tallest building

Chapter 275 First Scheme

The Empress woke up, her head still feeling a little heavy.

Yu Lu leaned closer and said solicitously, "Your Highness is awake. This servant will have them make tea."

"Where is Mingqian?" the Empress asked, frowning.

“She’s in the outer room,” Yu Lu said hurriedly. “This servant will call her in right away.”

"In a little while, you will accompany Princess Zhao to see Ying Bai. You must always be mindful of etiquette, otherwise the situation will only become more tense," the Empress said, sighing as she spoke.

"Yes, Your Highness, I understand. I will accompany the Princess Consort there in a moment. However, the Princess Consort of Chu has refused to see me these past few days..." Yu Lu said.

"Whether she sees us or not is her business; whether we go or not is our business," the Empress said impatiently. "I've already said it; we'll just do our best."

Yu Lu knew the Empress's temper and dared not say anything more, so he hurriedly withdrew.

Wen Mingqian then walked in from the outer room.

"Your incense is very effective; it finally allowed me to get some sleep." The Empress's expression softened upon seeing her. "I will have to reward you with something later."

"Your Majesty's words are too kind to this humble servant. It is already a great honor to serve Your Majesty, how could I dare to harbor any thoughts of reward?" Wen Mingqian quickly replied.

"Look at you, being too cautious. It's not that you want to reward me, it's that I want to reward you." The Empress was amused by her. "You all know I have a bad temper and I'm usually very careful. But actually, my temper comes on quickly and goes off quickly."

"Your Majesty is kind and straightforward. I respect you, but I am not afraid of you. If it were anyone else in this situation, I don't know what they would have done. Your Majesty has to balance things out and worry about all sides." Wen Mingqian stepped forward to massage the Empress. "But I feel more sorry for Your Majesty and hope that you are at peace. Only then can we servants have someone to rely on!"

The Empress had no doubt about Wen Mingqian's words. As a divorced woman, she had no husband's family to rely on and no maternal family to depend on. Wasn't she completely dependent on herself?
“You are a reasonable person and understand my difficulties. But the Zhao family only knows how to push trouble onto me.” The Queen couldn’t help but complain, “Tell me about this situation, if even one of them had considered the bigger picture and been considerate of me, things wouldn’t have come to this.”

"The Crown Prince of Zhao made an unintentional mistake, but the King of Chu simply refuses to forgive him." Wen Mingqian knew that the Empress was inclined to support the King of Zhao and his allies, but she was only complaining verbally.

As expected, the Empress sighed upon hearing her words, "Yes, the King of Chu and his group are pushing too hard. But we are ultimately in the wrong in this matter. The previous dynasty has caused such a commotion; it's impossible for this to just be left unresolved."

His Majesty said that Ying Tong and Ying Bai will both be moved out of the palace in the next few days. Alas!

"How can this be?" Wen Mingqian feigned great surprise. "The Crown Prince of Zhao has moved out of the palace. When will he be able to return?"

"It seems they won't let him come back, saying he made a grave mistake." The Empress shook her head helplessly and regretfully. "What a pity all these years of my hard work have been for nothing." "No wonder Your Majesty is so upset," Wen Mingqian said. "You have poured your heart and soul into the Prince of Zhao."

"What can we do? The Emperor has to win over the people. He even said that to make amends, he would bring the youngest son of the Prince of Chu into the palace and adopt him. I know that as long as we do that, the Prince of Chu will give in and stop pressing the issue." The Empress said sadly, "I really don't want to see this situation. But now I don't even have anyone to share my burdens with, and my father and brothers are not in the capital."

"This servant would very much like to share Your Highness's burdens, but I am afraid of being presumptuous," Wen Mingqian said. "After all, this servant is of limited knowledge."

“I know you are a smart man, and more importantly, you are an outsider,” the Queen said. “Why don’t you share your thoughts?”

“Then this servant will dare to speak,” Wen Mingqian said. “This servant thinks that no matter what decision His Majesty makes, the more important thing is to quell the current turmoil. Your Highness can only go along with it, but as long as you have a backup plan, there will surely be a turning point in the future.”

"Tell me what your backup plan is?" The Empress was intrigued by her words.

"This servant is very ignorant, please don't laugh at me, Your Highness. I foolishly thought that no matter what, as long as I have military power and leverage, I can seize a turning point."

Since the Crown Prince of Zhao must leave the palace, the King of Zhao will most likely be implicated as well. It would be better to retreat strategically, bide one's time, and wait for the right opportunity.

"Please explain more clearly," the Empress said, her spirits lifting. "Where should he be sent to retain both military power and influence?

“The north,” Wen Mingqian said, “is a place with open terrain and a large garrison, suitable for raising horses and cultivating land. If the Prince of Zhao’s heir could also form a marriage alliance with the Prince of Fenye, the two sides would be close by and could plan together in case of trouble. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

“Yes, if the Prince of Zhao stays in the capital, he will certainly be demoted, and his power will be reduced by at least 30%. It would be better for him to go to the northern frontier, avoiding the infighting in the court and allowing him to recuperate.” The Empress was satisfied with Wen Mingqian’s suggestion, but then she thought of another possibility, “However, once the Prince of Zhao leaves the capital, the Prince of Chu will inevitably become more powerful. Since he has already broken ties with the Prince of Zhao, he must compete for supremacy. His youngest son has entered the palace, and many people will surely be inclined to support him. In that case, if anything happens, the Prince of Zhao, being far away on the frontier, will be unable to provide timely assistance!”

“Therefore, in order to maintain a balance of power, the King of Chu must also leave the capital,” Wen Mingqian said. “The King of Chu’s youngest son has entered the palace, and he has already benefited from it. But the King of Chu’s youngest son has already been adopted by the Empress and His Majesty, and it is no longer the case that both the Prince of Zhao and the Prince of Chu’s heirs were in the palace before.”

To avoid suspicion, the King of Chu should no longer remain in the capital. Throughout history, when a royal heir is adopted, the heir has always been separated from his biological parents. This is not a rule unique to our dynasty.

“Indeed, they shouldn’t stay in the capital, but where should they be transferred? How can we guarantee that he won’t follow the example of Prince Zhao and bide his time, with ulterior motives?” The Empress was still uneasy.

“Then assign him to a place under supervision. This person must be someone that His Majesty and the Empress trust, and someone who cannot possibly be colluding with the Prince of Chu,” Wen Mingqian said. “This place must not be closer to the capital than the Prince of Zhao’s place, otherwise, if any changes occur, we must not let the Prince of Chu gain the upper hand.”

"Excellent, excellent," the Empress said repeatedly. "You've thought of everything very carefully. No wonder your son is a prodigy. It's said that sons often resemble their mothers, and it seems that Chang'an is just like you."

"Your Majesty is too kind," Wen Mingqian said, blushing. "I'm afraid those who truly understand strategy would laugh at me if they heard this."

"You don't need to belittle yourself. To be honest, it's just the way things are these days. There are so many women who are a hundred times better than men, yet they are confined to their boudoirs." The Empress couldn't help but sigh. "I'll talk to Princess Zhao about it later, so she can be prepared."