“My son is now quite old and has been on the throne for twenty-three years. Although he has not been on the throne for fifty-one years as my father, he is nearing sixty and his energy is somewhat lacking.”

Xu Lejin was stunned for a moment, then looked at Yin Chu with confusion.

Yin Chu exchanged a glance with the Empress beside him, then said, "Empress Mother, I have been thinking about this for some time and wish to follow the example of my father and abdicate in favor of Hongxu."

“Hongxu is my son’s eldest son. He has been by my son’s side since he was a child. My son personally taught him and raised him. He is better than my son in both literature and martial arts.”

Slowly raising her eyes, Xu Lejin glanced at Yin Chu and the Empress.

“Hongxu is indeed quite good. He is now over thirty years old. His wife, Lady Fucha, is dignified and well-mannered, which is very good, but…”

Xu Lejin gave the Empress a meaningful look and said in a deep voice, "I remember that Hongxu's concubine, Ulanara, is the niece of Mingwei. She was famous even when she was still a young lady. She was proud and arrogant. After marrying Hongxu as his concubine, she was still a bit unreasonable."

"Hongxu and she grew up together as childhood sweethearts, sharing a special bond. If Hongxu ascends the throne..."

After a pause, Xu Lejin said earnestly, "These past few years, Lady Fucha has given birth one after another, and her health is frail. To put it bluntly, if anything were to happen to Lady Fucha in the future, Hongxu would undoubtedly make her his empress."

Xu Lejin glanced at the Empress out of the corner of her eye, her expression ambiguous, and said softly, "Mingwei should also know that your niece from your maternal family is full of love and romance. She is also arrogant. Hongxu is not a devoted person like the Emperor. Your niece from your maternal family is simply not suitable to be the Empress."

"The Empress Dowager's admonition is correct."

The Empress lowered her head slightly, feeling quite helpless.

She knew, of course, that her son was not a devoted or faithful man, and she also knew the character of her niece, but she couldn't resist the fact that her son had taken a liking to her and had first had physical intimacy with her niece.

That's enough, children and grandchildren have their own blessings.

Yin Chu frowned and pondered for a long time before saying, "Empress Mother, since Hongxu's secondary consort, Ulanara, is not suitable to become the empress after Fucha's death, when I abdicate to Hongxu, I will leave a will to protect the honor of Hongxu's secondary consort and Ulanara, but Hongxu's secondary consort shall not become an imperial concubine or empress in the future."

"What does Your Majesty think?"

Nodding slightly, Xu Lejin said, "That's the only way."

In the tenth month of the twenty-third year of the Yonghe reign, the Yonghe Emperor abdicated in favor of his eldest son, Hongxu…