At this point, Qin Meiying smiled even more happily: "Lin Xue is about to have a descendant, which is truly a wonderful thing! Moreover, half of this descendant will be a member of the Qin family, which is a blessing from heaven!"

Hearing Qin Meiying say this, Qin Kou'er's tension gradually eased. She still kept her head down and said, "We haven't told anyone else about this yet. Aunt, please don't tell the Emperor for now, okay? Otherwise, the Emperor will definitely say that I used any means to abduct his son!"

"Hahahaha!" Qin Meiying laughed heartily again: "Kou'er, you are indeed clever, you actually figured out the Emperor's intention! Alright, your aunt promises you, I will definitely not tell the Emperor about this!"

Hearing Qin Meiying say this, Qin Kou'er finally looked up and smiled with her, relieved.

After the two whispered to each other for a while, Qin Meiying looked at Qin Kou'er seriously and asked, "Kou'er, what are your plans for the next step?"

Qin Kou'er immediately composed herself and said solemnly, "Aunt, my idea is the same as Lin Xue's. Let Xu Ming and Hu Tianyong fight like dogs, and then we can reap the benefits!"

"You mean you want those two to fight to the death over the position of crown prince?"

Qin Kou'er nodded vigorously, "Lin Xue risked everything to become the crown prince so that both of them would fight for the position. Wouldn't that make our actions much easier?"

Qin Meiying nodded: "This method is good! And it's also correct. But there's something your aunt needs to remind you of. Hu Tianyong is a cunning old fox. After so many years of cultivation, he's probably become quite shrewd! Whatever you can think of, he will definitely think of too. And let me tell you, he will absolutely not confront Xu Ming directly. Even if Xu Ming arrogantly smashes their family's ancestral tablets in front of him, he will absolutely not take action to eliminate Xu Ming right now!"

"Why?" Qin Kou'er's eyes widened, not understanding why Qin Meiying would say that.

"Because Xu Ming still holds one-third of the military power in the country!"

As she spoke, Qin Meiying led Qin Kou'er to the map again, then pointed to the dots on it with a thin stick and said, "Look carefully, a lot of military power here is controlled by Xu Ming. Especially most of the southern border, those are all guarded by Xu Ming's men. Now the military power in the world is divided into three parts, one part is in the hands of Lan Qingtian, one part is in the hands of Hu Tianyong, and one part is in the hands of Xu Ming."

The Xu family had been established for generations, their roots deep; how could they fall so easily? Hu Tianyong understood this perfectly. Although he wanted Lan Xiuyuan to compete for the crown prince position and was even willing to harm Xu Ming, he would never truly turn against Xu Ming. Because if the events of that year were to resurface, it would be a Pyrrhic victory. Why would Hu Tianyong do such a thing?

"Since it involves interests, would Hu Tianyong just stand by and watch Xu Ming act like a bully over him?"

Qin Meiying smiled coldly: "Hu Tianyong still has dirt on Xu Ming, and he will definitely not let Xu Ming get ahead of him. But he won't really turn against him either. He will use negotiations to bring the two of them back together."

"But there can only be one crown prince? Is Hu Tianyong really going to make concessions on this matter?"

Qin Kou'er didn't believe that Hu Tianyong could resolve this matter through negotiation.

Qin Meiying looked at Qin Kou'er and suddenly said calmly, "But if Lan Jiayuan dies, wouldn't the position of Crown Prince be left with only one person?"

Upon hearing Qin Meiying's words, Qin Kou'er immediately understood. "Aunt, I get it! As long as Hu Tianyong kills Lan Jiayuan, only Lan Xiuyuan will remain! And after Xu Ming loses his most important bargaining chip, he will naturally have no choice but to support Lan Xiuyuan. In this way, Hu Tianyong can bind Xu Ming to his own hands almost without lifting a finger!"

At this point, Qin Kou'er immediately lowered her head in frustration, "How could I be so stupid! How could I not have thought of this situation!"

Qin Meiying immediately grasped Qin Kou'er's hand: "Good child! You are such a kind person, how could you possibly imagine what those beasts would do? Your aunt has studied them all her life, which is why she was able to figure out what Hu Tianyong would do. But don't worry, as long as your aunt is with you, you'll be fine! Your aunt will think of some things for you, you just need to protect your child!"

As she spoke, Qin Meiying looked at Qin Kou'er with pity: "Good child, this time, your aunt promises you that within three years, we will bring back the ancestral tablets of our Qin family to our Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness! And back to our own Hall of Ancestral Worship!"

Looking at Qin Meiying, Qin Kou'er felt a surge of excitement and joy as she gently rested her head on Qin Meiying's shoulder for the first time besides Lan Linxue. "Aunt, now I know how wonderful it is to have someone who cares for me and to have family to rely on! I want to tell you that although it was a surprise to me that you are alive, my heart is filled with joy and happiness!"

As she spoke, Qin Kou'er's eyes reddened again.

Qin Meiying stroked Qin Kou'er's long hair, a sad and sorrowful expression on her face. "Yes! Your aunt is alive, alive and well, standing behind you, watching you go and take revenge on those people, watching our Qin family be exonerated and see the light of day again!"

Qin Kou'er nodded vigorously, then wiped away her tears, looked up at Qin Meiying, and asked, "Aunt, what do you think we should do next?"

"What have you arranged?"

Qin Kou'er quickly explained her plan to Qin Meiying, adding at the end, "Aunt, this is what I'm thinking. We'll use Hu Tianyong's name to cut off Xu Ming's source of income, and then at Hu Tianyong's birthday party, we'll make Xu Ming embarrass him. I figure that way, they'll both feel bad!"

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