That evening, a group of officials knelt in the Regent's study.
They were trembling with fear.
But the regent, as if he wasn't frightened enough, threatened them: "Such a huge disaster in Jiangnan, if you conceal it, aren't you afraid of losing your heads?"
"Your Highness, please forgive me!"
"Your Highness, please forgive me!"
"Your Highness, please forgive me!"
Only one official stood there, his neck stiff, as if it were thicker than the others and wouldn't easily fall off: "Your Highness, when we discovered this, there were already millions of disaster victims, and the streets were littered with corpses of the starved. Even if we used all the silver in the national treasury for disaster relief, we still couldn't save them!"
"So, you're just going to ignore it?" Gu Mu asked coldly.
“When next year’s harvest is better…” the official with the thicker neck stammered, “It’s always like this. Famine is related to the people’s harvest. The harvest is only so much. There will always be people who don’t have food. We can’t help them.”
The disaster has been raging for a month, so you can imagine how serious it has become.
But these officials indulged in wine, women, and food every day.
Gu Mu coldly surveyed the group of people kneeling on the ground.
This is imperial power—imposing without anger.
Except for the one with the thicker neck, none of those people dared to raise their heads.
Gu Muzheng hadn't figured out how to deal with them when he saw Princess Shen Ling walk in with lotus-like steps, like a fairy descending to earth, draped in silver moonlight, from outside.
She gave a slight curtsy and said, "Your Highness, may you enjoy boundless blessings."
Then, as if a fairy were to pity the world, she looked at those officials who concealed the truth and did not want to deal with it, and with the most innocent expression, she gently parted her lips: "Your Highness, if a person has no heart, we cannot control them."
"Since they don't deserve to be human, just kill them."
A chill crept up the official's back.
How could this princess be so ruthless?
"Alright, then let's do as my beloved consort says and kill him."
Gu Mu looked up at Shen Ling, who was smiling lightly.
Her expression was innocent and naive.
Like a child who knows nothing of the world.
Gu Mu thought he was really crazy. How could he have thought that his princess was supposed to be a kind little girl?
This is a female-oriented novel...
His queen is a major character who survives from the first episode to the last.
The reason he had those illusions before was probably because those girls all looked innocent and pure, which was too deceptive.
Otherwise, why would the old emperor only discover that the two children were not his own before he died?
Only then did he realize that the empress he deeply loved had been plotting to poison him for many years.
"My beloved consort, you may handle these people as you see fit." Gu Mu looked at his consort, who was staring at him with wide, clear eyes, and thought to himself: If the consort is allowed to handle the villainous roles, then wouldn't I be one step closer to my dream of becoming a male protagonist in a male-oriented novel?
"Your Majesty, there are too many of them. If we follow the proper procedures, it will inevitably involve various factions and may not achieve our desired outcome. In my opinion, we should go directly..."
"But His Highness said it himself, and told me to handle it."
At this moment, Shen Ling smiled, revealing two small tiger teeth.
The maid Lu Ming, who followed her in, shot out several poisoned needles from her palm.
They stabbed into the temples of those officials one by one.
Suddenly, all five officials died in the Regent's study.
? ? ?
The next day, the entire court was in turmoil.
Everyone knew that the regent summoned five officials to his study.
Then, all those officials disappeared!
As a result, the entire court was filled with unease, and the way people looked at Gu Mu changed.
Though they didn't say it aloud, they were thinking to themselves: This regent is acting too erratically; he assassinated five high-ranking officials without even distinguishing right from wrong...
How could they possibly have imagined that the person was killed by the most famous and refined princess in the capital?
Gu Mu was dumbfounded, but it was too late.
The person is already dead.
The princess ordered it to be carried to the dry well in the palace and filled in.
I originally intended to hand it over to the princess so that she could have more villainous roles.
Unexpectedly, the princess took an unconventional approach and killed the man directly in Gu Mu's study.
They wouldn't even let anyone go home for a proper meal.
That's...outrageous...
Gu Mu was thus burdened with the blame for being the villain, and besides, the person was dead, so some things were hard to explain.
Even if Gu Mu said that the five officials were executed because they were guilty, the other officials would definitely think to themselves, even if they didn't say it, that it was all because of the Regent's words.
Therefore, Gu Mu simply didn't bother to explain.
The grand plan to whitewash his image has failed miserably, and he can only rely on past achievements to make up for it.
But some things still need to be said—
"I have heard about the famine in Jiangnan."
Gu Mu sat behind the young emperor. Although it was nominally a regency, Gu Mu was actually in power.
"Famine? Is that true?"
"I have heard of famine in Jiangnan every year, but I wonder how severe it is this year?"
"Alas, famine has always been a major problem plaguing our dynasty. We can only hope for favorable weather so that the people can have a good harvest, but this is the will of Heaven, and we cannot control it!"
Instead, several officials, led by the prime minister, all knelt down and said earnestly, "Your Highness, now that we know about the famine in Jiangnan, we cannot ignore it!"
"Your Highness, every life saved is a life saved! Your subject is willing to take the lead in donating disaster relief grain!"
"Your Highness, the national treasury is empty, and we lack sufficient funds! Not only can we not save the people, but it may even threaten the stability of our dynasty!" The Minister of Revenue, who was in charge of the national treasury, spoke the truth with tears streaming down his face. It wasn't that he didn't want to help, but rather that... the dynasty lacked the capacity: "Your subject is willing to donate everything he owns, without accepting any salary, to use my money to help the people and bring peace to our dynasty!"
...
Gu Mu threw the fruit plate in his hand to the ground, the crisp sound interrupting the officials' chatter.
"Are you all implying that I cannot save him?"
The officials looked at each other in bewilderment... Wasn't this a case of no return?
The Minister of Revenue was a straightforward man: "Your Highness, the national treasury is depleted, yet we still need to reserve food for the soldiers on the frontier and recruit more soldiers. If the national treasury has no surplus funds, we will be left to wait for death if they invade!"
"At that time, it wasn't just the disaster victims who died!"
"Your Highness, please reconsider!"
"Your Highness, please reconsider!"
Many officials also knelt on the ground, urging Gu Mu to leave it alone.
"Using the money earned by ordinary people to buy their lives in exchange for your privileged lifestyle, don't you feel guilty?" Gu Mu never imagined that even if he were above ten thousand people and wielded immense power, he would still be able to do so.
Even when faced with the suffering of the people, they are so powerless.
No... it's the old emperor who's powerless.
He will do everything in his power to ensure the peace and safety of all people.
"Your Highness, we are doing this for my sake!"
"Yes, Your Highness, what if war breaks out..."
Gu Mu interrupted them: "If war breaks out, you may lose everything. Have you ever thought about how much those who are starving and about to die need food?"
"If you were them, would you still say such things?"
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