Luck Reliant Beauty – CH 081

Chapter 81: The Wang Family’s Merit

The Emperor’s Palace.

After Prince Kang left, the Empress remained motionless on the couch, lost in thought.

When the Emperor of Shu entered the courtyard, he saw the Empress, completely devoid of her former spirit and vitality. No, not just spirit and vitality; in just half a month, the Empress seemed to have aged several years, even her temples were streaked with gray.

In the Emperor of Shu’s heart, his second wife had always been flamboyant, proud, and refined. He still remembered their first meeting; she wore a red dress, held a long whip, and laughed arrogantly and triumphantly on horseback. Her clear, unrestrained laughter made her as dazzlingly beautiful as the sun. In that instant, the Emperor of Shu was captivated by her.

Originally, the Emperor of Shu was deeply dissatisfied with the Empress’s advanced age, her continued lack of self-restraint, and the numerous foolish actions her family had committed. Yet, he hadn’t expected that seeing her so forlorn and haggard would stir a pang of pity in him.

Of course, the Emperor of Shu’s pity stemmed from his clear understanding that the child abduction case had absolutely nothing to do with the Empress or her family. Their current predicament was merely a matter of bad luck.

Moreover, the Empress had made sacrifices; she had even used her beloved little sister and her most trusted confidantes.

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Thinking of how Shu’s Empress had been driven to this state by mistakes that weren’t her own, the Emperor of Shu frowned slightly.

Seeing the Emperor of Shu enter, the Empress jumped to her feet in surprise, but as soon as she stood, she remembered her haggard and aged appearance and hurriedly covered her face with her hands, hiding behind the curtains in a flustered manner.

It must be said, the Empress’s action truly seemed to transport her back to when they were seventeen or eighteen years old, involuntarily. Emperor of Shu said affectionately, “Don’t hide; I saw you long ago.”

The curtains swayed, and slowly, Empress Wu, head bowed and seemingly unsure of what to do with her hands and feet, emerged.

Seeing this, the Emperor of Shu sighed softly again, stepped forward, took the Empress’s hand, and led her to sit down. Emperor Shu said gently, “Look at you. Your eyes are so swollen. Haven’t you been resting well?”

The Empress lowered her head, avoiding his gaze, and replied softly, “I’m… I’m fine.”

Emperor of Shu turned to the palace maids and said, “Serve the meal.”

“Yes.”

A moment later, Emperor Shu turned to Empress Wu and said gently again, “We’ve been husband and wife for many years. There’s no need to be so formal.”

The Empress’s eyes welled up with tears. She called out emotionally, “Your Majesty.”

Emperor of Shu responded. He casually asked, “Did Kang’er come by just now? I heard he didn’t look well. Did someone bully him?” The Emperor of Shu cared deeply for this son he valued.

The Empress lowered her head and said softly, “It’s nothing… It’s just that yesterday when Kang’er was out in the street, she ran into Wang Cheng’s son, the one called Wang Hui… Kang’er overheard a few unpleasant words and came to me to complain.”

After all, she and the Emperor had been husband and wife for many years, and the moment the Emperor of Shu entered, the Empress sensed his momentary softening. Quickly, the Empress decided to seize this opportunity.

But this was where the Empress’s lack of wisdom manifested. Having finally found an opportunity, instead of thinking of securing greater benefits for herself and her family, she was blinded by hatred and only wanted to teach Jiang Mi a lesson.

The Empress thought that once Cui Zi Xuan was gone, and she took down Jiang Mi’s main supporter, Minister of Revenue Wang Cheng, it would be much easier to deal with Jiang Mi…

The Emperor of Shu was already dissatisfied with Wang Cheng’s incompetence, and hearing his son dare to act arrogantly towards him, he couldn’t help but snort coldly.

Hearing the Emperor’s cold snort, the Empress, who had been keeping her head down, smiled. She thought happily, “It’s done! The Wang family is going to fall!”

After leaving the Empress, the Emperor went straight to the Imperial Study.

On the east wall of the Imperial Study hung a map of the world’s situation. The Emperor stood before it, hands behind his back. After a while, he casually asked a eunuch beside him, “Have there been any memorials submitted recently?”

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The old eunuch shuddered, then, without a flicker of emotion, bowed and replied, “Yes.”

“Let me see it.”

“Yes!”

The eunuch responded and turned to leave.

Just then, a shrill eunuch’s voice rang out from outside, “Your Majesty, Minister of Revenue Wang Cheng and Minister of Works Li Jian request an audience!”

“Minister of Revenue Wang Cheng?” The Emperor paused upon hearing the name, then said calmly, “Let them in.”

“Yes!”

…

The old eunuch, carrying several memorials impeaching Wang Cheng, had just reached the door of the Imperial Study when he heard the voice of the Emperor from inside. “What did you say?”

In the study, Wang Cheng’s voice rang out excitedly and clearly, “Your Majesty, after much trouble, Li Jian and I have finally obtained the military defense map of Chengzhou… I believe that internal strife has broken out in Chengzhou, and the soldiers are demoralized. This is the opportune moment for our Shu State to incorporate it into our territory!”

To one side, the old minister Li Jian’s voice was equally excited and loud: “Your Majesty, I humbly request that you expand our territory and lay an everlasting foundation for our Shu State!”

The old eunuch stopped abruptly.

In the study, the Emperor of Shu, after his initial surprise, burst into laughter. The Emperor of Shu’s laughter was so loud and full of vigor. As he laughed, he exclaimed happily, “Good! Good! Good!” After uttering three “good”s in a row—a rare occurrence—his voice, filled with great satisfaction, rang out, “It’s rare that my two beloved ministers, concerned about the affairs of the State, have quietly obtained this Chengzhou military defense map for me. Good! Good! Good!”

At this moment, the Emperor of Shu was truly overjoyed. He strode forward to help Wang Cheng and Li Jian to their feet, deeply moved, thinking, “If it weren’t for these two ministers, who always keep me, the Shu State, and my empire in their hearts, how could they possibly think the same way as me? How could they even obtain the Chengzhou military defense map, which I couldn’t even get my hands on? What is true loyalty? This is true loyalty!”

Overwhelmed with emotion, the Emperor of Shu suddenly felt a loss of pity for the Empress, who had urged him to kill Wang Cheng. He frowned and thought to himself, “The Wu family is too narrow-minded; they have almost misled my loyal ministers!”

…

Cui Zi Xuan was still chatting idly with Jiang Mi when footsteps sounded from the stairs. In the blink of an eye, a young guard strode over. Upon reaching Cui Zi Xuan, he bowed and reported, “Young Master, the Emperor of Shu has just issued two decrees, greatly rewarding Minister of Revenue Wang Cheng and Minister of Works Li Jian. The Emperor of Shu repeatedly praised their loyalty in the decrees.” After a slight pause, the young guard continued, “It is said that Ministers Wang Cheng and Li Jian presented a report to the Emperor of Shu regarding the Chengzhou matter. Young Master,” the young guard said, “judging from the Emperor of Shu’s reaction, I fear Shu State will soon send troops to attack Chengzhou!”

In these chaotic times, the scions of noble families traveling far and wide were most concerned about war, which was why this young guard came to report immediately.

Upon hearing his report, the Young Master of the Wang Clan of Taiyuan and several Young Masters of the Lu Clan of Fanyang began to murmur amongst themselves. Only Cui Zi Xuan, after listening to the young guard’s report, asked with interest, “Wasn’t it said that this Minister of Revenue was dull and incompetent and that the Emperor of Shu was very dissatisfied? What happened this time? How did the once declining Wang family regain the Emperor’s favor?”

The young guard shook his head and replied, “We cannot ascertain the reason.”

To the side, the Young Master of the Wang Clan of Taiyuan walked over and casually smiled, “What’s so hard to understand? Since that old Minister was originally a dull and incompetent person but has suddenly become clever, there’s only one reason: he must have found a very talented advisor somewhere, listened to their advice, and figured out the Emperor of Shu’s thoughts.” At this point, Young Master Wang glanced at Jiang Mi, then turned to Cui Zi Xuan and reminded him, “Zi Xuan, don’t just focus on the pretty girl. In this world, talent is the most important thing. You should have someone investigate this advisor carefully.”