Echoes of My Heart Throughout the Court-Chapter 314: Am I Also Part of Your Play? New

Packing up is never a trivial matter!

Xu Lang felt like he had made a huge mistake:

[Damn it! I won’t take a single thing that doesn’t belong to me, but this is allowed by the rules! According to my rank, I should be entitled to seven dishes, right?]

[I hate wasting food, so I always just order two or three dishes!]

[I’ve been losing out!]

Not being able to take advantage of the system, Xu Yanmiao was heartbroken.

He was the type of person who, if a bakery had a promotion where spending five coins on bread earned a one-coin milk voucher, would absolutely make sure to claim that voucher—even if the milk was a full 2 liters.

Even if he ended up giving the bread to his roommates, he would still make sure to get the freebie.

During New Year’s, he never missed out on which milk tea shop gave out free drinks for holiday greetings, which stores handed out vouchers for scanning a QR code, which KTVs had free singing hours, or which department stores gave out tissues with laundry detergent purchases.

Diligent and thrifty young man.jpg

The old emperor and the crown prince both nodded in agreement.

Yes, yes, if it’s rightfully yours, why shouldn’t you take it?

[Tomorrow… no, starting today, I’m going to start packing up leftovers! If I can’t finish it, I’ll donate it to charity or give it to beggars!]

Xu Yanmiao felt like he couldn’t breathe from the pain of all the wasted portions over the past three years. He was so upset that he didn’t even have the mood to pay attention to gossip anymore.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Rites’ smile grew wider and wider.

An unexpected delight!

The Minister of War glanced quickly in Xu Yanmiao’s direction before lowering his head slightly and sighing.

As expected, Xu Yanmiao represented instability—no one could predict what he would do next.

But that was fine. He still had another plan in place!

The Minister of War stepped forward and cupped his hands. “Your Majesty, I have something to say.”

The old emperor: “Speak.”

The Minister of War spoke with deep meaning: “Your Majesty, generals and ministers should be in harmony… but how can generals and ministers truly be in harmony?”

The court fell into an unusual silence. Everyone subtly glanced at the Vice Minister of Rites and the Grand General.

The Grand General’s face turned red, then pale.

He was being called out.

If the Vice Minister of Rites became Minister, then what would it mean for a Minister and a General to be so closely connected?

—And not just any close connection, but the kind that shared the same bed!

“You damned featherless old beast!”

The Grand General lunged forward and threw a punch—

“Ow!”

The Minister of War clutched his face.

Other ministers quickly stepped in to pull them apart. “This isn’t necessary! General, this really isn’t necessary! Someone could die!”

The Grand General clenched his fists and sneered, “Li Qian, I may not be as good at arguing as you scholars, but from now on, every time I see you, I’ll beat you up!”

The Minister of War rubbed his face and gasped.

That Qin brute hit really hard!

All he did was use them as a pawn in his argument!

“Your Majesty!” The Minister of War shouted loudly, “Look at him!”

The Grand General immediately raised his voice even louder: “Your Majesty! Look at him too!”

The Grand General looked deeply aggrieved. “Your Majesty, Xing Chong and I are both over fifty. We’ve lived most of our lives, and we don’t even have children because we didn’t want to hinder our careers. What’s wrong with Xing Chong wanting to become Minister of Rites?”

The Minister of Rites coughed awkwardly.

Though he was aiming for the Prime Minister’s seat, he was still just a Minister at the moment. Wasn’t it a bit impolite to say it so openly?

But the Grand General wasn’t finished: “Your Majesty, we’re over fifty! Even if we wanted children now, we’re too old! Neither of us have children, so what kind of collusion are they talking about?”

Xu Yanmiao instinctively added: [You could adopt. Isn’t adoption considered the same as having a biological child in this era?]

The Grand General choked.

The Minister of War seized the opportunity to “help” Xu Yanmiao express his thoughts: “Then you can adopt too! Just because you can’t get it up doesn’t mean you can’t afford to raise a child!”

The Grand General’s attention was instantly diverted. He shouted even louder: “Who says I can’t get it up?! You’re the one who can’t! Don’t project your problems onto me! I wake up every morning standing at full attention!”

The conversation was getting more and more outrageous.

Not far away, the Vice Minister of Rites held his forehead with one hand, swaying slightly as if he might collapse.

The old emperor slammed the armrest hard and scolded fiercely, “Enough! This is a court assembly—what do you all think you’re doing? A marketplace brawl?! If you continue this nonsense, I’ll send you back to do your original jobs!”

The Minister of War and the Grand General immediately shut their mouths.

The old emperor declared, “As for who will be the Prime Minister, I have already made my decision.”

The court officials: “!!!”

Since when?!

[Who is it? Who is it?!]

[Is it the Minister of Rites? He did a great job reforming the Ministry of Rites—very capable!]

Instantly, the Minister of Rites’ gaze toward Xu Yanmiao became gentle.

What a good kid! Once I become Prime Minister, I’ll send him two baskets of cured meat!

Xu Yanmiao had no idea about the Minister of Rites’ “repay kindness with pork” thoughts and continued to speculate excitedly.

[Or is it the Minister of Personnel? He’s such a nice guy! Back during the exams, he did his best to help students whenever he could!]

The Minister of Personnel remained expressionless but unconsciously straightened his posture a little.

[Or maybe the Minister of War?]

The Minister of War’s face changed dramatically.

No way!!!

The old emperor spoke, “Minister of Works, Jin Jingchang…”

The Minister of Works’ eyes widened in shock before he burst into joy. “Your Majesty! I am here!”

He never expected this! In the end, he was the one who got the prize!

He had already given up hope, simply focusing on palace construction work!

The old emperor continued calmly, “…is appointed as the Right Prime Minister.”

The court officials: “!!!”

[Wow!]

The old emperor then announced, “Minister of War, Li Qian, is appointed as the Left Prime Minister.”

[Whoa!!]

Xu Yanmiao paused for a moment before blurting out, [He’s splitting the prime minister’s power!]

The Minister of War couldn’t help but glance at the Heavenly Emperor Tian Tong’s expression.

Nothing could be discerned.

So, he could only step forward, bow, and say, “I accept the decree.”

[Tsk tsk, so the old emperor had been working on weakening the Prime Minister’s power all along.]

With the help of his system, Xu Yanmiao quickly flipped through historical records.

The more he read, the more astonished he became.

[He started setting up the Six Ministries back in the sixth year of the Tian Tong era! The Six Ministries were given independent authority, and their censors could submit reports directly to the emperor without going through the Grand Censorate… Isn’t this a system where any official in the Six Ministries can bypass their superiors and directly reach the emperor?]

[They only answer to the emperor—basically an inner court bureau.]

[There are now two separate administrative structures. The Prime Ministers can only command the Six Ministries, but they have no control over the Six Ministries’ Censorate.]

[Besides, the Six Ministries officials don’t hold high ranks—the highest being the Chief Minister of Memorials at just the seventh rank. That means if the emperor wants to remove them in the future, it’ll be easy!]

[Also, the power to veto imperial decrees used to belong to the Prime Minister.]

[Not to mention the Hanlin Academy, which is responsible for drafting edicts—another duty that used to be the Prime Minister’s job!]

[No wonder the Minister of War never even considered fighting for the position. The Prime Minister’s powers have already been divided up… well, maybe not entirely, but at least fifty or sixty percent?]

[Either way, a huge chunk is gone.]

The Minister of War licked his dry, cracked lips—probably because he forgot to drink water before bed last night. With all eyes on him, he didn’t dare to nod.

He could only raise an imaginary sign in his heart, fully agreeing: Even if the Prime Minister still holds half of the old authority, it’s still far more responsibility than being a minister. It’s an exhausting job with heavy duties, always under scrutiny, and bound to be purged by His Majesty sooner or later. No way I want that!

Unfortunately, he wasn’t the emperor’s son, so he couldn’t just slack off openly like the Crown Prince.

The old emperor scanned the court. “Does anyone object?”

Silence.

Not that it mattered to the emperor—this was just a formality. He was only asking out of courtesy.

He continued, “Minister of Revenue, Yuan Zheng, is reassigned as Minister of Works.”

Xu Yanmiao was shocked: [Is the old emperor taking personal revenge? Did he reassign him just because the Minister of Revenue is too stingy with money?]

Xu Lang’s internal monologue was so powerful that it seemed to silence the entire court. Strange looks fell upon the emperor.

…Surely not?

The old emperor steadied himself, barely stopping the words “That’s nonsense!” from bursting out. But deep inside, he still defended himself loudly: What kind of absurdity is this?! Am I such a petty man?! It’s just that Yuan Zheng has been sitting in the Minister of Revenue’s seat for too long—he needs to be moved!

(—When the emperor calls a minister by his full name, it doesn’t count as an insult.)

The old emperor asked, “Yuan Zheng, do you have any objections?”

The Minister of Revenue shot his boss an exasperated look before bowing. “I have no objections, Your Majesty.”

He then began mentally calculating how long it would take before he could return to the Ministry of Revenue because…

[Hahahahahaha!]

[Every time the old emperor loses patience, he transfers someone out of the Ministry of Revenue—only to regret it later and transfer them back.]

[No need to “hahahaha” so hard!]

The Minister of Revenue nodded slightly.

Indeed, no need to…

The old emperor remained expressionless. “Left Vice Minister of Revenue, Jiang Weizhong, is appointed as Minister of Revenue.”

Jiang Weizhong: “……”

A thousand words were stuck in his throat—he desperately needed someone to speak for him.

At this critical moment, once again, Xu Yanmiao stepped in to share his thoughts: [Ah, so before, the Minister of Revenue’s seat was left empty, but now they’re just plugging the hole with someone new… Jiang Weizhong, are you also just another piece in their play?]

Though he didn’t understand what “play” meant, Jiang Weizhong immediately grasped the tone and feeling behind it.

He glanced at Xu Yanmiao, eyes brimming with emotion.

Then, he stepped forward and respectfully bowed. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

The old emperor continued, “Censor-in-Chief Jiao Cai is appointed as Minister of War.”

—He was the successor to Ji Sui, and had only been in office since the 34th year of the Tian Tong era. Now, less than a year later, he was being promoted again.

Jiao Cai was so overwhelmed with excitement that even his legs twitched slightly.

After all, unlike the Minister of Revenue, his position was solid. He was sure he could stay in power for a long time!

Next, the old emperor filled the now-vacant positions of Censor-in-Chief and Left Vice Minister of Revenue. Each of the newly promoted officials left behind vacancies, creating a chain reaction of promotions—one after another.

Everyone had a chance for advancement. Everyone had a bright future.

The old emperor asked, “Does anyone have anything else to report?”

After waiting for a while, no one stepped forward. Even that little troublemaker Xu didn’t jump out to cause him a headache. It seemed today’s court session could end perfectly.

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Feeling refreshed, the old emperor happily announced, “Court is dismissed!”

He boarded his palanquin and left in high spirits.

Before long, an imperial guard from the Jinyiwei hurried over to report, “Your Majesty… the newly appointed Ministers of War and Revenue, they…”

The old emperor, still in a good mood, asked, “What about them?”

Jinyiwei: “They were beaten up by some street thugs… right outside the palace gates.”

The old emperor: “……?”

The old emperor: “What?”

The Jinyiwei braced himself and repeated, “They were beaten up by some street thugs… right outside the palace gates.”

A joke popped into his head, but he didn’t dare say it out loud—

Their eyes were so swollen, they looked like two giant peaches!

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