Chapter 2154

Zhu Yanyi thought for a moment, then waved her hand. She grabbed the Emperor by the collar and flew out the window. Halfway up, she found it troublesome to carry her. So, she pulled out a flying device, placed the Emperor on it, and sat beside Yuan Yanqiu.

"Let us show you your so-called country," Zhu Yanyi said.

She accelerated the device. "Look at the sky of your country. It is pitch black, with not a single ray of light. You might say it is night, but there is no moonlight. Even if it is not the full moon, it is the tenth day of the lunar month. There should be some light. Do you really think this is normal?"

"Today is the tenth day. Even if it is not full, there should be a half-moon. But do you see any moonlight? The sky is like this. Now, look at your people below." Zhu Yanyi pointed down.

The Emperor looked at Zhu Yanyi, curious. She followed her finger and looked down. It was dark, but a few lanterns glowed. These were large gate lanterns from wealthy families, burning all night. Nearby, in corners and under bridges, many ragged people lay sleeping. They looked lifeless, without hope. It seemed they slept to regain their vitality and hope.

"Are these my people?" The Emperor’s eyes grew deep.

"Yes," Zhu Yanyi nodded slightly. "They are your people. It depends on how you face this."

The Emperor lowered his head. "The State Preceptor lied to me about peace and prosperity."

"Probably. I am curious, why did you trust your State Preceptor so much?" Zhu Yanyi asked.

"Twenty years ago, I was only five. My father was still alive. It had not rained for three months. My father led the officials to pray for rain, but it failed. Then the State Preceptor came. He prayed, and it rained soon after. My father made him the State Preceptor. Since then, the weather was good. Also, he has not aged at all. We thought he was a god." The Emperor spoke seriously.

Zhu Yanyi looked at her. "Do you know how outsiders judge you?"

"How?" The Emperor asked curiously.

"A tyrant," Zhu Yanyi said directly.

The Emperor was stunned. "But I have never harmed my people."

"You have. You listened to a non-human. Your State Preceptor is either possessed by an evil spirit or a bad person. Because you trusted him, your country’s fortune is fading. In ten years, the Dayu Dynasty will cease to exist."

Zhu Yanyi looked at the Emperor calmly. "Emperor of Dayu, do you think you can still be a good emperor like this?"

"A ruler who loses her country cannot be a good emperor." The Emperor smiled bitterly. Hearing Zhu Yanyi’s words, she felt depressed. Was she really going to be the last ruler?

"Junior Sister, shall we help her?" Yuan Yanqiu thought for a moment and said to Zhu Yanyi.

Zhu Yanyi looked at Yuan Yanqiu, then at the Emperor. "Emperor, I am direct. I do not like to talk too much. Here is the deal: My senior sister and I will help you for two months. We will fight the State Preceptor. Even if we cannot kill her, we will drive her away. We will not interfere with court affairs. But one condition: once successful, you must treat your people well."

"Agreed." The Emperor nodded seriously. "This is certain. I am the Emperor, the lord of all people. I must treat them well."

Zhu Yanyi looked at the Emperor and nodded slightly. "Fine. Since that is settled, we will send you back."

She returned the Emperor to the Imperial Study. Then she remembered something. "By the way, you acted very well just now. You seemed a bit silly and innocent. But I think an Emperor would not be that silly. So, I think I was tricked."

"Since I promised to fight the State Preceptor, I will do it. But I am in a bad mood, so I must beat you first. Do not worry, I will not hit your face."

Yuan Yanqiu did not understand what was happening. Zhu Yanyi had already grabbed the Emperor and started hitting her.

"Rest assured, I am a doctor. I know the body’s acupoints very well. I will not cause internal injury. But I will make you hurt a little. This is the price for tricking me." She continued hitting.

Zhu Yanyi realized she was becoming quite tough. She had beaten Wu Xiong a few days ago, and now she was beating the Emperor. The feeling was not bad. But she started to worry. Would she develop a habit of liking to beat people?

While she was distracted by these thoughts, the beating ended.

After finishing, Zhu Yanyi casually threw the Emperor onto her throne. "These people just took our special medicine. They will wake up when we leave. Just pretend they were dozing off. You do not need to explain much." Zhu Yanyi clicked her tongue. "I do not know how you manage to be Emperor. You have almost no trusted aides."

She pulled Yuan Yanqiu and left.

As soon as they left, the people on the ground woke up. The Emperor pretended not to notice and continued reviewing memorials. If the pain on his body had not remained, he would have thought it was a dream.

However, he secretly smiled. His eyes showed a hint of joy. He had waited for this. He felt that the State Preceptor’s nemesis had appeared.

Yes, this Emperor of Dayu was not actually incompetent. He just lacked the ability to fight the State Preceptor.

The previous Emperor had trusted the State Preceptor too much. The Preceptor’s supporters were everywhere in the court. Fighting him was difficult. Over the years, the Emperor realized the State Preceptor was likely not an ordinary person. So, he had to endure, pretending not to know. In fact, he was now sure he had finally waited for the right moment.

Zhu Yanyi and Yuan Yanqiu sat in the flying device, hovering in the air. Yuan Yanqiu looked at Zhu Yanyi curiously. "How did you know the Emperor was tricking us?"

"Mi Xiao likes reading novels because the stories are exciting. But people in the mortal world know one thing: all novel stories come from life."

"The palace is a common topic in novels. I have read many palace novels. An heir trained personally by the previous Emperor could not be very innocent. This Emperor acted too innocent."

"Of course, at first, I only suspected. Maybe I was wrong. So I tested him just now. In fact, I was not wrong. This Emperor was indeed using his innocent appearance to deceive us. Fortunately, we are not easily tricked. At least I saw through it."