The First Lackey Under The Empress

The legitimate daughter of the You family of Xiping… Zhao Du'an looked surprised.

It was as if he was truly seeing his stepmother for the first time.

You Jinhua's story wasn't complex. Although her branch of the family couldn't compare to the main line of the You family, they were still a force to be reckoned with locally.

Considered local heroes, they had many businesses and properties. Her stepmother's grandfather was also a martial artist, with connections in both the legitimate and underworld.

You Jinhua's father was originally the "head" of this branch of the family, but he was involved in a Jianghu dispute during an outing.

He seemed to have been injured by a sorcerer from the "Fashen Sect". After returning home, he was on his last breath and passed away shortly after.

You Jinhua was the second oldest in the family, with an older brother who was also missing.

The family's power was vacant for a time, and the second branch, You Jinhua's second uncle, took advantage of the situation to seize the power of the head of the family.

After the second branch took power, they investigated the family's property in the name of checking accounts, and caught many "evidences" of You Jinhua's father's "crimes".

They made a big fuss about this and continued to suppress the eldest branch and deprived them of their property.

The orphans and widows of the eldest branch, who had lost the support of men, were unable to contend.

You Jinhua's mother was already weak, and after suffering the bad news of her husband and eldest son in succession, she fell ill and passed away not long after.

For a time, in the large eldest branch, only You Jinhua, who was just a girl at that time, was left. Life was very hard, and she suffered a lot of bullying from the family.

At this time, it happened that an army was withdrawing and returning to the capital, and some troops were billeted in the You family.

You Jinhua had wanted to escape from the family for a long time, and it happened that she and a soldier were in love with each other.

Her second uncle, who was already the head of the family at that time, generously let her go and married You Jinhua off.

In this way, she came to the capital, and later remarried into the Zhao family.

"Mother…" Zhao Pan's eyes flickered with tears as she listened to the story, feeling empathy and heartache.

Zhao Du'an suddenly understood why a soldier could marry the well-educated You Erjie.

At the same time, he suddenly understood why his stepmother had always been submissive and gentle…

Once bitten by a snake, one is afraid of well ropes for ten years.

She had personally experienced the miserable situation of a family without the support of a man.

"So, does Madam have a feud with the elders in the family? If so, how about I take action to punish them?"

Zhao Du'an said with a smile:

"Find an excuse to throw them into the imperial prison. Even if they don't die, they'll be skinned alive to vent your anger."

You Jinhua was startled and waved her hands repeatedly, begging him:

"Young Master, don't do this!"

After a pause, she smiled bitterly:

"After all, they are all family. Many years have passed. Besides, my second uncle wasn't too harsh on me back then. He also took care of me."

Take care of?

Zhao Du'an didn't believe it.

Marrying the only daughter of a deceased elder brother to a soldier, is that called taking care of her?

Or is it getting rid of a burden?

However, he didn't say anything. After all, they were his stepmother's elders.

As a transmigrator, he lacked empathy for the clan kinship of this era and couldn't understand why You Jinhua still cared about family affection.

"Alright, for Madam's sake, I won't make things difficult for them. Since they've come to the capital to visit, then we'll treat them well."

Zhao Du'an smiled and said:

"Madam is, after all, a member of my Zhao family. I can't let you lose face in front of your family."

You Jinhua breathed a sigh of relief, bit her lip, and her eyes flickered, greatly moved by her stepson's consideration.

Zhao Pan frowned, thinking:

The uncles and elders who haven't been heard from for more than ten years are suddenly visiting, I'm afraid they're after Big Brother's wealth and glory.

…

…

A night passed without incident.

The next day at dawn, when the sky was dimly lit, the officials in the capital woke up one after another, washed and dressed, and went to court.

Outside the Meridian Gate.

When the court officials arrived, they stood in several distinct groups.

Because of the continuous fierce battles for the New Deal in recent days, they had accumulated anger and fatigue.

Especially the censors, as the main force of the court scolding, many people's voices were hoarse.

It's just… many people noticed that today, the members of the Li Party were particularly silent and listless.

With doubts in their hearts, the bell rang and the officials entered the palace.

The eunuch slammed the whip hard on the gleaming floor of the Golden Luan Hall.

The Empress sat on the dragon chair, signifying the start of today's battle.

However, the fierce battle that many people had expected did not appear.

Today, the officials of the Li Party were listless and responded weakly, showing signs of loosening.

Seeing this, the Imperial Party advanced triumphantly, but the Li Party had no fighting spirit.

After a symbolic resistance, they were already defeated.

Some even staged a scene of "sudden repentance" and "complete enlightenment" in the palace.

They said that after repeated consideration, they realized that the Three Policies were beneficial to the country and should be implemented, which was a virtuous policy.

With someone taking the lead, the officials of the Li Party defected one after another.

The remaining officials, although trying their best to resist, had become a minority.

The Imperial Party swept away the gloom and their morale was high, and the Empress took the opportunity to make a final decision.

This protracted war ended in this way.

After the court adjourned, Dong Xuan and others still couldn't believe it. They jointly stayed behind to meet the Empress alone and asked what had happened.

The Empress was tight-lipped about the details, only saying that someone had persuaded Li Yanfu.

Who was it?

In the hearts of the bigwigs of the Imperial Party, the smiling face of Zhao Du'an at the small court meeting yesterday appeared at the same time.

They were in a trance.

"It's him again…" The Minister of Justice was distracted.

"How did that kid do it?" Yuan Li was also puzzled.

"Talented people come forth from generation to generation, ha ha, it seems that we are old after all." Dong Xuan stroked his beard and sighed.

Xue Shence, who was taciturn and out of tune with this group of civil servants, stood in the vast square of the Meridian Gate, which was once filled with blood.

Squinting his eyes, he looked at the long white jade steps and walked away.

He was a military man, and he appreciated the marshal of the battlefield even more. Taking a step back, it should also be a martial arts genius.

As a martial artist, Zhao Du'an spent all day indulging in conspiracies and tricks. Perhaps he was indeed extraordinary in his methods and could be a capable minister.

But it was impossible for him to achieve anything in martial arts.

The way of the warrior lies only in purity.

Since this was the case, no matter how smart he was or how wonderful his methods were, he would not catch his eye.

"Losing the big for the small, abandoning cultivation for power, is extremely unwise, just another delusional person."

…

After the court adjourned.

The news that the Li Party had defected at the early court today and the New Deal had come to an end spread like a whirlwind through the streets and alleys of the capital.

It is conceivable that it will top the topic list of gatherings of scholars and officials today.

At the same time.

A rumor that the Li Party had defected was inextricably linked to the Little Secretary's visit to the Pear Blossom Hall yesterday spread like wildfire.

Some guessed that Zhao the Thief had used some insidious methods again. Others said they had personally witnessed Zhao Du'an meeting with the current Chancellor yesterday.

"Sir, there's a lot of talk outside about the changes in the court today. Some even say that Lord Zhao is involved. It's really unpleasant. They blame everything on Lord Zhao."

At the White Horse Bureau, a messenger reported to the old Director.

His complaints were actually envy mixed with a hint of probing.

"Let the fools talk," Sun Lianying said, waving his hand to dismiss the man while sitting in the courtyard.

Only then did a complicated expression appear on his calm face as he muttered softly:

"That kid really managed to pull it off… So that's how it is, so that's how it is…"

At this moment, the old Director had connected Zhao Du'an's train of thought in his mind, unable to suppress his feelings.

"How could the Zhao family produce such a monster?"

Sun Lianying rubbed his cheeks and glanced at his wine cellar, suddenly a little worried:

"That brat better not forget to ask His Majesty for wine…"

…

At the Li Residence.

The back door creaked open.

Madam Lin, dressed in plain white, stepped out of the doorway, followed by the old nanny who had seen her off.

"Madam Lin, the master has asked me to pick you up and take you to live at the yamen for now. He will meet with you later."

Outside the door, a carriage was waiting.

The curtain was lifted, revealing Qian Kerou's round face.

Last night, Li Yinglong had not returned to the residence, and Madam Lin had stayed up all night, only receiving a message at dawn.

It was sent by the Chancellor, requesting that "Consort Six" be sent away.

Also sent to her were a "letter of divorce" dissolving their concubine relationship and her own "indenture".

Madam Lin was agitated at this moment and couldn't help but say:

"Lord Zhao, he…"

Qian Kerou reached out and pulled her into the carriage first. Only when the carriage started moving did she smile and say:

"The master has to enter the palace this morning to report to His Majesty, which will take some time. Don't worry, my master's reputation… isn't very good, but he's always been good to his own people.

He won't go back on his promises to you. By the way, this is the 'interest' given to you in advance."

As she spoke, Qian Kerou took out a contract.

Madam Lin was stunned for a moment, realizing that it was a household registration change from the yamen.

Her original slave status had been changed to a commoner from her original place of origin, which meant that she was now a "free person".

Madam Lin bit her lip, her eyes reddening. She clenched her own indenture in her hand, squeezing it until it was tattered.

She threw it out the window, where it was crushed into the ground by the wheels.

It was like saying goodbye to a part of her life.

At this time, the carriage passed an intersection, and a particularly luxurious carriage with servants clearing the way happened to pass by from the side.

Inside the carriage.

It was Consort Yuan.

Consort Yuan, who had been frightened all night, had also stayed up all night and was listless.

She had thought countless times about the ways she might die.

But this morning, a female official from the palace arrived and casually asked her to return to the palace, instructing her:

"During these past few days of returning home to visit family, the Consort has never left the Yuan residence. That's what you must say if anyone asks, remember?"

So, Consort Yuan understood.

She realized that she had walked through the gates of hell and returned to the world of the living.

As for Li Yinglong… Consort Yuan sneered, tore open her sleeve, and threw half of the sleeve out of the carriage window. The sleeve was blown by the wind and fell to the ground.

Symbolizing her dead love.

After dreaming for so many years, she finally woke up.

Her parents, the old emperor, and Li Lang were all the same.

From now on, she would live for herself.

The two carriages passed each other, and the breeze lifted the curtains.

Two women who looked very similar but had different experiences "passed by" without seeing each other even once.

It was like an intersection of two completely different lives.

In a sense, they had "jointly" pushed this ancient empire a big step towards a bright future.

But they were both unaware of this.

And the scheming man who was behind them, orchestrating everything, was also on his way to the palace, where he met someone on a narrow road.

…

Zhao Du'an rode on a tall horse, looking down at the sedan chair that was slowly stopping in front of him.

The sedan chair carriers lifted the curtain, revealing the "Little Grand Secretary" sitting inside, with delicate features, sunken eye sockets, nearly forty years old, and an expressionless face.

"Out already? How was the taste of spending the night at the Imperial Prison?"

Zhao Du'an was a little surprised to encounter him and asked with a smile.

Inside the sedan chair, Li Yinglong stared at him calmly, staring at him intently, staring at him forcefully.

There was no rage, no cursing, no questioning.

He only slowly said one sentence: "I will remember you."

This sentence seemed to imply some kind of endless feud.

Zhao Du'an, however, didn't seem to care at all and only smiled:

"Is that a threat?"

Li Yinglong did not answer, but closed his eyes.

The sedan chair was slowly lifted, and Zhao Du'an shook the reins.

One sedan chair, one horse.

It was like two swordsmen meeting on a narrow bridge.

"Chī——"

The sound of hooves concealed the sound of the wind being cut.

The two sides passed each other, as if no conflict had erupted.

Until the two had walked a distance from each other, and the distance between the horse and the sedan chair exceeded a hundred steps.

Suddenly.

"BOOM!!"

With a destructive roar, the surface of the expensive sedan chair, built of high-quality wood and painted red, suddenly burst out with countless fine cracks.

Then, the fibers inside were shattered by some kind of force.

Dust flew up, and the sedan chair carriers fell to the ground in terror, dropping the sedan chair to the ground, and then…

It fell apart!

The flying sedan chair planks exploded into pieces of broken wood, and Li Yinglong sat stiffly in the almost disassembled sedan chair, his eyes wide open, his expression horrified.

In the distance.

A dark golden light suddenly burrowed back into Zhao Du'an's sleeve. He retracted the flying knife and tugged on the reins.

Riding on the horse, he didn't even turn his head, but his voice clearly penetrated the Little Grand Secretary's ears from a hundred steps away:

"I hate threats the most."

Thanks to: 2024…1762 for the 500-coin character reward, 2018…0702 for the 100-coin reward support