On the wedding day, my wife was abnormal

The first snow of the first year of Shenghui finally fell, dyeing the mansions, pavilions and towers of Chang'an City a layer of white.

However, beneath the tranquility of the snow-covered world, the hidden undercurrent is more turbulent than ever before.

The shock of the autumn hunt was still fresh in their minds. The news that Murong Yan had stopped attending court for several days and lived in Fenghuan Palace on the pretext of "recuperating" did not make the aristocratic families feel relieved at all. Instead, it was like a huge rock pressing on their hearts.

Everyone knew that the empress wearing the dress that resembled a divine phoenix was not recuperating from illness. She was controlling the government more closely in another way, together with her "husband" Lin Zhen.

In the Wang family mansion in Taiyuan, a charcoal fire blazed in the warm room, yet it couldn't dispel the gloom between Wang Xun's brows. Spread out before him were several secret reports, sourced from different sources, all pointing to the same disturbing truth.

The new policies of "equalizing official markets", surveying land, and verifying household registrations implemented by Murong Yan, after experiencing the initial shock, not only did not cause large-scale public resentment as they expected, but instead gradually gained a foothold among children from poor families and some small and medium-sized landlords!

The court's supply of materials at prices below market price did appease the people at the bottom of society. Although the land survey affected the interests of the big landlords, it also uncovered many hidden landowners and populations of local tyrants, increased the revenue of the national treasury, and to some extent even gained the secret support of the small landlords and self-cultivating farmers who had been exploited by the aristocratic families for a long time!

"I miscalculated, I really miscalculated." Wang Xun muttered to himself, his skinny fingers trembling as he traced the words on the secret report. "She's not just robbing Peter to pay Paul, she's starting a new business! Using the poor and the common people to replace us!"

He had originally hoped that the new policy would trigger civil unrest, but now it seems that Murong Yan is actually trying to build a new ruling foundation that bypasses the aristocratic families!

"Father, it's not just that." Wang Yunzhi, his face pale, handed over another secret letter. "Our people stationed in Jiangnan have sent word that Lin Zhen has dispatched a large number of his trusted confidants southward, under the pretext of rectifying the grain transport and ensuring stable supply to the official market. They've taken over several key customs offices and docks along the way. The several grain transport routes we secretly controlled have been nearly severed! The losses are incalculable!"

The pain of having one's economic lifeline strangled is far more direct and deadly than political suppression!

The wealth accumulated by the Wang family over hundreds of years depends largely on the implicit control of the north-south grain transport.

Lin Zhen's move was quick and ruthless, and it was obviously instructed by Murong Yan!

"Murong Yan, Lin Zhen." Wang Xun gritted his teeth and repeated the two names, his eyes filled with resentment and a hint of fear that he himself was unwilling to admit.

The scene of Fenghuan Palace described by the spy involuntarily emerged in his mind - Murong Yan wore that gorgeous and almost enchanting black and gold Su Jin cotton nightgown, which was made of "Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix" and the "Divine Phoenix Descent" skirt, all day long, and lazily leaned on the couch.

However, Lin Zhen, whom they called a "treacherous villain" and "male favorite", did not try to please her, but handled government affairs calmly. Sometimes he leaned over to whisper to her, sometimes he offered her tea and snacks, and massaged her shoulders and neck. It was a scene of intimacy, a high degree of integration of power and emotion.

For the aristocratic families who attach great importance to "the difference between the ruler and the ministers" and "the strict separation between men and women", this is so glaring and incomprehensible!

That divine phoenix dress, that five-meter-long dark gold Su brocade train that stretched to the ground, and the golden lining that caught a glimpse when she turned around, were described by the aristocratic family spies as more than just a piece of clothing, but a symbol of Murong Yan's unrestrained power that was above all rules.

It is a testimony to her "abnormal" relationship with Lin Zhen!

This made them feel a panic of their foundations being shaken more than any outright killing.

"They are trying to force us to death!" An elder of the tribe beat his chest and stamped his feet.

"No, it's not the end of the road yet." The mysterious messenger of the Cui family came quietly again, with unmelted snowflakes on his cloak. His eyes looked even colder under the reflection of the charcoal fire.

"Murong Yan and Lin Zhen are only two people after all. Their new policies and their stabilization of the official market may seem stable, but in fact they are fragile!"

"Brother Cui, what do you think?" Wang Yunzhi asked as if he was grabbing a life-saving straw.

"Cut off their roots!" Envoy Cui said coldly, "What does the government rely on to stabilize the market? It relies on a steady supply of low-priced supplies! Especially grain! Now it's winter, and the grain transport is controlled by Lin Zhen. How long can the grain reserves in the capital last? Although we have suffered setbacks in the grain transport, we have a deep foundation in the major grain-producing provinces!

"Pass the order down, mobilize all your connections, secretly buy up grain at exorbitant prices! Stockpile it! At the same time, spread the word among the people that the imperial granaries are running low on grain, and the official market will soon be out of grain! Create panic! As soon as the people start panic-buying and hoarding, the food shortage in the capital will increase dramatically! Then, I'll see where Murong Yan will find the food!"

This is to create an artificial "food famine" and fundamentally shake the credibility of the official market stabilization agency!

"Confuse her!" he continued. "Doesn't Murong Yan rely on secret guards to spy on us? Let's give her some real news! We'll take the initiative to expose some insignificant or carefully embellished evidence, like a member of a side branch bullying men and women, or a peripheral business evading taxes. Let her investigate and arrest them! Use these small details to paralyze her vigilance and conceal our true actions!"

This is sacrificing the car to save the driver and confuse the opponent.

"Attack them and they will surely come to your rescue!" Envoy Cui lowered his voice even lower, with a hint of viciousness.

"What is the biggest weakness of Murong Yan and Lin Zhen right now? It's that they have no children! The foundation of the country has not been established! This is the biggest hidden danger! We can do two things at once. On the one hand, think of a solution in the palace, of course, we must be extremely cautious; on the other hand, choose a young and well-behaved child from the royal family with a humble mother, secretly contact him, and show goodwill. Just in case, I mean, if anything happens to Murong Yan, this country has to be ruled by someone..."

As soon as these words came out, everyone in the secret room gasped! This was no longer a political struggle, but rather touching upon the most dangerous forbidden zone - murdering the monarch and coveting the throne!

Wang Xun's hands began to tremble violently, his face pale. "Brother Cui, this is a heinous crime punishable by the death of nine generations of your clan!"

"Punish the entire clan?" Envoy Cui smiled sinisterly.

"Prince, what do you think we are doing now? Murong Yan has long harbored murderous intentions towards us! The Lu family is a lesson for us! What we are doing now is just a struggle to survive! If she waits until her foundation is completely solid and all the poor families fall into her trap, then we will be truly doomed! If we act now, there is still a glimmer of hope! Besides, we don't have to act immediately, we are just laying a pawn in advance for a rainy day."

The chamber fell into a long, suffocating silence. The charcoal fire crackled, and the wind and snow howled outside the window. Everyone was weighing the huge risks of this desperate and crazy plan against the slim chance of survival.

Finally, a flash of desperate madness flashed across Wang Xun's cloudy eyes, and he slammed the table:

"Okay! Let's follow Brother Cui's plan! Yunzhi, you go and personally handle the grain purchase, and keep it absolutely secret! Select a few smart and reliable people in the clan to do as Brother Cui says! As for the royal family," he paused, a fierce look flashing in his eyes, "I'll go find the remaining forces of the Fanyang Lu family. They hate Murong Yan to the core, so perhaps we can use her as a tool to kill her."

A new, even more sinister plan quietly took shape on this snowy night. Like trapped beasts, the aristocratic families prepared to launch a more covert and even more dangerous all-out counterattack.

Their gazes penetrated through the numerous palace walls and were fixed on the warm Fenghuan Palace, on the Divine Phoenix Dress that they regarded as "monster", and on the man beside the skirt who was irreconcilable with them - Lin Zhen.

At this moment in Fenghuan Palace, Murong Yan was lazily lying on a warm couch covered with white tiger skin, wearing the warm Divine Phoenix Dress. Lin Zhen was sitting beside the couch, skillfully massaging her back which was a little sore from sitting for a long time reviewing memorials.

There was a raging snow outside the hall, but it was warm as spring inside, filled with soothing incense and the scent of each other.

"Husband, it seems to be snowing particularly heavily today." Murong Yan squinted her eyes, enjoying Lin Zhen's perfect strength, her voice nasal.

"Yes, it was a heavy snow. Your husband has asked Jingzhao Yin to make disaster preparations, don't worry, Yan'er." Lin Zhen responded in a low voice, his fingertips feeling the warmth of her skin and the slender bones under her cotton nightgown.

"With my husband here, I'm at ease." Murong Yan turned over, put her arms around his neck, and buried her face in his chest, like a little animal seeking warmth. Her wide trumpet sleeves fell, brushing against his arm.

Lin Zhen's heart softened, he hugged her tightly, and gently stroked the top of her head with his chin.

The candlelight in the hall flickered, casting the embracing figures on the wall, making it so warm that it seemed as if all the wind, snow and conspiracy in the outside world had nothing to do with them.

However, whether it is the vicious schemes growing among the aristocratic families or the lingering warmth in Fenghuan Palace, it indicates that the winter of the first year of Shenghui is destined to be not peaceful.

The underground channel is already surging, waiting for the moment when the thunder will explode.