Chapter 64: What a Utterly Loyal Ye Qingyan

Countless gazes converged upon Ye Qingyan.

Particularly that of the Censorship-in-Chief. The old man's expression was so venomous he practically looked ready to skin her alive right then and there.

"Ye Qingyan, what else do you have to say for yourself!"

The Chief Censor's voice reverberated through the grand hall, dripping with arrogance.

Ye Qingyan lowered her eyes, mentally warming up her acting skills.

The script had already been coordinated with the emperor.

Step one: Babble nonsense.

Step two: Make a scene and throw a tantrum.

Step three: Foam at the mouth and collapse onto the ground.

The core strategy was utter, delightfully eccentric madness—leaving these old foxes completely empty-handed when it came to finding any leverage against her.

Come on, time to unleash my true skills!

She marshaled her emotions, preparing to lift her head and unleash chaos.

[Warning! Warning! Host's imperial majesty has been insulted! The "Emperor's Art of Governance" Overbearing CEO mode has been activated!]

[Do not panic, Host. This system will take over completely and teach these ignorant mortals a lesson in humility!]

Ye Qingyan: Huh?

Wait, big brother, don't try to steal the spotlight right now!

However, her body was already beyond her control.

[Audacious! How dare mere vermin presume to second-guess the destiny of My empire!]

[Rebellious minister, someone tear out his tongue for Me!]

"Bang!"

A deafening crash echoed out.

Ye Qingyan abruptly slammed her palm onto the desk before her with such force that the teacup bounced into the air.

She jerked to her feet.

The murmuring throughout the entire grand hall vanished instantly.

Everyone was stunned dumb by this abrupt turn of events.

Gone was Ye Qingyan's usual docility; instead, she raised a hand and pointed directly at the Chief Censor's nose.

Her gaze no longer held the subservience of a subject, but rather the cold indifference and blazing fury of one looking down upon ants.

"You treacherous sycophants, how dare you commit regicide and deceive your sovereign!"

The Chief Censor was utterly bewildered.

The script didn't go like this!

Shouldn't she be trembling in terror and stammering incoherently?

What was this fierce momentum of pointing right at his nose and cursing him out all about?

"You... You are audacious! Showing disrespect before the emperor, you—"

"Shut your mouth!" Ye Qingyan barked, cutting him off mid-sentence.

Step by step, she strode down from her designated spot, marching straight toward the Chief Censor in the center of the hall.

Her high heels—no, her court shoes—struck the tiled floor with a dull, rhythmic *clack, clack*.

"A flourishing national destiny?"

She stopped right in front of the Chief Censor, looking down at him from her superior height as a chilling arc formed at the corner of her lips.

"With honey-tongued, treasonous court parasites like you running amok, how can anyone speak of a flourishing destiny!"

"With you lot of imperial leeches, who eat the ruler's grain yet spend every waking moment plotting against your peers and scheming for your own faction's gain, where would such prosperity ever come from!"

"I..."

Ye Qingyan suddenly choked to death on her own words.

Damn it!

The system almost let the imperial "We" slip out!

She relied on a sudden flash of wit to forcefully steer her sentence in another direction.

"...I think you people are all simply tired of living!"

As soon as these words dropped, the entire court erupted in uproar.

She had lost her mind!

Ye Qingyan had completely lost her mind!

This was no longer merely showing disrespect before the emperor—she was pointing straight at the entire faction of Prince Duan and cursing them as traitors, parasites, and rats!

This was a fight to the death with no holds barred!

The Chief Censor was so terrified by her death-defying aura that he stumbled backward repeatedly.

He felt as though he were facing not a delicate woman, but some primeval beast crawling up from the abyss.

That gaze, that tone—they completely did not belong to Ye Qingyan!

"You... You are slandering the innocent! You are spreading bewitching heresies!"

He stammered as he pointed at Ye Qingyan, completely unable to string together a coherent sentence.

The other officials of Prince Duan's faction were also struck dumb with fear, falling silent as cicadas in winter.

They had seen aggressive people before, but never one so utterly devoid of self-preservation.

Was this woman planning to trade her single life to splatter them all with blood?

Prince Duan sat in his seat, his complexion turning livid.

He stared fixedly at Ye Qingyan, trying to find any trace of a facade on her face.

Yet there was nothing.

This wasn't right!

Ye Qingyan was not this kind of person!

Just when everyone expected Ye Qingyan to engage in a physical, no-holds-barred brawl with the Chief Censor right there on the spot, she suddenly whipped around to face the emperor upon the dragon throne.

With a heavy *thud*, she dropped heavily to both knees. The sound of her knees slamming into the floor made everyone's hearts skip a beat.

Her spine remained straight as an arrow.

Her voice was no longer furious, yet it remained resonant and impactful.

"Your Majesty!"

"Your subject, Ye Qingyan, begs for this scoundrel's head to clear the imperial court of traitorous elements!"

In the vast hall, even the sound of breathing vanished.

Everyone was utterly baffled by this sequence of moves.

One second she was roaring curses, and the next she was kneeling to petition for an execution?

How on earth was her brain wired?

The Chief Censor, meanwhile, was scared out of his wits, tears and snot streaming down his face.

"Your Majesty! She has gone mad! She is a lunatic! This subject is utterly loyal to Great Xia, Heaven and Earth are my witnesses, Your Majesty!"

Ye Qingyan didn't even spare him a glance, keeping her gaze locked on the emperor upon the dragon throne.

"If Your Majesty cannot bear to do it, this subject is willing to stake her own head as a guarantee!"

"Within three months, this man will inevitably turn traitor!"

"If this subject's words prove false, Your Majesty need not dirty your hands—this subject shall take her own life right here in the imperial court to expiate the crime of deceiving the sovereign!"

As her voice faded, absolute silence enveloped the hall.

Everyone looked at Ye Qingyan as if she were a monster.

The stakes were simply too high!

To wager one's own life on the prediction that a Chief Censor would rebel within three months?

If this wasn't madness, what was?

The emperor sat upon the dragon throne, remaining silent for a long, long time.

His profound gaze lingered upon Ye Qingyan, revealing neither joy nor anger.

His original plan had simply been for Ye Qingyan to play the fool and muddle through the situation.

Yet never in his wildest dreams had he expected Ye Qingyan to pull off such an earth-shattering "grand production" for him.

The effect was a hundred times better than merely acting crazy!

The persona of a fiercely loyal official who appeared somewhat "mentally unhinged" merely due to her excessive zeal had thus been flawlessly established!

Prince Duan's heart sank.

He knew that attempting to take down Ye Qingyan today was no longer possible.

This woman had shattered this desperate deadlock in a way none of them could have anticipated.

"Hahaha..."

"Hahahahaha!"

Upon the dragon throne, the emperor suddenly burst into a fit of laughter.

His laughter echoed through the empty hall.

As he laughed, he pointed a finger at Ye Qingyan.

"Splendid!"

"A truly loyal Ye Qingyan!"

"A magnificent Minister Ye who is willing to stake her own head to clear the court for Us!"

The emperor stood up and descended the steps.

He personally reached out to help Ye Qingyan to her feet.

"We understand your loyal heart, Minister. Rise."

Following this, he turned around, the amusement vanishing from his face in an instant as his cold gaze swept toward the Chief Censor.

"Chief Censor, as an official of the Censorate, making inquiries based on hearsay is your duty."

"However, chasing shadows, slandering the loyal and virtuous, and using improper language are likewise your grave faults!"

Upon hearing these words, the Chief Censor's legs turned to jelly, and he collapsed limply onto the floor.

"Spare my life, Your Majesty! Spare my life, Your Majesty!"

"Guards!" The emperor completely ignored him.

"Award Ye Qingyan one hundred liang of gold and ten bolts of brocade to commend her loyalty!"

"As for the Chief Censor, dock his salary for one year and confine him to his residence to reflect upon his errors! Without Our decree, he is not permitted to step even half a step outside his estate!"

This verdict appeared lenient, but it was actually psychological torture.

For someone as obsessed with face as the Chief Censor, confinement was far more agonizing than execution.

It meant he had thoroughly become the laughingstock of the imperial court.

Prince Duan's complexion could no longer be described as livid; it was as dark as the bottom of a wok.

A meticulously planned encirclement had been utterly ruined by a woman throwing a tantrum.

And it had even cost them a Chief Censor in the bargain!

Ye Qingyan maintained a submissive demeanor as she expressed her gratitude, while internally she was going wild with sarcasm.

[The system is awesome!]

[I give this performance ninety-nine points, holding back one point so you don't get too arrogant!]

Just as she prepared to withdraw alongside the crowd as the court was dismissed, Chief Eunuch Li—the stern-faced head eunuch by the emperor's side—silently made a gesture as he brushed past her.

It was the universal gesture for "please stay a moment."

Ye Qingyan's heart skipped a beat.