But very occasionally, Yan Qingli would feel uneasy. Perhaps it was because they both knew that there were more important things in each other's hearts, and they could never give up everything for their lover. Therefore, when they woke up in the middle of the night, a little unease would arise.
If it's not the most important thing, then there's no way to be absolutely certain that they will never be separated.
In their careers, they also have different political views: Yan Qingli needs balance, while Qiu Lanxi wants equality.
Therefore, they were destined not to be able to stay in harmony forever.
She needs a balance, so she won't openly support Qiu Lanxi in court. Qiu Lanxi wants equality, so she may not agree with any of her policies.
Fortunately, they are both people who can separate public and private matters and process their emotions on their own, so their relationship did not break down because of this. However, they also have times when they give each other the silent treatment.
It's impossible for people to control their emotions perfectly all the time. Qiu Lanxi is too radical, while she is willing to spend decades or even centuries to achieve a goal. So even if they have the same goal, they may not necessarily be harmonious.
Qiu Lanxi didn't understand why she could be so calm. Who could be sure that things would go in the direction they expected a hundred years from now? Yan Qingli also didn't understand her urgency. It was enough to do what she wanted to do. What difference would it make if she finished things in the present? Wouldn't things bounce back after she died?
However, as long as they act gently, this path will not be blocked even after they die; there will always be a point where it can be restarted. But if the methods are drastic, those who fear the recurrence of this scene will surely try every means to prevent it from happening again in the world.
Yan Qingli tried to persuade her, not only because she wanted her to agree with her approach, but also because she was afraid. Even emperors are not omnipotent; everyone is feeling their way across the river. If one day she really made a mistake and was attacked by the masses, how would those who hated her to the bone treat her because of her ruthless way of dealing with people?
Qiu Lanxi, however, didn't care at all. She poured herself a cup of cold tea and then said, "It doesn't matter. If the ruler is honest, I am greedy; if the ruler is virtuous, I am wicked. If all the bad reputation in the world can be attributed to me, that would be a good thing."
She was absolutely certain of this, because when all the infamy was on her, no one in the world could see Yan Qingli, the female officials behind her, or the next female crown prince.
People's bottom line can be lowered time and time again. People are always moderate. By first presenting an extreme example, many people will naturally accept what they originally thought was unacceptable.
Every emperor has his scapegoats in court, but Yan Qingli doesn't want Qiu Lanxi to be one of them. She's also afraid that one day, things will get out of control.
Qiu Lanxi just smiled at her and pinched her cheek: "Don't be so serious. You know I don't care, and you don't care either, right? Some things are best left for future generations to judge who is loyal and who is treacherous."
Yan Qingli wanted to refute her, to tell her that she did care, that she only didn't care about her own reputation, but the thought of those reputations being applied to Qiu Lanxi made her feel uncomfortable.
At that very moment, Yan Qingli was absolutely certain that she loved her, and the most moving story was that she made her who she was.
“What’s done is done. Even if I turn back now, no one will believe me, right?” Qiu Lanxi kissed her, but her words distanced her from the situation. “I’m not just doing this for you. Actually, it’s more for my dream and the thousands of women behind me. Besides, I’m not like you. I’m the kind of person who repays kindness.”
Yan Qingli said, "Then you should ask for more."
She seemed somewhat surprised and chuckled softly, "Am I not greedy enough?"
Yan Qingli gently shook her head. She always thought that if it weren't for her, Qiu Lanxi might never have thought of these things, because the other party had never pursued these things in the first place.
Therefore, she always hoped that the other person could be a little more greedy and ask for more. A belated light cannot save a withered flower, and Yan Qingli did not want to one day only see withered love falling.
She could never forget what she saw that day. Perhaps neither of them believed in love that could last forever, but she desperately hoped that the other person could believe that she would spend her life with him.
Qiu Lanxi shrugged: "Then I'll be greedy and take a little more. Those who go back on their word will be punished."
"good."
She coveted supreme power, and she also coveted a free and passionate soul.
She didn't even remember when she started coveting it, just as she never knew why she so resolutely embarked on a path that no one dared to imagine.
Love arises without warning, and deepens with time.
I admire you, my love, and wish to spend my life with you, year after year. How fortunate I am!
--------------------
Author's Note:
"If the ruler is honest, I am greedy; if the ruler is virtuous, I am wicked." This phrase comes from the TV series "The Eloquent Ji Xiaolan."
Chapter 63 Extra 3
Qiu Lanxi actually took a long detour before realizing that one cannot impose the values of later generations on the ancients, nor can one use the thinking of hundreds of years later to deal with the affairs of the ancients. Once some things exceed the limitations of the times, the ending will be nothing more than another Wang Mang.
Before she realized this, it's not hard to imagine how many messes Yan Qingli had cleaned up for her.
But when she realized this, the experience from the future and the trials of reality led her to become the Right Chancellor and later the Prime Minister.
The tilted situation has broken the balance that Yan Qingli initially wanted to maintain. She has forced the men in the court to temporarily back down, but this situation will most likely only last until she and Yan Qingli leave, so it is not a big deal and has not caused any turmoil in the court.
Fate has clearly not been on Da Ning's side anymore, because Qiu Lanxi has yet to find a successor who can do what she has done.
After all, she brought out so much stuff: waterwheels, curved plows, gunpowder, alcohol, toilet water, tofu, refined salt, shipping...
She did everything she could think of and do. Unless another prodigy emerges, it's highly unlikely that anyone could achieve what she did. Although there's no shortage of geniuses in this world, some things are often born out of chance.
She stole the wisdom of her ancestors and managed to accomplish all of this relatively smoothly.
Therefore, Qiu Lanxi really doesn't care how others evaluate her. In any case, she and Yan Qingli will inevitably be active in the examination room in the future, making their presence felt and causing countless candidates to be heartbroken for them.
There might even be countless dramas, historical fiction, and period dramas based on them.
Logically speaking, with success in both career and love, anyone would be satisfied, but Qiu Lanxi was still not in a good mood.
Yan Qingli is ill.
In many people's eyes, this should be something that makes her happy, because without her, no one can suppress her, and it wouldn't be difficult for her to appoint herself as regent.
Although it was initially just a smear campaign by her political enemies, some people gradually came to believe that from the very beginning, when she met Yan Qingli, she deliberately used her cunning to make him take notice of her, and then proceeded step by step to achieve her own ambitions.
In a sense, such a conclusion doesn't seem to be entirely wrong.
Qiu Lanxi even deliberately tested Yan Qingli with a folk tale. Just as Yan Qingli would feel uneasy, even though the other party had done so much for her, she would still want to test her.
She didn't believe in forever; people are constantly changing. But Qiu Lanxi also understood that her confidence stemmed from her knowledge that Yan Qingli would indulge her arrogance at this moment.
So now she understands that birth, aging, sickness and death are the natural cycle. Although Yan Qingli has practiced martial arts since childhood and her body is even stronger than that of ordinary people, if we are serious about it, her body may be worse than that of Emperor Qinghe at the same age.
Therefore, as Yan Qingli reached middle age, she could not help but feel anxious about this, because she could clearly feel the changes in her body, and she was older than Qiu Lanxi, so she couldn't help but worry about what would happen to Qingqing if she were really gone one day.
Qiu Lanxi used to laugh at her for worrying unnecessarily, because she had imagined that they might go their separate ways, but she had never really imagined such a separation. So when this day seemed to have really come, she felt a little anxious and lost.
She never really felt that there was any passionate or dramatic love between her and Yan Qingli. Their beginning was not beautiful. Yan Qingli was aloof and superior, and she deliberately seduced him. Everything was just a series of coincidences. If there had been any slight mishap, it would have been nothing more than a fleeting encounter that was not worth paying attention to.
Qiu Lanxi never thought he loved her that much. He would just look at the sky at dawn and the clouds at dusk, and occasionally look at her, and suddenly realize that there was more than one moon in the world.
Even now, if someone asked her if she could die to ensure Yan Qingli's safety, she would not agree. But she also desperately hopes that Yan Qingli will not be defeated by the illness.
She plucked a peach blossom from the tree. Qiu Lanxi remembered that when Yan Qingli was thirty, she suddenly became anxious about her age. After all, in this era, people of that age already had grandchildren. So she began to consciously avoid bright colors. However, at her request, the other party still changed into a pink wide-sleeved fairy dress and danced a peach blossom fairy dance, just because she liked it.
Qiu Lanxi dislikes so many things, yet almost everything she likes is related to her.
But the peach blossoms remain, while the faces of those people have vanished without a trace.
Qiu Lanxi thought that if Yan Qingli really left, she would probably never want to come to the palace again. There were too many things here that she was familiar with, and she didn't want to recall them.
Yan Qingli was an unexpected twist in her life, a branch covered in blossoms. Perhaps it was because the blossoms were so abundant that the branches could not bear the weight and withered and fell.
She tossed aside the peach blossoms, turned, and left. Before she even reached the Dragon and Phoenix Palace, Dongxue came running towards her, her forehead covered in sweat: "My lady! The Emperor... the Emperor..."
Since ancient times, emperors have slept in separate rooms from their empresses, but Qiu Lanxi has never been separated from her. This is partly because she is used to it, and partly because whenever she misses someone, the other person would look at her with pitiful eyes.
Yan Qingli is actually quite good at playing the victim.
At this moment, Qiu Lanxi was a little lost, as if she was completely detached from the world.
"The Emperor has awakened!"
As if taking a deep breath, Dongxue finished speaking, her words as bright as a flash of lightning streaking across the sky.
It took Qiu Lanxi a long time to come to her senses. She realized that when people face a situation they don't want to face, they really will refuse to accept any information.
She still had the leisure to think like that, unaware of the joyful cup, she hurried towards the Dragon and Phoenix Palace. The inner chamber was filled with imperial physicians, and in the midst of the chaos, no one even noticed her arrival.
But Yan Qingli noticed immediately and turned her head to look at her: "Why are you crying again?"
"It's all your fault!" Qiu Lanxi strode over, her suppressed emotions finally finding an outlet.
“Yes, it’s all my fault,” she replied softly. “Don’t cry, don’t cry, how could I bear to see you sad?”
Qiu Lanxi thought that she was probably reluctant to part with it too, but thankfully, there was still plenty of time in the future.
She reached out and hugged her tightly, her eyes brimming with tears. Yan Qingli then kissed her gently, no longer able to appreciate the pitiful sight of her weeping face.
Chapter 64 Extra Four
Yan Qingli did not adopt a policy of "raising a treacherous insect" towards her next successor. The saying goes, "You can tell a person's future at three, their character at seven, and their destiny at twelve."
She provided uniform instruction to all the school-aged children, assigning them homework once a week to complete and hand in at the school that day. Through repeated assessments and tests, she was able to get a general understanding of their abilities and ideas.
Based on this, choosing a suitable successor is not difficult.
Because for the next few generations, Da Ning will not need an expansionist ruler, but only a ruler who can maintain the status quo. Therefore, the next crown prince needs to have the qualities of recognizing his own abilities, accepting reality, and being able to maintain what he has now. After a few generations, no one will question why a woman can enter the court as an official. The wealth that Da Ning lost in the war with Teng will be basically recovered. After that, Yan Qingli will not care whether the descendants choose to conquer other countries or have other ambitions.
Based on this, Yan Qingli selected a crown princess.
The Crown Princess is the legitimate daughter of Prince Fu. She is also very beautiful and always greets everyone with a smile. Most importantly, she has a good grasp of how to get along with people. The current court of Da Ning is a great test of the Crown Prince's social skills, especially after Qiu Lanxi steps down. They will inevitably form several new factions, and there is no one who can truly stand up and lead the way and win everyone's respect.
The same applies to male officials; the partisan struggles are quite intense, and without a good hand to suppress all of this, it could easily lead to chaos.
Unlike Yan Qingli, who was unyielding, the Crown Princess showed obvious interest in men her own age when she was just beginning to experience romantic feelings. Therefore, for those who wanted to take a shortcut, the Crown Princess was obviously more popular than Yan Qingli.
After all, some things might still surprise and be discussed for a year or two, but after five or ten years, no one will try to use a beauty trap anymore. If Yan Qingli changes her mind one day, the world's scholars might still be unable to resist criticizing her. But those extinguished thoughts were rekindled after the Crown Princess appeared.
Therefore, the Crown Princess was never short of good men around her, but unexpectedly, the person she finally mentioned to Qiu Lanxi was a son born out of wedlock.
It's not that there's anything wrong with illegitimate sons. Given the importance of the crown prince, everyone who appears around the crown princess has naturally been investigated. Among all the men, he is not outstanding. The only thing worth mentioning is his appearance, which is not unmatched.
Qiu Lanxi and the others did not care about the status of the Crown Prince. They had already made their decision that if the person the Crown Prince married wanted to enter the court as an official, he would only be given a noble but not influential position, unless the other party could prove that his role in a certain position was irreplaceable.
This cannot completely eliminate nepotism, but at least it prevents everyone from thinking about climbing the ranks through connections. Moreover, even for Qiu Lanxi, each promotion was not easy because she needed to be undisputed. Her relationship with Yan Qingli was actually an obstacle preventing her from advancing further in the court.
"You love him very much?"
After reviewing the information presented by Wei, Qiu Lanxi had a general idea of the other party's character.
The Crown Princess thought for a moment before saying, "Your subject does like him, but it's not love. I don't need to rely on marriage to increase my strength."
Therefore, in the Crown Princess's view, there was nothing wrong with the other party marrying into the family and becoming the rightful ruler.
Qiu Lanxi said, "Have you ever thought that the biggest attraction he has for you is your imagination?"
The Crown Princess paused for a moment.
In Qiu Lanxi's opinion, the other party's tactics were not clever. They were nothing more than flattering and ingratiating themselves with the Crown Princess. He alone was neither hot nor cold, and seemed to have a strong sense of integrity. He always looked aloof. But if he really had real talent and learning, how could he have remained unknown and only had a 'good reputation'?
Nowadays, the rising stars of aristocratic families are mostly known for their talent and learning. Qiu Lanxi, Yan Qingli, and the female officials in the court have reversed some of the current trends. When the superiors have certain preferences, the inferiors will follow suit. Therefore, the sons and daughters of aristocratic families are all competing with each other in terms of personal ability.