A Scummy Alpha Emperor Transmigrated and Marked the Powerful Prime Minister - Chapter 7

The news that the Empress Dowager’s personal eunuch had been dragged to the Inner Prison swept through the palace like a gale.

Is the Emperor taking power?

Is the Empress Dowager finished?

Or did Wang Duoshi do something to betray her?

Soon, versions of the scene were being whispered out of the mouths of various servants. Some even attempted to smuggle the news out of the palace. With so many eunuchs and female officials, who knew whose spy was who?

However, the moment this happened, the servants of Daming Palace held their heads high. Previously, whether it was the Palace of Longevity and Peace or the Western Palace, everyone could trample on Daming Palace. Now? Her Majesty was taking control.

Lin Jiayue could see an inexplicable sense of adoration in the eyes of the palace staff. Wei Jinming, her head now bandaged, walked behind her looking exactly like a victorious fighting rooster.

“Perhaps Teacher Lu should rest in the palace for a while,” Lin Jiayue suggested, picking up a book at random to distract herself. Her hand hurt so much that the moment she sat still, waves of throbbing pain surged upward. She’d had her wisdom teeth pulled before, but it had never hurt like this.

The “Zhi Hu Zhe Ye” (archaic scholarly prose) in the book only made her head ache more. Seeing Lu Siling sitting nearby drinking tea in total silence, she decided to use Lu Siling as a distraction. Honestly, one cold glance from Lu Siling was more effective than anesthesia—the pain instantly felt duller.

Lu Siling’s brow furrowed slightly. She certainly wasn’t going to close her eyes in any hall of Daming Palace right now. But if she could separate herself from Lin Jiayue, that wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

“This official takes her leave.”

Wait, what? That wasn’t what she meant.

Lin Jiayue decisively spoke to keep her. “Is the Grand Chancellor not hungry?”

Lu Siling hadn’t eaten last night, and she hadn’t eaten this morning. Lin Jiayue suspected her weakness wasn’t entirely due to the poison, but also hunger. She was just looking for things to say—what else could she do? She just wanted to build a good relationship with the Grand Chancellor.

She wanted to survive her days as Emperor and then find a place to live incognito. A diligent Emperor works themselves to death, a lazy one gets assassinated, and anyone in the middle is just a beast of burden—unable to lie flat, yet forced to clock in every day. As for being a “fatuous tyrant,” the current state of Great Zhou wouldn’t allow it; the wealth distribution was at its breaking point. If she played the tyrant now, she wouldn’t have to wait for Lu Siling to rebel—someone else would kill her first.

Lin Jiayue figured she’d “strike the bell as long as she was a monk.” She didn’t expect to be a legend, but she’d do her best to hold power and get things done. Even if it was just to ensure a better exit later, she couldn’t just rot.

First, she needed a reliable ally. As the female lead of this world, Lu Siling represented the side of justice; those who opposed her were villains, and villains all died.

Lin Jiayue coughed lightly, bringing up the most awkward topic possible. “If I said… I wasn’t the one who gave you the drug, would Teacher Lu believe me?”

She wanted to struggle one last time. It really wasn’t her!

The sudden remark hung in the air; both of them knew exactly what it referred to. Lu Siling stared at her for a heartbeat, burying her hatred deep in her heart and trying her best to remain calm.

Her voice was icy. “If Your Majesty says so, then this official believes it.”

Okay, she definitely doesn’t believe it.

The fact that Lu Siling hadn’t immediately done anything to the original owner after being disappointed was for the sake of political stability. In other words, as long as Lin Jiayue could ensure the reforms proceeded steadily, Lu Siling wouldn’t kill her. Lu Siling’s “protagonist aura” was invincible in the later stages; if she wanted to kill Lin Jiayue, there would be no escape.

So, Lin Jiayue had to make herself valuable. Lu Siling’s current power was great, but so was the opposition. She needed an ally who held the “orthodox” legal authority. And as Emperor, her support naturally represented “correctness.” Lu Siling might actually be interested.

Lin Jiayue knew she lacked real power, but every memorial had to pass through Daming Palace. Even if she couldn’t make decisions, she had the right of review. If she were bold enough to simply “keep” a memorial in the palace (ignoring it), the Grand Secretariat would be helpless. She lacked the ability to make something happen, but she had the power to break something.

“Forget it. I know you don’t believe me.”

Let’s talk about something else, then.

“Teacher Lu, I am the Emperor. Many may wish to pull me from the throne, but I hold the late Emperor’s decree and the Heirloom Seal of the Realm. I continue the Great Zhou’s legacy; I am the pillar upon which the people’s livelihood rests.”

Lin Jiayue first emphasized the legitimacy of her reign, then shifted to a sorrowful tone. “When Sister was in the Eastern Palace, she said the Great Zhou had been passed down for three hundred years and was terminally ill, requiring heavy medicine—drastic medicine. But Sister died young. I wanted to carry out her will, but Grand Chancellor… I have nothing but a heart full of passion, yet I am powerless. I am merely a mascot.”

She understood that playing the victim wouldn’t move Lu Siling. After last night, Lu Siling would surely think her motives were impure. To talk cooperation, she had to say certain things even if they weren’t her true thoughts. No one would believe Lin Jiayue if she said she didn’t want to be Emperor.

So, she framed all her actions as a desire to rule personally and preserve the late Emperor’s lifeblood. To Lu Siling, the late Emperor was both a teacher and an older sister.

However, Lu Siling showed no reaction to Lin Jiayue’s words. No young Emperor doesn’t long for personal rule. They are high-spirited, thinking they can do great things once they have power, never knowing that taking power is only the first step. Only then do they feel the true meaning of “willing but unable.”

Seeing Lu Siling’s silence, Lin Jiayue didn’t mind the monologue. She just wanted to state her position. She wanted Lu Siling to know they were on the same side.

“Although Teacher Lu is the head of the civil officials, you are hindered at every turn. I am willing to work with the Grand Chancellor to seek a livelihood and a future for the people.”

Lu Siling knew very well that despite her power, she was checked and balanced from all sides. The young Emperor wanted to cooperate?

Ridiculous. If last night hadn’t happened, she might have agreed to these words. Now, it was impossible. The young Emperor was immoral and untrustworthy. If the sovereign is not upright, the chaos must be corrected.

Or perhaps their brief cooperation just now had given Lin Jiayue the illusion that last night’s actions could be wiped clean.

“Your Majesty, if one cannot even govern a single room, how can one govern the nation and the world?”

Lu Siling rejected the cooperation request and added a sneer. The young Emperor couldn’t even control the affairs of the palace; how could she talk of personal rule, and by what right could she cooperate?

Lin Jiayue wasn’t angry. After all, the insult was for the original owner, not her. She hadn’t expected them to reach an agreement immediately anyway. Besides, what would getting angry do? The original owner got angry every day and ended up coming up with that disastrous plan, gaining nothing and getting herself killed.

Lin Jiayue smiled obediently. “This student still requires Teacher Lu’s guidance.”

Lu Siling’s pale face grew even colder. Teacher and student? They were no longer that. After Lin Jiayue did such a thing, she still dared to talk like this? Her skin was thicker than the palace walls.

“Why would Your Majesty need my guidance?”

Lu Siling’s tone was no longer polite. Having endured from the moment she woke up until now, she suddenly realized she no longer needed to endure, nor should she. Her sense of duty to the young Emperor came from the late Emperor and the laws of the land—it was certainly not respect for Lin Jiayue herself.

Lin Jiayue heard the disdain and the suppressed anger. “I wish to reach a mutual understanding with Teacher Lu as sovereign and subject. Whether you believe it or not, once a teacher, always a teacher.”

She almost said “once a teacher, always a mother,” but that sounded too weird—calling Lu Siling “Mom” was a step too far.

“Your Majesty, there are urgent matters in the Grand Secretariat.”

Lu Siling didn’t want to hear any more high-sounding words. Her patience had reached its limit the moment she was drugged. She rose abruptly, her body swaying as if from low blood sugar. She strode toward the exit. If Lin Jiayue stopped her again, Lu Siling would suspect she intended to repeat last night’s events.

Well, that talk failed.

This time, Lin Jiayue didn’t stop her. She had done what she could. These words sounded like “sharing deep thoughts with a superficial acquaintance,” especially since their relationship was ruined, but her stance had to be made clear. Lin Jiayue didn’t want to be Emperor, but there was a difference between being proactive and being passive. Regardless, she had expressed what she wanted to express.

Just as she reached for the tea on the table, her gaze froze. She spotted a short arrow left behind on the Luohan bed. Cold sweat instantly broke out.

If she had approached just now, would Lu Siling have used that arrow to pierce her throat? She felt she knew the answer. Lu Siling would not have shown her any mercy.

Having just stepped outside the hall, Lu Siling reached into her sleeve for the short arrow, only to find it gone. She didn’t look back; she kept walking.

Guang Wei, who had followed her for years, noticed something was wrong. “What is it, My Lady?”

“The short arrow.”

Guang Wei had smuggled the weapon into the palace and pressed it into Lu Siling’s hand just as they were leaving. Lu Siling could only hide it in her sleeve, but it must have fallen out. Wide sleeves were not meant for hiding things, and the arrow was a palm’s length; it was nearly impossible to conceal on one’s person.

Guang Wei’s face went white. “My Lady, it’s my fault for forcing it on you. I will take full responsibility for this; I won’t let it implicate you.”

“You are my person,” Lu Siling said, her voice low. Implication was inevitable; Guang Wei belonged to her, and they would certainly trace it back. “Bringing a weapon into the palace… return and receive your punishment.”

Ultimately, people were too afraid of Lu Siling to search Guang Wei, but if such leverage were caught, the fallout would be immense.

At that moment, Wei Jinming caught up with them, carrying a food box. “Grand Chancellor, Her Majesty asked me to bring this to you.”

Guang Wei quickly took it. Wei Jinming gave the food box a meaningful pat. She didn’t know why the Emperor told her to do that, but she did it anyway.

Once Wei Jinming left, Lu Siling immediately opened the box. The short arrow was lying quietly inside.

What did Lin Jiayue mean by this?