The poorest member of the Imperial Guard, the Empress begged me to embezzle.

"Minister Chu, now that everything is settled, how about we play another game of chess?"

Murong Si's pretty face showed a look of eagerness, and she looked at Chu Xiu expectantly and asked.

"Ahem... Your Majesty, perhaps next time. This humble subject has other matters to attend to, so I will take my leave now."

"Furthermore, I must make arrangements in advance to ensure that if the Yellow Heaven Sect does rebel, our Embroidered Uniform Guard can deliver the message immediately."

Chu Xiu coughed, hurriedly stood up, and said to Murong Si.

"Since Minister Chu still has matters to attend to, then I will not keep you any longer."

"However, Minister Chu owes me a game of chess. Next time Minister Chu comes to the palace, you must play chess with me."

"It's still more interesting to play chess with Minister Chu; playing chess with others is not interesting at all."

Upon hearing this, Murong Si's expression turned serious. She nodded slightly and spoke to Chu Xiu.

She also understood that Chu Xiu must have a lot to do at this moment.

She was also required to issue orders to the cabinet and the capital garrison in the shortest possible time, and to instruct the cabinet to convey her decrees to the government offices of various prefectures and counties.

"Of course, of course..."

Chu Xiu bowed and then quickly walked out of the Taiji Palace.

"Pei Guanyin, please escort Minister Chu to safety for me."

Seeing Chu Xiu leave, Murong Si said in a deep voice.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Pei Guanyin responded and caught up with Chu Xiu, leading him out of Taiji Palace.

After leaving Taiji Palace, Pei Guanyin deliberately moved closer to Chu Xiu and whispered, "My lord, you can come to the palace more often when you have free time. His Majesty likes to play chess with you."

"..."

Chu Xiu turned his head and said with a strange expression, "Why doesn't Lord Pei play chess with His Majesty?"

"Because my chess skills are not as good as yours, Lord Marquis, and my handicap is not as smooth and effortless as yours."

Pei Guanyin smiled and lowered her voice, saying, "Having played chess with the Marquis, His Majesty is probably not interested in playing chess with us anymore."

"..."

Chu Xiu fell silent. He looked up at the sky at a 45-degree angle, revealing an expression of wanting to cry but having no tears.

He performed exceptionally well.

I wish my acting had been even worse.

"My lord, accept reality."

"At least His Majesty enjoyed playing chess with the Marquis."

Pei Guanyin couldn't help but chuckle and comforted Chu Xiu, "Besides, when playing chess with the Marquis, His Majesty doesn't need to take back his moves."

"...Who did Your Majesty learn that phrase from?"

Chu Xiu rolled his eyes and said.

Governing a country is like playing chess; each move is like determining the fate of the nation. Every step changes the course of history, and every game brings order to the world.

If he only heard that sentence, he would definitely think that Murong Si was very good at chess.

However, Murong Si's chess skills were surprisingly poor.

How could she even say that?

If governing a country were as difficult as playing chess, the Great Zhou Dynasty would be doomed.

No matter how capable he is, he cannot save the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Fortunately, Murong Si's ability to govern the country was not that bad.

"That's what the eldest brother said."

"What our senior brother said when he first taught us how to play chess."

"only……"

"Later, the eldest brother stopped saying that phrase."

Pei Guanyin considered it for a moment before speaking.

"..."

That's why I won't say that anymore.

Yan Qingfeng, the Lord Yan, is probably too ashamed to say it.

No matter how he taught her, Murong Si's chess skills remained at this level.

A terrible chess player, and a terrible chess player who likes to take back his moves.

Chu Xiu sighed.

"My lord, I'll head back now. Please take care."

Pei Guanyin smiled gently and turned to walk into the Taiji Palace.

The thought of Chu Xiu not wanting to play chess with Murong Si in the future, but having to obediently pretend to not know how to play, made her want to laugh.

Chu Xiu smiled and walked out of the palace.

Not long after Chu Xiu left, Jiang Wan'er and Pei Guanyin left Taiji Palace together.

Jiang Wan'er headed straight for the inner cabinet, while Pei Guanyin headed towards the capital garrison.

There are no secrets in the palace, and soon the news of the Yellow Heaven Sect spread throughout the capital.

On the contrary, the promotion of Wang Hao, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, to Minister of Rites, and the meteoric rise of Yu Wenyuan, a minor county magistrate, to the position of Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, did not cause any stir.

The topic of conversation for everyone during their leisure time was the Huangtian Cult.

The next day, noon.

Licheng County, County Government Office.

A captain of the Imperial Guards led a hundred Imperial Guards soldiers galloping in.

"Xu..."

The Imperial Guard captain rode the Dragonblood Horse to the outside of the county government office.

"General, may I ask what brings you here?"

When a guard outside the county government office saw the Imperial Guard captain arrive, he hurriedly bowed and saluted.

The constables looked at the Imperial Guards with awe.

This is the most elite army of their Great Zhou Dynasty!

Even ordinary yamen runners could recognize their identities at a glance by looking at the armor they wore and their incredibly powerful aura.

Besides being the most powerful army to defend the Great Zhou Dynasty, the Imperial Guard of the Great Zhou Dynasty also had a very important duty: to convey imperial edicts to the emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

"Please inform Your Excellency that His Majesty has issued an imperial edict."

The Imperial Guard captain dismounted and looked at the constable with a gentle expression.

"Please wait a moment, General, I will inform you immediately."

The yamen runner paused for a moment, then cupped his hands in greeting to the Imperial Guard captain and said...

The Imperial Guard captain nodded, remaining silent.

The bailiffs quickly turned around and ran towards the county government office.

Not long after.

Yu Wenyuan, the magistrate of Licheng County, walked out of the county government office with an excited expression.

Although Chu Xiu had told him before, Yu Wenyuan was still incredibly excited that the imperial edict had arrived so quickly.

"Your humble servant Yu Wenyuan receives the imperial decree!"

Yu Wenyuan walked up to the Imperial Guard captain, knelt down, and shouted loudly.

"The Emperor, by the Will of Heaven, proclaims this."

"I believe that the most important aspect of governing a country is the people's livelihood; and the most crucial aspect of the people's livelihood is water conservancy."

"The Yellow River has been a source of trouble since ancient times, flooding unpredictably and causing great suffering to the people."

"The current magistrate of Licheng County is Yu Wenyuan, who is exceptionally talented, diligent, and especially skilled in water conservancy projects, which benefit the local people."

"During his tenure, he dredged waterways and built dikes, which greatly reduced flooding in Licheng County, allowing the people to live in peace. His achievements were remarkable and were recognized by both the government and the public."

"Yu Wenyuan is hereby promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, in charge of the management of Yellow River floods."

"I hope you will follow my will, work diligently day and night, take overall control of the situation, solicit good advice, and ensure that the Yellow River is calm and the people live in peace and prosperity."

"Strive hard and do not disappoint me!"

"Appreciate this."

The Imperial Guard captain took the imperial edict from a soldier standing nearby, slowly opened it, and spoke in a clear, resonant voice.

"..."

Yu Wenyuan stared blankly at the Imperial Guard captain, almost thinking he had misheard.

Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works?

Specializing in the management of Yellow River floods?

He could understand the second reason, since Chu Xiu had recommended him to be in charge of the Yellow River flood control.

but!

How could it be the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works?

Keep in mind, this is a high-ranking official of the third rank!

A third-rank official was already among the most important ministers in the entire Great Zhou Dynasty.

There are very few officials of the third rank in the entire Great Zhou Dynasty!

How many ranks has he been promoted from a mere seventh-rank county magistrate?

"Lord Yu, why don't you accept the imperial decree and express your gratitude?"

The Imperial Guard general, seeing Yu Wenyuan's dazed expression, kindly offered a reminder.