Wang Shiyu is incredibly busy now, because now that they've developed the new seeds, they need to keep an eye on their yields. Even after only one season of trials, no one is sure if the seeds are reliable. Fortunately, the rice here can be harvested three times a year, so they don't have to wait a full year to see results.
After Yu Xiuming eliminated those aristocratic families, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He then took over those families that had been completely suppressed and bankrupted, incorporating them into his own businesses, and then stopped his actions. If Yu Xiuming continued, Emperor Zhou Qingyun might not be able to help but intervene.
After all, his queen had suffered a serious backlash and could only lie in bed waiting to die, and the Duke of Anguo, who was the direct driving force, had been sidelined. Even though he still had a special force in his hands, he had almost lost any influence and could be said to be useless.
At this time, in the Pepper Palace of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Zhou Qingyun was looking at his queen.
At this time, Queen An had been tortured beyond recognition. She was emaciated and haggard, in stark contrast to her previous elegance and grace. She seemed like a completely different person.
Perhaps she thought that by pushing her own father out as a scapegoat, she could appease the public's anger. However, it turned out to be wishful thinking, and it ultimately backfired. Zhou Qingyun did not offer any assistance, as he had intended to harm someone else, not Wang Shiyu, who was in Jizhou City.
Yet, Empress An, driven by personal desires, sought to harm an innocent man. He simply couldn't understand why women always had to make things difficult for other women. Couldn't they simply deal with the man? Even if Zhou Qingyun were a man, if he were faced with the same situation—his beloved woman falling in love with someone else—he would have no hesitation in eliminating his rival and imprisoning his beloved, rather than harming an innocent person.
Queen An looked at Zhou Qingyun's stern eyes and finally sighed helplessly. She was overthinking it. She had thought that she could be with this man in harmony until the end, but in the end all her calculations were in vain. It seemed that this man had known about the plan they had made under the parasol tree.
Empress An bit her lip tightly, propping herself up with all her might, and with difficulty, she sat up straight. Her eyes, filled with despair and unwillingness, stared straight at the emperor, as if she could see through him. The emperor sat quietly by the bed, his face expressionless, like a cold sculpture.
Finally, Empress An couldn't help herself, her voice trembling. "You knew my plan a long time ago, didn't you? You also know that Yu Xiuming is not a good person. If you had punished me directly, perhaps Yu Xiuming would not have attacked me. But you chose to go along with it, putting me in trouble. Yu Xiuming vented all his anger on my father. Even if he wanted to deal with me, he wouldn't dare to do such a cruel thing. You must have said something to him, right?"
The emperor stared at Empress An silently, a complex emotion flashing across his eyes, but he quickly regained his composure. He didn't answer, but sighed softly, then stood up and said to Empress An with his back to her:
"It's come to this point, there's no point in saying more."
Zhou Qingyun watched her expression, a wave of emotion welling up in his heart. The queen no longer possessed the beauty she once had. Her prominent cheekbones made her calculating features appear even more unsightly. Yet, perhaps, in the moment of death, true emotions and kindness might be revealed. After a moment's hesitation, Zhou Qingyun decided to tell her his original plan.
In truth, Zhou Qingyun had once sincerely hoped to protect his queen. Even though their feelings had faded, he always remembered her companionship and support during their difficult times. Unfortunately, the queen's own cleverness had ruined all of this. If she hadn't tried to manipulate the situation, if she had been more honest with Zhou Qingyun, perhaps things wouldn't have reached this point. But now, nothing could be undone, and all she could do was accept her fate.
"In fact, I wanted to protect you at the beginning. I thought that if you could take the initiative to admit your mistakes and take off your hairpin to apologize, then I would give you a lighter sentence and only punish you to confine yourself in the Buddhist temple for three years.
Although such punishment may not cause you any serious injuries, it can at least make you lose face.
But who would have thought that you would be so clever as to plot against me, and in the end, I could only helplessly follow the path you set for me. I never revealed anything about you to Yu Xiuming; he found out all the truth himself.
Not only that, I also tried to cover up some things for you, but unfortunately, your father seemed to really want you dead and told Yu Xiuming everything about you without hesitation. Faced with such betrayal and deception, how could Yu Xiuming not hate you?
“Heh~!”
Queen An sneered, "Haha, it's just an excuse. No matter how nice Zhou Qingyun's words sound, he was just going with the flow."
She knew full well that the An family's power had always displeased the emperor, and Yu Xiuming was merely a pawn being used to eliminate this thorny issue.
However, Yu Xiuming arrogantly thought that he had solved the murderer who hurt his wife, but he didn't know that all this was Zhou Qingyun's plan to kill someone with a borrowed knife.
"How can a king of a country be a kind person? Yu Xiuming's power is so huge now, I guess the emperor will take action against him soon." A trace of sadness flashed in Queen An's eyes.
Yu Xiuming was just a businessman, powerless in front of the emperor. It was a pity that she might never witness all this. But how wonderful it would be if she could see this decadent dynasty fall to ruin!
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