The Empress Wants It All: The Empire and Me - Chapter 43.1

Chapter 43.1

Lin Yanran looked over in confusion. The moment her eyes met Youqin Mingyue’s, the latter became even more embarrassed. Mingyue hurriedly stood up, clutching her book, intending to flee the scene in a panic.

Unexpectedly, Lin Yanran let out a sharp cry of alarm: “Mingyue, don’t move!”

Chen Xiaohua was stunned, and Youqin Mingyue froze as well. What is this commoner trying to do?

Lin Yanran had already rushed over in two or three strides and scooped her up in her arms.

Youqin Mingyue: “…” Is this commoner insane?!

She instantly flared up with shame and rage, rebuking her, “Put me down!”

Lin Yanran had been lost in thought just now. Seeing Mingyue stand up reminded her of how she had almost slipped in the washroom earlier, causing her to panic. It was only when she heard the rebuke that she snapped back to reality.

She murmured, “Oh, so your weakness has already faded.”

Her tone held a faint trace of regret. Hearing this, Youqin Mingyue grew even more incensed. Does this commoner hope I stay weak forever? Has she truly lost her mind?

However, Lin Yanran looked at her with extreme seriousness, carrying her step by step toward the room before carefully and gently placing her in a chair.

She said softly, “Mingyue, if you feel even the slightest bit unwell in the future, you must call for me.”

So she was just worried about me.

Youqin Mingyue’s anger came to a sudden halt. However, she was not one to let others see through her thoughts. With a cold expression, she lightly scolded, “In the future, you are not allowed to hold me without my permission.”

Lin Yanran stole a glance at her and saw her looking back with a high-and-mighty, aloof expression. In the past, this would have made her heart tremble with fear that she might lose her life over a single word, but now she glimpsed the touch of “embarrassed rage” hidden behind Mingyue’s coldness.

So stubborn, she marveled once again.

The fear was still there, but it wasn’t as paralyzing as before. However, she didn’t dare be insolent. Looking at her earnestly, she said, “Alright, I’ll remember. Mingyue, I truly respect you from the bottom of my heart.”

Seeing her so sincere, the bit of anger in Youqin Mingyue’s heart could no longer find an outlet. She simply turned her face away, refusing to acknowledge her.

Lin Yanran pulled up a chair and sat beside her, telling her about what she had done that afternoon. She was a compelling storyteller, especially when she spoke of thrashing Lin Shan, her emotions were stirred and her voice was full of indignation, causing Youqin Mingyue to unknowingly turn her head back to watch her.

Finding a vent for her frustrations, Lin Yanran looked at her with irrepressible emotion and said, “Mingyue, tell me, how can there be such a detestable person? That mother and daughter rely on those ten taels of silver to survive, yet he had the nerve to take it. He even commits domestic violence against his wife and daughter every day as if they aren’t his own flesh and blood. Aren’t Lin Shan and Lin Cuicui his own children?”

These words instantly struck a chord with the hidden pain deep in Youqin Mingyue’s heart.

Her mind immediately flashed back to the day Youqin Yao imprisoned her Mother Empress in the Cold Palace. She had knelt before the Hall of Diligent Government to plead for mercy, kneeling for an entire day and night until her knees were nearly ruined. Youqin Yao hadn’t even shown his face. In the end, it was the head eunuch Hong Bao who couldn’t bear to watch and secretly came to advise her not to harm her health. Later, when she was framed by Youqin Yu, the facts and evidence were right there, yet Youqin Yao lightly brushed aside everything Youqin Yu had done. At the time, she thought it was because that wench Huangfu Jiao was whispering in his ear, but now she understood: the root cause was Youqin Yao himself. He simply didn’t view her or her mother as kin, so whether they lived or died was insignificant to him!

At this thought, all manner of pain surged into her heart, and her eyes suddenly burned with tears. Distraught, she turned her face away, her hands clenched into tight fists to suppress her emotions.

Lin Yanran gently tugged at her sleeve. “Mingyue, the reason I proposed the land-share system was to give these poor women who suffer from domestic violence a way out. When the time comes, jobs like laundry or cooking can be given to them. They’ll be able to earn a bit of money to live on, so they won’t have to live under someone else’s roof, enduring constant cold shoulders and daily beatings.”

Youqin Mingyue kept her back turned, her body tense. It took a long while before she managed to suppress the agony in her heart.

She admired that Lin Yanran had this kind of heart. These poor women would have her to rescue them and would likely live better and better lives in the future, but what about herself? Who was there to rescue her?

Her heart sank to the abyss, gnawed by sorrow and grief. But in the next instant, she fiercely discarded those fragile thoughts, her gaze turning dark and predatory.

In my past life, I was able to ascend the imperial throne by my own strength. Since I have come back to this life, I will surely rescue my Mother Empress and take back everything that belongs to me. Whoever dares to stand in my way shall be slaughtered without mercy!

Sensing something was wrong, Lin Yanran gently tugged her sleeve again. “Mingyue, what’s wrong?”

She leaned in, wanting to see her expression. Just then, Youqin Mingyue turned her face, and their faces ended up very close to each other.

Both of them widened their eyes simultaneously.

“…!!!”

Youqin Mingyue quickly looked away. Lin Yanran immediately stood up and honestly apologized in advance: “Mingyue, I only leaned in because I was worried about you and wanted to see how you were. It was my fault, please don’t be angry.”

Youqin Mingyue suppressed a momentary panic and said tonelessly, “Your land-share method is… not bad.”

Lin Yanran was so delighted she couldn’t help but take a step forward. “Mingyue, do you really think so?”

Youqin Mingyue first stared at her, then stared at her advancing foot. Lin Yanran hurriedly retracted her leg. “You rest, I’m going out to work.”

Work?

Youqin Mingyue’s eyes followed her back. She saw her take off her long robe, wearing only a close-fitting short tunic, which further emphasized her slim waist, narrow back, and lithe, tall stature. She rolled up her sleeves and began digging in the courtyard.

Chen Xiaohua ran over to help, so Lin Yanran gave her the hoe while she went to make a fence. She dragged firewood out of the shed, chopped it into smooth wooden slats, sharpened one end, and drove them firmly into the ground.

Soon, half a patch of land had been dug in the courtyard, and half a circle of fence had been built. At this point, Lin Feng arrived. He didn’t dare enter the courtyard, only peeking inside. Seeing Lin Yanran making a fence, he volunteered to help.

Lin Yanran immediately tossed him a wood knife and told him to go behind the house to cut bamboo. Lin Feng was instantly overjoyed and rushed off excitedly with the knife.

Youqin Mingyue found it quite peculiar—why was this Lin Feng so happy to have work to do, as if what Lin Yanran gave him wasn’t a chore, but a blessing?

Throughout the afternoon, the sounds of chopping and digging were incessant in the courtyard. She had been feeling somewhat uneasy because of the gold theft, but listening to this energetic, noisy activity, she unexpectedly felt a strange sense of peace.

Lin Feng was splitting bamboo and making strips by the main gate. Mountain folk were very handy; seeing how skillful he was, Lin Yanran asked if he knew how to weave bamboo baskets. She wanted Lin Feng to make a series of large and small baskets for drying medicinal herbs and sorting seeds later. Additionally, small baskets were needed for washing and holding vegetables and fruits in the kitchen—in short, the more the better.

Lin Feng had been restless since that one look Lin Yanran gave him this morning. Now, he only wanted to prove his worth. He nodded quickly. Lin Yanran described the shapes and sizes she wanted, and Lin Feng agreed. After splitting the bamboo strips for the fence, he sat on the ground by the gate and began weaving baskets.

After a busy afternoon, Lin Yanran finally finished planting the seedlings and vegetable sprouts she had brought back.

Chen Xiaohua asked curiously, “Sister Yanran, aren’t you a hunter? Why do you want to farm?”

Lin Yanran looked at her planted field with a sense of accomplishment and smiled. “Farming feels grounding.”

Youqin Mingyue took her words into her ears. For some reason, she thought back to what she had said before about “farming and hunting, a life like this.” At that time, she had felt a slight hint of envy. Hearing it again now, it felt different.

If I hadn’t regained my status, perhaps one day I would have let her go. But now that I am restored, how could I ever let her leave?

Thinking this, she couldn’t help but look toward Lin Yanran. Lin Yanran seemed to sense something and looked back, flashing a brilliant smile. It was now sunset, and the afterglow of the setting sun reflected on her face, making her look exceptionally radiant and spirited.

Youqin Mingyue hurriedly looked away.

At dinner, fire clouds suddenly appeared in the western sky, decorating the heavens with magnificent and majestic colors. Lin Yanran was so mesmerized she forgot to move until Chen Xiaohua tugged at her sleeve: “Sister Yanran, it’s time to eat!”

Lin Yanran snapped back to reality, but she didn’t want to miss the sight. She just said, “Alright, alright. Move the table over; let’s eat here in the courtyard.”

Chen Xiaohua looked at Youqin Mingyue, who nodded. “Let’s eat outside.”

She wasn’t as obsessed as Lin Yanran, but she also kept her neck tilted back to watch the infinitely changing clouds. Chen Xiaohua was quick and nimble, swiftly moving the table and setting the food. Youqin Mingyue sat down and noticed Lin Yanran was still standing motionless as if entranced.

She suddenly recalled that when Lin Yanran first formulated the medicine and identified her pill’s recipe, she had the same crazed look. She hadn’t expected her to be equally obsessed with looking at clouds. She was somewhat similar to the top-tier royal physicians under her command.

Chen Xiaohua was about to call her, but Youqin Mingyue raised a hand to stop her. Everyone tilted their heads back together, gazing at that magnificent, multi-hued sky.

After a short while, the sunset clouds gradually faded. She signaled to Chen Xiaohua, who walked to Lin Yanran’s side and said loudly, “Sister Yanran, time to eat!”

Lin Yanran finally came to her senses. She felt deeply regretful; sunset clouds always came and went so suddenly, never staying long enough to truly satisfy her. However, even after they faded, there were still clusters of clouds on the horizon carrying the lingering charm of the sunset, which were also exquisite to behold. She shoveled rice into her mouth while continuing to look at the sky.

Youqin Mingyue finished half a bowl of rice and put down her chopsticks. Tonight, Lin Yanran did not serve any food for her.

Just as they finished dinner, Wang Shouchun and Gu Yuwan arrived together. The two women arrived hand-in-hand, seemingly timing it perfectly to arrive just after they finished their meal. Upon entering, they saw the square table in the courtyard. The dishes had been cleared, and tea was brewing on the red clay stove nearby. Sweet-smelling tea fragrance wafted through the air.

Lin Yanran and Youqin Mingyue were sitting together at the table, drinking tea.

Gu Yuwan immediately smiled, walking forward briskly. “Sister-in-law, it’s rare for you to be out. Is your health much better?”

Previously, to prevent Youqin Mingyue from being disturbed, Lin Yanran had consistently used the excuse that she was ill. Gu Yuwan believed it to be true, and her words were sincere. When asked this, Youqin Mingyue inexplicably thought of the events of last night. She felt ashamed and annoyed, but her face remained calm as she said, “Thank you for your concern, little sister.”

From the moment she walked in, Wang Shouchun saw a woman sitting beside Lin Yanran. She immediately knew this must be Lin Yanran’s wife, who she had heard about but never seen. She stepped forward quickly. Upon reaching the table, she looked closely.

She saw Youqin Mingyue dressed in simple clothes, her hair in a elegant bun without any makeup, yet her peerless beauty remained impossible to hide. Her expression was indifferent, and she wasn’t intentionally striking a pose, but just by sitting there quietly, she made everything around her pale in comparison.

Wang Shouchun couldn’t help but marvel in her heart. There exists such a beautiful woman in this world?!

Youqin Mingyue lightly raised her eyes, her gaze falling on her face with a neutral coolness. Wang Shouchun felt another shock in her heart. To make a living, she had been a high-class courtesan, greeting and seeing off all sorts of people. Combined with her family’s study of military tactics, her greatest skill was reading people and discerning their essence.

Now, meeting Youqin Mingyue face-to-face, she immediately sensed an aura of immense authority and natural dignity, like a towering mountain or a deep abyss. Although she was dressed in common clothes, she couldn’t hide the grace and nobility radiating from her very bones.

The Savior was already extraordinary—not only composing poetry that drew out great scholars but also being as brilliant as a god in tactics, even predicting exactly when the County Magistrate’s office would release her. She hadn’t expected the wife to be even more unfathomable! She immediately knew that this wife of the Savior was absolutely not someone she could provoke.

She gave a graceful smile and spoke: “My Lord, I am new here and don’t yet know all of your family members. I hope you can introduce them.”

Lin Yanran realized and said, “That’s right, I haven’t had the chance to introduce you. This is my wife; you can just call her Sister-in-law.”

Then she said to Youqin Mingyue, “Mingyue, this is the Miss Wang I mentioned to you. She is currently organizing the pharmaceutical workshop regulations with Yuwan. She is a very shrewd and capable woman.”

This was exactly what Wang Shouchun was waiting for. She had stayed because of Lin Yanran, and only a direct introduction from her could make her presence legitimate, so as not to cause dissatisfaction for the lady of the house.

She immediately gathered her skirts and performed a formal salutation, saying gracefully, “This lowly one, Wang Shouchun, pays respects to the Matriarch.”

Matriarch?

Youqin Mingyue had been observing her. In her past life, it was because of this woman that she was besieged and killed by Wang Jinghong. To be honest, she instinctively loathed her. However, seeing her dignified demeanor and her sensible way of speaking, her intention to make things difficult for her faded.

It was beneath her, and there was no need. She gave a slight nod, her tone becoming even cooler. “I heard from Yanran that you will be helping manage the household in the future?”

Wang Shouchun was clever and mischievous in front of others, but in front of her, she was perfectly honest. Her words were brief and to the point: “Yes.”

With that, Youqin Mingyue fell silent. Wang Shouchun secretly breathed a sigh of relief. A sentence that seemed ordinary to others had put unprecedented pressure on her.

“I heard from Yanran” indicated that the Savior valued her opinion greatly. The moment she appeared, the Savior had told her. In the Savior’s mouth, she was merely an outsider coming to help at home. This question seemed like a confirmation, but it was actually an invisible warning.

Lin Yanran poured tea for her and Gu Yuwan, inviting them to sit and chat. Gu Yuwan then spoke about how she and Wang Shouchun had finalized the regulations and had come to let Lin Yanran review them. Lin Yanran took them and passed them directly to Youqin Mingyue. “Mingyue, why don’t you have a look?”

This action again confirmed Wang Shouchun’s judgment: the Savior truly placed great importance on this Matriarch.

Youqin Mingyue didn’t take them. She looked at Gu Yuwan, her peripheral vision sweeping over Wang Shouchun, and said slowly, “There is no need for me to look. Sister Yuwan is naturally intelligent and a genius in business; I naturally trust her.”

Lin Yanran, following her past-life project management style of “focusing on the big picture and delegating the rest,” immediately handed them back.

“Yuwan, my wife trusts you, so I naturally trust you too. No need to look. If there’s anything, you can just discuss it with Miss Wang.”

Gu Yuwan’s face flushed red with emotion. She was just the daughter of a ruined merchant family; she hadn’t expected to be so highly regarded by the Savior and her sister-in-law. She was so excited her speech became slightly stuttered. “Savior, sister-in-law, since you… you trust me so much, I will surely… surely not fail your trust!”

Wang Shouchun also voiced her stance: “Since My Lord and the Matriarch trust this lowly one, I will do my utmost to assist Sister Gu in making the pharmaceutical workshop’s name famous throughout the world!”

With the business settled, the two were about to leave. Before going, Wang Shouchun said, “My Lord, Matriarch, since I have already become the household manager, it would be appropriate for me to live closer so I can better handle house affairs. I wonder what My Lord and Matriarch think?”

Gu Yuwan chimed in, “Sister Wang, I already said you can stay with me! My room is very spacious, why won’t you agree?”

Wang Shouchun said seriously, “I appreciate Sister Gu’s kindness, but I have received great favor from My Lord, so it is only right that I stay nearby to serve her and the Matriarch.”