On the other side, the emperor was not faring as well as the empress.Some of the old officials threw away any resemblance of dignity, wailed loudly like little concubines at the heels of the emperor, and demanded that their sons be brought back immediately. Their set of actions took Jiang Yu"s breath away right then and there.He has yet to demonstrate his temper and yet he got caught up with these piles of old bones."You cry! You keep crying for Zhen! If not, then roll away!" Jiang Yu kicked one away but another crawled into his leg.Strict in his demand and clear on punishment and rewards. The emperor is known for his stable mind and resolute att.i.tude, but in regard to his old officials, there"s only a sense of weakness.At the death of an emperor, he would clean up the court, kill the corrupted, and pave the way for his heir and his new ministers. But the late emperor left in silence and the court was full of old officials.In control, influential, and cunning old foxes. A simple misstep and he"ll be their puppet. Jiang Yu fought an ugly and bitter battle for power and finally won after years of hard work.They lost both of their influence and control, stripped of their ambitions, and could hardly breathe. Slowly the emperor plucked them out, and slowly, the one"s he cultivated entered the court.Jiang Yu had yet to breathe in relief when the tide changed.Maybe they were cornered excessively, or maybe old ginger was still spicier, in the end, they threw off all pretense, acted temperamentally, and became unreasonable.Their t.i.tle will be stripped one way or another, they didn"t dare raise their sons with ambitions and dare not expand the family. What"s there to fear anymore? They really didn"t fear anymore and cried with every small grievance.Now, half of the imperial court is full of shameless old officials, resigned to their powerless, and already past the age where they fear death. Jiang Yu hated that he still needed to show them face."Where"s your dignity?! Stand up! Stand up or roll to the forest! Zhen will feed you to the beasts!" Why was that the older one gets, the more childish they are? Jiang Yu realized what they meant by raising one"s own elder."Emperor, justice ah! You must give us justice!""What justice? Speak properly. No one died yet!""Aiyo! Emperor, you cannot curse someone to death!""Zhen is cursing someone to death? You"re the one crying so mournfully! So unlucky!""But Your Majesty, we don"t know the situation inside! What if… what if… oh, my poor son! Oh, this official cannot breathe, ah! Cannot. Your majesty… Your majesty, this lowly official must see his son before I die."Jiang Yu looked at the sky and let the cold autumn wind brush his face. With a decisive att.i.tude, he peeled away from the wailing people. Seeing the emperor"s i-do-not-see-you att.i.tude, those old officials made their cries louder. Since you pretend not to see us, see if you can pretend not to hear us!It was piercing to the ears. They could enter the harem and compete with the concubines.The other presents stare at them as if watching a good show. As they fear no death, how could they care about the mocking gazes and further rumors?It"s not your son so you"re not hurting! You"re young and the others have countless children they can sell, but look at this set of old bones! The seeds already withered and only produced this one son! The lands are dried and can no longer be watered, where do I get another son?! No, ah! Return my son!They"ve been so oppressed that they only have these few useless sons!----After reprimanding the responsible people, as well as the prime minister, Jiang Yu went to find the Empress. Along the way, he learned of another matter that brought him to an immediate stop.He hesitated a bit before changing paths.Upon entering a small courtyard, he dismissed the servants, disallowing them from disturbing their mistress.Jiang Yu stared at the woman sleeping peacefully. His eyes drifted to her lower abdomen. Under the covers, any signs of pregnancy were unnoticeable.Regarding the women in the harem, Jiang Yu neither felt deep affection nor cold indifference. He flipped their plaque with the same att.i.tude he had when approving some memorials.They approached him with both reverence and caution, and he gave them the same level of wariness.Jiang Yu did not want a child this early. Although the court was pressing on this issue and he knew it was part of his duty, he didn"t want to have a child that would eye his throne while he was still healthy.After delaying it for so long, it unknowingly still came. "My dear consort, let us hope for a healthy princess."For his sake, as well as hers, it would be good to have a princess instead of a prince.Once the door closed and the sound of footsteps disappeared, Shen Nian Zhen"s eyelids fluttered. In a blank state, she stared unwavering at the bed canopy. The emperor came in silence and left with silence. Shen Nian Zhen smiled disdainfully.Since she"s suffering, it"s only fair that others are crying. They thought they schemed well but aren"t they all in the same h.e.l.l. As long as others are as miserable as her, she"ll still laugh heartily. ----Jiang Yu walked slowly. Lost in his mind and unsettled. Each of his steps was full of hesitation. A servant came, urging him to see Ye Ai Ning, expressing the grievances of her mistress.Distracted, he said, "What about the Empress?""...Ah?""The Empress, did she say something?"The servant blinked her eyes until the tears dry, dumbfounded. Asking her about the empress, a servant from a different palace, and a rival palace at that… Your Majesty, it was not appropriate, isn"t it?