Not for personal reasons

Xie Tiao had previously appeared indifferent to politics because his father, the emperor, was still on the throne, and Gu Yi controlled most of the major affairs of the court. He couldn't be eager for power, so he could only immerse himself in music and maintain a refined demeanor to avoid being perceived as power-hungry and wanting to replace his father and teacher. But how could things be the same now?

The more A Qiu looked at Zhao Lingying, the more suspicious she seemed. Hearing her reply now, every detail was airtight, clearly indicating she was intentionally deceiving Xie Lang.

Although Zhao Lingying's words implied that the Crown Prince was not ambitious, they were spoken in a gentle tone and did not sound harsh. Xie Lang did not suspect anything and simply said, "Take it slow. At his age, I didn't have much interest in the rise and fall of the nation. I was thinking about cockfighting and dog racing all day long."

Zhao Lingying finally showed a slight smile, perhaps thinking of her youth, and said with a smile, "Even so, Your Majesty was still the most steady and ambitious one among us back then."

There was something else he wanted to say, but he swallowed it and didn't say it.

Otherwise, how could he have become emperor in the end?

Xie Lang suddenly said, "Lingying, it's been a long time since I've heard you speak to me in such a tone. It's clear that you still consider me your elder brother."

Zhao Lingying seemed to suddenly realize something, and without making a sound, he took a half step back and smiled, "It was I who lost my composure."

Ah Qiu recalled that she had seen Zhao Lingying treat Xie Lang in front of the Emperor before. Zhao Lingying was neither as gentle and polite as Consort Chen, nor as straightforward as Sikong Zhao. Instead, Zhao Lingying was mostly sarcastic and arrogant.

But judging from what I just saw, Zhao Lingying seemed to have shown Xie Lang much more respect during his illness, at least on the surface he was always very respectful, even more so than he used to treat Xie Lang with the respect due to a subject.

Of course, no one knows what she was actually thinking.

Xie Lang said with a hint of regret, "Are you still blaming me for what happened back then?"

Zhao Lingying lowered his head, concealing his expression, and said in a flat tone, "If anyone is to blame, it is His Majesty, not me."

Her words immediately stirred up Xie Lang's thoughts, and he was speechless. He just looked out the window at the night with a sigh, his expression as if he had been plunged into a dreamlike past.

The two men, ruler and minister, remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts.

But at least from the outside, there is no sign that Xie Lang has been controlled or coerced. At most, Zhao Lingying is very powerful and is trying to kick Gu Yi and the Crown Prince out of the future political situation without Xie Lang's knowledge. It remains to be seen how long she can keep it from Xie Lang.

After a short while, Zhao Lingying saw that Xie Lang was still lost in thought, so she bowed slightly, no longer wanting to disturb him, and prepared to leave the hall.

Xie Lang suddenly asked, "How has Lingying considered what I said a few days ago?"

A Qiu thought to himself, judging from the situation, Xie Lang, though ill, had completely taken the initiative, while Zhao Lingying was merely obedient and compliant.

Zhao Lingying had already intended to leave, but at this moment her figure paused slightly. Finally, she turned around and walked step by step to Xie Lang's dragon bed, where she solemnly knelt down.

Her delicate and beautiful face showed no trace of her usual playful expression; instead, she looked up earnestly to meet Xie Lang's expectant gaze.

A Qiu could see clearly that there was no fear in those clear eyes, only solemnity.

Ah Qiu couldn't help but perk up, wondering what Xie Lang had asked that could make the usually clever and quick-witted Zhao Lingying so cautious and solemn.

She said, word by word, "I have thought it over carefully. I thank Your Majesty for your kindness, but I wish to serve as a minister in the court and not enter the palace as empress. I beg Your Majesty to consider this carefully."

Her voice was like a silver bell, yet soft and firm. Ah Qiu was instantly dumbfounded.

When she emerged from the Hidden Sect's "Otherworldly Paradise," she received two letters. One was Xie Lang's letter to Gu Yi containing the words "Understood, return immediately." The other, which she never expected, was a letter specifically written to her by Shangguan Yuqi. It mentioned that Xie Lang was about to establish a new empress and urged her to return to the palace immediately.

When everyone received this news, they were all shocked and even speculated that Xie Lang might finally consider Consort Chen's years of managing the inner palace and intend to make her empress, so that she could rightfully take charge of the six palaces with the Phoenix Seal.

However, A Qiu thought it was unlikely at the time, because if the new empress were to be established, it would be Consort Chen, Li Lanxiu, which would be well-deserved and popular, and would not cause a great stir. It was not worth Shangguan Yuqi writing a letter to her.

And now, the answer to this mystery has finally been revealed.

Xie Lang's chosen empress was none other than Zhao Lingying!

While A Qiu was speechless with astonishment, her first thought was that she felt sorry for Consort Chen, Li Lanxiu.

She had only met Consort Chen a few times, yet she felt a strong liking for this beautiful and noble woman. For some reason, Consort Chen always seemed to treat her with a special affection and trust. Of course, this could also be just A-Qiu's wishful thinking.

Even if it was an illusion, it further illustrates that Consort Chen treated everyone equally, without arrogance or flattery, and was considerate in all matters within the palace, regardless of their importance. She did not look down on anyone, not even a lowly palace maid, because of her status.

Whatever Xie Lang's reasons for wanting to make someone else his empress, A Qiu found it hard to accept, especially since that person was Zhao Lingying, who was a fellow member of the Flying Phoenix Guard with Consort Chen, Li Lanxiu, and had been a sister to her for many years.

At this moment, the only thing that made her feel fortunate was that Zhao Lingying had rejected Xie Lang's proposal.

At this moment, regardless of what arrest warrants Zhao Lingying had previously issued for her and Gu Yi, she felt that since the person wasn't too bad, she could forgive him.

Xie Lang's face turned extremely pale at this rejection. He suddenly gripped the bedside tightly and began to cough.

Zhao Lingying remained kneeling on the ground, watching coldly, without making any move to help or serve her. A Qiu interpreted this as her clear stance: she was a subject, not a concubine. If she were to be helped or fed water, that was something only women in the inner palace would do, which would be improper in the eyes of others and could be misinterpreted by Xie Lang as having some kind of ulterior motive.

Xie Lang looked at her and suddenly said angrily, "None of you are willing to marry into the imperial family. Does that mean you can't even enter the Xie family?"

A Qiu was surprised: This meant that more than one woman had rejected his proposal.

She couldn't help but feel a sense of triumph: if Xie Lang was such a heartless and ungrateful person, able to disregard even Consort Chen's feelings, then it was only right that he was rejected once or twice and no one was willing to marry him.

Zhao Lingying's gaze became calm and emotionless as she mechanically said, "Since I was young, I have aspired to serve in the government as a woman, to be an official, and to serve Your Majesty with writing and calligraphy for the rest of my life. I have no intention of marrying. Your Majesty and I have known each other since we were young, so you should know this."

Xie Lang was speechless for a moment, then said resolutely, "But you should also know that the reason I am making you empress now is not for personal feelings, but for the sake of political balance!"

He couldn't catch his breath and coughed for a long time before continuing, "Now that Lord Pei is gone and the Junior Tutor is not here, the situation in the army is difficult to stabilize. At this time, the Shangguan family has proposed to retire, and Little Pei has no interest in the position of Crown Princess. I urgently need to form a marriage alliance with a powerful clan, firstly to stabilize the situation in Jiangzuo, and secondly to... appease the hearts of the gentry in Wu."

The moment the name "Shangguan family" reached A Qiu's ears, she felt a sense of unease.

Not for any other reason than that it was the family Shangguan Yuqi came from. The Shangguan family's request to retire meant that Yuqi's uncle, Shangguan You, was about to leave the center of politics? What about Shangguan Yuqi herself? Aqiu couldn't help but feel a little worried for this old friend who could hardly be called a close friend.

Zhao Lingying finally revealed that familiar, sarcastic smile that Ah Qiu knew so well, and said, "What about Sister Lanxiu? Has Your Majesty considered what she thinks?"

Xie Lang stopped breathing, looked at her with a stern face, and said, "Lan Xiu knows very well why I made this decision. She is the person who understands me best in the world. The relationship between the four of you and me has never been about romantic love, but about mutual support and helping each other to maintain the world. She must have understood this long ago."

Zhao Lingying smiled sadly: "We used to think that our eldest brother came from a family with a long history of aristocracy. Although he was a military general, he had his own integrity and would not stoop to using marriage to gain political benefits. We never expected that after the departure of the Junior Tutor, our eldest brother would panic and even resort to such low-class tricks."

Xie Lang could no longer contain his anger and shouted, "Yes! If Gu Yi comes back, everything will be fine, and I won't need to rush to stabilize the situation. But you and I both know very well that he won't be back anytime soon, and Wu County has already rebelled in three places!"

His angry shout was deafening, making the entire hall reverberate, and the echo lingered for a long time. Even A-Qiu, who was lying on the eaves, felt an urge to cover his ears.

She finally understood why Xie Lang wanted to make Zhao Lingying his empress: to help the local Jiangdong aristocratic families integrate with the political groups that migrated south from the Central Plains.

Before the migration of the elite south, there were powerful local clans in Wu County, Yixing, and Qingzhou in Jiangdong, and the Zhao family, from which Zhao Lingying came, was the most prominent among them. For generations, his family had served as governors and military commanders of Wu County, with thousands of followers and followers, almost monopolizing the local land and economy.

The war forced the Central Plains royal family to move south and establish the Southern Dynasty after crossing the Yangtze River. The first thing they had to do was to win the support of the local aristocratic families in Jiangdong so that the dynasty's rule could continue safely in Jiangnan.

Initially, the rule of the Central Plains dynasties in Jiangdong relied primarily on the powerful clans that had migrated south from the north. Firstly, these families were already pillars of the court before their southward migration and had intricate connections with the imperial family. Secondly, only these top-tier central clans, whose influence had endured for centuries, possessed the foresight and ability to oversee the entire situation. The generals and ministers accustomed to governing the country naturally held a completely different mindset from the local wealthy landowners who were content with their lot in a single estate, only concerned with acquiring land and property. This mindset better suited the dynasty's need for political talent.

However, with the establishment of the Southern Dynasty, more and more northern aristocratic families migrated south. In order to maintain their original aristocratic lifestyle, the Southern Dynasty needed to allocate land and people to them in the Jiangdong region. These actions of seeking land and houses brought about conflicts with the local Jiangdong aristocratic families who had lived there for generations.

During periods of dynastic turmoil, political instability, and the threat from the north, these contradictions were often masked by the need to unite against external threats. After all, even if the local aristocratic families resented the newcomers who had taken over their territory, they knew that without the assistance of these expatriate gentry families in establishing the Jiangdong regime and training troops in the name of the state to fight against the northern nomads, the prosperity and peace of Jiangdong would not be preserved if the nomadic cavalry were allowed to advance unimpeded.

Now that external troubles have eased somewhat, the conflict between the southward-migrating aristocratic families and the local aristocratic families has become increasingly acute. The turmoil in Wu County at this moment is a result of the intensification and manifestation of this conflict.