4 Please
She walked to the window, looked at the morning light gradually rising in the sky, and suddenly understood her father's paranoia back then.
In the past, she always thought that her father was greedy for power and unwilling to give it to his brothers, but now she understands that behind power is a heavy responsibility.
Without power, you cannot protect the people you want to protect, nor can you defend the country you want to defend.
The reason why my father was unwilling to give up power was perhaps not because of greed, but because he knew that his brothers had their own thoughts and if he handed the country over to them, it would only cause greater unrest.
Just like this palace coup, if my father had been able to be ruthless at the time, perhaps there wouldn't be the fratricide and loss of relatives today.
"Chen Zhiyuan, do you think I want to rely on others?" Li Zhaoyi whispered to the window, with a hint of stubbornness in her voice.
"If you refuse to come, I will shoulder the responsibility myself. One day, I will show you that I can defend this land and protect the people of this world."
She wiped away her tears, walked to the desk, picked up a pen, and began to review the memorials.
Although the northern border is in danger, there are still loyal soldiers resisting. She must immediately dispatch food and supplies to support Yanmen Pass.
When the south was hit by floods, she would send officials to provide disaster relief and comfort the refugees; she would also purge the corrupt officials in the court one by one to ensure clean government.
She may be young, she may not be strong enough, but she will never give up.
At this time, the eunuchs delivered another report that the refugees in the south had gathered together to cause trouble and even attacked the local government because they were dissatisfied with the disaster relief officials' withholding of food and money.
Li Zhaoyi looked at the report and took a deep breath.
Troubles came one after another, making her almost breathless, but her eyes became more and more determined.
She picked up a pen and wrote a reply on the memorial: "Immediately dismiss the officials who withheld grain funds and investigate and punish them. Send honest and capable officials to provide disaster relief and ensure that the refugees are properly appeased."
However, she still had a glimmer of hope in her heart.
She hoped that Shen Zhiyuan would change his mind, and that the legendary upright and capable minister with the world in his heart would see her determination, reach out and accompany her through these most difficult years.
She picked up her brush and spread out another sheet of rice paper. This time, she was going to write a third edict, one that would not be returned.
She wanted Shen Zhiyuan to know that she was not a young emperor who only knew how to ask for help, but a monarch who was willing to fight for the country with all her strength.
The ink fell on the rice paper, blurring out the neat handwriting. That was her determination and her hope.
On the fifth day after the third edict was sent, there was still no news of victory from Yanmen Pass, but reports of unrest caused by refugees in the south piled up like a mountain.
Li Zhaoyi sat at the desk in the Yangxin Palace, her fingertips repeatedly stroking the words "refugees exchanging their children for food" in the report, her heart feeling as if it were being cut by a blunt knife.
The disaster relief officials she sent were still making excuses and delaying their work, and there was still no news from Shen Zhiyuan.
"Your Majesty, Grand Tutor Xu requests an audience." The eunuch's voice interrupted her thoughts.
Li Zhaoyi looked up, and the red bloodshot in her eyes made Master Xu's heart tighten.
“Your Majesty, I came here today to advise Your Majesty again. Shen Zhiyuan is a man of upright character and hates the emperor’s airs the most.
Although your three edicts are sincere, they are still separated by a layer of etiquette between the emperor and his subjects. He may not believe your sincerity."
"Then according to what the Grand Tutor said, what should I do?" Li Zhaoyi's voice was a little tired. The anxiety of the past few days made her too weak to even speak.
"Go incognito," said Grand Tutor Xu, bowing. "Go to his retreat in person and tell him of your predicament and your resolve.
Shen Zhiyuan cares deeply about the world. If she sees that you, a female emperor, are willing to lower your status and work hard for the people, she might change her mind."
An incognito visit? Li Zhaoyi was stunned. She had grown up in the imperial palace and had never set foot outside the city, let alone disguise herself as an ordinary person to visit the countryside.
But looking at the pile of reports on the desk and thinking about the people struggling in misery, she gritted her teeth and said, "Okay, I'll go."
The next morning, Li Zhaoyi changed into a green eunuch's uniform, tied her hair behind her head, covered her face with a layer of gauze, and followed Xu Taifu and two trusted guards, quietly leaving the imperial city.
The carriage bumped along the country road. The scenery outside the window gradually changed from a bustling street to a desolate field. Starving refugees could be seen everywhere on the ridges.
The ragged children chased the carriage to beg, and their cries of "Give us something to eat" pierced Li Zhaoyi's heart like needles.
"This is my kingdom." She lifted the curtain of the carriage, looked at the tragic scene in front of her, her voice choked with sobs.
In the past, she had only known the suffering of the common people in the imperial palace, but she had never witnessed such a hell on earth. It turned out that behind the words "disaster relief" she wrote, there were so many lives struggling.
Taifu Xu patted her shoulder and said softly, "Your Majesty, this is why you must ask Shen Zhiyuan to come out of seclusion. Only he can help you change all this."
The carriage traveled for a whole day until dusk when it arrived at Qingxi County where Shen Zhiyuan lived in seclusion.
The village was quiet, with only the barking of dogs and the sounds of children playing. Taifu Xu pointed to a dilapidated courtyard not far away and said, "Your Majesty, that is where Lord Shen lives."
Li Zhaoyi got off the car and looked from afar. She saw that the courtyard wall was covered with morning glories. Under the old locust tree in the yard, a man in a coarse cloth gown was sitting on a stone bench with a book in his hand, teaching several village children to read.
His hair was casually tied behind his head, with a few strands hanging in front of his forehead. The sunlight shone on his face, making it look soft and unlike the legendary "traitor" who dared to contradict the late emperor.
"Is that Shen Zhiyuan?" Li Zhaoyi asked softly, feeling a sense of inexplicable nervousness in her heart.
Grand Tutor Xu nodded and was about to step forward to report, but was stopped by Consort Li. "Wait, let me take a closer look."
She stood behind the tree, watching Shen Zhiyuan patiently explaining the words in the book to the children. A little fat boy pulled his beard playfully.
He didn't get angry, but instead smiled and scratched the fat boy's nose. At that moment, Li Zhaoyi suddenly felt that this man didn't seem as cold as she had imagined.
Only after the children had all returned home from school did Shen Zhiyuan pack up his books and turn around to go into the house. Only then did Grand Tutor Xu step forward and bow, saying, "Master Shen, how are you?"
Shen Zhiyuan turned around and saw Master Xu. A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, but he immediately regained his composure. "Master Xu? Why are you here?"
"I am here to accompany His Majesty." Grand Tutor Xu stepped aside to let Li Zhaoyi stand aside.
Li Zhaoyi took off the veil, revealing her face which was still childish but with a firm look in her eyes.
The moment Shen Zhiyuan saw her, a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes, but he did not kneel down to salute like the others. He just bowed slightly and said, "Your humble servant Shen Zhiyuan greets His Majesty."
"Master Shen, there's no need to be so polite." Li Zhaoyi walked forward, her eyes falling on his tattered clothes and patched cuffs, and she felt a little guilty.
"I came here today to personally invite Lord Shen to come out of retirement and assist me in governing the country."
Shen Zhiyuan did not respond, but turned and walked into the yard, saying lightly: "Your Majesty, please come in. The yard is simple, and I am sorry to trouble Your Majesty."
The yard was very clean, with a few green vegetables planted in the corner, and paper and pens left by the children on the stone table.
Shen Zhiyuan poured two bowls of coarse tea and placed them in front of Li Zhaoyi and Xu Taifu: "In the countryside, there is only coarse tea. Your Majesty, please don't despise it."
Li Zhaoyi picked up the tea bowl, and the warm tea slid down her throat, but it could not relieve her anxiety: "Sir Shen, I know that the late emperor deposed you, and you may have resentment in your heart.
But now the country is in crisis. The Xiongnu are wreaking havoc in the north, floods are raging in the south, and the people are displaced. I beg you, for the sake of the people of the world, to return to the capital with me and help me."
Shen Zhiyuan put down the tea bowl and looked at Li Zhaoyi's face. His eyes were so sharp that he seemed to see through her thoughts: "Your Majesty, do you know where the root of the current chaos lies?"
Li Zhaoyi was stunned. She thought Shen Zhiyuan would accuse her of being young and incompetent, but she didn't expect him to ask such a question.
"The root of the problem lies with the late emperor." Shen Zhiyuan's voice was calm but with a hint of heaviness.
"In his later years, the late emperor was obsessed with power and refused to delegate authority to his sons. He also allowed them to fight among themselves, which led to the tragedy of the palace coup.
Now that you have ascended the throne, you still use the old ministers of the previous emperor. They are either corrupt and pervert the law, or shirk their responsibilities and quibble. Even if you invite more people out, nothing will change. "
"You..." Li Zhaoyi was speechless, but an inexplicable sense of grievance welled up in her heart.
She knew she wasn't doing well enough, but she was trying her best.
"Your Majesty, do you know why the officials you sent to the south to provide disaster relief have not arrived yet?"
Shen Zhiyuan continued, "Because they withheld half of the relief funds along the way and used it to bribe their superiors. Why hasn't the reinforcements you sent to the northern border set off yet?
Because the Minister of War, Zhou Lei, wanted to seize the opportunity to demand military power and compete with Wang Chengzong for power and profit.
These words were like a hammer, hitting Li Zhaoyi's heart hard.
She always thought that although the ministers in the court had selfish motives, they would not be so indifferent to the lives of the people.
It turned out that the "kingdom" in her eyes had already been eaten away by these termites.
"Then what should I do?" Her voice trembled slightly, and for the first time, she showed her vulnerable side in front of others.
"I don't want to be a king who loses his country. I want to keep this country and let the people live a good life, but I don't know how to do it."
Shen Zhiyuan looked at her red eyes, his eyes softened for a moment, but he still did not let go: “Your Majesty, governing a country is not based on passion or the tears of an emperor.
If you are truly determined, you should first clean out the corrupt officials in the court, establish new laws, and let the people see your sincerity.
Instead of running here and asking a retired commoner to help you clean up your mess."
"I can!" Li Zhaoyi stood up suddenly, a glint of determination flashing in her eyes, "I can clean out the pests and establish new laws!
As long as Lord Shen is willing to come out and teach me how to do it, I am willing to do anything!"
Shen Zhiyuan looked at her and was silent for a long time.
The afterglow of the setting sun shone on her face. This empress, who was only fifteen years old, was wearing coarse eunuch clothes. Her face still had a childishness, but she had a tenacity that refused to admit defeat.
He remembered that when he defied the previous emperor, he also had such passion and determination, but in the end he was defeated by the coldness of imperial power.
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