Inside the Imperial Academy, Chu Yi sat at his desk in a daze. As a Compiler of the Imperial Academy, he did not need to attend the morning court for the time being.
He was pretty miserable about it too. One moment he had closed his eyes, and the next he had transmigrated into the body of a minor sixth-rank official. The original owner had left him nothing but a shabby little house.
Fortunately, when he arrived, the original owner had only just been assigned to the Imperial Academy as a Compiler.
His usual duties were limited to restoring and drafting documents. His performance had always been neither meritorious nor blameworthy, he had no especially close friends, and both his parents were dead, so Chu Yi did not have to worry too much about anyone noticing that he was different from the original owner.
He did have the original owner's memories, so dealing with these things did not leave him flustered.
Except for one thing, he had adapted quite well.
But there was simply no getting around that one thing…
He was poor…
Chu Yi sighed. In fact, after discovering that he had transmigrated, he had thought about hanging himself. As a modern person, he really could not accept life in ancient times. But the instant the noose touched his neck, it snapped; when he tried to cut his wrists, the blade simply would not sever an artery; and when he jumped into a river, his body started swimming on its own.
After several attempts to die, he understood. This world would not let him leave, and he could not leave even if he wanted to.
What else could he do? He could only keep smiling and live on.
Poverty made a man ambitious. Chu Yi rubbed his chin and began looking forward to the end of the workday. He wondered how well his beauty paintings had sold…
If they had sold well, he would go to Changchun Restaurant and treat himself to a good meal today. Licking his lips, he wondered what he should eat. Roast chicken sounded good~ Changchun Restaurant's roast chicken was incredible~
While Chu Yi was still thinking, a burst of commotion suddenly came from outside.
Hua Cheng hurried over, grabbed Chu Yi, and said, “Lord Chu, come out and look! The sky has sprung a leak.”
Chu Yi jolted upright. The sky had sprung a leak???
He immediately let Hua Cheng pull him outside. The courtyard was already packed with people, and everyone from the Imperial Academy stood outside staring up at the sky.
Clouds poured across the heavens as a halo of light spread downward, transforming into a square black screen, neat and rectangular like a movie screen.
Chu Yi's vision went dark as an ominous feeling surged through him.
He knew this setup. Wasn't this the opening of a sky-screen novel?
Before transmigrating, he had read novels too. As a part-time writer, it was not as though he had never thought about writing a sky-screen story himself.
But… a sky-screen story should have nothing to do with an insignificant nobody like him.
In the Golden Throne Hall, Emperor Xuanwu, Ying Xuan, was listening to his ministers' reports when a guard suddenly rushed in to pay his respects.
“Your Majesty!! Something strange has appeared in the sky outside!!!”
Emperor Xuanwu raised an eyebrow, stood, and said, “My ministers, come with Us and have a look.”
The officials below answered in unison, followed Emperor Xuanwu out of the hall, and raised their heads.
The sky screen lit up. Strange music began to play, and a bespectacled man appeared on the screen with a smile, holding a stack of papers in his hands.
Chu Yi leaned against the doorframe as though watching a show. The Great Xuan Dynasty had already existed for a century, and the current Emperor Xuanwu was its third emperor.
The emperor of Great Xuan was named Ying Xuan. Because his martial prowess was excessively abundant, he had come to be known as Emperor Xuanwu.
Emperor Xuanwu had six sons and four daughters in total. The empress had borne one son, the Noble Consort had borne two daughters, and the remaining children had been born to other consorts.
The imperial harem was relatively peaceful. Given the usual behavior of sky-screen stories, Chu Yi guessed that someone was probably about to have very bad luck~
Grinning, he pulled a handful of sunflower seeds from his sleeve, bumped Hua Cheng beside him with his shoulder, and asked, “Want some seeds?”
Hua Cheng was still staring at the sky screen in astonishment. Seeing Chu Yi act like this, he asked in confusion, “Aren't you scared?”
Chu Yi waved it off. “Scared of what? Even if the sky really falls, the tall people will hold it up. Little nobodies like us couldn't do anything even if we worried.”
Hua Cheng nodded. True enough~
Then he grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds from Chu Yi and prepared to snack along with him.
【Hello, everyone~ I'm Chu Wan, a historical researcher specializing in the era of Emperor Xuanwu. Recently, a large tomb dating back to Emperor Xuanwu's reign was discovered. Although we still haven't found the tomb owner's name, we did obtain some precious historical materials. So now, I'll be sharing those materials with everyone.】
Whoa. Emperor Xuanwu's era… history…
The court officials all looked toward the emperor standing there with his hands behind his back, and the guesses running through their minds scattered.
They had thought this was a divine miracle. Now it seemed… this was something from later generations.
The tomb owner???
Emperor Xuanwu narrowed his eyes at the sky screen without speaking.
Chu Yi, meanwhile, nodded. Just as he had expected~
Sky-screen stories were always like this~
He wondered whose humiliating secrets were about to be publicly exposed.
Watching someone else's embarrassment was always especially entertaining.
The figure disappeared, and the sky screen split into two halves. Text appeared on one side, while the man from before remained on the other.
The man's voice rang out.
【Xuanwu Year Seven, October 6. Clear weather.
The weather is nice today. Perfect for slacking off. Sigh, I'm so miserable. I'm running low on silver again, so I need to think of a way to make money. If I don't earn some soon, I won't even be able to afford Changchun Restaurant's roast chicken. Every bit of silver I get ends up going straight into my stomach.
How should I make money? That is the question. As an honest and upright official, I neither embezzle nor take bribes—although even if I wanted to, I don't have the connections for it…
Poor me. My salary is tiny and only barely covers my living expenses. So how am I supposed to make money?
More precisely, how can I make money without spending any money first…
Sigh. Should I grit my teeth and threaten the Vice Minister of Revenue? But I'm afraid he'll beat me. I might not be able to die, but getting beaten still hurts. People say scholars are useless in practical matters, and I am the most useless one of all…
Ah, life is hard. Being born is hard, and staying alive is even harder. I guess I really should threaten the Vice Minister of Revenue. Who told him to let me discover his little secret? It's his own fault too. Is my presence really that faint? I was standing right behind him and he didn't even notice me. That's what happens when you're careless—someone gets hold of your secret.
I'm so wicked. Heh heh heh heh heh.
Tomorrow. If I still can't think of a way to make money tomorrow, I'll threaten him and get my first pot of gold~】
The Vice Minister of Revenue stood there with cold sweat breaking out across his forehead. His little secret?? He had plenty of little secrets. Which one did this person know?
Everyone else's gaze snapped toward the Vice Minister of Revenue as Emperor Xuanwu's unreadable voice sounded. “My dear Minister Wei… your little secret…”
Wei Qingwei immediately dropped to his knees. Heaven preserve him, he was going to die.
After thinking hard, he gritted his teeth and cried, “Your Majesty, I have been wronged! How could this subject possibly have secrets from Your Majesty? That demon on the screen must be spouting nonsense to destroy the bond between sovereign and minister, Your Majesty!!”
October 6 was yesterday, which meant this person should come looking for him today. But… no one had come to threaten him today.
Back at the Imperial Academy, Chu Yi felt as though his sky had collapsed. He stared at the screen in disbelief. A moment ago, he had been happily watching someone else's scandal, only to discover that he was the scandal???
Ha. And he had just been wondering who could possibly be that unlucky. So it was him~
