Am I going to be controlled by the players too?

"Long live the Emperor! Congratulations to Your Majesty on acquiring such a rare talent!"

Tong Chuxue stood beneath the imperial steps, her robes tinged with the fragrance of the palace incense. A surge of emotion welled up within her, but she quickly composed herself and bowed respectfully.

"Your subject, Tong Chuxue, thanks Your Majesty for your great favor! Your Majesty is wise!"

Ji Yushen's dragon eyes held a smile as he raised his hand to help her up, saying, "Rise, my dear minister."

From then on, Tong Chuxue leaped over the dragon gate!

From a mere junior college student to a second lieutenant in the army, then to a bachelor's degree, to the top scorer in the provincial examination, and finally to the top scorer in the imperial examination, becoming the number one scholar!

This thrilling storyline spread like wildfire throughout the capital, with countless media outlets eagerly anticipating the news and spreading the name of the top scholar across the country. Suddenly, everyone in the world knew him!

…………

The following day, the grand ceremony of announcing the results of the imperial examination took place.

The ceremony was still held in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, with all civil and military officials in the capital in attendance.

Beneath the golden throne, generals holding ceremonial swords, halberds, golden maces, and halberds lined the three levels of the Danbi steps, while a yellow parasol with nine dragons and curved handles was placed in the center outside the gate. The most eye-catching feature was the four golden dragons on the steps inside and outside the Huangji Gate, each the size of a house, representing the most solemn royal ceremony.

The palace eunuchs came carrying brocade robes and palace flowers, and personally adorned Tong Chuxue with golden flowers. Wearing a red brocade cloak embroidered with the colors of a top scholar, and with a jade belt around her waist, she had handsome features and a dignified bearing. Standing among the officials, she already possessed the demeanor of a renowned minister.

After expressing his gratitude, he, along with Yan Bang, the second-ranked scholar, and Feng Chuanxiang, the third-ranked scholar, were led onto the final imperial path and exited the palace through the central gate.

Standing before the imperial road, the three of them took a deep breath, feeling as if they had been born for this moment.

This is a privilege that all the princes, ministers, and even the legendary Grand Marshal and General could only dream of. Apart from the emperor, among the officials, only the top three scholars who are selected every three years are qualified to walk out of the palace through the main gate!

Even the Empress could only enter through the main gate on her wedding day!

The remaining scholars and civil and military officials exited through the left and right side gates. When Tong Chuxue and the second and third place scholars stepped out of the palace gate hand in hand, countless media outlets raised their cameras and recorded this glorious moment from every angle.

…………

Meanwhile, in Jinling City.

Inside the dusty, gray civil engineering teaching building of Jinling Vocational and Technical School.

At this moment, all the teachers and students of the school are gathered together to watch the live broadcast of the grand ceremony of announcing the results of the imperial examinations. On the huge screen, Tong Chuxue's radiant figure is on display.

The scene immediately erupted in commotion. The students who hadn't joined the army gasped in surprise, and even Tong Chuxue's former counselor was extremely excited: "Look, look! Who says a college can't produce a true dragon! From today onwards, I'm the teacher who taught the top scorer!"

"When I first met her two months ago, I felt that this woman was terrifyingly talented and that her talent should not be wasted. So I entrusted her with all the work on the construction site. Hard work pays off. She used the moving techniques she learned from me to move herself to the top of the imperial examination!"

"Want to know which courses I secretly tutored her in? The registration fee is just..."

…………

A certain construction company whose name cannot be directly stated due to Shenhe's divine power.

Tong Chuxue's parents sat in front of the television, watching the live broadcast of the Imperial Examination Ceremony, looking completely bewildered: "Is this...is this my son?"

“They look alike, and their names are similar too…” Tong’s father thought for a moment, “So it shouldn’t be. Didn’t Chu Xue just take her college entrance exam? Didn’t we agree to create another account and start over?”

"That's true."

"What names are we going to use for the new account? Tong Chuyu for a girl, and Tong Chulei for a boy?"

"What if the baby is a futa or a boy?"

"Then let's call it Tongchu Hailstorm."

As the couple were discussing things, the doorbell suddenly rang. The once unapproachable county magistrate, now all smiles, brought a large pile of gifts and repeatedly congratulated Tong Chuxue's parents.

…………

The western front.

The conflict has now turned into a tug-of-war. After realizing the enemy's firepower advantage, the Empire began to send soldiers in small squads to attack important military facilities and trenches occupied by the Kingdom.

However, the team is easily exposed under magic detection.

In particular, the kingdom's latest unmanned flying birds can carry bombs and patrol from ten miles away. Once they spot an imperial squad, they will swoop down to carry out a suicide attack.

Previously, Imperial soldiers could exchange their lives for enemy soldiers, but now, even if they fought desperately, they could only exchange their lives for a magical bird that cost tens of thousands of coins, making their deaths meaningless. As a result, morale on the Imperial Western Front plummeted, and many soldiers would rather be punished or even go to a military court than die like this.

Wang Zhiming's injuries have almost healed, and his team will be going on a mission in a couple of days.

Because of the defeat in the last battle, he became a squad leader even though he had only been in the army for a month. But when he looked at those green recruits, a trace of sadness would always appear in Wang Zhiming's eyes as he recalled his own equally green self and his close friends who had shared life and death with him.

Lying in the barracks, as the grand ceremony of awarding honors was broadcast on television, seeing the smug expressions of the civil officials, many soldiers and officers, incited by Wang Zhiming, began to hurl insults.

At this moment, they all believed that the war was started by the civil service group, that the civil service group sent them to the battlefield while they themselves enjoyed themselves in the rear.

When the first snow fell on Tong, the soldiers all stopped.

Among the officers and soldiers present, few were personally rescued by Tong Chuxue, but their comrades, subordinates, and superiors all benefited from Tong Chuxue's kindness and constantly spread the word about her bravery, kindness, piety, and beauty throughout the army.

Today, this legendary lieutenant has become a legend in the military camp. Whenever a soldier is shot and falls, he prays to this Valkyrie-like lieutenant before praying to the Amber God, saints, or Buddha, hoping that she will descend from the sky and save him.

When Wang Zhiming saw this scene, he also trembled uncontrollably:

"Boss... I never imagined that you would choose to join them and become a military official for our sake and to fight against the civil official group..." Wang Zhiming was moved to tears. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Boss, you are so great! I want to write a book and a biography for you!"

I've decided to write it in my "True History of the Empire," recounting the glorious life of Tong Laoda, from junior college student to top scholar!

So, after writing the title "The First Snow on the Paulownia Tree," Wang Zhiming pondered deeply and wrote the opening lines—

"Tong Chuxue's college entrance examination results were not ideal..."

…………

The procession of the riders through the streets was led by the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture himself. The streets were packed with people, who flocked to watch, while ladies gazed at the spectacle from the railings. Cheers and exclamations of admiration echoed throughout the streets and alleys.

The spring breeze caressed my robes, and the horses' hooves pounded on the bluestone slabs, their clattering sounds adding to the city's splendor.

A surge of pride welled up in the young girl's heart. The capital city's vermilion gates and painted beams, the willows along the imperial streets, the pavilions and towers—all came into view. Scenes of ten years of hard study, the strategies she devised in the examination hall, and the couplets she composed in the imperial palace that amazed the emperor and his ministers flashed through her mind. From an ordinary college student to the top scholar in the imperial examination, the glory she felt at this moment was enough to soothe all the past resentment and discontent.

Riding a swift horse in the spring breeze, one can see all the flowers of the capital in a single day.

After the parade, the Imperial Banquet at Qionglin was held.

The emperor personally hosted a banquet to entertain the newly appointed scholars, with senior officials and ministers from the six ministries in attendance.

Fine wine and delicacies, elegant music lingering in the air, the emperor and his ministers sat together, composing poems to express their aspirations. The Grand Secretary Lu Weiming raised his cup during the banquet, maintaining his composure, and toasted Tong Chuxue to show goodwill. The other civil officials stepped forward one after another to befriend him, their words full of attempts to win him over and curry favor.

After the banquet, there were various rituals such as paying homage at the Confucius Temple, expressing gratitude to the teacher, and the top scholar visiting the academy. Step by step, the entire set of rituals for the top scholar was completed, making it legitimate and recorded in the annals of the court and officialdom.

It wasn't until several days later that he was finally arranged to meet the Emperor again.

This time it wasn't the Imperial Palace, but a side hall, where Ji Yushen was reclining on the dragon bed, enjoying the grapes fed to him by the mermaid princess.

When she saw Tong Chuxue enter the hall, she smiled. She was barefoot and walked to the hall door to help Tong Chuxue up. She patted the dust off her body and acted as if she were a humble and respectful person.

Tong Chuxue naturally looked extremely grateful.

Ji Yushen led Tong Chuxue to her seat, then ordered the eunuchs to serve the imperial meal before returning to her original position.

Her Majesty the Empress's small figure barely touches the ground, and when she stands up, she might not even be as tall as eleven cans of Coke, yet she exudes majesty—under the influence of the "Emperor" card and the source essence [Glory], her every word and action is like that of a true dragon, inspiring a sense of worship from the bottom of one's heart. One would rather be a dog of Miss Himegami and be at her beck and call, which would be the greatest happiness in this life.

Seeing that Tong Chuxue seemed completely subdued by his authority, Ji Yushen nodded in satisfaction, then said softly:

"You were originally a junior lieutenant. I originally planned to send you to the Ministry of War to observe and learn, and then send you to the western front to join the army... But after reading your articles and poems, I felt it would be too much of a waste."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Cheng, who was inside the ring, wished he could jump out and slap Ji Yushen—what a pity! I worked so hard to make Tong Chuxue the top scholar, all I wanted was for her to go to the Ministry of War!

Isn't this wartime? Shouldn't we use our strengths wisely?

However, Ji Yushen changed the subject: "After all, I am a woman. The eunuchs left by my father in the palace are useless and cannot be released to harm the local areas. So I have filled them all into the Eastern Depot and the Western Depot to collect intelligence for me. But eunuchs cannot be trusted. I hope to select one person from among the officials to establish a wartime intelligence department to be responsible for the kingdom's espionage work."

"This person should be knowledgeable in military affairs, preferably with a military rank; this person should have meritorious service, preferably a civil official; this person should ideally have no connection with either the civil or military official groups, a clean family background, no relation to the kingdom, and should not participate in factional struggles, serving only me..."

"It would be best if this person were a woman, so that it would be easier for her to enter the palace and exchange information with the eunuchs of the Eastern and Western Depots."

Cheng Cheng's eyes lit up.

Himeko stepped forward, patted Kiri Hatsuyuki on the shoulder, and praised her:

"Therefore, after much deliberation, I have decided that this great responsibility is best entrusted to Minister Tong!"

Cheng Cheng burst into tears immediately.

Your Majesty, you've really found the right person! No one in the world knows more about the kingdom's spies than I do!

Chapter 116, The Tragedy of Ceasefire

One month later, inside the ring.

Cheng Cheng rubbed his tired hands and rechecked the secret message he needed to send to Freya today:

To Her Majesty Freya—

It's been a long time since I last saw you; winter has already arrived.

Another day of missing you.

Right now, I only have two girls on my mind: Tong Chuxue and you.

I only see Tong Chuxue every day for official business, to help her climb to a higher position and obtain more imperial intelligence for you; but when I think of you, I wish I could put you in a wedding dress right away.

Ultimately, you're the only one in my heart.

I love you, baby.

(Five hundred words of cheesy love talk are omitted here; it's not that Cheng Cheng hasn't dated or can't write.)

In conclusion, I look forward to the day I see you again.

Regarding the Witch Trials, the second tier of missions, "Establish an intelligence organization behind enemy lines," and the third tier, "Make contact with the kingdom," have been completed, but the first tier, "Climb to the upper echelons of the empire to stop the war," remains elusive. However, under my brilliant command, Tong Chuxue was promoted from a sixth-rank scholar to a fourth-rank commander of the Imperial Guard in just one month, a remarkably rapid advancement.

Of course, such progress is partly due to Himeko's appreciation, but also largely thanks to His Majesty's assistance—if His Majesty had not given me those high-ranking officials with businesses in the kingdom and useless spy information, Kiri Chuyuki would not have been able to achieve such merits so many times.

The Snow Lotus case, in particular, unfortunately did not achieve the planned results.

The Imperial Great Rare Snow Lotus, in order to marry the island nation's Emperor Sun, betrayed Imperial intelligence to the Kingdom. His Majesty entrusted this information to me, and I passed it on to Hime Mikami. My intention was to allow the Empire to wage war on multiple fronts against the island nation, thus relieving the pressure on the Kingdom's front lines... But I never expected the island nation to be so weak. It was destroyed after losing two golds and then surrendered unconditionally, without involving much of our military strength.

Fortunately, Tong Chuxue was promoted to the fourth rank as a result, and then to the fourth rank through other merits. Because of her important position, she was finally qualified to attend court discussions as an observer.

Himeko has recently been paying more and more attention to Kiri Hatsuyuki, often greeting her barefoot. I've heard that this custom originates from the imperial idiom "to greet someone with shoes on," which refers to a superior meeting a subordinate without wearing shoes or adjusting their clothes, to express humility, delight, and extreme respect.

I strongly suspect that this tactic involves seduction.

I've heard that there's a story in the Empire called "sleeping together at night, touching feet to sleep," which is also a way of expressing high levels of trust. Unfortunately, Ji Yushen has only used this trick on that mermaid princess, Jianqi Jue, and hasn't used it on me yet.

Of course, what I regret is that Hime no Mikoto didn't give me the chance to assassinate her in the middle of the night, not that I didn't have the chance to spend the night in the dragon's bed.

(Five hundred words omitted here to express Cheng Cheng's loyalty to Freya, and that he would not fall in love with someone else just because of a business trip.)