The capital city, the imperial palace!
"Great! That's wonderful!"
"The Xie family is indeed blessed. My Ah Xi, finally has a worthy successor!"
Holding the secret letter sent back from Lingnan, Empress Ashina beamed with joy.
"Princess Xie is indeed exceptional. If other women could give birth to twins, it would be a rare and auspicious event. I never expected that she would give birth to twins, one boy and one girl."
The one who readily agreed was a nanny in her forties, who was Empress Ashina's personal maid and had served her for over twenty years.
The old woman's surname was Helu, and like Empress Ashina, she was a Turk.
Granny Helu had watched Helian Jue grow up since he was a child, and she had long regarded Helian Jue, this young master, as her own son.
Unfortunately, due to the defeat of the Turks, the young master was deposed.
They were also exiled to the remote and wild Lingnan region.
Granny Helu was born in the Northwest and later followed the Empress to marry into the Great Zhou Dynasty.
She simply couldn't imagine what the southernmost part of the Great Zhou Dynasty was like.
All she knew was that the court officials feared Lingnan like a tiger.
Some ministers would be scared half to death, let alone being exiled to Lingnan, or even just being demoted to serve as an official there.
He would rather defy the imperial decree than take up the post.
Disobeying the imperial decree offers a sliver of hope, but going to Lingnan means certain death.
Your Highness, such a noble young master, actually—
Without her maternal family to rely on, Empress Ashina's situation became extremely difficult.
The fact that she was able to retain her status as empress is already a testament to the benevolence of a saint.
This man aspires to be a great ruler for all time; how could he bear the infamy of being treacherous and disloyal?
She was neither deposed nor banished to the cold palace, but Empress Ashina had long since become a figurehead.
With the Phoenix Seal revoked, the management of the harem fell into the hands of other favored concubines.
Empress Ashina had become a figurehead empress; the eunuchs and palace maids didn't really respect her.
She, along with several trusted confidantes including Granny Helu, could only stay quietly in their palace.
Empress Ashina's only hope lay with her adopted son, Helian Jue, who lived thousands of miles away.
Fortunately, Helian Jue did not disappoint her.
In less than three years, it has rapidly risen in Lingnan.
Besides Helian Jue's own abilities, Princess Xie of Yue also played a significant role.
Empress Ashina was not the kind of shallow and wicked mother-in-law; she would not dwell on any conflicts between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
As long as she can help her son, Xie is a good daughter-in-law.
If there was one flaw in the past Princess Xie, it was that she had no children after marriage.
Now, all her shortcomings have been addressed.
Moreover, she exceeded expectations—giving birth to four babies, two dragons and two phoenixes.
What a blessing!
Does this auspicious omen mean that her Ah Xi will achieve great things?
"Yes, she is Ah Xi's wife."
Empress Ashina was probably one of the people who understood Helian Jue best. The letter sent by her adopted son revealed her affection and trust for Xie Shi.
Therefore, Empress Ashina did not refer to Lady Xie as a "princess," but rather as Helian Jue's wife.
The title of Princess Consort of Yue is just that—a title anyone can hold.
But Ah Xi's wife was a woman who could truly touch his heart.
“Axi is outstanding, so the wife he chose is naturally no ordinary person either.”
Empress Ashina had not yet formally met Xie Yuan; she only peeked at him from a corner when the couple left the palace.
That brief glance wasn't enough to get a clear view of Xie Yuan's entire appearance.
However, Empress Ashina was still very certain that Xie Yuan was an extremely beautiful, noble and elegant woman.
"As expected of the Xie family of Chenjun, the Xie family is indeed worthy of my Ah Xi."
Empress Ashina grew increasingly satisfied with Xie Yuan.
The Empress longed to see her grandchildren, whom she could not meet for the time being.
Sigh, I really hope that day comes soon.
Her son and her grandson would ride fine horses, as wise and mighty as gods descending from heaven, and charge all the way back to the capital.
The thought of the word "capital city" caused Empress Ashina's thoughts to wander.
"By the way, what funny stories have been circulating in the capital lately?"
The Queen did not say "news," but instead used the word "joke."
Her tone was full of sarcasm.
There's nothing we can do; the capital is currently a place where petty people are getting ahead and demons are running rampant.
Ever since the emperor appointed Jia Yi, a commoner from a humble background, as prime minister, the court and the entire capital have been in constant turmoil.
Absurd things and outlandish rumors kept popping up.
At first, Queen Ashina was surprised, but after hearing more and more absurd things, she became numb.
She had a premonition: Jia Yi was doomed.
If not handled properly, it could lead to a major disaster.
"Your Majesty was right; a truly ridiculous situation has arisen in the capital!"
Granny Helu knew her mistress very well, and she could hear the disdain and contempt in her words.
Suppressing a laugh, Granny Helu replied.
"Is this another mess caused by our 'fake' prime minister (an honorific title for prime minister)?"
The empress emphasized the pronunciation of the word "fake".
It has to be said that the surname Jia Yi is at a slight disadvantage, as it is easy for people to give it nicknames.
He was not upright, and did not advance through knowledge or family background, but became famous through "filial piety" and some shocking remarks, which led to his being specially summoned to the capital by the emperor.
It's hard not to suspect that he got the position through "lucky break".
Of course, in the eyes of those powerful and aristocratic families who monopolize power, only a very small number of the poor and common people outside of themselves are truly talented and capable officials.
The rest were all favored officials.
Jia Yi was better off; at least he was known for his filial piety and was a famous filial son.
He did not gain the sage's favor through any extraordinary skills or by flattery.
If he can do his job well after becoming prime minister, and if he wants to make reforms, he shouldn't be too radical. Even if he isn't praised, he won't become a "laughable figure".
Unfortunately, this person probably had a very unhappy first half of his life and was too cynical.
He hated aristocratic families and those powerful people in high positions.
If someone harbors extreme hatred for a particular social class, they are prone to going to extremes.
In Jia Yi's view, the sons of aristocratic families were all incompetent fools who "mistake a horse for a tiger".
They have no real talent or ability; they hold high positions simply because they come from a good family.
Admittedly, there are indeed useless people in aristocratic families who only know how to put on makeup and act pretentious, but there are also talented people who are accomplished in both literature and martial arts.
Moreover, the proportion of talented individuals is actually even higher!
Jia Yi, however, cannot see the merits of others; he only harbors hatred, targets, and provokes them!
Jia Yi was a nobody; the powerful families could easily disregard him.
But Jia Yi has a sage behind him.
Relying on his master's power, Jia Yi became incredibly arrogant and rampant.
He tore at the aristocratic families like a mad dog, disregarding everything else.
The powerful families were not weaklings who would stand and take a beating; they first confronted Jia Yi head-on.
After discovering that the saint was taking sides, they began digging a pit for him...
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