As the voice fell.
The hall fell into silence.
Lyu Fang stared dead at Gu Chengyin, not saying a word.
His gaze was like a tangible probe, attempting to dig out the truth behind those words from every twitch of a muscle on his face, every flicker of his eyes!
Countless fragments of information collided, reorganized, and connected in his mind!
Gu Chengyin brought a red sandalwood box back to the palace, which contained Shangguan Yuan's return gift.
Shortly after returning to the palace, an edict was issued from the Crown Princess's palace, in which Her Highness specially titled Gu Chengyin the Marquis of Bingjian, using the highly impactful word "Bingjian" (shoulder to shoulder).
These events were closely linked in time, forming a clear chain!
If someone said there was no connection between this return gift and the conferment of the marquis title, Lyu Fang wouldn't believe it even if he were beaten to death.
The item in that red sandalwood box was definitely not ordinary, otherwise there wouldn't be such astonishing favor.
The answer was already on the verge of coming out.
Lyu Fang felt his heartbeat vibrating violently in his chest, a scalp-numbing answer almost bursting through his throat!
But he forcefully suppressed the urge; he needed confirmation, needed to hear Gu Chengyin say that answer with his own mouth.
Thus, after a brief exchange of gazes, Lyu Fang suddenly changed the subject.
He picked up the slightly cooled tea, took a gentle sip, then put it down, and said casually:
"Marquis Gu, speaking of which, when His Majesty heard that Her Highness had returned safely the day before yesterday, he was greatly pleased and very happy."
He looked at Gu Chengyin and sighed with emotion:
"Ever since His Majesty established the Crown Princess, he has placed great hopes on Her Highness."
"I am often by his side, listening to the imperial teachings. His Majesty often says that Her Highness is intelligent, decisive, can clearly distinguish right from wrong, and has the aura of a wise ruler."
After some affirmation, he slightly changed the subject, his tone full of concern:
"His Majesty also said that Her Highness is good in every way, except... her temperament is too proud, her edge is too exposed. Being too rigid makes one easy to break, being too sharp makes one easy to damage. She doesn't know how to temper hardness with softness."
Immediately after, Lyu Fang's tone suddenly became appreciative:
"However, at yesterday's morning assembly, Her Highness's response was well-founded in advance and retreat, drawing the bow without shooting. It both showed her attitude and did not lose a sense of proportion."
"This performance gave His Majesty a great surprise!"
He deliberately emphasized the word "surprise", looking brightly at Gu Chengyin:
"After His Majesty left the court, although he didn't say anything, I have served him for many years and could feel that His Majesty was in an excellent mood. For Her Highness to have such a performance..."
Lyu Fang paused, a meaningful smile appearing on his face:
"Marquis Gu, you must have contributed greatly to this, right?"
Listening to Lyu Fang's rambling words, Gu Chengyin's mind was completely clear.
These words seemed simple, but in fact, they revealed an extremely crucial piece of information!
Emperor Luo's attitude.
Between the lines, Lyu Fang was transmitting a clear signal: Emperor Luo highly approved of Luo Zhao's performance.
This approval was definitely not just superficial praise, but also contained tacit consent and support for checking the accounts, and even further actions!
As the person closest to Emperor Luo, Lyu Fang's relaying at this moment was almost telling Gu Chengyin: On this matter, His Majesty is on Her Highness's side.
Gu Chengyin quickly calculated in his heart.
Shangguan Yunying once told him that the eunuch faction in the court and the public was more inclined towards the Second Prince, but he had a different understanding of this.
Eunuchs were different from civil officials and military generals; they were a special group that could only rely on imperial power.
Their power, status, and foundation of survival all came from the emperor alone.
Therefore, Emperor Luo's will was the highest mission and action guide for the eunuch faction.
Without Emperor Luo's permission, Lyu Fang would absolutely not dare to let the rumor that "the eunuch faction favors the Second Prince" spread outside.
So although Lyu Fang was chatting casually, he was actually showing his attitude, and also to get an answer from Gu Chengyin, so as to determine what to do next.
Gu Chengyin did not directly answer this probe, but instead showed a look of shame and lingering fear on his face.
He sighed and said with lingering fear:
"Eunuch Lyu praises me too much. Speaking of which, after I presented the return gift to Her Highness, I was soundly scolded by her."
"Oh?"
Lyu Fang raised an eyebrow, the glint in his eyes intensifying. He leaned forward, adopting a listening posture.
He knew, the big one was coming!
Gu Chengyin's tone was sorrowful, as if recalling a nightmare:
"Her Highness was very angry at that time. The severity of her words and the coldness of her attitude make it unforgettable and deeply engraved in my heart even when I recall it now!"
Lyu Fang instantly held his breath and concentrated, even his breathing unconsciously lightening, fully focused on every word Gu Chengyin said.
He knew that the content of this reprimand was probably the answer to solving the mystery.
Looking at Lyu Fang's fully concentrated expression, Gu Chengyin smiled slightly in his heart, but still maintained that shame on his face, and said slowly:
"Her Highness scolded me at that time, saying: 'Gu Chengyin! You have a lot of nerve! You actually dared to accept Shangguan Yuan's return gift? And brought it back to the palace?!'"
He imitated Luo Zhao's cold and majestic tone to perfection.
Lyu Fang's heart skipped a beat! The reprimand was about the return gift? It seems... not quite right?
Gu Chengyin continued, his tone turning into a kind of grievance and self-blame as if suddenly realizing the truth:
"Her Highness also scolded: This trend of 'bringing heavy gifts to the door, and there must be a return after the matter is done', is a bad habit that only exists over in the Luo Capital!"
"It is an evil trend that ruins the imperial discipline and corrupts the administration of officials! As the Crown Princess, she absolutely will not allow such a trend to appear in the Divine Capital, or in the Crown Princess's palace."
"Her Highness even scolded me by quoting classics and historical records."
Gu Chengyin raised his pitch, looked straight at Lyu Fang, and said clearly word by word:
"'Grand Secretary Xiao has long given repeated injunctions, severely refuting it multiple times at the court assemblies, explicitly forbidding the appearance of such evil trends among the court and the public! One must be an honest official and handle affairs impartially!'"
The words "Grand Secretary Xiao", like a heavy bomb, were thrown out so lightly by Gu Chengyin.
"Only then did I suddenly realize!"
Gu Chengyin slapped his thigh, a look of extreme regret on his face: "I repeatedly kowtowed to Her Highness and begged for forgiveness, saying that I was muddle-headed, didn't understand the rules, almost ruined the court's laws, and let down Grand Secretary Xiao's painstaking efforts!"
"Seeing that my attitude of admitting my mistake was sincere, and considering that I had just entered the court and was ignorant of the ways of the world, Her Highness barely forgave me."
"If it weren't for Her Highness's magnanimity, I'm afraid you wouldn't be seeing me now, Eunuch Lyu."
After Gu Chengyin finished speaking, he let out a long sigh of relief, as if taking off a huge burden. He picked up his teacup and took a sip to calm his agitated mood.
And at this moment, Lyu Fang...
His whole body froze there!
Those eyes that always seemed peaceful and even a bit wooden, were now staring round!
They were filled with extreme shock, disbelief, and a kind of horror of "as expected"!
It was as if thunder exploded in his mind, automatically filtering out all the miscellaneous parts of Gu Chengyin's words that seemed to be complaining.
Only three words remained, branded into his soul like a mark.
Grand, Secretary, Xiao.
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
