On the afternoon of that day, news of the incident at the Envoy's residence quickly spread throughout the capital, causing widespread shock among both officials and common people.
The next day in the imperial court, emotions ran high as everyone denounced the outrageous behavior of the Dongwo ruler.
Some hot-tempered military officials even petitioned the emperor on the spot, requesting to lead troops into battle. They were itching to flatten that tiny country immediately to vent their anger.
Of course, this was unrealistic. Before the emperor could even respond, ministers quickly intervened, saying: "While Dongwo's actions are indeed despicable, war would be costly and harm our people. Moreover, Dongwo is separated from us by the Eastern Sea. Mobilizing troops would not guarantee victory."
"Indeed, we should not rush into war without certainty of success. After all, it was the Crown Prince of Gaoli who was wounded by the Dongwo assassins. Once news reaches Gaoli, those two countries may well end up at odds. Why don't we observe from the sidelines for now, and wait for the right moment to reap the benefits?"
This suggestion was met with widespread agreement, though some still angrily protested: "Are we simply going to tolerate this insult?"
At this point, the emperor finally spoke from his throne: "The more detestable they are, the more composed you all must remain. For now, our priority should be to strengthen our coastal navy and shore up maritime defenses. Even if we don't go to war immediately, we must always be prepared. If Dongwo dares to offend us again, we will retaliate decisively and show no mercy."
As his words fell, the officials responded in unison, indicating their agreement.
The emperor continued: "The Court of State Ceremonial shall immediately send letters to both Gaoli and Dongwo explaining the situation, and issue a stern rebuke to Dongwo. If possible, we should also find a way to let their citizens know how absurd their ruler's actions have been."
The Court of State Ceremonial officials promptly stepped forward to acknowledge the order.
However... while sending letters to both countries was straightforward, the emperor's final instruction...
How exactly were they supposed to inform the Dongwo populace?
Just then, Zou Mozhong, Scholar of the Hanlin Academy, spoke up: "Your subject has an idea. I've heard that Master Xiao Yao's latest story bears a striking resemblance to this Dongwo incident. Perhaps the officials of the Court of State Ceremonial could have this story translated into the Dongwo language, and arrange for Dongwo merchants to see it and bring it back to circulate in their country?"
Oh? This was indeed an excellent suggestion!
Another official chimed in: "Scholar Zou's proposal is brilliant! It would be even better if Dongwo has storytellers or theater troupes who could adapt this tale and perform it in rural areas. That would help it spread even further."
-- If the Dongwo commoners learned that their ruler was harming innocent people to satisfy his own outrageous desires, that dynasty likely wouldn't last much longer.
Everyone seemed to share this thought, and a chorus of approval filled the hall.
Seeing this reaction, the emperor nodded and said: "This idea is indeed excellent. Let the Court of State Ceremonial handle it. If there are any uncertainties, they may consult with Scholar Zou."
As he finished speaking, the Court of State Ceremonial officials once again indicated their acknowledgment. The other officials also chimed in, praising the emperor's wisdom.
Of course, among them all, Minister of Works Lu Kaihe was particularly excited --
How wonderful that his favorite author Master Xiao Yao's work would finally spread to a foreign land!
Naturally, along with his excitement came impatience. In his rush to court this morning, he hadn't even realized a new book by Master Xiao Yao had been released today.
He must hurry to buy it as soon as court was dismissed!
Meanwhile, in the Palace of Benevolent Peace, Yanshu was discussing her new story with her number one fan, the Empress Dowager.
After hearing the story, the Empress Dowager nodded approvingly: "You've handled it well. This incident was indeed too outrageous, and might have frightened the common people if told directly. It's better to present it as a supernatural tale like this. However, it does seem we're covering up for that Dongwo ruler in the end. To think we have to shield him after all he's done."
Yanshu quickly replied: "It's alright. Given how he treats people so inhumanely, his reign likely won't last long anyway. Besides, now that the truth has come out, Dongwo and Gaoli have become enemies. We can just sit back and watch the drama unfold."
The Empress Dowager made a sound of agreement. "That Gaoli prince got what he deserved too. Being a guest in someone else's territory yet behaving so improperly. Now he's been frightened to this extent - who knows if he'll ever recover."
Yanshu said: "Yesterday, I heard from Doctor Jiang that as long as he avoids anything that might trigger him going forward, he should recover eventually. It's just that it might take quite some time."
She then lowered her voice and continued: "You know, I heard he can't even bear the sight of unfamiliar women now. He screams 'monster!' whenever he sees one, so only his own wife can attend to him closely."
The Empress Dowager let out an "Oh" and couldn't help but laugh: "Well, that certainly works out well for the princess consort. She no longer has to worry about her husband's wandering eyes or come up with roundabout ways to keep him in check."
Yanshu also laughed: "Exactly! That's why she's being so cooperative with us now. Yesterday she had the envoys quickly write back to Gaoli, describing how despicable and outrageous Dongwo is, saying that after failing to assassinate our emperor, they took the opportunity to attack her husband instead... Of course, she didn't mention that her husband had first acted inappropriately with those two... individuals."
The Empress Dowager gave a scornful laugh: "How could she possibly say that? Though she resents him, she still wants to protect her husband's position and her own wealth and status. Someone like that can't truly be at peace."
-- Either don't care at all, or care completely. What's the point of living in constant anxiety, torn between desires?
Realizing she might have gotten carried away with her musings, the Empress Dowager addressed Yanshu again: "It's admirable that you're concerning yourself with such matters while pregnant. Now that you've finished the story, you should go back and rest properly."
Yanshu acknowledged this and took her leave.
As she walked out, she couldn't help but wonder if the Empress Dowager's earlier words stemmed from her own experiences.
-- Perhaps it was only after completely giving up on the late emperor that the Empress Dowager was able to live so freely.
As she pushed open the door, she saw Rendong waiting for her outside. Zhu Shu, Nanny Zhuang, and other palace maids attending to the Empress Dowager were also waiting in the corridor. Seeing her emerge, they all bowed respectfully.
Yanshu nodded slightly, and with Rendong's support, boarded the palanquin waiting nearby.
To the side, Zhu Shu and Nanny Zhuang's gazes swept over the book in Yanshu's hand before they exchanged a silent glance and entered the hall.
Having resolved the case at the Envoy's residence and released a new story, Yanshu had certainly earned some rest.
In the coming days, she planned to relax while also keeping an eye on readers' reactions.
-- After all, this time she had written a supernatural tale, and it was a long serial story. She wasn't entirely sure if readers would enjoy it.
However, just two days later, Fu Hai brought her a sack full of letters from readers outside the palace.
Come to think of it, she had been publishing less frequently since becoming pregnant, so reader correspondence had also decreased. Receiving so many letters right after releasing a new story showed that readers hadn't forgotten her. Yanshu was very excited and immediately began opening and reading them.
Most of the letters either inquired why she hadn't published anything in so long and asked if she was doing well, which warmed her heart;
Or, as before, they shared their thoughts after reading the new story. Overall, the reception seemed quite positive.
However, there were a few letters that caught her by surprise --
They questioned in very strong terms whether she was actually a woman, and admonished her that she should stay quietly in the women's quarters instead of writing to seek attention.
Yanshu was baffled. "???"
What was going on?
First of all, why did they think she was a woman?
Had she slipped up somewhere?
And why did they think she shouldn't be writing stories???
The system explained: [Let's address these issues one by one. First, why they think you're a woman -- You've been publishing less frequently lately, right? Seeing readers eagerly waiting, some people tried to impersonate you and write stories. But their writing style and plots weren't quite right, so the results weren't great. With no other options, these people started analyzing your stories carefully. They noticed that most of your villains are men, while most women are innocent victims. So they speculated that you might hate men, and concluded you could be a woman.]
[Plus, in this latest story, the demon-slaying protagonist is also a woman, which further convinced them you must be female.]
Hearing this, Yanshu zeroed in on the key point: [...What kind of reasoning is that? There are both good and bad people of both genders in the world. I don't only write about male villains. How can they conclude I hate men based on that?]
System: [This is actually a means of competition. After all, once this conclusion is spread, won't it cause more people to be suspicious?]
Yanshu: [......]
Well, they must have achieved their goal, otherwise she wouldn't have received such a strongly worded letter.
So she still asked incredulously, [Why are they so angry that I'm a woman? Didn't they like my stories before? What does this have to do with gender?]
System: [That's the logic, but some people just can't accept it. Especially now that you've come out with this female knight story, they think you're biased against men. They're convinced you have a prejudice against males because you made a demon-slaying hero a woman.]
Yanshu: [......]
This was truly speechless. There have been countless male hero figures throughout history, she just wanted to write something different. How could this lead to such an interpretation?
Besides, Sun Wukong also vanquished demons and monsters, didn't he? He wasn't even human. Would these people think that story was biased against humanity?
System: [Well said! But people born with prejudices won't think about these things.]
Yanshu: [...Well, let them think what they want. If these people can't accept it, so be it. I am a woman after all, and I can't possibly change that for them, can I?]
With that, she decided not to care anymore and just patted her belly, saying, "Come on, Mother will take you to pick some lotus seed pods!"
Then she got up and went out.
As the peak of summer had passed and the weather was turning cooler, the lotus flowers in the Taiye Pool were about to wither. It was the season for harvesting lotus seed pods, and these days, the palace maids were busy collecting them in the Taiye Pool. It was quite a lively scene.
Rather than thinking about these vexing matters, it was better to go out and clear her mind.
Every day after noon was the time for the Empress Dowager's nap.
The Empress Dowager didn't like having people around when she slept, so Nanny Zhuang had some free time again and returned to the duty room.
Upon entering, she saw Zhu Shu holding a book, and it was none other than the Carefree Master's story that the Empress Dowager loved so much.
She snorted and said, "Now that Her Majesty has Lady Yi, she doesn't need you to read anymore. Why are you still looking at this?"
Zhu Shu felt a pang in her heart, but said, "I heard that people outside are saying the author of these stories is actually a woman, so I just wanted to take another look."
Hearing this, Nanny Zhuang remembered something else and said to Zhu Shu, "Speaking of which, why did Lady Yi used to read stories to Her Majesty without avoiding people, but now she always avoids others every time? Could something have happened during those three days when I was at the temple?"
Zhu Shu thought for a moment before putting down the book and saying, "At that time, I was sent by the Empress Dowager to deliver a reward to Lady Yi. I noticed that the pen she was using was very similar to the one the Empress Dowager had given to the Carefree Master, so I mentioned it in front of the Empress Dowager. But as soon as I finished speaking, she came in, saying she had an urgent matter to report to the Empress Dowager privately. Since then, every time she comes, the Empress Dowager sends us all out."
Upon hearing this, Nanny Zhuang immediately frowned.
"She came just as you finished speaking? Could it be that she had a guilty conscience? Was she afraid you would expose her, so she took the initiative to confess to Her Majesty?"
Zhu Shu replied, "I've thought about that too, but if she really had taken the reward the Empress Dowager meant for the Carefree Master, why isn't Her Majesty angry at all? In fact, she seems to be treating her even better now. Have you ever seen Her Majesty treat anyone else this well, Nanny?"
Especially the other day, when the Empress Dowager actually spoke up in front of so many people, saying not to send more people into the palace harem...
Just thinking about this made Zhu Shu particularly uncomfortable.
Since ancient times, wasn't it most common for emperors to have three palaces and six courts? It was one thing for her to want to monopolize His Majesty, but how could she make the Empress Dowager speak up for her like this!
Then she heard Nanny Zhuang say, "You're right. I've been by Her Majesty's side for so many years, and I know that what Her Majesty values most is character. If Lady Yi had done something like that, Her Majesty definitely wouldn't pay her any attention. So looking at it this way, at least regarding the pen issue, Lady Yi should be clear of suspicion."
Zhu Shu nodded upon hearing this.
After all, she had later found out that there were two sets of those lake pens in total, both tributes from the Governor of Jiangnan. One set was presented to His Majesty, and one set to the Empress Dowager. It was very likely that the one Lady Yi had was given to her by His Majesty.
However, the fact that His Majesty would so casually give such a precious item to Lady Yi for practicing calligraphy made Zhu Shu even more uncomfortable.
Just then, she heard Nanny Zhuang say, "Is it possible that the pen was meant for her?"
Zhu Shu was stunned, still not quite understanding.
Then she heard Nanny Zhuang continue, "The Empress Dowager has seen plenty of flowery words and clever speech over the years. Even someone as smart as Lady An couldn't win the Empress Dowager's favor once her ambition was exposed. So for the Empress Dowager to like Lady Yi so much now, she must have some extraordinary quality."
Zhu Shu retorted, "Isn't it because she's carrying the imperial heir?"
Nanny Zhuang dismissed this, saying, "Even if our Noble Consort had been carrying the imperial heir back then, do you think the Empress Dowager would have treated her the way she treats Lady Yi now?"
Zhu Shu paused.
She had to admit, it was true.
Given Zhou Consort's personality back then, even if she had truly been pregnant with the imperial heir, the Empress Dowager probably wouldn't have been so kind to her...
But what extraordinary quality did this Lady Yi have that could capture the Empress Dowager's heart?
Then she heard Nanny Zhuang say, "Since she always avoids others when she comes to read stories to Her Majesty... could it be that besides reading these stories, she and Her Majesty have some conversations that others shouldn't hear?"
This was exactly what Zhu Shu wanted to know. Upon hearing this, she frowned and said, "I can't figure it out either. In the past, besides having her read stories, Her Majesty would only ask about the Carefree Master's affairs..."
At this point, she suddenly paused.
She heard Nanny Zhuang say, "That's right. In the past, Her Majesty would often mention wanting to meet the Carefree Master, but now she doesn't talk about it anymore."
Zhu Shu furrowed her brows, with an incredulous look on her face, "Could it be... that she is the Carefree Master?"
......
After admiring the harvest scene by the Taiye Pool and picking a bag of fresh lotus seed pods, Yanshu was about to head back.
However, every couple of steps, she heard the System chime in, [Pay attention now. Just now, Zhu Shu and Nanny Zhuang were gossiping in the duty room and deduced that you are very likely to be the Carefree Master. They're planning to spread the news now.]
Yanshu: [???]
This really wasn't necessary.
Was it that fun to rush to expose her privacy?
It was one thing if she wanted to announce it herself, but it was quite another to have others sneakily leak it.
So she immediately changed her plans and gave instructions to Rendong and Lianxin who were following her.
The two immediately complied and set off separately.
Not long after, the Empress Dowager saw Yanshu approach with a bag of lotus seed pods.
"Your Majesty, these are lotus seed pods from the Taiye Pool. I just went to pick them myself and saw that they looked good, so I brought them specially for you to taste."
The Empress Dowager looked at the full basket of lotus seed pods and smiled, "Why did you bring so many?"
In fact, this was because Yanshu had been greedy. Earlier by the lake, seeing that each lotus pod was bigger and fresher than the last, she couldn't resist and took this many.
But now she sighed and said, "I've been feeling uneasy and heated these past couple of days. The imperial physician said lotus seeds can calm the mind and clear heat, so I planned to take more to eat slowly."
Hearing this, the Empress Dowager frowned and said, "Child, how did you suddenly become heated?"
She saw Yanshu with an expression as if she wanted to speak but held back.
The Empress Dowager then waved her hand at the palace maids in the hall, saying, "You may all leave first."
Nanny Zhuang, who was nearby, paused slightly but had to comply and retreated with the others.
In her heart, she couldn't help but wonder what Lady Yi was going to say to the Empress Dowager this time, since she hadn't brought a storybook.
In the blink of an eye, there were no outsiders left in the hall.
The Empress Dowager then said gently, "Tell me, has something happened again? Don't hide anything from me."
Yanshu felt warmth in her heart and said, "Something did happen these past few days that has been troubling me. As you know, I wrote about a female knight in my new story. I originally just wanted to create a character different from the male heroes in the market, but I didn't expect this to upset some people outside. Not only have some people guessed that I'm a woman, but in the past few days, some have even written letters cursing at me, saying that if I'm a woman, I should stay properly in the boudoir and not come out to seek attention."
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager immediately furrowed her brow and said, "What's wrong with these people? Haven't they always been eager for women to write stories before? They actually wrote letters to scold you? It's too much!"
Yanshu nodded and said, "I don't quite understand their thoughts either, but this world has always looked down on women, and I've thought about such a situation before. If they don't like it, so be it. This isn't the most important thing. What I'm worried about now is whether someone will guess my identity in a few days and make an issue of it."
The Empress Dowager didn't seem concerned and said, "What's there to be afraid of? After all, His Majesty asked you to write these novels, and you're just following orders. There's no palace rule saying women in the harem can't write novels. If those old fogies dare to make a big fuss about this, His Majesty and I will stand up for you."
Hearing this, Yanshu was incredibly touched. She immediately stood up and bowed, saying, "I am grateful for Your Majesty's protection."
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "Get up. I thought something serious had happened. Is it worth being so anxious about this?"
Yanshu couldn't help but smile sheepishly.
Just then, a voice came from outside, "Reporting to the Empress Dowager, Eunuch Fu Hai requests an audience."
Hmm, why has Fu Hai suddenly come?
The Empress Dowager was also a bit surprised and said, "Let him in."
The person outside acknowledged and opened the palace doors. Sure enough, Fu Hai entered carrying a basket. After paying his respects, he said, "Reporting to the Empress Dowager, fresh grapes have just arrived from Qingyuan County in Taiyuan Prefecture. His Majesty saw they were fresh and specially asked this servant to bring you a basket."
As he spoke, he lifted the cover of the basket, revealing bunches of fresh grapes inside, each grape plump and purple-red, looking delicious at first glance.
The Empress Dowager nodded, "Qingyuan grapes are indeed good. I'm grateful for His Majesty's thoughtfulness. You may set it down."
Fu Hai acknowledged and handed the basket to the palace maid who came forward to receive it.
Then he looked around the hall and said, "By the way, I wonder if Miss Zhu Shu is around these days?"
The Empress Dowager made a sound of surprise and asked curiously, "What do you want with Zhu Shu?"
Fu Hai replied, "Just now, the guards at the palace gate said they caught a young eunuch with some silver and a letter on him, which seemed suspicious. When questioned, the young eunuch claimed that Miss Zhu Shu had asked him to deliver a letter to her relatives outside the palace."
Hearing this, the Empress Dowager paused for a moment, then immediately called for Zhu Shu to be brought before her. She asked, "Isn't your family in Lu Prefecture? When did you get relatives in the capital?"
At this point, Zhu Shu, having heard the news, was very nervous and was quickly trying to think of an excuse to answer.
But Fu Hai continued after the Empress Dowager's question, saying, "Yes, this servant also knows that Miss Zhu Shu is not from the capital. I'm afraid that young eunuch might have stolen Miss Zhu Shu's silver, so I came specifically to ask about it."
As he finished speaking, suspicion was already evident in the Empress Dowager's eyes.
Zhu Shu became even more nervous and hurriedly said, "...He didn't steal it. I asked him to keep some silver for me outside the palace. I heard that the interest rates for saving money outside are high, so I thought to prepare for the future. I also asked him to help forward a letter to Lu Prefecture for me."
Unexpectedly, Fu Hai made a sound of surprise and said, "That's strange. Doesn't the palace have its own postal service? The day after tomorrow is the day for collecting letters. Did you have some urgent matter, Miss? Moreover, the place that young man mentioned, the guards checked, and it's a book printing shop. It's not a bank at all. Miss, could it be that you've been deceived?"
What? A book printing shop?
The Empress Dowager, having heard all this, suddenly said in a cold voice, "Tell me honestly, what exactly are you trying to do!"
