Chapter 108

Outside the Du residence, the crowd of commoners kept growing larger and larger, with people calling out to friends, gathering their families, and trekking over just to catch a glimpse of the Son of Heaven and Concubine Sha in person. The scene soon spiraled completely out of control.

Once they laid eyes on the two of them, the commoners burst into another wave of exclamations, even dragging the long-dead Tushan Ze—whose grave had grown grass two zhang tall—out for a figurative whipping.

"No wonder Prince Ze fell for Concubine Sha, and then fell for His Majesty too! Their Majesties' looks and bearing are simply too extraordinary to belong to ordinary mortals!"

"Having such a wise ruler and such a blessing of fortune, Yan Chi is truly fortunate, this is a blessing for us common folk!"

"I'd gladly take fifty years off the lives of my ex-husband, my sworn enemy, the thief who stole my fish, and the shrew who cursed at me, just to trade it all for Your Majesties to live ten thousand long and prosperous years!"

"..."

Yun Yaoyao was grinning so wide her face almost ached, maintaining the image of an approachable, benevolent ruler as she nodded gently to the crowd.

She did not forget to tug the cold-faced Tu Shanjin over, whispering right by his ear, "What a perfect chance to win the people's hearts. Hurry up and smile!"

Tu Shanjin flatly refused, "No." A sovereign's bearing ought to be majestic and unassailable, he would never simper and fawn over his own people, that was utterly unthinkable!

One incense stick's worth of time later, two faces that were both stretched into wide, almost overworked grins stood side by side.

At the sight, the crowd's screams of excitement grew even louder, everyone was beside themselves with joy.

Yet all this revelry was completely at odds with Du Guanliu's mood.

There was a plain reason for that: the bones of the Xiongnu hidden on the grounds of the Du residence and in the Pure Spirit Lake absolutely must not be exposed to the common folk. If word got out, that so-called Mister Fugui would surely seize the chance to make a huge fuss and slander the Du family relentlessly!

But the more you try to keep something from happening, the more likely it is to unfold.

From within the crowd, a Dragon Shadow Guard who was playing the part of a warm-hearted local yelled out loud, "Your Majesty! Just now, this commoner saw the man who was dragged away earlier and he looked so familiar! I think he's the Death Riders' leader from the newly posted wanted notice! What was a criminal like that doing here? And what was that explosion we heard just a moment ago?"

A second Dragon Shadow Guard, also playing a warm-hearted local, picked up the thread, "No way no way! Could it be that the Du residence is sheltering a fugitive? Your Majesty, please punish the Du residence for this!"

A third Dragon Shadow Guard spoke up in feigned indignation, "How outrageous! The Du family failed to protect Their Majesties, they dared to put the honorable Son of Heaven in such danger! What use do we even have for a household like that!"

Du Guanliu's eyes sharpened with fury, and he glowered fiercely at the few people who had just spoken.

How dared these lowly commoners act like this? Did they not fear the Du family's retaliation?!

Just as he was about to fly into a rage, Yun Yaoyao cast a calming look toward him, and announced to the crowd, "The Du family did not shelter any Xiongnu people, and the noise just now had nothing to do with the Xiongnu at all."

Du Guanliu let out a sigh of relief, and his heart swelled with arrogance. So His Majesty is still wary of the Du family, and is willing to preserve our family's dignity, he thought to himself smugly.

His smugness lasted less than three seconds, before a sharp, piercing cry rang out from the crowd: "Ah! How come there are so many human bones over there?!"

The fifth Dragon Shadow Guard covered his face, putting on a terrified act, "Good heavens! I wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't pointed it out. Could these bones be connected to the noise we heard earlier?"

The sixth Dragon Shadow Guard chimed in in agreement, "His Majesty said the noise had nothing to do with the Xiongnu, so that must mean it's connected to these bones! The Du family must have committed some heinous, heaven-offending act, and Concubine Sha has sent down a divine punishment!"

Seeing that these bold few people were leading the crowd's thoughts further and further off in a wild, unfounded direction, Du Guanliu was so furious his beard puffed up. He secretly memorized the faces of those troublemakers, then cupped his hands in a respectful salute to Yun Yaoyao and said, "Your Majesty, I beg you to explain this matter clearly for your humble official!"

Yun Yaoyao had been building up to this exact moment, waiting for him to say those words. She let out a long, deliberate sigh and said, "My dear subject, I have already covered up the Xiongnu incident for you. But this matter is no longer something we can conceal."

A bad feeling crept over Du Guanliu, and he hurriedly spoke, "Your Majesty, those Xiongnu people snuck into the Du residence completely without my knowledge! Your humble official was kept in the dark and suffered greatly from their actions, this..."

Yaoyao understands, but Yaoyao is being willful and will not listen. If she didn't have to keep up this fake, ambiguous little act with this old fool, she would have laid all her cards on the table and taken him down long ago.

Yun Yaoyao told the crowd the origin of Pure Spirit Lake, and the full story of Mo Xiaozhi's divorce from her husband. When she finished speaking, her gaze turned icy cold.

"Just now, it was the heavens themselves that learned of Pure Spirit Lake's existence, learned that such a cruel, absurd custom still persists in our land of Yan Chi. That is why the heavens flew into a rage and sent down this divine punishment, to warn all the people of the world!"

The commoners immediately fell completely silent, pricking up their ears to listen intently.

Du Guanliu had a bellyful of grievances he could not voice at all. What divine punishment? That explosion was clearly set off by the Xiongnu! But he could not refute it, otherwise that would directly contradict his earlier claim that the Du family had no connection to the Xiongnu!

Tu Shanjin stood quietly off to one side, listening with faint amusement as she wove her wild, nonsensical tale.

Yun Yaoyao stood with her hands clasped behind her back, and suddenly a formidable, overwhelming aura burst out from her. Her words resounded clearly and powerfully, "On a personal level, the very existence of Pure Spirit Lake is nothing but oppression and brutal harm inflicted upon women!"

"Nowadays, women study the teachings of 'Women's Independence' and 'Women's Aspirations'. Every woman is an independent individual, yet this meaningless label of 'chastity' can nail a woman to the pillar of shame for life, and even be used as an excuse to take her life at will. That is utterly absurd!"

"This is a blatant disregard for human life, and it will only give rise to countless unseen evils. If someone wants to harm a woman, all they have to do is slander her reputation by claiming she is unchaste, or even send someone to violate her. Where does that leave the laws of Yan Chi?!"

"A woman's right to life must always come before this so-called 'chastity'! From this day forth, any practice that harms or kills a woman over accusations of lost chastity is strictly forbidden!"

"Anyone who violates this rule will be severely punished!"

These words immediately drew a wave of agreement and support from all the women present.

"Your Majesty is wise! Three years ago, my elder sister was subjected to cruel, vulgar wedding hazing on her wedding night. A drunk brute forced himself on her, but that scoundrel turned around and lied that my sister had seduced him. The whole village hounded her until she was forced to drown herself in a pond! How ridiculous and tragic that was!"

"I once had a close friend who worked as a maid in a noble household. The young master of the manor set his sights on her and forced himself on her. She was just a lowly maid, how could she dare resist? Later she became pregnant, and the mistress of the household found out, forced her to drink an abortifacient, called her immoral and a seductress, then beat her to death. It was all the young master's fault from the very start, yet she was the one who paid with her life! How could such unfair things happen!"

A well-dressed woman wearing a golden hairpin spoke up angrily, "If a woman falls into the water and is saved by a man, people say she has to marry that man. If a married woman is saved by a man from drowning, people claim she has lost her chastity. But why is it that men can go to brothels all they want, and no one says they have to marry those courtesans, no one calls them unchaste? The customs of this world are so unfair!"

"..."

Yun Yaoyao listened to the women crying and pouring out their sufferings. Her heart ached for all the women trapped in this era, but at the same time, she felt a deep sense of relief.

Nowadays, more and more women walk openly on the streets, and the common people are long used to seeing that. The spread of books like *Women's Aspirations* and *Women's Independence*, the stories of Mulan and Gangubai, the hard work put in by the women of Manyu Tower, the establishment of positions for female officials... Every single one of these efforts has awakened the spirit of resistance in countless women. They can see the unfairness and the chains that bind them, they feel dissatisfied, they resent it, and they are willing to stand up and fight.

All of this made Yun Yaoyao feel that every bit of effort she had put in up to now was completely worth it.

In stark contrast to the women's indignation and outpouring of grief, most of the men present did not care much for what was being said, could not empathize at all, and some even grew upset and started arguing with the women.

It was fine, this was all well within Yaoyao's plans. She was fully prepared to handle that.

Yun Yaoyao's aura grew even more commanding as she said in a deep, solemn voice, "When it comes to the welfare of the state, this matter is simply unforgivable!"

The noisy common folk immediately fell silent. The men wore confused looks on their faces, wondering how a woman's chastity could possibly have anything to do with the state's well-being.

"In this world, countless women have lost their lives over the so-called 'chastity'—many of them even died with unjust grievances. The number of such cases is staggering!"

"And what is the very foundation of a state? It is the people! People are the main force behind a nation's development, the creators and drivers of history!"

"Today, women can also contribute to the country. They can serve as female officials, go out in public to earn a living, and as long as they have the ability and the opportunity, there is nothing they cannot do!"

"Take Mo Xiaozhi for example. She fell into the water and was saved by a man, yet now she is to be locked away in the inner courtyard and forbidden from ever stepping outside. She cannot do a single useful thing, so how is she supposed to contribute to the Yan Chi realm? The Du family is the most prominent clan in the capital. If every other noble family follows their example and locks their women away behind closed doors, how many people will be lost to the construction and progress of the Yan Chi realm?"

Yun Yaoyao looked at the men before her, her gaze brimming with profound care and exasperation at their failure to see reason. "Why can't you understand? I am doing this for the good of the men too!"

"Most of you are already married with families, so you know full well how hard it is to make ends meet. If your wives and daughters can stand on their own two feet and earn money outside the home, the burden on your shoulders will be lightened considerably!"

"Furthermore, the very fact that women are victimized by this obsession with chastity is essentially persecution of the vulnerable by the powerful. In terms of gender, men hold the position of the stronger group."

"But in terms of social status, ordinary common people are the vulnerable ones. And who makes up the vast majority of the Yan Chi realm's population? It is you, the common folk!"

"When I decree that a woman's right to life comes before her chastity, I am also protecting your rights. I am preventing the privileges of the elite from overriding the right to life that every ordinary commoner deserves!"

"More than that, I am ensuring that the laws of Yan Chi protect every single one of you. The prosperity of our realm requires the contribution of each and every one of you!"

"Man or woman, noble or common, I will safeguard the rights and interests that every living soul in this land is entitled to!"

"To establish the heart of heaven and earth, to secure the livelihood of the people, to carry forward the lost wisdom of the sages, and to bring eternal peace for all generations. I will make the Yan Chi realm strong and glorious... (ten thousand words of grand vision omitted here)... I will make sure every last person in Yan Chi achieves shared prosperity!!!"

By the end of this speech, Yun Yaoyao's throat was completely parched.

She had fudged a few concepts, exaggerated some facts, and spun a whole lot of grand idealistic promises. But this masterful bit of persuasion had lifted the Lingjing Lake incident to an unprecedented, lofty height that no one could possibly argue against.

What? You think this is just about protecting women's rights? How shallow! This is about protecting the rights of every single person across the entire Yan Chi realm!

Whoa!!!

The men, who had harbored misgivings a moment earlier, now felt a surge of passion rise in their chests, tears welling up in their eyes.

They had thought their emperor was showing special favor to women, but never did they imagine that all of this was born out of her immense devotion to all the common people, and her profound care for the future of the Yan Chi realm!

They had even dared to judge her noble intentions with their own petty thoughts just a moment before. They were truly unforgivable!

"Your Majesty, you deserve a place in the Imperial Ancestral Temple for all eternity!!!"

"This humble subject has sinned! From this day on, if anyone dares to speak a single bad word about Your Majesty, I will twist their head off!"

"We do not deserve such kindness, Your Majesty! Waaaaa~"

In an instant, nearly all the common people dropped to their knees, every man and woman bowing in complete sincerity. The scene was nothing short of a ten-thousand-strong crowd paying homage to their ruler.

Ordinary folk already held a natural reverence and admiration for their emperor. But this emperor, not only was she approachable, she had now laid bare all her selfless, painstaking intentions right before their eyes, all for the sake of her people!

It was the kind of gesture that would make anyone willing to lay down their life for her without a second thought.

This entire sequence of actions left Tu Shanjin completely stunned once again.