The glazed tiles of the Qianqing Palace gleamed golden in the autumn sun. The emperor reclined on his dragon throne, listening to his personal eunuch, Little Li, reading the tabloids. As the lines "The chamber pot has a big belly and a small mouth, and the aunt's abacus is too sharp" drifted from the eunuch's shrill voice, the emperor suddenly clapped his hands on the throne's armrests and burst into laughter, shaking the screen behind the throne.
"This girl is quite courageous!" The emperor pointed at the three characters "Chen Weiwan" on the newspaper, his beard curling with laughter. "She's much better than those Hanlin scholars who only know how to show off their knowledge! Little Li, recite that 'abacus poem' again!"
Little Li shuddered with fear and quickly turned to the page: "A small abacus with eight strings, aunt's fingertips twirled happily..."
"Brilliant! Truly brilliant!" the emperor laughed, his body throbbing with laughter. "It perfectly captures the calculating nature of that old, scheming woman, Liu!" He suddenly sat up straight and said to the Seventh Prince, Xiao Yu, who was standing beside him, "Xiao Yu, you're familiar with this girl. Bring her to the palace when you have time—don't ask her to compose serious poetry, just tell her some folk jokes. I find them more interesting than reading memorials!"
The corners of Xiao Yu's mouth twitched, thinking of Shen Weiwan's belly full of "silly poems", and nodded: "Your son obeys your order." He knew in his heart that his father was probably bewitched by the girl's crooked poems.
When the news reached the General's Mansion, Shen Weiwan was teaching Chuntao a new jingle. "Miss, someone's coming from the palace!" Chuntao ran in breathlessly. "His Highness the Seventh Prince wants you to get ready. He's going to the palace tomorrow!"
Chen Weiwan paused while chewing on the osmanthus cake: "Enter the palace? What does the emperor want me to do?" Her heart skipped a beat. Could it be that Liu was making false accusations to the emperor again?
"Eunuch Li said the Emperor wants to hear your jokes!" Chun Tao's eyes sparkled. "He also said your 'chamber pot poem' made the Emperor laugh!"
Shen Weiwan nearly choked on her cake. The Emperor actually liked her crooked poetry? This was truly a case of the sun rising from the west.
The next morning, Shen Weiwan followed Xiao Yu into the palace. When passing by the Imperial Garden, she ran into Liu Shi and Shen Ruorou coming out of Changchun Palace. Seeing Shen Weiwan, Liu Shi squinted her eyes and said, "Oh, isn't this Miss Shen who can write 'wonderful poems'? How come you have time to come to the palace?"
Shen Weiwan blinked and deliberately raised her voice: "Aunt, don't you know? The emperor summoned me to recite poetry! I'm reciting the poem 'Aunt's Abacus'. The emperor said it's much more interesting than the poem copied by your sister Ruorou!"
Shen Ruorou's face turned pale, and Liu was so angry that she dug her nails into her palms: "You... The emperor is busy with all kinds of affairs, how could he listen to your vulgar words!"
"Oh?" Chen Weiwan tilted her head. "Maybe the emperor wants to hear the truth? Unlike some people, who will only tell lies like 'the laurels fall in the moon'."
Xiao Yu coughed lightly and interrupted, "Madam Liu, Miss Chen came to the palace on the emperor's orders. Can you bear the delay?"
Liu choked and watched Shen Weiwan walk away with Xiao Yu, shaking with anger. Shen Ruorou whispered: "Mother, how about we..."
"Shut up!" Liu glared at her fiercely, "Go! Find your uncle, Minister Liu, and tell him that Chen Weiwan is trying to deceive the emperor and tell him to find a solution!"
In the Palace of Heavenly Purity, the emperor really did not ask Shen Weiwan to compose a serious poem, but instead asked her to sit on the soft couch in the side hall and chat as if they were talking about family matters.
"I heard you were selling poems on the street?" The emperor sipped his tea and looked at her with a smile.
"Your Majesty," Shen Weiwan bowed, "It's just some pocket money, it's nothing compared to the wealth in the palace."
"Hahaha!" the emperor laughed. "I think your poems are worth more than gold! Read me another fresh one, and tell me about... about how I reviewed the memorial yesterday!"
Shen Weiwan's mind raced, and she spoke without hesitation: "The Emperor sits on the dragon throne, the red brush in his hand. Memorials pile up like a mountain, his eyes narrowed. Suddenly he sees something interesting, and his beard stands up with joy!"
The emperor nearly knocked over his teacup with laughter. "Excellent! A wonderful 'beard sticking up three feet'! Much more interesting than the 'sacred heart delighted' written by the imperial scholars!"
At this moment, Minister Liu hurried into the hall and said with a bow, "Your Majesty, I have something to report!" He glanced at Shen Weiwan and said, "I heard that Miss Shen was spreading vulgar words among the people. I am afraid that it has polluted your ears. I hope Your Majesty will understand!"
Shen Weiwan sneered in her heart, but pretended to be afraid on the surface: "Why did Lord Liu say that? I just wrote the people's inner thoughts into poetry. For example, the line 'Lord Liu's official hat is crooked, and he judges cases with black and white'..."
"You're talking nonsense!" Minister Liu's face changed drastically.
"Oh?" The emperor raised an eyebrow. "Lord Shen, you still have this poem? Read it to me."
Shen Weiwan secretly glanced at Xiao Yu, and seeing the smile on his face, she boldly said: "Master Liu, your official hat is crooked, and you accepted bribes and distorted the case. The plaintiff became the defendant, and black and white were completely reversed. The people shook their heads when they saw it, and they all said that this official should be dismissed!"
The hall instantly fell silent. Minister Liu was so angry that he was shaking all over, pointing at Shen Weiwan and unable to speak. The emperor stroked his beard, thinking: "Hmm... This poem is quite interesting. Liu Aiqing, what do you think?"
Minister Liu was so frightened that he quickly knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please understand! This is slander! It is a lie to confuse the people!"
"Whether it's slander or not, we'll know after we investigate," the emperor said calmly. "Little Li, pass on my decree. I order the Censorate to thoroughly investigate Minister Liu's recent case records."
Minister Liu collapsed to the ground, his face ashen. Shen Weiwan secretly winked at Xiao Yu, and the two smiled knowingly.
Coming out of the Palace of Heavenly Purity, Xiao Yu looked at Shen Weiwan: "You are getting bolder and bolder. You even dare to confront Minister Liu."
"Who asked him to be scolded!" Shen Weiwan shrugged, "By the way, Your Highness, why did the emperor look at me so strangely just now?"
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
