If you're made a fake emperor, why did you change the country's name?

Outside the Golden Palace

As soon as Zhao Yu stepped out of the Golden Palace, he saw a figure.

It was none other than the old dog Li Fu'an, who had been suppressing his anger for three days.

Li Fu'an's face was full of gloom. When he saw Zhao Yu, he revealed a sinister smile and walked towards Zhao Yu step by step.

The murderous intent in his eyes was completely undisguised.

"Your Majesty, shall I take action?"

A faint sound reached Zhao Yu's ears. Zhao Yu shook his head. Now was not the time to let Meng Baishan take action.

Suddenly, when Li Fu'an was still twenty steps away from Zhao Yu, he abruptly stopped.

Around the corner, a group of richly dressed young men walked by, chatting and laughing, as if they were not in the imperial palace, but on a spring outing.

"Don't worry, his aunt is his mother, how could she refuse?"

"Exactly, so what about all the unpleasant things that happened before?"

"After the peace talks, I will ask my aunt to give me a different position. This is a sinecure with no power whatsoever."

The boys noticed Li Fu'an, but paid him no attention.

In their eyes, even the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial was nothing more than a servant of the Qian family.

Seeing so many young men from the Qian family, Li Fu'an gritted his teeth in displeasure.

This kid is really lucky!

He cannot act yet; the Emperor's original order to him was that no one else should discover it within three days.

He originally planned to control Zhao Yu and then find a place to kill him without anyone noticing, but now it seems that won't work.

Never mind, it won't make a difference of an hour or two.

The boys walked up to Zhao Yu, and the leader casually cupped his hands in greeting, showing no respect whatsoever.

"Brother, where are we going?"

"Perfect timing, my aunt asked us to invite you to come and sit with us at the Cining Palace."

"Yes, Your Majesty, it's been a long time since we last met. Let's go and pay our respects to Aunt."

They talked back and forth as if the emperor were one of their group of纨绔 (playboys).

Upon hearing this, Li Fu'an, who was standing at a distance, frowned.

Empress Dowager.

That was His Majesty's biological mother.

Can this kid get away with it?

If this were exposed, wouldn't it ruin the Emperor's grand plan?

Zhao Yu had anticipated this, and remained calm.

"Then let's go. I haven't seen the Empress Dowager in a long time."

The boys were overjoyed upon hearing this, and they exchanged smug glances.

"This way, Your Majesty!"

Li Fu'an watched the group walk away, and finally chose to silently follow them.

If this kid is exposed, there's nothing he can do. After all, the Empress Dowager is the Emperor's mother, and he can't possibly take action against her.

If not...

Then he would personally take care of sending him on his way.

............... ..

Cining Palace.

The air was filled with the fragrance of sandalwood, and the place was magnificent and opulent.

As soon as Zhao Yu stepped into the palace, he saw a well-maintained old woman dressed in a phoenix robe, smiling at him with a kind expression.

It was none other than the reigning Empress Dowager, Lady Qian.

"Aunt, we've brought our brother with us!"

"Auntie, we'll take our leave now."

The boys greeted them all at once, then tactfully withdrew.

Only Zhao Yu and the Empress Dowager remained in the hall.

"Yu'er, come here quickly, let your mother take a good look at you." The old woman smiled and beckoned to him.

Zhao Yu stepped forward as instructed and bowed slightly.

"Mother Empress."

Upon hearing the words "Mother Empress," the Empress Dowager's smile widened, her eyes filled with satisfaction.

"My Yu'er has suffered so much. He has to work hard for the country every day, and he has become so thin."

As she spoke, the Empress Dowager reached out and affectionately grasped Zhao Yu's wrist.

But the next second, the smile on her face froze slightly.

The feel of it...

"You seem to have gained a little weight." The Empress Dowager pinched him with some doubt. "Yu'er, since you ascended the throne, you have been worrying and working hard, and you haven't gained an ounce of weight. It's only been a few days, but you have gained some weight."

Zhao Yu's heart skipped a beat.

But he remained expressionless, instead adopting a disdainful look as he withdrew his hand.

"With those five families no longer bothering me these past two days, I feel at ease, and naturally, I've gained weight."

The Empress Dowager was taken aback, thinking that Zhao Yu was using this opportunity to subtly criticize her, but upon closer examination, she found it to be quite reasonable.

Yu'er had a falling out with me because of the five families. She dealt with the Dong family a couple of days ago, and the other three families behaved themselves. She was in a good mood, so it's normal that she ate more.

"Yu'er, are you still angry with your mother?" The Empress Dowager sighed and said softly.

Zhao Yu pretended to be serious and lowered his eyes.

"I wouldn't dare."

Seeing his appearance, the Empress Dowager shook her head helplessly.

"Yu'er, don't blame your mother."

Everything the Qian family has done is for your own good. Like now, no matter how powerful the Meng family is, what can they do?

How could a mere five thousand imperial guards possibly withstand the thirty thousand troops of the Wolf Kingdom?

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yu suddenly looked up and feigned anger, saying, "So, Mother Empress wants those people from the Wolf Kingdom to trample on my head and act arrogantly?"

"Nonsense!" The Empress Dowager shook her head. "With your uncle around, how dare they act so recklessly? At most, they'll just steal some things to take back with them."

"Wealth and women—as the ruler of a nation, do you really lack these things?"

Zhao Yu pretended to be angry.

"Mother, there's no need to say any more!"

There's no room for negotiation on this matter!

Seeing his resolute attitude, the Empress Dowager also became somewhat anxious.

"Yu'er! This matter is not as simple as you think!"

If peace is to be negotiated, the people of the Wolf Kingdom will naturally give way to your uncle out of consideration for his reputation.

But if a real war breaks out, and the Wolf Kingdom enters the city later, the situation will be difficult to control!

Zhao Yu, however, had already stood up, ready to leave.

His purpose in coming here was merely to go through the motions and give those who advocated peace a false hope.

Now that the goal has been achieved, it's time to leave this troublesome place as soon as possible.

When the Empress Dowager saw Zhao Yu about to leave, she thought he was really angry, so she quickly got up and chased after him.

"Yu'er! Stop right there!"

If you really wanted to fight, you should have told me five days ago when your mother asked you! I could have had your uncle lead troops to support you!

Now that the army is at the city gates, you've suddenly changed your mind and insist on fighting to the death!

If things get to the point of no return, even if your mother wanted to help you, it wouldn't be enough!

Zhao Yu's steps faltered abruptly.

Five days ago?

It turns out that the reason why the Prince of Zhennan did not come to the capital to provide support was actually because Zhao Yu himself had issued the decree!

He was unaware of this matter.

Fortunately, we came today. Otherwise, if we had sent someone to the Prince of Zhennan for help, no matter who we sent, it would have immediately aroused the suspicion of that uncle!

Zhao Yu slowly turned around, looking at the Empress Dowager with icy eyes.

"I am the only emperor of this Great Liang."

"If I say fight, then fight!"