The hall fell even quieter.
The nobles bowed their heads lower, and cold sweat had already appeared on some of their foreheads.
"Nobles carve up the land, kingdoms stand everywhere, and imperial decrees cannot reach beyond Heaven Dou City.
The common people eat chaff while you live in glittering mansions.
The imperial treasury has only two million five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins left, while every one of you is rolling in wealth."
Yan Lingji rose to her feet. Her black-and-red gown trailed over the red carpet, and the sound of her heels striking the stone echoed again and again, like a knock on every heart in the hall.
"An empire like this deserves to perish. Anything else would defy the heavens."
She stood on the steps, looking down at the trembling figures below.
"But now that I have taken this throne, I will not let it keep rotting."
"I will make it over from the ground up."
"I will make sure there are no more kingdoms, no more fiefs, and no more absurdities like 'the vassal of my vassal is not my vassal' on this continent."
"I want—"
Her voice paused, and a sharp glint flashed through her peach-blossom eyes.
"Under all the heavens, every inch of land belongs to the sovereign. On every shore, all are the sovereign's subjects."
The words struck the ground, and the hall erupted.
The nobles jerked their heads up, eyes wide and faces full of disbelief.
Every inch of land under the heavens belonged to the sovereign?
Was she going to bring every kingdom, principality, and fief under her rule?
Was she going to dig up the very foundations of the nobility?
Several elderly nobles' lips trembled as they tried to say something,
but the moment they opened their mouths, the restriction in their minds tightened,
and the words at their lips were forced back down. They could only choke on them, their faces flushed red.
They wanted to say, "This is impossible." They wanted to say, "These are the ancestral rules."
They wanted to say, "The empire has been this way for thousands of years"—but they could not.
Their bodies would not obey them.
Yan Lingji looked at the nobles' twisted expressions and curled her lips into a cold smile.
"What? Anyone have an objection?"
No one dared answer.
"Then I'll take it that none of you object."
She turned and walked back to the throne, then sat down again. Nine fox tails spread behind her, making her look like a Calamity Enchantress.
"Convey my decree."
Everyone in the hall dropped to their knees in unison.
Yan Lingji raised her eyes, her voice cool and clear.
"First decree—reform the official system."
"Effective immediately, the Heaven Dou Empire will adopt the Three Departments and Six Ministries System.
The Secretariat will handle policy decisions, the Chancellery will review them, and the Department of State Affairs will carry them out.
The Department of State Affairs will oversee six ministries:
The Ministry of Personnel will manage officials' appointments and promotions, the Ministry of Revenue will manage taxes and household registers, the Ministry of Rites will manage sacrifices and diplomacy, the Ministry of War will manage military affairs and national defense, the Ministry of Justice will manage judicial affairs and prisons, and the Ministry of Works will manage construction and public works."
Gasps rippled through the hall.
Three Departments and Six Ministries?
What kind of system was that?
They had never heard of it.
But just from the structure, they could tell this was no simple adjustment. It was a complete overturning of the Heaven Dou Empire's centuries-old system of government.
Yan Lingji paid no heed to their shock and continued:
"Second decree—reform local administration."
Her voice turned cold.
"Effective immediately, the Heaven Dou Empire will abolish its kingdoms and revoke all fiefs.
The empire will be divided into commanderies and counties, all directly governed by the central government.
The four kingdoms and one principality will all be reorganized into commanderies and counties.
The former nobles will relocate to Heaven Dou City. Their titles will be retained, and their privileges will remain unchanged, but they will have no say in government affairs."
The words hit the hall, and it erupted into chaos.
Abolish the kingdoms?
Revoke the fiefs?
Those kingdoms had existed for a thousand years!
The lands of those dukes and marquises had been passed down from generation to generation!
And now they would simply be abolished?
Just seized?
An old marquis with white hair trembled all over, his lips quivering, his eyes full of horror.
He wanted to stand and object, to say, "This will sever the roots of the empire,"
but his body would not obey him. He could only kneel where he was.
Yan Lingji glanced at him, the corner of her mouth lifting slightly.
"Each commandery will have three officials: a commandery governor, a commandery commandant, and a commandery inspector. Their powers will be divided, and they will check one another.
We will also establish the post of assistant prefect, who will report directly to the court and co-sign documents with the commandery governor.
In other words, an order issued by the commandery governor will be invalid without the assistant prefect's signature."
The nobles' faces had gone as white as paper.
Divided powers?
An assistant prefect?
It meant no one in a commandery would have the final say.
The commandery governor would handle administration, the commandery commandant the military, and the commandery inspector oversight, while the assistant prefect would supervise the commandery governor as well.
The four of them would keep an eye on one another, and none would dare act recklessly.
This system...
It was ruthless.
"Third decree—reform the system for selecting officials."
Yan Lingji's voice continued, unhurried.
"Effective immediately, hereditary titles are abolished.
Existing noble titles will become lifelong honors and will not be passed down to one's children.
The empire will establish an Imperial Examination system to select officials. Scholars throughout the realm,
regardless of status or wealth, may register for the imperial examinations once they reach the age of fourteen.
The examinations will have civil and military divisions. Those who pass will be appointed to official posts.
The top three in the palace examination will receive honors from me in person."
Abolish hereditary titles?
Stop them from being passed down to their children?
The Imperial Examination?
Anyone could become an official by taking an exam, regardless of status or wealth?
This—
Wasn't this digging up the very foundations of the nobility?
What was a noble's greatest privilege?
Inheritance!
A son could inherit his father's title and status without lifting a finger!
And now she was saying hereditary titles were abolished, and that their sons would have to take exams alongside commoners if they wanted to become officials?
The young nobles' expressions could no longer be called merely "ugly."
They were despairing.
It was the despair of watching everything they had been born with go up in flames, leaving nothing behind.
"Fourth decree—reform the legal system."
Yan Lingji's voice grew colder.
"Effective immediately, the Heaven Dou Empire New Code will apply throughout the entire Heaven Dou Empire.
The old noble laws, lord's laws, and kingdom laws are all abolished.
Each commandery will establish a Court of Justice, where judges will rule independently, free from interference by local officials.
Nobles who break the law will be punished just like commoners.
No one may be convicted or punished without due legal process.
Nobles are forbidden to establish private courts of punishment. Any who do so will be charged with usurpation of authority, stripped of all titles, beheaded by waist-cutting, and have their estates confiscated."
Some in the hall began to tremble.
Not ordinary trembling, but a helpless quaking that seeped out from the marrow of their bones.
A uniform legal code?
Nobles punished just like commoners?
No private courts of punishment?
What did that mean?
It meant that the "lord's right to judge" they had enjoyed for centuries was gone!
It meant they could no longer kill or imprison whomever they pleased on their own lands!
"Fifth decree—establish an inspectorate and a secret service."
A cold glint flashed through Yan Lingji's peach-blossom eyes.
"The Censorate will oversee all officials.
The Grand Censor will report directly to me, and each commandery will have Censors.
Censors may impeach officials based on hearsay—they may report and lodge accusations as soon as they hear a rumor, without waiting for conclusive evidence.
We will also establish the Net, which will report directly to me and secretly monitor the words and deeds of all officials.
The Net will be subordinate to no government office and will answer to me alone."
Censors? Impeach officials based on hearsay?
And the Net?
What was that?
But from the description alone, they could tell it was an eye hidden in the shadows, with nowhere it could not reach and no one who could escape it.
Everyone felt a chill run down their spines.
It meant that every word they said and everything they did could be watched by some hidden member of the Net, who could then report it straight to the empress. They would not even get a chance to defend themselves.
"Sixth decree—reform the military system."
Yan Lingji's voice rose slightly.
"Effective immediately, military power will be centralized.
Using the former Heaven Dou Imperial Guards as its foundation, we will establish the Heavenly Strategy Army, which will report directly to me and garrison Heaven Dou City and other strategic locations.
All private armies belonging to nobles and lords must be disbanded or incorporated into the imperial army within the specified period.
Anyone who refuses will be charged with treason.
Local garrisons will have Garrison Commanders in each commandery, responsible for local defense, but military authority will belong to the central government, and Garrison Commanders will have no authority to deploy troops."
Centralize military power?
Disband all the nobles' private armies?
Garrison Commanders without the authority to deploy troops?
What did that mean?
It meant that the private soldiers, guard units, and armed forces that had taken orders only from them—all the troops they had maintained for centuries—would have to be handed over!
Without private armies, how could they stand against the central government?
How could they protect their lands?
"Seventh decree—reform the finances."
Yan Lingji's voice remained unhurried.
"All taxes and revenues throughout the realm will be managed centrally.
Each commandery will have a Transport Commissioner who reports directly to the Ministry of Revenue and is responsible for collecting and transporting local revenues.
Commanderies and counties may not withhold tax revenue. Any who do so will be charged with embezzlement.
Any official who imposes taxes without authorization or sets up checkpoints to extort money from the people will be executed.
Local government officials and their relatives are strictly forbidden from engaging in business. Violators will be dismissed and investigated."
Withholding tax revenue? Imposing taxes without authorization?
Wasn't she taking control of the local governments' purse strings too?
Without military power, financial power, or judicial authority,
what could a commandery governor even do?
He would be nothing but an empty figurehead.
"Eighth decree—establish the Twenty-Rank Military Merit System."
Yan Lingji's voice landed like the final blow of a hammer.
"From this day onward, the Empire shall establish the Twenty-Rank Military Merit System.
All who pass the Imperial Examination's palace examination shall be granted a low-ranking title.
Those who distinguish themselves through military merit or outstanding governance shall be promoted according to their achievements.
Titles shall be awarded for merit and revoked for crimes. No merit, no title.
All titles held by the old nobility are hereby abolished and replaced with new titles. The new titles shall not be hereditary; only the Marquis of Thoroughness may pass his title down for one generation."
The Twenty-Rank Military Merit System?
Not hereditary?
Everyone was stunned.
That meant—
The dukedoms, marquisates, and earldoms passed down by their ancestors were all abolished.
From this moment on, titles would no longer be inherited by blood, but earned through merit.
Your son wanted to become a duke?
Fine. Let him take the Imperial Examination and earn military merit for himself.
He couldn't pass? Couldn't distinguish himself?
Then he could go be a commoner.
The hall fell deathly silent.
Yan Lingji sat upon the imperial throne, looking down at the pale-faced, trembling nobles. Her peach-blossom eyes brimmed with amusement.
She relished this feeling.
Not the power itself, but the fear seeping from these people's very bones, impossible for them to conceal.
They wanted to fight back, but they couldn't.
They wanted to speak, but couldn't get the words out.
They wanted to curse her, to damn her, to band together and overthrow her—but they couldn't.
Because their bodies wouldn't obey them.
Deep in their sea of consciousness, that restriction was like an invisible chain, binding them fast.
This was the Master's power.
Yan Lingji silently marveled to herself.
Without her Master, no matter how strong she was, she could only be an assassin, or at most the leader of a band of mountain outlaws.
How else could she sit upon this golden throne and look down upon the whole Empire?
A long while passed.
At last, someone in the hall spoke.
A young noble—
the son of an earl from the former Heaven Dou Empire—
trembled all over, his lips quivering.
"This... this is..."
He wanted to say, "The world is about to turn upside down."
But the words reached his lips, then sank back down.
Because he had seen Yan Lingji's eyes.
They didn't look at him as if he were a person, but as if he were one of a flock of lambs waiting to be slaughtered.
The world turning upside down?
The world had already changed.
Yan Lingji turned her gaze away and leaned back on the throne, her fingers once more tapping lightly against the armrest.
Tap, tap, tap.
The crisp sound echoed through the empty hall, one beat at a time, like a funeral bell.
"My dear subjects."
She spoke, her voice tinged with a lazy smile.
"What do you think of these decrees?"
No one dared answer.
"No answer? Then I'll take it that you all agree."
Yan Lingji chuckled.
"Since you all agree, then send down the orders.
"From today onward, the Heaven Dou Empire shall change its era name, establish a new system, and usher in reform.
"All provinces, commanderies, and counties shall comply with My decrees.
"Those who disobey, delay, or pay lip service while acting otherwise—"
Her voice paused, a cold glint flashing in her peach-blossom eyes.
"Will be executed without exception."
When that word, "executed," fell, the temperature in the hall seemed to drop several degrees.
The nobles shuddered, pressing their foreheads to the floor as they quaked in fear.
They knew—this female emperor wasn't joking.
She really would kill.
And her methods were more ruthless than those of any emperor they had ever known.
She had killed her way to the top.
From Heaven Dou City to the Sunset Forest, from the Sunset Forest to the Duke's Mansion, from the Duke's Mansion to the imperial palace.
Corpses paved the ground beneath her throne.
Who would dare defy an empress like that?
Yan Lingji glanced over the crowd prostrate on the floor, the corners of her lips lifting slightly.
"That's enough. You may all leave. Tend to your duties and see that your work gets done."
The nobles fled the hall, stumbling over one another as if granted a royal pardon.
The moment the doors shut, Yan Lingji let out a long breath and leaned back against the throne, her nine fox tails swishing gently behind her.
"Master—"
She spoke in his mind, her voice carrying a hint of coquettishness.
"How did I do just now?"
"Not bad."
Jiang Ce's voice held a trace of amusement.
"You just didn't sound fierce enough when you said, 'executed without exception.'"
"I wasn't fierce enough?" Yan Lingji pouted. "I thought my killing intent nearly lifted the roof off the hall."
"Keep practicing next time."
Jiang Ce paused.
"But once these decrees are issued, that's when the real trouble begins. Down in the commanderies and counties, there are nobles we haven't brought under control and remnants of the kingdoms. They'll do everything they can to stall, resist, and pay lip service while acting otherwise."
"Then we'll just kill them."
Yan Lingji smiled, her peach-blossom eyes full of coldness.
"Killing people is what I do best."
Jiang Ce laughed too.
"Then kill them. Keep killing until everyone listens."
Yan Lingji leaned back on the throne, gazing at the carved ceiling, candlelight reflected in her peach-blossom eyes.
"Beneath the wide sky, all is the king's land. To the shores of the land, all are the king's subjects."
She murmured those words, the corners of her lips curving.
How interesting.
Truly interesting.
Before, she had been nothing but an assassin from Baiyue, working for the Crown Prince, killing and setting fires, never giving a thought to tomorrow.
Now—
She was the female emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire.
She would make every person on this continent remember her name.
Yan Lingji.
The Calamity Enchantress.
And the woman who had built a new empire with her own hands—
the female emperor.
Of course, she knew her place.
This female emperor of hers was nothing more than a plaything for her Master to toy with at his leisure.
But so what?
She was a temptress, after all.
It was only natural for her Master to play with her.
Her Master's tentacles were amazing.
At that thought—
Phantom Dragon Impact activated.
"Mmm... Master..."
"Little temptress, I'll satisfy you."
"Yes, Master."
Yan Lingji's movements also caught Xiaomeng's attention. She discreetly started to leave.
Suddenly, her expression changed. She clutched her lower abdomen and fell to her knees.
"My Xiaomeng, where are you going?"
A cackling laugh rang out.
Before you continue