When he opened his eyes, he had a splitting headache.
There was another memory pouring into his mind.
Back then, when Youyu sat alone under the lamp, reading the books of the wise sages, she thought that one day, she would be able to rule the country and pacify the world. She would become a virtuous minister of a generation and assist the emperor in creating a prosperous era.
Youyu learned from the ancient sages, using a rolling pin as a pillow and reading until the east was white.
Now, he had entered the imperial court as he wished, rising from a small assistant minister to a senior official. Ai, how should he say it, it was because of the times. He was promoted step by step, not because of his knowledge.
It was because … … no matter what, Youyu had achieved his original goal, even if the road was complicated.
Youyu was gradually getting used to his identity. When others cursed at him, accused him, and rolled their eyes at him, he just smiled and didn't care.
The infusion was complete.
The memories of his past life and this life were intertwined, causing him to have some symptoms of forgetfulness. The memories of his past life began to blur, and the first half of this life was a bit intermittent.
But at this moment, he didn't have time to think about it, he just wanted to curse.
Fuck! Why am I a sycophant again!
But he immediately calmed down. Don't panic, don't panic. Being a sycophant is my own design, it has nothing to do with what I did.
He immediately sat up from the bed. As long as he was a good person from now on and didn't break the rules, it was fine!
Thinking of this, he happily hummed a little song.
After all, he had lived a lifetime, and not long after, he quickly became Youyu.
The morning court always made people sleepy, Youyu couldn't help but yawn when no one was paying attention.
But just as he finished yawning, he saw the officials next to him looking at him with disgust. Youyu smiled at him to express his apology.
But like this, he suspected that his original frivolous reputation would be added to it.
The emperor was sitting high up, indifferently listening to the officials' admonitions.
Youyu saw the light from the beaded curtains of the coronet, shining on the emperor's face. He quietly looked at the emperor's side profile, studying his face.
When he finally reacted, the morning court had already dispersed. The hundreds of officials dispersed, and the hall immediately became empty. Youyu didn't know how to face the Emperor in his dragon robe during the day. Therefore, he didn't even dare to look at him as he hurriedly walked out of the hall.
"Youyu, Youyu, please wait." A voice rang out from behind him.
He turned around and saw that it was Zhang Zezheng, Lord Zhang.
"Oh, it's Lord Zhang." Youyu smiled. "What's the matter? Talking to me here, aren't you afraid of being pointed at by others? "
Lord Zhang looked around and said nervously, "Let's talk somewhere else."
When they reached a secluded place, Lord Zhang let out a long sigh of relief. His serious expression disappeared and he put on a playful face.
"I say, Xiaoyu." Lord Zhang blinked his eyes. "Are you going to hold your Appraisal Conference tonight? I didn't even receive an invitation."
Youyu sighed. "Lord Zhang, I can't hold it tonight. This one has urgent matters to attend to. Also, Lord Zhang, you don't know. Recently, things have been tense and I can't hold it. However, for your sake, no matter what, I will still hold it. "
Lord Zhang revealed a regretful expression. "Eh, Xiaoyu, then the next time you hold it, please pass it on to me."
Xiaoyu nodded. "Lord Zhang, don't worry."
After bidding farewell to Zhang Zezheng, Youyu left the palace. He strolled along the long street for a while before returning to his residence. After all, he had to make a lot of preparations in advance for tonight's event. He couldn't afford to be negligent.
"Lord, you're finally back." Steward Song saw that Youyu had returned and immediately went up to greet him.
Youyu took off his official robe as he asked, "How was it? Did anything happen in the hall today?"
"It wasn't big, but it wasn't small either. Lord, you know that Sun Yizhi threw a tantrum again. No one could persuade him." Steward Song frowned.
Damn, Sun Yizhi, that brat, caused trouble for me again. I didn't expect him to be so stubborn even though his name was so gentle.
"It's fine. I'll go take a look later." Youyu changed into a casual green robe and planned to drink a pot of tea first.
Since everyone knew that Youyu was a sycophant without any achievements.
Then, being an official was definitely not Youyu's main job. It was just a side job. Then, Youyu's main job was to personally manage the capital's largest antique shop — Guiyu Pavilion.
The structure was exquisite and the layout was elegant. This shop used to belong to Youyu's father. After his father died, it naturally belonged to him.
It was also the capital that Youyu would rely on to make a living in the future.
However, Guiyu Pavilion didn't only have antiques. It also had rare flowers, herbs, and old books collected from all over the world. It could be said to be all-inclusive. Anyone who walked in would definitely be surrounded by exotic fragrances.
Moreover, it was widely rumored that there was a stage set up in the backyard of the shop. A large number of singers and actors were hired to accompany the high-ranking officials, dignitaries, and hedonistic sons of rich families who gathered here to play tea.
However, this was the truth from the start. The group of young masters that Youyu raised was the main source of his money.
Every time there was a festival, on a windy and moonlit night, they would sing a new song. They would dance, sing, and play drums and flutes. The wonderful music would often spread all around.
Although Youyu rarely appeared in the shop with his real identity, there were still rumors circulating that Youyu indulged himself and had a close relationship with Guiyu Pavilion. Guiyu Pavilion was rotten to the core.
If it was in his previous life, Youyu would definitely make a big fuss about it. However, it was better for him to keep a low profile. He understood the principle of making money silently.
"Yizhi, what's wrong with you? Can't you stop?" Youyu said as he pushed open the door to Yizhi's room.
"Hey, didn't you knock before coming in?" Yizhi had a sour expression on his face. His feet were on the table. The table was littered with melon seed shells and a few broken tea sets were on the floor.
Youyu carefully stepped over the broken pieces on the floor. He sat down next to Yizhi and pulled him into his arms.
"Come and tell your brother what's going on. Why are you sitting here sulking?" Youyu said.
Yizhi struggled for a while but couldn't break free. His expression softened a little. "Then let's make it clear first. You can't deduct my monthly allowance for the things I broke today."
Youyu couldn't help but laugh. "Absolutely not."
"Sigh." Yizhi sighed and hesitated for a long time. "It's all because of that Lord Zhang. I haven't seen him for a few days. He even said … that he would give me a Persian cat's eye stone. He's really a big liar."
Youyu couldn't help but think that Lord Zhang had said that he would come this morning. In the end, he was stopped by his personal affairs. It seemed that he was partly responsible. "Yizhi, it's just a small matter. Don't worry. He will come in a few days. The cat's eye stone is just a matter of time."
Yizhi stood up. "I don't need your charity. Come if you want."
Youyu still saw that the corners of Yizhi's mouth couldn't help but curl up. He relaxed and left.
Night was about to fall, and the lights in the streets had already been lit up. Youyu wandered around leisurely. She passed by a small stall with a messy pile of jewelry and jewels. Sometimes, treasures could be found in the busy streets.
But after a few glances, he found that they were all fake. Then, he remembered what happened last night. He quickened his pace and hurried back to his residence.
"Master, it's settled, right?" Steward Song came up to him.
"It's easy." Youyu said with a smile.
"That's good." Steward Song let out a long sigh of relief. "Master, please hurry. It's getting late. If there's any delay …"
Youyu nodded. "Yes, I have to hurry."
And so, he began. Bathing and burning incense. A series of tedious procedures made Youyu a little sleepy. Then, he had to put on a light gauze, like a hazy fog. Then, he had to comb his hair, put on a headscarf, and put a strange fragrance in his mouth. When the steward arrived, he was immediately sent to the palace.
Just as night fell, there was a knock on the door.
"Master Youyu, is everything ready?" The steward's voice sounded.
"Everything is ready. We can set off immediately." The voice in the room responded.
Youyu was led by the steward and other eunuchs to a carriage parked at the side door. Clatter? Clatter? Accompanied by the sound of hooves, he was sent into the palace.
Youyu had long been used to this kind of thing. From the last time he stepped in, the scene of him trembling in fear seemed to be not far away. But in reality, it had been many years. Now, he directly fell asleep in the carriage.
Thousands of lanterns were lit in the palace. At this time, most people had left. Compared to the morning court, when hundreds of officials entered the palace, it was much more desolate. Young Jade followed the steward through the winding corridors. Finally, they arrived at the heavily guarded entrance, which was lit with bright yellow palace lanterns.
"Master Youyu, you can go in. His Majesty is already inside." The steward lowered his head and said.
"Mm, thank you." After Youyu finished speaking, he took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and tried to sneak in as quietly as possible.
After entering the room, Youyu moved to the bedside with the bright yellow curtain and sat down. He swept his gaze across the room and found that the Emperor was sitting in front of the table. He was still reading and didn't seem to notice that he had come.
He stared at the Emperor's face for a long time. Then, he inexplicably sighed. But he didn't expect that the entire room was so quiet that his sigh was particularly clear. Just as he was feeling awkward and didn't know what to do, the Emperor raised his head.
They were only a few feet apart, but Youyu couldn't see the Emperor's expression clearly. It seemed like the Emperor was smiling. He guessed in his heart.
"How long have you been here?" The Emperor's deep voice sounded.
"Uh …" Youyu lowered his head. "This official … hasn't … hasn't been here for long. Just for a while." He didn't know how to complete a sentence, but he stuttered and stammered.
"Mm." The Emperor responded.
Youyu fiercely hit his head in his heart. What am I nervous about? I've been here so many times. Why am I so nervous this time …
Then, the Emperor put down the book in his hand and walked over.
"Zhen is tired. Help me change."
"This official … this official obeys." Youyu trembled as he walked forward. He fiercely gritted his teeth to stop himself from trembling.
When he was lying on the bed, he finally calmed down. The Emperor calmly breathed beside him. Just as Youyu was about to fall into a half-awake state, the Emperor got up and reached out to Youyu.
He pulled down the curtain close to him.
In fact, the Emperor didn't do anything to him.
Originally, this would be the most distressing thing for Youyu. As a favored official, he had to be exposed. Isn't that against the rules? Moreover, he scratched his head and couldn't think of a reason to refuse the Emperor.
Catch a cold? He can't catch a cold often, right? Reject with righteous words and a strong sense of righteousness? Forget it. I just died once. I don't want to die again.
But later, he found out that the Emperor was just sleeping beside him.
This made him feel both surprised and relieved.
"Yu'er." The Emperor said, "I have a problem right now."
The name Yu'er made Youyu break out in a cold sweat.
Youyu wiped the sweat on his forehead and calmed his breathing. "This official is willing to share the burden for the Emperor."
"Now that the position of the Empress is vacant, there is no one to manage the affairs of the harem." The Emperor said again.
Youyu didn't even think before answering, "There are many virtuous women in the harem. The Emperor can choose a noble consort with good conduct to manage the harem."
"Zhen …" The Emperor paused. "Zhen wants to imitate Emperor Chen Wen and make you the Empress."
Youyu couldn't stop his body from twitching.
"Yu'er, are you cold?" The Emperor asked seriously, "If you are afraid of the cold, come to me."
"This official … … this official is not cold." Youyu answered, but he couldn't stop the images from appearing in his mind.
Young Jade herself was wearing layers upon layers of complicated clothes. She was carrying something heavy on her head as she sat on the phoenix chair. A group of graceful concubines surrounded him and shouted, "Jiejie ~ Jiejie ~ Meimei is in a bad mood recently."
Another image was of him aggressively rushing into the palace. The concubines were scared out of their wits. Following his order, "Someone come, pour this bowl of safflower down for ben gong." The eunuch next to him rolled up his sleeves and rushed forward to pour the bowl of safflower down.
Youyu couldn't help but shiver again.
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