Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

"With the imperial power weakened, the powerful families naturally don't take the royal family seriously. In the current situation, even if someone impeaches the Empress, it will be of no use."

Providing relief to displaced people is a righteous act; should the imperial court object to it? This matter should not be intervened in forcefully from the beginning; otherwise, it will only cause trouble for themselves.

Shen Lang understood this perfectly. While drinking his beef soup, he pointed out the crux of the problem to Jiang Chaoyun.

Jiang Chaoyun protested: "Are we just supposed to stand by and watch them do whatever they want?"

"Let them make a fuss. The longer it goes on, the easier it will be for the true purpose of the person behind it all to be exposed."

The best thing to do right now is to stay calm and not let others lead us by the nose.

After finishing his soup, Shen Lang put down his bowl and chopsticks, took out a handkerchief and casually wiped his mouth. He then stood up and looked at the dense crowd at the south gate with Jiang Chaoyun.

"When imperial power returns to the central government, everything will change."

But this process will be incredibly arduous, and it's uncertain whether the young empress can withstand the pressure of the aristocratic families' counterattack.

Jiang Chaoyun stared blankly at Shen Lang, and couldn't help but say, "Brother Shen, I understand you less and less. How do you know so much?"

Shen Lang chuckled and said, "How could I be chosen by the Empress to be her servant if I didn't know anything?"

Jiang Chaoyun: "You can't say that. You're being too pessimistic. I think the Empress is really interested in you. Of the three men chosen as husbands, you've been summoned the most times."

Shen Lang shrugged: "Summoning more people isn't necessarily a good thing, but I'm still useful for now."

The day I'm no longer of any use to you, perhaps you should bring a pot of wine to my grave and weep.

"Pah, don't say such unlucky things. Her Majesty is not that kind of person. I grew up in the palace since I was a child. In fact, she is a very sentimental person."

"Maybe not now, but what about later? Who knows? People change as their environment changes."

The day she truly seizes power in the court will likely be the day I flee in disarray.

As for matters of the heart, it's best not to be too superstitious about them. Very few people in the world would give up power for love.

Before Jiang Chaoyun could say anything more, Shen Lang reminded her, "Let's not talk about this anymore, the show is about to begin."

Following Shen Lang's gaze, they saw carts of wooden barrels, each about half a person's height, slowly moving towards the group of refugees in the distance.

……

"Everyone, please be quiet! Let me say a few words—"

Mu Changge arrived in front of the group of refugees, jumped onto a long table, and shouted loudly to the crowd that was constantly thronging around him.

"My name is Mu Changge, chosen by His Majesty as his son-in-law."

Hearing of the hardship my neighbors were facing today, I traveled a long and arduous journey to get here. I specially prepared some thin rice and cooked some rice porridge for everyone to share.

Please line up in an orderly fashion and come one by one to receive the rice porridge. We guarantee everyone will get some.

As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd erupted in cheers.

The starving refugees surged forward, and if it weren't for the guards from the Jingzhao Prefecture deliberately stopping them, the porridge buckets would probably have been overturned long ago.

"Please be quiet, everyone. Please listen to what I have to say!"

Zeng Qian quickly stepped forward to calm the people down.

He pointed at Mu Changge and said, "Do you know who he is? He is the famous scholar from Jiangnan, Mu Changge, the young master Mu!"

He was extremely worried when he heard about everyone's misfortune. He got up at the crack of dawn this morning and ran around to various rice shops to buy food. He also personally cooked porridge to help everyone recover.

He hasn't rested yet. Actually, he could have ignored this matter, after all, Young Master Mu is currently one of the three potential husbands of the current Empress.

He should have lived in the palace enjoying wealth and luxury, but he cared about the safety of the people and couldn't bear to see them go hungry, so he specially prepared this food for them.

When you're drinking your porridge, please don't forget how kind Young Master Mu was!

As soon as Zeng Qian finished speaking, waves of gratitude rang out from among the refugees.

"Young Master Mu! You are truly our savior!"

"Young Master Mu is a compassionate and merciful living bodhisattva, a great philanthropist who has come to save us from our suffering!"

"Your Majesty the Empress is so fortunate to have such a wonderful husband. Our Great Chu will surely enjoy peace, prosperity, and favorable weather in the future!"

When people are starving, they will shower others with praise, no matter how disgusting, just to get a bite of food to survive. Even the most tongue-tied person can become eloquent.

The scene before them greatly impressed the passing residents, who developed an inexplicable fondness for Mu Changge.

Upon seeing this scene, Zeng Qian and Mu Changge both smiled.

They have achieved their initial goal.

The common people are the easiest to fool, especially under the influence of the authoritative public opinion of the Prefect of the Capital.

Seeing this from a distance, Jiang Chaoyun was immediately furious: "This Mu Changge and Zeng Qian are clearly conspiring to win people over!"

The capital is under the jurisdiction of the Relief Department; when did it become their turn to provide disaster relief? This behavior must be stopped.

"Stopping them won't help," Shen Lang shook his head. "How do you plan to stop them? Rescuing people from fire and water is already a great act of kindness."

Why were the relief officials not as quick to react as the locals? Trying to stop Mu Changge from distributing porridge at this point would only put you at odds with the people.

They will hate you, even hate His Majesty to the core; the will of the people is the most difficult thing to control.

They may support you today, but they can overthrow you tomorrow. The best approach is to remain inactive.

Report the situation here to the Empress in detail; it's best if she handles this matter.

Jiang Chaoyun: "So, are we just going to do nothing now?"

Shen Lang countered, "Given the current situation, what else can you do? Just keep watching."

Jiang Chaoyun had no choice but to continue looking at the crowd of refugees with Shen Lang.

At this time, the refugees gradually received their share of rice porridge.

Everyone squatted on the ground, wolfing down their food. The sounds of slurping rice porridge and chopsticks hitting the surface of the bowls filled the air.

During this time, the people arranged by Mu Changge and Zeng Qian continuously spread rumors among the refugees and onlookers.

"Did you know? Young Master Mu was His Majesty's most favored son-in-law, and they were supposed to marry last month."

But at this very moment, a fellow named Shen Lang appeared, using all sorts of despicable means to sow discord between His Majesty and Young Master Mu.

This is why Young Master Mu wasn't chosen by His Majesty. What a pity! Young Master Mu is such a good person; just because of Shen Lang's interference, he missed out on a wonderful marriage.

If Young Master Mu could become the emperor's son-in-law, it would surely be a blessing for our Great Chu. Alas, what a pity..."

As the rumors spread, both passersby and refugees felt sorry that such a good person as Mu Changge could not become the son-in-law of the Great Chu Emperor.

At the same time, he felt a strange hatred for Shen Lang, the third party who had interfered in their relationship.

Hearing the voices of hatred towards Shen Lang and indignation at the injustice suffered by Mu Changge from the crowd, Zeng Qian smiled with satisfaction.

In just a few days, the calls for Mu Changge to become the emperor's son-in-law and for Shen Lang to be deposed will only grow louder.

Faced with the overwhelming public opinion, would you, a mere empress, dare to disobey?

In addition, Zeng Qian contacted all the aristocratic families in the capital who had close ties with the Zeng family, and together they put pressure on the Empress at the crucial moment, forcing her to accept Mu Changge and demote Shen Lang to a commoner.

"I support Young Master Mu becoming the Emperor's son-in-law!"

Suddenly, someone in the crowd couldn't help but shout.

Immediately afterwards, the shouts grew louder and louder.

"Yes, Young Master Mu must become the emperor's son-in-law on the spot!"

"Only Young Master Mu is worthy of His Majesty. Let that bastard Shen Lang eat shit!"

Jiang Chaoyun, looking at Shen Lang from a distance, couldn't help but say, "Brother, it seems like this is aimed at you."

Shen Lang was also bewildered, but after a moment he realized that Zeng Qian was behind it all.

"Great, this is getting more and more interesting."

Hearing him say that, Jiang Chaoyun couldn't help but retort, "You still think it's funny? I'm telling you, bro, you should be thinking about how to get out of here!"

Shen Lang cracked his neck and said, "It doesn't matter. Since they all want to die..."

Why should I bother giving them attitude? I'll go back to the palace and report this to the Empress first, then let time take its course."

After saying that, he turned around and walked directly towards Weiyang Palace.