Chapter 255: Good, Good, Good
The officials of the Imperial Court had a strict order.
Normally, it was like this: they stood according to their rank.
Generally, one stood in the position corresponding to their level.
However, there were occasionally one or two shameless individuals who didn’t follow the rules and walked about as they pleased.
If you moved backward, that was fine; no one would care.
But if you squeezed forward, that was being ignorant of the rules.
Meng Qingshe squeezed forward, yet no one said anything.
Meng Qingshe’s rank was quite high, after all.
Usually, he didn’t care to crowd to the front, but in reality, he was permitted to do so.
But what the hell was that little newcomer he was dragging along?
He actually had the nerve to shamelessly crowd forward too.
He didn’t understand the rules of officialdom at all.
Censor He, who usually had no one within a six-zhang radius of his body, found the distance closing as everyone gradually drew nearer.
Seeing the strange expressions on everyone’s faces, Censor He turned around and saw the person being dragged forward by Meng Qingshe, who was about to get close to him.
Meng Qingshe was true to his name; he walked in a serpentine path, grabbing Commander Jiang and weaving left and right, squeezing his way all the way up.
Even the usually stern-faced Censor He couldn’t help but crack a bit.
Meng Qingshe’s protective, mother-hen expression was completely unnecessary.
Commander Jiang really didn’t need your protection.
If you two were together, he was definitely not the one who needed protecting.
Censor He, however, did not move closer.
He had an image to maintain.
He hadn’t even brought his own nephew.
Old He’s nephew, Young Master He Chen, was also in the crowd.
Just a moment ago, when Meng Qingshe was maneuvering with Mr. Jiang, he had even bumped into him.
Just as he was about to speak up and greet them, General Meng had already dragged the person and squeezed to the front again.
He was a newcomer to the workplace and understood the rules; even though he had connections, he couldn’t just run around.
Although he had heard his uncle speak of Mr. Jiang, he hadn’t expected to meet him again in the Imperial Court.
Because of preparing for the imperial examinations, he himself felt no longer young.
His hair fell out in clumps every day, and his hairline had receded quite a bit.
If it weren’t for his official cap, he felt his hairline would be exposed, making his face look long.
Yet, Mr. Jiang’s appearance remained unchanged.
In fact, wearing the official robes made him look even more radiant.
When they first met, he had been somewhat shabby and down-and-out.
So many years had passed, and not only had he not aged, but he had actually become even more handsome and striking.
It was as if he had blossomed.
Time had uniquely bypassed him.
Back then, he had felt it a pity that Mr. Jiang, with his brilliant learning and conversation, could only hide away in a small village, unknown to the world.
He had regretted that Jiang Feng, with his outstanding talent, had no path for advancement.
Now, meeting again, they were actually in the same Imperial Court.
He had earned his place through solid examination results, while Mr. Jiang had come via rebellion and amnesty.
Life was truly sigh-worthy and unbelievable.
However, Mr. Jiang didn’t look like he had changed.
Just now, he had cast an apologetic look toward him.
Fate played tricks on people.
With General Meng protecting him, Mr. Jiang likely wouldn’t be bullied.
This Imperial Court was simply too complex.
As a newcomer, even with Censor He as his uncle, he felt exhausted and found the work very difficult.
Thinking that Shaoxia had also returned, he had originally planned to go see her after the court session today.
Over there, Meng Qingshe was squeezing forward with Jiang Changtian.
By accident, he failed to brake in time and ended up directly passing Censor He.
However, Meng Qingshe eventually stopped.
He pulled his in-law back a few steps, retreating behind Censor He.
“Old He is very petty. Let’s not stand in front of him; standing here is fine. If we go any further, there won’t be many people left, and the probability of being questioned by the Emperor is a bit high,” Meng Qingshe said in a low voice, looking like a typical underachieving student.
His “low voice” was just loud enough for everyone to his left, right, front, and back—including Censor He himself—to hear…
Jiang Changtian sighed once again: fortunately, his in-law had a good father.
Censor He didn’t even twitch an eyebrow.
In his heart, he sighed: fortunately, Meng Qingshe had a good son.
The officials schemed against each other and lined up.
The eunuch in charge of etiquette cast glances over several times.
Only then did Meng Qingshe notice that he was being watched.
Reluctantly, he moved away from his in-law and stepped to the side, no longer whispering.
Finally, there was another sound.
The eunuch shrieked at the top of his lungs: “The Emperor has arrived!”
The officials knelt and shouted in unison: “Long live the Emperor, long live, long live!”
The Emperor sat down and waved his hand: “Rise, beloved subjects.”
It was very much like the scene at the start of a class.
In class, when the teacher arrives, everyone stands up.
At court, when the Emperor arrives, everyone kneels.
The teacher says “please sit,” the Emperor says “please rise.”
The difference is, you pay money for class, while the Emperor pays you for court.
To the Emperor, today’s court session was no different from the past few years.
Except for when he had just ascended the throne—when he was diligent, thinking all day, and pitting his wits against the court officials—now, after being Emperor for decades, he was already exhausted.
Any job, when done for too long without room for promotion, leads to burnout.
For the officials, it was different; every court session was unique.
After all, every one of them had room for advancement if they performed well.
The eunuch routinely shrieked: “Submit your memorials if you have matters; otherwise, the court is dismissed.”
He also took the opportunity to glare at General Meng.
Because even though the Emperor had arrived, General Meng’s eyes were still restless, constantly flirting with the handsome newcomer beside him.
Oh my.
Who knows where that person came from?
Why is he so handsome?
The way he wears that official robe makes anyone who looks at him feel it’s a pleasing sight.
Since they only came to court once every ten days, the officials naturally had matters to discuss.
Whether big or small, they had to report them.
Even if there were no matters, they had to find something to report; otherwise, wouldn’t it look like you weren’t doing your job and weren’t diligent?
Memorial after memorial was submitted.
As expected, it was basically just the few officials at the front who spoke.
The majority at the back were just background props, serving only to warm up the room.
They couldn’t even be considered the atmosphere group, because they weren’t allowed to speak freely.
The Emperor watched them drone on about the same old topics, talking about the same issues over and over.
To him, there was nothing new.
In winter, they would report which place suffered a disaster.
Or they would oppose some project he wanted to build, using money from the Imperial Household Department; these people had to interfere in everything to show they had status.
Then there were the bold, death-defying ones who were still suggesting that he establish a Crown Prince.
What was slightly different this time was that two or three officials had separately recommended the First Prince as Crown Prince.
In the Emperor’s eyes, this was them being impatient for him to die so the First Prince could take the throne.
It seemed the eldest son had been very restless lately.
Jumping around was one thing, but he was actually colluding with court officials—that was a major taboo.
It hadn’t been long since the Crown Prince’s death anniversary; this unfilial, unbrotherly cur had no brotherly affection or filial piety.
As the Emperor’s expression darkened, those officials who had made the recommendations began to tremble.
Something was wrong.
They hadn’t intended to recommend him all at once.
Such things should be done separately.
They shouldn’t have happened together.
Doing it together was clearly pressuring the Emperor, telling him they were the First Prince’s faction.
There must be one or two “black fans” among them who did it on purpose.
But right now, they couldn’t explain themselves; the Emperor wouldn’t listen to excuses.
The true leader of the First Prince’s faction, Prime Minister Wang, hung his head low at this moment, thinking, “It’s over.”
The First Prince was in danger, and he was finished too.
It was his first time at court.
Jiang Changtian didn’t say a word.
He just watched Prime Minister Wang—who had been standing at the very front, head held high, ignoring everyone, arrogant and insufferable—now trembling, prostrate on the ground, and having his official robes stripped off on the spot.
And the First Prince was ordered to reflect at home and stop causing trouble outside.
After dealing with them, the Emperor finally felt his anger subside.
Seeing that the court below was no longer noisy and had become very quiet, he was satisfied.
He swept his gaze over the officials with satisfaction.
Then, he saw a man with an ethereal and graceful bearing standing next to the dark, burly, and square-faced Meng Qingshe.
While others wore their official robes with stiffness and tension, the robes he wore—not a fraction too long or short, not a fraction too loose or tight—looked as if they had been tailor-made specifically for him.
He stood there, his face like jade, his posture like a willow; he was like a clear spring in a mountain stream.
Just one extra glance at him made one feel joy in their heart and all gloom disappear.
To think there was someone in this world who looked like this; one felt a sense of familiarity at first sight.
It was as if they had met in a dream.
Could this be love at first sight?
The Emperor suddenly remembered what Wen Xin had said this morning: his sister married that man because the man was good-looking.
“A man of unparalleled beauty, none other like him in the world.” (Note 1)
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