To be honest, everyone present today was truly angered by An Hongsheng.

So when the Empress Dowager finished speaking, all called out that she was wise and enlightened.

Yuwen Lan then heard Yanshu screaming in her mind again, [The Empress Dowager is so cool! Scholar Qi, did you get that? The Empress Dowager did all this for you!]

Yuwen Lan: "..."

Fortunately that scream wasn't out loud.

And then, Qi Shuguang stood up and said, "Empress Dowager, please calm your anger. Don't harm your health."

Yuwen Lan paused, immediately getting a bad feeling. Sure enough, he then heard Yanshu squealing in her mind again, [Scholar Qi got it too!!! Their mutual feelings are so touching!!!]

"..."

What does "mutual feelings" mean again?

Of course, this wasn't the most important thing. The important thing was this An Hongsheng before them, who was truly detestable!

With so much evidence today, everyone already knew it was him, yet he still intended to stubbornly deny it, forcing Madam Gu to come and scold him in person.

He really was shameless and despicable.

So Yuwen Lan also spoke to this man, saying, "You know the truth, yet still slander others maliciously, making good people lose heart. If this continues, will anyone in the world still do good deeds? If there are more people like you, it will only make social customs worse and worse!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard the Empress Dowager say, "Your Majesty speaks wisely. This kind of behavior absolutely cannot be allowed to continue! He dared to spread rumors about Scholar Qi and Madam Gu today, who knows who he'll slander tomorrow? If this person really drives away all the scholars, leaving only himself to be the headmaster of Songhe Academy, wouldn't that waste all the efforts of Your Majesty and the court, as well as the goodwill of these scholars! So this person is truly detestable!"

Yuwen Lan nodded, "Mother Empress speaks correctly. So, just posting notices in the capital and at White Horse Academy is not enough. We must post announcements in all regions, at all academies and government offices, to let the whole world know how despicable these rumormongers are. And we must make spreading rumors a criminal offense, write it into the law, so that anyone who commits this crime in the future must be severely punished."

As he spoke, he looked at An Hongsheng kneeling on the ground and said, "We must also let these rumormongers know that a simple apology is not enough to settle the matter. They must pay a price."

As soon as he finished speaking, An Hongsheng was already trembling all over, unable to speak.

The others in the garden all called out that His Majesty was wise and enlightened.

Amidst the chorus of voices, Yuwen Lan heard Qi Shuguang sighing in his mind, [His Majesty has truly grown into an enlightened ruler, living up to everyone's expectations. We can rest assured now.]

Yuwen Lan secretly raised an eyebrow.

He also paid attention to Yanshu, and heard her say, [Aww the little emperor is so handsome too, I love it!]

Yuwen Lan: "..."

It's good that she loves him, but why call him "little"?

He... where is he "little"?

With the Empress Dowager and the Emperor speaking one after another, the guards came forward to drag An Hongsheng away, and the garden party finally returned to normal.

Seeing that the villain had finally been punished, everyone felt relieved, and the drinking became much more lively.

Suddenly, the scholarly Madam Yu of Nanyang raised her cup to Madam Gu and said, "Madam Gu's heroic spirit is truly admirable. I toast to you, thanking you for saying what we all wanted to say earlier."

At these words, the other ladies also began toasting. Madam Gu graciously accepted, boldly drinking it all in one gulp, earning everyone's admiration once again.

Then Madam Gu said to everyone, "Actually, that person earlier really didn't need to bother with us. I'm just a rough person after all, not very well-read, incomparable to you ladies from scholarly families, so I could never be the headmaster's wife."

Although her tone was joking, her meaning was clear...

Their Gu family had no intention of competing for the headmaster position.

As soon as she said this, Madam Ji of Jinling City also hurriedly said, "My husband is already in his twilight years, I'm afraid he can't be of much use to the court anymore."

Her husband quickly nodded beside her, "That's right, that's right."

— It was just choosing an academy headmaster, yet it had turned into such intrigue with undercurrents. It was truly frightening. If someday his letter reporting Willow Zhengxin's matter was discovered, it wouldn't be good.

So it was better to retire early and preserve one's integrity.

Seeing these two families take such a stance, Mr. Yu of Nanyang directly said to the Emperor, "After today's events, Scholar Qi's character has earned everyone's admiration. Therefore, this humble official nominates Scholar Qi to serve as the headmaster."

As soon as he said this, everyone began to agree, "That's right, Scholar Qi's noble character and profound knowledge make him worthy of the headmaster position."

"Selecting Scholar Qi is convincing to all!"

"No one is more suited to be headmaster than Scholar Qi!"

...

Faced with this situation, Qi Shuguang had to stand up again and say, "You all flatter me too much, it truly makes me feel unworthy. I am but a simple country scholar, how could I bear such a great responsibility?"

However, his friend Gu Hongbai, enjoying the excitement, said from the side, "Scholar Qi, don't be so modest. Your character and learning are most convincing to all. If you're a country bumpkin, wouldn't that make the rest of us complete savages?"

Qi Shuguang glanced at him helplessly, "This is a serious matter, Brother Gu, don't joke."

Seeing this situation, although the Empress Dowager didn't speak, she glanced at Yuwen Lan, thinking to herself, [With the situation like this, why hasn't the Emperor spoken up to keep Qi Shuguang? Could he have some issue with Qi Shuguang?]

[He used to teach him so devotedly before, even more attentively than the Imperial Tutor! Tsk, how ungrateful, could it be he looks down on Qi Shuguang?]

Yuwen Lan: "???"

How had he looked down on Qi Shuguang...

Just then, he heard Yanshu's anxious voice in his ear again, [The atmosphere has been built up so well, why hasn't the Emperor agreed yet??? Could he really have some prejudice against Qi Shuguang? Please! Scholar Qi is such a pure and flawless person!! Is there something wrong with your eyes?!!!]

Yuwen Lan: "???"

He had just not spoken immediately, and had already been accused of so many crimes?

...He had only come to catch that slanderous little man!

But come to think of it... he did seem to have some...

Not prejudice, just some... awkwardness with Qi Shuguang.

But to be honest, after these few meetings and interactions, Scholar Qi Shuguang's vision and character truly had no problems.

He really was the most suitable candidate for headmaster of Songhe Academy.

So he had no choice but to speak up, "Since everyone unanimously recommends Scholar Qi, I hope Scholar Qi can reluctantly accept, and do his best for Songhe Academy."

As soon as he said this, the Empress Dowager felt relieved.

Yanshu was overjoyed, and quickly looked at Qi Shuguang.

With the Emperor speaking thus, Qi Shuguang naturally had no choice, and could only respond, "This humble official is unworthy, but since Your Majesty trusts me so, I can only do my utmost, ready to go through fire and water, sparing no effort."

Yuwen Lan nodded.

And immediately after, all kinds of voices flooded his mind.

The Empress Dowager: [Good boy, I haven't pampered him in vain!]

Yuwen Lan: "..."

So the difference between him being "good" and "not good" was just Qi Shuguang?

Yanshu: [Ahhh the Emperor agreed! My idol can stay!!! Now he'll be even closer to the Empress Dowager!!! CP fans rejoice!!! I must give the Emperor lots of kisses when we get back!!!]

Yuwen Lan: "..."

So the kisses later were earned by Qi Shuguang...

And the others: [That's good, this hot potato finally has an owner. This capital is too scary, wishing Old Qi well!]

Yuwen Lan: "???"

As if he had begged them to be headmaster?!!!

Sigh, how exhausting.

With the Emperor's word, the position of headmaster of Songhe Academy was settled.

Having resolved the big issue, there was no need to worry about any more overt or covert attacks, so the guests drank even more freely.

Seeing that night had fallen and it was getting late, the banquet was coming to an end.

The guests bowed and said their farewells, filing out of the garden.

To keep things simple today, Yanshu had hitched a ride in the Empress Dowager's carriage, and now she was still riding back to the palace with her.

It was clear that after finalizing Scholar Qi's appointment tonight, the Empress Dowager was in a good mood. Not only had she drunk some wine earlier, but now she occasionally glanced outside through the carriage curtains blown by the night breeze, with a hint of a smile in her eyes.

Yanshu saw this and felt even more excited.

Hehe, from now on Scholar Qi would stay in the capital, so the two of them would be closer. Would they be able to hear news of each other, and maybe even meet a few times...

Compared to before when they were separated with no news of each other, this was already great progress, she thought with a flutter.

She must have been too absorbed in her thoughts, as she didn't control her expression well. Suddenly, the Empress Dowager asked her, "Why do you look so happy? Did something good happen?"

Yanshu was startled and quickly made up an excuse, "Oh... actually, I was just thinking about what Madam Gu said at the banquet tonight about her past with Mr. Gu. I found it quite amusing. Who would have thought that the famous Mr. Gu, such a talented scholar, would set up a fortune-telling stall on the street just to catch a glimpse of Madam Gu when he was young? The mental image is just so entertaining."

Hearing this, the Empress Dowager also chuckled, sighing, "Indeed! Who hasn't done foolish things when young? It's fortunate they found the right person. For a couple to grow old together is a rare and precious blessing."

As she finished speaking, she inwardly sighed, unable to help wondering what kind of life she would have had if she had met that person before she was married.

Yanshu, observant of the Empress Dowager's expressions, noticed her smile fade and a contemplative look appear on her face. Guessing that the Empress Dowager was thinking of herself, Yanshu quickly changed the subject, "Actually, beautiful stories like Mr. and Madam Gu's are probably what people enjoy reading. If the Carefree Gentleman could write some stories like that, they would likely be very popular."

The Empress Dowager nodded, "Indeed. I hope he writes more. I'm counting on his stories to pass the time."

Yanshu nodded, suddenly feeling energized - for the happiness of her number one fan, she had to work hard on updating her stories!!!

Changchun Garden wasn't far from the palace, so it didn't take long for Yanshu to return to Ganlu Palace.

She was in high spirits today and had drunk quite a bit of wine, leaving her smelling of alcohol. So as soon as she returned, she went to take a bath.

Not long after she finished bathing, Yuwen Lan arrived.

He seemed to have already bathed at Qianming Palace, having changed from his dragon-emblazoned robes to casual round-collared robes, making him look much softer.

But he seemed somewhat impatient. Before she could even bow, he scooped her up and carried her to the bed.

The maids quickly lowered their heads and retreated, closing the door behind them.

In an instant, his kisses fell upon her.

Yanshu was in a good mood and had planned to go along with it, but suddenly remembered something important. She pushed him away and said with a serious face, "Your Majesty also drank tonight."

Yuwen Lan, caught up in the moment, casually replied, "So what? Didn't you drink too?"

He tried to continue, but Yanshu froze, quickly saying, "Oh right, how could I have drunk too? This won't do, this won't do at all. It seems there's no hope for this entire month."

This entire month???

Yuwen Lan frowned, "There's no need to be so anxious. I don't believe the late Emperor never drank when... I'm not... Is everything alright?"

Saying this, he pulled her firmly into his arms, trying to kiss her again.

However, he accidentally touched her ticklish spot, causing her to burst into giggles.

Yuwen Lan was eager to continue, but as she laughed, she suddenly covered her mouth, looking as if she was about to retch.

He was startled and quickly asked, "What's wrong?"

Yanshu covered her mouth and tried to calm down, saying, "Maybe I ate too much. Laughing made me feel a bit nauseous."

Yuwen Lan: "..."

This girl, why did she eat so much?

It was the first time he'd heard of someone laughing until they felt sick.

Realizing they probably couldn't continue, he asked, "Do you want some water to help settle your stomach?"

Yanshu nodded, about to say yes, but before she could speak, another wave of nausea hit her.

Hmm, something seemed a bit off.