Di'an Yan is not a clingy person. No matter how much an emperor likes someone, he can't stay in a gentle embrace every day.
With the disaster resolved, the ministers resumed their worries. On this day...
"Your Majesty, Consort Xiu has been married into the palace for half a year, but there has been no sign of pregnancy. Back then, the late Emperor's children were already running around everywhere."
The speaker was a historian who recorded the prosperous times of the court and kept in mind the expansion of the royal family.
Emperor Yan's eyes gleamed, but he paid no attention to the historian's words. His fingertips twirled on the dragon throne, silently radiating an aura of authority.
"Hold imperial examinations to recruit talented individuals and martial arts champions."
Everyone was stunned. Why were they going to hold the imperial examinations again? Seeing that Emperor An Yan had no room for negotiation, the ministers remained silent.
Emperor Yan began to sweep through the court, confiscating the homes of countless corrupt officials, causing widespread panic throughout the court. All the ministers became even more cautious in their actions, fearing that they would be the next to be caught in the crossfire.
Since some of the ministers whose positions were confiscated were important, Emperor Yan has now placed his close confidants in those positions, causing many people to suffer significant losses. As a result, the people have become much more stable.
Di An Yan's favor with the emperor grew stronger. Di An Yan secretly went on an incognito visit with his confidants. Naturally, Dou Shiliu found out about this and insisted that Di An Yan take her along.
Di An Yan couldn't resist her coaxing and cajoling, so he agreed and went out with them, only to find that Xu Luo Zhou was there.
It seems that Xu Luozhou is very popular with Di Anyan. This time, the group went on a secret incognito visit, mainly to see how the local officials were virtuous and how the people were doing.
The Jiangnan region is a wonderful place, with abundant corn production. Unlike the disaster-stricken areas, the people here live in peace and prosperity, a picture of a peaceful and prosperous world.
Di'an Yan sent Xu Luozhou to scout out the route first, and then the group stayed at a famous restaurant.
Dou Shiliu was dazzled by the various tricks of the street vendors; it truly was a scene of dazzling entertainment amidst the dim lights.
Di An Yan was quite satisfied with the scenery and customs of Jiangnan. He went with Xu Luo Zhou and the others to visit the local officials, who were upright and selfless. They showed great respect to Di An Yan.
Under his hospitality, Di An Yan felt that this person's temperament and character were truly rare. Dou Shiliu watched from the side as Di An Yan happily stayed in Jiangnan for a long time.
The greatest thing an emperor can do is to see the local officials who care about their people. Xu Luozhou and Di Anyan discussed something, and Dou Shiliu saw Xu Luozhou give the official something.
They then went to the next place, which was quite different from Jiangnan. Because of the frequent natural disasters, the government reported to the imperial court for help, but the imperial court never implemented any rescue measures.
After Di'an Yan asked Xu Luozhou to investigate, he learned that it turned out that the higher-ups had suppressed the announcement and had not let him hear about it.
Di'an Yan immediately arranged for people to come down and take action, and simply uprooted some of the pests, which allowed some of the small pipes that had been suppressed to see the light of day.
Di An Yan and his group stayed there for a few days. After finishing their business, they returned to the palace with Dou Shiliu. Xu Luo Zhou, on the other hand, carried out the task given to her by Di An Yan: to remove cavities, overturn wrongful convictions, and seek justice for the poor.
...
Back in the palace, Emperor An Yan had a mountain of things to do, and it took him several days and nights to finish all the tasks, big and small.
That night, Di An Yan went straight to Dou Shiliu and threw himself into her arms. Lacking his usual sharpness, Di An Yan wearily said, "Su Xiu, my head hurts."
He had actually become spoiled by Dou Shiliu's meticulous care these past few days. Di An Yan had endured all kinds of hardships, but at this moment he just wanted to be able to snuggle up in Dou Shiliu's arms and be pampered.
Dou Shiliu raised his hand and massaged Di An Yan's temples. The spiritual energy from his fingertips flowed into Di An Yan's brain like sweet spring water, which indeed made his headache feel a little better.
With a modern massage technique, Dou Shiliu lowered her eyes and asked gently, "How are you? Does your head still hurt?"
Di An Yan's eyes trembled slightly, and he gave a soft "hmm," then felt the woman continue massaging his temples.
"You can try not to take on everything yourself. The people under you are not just sitting around doing nothing."
Di An Yan chuckled, "You peeked at my memorials?" He got up from her embrace, noticing her startled expression, then stuck out his tongue playfully, "I just saw you were so busy, I wanted to help you out a bit..."
“Those may seem like trivial matters to you, but they were all carefully examined by the Internal Affairs Bureau before being presented to me.”
Some things seem small, but they can often lead to big problems.
Dou Shiliu nodded; she was rather straightforward and blunt in her actions.
White Cube: "Has the host finally admitted to being simplistic and crude?"
Emperor Yan did not say much about the affairs of the court to Dou Shiliu. His rebellion back then was entirely for revenge. As for the world, many people were still thinking about it.
Being an emperor is really not an easy job.
...
The imperial examination system was revised again and again under the supervision of Emperor Yan of Di'an. Last year's system allowed some scholars who missed the exam to regroup and continue to go to the capital for the exam.
The inns in the capital were almost full, and Emperor Yan ordered that a special courtyard be given to the examinees.
The scholars buried themselves in their studies, hoping to stand out in the imperial examinations. This time, the emperor was in charge, making the process even stricter than in previous years.
The entire capital city was filled with an atmosphere of scholarly pursuits. With so many handsome young men and ladies, it attracted the attention of young women of marriageable age who secretly admired them.
Not far away, in a secluded garden, lived a young master named He Yanyu. Dressed in white, he often accompanied some scholars on lake excursions and poetry recitations, which caught the eye of some daughters of officials.
He Yanyu had a handsome face, and no matter who he was dealing with, whether old, weak, sick, or disabled, he always maintained a gentle, warm smile. His smile could make a hundred people smile, and many young ladies secretly fell in love with him.
"Brother He, how confident are you about this year's assessment?"
He Yanyu closed her fan, her beautiful phoenix eyes curving as if they could speak. Her eyes made all the scholars present sigh in admiration; she was truly a prodigy.
"I won't make any rash judgments based on my level of certainty, but this year's questions will likely be very difficult."
He Yanyu's eyes trembled slightly. When everyone heard him say the same thing, they couldn't help but sigh. It was said that the emperor himself had set the questions for this year's exam, so the difficulty was unimaginable.
It seemed this year would be another year of failure, and many scholars were somewhat dejected.
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