Upon hearing these words, a look of hatred surfaced on Cai Bo's face.
"That Chu thief is despicable," he said.
Xie Yanfang chuckled softly. "Cai Bo, you've never had a single good word to say about her from the beginning until now."
Indeed, from the first time he saw that girl, he had disliked her. Why? Cai Bo pondered as he rowed the oars, gazing at the young master leaning against the boat's edge, whose once raven-black hair had now turned as white as snow.
Perhaps it was because, from the very start, this girl had made the young master regard her differently.
In the young master's eyes, most people were all the same. Once someone stood apart, the heart would inevitably become biased.
And when the heart is biased, it becomes trapped and blinded.
Sure enough, the young master had ended up in his current state.
"Now I only regret that I merely spoke ill of her," Cai Bo sighed.
He should have eliminated her outright.
He had underestimated this woman after all.
Xie Yanfang laughed heartily. "But this time, you truly can't blame her. It wasn't she who harmed me—I harmed myself."
Hearing this, Cai Bo's expression darkened further, and the oars creaked loudly under his forceful rowing.
When that woman fought her way back to the capital, her first act was to send the young master a cup of poisoned wine.
This had long been anticipated. Xie Yanfang's earlier self-inflicted injuries were meant to lure her back to the Imperial City—not because he wished to die or was willing to be killed.
Thus, he had preemptively consumed poison, intending to use poison against poison and neutralize the threat.
Who could have guessed—
"The wine she gave me wasn't actually poisoned," Xie Yanfang said.
As a result, with no external poison to counteract, his own poison injured him severely, nearly killing him.
"She did it on purpose! No wonder she said to me as she left, 'Those who scheme against others are ultimately scheming against themselves.'" Cai Bo recalled the incident, still trembling with anger.
At the time, he hadn't grasped her meaning, thinking Chu Zhao was accusing the Xie family of bringing ruin upon themselves through their own turmoil. It was only when he noticed the young master's condition worsening that he understood what had truly happened.
Xie Yanfang laughed again, regretting that he had been unconscious from the poison at the time, unaware of Chu Zhao's expression or her exact words. He wished he could have applauded and cheered for her cleverness.
She was right—she had been wary of him, knowing he was equally wary of her. So, she had gone along with his plan, letting him suffer the consequences of his own schemes.
Indeed, she was different from him—she was even more detestable.
Xie Yanfang smiled, leaning against the boat's edge as he watched the rushing currents. Cai Bo's voice continued in his ears.
"The old master and the others have been imprisoned, and the family estate has been confiscated. Although, following your instructions, we had the younger generations change their names and scatter to preserve the bloodline, what connection does a renamed bloodline have with our Xie family?"
"This past year, the Xie family has been convicted, yet she still refuses to relent. It's like using a blunt knife to slice flesh, grinding the Xie family into dust."
"Not just the Xie family—our relatives and friends have also suffered greatly, enduring immense hardship."
Xie Yanfang interrupted him. "None of that matters anymore, Cai Bo. The defeated are the outlaws, and this is the fate of outlaws."
He turned his palm downward, and fallen petals once again dropped into the water, vanishing in an instant.
Cai Bo fell silent for a moment before letting out a long sigh. "I understand this principle, but who would have thought we would be defeated by her?"
Xie Yanfang suddenly said, "During the year I was unconscious, I had a dream—I lived another life."
Cai Bo was taken aback. "What was that other life like?"
Xie Yanfang replied, "It was both similar and different from this one. In that life, A Yu also died."
Xiao Yu died too? Even though he knew it was just a dream, Cai Bo couldn't help but ask, "What was the outcome then?"
Xie Yanfang smiled faintly. "The outcome, of course, still went as I wished."But it wasn't particularly interesting either.
That dream didn't include Chu Zhao, or rather, there was a negligible presence of Chu Zhao.
He hadn't even seen what she looked like alive.
Only a corpse.
So, it was just like that—neither surprising, joyful, nor amusing.
Cai Bo wasn't very interested in dreams; he lived only in the present. He sighed softly, "Empress Chu brought Deng Yi out into the open but didn't clear his name, leaving him in an ambiguous state, forever controlled and used by her."
The crimes of the former Grand Tutor Deng Yi were firmly established. Now, even if Deng Yi didn't change his name or identity, even if everyone knew he was Deng Yi, he could never truly be Deng Yi again. Moreover, Deng Yi had become a sword hanging over his head.
Once the Emperor no longer wanted to use him, it could fall at any moment.
It was hard to understand why he even bothered to reappear. He might as well have died outright—perhaps he couldn't even seek death, trapped as he was in Chu Zhao's grasp.
"No need to think too much about it," Xie Yanfang said lazily.
If he were by her side, he would have advised her to do the same.
This not only restrained Deng Yi but also kept the Emperor in check.
Cai Bo added, "She initiated the imperial examinations for women to win over more noble families and consolidate her power."
With Grand Tutor Deng Yi gone from the court and the Xie family purged by her, the only obstacle left was the Emperor.
At this, Cai Bo sighed sorrowfully again.
"Young master, back then, when you were furious that she refused to become Empress, you fell into her trap."
"She merely used the opportunity to eliminate you."
"You devoted yourself to making her Empress, while she was determined to have you killed."
Xie Yanfang still smiled lazily. "No need to think too much."
He would have advised her to do the same. Using the imperial examinations and a few female officials to win over a group of noble families was a wise move.
What did it matter if the Empress contended for power with Xiao Yu?
Who said that becoming Empress meant she could only be Empress?
Xiao Yu was saved by her; his life belonged to her. She could do as she pleased.
Hearing Xie Yanfang's repeated dismissals, Cai Bo was stunned for a moment before sighing deeply again. Yes, there was no need to think too much—it was useless now. The young master's body was completely ruined, and the Xie family was gone. Though Deng Yi was neither man nor ghost, at least he could still appear in the world, while the young master could not.
He wandered with the young master, hoping only to keep him alive.
What use were grand ambitions and intricate schemes now?
Not wanting to upset the young master further, he quietly rowed the boat.
Xie Yanfang leaned against the boat's edge, silently watching the flowing water. He wasn't particularly saddened—his broken body, his ruined family, his tragic end—none of it mattered.
She had indeed become Empress as he wished, and everything she had done since becoming Empress aligned with his desires.
So, what exactly was different about her "uniqueness"?
His body, with its rotting organs, made life excruciating, but he had still awakened.
Enduring the pain and suffering, he would watch and see what made her different in this world.
...
...
The hall, empty for over a year, was now filled with people.
The two hundred scholars selected from the first imperial examination after the new Emperor took personal reign, along with the twenty women who had outperformed the scholars in the competition, stood in the court hall.
Regardless of gender or age, all wore red robes and adorned flowers, bowing in unison to the Emperor and Empress as the ceremonial officials chanted.
The scholars were excited, but the women were even more so.
Earlier, they had paraded on horseback through the streets, and it seemed as if all the women of the capital had turned out, showering their path with flowers.
They had done such things before, but only as bystanders tossing flowers at men, filled with admiration and envy.Never did they imagine that one day they too would be treated this way.
Now standing once again in the great hall of the Imperial City, some among them had visited before, but always as female relatives confined to side halls or the inner palace, never setting foot in the main court to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with men.
During the court assembly, everyone struggled to maintain composure. But when the Empress personally summoned them after the ceremony concluded, several women could no longer hold back tears behind their sleeves.
Among these twenty women, only seven or eight were Chu Zhao's familiar companions. Though Qi Leyun and others had participated, not everyone could be selected—after all, not all possessed extraordinary talent.
These seven or eight who made the cut had exerted tremendous effort. Chu Tang studied with hair tied to the beam and awls pricking her thighs, while Zhou Jiang was confined at home by her grandfather, who monitored her studies with a ruler.
Their selection also involved luck, as the number of female candidates remained small compared to male examinees.
"So emotional?" Chu Zhao laughed. "Didn't you already celebrate when the results were announced?"
"That was excitement over winning," one woman explained. "Now we're moved by truly experiencing the consequences of victory."
This woman, surnamed Zeng, wasn't among Chu Zhao's close friends and was considerably older—already in her thirties.
She called herself Auntie Zeng. Though from a prominent family, her name never appeared among the capital's celebrated talented women.
Auntie Zeng had broken through the competition with her expertise in astronomy, calendars, and mathematics, not only topping the female candidates but surpassing all two hundred scholars in this examination.
Though initially it was decided women would enter the Hanlin Academy, officials from the Ministries of Rites, Revenue, and Works had recently been circling the Empress, subtly inquiring about Auntie Zeng—seemingly interested but hesitant due to gender barriers.
"The consequences of winning mean real status and power," Chu Zhao said smiling. "For years, these are what made countless officials in these halls sacrifice everything."
Auntie Zeng stepped forward: "Your Majesty, I, Zeng, am willing to sacrifice everything for you."
Neither her father nor brothers had remarkable careers or entered officialdom, while she herself remained a chaste woman who'd sworn never to marry after her fiancé's death.
Her clan's greatest expectation for her was to earn a memorial archway after death.
Never did she expect the skills she used to pass time would bring her official honors.
To her family, an official position proved more valuable than a memorial arch. As long as it brought glory to the clan, they didn't care about gender—offering full support through connections and resources.
She wasn't alone. Several other women stepped forward to declare their dedication.
They knew their present standing came from the Empress, and their families understood that gains required giving. Their clans were more than willing to contribute.
When men became officials, they sold themselves and their families to the emperor, then received rewards from imperial hands.
Now that women held office, they must do the same.
Chu Zhao watched them with a smile.
"No, your task isn't to sacrifice for me, but for yourselves," she said. "Having won, you shouldn't look upward—but downward."
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