The Empress's No.1 Lackey

On this clear morning, Zhao Douan was woken by the noise within the mansion.

The document appointing the new Master had already arrived two days earlier; learning that their eldest son was being promoted, the entire Zhao family was jubilant, immersed in an atmosphere of celebration.

As the head of the household, You Jinhua believed that taking up an official post was a major event and must be treated seriously.

According to Great Yu's traditions, on the day a new official assumes office, the family should clean and sweep the courtyard to wash away the dust, seeking a favorable sign of "renewal day by day."

Therefore, early in the morning, the servants of the Zhao family had risen to carry out a thorough cleaning.

Breakfast was very sumptuous.

While eating, the beautiful woman cheerfully said,

"The official robe of the eldest has already been ironed with a 'fire pot,' the servants' hands are clumsy, later, Aunt will help you put it on herself."

"Will the eldest son come home for lunch on his first day at the government office? Aunt has simmered a good soup; should I have someone deliver it to you, would that be good?"

As a newcomer to the government office, the eldest son must be expected to socialize and drink with colleagues. If you come home, Aunt will be prepared early..."

Zhao Douan was called "eldest son" by his gorgeous stepmother, and felt extremely uncomfortable in his heart.

After a moment, with a "snap," he slapped his chopsticks heavily on the table and said indifferently,

"Aunt seems to have a lot to say today."

The soft and fragile You Jinhua was startled, and once again recalled the past fear of being dominated by her stepson.

She immediately squeezed out a conciliatory smile,

"Aunt has talked too much; if it bothers you, I will stop speaking."

Beside her, Zhao Pan, who kept his head down and ate without a word, was already accustomed to his mother's attempt to cozy up with those who were indifferent to her.

The graceful young lady had tried to persuade her mother multiple times in vain, knowing that her mother, with her traditional character, believed in the principle of "a widow must follow her son."

She, on the other hand, idolized the female Empress.

...

After breakfast.

You Jinhua personally brought over the brand new "Master" official robe and helped Zhao Douan put it on, as he stood in front of the gown mirror with his arms spread wide.

The robe was dark as the base, covered with brocade. The sleeves were edged with silver, and the style was stern and imposing, perfectly matching Zhao Douan's good looks.

Once dressed, You Jinhua looked at the tall young man in the mirror and was slightly lost in thought, then she revealed an affectionate aunt's smile:

"Eldest son looks so handsome; it suits someone meant to be a high official."

The Empress's father, the late Old Emperor, was quite a stickler for looks; during the imperial examinations, he would change the rankings of the top scholars based on their appearance.

As a result, the binding relationship between appearance and career prospects had deeply penetrated into the hearts of the people.

Zhao Douan, logically, did not agree with this peculiar logic.

But as the principal beneficiary, he did not have the confidence to refute it and even tacitly accepted it.

...

...

Having left his home, Zhao Douan walked past two streets and boarded a modest-looking yet luxuriously understated carriage waiting at the corner.

As soon as he sat down, he smiled at another figure in the carriage,

"The inferior officer has arrived a step late, I've made Mo Zhaorong wait too long."

The female officer, dressed in official attire and wearing a wingless black hat, exuded an air of cool detachment and androgynous beauty, her forehead adorned with a plum blossom makeup. The female chancellor rested with her eyes closed.

Now opening her eyes, she spoke in a cold tone,

"I am acting on Her Majesty's orders to accompany you to your post today. If you have any questions, just ask."

She seemed like a heartless machine, focused solely on completing the task as quickly as possible.

As the carriage wheels began to turn and the vehicle made its way toward the Imperial Court, Zhao Douan thought to himself ruefully, She doesn't even bother to make conversation...

He knew the female officer before him had a deeply ingrained stereotype of him.

Even though he had repeatedly achieved merits, in Mo Chou's eyes, Zhao Douan had merely graduated from being a "nobody" to a "schemer."

Or rather, Mo Chou had always scorned what she saw as his deplorable character.

And she believed that Zhao Douan was appreciated by the Empress, Mr. Yuan, including Sun Lianying, because he was hypocritical and adept at flattery and pretending.

Zhao Douan was well aware that once prejudice took deep root, changing it would not happen overnight.

So he simply responded in a businesslike manner,

"The office has been hasty in its appointment, and there are things I do not understand. I would like to know about the situation in Lihua Hall and why there is no Master?"

Having learned that the Empress had sent Mo Chou to back him up, Zhao Douan had already sensed something was amiss.

If it was just a simple appointment, even if there were some underlings who were discontented, the Empress could have simply instructed Lord Ma to look after things. It made no sense to dispatch the female chancellor.

He suspected there was a catch.

On hearing this, a glimmer of schadenfreude appeared in Mo Chou's eyes,

"Does Lord Zhao not know?"

"Call me 'Master Jishi'...ah, I haven't officially taken office yet, so that's no issue," Zhao Douan said with gravity,

"Please, Mo Zhaorong, give your explicit instructions."

Mo Chou said indifferently,

"The Imperial Court has nine divisions. While they are colleagues, there is also competition among them.

Since Lord Ma took over the Imperial Court, he has made several adjustments to the division officers over the past two years. The Lihua Hall, which you are about to take over, ranks ninth.

The previous Master Jishi was corrupt and made a mistake, resulting in his disposal. Consequently, the original staff was also dispersed... At one point, it became an empty shell.

Later, when Ma Yan prepared to rebuild Lihua Hall, he drafted some 'elite' from the other eight divisions to fill the ranks..."

Zhao Douan sensed something ominous, "Elites?"

Mo Chou hummed in affirmation and explained,

"Some are capable workers but isolated for being divisive.

Some are inefficient and lazy, yet not easy to dismiss due to their seniority in the Imperial Court.

There are also newcomers without seniority or connections... Of course, most of them belong to powerful families with connections; they are the unruly children of the bureaucracy."

Zhao Douan's expression became increasingly stiff,

"Children of the bureaucracy? As far as I know, most government officers at the Imperial Court are selected from the various guards throughout the land."

The Imperial Court was responsible for monitoring and arresting officials, and to ensure the integrity of its ranks, it had a unique selection process.

This was meant to minimize connections to power factions in the bureaucracy—it was the impression held by the original person as well as most others.

Mo Chou let out a "Ha," as if to say, "It seems you really don't know,"

"Initially, the Imperial Court did operate that way. However, after six hundred years since Great Yu's founding, even with periodic purges, the inevitable accumulation of corruption is difficult to avoid.

Nowadays, although many government officers still come from the guards, there are many hereditary Jinyi Captains, and over the years, many scions have been inserted into the ranks by various 'immortals'...

In short, the composition is far more complex than the common person can imagine."

Systemic issues... Zhao Douan sighed.

Any organization starts with purity but gradually decays over time.

It seemed the Imperial Court was no exception. Since Ma Yan took power, there had been frequent purges and personnel shifts, presumably under the Empress's directive to eradicate corruption.

By removing the rust from the blade of the Imperial Court, the goal was to restore its sharpness and luster.

But the long-standing problems were ultimately impossible to completely solve.

Therefore, Ma Yan decisively took advantage of 'replenishing' to dump all those in the other eight divisions who were difficult to 'expel' and were dragging down the office, the troublemakers, into Lihua Hall all at once.

Zhao Douan's face did not look too good,

"So, is the reason why Lihua Hall has been without a leading Master Jishi for so long because of this?"

"That's one way of putting it," Mo Chou stated faintly,

"No one within the Imperial Court wants to take over this mess, and those who do have ulterior motives, so it's been left untouched."

After pausing, she seemed to smile slightly,

"This time, Mr. Yuan must value your capabilities to commission you with this responsibility."

Schadenfreude!

Definitely schadenfreude!

In Zhao Douan's heart, a whirlwind of alpacas raced by as he thought, no wonder Yuan Li was promoting me so exceptionally—there was no good intention behind it.

He verbally speaks of giving me a big gift, yet it's nothing but a pitfall.

No wonder the Empress sent a confidant to supervise, probably because the thorns in Lihua Hall have significant backgrounds that even Ma Yan hesitates to provoke.

However, on the other hand, every situation has its pros and cons.

The greater the difficulty, the bigger the reward.

Lihua Hall indeed poses challenges, but if he truly can establish himself there and recruit the capable yet troublesome scions under his command,

Then Zhao Douan, as the Master Jishi, could wield authority far beyond the other eight divisions, possibly even becoming the number one man under the Lord.

Zhao Douan, in a trance, seemed to see Xu Zhenguan's smiling face, as if the Empress was saying to him,

"Do you dare to accept this challenge?"

Inside the carriage.

Mo Chou watched with schadenfreude, as the handsome "Lihua Master Jishi's" expressions changed, recalling the Empress's instructions, she said,

"Her Majesty is worried you won't be able to establish yourself, which is why she commanded me to come along. I'll take you inside myself; with Her Majesty's face to consider, it should be enough..."

"No!"

Zhao Douan suddenly spoke up, his eyes clear and bright, a smile on his lips,

"Mo Zhaorong, just wait outside the government office for a while. I'd like to meet this 'Dragon Pond and Tiger Cave' on my own. If needed, please make an appearance to keep things in order, how about that?"

...

ps: Tomorrow, Tuesday, is the last attempt to push for recommendations. Although the chances are slight, I still humbly ask for everyone to check tomorrow's update.