“Then Yue'er must get used to it sooner.”
The Emperor chuckled lightly: “I can wait for at most three more days. After that, how about holding your coronation as Empress and your mother’s ennoblement ceremony on the same day?”
Even though Lady Zhou was once Jiang Xinyue’s stepmother and had been malicious, according to folk customs, one would need to observe a three-year mourning period. However, since she was now in the royal court, those rules no longer applied. The Emperor’s decree was the ultimate law. His statement of waiting for at most three days meant that he would announce that the Imperial Noble Consort was observing a three-day mourning period for her stepmother. After those three days, he would officially crown her as Empress, celebrating the occasion throughout the land.
“This subject…”
“No more talk of not wanting to be Empress.”
Emperor Xuanwu interrupted her: “I’ve already made too many efforts to make you this Empress. You are not allowed to refuse me. This Empress, I don’t want to give to anyone else but you.”
“This subject is not refusing,”
Jiang Xinyue, held in the Emperor’s embrace, pushed against his shoulders with both hands and looked at him earnestly: “But Your Majesty, if this subject becomes your Empress and the mother of the nation, while you work to strengthen your court, I also wish to do something for the women of the world. These things, people might think I’m mad, that I’m deviating from the norm. Even so, will Your Majesty believe in me and support me?”
She didn’t want to become Empress because she didn’t want to be the Emperor’s caretaker, but realizing that only by becoming Empress could she achieve her desired utopia, she knew she had to take the position. She needed to prepare the Emperor in advance, so that when she actually implemented her plans, he would be mentally ready.
“You’ve done enough unorthodox things, haven’t you?”
The Emperor leaned his forehead against hers: “Which time wasn’t I the one cleaning up after you?”
Just like this time when Jiang Xinyue led people to confront Imperial Doctor Hu and Director Lin. If word got out, she would be branded as a vixen.
The Emperor had Imperial Doctor Hu beaten and exiled from the palace, while Director Lin, for framing a high-ranking official, was imprisoned.
Imperial Doctor Hu, already advanced in age and unable to withstand the beating, had also lost a finger without proper treatment, likely not long for this world.
Director Lin, having aligned himself with Duke of Cheng in an attempt to bring down Minister Jiang and take his position, ended up losing everything. Stripped of his rank and now a prisoner, he was driven to madness.
With both central figures rendered unable to speak, the incident would not spread. If it did, it would be Duke of Cheng’s doing, and the Emperor would personally settle the score with him.
However, Duke of Cheng wasn’t that foolish. He understood the principle of preserving strength for future opportunities.
Consort De had inherited his cunning and ruthlessness.
She had pinned the deaths of over a dozen people on a eunuch, thinking it would end there. But as the Investigative Bureau delved deeper, they found the situation was far from simple.
Consort De was deeply hidden.
In the fertilizer storage room of Yanqing Palace, the red soil was soaked in blood. Yet, Consort De claimed that Luyin had always been in charge of the storage room, and all the precious flowers in Yanqing Palace were cared for by Luyin.
Well!
The murders were committed by mute slaves, and the flowers were nurtured by Luyin. With both dead, there was no one to testify, and the trail ended there.
Jiang Xinyue sat on the Emperor’s lap, proudly swinging her little feet, thinking: If I don’t get you used to cleaning up my mess, how will I manipulate you in the future?
A lovesick mind is the best dowry a man can have.
Jiang Xinyue suddenly remembered something: “Your Majesty, when we were at the imperial retreat, didn’t you find a porcelain bottle that resembled the one that killed the Former Crown Prince? Have you found out anything?”
At this, the Emperor’s brows furrowed, and he sighed, shaking his head: “This throne of mine has only been stable in recent years. The year the Crown Prince drowned, the court was in turmoil, and I had no mind to focus on the harem. Moreover, so many years have passed, and all those who knew the truth are either dead or have left the palace. I’m completely in the dark.”
It was the first time the Emperor spoke so candidly, and Jiang Xinyue found it rather refreshing.
“But among the palace concubines, those who entered the palace with the Empress and have received favor or given birth to children are only Consort De and Low Level Consort Yu.”
Low Level Consort Yu had only borne a princess and had a deep bond with the Empress. Back then, she was able to rise to the rank of Consort Wen, entirely supported by the Empress. She had no motive, reason, or courage to kill the Empress’s son.
That left only Consort De.
She was an old timer who entered the palace around the same time as the Empress and had given birth to the Second Princess and the Third Prince. The discovery of so many bodies in Yanqing Palace revealed her sinister and complex nature.
The Emperor pondered for a moment. Consort De was the mother of the Third Prince, and he most unwilling to see was that she was the true culprit behind the murder of the former Crown Prince and the Second Prince.
Even with the recent palace case of the Lotus Pond that had terrified the palace maids and eunuchs, he always subconsciously made excuses for Consort De.
Whether it was because she had been too good at hiding her true nature for the past decade or because he felt the Third Prince was too pitiful, every time his suspicions fell on Consort De, he would numb himself, refusing to delve deeper.
Between the deceased consorts, maids, eunuchs, and the Third Prince, he couldn’t bring himself to handle the situation fairly.
Jiang Xinyue could read his thoughts from a glance.
It was truly… every time she had a change of heart about this foolish Emperor and wanted to get closer to him, his indecisiveness always pushed her away.
He not only hadn’t learned how to love someone properly but also hadn’t learned how to be a good father. He didn’t know what was truly best for the Third Prince.
A mother who could poison her own child just to frame her rival would, in the future, kill her child to save herself.
Such a person was naturally cold-hearted and selfish, capable of anything to achieve their goals.
Emperor Xuanwu was highly sensitive to emotions. The moment Jiang Xinyue’s face turned cold, he looked at her with innocent big eyes, glistening with tears.
It was deadly!
He hadn’t learned how to love someone, but he had picked up Consort Wen and Low Level Consort Yu’s tactic… of using cuteness to win her over.
She, a proud 5’5”… she really couldn’t resist cuteness!
When did this foolish Emperor figure out her weakness?
Jiang Xinyue couldn’t resist reaching out and pinching the flesh on his cheeks, pulling his face out of shape: “Kneel down, call me sister!”
Pfft!
That was just what Queen Jiang imagined. In reality, she simply covered his eyes with her palm: “Your Majesty, don’t look at me like that. I might lose control.”
“If you can’t control yourself, then don’t. Come and take me.”
Jiang Xinyue slapped his hand away, put on her clothes, and walked inside: “Starting tonight, I will observe a three-day mourning period and sleep in the side hall. Your Majesty should also rest early and take care of your health.”
