Miss Cousin is Always Busy

MCAB – Chapter 177

“What is the meaning of this, Your Majesty?”

Chu Ying couldn’t help but wonder what the tyrant before him was trying to do today. Rather than leave or reprimand him as usual, she was having people accompany him instead. Was this a new method the tyrant had come up with to mess with him?

“Exactly what it means.”

Jun Zishu placed her hand on the armrest, and the palace maid nearby hurriedly served her a cup of tea.

When Jun Zishu saw the palace maid’s cowering look, she couldn’t help but let out a laugh. She found that it was surprisingly fun to be a tyrant.

Meanwhile, when Chu Ying saw Jun Zishu laughing, the anger in his heart flared up.

“Must Your Majesty humiliate me like this?”

Chu Ying glared at Jun Zishu, resentment written all over his face.

Jun Zishu curbed her laughter and picked up the tea the palace maid had just served her. Then, she threw the cup right in front of Chu Ying.

The sound of porcelain breaking filled the room, startling the palace maid and Chu Ying. The palace maid even knelt out of fear.

After the pieces of broken porcelain and splashing tea settled on the floor, the hall became terribly quiet.

“Who do you think you are talking to?

“No matter how reluctant you feel, I am still the empress of this dynasty. Humiliate you? Do you think you are worthy of me to humiliate you?

“Earlier, you said that my arrival spoiled your fun. What? Now that I am trying to let you have your fun, you end up unhappy instead? What a troublesome person you are.

“But I don’t care what you think. You are going to have fun today whether you like it or not.”

The empress wearing luxurious clothing wore a cold expression on her face, her raised eyebrows giving off a sharp chill.

Jun Zishu wasn’t a person without a temper, and she was very skilled at showing it when she wanted to.

“Bring me a new cup of tea,” Jun Zishu said to the palace maid in a gentler voice.

In response, the palace maid nodded and stood up while trembling.

When Jun Zishu saw the maid’s petrified appearance, she couldn’t help but have the urge to laugh again. This time, though, she held it in and shifted her attention elsewhere as she asked Little Fairy:

Am I really that scary?

[I think you were beautiful!]

Little Fairy flattered, finding Jun Zishu’s performance just now to be very cool. Unfortunately, there was no internet in this world, so she couldn’t share these thoughts with anyone else.

In the meantime, another maid had picked up the shards of the broken porcelain and wiped the spilled tea off the floor. The palace maids that were recalled also stood by Chu Ying’s side, every one of them hanging their heads in silence.

The musicians and dancers Jun Zishu had called for were also in place now.

“Go on. What are you waiting for? Weren’t you all playing quite cheerfully just now? Why aren’t you even laughing now?” Jun Zishu asked in a casual tone. Her voice, however, carried a veiled threat.

When the music began, Chu Ying sat surrounded by beautiful women with an ugly look on his face.

The beauties mostly had forced smiles on their faces, and they moved carefully as they either danced or served Chu Ying.

The music played sounded cheerful, and the dance similarly looked cheerful. Normally, the atmosphere in the room should have also been cheerful. However, everyone behaved like someone was choking them by the neck, and the scene felt incredibly tense and awkward.

Jun Zishu’s expression grew colder and colder, and her aura grew scarier and scarier as time passed.

After a while, the musicians still had the stamina to play their instruments. The dancers, however, had trouble moving steadily due to exhaustion, and they couldn’t even bring themselves to put on a smile now.

The palace maids naturally weren’t faring any better, their movements stiff and awkward as they carefully serviced Chu Ying.

The more one looked at this scene, the scarier it seemed.

“Is that enough, Your Majesty?” Chu Ying asked, gnashing his teeth.

“Have you even started? What’s wrong? Don’t you all even know how to seduce a man? Don’t know how to smile? If that’s the case, what use do I have in keeping you here?” Jun Zishu asked. Since she was going to humiliate Chu Ying, she would do her utmost best to do so.

Jun Zishu wasn’t a Holy Mother. If others looked down on her, was she not allowed to retaliate?

Jun Zishu was certain that Chu Ying would retaliate against her as soon as he was given a chance. So, she planned to extinguish this threat right here and now.

Amidst the tense atmosphere, one person suddenly stepped forward. It was the lead dancer, and Jun Zishu noticed that this dancer’s clothing was slightly different from the other dancers.

The dancer lifted her skirt and bowed to Jun Zishu.

Confused by their leader’s actions, the other dancers stopped their dance and looked at her.

After bowing, the lead dancer made a gesture to the musicians. In response, the musicians stopped playing for a moment before quickly switching to playing a different song.

Unlike the previous song, this new one conveyed a feeling of decadence.

Jun Zishu looked at the dancer dressed in a peach-colored gauze dress, a hint of interest appearing in her eyes.

Following the music’s beat, the dancer walked step by step toward Chu Ying. Anyone with eyes could tell that she was seducing Chu Ying.

Jun Zishu narrowed her eyes as she admired the girl’s skillfulness.

After all was said and done, Chu Ying was still the son of a very influential family. His rogue behavior was nothing more than an act of resistance and retaliation against the empress holding him captive. He wasn’t actually someone who would flirt with women out in public.

The dancer was quite bold as well. Not only did she cling to Chu Ying’s chest after approaching him, but she even extended a hand down to Chu Ying’s lower half.

Startled by this situation, Chu Ying promptly pushed the dancer away and cursed, “Slut.”

Chu Ying was a man who trained in martial arts. Even though he didn’t use his full strength, his push had still caused the dancer to stumble and fall to the ground.

However, the dancer did not cry or sob at the mistreatment. Instead, she patted her dress and graciously stood up. Then, she respectfully knelt in front of Jun Zishu before saying, “I have already done my best, Your Majesty. Unfortunately, Prince Chu is unresponsive.”

Jun Zishu snorted inwardly, having the urge to clap and laugh out loud. Of course, she wouldn’t behave in such an uncultured manner, and she simply looked at Chu Ying with a thoughtful look as she said to Chu Ying, “I was wondering why you were unhappy. It turns out that your thing isn’t working anymore, so you lack the means to enjoy the blessings of women.”

Everyone could hear the sarcasm in Jun Zishu’s words.

“You!”

Chu Ying’s face flushed with anger.

“Guards, hold Chu Ying down,” Jun Zishu said while gesturing with her hand.

“What are you trying to do?”

“Are these the only words you know how to say?” Jun Zishu asked rhetorically. Then, she tilted her head slightly toward Defu and said, “Pass on my words. Chu Ying has engaged in adultery in the palace. A crime of impurity is normally punishable by death, but considering the many contributions the General’s family has made to the country, Chu Ying will be exempted from death. Put him in prison as I decide on his punishment.”

“Understood,” Defu responded.

“You are uttering nonsense! Since when have I engaged in adultery?!”

“You say that I am uttering nonsense? Do you need me to find each and every one of the palace maids you have engaged in adultery with and bring them to you?”

“I am a man…”

“And I am the reigning empress.”

“You do not deserve to be a ruler!” Chu Ying clenched his fists, his reason going out of the window as he shouted these words. After saying these words, though, he realized that there was no more ground for peace, so he decided to send the helve after the hatchet as he continued, “The throne has never been meant for women! What contributions have you made for the Liang Empire since you took the throne?! You have merely acted despicably and disgracefully! You are nothing but a woman who belongs to the rear palace! You know nothing about political affairs, and you have only been forcing men into the palace to suffer for nothing!”

When Chu Ying finished speaking his mind, he thought Jun Zishu would react in anger. However, she didn’t, to his surprise. Instead, she only looked at him calmly and quietly, as if she were appraising an object.

“So, this is the son General Chu has taught? It seems the General isn’t as loyal as I thought.”

“Do not bring my father into this! His loyalty lies with the throne, not a scoundrel ruler like you! Ptui!”

As soon as Chu Ying finished his words, the sound of a slap echoed throughout the hall as Chu Ying’s head got hit sideways. Then, Jun Zishu frowned and took out a handkerchief to wipe her fingers.

“I am not fit for the throne? In that case, tell me. Who’s fit for it? Is it you? Or is it your father?”

“I dare not say it.”

Chu Ying swallowed the blood in his mouth, his expression changing dramatically when he heard Jun Zishu’s question. Now, he couldn’t care less about the stinging pain coming from his swollen face.

It was one thing to rebuke the empress, but it was another thing entirely to usurp the throne.

The former would earn the admiration of others, but even ten thousand deaths wouldn’t be enough for the latter.

“You don’t dare? But I think you are plenty courageous. Guards, take him away! Defu, summon General Chu to the palace!”

“Understood.”

Chu Ying realized that he had misspoken, so he chose to keep his mouth shut and let the guards take him away.

Meanwhile, the palace maids remained in the hall, all of them kneeling fearfully.

“You, stay. Everyone else, leave,” Jun Zishu said as she pointed her chin at the lead dancer.

“Understood.”

After the others left, Jun Zishu looked at the kneeling dancer before her and asked, “What is your name?”

“My name is Lan Xi.”

“A good name. Stand up,” Jun Zishu said. Then, she leaned closer and scrutinized Lan Xi’s face.

Lan Xi’s beauty was above-average, and she had a rather flamboyant appearance. She was similar to Jun Zishu in this regard, but the gap in their beauty was significant.

When Lan Xi looked at the beautiful empress before her, she subconsciously held her breath. She had danced before this person many times in the past but never had she managed to catch this person’s eye. She also never dared to scrutinize the empress’s appearance, so this was the first time she had actually gotten a good look at the empress’s face.

Meanwhile, all Lan Xi could think of was that the empress’s beauty was perfectly on point; anything more would make her look gaudy, and anything less would make her look vulgar. Paired with her shockingly imposing aura and the occasional smile she revealed, the empress was undoubtedly a breathtaking beauty.

At this point, Lan Xi couldn’t help but wonder what some of the men in the imperial harem were thinking. They got to eat well, sleep well, and live well in the rear palace, and they didn’t have to work hard for any of these things. On top of that, they also got to sleep with a breathtaking beauty like the empress. Yet, men like Chu Ying were doing their utmost best to anger the empress in the hopes of getting out of this paradise.

“You are very courageous.”

“I only did what Your Majesty has instructed.”

Jun Zishu was a little surprised when she browsed the information on Lan Xi that Little Fairy provided. She had originally thought that Lan Xi might be a spy or assassin trying to win her attention and slid her throat when she wasn’t paying attention. However, according to Little Fairy’s information, Lan Xi wasn’t any of those things. The girl was merely someone who practiced dancing from a young age and became a dancer later on in life. Then, relying on her exceptional skills, she entered the imperial palace and became an imperial dancer.

“What do you want?”

Jun Zishu couldn’t figure out what this girl was aiming for. If the girl was aiming to marry into a wealthy family, there were plenty of dignitaries in the imperial palace for her to choose from. So long as she showed off her skill and beauty, she could easily become a concubine for one of these wealthy and influential men. If she was skillful in bed and flirting, she could even climb her way to a main wife’s position.

“I do not want anything. I only wish to serve by Your Majesty’s side,” Lan Xi said sincerely.

“Oh?”

“I have grown up in a brothel and seen many things. I do not wish to marry, nor do I wish to enter a nobleman’s harem and fight with other women. I used to wonder if women should have other paths in life, but I never managed to make sense of my thoughts. My initial plan was to work as a dancer and teach others after retiring. However, that all changed four years ago when I saw Your Majesty ascending to the throne.”

Lan Xi knelt again and looked at Jun Zishu with eyes of admiration.