Echoes of My Heart Throughout the Court

The emperor had four attendants in rotation, with two on duty each day.

“Do I not have to attend to His Majesty today?”

After court, Xu Yanmiao received the news and cheerfully headed to the Ministry of Personnel.

Serving the emperor was like living alongside a tiger. To him, staying by the old emperor’s side might seem like a great honor, but in reality, you couldn’t even breathe loudly. Even the thought of passing gas had to be suppressed. You couldn’t afford to lose focus, fearing that if your name was called, you’d fail to respond instantly.

Not suited for a carefree soul like him!

A light spring drizzle fell today, with dragonflies flying low. Each raindrop that hit the ground spread into rippling circles.

Xu Yanmiao strolled through the rain with his umbrella, stepping into puddles as he reached the ministry gates. Humming happily to himself, he handed his umbrella to a clerk, who opened the door for him. Before he could express his thanks, he was hit by the lively buzz coming from inside.

“Did you hear? The Prince of Jibei is rebelling!”

“What gave him the guts to do that? Does he think that just because the Grand General is out at sea and Marquis Yongchang is fighting the Wokou, the court is defenseless and he can act boldly?”

“The court, defenseless? There are plenty of military commanders itching for a chance to earn merit!”

“Exactly. That’s just what the Prince of Jibei thinks.”

[Impressive… Everyone’s so well-informed, huh?]

As Xu Yanmiao marveled inwardly, he noticed his colleagues, who had been chatting and laughing, now glancing in his direction. They must have heard the door open, as their laughter gradually subsided.

Before he could feel awkward, one official joked, “Oh, it’s only Xu Lang! You gave us a scare—we thought the Minister was here!”

Another official enthusiastically called out, “Xu Lang, care to join our wager?”

“Huh?”

Xu Yanmiao looked over, puzzled. “Wager? On what?”

That official strode over, pulling him along like an old friend. “We just started a betting pool! We’re wagering on how long it’ll take for the Prince of Jibei’s rebellion to be crushed by the imperial troops! Losers will handle the winners’ paperwork for three days!”

Xu Yanmiao stared blankly for a few seconds. “You can bet on that?”

The official whispered, “It’s just a small gamble to make things fun. As long as you keep it low-key, it’s fine—over at the Ministry of Justice, I hear they even have prisoners doing office work!”

Xu Yanmiao nodded knowingly.

He had read about this from his gossip system.

Meanwhile, his colleagues were already excitedly placing bets.

“He’s been planning for thirty years, so he might hold out longer… I’ll bet seven months!”

“Are you underestimating us? Our court is full of capable generals! Three months tops, and the Prince of Jibei is done!”

“I’m guessing one month!”

“That’s too short! I don’t think the Prince of Jibei is that—”

[Wait!]

[The Prince of Jibei has already been captured?!]

“Ack—”

The official who had been speaking suddenly bit his tongue, tears welling up in his eyes.

But no one cared about that!

He—and every other official in the Ministry of Personnel—was too stunned by the revelation to process it properly. Their thoughts tangled, almost tripping over their own mental reactions.

Captured already???

How long had it been? From the Prince of Jibei raising his troops to now, it had only been two hours!

Even if his private army wasn’t elite, they couldn’t have collapsed this quickly. Were they made of paper?!

Unless… His Majesty had an inside agent? If they broke through from within, then it might explain how the rebellion was quashed in just two hours.

The officials in the ministry struggled to concoct a theory that didn’t insult their own intelligence—until Xu Yanmiao casually crushed it.

[Even if you were leading a herd of pigs, it wouldn’t end this fast! Let me check…]

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