System: [Hehe, ah, Ah Ruan, eating melons is so fun that I forgot to activate the potato reward! Let me do it right now.]

The officials immediately perked up: Potatoes! Potatoes with yields of thousands of catties per acre are on the way!

The emperor and crown prince also refocused their attention.

A cup of tea, half an hour, nearly an hour passed…

Those who had heard the inner thoughts eagerly awaited the potatoes, while those who hadn’t simply remained still, seeing that neither the emperor nor the crown prince nor their colleagues were moving. Naturally, they didn’t dare move either.

The cold wind howled, and though everyone’s stomachs were nearly full, their legs were numb from kneeling. They couldn’t help but steal glances at Yuan Ruan.

Little divine child, are the potatoes coming today?

Yuan Ruan sneezed and wondered:

[Why are Brother and the Crown Prince still here? Is something big about to happen at this tavern?]

The group looked at her in misery: No, we’re just waiting for you.

System: [I don’t know! Strange, I clearly activated the treasure chest. Why hasn’t it arrived yet?]

Yuan Ruan poked her head out and, with a soft and slightly worried voice, said:

[Could someone have intercepted it? The chest has no markings. What if someone else takes it?]

System: [Impossible! I mixed it in with the tribute. Who would dare touch the emperor’s tribute?! But something is definitely off. Let me investigate.]

Yuan Ruan: [Okay, okay.]

Everyone who overheard nodded in agreement.

She made a good point. Normally, no one would dare tamper with the tyrant’s belongings.

Could it be intercepted by foreign forces?

At that moment, a sharp notification rang out:

[Ahhh! My treasure chest! When the tribute was being delivered, it collided with another cart and tipped over. Then the owner of the other cart outright snatched it! What should we do? If the potatoes are gone, we can’t plant them anymore!]

Everyone: !!!

What?! The seeds that could yield thousands of catties per acre are gone?!

Several officials jumped to their feet, clenching their fists.

Yuan Ruan’s lazy voice rang out:

[Don’t panic. Maybe Daxia already has potatoes, corn, sweet potatoes, and the like. Stay calm.]

Everyone: !!!

Could it be that besides potatoes, corn and sweet potatoes are also high-yield crops?!

No, we don’t have any of that! Hurry up and worry!

“Your Majesty!” The Minister of Revenue sprang up, grabbed a subordinate nearby, and ran down the steps. He quickly returned, speaking in a hurried tone, “There’s trouble at the East Gate. Just now, a low-ranking official reported that someone has stolen tribute offerings. I request permission to investigate and apprehend the culprit!”

The court ministers stared at him in surprise: Quick thinking! Fabricating news on the spot!

The emperor reacted even faster. He swiftly stood, scooped Yuan Ruan into his arms, and left the private room.

The crown prince followed closely behind.

The emperor and crown prince mounted their horses, while officials with horses followed suit. Those without horses started running on foot.

This spectacle caught the attention of the citizens of Daxia, many of whom began to curiously follow the black tide surging toward the East Gate.

From a distance, the sight of the crowd rushing toward the East Gate resembled a dark flood.

Before long, the emperor and crown prince arrived on horseback at the East Gate.

Reining in their horses, they saw a girl dressed in luxurious clothes with a white flower in her hair, directing two servants to carry several items out.

As they moved, a low-ranking official chased after them, pleading bitterly, “Wait, miss, please wait! You’ve taken the wrong box! That’s tribute meant for His Majesty!”

“What tribute? This fell off my cart! Don’t you think I’d recognize my own belongings?”

The girl, who was barely 1.4 meters tall, sneered disdainfully at the man. Her voice carried an arrogant tone as she said, “Don’t block me. Do you know who my father is?!”

“Who is he?!”

The emperor’s deep voice boomed as he sat tall on his horse.

The girl didn’t even turn her head, replying proudly, “My father is Yu Hongyu, Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture!”

Hearing this, Yu Hongyu, who had eagerly followed the crowd to watch the excitement, stumbled and fell to the ground.

The other officials nearly burst out laughing, with several shooting pitying glances his way.

Those who were close to Yu Hongyu whispered urgently, “She’s stealing from His Majesty? Quick, get that daughter of yours out of here before she drags you down!”

Yu Hongyu’s face turned red with rage as he shouted, “I don’t have a daughter!”

Everyone: ???

Wait, what’s going on? Is there an even bigger scandal brewing?

One person even blurted out, “Yu Hongyu, are you sure? Shouldn’t you go home and ask your wife?”

“Get lost!” Yu Hongyu furiously aimed a kick but nearly sprained his back instead.

Yuan Ruan, cupping her face, spoke in amazement to the system:

[Did you hear that, System? Yu Hongyu says he doesn’t have a daughter. Then who is she?]

System: [Let me take a look! Oh my, this girl is an imposter!]

Everyone: !!!

An imposter?

Someone dared to pose as the child of a court official?!

Yu Hongyu heaved a sigh of relief. At least his wife wasn’t unfaithful.

Yuan Ruan let out a startled hiccup:

[Explain further.]

System: [She’s not the one pretending. Her biological father impersonated the Minister of Agriculture to marry her mother and have children. So, she’s always believed herself to be the legitimate daughter of the Assistant Minister.]

Everyone gasped, nibbling on their fingernails.

This revelation was even more shocking than someone impersonating an official’s child—an official’s identity had been faked?!

Yu Hongyu’s face turned even darker. Someone had impersonated him to marry and have children? And the daughter was already this old?

The emperor and crown prince froze, then frowned deeply. Were all the other official households in the capital asleep? How did they let this happen?

The emperor was about to order Song Wei to investigate when he overheard Yuan Ruan’s curious thoughts:

[Why impersonate the Minister of Agriculture? Was it just to marry and have kids? Did he do anything else?]

System: [Let me check! His real name is Yu Ergou. He was a lazy scoundrel who, to make money, teamed up with some like-minded ruffians to pose as officials. They set up toll stations on roads and rivers outside the jurisdiction of local authorities to extort money from merchants. They swindled quite a bit of money this way, but within six months, they were caught by undercover officials.]

Everyone nodded at this, but then confusion set in. If he was caught within six months, then how does he have a seven- or eight-year-old daughter?

Yuan Ruan: [And then?]

System: [Then they were recruited by the court officials of Daxia.]

The emperor nearly fell off his horse.

Everyone: ???

Recruited by Daxia officials?! This revelation was terrifying!

Wait!

Could this not be an isolated incident? Was there a mastermind behind it?!

As everyone’s desire for gossip reached a fever pitch, a sharp voice rang out from behind.

“Hey! Who do you think you are, blocking our young lady?!”

The speaker, a steward in black-and-white attire with a white flower pinned to his chest, raised his head arrogantly. “Do you know who our master is? He’s the Minister of Agriculture! Don’t think you can stop us without consequences!”

Everyone: !!!

They stifled laughter as they turned to look at Yu Hongyu.

Yu Hongyu couldn’t hold back any longer and roared, “You insolent fools! Even the Minister of Revenue wouldn’t dare speak like this!”

“And who do you think you are, speaking about our master like that?” The butler extended a finger. “Step aside! Don’t delay us—our master has to go to a funeral. If you don’t move, I’ll crush you with one finger!”

Yu Hongyu felt absurdly angry, as if he might burst:

Am I Supposed to Be Mourning? Why Don’t I Know About This?!

Yuan Ruan suddenly grew excited:

[System! Could this be a clue for the national fortune mission—“The True and the False Official”?]

The emperor and crown prince immediately focused all their attention.