The First Lackey Under The Empress

What a strange quirk... Inside the archives, sunlight pierced through the window lattices, passed through rows of bookshelves, and landed on the paper scroll in his hand.

"So, this Pei Niannu is not only a powerful ancient from six hundred years ago, but also a terrifying fellow who would imprison storytellers in dark rooms at the drop of a hat..."

"Fought Tai Zu to a draw... Hmm, what should be recorded here is Old Xu before he entered the Celestial Human Realm, but even this achievement is terrifying. Peak-stage Pseudo-Celestial Human Realm... Hiss, wouldn't that be similar to Zhen Bao?"

"Pei Niannu... Not famous, at least I don't know of her. Six hundred years have passed, and indeed many records have been sealed in time. But Old Xu, why did you draw her? It can't be because you can't forget her..."

Zhao Du'an stood in the archives, his mind racing with thoughts.

He closed the book, an idea forming in his mind:

"According to Ma Yan, the people within the Six Chapters Scripture possess a certain spirituality and can be communicated with. It seems impossible for me to confront this Pei Niannu with force. So, why not change my approach and cater to her preferences..."

"As the saying goes, flattery will get you everywhere... As long as I prepare adequately, there's no big shot I can't suck up to..."

It's path dependence, alright.

However, these few lines of records aren't enough. Zhao Du'an walked straight out of the palace and headed directly to the yamen, preparing to use the resources at hand to collect information on "Pei Niannu."

To strategize a conquest.

...

Just as Zhao Du'an was busy collecting information, the Gao Lian case officially began its review and retrial.

The public opinion in the streets was just a small reflection of the game played by various forces.

Nothing was said that night.

The next day, the early court session resumed.

On this day, some people were surprised to witness a large group of censors entering the Golden Luan Hall together.

It was later revealed that dozens of officials had jointly "petitioned" for Gao Lian during the early court session.

They even presented a memorial signed by many officials, stating that Governor Gao had a renowned reputation and noble character, which was evident to all.

It was hard to believe that he would commit such heinous crimes, leading them to question the authenticity of the evidence.

Furthermore, a supervising secretary refuted much of the evidence in court, suspecting that Zhao Du'an, the imperial envoy, had been deceived and that Gao Lian's imprisonment was due to someone targeting him.

This court session, strictly speaking, had no actual content, but its political significance was extremely clear.

Such a grand petition was rare in the court, and behind it was undoubtedly the Jiangnan aristocratic families, led by Li Yanfu, fueling the flames.

After the court adjourned.

In the Imperial College, disputes also erupted. It was said that the students were divided into two factions, staging a debate on the matter of "whether Gao Lian was framed."

However, due to the abundance of evidence, the students who held the "guilty" stance still accounted for the vast majority.

But the emergence of opposing voices in itself released a subtle signal.

White Horse Bureau, back office.

"Li Yanfu really has such abilities, so quickly getting so many officials to express their opinions?" Zhao Du'an sat under an old tree that had almost lost all its leaves, curiously asking.

Opposite him was Sun Lianying, the Director of the Bureau, with graying temples and sunken eye sockets.

Because the autumn days were getting colder, the old eunuch had a knitted blanket covering his knees, and the clothes on his body were also thicker. He chuckled and said:

"Li Yanfu has been entrenched in the court for many years, so his foundation is naturally solid. But after several blows, his prestige has also declined a lot. This time, the rapid response isn't just his doing.

Do you know that yesterday, the Gao family of Jiangnan and the family of his legal wife arrived in the capital together and visited as many as thirty mansions in just one day."

The people from the Southern gentry families are here?

How come I didn't know... Zhao Du'an was taken aback, then scratched his head, thinking that he didn't seem to care about this matter at all, so that's fine.

He said with a smile, "You're living a leisurely life in the White Horse Bureau, but your news is even better than mine."

The old Director glanced at him, snorted, and said lightly:

"When people live in a place for a long time, they will always know more people."

Zhao Du'an deeply agreed, handing over the few cleaned winter jujubes in his hand, and said with a smile:

"So, are you saying that this morning's performance in court was the gentry families exerting their power?"

The old Director nodded and leaned back in his chair.

The autumn sky was high and clear, and the sky in the capital was particularly clear, with only a few wisps of clouds floating in the high distance.

"This is just the beginning. The various forces in the court have you in me and me in you. This world was originally divided and controlled by aristocratic families, and the royal family is simply the largest of them.

In the past, these Southern century-old families were not flashy. The biggest reason for this was their fear of the imperial court. Once people fear the imperial court, they will try to find ways to build relationships and infiltrate..."

"But fear doesn't mean taking a beating all the time. You, young man, have indeed been attacking the aristocratic families too frequently in the past six months," the old Director sighed.

Zhao Du'an looked distressed and felt extremely wronged:

"How could I have such abilities? If you say it's too frequent, that's just because there wasn't enough time."

Even a rabbit will bite when cornered, let alone a large family with a century of history.

How could Zhao Du'an not understand?

Whether the Empress controlled the court or promoted the New Policies, the best and most stable way was naturally to "boil the frog in warm water."

But would the Eight Kings, who were eyeing the throne, and the treacherous remnants of the Second Prince leave enough time for people to boil water?

If it was entirely for stability, even if it was known that Gao Lian was the mastermind, they should pretend not to know and first stabilize the Southern gentry group.

But in the end, the Empress still decided to take a risk, taking advantage of the accumulated power of the past six months to attack the officialdom of Linfeng.

As long as Gao Lian was successfully killed and the aristocratic families suffered a major defeat, their morale would plummet, and the resistance to the New Policies would also be reduced... Of course, in Zhao Du'an's view, this operation was a bit like dancing on the tip of a knife.

Either the aristocratic families would be devastated and willingly accept their fate, or it would arouse rebellion. Of course, the greater possibility was that there would be various thoughts.

Internally, different factions would be divided.

For example, as far as he knew, the Empress was deliberately attracting a portion of the aristocratic families to join in the "opening of the market" in the New Policies.

Using the tempting bait of "opening the market" to split the entire aristocratic family group, attracting some and suppressing others... All of the above were strategies that were never explicitly stated in the court, but Zhao Du'an, based on his experience, could discern from the court's actions and decrees.

So, Zhen Bao wasn't just clearing obstacles in a simple way.

While dealing with Gao Lian, she was also quietly offering sweet dates to some other large families.

"Just eat a few, old people can't eat too much sweet food." The old Director only took a few winter jujubes and said quietly:

"In short, you just watch, in the next few days, the Southern gentry families' lobbying of influential figures in the capital will only increase, not decrease. Today's actions of the Li faction are just releasing signals, the real counterattack hasn't even begun yet."

Zhao Du'an chewed on the jujubes with large bites and said, "Anyway, it has nothing to do with me."

At this time, a messenger from the Bureau came to find him, and the old Director got up to handle official business.

Only Zhao Du'an was left alone in the small courtyard, drinking with jujubes.

He closed his eyes, his tongue touching the upper palate, circulating his breath.

Although he was sitting and lying down, he entered a state of meditation like a Buddhist arhat.

...

In a trance, Zhao Du'an once again entered the Six Chapters Scripture.

Appearing in the wilderness.

Raising his head, it was still the dim sky, surrounded by sparse trees.

He looked up, and in front of him was still that dilapidated temple.

"...Does this count as a respawn point?"

Zhao Du'an muttered, tidied his clothes, and happily walked towards the ancient temple for the second time.

There weren't many records left by Pei Niannu, but he still found some ancient books and confirmed the authenticity of the records in the archives.

At the same time, in the descriptions of those ancient books, he gained a more detailed understanding of this "First Female Warlock's (ancient term: Fangshi)" reading preferences.

For example, as one of the giants who roamed the Jianghu six hundred years ago, Pei Niannu did not like romance novels, believing that "lovey-dovey stuff is petty."

She also did not like stories of establishing achievements, becoming a general or minister, or conquering the world, believing that "fame and wealth are fleeting clouds, in a word, vulgar."

Her greatest pleasure in life was listening to fantastical stories of immortals and ghosts, which was said to originate from her childhood yearning for becoming an immortal.

Even after she later became a top-notch expert in the world, she still remained as enthusiastic about this type of material as ever.

"Isn't it just liking fantasy and Xianxia..."

Zhao Du'an muttered, already walking to the steps of the dilapidated temple.

Taking a deep breath, he held his breath and concentrated. He couldn't win by fighting, so success or failure depended on this.

In the next moment, Zhao Du'an gathered his energy in his dantian and recited loudly:

"An ordinary mountain village boy accidentally enters a local Jianghu sect and becomes a registered disciple. With this status, how does he gain a foothold in the sect, how does he enter the ranks of cultivators with mediocre qualifications, and thus laugh proudly among the three realms? Let's listen to the first chapter of A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality."

"Han Li opened his eyes wide, staring straight at the black roof made of thatched grass and rotten mud. The old cotton quilt covering him was already dark yellow, and he couldn't see its original appearance. It also faintly emitted a faint musty smell..."

Zhao Du'an recited loudly.

At this moment, he was extremely grateful for his habit of listening to books during his commute to work in his previous life...

While reciting, Zhao Du'an stepped forward and slowly pushed open the door of the dilapidated temple.

Inside, it was still as he had seen last time, with weeds growing everywhere and a broken alchemy furnace lying in the corner. The main hall had been abandoned for a long time.

His eyes darted around, unable to find Pei Niannu's whereabouts.

But the action of telling the story in his mouth did not stop at all. Thanks to the silent recitation practice last night, the story was told smoothly and naturally, although it was not very vivid.

And when he walked to the center of the courtyard for the second time, as expected, he once again felt a strong pressure.

Here it comes!

Zhao Du'an hardened his heart, suppressed his aura, did not resist in any way, and simply closed his eyes, standing in place and immersing himself in the storytelling...

But the pain of having his skull cracked open as he had expected did not come.

It's working!

Zhao Du'an suppressed his joy and continued to tell:

"...Han Li never thought that the amount of money he would get after this trip had lost its meaning to him. He had unexpectedly embarked on a path of immortality different from ordinary people and walked out of his own path of cultivation."

Swish...

A cold wind blew through the dilapidated ancient temple.

Zhao Du'an, who was reciting with his eyes closed, did not know that on the eaves of the main hall in front of him, a bright red wedding dress was hanging down, letting the wind blow, motionless.

The golden and red scales in Pei Niannu's hand slowly fell, covering the holes behind the dark gold mask on her face, revealing a strange look in her eyes.

Gradually, the female warlock in a wedding dress, who had once been a top-notch expert in the Jianghu, slowly sat on the eaves, with a pair of small legs hanging down from under her skirt, and the embroidered shoes swaying slightly.

Behind the dark gold mask, the baleful aura gradually eased.

"This story... I haven't heard it before."

Thanks to Paper Cat for the 100 coins reward!