet him. He only opened his eyes and flicked his whisk when Xuanji walked in front of him. "I greet the emperor."

It does have a bit of an immortal feel.

But Tao Rui had been in the world of immortal cultivation and had seen real immortal Taoist priests. Looking at Xuan Ji again, he really wanted to laugh. It felt like he was watching him imitating someone else, which was very funny.

Like the original owner, he ignored Xuanji's rudeness and stared at the wooden box in his hand, saying anxiously, "Is this the elixir you just made? Bring it to me quickly, I have a terrible headache."

Taoist Xuanji disapproved and advised, "Your Majesty, I have long said that elixirs should not be taken every day. Just now, Eunuch Deshun said that Your Majesty took elixirs every day. Today, you stopped taking elixirs and you have a headache again."

He handed the box to Deshun beside him and said with a stern face, "I brought the elixir here today not for Your Majesty to continue taking. Your health is paramount, so it would be best if you consult the imperial physician and take a pill every three to five days."

Taoist Xuanji said this on purpose to avoid suspicion. He had been trying to dissuade the emperor from taking the medicine, but the emperor insisted on taking it and became addicted to it, so it was not his fault.

According to Xuan Ji's idea, Tao Rui would definitely not listen to him at this moment. Instead, he would hurriedly take a pill and take it, because only his pill could relieve the pain like a hammer hitting his head.

Tao Rui did not disappoint him. He snatched the box and took a handful of pills to eat. Xuan Ji was so shocked that his expression changed.

"Your Majesty!" Deshun was anxious and tried to stop him. "Your Majesty, please spit it out! You can't take so much of this pill! All medicines are poisonous. Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you can't take it!"

Tao Rui pushed Deshun aside, sat down with the box in his arms, and said nonchalantly, "How can elixirs be compared to those common medicines? What's the saying that all medicines are three-quarters poisonous? Taoist Xuanji's elixir can save me. The Imperial Hospital has also examined it. How can it be poisonous?"

He took a few sips of tea and swallowed the pills. After a moment, he showed a relieved expression and said with a faint smile: "Master Xuanji is indeed an otherworldly master. He can actually refine such an elixir..."

He paused as he spoke, a look of sorrow on his face. "If only the Empress Dowager had met the Taoist priest when she was still alive, it would have been wonderful. With his abilities, he would have surely saved her. Then I wouldn't have been separated from her..."

"…Your Majesty, please accept my condolences." Taoist Xuanji, still a little dazed, glanced at the box. Only four of the ten pills remained, and he couldn't help but twitch his face. The pills contained something addictive and powerfully relieved pain. Given the severity of Tao Rui's headache, one pill could have kept him well for a day. Now, taking six pills at once seemed inappropriate.

This sudden incident made Taoist Xuanji unable to sit still. They wanted to make the dog emperor angry and irritable, and to oppose the regent, not to kill the dog emperor. If the dog emperor died in an unclear manner, they would definitely be investigated by the court officials. He had to communicate with Doctor Li and ask him to pay more attention to the dog emperor's health.

Normally, Taoist Master Xuan Ji would teach the original owner about Taoism and stay for half a day. But this time, he stood up and said goodbye before he had even sat for a quarter of an hour, saying that he had to go back to study the art of alchemy.

The original owner's most important task was his alchemy, so Tao Rui naturally urged him, "Alchemy is a serious matter and cannot be delayed. Taoist priest, please return soon. Deshun, see you off."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Deshun led Xuanji out politely, with worry in his eyes.

He and the original owner grew up together, so naturally they had feelings for each other. He felt that elixirs were not good things and was genuinely worried about the original owner's health. After sending Xuanji off, he returned and cautiously advised, "Your Majesty, you are not feeling well today and have used too many elixirs. Why not send the imperial physician to take a look?"

Tao Rui patted the box containing the elixir and said, "I have this magic medicine. It can cure all my ailments. Why would I need to see a doctor? It's a waste of time. Come on, you keep it for me. If I lose any of it, you will be held responsible!"

Tao Rui threw the box to Deshun, who was so scared that he caught it in a panic, fearing that it would fall to the ground and something might go wrong.

Tao Rui stood up and walked outside. He stood at the door with his hands behind his back, looked at the ancient palace, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

Since Taoist Xuanji likes to make pills so much, why not try some? This pill isn't bad, and he'll eat as much as Xuanji dares to give him. I just don't know when Xuanji will realize that he's the one who's addicted.

This life-saving artifact was awesome! He was looking forward to seeing Xuanji become addicted and go crazy. And Doctor Li, he should find opportunities to use him more often, otherwise how would he have the chance to poison someone? From now on, Doctor Li would be the one who got a headache.

Deshun came over and asked Tao Rui if he wanted to have dinner. Tao Rui specifically said that he wanted to eat vegetarian food and keep everything simple.

The Empress Dowager helped the original owner become emperor in order to preserve the throne, but at this time the Empress Dowager had passed away, and Tao Rui felt that mourning was still necessary.

No matter how simple the emperor's meal was, there were still more than a dozen dishes.

Tao Rui had spent his entire life studying food in his previous life, but as soon as he tasted the imperial meal, he felt his cooking skills were still lacking. This thing probably required both talent and experience. He had learned a lot, and his food was excellent, but he still fell short of perfect mastery. If he had the chance, perhaps he could ask the imperial chef for advice.

The dishes were all delicious. Tao Rui tasted each one, picked out the ones he liked, and was full after just two bites. He let Deshun take the rest as a gift.

Although these dishes were his leftovers, the chopsticks Deshun used to serve him the dishes were not used by anyone, so the dishes were not stained by his saliva and were very clean. Giving them to people was a reward. Letting Deshun handle it was also giving him a chance to win people over.

In the original script, Deshun remained loyal to his original owner, a clever and sensible person, and Tao Rui wished him a happy ending. As for whether Deshun would discover that the emperor's heart had been replaced, it was definitely not likely. After all, Tao Rui has traveled through time several times and has perfected his acting skills to the highest level, so each time he travels through time, he's never out of character. Any changes he makes must have a reason, allowing everyone to see his changes as normal.

Tao Rui did not go to see any of the palace concubines. Later that night, Concubine Chen and Concubine Rong sent people over to ask Deshun how the emperor was doing. Deshun sent them away with a smile, saying that the emperor was feeling upset and did not want anyone to disturb him.

Tao Rui finally had some peace and quiet, and after another night of practice, he went to court in the morning feeling refreshed.

Of course, he acted very reluctant. In the past, when the Empress Dowager was ruling from behind the scenes, he could just lie in and sleep in, because he couldn't understand anyway. Now, suddenly he had to get up early every day to attend court, sitting there listening to all that nonsense, so of course he was angry. If he had a headache, he would lose his temper for no reason.

On the way, Deshun asked, "Your Majesty, what arrangements have been made for Miss Liu?"

Tao Rui thought for a moment. Miss Liu was Liu Si. The original owner had just brought Liu Si into the palace the day before. It was just that she had run out of elixirs, and because of a headache, she hadn't had time to make arrangements for Liu Si. According to the original script, after taking the elixir sent by Taoist Xuanji, the original owner would have excitedly gone to see Liu Si and wanted to make her empress, but Liu Si dissuaded her, and in the end, she was only given the title of beauty.

However, when Tao Rui came here, he gave this plot to Butterfly. He was busy practicing yesterday and didn't think of Liu Silai.

Hearing Deshun's question, Tao Rui stroked his chin and said, "Find someone to investigate Miss Liu's situation at home. Has she been bullied over the years? You said I suddenly brought her into the palace. She must have been frightened. Ask the maids there how she is doing. Does she blame me for separating her from her parents?"

This uneasy mind is definitely that of a young man with budding love.

Deshun had no doubts and said with a smile, "It is a great honor to be accepted into the palace by the Emperor. Miss Liu must be delighted. Your Majesty, rest assured. I will order someone to investigate immediately. When Your Majesty leaves court, we will get to the bottom of everything."

Tao Rui then smiled and looked at him with admiration, "You are getting better and better at doing things. Take the reward yourself and do things better."

Deshun took the order to make arrangements, and then followed Tao Rui to the court.

Although Tao Rui had traveled through several lives, this was his first time sitting on the dragon throne as emperor. When he sat on the dragon throne and watched the civil and military officials kneel on the ground and shout "Long live the emperor" three times, he suddenly understood why so many people were vying to be emperor.

The feeling of being the supreme being in the world is really great. Even when he was Long Aotian in the world of cultivating immortals and climbed to the top of the world, he didn't do these things of cheering for the emperor three times. It was still a little lacking in pomp and ceremony.

He glanced again at the original owner's only brother, Tao Yuan, the son of the imperial concubine who hadn't been chosen. Few princes wanted to be emperor, especially in a situation like this. Tao Rui had been chosen by the Grand Empress Dowager simply because he was a few years older, while Tao Yuan, the son of a noble imperial concubine, had missed out on the throne. How could he possibly accept that?

Even if he was willing, his maternal family wouldn't be. It was just that the Grand Empress Dowager had no time to deal with them. She had the Imperial Concubine killed when the Emperor was chosen. Even if the Imperial Concubine's maternal family, the Jin family, was powerful, they couldn't properly educate Tao Yuan. The Grand Empress Dowager also suppressed the Jin family for many years, and they are now not very influential.

The Jin family used all their power to ensure Tao Yuan's access to the court. Tao Yuan was only eleven years old. The Grand Empress Dowager, believing that Tao Rui had been emperor for years and the Jin family's influence had weakened, agreed to the offer. The Grand Empress Dowager hadn't anticipated her sudden death. In the original script, this younger brother also constantly plotted to kill the original emperor, making him another person to be wary of.

Tao Rui's mind raced with random thoughts, but it didn't interfere with his acting. He waved his hand impatiently and frowned, saying, "Everyone, stand up. If you have something to say, tell me quickly."

Several loyal ministers lowered their heads in disappointment, unwilling to see such an emperor sitting on the throne.

A few more ministers raised some minor matters, but since all the important matters had been reported to the Regent, it would be pointless to report them to the Emperor. Then the Minister of Rites came forward and said, "Your Majesty, regarding the change in the mourning period, I have drafted the regulations for your review."

Tao Rui yawned and asked in confusion, "What deadline do you want to change?"

The Minister of Rites bowed his head and said, "As the Regent said yesterday, the three-year mourning period will be changed to twenty-seven days."

Tao Rui frowned and said, "Who asked you to change? No, no, no. My grandmother raised me single-handedly. If I can't even observe mourning with sincerity, won't the people of the world laugh at me?"

The Minister of Rites subconsciously glanced at the Regent. It wasn't that he was the Regent's man, but he was used to it. In this situation, he definitely had to see what the Regent thought. After all, the Regent's daughter had already been consorted, so how could she remain a widow for three years? It was the Regent who suggested changing the date to the 27th.

The Regent's expression was indeed grim. He said, "Your Majesty is the ruler of all people. Who dares to mock you? Your Majesty's status is special, so naturally he cannot observe the same three years of mourning as the rest of us. I believe the Empress Dowager's spirit in heaven would also like to see Your Majesty expand his harem and have many children soon..."

Tao Rui patted the dragon throne. "Whose elder dies and his grandson is busy having children? Regent, do you want me to become a laughing stock?"

Tao Rui's words were heartbreaking. Although he did not have the emperor's aura, he was very arrogant and unreasonable, and had no intention of speaking in a nice way.

In front of the entire court, the Regent couldn't refute him, so he could only grit his teeth and bow his head, "I dare not."