Chapter 401: Chapter 169: Drunk Heart Inquiry! Empress: "Little thief, I want a kiss~" _3
Chen Mo shook his head and said, "I dare not say."
"Just speak freely, I will not punish you," the Empress squinted her eyes slightly, "I want to hear your true thoughts, you must not hide anything."
Since the words had reached this point, Chen Mo did not hold back. He drained the wine in his cup in one gulp and said in a deep voice:
"In my humble opinion, to cleanse the corrupt officials, we should cut ranks and salaries, and to sever factions, we should eliminate the Gate Valves!"
"Rather than let the decaying flesh rot beneath the brocade robe, it is better to endure the pain to cut the flesh and scrape the bones. Even if blood stains the golden stairs temporarily, it can eventually be exchanged for peace and prosperity!"
The Empress was stunned upon hearing this.
Chen Mo, being the child of a high-ranking official, held a distinguished status and was a vested interest party. Could he really say such things as "cut ranks and salaries to cleanse corrupt officials, eliminate the Gate Valves to sever factions"?
It was truly beyond her expectations.
This little thief...
An imperceptible smile flitted across the Empress’s eyes. She sighed deeply, her tone somewhat resentful:
"Do you think I don’t want to?"
"Now with the two factions in strife, internal and external troubles abound. With tigers and wolves entrenched deep in the palace, if I make any significant moves, some will surely take advantage immediately."
"I thought I had found a virtuous talent to promote good and purge the bad, but it turns out to be a fence sitter, wasting my sincere efforts..."
"..."
Chen Mo’s mouth twitched.
He understood that the "tigers and wolves" the Empress spoke of referred to Consort Yu.
As for the "fence sitter," it naturally referred to himself.
The Empress’s words now laid things bare, clearly waiting for him to express his stance.
Chen Mo deliberated for a moment, then said, "For some matters, it’s inconvenient for Your Highness to act directly, but you can leverage the claws and fangs of tigers and wolves to excise the malignant tumors. Otherwise, how could you have endured until now, right?"
"Hmm?"
The Empress raised her delicate eyebrows, looking at him with some surprise, "You are quite perceptive."
She had not clipped the wings of the Imperial Consort precisely to use the officials to balance the powerful ministers and cleanse the Six Ministries of corrupt elements.
The Zhou Family Case is an example.
It seemed like the Empress Faction suffered a severe blow, but in the long run, it was more beneficial than harmful.
Including Lv Bojun, the group of veterans were as clear as a bright mirror, so they stayed out of it, only some fools jumped the most joyous.
"Such a simple reason, even a Deputy Thousand Households like you who doesn’t enter the court understands it clearly, yet some people are blinded by greed and persist in their obsessions..." The Empress snorted coldly.
Chen Mo smiled but said nothing, lifting the wine pot to fill the cup.
The two exchanged cups and talk, not realizing they had finished three pots of fine wine.
As the intoxication gradually surged, the Empress relaxed quite a bit, reclining on the small couch, supporting her body with her arm, her long legs crossed, and her fair, pretty, oval face flushed with a reddish hue.
"You little thief, you’re quite slick, going around in circles and still not answering my question!"
"Between me and Consort Yu, who do you choose?"
Under the influence of alcohol, she spoke somewhat thoughtlessly.
Being a slave of three surnames, Mr. Chen spoke without hesitation, "I am loyal to Your Highness, the sun and the moon can testify!"
The Empress nodded in satisfaction, "That’s more like it... You’ve touched and kissed, if you still dare have disloyalty, I’ll chop you up and throw you into the Canglan River to feed the fish!"
Chen Mo: "..."
The Empress turned over on the small couch, her moist eyes slightly dreamy, softly said, "I’m feeling a bit tired, come over and massage my shoulders and neck."
"Yes."
Chen Mo got up and came closer, looking at the voluptuous curve, not knowing how to start.
"Your Highness, could you sit up first? I can’t reach like this..."
"I don’t want to sit up, just come up and massage," the Empress said unclearly.
Upon hearing this, Chen Mo hesitated for a moment, then said, "Then I must offend."
He took off his shoes, climbed onto the small couch, spread his legs and straddled the Empress’s waist, sitting properly on her plump buttocks.
?!
The Empress’s body stiffened, turning her head to ask, "What are you doing?"
Chen Mo wondered, "Did Your Highness not tell me to come up?"
The Empress was ashamed and annoyed, "I told you to come onto the couch, who told you to ride on me?"
"...Sorry, I misunderstood."
Chen Mo was about to get off, but the Empress stopped him.
"Forget it, don’t bother, just massage like this."
"As you command."
Chen Mo placed his hands on the Empress’s shoulders, pressing slowly and forcefully on the acupoints.
In the process of pressing, the body’s movements inevitably caused rubbing between them... A strange tingling sensation arose, making her somewhat flustered and her cheeks burning as if on fire.
To divert her attention, the Empress asked, "Earlier, we hadn’t finished talking, since you were trapped by the Blood Demon with formations, how did you escape ultimately?"
Chen Mo replied, "It’s a coincidence, the Daoist Venerable saved me..."
Upon hearing this, the Empress’s expression shifted, frowning, "So during that time you disappeared, you were with Ji Hongxiu the whole time?"
"Exactly." Chen Mo nodded.
The Empress asked again, "Did she do anything to you?"
Chen Mo was puzzled, "Your Highness is referring to..."
"You know perfectly well what I’m talking about!" The Empress heard the hesitation in his words, and her tone instantly turned cold, "Get up from me immediately."
As Chen Mo raised his buttocks, the Empress turned around.
Then grabbed his collar, pulling him close, her almond eyes staring intently at him.
"Last time you promised me, no more fooling around with Ji Hongxiu in the future!"
Facing those eyes full of grievances, Chen Mo inexplicably felt guilty, explained, "The Daoist Venerable saved my life after all, and really nothing happened between me and her..."
"Really? You’re not lying to me?" The Empress was somewhat doubtful.
Chen Mo smiled bitterly, "Doesn’t Your Highness have the Heart-Seeking Incense? If you don’t believe it, just light one and try."