Qiao Chu

Hearing Xie Yanfang's rhetorical question, Chu Zhao sighed helplessly.

Deng Yi—

The reason she fell out with Deng Yi was because of the fall of Stone Slope City, or even earlier, because Deng Yi wanted to appoint Liang Qiang.

Everything about Liang Qiang was arranged by Xie Yanfang, so naturally Deng Yi was also part of Xie Yanfang's plans.

Therefore, that fire wasn't set by Xiao Xun or Deng Yi.

At that time, Deng Yi had been imprisoned on her orders, and it was indeed the perfect moment for Xie Yanfang to take Deng Yi's life.

Deng Yi should have died just like that, but he was rescued by Xiao Xun, who had been hiding in the shadows. It was hard to say whether this was good or bad luck for Deng Yi.

Or was it the driving force of fate? Chu Zhao pressed her fingers to her forehead, feeling somewhat amused.

Xie Yanfang sat down, poured a cup of tea from the pot on the table, and pushed it toward Chu Zhao.

"I know Deng Yi seemed to oppose you, but in truth, the two of you have walked side by side until now," he said. "In the end, you had no choice but to kill Deng Yi with your own hands. That must have been very difficult for you."

Chu Zhao took the teacup and held it in her hands. "Actually, it wasn’t so bad. I never liked him much anyway."

Xie Yanfang said, "That’s the right way to think. You and Deng Yi could never coexist in the court. So, for your sake, Deng Yi had to disappear."

Chu Zhao replied, "I can understand that eliminating Deng Yi was for my benefit. But can you really claim that your move against Zhong Changrong was also for me?"

This question seemed difficult to answer. Xie Yanfang straightened his posture on the cushion and said, "Yes, it was."

Chu Zhao laughed bitterly and drained the tea in one gulp.

"I, Chu Zhao, fought desperately in Yunzhong Commandery, leading troops against Western Liang. Setting aside all talk of serving the nation and its people selflessly, what was my personal motive?" she said. "Someone as intelligent as you, Third Young Master, couldn’t possibly be unaware."

She set the teacup down on the table and looked directly at Xie Yanfang, enunciating each word clearly.

"I did it to seize military power."

"Uncle Zhong is the person I trust most. By killing him, you were killing me."

The mountain wind howled through the forest, carrying with it the clamor of the hunt from the slopes below, but the sound faded almost instantly. The mountaintop seemed enclosed by an invisible barrier.

This barrier was formed by the visible imperial guards around them, as well as those hidden from sight.

Xie Yanfang glanced at the maid behind Chu Zhao, who had already lifted her gaze toward him, her eyes gleaming with killing intent.

He picked up the teapot again and poured another cup for Chu Zhao.

"As absurd as it may sound, I must say that I did this for the Empress," he said, lowering his eyes to the gleaming tea. "The military power held through Zhong Changrong was only the power Chu Zhao could control, not the Empress. For the Empress to truly grasp military authority, she cannot entrust it to relatives."

He raised his eyes to meet Chu Zhao’s gaze.

"Especially not to relatives known to everyone."

"The Empress should understand this. That’s why you sent your uncle’s family to Qiao Mountain Academy, far from the capital, and gave them no official titles."

That was because they would bring disaster upon her, be manipulated, or be deceived. She had witnessed it in her previous life, so of course she had to prevent it. But—

"Would Zhong Changrong not bring disaster upon you? Would he not be manipulated or deceived?" Xie Yanfang’s voice came calmly. "Zhong Changrong is different from Chu Lan’s family, but even if he never intended to harm you, he couldn’t withstand the schemes and calculations of countless others."

Chu Zhao fell silent. In truth, she had witnessed it in her previous life as well.In order to seize the military power of the Border Army left by his father, Xiao Xun privately allowed Zhong Changrong to be slandered. Zhong Changrong's reputation was ruined; he was isolated and marginalized, gradually consumed step by step. And all these slanders were also attributed to her—being called a wicked empress, a hegemon, using military power to hold the Emperor hostage.

Even though she had done nothing.

"I know the Empress doesn't care about these things. I believe you used this very point to persuade the late Emperor back then—you and your family were willing to tarnish your own reputations, willing to be seen as hegemonists, even preferring infamy and wickedness, even if it meant bearing the reputation of using military power to hold the Emperor hostage, just to ensure that the young child A Yu could securely sit on the throne."

When she heard this, Chu Zhao recalled that night when she stood before the Emperor, making her proposal and promises.

"Yes," she smiled faintly. "That's exactly what I told the late Emperor back then."

"At that time, Miss Azhao didn't aim to become the Empress—she just wanted to survive," Xie Yanfang said softly. "To allow many people to survive."

Chu Zhao picked up the teacup he had pushed toward her and took a gentle sip.

"Now, there's no need for that anymore," Xie Yanfang said. "Now, it's best for the Empress to hold onto military power and use a puppet. The advantages of a puppet—I don't need to explain, Miss Azhao already knows."

A puppet like Liang Qiang, especially one who had previously held grudges against the Empress, could not only showcase the Empress's magnanimity but also deflect and divide the slanders from court officials. It could win over a group of officials and generals who harbored ill intentions toward the Empress and could be discarded at any time without hesitation. Chu Zhao nodded, her expression tinged with melancholy. "I know, I know everything."

She let out a soft sigh, tinged with self-mockery.

"I know how formidable you are, Third Young Master. I've been fully aware from the very beginning that without you, I could never have secured this position as Empress. I could never have wielded such authority in court, nor could I have commanded the Dragon Guard Army with such impunity. I could never have achieved such illustrious military victories and swept through every battle—"

She suppressed Xiao Xun's rebellion in less than two years. Less than two years! It wasn't because she was exceptionally capable; Xiao Xun wasn't defeated by her.

In this lifetime, while Xiao Xun appeared to be fighting her on the surface, it was still Xie Yanfang behind it all.

That day, when she urged Liang Qiang to drink, he clearly looked uneasy, yet in the end, he still refused to reveal who that person was.

Standing before him was the Empress. The Emperor was still young, and she could be said to wield the greatest power in the land. But Liang Qiang, facing her, chose to remain silent. Why?

What else could it be? Because that person was the most formidable of all.

Compared to that person, she, the Empress, was nothing.

The same was true for the Wei family in Han County. Even when informed that the truth had been uncovered, they disdainfully told her to think it over.

Why did the Wei family disregard her? Because in their eyes, that person was the most formidable.

Chu Zhao let out a heavy sigh and covered her face with her hands.

"But even if I know, what can I do? I can't leave you, because without you, I would never have made it this far."

"So I force myself not to think about what you're doing. I only need to see the results."

"Truth be told, I'm not a good person either, nor am I fair and selfless."

Watching the girl leaning against the armrest, looking pained, Xie Yanfang felt somewhat helpless. "You're overthinking it. I've said it many times before, and I'll say it again: all of this is what you've earned for yourself. To put it simply, you came first, and then I followed. It was Miss Azhao who stood before me and made me see—"

He looked at Chu Zhao."I am willing to help wholeheartedly."

Chu Zhao opened her palm, peering at him through the gaps between her fingers.

"I can see the purity in your eyes, Third Young Master. I believe everything you say is true," she said. "That's why I'm perplexed."

...

...

Perplexed—this wasn't the first time Chu Zhao had said this to him. Xie Yanfang recalled when they were fishing in the imperial garden, she had looked at him and uttered those very words.

So her confusion wasn't about the matter of the Wei family in Han County.

"Over the years, I've been observing. I've seen how you genuinely and openly regard Xiao Yu as the Emperor—sincere and straightforward, neither servile nor arrogant, without even a hint of condescension."

"Yet you also associate with Western Liang, even manipulating the Xiliang soldiers to attack the cities and seize the lands of Great Xia, causing the deaths of Great Xia's soldiers and civilians."

"I've also witnessed your assistance to me. No matter how I look at it, I can see your sincerity. I can't find even a trace of falsehood."

"But then you sow discord between me and those around me, planting your own people to seize the military authority of those I trust, even endangering their lives."

Chu Zhao looked at the young master before her and shook her head.

"I am deeply perplexed, Third Young Master. What exactly are you doing? What is it that you truly want?"

Xie Yanfang looked at her and said, "From beginning to end, I have only one wish and one goal: to make A Yu a renowned and illustrious Emperor. But, Miss Azhao, the Emperor does not equate to Great Xia."

The Emperor does not equate to Great Xia? Chu Zhao was taken aback.

"The Emperor is the world, or as the saying goes, the solitary ruler," Xie Yanfang explained. "What the Emperor desires is that all under heaven—everything, the entire world, all beings—must serve his purpose."

Chu Zhao pondered thoughtfully. "So what you protect is A Yu as the Emperor, not the people of Great Xia. Therefore—"

"Therefore, there's no need to be constrained by whether they are on our side or the opposing side," Xie Yanfang said. "As long as they can be of use to me, why not use them? Whether they are Xiliang people or Great Xia people, if they can be utilized, they should all be utilized."

Chu Zhao looked at him, her expression complex. "Third Young Master, this idea of yours—"

She seemed at a loss for words.

"Although this idea of mine may sound despicable, it is the reality," Xie Yanfang said softly. "I mean no offense, but if not for the Xiliang people, if not for the casualties among Great Xia's subjects, your father might not have been utilized by the late Emperor. He might have lived his entire life as an ordinary, undistinguished soldier."

Chu Zhao's face changed slightly, but before she could speak, Xie Yanfang continued.

"I know that General Chu holds the belief: 'If only there were no illness in the world, why regret the dust gathering on the medicine shelves?'"

He looked at Chu Zhao.

"But let us not discuss ideals; let us discuss reality."

Chu Zhao remained silent.

Xie Yanfang gazed down the hillside. The deer hunt in this area had concluded, and in the distance, the cries of wild geese could be heard—the geese had been released, and it was time for the Emperor to hunt them.

"I understand the concepts of good and evil in the world, and the principles behind them," he said. "But A Yu was born in such times, and I encountered A Yu in such circumstances. It is a matter of timing and fate."

Fate. Chu Zhao sighed softly. "Then my encounter with you, Third Young Master, must also be fate."

In that previous life, meeting Xie Yanfang was the fate of Xiao Xun and Deng Yi. Her own fate was to encounter Xiao Xun. In this life, she had altered Xiao Xun's fate, leaving her to face Xie Yanfang alone.

Hearing this, Xie Yanfang smiled."I know that although I've repeatedly said I'm doing this for you, the pain from these matters is borne by Miss Azhao." He paused here, shaking his head, "Moreover, I cannot claim it's for you—this is merely my own affair. Even if I clearly explain the reasoning to Miss Azhao and analyze the pros and cons, she would never act this way."

Chu Zhao looked at him and laughed wryly: "Third Young Master knows everything, understands everything."

"And I've said all there is to say, haven't I?" Xie Yanfang responded with a smile.

Chu Zhao remained silent.

Xie Yanfang continued: "In saying all this, I'm not making excuses for myself, nor do I need to make excuses."

He turned his gaze to Chu Zhao.

"I only hope to resolve one doubt for Miss Azhao—you and A Yu are the Emperor and Empress I am sworn to protect, this is beyond question."

Chu Zhao stared fixedly at him, as if trying to see through to his very flesh and spirit, and said: "I believe you."

Having said this, she finished the tea Xie Yanfang had previously offered her, then poured two fresh cups.

"Minister Xie, please drink," she said.

Xie Yanfang reached out to take the teacup, gazing at the shimmering tea, and remarked: "But the Empress still intends to give me a cup of poisoned tea."