Chu Xunsheng stood composedly in the imperial court.
He had been in this world for two months already. As a useless royal relative, his daily routine consisted of waking up early for morning court, offering one or two harmless suggestions, and then returning to his estate to dote on his beauty.
Chu Xunsheng felt that his image as a tyrannical, power-abusing corrupt official was shaped to absolute perfection. This was evident from the fact that no court official had spoken to him in the two months since his arrival.
Clearly, among the civil officials, various banquets and poetry gatherings were constantly held, yet not a single person had invited him! How hateful!
Fortunately, this was also a manifestation of his role-playing proficiency. He firmly believed that this mission would never fail.
Chu Xunsheng flicked his red official robes, raised a hand to cover his face, and let out a drowsy yawn.
Up on the elevated dais, the emperor’s somewhat deep voice paused for a moment, immediately followed by the chief eunuch’s shrill proclamation: dismissed from court!
With a profound sense of relief, Chu Xunsheng wove through the clusters of civil and military officials to make his exit.
The imperial court of the Northern Dynasty seemed to have a clique culture. The civil officials looked down on the muscle-bound military officials, while the military officials despised the bookish civil officials. Even within the civil and military factions, distinct internal hierarchies of disdain existed.
Taking the civil officials as an example, led by grand academicians deeply versed in literature, they considered themselves refined and aloof, always fond of composing poetry, drinking wine, and making merry. Poetry gatherings and banquets emerged endlessly, though they were indeed genuinely talented scholars whose well-written essays were matched by innovative and effective policy measures.
Beneath them were the minor civil officials who drafted documents and paperwork, looked down upon by the upper-tier scholars.
As for himself, being the younger brother of the Prince Consort’s imperial concubine, a brainless, uncultured, and nameless triple-zero corrupt official who relied on royal connections to secure a post, destined to bully the weak and abuse his power, he naturally sat at the absolute bottom of the disdain chain, scorned by everyone.
During his two months in this world, whenever he spoke or offered an opinion, several civil officials would immediately shut up and cease talking, displaying their contempt and disdain to the fullest. Even the poetry gatherings yearned for by the little maidservants daily had never yielded a single invitation for him.
Fortunately, the plot was progressing smoothly, so being ignored was fine by him.
Chu Xunsheng flicked his sleeves and walked straight past the clusters of officials without looking sideways. He portrayed the petty, domineering demeanor of a powerful royal relative to absolute perfection.
“Lord Chu—”
Huh? Someone is actually talking to me?
Chu Xunsheng turned around, casting a calm glance at the person who had spoken. It was a mid-ranking civil official, comfortably situated in the middle tier of the disdain chain.
The official rubbed his hands together nervously, smiling as he drew an invitation card from his sleeve, “I wonder if this junior official might have the honor of inviting Lord Chu to attend a gathering next month?”
He looked rather nervous, using his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
Chu Xunsheng thoughtfully accepted the invitation. Mid-ranking civil officials rarely had the wealth to host banquets independently; this was likely a scion from a prominent noble family undergoing training.
Did he not know what a universally shunned, rotten official he was?
Chu Xunsheng scanned his surroundings, noticing that everyone was intentionally or unintentionally glancing his way, instantly snapping their gazes back the moment they met his eyes.
Combining this with the young official’s nervous demeanor, there was only one truth! He undoubtedly wanted to lure him over to humiliate him and make him the butt of a joke!
How terrifying!
Such a humiliating ordeal, Chu Xunsheng must definitely attend!
In the plot, Chu Xunsheng, as Prince Jing’s maternal uncle, not only bullied the common people and committed every conceivable misdeed, but also firmly believed he possessed peerless talent and desperately wanted to integrate into the circle of civil officials. Since someone invited him to such a gathering, naturally he had to go.
Chu Xunsheng extended a hand to take the invitation and gave it a casual inspection. It featured an exquisite design with gold borders and patterned base paper, showing clear effort.
“I will be there.” Chu Xunsheng spoke calmly, tucking the invitation into his sleeve.
Stepping out through the doors, he happened to hear Grand Academician Su’s bright, moon-like voice, “This gathering—”
The rest was lost, but it was undoubtedly a disapproving reprimand.
Ah, little official, I truly feel sorry for you.
Leaving the grand hall, Chu Xunsheng realized it was still quite early; today’s morning court seemed to have wrapped up somewhat ahead of schedule.
Although the current sovereign was a ruthless figure capable of stopping children from crying in the night, contrary to popular rumors of extreme cruelty and arbitrary violence, he was remarkably diligent in state affairs. Fairly speaking, he was genuinely a good emperor, and the swift, resolute policies implemented since his accession were truly effective.
It was only the folk rumors that remained unfavorable, claiming his face resembled a rakshasa and was hideously deformed, which was why he wore a mask and refused to show his true countenance.
However, from the elegant jawline and pale thin lips of the emperor, Chu Xunsheng could sense that he was far from ugly. Why he chose to wear a mask remained a mystery, though it was likely to maintain his majesty, and it was certainly effective, as most people feared this inscrutable monarch.
Yet his younger brother, Chu Xunsheng’s own nephew Prince Jing, felt not an ounce of fear toward him and even harbored rebellious intentions, dedicating long-term efforts toward that goal.
In the original plot, after Prince Jing confided his ambitions to his maternal uncle, Chu Xunsheng naturally wanted to reap the benefits of being the emperor’s relative and threw his full weight behind Prince Jing’s treasonous plot. However, being an utter fool who spent his days tyrannizing others, he blundered aggressively when it came to rebellion, tipping off the emperor early about Prince Jing’s usurpation attempt and causing the eventual failure.
He was essentially a pig-teammate whose actions consistently undermined his own side. Naturally, his ending was far from pleasant. Following the failed coup, Prince Jing received a relatively dignified end via a cup of poisoned wine sent to the western netherworld, while Chu Xunsheng was subjected to capital punishment, his unblinking head hung outside the West Market gates for three days.
Chu Xunsheng shivered slightly and asked the system, “I can log off early, right? Too much pain is a dealbreaker.”
The system hurriedly nodded, We will not let Xiao Chu suffer!
Noticing the early hour, Chu Xunsheng altered his course and headed toward a small courtyard. This courtyard felt entirely out of place in the land-is-gold capital city, resembling instead a common rural cottage with white walls, grey tiles, and tall, beautiful trees planted by the entrance.
Stepping inside, the interior mirrored a countryside yard, dotted with miscellaneous flowers, plants, and various vegetable patches growing radishes, cabbages, and the like. A lovely swing hung in the corner of the yard, piece by piece chopped, whittled, and constructed by Chu Xunsheng himself.
Rolling up his sleeves, Chu Xunsheng picked up a nearby iron hoe to loosen the soil, applied some fertilizer, pulled up a radish, and finally walked indoors.
The moment he stepped inside, the expression on his face softened instantly.
Sitting within the room was a gaunt beauty draped in white robes, long black hair cascading over his shoulders, eyes lowered in contemplation as his long eyelashes fluttered, almost plucking at Chu Xunsheng’s heartstrings.
From this angle, only his graceful jawline and pale thin lips were visible, carrying an inexplicable sense of familiarity. Yet that thought instantly vanished as Chu Xunsheng trotted forward happily, hauling his radish.
This was the beauty he, the tyrannical bully, had forcibly seized and plundered.