Inside the Qianqing Palace, Tu Shanjin was going through memorials.
Virtually all positions in the Ministry of Revenue were vacant now, and the rest of the court factions were eyeing the openings, eager to get a piece of the action.
Tu Shanjin was determined to steer clear of this messy power grab, and place people he had personally trained into the Ministry of Revenue to take full control of the department.
As a result, these past few days he had been even busier than before.
Yun Yaoyao lay comfortably on a noble concubine's couch, her mind wandering to all the lovely little treasures stored in the imperial vault.
Suddenly, she spoke up, "Tu Shanjin, there's still a batch of rare ancient paintings, porcelain, jade pieces, jewels and other valuables that the imperial vault can't fit. What do you plan to do with them?"
Tu Shanjin paused his brush. He had been quite vexed about these items too.
Selling them would be a massive loss, but keeping them meant there was nowhere to put them. Giving them out as rewards to court officials felt like they didn't deserve such precious things.
He thought over and over, but could not come up with a suitable solution.
Yun Yaoyao smiled mysteriously, "I actually have a great idea."
Tu Shanjin perked up, "Tell me."
"Build a museum right here in the capital, and display all these items inside it," Yun Yaoyao said, explaining the concept of a modern museum to Tu Shanjin in full detail.
"Set the ticket price low, so that even ordinary common people can come visit the museum. On special days like the Autumn Sacrifice Festival, we can open it to the public for free."
A museum?
This novel term made Tu Shanjin's eyes light up. Once he had listened to Yun Yaoyao's entire explanation, he immediately understood all the benefits that opening such a place would bring.
It would not only solve the problem of where to store this batch of treasures, but also generate more revenue from the wealth itself.
Most importantly, it would win the people's support.
The exhibits on display would constantly remind the common people that Lou Jianshan and his corrupt Ministry of Revenue associates, who had brought harm to the country and its people, were removed by the emperor. It would also close the distance between the ruler and the public, and even serve as a warning to all court officials.
Just imagine.
Ordinary people would point at the exhibits and exclaim, "Thanks to His Majesty's grace, I get to see such precious things with my own eyes in my entire life. Those corrupt scoundrel officials must have exploited us common folk terribly to get so rich! Fortunately, His Majesty rooted out those scourges. His Majesty is brilliant!"
Court officials would look at the exhibits and be filled with dread: We must never follow in the footsteps of the Ministry of Revenue, or else our homes will be confiscated too, and our family heirlooms will end up here on display for all the common people to see. We'd get our names cursed by the whole world every single day, and our ancestors in the netherworld would be so infuriated that their corpses would jump out of their coffins. That's terrifying!
Deep in Tu Shanjin's eyes was full of approval.
Opening a museum was truly a plan that had nothing but upsides!
"My idea is great, isn't it?" Yun Yaoyao said, slouching with her legs propped up, so proud of herself that the smugness was practically oozing out of her.
"Right now I'll announce that this idea came from Consort Miao, and appoint you as the curator of the museum!"
That way, even if she ever switched back to her own original body, she would have a steady, well-paying job as a curator to fall back on~
Tu Shanjin gave her a surprised look.
He still could not stand the way his own body's demeanor, speech, and every little expression had been completely warped by her, but she was thinking of benefits for him again.
"Hmm," Tu Shanjin agreed, a hint of unrecognized joy flashing across his eyes.
Just then, the palace door was knocked on, and Niu Xiu'er's loud, clear voice came from outside.
"Your Majesty, Your Ladyship, this servant has steamed two pots of premium bird's nest soup. May I come in?"
Yun Yaoyao was feeling hungry just then, so she quickly switched places with Tu Shanjin, picked up a memorial, and said, "Come in."
Niu Xiu'er pushed the door open, walked in respectfully, set the bird's nest soup on the table, and gave her young lady a pitying look.
Alas, clearly it was His Majesty who was slaving away handling all the government affairs, while her young lady spent her days eating to her fill and then lazing about sleeping. How come her young lady looked more worn out, with a pale dark shadow under her eyes?
In contrast, His Majesty looked fresh and energetic, full of life.
Thinking of her young lady's nickname "Giant Peng Bird Consort", Niu Xiu'er spoke carefully, "Your Ladyship, could it be that you've been eating too much lately, and your food isn't digesting well? This servant once heard a folk doctor say that digesting food also uses up your energy and spirit, and too much of a good thing can be bad."
"Your Ladyship, why don't you try eating a little less from now on?"
Tu Shanjin froze, and Yun Yaoyao burst out laughing the second she heard that.
As for feeling guilty? Not a bit!
Tu Shanjin's face turned dark, and he remembered that old joke about "a tiny bird stomach turning into a Giant Peng Bird Consort", making the bird's nest soup in his hands suddenly taste completely unappealing.
Yun Yaoyao held back her laughter, and patted Tu Shanjin's shoulder with a serious look, "My dear beloved consort, Xiu'er is right. You really need to control how much you eat from now on."
"Say, I've been tired from all these affairs lately. The apricots at Bright Light Monastery should be ripe now. I'll bring you there to stay for a few days, so we can both relax."
Niu Xiu'er nodded vigorously. Exactly, her young lady needed to get out and walk around more. If she just ate and never moved, she'd end up as stout as she was now, and she might crush His Majesty's dragon root to pieces when they shared the bed at night!
Tu Shanjin frowned, about to turn her down, "Government affairs are busy, I don't have…"
Before he could finish his sentence, Yun Yaoyao cut him off, "My dear consort, there's no need to worry."
"Zhou Siren is now the Minister of Revenue, and he is willing to loyally serve me. As a ruler, I should know to put capable people to good use, and delegate appropriate authority to show my trust. The rest of the work can be left to him."
As long as your underlings do the work well, the boss can sleep in peace every day! As long as your underlings do more work, the boss can ride a new motorbike every day!
Above Yun Yaoyao's head popped up a little grinning demon wearing a capitalist's smile, waving a tiny whip.
Tu Shanjin was still a little uneasy, but thinking that he would end up being persuaded by Yun Yaoyao anyway, he gave up objecting.
He had also heard that the imperial astrologer would pass by Bright Light Monastery soon during his travels, and he had questions to ask the man about the matter of their swapped souls.
"Fine," he agreed.
Yun Yaoyao's casual decree directly set the stage for Zhou Siren's utterly miserable life that followed.
He was left to pick up the messy pieces of the Ministry of Revenue, working nonstop from dawn till dusk without a moment to rest, which made his already severe constipation even worse.
But every time he thought this was His Majesty's trust in him and a chance for promotion, Zhou Siren's fighting spirit was rekindled.
Ah, what a life of agony mixed with bliss!
Meanwhile, in the Yun Manor, Yun Liang was pacing anxiously in his study, his heart filled with utter panic.
On the day of Lou Jianshan's birthday banquet, he had claimed to be ill and skipped the event, only sending a gift along with his servants.
Who knew that when he woke up after a good night's sleep, the entire court had completely changed, and Lou Jianshan along with all his Ministry of Revenue associates had been wiped out in one go!
Cold sweat broke out all over Yun Liang. He dragged his supposedly sick body to ask his colleagues what had happened that day.
That was when he found out—he had been… been… been left out again.
His Majesty had invited every single official of any standing to the secret chamber in the Lou Manor, except him. Being left out of all the loop was just his fate.
*Sobs incoherently*
Yun Liang was absolutely panicked now. There was Lin Qingti, whose power was soaring in the imperial court, and that wicked daughter of his in the imperial harem who was dead set on making trouble for him.
Was he going to be the next one to get purged?
Thinking of this, Yun Liang yelled out loud "My life is doomed!" and could not hold back any longer. He rushed out of his study, ordered his trusted servant to hitch up the carriage, and headed straight for the Prince Ze's Manor.
The autumn air was crisp and refreshing. Several understated yet luxurious carriages left the imperial palace, heading towards the suburbs.
The trees and grass on both sides of the road grew denser as they traveled, and soon a secluded path leading up the hillside came into view.
Yun Yaoyao and Tu Shanjin stepped down from their carriages, mounted their horses "Rice Bucket" and "Swift Wind", and followed by the escort of Dragon Shadow Guard, headed up the mountain towards Bright Light Monastery.
When they arrived at the back hill of Bright Light Monastery, several monks were already waiting there for them.
"The temple has prepared guest wings for the two honored visitors. Please follow this poor monk."
The young novice took the reins of the horses from Tu Shanjin and Yun Yaoyao.
As their hands brushed during the handover, Tu Shanjin felt a small object slipped into his palm. He hid it in his sleeve without the slightest change in his expression.
Once he was alone in the private guest wing, Tu Shanjin pulled the item out from his sleeve. It was a tightly folded slip of paper.
He unfolded the paper, where two lines of tiny characters were written: Find a way to slip this to him, and you can reunite with your fair lady tomorrow night.
The moment he finished reading, the ink vanished as if by magic, leaving only a small pile of white powder at the center of the slip.
Tu Shanjin instantly pieced together where the note had come from. A stormy, deep darkness pooled in his eyes. He let out a cold, sharp smirk, and spoke the name of the note's owner one deliberate word at a time.
"Tushan Ze."
