The Empress pondered this carefully in her heart, and Lingxiu's words made sense. Fucha was a good candidate, but she was too vicious and scheming; if not handled properly, she could suffer the consequences.
"You mean Fucha and Wuya are together?" the Empress asked.
Lingxiu nodded, then quickly interjected, "Your Majesty, Lady Fucha is cautious and quite shrewd; she's a capable assistant. Just the fact that she managed to attract Your Majesty's attention in the Imperial Laundry Department shows how clever she is. Why doesn't Your Majesty consider giving her a try?"
The Empress sneered, stood up, walked to the table, picked up a chess piece, and said, "I'm afraid she's too clever. Such a person is uncontrollable, and in the end, she might shoot herself in the foot, which would be a great loss..."
Lingxiu dared not utter a sound, carefully lifting the Empress's skirt before the Empress sat down. She began tidying up the remaining pieces of the chess set, murmuring, "But the Wuya clan... I'm quite interested in them..."
“Wuya was banished to the Cold Palace by the Emperor, I’m afraid…” Lingxiu dared not openly refute, so she could only say this.
The Empress, however, was unimpressed. Smiling, she picked out a black chess piece mixed in with the white pieces, admiring it between her fingers: "Uya is the Emperor's cousin, and they were childhood sweethearts. Back in the Prince's residence, she was showered with the Fourth Prince's favor, quite conspicuously. If it weren't for Niohuru, Uya would at least be a Noble Consort by now..."
Lingxiu was slightly startled and hesitated, saying, "But in the end, the Emperor got tired of Wuya, so he wouldn't have stayed in the Cold Palace for so long without the Emperor asking about her."
The Empress placed the black chess piece in her hand back into its original box and said with a smile, "When Empress Niohuru was alive, did you ever see the Emperor focus his attention on anyone else?"
Lingxiu understood, and the Empress slowly spoke: "Now that she is not here, this is a good opportunity. I will send the Emperor's former cousin to the Emperor. The Emperor is a man who cherishes old friendships, and the past affections will resurface once again. The Emperor will have no choice but to treat Wuya Shi well."
Lingxiu was unwilling to accept this, as the hope she had finally gained from Lady Fucha had been shattered. She urgently advised, "Your Majesty, Lady Wuya is old and her beauty has faded. Even if she is still affectionate, the Emperor may not be moved..."
"I don't need Your Majesty to be moved, just your pity is enough. Uya is easy to control and won't cause any major problems, so I can use her with peace of mind," the Empress said.
Lingxiu's mind wasn't on the Empress's emotions, so she naturally didn't notice. She was only focused on achieving her goal and muttered to herself, "Since the Emperor loves Consort Xi so much, and Uya has harmed Consort Xi, wouldn't it displease the Emperor if we rashly send Uya up like this?"
The Empress slammed her hand on the table, and Lingxiu, startled, immediately knelt down, crying out, "Your Majesty, please calm down! This servant was only worried about Your Majesty; this servant was too talkative..."
The Empress glanced sideways at Lingxiu, who was kneeling on the ground, and said, "I see you speaking up for Fucha at every turn and trying to stop me from using Wuya. Do you have ulterior motives?"
Lingxiu shook her head nervously and replied in a panic, "Your Majesty has misunderstood. This servant only had Your Majesty's best interests at heart and had no other intentions..."
The Empress calmed down slightly, her tone less urgent, and slowly asked, "So what do you mean?"
Lingxiu timidly raised her head, took a deep breath, and said, "This servant thinks that if Your Majesty wants to cultivate your own power, it would be better to cultivate those around you, whom you know well and who won't go wrong..."
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