Reincarnated as the daughter of my mortal enemy, all I want is to ascend the throne.

At exactly 5:00 AM, footsteps echoed in the small building.

Cuiping led her maids upstairs.

The curtains in the room were tied with pearl ribbons, and sunlight slanted down onto the floor.

Before touching the bed curtains, Cuiping called out "Your Highness" a few times. This was to prevent Li Qingyan from being frightened.

In the Hall of Diligent Governance, it was always Li Yan who woke her up. In Li Qingyan's subconscious, everyone else was considered a stranger, and they would all startle her in her sleep.

I watched as the little bulge inside the bed curtains moved a few times.

Only then did Cuiping dare to lift the curtain.

"Your Highness, it's time to rise."

Li Qingyan shrank into the blanket, becoming a small bulge, her voice muffled.

"Sleep a little longer."

Cuiping didn't believe she would only sleep for a short while, so she went straight into the blankets, grabbed her under the armpits, lifted her up, and put her on the bed.

Cuiping was stunned when she saw Li Qingyan's face.

"What kind of pattern did Your Highness draw on yourself?"

Li Qingyan was somewhat confused.

"Um?"

Several maids in the room couldn't help but laugh, then quickly lowered their heads. Cuiping casually handed over a mirror.

Seeing herself in the mirror, Li Qingyan narrowed her eyes slightly. "Li Yan, you bastard!!!"

She had three cat whiskers drawn on each side of her face.

The only people who could easily enter this small building in the Yan residence besides Yan Xu are Li Yan. Yan Xu wouldn't do something so pointless, so it must be Li Yan.

Inside the main hall, Li Qingyan glanced at Yan Xu several times, finally letting out a cold snort. She was clearly angry.

"Who has offended the young prince?"

Yan Xu put some food into her bowl.

Li Qingyan rolled her eyes at him. "Last night, someone came into the small building and turned me into a cat. Your role as a guard in the General's Mansion isn't very good either..."

The "ah" at the end was deliberately drawn out.

Yan Xu took out a small riding whip from a brocade box and handed it to Li Qingyan, saying, "As Your Majesty, it is not proper for a subject to stop you. To express my apologies, I present this riding whip to Your Highness."

Li Qingyan raised an eyebrow at the little rabbit carved on the handle of the whip; this hobby was exactly the same as Li Yan's.

The whip is just the right size for her.

"I'll reluctantly forgive you for the sake of the riding whip."

With its head held high, it looked like a proud little peacock.

The little white horse she had her eye on had already been delivered to the horse-breeding area in the backyard of the Yan residence. It was Yan Li who personally brought it back.

When Li Qingyan arrived, she saw Yan Li feeding the foal.

"It did survive."

Li Qingyan leaned over and touched the foal's mane, which hadn't fully grown yet. The horse seemed to know that Li Qingyan was the one who saved it, and kept nuzzling against her face.

Even Yan Li, who had been raising horses for many years, was shocked.

According to experience, this kind of horse is a weak offspring and should not have survived, but this foal survived the attack from its mother and still has a big appetite.

"This foal has survived, but it might not grow very big."

This horse will probably be much shorter than other horses when it grows up.

But Li Qingyan waved her hand dismissively, seemingly unconcerned.

"I'm not tall now, so it's perfect for me if it doesn't grow tall."

Yan Li leaned against a pillar, still chewing on a straw, looking defiant and unruly.

"Your Highness, please tell me how I can help you?"

He was in a hurry to get back to the horse farm.

The Yan family can be considered a prominent family, but Yan Li has a particular fondness for raising horses, making him a truly rebellious person.

"Naturally, it was to help me pull some strings."

Li Qingyan narrowed her eyes. After she came out to investigate the case, she actually went to the Dali Temple, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Personnel several times. Those people seemed to be respectful to her, but they were mostly wary and looked down on her. After all, what could a three-year-old child find out by investigating a case?

In particular, some people in the harem did not want her to stand out, so naturally the families of those women would also make things difficult for her.

Li Qingyan had considered asking Li Yan for help, but if Li Yan really got involved, no matter how many achievements she made, she would be labeled as someone who relied on her father.

Once this foundation is laid, it will be extremely difficult for her to establish her own power in the future.

Who would follow a master who only relies on his father to accomplish great things?

Li Qingyan clearly explained all of this to Yan Li.

Yan Li wished he could cover his ears. "Your Highness, I didn't hear anything."

After feeding the white horse, Li Qingyan walked over to Yan Li and wiped her hands with the hem of his robe. "You heard it, but that doesn't change the fact."

"You think you can get off my pirate ship now that you're on it? Dream on."

At this moment, Yan Li wished he could bang his head against a pillar and kill himself. What kind of pirate ship had he boarded? He even pitied this little thing; wasn't he just selling himself to her?

Sure enough, the little black sesame dumpling's offspring is a little black sesame dumpling.

Yan Li stopped struggling. He figured that once he helped her this time, he wouldn't get involved in these things anymore. He didn't want to be trapped in this hellish capital city like his older brother.

"Your Highness, I don't participate in court affairs. I'm just a horse breeder, and I'll be going back to the frontier to raise horses in the future."

"A generous gift for His Highness."

Yan Li took out a letter from his pocket and handed it to Li Qingyan.

This puzzled Li Qingyan. She opened the envelope, and inside were only a few words: "Zhao Ke was assassinated on his way back to the capital; his entire family is dead."

"This news came from half a month ago, when His Highness was seriously ill."

Li Qingyan calmly put the letter away.

Half a month ago, she was seriously ill and did not report the case of favoritism and malpractice to Li Yan, nor did she mention it to anyone else.

It seems that her high-profile handling of the exam papers at Wenshu Monastery has made some people extremely nervous.

"That person is dead, that's all."

Li Qingyan hadn't expected to gain any useful information from Zhao Ke. A person sent out to serve as a seventh-rank official was merely the final link in the chain.

"Yanli, do you know anyone at the Ministry of Revenue?" Li Qingyan asked with a smile. "How about I go to the Ministry of Revenue and you go catch up with some old friends?"

The topic changed so quickly that Yan Li didn't even have time to react before Li Qingyan grabbed his sleeve and pulled him outside.

Although he was being pulled by the sleeve, Yan Li still had the illusion that he was being led around like a dog.

"These demons and monsters, I'll see what tricks you have up your sleeves."

The Ministry of Revenue had four departments. The people in charge of the household registration were the Ministry of Revenue Inspectors, one named Qian Hai and the other named Zheng Ping.

Zheng Ping wasn't there, so only Qian Hai came to receive Li Qingyan. He was extremely respectful to Li Qingyan.

"Your Highness, this way please. Whose household registration are you looking for?"

Li Qingyan, hands behind her back and chin held high, appeared quite casual. "Do you know anything about Zhao Ke's household registration?"

Qian Hai slapped his forehead. "Oh dear, Your Highness, there are over three hundred people named Zhao Ke in the capital, and you..."

Li Qingyan sat on a chair to the side, tapped the table, and looked at Hongyu as if she didn't understand, "What should we do?"

Hong Yu said coldly, "Zhao Ke ranked seventh in the first-class imperial examination of the fifth year of Yuan'an."

Seeing Li Qingyan's bewildered expression, as if she understood nothing, Qian Hai's beady eyes darted around, and he slapped his forehead, "Your Majesty, I'll find it for you right away."

Looking at his obese body in his official robes, resembling a large green worm, Li Qingyan curled her lips, her good mood completely ruined. Hongyu, standing beside her, was much more attractive…

He kept a cold expression.

She sighed.

"Acting is tough; you have to watch these people fool you, and you have to pretend you don't know anything."

Li Qingyan was too lazy to even turn the page of the household registration book in front of her, and directly had Fei Cha scan it.

[Outrageous]

[Host, they think you're a fool.]

"Anything I can find must have been changed."

Li Qingyan looked at Yan Li who appeared outside and closed the booklet in front of her.

"Okay, let's go."

"Your Highness, please take care."

Watching Li Qingyan and the others leave the Ministry of Revenue, Qian Hai flicked his sleeves.

"You little brat with yellow hair."

"Someone come and close the door."