Chapter 15 The Dog Emperor Wants to Tire the Dogs to Death
Xiao Yan's face darkened slightly, his Adam's apple rolled, but he finally gritted his teeth and bowed: "Your Highness...I accept your order."
There was no trace of reluctance in that voice.
Yun Zhao knelt beside the table with his head lowered, observing his nose and heart, until King Jin Xiao Heng wanted to say something but stopped himself several times, and finally let out a heavy sigh and reluctantly bowed to take his leave.
All that remained in the hall was the suffocating silence and the unpredictable emperor sitting on the dragon throne.
She couldn't leave. After the King of Qin had also left, she resigned herself to picking up the pieces. She sorted the scattered memorials into neat piles, sorted the scattered books back into their proper places, and carefully picked up the fallen pages of the record book, smoothing out the wrinkles. Every movement was stiff with the stiffness of someone who had survived a catastrophe.
By the time everything was back to normal and the desk was as clean as new, two cups of tea had already passed.
It was not until the palace maid from the Imperial Food Bureau who delivered snacks quietly entered the hall that Yun Zhao was able to retreat with his legs that felt like they were filled with lead.
She pinched her aching arm and almost moved back to the narrow maid's room.
Cao Suzhu, who lives in the same room, is folding clothes.
She was another palace maid in the Shangshi Bureau who was responsible for the emperor's meals. She had a slim figure and outstanding appearance, and was quite favored by Su Ying, the manager of the Shangshi Bureau.
At this moment, her movements of folding clothes revealed a deliberately maintained elegance.
Yun Zhao was so tired that his eyelids were fighting each other. He just said hello vaguely, kicked off his shoes, pulled up the thin blanket and buried himself in it.
Cao Suzhu didn't even raise her eyelids, as indifferent as if there wasn't another person in the room. Just as Yun Zhao's consciousness was about to sink into darkness, a few very light but clear knocks were heard - knock, knock, knock, knock on the window frame.
Just as a hint of curiosity arose in Yun Zhao's confused thoughts, she saw Cao Suzhu quickly glance at her. After confirming that she was "asleep", she quickly stood up, pushed the door open and slipped out quietly.
Too tired... Yun Zhao didn't even have the energy to explore. The faint doubt was instantly drowned by heavy fatigue.
She didn't know how long she had slept when she was suddenly awakened by a commotion outside the house: "Hurry, hurry, hurry! Hasn't the Zhaixing Tower been cleaned up yet? The imperial concubine's phoenix carriage has already entered the palace!"
"Oh my God! I'm a concubine as soon as I enter the palace! This is the first time since the founding of the dynasty that I've been granted such a privilege!"
"What do you know! Miss Su and His Majesty have been childhood sweethearts. Isn't this honor her due?"
"I wonder which lucky person will be chosen to serve..."
Su Mingli! Entering the palace!
Yun Zhao sat up abruptly, her heart beating erratically in her exhausted frame. Her mouth was dry, and she fumbled for a cup of cold, remnant tea. The cool liquid slid down her throat, barely suppressing the inexplicable restlessness.
Her stomach was empty, so she decided to go find something to eat.
As soon as she stepped into the familiar tea room, Wu Lingyu's cold gaze fixed on her. "Pack your things," Wu Lingyu said bluntly, his voice calm. "You've been transferred to the Shanggong Bureau, effective immediately, as the secretary."
Yun Zhao was stunned, thinking he had misheard. "I've only been in the palace for five days. How could the Shanggong Bureau be short-staffed? How could the tea-serving maid be transferred to be the secretary?"
Wu Lingyu scoffed and snatched the empty teacup from Yun Zhao's hand, as if it were something dirty. "Your Majesty's order! He said the tea you've been serving these days is unpalatable, and only the handwriting is barely acceptable."
She slammed the teacup down on the table, causing the tea to spill. "What? Are you not convinced? Why don't you go ask His Majesty yourself?"
Yun Zhao was so overwhelmed by the sudden humiliation and transfer order that his blood boiled and a feeling of depression filled his chest.
She forced herself not to lose her temper and turned to walk out of the tea room.
With nowhere to go and nowhere to complain, she walked aimlessly to the steps of a secluded corridor and sat down dejectedly.
The afterglow of the setting sun lengthened her shadow, making her look particularly lonely. She held her chin in her hand, gazing at the eaves of the distant palace wall, her heart filled with confusion.
"That bastard emperor... he's determined to use me, the Yun family, as a pawn. Escape? How easy is that!" She tugged at the hem of her skirt in frustration. "Five days after serving tea, I'm being dragged to the Imperial Court to be the secretary? The fifth-rank official in the Shanggong Bureau is the Empress Dowager's confidant! This isn't a transfer; it's clearly putting me on the spot! There's the covetous Prince Qin in front of me, the imperial concubine about to take over Zhaixing Tower behind me, and now I've offended the Shanggong Bureau..."
The more she thought about it, the more dangerous the road ahead seemed. A chill spread from the bottom of her heart, almost covering up her physical fatigue.
"My dear! My dear little aunt! Why are you hiding here? It's hard for me to find you!" A sharp and anxious voice suddenly rang out. Xiao Guizi appeared at the bottom of the stairs, panting, with his whisk flying. "Quick! Come with me! His Majesty has summoned you, it's urgent!"
As Yun Zhao stepped into the imperial study, a cold rebuke struck him on the head:
"Which rat hole have you been hiding in? You've made me wait! How many heads do you have left to waste time with?!"
Her legs went limp, and she knelt on the cushion in front of the imperial desk. She spoke in a weak, tinny voice, "Your Majesty...I'm lost."
"Lost?" Xiao Jin raised his eyes from behind the pile of memorials, his sharp gaze seeming to penetrate people's hearts. "Miss Yun, who has been struggling in the Imperial College since she was young and can walk three blocks with her eyes closed, is lost after entering my palace? Yun Zhao, stop showing off these cheap tricks in front of me!"
Yun Zhao looked at her nose and her heart, looking like a quail who had accepted his fate: "Okay, I understand." Her tone was as flat as a glass of water.
Um? !
Xiao Jin tilted his head imperceptibly, holding his breath and concentrating—strange! Where were the crackling, sparking, and lightning-like complaints in his heart in the past?
Why is there such silence? Has this girl changed her ways today? Or is she… holding back on a bigger trick?
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously, and his tone slowed down a bit, with a hint of tentativeness: "What? Who made you angry?"
"No one bullies me!" Yun Zhao answered quickly, lowering his head even lower.
Xiao Jin snorted coldly, picked up the slightly cold teacup on the table and took a sip. His brows immediately knitted into knots: "Where's the tea? Why don't you serve tea?!"
Yun Zhao looked up blankly, her eyes innocent: "Your Majesty...wasn't this servant transferred to the Shang Palace Bureau to be the secretary?"
Isn’t serving tea the job of the Shangshi Bureau?
"Secretary?" Xiao Jin put down his teacup, leaned forward slightly, and with an almost malicious smile on his lips, he declared clearly, word for word, "Listen to me carefully—from today onwards, serving tea, keeping secrets, managing clothes, and taking care of my bedchamber—all my personal affairs will be under your care! If you slack off even a little bit," he tapped the table with his fingertips, making a soft thud that felt like it was knocking on Yun Zhao's heart, "you will have ten taels of military pay deducted from your brother, General Yun Hui! Do you understand?"
【a bolt from the blue! ! ! 】
Yun Zhao felt a black screen before his eyes and almost fainted on the spot.
[You bastard emperor! You're trying to treat me like an ox or a horse, working me to death! Can't you just kill me with one cut? Why do you have to use a blunt knife to cut the flesh? Serve tea, manage books, manage clothes, manage the bedrooms...why not just let me be in charge of the palace! Wouldn't it be easier if I could command the entire harem?!]
The volcano in my heart is erupting, but I have to pretend to be calm on the surface.
She took a deep breath, trying to make a final struggle, her voice trembling, "Your Majesty... I am overwhelmed and unable to serve you properly... Please reconsider!"
Xiao Jin raised an eyebrow, leaning lazily back on the dragon throne, his eyes playfully pondering, "Oh? Yun Zhao, from what you're saying... do you feel that serving me has wronged you? Has it humiliated you?"
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