"Long live His Majesty, ten thousand years, ten thousand times ten thousand years!"
The assembled ministers bowed in unison toward Gu Qingfeng, who sat high upon the dragon throne.
"Ahem. Rise, my lords," Gu Qingfeng said, barely suppressing his glee as he forced a dignified tone.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The ministers stood and took their positions.
Gu Qingfeng surveyed them with immense satisfaction, feeling absolutely exhilarated.
So this is what it feels like to be emperor? Damn, this is good!
"If there are matters to report, speak now. Otherwise, this court is dismissed."
A eunuch standing nearby announced this in a somewhat odd tone.
The reason for his strange expression was simple—everything had happened too fast. Before he could even process it, the Great Yan Dynasty had changed hands.
What was most baffling was that, looking back through history, no usurpation had ever been this effortless.
Every recorded coup in history had required rivers of blood, sometimes staining the entire capital.
But this new emperor's ascension? Only the late emperor and the crown prince had died—then it was done.
The eeriest part was that none of the capital's great noble families, high-ranking officials, or powerful ministers had raised a single objection. It was as if they had collectively forgotten the late emperor.
As if Gu Qingfeng had always been the ruler.
For days now, the palace eunuchs, maids, and imperial concubines had been in a daze, unsure how to act.
"Your Majesty, this subject has a petition," said a stern-looking, white-haired minister as he stepped forward respectfully.
Gu Qingfeng glanced at him. "And you are?"
"Replying to Your Majesty, this humble official is Lu Xiangfei, currently serving as Grand Chancellor." (Special appearance by reader Xiaofeima.)
"Ah, Grand Chancellor Lu. What is it?"
"It concerns the burial arrangements for the late emperor, as well as the placement of the imperial princes, princesses, and the late emperor's consorts. We await Your Majesty's wise decision."
Gu Qingfeng stroked his chin in thought. "My—ahem—our elder brother lived a simple life. He wouldn’t have wanted extravagance in death either, so skip the imperial tomb. Just bury him somewhere random."
The nearby eunuch’s heart nearly stopped. He stole glances at the ministers, expecting outrage—but not a single one protested.
Furious, the eunuch cursed inwardly: Traitors, every last one of them! After all the late emperor did for you!
Yet despite his silent fury, his face remained perfectly composed. Clearly, he had no intention of speaking up.
The dead were dead, but the living still had to live.
"As for the princes... Well, jade must be carved to become a vessel. How can my nephews grow strong if they’re coddled in luxury? Strip them of their titles and send them to the borderlands. Let them toughen up.
The princesses and consorts? Well, I promised our elder brother before his passing that I’d take care of his wives and daughters. I’m sure his spirit will rest easy knowing they’re in good hands."
"Your Majesty’s benevolence knows no bounds. Truly a ruler for the ages—we are in awe," Grand Chancellor Lu Xiangfei said with deep admiration.
The other ministers quickly echoed the praise.
"Alright, anything else? If not, I’ll head to the inner palace to... comfort my sisters-in-law. They must be devastated after my elder brother’s passing."
Gu Qingfeng was already shifting impatiently, ready to leave—but Lu Xiangfei spoke again.
"Your Majesty, there is one more matter. Recently, the northwest suffered a severe drought. The people have no harvest, and disaster relief is urgently needed."
"Disaster relief? Then relieve it!"
"Your Majesty, the number of victims is vast. The treasury’s funds and grain stores may not suffice. This humble official suggests... raising taxes—"
"Hold it!" Gu Qingfeng cut him off. "If the treasury’s empty, why don’t you all chip in? What do I keep you around for? Everyone knows you ministers are richer than I am!
Here’s the deal—each of you coughs up half your wealth for relief efforts. That’s final."
The ministers’ faces paled, but none dared object. They had all sworn oaths of loyalty—defiance was unthinkable.
"Your subjects obey Your Majesty’s decree."
"From now on, don’t bother me with this kind of thing. If money’s needed, you pay first. Only after you’ve exhausted all the wealth you’ve embezzled over the years do you touch the treasury. Understood?"
"Understood, Your Majesty."
"Good. Court dismissed."
Without waiting for the ministers’ farewells, Gu Qingfeng hurried off to the inner palace.
......
Inner Palace.
"How many imperial consorts are there?"
"Replying to Your Majesty, there are 3,721."
"How many?!" Gu Qingfeng exclaimed.
"3,721," the attending eunuch repeated respectfully.
That many? How am I supposed to comfort all of them?
"Is there a registry?"
"Of course, Your Majesty. One moment."
Soon, a eunuch rushed over with the registry—complete with portraits.
Gu Qingfeng flipped through it, eyes widening at the sight.
Beauties. Every single one, a stunning beauty!
"Summon the Virtuous Consort, the Noble Consort, the Graceful Consort, the Benevolent Consort, and the Gentle Consort."
"As you command, Your Majesty."
A long while later...
Gu Qingfeng stared in horror at the five trembling elderly women before him.
He bolted for the door.
"These are the Virtuous, Noble, Graceful, Benevolent, and Gentle Consorts?! They’re all grannies!"
"Replying to Your Majesty, these consorts were the late emperor’s earliest companions. Naturally, their age..."
"Damn it! Why didn’t you say so earlier?!" Gu Qingfeng roared.
The eunuch dropped to his knees, kowtowing frantically. "This lowly one deserves death! Spare me, Your Majesty!"
"Enough. Tell me—are there any younger consorts?"
"Well... the late emperor was over a hundred years old. Though he continued selecting consorts, the youngest chosen were around eighty."
"What?! Eighty?! So the youngest consort here was selected over twenty years ago? Even if they were sixteen then, they’d be pushing forty now!"
"Your Majesty, the late emperor lived to 112."
"112?! So the youngest is in her fifties?! Unbelievable!"
Gu Qingfeng’s earlier excitement had turned to utter despair.
"Your Majesty... shall we proceed with the comforting?" the eunuch ventured cautiously.
"Comfort my—ahem—what I mean is, since the consorts are all so... mature, they must have already come to terms with life and death. They don’t need my comfort. I’ll go console my nieces instead. Speaking of—how old are my actual nieces?"
"Replying... replying to Your Majesty, the late emperor stopped having children forty years ago, so..."
"Damn it all! Return to the palace!" Gu Qingfeng’s face darkened.
"Oh, and send someone to Prince Gu's Mansion. Bring over all my former maidservants."
"At once, Your Majesty."
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
esick Sect? Well, at least it's considered a respectable orthodox sect. Wait a minute— What kind of vibe are you all giving off? Shouldn’t this be a love-struck, romance-obsessed sect? Why does everyone here sound more like demonic cultivators? "Master, today he’s getting married. This disciple wishes to descend the mountain and crash the wedding, then toy with him to death right in front of his wife..." "Elder, I only got into your sect through connections, so why won’t you teach me anything?" "Because I also became an elder through connections." Thankfully, Su Ji was just an outer sect labor disciple. Surely, nothing too crazy would— "Junior Brother, you’ve broken through to Qi Refining. Once you sever your useless spiritual root, you can officially become an outer sect disciple." "The Great Dao is merciless. Don’t let a worthless spiritual root waste your essence and spirit, hindering your cultivation." Is this really the Lovesick Sect? ... Three years later, Su Ji sat in the seat of the Lovesick Sect’s sect master, sighing with emotion. His rise to this position all started when his junior sister adamantly insisted on preserving his "spiritual root." "Mmm... Senior Brother, what’s our relationship now?" "Stop talking. Keep going." "By the way, that newly promoted top-tier sect—didn’t they come to buy our Love Beans?" "One top-grade spirit stone per Love Bean—is that really so expensive?" "I suspect they’ve eaten too many Love Beans." "Now they’re lovesick." Well, this really is the Lovesick Sect after all.
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with yanderes.
