Chapter 24: If I Were an Emperor

  Does the emperor also need to take an exam? Like our college entrance exams? What kind of questions are on it? Why aren't the empress and concubines here? I'm going out of the palace soon, great! After being cooped up for so long, I finally get to see what the outside world looks like. From now on, I won't have to see that tyrannical man again. Just as I was daydreaming, they both handed in their papers. So fast! I thought we'd have to wait a few more hours. The old emperor looked at the papers they submitted, let out a deep sigh, and then handed them over to Prime Minister Leng. They took turns looking through them. What's on those papers? I'm really curious, I forgot that there are still tears on my face, stretched my neck to take a peek at the papers in my father's hands.

  "Snowflakes." The old emperor suddenly called out to me, "Ah?" Can't I look?

  "I want to ask you a few questions, and I hope you will answer them carefully, understand?"

  So serious, I touched my tears and said, "I know."

  "If you were emperor," said the Emperor, "how would you be a good one?"

  "Huh?" Is that a question? Maybe if I were the emperor. "But I'm not the emperor, no ifs." I really didn't understand what the old emperor meant.

  "I said if," the emperor seemed eager to know how I would answer, "If you were an emperor, what would you do to be a good one?"

  "What does the Emperor want me to say? I stared at the Emperor and said: 'Your Majesty, if there's anything disrespectful in what I'm about to say, don't blame Fei Xue.'"

  "I won't blame you, I guarantee it."

  That's all I need to hear from you.

  "So I said: 'If I were the emperor, I would work hard and love my people. I want all of my subjects to have food to eat, clothes to wear, and money to see a doctor when they are sick.' I spoke for the voice of the common people and did many things for them."

  Is that the question? Why is the emperor asking me this? Did I do something wrong, will he behead me? Thinking of this, my hand unconsciously touched my neck, no, I don't want to move my head.

  "Is that all?"

  The emperor might just be casually asking, am I overthinking this, no one wants to chop off my head, fully displaying my own Q spirit. Said to the emperor:

  "Your Majesty, being an emperor and a good one at that is not something that can be accomplished with just a few words. Moreover, a good emperor is not someone who claims to be good themselves; it's the people who will judge. Being an emperor isn't just about you wanting to be a good one, either. If your officials are corrupt and only think of exploiting the people for personal gain, then no matter what, you won't be a good emperor in their eyes."

  I paused, looking around the room at everyone staring at me in silence.

  "Your Majesty, this is a long story, so I'll keep it brief: an emperor should favor wise officials, distance themselves from petty ones, and listen to, observe, and understand the voices of their people. Everything an emperor has comes from their subjects; if they don't support you, you'll have nothing. So, if I were emperor, I would ensure that every one of my subjects has food to eat, clothes to wear, money for medical care when they're sick, and a secure life where they can live in peace."

  I finished speaking and then heard the old emperor say to me: "Well said, a life of peace and contentment, every one of my subjects has food to eat and clothes to wear, and when they fall ill, they have money for medical treatment." The emperor turned to his ministers and said: "If the common people do not even have the most basic guarantees for their livelihoods, it shows that the emperor is not a good one. If he cannot even provide for the basic needs of his own subjects, it's well said." His ministers all nodded in agreement.

  "Snowflake, if you were an emperor, who would you most want to thank?" The emperor asked another question.

  "Of course, it's the generals guarding the borders."

  "Why?" This time the question was not from the Emperor, but from Prime Minister Leng. All he saw was him asking: "Why does the princess think that she should thank the border generals most, rather than the previous emperor who abdicated to you?"

  "Being born into a royal family is not something you can choose, but since you are the emperor, your throne may have been passed down to you by your father, however, without those generals who guard the borders and fight to the death to protect your kingdom, how can you sit securely on your throne?"

  "Since so, why wasn't it you who came up with strategies for him in the morning as a great minister?" asked Bai Qi, the university scholar.

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