[Ah! Isn’t that Lord Liu from the Nine Cities Military Division? I’ve lost count of how many green hats he’s been made to wear! His son might not even be his, yet he has no idea. He treats that boy like a treasure, afraid he’ll break if he holds him too hard or melt if he puts him in his mouth! If he ever finds out the child isn’t his, won’t he cry himself to death?]

The crowd: Oh! So that’s how it is!

Several people turned to look at Lord Liu’s head, their expressions full of sympathy.

Even the emperor couldn’t help but sympathize.

His official had suffered such humiliation.

Once the banquet was over, he decided to summon Lord Liu for a heart-to-heart talk.

[Huh? Isn’t that Minister Ji, who holds a rank higher than her father? Minister Ji has far more real power than her father does, and he’s also a diligent and virtuous official. It’s just a pity that his health is poor, and he died young. Looking at him now, it seems like he’s already sick. If he had received treatment earlier, maybe he could have been saved.]

The crowd: Mmm, he’s a good official.

The emperor: After the banquet, send an imperial physician to check on Minister Ji. We must keep such a good official alive.

[“Wow! Are those two making eyes at each other? How thrilling! And right under the emperor’s nose, no less! But wait… why does that woman look so familiar? Isn’t she Consort Shu? Oh my! How dare someone flirt with the emperor’s woman?!”]

The crowd’s expressions changed as they discreetly glanced at the emperor. It seems even the emperor has his fair share of green hats.

The empress pursed her lips and looked at the emperor. Should she say something or not? Any man would find being cuckolded unbearable, let alone the emperor!

The emperor’s face darkened.

A moment ago, he was still sympathizing with Lord Liu, but now he felt like the real fool here. So I’m the green-hatted turtle?

Though he had little affection for these concubines, they were still his women. Yet, they were brazenly humiliating him like this!

A glint of murderous intent flashed in the emperor’s eyes.

Meanwhile, Lin Yuxin remained blissfully unaware of the disaster she had stirred up.

She continued eagerly searching for more gossip.

[“Wait… has the Sixth Prince recovered from his impotence? He was half-faking it before, but now he’s not even pretending? Could it be that he has some grand scheme to seize power?”]

The crowd’s faces paled, and even the emperor’s expression turned stormy. So my sixth son has been deceiving me all along? His womanizing and debauchery were all an act?

“Good, very good… my dear son!”

The emperor was fuming. This year’s imperial banquet was truly full of surprises.

“Hey, that guy over there—!”

“Lin Yuxin!”

The emperor suddenly cut off Lin Yuxin’s inner monologue.

If he listened any longer, he’d find out that none of his ministers or concubines were worth anything!

He needed to put a stop to this madness.

The emperor had mixed feelings about this girl. It was their first time meeting, yet she had already left such a deep impression.

With all the things she’s said, I should have her beheaded on the spot! But… she hasn’t actually spoken a word out loud! I can’t even punish her for speaking recklessly!

The emperor was livid!

“Ah! Oh!”

Lin Yuxin was startled before realizing someone was calling her. Wait, it’s the emperor?!

She hurriedly stood up and stepped forward to bow.

“Greetings, Your Majesty!”

“Tell me, how did you learn to tame tigers?”

The emperor just wanted to change the topic—anything to keep her from gossiping.

“Your Majesty, you probably know that I was mistakenly swapped at birth and raised in the countryside. When I was little, I met a strange old man who taught me.”

Lin Yuxin lied through her teeth without hesitation. [Go ahead, try to verify it. You won’t find anything!]

The emperor didn’t care whether she was lying or not. As long as she wasn’t gossiping in her mind, he was satisfied.

But then, he recalled how she had insulted him earlier, calling him stingy.

He glanced at her and asked:

“Oh? Since you won the competition, what reward do you want?”

“A reward? Anything I want?”

Lin Yuxin’s eyes lit up.

“Say what you want first. If I think it’s reasonable, I’ll grant it.”

The emperor looked at her, feeling momentarily speechless. Do I seem like such a petty person?

“Then… I want the hot spring in the Regent Prince’s residence!”

Lin Yuxin had long been eyeing that hot spring.

She wanted to study its properties since, in the story, it had saved Li Xiaocheng from death multiple times.

Though Li Xiaocheng ultimately died, the spring’s miraculous effects were undeniable.

If she could obtain it and study it, Zhao’s family would be able to recover their strength even faster.

“This…!”

The emperor was momentarily at a loss.

That was the one reward he couldn’t grant. He turned to look at Li Xiaocheng, who was leisurely sipping wine as if none of this concerned him, and became even more annoyed.

“Li Xiaocheng, what do you think?”

The emperor directly passed the problem to him.

Li Xiaocheng slowly set down his wine cup, bowed to the emperor, and coldly replied:

“Your Majesty, the hot spring is in my residence. I cannot give it away.”

In other words, it belongs to my estate, so it’s not up for negotiation.

The emperor turned to Lin Yuxin and said:

“Lin Yuxin, it’s a hot spring, and it’s in the Regent Prince’s residence. You wouldn’t be able to take it anyway. How about choosing something else?”

[“Tsk, you two sure know how to pass the buck. If you don’t want to give it to me, just say so! If the emperor really wanted to, he could issue a decree, and the Regent Prince wouldn’t dare refuse. Just bullying a powerless woman, huh? Hmph! Fine, I don’t want it anymore!”]

“Then forget it. I was just joking. Rewards aren’t that important—it’s my duty to serve Your Majesty.”

Despite her internal complaints, Lin Yuxin remained outwardly respectful.

The emperor: If I couldn’t hear her inner thoughts, I might have actually believed her.

Li Xiaocheng’s eyes flickered with amusement, but he remained silent.

The emperor didn’t want to deal with her any longer, so he quickly announced:

“Since your requested reward cannot be granted, but you did win the competition for me, I’ll reward you with a thousand taels of gold instead!”

“Thank you, Your Majesty!”

Lin Yuxin’s previous frustration vanished instantly. [Gold! Who wouldn’t want gold?]

She happily thanked the emperor and returned to her seat.

At that moment, a new dance performance began in the hall.

The enchanting music filled the air as eight beautiful women swayed gracefully, exuding irresistible charm.

Lin Yuxin, still basking in her joy, quickly noticed something was off.

The ministers around her were utterly entranced, their eyes locked onto the dancers without blinking, as if their souls had been stolen.

Even the emperor was mesmerized.

[“Tsk, so it’s finally happening! I thought the drama was over for the night, but they just had to pull this trick at the last moment.”]

Lin Yuxin sighed inwardly.

She examined the situation: most men seemed bewitched, while the noble ladies appeared weak and lethargic, though still conscious.

“Mother, how do you feel?”

Lin Yuxin turned to her mother, Zhao Hanya, checking her pulse.

“I just feel weak and exhausted… What’s happening to me?”

Zhao Hanya leaned against the table, struggling to speak.

After checking her pulse, Lin Yuxin whispered:

“Mother, you’ve been poisoned. In fact, the entire palace has. This poison won’t kill, but it induces hallucinations and makes people easy to control.”

“What?!”

Zhao Hanya was stunned.

She looked around and realized that something was seriously wrong.