The Little Eunuch glanced cautiously left and right, then whispered, "Your Majesty, there are no more teacups here. Shall I go out and get one back immediately?"

Most of the Emperor’s tea sets were silverware. Traditionally, emperors of past dynasties used silverware as tableware to prevent poisoning. The two porcelain teacups just now were exceptions, as the Emperor particularly liked them and had used them for a long time. In a fit of anger, he smashed them all just now. Now, there’s no need to worry about poisoning.

Every time the Emperor drank tea, his Personal Eunuch would taste it first, and then he would drink. This was known as the legendary poison testing among the people.

The eunuch beside the Emperor was politely called the Personal Eunuch, but more bluntly, he was merely a tool for testing poison.

The daily meals followed the same procedure, with every dish being tasted by the Personal Eunuch before the Emperor ate.

Upon hearing this, the Emperor glared hard at him and cursed, "Why are you trembling? Hurry up and get it! Are you trying to let me die of thirst?"

"This servant wouldn’t dare. This servant will go immediately."

After the Little Eunuch finished speaking, he dashed out quickly. The Emperor had been in a bad mood these days, as if any little thing triggered his anger. It was truly hard for him.

Indeed, the entire Capital was filled with curses, all saying the Emperor was incompetent and unscrupulous, causing so many people’s deaths for his own selfish interests.

The Emperor was extremely agitated. His capable assistants had been mostly crippled. Celestial Master Zhang had his hands chopped off, and after Zhao Yin tricked him, he too had vanished into thin air.

For a moment, the Emperor didn’t know whom to consult for countermeasures, feeling extremely irritable, seeing nothing pleasing. All he wanted to do was vent his anger, and those around him suffered. The Little Eunuch bore the brunt, living as if treading on thin ice, found life unbearable.

The Emperor was angry for several days, and the gossip outside grew increasingly aggressive. Under pressure, he had no choice but to plan the execution of the Fourth Prince to take the heat off himself.

On the streets, Imperial Edicts were posted everywhere, and the common folk started spreading the news...

"Oh my, have you seen it? The Emperor is going to execute the Fourth Prince!"

"I haven’t seen it, where is it? When?" 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

"You don’t know? There’s an Imperial Edict posted not far ahead, they’re all over the place now. A group of Government Soldiers just walked past, they’re the ones posting the edicts. I heard the execution is scheduled for 3 pm tomorrow."

"Really? That’s great! Oh my! You don’t know! My man went mad, and the government office took him away, leaving the family without a breadwinner or income. Three meals a day became a problem, and the little kids at home cried from hunger all night till dawn. We barely got through by drinking raw water. The Fourth Prince ruined our family; he deserves to die. Great, wonderful, it’s a good execution at last, finally avenging our man and the kids."

A woman began to complain incessantly, burdened by the household’s livelihood solely on her shoulders, struggling to catch her breath, harboring a belly full of grievances.

There were quite a few families in the Capital in similar situations as hers.

In Moli Country, males were valued over females. Men working outside earned some income, easing the burden of supporting a family. But for women, it was harder. Shops generally didn’t hire women, so women typically stayed home, assisting husbands and educating children. At most, they did some needlework and sold it at markets to earn some money for rouge and face powder.

Such money didn’t fetch much, making it even harder to sustain a living. It was evident how difficult it was for a woman to support a family alone.

Another woman said, "Alas! I’m in almost the same situation, that Fourth Prince really ruined us."

"Come, let’s go see the Imperial Edict together, this time it’s great, the Emperor finally stops shielding the guilty."