Yes, Madam Prime Minister

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"Then why didn't you stop it?" Zhao Yingqi asked the same question again.

Ronan responded, "Because I never intended to protect them in the first place. If one of them dies, firstly, it proves that I had foresight, so that they won't easily contradict me in the future; secondly, it makes them realize the threat and truly band together on my side."

Zhao Yingqi smiled with relief. "Okay, that's very Ronan."

"Then how did you know from the beginning that Scholar Chen wanted to kill He Jinxin?" Zhao Yingqi asked again. She had only just heard the news and thought of it, while Ronan had obviously guessed it from the start.

Ronan smiled and said, "Because I knew from the beginning that Chen Zuolin and I are the same kind of people. If I were him, I would do the same thing. Of course, I'm not sure who he wants to kill. I only just made a judgment."

At this moment, a trace of worry appeared on Zhao Yingqi's face. "Then, should we be on guard against the Liu family?" The Liu family was what she called Liu Menglong in private. Although Zhao Yingqi knew that the "Zhao Yingqi" in this world had no connection with her, she still had a very bad impression of Liu Menglong, the husband of another "her". In terms of appearance, strength, ability and even attitude towards women, Liu Menglong was inferior to Ronan in every way.

Despite having so many women and so many things to do, Ronan still makes time to care about each and every one of them. Liu Menglong, on the other hand, only has one wife, and their daily interactions are bland and unenthusiastic.

“No need. Chen Zuolin would never lay a hand on Brother Liu; that would be a completely different matter,” Ronan replied.

Killing an official is tantamount to rebellion. This is Foshan, not some barbaric land. Chen Zuolin is a scholar and a relative of a high-ranking official, not some local tyrant in a remote border region.

“Then I’ll go back to her side and look at the files,” Zhao Yingqi said.

Looking at the case files was just a pretext; she simply wanted to get closer to another "self."

Chapter 764 Gratitude to the Han Dynasty, Loyalty, Filial Piety, Benevolence, and Righteousness—Death is Not a Pity

Yang Huaien, who had changed into a Hanfu (traditional Han Chinese clothing), took off her large silver hoop earrings and put on small pearl earrings instead.

After doing her makeup in front of the glass mirror, looking at herself in the mirror, she once again recalled the past.

She was not Han Chinese, nor could she be considered a minority group in the southwest of the Davidic dynasty; her ancestors were from Siam.

A little over a hundred to two hundred years ago, a group of Seres who failed to seize power in Han territory fled to Southeast Asia. They once conquered the entire Southeast Asian region, mainly Annam, Siam, and Burma, with great speed and force. The Seres people were the national ethnic group and enjoyed the highest status. They also adopted some customs from the northern Seres grasslands, appointing the heads of the local powerful clans and leaders of separatist forces as banner lords, turning their own armed forces into a banner.

Although the original masters suffered considerable losses, they were still masters. However, in the midst of war, countless common people suffered greatly.

These people simply fled north to Seres.

Yang Huaien's ancestors were among them.

There was exchange between East and West in the past, then it stopped, and only in recent decades has it become more and more frequent again. But this is the general situation. For extraordinary people, especially those with great strength, it is not difficult to travel from the West to the East or from the East to the West.

Yang Huaien's mother met a Westerner, and Yang Huaien was born after his mother was raped.

My mother remarried a local man. Perhaps the word "married" is inappropriate; it's more accurate to say she became that man's woman.

At this time, Yang Huaien was four years old. She was just a child, but she had to work like a slave.

Everything changed when she was seven years old. That year, she awakened extraordinary powers, but more importantly, her "father" unexpectedly rescued a Seres official who had been exiled to this side of the river. Afterward, this "father" became the official's attendant. From

Looking back now, it probably wasn't a rescue, because that official was a very powerful superhuman; even if he hadn't encountered my father, he wouldn't have died.

Although my father also possessed extraordinary powers, they were insignificant compared to that official.

Before long, her father stopped treating her so harshly, and even the way he spoke to her changed.

This change wasn't because her father realized she had extraordinary powers, but because the official changed him, because her attitude towards her mother and others improved.

Later, many people from this area went to listen to that official's lecture.

Yang Huaien also went to eavesdrop.

Later, this official also privately taught cultivation methods to some good students. Yang Huaien also wanted to learn, but the official told her that it would be a waste to use her strength for cultivation methods, and then gave her some books.

He stayed there for five years before the official left.

Before leaving, the official gave her a beautiful Chinese name, but she didn't use it. She chose her own name, Yang Huaien, to remember her teacher's kindness.

That year, Yang Huaien was twelve years old. She still didn't quite understand the principles in the book, but she firmly had an idea: she wanted to marry a Han man and become a Han man, not to escape from here, nor to pursue a better life, but to understand the teacher's way.

At fourteen, her father died, and she was the only one in the family who escaped.

She never thought of helping her father, not because her power was insignificant, but because her father was going to help a traitor seize the throne, which was disloyal. If her father was loyal, what did it matter if she died?

At fifteen, she finally got her wish and married a Seres man, although he was just a military household member with no money, no power, and no supernatural abilities.

Unfortunately, on the second day of their marriage, her husband was conscripted to the battlefield. When he returned, he had only a plaque, five taels of silver, and two bags of rice.

She became a widow, and by then she was already of the third rank. But she had no intention of leaving the family, because she still had her parents-in-law and her younger brother-in-law. She had to serve her parents-in-law and raise her younger brother-in-law like her own son, teaching him how to be a good person.

However, when she turned eighteen, fate played another trick on her. Her in-laws plotted to sell her for money as a dowry for their youngest son's marriage.

Yang Huaien's world completely collapsed; the benevolence and filial piety she believed in were ruthlessly trampled upon.

She did not seek revenge, but simply left. From then on, the world of martial arts gained a new figure, Widow Yang, a bandit leader who killed for money.

In the blink of an eye, ten years have passed. She is now twenty-eight years old and at the fourth level, although her appearance has not changed much since she was eighteen.

In Seris's words, she belongs to the Apocalypse; in Western terms, she belongs to the Fate Transformation system.

A first-tier Golden Tiger can transform into a tiger-man clad in armor and equipped with sharp claws. Even without transforming, it possesses tiger power, which increases with its rank.

The second-tier earth cat transforms into a very small cat that can burrow underground. Even without transforming, it possesses exceptional flexibility. The enhancement level starts at the second tier and increases with the tier level.

The Tier 3 Wooden Leopard resembles a clouded leopard, possessing exceptional agility, climbing ability, and life regeneration. Even without transforming, it retains high agility and high life regeneration, with the same buffs as before.

The fourth-tier water tiger is endowed with abilities in water and has undergone a change in appearance. Starting from the fourth tier, its transformation has become qualitative, transcending the appearance of animals in nature and beginning to become fantastical.

"Big sister, it's time to go." A somewhat urgent voice came from outside the door.

Yang Huaien picked up his two swords and went outside.

All six of her subordinates were present.

"You guys are being so diligent this time?" Yang Huaien asked with a smile.

"Ha, this is a big order! If we close it, we can live comfortably for half a year." The skinny man who had just come over to urge her said with a lewd smile.

The group of people also grinned, revealing their憨憨 (simple and honest) smiles.

The strongest of these six was only a second-tier individual, followed by a first-tier individual. The remaining four were all second-rate and lacked real combat skills. Their main role was to complete auxiliary tasks such as making contact, scouting locations, planning routes, and collecting money. Only Yang Huaien himself was truly capable of actual combat.

"Has all the evidence been confirmed?" Yang Huaien asked.

"That guy's business is so big, how could he be a good person?" the plain-looking, slightly overweight man said with a chuckle.

Yang Huaien glared at the other person.

The slightly overweight man quickly pulled out a manuscript and said, "Absolutely no problem, please take a look, ma'am."

Yang Huaien looked at the list. She was indeed utterly disappointed in Seris, but as long as the target embodied any two of the four virtues of loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness, or had no obvious evil deeds, or had done many good deeds—if even one of these three criteria was met—she wouldn't accept the job. Although, in the past ten years, she hadn't encountered a single person she could refuse.

Sure enough, another unscrupulous merchant who doesn't take advantage of any of the three advantages; he deserves to die.

"Is everything planned out?" Yang Huaien asked again.

"Don't worry, big sister," the skinny, sleazy-looking man replied. He was in charge of the entire plan.

“Alright, we’ll do it the same way as before. Go have some fun for a couple of days. After that, I’ll make my move, and you can leave. Go to the usual place. If I don’t come back, you can split the gold and silver and go your separate ways. Don’t even think about taking any money,” Yang Huaien said.

She would say this before every operation, and she never failed. Everyone was already tired of hearing it.

Chapter 765 Curiosity, "Cat", Outwardly Tang, Inwardly Ming

He Jinxin is dead; he committed suicide by shooting himself.

News of his death will spread rapidly throughout the streets and alleys of Foshan tomorrow.

Most people will first ask, "Who is He Jinxin?" because they are merely fuel in the giant furnace of Foshan. When they learn who He Jinxin was, what he did, and that he committed suicide out of guilt, they will suddenly understand and say, "He deserved it."

After all, He Jinxin was one of the ones who pushed them into the furnace.

As for those who actually knew He Jinxin, such as Master Wang, Master Li, Master Zhou, Master Xu, and Master Lin, they knew that Master He would not commit suicide; he was forced to commit suicide.

But these things are no longer relevant to Yang Huaien.

However, Yang Huaien did not intend to leave just like that. She was very curious about the new Lord Liu who had come to Foshan, even though she did not know this lord named Liu Menglong at all.

She didn't know Liu Menglong, but she knew Yuan Fanghe. Yuan Fanghe had previously served as an official in Guangxi, in a poor place inhabited mainly by Yi people. That place was Yang Huaien's hometown.

Yuan Fanghe is a somewhat difficult person to describe, at least that's what Yang Huaien thinks.

He was irritable, eccentric, arrogant, and rude. He was inconsiderate of his subordinates and did not care for the people. He did not seem like a good person at all. However, when he quelled the civil unrest, he did not kill innocent people to claim credit, and he actually implemented the policies that benefited the people.

Yang Huaien was naturally curious about what kind of person Liu Menglong was, who was being targeted by Yuan Fanghe.

Yang Huaien knew that He Xinjin was killed because he was close to Liu Menglong.

After all, she was a well-informed assassin, and also a foreign bastard who had read more books than many Han Chinese. Many Han Chinese had only read the so-called classics, and if you asked them who a certain historical figure was, they probably wouldn't be able to answer. But she had read many history books.

Yang Huaien was unaware that the person who truly wanted He Xinjin dead was not Yuan Fanghe, but Chen Zuolin.

In the dead of night, Yang Huaien quietly approached Liu Menglong's residence, preparing to sneak in disguise as a little stray cat.

Her ability to infiltrate in human form is only detectable by those of higher rank than herself; those of equal or lower rank are absolutely unable to detect it. This is a rule-based power akin to divine magic.

As for Liu Menglong, he was at the third rank. His wife didn't know, but it probably wasn't high.

Rumor has it that Master Luo and his concubine are quite formidable; Yuan Fanghe couldn't even withstand a single kick from them, which would require at least fifth-level strength. However, it's clear they couldn't be at Liu Menglong's house, since Liu Menglong's household includes women.

Meanwhile, Zhao Yingqi, the clerk, was organizing the case files, or more accurately, watching Alice organize them.

Another "Zhao Yingqi" was also there. Her daughter with Liu Menglong was only a little over a year old. She slept all day, but would wake up crying from time to time. Her schedule followed the child's. She would wait until it was close to midnight, when the child woke up, to feed her and coax her back to sleep before she would go to sleep herself.

"Gentlemen, please rest for a while and have some late-night snacks," said Madam Zhao.

"I'm not tired," Zhao Yingqi said.

“Of course you’re not tired, I’m the one doing all the work,” Alice said.

She knew that the two were one person in a sense, and Zhao Yingqi was five years older than Madam Zhao, but Madam Zhao, who was well-educated and reasonable, seemed more like the older sister.

It can only be said that Ronan's two daughters led her astray.

"I'll go to the kitchen and make you something," Madam Zhao said before leaving.

Liu Menglong's family certainly had a cook, but it was so late that the cook was asleep, and Madam Zhao was unwilling to wake her up.

Meanwhile, Alice continued working. It has to be said, the officials in Seris are really incompetent.

Looking at the past records and files of various government departments will reveal a whole host of problems.

Zhao Yingqi, standing to the side, was also impressed. Alice could point out mistakes as easily as eating or drinking.

How could it not be easy? Alice was trained by Ronan, a top-notch traitor, and had worked as an inspector for nearly thirty years, overseeing all sorts of scoundrels promoted by Ronan. Ronan, on the other hand, was strict in cracking down on the kind of crude and ruthless corruption, tacitly encouraging officials to exploit legal loopholes and engage in collusion between officials and businessmen. Not to mention the competence of these people, their ability to fabricate lies was top-notch. Alice was trained in this way.

The level of deception among Seris's officials was unimaginably low; in Seris's words, it was a classic case of "protesting too much."

Actually, this is quite normal.

Before Ronan and Dinia came to power, the civil service exams in the Kingdom of Phos focused on mathematics and law. After Ronan and Dinia took power, these two subjects became even more difficult.

In Ronan's words, in France under the wise leadership of the great Empress Ambrina, officials must be just as competent as those unscrupulous businessmen, and must understand finance and taxation and the law better than businessmen. Otherwise, how can we build a wonderful society of bureaucratic capitalism? Remember, officials come first, capital comes second. If a mayor can only kneel before those 30%, then he should not be a mayor.

In fact, during the later years of Ronan's rule, many sons of French bankers and lawyers simply entered politics.

On the contrary, most of the officials in Seris, apart from having read some sage books, were only good at cultivation techniques, and their level of expertise in accounting and law was simply appalling.

Because Seris implemented the imperial examination system, the kind that tested knowledge of the classics. Within the imperial examination, there was also something called "tribute examination," which was equivalent to a scholar. Warriors automatically became candidates for the "tribute examination," while anyone with a skill level equivalent to a beginner Western magician became a "scholar."

Of course, if you want to become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), you still have to take the exam.

Liu Menglong first became a scholar, directly acquiring the status of a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examination), and then passed the Jinshi (a successful candidate in the metropolitan examination) before becoming an official. Of course, he ranked very low, so he started as a minor eighth-rank official. Those who ranked higher would enter the central government departments for training; some would remain in the central government starting as minor officials, while others would be sent to local areas. Those who ranked in the middle would be directly sent to local areas, basically at the level of a county magistrate.

Officials produced under this system may have some political acumen and even decent military skills, but they are truly incompetent in economics and law.

Alice has it all figured out.

In addition, this system is also the reason why Seris is now "outwardly Tang and inwardly Ming". Scholars are generally more cultured because scholars are mainly engaged in "magic", that is, divine magic, and they have to study knowledge hard. Warriors, on the other hand, are engaged in "different martial arts", that is, different martial arts, and they mainly train their spiritual organs to release magic quickly or even automatically.

The civil officials, dominated by scholars, controlled the central government, pushing the military officials, dominated by warriors, to the border towns or even overseas.

To put it nicely, "outer Tang, inner Ming" means that internally it was as strict with etiquette as the Great Meng Dynasty, while externally it was as enterprising as the Great Tang Dynasty. To put it bluntly, internally it was as fiercely divided as the Great Meng Dynasty, while externally it was as resistant to the central government as the Great Tang Dynasty.

"Yingqi, go to Madam Zhao's place," Alice suddenly said seriously.

"Huh?" Zhao Yingqi looked surprised.

"Don't ask, just go!" Alice snapped, sensing an unfamiliar presence.

In the past, Alice wouldn't have been able to do it, but during this journey eastward, she was the one who improved the most, rising from the third rank to the fifth rank.

Chapter 766 Within Seven Steps, the Fighting Game Revolves Around Dual Wielding; Not Drunk and Drunk

In the courtyard, where the moonlight cast dappled shadows and the oil lamp shone brightly, Alice warily watched the corner around the bend.

Just then, a small, sandy-brown tabby kitten appeared, waddling along. It gave Alice a warning in a soft, childish voice, as if this were its territory.

Alice smiled and exclaimed softly, "Oh, it's just a cat."

At this moment, Yang Huaien breathed a sigh of relief; she had thought the woman had discovered her.