The Emperor's Guide to Growing Mushrooms

Lin Ling is a little mushroom spirit growing on the beam of the imperial study, spending each day observing the daily life of the tyrannical emperor— Confiscating properties, exiling families, executing entire clans. The little mushroom has no opinions on these matters, except that its tiny flowerpot for moonbathing always gets caught in the crossfire, tossed to the ground amid the flurry of crumpled memorials. So, it starts invading the emperor's dreams every night to complain, and eventually, the tyrant gifts it a new flowerpot. Perched on the beam, Lin Ling happily admires its new flowerpot, daydreaming about moving in, when suddenly—the emperor is angered again. As the emperor raises his hand, Lin Ling nervously whispers a reminder, "If you’re going to smash things later, please don’t throw my new flowerpot again, okay?" The study falls dead silent. Under everyone’s bewildered gazes, the tyrant turns and carefully relocates the flowerpot to a safer spot. The trembling officials, too scared to look up, slowly realize: the ruthless, decisive emperor is learning to care for a soft, tiny mushroom. PS: Set in a fictional dynasty with modernized language. A sweet bedtime snack/fluffy read—overthinking might ruin the charm and keep you awake OvO