northernbook Chapter 1224 What are your plans for the future?
Chapter 1224 What are your plans for the future?
After the eldest prince and the others left, Su Yueyao stood quietly waiting for the empress to speak.
The Empress waved her hand, and Fu'an, who was standing to the side, gestured to the eunuch to bring up a stool.
"Yueyao is still in her postpartum period, please sit down!"
At this moment, Su Yueyao felt the Empress's goodwill and was somewhat surprised. She had thought about many things, including that the Empress was behind this incident, that she would refuse them with harsh words, and that she would smooth things over and let them fight with those officials themselves. But she had never thought of this.
His tone carried a hint of weariness and goodwill towards her.
After Su Yueyao sat down, the Empress spoke again: "Yueyao, have you considered that I was the one who carried out this matter, and took the opportunity to eliminate the Xu family? Next, I will dismantle the powerful families in the prefecture one by one."
"After all, once you get started, everything becomes easier."
"Your Majesty... Your subject..." Upon hearing this, Su Yueyao wanted to lie and tell His Majesty that she hadn't, but the words wouldn't come out.
The Empress chuckled softly when she saw Su Yueyao's appearance.
"I think that's what the officials in my faction in the court are thinking! That's why Minister Ma went directly to your residence to pin the charges on you, forcing you to take action, so as to make your guilty conscience known and to prevent the interference of the forces behind you."
Upon hearing this, Su Yueyao immediately asked, "Your Majesty, is Minister Ma one of your men?"
"That's right, she's my person. Yueyao, I wanted to take back the power of the various prefectures, but I never thought of starting with your husband."
"Perhaps I would have done so before! But now that we have Tian Tian, you, Su Yueyao, and your Su family will be her support in the future, so why should I suppress your power?"
"Whether it's the Xu family of Fenglin Prefecture, the Lin family of Linzhou Prefecture, the Feng and Nan families of Qingzhou Prefecture, or the Ying family and Yu family who have already pledged allegiance to you, these forces will all be sweet in the future."
"I have been suppressed by these powerful families for most of my life, and I never thought that it would be the same in Tian Tian's generation."
"Your Majesty..." Aren't you afraid of me...?
"Yueyao is thinking, am I not afraid that you will seize control of the court after Tiantian ascends the throne?"
When Su Yueyao heard the Empress speak her mind, she immediately retorted, "Your Majesty, aren't you afraid? The power of maternal relatives has existed since ancient times, and I am also Tian Tian's birth mother."
Upon hearing this, the Empress chuckled again: "I might be a little worried about others, but not about you. If you really wanted to seize power, you would have retaliated when I took action against Tao'er before."
"If you want to rule now, you don't have to wait until Tian Tian ascends the throne. I will just agree to it. After all, you have the ability to make these millions of people live well. I ascended the throne at the age of fifteen and have been emperor for decades. I am tired and I also want to enjoy the life you have, where you can be served by your husband every day."
Upon hearing this, Su Yueyao felt a wave of exasperation. She couldn't help but feel that the Empress was acting rebelliously and wanted to back down!
"Your Majesty, minister..."
“You have no interest in power at all. You just want to lie down and do whatever makes you comfortable. You want to close the doors of your mansion and live your blissful life. The regent of Dongli Kingdom saw through your true nature, otherwise he wouldn’t have allowed your child to inherit the throne of Dongli Kingdom in the future.”
Su Yueyao blushed slightly upon hearing the Empress's words; someone had noticed... how could she refute her...?
"Sometimes when I'm busy late at night, reviewing memorials, I hear my guards reporting that you're playing around with so-and-so at night, and how they serve you during the day. I really wish I could drag you into the palace and have you handle my official duties for me!"
"But I can't, because you're pregnant or in postpartum confinement. Do you know how it feels when I'm angry but can't vent my anger?" the Empress sneered.
Looking at the Empress, whose face was filled with jealousy, Su Yueyao said somewhat guiltily, "Your Majesty... my interactions with the men are simply the way of life for women in the world. They serve me during the day, and at night we don't play around; it's just for after-dinner relaxation..."
"After meals, I don't even have time for dinner! My day is busy from 5 AM to 9 PM!"
Su Yueyao: “…”
How did we get to this topic? Wasn't she here about the counterfeit currency case? She didn't want to see a monarch complaining, so she said, "What's so good about being an emperor? Getting up earlier than the rooster and going to bed later than the dog."
If you do a good job, everyone will praise you; if you do a bad job, you'll be labeled a tyrant or a foolish ruler. What's the use of leaving behind a hollow reputation? It's better to live a good life yourself.
"I've already gone through so much trouble. In the early years, because I hadn't given birth to any daughters, my ministers would petition me every day to favor the men in my harem more!"
The Empress snorted coldly, "Su Yueyao, do you have anything to say?"
Su Yueyao lowered her head, her eyes darting around a couple of times, and said with great admiration, "Your Majesty, you've worked hard!"
The Empress, who had hoped to hear that Su Yueyao was willing to share some of her burdens, paused upon hearing these words: "Besides these words, you don't want to say anything else?"
"Your Majesty, this...you are doing this for the sake of the Feng family's empire, so it's worth the hardship."
The Empress looked at Su Yueyao, who was feigning ignorance, and sneered: "I've had a hard time. What are your plans for the rest of the trip?"
"Your Majesty, I... am still recovering from childbirth and have to solve the counterfeit money case to clear my husband's and the Xu family's name."
"Ah!"
Su Yueyao, forcing a smile, continued to argue, "Your Majesty, you know what kind of person I am. You surely believe us in the counterfeit currency case, right? I will definitely..."
"The Ministry of Personnel is investigating, and your husbands are also in charge. What are you still worried about? Go back and take care of your postpartum confinement!"
"Your Majesty, minister..."
"Want to see that young master of the Xu family? Fine, after you finish your confinement period, you'd better attend court and help me with government affairs. Otherwise, I won't issue an order for the Ministry of Justice to investigate this case thoroughly. The counterfeit currency case is a serious matter!"
Su Yueyao: “…”
Seeing the Empress starting to act somewhat unreasonably, she had no desire to get up early for court and handle state affairs. There were so many problems: floods here, droughts there, food shortages at the border... and so on...
"Your Majesty, you can't threaten people like that. After my confinement period, I was planning to rest for a while and then continue to have children for my husband!"
"Su Yueyao, how many children have you had already! And you still want more? Can your mansion even contain them all? Are you planning to make every man in the entire Phoenix Kingdom your future son-in-law?!"
Su Yueyao looked at the distraught Empress: "Your Majesty, doesn't the court encourage having more children? My ability to have so many children is also a contribution to the Phoenix Kingdom!"
“Since Your Majesty has said so, I also feel that the mansion is a bit small. Why don’t you bestow the mansion next door upon me as well, and I can simply connect them? Or could Your Highness’s princely mansion be expanded to the wasteland outside, and we can build it ourselves?”