EMHTC -Chapter 140 Let’s Open a Blind Box Today—Whoever Reports First, I’ll Dig Up Their Gossip!

“Done!”

“Yeah!”

Two hands clapped in the air.

Princess Xiangyang was elated. “I can play the huqin! I’ll play a song now!”

Xu Yanmiao cheered, “Great!”

And so, Princess Xiangyang hugged her beloved huqin and began plucking away at the strings, producing a lively melody.

Xu Yanmiao couldn’t play any instrument, but he knew how to create an atmosphere. He grabbed a wooden bucket with a lid and started drumming on it with his hands, making a resounding boom bang clang.

“Dong dong dong—”

“Lung lung lung—”

The wild notes soared through the roof, mixed with bursts of laughter.

Princess Xiangyang played and laughed, then suddenly called out, “Xu Yaohai—”

She shouted, “Thank you—”

Xu Yanmiao was still pounding on the bucket when he heard her voice amid the noise. He barely caught her words and asked, “What? What did you say?”

Princess Xiangyang then raised her voice and shouted, “I—SAID—THANK—YOU—”

Thank you for not calling me childish just because I don’t want to get married.

Thank you for indulging my ‘nonsense.’

Xu Yanmiao shouted back, “NO—NEED—TO—THANK—ME—”

They were in the countryside, where the endless echoes of the huqin and drumbeats resonated against the blue sky, white clouds, green trees, blooming flowers, tender grass, and distant mountains. Streams of water trickled down the slopes, as if even joy had left its traces.

The old emperor, having learned of the situation from the Jinyiwei, couldn’t help but chuckle. “Those two little troublemakers really know how to amuse themselves.”

After the initial shock of Princess Xiangyang’s “romantic declaration,” the emperor quickly realized—

That little scoundrel, Gao Shengxian, didn’t really long for some kind of ‘pure love’ as she claimed.

She was just doing it to annoy her father!

And he didn’t even have to guess whose idea it was—this had Xu Yanmiao’s unorthodox scheming written all over it.

If any other official tried to play tricks on him like this, he’d make sure they paid a heavy price. But these two…

“Forget it.”

The emperor picked up his chopsticks and calmly ate his peanuts, one by one. These peanuts were salted and large, making a crisp crunch with each bite.

Then, he uncorked a bottle of aged liquor beside him and took a swig straight from it. After drinking, he sighed, “I’m not dying anytime soon anyway. My teeth can still handle peanuts for a few more years—let them play.”

—Besides, he was indeed a bit surprised.

His daughter seemed normal now, but what if she really turned into a love-struck fool in the future?

Might as well wait and see. No rush for a couple of years.

Still, those little brats dared to mess with their emperor father—they needed a little scare.

He pointed at a plate of peanuts and smiled at the Jinyiwei. “They must be exhausted and hungry after all that playing. Take this plate of peanuts and bestow it upon them.”

The Jinyiwei: “…”

If you weren’t the emperor, I’d have to ask—are you seriously telling me to leave the palace, go beyond the outer city, travel 20-30 miles just to deliver a plate of peanuts?

At least add a couple of pieces of meat to make it look more valuable!

After their fun, Xu Yanmiao wiped the sweat off his face with the back of his hand. The sun was blazing on the back of his head, making him long for a bath.

Just before heading home, a light bulb went off in his mind. Ding!

“Hey, Gao Xiang, I just thought of another way to up the stakes!”

Princess Xiangyang got excited immediately. “What is it?”

Xu Yanmiao pushed the bucket aside, his tone full of mischief. “Put on a white dress and walk around the palace at night. Contemplate the moon, brood over the flowers—”

“!!!”

Princess Xiangyang’s eyes lit up even more. “This is brilliant! I’ll go find my white dress right away!”

Xu Yanmiao continued, “And if you get caught, just say this—come, repeat after me: ‘Father, I wish for someone to watch the snow, the stars, and the moon with me, to discuss poetry and philosophy of life.’“

Princess Xiangyang immediately covered her teeth.

No matter how many times she heard that line, it still made her cringe.

But soon, her father would have to hear it!

Just thinking about it, she managed to put on an air of nonchalance and repeated with exaggerated serenity, “Father~ I wish for someone to watch the snow, the stars, and the moon with me, to discuss poetry and—“

She was abruptly interrupted by the arrival of the Jinyiwei.

Xu Yanmiao blinked. “Do you need something?”

The Jinyiwei commander presented a food box with perfect composure. “Your Highness, Lord Xu, His Majesty was concerned that you might be tired and hungry from all the music and commotion, so he ordered me to deliver this plate of peanuts.”

Princess Xiangyang: “…”

Xu Yanmiao: “…”

【Wait, wait a second—did we get exposed this fast?!】

The Jinyiwei commander finished his task, saluted, and left, leaving the two of them staring at each other.

Xu Yanmiao hesitated. “Maybe…”

Princess Xiangyang swallowed. “Actually…”

They looked at each other again, noticing the sweat stains on each other’s collars.

Princess Xiangyang gulped. “Actually, wandering the palace in white at midnight… doesn’t seem that necessary?”

Xu Yanmiao gave an innocent smile, eyes gleaming with pure sincerity. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Midnight wandering in white? Never heard of it.”

Princess Xiangyang paused, then grinned as brilliantly as a peach blossom in spring. “Right, right, right. I must have been talking nonsense.”

“Let’s go! Didn’t we come out to eat noodles? If we don’t hurry, the shop will be full!”

“Huh? Oh, oh! Right! Let’s go!”

Soon, the time arrived for the appointment of new scholars.

In the imperial examination system, the top-ranked (First-Class) scholars usually entered the Hanlin Academy, the Second-Class scholars were assigned positions in the capital or provinces, and the Third-Class scholars were typically given provincial posts.

However, this time was an exception.

The old emperor, perhaps having killed too many people recently, made an exception—allowing the top of the Second-Class scholars to also enter the Hanlin Academy. But aside from that, the rest of the Second-Class scholars were assigned their usual capital or provincial posts.

Gao He rubbed his red nose and wiped away his tears.

—The joy of finally making it ashore—who could understand it?

“It’s just a pity that I couldn’t get into the Hanlin Academy…”

He sighed regretfully to Xu Yanmiao, “Although a position as a principal secretary in the Ministry of Works is technically higher in rank than a Hanlin Academy editor or compiler, Hanlin graduates have a much faster path to promotion.”

Xu Yanmiao laughed at him. “If you’d practiced your calligraphy earlier, you could have become a junior compiler after the court exam.”

After the palace examination, except for the top-ranking candidates, everyone had to take another court exam. Those skilled in literature and calligraphy could be selected as junior compilers at the Hanlin Academy.

Gao He’s face flushed. “Calligraphy… isn’t something you can just practice and get good at right away. I mean, I did practice for a while, but…”

“But you used the study hall’s designated calligraphy practice time to copy scriptures instead?”

Gao He’s voice shot up in shock. “How did you know?!”

At his former study hall, students were required to copy scriptures for an hour each day, regardless of their calligraphy skills. Those with good handwriting would use expensive paper or silk, while those with poor handwriting would use bamboo or wooden slips.

The study hall would then sell these scriptures to temples, and the money would help cover students’ living expenses.

To earn money, Gao He spent all his spare time copying scriptures, prioritizing quantity over quality and pretending that they were done within the required practice hour.

—After all, back then, he never expected to get this far.

Xu Yanmiao was about to respond when the bell for lineup rang. He had no choice but to quickly part ways with Gao He and move to his designated position.

【After all, I did something similar—sneaking novels during penmanship class…】

He had read all sorts of books—Qiong Yao novels included.

Gao He, also hurrying to his spot, suddenly heard Xu Yanmiao’s voice in his head and was deeply moved.

Young Master Xu was such a good person. Even in such a rush, he still took the time to explain things to him. Though his voice was a bit loud—loud enough that others probably heard it too—it was understandable, given the urgency of the moment.

…But wait, what was “penmanship class”?

Confused, Gao He turned back, intending to say, “I heard you,” but before he could, several officials hurried past between them. In just a brief moment, Xu Yanmiao had already settled into his position.

When their eyes met, Xu Yanmiao nodded at him with a smile.

Gao He smiled and nodded back.

The other officials who were not new exam graduates: “…”

Did you two not realize that you might be smiling about completely different things?

On the first day of attending court, Gao He was incredibly nervous.

On the umpteenth day of attending court, Xu Yanmiao skillfully opened his system: 【Let’s draw a blind box today—woohoo! The first person to step forward to report will have their gossip revealed!】

The assembled officials instantly paled.

Several officials who had just been about to step forward instinctively retracted their feet.

Then, they started deferring to one another.

“My matter is not urgent. Please, after you.”

“Oh, nonsense, the Ministry of Revenue’s financial affairs are far more pressing. You go first.”

“The accounts will still be there in a little while, unchanged by a minute’s delay. But I heard you were about to report an auspicious omen. That would surely delight His Majesty! The Emperor’s matters take precedence—you should go first.”

“To be honest, I was just reflecting… That so-called five-colored auspicious cloud over Mount Qi was merely a trick of the light. Hardly worthy of presenting as an auspicious sign. As for the rumors of a phoenix landing there, that’s just baseless folk gossip.”

Both ministers wore polite smiles, their expressions harmonious.

But internally:

One scoffed: Old fox! Weren’t you the one who stubbornly refused to approve our department’s budget request? And now you say money isn’t important?

The other rolled his eyes: Everyone knows that except for a rare Baize beast, all so-called “auspicious omens” are just made-up nonsense. But they sound good! And if I’m lucky and His Majesty is pleased, my career will skyrocket!

And it wasn’t just them—other ministers also started shuffling and deferring to each other, transforming what was usually a battleground of political disputes into a rare scene of peaceful camaraderie.

As for the newly appointed officials…

Gao He: “…Did I get up too fast? I think I just heard Young Master Xu’s voice in the court hall?”

Liang Youwen blinked in confusion.

Someone could speak out loud in court? And no one was stopping them?

Other new officials, who had just secured positions in the capital, either stood frozen in shock or felt an eerie sense of something being amiss. Some masked their emotions, while others anxiously looked around.

Meanwhile, the senior officials smugly folded their hands and sighed meaningfully: “Ah, young people… Even if you’ve grown some facial hair, that doesn’t mean you’re ready for real responsibility. Do you not understand that only with the composure of a mountain in an earthquake can one truly thrive in the court?”

—Conveniently forgetting how their own reactions back when they first heard “thought voices” had been just as ridiculous.