Shen Yuxi asked the system curiously, [Who fathered Noble Consort Wei's third princess?]
By now, Emperor Xuanzhao had already suppressed the fury blazing fiercely in his heart.
He remained calm.
He was the emperor, after all. What grand spectacle had he not seen?
He had long since mastered the ability to remain unruffled even if Mount Tai collapsed before him.
Yet at Shen Yuxi's words, his taut cheeks and clenched fists betrayed his inner state.
Towering waves had already surged within him.
[Her head personal eunuch.]
[What? Are you kidding me?] Shen Yuxi's round eyes widened.
Emperor Xuanzhao and the assembled ministers: ???
Minister Shen covered his face, utterly bereft of the will to live.
Rather than have her expose Noble Consort Wei's affair in court, making it known to everyone,
he would have preferred his youngest daughter to curse the emperor a few times instead.
Now the emperor had lost every last shred of face and dignity.
He glanced at Grand Tutor Wei out of the corner of his eye.
Grand Tutor Wei's complexion could no longer be described as ashen. His vicious gaze looked as though he would charge forward and tear Shen Yuxi to pieces the very next second.
Minister Shen's face darkened at once.
Grand Tutor Wei prided himself on being a veteran of two reigns and having taught the emperor for several years. He was arrogant by nature.
Now that his youngest daughter had exposed this scandal, Grand Tutor Wei would surely harbor resentment toward her.
It seemed he would have to arrange for people to protect his youngest daughter ahead of time, lest Grand Tutor Wei become a cornered dog that leaped over the wall.
Still, remembering Shen Yuxi's protection mechanism, Minister Shen felt somewhat reassured.
[Host, I'm not kidding.]
The system slowly recounted the entire story. [Before Noble Consort Wei entered the palace, she already had a man she loved.]
[She and that man were childhood sweethearts who had grown up together. Although their families had never arranged a betrothal, the two had privately pledged themselves to each other, promising to marry no one else.]
[However, just when their love was at its strongest, something unexpected happened.]
[In the first year after Emperor Xuanzhao ascended the throne, he began selecting consorts.]
[As Grand Tutor Wei's most outstanding legitimate daughter, Noble Consort Wei possessed exceptional beauty and was skilled in the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Naturally, Grand Tutor Wei hoped his daughter would enter the palace to serve the emperor, bringing glory to the family and perpetuating its honor.]
[If Noble Consort Wei was fortunate enough to bear a prince who later ascended the throne, the entire Wei family would rise with the tide.]
[At first, Noble Consort Wei was unwilling and even went on a hunger strike to refuse the selection. But afterward, once she accompanied Grand Tutor Wei into the palace and met the emperor, she fell for the young, handsome emperor who wielded great power.]
Shen Yuxi picked up the thread. [So she agreed to enter the palace?]
[Yes.]
[After entering the palace, Noble Consort Wei eagerly anticipated loving intimacy with the emperor, but he rarely visited her residence.]
[Let me guess what happened next.]
Shen Yuxi stroked her chin and narrowed her eyes.
She said, [Lonely deep within the palace, Noble Consort Wei missed the loving times she had shared with her childhood sweetheart, so she arranged for him to enter the palace as her personal eunuch.]
[Through underhanded maneuvering, she let him bypass castration.]
[That way, her childhood sweetheart could stand openly by Noble Consort Wei's side without arousing suspicion.]
[Whenever the emperor was away, the two fooled around every night, doing this and that, huffing and puffing away until they made the third princess, right?]
[You're so clever, Host!]
Hearing Shen Yuxi speak so bluntly and explicitly,
even men like Emperor Xuanzhao felt themselves blush.
How could a young girl be so utterly without shame?
"Ahem... Minister Shen, young Lord Shen certainly is... frank and endearing." The second prince, Mo Yao, coughed twice and spoke quietly.
Minister Shen: Ha. Ha. Ha.
He had struggled in court for half his life, only to lose every scrap of face today.
[And that man agreed? Wasn't he afraid of being discovered and having his nine familial relations exterminated?]
[Noble Consort Wei lied to him, saying she had only entered the palace because Grand Tutor Wei forced her and she had no choice, and that he remained the only man she loved.]
[The man chose to believe Noble Consort Wei. After all, he still loved her, so he risked his life and entered the palace under her arrangements.]
[Especially after spending a night of passion with Noble Consort Wei, he became completely infatuated with the thrill.]
[Whenever the emperor was absent and Noble Consort Wei was in the mood, she would pull her childhood sweetheart away for some hanky-panky.]
Emperor Xuanzhao: "..."
Damn it. I must kill that adulterous pair.
With a vast green prairie atop his head, Emperor Xuanzhao brimmed with murderous intent.
[Under her childhood sweetheart's tireless plowing day and night, Noble Consort Wei successfully became pregnant.]
[After giving birth to the third princess, Noble Consort Wei felt the emperor favored the second princess and neglected her and her daughter, so she bribed the wet nurse attending the second princess.]
[Money has always been a great temptation. How could an ordinary person resist weighty silver?]
[As though possessed, the wet nurse agreed to Noble Consort Wei's request and secretly mixed large quantities of crushed peanuts into the second princess's food, causing her tragedy.]
[After acting, the wet nurse belatedly grew frightened. She wanted to confess to the emperor, but Noble Consort Wei threatened her with her daughter outside the palace.]
[The wet nurse had no choice but to take all the blame upon herself.]
[But how could Noble Consort Wei leave the wet nurse's daughter alive and needlessly sow the seeds of future trouble?]
[Sigh!]
Shen Yuxi shook her head and sighed heavily, looking at Emperor Xuanzhao with pity.
[His Majesty is so pitiful!]
[Three daughters in total. The first two didn't survive, and the one who finally did isn't even his.]
Emperor Xuanzhao: There is really no need to keep rubbing salt into my wounds.
[Do you think the emperor would faint from anger if he found out?]
[Probably?]
The system said uncertainly, [Given the emperor's temperament, even if he did faint, he would kill Noble Consort Wei and the third princess first.]
[True.]
[What man could tolerate his woman putting a green hat on him, let alone an emperor who stands above all others?]
[Will you tell the emperor about this, Host?]
[I'll think about it later.]
Shen Yuxi sounded hesitant. [Am I supposed to suddenly walk up to the emperor now and say that Noble Consort Wei murdered the second princess and had the third princess through an affair?]
[The emperor would have me killed.]
[Besides, I don't have any evidence.]
Not wanting to reveal any clues before Shen Yuxi, Emperor Xuanzhao forcibly suppressed his murderous urges.
Pretending nothing had happened, he continued discussing state affairs with the ministers.
Another four hours passed, and Shen Yuxi's legs had gone numb from standing.
"Lord Shi, you must be tired after writing for so long. Would you like me to help take the records?"
Throughout the entire court, aside from the emperor, only Lord Shi, the recording historian, could sit back on his heels.
Lord Shi looked at Shen Yuxi's sincere face and expectant eyes.
He discreetly glanced at her waist, which was nearly bent all the way to the floor, and his lips twitched.
"Sorry for the trouble, young Lord Shen."
"No trouble at all, no trouble." Shen Yuxi waved her hands repeatedly.
Writing was her specialty.
Lord Shi silently stepped aside.
As though liberated, Shen Yuxi immediately took Lord Shi's place and sat back on her heels.
She did not hesitate for even a second.
[Whew-]
[That's better.]
[Huh? After all this time, Lord Shi has only written this little?]
Bored, Shen Yuxi flipped through Lord Shi's records. Compared with his previous entries, he had recorded particularly little today.
Lord Shi: "..."
Wasn't that because I was so engrossed in listening to your thoughts that I forgot to record anything?
[Lord Shi really knows how to slack off.]
The system said, [Besides, no one actually checks things like these records. Generally, he only needs to note down important events. Certain inconsequential details can be omitted.]
[By the way, where's the fourth prince? Why haven't I seen him?]
Shen Yuxi swept her gaze around but found no sign of Mo Xuanchen, so she asked the system.
[Mo Xuanchen was gravely injured. Although you saved his life, Host, the emperor still granted him special leave so he could recuperate properly for a while.]