Qiu Lanxi: "It won't make a difference if it's just a little while longer."
Chapter 60
Yan Qingli served as the crown prince for five years. During those five years, Emperor Qinghe remained healthy and robust, to the point that everyone believed his previous serious illness was just a charade to elevate his favorite princess, Shaoguang, to the throne.
Of course, some people think that he might be planning to outlive Yan Qingli and then promote a grandson to the throne.
But Qiu Lanxi knew that Emperor Qinghe was actually still in power. It was just that he was in charge of the situation. There were many things that the Crown Prince and the Emperor could do, but if they wanted to do something without causing too much of a stir, they had to do it together.
The aura surrounding Emperor Qinghe made him almost comparable to a living saint. With him in charge, no unreasonable thing would cause too much trouble.
So when Yan Qingli handed her a list of women, Qiu Lanxi immediately understood why she insisted on keeping Emperor Qinghe alive.
The first imperial examination for women was held in the second year after Yan Qingli became the Crown Princess. It was a very small event, with only people from the capital participating. Only ten people were selected, and eight of them were predetermined...
There's no way around it. In this kind of precedent-breaking situation, you have to give the supporters something in return, otherwise why would they support you? Besides, if you don't give a few spots to some 'important' people, they'll lose face.
However, although there are many ways to operate behind the scenes, at least once this precedent is set, it will be natural to hold a second and third event.
All the selected women were assigned to the Shaofu (a government office) and became Qiu Lanxi's subordinates.
Those in positions of power need to maintain a balance, but Qiu Lanxi doesn't. Once she starts fighting, they will inevitably focus more attention on Qiu Lanxi than on Yan Qingli.
After all, while Yan Qingli might affect the future prospects of their descendants and shake the rules at the very bottom of society, that's a matter for the future. But Qiu Lanxi's existence affects their own interests!
Not everyone values others more than themselves.
Humans are learning animals, and Qiu Lanxi's existence will inevitably awaken women. Unlike Yan Qingli, she has Emperor Qinghe backing her up, and the court officials can't do anything to Yan Qingli, so they can elevate her to a high position, saying she is the heir personally chosen by the founding emperor, saying she is a deity descended to earth. In short, they want to make her stand on high. Do you want to imitate her? Do you think you have that ability? Are you a deity reincarnated?
But Qiu Lanxi was different. The court officials were absolutely unwilling to praise her because they wanted to expel her from the court. This meant they would not flatter her. But if they didn't, it would naturally cause many women to have some disloyal thoughts.
Qiu Lanxi believes that not all women are willing to accept their current fate. They may have wondered when they were young why their older/younger brothers could go to the academy while they could only stay at home.
Why can they go out on the street freely, while they can only watch?
These doubts may still exist as we grow up, or they may gradually be buried as we grow up, but they existed and will not disappear.
Five years is enough time for Qiu Lanxi to cultivate this power, and also enough time for the court officials to hate her to the bone.
After all, it's one thing for her to steal their credit, but she's also dragging others down with her.
Emperor Qinghe didn't care about any of that. Seeing that the situation had stabilized and that the old foxes were behaving themselves without him having to lift a finger, he waved his hand and abdicated.
This was truly unexpected. Throughout history, there have been very few emperors who were willing to abdicate. Most emperors only gave up what they clung to so tightly when they died of old age or were forced to do so. It is rare to see someone like Emperor Qinghe, who could clearly live for many more years but was willing to abdicate and yield the throne to a more virtuous ruler.
However, Emperor Qinghe's words were law, and the court officials naturally obeyed. After all, there was always a period of time each year when Yan Qingli was in charge of the country, so whether he abdicated or not made little difference.
For Yan Qingli, this was of great significance. After all, the Crown Princess was just the Crown Princess. With someone above her, she would have to be cautious about doing many things.
Yan Qingli's coronation ceremony went smoothly and was quite elaborate, but these were not what the court officials cared about. Compared to the scolding the previous crown prince had suffered during the process, Emperor Qinghe was obviously extremely satisfied with Yan Qingli, so no one doubted that Yan Qingli would not be able to ascend the throne in the future; it was just a matter of time.
Therefore, what they were more concerned about was the first decree issued by Yan Qingli after his ascension to the throne, which represented the new emperor's political views. As the saying goes, "a new emperor brings a new court," and this was something that was closely related to them.
To everyone's surprise, the first order Yan Qingli issued after taking the throne was to confer the title of Empress.
The imperial edict was filled with praise, so much so that people couldn't help but suspect that it was written by His Majesty himself. After all, who else but her would see Qiu Lanxi in this way?
However, everyone remained silent on the matter. After all, while it might not be immediately obvious whether there was an affair, over time, clues would inevitably emerge.
Everyone just tacitly kept quiet about it. Anyway, there have been instances of emperors and court officials exchanging flirtatious glances in the history of Da Ning. Now it's just that the relationship between men has been changed to that between women.
However, no one objected to these things. In the end, they were hoping that Qiu Lanxi would enter the harem and stop causing trouble in the court. Without her, the women's army in the court would lose its most important backbone, which was actually a good thing for them.
But the next day, seeing Qiu Lanxi come to court, they couldn't hold back anymore.
Didn't you already receive the imperial decree to get married? Why are you still showing your face in public?
However, they also knew very well that Yan Qingli could not possibly be unaware of Qiu Lanxi's appearance, so on the surface everything was peaceful, but as soon as the court session ended, a group of people went to find the retired emperor.
Unfortunately, Emperor Qinghe was a very clear-headed person. After he abdicated, he would no longer interfere in the affairs of the court. Moreover, he did not stop doing nothing after abdicating. Qiu Lanxi persuaded him.
Emperor Qinghe valued talent because he himself was not particularly gifted in literature from a young age. People tend to pay more attention to what they lack. His military skills were not bad, and he had personally led several military campaigns. If he had not become emperor, he could have become an excellent general. However, he could not have become a great scholar.
Because he really doesn't have any talent in this area...
But what does it matter? He can make those brilliant students respectfully call him "teacher".
In fact, every student selected in the palace is a disciple of the emperor, but most of them are just empty shells. This is not what Emperor Qinghe wants. After all, even if those selected students emerge, would they really dare to call him "teacher"?
But now that he's no longer the emperor, he can do that. He can even happily tell his students that what he loves most in his life isn't the days when he was emperor, but the time he spends teaching them right now.
So after Emperor Qinghe abdicated, he gathered some talented women from among his concubines and happily led them to the academy he had already chosen and was preparing to open.
As the culprit behind all this, Qiu Lanxi felt that she was just helping the retired emperor to understand his own heart. For someone like Emperor Qinghe, leaving his career would inevitably leave him feeling empty. In order to prevent him from still paying attention to politics after his abdication, she naturally had to find something for him to do.
Emperor Qinghe was a smart man; he knew what to do.
Moreover, what's the point of just having the emperor's name recorded in history? Scholars will still have to call him a sage!
Therefore, Qiu Lanxi knew very well that the Emperor Emeritus would not care what Yan Qingli did, as long as she did not ruin Da Ning.
The only ones in a bad mood were the court officials.
But no one cared about their opinions, and Qiu Lanxi cared even less.
Ultimately, was their concern for the emperor's feelings really because of the emperor himself?
They couldn't stand the emperor favoring any particular concubine, and they would call that concubine a femme fatale or a source of trouble. But if the emperor favored the empress, they would also call her jealous and unwilling to share the emperor's favor. They couldn't stand the emperor valuing the eunuchs, and they would call them the eunuch faction. Ultimately, it was simply because the emperor didn't value them the most.
Only in this way can the emperor's actions be publicized as a good story and earn him an enviable reputation.
However, Qiu Lanxi has both, so isn't she just asking for trouble?
The empress's investiture ceremony was extremely grand and even violated ancestral rules, because she neither wore a veil nor waited obediently in the room for Yan Qingli to return. Instead, she appeared on the stage with Yan Qingli, and only after the formalities were over did she leave with Yan Qingli.
Yan Qingli helped her adjust her neck: "Is it heavy?"
"It's alright, we'll only be here once anyway." They didn't ride in a palanquin, but walked hand in hand through the palace, which was an even larger cage, but both sunlight and moonlight could always shine into it.
Yan Qingli turned her head to look at her. Her makeup was bright, but she did not look arrogant. Instead, it softened the fragile look that was naturally part of her appearance. The moonlight was gentle, and so was she.
Looking up at the high palace walls, she softly asked Qiu Lanxi, "Do you think I've treated you well?"
Yan Qingli wouldn't ask questions like "Do you like me?" because it's meaningless and doesn't affect anything. She also wouldn't be completely honest with Qiu Lanxi. Some people believe that if you like someone, you have to show them everything, good and bad.
But if you do that, you might feel comfortable, but will the other person necessarily feel happy too?
So all she'll ask is if it's okay. When you become the person who treats her well in her heart, who would be willing to leave?
Qiu Lanxi couldn't help but laugh and asked in return, "Why don't you ask me if I'm good to you?"
Qiu Lanxi thought it was probably a bad thing. She was very willful and unwilling to sacrifice herself. In this era, in the eyes of those in power, she would always have more faults than merits, just as everyone believed that she was the only and biggest stain on Yan Qingli's body that could not be erased.
Yan Qingli, however, was simply being tolerant.
“Very good,” Yan Qingli looked at her, her heart racing, and said slowly, “You are the best person in my heart.”
On their wedding night, while others poured out their hearts to each other under the moonlight, they were exchanging "friend zone" cards.
Qiu Lanxi couldn't help but laugh. She wasn't usually a very cheerful person, but for some reason, she couldn't help it at this moment.
Looking at the light in her eyes, Yan Qingli hoped that even when her hair turned white, there would still be light in her eyes when she looked at her.
Qiu Lanxi jumped into her arms and whispered in her ear, "Your Majesty, the spring night is too short..."
Before she could finish speaking, Yan Qingli had already used his lightness skill to quickly take her away.
Chapter 60 Extra 1
one
Yan Qingli wasn't always able to remain rational; she would sometimes get jealous of others' closeness to Qiu Lanxi, but most of the time, she wouldn't show it.
The first time Qiu Lanxi saw her jealous was when the number of women under her command was increasing.
Those lists were all provided by Yan Qingli, and almost all of them were outstanding women from prominent families. Naturally, Qiu Lanxi would have to put in some effort to win their hearts and minds. This was not difficult, as women often have a natural affinity for each other, especially those women who have not yet been completely brainwashed by male chauvinism. They can better understand the hardships women face today.
In fact, at first, these people all had a vague liking for Yan Qingli. However, people nowadays tend to be more reserved, and they usually only realize what Yan Qingli did on their own. Qiu Lanxi, on the other hand, is different. She can exaggerate even the smallest effort into something significant. In particular, children raised with the traditional, harsh education methods are even less able to resist the emotional value demands.
So naturally, my thoughts began to wander.
To be honest, Qiu Lanxi's dedication to them was not even half that of Yan Qingli, but that's just how unfair it is. Sometimes, down-to-earth hard work can't compare to a smooth-talking scoundrel.
While Qiu Lanxi was thriving among the group, Yan Qingli was troubled by the women around her.
Qiu Lanxi's deliberate decision to live outside the mansion gave many people the illusion that Yan Qingli might still prefer men.
Many men nowadays have been instilled with the idea that women are merely a pastime in their lives, and that even a lawfully wedded wife can be sold off when they encounter difficulties, let alone concubines and children.
Few people would consider whether this was right or wrong. In their eyes, children were nothing more than tools to exchange for benefits. Therefore, many ministers would marry their illegitimate daughters to men who were more than twelve years older than their wives. Those who had a little more sense of face would settle for marrying the other party's daughter or having their own daughter marry into the other party's family.
Such 'business marriages' are not uncommon. Naturally, when there is something to gain from Yan Qingli, they will naturally push their own sons forward, regardless of whether the other party is real or not, and even less concerned about whether they will become male concubines in the future.
When faced with self-interest, both men and women can become victims.
Qiu Lanxi deliberately created a misconception for them: they wanted to kill her, so she went to destroy their hearts. In this era of rampant male chauvinism, how many young people can tolerate becoming a sacrifice of their family, just like their sisters, and serving others with their beauty?
When the younger generation is no longer aligned with their elders, the situation naturally becomes difficult to manage.
Although they may regret their past actions when they look back after experiencing the ups and downs of officialdom, by then they will no longer be able to affect the overall situation.
There is no such thing as true empathy in this world. Only by experiencing it yourself can you find it unbearable. Only in this way will these people, after entering officialdom, not think about getting rid of the women in the court first and forcing fair competition. This is not speaking up for women, but merely resisting the arrangements of their parents.
Qiulan Creek stirred up their belated rebellious phase.
However, this caused Yan Qingli great distress. She never imagined that she would face such a situation one day. After all, in the past, the imperial son-in-law was not allowed to serve as an official in the court. The ministers were very careful to protect their outstanding sons, fearing that she would take a liking to them. But now they were eager for Yan Qingli to take a liking to them, even if the reputation was not good, the benefits were real.
Those with a long-term vision are ultimately few and far between, not to mention those who are blinded by greed.
Yan Qingli thought that this was Emperor Qinghe's doing. With so many dazzling flowers, one might lose interest in Qiulanxi.
But when she investigated further and discovered that it was all related to Qiu Lanxi, her mind went completely blank.
They all tacitly avoided interfering with each other's plans and schemes, but this time Yan Qingli couldn't help but want to ask for clarification. She didn't understand why Qiu Lanxi was pushing her away, testing her, or really wanted to leave.
But when she found Qiu Lanxi, she witnessed her intimacy with everyone. She would fan people by the ice basin, allow others to touch her, and smile sweetly at them.
Yan Qingli wanted to rush in and take her away, but she ultimately did nothing. It wasn't until everyone had left that Qiu Lanxi saw her from her blind spot.
"When does Your Highness always come?" Qiu Lanxi was startled when she suddenly saw her. People with high martial arts skills always appear and disappear unpredictably. Even though it wasn't the first time, she was still easily frightened by a figure that suddenly appeared.