Dad, don't be greedy! My brother climbed into the emperor's bed, and I became famous overn

Xiao Ye frowned slightly.

Staring at the Yue kiln celadon cup in his hand, he took another sip of tea, displeased.

Why does this tea taste so bland today?

It's practically the same as plain water.

He disdainfully set the teacup aside, making a deliberate "clattering" sound.

snort!

Xiao Ye scoffed inwardly.

What surprise?

He wasn't curious about "surprises" at all!

There was absolutely no expectation!!

As a prince, from childhood to adulthood, in that cannibalistic palace, all he ever received was fear, terror, and panic.

What exactly is a "surprise"?

He had never seen it before, nor was it rare!

only……

A gaze has its own thoughts.

He glanced almost imperceptibly at the back of the head of the person hunched over the desk below, writing furiously.

Gu Mingli's mind always seems to be filled with strange and wonderful ideas that others can't even imagine, no matter how hard they try.

He possesses vast knowledge, yet his actions are always unconventional and completely contrary to common sense.

Since this guy has the audacity to say he's preparing some kind of "surprise."

Who knows, it might really be a rare item that's one of a kind in the whole world.

but!

This has been going on for days!

Why haven't I seen a single shadow?!

Does he really expect the emperor of a nation to personally lower himself and ask the question?

This is utterly absurd!

An unnamed fire suddenly flared up in Xiao Ye's heart, burning ever brighter.

He grabbed a folding book and flipped it open with a clatter.

The eunuch Liu, who was huddled in the corner, keenly noticed the dangerous commotion and quietly raised his eyelids.

He glanced at the emperor on the dragon throne, who exuded a terrifyingly oppressive aura.

Then he glanced down at Gu Mingli, who was still oblivious and focused on writing and drawing on paper.

Liu An shrank back and quickly stepped forward, deftly replacing the emperor's cup with a steaming cup of fresh tea.

The main hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

After waiting for a long time, Xiao Ye's patience finally ran out.

His fingers tapped unconsciously twice on the imperial desk.

He cleared his throat, deciding to condescend to do so.

Give this clueless minister a little hint.

"Ahem...Gu Qing."

His voice was extremely calm, carrying the majesty and authority typical of an emperor.

He even deliberately shifted his gaze to the memorials on the side.

Pretending to be taking a break from handling official business, he casually asked the question out of boredom.

"Did anything interesting happen at the Hanlin Academy today?"

However, Gu Mingli didn't even raise his head.

He was holding the homemade charcoal pencil, his eyes almost glued to the paper.

With utmost concentration, he marked the key data for the last mortise and tenon structure on the drawing.

His mind was filled with the proportions of load-bearing walls and beams, and he mumbled incoherently, giving perfunctory replies.

"Sigh, I haven't been to the Hanlin Academy for the past two days."

"What could possibly be going on over there?"

"A bunch of old men argue about trivial things every day, quoting classical texts and all that. Even if something happens, how the hell am I supposed to know?"

Xiao Ye: "..."

I almost couldn't catch my breath; it was stuck in my chest, I couldn't go up or down.

Does Gu Mingli have a mouth like a steamed bun?!

Why do you speak so rudely!

Am I referring to the Hanlin Academy?

I'm asking you!

What an unruly person!

An eerie silence fell over the hall once again, and the air pressure seemed to drop three degrees.

Xiao Ye coldly withdrew his gaze, the temperature in his eyes dropping to freezing point.

He reached for another memorial and tore it open forcefully as if in a fit of rage.

The paper made an extremely piercing "whoosh" sound.

Gu Mingli remained completely oblivious to the tense atmosphere that could have cost him his life.

After a moment, Xiao Ye couldn't help himself and tapped his fingers heavily on the imperial desk twice more.

Undeterred, he spoke again, seemingly unintentionally, in a low, melancholic voice.

"And... what about the streets and markets of the capital? Are there any new or unusual items for sale lately?"

He paused, then casually added a suggestive comment.

"Or...is someone secretly tinkering with some new gadget?"

The implication is clear enough, isn't it?

It was almost as if he was directly asking, "Where are the novelties you prepared for me?"

Gu Mingli had just finished drawing a portion of the long lines on the blueprint and breathed a sigh of relief.

He casually switched to a finer brush and dipped it into the thick black ink on the edge of the inkstone.

His tone remained as matter-of-fact as ever.

The complaints of a "corporate slave" to his boss.

"What novelties could there be? I've been shuttling between the construction site and the palace these past two days!"

"My feet are practically burning from all the blisters, how can I possibly have time to go shopping?"

"Forget about novelties, I didn't even have time to glance at a dog on the street!"

Xiao Ye: "…………"

ヾ(｡｀Д´｡)ﾉ彡

He took a deep breath and then glared fiercely at the top of Gu Mingli's head.

good very good.

They didn't even have time to look at the dogs on the street, let alone pay attention to my surprise!

[Ding! Warning! Xiao Ye's favorability towards you has decreased by 0.5, current favorability is -450.5!]

The sudden, mechanical system notification in his mind startled Gu Mingli, causing his wrist to tremble!

Holy crap?!

What's going on?!

Gu Mingli looked up, bewildered and surprised.

At this moment, the emperor sat expressionlessly on the dragon throne, staring intently down at him.

On that cold face, his eyebrows and eyes were lowered very much.

It seems to be written clearly and plainly:

[I am extremely, exceptionally, and particularly displeased!]

Gu Mingli blinked in bewilderment.

The less than ten sentences of conversation replayed in my mind.

"..."

He doesn't understand at all!

Why did the boss suddenly get angry?!

Moreover, this temper tantrum was completely unexpected, inexplicable, and unreasonable!

Why take out your bad mood on innocent employees working overtime?

Even if you're unhappy, you can't just deduct his favorability rating!

He gets up earlier than the rooster and goes to bed later than the dog, working like a beast of burden every day.

It took him several days to barely accumulate that +1 favorability point. Was it easy for him?!

Now look what's happened! One sentence didn't match up, and I'm deducted 0.5!

Is Xiao Ye experiencing early menopause, or is it just that her rebellious adolescence has been delayed?

Kids are so hard to take care of!

Gu Mingli mentally unleashed a barrage of 10,000 words of吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or critical comments).

But on the surface, he displayed the self-cultivation of a fully-fledged working-class person.

He instantly switched to a loyal minister's demeanor, saying "I understand you," and quickly tried to soothe her and calm her down.

"Is Your Majesty tired of looking at the memorials?"

Gu Mingli sighed, helplessly put down the destroyed blueprints, and tilted his head to carefully examine this unpredictable emperor.

Xiao Ye snorted coldly, his gaze passing over him and landing coldly on the empty space outside the palace gate.

His jawline was taut, and he forced out two words through his teeth:

"Not tired."

All the eunuchs and palace maids attending to the emperor in the palace bowed their heads so low they wished they could disappear into the cracks between the bricks.

Others may not understand His Majesty's seemingly calm but subtle actions.

But those servants who were close to them knew all too well.

The more His Majesty avoids looking at people, the more utterly bored he becomes.

Anyone who's foolish enough to provoke trouble at this time would probably lose nine heads.

Seeing this, Gu Mingli simply stood up.

He disregarded the proper etiquette between ruler and subject, casually placing his hands on his hips and twisting his stiff neck.

"Your Majesty, I've seen you sit at this desk for a whole day without moving an inch. Even the strongest body couldn't withstand this!"

Gu Mingli's voice carried just the right amount of concern.

"There is never a complete end to handling government affairs."

Gu Mingli raised his chin and grinned.

"Let me take you out of the palace for a walk! Before it gets completely dark, let's go out to a restaurant."

"How about we eat something fresh, relax a bit, and get a feel for the local conditions?"

Xiao Ye finally took pity on him.

Shifting my gaze back to his face, my deep eyes held a scrutinizing and probing look.

"Eating out?"

interesting.