Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
When Ah Yu entered, she realized that there were still many people in the room, especially Empress Qin, who was sitting not far from the bed. Her face was as ugly as it could be.
As a maidservant had already reported that Ah Yu had arrived, Empress Qin held back the rest of her words and only glanced at Qin Huai. She didnât say anything and left.
After Empress Qin left, the Empress Dowager was still around. She was all smiles and didnât care about the Empress.
She said, âGood child, donât listen to the Empress. She doesnât have any bad intentions. Sheâs just a little stupid.â
Everyone present was either family or trusted aides. When they heard this, they pretended not to hear it.
Empress Qin was stupid? No one would believe that!
Ah Yu bowed to the Empress Dowager before looking at Qin Huai.
Qin Huaiâs body was actually fine. After all, All Yu had given him too many life-saving items. As long as he was still alive, it was not difficult for him to survive.
âAh Yu, come back in a few days. You must be tired from the long journey. 1 still have the scent of illness on me.â Seeing Ah Yu, the cold expression on Qin Huaiâs face disappeared, and his eyes were filled with her.
Seeing Qin Huai like this, the Empress Dowager smiled and shook her head. Then, she pulled Liu Shi and the servants out.
âThe two little fellows havenât seen each other for more than a year. Let them talk properly.â The Empress Dowager liked Ah Yu to begin with. She knew that Ah Yu was Yaoguangâs granddaughter, so she doted on her even more.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Liu Shi also smiled. âYes.â
Now, when she was facing the Empress Dowager and the other nobles, she was no longer uneasy.
Just as her mother-in-law had said, as long as the other party doesnât have two noses, how scary could they be?
If she revealed her cowardice, others would look down on her.
After returning to her room, All Yu endured it and couldnât help but ask curiously, âI heard you say something earlier. Did the Empress say something to you again?â
Qin Huai didnât want to hide it from her, but he didnât want her to feel disgusted.
âShe wants to do something that she thinks is good for us.â Qin Huaiâs eyes were filled with impatience when he mentioned the Empress. âDonât worry about it. Iâll handle it.â
Actually, Empress Qin didnât have any other intentions. She and Emperor Minghua were very angry about Qin Huaiâs assassination this time. But on the surface, they couldnât do too much.
According to Empress Qin, Qin Huai had already recovered and should be allowed to take the position of Crown Prince.
In the past, he wasnât expected to live long. So even if he sat in that position, it would be for nothing. Now, as long as he acknowledged his roots and ancestors, he could assume his position as the legitimate Crown Prince.
Moreover, Qin Huaiâs identity was not shameful. Heâs the legitimate son of the Emperor and the Empress, and Emperor Minghua favored the Empress very much.
The Empress was from the Qin Family of Jiangnan. Even if she was a little distant from the main branch, the Qin Family had always been united, and the Qin Family Head of Jiangnan was willing to support her.
As for the Empress Dowager, she was the head of the Qin Family in Jiangnan. Emperor Minghuaâs ability as a monarch was outstanding, and he didnât need to be restrained by any side at all. It could be said that it was effortless for the couple to push Qin Huai to the position of Crown Prince.
The only troublesome thing was the families of the other Princes in the harem. Although they were weaker than the Qin Family of Jiangnan, they were all aristocratic families that had guarded Wanning City for hundreds of years.
If they wanted to minimize their losses, they had to do something they had no choice in.
Emperor Minghua suggested that Qin Huai choose a few women from the aristocratic families as his future concubines.
After Ah Yu married into the royal family, he could bring the concubines in.
As for whether Qin Huai would dote on them when he grew up in the future, the two of them didnât care.
There was another purpose for doing this, and that was to take the opportunity to suppress some of the large clans that were involved in the assassination of Qin Huai. They might not all support the Second Prince.
Ahead of the Second Prince was the Eldest Prince, and below him was the Third Prince. They were all about the same age and were all talented people. No one could say for sure which of them had any thoughts.
Taking the daughters of the aristocratic families as imperial concubines was both a favor and a punishment.
This was originally a very ordinary matter. It would even make many people suffer in silence and rush to curry favor with Qin Huai, clearing many obstacles for him.
However, Qin Huai didnât agree. He did not even wait for Empress Qin to analyze anything for him before rejecting her.
Before Ah Yu entered the courtyard, Qin Huai even said with burning words, âThereâs no need to waste your breath. 1â11 never agree! This is not only an insult to me, but also to All Yu! So what if the aristocratic families and peddlers all take in concubines? Do I have to do whatever the world does?
Only you can treat such a disgusting thing as a reward. Your Highness, even if you can tolerate someone sharing your husband with you in the harem, our Ah Yu canât! Even if she can tolerate it, 1 canât bear to let her do it. I canât tolerate it myself!
If you want to be a wise Empress, go ahead. As long as Iâm an official of the court, I will be loyal to the Emperor! Youâre so capable. Even if you pull a beggar along the roadside to be your son, you can still enjoy your old age in the future. You donât have to scheme against me, a person whoâs destined to die.â
Then, it was the words that he had promised Ah Yu in this life.
Empress Qin was so angry that her face turned pale. The Empress Dowager was calm, as if Qin Huaiâs words were not dangerous and worthy of the death penalty, but a brat making a scene.
Now that everyone had dispersed, Ah Yu blinked and asked, âBig Brother Ah You, arenât you afraid of being impeached by the censors after what you said just now?â
Empress Qin valued etiquette the most. Even an elder wouldnât tolerate Qin Huaiâs last sentence.
Which man from a good family would say such words?
Even the unmarried women couldnât say it, let alone Qin Huai with his extraordinary status.
Qin Huai pursed his lips. âJust let them impeach me. They have nothing to do all day anyway.â
The Great Chang had been prosperous for many years. Under the rule of Emperor Minghua, the country was considered prosperous and the people were safe. They also ruthlessly investigated a few nobles, confiscated their houses, and exiled them. They frightened the corrupt officials so much that they didnât dare to make a big move.
When the censors had nothing to do, they would impeach them for some small matters. The big matters would be sent to the Cabinet and Emperor Minghuaâs imperial study, and the small matters would be sent to the Hanlin Academy they were in.
If he was impeached for his words, the case would only be sent to the Hanlin Academy.
He was a staff member of the Hanlin Academy. In name, he was in charge of the compilation of records and other matters. In fact, the Hanlin Academy was almost his home ground. What could they achieve there?
He was already giving them face by writing back to them.
Ah Yu laughed. âBig Brother All You, looks like youâve grown a lot in the past year!â
âOf course I have to grow.â Qin Huai felt much more relaxed in front of All Yu. âDidnât you change too? You must have suffered a lot in a bitter and cold place like Jiangsai.â
Ah Yu shook her head honestly. âNo, who can bully me? Not only that, I also did a few big things over there. Iâm sure youâve heard about it.â
âYes, the guards told me.â
The guards he mentioned were naturally the Crimson Guards. At the mention of this, Qin Huai asked, âChi Jia must have been seriously injured in order to protect me. Do you know how he is?â
Qin Huai had just woken up when people kept coming to visit him in the room. It was not convenient for the Crimson Guards to come in and report.
Before he fainted, he saw that Chi Jia was already covered in injuries.
âHis life was saved, but the tendons in his feet were broken by someone. His True Qi is flowing in reverse. His external injuries are fine, but his internal injuries are very serious.â As she spoke, Ah Yu lowered her body and whispered into Qin Huaiâs ear, âDonât worry, itâs all for the outsiders to see. Iâve used all the important medicine.â
Chi Jiaâs injuries looked very serious, but he survived. It wouldnât be a big problem to nurse him back to health. She only needed to use the ordinary Myriad Spirit Water and Myriad Spirit Fruit to heal him.
On the other hand, Qin Huaiâs situation did not look that serious, but his body was extremely damaged.
Fortunately, with Ah Yu around, everything could be saved.
A relaxed smile appeared on Qin Huaiâs face. He sighed. âThe world doesnât know that if not for you, I would have died thousands of times. No one knows how good you are.â
He couldnât bear to let Ah Yu down at all. In fact, if not for the fact that he was too attached to her, he felt that he was not worthy of her.
Not to mention bringing in concubines. That was not a gift, but forcing Ah Yu to separate from him.
Ah Yu should be free. He, Qin Huai, must hold up the vast world for her even if he wasnât a Prince or the Crown Prince.
After this incident, he would not be soft-hearted at all. If Emperor Minghua and Empress Qin still wanted the harem to be equally peaceful, they would know what to do.
Otherwise, he wouldnât mind killing all their children and forcing Empress Qin, who had always valued integrity, to give birth to a little prince with Emperor Minghua.
It was not that he couldnât do it in the past, but he didnât want to do so.
All these years he had been in Wanning City, he was not just preparing to become the top scorer and be an official.
He couldnât let Ah Yu accompany him through such a tiring and tiring life.
On the fifth of June, something huge happened in the Great Chang.
The Second Prince, who had been demoted to a commoner, had somehow run to the border and colluded with the remnants of the Eastern Desert Kingdom to rebel.
The officials shouted that they wanted to purge the country, but the generals didnât dare to take the initiative to fight.
Whether heâs a commoner or a rebel, heâs still the Second Prince, the child of the young and powerful Emperor Minghua.
Qin Huai, who was standing at the end of the hall, stood up with the ceremonial tablet in his hand. The young official was filled with righteousness, his eyes were clear, and he was neither servile nor overbearing. He said loudly, âYour Majesty, Iâm willing to lead the army and resist external humiliation to protect the stability of our Great Chang!â
Was the âlovelyâ scholar from the Hanlin Academy going to lead the army to war and fight the Second Prince?
Everyone was in an uproar!