Did Miss Yan Drive the Entire Capital Insane

Everyone knows that Kaifeng has a Lord Yan, an upright man. Extremely upright. Incredibly upright. Every day, right on schedule, she uses trivial scraps of gossip to impeach members of the imperial family, civil officials, and military officers. She has offended the entire court, and even the emperor keeps his distance whenever he sees her. As a result, ever since Yan Tongshu entered public service, she has been sidelined in a position with no authority, no influence, and nothing to do. Of course, Yan Tongshu, who transmigrated here, is happy to lie flat. Yan Tongshu: Who gets it, folks? The moment I transmigrated, I was guilty of deceiving the emperor by disguising myself as a man. If I hadn’t reacted quickly and established a reputation for being so upright that I became a political outcast, I’d have been done for. Just as Yan Tongshu was happily lying flat, a new emperor ascended the throne, and she was promoted to Acting Prefect of Kaifeng. The Acting Prefect of Kaifeng is a third-rank official. It sounds like a high position, but it means governing the area right beneath the imperial palace. Here, if you threw a brick, you’d hit five people, and four of them would have powerful connections and the means to crush Yan Tongshu. With the imperial decree already issued, there was nothing she could do but grit her teeth, maintain her reputation for being “upright, extremely upright, and incredibly upright,” and try to drive the entire capital mad. Terror on a pleasure boat. Murder in a locked room. A new Chen Shimei. As she investigated each case, no one could pull strings or get special treatment from Lord Yan, whether they were royalty, a high-ranking official, a princess’s husband, the empress dowager, or a prince. Lord Yan declared, “As long as I sit in the position of Prefect of Kaifeng, no criminal will get off lightly!” Lord Yan, thinking to herself: So hurry up and get rid of me. I want to go home and lie flat. … Qin Yi was a man of deep and calculating thoughts, ruthless methods, and ten years of patient concealment. At last, he claimed the throne. After Qin Yi’s ascension, Yan Tongshu became one of his pawns in his campaign to set the court in order. Her excessive uprightness and lack of social tact made her perfect for dealing with the stubborn, corrupt, hidebound, self-important old ministers and noble scions. So while Yan Tongshu investigated cases, he backed her up. Their iron-fisted purge was so brutal that every official in the capital lived in fear. But what Qin Yi hadn’t expected was that, as they worked together, Yan Tongshu’s pawn climbed right over his head and started throwing her weight around. She even kicked him out of bed whenever they disagreed. That day, in the Zichen Hall. At the foot of the white jade steps. The emperor was furious. The princes, marquises, and ministers all knelt with their heads bowed, trembling with fear. Yan Tongshu held on to the emperor’s dragon robe and refused to budge. She declared that the court would not adjourn unless His Majesty agreed to reopen the case of the woman’s corpse found in a dry well in the previous emperor’s mausoleum. Qin Yi’s eyes were pitch-black and his face livid. Grinding his teeth in fury, he said, “You want to investigate it, is that it? Fine, fine, fine! Investigate! Go on! We’ll dig up the previous emperor’s mausoleum so you can investigate. Is that enough?” That evening, he made his way to the Yan residence. The main gate was shut tight. After he knocked, the gatekeeper reported, “Lord Yan says she won’t see anyone who comes by tonight.” “Ha!” Qin Yi laughed in anger. “She humiliated me in front of the entire court this morning, and now she’s throwing a fit tonight? Does she really think I can’t do without her?” Qin Yi flung his sleeve and walked away. The guards and attendants knelt across the ground. Without the emperor’s order, none dared rise. The chief eunuch looked down and quietly grumbled to himself: If you were so unhappy about it earlier, why did you come rushing over tonight? To spend the night with her? Theme: I would gladly be shattered to pieces, as long as I leave my name unstained in this world