The Imperial Court's First Juicy Scandal

"Your Majesty, this subject has a matter to report!"

"Since ancient times, there has never been a precedent for a princess taking part in court affairs. Your Majesty's decision to bring the Ninth Princess to court today violates ritual and propriety!"

The moment these words were spoken, most of the ministers voiced their agreement.

Those who had secretly chosen sides, hoping to earn merit by helping a prince ascend the throne, were especially agitated. They had thought their only rivals were the other princes' factions, but Jiang Yunsheng's move today had left them utterly bewildered.

"Your Majesty, this subject agrees with Lord Zhang."

"This subject concurs."

Hearing everyone oppose her attendance at court, Jiang Nuan's eyes filled with tears of gratitude.

They were good people! Such wonderful people!

Whoever wanted to attend this damned court could have it. She could not stomach a life that required getting up at five in the morning.

[Yes, yes, yes, that's it! Hurry up and oppose my attending court! I don't want to be here at all! Who knows what that scumbag dad was thinking? I don't know how to do anything. Did he bring me here as a mascot? He'd have been better off bringing my eighth brother!]

Let the opposition rage even harder!

Yet the moment Jiang Nuan's inner voice rang out, the imperial court fell silent.

Jiang Nuan blinked at the ministers, only to discover that they were all staring at her.

[Wait, why are they looking at me so strangely? Did I accidentally say my thoughts out loud just now?]

By now, every minister had seen clearly that Jiang Nuan had not opened her mouth.

And that slightly childish little girl's voice could not possibly have belonged to anyone else.

Faced with something so supernatural, several elderly ministers rolled their eyes back, clutched their chests, and fainted on the spot.

Fortunately, Eunuch Wang had prepared in advance. Jiang Nuan was not the only addition to today's morning court session; several guards and imperial physicians were also present.

Whenever the guards spotted a minister who might expose the matter of her inner voice, they dragged him aside for a little instruction.

There was even less need to worry about those who could not take the shock and fainted. Every imperial physician had brought his portable acupuncture kit.

If one needle did not work, they would try another. Within three needles, everyone would slowly come around.

[Host, you didn't make a sound just now!]

Guagua reminded her.

The appearance of another childish voice made their eyes widen further. They scanned the hall but could not find the owner of this second voice.

They felt their minds failing to keep up again, and it seemed they were on the verge of fainting.

The imperial physicians said nothing. They merely kept wiping their silver needles, each half a forearm long, ready to "treat" the ministers at any moment.

The ministers who got a good look suddenly felt they could hold out a little longer.

[Oh, that scared me! I thought I'd accidentally said what I was thinking. Phew~ I gave myself a fright.]

Jiang Nuan had only just relaxed when something else seemed to occur to her, and her thoughts took a turn:

[But...]

The ministers held their breath and concentrated, waiting for Jiang Nuan's next words.

[These ministers seem so strange today. They keep jumping at every little thing. Are all Father's officials this easily rattled?]

The ministers wanted to cry but had no tears.

Everything that had happened at court today had crushed the view of the world they had built over decades. Maintaining even this much composure was already no easy feat.

A strange thought flashed through Jiang Nuan's mind, and she continued silently:

*[Guagua, something just occurred to me that gets more terrifying the more I think about it.

Seven years from now, Great Xia will fall, and it seems more than half these ministers will die. That Minister of Revenue—I remember he was cut in half at the waist. And the Minister of Rites was beheaded, with three generations of his family exterminated. Then there's that Deputy Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. I remember he had it worst: his limbs were cut off, and he was turned into a human swine. And...]*

Jiang Nuan listed all the ministers whose deaths she remembered, and without exception, those she could recall had met gruesome ends.

Those she named stared wide-eyed, unable to believe that such a fate awaited them.

The minds of the ministers she had not named were also churning. Not being named did not mean they were safe; they might well be among the remaining dead who made up the "more than half" Jiang Nuan had mentioned.

And to think Jiang Nuan could actually know the future. Still, with something as inconceivable as hearing her inner voice already happening, they felt that foreknowledge was not entirely beyond comprehension.

Some ministers with grand ambitions panicked upon hearing that Great Xia would fall in seven years. They had not even had the chance to spread their wings!

[When you think of it like that, all the ministers in the Golden Throne Hall will become dead people before long. This feels kind of creepy. What do I do?]

As she thought this, Jiang Nuan felt a faint chill, and even goosebumps rose on her skin. She hurriedly rubbed her hands together before she felt a little better.

Some of the more timid ministers looked at their longtime colleagues and felt a chill in their hearts too. They could not help rubbing their hands together along with her.

[No, I can't think like that. I'm getting scared!]

Jiang Nuan had always been a little afraid of ghosts. After experiencing transmigration and rebirth, she felt that the idea of ghosts existing might not be entirely smoke without fire, which only made her more frightened.

Just then, Guagua spoke:

[Don't be afraid, Host. At least in the world you're in now, there are no ghosts.]

Hearing that there were no ghosts eased Jiang Nuan's taut nerves a little, but not much.

Seeing that the reassurance had not helped much, Guagua continued:

[Don't be afraid, Host. Guagua will stay with you. How about we feast on some juicy gossip to take your mind off it?]

Feast on gossip? What gossip? Where was this feast?

The ministers, who did not understand the expression, genuinely thought it referred to an ordinary feast of fruits and vegetables.

Once Jiang Nuan agreed, Guagua asked again, [Everyone here has so much juicy gossip! Host, whose would you like to feast on?]

Some of the cleverer ministers had already realized that this was no ordinary feast, and an ominous premonition stirred in their hearts. They could only pray that their own gossip would not be served up.

Jiang Nuan swept her gaze over the ministers below. Everyone her eyes passed over involuntarily shrank back.

At last, Jiang Nuan's gaze settled on the first man who had stepped forward to oppose her attendance at court.

[Let's pick him. He's such a good person.]

The man wanted to cry but had no tears. No one had told him that merely stepping forward to object to the princess attending court would mean having his gossip feasted on!

But what did the Ninth Princess mean by feasting on gossip?

His question did not linger for long before an answer arrived.

[He is Left Secretariat Assistant Xun Rongchang, thirty years old. He passed the metropolitan examination seven years ago...]

Guagua briefly introduced Xun Rongchang's basic circumstances.

Everyone turned to look at him. He gave a slight nod, confirming that the system was correct.

When Guagua reached the main attraction, a mischievous chuckle slipped out.

[Hehe, Host, don't be fooled by how big and burly he looks. He's actually a crybaby, and his wife has him firmly under her thumb. Whenever something doesn't go his way, he runs to his wife and goes boo-hoo-hoo. Hahahahaha!]