Immortal Travel of Longevity

Following Minister Tang's burial, Tong Nianyi observed three days of mourning.

During this time, Xie Huan came to visit.

Unsure of how to console her, he simply kept Tong Nianyi company at the grave for the entire afternoon.

Only at sunset did Xie Huan finally speak. "Minister Tang is gone. Now, no one is managing the Ministry of Revenue's ledgers. In this vast Imperial Court, not a single person is qualified for the position. You are Minister Tang's only student..."

"Don't go back."

Xie Huan said, "Stay in Shangjing."

Tong Nianyi didn't answer. Seeing this, Xie Huan understood—sometimes, silence was an answer in itself.

She would come.

Early the next morning, the Imperial Court issued an Imperial Decree.

After her three days of mourning, Tong Nianyi arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, just as the Imperial Decree commanded.

The moment she took charge, every difficulty was easily resolved.

She spent a full half-month organizing all the ledgers until they were impeccably neat, correcting every error and falsification in the newly added accounts.

In a flash, the entire Ministry of Revenue had its pillar of support back. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

And the moment the Ministry of Revenue allocated the silver...

The entire Imperial Court breathed a sigh of relief.

"It truly had to be Minister Tang's student."

Xie Huan had personally gone to inspect the Ministry of Revenue's ledgers before. Just looking at those densely packed, mountainous stacks of books had made his vision swim. He couldn't even fathom how Minister Tang had ever managed to complete them.

But he had known that Tong Nianyi would definitely be able to solve the Ministry's dilemma. And she had resolved it cleanly and efficiently, taking less than half a month to restore the Ministry of Revenue to its former order.

Half a month later, when Xie Huan saw Tong Nianyi again...

...he saw that she had grown significantly more haggard.

Xie Huan said, "If the pressure at the Ministry of Revenue is too much, just say the word, and I'll have you transferred somewhere else."

Tong Nianyi paused at those words. She asked, "Has His Majesty already left the palace?"

Xie Huan paused, then nodded.

Tong Nianyi stared blankly for a moment, then asked, "Then the one currently in the palace..."

"It's Shen Qiuyue."

Xie Huan said, "One of my people."

Tong Nianyi looked at him, asking, "Did His Majesty never realize?"

"No."

Xie Huan shook his head. "He realized. He even told me outright that he had figured it out long ago."

Tong Nianyi looked up at him.

Xie Huan said, "However, His Majesty didn't blame me for anything. He simply told me to give it a try—to see if governing this world was as easy as I imagined."

Tong Nianyi fell silent.

Xie Huan shook his head with a bitter smile. "How laughable. Someone like me, thinking myself so clever, believing I could deceive heaven and cross the sea, only to end up a joke in His Majesty's eyes. In the end, I'm reduced to accepting His Majesty's charity. It's like throwing a punch into cotton. This is even harder to accept than being executed for treason."

Tong Nianyi said, "Isn't this what you wanted?"

"I did get what I wanted."

Xie Huan opened his mouth, then said, "But what meaning is there in it? It feels as if I've spent the past few decades doing utterly pointless things."

He rubbed his hands together, exhaling a puff of white mist.

The weather was growing colder, and winter was visibly approaching.

Xie Huan said, "Winter came earlier this year. Who knows how many more people will die?"

Tong Nianyi remained silent for a moment before saying, "Is it vastly different from what you imagined?"

Xie Huan was taken aback, but nodded. "It's different. Very, very different."

He had never imagined that governing a nation would be such a difficult endeavor.

He wasn't an emperor, nor had he ever experienced any of this. No one had ever taught him. That overwhelming sense of being at a loss was what pained him the most.

Tong Nianyi took a sip of hot soup and asked, "Do you think His Majesty will ever return?"

At those words, Xie Huan suddenly stiffened.

He opened his mouth, evident panic flashing in his eyes.

Tong Nianyi finished her soup and stood up. "There are still matters to attend to at the Ministry of Revenue. I'll be taking my leave."

Xie Huan's gaze followed her, but he didn't know how to respond.

He just watched blankly until Tong Nianyi's figure vanished from his sight.

Tong Nianyi's final words were like a needle piercing his heart, one that he simply couldn't pull out.

...

As a Fox Demon, Shen Qiuyue understood nothing of national affairs.

She had come here solely because Xie Huan had promised her qi destiny.

Shen Qiuyue had also never considered that one day she would take the emperor's place and handle the affairs of the state.

Granted, Xie Huan had left notes in red ink on every matter, meaning she only had to approve the memorials according to his instructions. However, what was the point in facing these incomprehensible things day in and day out?

She was incredibly frustrated.

This wasn't what she wanted.

"What's wrong?"

Xie Huan asked after coming to see her.

Shen Qiuyue said, "I don't want to be the emperor anymore. I want to leave. It's not fun here anymore."

Xie Huan froze for a moment before saying, "If you leave, how are we supposed to deceive the officials?"

"How could we not?" Shen Qiuyue retorted. "If I can do it, others can too. Find anyone you want; I just don't want to do this anymore. I might not know the Illusory Veil, but I do understand disguise techniques. Copying a face exactly isn't hard at all."

"Do you not want the qi destiny anymore?"

"Want what? Do you think I really came here for the qi destiny?"

Shen Qiuyue stood up and said, "I only agreed to help you in the first place because it seemed fun. Now, it's not fun anymore. Being in this palace is no different from being in prison."

For a moment, Xie Huan didn't know how to respond.

He couldn't find a suitable replacement.

More importantly, he couldn't trust anyone else.

Other than himself and Yan Nantian, only two other people knew this secret. They were also the only two people he could trust.

But right now, Tong Nianyi was serving as the Minister of Revenue, so it was impossible for her to come help him. Furthermore, given her personality, there was a high probability she wouldn't have come anyway.

Who else was he supposed to find?

Xie Huan felt a profound sense of exhaustion. He couldn't help but look at Shen Qiuyue and say, "Think about it again. Just give me a few days' grace to find a suitable person, alright?"

Hearing this, Shen Qiuyue said, "Then hurry up."

"Mm, alright..."

Xie Huan left and returned to his own estate.

At this moment, he felt deeply exhausted.

He couldn't shake the feeling that, in the end, he had achieved nothing at all.

He was a little tired.

After pondering in his estate for two days...

Shen Qiuyue sent something over.

It was a Human Skin Mask. Once worn, it perfectly replicated Yan Nantian's appearance. Apart from the wearer's physical build, there wouldn't be a single flaw to be seen.

Xie Huan knew that Shen Qiuyue was urging him to hurry up.

That night, Xie Huan finally made his decision.

...

One early morning, grim news suddenly spread.

Scholar Xie of the Grand Cabinet had been struck by a sudden, severe illness and breathed his last in his home.

Several Cabinet Elders, along with other court officials, all came to offer their condolences.

Meanwhile, inside the Imperial Palace...

Shen Qiuyue personally placed the Human Skin Mask on Xie Huan's face. Using Divine Abilities, she flawlessly concealed the differences in his physical build as well.

Shen Qiuyue looked at him and said, "Exactly the same."

Xie Huan froze for a moment upon hearing this. He looked into the bronze mirror.

Was it truly exactly the same?

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