The Empress's No.1 Lackey

"Since the lord insists on it, I have no objections."

Mo Chou was momentarily taken aback, then seemed to understand something and replied faintly.

"You refuse the support offered to you... is it because you are arrogant and overconfident from repeated successes? Do you believe you can manage without the Emperor's help?"

"Or is it simply a desire to showcase your abilities and make me regard you differently, changing the impression I have of you?"

"It doesn't matter. The female chancellor wasn't concerned."

Although she had a premonition, Zhao Douan would inevitably seek her as a backup after entering Lihua Hall.

After all, a deceitful, fawning scoundrel who bullies the weak but fears the strong and enjoys wielding power over the commoners and lower-level officials might find his knees weak when confronting the powerful elites. This has nothing to do with skill or strategy.

Mo Chou had no doubt in Zhao Douan's intelligence or methods.

But she also knew that the smarter a person was, the more they understood how to "weigh the situation" and even ingratiate themselves with others.

Hmm, saying that, there was another possibility:

The Zhao fellow never intended to establish his authority and instead colluded with the foppish aristocrats of Lihua Hall.

Given Zhao Douan's terrible character, this possibility wasn't small...

But if Zhu Kui were here, his heart would surely skip a beat. Whenever their lord showed this smile, it always meant someone was destined for misfortune.

...

A while later, the carriage arrived outside the Imperial Court. Zhao Douan got off alone, leaving the female chancellor waiting outside.

The Imperial Court was a vast complex, with each hall having its own gate and courtyard.

Directly facing the main entrance was "Governor Hall," where Ma Yan conducted his duties.

To the left and right were nine halls, distributed further back, and there lay the infamous "Imperial Prison" dungeons.

"Master Inspector! It's been a while, I missed you dearly."

As soon as Zhao Douan announced himself at the entrance, Zhou Cang, an old acquaintance who was a hundred households officer, greeted him with a hearty laugh:

"The Lord is occupied, so he instructed this humble official to guide you."

"Occupied? Or avoiding me?" Zhao Douan smirked and nodded cheerfully:

"Then I'll trouble you."

Zhou Cang grinned, "You're too kind, please follow me."

The two walked along the stone path towards Lihua Hall, occasionally passing by hired personnel and government officers, all casting sidelong glances, clearly having heard about the new superior arriving from above.

"The Lord instructed me to introduce the situation. If you have any questions, feel free to ask at any time," Zhou Cang said as they walked.

Zhao Douan chuckled:

"Before I came, I had heard a little about Lihua Hall. They say it's full of rebellious characters, correct?"

Starting off so bluntly... Zhou Cang awkwardly replied, "Well... it's true."

Zhao Douan inquired with curiosity:

"Does the Lord tolerate this? With his authority, is it truly difficult if he wants to weed out the unruly?"

Zhou Cang sighed and chuckled bitterly:

"The Lord has the backing of Your Majesty. If he resolutely decides to act regardless of the cost, these small ailments can naturally be easily handled, but..."

He hesitated, as if weighing his words, finally lowering his voice and choosing a more diplomatic phrasing:

"Do you know that since the establishment of the Imperial Court, most Lords haven't met with good fates?"

Zhao Douan instantly understood!

In his past life, he studied history and found that leaders of Eastern and Western Secretariats, Jinyi Guard, and similar institutions often met tragic ends, eventually becoming sacrifices to quell court ministers' anger.

But there were exceptions.

For example, Lu Bing, the leader of the Ming Dynasty's Jinyi Guard, absorbed lessons from his predecessors. During his term, he paid great attention to currying favor with both influential ministers and the Emperor, eating from both sides.

He outwardly served the Emperor, while secretly also serving those high-ranking officials, navigating both sides until he eventually retreated safely.

Influenced by films and dramas, Zhao Douan once thought that special agencies were above the law and commanded full intimidation over the ministers.

But upon reading history books, he found the reality more complex.

For instance, Lu Bing once knelt and tearfully pleaded for the forgiveness of the then-Prime Minister... He later sided with his political enemy and brought him down—but that was another story.

Back to Great Yu.

Ma Yan wasn't exactly cozying up to Li Yanfu or Yuann Li, but in the end, he was human.

Loyal enough to serve the Empress but also mindful of his self-interest, attempting to reduce the hatred value from the officials' group.

Therefore, certain people who didn't need to be offended, Ma Yan also tolerated.

The group at Lihua Hall belonged to this category.

Thinking of this, Zhao Douan suddenly grasped an insight: Did his Zhenbao and the old scoundrel Yuann Li place him here with another consideration in mind?

"I see," he nodded gently and asked, "Then tell me, who in Lihua Hall is not easy to provoke?"

Zhou Cang exhaled silently, considering his words carefully:

"The newcomers, and those who were ostracized from other halls aren't counted. The rest with backgrounds, given your relationship with His Majesty, need not be overly feared.

"A little offense is no big deal, except for one, who is an exception and must not be offended. He is called Li Lang, also the biggest thorn in Lihua Hall."

"That name sounds familiar. Whose young master is he?" Zhao Douan frowned.

"Princess Yunyang's son," Zhou Cang whispered.

Zhao Douan suddenly understood!

Princess Yunyang was renowned, being the Old Emperor's sister. Even the Empress had to call her aunt.

But due to a small age difference, she was only about ten years older than Xu Zhenguan.

A true royal scion.

Originally, Qin Qiu managed to infiltrate the capital circle by clinging to Princess Yunyang's consort. However, Princess Yunyang was most famous not for her noble status,

but for the term "promiscuity."

As the Empress's aunt, she openly kept gigolos and often invited handsome youths to her mansion for games, much to the disgrace of her consort, considered the greatest cuckold in Great Yu.

"The son of Princess Yunyang?" Zhao Douan raised an eyebrow.

No wonder he was hard to offend. Both Ma Yan and he were tethered to the Royal Family.

Offending external ministers was one thing, but bearing the wrath of a royal family member required a lot more caution.

...

...

As they spoke, they passed through a side door into a courtyard.

At the center of the courtyard stood a great pear tree, its branches lush and full.

On the branches hung clusters of young green pears, not yet ripe.

Turning left was the inner hall, with a plaque inscribed with the gold-lettered words "Lihua Hall."

By now, far past the time for roll call, the hall was empty, and around a huge "conference table," a few chairs were crookedly scattered.

Only one female official was asleep on the table.

Zhao Douan: ??

"Ahem!" Zhou Cang awkwardly coughed into his fist:

"Where are the others? Didn't the Lord inform you earlier about the arrival of the new Master Inspector today? Weren't you asked to wait?"

The dozing female official jolted awake, standing up with a start, still groggy.

Looking to be in her early twenties, she had a somewhat proper appearance, half her face imprinted red from her snooze, a drop of saliva glistening at the corner of her mouth.

Perhaps still in a sleep daze, she resembled a fresh graduate in a workplace-themed drama, with a naive and silly look, as if she might bow ninety degrees and utters "sumimasen" at any moment!

Qian Kerou had stayed up late reading a fiction book the previous night, causing her delay.

This was usually not an issue, as Lihua Hall had no regular officer, lacking organization and discipline.

Roll calls were merely formalities, with frequent truancy and constant napping—even more so.

But today was different. In her daze, she remembered the new Master Inspector's arrival and hastily explained:

"They're all in the back playing cards... I'll go call them!"

As she spoke, she hurriedly left, taking two steps before remembering to turn back and bow to her new superior. Startled by Zhao Douan's handsome appearance, she stammered:

"Please wait, Sir."

And with that, she dashed off.

Zhou Cang rubbed his hands awkwardly, "I did inform them yesterday..."

"No matter," Zhao Douan's face showed no sign of anger. Instead, he smiled as if unconcerned:

"By the way, who was that just now?"

"Oh, she's a newcomer to the government office, without much background. She took the place of her family and was hired, a mere Martial Artist," Zhou Cang explained, "one of the few obedient subordinates of Lihua Hall."

By "few," do you mean "the only"? Zhao Douan thought to himself, a broader smile spreading across his face.

Good, very good, being ignored by subordinates from the first day was exactly what he wanted.

After all, if everyone were obedient, it would be hard to stand out or establish authority—he was no demon, after all.

"The place is filled with talents, it pleases me greatly," Zhao Douan said calmly, leaning against the big pear tree in the courtyard.

Zhou Cang was drenched in sweat, feeling a chill in the air.

Yet Zhao Douan had already stepped inside, heading directly to the main hall, his gaze briefly passing over the weapon rack against the wall.

He then turned around, leisurely sat at the head seat, and closed his eyes to wait.