The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 206: Your Majesty, indeed, it was all done by your servant.

The carriage left the Divine Dragon Temple, moving against the stream of people, and returned to the Zhao family before noon.

The cook was greatly surprised and hurried to add more dishes. Fortunately, the Zhao Douan of today was different from before; even if the meals took longer to prepare, he would not lash out with beatings or scoldings.

At the dining table, the ladies of the house transformed into curious babies, asking about Zhao Douan’s experiences at the Xiuwen Pavilion.

Out of helplessness, he carefully selected some stories that he could share... Of course, it was also to satisfy the need to brag, successfully reaping adoration from both mother and daughter.

But... in the end, the most important person was still missing...

After the meal, Zhao Douan climbed onto the roof and looked towards the direction of the Imperial Palace, wondering when Your Majesty would finish her retreat.

Sadly, this time he probably wouldn’t have the chance to report in person.

Feeling melancholic.

"Sigh."

Zhao Douan lay on the gray tiles of the roof, with the cool shade of a big tree in the yard cast above him.

With a gentle breeze blowing, he contemplated the follow-up to today’s events.

"Grandmaster Dong speaking out in public means the new policies have been finalized. Next, we just wait for Your Majesty to leave her retreat and peruse them. Without surprises, they will be implemented step by step."

"As for myself, after today’s events, attacks from the scholars should diminish quite a bit... at least for the time being.

As for my contributions at the Xiuwen Pavilion, the Grandmaster was not clear, but with so many scholars, it can’t be hidden forever. Whether others believe it or not? That’s not important."

What he coveted, was never the so-called reputation.

Rather, once word of his hand in drafting the new policies spread, it will likely attract even more hostility... like from those powerful clans, corrupt officials being reformed?

Including, the level of attention the Kuangfu Society pays to him?

"Others transmigrate and end up better off. Why do I seem to have more and more enemies?" Zhao Douan lamented.

Unbeknownst to him, he fell asleep.

When he opened his eyes again, the sun had already set in the west, and the last sliver of light sank into the earth.

Suddenly, he felt that a brief rest at home was far more pleasant than participating in some tiresome festival. The only regret was not having celebrated the festival properly.

"Eldest son, eldest son..."

In the courtyard, the old steward’s calling voice could be heard.

Zhao Douan sat on the roof, looking down, and sighed:

"I’m here. There’s no need to call for a soul on the Ghost Festival like that..."

"Ah! The eldest son is here." The old steward was startled and said,

"There’s a lady at the door looking for you, she seems distinguished and imposing, probably no ordinary person."

A lady? Could it be Mo Chou?

Zhao Douan wondered, patted the dust off his buttocks, climbed down from the roof, and walked outside.

But when he reached the gate, he didn’t see his romantic rival, Mo Zhaorong. There were no carriages, no entourage.

Only a solitary, masked woman stood there.

She wore a light-blue long dress, tall and slender, with her face veiled, revealing only her narrow eyes and forehead. Her hair was simply coiled behind her head, secured with a jade hairpin.

Her attire was ordinary and inconspicuous, but her very presence exuded dignity.

"May I ask who this lady is..."

Zhao Douan cautiously started to speak. When his gaze met that of the unfamiliar woman’s eyes, he was stunned, disbelieving:

"Your Ma..."

"Quiet." The Empress, walking the mortal world in the guise of a commoner, gestured, and with him, she vanished into thin air.

...

In the Capital, on a small bridge.

As the night swallowed the city, two figures quietly appeared.

"Your servant greets Your Majesty!" Zhao Douan shamelessly bowed and bent his knees, speaking excitedly:

"Your Majesty, when did you leave your retreat?"

The Emperor of Great Yu stood on the bridge, amused:

"How did you recognize me?"

Zhao Douan, fully aware of his flatterer’s intuition, spoke with flowery words:

"Your Majesty’s grace, how could I dare forget? Even revealing only a portion of your countenance, none in the world could compare..."

"...glib-tongued." Xu Zhenguan had grown accustomed to his personality.

Strange to say, but while some flatterers were annoying to her,

Others... sounded quite pleasant in conversation.

So the Empress was also a creature of double standards.

Glib-tongued? How would you know without tasting... Zhao Douan was indignant, feeling that judgments without experimentation were utterly unscientific.

"I have just left the retreat today. I went to the Ullambana Festival earlier and just returned."

Xu Zhenguan gently leaned her delicate hands on the stone railing of the bridge. Her light-blue dress fluttered with the wind coming from the river.

A few loose strands next to her elegant ears also slightly stirred.

A beauty that could topple a nation was not merely a matter of lip service.

Even with most of her face covered, wearing the simplest of dresses, she remained an exceptionally beautiful woman.

Zhao Douan had heard in his former life that a mask was the best fashion item, easily multiplying one’s attractiveness several times over.

Because the human brain would supplement a perfect image based on the exposed half of the face.

But this principle failed on the Empress, because her complete visage was far more stunning than any mental supplement.

If he had to describe it, merely half her face was enough to send Little Zhao’s blood surging.

After a pause, she added another sentence: "The Grandmaster has told me about you."

Speaking to this point, even though she had half a day to digest it, the Emperor of Great Yu still hesitated:

"So, the Golden Three Strategies were..."

Zhao Douan shamelessly nodded: "They were my doing."

"...Why?" Xu Zhenguan slightly parted her red lips and asked the question that had long been pressing on her mind, "Why do you... know these things?"

She still clearly remembered the moment in the meditation room when Grandmaster Dong meticulously recounted how Zhao Douan left behind his manuscripts, how he was invited to give a talk, how he proposed the "Golden Three Strategies," and how he discreetly aided and refined the new policies... during that period.

The seemingly calm Xu Zhenguan’s heart had once churned with what kind of emotions.

It seemed that every so often, he would give her a big surprise, one that far exceeded her prior expectations.

Xu Zhenguan wasn’t "forgetful," so she had repeatedly raised her assessment of this Little Forbidden Army.

Even if Zhao Douan approached her at this time and said he had just toppled some Chief of Staff from the six ministries,

She thought to herself that she wouldn’t lose her composure.

But... Xiuwen Pavilion?

New policies?

Three strategies?

New novel chapters are published on freewёbn૦νeɭ.com.

Scholar?

How were these terms, completely at odds with her previous understanding, connected to him? The Empress couldn’t understand.

That shock was like suddenly discovering that a senile Grandmaster was an unrivaled fierce general, strong enough to gallop horses on his arms, cutting in and out of an army of thousands without any sense...

"I previously said that I’ve privately read many books," Zhao Douan had a prepared answer and spoke calmly.

"Is that all?"

"Additionally, I understand the mortal world’s perils and am more pragmatic than those scholars."

"Is that all?"

"... I dreamt that an old immortal..."

"...Do you believe I would charge you with the crime of deceiving the sovereign?"

"I was wrong." Zhao Douan instantly backed down, also feeling helpless—he did want to tell the truth, but alas, no one believed him.

Xu Zhenguan lightly pursed her full lips, her eyes carrying a hint of exclamation.

In the end, this kind of question would never yield an answer; it could only be explained as Zhao Douan truly having splendid plans in his belly, just unseen by others in the past.

The Empress suddenly let out a light sigh and said in a low voice:

"If one day... you suddenly compose poetry and your poems and essays overpower all the talents in the world, I wouldn’t be surprised anymore."

I haven’t even had time to copy... you’ve already stifled me... Zhao Douan’s expression stiffened.

"You can’t really be capable of composing poetry, can you?" Xu Zhenguan was just making an offhand remark, but seeing his expression, her face took on a strange look.

"Cough cough, I have a slight understanding," Zhao Douan admitted honestly.

"...Let’s hear a poem then?"

"Now? I lack inspiration," Zhao Douan said with reserve.

Tsk... Xu Zhenguan suddenly rolled her eyes, not really expecting him to compose poetry. Poetry wasn’t her concern; her concerns were always about the court, about Great Yu:

"I want to hear your thoughts on the new policies."

"Yes," Zhao Douan pondered for a moment, then said:

"The Grandmaster must have already recounted the specifics. Now that Your Majesty has returned from seclusion, it is time for the new policies to surface."

"However, it is destined to be a lengthy process, requiring both the reform of official governance and the implementation of the Examination Method, while simultaneously designating areas and creating markets to generate revenue... After resolving the most urgent problems, we can then push forward with reforms like converting corvée labor to land tax. Without several years, we won’t reach that step."

"Moreover, where to begin is also an issue. I believe that the Eight Princes span all regions and we cannot avoid them, but choosing the order is crucial knowledge.

"In the pavilion, I heard discussions about the previous dynasty’s reduction of vassal power. The Great Yu Dynasty has no Vassal Kings, and the Eight Princes are powerful but not vassals.

"However, to weaken them, the rationale is the same; we must, and can only, start with the weakest and not in reverse.

"Moreover, I believe using the market strategy to first drain the enemy’s funds dry is the best strategy; military force is always the last resort within the worst options..."

On the bridge.

The night breeze blew through.

The heat dissipated, leaving a cool and pleasant air.

Zhao Douan spoke with ease, as if he were back in his previous life, speaking at a closed-door meeting.

In fact, compared to everything he had experienced after arriving in this strange world, the topics he was discussing now were his area of expertise.

When he finally finished sharing the thoughts in his mind, he realized belatedly that the Empress had been silent for quite some time.

Zhao Douan was startled and thought to himself that he had gotten carried away. He quickly looked over to his side, then froze.

Under the veil of night, Xu Zhenguan, her face covered with a light veil, was looking at him quietly and intently, her beautiful eyes like stars.

"Your... Your Majesty?" Zhao Douan was somewhat flustered.

Xu Zhenguan suddenly said, "Do you know?"

Zhao Douan was confused for a moment: "What should I know?"

Xu Zhenguan looked at him strangely and said:

"Just now, when you were talking about these things, you seemed to be... shining."

"..."

Zhao Douan was momentarily at a loss for words and rarely appeared so dazed.

At that moment, a peddler pushed his cart across the bridge.

A child, following his elder relatives to the stall, was wearing a bunch of odd "divine" masks around his neck and ran back, turned his eyes towards Zhao Douan, and said:

"Young master! Buy a mask for your wife!"

According to Great Yu’s customs, on the night of Ghost Festival, both deities and the spirits of the deceased walk the earth.

And to avoid being taken away by ghosts and gods, the living don masks of various bizarre deities, pretending to be deities themselves to blend in and avoid being taken by spirits.

There is also a nighttime activity called "Night Parade."

Wife... The Empress paused, then realizing the misunderstanding, she was about to explain with a furrowed brow.

But she saw Zhao Douan smile and hand out a few large coins, taking one black and one white "Yaksha" mask from the child’s neck.

He passed the white Yaksha mask to the Empress and said:

"Your Majesty, when in Rome."

Xu Zhenguan looked at him with a smile that was not quite a smile: "Are you seeking death?"