This son-in-law is wicked in a good way!

Under Li Dekui's command, two eunuchs carried a strange form and placed it in the middle of the hall.

The courtiers immediately craned their necks to look around with curiosity.

What is this?

It looks like a map, but not quite.

Even the ministers, including the Left Chancellor, were completely baffled.

The Empress took in the expressions of her ministers, a hint of pleasure flashing across her face.

You don't recognize me, do you?

Never seen this before, have you?

Heh, a bunch of old fogies who've never seen the world. Today, I'll show you all what's what.

The Empress suppressed the urge to feign... no, to show off in front of everyone, and said sternly, "My beloved ministers, do you recognize this item?"

"Your Majesty, this is... a map?" Imperial Censor Zhang asked with a curious expression.

"Guess again," the Empress said with a smile.

Guan Tianyou, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, said, "Your Majesty, I think this looks like a painting, a painting of pillars!"

Yu Hua, the Right Vice Minister of War who was at odds with him, immediately sneered, "Why don't you just say this is a painting of mountains? Humph, pillars? Have you ever seen a painter paint pillars in this shape?"

"Ignorant fool!"

Guan Tianyou's face flushed red from the retort, and he immediately retorted, "You recognize it? Then tell me what this painting is?"

Yu Hua raised his head, a sneer on his face: "Although I don't recognize what's in the painting, it's definitely not a pillar!"

"You..." Guan Tianyou gritted his teeth in anger.

"Hmph, I say it's the pillar, come and argue if you disagree!"

"I insist it's a mountain, so what!" Yu Hua immediately retorted.

As a result, a contest between pillars and mountains immediately broke out in the imperial court.

The Empress sat high on her dragon throne, watching these ministers who usually spoke of classical Chinese and morality, now arguing amongst themselves, and she sneered inwardly.

Hmph, keep arguing, you bunch of old fogies who've never seen the world.

She forgot that just yesterday, when Zhang Ping'an drew up this statistical table, she was no different from these old guys.

"Ahem..." The Left Prime Minister coughed lightly, "What kind of decorum is this, making such a racket in the main hall!"

The crowd finally quieted down, but the battle between the pillar and the mountain continued.

"Your Majesty, we do not know what this is. Please enlighten us." The Left Prime Minister bowed, appearing eager to learn.

The Empress suddenly looked at Zhang Xuanling, who had been standing silently in the crowd, and asked, "Minister Zhang, you are the Vice Minister of Revenue, and you are most sensitive to numbers. Come and see what this is?"

Since being targeted by the Empress several times, Zhang Xuanling has become much smarter and more honest.

Especially after Sun Guihua's family was raided and exterminated, Lord Zhang became even more cautious, walking on thin ice.

He even proactively cut off contact with many people, choosing to maintain a clean and virtuous lifestyle.

Upon hearing the Empress ask the question, Zhang Xuanling, who had been somewhat paranoid lately, immediately felt his heart pound and his CPU work at full speed.

Have I offended His Majesty again?

That shouldn't be the case. I've been deliberately avoiding that bastard Zhang Ping'an lately.

Could it be those good-for-nothing idiots in the family?

No, we need to go back and beat them up again, or maybe once a month, to teach them a lesson.

Yes, that's what we'll do.

The common saying "the son of the Vice Minister of Revenue" during the Great Wu Dynasty came about unintentionally in this way.

"Your Majesty, this picture doesn't look like a painting; it's more like a pattern used to record data."

The Empress was slightly startled.

It must be said that Zhang Xuanling was indeed quite capable.

Even when the Empress first saw Zhang Ping'an draw up the statistical table, she was completely clueless.

But Zhang Xuanling was able to see it!

This is also why the Empress kept using him despite her constant warnings; Zhang Xuanling was capable.

"Lord Zhang is indeed very knowledgeable."

The Empress exclaimed in praise.

"This is a statistical table, a chart used to collect statistical data."

The Empress stood up, walked to the huge statistical table, and raised her jade hand to introduce it.

"Strictly speaking, this is a record of Yellow River floods over the past thirty years."

"The numbers below represent the years, and the numbers on the left represent the number of floods."

"Now, everyone can see it clearly at a glance."

The female version of Zhang Ping'an begins to introduce the statistical tables to the officials of the Great Wu Dynasty.

The courtiers craned their necks to look at the statistics table.

Even the usually aloof Left Prime Minister and the six ministers watched with curiosity.

The Minister of Revenue, in particular, had his eyes light up the more he looked at it; anyone who didn't know better would think he'd seen something inappropriate for children.

"It's so obvious!"

"Your Majesty is truly a genius! You actually thought of using drawing to record data. A small chart clearly shows the number of Yellow River floods over the past thirty years."

"Your Majesty is truly talented!"

Some opportunists started to fawn over him, and this time they were genuinely sincere.

Those in the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works, in particular, had already figured out how to copy the Empress's statistical tables.

Watching the ministers fawn over her, the Empress remained outwardly calm, but inwardly she was secretly pleased.

No wonder everyone loves to show off in front of others; it feels so good!

However, some astute officials have already noticed something.

Zhang Xuanling had even secretly glanced at Wan Yu, the insignificant nobody kneeling in the main hall and ignored by everyone, several times.

Because, through the statistical tables, he could clearly see that since Wan Yu took office as the River Conservancy Commissioner, the number of Yellow River floods had decreased significantly compared to before.

Especially in recent years, although floods still occur from time to time, they have been reduced by half compared to before.

Perhaps comparing last year and the year before doesn't reveal much, but by comparing these statistics, Wan Yu's contributions become immediately apparent.

"Your Majesty is truly a man of great talent! You actually managed to devise a method of creating a table to help Lord Wan escape punishment!"

"A true talent! Absolutely brilliant!"

Zhang Xuanling's awe of the Empress deepened.

The Minister of Works and the Left Chancellor, who had finally realized what was happening, looked extremely grim.

The group exchanged glances and shook their heads.

The position of River Conservancy Governor is gone.

The Empress saw everything they were doing.

He was even happier.

Now, it's time to get down to business.

The Empress gestured to Li Dekui with her eyes.

The head eunuch immediately shouted, "Silence!"

"No noise or disturbance is permitted in the imperial court!"

The ministers then hurriedly returned to their positions and quieted down.

The empress pointed at the statistics table and continued to pretend... no, to show off in front of everyone.

"My esteemed subjects, please take a look!"

"The preceding text records the number of times the Yellow River flooded before Lord Wan took over the management of the Yellow River."

"From here on, we will see the number of times that Minister Wan controlled the Yellow River's floods."

"The statistics clearly show that since Wan Daren began managing the Yellow River, the number of floods has been decreasing every year."

"Especially in the last few years, the number of floods has decreased by more than half compared to before he took over."

"I believe that Lord Wan has achieved remarkable results in managing the Yellow River for fifteen years. He has not only made no mistakes, but has also made great contributions."

"This statistical table shows that Lord Wan's approach to river management was correct."

"My esteemed subjects, do you have any objections?"