The Empror's Trap

Hello, sorry for not making it complicated, I will change Sonya Lius( The one in the harem) To Liza. To not make it complicated with Sonya Song.

I will correct the previous chapters too and delete this comment.

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"Your Majesty, you should rest now."

In the evening, Liza approached Pluvia with a bowl of medicinal soup.

"I'll sleep in a bit."

Pluvia yawned, then sat up straight and drank the medicine. Afterward, she stretched her body and sat down to continue reviewing the documents before her.

These were documents concerning grain transportation, related to the possible upcoming war with Samanjiang. According to Kenji's estimate, to deal with Samanjiang, it would be best to directly mobilize the entire Red Kite Army.

Recently, Kenji had been particularly fond of using the Red Kite Army for tasks. Although Kenji himself mainly controlled three of Camelot's veteran armies, lately he had been finding ways to involve the Red Kite Army, his intentions barely concealed.

On one hand, the Red Kite Army was indeed effective. Though not as well-trained in combat as Kenji's own Fierce Tiger Army, Mountain Army, and Stabilization Army, they were exceptionally strong as light cavalry.

On the other hand, the Red Kite Army was still under the Emperor's command. Kenji wasn't a fool—why would he deploy troops under his own control when he could petition to use the Emperor's forces?

Of course, Kenji had a third consideration—the Red Kite Army was among the first of Camelot's forces to undergo reform and modernization, with updated equipment, a higher proportion of cultivators, and a relatively more streamlined and efficient military system. Kenji also wanted to see how effective this new type of unit would be, and if it performed well, he could implement similar reforms in other units.

Pluvia had originally been reluctant to deploy the Red Kite Army for this war. She had planned to send out the Wind Forest Army, which was heavily influenced by various court ministers. But after careful consideration, she abandoned this idea.

Deploying the Wind Forest Army could indeed somewhat reduce the control that ministers and nobles had over it. However, placing this force outside the capital could very likely lead to trouble caused by factional officers loyal to certain court ministers. Therefore, it was better to keep the Wind Forest Army stationed in the south. The southern regions consisted mostly of small countries that couldn't cause significant trouble.

In the end, she decided to deploy the Red Kite Army—a significant part of her reasoning was that she also wanted to test the effectiveness of the reformed military system and equipment.

Now, the task at hand was to prepare for war, specifically the transportation of provisions.

Camelot had recently experienced a major disaster in Hexi County, its main grain-producing region. Kenji's previous method of collecting surplus grain from the populace had indeed added considerable reserves to Camelot's granaries. However, part of this had been used to address the grain shortage following the disaster in Hexi County, and some of what remained needed to be kept in reserve for emergencies.

The central granary couldn't be touched, and local granaries needed to maintain reserves, so the only option was to withdraw portions from various local granaries for military provisions.

This wasn't a difficult task, but coordinating withdrawals from various locations was detailed work.

"Your Majesty, you should rest earlier. Not everything needs to be rushed," Liza advised.

"I'd like to rest, but can I?" Pluvia sighed, then continued handling the matters before her. "Alright, you go to bed first. I still have work to do."

"In that case, Your Majesty, I'll wait until you go to bed. What if you need someone?"

Hearing Liza's words, Pluvia smiled and put down her brush. "It's fine. You sleep first. I'll go to bed shortly."

After a moment of silence, Liza could only comply.

Watching Liza enter the adjoining small room—her own bedroom—Pluvia let out a long breath.

Having someone monitor her routine was truly not a comfortable thing, although she knew the other person was concerned about her health. But... she couldn't bear to delay Camelot's affairs for even a moment.

Suddenly, she remembered something.

She opened her door, looked at the Royal Guards standing watch, and said:

"Go to Spring Peace Palace and see if the Grand Marshal has retired for the night. Just check the lights at his residence; don't disturb him unnecessarily."

"Understood, Your Majesty."

Naturally, the Royal Guards obeyed the Emperor's orders without question. One guard immediately set off toward Spring Peace Palace to investigate.

Pluvia then turned to another guard: "Go to the kitchen and tell the assistant imperial chef to prepare some late-night snacks. I want something to eat."

"As you command, Your Majesty. What would you like to eat?"

"The usual few items. Any one of them will do. Make extra."

The guard left, leaving two others at the door—Royal Guards served in shifts throughout the day, ensuring that at least four guards were stationed outside the Emperor's chambers at all times.

Before long, the kitchen had prepared a steamer of translucent shrimp dumplings.

Pluvia ate while continuing to review documents, making notes on several memorials confirming military grain transport routes before putting down her chopsticks.

She couldn't eat any more.

She never ate much to begin with, and having already had dinner, she wanted a late-night snack purely to prevent hunger before sleep, just to fill her stomach a little.

Just then, a Royal Guard reported from outside the door: "Your Majesty, your servant has been to Spring Peace Palace to check on the Grand Marshal."

"Oh? How was it?"

"Spring Peace Palace was brightly lit, with shadows moving about. The Grand Marshal probably hasn't gone to bed yet."

"He is..."

Sometimes that fellow was quite irritating, but honestly, he was truly working hard. Camelot's foundation wasn't particularly stable yet, with both internal and external situations requiring attention. Since those old fogies and slippery officials couldn't yet be adequately replaced, a considerable portion of affairs required Kenji's presence to keep things under control.

He really wasn't having an easy time.

"I can't finish these. Send them to Spring Peace Palace." Pluvia covered the steamer and pushed it forward, but after a moment's thought, she reconsidered.

Given Kenji's physique, these two or three dumplings probably wouldn't be enough, would they?

"Never mind. Please trouble the kitchen again to make another serving and send it to the Grand Marshal."

...

That night, as Kenji was preparing for bed, he looked at the steamer of still-steaming shrimp dumplings with an awkward expression.

A late-night snack bestowed by the Emperor herself was indeed a great honor, but the problem was that he was about to go to bed...

What Pluvia imagined—him burning the midnight oil, working so diligently—was completely off the mark. His late nights were purely due to habits formed in his previous world; being a night owl and staying up until one or two in the morning was common for him. He wasn't staying up late to work but to chat with his sister.

Chatting about matters of this world.

This didn't count as work; it was casual conversation. Kenji had just finished chatting and was preparing for bed when the Royal Guard arrived with the shrimp dumplings.

There was no help for it. He'd have to eat them.

Kenji expressed his gratitude while starting to eat. The taste was good, though eating at this hour seemed unnecessary.

He felt that Pluvia's attitude toward him had softened considerably lately. Perhaps it was due to that drugging incident, or perhaps she was genuinely considering the marriage alliance and trying to improve their relationship.

Kenji wasn't sure, but the priority now was to finish this food, then lie in bed, pull up the covers, and get some sleep!