The First Lackey Under The Empress

"An apology? More like a bribe." After a brief moment of stunned silence, the grizzled old Director of Surveillance, with his temples streaked with white and deep-set eyes, spoke in a cold voice.

The disappointment in his eyes grew even stronger.

In his view, Zhao Dunan's behavior was undoubtedly hypocritical. Knowing that he had caused a major incident, he was trying to bribe him, a common practice in officialdom.

The once pure and simple Imperial Guard had ultimately been corrupted by the great dyeing vat of officialdom, reduced to petty scheming, no longer what he once was.

"Take it away. This fine thing is not something this old one can enjoy." The old Director of Surveillance waved his hand, dismissing him.

However, Zhao Dunan's next words truly surprised him.

"You misunderstand. This folding fan is actually a赃物 that this humble servant is presenting," Zhao Dunan said, his words astonishing.

The old Director of Surveillance frowned: "What do you mean?"

Zhao Dunan said calmly:

"Some time ago, Ning'an County's son, acting as a broker, approached me, promising a generous gift if I would help reduce the sentence of an official detained by the Ministry of Justice…"

Immediately, he told the whole story as it was.

This was the purpose of his visit tonight.

In the original host's memory, the old eunuch before him was the Empress's true confidant, a direct descendant who had followed her since her days as the Third Princess.

After taking charge of the White Horse Surveillance, although extremely low-key and inconspicuous, he was an ear and a pair of eyes that the Empress had placed in the yamen.

He highly suspected that the old eunuch was one of the few insiders who knew that he was not the Empress's "male favorite."

Zhang Changshuo's appearance added many variables.

Zhao Dunan could only respond hastily, choosing to report what he was about to do in advance.

In this way, as long as he "filed" in advance, the power of Zhang Changshuo's subsequent attempts to make an issue of this matter would be greatly reduced.

You want to report me behind my back?

Heh, I'll report myself in advance.

"…Because this humble servant has been slow to reply to him, that Wang Xian invited me to meet today to discuss it," Zhao Dunan paused, and said:

"I agreed to him."

Inside the room, the oil lamp burned quietly, the light gradually dimming.

The old eunuch, draped in a wide robe, remained expressionless throughout:

"You want to use this Wang Xian to find out who's behind him?"

Old people become refined, and smart people don't need to waste words in conversation.

"Yes."

The old Director of Surveillance sat up slightly, and Zhao Dunan quickly added oil to the lamp.

The lamplight was restored.

…The old Director of Surveillance glanced at him, leaned back into the armchair, and said:

"You want to redeem yourself? To offset the trouble you've caused? To survive this impeachment?"

Without waiting for him to answer, the old man shook his head, slightly sarcastically:

"It's too late. Not to mention that you have made many enemies in the past, your identity alone is prone to attracting disasters."

These words were very subtle. If it were the original host's intelligence, he would not have been able to understand the deep meaning.

But Zhao Dunan had already thought of this when he left the palace in the afternoon, which is why he was so apprehensive.

For the real bigwigs in the court, they would not be jealous of a gigolo who sells his looks, just like the Chancellor Li Yanfu, who didn't even bother to look at him.

But that doesn't mean that the bigwigs won't target him.

Just like in the history he was familiar with, in some dynasties, the civil official group impeached the emperor's concubines, influencing the establishment of an heir, raising the emperor's family affairs to the safety of the world, which was not uncommon.

Was it because of hatred? Not necessarily.

It may also be to check and balance imperial power.

The game between the courtiers and the Empress would often not break the surface, but would launch confrontation through a pawn.

Zhao Dunan was very suitable to act as a pawn.

A powerful minister like Li Yanfu would not mind taking this opportunity to casually abolish Zhao Dunan, which would be equivalent to winning a small victory in the confrontation.

The old Director of Surveillance had long seen through this, so he repeatedly warned the original host to keep a low profile.

Unfortunately, good advice is hard to persuade a damned ghost.

"I know," Zhao Dunan smiled self-deprecatingly, "but I have to do something."

The old Director of Surveillance looked at him and shook his head, saying:

"Even if you can make meritorious contributions and find out those people, this little merit is not enough. The fact that they are asking you means that the people behind them are not powerful figures."

That's heartbreaking, old iron…

Zhao Dunan's eyes dimmed, and after a moment of silence, he said:

"Even so, I want to investigate it. Just consider it as a thank you for your care in the past."

He forced a smile:

"In the end, I am also a member of the yamen. Even if I can't change anything, making meritorious contributions will also benefit you, sir. I have caused a lot of trouble for the Surveillance, so consider this a small return."

The old Director of Surveillance was stunned, somewhat dazed.

After Zhao Dunan finished speaking, he turned to leave, counting one, two, three in his heart.

"Wait," the old man's complicated voice came from behind:

"Take the fan away."

Zhao Dunan didn't look back:

"It's hot, keep it to fan yourself."

After saying that, he disappeared into the darkness outside the door.

In the quiet room, only the elderly old man remained, silently gazing at his disappearing back, and after a long time, he sighed softly:

"If you had been like this earlier, you wouldn't be where you are today."

Immediately, he raised his hand and pushed aside a ledger on the table, revealing two memorials hidden underneath.

The one on the left was sent from the palace, the Holy One asking for his evaluation of Zhao Dunan.

The one on the right was the memorial he had just written, with eight characters on it:

Rampant and domineering, notorious.

After a moment of silence, the old Director of Surveillance tore up the memorial, threw it away, and took out a blank memorial again, picking up his pen and writing a new eight-character evaluation:

"A prodigal son returns, perhaps he can be forgiven."

…

…

The night was deep, and Imperial Guards patrolled the city walls around the palace.

The Yangxin Hall, where the Empress resided, was also brightly lit.

In the corridor, a palace maid carried a tray, walking with small steps. The tray held lotus seed soup cooked by the Imperial Kitchen. When she arrived outside the Imperial Study.

She saw a figure walking towards her.

"This servant greets Zhaorong," the little palace maid stopped and saluted.

The young female official, honored as "Zhaorong", in charge of the Six Bureaus, with an official rank of 正五品, said "En" and took the tray:

"Let me do it."

With that, the young female official knocked on the door.

Inside the Imperial Study.

The Grand Yu Empress Xu Zhenguan, wearing white casual clothes, dignified and elegant, was processing government affairs at her desk.

Under the candlelight, her crystal-clear skin was covered with a warm, ivory-like luster.

Her slender, dark eyebrows were slightly furrowed, with a hint of imperceptible fatigue.

"Your Majesty," the young female official placed the lotus seed soup on the table and called out softly.

Xu Zhenguan then raised her head, surprised:

"Why did you come to deliver it?"

"I ran into it on the way," the young female official stirred the soup with her fair hand, handed over a spoon, and looked at the mountain of memorials, distressed:

"Why does Your Majesty have to work so hard? There's always more to be done."

Xu Zhenguan put the soup into her sandalwood mouth, drank for a while, and her fatigue was slightly reduced.

Turning her head to look at her most valued, the top female official in the inner court, known in the court as 'female prime minister', she smiled helplessly:

"How can I not want to rest? It's just that I don't know how many people in the world are watching me. Since this year, disasters have occurred frequently in various states and prefectures, and the mess left by my father and my second brother must also be dealt with…

With internal and external troubles, if I don't do one thing well, it will be blamed on my female body."

Outsiders only see the bright side of Xu Zhenguan, the victor of the "Xuanmen Coup", who ascended the throne and became Empress.

But only those around her know how much pressure she has been under in the two years since she ascended the throne.

The late Emperor left a shell-like treasury.

The Second Prince's coup also involved a large number of ministers being replaced, causing instability in the court, and leaving remnants stirring up trouble in the dark.

The various "princes" who were enfeoffed to the eighteen prefectures of the Grand Yu Dynasty were eyeing her covetously.

The major cultivation forces were ready to move…

The Grand Yu Empress looked around, and the seemingly prosperous dynasty was actually fraught with crises.

And there were very few direct descendants and confidants who were truly useful under her command.

"Let's not talk about this," Xu Zhenguan swallowed the lotus seed soup, resisted the urge to suck on her slender fingers, put down the porcelain bowl, and smiled:

"Coming over so late, you wouldn't just be here to persuade me to rest, would you?"

The young female official took out a memorial from her sleeve:

"The White Horse Surveillance Director sent someone to deliver it just now. It's an assessment of that Zhao Dunan."

Him… Xu Zhenguan's mind conjured up a handsome face. Leaving aside his character, Zhao Dunan's appearance was indeed impeccable.

"What did the Director of Surveillance say?"

"This servant has not opened it, please open it yourself, Your Majesty."

At this moment, Xu Zhenguan looked at the memorial in front of her, and suddenly hesitated.