Chapter 46 History Cannot Be Changed? No, it's just that the love scammers didn't give us a chance!

Yun Zhan has been working like a mule on a non-stop 90-minute drive lately—no, even worse than a mule. A mule pulling a millstone can at least take a break now and then, but he, the emperor, hasn't even had a moment to catch his breath.

As soon as dawn breaks, he has to get up from that huge dragon bed that could be ridden by a horse—don't get me wrong, he basically sleeps alone now, at most dreaming of some bastard—and then begin his day of "torture," or rather, morning court.

Listening to the endless chatter of the ministers below—one reporting an urgent military situation at the border, another lamenting the starving famine victims, and yet another subtly hinting at the need to select concubines to enrich the harem—Yun Zhan forced himself to remain focused while inwardly ranting and raving:

"System, I suspect these old guys are doing this on purpose! They know I'm dirt poor, yet they keep finding ways to ask me for money!"

Based on behavioral pattern analysis, 73.8% of officials did indeed exploit the host's financial difficulties for personal gain.

"Damn! I knew it!"

He finally made it to the end of the court session, but the real "torture" had only just begun. A mountain of memorials awaited his review in the imperial study, each one seeming to mock his incompetence.

"They're requesting another 500,000 taels of silver for the floods in Jiangnan? Where am I supposed to steal that from?"

"The Northern Army's pay is three months behind schedule? I'd like to pay it, but can the national treasury really scrape together the silver?"

"The Ministry of Works is requesting funding to develop new weapons? That's a legitimate matter, but where's the money? Where's the money!"

"The little money I managed to scrape together is all gone in an instant. I need to come up with some new inventions again."

He clutched his thinning hair, wishing he could grab the Minister of Revenue and make him perform a magic trick of turning silver into money from nothing.

In order to advance various reforms, he also had to occasionally "favor" his capable lieutenants. Of course, this "favor" was not the same as that kind of "favor".

For example, last night, he summoned Li Muyan to "serve him in bed." The two sat facing each other by candlelight, discussing how to more efficiently promote the new agricultural tools to remote prefectures and counties.

“Your Majesty, this matter requires capable local officials; otherwise, even the best policies will be nothing but empty talk.” Li Muyan frowned as he scribbled on the paper.

"I know, but there are too few capable people these days!" Yun Zhan sighed. "Those old ministers are like beads on an abacus, they won't budge unless you move them."

"Perhaps we could consider establishing a special imperial examination outside of the regular civil service examination to select capable and practical talents?"

"That's a great idea! Mu Yan, you are truly my wise and capable assistant... no, I mean, my invaluable helper!"

As soon as he said it, Yun Zhan saw that Li Muyan's ears turned slightly red, which startled him so much that he quickly changed the subject, inwardly cursing himself for his slip of the tongue.

As the days went by, Yun Zhan felt himself being completely drained. He looked in the bronze mirror at the young man with dark circles under his eyes and a haggard face, and he could hardly believe that this was the same person who had been acting spoiled and unreasonable with Yan Linye in Hejian Prefecture just half a year ago.

"System, I feel like I'm about to become an immortal..." he said weakly, fiddling with the abacus beads. "I'm just hanging on by a thread of immortal energy."

[Host, according to the law of conservation of energy, you cannot become an immortal. You are simply overworked. We recommend you rest appropriately.]

"Rest? I'd like to!" Yun Zhan wailed. "The northern barbarians are eyeing us covetously, the Japanese pirates in the southeast haven't been wiped out yet, the Yellow River dikes are waiting for money to be repaired, and the people in the disaster areas are waiting for rice to cook... How dare I rest?!"

He was rambling on and on to the system, when suddenly, hurried footsteps came from outside the imperial study, accompanied by Eunuch Gao's shrill voice filled with unprecedented panic:

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Urgent dispatch! Report from Hejian Prefecture!"

Yun Zhan's heart skipped a beat, and an ominous premonition instantly gripped him. Hejian Prefecture... that was Yan Linye's territory!

He stood up abruptly, his voice trembling slightly: "Quick! Bring it here!"

Grandpa Gao scrambled in, holding a letter with a feather stuck in it, his face ashen.

Yun Zhan snatched the letter, tore off the sealing wax, and quickly scanned it. The handwriting seemed to carry the scent of blood and fire; each word struck his heart like a hammer blow.

"...Yan Ni, facing the wilderness, swore an oath in Hejian Prefecture three days ago, falsely claiming to 'purge the court of corrupt officials and quell the national crisis,' and raised an army of 100,000. He swept through the country like a whirlwind, capturing three cities in succession, and his army was heading straight for the capital..."

"Wherever the rebels went, they opened granaries and distributed grain, proclaiming that His Majesty was licentious and tyrannical, favoring treacherous ministers, which angered both Heaven and the people..."

"The defending troops along the way either surrendered or fled, and not a single force could stop their advance..."

Yun Zhan could no longer see what was written after that.

He felt a buzzing in his ears, his vision went black, and the letter in his hand slipped from his grasp.

It's here... it's finally here.

Just as it was written in that tattered miscellaneous book, Yan Linye rebelled.

Despite his desperate efforts over the past six months to change things, eliminate treacherous officials, improve people's livelihoods, develop the economy, and strengthen border defenses, he thought he had done his best and that history would at least take a slight turn.

But reality gave him a resounding slap in the face.

Yan Linye rebelled after all. Just when he was overwhelmed with natural and man-made disasters, and just when he had glimpsed a ray of hope...

A chilling despair shot from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, freezing him completely.

"As expected... as expected, it still doesn't work..." he murmured to himself, his voice so soft it seemed a breeze could carry it away, "No matter how much I struggle, the outcome of history... cannot be changed..."

He slumped back onto the dragon throne, as if all his strength had been drained away. The imperial study was eerily quiet; only his own heavy breathing and the suppressed sobs of Eunuch Gao could be heard.

"System..." he called out in his heart, his voice carrying the last glimmer of hope, "Is there really... absolutely no way? Aren't you the 'Tyrant's Self-Saving System'? Think of something! Fight against him! Stop him!"

[...] The system remained silent for a moment, then its electronic voice unusually carried a hint of near-helplessness. [Host, the core function of this system is to assist you in changing your destiny through your own efforts. However, the target, Yan Linye, possesses the great fortune of this plane and is the 'Chosen One.' His crucial choices and actions are strongly protected by the world's rules. With the current permissions and energy level of this system, it is impossible to directly confront or forcibly reverse this.]

Unable to resist... the Chosen One...

These words were like poisoned needles, piercing deeply into Yun Zhan's heart.

He recalled his days in Hejian Prefecture, and those memories he had deliberately buried came flooding back with unparalleled clarity.

He remembered Yan Linye holding him and whispering in his ear with such earnestness and a heart-stirring tone:

"Yun Zhan, I am not doing this for my own selfish desires... What I want is for all the people of this world to have food to eat and clothes to wear!"

"To end this chaotic world, so that more people can live and work in peace and contentment like the people of Hejian Prefecture!"

He was deeply moved when he heard this, feeling that this man had the world in his heart and was worthy of being entrusted with important tasks. He even fantasized about how wonderful it would be if he were not Chu Yin, and if there were no blood feud between them.

But what about now?

Has Yun Zhan not done anything for the people of the world?

He eliminated corrupt officials, worked hard to promote new farming tools and improved seeds that could feed the people, tried every means to lower the price of salt, and even risked being labeled a "discarded pawn" to deal with various natural and man-made disasters... Wasn't all he did just so that the people of the world could live and work in peace and contentment?!

He doesn't need Yan Linye to "end the chaos," he's doing it himself! And given a little more time, he believes he can do even better!

But what about Yan Linye?

He wouldn't even give him this little bit of time!

He couldn't even wait to see what the world under his rule would become before he hastily raised the banner of rebellion!

What is it for the sake of all the people?

What makes you unable to bear the suffering of the people?

They're all excuses!

What a beautiful, high-sounding excuse!

Yan Linye, all he wants is to be emperor! All his previous affection, promises, and seemingly selfless ambitions were just a lie!

A surge of anger, a feeling of being deceived and betrayed, erupted from the depths of his heart like magma, instantly burning away all his reason and previous affection!

His heart ached as if it were being gripped and squeezed tightly by an invisible hand, the pain making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

It hurt more than when he knew he might be turned into a wine vessel! It hurt more than when he was imprisoned by Yan Linye!

Because he gave his heart, only to be met with a carefully planned deception!

"Liar... Yan Linye... You big liar!" Yun Zhan gritted his teeth, his nails digging deep into his palms, leaving several bloody crescent-shaped marks. His eyes were hot and swollen, but he stubbornly held back, refusing to let those shameful tears fall.

Eunuch Gao knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty, please take care of your health! This old servant will immediately go and summon the generals to the palace to discuss countermeasures!"

"A countermeasure?" Yun Zhan suddenly laughed, a laugh more painful than a cry. "What countermeasure? He is the chosen one of destiny, and I am a pawn abandoned by the plane. No matter how he fights, he will win, and no matter how I struggle, I will lose."

After the anger comes a deeper, more profound sense of powerlessness.

Even the system said that it cannot defy fate.

How can a "discarded pawn of another plane" fight against a "chosen one"?

All his efforts seemed to be laughable and futile in the face of the established historical tide.

Continue to resist? And then what? Let more soldiers die in vain? Let the already suffering people be ravaged by war once more?

He recalled Yan Linye's terrifying military talent and incredible luck, and his own predicament of internal and external troubles and being stretched thin.

What's the point of resistance, other than increasing casualties and delaying the process of turning one's own head into a work of art?

Since history cannot be changed... since he was destined to lose...

Yun Zhan slowly closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, all that remained in his eyes was a deathly grayness.

He faced the empty imperial study, and also the system in his mind, and with all his might, his voice hoarse yet calm, he said:

"Never mind..."

"Issue my decree... ordering the garrison troops in various regions... to retreat as appropriate if they encounter the Yan army..."

"Let's try to minimize...unnecessary casualties."

In the end, he still chose to give up.

It wasn't because he was cowardly, but because he discovered that all his struggles seemed so pale and powerless in the face of fate and the deception of "true feelings."

The eunuch stared in shock at the emperor, who seemed to have lost all his vitality in an instant. His old eyes were filled with heartache. He opened his mouth, but in the end, he said nothing. He simply kowtowed heavily and retreated with faltering steps to deliver the order.

In the imperial study, only Yun Zhan remained, facing the urgent report that felt like a death knell, amidst the cold silence that filled the room.

System Xiaoqi also fell silent.

It detected that the host's mental state had plummeted to rock bottom, and its despair level had skyrocketed. The self-rescue mission seemed to have reached its end.

Meanwhile, Yan Linye, who had been labeled a "big liar," was riding a fine horse on his way to "save" him, filled with anger and love, and eager to see the person he loved and rescue him from the "pit of fire."