Chapter 695: The Emperor and Empress (Part 3)

Chapter 695: The Emperor and Empress (Part 3)

While Xiao Silang was in the middle of speaking, he noticed his clothes were hard to clean, so he went back to change, missing a lot of the conversation.

It wasn’t the first time he had privately discussed matters with his wife.

When Su Rong first married into the Jinghai Marquis Mansion, she felt somewhat anxious. Unlike the small Su family, the Jinghai Marquis Mansion had many relatives, and she feared making a mistake that would tarnish the reputation of the Su family's daughters.

However, although the Jinghai Marquis Mansion did have some troublesome relatives, her husband would always inform her beforehand and tell her how to deal with them.

Within just over a month of marriage, she had already become adept at handling those relatives.

Her father-in-law and mother-in-law from the main family, as well as the uncles and aunts, were quite easy to deal with, as they were all very kind people.

Su Rong had seen too many women unhappy after marriage, so she knew that encountering such a family was a stroke of luck, and meeting a man devoted to her was a blessing from three lifetimes. Thus, she aimed to live up to everyone's expectations.

In the past, she often felt her life was unfortunate, not being born to the primary wife, not being favored by her father, and not being as good as her two older sisters, with many disappointments in life.

But now, reflecting back, she realized how fortunate she was to have been taken away by her aunt from that terrible family right after birth, and then fortunate enough to be adopted by her father. Now, her future life of smooth sailing was clearly visible, and she felt immensely fortunate.

She smiled and adjusted Xiao Silang's clothes: "After inquiring about the shop, mother asked me to persuade Feiyan to think about marriage."

Hearing this, Xiao Silang couldn’t help but laugh: "Actually, there's no hurry. Our Feiyan is both beautiful and capable, truly a woman who stands equal to men. She isn’t concerned about marriage. Moreover, the Emperor is now heeding my mother-in-law, advocating for women to marry and bear children later, saying it's good for women's health."

Su Rong had also heard about this. Nowadays, what was taught in women's schools in the Capital was what became popular in the public.

She even secretly wondered if the Emperor actually preferred older girls, which was why he was so slow to establish a harem.

"Anyway, don’t worry about mother. I’ll talk to her later," Xiao Silang said, noticing his wife was distracted, and he sneakily kissed her on the cheek.

Su Rong came back to her senses, covering her face and shyly glancing at him.

Xiao Silang chuckled, the more he looked at his wife, the more he liked her.

Thinking this, he suddenly changed his mind, feeling that it might be good to arrange a marriage for his sister earlier. Having someone who understood you by your side was a wonderful feeling.

The matter of the Xiao family secretly looking for a marriage partner for Xiao Feiyan eventually reached the imperial study.

The shadow guards had almost immediately gathered the list of potential suitors the Xiao family was considering and presented it to BaiLi Hongxuan.

"The Jinghai Marquis Mansion is looking for a marriage partner for Miss Xiao... this is a joyous occasion," BaiLi Hongxuan's lips curled slightly, but he quickly suppressed it.

The shadow guard was surprised by the Emperor's reaction.

For the past two years, the Emperor had been secretly protecting Miss Xiao's official career. Otherwise, with Miss Xiao's straightforward nature and the many people she had offended, she would have encountered countless hidden dangers.

He had always thought that the Emperor had feelings for Miss Xiao and that she would be the future Empress.

But now that the Xiao family was looking for a husband for Miss Xiao, the Emperor still thought it was a joyous occasion?

Indeed, the Emperor's heart was hard to fathom.

BaiLi Hongxuan noticed his reaction and lowered his eyes: "Changxing."

"Your Majesty, I am here," the shadow guard immediately responded.

BaiLi Hongxuan continued: "Do you remember what Miss Xiao said when we were at Jiuyuan Pass?"

"If I become an official, I will eliminate evil and uphold justice, sweeping away all injustices in the world."

Changxing couldn't help but recall those days at Jiuyuan Pass.

When he first heard Miss Xiao's words, he was hiding in the shadows, feeling indifferent, merely thinking that Miss Xiao of the Jinghai Marquis Mansion was too naive, sheltered by her family.

In this world, as long as people exist, evil will persist. How can one possibly eradicate all the injustices in the world?

However, looking back at Miss Xiao's two years in office, she had been vigorously punishing evil and promoting good, seeking justice for the suffering people of the world.

It seemed she hadn't achieved what she had vowed, yet in a way, she had.

BaiLi Hongxuan looked up: "From that moment, I wanted to know, how far can women in this world go? How high can this Feiyan fly?"

"Though the world is now at peace, the future of Great Shen extends far beyond this. In the future, when people talk about it, Great Shen will be prosperous and thriving, bold enough to fortify the nation with innovation, and generous enough to allow women to showcase their talents."

"And I am willing to lead the way for the world."

Changxing was beginning to understand.

Did the Emperor have feelings for Miss Xiao?

Perhaps...

But undoubtedly, the Emperor admired those who were resolutely willing to sacrifice for the justice of this world, those who never changed their original intentions no matter how long it took.

He surely admired Miss Xiao.

"Your Majesty speaks wisely," Changxing was somewhat unsure whether the Emperor had feelings for Miss Xiao.

But he knew, if Miss Xiao intended to serve as a female official for life, she might never have a future with the Emperor.

Those ministers could tolerate a female official who traveled extensively and served in the court, but they certainly could not tolerate an empress who traveled around and debated with them in the court.

Changxing believed that the Emperor and Miss Xiao were fated to be apart in this life.

Another ten years passed, and things unfolded just as he had predicted.

The Emperor's harem remained empty, and the old ministers had exhausted their arguments and grown weary of persuasion. Gradually, they all gave up on advising the Emperor to take someone into his harem.

They even began to speculate that the Emperor would eventually adopt a child from the royal family to inherit the position of Crown Prince.

Meanwhile, Miss Xiao, for various reasons, had not married. Even in the Capital, where late marriages were becoming fashionable, she was considered an older unmarried woman, now twenty-eight years old.

It seemed that the Jinghai Marquis's Mansion had given up on arranging a marriage for her, completely resigned to letting her remain a spinster at home for the rest of her life.

But it was in this very year, just as the ministers were advising the Emperor in court to adopt a child from the royal family, that BaiLi Hongxuan suddenly displayed a smile the ministers had never witnessed before.

"If you hadn't mentioned it, I might have forgotten to share this good news with you."

"Yes, I have a child."

"I am a father now."

"..."

The ministers exchanged shocked glances, and after a long moment, the court burst into chaos.

What?

The Emperor has a child?

Whose child?

Where is it?

Who gave birth to it?

The ministers were completely stunned by this bombshell, and questions flooded their minds like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. For a moment, they couldn't help but suspect that the Emperor was pulling their leg.