???
Didn’t push open.
Pushed again.
Still didn’t open.
“Steward, Lang Jun has locked himself in.”
Inside the room
Xiao Yaozu lay pale-faced on the bed, completely ignoring the voices calling for her to come out.
Go ahead and burn the house down if you dare.
[Host, are you alright?]
[Not dead yet, just that this body is too weak.]
Mainly because the original owner’s emotional fluctuations became intense and irritable whenever she returned to this household.
She knew it wasn’t just due to the original owner’s resentment, but also because of the Gu insect…
“Steward, Lang Jun still won’t open the door. Should we start a fire?”
Steward Wu kicked the servant to the ground, angrily scolding: “Brainless fool.”
Steward Wu glared fiercely at the door before turning to report to Master Xiao.
When Master Xiao heard that Xiao Yaozu had locked herself in, he flew into a rage and immediately ordered people to guard the door.
He didn’t believe she wouldn’t come out eventually…
Madam Xiao came by once during this time.
Seeing the door tightly shut.
“Yaozu, open the door. It’s your mother.”
However, the room remained completely silent with no response.
Seeing this, Madam Xiao couldn’t help but feel somewhat annoyed.
Was she really refusing to even give her own mother face? Xiao Yaozu truly couldn’t shake off her vulgar commoner habits.
The more Madam Xiao thought about it, the angrier she became, her tone barely containing her uncontrollable disgust:
“Just apologize to your father, then go kneel in the ancestral hall all night until your father’s anger subsides.”
Xiao Yaozu paid no attention.
If it were the former Xiao Yaozu, she might have bowed her head obediently and gone to kneel in the ancestral hall because of her mother’s illusory maternal love.
But the current her was no longer that same Xiao Yaozu.
She was now Niohuru Yaozu – no one could make her bow easily.
Madam Xiao was also quite peculiar – she never dared to speak harshly to Master Xiao, always naturally shifting the blame to Xiao Yaozu whenever conflicts arose.
She stubbornly believed that as long as Xiao Yaozu compromised and admitted her mistakes, this household could maintain its peace.
Imperial Study
The Eighth Prince ordered several large chests to be opened.
The Emperor looked at the gold bricks that couldn’t even fit in several large chests, angrily slapping the desk.
“How audacious! To dare embezzle right under my nose! Those stationed far away must be running completely wild!!”
Eighth Prince: “Your Majesty, please calm down. Don’t harm your health. Xiao Yaozu mentioned Your Majesty’s health seems unwell – have you consulted the imperial physicians?”
The Emperor remembered nearly losing his life due to bedroom affairs and awkwardly concealed his emotions: “The imperial physicians have examined me. I’m not going to die.”
Emperor: “You heard about that too?”
The Eighth Prince softly acknowledged.
“Did he show any unusual behavior during the investigation? Didn’t secretly pocket a brick or two?” The Emperor’s tone carried a hint of teasing.
This Xiao Yaozu was probably afraid he would die without paying her salary, watching all those gold bricks being confiscated must have broken her heart.
The Eighth Prince recalled Xiao Yaozu’s amusing inner thoughts and said impartially:
“We owe the successful discovery of these embezzled gold bricks entirely to Xiao Yaozu. Although he’s somewhat unconventional, he was quite diligent during the investigation.”
The Emperor stroked his chin thoughtfully: “The Prime Minister also said he’s usable. If we can properly utilize the System he possesses, he could be a great asset to the court.”
The Next Day
Before dawn, she was awakened by the System’s alarm.
[Damn it, I was already going crazy with 996 before. Now it feels like I just lie down and have to get up for work.]
[Host, don’t be unhappy. There are people waiting for you outside.]
Xiao Yaozu raised an eyebrow.
After hurriedly getting ready, she pushed open the door.
Steward Wu, with a fierce look in his eyes, immediately had people stop Xiao Yaozu and surround her.
“Lang Jun, my apologies, but the master has ordered us to keep you confined.”
[System, look at the old man you accused me of mistreating yesterday. Now look at his smug face today.]
[Host, I was wrong. Doesn’t the saying go ‘to forgive is divine’?]
[That’s meant for dealing with honest people – invented precisely to make decent folks swallow their grievances silently.]
The System didn’t understand, so it just recorded the Host’s words in its notebook.
Xiao Yaozu pretended not to hear Steward Wu’s words and strode directly toward the main gate, his gaze sweeping over the servants blocking his path.
Under the eldest young master’s glare, the servants felt their legs go weak.
This eldest young master had just beaten up the third young master yesterday. If they tried to stop him, they’d undoubtedly receive a beating too.
Sure enough.
Thump thump~~
With swift, precise, and ruthless kicks to the two servants’ groins, the surrounding people retreated in fright.
After dealing with those two, he couldn’t possibly beat all the others.
When outnumbered, one must strike where least expected.
Seeing everyone thoroughly intimidated, Xiao Yaozu lifted his foot to leave but was blocked by another person.
A slap came swinging toward him.
Xiao Yaozu shrank back, barely dodging the blow.
“You unfilial son!!”
Seeing Xiao Yaozu still evading him, Master Xiao felt his blood pressure rising again.
“Unfilial son? That’s not me, don’t talk nonsense. I’m the one who’ll be tending your funeral and breaking the burial pottery.”
“You… you…” Cursing your own father to die? This is outright rebellion!
Xiao Yaozu clasped his hands behind his back, feigning profundity: “My dear father, do you still have time to deepen our bond here? Do you realize disaster is looming?”
“What do you mean?” Master Xiao looked suspicious. What new scheme was this unfilial son plotting now?
Xiao Yaozu stepped closer: “Your precious son is getting quite intimate with the Third Prince. There isn’t a talented scholar or beauty in the Drunk Moon Tower who hasn’t witnessed it. I hear the Third Prince has been particularly ambitious lately. If he ever rebels someday, you as his father…”
As Xiao Yaozu spoke word by word, Master Xiao broke out in a cold sweat.
“Impossible! Ye’er would never do such things. He’s always been sensible and knew his limits since childhood.”Absolutely impossible plot rebellion.”
“You unfilial son, you must be trying to frame your younger brother again.”
“Don’t believe me? There were hundreds of eyes watching at the Drunk Moon Tower. You can ask around.” Xiao Yaozu blinked innocently.
For some reason, Master Xiao’s heart began pounding like thunder.
If this were true… then the Xiao Mansion would face execution of the entire family…
Thoroughly frightened, Master Xiao had no time to deal with Xiao Yaozu and hurried off to question Xiao Yaoye.
When Master Xiao arrived at Xiao Yaoye’s courtyard, he found its pavilions and towers even more magnificent than those where the legitimate eldest son Xiao Yaozu resided.
He looked sternly at Xiao Yaoye, his tone carrying some accusation.
“Ye’er, Yaozu says you’ve been associating with the Third Prince. Is this true?”
Back when the new emperor first took the throne, the conflicts among those princes had been tumultuous, especially this Third Prince, who was rumored to harbor rebellious intentions.
So when Master Xiao heard from Xiao Yaozu that Xiao Yaoye had been interacting with the Third Prince, worry welled up in his heart.
Facing his father’s questioning, Xiao Yaoye didn’t deny it:
“Father, how did you find out about this?”
“Yaozu told me.” Master Xiao said gravely, not hiding the truth from Xiao Yaoye.
Hearing this, Xiao Yaoye’s anger surged: “Father, I knew Xiao Yaozu was up to no good again!”
“He just can’t stand me being better than him, that’s why he’s spreading rumors in front of you!”
Seeing Master Xiao about to vent his anger at him, Xiao Yaoye quickly said:
“Father, my association with the Third Prince is actually for your sake, for our Xiao Family.”
“Just think, Xiao Yaozu is at most a mere Seventh Rank official—what prospects could he possibly have?”
“Relying on him, our Xiao Family will never rise above mediocrity in this lifetime! What I’m doing is also to find a way out for the Xiao Family.”
Master Xiao’s expression softened slightly upon hearing Xiao Yaoye’s words, but he still had some concerns and lowered his voice:
“But the Third Prince has a rather unsavory reputation after all. Won’t there be any danger if you get too close to him?”
“Father, your son went through great difficulty to get introduced to the Third Prince through connections. Right now, it’s just a casual acquaintance, nothing deep.”
Master Xiao’s frown deepened: “If your association with him is exposed, our entire Xiao Family will suffer!”
“Father, the Third Prince’s influence is growing steadily. If we can claim some credit after he succeeds…”
Xiao Yaoye leaned closer and continued explaining: “The Xiao Family is bound to prosper greatly in the future. Besides, nothing is settled yet—who knows who will ultimately emerge victorious.”
Master Xiao thought it over and felt Xiao Yaoye made sense, saying with relief:
“Ye’er, you’re the one who puts your father’s mind at ease. With you considering the Xiao Family’s future, this family will have to rely on you.”
Xiao Yaoye’s eyes gleamed with ambition: “Don’t worry, Father. Your son will bring you glory and honor in the future.”
He wanted Master Xiao and those clan elders to see clearly that he, Xiao Yaoye, was the most promising member of the Xiao Family!