【System, keep digging!】
【Whose gossip in the court is especially explosive?】
The system chuckled twice.
【Host, let’s switch flavors!】
【We’ve been eating too many old officials’ scandals—let’s look at the young ones!】
Feng Zexuan’s eyes lit up.
【This is good! The young ones’ gossip should be more exciting!】
【Then let’s start with the newly appointed seventh-rank Dali Temple Evaluator this year!】
The system’s tone turned teasing.
【Surname Fang, given name Ziqin, twenty-three years old.】
【Host, the most handsome guy at the end of the official line—that’s him.】
Feng Zexuan turned to look where the system pointed.
A tall young official stood there.
The seventh-rank official robe fit him well, giving him an air of dignity.
His features were refined—clear brows, a high nose bridge, thin lips slightly pressed together, carrying a scholarly aura.
【Huh?】
Feng Zexuan evaluated silently.
【He is quite handsome.】
【Not as striking as my brother, but definitely among the top in court.】
【This kind of refined “scum—no, scholarly gentleman” look is exactly the type that hides secrets!】
【System! I’m more interested in handsome guys’ gossip! Hurry up!】
The officials nearby all turned their heads at the words “refined scum.”
This guy usually looked quite honest…
Could he really have something shady?
Fang Ziqin, standing in the ranks, suddenly felt a chill at the back of his neck.
A bad premonition rose in his heart.
His face instantly turned pale.
If the Northern Duke really exposed that matter…
He might as well just die.
The system let out a sinister laugh.
【Host, brace yourself!】
【This gossip… is explosive!】
【And I guarantee—you’ll never guess it!】
Feng Zexuan got even more excited.
【That mysterious? Let me see how explosive it can be!】
The officials also perked up.
Even the “system” said it was explosive—this must be big!
Prime Minister Xiao Juechen narrowed his eyes, watching Fang Ziqin’s increasingly pale face.
This guy’s reaction… is suspicious.
【Fang Ziqin…】
The system dragged out its tone, deliberately building suspense.
【He has a very, very… special hobby.】
Feng Zexuan leaned in mentally.
【What hobby?】
【Don’t tell me he collects smelly socks or something?】
【No, no, no! Way more explosive than that!】
【He likes—】
The system paused.
【Running naked at night!】
Feng Zexuan’s mind went blank.
【…What?】
【Let me repeat it!】
The system was excited.
【Naked running!】
【Every three days, he runs one lap around Bibo Lake in the western outskirts of the capital at night!】
【That lake is three li in circumference!】
【And he does it completely naked!】
Feng Zexuan froze.
【Am… am I hearing correctly?】
【No… is my brain malfunctioning?】
“Hiss—”
All officials collectively gasped.
Naked running?!
At night?!
Bibo Lake?!
This gossip was too outrageous!
Fang Ziqin’s last trace of color drained from his face.
His body swayed slightly.
It’s over…
He was already thinking about how to die when he got home.
Hanging? Drowning? Or smashing his head against a wall?
Xiao Juechen stared at him, his gaze becoming meaningful.
So this seemingly proper young man…
has such a… hobby?
Feng Zexuan suddenly thought of a song.
In her previous life, during the final semester of high school, while others were frantically studying…
she had been looping a song in an internet café.
Black Panther Band’s—
“No Place to Hide.”
It felt intense and strangely relieving.
And now—it fit perfectly.
Without thinking, she began humming in her mind.
【In the crowd of people, you and me, meeting, knowing, probing each other…】
【I no longer reminisce, what’s the point of the past… I am no longer who I used to be…】
【No place to hide…】
【I truly have no place to hide…】
She sang more and more immersed.
Feng Zekai, standing behind her, watched his sister’s head gently bobbing.
Even his fingers subconsciously tapped along.
The melody was sorrowful, the lyrics piercing.
The officials were stunned.
What… what song is this?
It sounds so tragic, so heavy!
And most importantly—it fits perfectly!
The phrase “no place to hide” described Fang Ziqin’s current state perfectly.
Fang Ziqin froze in place upon hearing the lyrics.
No place to hide…
Yes, he truly had no place to hide.
Not even a crack in the ground to slip into.
He had an excellent memory and unconsciously replayed the melody and lyrics in his mind.
Strangely… he resonated deeply with it.
Wasn’t this song describing him?
“Moving through crowds, pretending to be proper, expressionless…”
Wasn’t that exactly how he acted in court every day?
“No place to hide…”
Wasn’t that exactly his current situation?
His eyes reddened slightly as he silently memorized the tune.
From now on…
He would sing this song too.
Make it his life’s theme song.
Feng Zexuan stopped humming and scratched her head.
【System, why would he run naked?】
【Could it be some special fetish?】
【Like… enjoying the feeling of moonlight on his skin?】
The system sighed, its tone turning serious.
【No. It’s not a fetish—it’s stress.】
【Stress?】
Feng Zexuan froze.
【Yes. Stress so severe it makes someone want to die.】
The system’s voice grew heavy.
【Fang Ziqin comes from a poor family. His parents are ordinary farmers.】
【He studied for ten years, nearly ruining his eyesight, before passing the imperial exam.】
【The entire village pooled money to buy him official robes and rent him housing, placing all their hopes on him.】
【But after entering court…】
【He’s introverted, bad at speaking, doesn’t know how to flatter or bribe.】
【He hits walls everywhere.】
Feng Zexuan felt her heart tighten.
The officials also fell silent.
They suddenly remembered their own early days in court.
That feeling of helplessness and walking on thin ice…
It was indeed suffocating.
The Minister of Rites thought of his own son, who had just entered office this year.
He suddenly realized he had never once asked how his son was doing at work.
The Minister of Revenue sighed.
Court politics… truly ruthless.
【His superior, the Deputy Minister of Dali Temple, is extremely harsh.】
The system continued.
【He scolds him constantly, even humiliates him in front of others.】
【“People from humble backgrounds just aren’t good enough.”】
【“Country bumpkin.”】
【“Bookish fool who only knows dead texts.”】
【He hears this every day.】
【His colleagues also isolate him.】
【Because he doesn’t give gifts or curry favor, he is excluded.】
【Good tasks never go to him; whenever something goes wrong, he’s the first scapegoat.】
Feng Zexuan frowned.
【That’s too much bullying…】
Xiao Juechen’s brow tightened.
He didn’t expect a mere seventh-rank official to be under such pressure.
It seems…
court discipline really needs reform.
【Every night he returns home, his mind replays the day—】
【Being scolded, cold stares, piles of documents…】
【He feels like he can’t breathe.】
【Every morning he wakes up in fear.】
【Fear of going to office, fear of seeing those people, fear of hearing those harsh words.】
【He develops insomnia, nightmares, loses appetite.】
【He becomes painfully thin.】
Fang Ziqin’s eyes filled with tears.
Yes…
Those days were truly unbearable.
He lived in torment every single day.
And then…
【And once…】
The system’s voice deepened further.
【He stood at a cliff in the western outskirts, looking down into the abyss.】
【A thought appeared in his mind—】
【Jump down. End it all.】
The officials’ expressions changed.
A young official…
so overwhelmed he considered suicide.
Feng Zexuan sighed inwardly.
【I can understand pressure from a new job…】
【Even though I’ve never worked in my past life…】
【But what does that have to do with naked running?】
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