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It was she who wanted to break up.

She put on airs, thinking that because she was the one who was loved, she could boss people around and arbitrarily decide her relationship with the Young Master.

She was selfish and cowardly, afraid of getting hurt and being hurt. In order to protect herself and avoid being the one who was abandoned, she unilaterally decided to correct this strange relationship from the very beginning.

Then why are you still hoping?

Hopefully, the Young Master won't give up and won't easily leave her.

How despicable.

Your wishful thinking has backfired, hasn't it?

Zhu Bafu, you've been abandoned. You pretentious and cowardly fellow.

She raised her hand to rub her aching shoulder blades, and bent down to pick up another stone brick when a pair of pink embroidered shoes came into her view. A faint, elegant fragrance of perfume wafted past her nose. Before she could even lift her head, a warm, gentle, androgynous voice brushed past her ear.

"May I ask if you are Lord Zhu Bafu, the Minister of Works?"

"That's me." Wiping the fine sweat from his face with the back of his hand and sleeve, Zhu Bafu suddenly raised his head. The next moment, he was stunned—

The beautiful woman before him was more than a head taller than the boy in his male attire, yet her figure was slender and graceful, with a delicate waistline. She possessed an ethereal and elegant air, and her refined and beautiful demeanor was captivating. With a touch of makeup, her soft eyebrows and alluring eyes were highlighted, and her supple steps exuded femininity. When the boy looked up at him rudely, she did not blush. Instead, she gently moved closer in her embroidered shoes, politely curtsied slightly, and performed a woman's greeting. Her thin, red lips parted slightly. "Greetings, Lord Zhu. This Long Ang, the Minister of Rites."

"..."== Ceremony... Master Long Ang of the Ministry of Rites?! Wait... looking back with a charming smile and a swaying aura of beautiful face and golden steps, he turned out to be Lord Long Ang of the Ministry of Rites?!

What exactly is going on with the Six Ministries Departments of the Eastern Order? This fake man went to great lengths to Woman Dressed as a Man in, while this real man is dressed as a woman and wearing makeup!

No wonder she saw a woman when she first peeked into the Six Ministries Hall; she thought someone was hiding Little Enchantress there. But... facepalm, her head ached. Were there no normal people in these Six Ministries? There was the bully forcing people to write love letters and engaging in Longyang, the serious but stingy little boy, Lord Wei who wholeheartedly supported Cut Sleeve, and now there was the Minister of Ministry of Rites who liked to dress as a feminine woman—

So, the Young Master was originally the only normal person in the entire Six Ministries?

However, he's not acting normally now.

"Lord Zhu?" Interrupting her myriad thoughts, Long Ang waved his hand in front of her eyes.

"Uh... uh... yes, may I ask what advice Lord Long may offer?"

Reaching out, she gently pinched a tuft of soft hair behind her ear, Long Ang curved her lightly powdered lips into a smile. "It's not so much about giving advice, but there are some things I need to discuss with Lord Zhu. What do you think should be done with these files?"

As soon as the soft voice finished, her slender, fair fingers lifted and waved lightly. The piles of files, stacked like small mountains, were loaded onto small trailers, which were then quickly pushed over by a dozen Academy Student from a distance. Without a word, the trailers were overturned, and the files were unloaded and dumped in front of her.

"Lord Long? What... what are these?"

Unfolding her small embroidered fan and swaying it gently, Long Ang leisurely lifted her silk skirt and sat gracefully on the mountain of scrolls, crossing her long legs and resting her chin on her hand. "These are all scrolls that the Academy Student rescued on the day the Library Pavilion caught fire."

"So much?"

"Hehe, there aren't many left. Half of the precious books have already been inventoried and sent to the palace for safekeeping by my people. As for the rest, please dispose of them as you see fit Lord Zhu."

"This... how should we handle this?" She had just been promoted to a position she had never held before, and she didn't even know what she was supposed to do. Wasn't this just creating a problem for her?

"Lord Zhu, are you joking with me? You are the newly appointed head of the Commander Mansion. Since Eastern Order establishment of the Eastern Academy, no Academy Student has ever been so highly regarded by the Emperor. You must possess both talent and virtue to have earned the Emperor's special favor, right? Of course... whatever you say, we'll handle it." Tilting her head and smiling innocently, Long Ang pursed her lips charmingly, her mouth slightly parted. "However, since Lord Zhu has asked this question, I'll take the liberty of offering a small suggestion. These scrolls were all provided by the Academy Student. To facilitate borrowing, they are temporarily stored in a side room of the Library Pavilion that wasn't burned. Please, Lord Zhu, take the time to categorize and organize them."

"... But... how could so many books be collected in such a short time..."

"Oh... Lord Zhu, since you're asking what to do, you should be polite and let the person finish speaking first. This habit of interrupting without letting others finish is unacceptable and needs to be changed." A pointed, sarcastic remark shot from her beautiful lips. Although the tone was soft, the words were clearly aimed at her back. "If you can't finish today, do it tomorrow. If you do it tomorrow, do it the day after. If that doesn't work, you should be able to finish it in half a month or a month. Someone as learned as Lord Zhu, a talent highly valued by the Emperor, compiling such a collection of classics is naturally no problem for him, right?"

"... Lord Long, have I seen you before?"

"Never."

"Have I offended the master?"

"No, not at all."

"Then why did you mess with me?"

"Hehe... not bad, you know I'm messing with you." With a flick of her Silk Garment, she stood up gracefully, Long Ang combing her long, loose hair with her hand. Her bright eyes flashed with a hint of sarcasm. "Naturally, it's because you bullied someone you shouldn't have."

"I?"

"Yes. Is it fun to toy with Xiaojing?" Raising his chin, he stepped forward, revealing Small Fan embroidered fan. With a deft flick of his fingers, he provocatively hooked her chin, forcing her to confront him. His usually gentle and refined demeanor vanished, no longer bothering to conceal his disgust and contempt. His sharp gaze pierced her eyes, his cold voice rising, "I'm warning you, don't think that just because you've climbed the Emperor and infiltrated the Six Ministries, you can rise to power and become arrogant. You haven't even figured out how deep the waters are before you've crossed the river and burned the bridge; you deserve to drown. But if you dare to approach and tease Xiaojing again under any pretext, it won't be as simple as moving bricks and organizing books..."