She Doesn't Want to Deceive the Emperor Either

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[Woman Disguised as a Man, Scheming County Magistrate Who Deceives the Emperor & Dali Temple Vice Minister Whose Steel-Strong Heart Softens Like a Silken Cord]

Liang Wen was investigating the over-exploitation of a mine. The unscrupulous developers had skimped even on the most basic safety measures, and the mine was dug out so extensively that it collapsed. She died in the disaster.

When she woke up, she had become a county magistrate who was a woman disguised as a man.

She had barely enjoyed a few peaceful days before someone handed her a performance review: a murder case right off the bat. Guided by a journalist's commitment to fairness and impartiality, she handled the case by the book.

After she finally got two quiet days, she was forced into the case of stolen military payroll in Youzhou. The secret of her deception was now in the hands of Su Qubai, the Dali Temple Vice Minister who had shown up uninvited. Liang Wen could only struggle to maintain her persona and reassure herself that everything would be fine.

It was all for the sake of staying alive. As long as she survived, what was there to fear?

She tried to steer clear of trouble, but trouble kept landing right on her head.

The Military Governor of Youzhou said, "Magistrate Liang knows the roads of Youzhou well. I'll leave the task of transporting the grain to you."

Fine, Liang Wen transported it. She was ambushed, fell off a cliff, and nearly ended up crippled.

The Crown Prince said, "Magistrate Liang is clever. I'm sure you'll rebuild the commercial routes of the Great Zhao Dynasty for me."

Fine, Liang Wen rebuilt them. She was betrayed and nearly lost half her life.

Then the Dali Temple Vice Minister showed up too. "Magistrate Liang..."

Liang Wen cut him off through gritted teeth. "What is it, Vice Minister Su?"

The Dali Temple Vice Minister chuckled. "Lady Liang is beautiful. I have long admired you."

Liang Wen froze. It was supposed to be an arrangement of mutual convenience. How had he fallen in love with me?

Liang Wen's expression turned cold. "Vice Minister Su, I bear the crime of deceiving the emperor. We are not suited to each other."

[Break me apart and scatter me across heaven and earth. That is freedom.]

[He's a mad dog, and he's my mad dog alone.]

Upcoming novel: The Judgment

[Enemies locked in a fierce battle = A powerful couple joining forces]

In the spring of the fifteenth year of Zhaohua, the top female scholar Liu Xiaotang's reform failed. Shackled in an iron prison cart, she was led to the executioner's block.

Scholars cursed her. Generals cheered. Passersby threw rotten fruit at her.

Liu Xiaotang went calmly to her death, taking the road of no return because she knew the country she had wanted to save was finished.

The emperor personally issued the order, and every civil and military official watched the execution.

As Liu Xiaotang's head was forced down, she saw the person she hated most in all the world: the powerful minister Yin Zhu.

Their eyes met. There seemed to be pity in his gaze, and in her heart she cursed his hypocrisy and deceit.

Liu Xiaotang hated him with all her heart. She hated that he could not tell the loyal from the treacherous, that he was devious and sinister, and that he had stood in the way of her reforms.

In her eyes, even the word villain was too good for him.

She had exhausted every scheme and tactic to fight him at court, yet she still could not defeat him. In the end, he had won, and he watched her go to her death with his own eyes.

Liu Xiaotang thought he must be pleased. His lifelong nemesis had finally fallen.

From then on, nothing would stand in his way. He could do as he pleased.

Her blood splashed three feet, and no one came to claim her body.

Beneath the warm spring sunlight, frost and snow fell from the sky, settling over Liu Xiaotang like a shroud.

A year later, all the notes she had left behind came to light. Only then did the world see her pure and loyal heart.

While she was alive, people condemned her and called for her death. After she died, they praised her with splendid words.

The scholars even composed a judgment for her: "I still remember the heart that once reached for the bright moon. The moon took the wrong road, and she met her death."

Liu Xiaotang witnessed it all and could only feel the irony.

When she opened her eyes again, she had returned to three years earlier.

Treachery ran rampant at court, and corrupt officials were everywhere. Liu Xiaotang knelt and resigned. She was done with it.

Unexpectedly, Yin Zhu, who had always opposed her, stopped her on the road. "Will you marry me?"

Liu Xiaotang: ...

She fell silent and tried to leave by the side, but he blocked her again.

Yin Zhu: "I can marry into your family, too."

Liu Xiaotang: ... Had she finally driven him mad after a lifetime of fighting him?

*

The powerful minister Yin Zhu was ruthless, devious, and hated by both people and dogs.

He had spent his whole life navigating officialdom and understood just how rotten the dynasty was. He watched coldly, ready to sink into ruin alongside it, when an unexpected change occurred.

The foolish emperor had a rare moment of clarity, accidentally finding his way onto the right path and opening the civil service examinations to women across the country.

Liu Xiaotang, the top female scholar, emerged at just the right moment, full of fervor and determined to save her country.

Yin Zhu sneered. He wanted to see how she planned to save it.

At court, he opposed her at every turn, becoming the greatest obstacle on Liu Xiaotang's path to saving the country.

They fought for years, until Liu Xiaotang's reforms failed and the emperor flew into a rage. She was sent to the executioner's block.

Yin Zhu, dressed in white, climbed high to see her off.

He thought that this country could not be saved. She had failed, and no one else could succeed.

He had tried, after all, but no one remembered.

A year later, he found her notes. He read of her heartfelt devotion to her country and gave a scornful laugh, adding two words: "Wrong path."

But after a moment's silence, he added two more: "True heart."

He had glimpsed her true heart, pure and blameless.

In this new life, he gazed at her upright figure in court.

He thought that perhaps this country could still be saved.

The world condemned her and called for her death, while its decayed humanity sought to change her.

But Yin Zhu was determined to wish her strength and high spirits.

He wanted her fierce spirit to burn bright. He wanted her to break through her shackles and rise to the highest halls once more.

P.S. This is not a wish-fulfillment story! This is not a wish-fulfillment story! This is not a wish-fulfillment story! The heroine grows over time. She is not one of those exceptionally clever characters whose every thought is a scheme. The pacing will not be fast, and the heroine will not change until later in the story.

Content notes:

1. The heroine is not very powerful at first and is constrained by her identity. She grows later, around chapter thirty.

2. All place names in the story are fictional and unrelated to the real world. Please don't draw comparisons.

3. The heroine will openly reclaim her identity as a woman.

4. Every character has distinct traits and their own position. Please don't jump to conclusions based on stereotypes.

5. This is the author's first work, so there may be flaws. If you can't accept that, feel free to find another great story. Everyone has different tastes, and you'll find something you like.

6. More notes may be added later. Enjoy reading!

Theme: See yourself, see all living beings.