scheming
He continued, "Do you also believe that if your mother were removed, I, your father in the prime of my life, still wouldn't be able to produce a son to take your place?"
Sima Yao had been a seasoned swordswoman throughout her life, never flinching even when facing an enemy's blade. But now, faced with her father's final ultimatum, she was utterly incredulous, almost in a daze.
All the details of her father's earnest instructions and hands-on teaching of swordsmanship vividly came to life.
The sunlight shone on my father, and he smiled with satisfaction and pride.
Even the mother, who was tending to her servants under the shade of the flowers, showed a rare, radiant, and peaceful smile when she saw the affection between the father and daughter.
When exactly did she begin to enjoy martial arts?
It was around the time she discovered that as long as she practiced swordsmanship diligently, her father would be extremely pleased, her mother's emotions would be much more relaxed, and the tense atmosphere at home would dissipate considerably.
When exactly did she start to enjoy going to her brother's side to inquire about his well-being and gossip?
It was around the time she discovered that whenever she visited her elder brother and received a reward from him, no matter how late she returned, her father would look pleased with himself. He would even wave his hand and exempt her from the curfew she was supposed to observe, and would even invite her to a banquet that night, where the two of them would drink and make merry together.
Her father never withheld any of the rights a man should have.
The premise is that she must bear the expectations of a man.
All she did was hope that there would be fewer arguments at home and that there would be more peaceful and warm moments.
And she did it.
She seemed to see clearly where she had come from, and felt a sharp pain in her eyes. The desolation and sorrow in her heart were overcome by the determination and will that followed.
Facing her aggressive father, she suddenly straightened up, her dazed and weak expression vanished, replaced by a sharp glint, just as she usually held her sword in her hand, ready to strike.
Sima Jun was also startled by her actions and expression, and took a slight step back.
Sima Yao's expression was familiar to him. He had seen this same alert, beast-like look in her during sparring countless times before, always ready for battle.
Sima Yao stared directly into his eyes without yielding an inch, and said coldly, "It's a pity that Father has lived to such an old age, yet there's one thing he seems to have never understood."
Her reaction caught Sima Jun off guard, and he immediately found himself at a disadvantage.
He said in a hoarse voice, "What did you say?"
Sima Yao said calmly, "Among all the members of the imperial clan, Father King is the only one favored by the Emperor, who has granted you special permission to stay in Jianzhang Palace instead of returning to your fiefdom, and has bestowed various honors and rewards upon you. Have you always thought that this is all because of your talent and ability, and because he and your cousin are particularly close?"
Sima Jun had indeed never considered this issue. After Sima Yan ascended the throne, he deliberately favored and promoted Sima Jun's faction. At first, Sima Jun thought that the new emperor's foundation was unstable, so he naturally had to promote members of his father's lineage. As the oldest and most capable among the princes, he was naturally the best candidate to be trusted and used by Sima Yan.
Sima Jun still tried to defend himself, saying, "The Langya branch has always been the eldest branch of the Sima family, respected and valued by emperors throughout history. Even disregarding my father's and my abilities, His Majesty has reasons to value us!"
Sima Yao said coldly, "Is that so?" She deliberately drew out her words, saying each one carefully, "Are you really so confident that the reason His Majesty has given us such important responsibilities and favors, making our rewards and affection known throughout the land, is because of your talent, and not precisely because you have no heir?"
Inside the hall, it was as if a thunderbolt struck from mid-air, causing the wine cup in Sima Jun's hand to fall to the ground and shatter into countless fragments.
His forehead was bulging with veins, his face was pale and flushed, and countless tiny beads of sweat kept seeping from the tip of his nose to his cheeks.
A fact that was obvious yet had remained completely oblivious to him for so many years suddenly descended upon him.
Sima Yao's sneer continued: "Your Majesty has been praising and favoring me all these years. Don't you think he's intentionally standing behind my mother and me to maintain the balance of power in the Prince's Mansion? Everyone knows about your childless predicament. If Your Majesty were truly your good nephew and relative, he could easily solve this problem for you—he has over ten thousand concubines in his own harem, and he could just casually give you two beauties. What could Mother possibly do?"
"That's it." Sima Jun thought, cold sweat beading on his body. If Sima Yan intended to help him out of this predicament, it would actually be very easy. He could simply send two beauties to her, bestowing upon them respectable ranks—if the princess objected, it would be considered defying the imperial decree, and there would be plenty of laws and family rules to punish her; if she dared to poison the beauties, it would be a matter of life and death, further solidifying her reputation as a jealous and wicked woman, at which point it would be easy to depose or kill her.
However, Sima Yan, who was so licentious and fond of drinking, would at most invite Sima Yao into the palace to serve him, to show his brotherly affection, but he never included his uncle in his pursuit of women.
Was Sima Yan's carelessness truly unintentional?
Judging from his expression, Sima Yao knew that he was the key to her fate, but she no longer felt any reluctance.
She said calmly, "If you were to have another son, the one who would immediately have a headache would not be your mother, but your elder brother. Given his temperament, he would only think that you are ungrateful, greedy, and have failed to live up to his years of cultivation and care. He would take immediate action, at best banishing you back to your old fiefdom of Langya, and at worst imprisoning your entire clan. After all, if he doesn't take action, he himself might be the one to die."
These startling words, spoken by the fifteen-year-old girl, were delivered with chilling precision.
Not a single word was spared from hitting Sima Jun's sore spot.
Sima Jun raised his head, making a final struggle: "I don't believe His Majesty would treat us like this... Our uncle-nephew relationship of so many years, just because I want a son, it has come to this."
Sima Yao laughed sarcastically: "No matter how bad my brother is, he is still a member of the Sima family. What you want, he also wants."
She then delivered her final verdict, pushing the "mental block" even deeper into Sima Jun's heart: "Only someone who has lived in a delusional state of arrogance for so many years would believe that his current status and honor are entirely due to himself."
Seeing that Sima Jun was already pale and swaying, she said coldly, "As for me, the more useless I am, the more of a joke I am, the more I fail to live up to the Emperor's favor, the more satisfied he will be: because only in this way can he show his emphasis on family ties and his magnanimity."
She continued, "If I were to marry into a powerful family, that would be the time when he would have sleepless nights. Because of the unparalleled noble bloodline of the Langya King, coupled with his powerful military and any other strong political influence, he would have to think twice about the consequences if his father received strong support. And that would definitely not be what he wanted to see."
She paused, then calmly instructed, "Find a way for me to marry into the Shangguan family and inherit their tradition as tomb keepers."
"Firstly, it will further solidify the alliance between the Sima and Shangguan families. Secondly, it will demonstrate to the Emperor that we have no interest in politics and only seek the path of the sword. This alone will ensure your continued favor and privilege in His Majesty's eyes for the rest of your life."
It should be said that Sima Yao's estimate was not too far off from reality.
The more the Langya Prince's faction demonstrated their lack of interest in power, the more it evoked Sima Yan's sense of kinship and trust, because ultimately, sitting in that position, he too was lonely. He also needed people with whom he had no vested interests, but only a familial connection, with whom he could chat casually.
As for this person's reputation, whether he is a drunkard, dissolute, or morally deficient, these are all trivial matters compared to his ambition to seize power and rule the country.
After saying this, Sima Yao left, leaving Sima Jun alone to face the mess of cups and plates on the table and the empty seat.
She knew that was enough.
For the sake of a son whose fate is still unknown, risking his own wealth and honor for the rest of his life, and the possibility of falling out of favor, is something Sima Jun would never do.
From now on, no matter where she is, her mother will live out her days peacefully in the Langya Prince's Mansion.
This is her way of repaying her mother for raising her all these years.
Upon hearing this, A Qiu couldn't help but ask, "Sima Yan... Emperor Wu, is that really what you think? If the Prince of Langya has an heir, you will not allow him to remain in Jianzhang Palace, and you will immediately take action to reduce his position and power."
Sima Yao picked up a piece of fish with her chopsticks, examined its texture against the moonlight for a moment, and then asked, "Why would you ask that?"
A Qiu said, "I'm just curious. In the stories I've heard before, Emperor Wu was always a muddle-headed ruler. But if he has the kind of thoughts that Aunt Yao described, then he should actually be... a smart man. That's quite different from what I've heard before."
Sima Yao calmly put the fish into her mouth and said, "So what do you think?"
When asked by her, A Qiu suddenly felt overwhelmed with a thousand thoughts and couldn't find the words to express herself.
For some reason, the songs and cries she heard in Wuyang Mausoleum seemed to echo in her ears again.
Sima Yao said calmly, "Emperor Wu died at the age of seven. Therefore, most historians will not say anything good about him. But I think that among all the emperors throughout history, my elder brother may not be the worst one. He was just unlucky and happened to be born at the right time. In fact, when my elder brother ascended the throne, the Great Huan Dynasty was already at its last gasp. Problems at all levels had been piling up for nearly a century. For those twenty years, it was only thanks to the former Grand Secretary's ability to turn the tide and his extraordinary talent that the dynasty was held up. After the former Grand Secretary left, no one had the ability to reverse the decline of this great edifice."
Ah Qiu remembered that Sima Yao was the second person she had met to stand on Sima Yan's side.
The first was Chu Yuanyi, who regarded Sima Yan as his own son.
Of course, it's understandable. Sima Yan never treated Sima Yao badly and even bestowed upon her a high position and generous salary. It's normal for Sima Yao to remember his kindness and speak up for him.
Because he sided with Sima Yan, Sima Yao disliked Empress Shangguan and had many complaints about her "lack of virtue".
Sima Yao looked at her, and in that instant, she seemed to have a fleeting, sharp glint in Sima Yao's eyes.
Sima Yao softened her voice and said, "What I said was all my own conjecture, not something my brother ever intended."
She continued, "Actually, my brother had no interest in politics during those years and relied entirely on the Grand Secretary to make decisions. If my father had really taken any action, he might have been alerted. But at least during the years I was by his side, my brother never showed any particular fear of us."
Aqiu suddenly realized and said, "Then all these words... were made up by you to scare your father?"
Sima Yao tapped her teacup with her finger and said indifferently, "That's just one possibility. If my father really has an heir, and my brother remembers it, or someone reminds him, given his fickle and suspicious nature, it's not impossible for him to reduce the power of the princes and remove them from their positions."
She looked at A-Qiu again and said in a deep voice, "I know what the real question you want to ask is."
"You just want to ask whether I'm just making baseless accusations, deliberately planting a mental block in my father's mind, so that he would never dare to think of marrying another woman and having children."
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