Marrying the Sweet Story’s Melodramatic Villainess [Transmigration] - Chapter 49

The day Yan Yuanyi and her party returned, the sun shone brightly and a gentle breeze blew. Although they were travel-worn and covered in the dust of the road, everyone was in high spirits. Their very first task upon returning was to enter the palace to have an audience with the Emperor.

Yan Yuanyi solemnly held an object in both hands. “Your Majesty, this is a gift presented to you by the thousands of disaster victims in Hebei.”

An attendant hurried forward, taking the yellowed paper umbrella from Yan Yuanyi’s hands with extreme care—as if it were a precious treasure—and then respectfully presented it to Emperor Qi.

Seated upon his dragon throne, Emperor Qi looked at the umbrella, and a ripple of emotion stirred in his heart. He gently and slowly pushed the umbrella open. In an instant, dense ink marks met his eyes. The handwriting was crooked and the characters were strangely shaped; it was clearly the work of countless refugees. Some were illiterate, while others perhaps only had a smattering of education, yet they had left their marks with hearts full of absolute sincerity. As Emperor Qi examined it closely, he could vaguely discern several full names.

Liu Miao, Zhang Erniu, Lin Chunya…

These simple and ordinary names struck a chord in Emperor Qi’s heart. He gazed at them for a long while before carefully handing the umbrella back to the attendant, instructing, “Place this in my private treasury.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Only then did Emperor Qi shift his gaze toward Yan Yuanyi. His look was one of scrutiny. Under the weight of that oppressive aura, the people standing behind her began to break into cold sweats to varying degrees—Gu Ning, being a modern soul, was no exception.

Gu Ning could not even clearly make out the face of this feudal monarch.

After the atmosphere had stagnated for a moment, Emperor Qi burst into loud laughter. “Yuanyi, you truly are my good niece. You have done well.”

This single sentence of affectionate praise instantly shattered the freezing tension. Yan Yuanyi’s taut expression suddenly relaxed, and a smile touched the corners of her mouth. “Your Majesty overpraises me. Yuanyi merely performed her duty. To be able to exert effort for the common people and share Your Majesty’s burdens is Yuanyi’s great fortune.”

Following this display of harmony between monarch and subject, Emperor Qi was not stingy with his rewards. Yan Yuanyi was promoted directly into the Ministry of Revenue. Other personnel who participated in the disaster relief received varying rewards; Gu Yue was promoted by one rank, and Gu Ning even followed Yan Yuanyi into the Ministry of Revenue, being granted an official post of the follow-fifth rank (Cong Wu Pin).

Having suddenly become a national civil servant, one could well imagine Gu Ning’s mood.

Seeing Gu Ning so happy, Yan Yuanyi’s mind also relaxed accordingly.

At this point, this young County Princess who had just reached her hair-pinning ceremony (Ji Guan) burst into everyone’s field of vision like a rising star. To date, the State of Qi had only produced two female emperors, but anything was possible. In the transition of imperial power, there was never a shortage of opportunists; Yan Yuanyi’s makeshift team was finally established.

Yan Yuanyi did not hide her ambitions, but she maintained a certain degree of restraint—neither provoking the wariness of those above her nor allowing others to look down on her.

As the number one favorite by Yan Yuanyi’s side, Gu Ning received no small amount of attention. Some people even secretly sent her two handsome young male attendants.

The innocent maiden Gu Ning: “…”

When Yan Yuanyi found out, she teased her, “It’s only reached this stage and you already can’t handle it?”

Gu Ning said firmly, “I am a die-hard ‘Pure Love’ fan.”

Fearing Yan Yuanyi wouldn’t understand, Gu Ning thoughtfully explained the concept. Unexpectedly, Yan Yuanyi laughed until she trembled like a flower in the wind, before turning serious. “Ning-niang, a true soulmate is the hardest thing to find in this world. Do not take men too seriously.”

What ahead-of-its-time thinking.

Gu Ning was stunned, thinking that she truly was a girl destined for great things. She nodded and answered with certainty, “Don’t worry, I understand.”

As Yan Yuanyi’s brilliance became fully apparent, even Pei Mingjiao, who usually paid no attention to political affairs, became aware of it. Currently, she was out on a spring outing with Gu Yue. Having been away for so long, Gu Yue’s face had become somewhat weathered. Gu Yue looked at the new buds on the trees; new life represented hope, and she felt happy just looking at them.

Zheng Liuniang, who was with them, observed Gu Yue from time to time. Even the least perceptive person could see that Gu Yue was very tolerant toward young women. Gu Yue asked softly, “You keep looking at me; is there something you want to ask?”

Zheng Liuniang was not a coy person either, asking frankly, “Sister Gu, what does it feel like to be an official in the imperial court?”

Gu Yue paused, her smile widening as she replied candidly, “It is… enchanting.”

She appeared calm, gentle, and yet brimming with high spirits.

Zheng Liuniang was momentarily infatuated and mustered the courage to ask, “Do you think I can become an official?”

“It only depends on whether you want to or not,” Gu Yue said, gazing at her.

Pei Mingjiao watched from the side without speaking. At that moment, a voice drifted over from nearby: “If even Yan Yuanyi can have such fantastic ideas, why can’t I?”