Fang Jinxian listened quietly to the end. The corners of his lips curved slightly upward, while the appreciation in his eyes was concealed when he lowered his gaze.
“Very good. Recently, I have been supporting the Lin Family. The Yu Clan has been too cautious and has yet to reveal any weaknesses. I could only release a few bait fish. Judging by the situation, they should take the bait within a couple of days.”
Yu Qijian’s eyes curved into crescents as she smiled brightly.
“Great minds think alike!”
At last, Fang Jinxian looked at her.
“And you? How do you plan to pull yourself together?”
Yu Qijian thought for a moment.
“If I govern from behind the curtain, will you make me work?”
“Yes.”
“…….”
Silence lingered in the air for a moment.
Yu Qijian was thinking of a solution.
Fang Jinxian, however, was questioning himself.
A puppet Empress Dowager was ideal.
Allowing her to govern from behind the curtain was already an act of relinquishing authority. He had never done something so dangerous.
Was she truly trustworthy?
Was she really not aligned with the Yu Clan?
Could she actually be pretending to be harmless while secretly concealing greater ambitions?
The moment those questions surfaced, he inexplicably recalled that day in the Imperial Secretariat—the tears hidden within those clear eyes, tears that stubbornly refused to fall.
He had seen Yu Qijian effortlessly summon tears in front of others.
Yet it was her unwillingness to reveal genuine vulnerability that had clouded his judgment.
The realization left him somewhat irritated.
Fang Jinxian rose listlessly to his feet.
“Then that’s settled. I’m leaving.”
“What do you mean, that’s settled? I don’t want to work!”
Her voice echoed through the vast and empty Northern Garden.
Fang Jinxian let out a helpless chuckle.
Without turning around, he gradually disappeared into the distance.
That very afternoon, determined to make him retract his decision, Yu Qijian deliberately went to the small kitchen and personally brewed a fragrant milk tea.
She sent it to the Imperial Secretariat along with a note:
Please, please, I don’t want to work.
A crying face was drawn underneath in an attempt to pass herself off as adorable.
That same evening, news spread throughout the palace that the Empress Dowager would begin governing from behind the curtain immediately.
Yu Qijian nearly fainted from anger.
Seriously?
Didn’t something like this require procedures and approvals?
Fang Jinxian had to be doing it on purpose!
After coming to her senses, she sat in the Palace of Eternal Peace gloomily drawing circles on a piece of paper.
“Fang Jinxian, I’m never treating you to milk tea again!”
In the end, she decided that governing from behind the curtain was acceptable.
After all, she still had no intention of actually working.
She then dragged Shuanglan into rehearsing the phrase “Rise, ministers” ten times in a row.
Shortly after the Hour of the Tiger began, Shuanglan gently woke Yu Qijian from beneath her blankets.
“Your Majesty, it is time to dress and prepare.”
“What time is it?”
“The third quarter of the Hour of the Tiger. Court will convene at the second quarter of the Hour of the Rabbit. Your Majesty must arrive at the rear hall of Taiping Hall beforehand.”
Since arriving in this world, Yu Qijian had never gotten up this early.
Yawning repeatedly, she accepted her fate and climbed out of bed, allowing Shuanglan and several palace maids to begin dressing her.
The process was painfully long.
Several pairs of hands fussed over her hair, arranging it into an elaborate hairstyle.
She asked gloomily,
“Do I even have enough hair for this?”
Of course she did not.
Shuanglan smiled shyly and brought over hairpieces.
“Your Majesty, your hair is not sparse at all. Formal court hairstyles are always arranged this way.”
Once the additional hair was secured, they adorned her with a Nine-Tailed Phoenix Hairpin.
Then came the formal court robes: black as the base color, embroidered with golden phoenixes and the Twelve Imperial Symbols.
Yu Qijian felt as though she had been stuffed into a magnificent but unbearably heavy shell.
The weight of that dignity and authority made her let out a long sigh.
In the rear hall of Taiping Hall, Yu Qijian finally saw the Phoenix Throne in the main hall.
It gleamed brilliantly with gold.
If someone pried that thing apart, how much money would it sell for?
The phoenixes carved upon it were majestic and beautiful.
She could not help secretly laughing before quickly composing herself.
Power truly clouded people’s judgment.
A finely woven bamboo curtain hung before her seat.
Beyond it, the outline of the grand hall gradually became clearer as dawn brightened the sky.
She could see the small figure seated upon the imperial throne.
Zhao Yan sat upright in a miniature dragon robe of brilliant yellow.
So cute, my son.
As though sensing her gaze, he turned around and smiled at her.
Yu Qijian winked back.
Below the throne, civil and military officials stood according to rank.
A sea of dark robes stretched across the hall.
Though they kept their heads lowered, an invisible pressure seeped through the bamboo curtain little by little.
Apparently, there was some kind of welcoming ceremony specifically for her.
Otherwise, she probably would have entered and taken her seat alongside Zhao Yan.
Thankfully, such grand court assemblies were not held every day.
Otherwise, her urge to retreat would never stop.
Instinctively, she searched for Fang Jinxian.
He should have been standing beside the throne, or perhaps—
There.
At the very front of the civil officials’ ranks, beneath the imperial steps.
His crimson robes and jade belt stood out immediately.
His head was slightly lowered.
The side of his face appeared especially pale in the morning light, while his expression remained as calm and indifferent as ever.
“The Empress Dowager arrives—!”
The ceremonial eunuch’s drawn-out announcement shattered the silence.
The officials immediately knelt in perfect unison and loudly offered their salutations.
Yu Qijian took a deep breath.
Maintaining a dignified posture, she took her seat.
From behind the bamboo curtain, she spoke in a deliberately calm voice.
“Rise, ministers.”
“Thank you, Empress Dowager—”
For a brief instant, Yu Qijian thought she saw Fang Jinxian glance toward her.
His expression seemed half-smiling.
The moment passed, and he lowered his eyes once more.
That troublesome man was enjoying the spectacle again.
The first official to step forward was the Minister of Revenue, an elderly minister well past fifty.
Holding a jade tablet, he reported in a booming voice that autumn rains had delayed grain shipments from Jiangnan, causing severe silt buildup in the waterways.
He requested additional funds for dredging operations and simultaneously impeached the Transport Governor for negligence.
Yu Qijian translated it into simpler terms:
A delayed project and a request for a larger budget.
Carefully choosing her words, she tried to remember one of Fang Jinxian’s favorite responses:
“Have the relevant departments investigate first, then discuss the matter further.”
Speaking steadily, she said,
“The memorial is approved. Let the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue conduct a joint investigation and submit another report within ten days for further discussion.”
No sooner had she finished speaking than a censor hurried forward.
“This minister has a memorial to present!”
His accusations directly targeted the Minister of Revenue.
He claimed the reported disaster had been exaggerated, that the minister intended to embezzle funds, and he even hinted at connections to a retired Grand Secretary.
The Minister of Revenue immediately flushed red with anger and fired back.
He accused the censor of relying on rumors and maliciously framing fellow officials.
Within moments, the two ministers were attacking each other.
Soon other officials joined the fray as well.
Some supported one side.
Some distanced themselves.
Some took advantage of the chaos to introduce entirely different issues.
Wait.
They were already arguing?
At first, Yu Qijian struggled to follow the logic of their debate.
She tried to distinguish fact from factional infighting.
But before long, the winding Classical Chinese rhetoric, the endless accusations, the veiled references, and the obscure historical allusions…
Made her feel as though she were listening to a debate competition with no translator, where every participant was frantically speaking in professional jargon.
It was actually kind of fascinating.
A real eye-opener.
As she observed, she noticed that members of the Yu Clan remained wisely detached and avoided participating.
As for Fang Jinxian…
He remained unmoving, as steady as a mountain.
Clearly accustomed to such scenes.
His eyes stayed lowered, as though the arguments had nothing to do with him.
Yet when one voice suddenly rose several degrees louder than the others, he barely lifted his eyelids.
His cold, indifferent gaze swept over the crowd.
Instantly, some of the noise subsided.
The officials who had been arguing both faltered beneath that look.
At that moment, Zhao Yan, who had been sitting quietly upon the throne all along, moved ever so slightly.
He seemed about to turn toward the curtain behind him.
Yet he forcibly restrained himself.
Yu Qijian noticed.
Immediately, she adjusted her mindset.
She was supposed to be setting an example for her son.
She could not lose her composure.
“Enough.”
Her voice was not loud.
Yet somehow the hall fell silent.
All eyes turned once more toward the bamboo curtain.
“The grain transport concerns the lifeblood of the realm. The blocked waterways are the immediate problem before us. Today’s discussion should focus on resolving that urgent matter first. As for the various accusations and disputes you have raised, right and wrong will be judged in due course.”
“The Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works are hereby ordered to recalculate the funds and timetable required for the dredging project according to actual conditions and submit a detailed plan within three days.”
“As for whether the Transport Governor was negligent in his duties, let the Censorate conduct a concurrent investigation and submit its findings within ten days.”
After speaking, she paused briefly.
As though trying—and failing—to hold something back.
“His Majesty and I wish to see results.”
“Not saliva.”