LOT – Chapter 6 Other girls study music, chess, calligraphy, and painting—you’ve been eavesdropping on gossip with a stool since you were little

This was seriously awkward now. Lin Mo rubbed her nose and said a little sheepishly, “Um… Father, are you okay? I really didn’t mean to scare you. I just couldn’t sleep at night and was worried I’d be late for morning court, so I figured I’d just make a bedroll at your door.”

Everyone: …What kind of bizarre logic is that? What does making a bedroll at your parents’ door have to do with being late for court?

Seeing the confused expressions on their faces, Lin Mo explained awkwardly, “I just thought if Father woke up in the morning, he could wake me up and take me along. Isn’t that the best of both worlds? I even changed into my court robes already!”

Minister Lin clutched his chest, his vision going black. “Nonsense! You’re a young lady—how could you do such a thing! If word of this gets out, what will happen to your reputation?! I’ll let it slide this time since it’s your first offense, but if you pull this sort of nonsense again, just wait and see how I deal with you!”

Lin Mo nodded quickly, sincerely: [Looks like I can’t make a bedroll at their door anymore.]

System: [So you haven’t given up on the bedroll idea altogether, huh.]

Everyone in the Lin household: …………

Lin Ran looked at her little sister and sighed helplessly. Thankfully, she was just tormenting their father for now. If she had to take her sister to socialize with the noble ladies’ circle, she might just lose all hope in life.

Their Lin family had been part of the elite for generations—how did someone like this come out of their bloodline? This just proves that life can’t be too smooth; if it is, heaven’s bound to throw you a headache or two.

Lin Qi rolled up all the bedding at the door and casually asked what time it was.

Perfect. Time to go to court.

The whole family hadn’t slept well that night, and the story of what happened at the Lin household quickly spread—after all, there were plenty of people keeping an eye on them.

“Hahahaha! That little Lin girl is just too funny. What was she thinking, setting up a bedroll outside her parents’ door in the middle of the night? Wasn’t she afraid of scaring them to death?”

The emperor, Xuande, was being helped into his robes as he listened to the story. He’d woken up in a foul mood, but now he felt much better.

Eunuch Li wore a big grin as he reported, “It’s said that Young Lady Lin couldn’t sleep at night and was worried about missing morning court, so she did that. But the best part is, she started snoring right after she lay down—so loud she woke up the entire house. Lord Lin was nearly scared unconscious.”

The more Emperor Xuande heard, the better his mood became. This little Lin girl really was a treasure! In all his years, he’d never seen anyone so amusing.

“This Lin Mo is just too entertaining. How did a serious man like Minister Lin raise such a daughter? Wait, wasn’t Minister Lin kind of shameless when he was chasing after his wife back in the day? He only got more composed later in life.”

“If my three princes weren’t already married, I’d seriously consider bringing her into the royal family.”

Eunuch Li: …Your Majesty, are you serious?

This Young Lady Lin seemed like the type who thrived on chaos. If she really married into the royal family, wouldn’t the palace turn into one giant drama stage? And with her around, anything that happened inside the palace would become public knowledge in no time.

Morning court wouldn’t be about listening to government affairs—it’d be a front-row seat to royal gossip.

“Today, you better behave yourself, got it?”

Minister Lin was still scolding Lin Mo as they rode in the carriage.

Meanwhile, Lin Mo completely spaced out: [Not listening, not listening, you old turtle chanting scriptures!]

Minister Lin: …YOU’RE the turtle! Your whole family’s a bunch of—wait, no, this little troublemaker is his own daughter. He couldn’t insult her like that.

The coachman outside nearly burst out laughing. This second young lady was seriously too hilarious.

They finally arrived at the palace, and for the first time, Minister Lin experienced the enthusiastic “warmth” of his colleagues.

“Oh, Minister Lin, you’re here! Has Young Lady Lin arrived yet? Minister, you’ve raised quite the daughter!”

“Absolutely! I heard your eldest son and eldest daughter are both outstanding as well. You’re truly blessed!”

“I don’t know why I wasn’t so lucky—my children are all like debt collectors. Everyone has their own fate, I guess.”

Minister Lin: …Are you all okay? What kind of early morning madness is this?

We’ve worked together for years, and this is the first time you’ve shown me this much enthusiasm. Be honest—you just want to hear the gossip, don’t you?

Lin Mo, on the other hand, was chatting happily with the officials, handling everything with ease and confidence.

Before long, she had coaxed out all the information about the adult who had been chatting with her — like how many people were in his family, how many children he had, what their relationships were like… All under the guise of “concern.”

System: [Host, host, stop asking already! He’s practically handed over his underwear at this point. I really think you’re in the wrong line of work — you were born to be a gossipmonger! The poor guy just wanted a casual chat, and now you’ve dug out his entire family background. Is that even how normal people chat?!]

The adult finally realized something was off after hearing the system’s words. Crap! He really had spilled everything about his household!

Lin Mo sighed internally. [Weren’t they the ones who started chatting with me first? You know what I’m like. If there’s no gossip, then what’s even the point of a conversation?]

[But this adult is actually pretty decent. Based on his description, though… he kinda sounds like he’s under his wife’s thumb.]

The adult in question: !!! Don’t talk nonsense! How could I possibly be henpecked?! I’m the head of the household!

The expressions of the other officials who had been eavesdropping were… hard to describe.

And yet, even without crowding around her, they could already tell — this Lin family girl, even without that system, had a terrifying natural talent for digging gossip.

System: [Host, your skills are seriously top-tier. No wonder — you were trained in the gossip battlegrounds of maids and old nannies! Other noble girls were learning music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, while you were carrying around a little stool to go eavesdrop on rumors.]

Lin Mo: [Oh, you flatter me, you flatter me. The noble girls in the capital all know the arts. I had to find something different — something to make me stand out.]

Everyone listening was speechless.

Different — yes, she was certainly different. While others practiced the elegant arts, she ran around gathering gossip. No other noble girl was like this.

Minister Lin really wanted to find a hole and crawl into it. It was just so embarrassing! Clearly it was that little rascal embarrassing herself, but why did he feel so awkward?

Why hasn’t court started yet?! Why is time crawling today?!

Finally, just as Minister Lin was on the verge of a breakdown, Eunuch Li arrived to announce that court was about to begin.

Lin Mo: [Already? But it feels like we just got here.]

Minister Lin: Already, my ass!