Chapter 8: Let You See Things and Think of Eunuch Yuan?

“Xiao Yuanzi has gone to investigate the Household Department. Empress, you go and brew tea for me.”

Feng Changye glanced at Zhu Wuhuan, then lowered his head to review the memorials.

Zhu Wuhuan looked completely surprised.

As she walked toward the imperial desk to pick up the teacup, she complained to the system in her heart.

【Oh my god, he wants to kill my entire family, yet he still dares to have the nerve to let me make him tea! Isn’t he afraid that while I’m in the back brewing, I’ll poison him and take him down with me? With such a big heart, no wonder he drops dead in three years. If he doesn’t drop dead, who would?】

Even the system, for once, stood on her side.

【The host is right, this tyrant’s thinking is indeed abnormal. I don’t understand either—he clearly said he wanted to imprison you, so why did he summon you to the Hall of Supreme Harmony again? What’s the meaning of calling you here?】

“……” Feng Changye lowered his head, listening to the woman and the system once again badmouthing him.

He was calmer than before.

This level of complaint, he was already able to keep his mood steady.

He thought to himself: Why exactly did he summon Zhu Wuhuan here?

Heh, aside from testing the effects of the Strength Pill, of course he also wanted to use the chance to pardon the Zhu family from their death sentence…

Now that he had witnessed the effects of the Strength Pill, it was time to find a reason to pardon the Zhu family.

Zhu Wuhuan unwillingly walked to Feng Changye’s side, picked up the teacup and tray beside his hand, then turned to head toward the back hall to make tea.

【Tch, first you made me kneel, now you’re making me serve like a maid and brew tea for you. Does a tyrant like you deserve to enjoy my service?】

She had only walked two steps when her eyes shifted, and a thought struck her.

Her hand holding the teacup gave a light squeeze!

Crack! With a sharp sound, the teacup broke again!

Feigning fright, she held the fragments innocently and turned back to look at Feng Changye, accusing first.

“Your Majesty, you really must have Eunuch Yuan carefully investigate the Household Department! They’re simply too outrageous! Look! The quality of this batch of teacups is problematic! Even the one Your Majesty used just broke!”

With lingering fear, she patted her chest and said:

“Fortunately, this cup broke in my hands. If it had been just a little later, if I had brewed a cup of boiling tea and you held it in your hand when it shattered, then Your Majesty’s incomparably precious, priceless hands would have been ruined!”

“……” Ha!

Feng Changye gripped his brush tightly and slowly raised his head to look at Zhu Wuhuan.

Facing her innocent gaze, watching her superb acting, he nearly wanted to put down the brush and clap for her!

Truly marvelous! Another teacup destroyed!

If it weren’t for the fact that he could hear her inner thoughts—hearing her say with his own ears that this tyrant didn’t deserve her service—wouldn’t he have really been fooled by her, believing this batch of teacups was defective?

Just as he thought of this, his gaze turned subtle.

No.

Even if he had heard her thoughts, didn’t he still have to pretend to be fooled?

Could he possibly stand up, point at her nose, and say: this teacup is perfectly fine, you deliberately crushed it?

He couldn’t reveal that he had mind-reading abilities, so he could only act like a fool and play along with this damn woman, letting her “trick” him!

Suppressing the irritation in his heart, he instantly adjusted his emotions.

With a flick of strength in his fingers—snap—the brush broke into two pieces!

He looked into her eyes, face cold, and snapped in anger:

“The Household Department truly has guts like bears and leopards! Once I catch the culprit, I will have her torn apart by five horses and ground to ashes!”

A chill crept up Zhu Wuhuan’s back.

Strange, the damned tyrant was clearly angry at the Household Department, so why did she feel a cold dread?

“Empress.”
“Your concubine is here.”

Zhu Wuhuan steadied herself and looked at Feng Changye.

Feng Changye said calmly, “Go brew me a cup of cold tea. That dog from the Household Department has truly enraged me. I need cold tea to cool my temper.”

Zhu Wuhuan felt that the “dog” he cursed was actually referring to her. After all, she was the true culprit who broke the cup…

She bowed and left to brew the tea.

Sigh, it seemed this tea was unavoidable today, she couldn’t escape it!

She followed the palace maids into the back hall.

There, several treasure shelves stood, each neatly lined with pretty porcelain jars, sealed and filled with tea leaves.

At a glance, she saw a row labeled Mengding Stone Flower, Xishan White Dew, Xianya Stone Flower, Shenquan Small Tuan… all teas she had never heard of.

She didn’t understand tea, nor did she like to drink it. After one glance, she looked away.

Then she turned her eyes to the left front.

By the window was a small red clay stove, boiling with water, steam curling upward, always ready for the tyrant’s tea.

On the long table beside it, a row of celadon teacups was neatly arranged, along with delicate teapots.

Zhu Wuhuan asked the little eunuch tending the stove, “Is there any cold tea already brewed?”

The eunuch quickly kowtowed, then presented a pot of cold tea.

“Empress, this is the prepared cold tea.”

“Mm.”

Zhu Wuhuan nodded and casually pointed at a small teacup. “Pour one.”

The eunuch was dumbfounded.

He looked at the teapot in his hands, then looked up at Zhu Wuhuan.

Empress, shouldn’t you personally pour for His Majesty?

You’re just standing here doing nothing, leaving a lowly water-boiling slave like me to pour tea for the emperor?

I’m not worthy!

He looked at Zhu Wuhuan, and Zhu Wuhuan looked back at him.

She thought: You’re not worthy to pour tea for the damned tyrant? Well, the damned tyrant isn’t worthy to drink tea poured by me!

“Pour.”

“……” The little eunuch silently looked at Zhu Wuhuan a few more times. Unable to go against this empress, he could only turn back, wash his already clean hands again, and then pour the tea.

As he poured, he thought—

Sigh, poor Empress, she must have been chilled to the bone by His Majesty’s treatment. Anyone could see her unwillingness to serve. Even we lowly servants can tell!

But you can’t blame her either. The Zhu family was loyal to the bone—who among the common people didn’t know? And now, to end up with the whole clan executed, who wouldn’t feel cold-hearted?

While the eunuch poured, the idle Zhu Wuhuan looked around the table.

Suddenly, she saw a jeweled dagger beneath the table.

She was especially surprised.

“How come there’s a dagger here?”

She walked over, picked it up, and toyed with it, asking the eunuch, “So close to the emperor’s Hall of Supreme Harmony, aren’t weapons supposed to be forbidden?”

The eunuch finished pouring, covered the cup, then turned to see the dagger in her hand. Respectfully, he said, “Replying to the Empress, this is Eunuch Yuan’s dagger. His Majesty trusts and favors him, specially allowing him to carry it for self-defense. He left in a hurry just now and forgot to take it.”

Zhu Wuhuan frowned at the dagger, faintly feeling something was off, but couldn’t recall what.

She didn’t think more of it, put the dagger back under the table, and carried the cold tea back to the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

Coming to Feng Changye’s side, she handed him the cup, which he took.

Feng Changye looked up at her. “You saw the dagger in the tea room?”

Zhu Wuhuan nodded. “I did. Would Your Majesty like it? Then I’ll go fetch it for you?”

Eunuch Yuan isn’t here. If you carry his dagger, it might help you think of him, right?

“……” This tea was truly undrinkable.