EES - Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Meanwhile, on the other side, Song Ling, who had suddenly transmigrated into the role of a newly selected palace candidate, still believed she had simply fallen into some generic fictional ancient era after following the girl, presumed to be an acquaintance of the original Song Ling, to their residence. After all, that was how most transmigration novels went. Song Ling had only recently switched careers to become a screenwriter, and her mindset had not quite adjusted yet.

But!

When she arrived at the residence and began quietly packing her belongings alongside the other girl, the girl suddenly spoke. "I did not expect this year's selection to include Third Miss Ji Wanshuang of the Ji family, who has kept such a low profile. I have heard her health has not been great these past years. Song Ling, your families interact frequently. Do you and Ji Wanshuang usually meet?"

"Wait, what did you say?" Song Ling thought she had misheard.

"I mean, do you keep in touch with her?" The girl sounded puzzled.

"Could you say that name again?"

"Ji Wanshuang?"

Had she not misheard things after all?

Song Ling's pupils dilated in shock.

If it was not a coincidence of names, she knew that name far too well!

The renowned Empress Wude of the Xuan dynasty was Emperor Xuanming's one true love and his only consort. Single-handedly, she imposed strict rules on the Xuan dynasty's knight-errants and jianghu denizens, brought many into the service of the court, and transformed the early Xuanming era, when such fighters had scorned imperial authority and used force to flout the law.

Because this historical record was so legendary and fantastical, later generations often suspected it was fabricated by some storyteller posing as a court historian.

But those were distant matters. Before transmigrating, the closest Song Ling had come to Empress Wude was through the production crew she had visited to gather material. They were filming a drama based on this very history, though they had altered it so drastically that it was painful to watch. If Song Ling had not needed research material, she never would have made it through the bizarre plot.

The story followed a female lead who transmigrated and became the twin sister of Empress Wude, Ji Wanshuang. In her childhood, she saved Emperor Xuanming when he was still a prince but never revealed her name, leaving behind only a jade pendant. Years later, Emperor Xuanming used the pendant to find Ji Wanshuang, mistaking her for the child who had saved him, and intended to take her as Empress. Upon learning this, the female lead fell into utter despair. Then came more than half a script's worth of physical and emotional torment before Emperor Xuanming began groveling to win his wife back. Meanwhile, Empress Wude, the woman who should have been Emperor Xuanming's true love in history, was reduced to a vicious supporting antagonist.

Oh, right, that drama's heroine was a woman everyone adored. Her idol Yang Qiancai was in love with her, as was her other idol, General Qi Donghan. Even Wang Xiuwen, the eunuch who served as Chief Palace Steward and was already in his fifties by the time Emperor Xuanming took the throne, had been recast as a handsome, ruthless head of the Eastern Depot.

That script packed in popular tropes like mistaken identity, substitute lovers, groveling to win a lover back, love triangles, and coercive romance. It was a masterpiece of melodramatic clichés. Song Ling watched the actors with her brow furrowed the entire time.

At that thought, Song Ling's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Wait... Transmigration? Could she have gotten the female lead's role in that awful web drama? If she had transmigrated to the Xuan dynasty, was it really the historical Xuan dynasty? What if she had actually entered that awful web drama's world, like in those popular stories about people transmigrating into books?

But if that were the case, would the people in the script world look just like the actors?

The thought left Song Ling feeling suffocated, even though the chance was tiny.

No, no! Please, don't let that be true!

SOS!

The actor playing Emperor Xuanming in that production was so greasy. A young sovereign in his twenties was portrayed as a lecherous, greasy middle-aged man. The casting for Male God Qiancai and General Qi was equally atrocious. They could not stand or sit properly, their facial features seemed scattered, and their physiques were blatantly fake.

Since she had transmigrated anyway, couldn't she at least meet the historical heartthrobs renowned for their noble bearing instead of those hideous actors from costume dramas? She couldn't take it! QAQ!

As someone with a particularly active imagination, Song Ling had completely fallen into the scenes she was conjuring up. The girl conversing with her, whose name was Shan Lanze, saw Song Ling's tightly furrowed brows and thoughtful expression, along with her hands nervously twisting the hem of her robe. Puzzled, Shan called out, "What is wrong with you?"

"Probably just overthinking things and scaring myself," Song Ling replied distractedly.

Assuming Song Ling meant the grim prospects ahead and the horrors of palace intrigue, Shan remained silent for a moment before offering comfort. "Do not overthink it. Given our backgrounds, things will not be too dire. If His Majesty values family background, one of us may become Empress."

Song Ling jumped in fright, waving her hands frantically in a triple denial. "No, no, no. I cannot do it. Palace intrigue is impossible. I would not even think about the Empress throne!"

Shan Lanze: "?"

She felt that today Song Ling was vastly different from the one she usually interacted with. Today, Song Ling was acting strangely, lacking any trace of a proper noble lady demeanor, as if suffering from some serious ailment.

She gave up trying to continue the conversation and focused on packing her own belongings.

Meanwhile, after cycling through various thoughts in her mind, Song Ling stealthily peeked out the nearby window, trying to catch a glimpse of Empress Wude.

Palace intrigue was out of the question; her only chance of survival was to latch onto a powerful patron. The future Empress Wude, Emperor Xuanming's one true love, lived so close by. If Song Ling failed to get on her good side, what kind of fool would she be?

---

After finishing her martial arts training as Ji Wanshuang, An Lin watched Wang Xiuwen head toward the study. She timed it perfectly, calling out to him just as he approached and seamlessly giving him another order: take the processed memorials out for distribution.

"Xiuwen, thank you for your hard work. Once you have distributed these, go rest." After giving the order, An Lin added a heartfelt thank you for your trouble.

Throughout the day, the Empress Avatar gained martial strength and the Emperor Avatar processed memorials. The only one who suffered was Xiuwen, running back and forth between the two.

But... ah, what could I do? I was short on people.

Wang Xiuwen was the only person nearby with excellent Martial Strength. Sending him to train the Empress Avatar would improve her stats fastest, but he was also the person An Lin relied on most.

If I had another officer with a Martial Strength score above 90, I would have sent someone else to train the Empress Avatar. With that in mind, I planned to slip a memorial into my sleeve before bed and check on my favorite general, the Gold Card Warrior. How far had he gotten? Had he finished suppressing the bandits? When would he return?

"Your Majesty, this slave does not find it burdensome," Wang Xiuwen said with a smile, shaking his head as he stepped forward to take the memorials. "It is Your Majesty who should pay attention to rest. These past days you have been processing memorials from morning till night. Although I have always advised you to attend to state affairs, pushing too far is counterproductive. Your health is the foundation of this nation."

An Lin paused, looking at Wang Xiuwen with a strange expression.

This line had appeared in Emperor Simulator when An Lin played it before transmigrating. The wording was not identical, but the meaning was similar. She remembered it as Wang Xiuwen's personal event in the game, the point when his loyalty rose from 99 to 100.

Yet hearing him say it in reality was something An Lin had not anticipated.

Ah, so that was concern. I could see it on Wang Xiuwen's face. With his loyalty at 99, I trusted it was sincere.

An Lin fell silent for a moment, recalling the dialogue option she had chosen when this mini event triggered in the game.

So my next response should be:

"You are correct." An Lin relaxed slightly, leaned back, and kneaded her sore shoulders. On the other side, the Empress Avatar did the same, rubbing the muscles made sore by training. "Then We shall retire early today as well. Oh, there is one more thing."

"Your Majesty, please give your orders."

"Xiuwen, from now on, please stop referring to yourself as 'this slave.' It does not suit you." An Lin rested her chin on one hand and spoke gently. "Next time, you may say, 'This subject obeys Your Majesty's command.'"

This time, Wang Xiuwen was thoroughly stunned. "Your Majesty, you..."

"Say it! This subject obeys Your Majesty's command!" An Lin urged. "Surely you do not expect Us to issue a formal edict for this?"

"This subject... obeys Your Majesty's command."

...

[Wang Xiuwen (Chief Palace Steward) | Governance: 30 | Military: 45 | Learning: 72 | Martial Strength: 90 | Politics: 63 | Management: 72 | Ambition: 0 | Loyalty: 100 (99↑) | Mood: 100 (70↑) | Prestige: 1380 | Specialties: Attending to the Emperor's daily routine, assassination, intelligence gathering]

These were Wang Xiuwen's updated stats.

Satisfied, given her mild OCD tendencies in certain areas, An Lin no longer bothered to read the complex emotions on Wang Xiuwen's face. She waved her hand lightly. "Very well. Go distribute the memorials. We are going to rest now as well."

Saying this, she casually tucked a memorial into her sleeve and led the way out of the study.

Once settled into bed, An Lin pulled out that same memorial, opened it, and skillfully dragged the minimap until it centered near the official road from Qiong'an to Huaian County. She scrolled until she found the location marked as a rebel camp, zoomed in, and took a look.

The rebel camp was nearly empty. Scrolling around, An Lin saw no one dressed as bandits, only a small squad of soldiers in standard Xuan army armor guarding the front gate.

It looked like the camp had already been taken. Quite fast, actually. Her Gold Card Warrior must be leading the main force back now.

An Lin dragged the map back along the route and indeed found an orderly column of troops midway between Qiong'an and Huaian County. The figure riding at the very front held the reins. Presumably because wearing an iron helmet while riding long distances was cumbersome, he had left it off. His hair, tied back in a single ponytail, blew backward in the wind, almost matching the direction of the black horse tail swaying beneath him.

From that position to Qiong'an, An Lin raised her viewpoint and observed for a moment. Calculating from the column marching speed, she estimated the unit would arrive in Qiong'an in roughly ten days.

Since she had checked here, An Lin, adhering to a principle of equal treatment, decided to check on the Top Scholar who had returned to his hometown to fetch his mother, to see where he stood now.

"Qiancai's hometown, I believe, was Linfang, was it not?" She rolled over, shifted into a more comfortable leaning position, and slid the map.

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