As the younger sister, Li Weiyi always had to clean up after Li Yujiao, and over time, she naturally became dissatisfied with him.
The siblings had a long period of strained relationship, but being blood relatives, they couldn't remain estranged forever. So, after Li Yujiao gave birth to Yunqing, they resumed their interactions.
Who knew that things would turn out in a way that completely surprised everyone? For a full ten years, starting from the time he married the Queen, not a single woman in Li Weiyi's vast harem gave birth to a princess.
As an emperor, Li Weiyi was not feudal and did not have any preference for women over men, otherwise he would not have allowed Li Yujiao to ride on his head for decades.
However, the rules passed down from our ancestors cannot be changed; the throne must be handed over to a girl.
Initially, she tried all sorts of methods to deal with the inability to have a daughter, but to no avail, so she had no choice but to accept it helplessly.
The Li family's daughters have been the only sons for seventeen generations. Li Weiyi believes that not being able to give birth to a daughter is not her fault. Either her ancestors were not destined to have one, or the men in her harem are incompetent. She will not take the blame for that.
Fortunately, she also has a biological niece.
In terms of blood relation, Yun Qing is the daughter of her twin brother, and she looks three-tenths like her, more like her than the sons born to the men in the harem.
In terms of relationships, Yunqing was raised by the Empress Dowager from a young age and was watched over by her. Her appearance and character are impeccable. Although she is somewhat fickle and rebellious, well, she is a girl, and things will naturally improve once she gets married.
So, three years ago, when Yunqing was fifteen, Li Weiyi issued an imperial edict, exceptionally bestowing upon Yunqing the title of Lady of the First Rank and granting her the surname Li (this was a privilege reserved for the daughters of princes; the eldest prince, Li Yujiao, being a married man, did not receive this honor).
In this way, her intentions became crystal clear: she was clearly grooming Yun Qing to be the next emperor, but without adopting him.
Because the Yun family has only had one son for three generations, and Li Yujiao had given birth to four children before finally having this little daughter, even if he agreed, Minister Yun would not agree.
Li Weiyi had a good plan. When Yun Qing reached marriageable age, she would marry her son to her, so that the bloodline of their grandchildren would be pure.
Who knew... Thinking of this, she couldn't help but sigh sadly.
Inside Jinghe Palace.
Li Yujiao leaned against the Empress Dowager, her posture languid, but her mouth kept opening and closing as she kept talking.
As the most arrogant eldest prince of the Great Sheng Dynasty, he possessed an exceptionally handsome appearance, with a pair of narrow, fox-like eyes that were slightly upturned, making him both alluring and noblely unapproachable.
His hearing was excellent; he heard the palace servants greeting Li Weiyi from afar and ran out in his shoes.
"Li Weiyi, you've come at the right time. I want to ask you, why did you send Yun Qing to such a dangerous place?"
Upon seeing his elder brother, Li Weiyi's expression turned quite unpleasant. Over the years, he had still perfectly embodied the phrase "beautiful yet foolish."
If it weren't for Yun Qing's sake, she would have long ago revoked his right to freely enter and leave the palace, and she wouldn't have allowed him to make such a fuss time and time again.
“Brother, how can you, a man, make such a racket in public? What kind of behavior is this! Father, aren’t you going to do something about it?”
Hearing her daughter's complaints, the Empress Dowager calmly came out of the palace and patted Li Yujiao on the back.
"Yu'er, be more dignified!"
After saying that, he turned his gaze to Li Weiyi. This daughter was someone he was proud of, and the only shortcoming was that he hadn't given birth to a daughter.
“Weiyi, come in first.”
Li Weiyi entered the hall and sat at the lower end of the table. A palace attendant served her tea.
"Father, if I'm not mistaken, you summoned me here because of Yun Qing's matter?"
"Indeed." The Empress Dowager placed the teacup heavily on the table, her expression solemn.
“Weiyi, I’m not trying to criticize you, but you must train Yunqing in any way you want, but you absolutely cannot threaten her safety. The Yun and Li families only have this one heir now. If something happens to her, how can I face your mother and Brother Yun (Yunqing’s grandfather, a close friend of the Empress Dowager before her marriage)?”
Li Weiyi watched her father weep uncontrollably, unsure how to respond. It wasn't her decision; it was Yun Qing herself who volunteered to go to Lin'an County to manage the plague in order to escape the tyrant in her home.
Otherwise, given her personality, she would be too busy seeking pleasure all day long to take on such a difficult task.
However, she certainly couldn't say this directly. The two men in front of her had a much stronger bias against Yun Qing than a city wall. If she said it, they would definitely think that she was slandering their good granddaughter, so she decided to leave it at that.
"Ahem, Father, I understand what you're saying. To be honest, this matter was brought up by Yunqing herself. As you know, she has been married for some time now and it's time for her to make a name for herself, which is why she volunteered."
Seeing that the Empress Dowager's expression had softened, Li Weiyi pressed on with his efforts.
"As for her safety, you can rest assured. I have transferred the Imperial Guards to protect her, and the accompanying imperial physicians are the most experienced ones. She will definitely return unharmed. Besides, as you know, Yunqing is always very opinionated. As her aunt, I will naturally support her. She is very filial to you, so you can't hold her back."
After hearing these words, even if the Empress Dowager had many complaints, she couldn't find fault with them.
Yun Qing is about to reach the age of coming-of-age ceremony, and if she wants to achieve something, they will definitely support her.
"However, she risked her life this time, so you must reward her well when she comes back. Don't discourage the child."
“Of course.” Li Weiyi nodded repeatedly. “Don’t worry, when she returns, I will appoint her to a position in the Ministry of Revenue. At her coming-of-age ceremony two years later, I will officially confer upon her the title of Crown Princess.”
"Royal sister, do you really mean this?" Before the Empress Dowager could say anything, Li Yujiao, who had been silent for a long time, couldn't sit still any longer.
This was the first time Li Weiyi had explicitly brought up this matter. After all, she was only just over forty and was not completely incapable of having children. If she were to give birth to a princess in the future, Yun Qing's position would become awkward.
However, if the title is officially conferred, the situation will be completely different. Regardless of whether a princess is born in the harem, Yun Qing will be the next emperor without a doubt.
Thinking of this, Li Yujiao could barely suppress her smile.
"Of course it's true. Once I've spoken, my word is my bond."
Although he disapproved of his elder brother's overjoyed expression, Li Weiyi nodded and gave him an affirmative answer.
Upon receiving the reply, Li Yujiao was overjoyed and eagerly walked up to Li Weiyi, massaging her shoulders.
Watching the interaction between the siblings, the Empress Dowager changed her previous somber expression and smiled again.
In contrast to the harmonious atmosphere of Jinghe Palace, the Kunning Palace, where the Empress resided, was a place of undercurrents.
"What did you say? The Queen Mother really said that?"
[Writing in a matriarchal society is so difficult! All the different titles and phrases are making my head spin. If there are any problems, please comment and tag me, and I'll correct them.]
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