This inner monologue directly startled Changshun Gonggong so badly that he stumbled, the teacup in his hands no longer steady. The crisp sound of jade clashing echoed in the hall that appeared perfectly quiet to others, instantly drawing everyone’s attention.
Jiang Yan Chuan’s gaze was probing, while Jiang Yingcheng raised her chubby little face, her almond-shaped eyes filled with confusion.
[What’s wrong with uncle? There’s nothing on the ground to trip him.]
Thinking of the word “trip,” she suddenly remembered her previous plan to fake a fall.
After scanning the hall with her eyes, she successfully located the figure from earlier in the corner.
[Found him!]
She slipped off the couch like a loach and was about to run toward that person on her short little legs. But as she passed Jiang Yan Chuan, he grabbed her, and then her feet left the ground as she was placed beside him.
Jiang Yan Chuan radiated the warmth of a martial artist with vigorous blood circulation, along with a very pleasant fragrance.
She liked both these scents very much. After being seated, she carefully moved closer to him, completely forgetting what she had intended to do moments earlier.
[Hehehe, Chengcheng loves handsome Father Emperor the most!]
She thought her movements were very discreet and would certainly go unnoticed, unaware that this action had long been taken in by Jiang Yan Chuan. However, he calmly turned his gaze away, silently acquiescing to her behavior.
Changshun silently placed the teacup by Jiang Yan Chuan’s hand, quickly wiping the thin sweat from his temple as he turned around.
Earlier, when he suddenly heard such shocking news, he was too startled to even glance at which official the Little Princess’s inner monologue had mentioned embezzling silver.
However…
As he stood still, he secretly glanced at Jiang Yan Chuan’s expression again.
His methods were several times more brilliant than the previous emperor’s, so this minor matter probably wouldn’t trouble him.
Jiang Yan Chuan gave a light cough, drawing back all the probing gazes fixed on Jiang Yingcheng, and said slowly in a casual tone, “Today, I summoned you esteemed ministers here to hear about the progress of the matters assigned to you a few days ago.”
Gongbu Shilang was the first to bow and respond, “Your Majesty, yesterday I personally inspected the embankment of the Hucheng River. After this year’s repairs, the riverbank is already very stable. Please rest assured, Your Majesty.”
The room fell into complete silence. After speaking, Zhang Ding’an lowered his gaze to stare at a small patch of empty floor in front of him, uncertain of the Mingze Emperor’s intentions.
In the past, after listening to officials’ reports, the Mingze Emperor would always respond with either comments or questions, never letting the conversation stall here without speaking for so long.
Could he be lost in thought?
Jiang Yan Chuan remained silent but wasn’t idle.
The person Jiang Yingcheng called “Tong Ge” must have said something to her again, as Jiang Yan Chuan’s ears were filled with her continuous exclamations of amazement.
Suddenly, Jiang Yingcheng reached out with her chubby little hand and grabbed a piece of his clothing, the anxiety in her eyes nearly overflowing.
[Handsome Father Emperor, don’t believe him! This person didn’t personally inspect the Hucheng Riverbank at all yesterday. He’s lying!]
[Wuwuwu, I really want to tell Father Emperor. Tong Ge, think of something quick!]
[That stuff about Cooked Soil and Raw Soil—Tong Ge, slow down when you explain.]
[Oh oh oh, this person used Cooked Soil to repair the embankment…]
She automatically skipped over 007’s subsequent lengthy science explanation, summarizing succinctly yet emphatically: 【Danger!】
Jiang Yan Chuan’s eyes abruptly darkened.
Although the little one’s words were vague, he had already pieced together the outline of the incident from these fragmented sentences.
Zhang Ding’an, with unimaginable audacity, had actually used Cooked Soil as Raw Soil to repair the river embankment, embezzling the court’s repair funds.
This type of soil was too loose—if not discovered early, there would be risk of the embankment collapsing during the rainy spring and summer seasons.
Jiang Yan Chuan maintained a calm expression, drawing out an “Hmm” in a measured tone while mentally adding another mark against Zhang Ding’an.
He would need to investigate further to confirm whether everything in the little one’s inner thoughts was true.
Zhang Ding’an let out a long sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yingcheng was growing frantic. Her small hand still clutched the piece of fabric, shaking it back and forth rapidly as she struggled to figure out how to fully explain this matter to her handsome Father Emperor.
007 had warned that this era revered but also feared spirits—if anyone discovered her abnormality, she could be burned alive!
While mentally pressuring 007 to devise a solution, she suddenly found a shadow falling over her head. Then, Jiang Yan Chuan’s large hand descended once more to envelop her small one.
Jiang Yan Chuan’s perpetually unhurried tone finally carried a hint of helplessness: “Stop fussing.”
If one listened carefully, there was also a barely detectable note of fondness.
007 finally seized a moment of peace to advise: 【Even if the embankment collapses, it won’t happen until next year. We still have time to find a solution.】
Having her hand held again put Jiang Yingcheng in such high spirits that she readily let it go: 【Then remember to remind me before the embankment collapses next year.】
007: 【Alright, alright, alright.】
Jiang Yan Chuan: “……”
Changshun: “……”
Changshun felt his legs go weak, strongly tempted to kneel and kowtow to this little dumpling right then.
Why did he have to be the one to overhear this news?
If he suppressed this information, there was no guarantee this young ancestor wouldn’t actually get carried away and forget to inform the Mingze Emperor when the time came.
If the river breached the embankment and the city’s residents suffered, with potential loss of life, his conscience would never rest easy.
But if he went to report this to the Mingze Emperor…
How would he explain the source of this information?
Changshun felt a headache coming on.
As the remaining officials delivered their reports in turn, Jiang Yingcheng watched each speaker with wide, round eyes, her gaze shifting between curiosity, disgust, affection, and shock. Even without hearing her inner thoughts, her mental state was exceptionally easy to read.
【Wow, this person’s home was robbed yesterday, and while catching the thief he discovered his concubine having an affair?】
【He’s so pitiful—his wife confiscates all his salary, he doesn’t even have pocket money and can’t afford to buy snacks!】
【Huh? This uncle’s newborn son isn’t actually his? Well… that makes him even more pitiful.】
Changshun struggled to contain his laughter throughout, while Jiang Yan Chuan’s lips also carried a faint smile.
Until the final official finished reporting, when the previously cheerful commentary suddenly turned grave.
【How… how dare he embezzle so much silver!】
007 had just finished explaining to her how many small cakes 900,000 taels of silver could buy, and she finally had a rough idea of the magnitude of this number.
Jiang Yingcheng thought indignantly to herself: 【That many little treats—could he even finish them all?!】
Jiang Yan Chuan suddenly stood up and took two steps forward in the direction of that person.
It was Liu Zhengqing, who had just been promoted from Vice Minister of Personnel to Libu Shangshu.