“Paner, where is the...bamboo scroll?”

“What?”

“The bamboo scroll...you mentioned.”

“Oh, right.” Paner finally remembered what she came here for and took out a bamboo scroll from her pocket. This was the reason why she came to find Shui Yinzhu.

“Okay.” The pain drained all the strength from Shui Yinzhu’s body. But she still managed to read the message before sending Paner to burn it.

The bamboo scroll came from Wei Ruxuan. He intended to cooperate with Shui Yinzhu. It wouldn’t be hard to guess that it was because of Bu Xiaoyan. But Shui Yinzhu didn’t expect was that Wei Ruxuan could send this bamboo scroll to her through this well-guarded harem. Prime Minister Wei’s influence could reach farther than it seemed.

As the window opened again, Xiaoba took out a flask and handed it to Shui Yinzhu. “I asked the doctor to have the medicine boiled for you.”

“Okay.” Shui Yinzhu took the flask and quickly drank the medicine. The maiden who used to hate the bitter medicine now felt no detest against it. Bitterness had become part of her life. Since the medicine wasn’t magical and couldn’t ease the pain immediately, Shui Yinzhu had to close her eyes in pain and wait for the medicine to take effect.

It was the first time for Xiaoba to forget his identity and fail in keeping the distance between men and women. He was too concerned with her. Xiaoba and Paner stopped talking and stayed with the weak empress silently until she stopped frowning and started to breathe steadily.

“I’m fine now.” Shui Yinzhu opened her eyes. Although she looked weak, she finally had some strength to speak as she no longer felt pain.

Shui Yinzhu raised her body on the elbows. Paner started to look for a pillow, but Xiaoba was quicker. In case she didn’t feel comfortable, Xiaoba sat on the bed so that Shui Yinzhu could lean on him. The guard acted like a different man today.

“Are you all right, Your Majesty(sister)?” Xiaoba and Paner asked simultaneously.

“I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

“What’s wrong with your body, Your Majesty(sister)?” The two of them spoke at the same time again. They looked at each other in embarrassment.

“Pff.” Shui Yinzhu was amused by them. “It’s the after-effect of the Heat Poison. It happens once every month and causes pain. No other side-effect.”

“It looked really painful. It’s still better for you to go see a doctor, Your Majesty(sister).” Three times in a row for Xiaoba and Paner to speak in unison. They didn’t even intend to look at each other this time.

“Heat Poison keeps me infertile. I don’t want to have Yun Su’s baby.”

The three of them went silent after Shui Yinzhu said that. Xiaoba and Paner both knew how much Shui Yinzhu disliked Yun Su. Compared to the innocent little palace maid, Xiaoba understood better why she hated the emperor. The guard subconsciously held the woman tighter in his arms as he got entangled in different emotions.

“Xiaoba, you hurt me.”

Shui Yinzhu broke the awkward silence as she felt Xiaoba’s grip. Xiaoba then realized that he had gone way across the line. What’s more, Shui Yinzhu was still in her long underwear. He left Shui Yinzhu on her bed and disappeared with a blushing face.

The moment he disappeared, Paner somehow blushed, too. The girl might have fallen in love. Shui Yinzhu noticed it even though Paner didn’t realize it herself.

That would actually be good. Shui Yinzhu didn’t love Xiaoba. She seduced him to earn his loyalty. Shui Yinzhu would love to see Xiaoba fall in love with Paner and let the two lead a happy life. At that moment, the girl was in love, but the man wasn’t, as he was still obsessed with the illusion of the empress. There was always something one couldn’t control.

Everything gradually went on as Shui Yinzhu planned. One of the good things was that after Xiaoba and Paner learned this monthly Heat Poison attack of Shui Yinzhu, Xiaoba would prepare painkillers for her on time and send the medicine flask through Paner. Ever since then, Shui Yinzhu no longer had to suffer the pain for an entire night for the after-effect of Heat Poison.

After Shui Yinzhu sensed the feelings of Paner for Xiaoba, she deliberately had Xiaoba and Paner deliver things mutually so that they would have the chance to meet each other.

Three days after the Heat Poison attack, it was a winter night. The snow had already stopped. It only snowed for two days that year. The weather was still cold, but there weren’t any more snowflakes.

Yun Su was still too busy to visit Shui Yinzhu. That again gave the evil empress some more time to create more chaos. Shui Yinzhu called Paner in the middle of the night. She could have asked for Xiaoba herself, but she ordered Paner to do the job for her.

After Xiaoba showed up, Shui Yinzhu would give them some time to see each other before sending Paner out.

“Xiaoba, take me to the mansion of Prime Minister Wei. I need to talk to Wei Ruxuan.”

“Okay.”

The confidential guard Xiaoba was a simple-minded man. He didn’t notice the love of Paner or the special arrangement of Shui Yinzhu. The only thing he could tell was his love for Shui Yinzhu. The man wasn’t insensitive. He would be willing to sacrifice everything for his unspoken love.

He carried the woman in red in his arms. In order to keep her safe and make her feel comfortable, he had to remain vigilant, stay silent while allowing her to lean on his chest. The two of them soon got out of the palace.

Wei Ruxuan had been waiting for Shui Yinzhu in his study. The two of them got in touch with each other in the morning session two days ago.

Would it be acceptable when the evil empress took part in the imperial court? To make matters worse, Empress Xi ignored all the ministers and shamelessly flirted with Yun Su in public while sitting in his arms.

Shui Yinzhu was only auditing in the beginning. But then she participated in the decision-making of all the affairs, whether important or not.

Even though the Empire of Yun’s orders were about to derail, Yun Su, the emperor, still didn’t intend to restrain himself as he kept the evil empress Shui Yinzhu around. The once serious imperial court became where a woman was the decision-maker.

The emperor wasn’t completely brainless as he would still make decisions. But Shui Yinzhu was exerting too much influence on him. Whenever Yun Su didn’t agree with her opinion, she would either make a scene, play the coquette or kill someone in the audience hall of the imperial palace. She was trying every method, and Yun Su had to tolerate her by giving her what she wanted.

One day, Shui Yinzhu started to chitchat with the ministers in the morning session. All she talked about was family trifles. For example, the concubine of Master Zhang gave a baby; Master Li married a new concubine; Master Wang had a quarrel with his wife, and she went back home; Prime Minister Wei slept in his study instead of in the bedroom every day... The morning session was turned into a salon chat.

It soon started to bother Yun Su, so he put an end to the chitchat. The emperor’s authority would be disgraced if Shui Yinzhu’s chat continued. However, Shui Yinzhu didn’t need to keep it on. The message was already sent out.

Wei Ruxuan was clever enough to receive the message. Ever since that day, he started to sleep in his study. Since he didn’t know when the evil empress would visit, he started waiting every night.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

“Get up on your feet.” Shui Yinzhu had already asked Xiaoba to hide as she walked into the mansion of Prime Minister Wei. Then she entered the study by herself.

“Your Majesty, thank you for forgiving my wife Xiaoyan and saving all the lives of my family.”

“Ruxuan, don’t even mention it between us.”

“Well, Wu Shuang, thanks for forgiving the Wei family.”

Wei Ruxuan hated Shui Yinzhu, but years of work taught him to adapt to changes. The innocent teenager had become a diplomatic man. Besides, he understood the situation after taking benefit from his power. Moreover, Shui Yinzhu gave him the title of Prime Minister. In order to keep his position and secure his family, he had to take Shui Yinzhu’s side.

“Well, you should treat your wife better. Wu Shuang only existed in your past. But your wife needs to be disciplined. If she is to talk nonsense again, I can’t guarantee the safety of your family. I apologize for what happened to your father, but I can’t say I regret it.”

“You have my gratitude. I do understand it. I sent her to the countryside for recuperation.”

“Okay.”

“Wu Shuang, you know, ever since you left, I couldn’t touch any other women. I married Xiaoyan only to fulfill the last will of my deceased father.”

“Ruxuan, there is no need to pretend. We will be allies, and allies only.”

Even though Wei Ruxuan still had a mixed feeling towards Shui Yinzhu, he had already become a scheming politician. Their relationship was but a card to play. But no matter how clever Wei Ruxuan could be, Shui Yinzhu was ten times better. She knew what the Prime Minister was up to since his eyes sold him.

“Wu Shuang, if you really have no feeling for me, why did you arrange me to be the Prime Minister?”

“I didn’t love you as Wu Shuang, and neither do I now as Shui Yinzhu. I promoted you to be the Prime Minister for our future cooperation.”

“Is that it?”

“Ruxuan, stop talking nonsense. Now that you’ve taken my side, I’ll send my man to inform you what you need to do.”

“What do I do for now?”

“Do not follow my will in the imperial court. Agree more with Yun Su’s opinion. Keep a low profile and don’t stand out. Make more friends with the ministers and take them to the new brothel in the city at night.”

“Do you own that brothel?”

“No. But I have my men in it. I need things that can help me stand against those ministers. Do what you think can be of help.”

“I see.”

“Ruxuan, you are a clever man. I believe you can tell that the Empire of Yun will come to an end.”

“What’s your plan?”

“It has nothing to do with you. Whether you hate me or not, do the job, and I will guarantee a safe and prosperous future for you and your family.”

“Okay.”

Why did Shui Yinzhu pick Wei Ruxuan? The only reason was the greed and desire in his eyes. The title of a Prime Minister was enough to buy him off and let him take a side regardless of what happened in the past. A greedy man would be the easiest kind to use.

Shui Yinzhu wouldn’t completely trust Wei Ruxuan. She had a hidden pawn that Wei Ruxuan didn’t know, Chi Mu, the Fengchang and the brother of Madam Li. She had already been in touch with him through Madam Li.

The shrewd empress didn’t tell Wei Ruxuan and Chi Mu that they were both working for her so that she could easily test their loyalty and keep a balance between them in secret.

It was about to be a new year. But things were no longer like before. It would be a terrifying new year for everyone.

After the blood cleansing of the imperial family in the past month, Yun Su thought he killed all the Yun family members. Shortly after Huaiyang City went peaceful for a couple of days, a new rumor spread out, saying that the baby girl that switched place with Yun Su was the real princess of the Yun family and was still alive.

The Empire of Yun went further into chaos. Many rebellious people started to look for this last child of the Yun family. Yun Su was so angry that he started an empire-wide search for this so-called “fake princess,” who actually had the real imperial blood.

No matter how determined he gave the order and how many soldiers he sent, Yun Su couldn’t find her or any clue. The thing was, he could never imagine that his Sister Xi was behind this. Since Shui Yinzhu dared to spread the message, she was well prepared for the consequence.

The evil empress was an expert on humanity. She knew that people were superstitious. With the prophecy, the rumor would be more convincing. As she sent more people to spread the story of the real princess, the public opinion would eventually go out of control no matter how strictly it was censored.

The atrocity of Yun Su was dreadful indeed, but it made him lose his people’s trust. In order to arouse more negativity towards Yun Su and herself, Shui Yinzhu made full use of Yun Su’s violence as well as her position in the imperial court.