I, the Treacherous Minister, Fell in Love with Someone Else—What’s It Got to Do with You, Empress? - Chapter 4:

Chapter 4: I Still Have Room-Sharing Maidservants?

“Sorry, I saw it wrong. Turns out it was just a small black mole,” Lin Ming scratched his head and said with a smile.

He hadn’t expected Ye Qinghuan’s reaction to be so extreme. Especially the way she guarded her legs—did she really think he was about to touch her thighs?

Tsk tsk… this Empress has quite the dirty mind!

Ye Qinghuan, meanwhile, was already furious and embarrassed by what just happened. Her face flushed red, and she wished she could find a hole in the ground to crawl into.

Heavens! In front of all the officials, that was humiliating—far too humiliating!

All dignity as ruler of a nation had been utterly lost.

Her chest rose and fell as she took a deep breath and thought to herself, “Lin Ming, just you wait! One day, I’ll have your head—and wipe out the entire Lin family!”

But her face still wore a delicate smile as she said, “I didn’t expect Minister Lin to be so humorous. Quite the little joke you made. But next time, please don’t do it again.”

“Your Majesty, I didn’t upset you, did I?” Lin Ming asked tentatively.

“Of course not. How could a monarch of an empire lack such tolerance?” Ye Qinghuan forced a smile and waved her sleeve, saying, “I’m feeling unwell and will return to the palace. The rewards from the palace will be sent later.”

“Alright, I shall escort Your Majesty—”

“No… that won’t be necessary. Minister Lin, you may remain.”

Ye Qinghuan waved her hands quickly as if seeing a plague, and her steps were far less composed than before as she turned and walked away in haste.

[Ding! Empress’s anger level +10. Lifespan extended by 300 minutes! Gained one adrenaline injection!]
[Ding! Empress’s anger level +9. Lifespan extended by 200 minutes. Charm +1.]

Hearing the system’s notifications, Lin Ming couldn’t help but hold back his laughter.

Damn it, and she said she wasn’t angry? This Empress may rule a nation, but her emotional maturity was about the same as his!

Anyway, with Ye Qinghuan gone, he could finally enjoy some peace.

Lin Ming decided to spend some time understanding the world.

He summoned Luo Feng, who had earlier been putting on quite the dramatic act, and learned that his father, Lin Ba, had a private study that practically held records on every detail of the empire—geography, astronomy, customs, and more.

Thus, he spent the entire afternoon immersed in the study under the noble excuse of “reading.”

It turned out this world resembled a classical dynasty similar to Tang, Song, or Ming. The nation he was in was called the Great Duan Empire, located in the southernmost region of the continent and was one of the eight major powers in the world.

There was even a hint of low-level martial cultivation—those who trained in martial arts could achieve feats like running on rooftops and walking on walls, much like in wuxia novels.

For instance, Empress Ye Qinghuan, who had trained in martial arts since childhood, had already reached the level of a 3rd-tier master by the age of twenty. Even in the military, she was an exceptional figure.

Of course, martial experts were still rare. Most people were just ordinary.

As for his own father, Lin Ba, he had been a trusted general under the founding emperor of the Great Duan Empire. A 1st-tier martial arts grandmaster and a founding hero.

Due to his contributions during the founding, he was already highly ranked under the first emperor.

By the time of the second emperor, he stood out even more and was granted the title Duke Commander.

Later, when the second emperor passed, Lin Ba successively supported Emperors Wenzong, Jingzong, and Zhaozong to the throne, controlling the government for nearly thirty years and planting loyalists everywhere.

Empress Ye Qinghuan’s elder brother, Emperor Zhaozong, once fought for power against Lin Ba. In the end, during a bloody palace coup, he failed, became a puppet, and was completely at Lin Ba’s mercy—even his concubines were played with at will by Lin Ba. In the end, Zhaozong died in depression.

Thus, ever since Empress Ye Qinghuan took the throne, she had seen the fall of the Lin family as her life’s mission, secretly planning various schemes of revenge.

“No wonder my dad was known as the number one treacherous minister of the Great Duan Empire. He really is my idol!”

Lin Ming was genuinely impressed.

To be a treacherous minister at this level—wasn’t it better than being emperor?

Unfortunately, the current emperor was a woman. No concubines. Otherwise, he would’ve gladly inherited this glorious family tradition.

As for the structure of power in the Great Duan Empire, it was a combination of aristocratic and regional governance.

The six great noble families controlled the Three Departments and Six Ministries. The Ministry of War was under the Lin family, while the other five were divided among the other five clans.

For years now, even the selection of the Grand Councilor had been decided by rotation among the six noble families, each promoting their own candidate.

As for the military, the empire was divided into dozens of military regions. The regional governors held both civil and military power—they were the absolute authority in their regions.

In the capital, there were 100,000 imperial guards, but they didn’t entirely obey Empress Ye Qinghuan either.

However, just outside the capital, there was a 30,000-strong Black Cavalry unit—heavy-armored cavalry loyal to the Lin family!

It was thanks to this force that generations of emperors hadn’t dared move against the Lin family lightly.

Even with 100,000 guards, they might not withstand the charge of 30,000 heavy cavalry.

That was his family—the number one treacherous minister clan!

“No wonder Ye Qinghuan is so determined to get rid of me. If I were emperor and had a dangerous minister like this lying beside me, I wouldn’t be able to sleep either!”

Lin Ming sighed. He really had become the grand villain of history.

But damn it, if being the villain, so be it!

History is just a little girl waiting to be dressed up. Even someone like Li Erfeng, who killed his brothers, forced his father, and violated women, still got hailed as an eternal emperor!

“Master! Madam is here!”

At that moment, Luo Feng, standing guard outside, came in to report.

“Son! I heard you were in the study reading?”

Madam Lin hurried in, breathless.

“Uh, yes!” Lin Ming quickly stood up and casually said, “Mother, your son’s no longer a child. I thought I’d read some classics to cultivate my character.”

But Lady Lin ignored his excuse. She touched Lin Ming’s forehead and muttered, “No fever… Could it be your brain’s gone bad? Why would you suddenly decide to read?”

Lin Ming: …

Lady Lin earnestly advised, “Son, we have over a dozen gold mines. You could squander for several lifetimes and not run out of wealth. What’s the point of reading useless books? If you want a title, I’ll speak to the Wang family that oversees the Ministry of Rites and get you appointed as a top scholar.”

Hearing this, Lin Ming was amazed.

No wonder this was a treacherous minister household—their values were perfect!

They taught him early to take shortcuts and avoid detours! After all, other than splurging, he had no real talent!

“Yes, yes, yes!” He nodded like a chicken pecking rice.

But then Lady Lin’s tone changed, “I think you got into trouble today because you’re too obsessed with women. You’ve got too many room-sharing maidservants! From now on, you can keep no more than ten!”

Lin Ming’s eyes widened.

Holy crap! I have room-sharing maidservants?

This son of a Duke really lived wild, huh?

That afternoon.

After seeing for himself the hundreds of beautiful maidservants in his harem, Lin Ming finally understood why this body, despite its young age, was so frail.

Don’t take on porcelain work without the right tools!

And they were all drop-dead gorgeous!

“Master, Madam instructed that from among these girls, you may keep only ten. The rest must be sent away.”

The housekeeper sent by Lady Lin bowed and informed him.

Lin Ming narrowed his eyes, scanning the room.

Fair-skinned beauties with long legs, even foreign girls and dark-skinned ones…

This was a tough choice!

Even the housekeeper in front of him still looked charming and elegant…

Lin Ming looked at her and asked, “Then… can I pick you?”