Chapter 396

Those who were dissatisfied and always sought to replace her, hoping to elevate their own daughters, should carefully consider their own worth. Otherwise, they would end up like the Huang Family, and they would have no one but themselves to blame.

She was a person who, when pushed to her limits, would show no mercy, even to her own family. So, they shouldn’t blame her later for not caring about family ties or face.

Jiang Yankun looked at the elegant and delicate handwriting, unable to discern whether it was written by his daughter or by someone else on her behalf.

But the message was undoubtedly his daughter’s.

He glanced at the elders gathered in the Jiang Family’s reception hall. It seemed they all knew that the younger ones couldn’t handle Jiang Yankun, so they had sent the older, more respected members of the clan.

“Yankun, Huang Xicai came to my house, saying that he sent his daughter into the palace to assist the Empress, but she was falsely accused of poisoning Consort Liang, forced to drink poison, and expelled from the palace. Is this true?”

“How could this happen? She’s still young, and her actions are too extreme. Now that she’s beautiful and favored by the Emperor, what will happen when she grows old and loses his favor? Won’t the family send other girls to help her secure his affection?”

“Yankun, you must talk to her. Being too cruel will make her unlikable to men. Right now, she’s in favor, so no one dares to confront her. But if she falls out of favor, this will be brought up and damage the Crown Prince’s reputation!”

“She became the Empress with the family’s support. Her behavior now suggests she thinks we sent the Huang girl into the palace. Is this her way of warning us, the elders?”

“Exactly! This is unacceptable.”

...

These people were all voicing their dissatisfaction with Jiang Xinyue. In the past, Jiang Yankun would have turned into a fierce critic and lashed out at them.

They knew his daughter was currently favored by the Emperor, yet they still wanted to send young girls into the palace. Were they trying to secure her position or steal it? The old men knew the answer themselves.

If they truly wanted to help Jiang Xinyue maintain the Emperor’s favor, they should wait until she had fallen from grace, with no hope of recovery, before sending young, beautiful, and skilled women into the palace to help her regain his affection.

But no, they saw that she was currently in power, loved by the Emperor, with the entire harem bowing to her, and her son had been named the Crown Prince. She was at the peak of her influence and favor.

Sending their own daughters into the palace at this time was clearly using Jiang Xinyue as a stepping stone, hoping she would pave the way for their daughters. If the Emperor were truly captivated by their daughters, Jiang Xinyue’s position would be in jeopardy.

What did they mean by saying the family had contributed greatly to Jiang Xinyue becoming the Empress?

Back when he hadn’t yet taken the imperial exams and wasn’t an official in the capital, when had the family ever treated his branch with respect?

It wasn’t that the family had willingly helped Jiang Xinyue; it was that after she gained the Emperor’s favor, the Jiang Family’s status rose, and they all reaped tangible benefits. That was why they listened to Jiang Yanxi and supported Jiang Xinyue wholeheartedly.

If Jiang Xinyue had remained a low-ranking concubine in the palace, bringing them no benefits, would they have helped her?

Absolutely not.

So, this was a mutually beneficial arrangement. Why did they act as if they had made selfless sacrifices, and that Jiang Xinyue was ungrateful for not complying with their wishes?

He went over these thoughts in his mind, and his anger subsided a little.

Thanks to Master Jing’s teachings, he was no longer the hot-headed critic he used to be. Now, he was the reasonable Minister Jiang.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“You elders are right. I, Jiang Yankun, owe my current position to the family’s support. But let’s be clear, so that no one in the future can exaggerate their contributions and tarnish the reputation of the Empress and the Crown Prince. What do you think?”

“What do you mean by ‘be clear’?”

“If there’s something unclear, just say it.”

“Since the Empress entered the palace over three years ago, she has risen from a low-ranking concubine to the position of Empress. Frankly, as her father, I haven’t been able to help her at all. Instead, it is the Empress who has elevated me, an unworthy father, from a minor official in the Ministry of Rites to the head of the Ministry of Punishment, and now to a member of the imperial cabinet. All of this is due to the Emperor’s love and respect for the Empress. Her life in the palace is fraught with danger; one misstep could lead to disaster. Today, I’m making it clear: I will not allow anyone, under any pretext, to harm my daughter.”

His years as an official had given him an imposing aura, and those with guilty consciences couldn’t meet his gaze.

Jiang Yankun snorted heavily through his nose: “The cases I’ve solved could circle the city. Don’t try to play any tricks in front of me. If I expose your schemes, it will be embarrassing for everyone. If you want this wealth and status to continue, then, as before, stand united with the Empress. If you harbor any ulterior motives, the Huang Family’s fate will be yours. I, Jiang Yankun, will always prioritize the Empress and the Crown Prince. Remember this: anyone—and I mean anyone—who dares to harm their interests, I will personally remove them from the Jiang Family’s genealogy.”

The old men, who valued their clan above all else, were too frightened to speak.

They had unanimously chosen Jiang Yankun as the new clan leader, and now it was too late to regret their decision.

After leaving the Jiang Family’s estate, a few of the elders gathered to discuss Jiang Yankun’s words: “What did he mean by saying he hadn’t helped the Empress?”

Before the previous Empress passed away, Jiang Yanxi and Jiang Yankun had written to the clan, asking them to send a rare and luxurious garment to the Zhu family through the Duke of Cheng. The garment had been laced with a powerful sedative capable of knocking out an ox. Wasn’t that helping the Empress?

“Are you stupid? Didn’t you understand what he meant? He was saying that even he, as her father, hadn’t been able to help the Empress. Instead, it was her favor with the Emperor that had elevated him to the cabinet. We, as members of the clan, had done even less. He was telling us not to act self-important or try to morally blackmail the Empress.”

“He’s certainly improved. He didn’t directly call us old fools, as he would have in the past. With this kind of progress, the Jiang Family might have a brighter future.”

“Go home and arrange marriages for our daughters. Judging by Jiang Yankun and the Empress’s attitude, sending them into the palace would only displease the Empress. We might end up losing our most promising girls for nothing.”

“All we want is wealth and status. As long as Jiang Xinyue continues to promote the younger members of the clan and allows the Jiang Family to support the Crown Prince, that’s enough. If we fight among ourselves, others will benefit.”

“That’s true. Jiang Yankun was very restrained. He didn’t curse us out, which shows he still cares about the family’s reputation.”

Jiang Yankun himself hadn’t expected that by not lashing out, these old men would start praising him.