Chapter 79 You are my man, the censor has no right to interfere
Being promoted to the rank of Shang Gong, commanding six bureaus... this should have been a land of unparalleled glory and power. However, Yun Zhao felt a heavy weight in her heart, without a trace of joy.
She had clearly been thinking of leaving the palace, but now Xiao Jin had personally placed her at the pinnacle of power!
The heavy burden of commanding six bureaus was so heavy that it almost made her breathless.
In Xiao Jin's harem, concubines were useless and no one had received his favor for a long time, let alone any balance of power.
To put it bluntly, her foundation is still shallow, and she has very few truly useful and trustworthy assistants under her.
Overnight, three people were in charge of the six bureaus. The old hands in the remaining three bureaus will only be more cautious in the future, and may even stick together to keep warm and secretly make things difficult for her.
After sending Xiao Jin back to Zichen Palace and watching him being escorted in by palace maids from the Shangqin Bureau, Yun Zhao seemed to have taken off a layer of invisible armor and retreated tiredly.
The night wind was bitterly cold. She sat alone on the cold white marble steps of the Purple Palace, her elbows propped up on her knees, her chin in her hand, staring blankly at the distant, swaying palace lanterns in the shadows of the deep palace. The cold wind seeped into her collar, but she was oblivious.
Suddenly, my shoulders felt warm, and a heavy cloak with body temperature fell down.
Yun Zhao was startled and turned around suddenly.
What caught my eyes were Xiao Jin's bottomless eyes.
He stood behind her, watching her for who knows how long.
"Your Majesty?!" Yun Zhao hurriedly stood up and saluted, "You...why haven't you gone to bed yet?"
Xiao Jin did not answer. Instead, he lifted the corner of his robe and sat down on the steps beside her. His action was somewhat casual, but it made Yun Zhao's heart skip a beat.
"Aren't you asleep either?" His voice was low, and especially clear in the silent night.
Yun Zhao lowered his eyes, a hint of self-mockery curling up the corners of his lips: "Your Majesty...was promoted, and I was so excited that I couldn't sleep."
"Oh?" Xiao Jin glanced at her sideways, his eyes so sharp that they seemed to penetrate her disguise. "Really? I didn't see you happy at all. Is it because this burden is too heavy and you can't smile?"
"That's right! I wish I could just throw all six bureaus at my feet! Thousands of palace servants, all with different mindsets, would be a hundred times harder than managing just one Imperial Food Bureau! Just one Imperial Food Bureau is enough to exhaust me..."
Complaints surged deep within Yun Zhao, yet he forced a calm demeanor. "Your Majesty is very perceptive. The burden... is indeed heavy."
She paused, mustered her courage, raised her eyes to meet his, and said in a voice with a hint of subtle temptation and determination, "Your Majesty... I have an unwelcome request."
"Tell me about it." Xiao Jin's tone did not reveal his joy or anger.
"Your Majesty," Yun Zhao's voice was particularly clear in the cold wind, "I am nineteen years old this year. According to palace regulations, female officials can leave the palace upon reaching the age of twenty without special permission. I dare to ask Your Majesty to allow me to leave the palace in one year. In the remaining year, I will do my utmost to train and recommend outstanding female officials who are qualified for the position of Shang Gong! I sincerely hope that Your Majesty will grant my request!"
The casualness on Xiao Jin's face froze instantly, and his eyes suddenly turned cold, like a sharp blade tempered with ice!
He never expected that the immense power he gave her would be exchanged for her impatient escape plan!
"Heh..." A cold sneer escaped his throat. "I've doted on you too much, haven't I? I've promoted you exceptionally and handed the power of the six palaces into your hands, and all you're thinking about is how to escape from me?"
He leaned forward, his imposing aura nearly suffocating Yun Zhao. "What? Am I a vicious beast that you should avoid?!"
Yun Zhao's heart sank, and regret instantly overwhelmed her: [Oh no! I was so hasty! Why did I even talk about this tonight?! I've really lost my mind!]
She immediately lowered her head, suppressing all true emotions and adopting a respectful and submissive attitude: "Your Majesty, please calm down! I...I was just speaking nonsense for a moment. If Your Majesty disapproves, then forget it! I will be loyal and fulfill my duties to help Your Majesty and relieve the harem's difficulties! Thank you for your promotion today. Tomorrow, I will inform my family of this good news!"
The brief moment of naturalness and relaxation on the steps just now disappeared in an instant, leaving only the cold distance between the monarch and his subject.
Xiao Jin looked at the mask she had put on in an instant, his Adam's apple rolled, and he wanted to say something, but in the end it turned into a suppressed silence.
Yun Zhao bowed again, her tone distant: "Your Majesty, your health is the most important thing. I will take my leave." Without waiting for Xiao Jin's response, she had swiftly taken off the cloak that still carried his body temperature and stuffed it into the hands of the eunuch standing beside her. She turned around and walked away quickly along the palace road, her back resolute.
Xiao Jin watched her disappear into the darkness, a nameless anger mixed with inexplicable depression clogging his chest. He couldn't help but yell at the air, "You run faster than a rabbit! Aren't you afraid of spraining your ankle?"
Before he finished speaking——
“Ouch—!”
A suppressed cry of pain came from the darkness not far away! Then Yun Zhao cursed angrily: "Who the hell is this? Why put a square stone like this on the road for no reason?! It's really..." The rest of the words were muffled by the sound of painful inhalation.
[This year is not going well! Even drinking water makes my teeth ache! Today is such a bad day!]
Yun Zhao gasped in pain and sat on the ground rubbing his ankle.
Xiao Jin's face changed, and he rushed out like lightning, even faster than the reaction of the Yulin Guards on duty!
He rushed to Yun Zhao in a few steps, his tall figure looming over her, looking down at the woman who was sitting on the ground in a mess.
"Sprained your ankle?" His voice was emotionless, but there was a barely perceptible trace of anxiety deep in his eyes.
Yun Zhao bit his lip, endured the pain, and raised his head, admitting unhappily, "Your Majesty is a god. I did sprain my ankle."
Xiao Jin squatted down and moved closer. His tone was a bit cold, yet it seemed to carry a lot of meaning: "I am the Son of Heaven, and my words are my law. You shouldn't have disobeyed my will just now. See, retribution has come, right?"
[Shut up! If you can't speak, don't speak! I'm in so much pain, and you're still making sarcastic remarks! The imperial family is truly the most heartless!]
Yun Zhao was so angry that he turned his face away and was too lazy to argue with him anymore.
Xiao Jin looked at her eyes that were slightly red from the pain and her lips that were stubbornly pursed, and the depression in his heart inexplicably dissipated a little.
He stretched out his hand and helped her up without any explanation. Then, amid Yun Zhao's exclamation, he exerted force with his arms and actually lifted her up sideways!
“You…!” Yun Zhao froze in an instant, his cheeks flushing uncontrollably.
"Let's go to Zichen Palace first." Xiao Jin held her in his arms and walked back with steady steps, his tone full of command that left no room for doubt. "Yanying Palace is too far. I don't have the strength to carry you that far!"
What do you mean?! You think I'm too heavy?!
Yun Zhao was both embarrassed and annoyed, and struggled, "Your Majesty! Let me down! I can walk on my own!"
Xiao Jin tightened his arms, holding her more firmly. He glanced down at her, a faint smile on his lips, but his voice was serious: "You are my personal concubine. Tomorrow, many matters of the Sixth Bureau are waiting for you to preside over. If your foot injury gets worse and you delay important matters, who will be held responsible?"
[Xiao Jin is crazy! He definitely did this on purpose!] Yun Zhao felt his heartbeat uncontrollably fast, and could only lean stiffly against his solid chest, his nose filled with his own refreshing scent, mixed with a hint of ambergris.
"Fortunately... it's late at night and there's no one around..." She tried to regain some composure, but her voice trembled. "Otherwise, I'm afraid I'd be overwhelmed by the censor's impeachment memorials tomorrow..."
From above came Xiao Jin's low, yet heroic, response, remarkably clear in the silent palace corridor, almost like a declaration: "You belong to me. The Censor—it's none of your business!"
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