Chapter 201.1

When the news came out, it shocked many people.

There was no other reason but because throughout the dynasties, it was extremely rare for an emperor to still be alive and pass on the throne to his son.

To put it bluntly, which emperor didn’t want to die on the dragon throne? Only then would they be willing to pass on the imperial position. Especially during the reign of Emperor Hongjing in recent years, it was obvious that he was exercising absolute power and unwilling to relinquish it.

Regardless of whether Emperor Hongjing truly wanted to abdicate or was just pretending, since such a situation had occurred, it was the duty of the officials to advise him. Those who were allowed to enter the palace to meet the emperor would advise him, and those who couldn’t enter would submit written memorials to advise him.

For a while, the court was busy with this matter.

Not only did the officials advise against abdication, but those who were being offered the throne also had to strongly refuse, and the intensity had to be great. If it didn’t succeed once, try twice; if it didn’t succeed twice, try three times. They had to show a righteous and resolute attitude, appearing genuinely humble and fearful, as if they were not suitable for such a great responsibility, fearing that they would let down the rivers and mountains.

Jin Wang had already entered the palace several times to advise against abdication. In order to avoid suspicion, he even put aside the matter of regency and secluded himself in his residence, neither going out nor seeing anyone.

Yaoniang had been watching coldly all along, unable to understand what kind of play was being staged in recent days. The emperor was strange and the son was also acting strange, but those ministers were acting even stranger.

On this day, she couldn’t bear it any longer and asked Jin Wang.

Jin Wang’s expression was strange after listening to Yaoniang’s inquiry. Seeing that she was genuinely eager to know, he explained to her the meaning of the term ‘persuasion’ and the story behind it.

It turned out that throughout the dynasties when a new emperor ascended the throne, he often had to decline the position several times before reluctantly accepting it under the repeated persuasion of the officials. Even if an emperor usurped the throne or reached that stage through improper means, he would often command his trusted ministers to unite with the court officials and repeatedly persuade him to ascend the throne, while he pretended to be modest and would reject their pleas several times before finally taking the throne.

It was nothing more than following the logical order, conforming to the customs and traditions, and having a legitimate and justifiable reason.

It was an expression of modesty, humility, composure, and grace.

After listening, Yaoniang’s expression became strange. Wasn’t this hypocrisy? Clearly, they had their own thoughts, yet they pretended to be indifferent.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Jin Wang knew that she had misunderstood again, so he told her about the accession of Emperor Hanwen as recorded in the history books.

In fact, rather than saying it was a kind of hypocrisy, it was more like a way of testing, showing weakness, and expressing one’s own attitude. Just like Jin Wang’s current situation, Emperor Hongjing said he wanted to abdicate in his favour, but no one knew what Emperor Hongjing really thought in his heart. After all, the thoughts of an emperor were unfathomable. If he was only testing, his true intention was not really to abdicate. If Jin Wang didn’t act appropriately, he would commit a grave mistake.

Yaoniang was silent for a while, unable to come back to her senses. She couldn’t help but glance at Jin Wang before saying, “The relationship between father and son is one of the closest in the world. Who knew it could be so complicated.”

Jin Wang remained silent for a moment before saying, “In the imperial family, there is no father and son. It can’t be put in any other way.”

She leaned forward and asked, “If the Emperor truly wants to abdicate, what will you do? Then you will become the emperor, won’t you?” She shook her head involuntarily and said, “If you become the emperor, I can’t help but find it weird.”

“Why would it be weird?”

Yaoniang took a step back and carefully observed him for several moments. “In short, it just feels weird.”

Jin Wang laughed and pulled her closer, saying, “Don’t overthink it, let nature take its course.”

Despite his words, Yaoniang still pondered for a while, unable to figure out the reason behind it. Finally, she blurted out, “If you really become the emperor one day, and you end up treating Xiaobao and Erbao the same way as the current emperor treats you, I will die of heartbreak.”

Jin Wang’s hand, caressing her back, paused in mid-air for a moment before continuing, “I just told you not to think too much.”

At that moment, there was a noise outside the door, and Xiaobao walked in.

Xiaobao had been visiting the main courtyard too frequently, to the point where the maidservants downstairs stopped notifying Yaoniang about his visits. When she saw her son enter, Yaoniang quickly sat up from Jin Wang’s embrace and asked, “You’re back. Why are you back so early today?” She deliberately glanced at the sky outside, as Xiaobao didn’t usually finish school this early.

“I have martial arts class in the afternoon, so I came back early.”

Now Xiaobao had already started studying in the imperial study with his cousin brothers who were older than him. Emperor Hongjing emphasized the importance of education for the imperial princes and grandchildren, including both academic and martial arts lessons. However, Xiaobao was still young, so he didn’t attend martial arts classes yet. He would only be exposed to those things after turning five.

Yaoniang didn’t think too deeply and didn’t consider things like her son eavesdropping. However, Jin Wang noticed Xiaobao’s peculiar expression and couldn’t help but wonder if he overheard something. But he wasn’t sure, as the thought only flashed briefly across his mind.

“Father, Grandfather Emperor summoned you to the palace.”

Jin Wang glanced at him.

Xiaobao continued, “Before returning home, this son made a visit to Qianqing Palace. It was Grandfather Emperor who told me.”

“Did he mention the reason?”

Xiaobao shook his head.

Jin Wang stood up and said to Yaoniang, “Benwang will go to the palace, you stay at home.”

“Come back early, we’ll be waiting for you to have dinner.”

Jin Wang didn’t say much, just nodded and left.

It was cold outside, so Xiaobao wore thick clothing when he returned. After warming up in the house for a while, he asked someone to help him remove the outer layers.

Once he took off the black fur-lined coat, he felt much lighter, and he changed his boots to the shoes he wore at home.

When Yaoniang took his clothes, she noticed that one of the buttons was loose. She casually took a needle and thread from under the table and began to sew it back on.

She sewed it carefully because it was not easy to sew the buttons that were attached to the outside. They had to be sewn from the inside out, so they wouldn’t be visible from the outside. After Xiaobao changed his clothes, he stood by Yaoniang’s legs and watched her sew. Yaoniang thought he was bored, so she told him that Erbao was in the eastern wing.

Xiaobao remained standing and motionless, saying, “I’ll go see him later.”

Yaoniang smiled at Xiaobao and reached out to embrace him, asking gently, “What’s wrong? You’re all grown up now and don’t share your worries with your mother anymore.”

In fact, Yaoniang had said these words countless times in her heart. As Xiaobao grew older, he had more playmates and saw more of the world outside. Gradually, he became distant from his mother.