The young lady is delicate and soft, yet she criticizes the powerful minister for bowing and scrapin

Qi Yunli led the two of them to a new courtyard.

"Is this our home from now on?" Qi Yunsi asked.

Qi Yunli nodded, "I've already made arrangements for the private school I showed you last time. You can go there in a few days."

They didn't leave the capital. She could broaden her horizons there, and she didn't want her younger brother to leave the capital.

The courtyard was clean and small, with just the right number of rooms, and it was very cozy.

"In a few years, this house will be given to Asi," Qi Yunli suddenly said.

Qi Yunsi: "After I graduate from high school in a few years, I will definitely take my sister to live in a big house."

Qi Yunli didn't tell her younger brother her truest thoughts, otherwise he definitely wouldn't have agreed.

"it is good."

Half a month has passed.

Under Qi Yunli's management, the small courtyard came to life, and they lived a peaceful life with their savings.

Qi Yunli also designed some jewelry styles and sold them to jewelry shops for profit.

Meanwhile, inside the Imperial Study in the Imperial City.

The candle beside Wei Jun burned all night, casting a long, long shadow of him in the flickering flame.

Piles of memorials lay before him. Wei Jun's hair was disheveled, his eyes were bloodshot, and he had a lot of stubble on his chin, but he didn't groom himself.

Instead, he seemed to have lost his soul, constantly picking up his pen and flipping through memorials, without taking a moment's rest.

After court, he would stay in the Imperial Study for the entire day.

He finished revising the last memorial.

With red eyes, Wei Jun asked, "That's...it's over?"

A young eunuch entered and said, "Your Majesty, it's already late at night; you should rest."

He carried in ginseng soup, but His Majesty pretended not to hear him.

The young eunuch held the soup in that position for a long time, and Wei Jun did not tell him to put it down.

"Did you say something to Ah Li?"

The young eunuch's legs went weak, and he immediately knelt down. "Your Majesty, I was merely conveying Your Majesty's will; I did not exert any pressure on Miss Qi!"

Wei Jun smirked. "Still lying. I told you to ask A-Li if she wanted to return to the palace, not to use an imperial edict to pressure her!"

The young eunuch's forehead was sweating.

He originally thought this was a lucrative job, and that as long as he did a good job on the surface, the emperor wouldn't make things difficult for him.

But serving the Emperor is not easy. Ever since Miss Qi left, the Emperor's temper has become increasingly strange, and he doesn't even dare to breathe loudly.

"You may leave. You don't need to come back. Go to the Internal Affairs Bureau to collect your wages, and remember to keep your mouth shut when you leave the palace. Don't spread palace affairs outside," Wei Jun said coldly.

"Drink this bowl of ginseng soup yourself."

The young eunuch dared not linger any longer; he was grateful to have survived. He knew the new emperor must have overheard some clues about his disrespect towards Miss Qi.

"This servant thanks Your Majesty for your great kindness." The little eunuch left the imperial study tremblingly.

Wei Jun slowly closed his eyes, letting the still candlelight, hot and gentle, brush against his cheeks.

A messenger announced outside the Imperial Study that Young Master Xie had arrived.

As soon as Xie Dongpo entered the room, he pulled Wei Jun to his feet.

"Are you out of your mind? The servants say you haven't rested for days!"

Wei Jun released his grip. "Is this how you treat me? You can't be disrespectful to your superiors."

After Xie Dongpo bowed, he pulled him over again.

"Your Majesty, please go and rest. I have news of Miss Qi. I will tell you after you wake up."

Xie Dongpo was helpless.

A glimmer of light finally appeared in Wei Jun's eyes. "Really?"

"Deceiving the emperor is a grave crime; how could I dare?"

Lying back in bed, Wei Jun tossed and turned, speaking to Xie Dongpo who was guarding the bedside.

"Shi Qing, actually, I'm starting to regret it."

"Regret what?"

"I regret becoming emperor. This position makes those who love me fear me."

Xie Dongpo almost laughed in anger, "Power is never a bad thing. It depends on how you use it. It's terrible to have no power. Think about it, when your parents were framed, you knew something was wrong, but you couldn't investigate."

Their tone of voice remained exactly the same as before, unchanged despite the difference in their roles as ruler and subject.

Wei Jun closed his eyes, tacitly agreeing with him.

"Besides, it's not like only one person loves you. Have all those years of being your brothers been for nothing?"

Xie Dongpo held a fan and fanned him, saying, "Don't tell me you want to give up the throne."

"Between power and beauty, I choose the latter." Wei Jun did not open his eyes.

"If you say that again, I'll conspire with Fu Chong to seize your throne. You don't cherish it at all."

Xie Dongpo sighed, "Go to sleep, I'll help you figure something out."

-

The music and ceremonial music of the enthronement ceremony echoed over the imperial city.

Wearing a bright yellow dragon robe, Wei Jun received the highest honor amidst a deafening roar of "Long live the Emperor!"

The new emperor was twenty-two years old, young and promising, but when he ascended the throne, no woman stood beside him, making him appear somewhat lonely.

After the ceremony, the ministers advised that the position of empress should be decided as soon as possible.

The emperor did not reply, and the ministers all kowtowed and finally knelt on the ground.

"With the foundation of the nation newly established, the position of Empress has been vacant for too long, which is detrimental to the administration of the court. We humbly request Your Majesty to issue an edict as soon as possible to select a noblewoman and appoint her as Empress, so as to bring peace to the realm!"

Wei Jun coldly swept his gaze over them.

The only sound in the hall was the breathing of the ministers; no one dared to speak.

Wei Jun slowly spoke: "I do not need the Empress to reassure the people. I have my own plans. In the days to come, I will definitely work hard and not slack off in the slightest."

"If you want to kneel, then keep kneeling."

Wei Jun stood up and said, "I know who is in charge of the Empress's position. There is no need for you to comment. From now on, anyone who dares to speak out on the matter of the Empress's appointment without cause will be punished for disrupting the court, demoted three ranks, and exiled to the frontier."

"Dismiss the court."

In the Imperial Study, Xie Dongpo pushed open the door and entered, holding a memorial in his hand, just to put on an act.

Upon seeing the person, Wei Jun's eyes flashed with urgency: "How is she? How has she been lately?"

"That's wonderful! Qi Yunsi is very diligent in the private school. He gets first place in every exam, and the teacher praises him for being intelligent and studious."

"Also, Miss Qi's jewelry business is doing well. She opened her own shop and asked Tingyue to help manage it. Now Tingyue is the shopkeeper herself, and she's very good at accounting."

"I have investigated all the residents near that small courtyard, and there are no problems at all. Besides, they have lived there for half a year and it has always been very safe."

Wei Jun smiled.

It's been half a year. I haven't seen Qi Yunli for half a year.

Is she alright?

"I want to go see her," Wei Jun asked tentatively. "Do you think it's alright?"

"Go and see her. You've had a tough time being emperor these past few days. Go and see her," Xie Dongpo said with regret.

He sincerely hoped that his good brother could become a couple with Qi Yunli.

"She kept the yard very well; she planted many plum blossoms, but they grew rather slowly."

Wei Jun's eyes held a glimmer of hope as he considered the days ahead. "Should I go see her tomorrow, or the day after? Or should I ask the Imperial Observatory to pick an auspicious day so she won't be annoyed by me?"

"You must hide yourself well. Miss Qi rejected you because she didn't want to be in danger. As the emperor, your every move is being watched, so it's best to be careful."

Xie Dongpo reminded him.

-

The weather was sunny and warm that day.

Tingyue returned with the account book and meticulously calculated the accounts for Qi Yunli.

Qi Yunli listened patiently, but caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye.