“Y-Your Majesty! Greetings to Your Majesty! Long live Your Majesty!” The Assistant Minister of Revenue knelt, trembling, and then addressed the empress, “Greetings to Your Majesty the Empress. Wishing Your Grace good health.”

Yuan Ruan: 【Don’t forget me! Big Brother, give me a grand entrance!】

The emperor: …

She really knows how to command me.

The Assistant Minister froze. What? That mysterious voice is here too?

The emperor then spoke. “What’s the matter? Are you ignoring my child?”

The Assistant Minister looked up in shock and saw the emperor lifting a small baby by her armpits, raising her slightly above his shoulders.

The baby instantly became the tallest person in the room, tilting her chin upward slightly, waiting as if expecting formal greetings.

The Assistant Minister: …

Wait… could that mysterious voice from earlier belong to this baby?!

Hold on, the emperor’s reaction… could he hear the voice too?

The Assistant Minister was so startled by this thought that he collapsed onto the floor in a sitting position.

Then, scrambling to his knees, he began bowing repeatedly. “Greetings, Young Princess! I… I deserve to die a thousand times over! I was disrespectful in Your Majesty’s presence—it’s all my fault!”

Yuan Ruan was taken aback:

Yuan Ruan: 【Why did he suddenly kneel in fear? Is Big Brother really that intimidating?】

The emperor’s mouth twitched slightly: …

Why blame me again? It’s not me—it’s because of your inner thoughts he can hear.

Indeed, the emperor realized from the Assistant Minister’s reaction that he, too, could hear Yuan Ruan’s voice.

This intrigued the emperor. He hadn’t expected someone outside the palace to also have the ability to hear her thoughts. What was the mechanism behind this? What were the criteria for such an ability?

The emperor fell into deep thought.

Meanwhile, the Assistant Minister knelt so long his knees felt numb, but he didn’t dare move.

After some time, his concubine, tired of waiting outside, stepped in. First, she asked, “Husband, what’s wrong?” Then, noticing the emperor, she curtsied and said, “Your Grace, my husband…”

“Stop talking! Bow to His Majesty at once,” the Assistant Minister interrupted, quickly pulling the concubine forward and lowering his voice. “Be careful—you’re with child.”

At that moment, the inner voice rang out again:

System: 【Host, I’ve finally uncovered something! Looking at how lovey-dovey those two are, I suspect this isn’t about stolen tribute at all—it’s a setup meant to trap the beautiful lady.】

Both the emperor and empress immediately darkened their expressions.

The Assistant Minister noticed this and was nearly scared to death.

Please don’t say such things in front of His Majesty!

He was a paragon of filial piety, praised and recommended by three respected village elders. How could he possibly steal tribute items?

Desperately anxious, the Assistant Minister wanted to confront the baby, but the emperor’s warning glare stopped him cold.

At that moment, Yuan Ruan curiously asked the system:

Yuan Ruan: 【Huh? What’s going on? Explain.】

System: 【Take a look for yourself.】

Yuan Ruan scanned the scene carefully, her round eyes gradually curving into crescent moons as she chuckled.

Yuan Ruan: 【Pfft, hahaha… How thrilling! No wonder they couldn’t find the items—they’re hidden in her belly!】

Everyone: ???

Consort Rong, who had also entered the inner hall, immediately looked at the concubine upon hearing this.

Raising her eyebrows sharply, Consort Rong stood and pointed at the concubine. “Your complexion looks off. It seems your pregnancy is unstable. I have an excellent female physician who can examine you.”

The concubine quickly covered her belly, her face full of panic.

The Assistant Minister, not yet grasping the situation, anxiously helped her up and asked, “Did you fall? Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, but… but my baby,” the concubine said weakly, leaning bonelessly against him. “I’m frightened… I want to go back and see a doctor.”

The Assistant Minister finally began to piece things together but hesitated when he saw her pleading gaze.

Clenching his teeth, he stood and lifted her into his arms. “Your Majesty, I deserve to die a thousand times over. But my wife is weak, and I… I humbly request permission to leave and seek medical attention.”

Yuan Ruan: 【Twenty pounds of jewelry stuffed inside her belly—how is that not heavy? Truly, a masterful actress!】

The Assistant Minister of Revenue suddenly stopped in his tracks.

System: 【Yuan Ruan, I’m more curious about how she managed to do it. How could she make a fake pregnancy belly so convincing? Every time she comes and goes, she stuffs it with a large amount of jewelry, yet no one has ever searched her or discovered it.】

The emperor’s face darkened slightly. How dare they neglect their duties.

The Assistant Minister’s face turned pale: ???

A fake pregnancy belly? How could that be…

But if it was fake, then it made sense why no searches were conducted—because he had relied on his status to ensure no one dared search his concubine’s body.

System: 【This counts as embezzlement and abuse of power. And thinking about how he’s been raising someone else’s children… well, pitiable people often have contemptible traits.】

The Assistant Minister: !!!

Raising someone else’s children?!

Dazed, he suddenly lifted his gaze and stared at Lady Rong. If Lady Rong wasn’t his daughter, so be it, but could his son also not be his?

How many times had his late wife cheated on him?!

If that were the case, the only children truly his would be the ones his concubine bore.

Determined, the Assistant Minister clenched his fists and suddenly cupped his hands, bowing to Consort Rong. “Your Grace, you and I both know the truth about certain matters. That dowry should belong to the Liu family. If it could cover this shortfall for His Majesty…” A flash of disgust crossed his face. “Then I—I would forgive the wrongs committed by your late mother.”

Consort Rong sneered.

Yuan Ruan: 【What?! Does this mean Consort Rong isn’t his biological child either? So, of the four children he’s raised, not a single one is his?!】

The empress choked on her water. This… this was too much!

Even the emperor turned to look at the Assistant Minister. Was there not a single hat on his head that wasn’t green*?

(*Note: A “green hat” in Chinese culture signifies being cuckolded.)

The Assistant Minister: ???

What?

Four… four children?

Could the voice be referring to not Consort Rong and her brother, but rather…

The Assistant Minister didn’t want to believe it, but the emperor and empress’s knowing gazes, along with the voice’s uncanny accuracy, made him doubt further.

Dazed, he stared at his concubine, unable to resist testing her.

He suddenly said, “Have you betrayed me?”

In that instant, he saw her clench her fists, a flash of panic crossing her face before she steadied herself and replied, “Husband, you wrong me! Ever since I… left my boudoir and married into the capital, I have been devoted to you!”

System: 【Hahaha, what acting skills! She used to be a top courtesan at Huainan’s most famous flower house. Redefining ‘boudoir upbringing,’ indeed. After arriving in the capital, she even encountered three or four old patrons from her past, silencing them one by one with… her body. So, yes, she has been devoted—but her body and her children don’t count in that.】

The emperor: …

The empress: …

Even Consort Rong took a sharp breath. This wasn’t just about her identity being false—she was still so promiscuous even after marriage?!

The Assistant Minister: …

He was completely stunned.

So, his gentel wife wasn’t from a noble family but had been a courtesan?

And the children… were all from her former clients?!

Yuan Ruan: 【Tsk… loyal to the flesh, not the heart? If she hadn’t married, she might’ve been a role model for our generation!】

The emperor, empress, and Consort Rong: !!!

Sometimes, keeping a straight face was the hardest thing, especially when you couldn’t smack a cheeky child on her bottom.

System: 【Wait, there’s more. Consort Rong’s father doesn’t seem to be her accomplice. His wife was introduced to him by someone from his hometown. Turns out, this so-called friend was jealous of him becoming an official and marrying a beauty, so they intentionally set him up with a courtesan to ruin his family.】

The Assistant Minister: …

He was on the verge of tears.

The person he had trusted most as a close friend had harbored jealousy all along. And now that he thought about it, every rumor about Consort Rong not resembling him had originated from this “friend.”

Yuan Ruan was busy consulting with the system:

Yuan Ruan: 【So, now that we’ve found the gold, does that mean my national destiny task is complete?】

As soon as she said this, the emperor, empress, and Consort Rong all focused their attention on Yuan Ruan.

Just then, everyone was startled by a loud, angry shout.

They turned to see the Assistant Minister furiously tearing at his concubine’s clothes.

Yuan Ruan gasped and covered her eyes:

Yuan Ruan: 【Morals are in decline, and hearts are growing colder by the day!】

The emperor, empress, and Consort Rong: …

If only the pair of big, curious eyes peeking through her tiny fingers weren’t darting around so eagerly, her words might’ve been more convincing.