"Say whatever you want, just treat it as idle chatter. After becoming Emperor, I don't even have someone to chat idly with." Gao Zhijian poured out his dissatisfaction to Li Huowang.
"Heh, you think I came here to chat idly with you?" Li Huowang casually tossed the stone aside and clapped the soil off his palms.
"Not really, but before we talk business, just humor me for a bit. In the palace, even talking has to be regulated."
"You're the Emperor—who could possibly regulate you?"
"I'm the Emperor, which means the rules for Emperors regulate me. How I eat, how I speak, how I treat people—all dictated by those rules."
As they spoke, a flock of concubines came running over to pour their complaints to Gao Zhijian.
Gao Zhijian impatiently dismissed them after a few words. Pointing at the departing women with his robust finger, he said with deep disdain, "I'm sick of them. All they think about is dragging me into bed with them! Just looking at them makes me want to puke."
