The Queen shook her head and said, "It was my own idea to do it this way."
Jiang Jiuniang was puzzled; the Empress's actions were not quite right.
"The Emperor has made a mistake, so I will use myself to force him to correct it. I have not seen him these days so that he will realize his mistake. People's hearts are fickle, let alone an emperor. If he is not firm in his heart and fails the ministers who have been with him until now, he will not be able to sit on the throne for long."
The Empress smiled wryly and explained that she didn't know if this was the root of the problem.
When the old emperor was young, he did some good things for the people, but after a few years he became obsessed with cultivating immortality and neglected state affairs.
The current emperor, who had previously worked diligently for the people and treated his loyal ministers well, suddenly developed many inappropriate thoughts in a short period of time. Coupled with slanderous remarks from treacherous officials, he did such a disheartening thing.
"He's still somewhat rational now, and I can still use myself to threaten him. What I should be most grateful for is that he's sincere towards me; otherwise, I would really be powerless in this situation."
At this point, the Empress sighed, her smile tinged with helplessness.
Jiang Jiuniang really didn't expect the Empress to be living like this during this period. She thought that the Empress's so-called self-imposed confinement was just for show.
Unexpectedly, the Empress was truly fighting against the Emperor all by herself.
A few days ago, Lu Baichuan mentioned the emperor's attitude, saying it had changed a lot, as if nothing had happened before, and he even gave her many rewards, seemingly as an apology. But at the time, she was busy investigating business matters and didn't care about any of this.
It turns out that the Empress was the only one playing a game against him, using the more than ten years of affection between them as husband and wife to fight.
"Your Majesty, why do this? The affection between husband and wife is the most precious thing. Let it go this time, but if it happens again, I'm afraid there will be new concubines in the palace."
The path the empress took was too extreme; one wrong move and she could have brought disaster upon herself, yet she still did it.
It has to be said that the emperor was incredibly lucky to marry such a wife.
The Empress feigned indifference and said, "If he really does that, then I will consider my original husband dead."
That's what she said, but her tone was bitter. How could she not care after more than ten years of marriage?
Jiang Jiuniang didn't know what to say, so she just hugged her silently.
During this period, the Empress had been holding on by herself. Her mother from her maternal family came once, thinking that she had been confined by the Emperor and was about to fall out of favor. She quickly sent two people over, but the Empress felt a chill run down her spine and sent them away on the grounds that she was confined and could not see anyone.
If even her mother was like this, one can imagine how eagerly the officials in the court would try to place their people around the emperor.
Having endured so much alone, she hadn't shed a tear even on the day her mother came. But now, being held so gently in Jiang Jiuniang's arms, she couldn't help but burst into tears.
After crying, she recounted how her mother had sent someone to the palace. Jiang Jiuniang pursed her lips, not wanting to say anything.
Her native language is speechlessness.
Once the Empress had completely calmed down, Jiang Jiuniang spoke up: "Your Majesty, this incident teaches us that relying on ourselves is worse than relying on anyone else. Now that we can't rely on the Emperor, we can only rely on ourselves. I plan to build a ranch in Yangcheng, specializing in raising cows to produce milk, which will then be processed into milk powder and mass-produced for the market. I'm the only one with this technology right now, and we can even expand our business to several other countries. We're sure to make a fortune. Does Your Majesty agree?"
The Empress was stunned, not expecting the scene to change so quickly; she hadn't yet recovered from her grief.
After a while, she spoke up: "You mean workshops like those in Huizhou City?"
"Yes, but on a larger scale than there. Over there, they buy goat milk from the locals, so the quality varies. But in Yangcheng, I plan to hire specialists to raise the goats, standardize the quality, and then produce in large quantities. The initial investment will be higher, but the subsequent income will be considerable."
Jiang Jiuniang explained her plan, and the Empress was very interested. Jiang Jiuniang was right; only money would never betray her. She needed to be rich enough to be unafraid of any changes. With money, even without the Emperor's favor, she and her three children could still live a comfortable life.
"Okay, I'll do it with you. This time I'll also invest with you. I can't keep taking advantage of you."
In her excitement, she didn't even refer to herself as "this Empress".
Jiang Jiuniang readily agreed, then said, "Your Majesty, if you want to live a good life, you must not behave like this again. If you are not doing well, others will be happy. You must let everyone know that you are doing well. They may be angry, but they can't do anything about it. In this harem, you must always be the one in charge."
Only when the Empress remains favored and prestigious in the palace will their cooperation be meaningful, and those on the border will be wary of her and dare not easily interfere with their business.
The Empress nodded to indicate that she understood. She could not pretend to be indifferent or truly ignore everything. On the contrary, she had to fight and compete to prevent any woman from entering the palace.
Previously, she prioritized the shared interests of the couple, especially her husband's interests. Now, she values her own interests more, believing that only by becoming powerful enough can she ensure the emperor's dependence on her.
After all, feelings are the most elusive thing.
After seeing that she had completely figured things out, Jiang Jiuniang left. The Empress had people help her with her grooming and dressing, and she ate a good meal. Then she personally cooked a bowl of soup for the Emperor and sent it to him.
The emperor is currently investigating matters related to the Cao family. He originally wanted to send Lu Baichuan to investigate, but Lu Baichuan said that the person was brought from the border and that to avoid suspicion, it would be most appropriate to send someone else.
As Peng Yuan's pregnancy progressed, Qin Jian took leave to stay home and keep her company, while Prince Jing began looking for his own princess consort. Everyone seemed to have their own things to do.
Left with no other choice, he had to hand the task over to someone else, but after so long there was no progress at all. That's when he remembered how good Lu Baichuan was.
But he had offended the Lu family before, and they were unwilling to do it, which was giving him a headache.
Just then, someone outside announced, "Your Majesty, the Empress is here!"
During this period, the emperor was refused entry to the empress. The emperor was in a bad mood, and the atmosphere around him was very tense. The palace servants around him served him very carefully, for fear of being punished for the slightest mistake.
Now that the Empress has come of her own accord, it is a great thing not only for the Emperor, but also for all of them, the servants.
"Let her in quickly!"
He hurriedly picked up the memorial in front of him and pretended to be working diligently, thinking that he should act aloof so that the Empress would know that he also had his pride.
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