After being reborn, I stole the female lead's cheat ability and raised the empress.

Chapter 154 The Emperor's Profound Meaning

Su Tiyu also said, "Although we can't cure it, we can alleviate it. If the Emperor follows our method, as long as he keeps calm and doesn't overwork himself and is no longer stimulated, he can live another thirty or forty years without any problem."

"This..." The emperor was destined to be a busy man, to say the least...

None of them could say for sure whether the Third Prince would act as a catalyst.

Luan Yi was a straightforward person, and she said directly, "Then let the emperor abdicate and pass the throne to a worthy successor, so that he can concentrate on recuperating!"

"Your Majesty..." Zhao Jihua immediately knelt down to beg for forgiveness.

"It's alright! What she said is true. It's just that I can't step down now. The country is unstable, and the person who can shoulder great responsibilities has not yet returned. I must leave a stable court for the Crown Prince."

The emperor waved his hand dismissively, signaling for people to rise.

Zhao Jihua thought for a moment and said, "Could Su Tiyu stay behind to help His Majesty recuperate? I'm afraid there will be no one to watch over her..."

"Granted!" The emperor pointed at Zhao Jihua. "You may all leave. I have a word with Princess Nanhua."

"Yes."

After everyone left, the emperor pointed to the other side of the folded chair and waved to her: "Come and sit down."

Zhao Jihua's heart skipped a beat: What does the emperor mean by this?

A woman who can sit in that position

No, the old emperor wouldn't want to take me as a concubine, would he?

Thinking this, Zhao Jihua knelt down: "This humble woman is filled with trepidation."

The emperor, seeing her like this, knew exactly what she was thinking. He chuckled and lightly tapped the table. "Afraid I've taken a liking to you? I'm too old for that; I'd be more suited to be your father! But you've taken a liking to Xiao Jiu?"

Zhao Jihua relaxed, but she still didn't dare to sit down. She stood by the bed and replied, "Your Majesty, the Ninth Prince is gentle and refined, talented and kind. He is a benevolent crown prince. Please, Your Majesty, take a look at him."

The emperor laughed heartily, "You make no attempt to hide your thoughts!"

"I am merely trying to share Your Majesty's burdens," she paused, then continued, "When I was little, Your Majesty held me in your arms and told me that you hoped I would grow up to be a person of great talent and knowledge. I have kept that in mind, and now I only wish to do my part for Your Majesty and for the country."

The Emperor nodded with satisfaction. "You have indeed lived up to my expectations. The Ninth Prince is kind and benevolent, but that is only true when the country is at peace. Now, with powerful families vying for power internally and the Vermilion Bird Kingdom eyeing us covetously from the outside, only the First Prince can shoulder this great responsibility for the nation."

Zhao Jihua respectfully replied, "Your Majesty is wise."

The emperor looked at her again, "As for your relationship with Xiao Jiu, don't rush things. Everything should be done with the greater good in mind."

Zhao Jihua blushed and lowered her head.

The emperor straightened his robes. "You may leave now."

Zhao Jihua bowed and took his leave.

Along with her, a stream of rewards flowed back to the Prince of Jin's residence.

Although no one pointed it out, the emperor knew that the Southern Barbarians could only serve as a fiefdom for Zhao Jihua or Xia Li.

Because the most terrifying thing about the Southern Barbarians is their Gu magic, and only the two of them can counter it.

If it were anyone else... haha!

I'm afraid I'll become a puppet as soon as I go in.

……

Back in the courtyard, Zhao Jihua pondered the events of the day.

I always felt that the emperor had a deeper meaning.

Why would the emperor be so kind as to tell me something that concerns national affairs?

Why do I have such a bad feeling?

But before she could figure it out, she learned that her mother had an accident!

She rushed to the Princess Consort of Jin's courtyard, only to find the door tightly closed and the royal physician inside treating patients.

"what happened?"

The personal maid, Su Ying, said, "The Third Prince happened to meet the Prince's concubine's son, so he sent the mother and son to the Prince's residence..."

Just then, a woman rushed in and began to boss her around: "You must be Zhao Jihua, right? I'm your aunt, you have to bow and greet me!"

Zhao Jihua coldly swept her gaze over: "Drag him away. This princess cannot tolerate anything filthy!"

To everyone's surprise, the woman broke free and pointed at the servants, saying, "Get your dog paws off me! I am the prince's most beloved woman. Can you bear the responsibility if I get hurt?"

For a moment, no one dared to step forward and take her.

Seeing this, she became even more smug, baring her teeth and brandishing her claws at the group of people: "Don't forget, I was sent here by the Third Prince. He instructed you to treat me well!"

At this moment, Zhao Jihua was worried about her mother's safety and had no time to care about her, which made the woman think that the other party was afraid of her.

The woman boasted to herself, her voice brimming with smug satisfaction:

"You think you're so great just because you're a princess? So what if you just got Xia Li back? Only our Fan Yu is a little prince, only he is the future of the Jin Prince's Mansion! You're sixteen, right? Our Fan Yu is already thirteen! The year your mother found you, I recognized the prince. He arranged a large courtyard for us outside, and every day he would come to meet with us, only leaving reluctantly very late."

"Outsiders say that the Prince of Jin and his wife are very loving, and that he never takes a concubine because of her. Actually, it's because of me. The Prince of Jin and I were childhood sweethearts. If he hadn't gone missing after joining the army, we wouldn't have missed each other for so many years, and you and your daughter wouldn't exist. I should have been the Princess Consort of Jin!"

"And you too! What do you think Prince Jin made you learn etiquette and manners for? Wasn't it to pave the way for our Fanyu? Only our Fanyu is the future of Prince Jin's mansion. If you know what's good for you, hurry up and kowtow to me. Then you and your daughter can live out the rest of your lives in peace..."

Zhao Jihua couldn't help but glare at her: "God help me! You'd better pray that my mother is alright, otherwise..."

The woman shrank back, but remembering that she had been escorted back by the Third Prince and was the prince's most beloved woman, she straightened up again:

"If you ask me, it's all because your princess is too delicate and jealous. She gets so angry when she sees me that she trembles and even falls into the lotus pond. She can't even walk properly. She deserves it!" It would be good if the king could just leave so I could make room!

At Zhao Jihua's single glance, a servant immediately held a knife to the other man's neck.

The other party then fell silent.

A short while later, the door opened.

Zhao Jihua hurriedly went to greet him, "Doctor, how is my mother?"

The royal physician bowed and said, "Your Highness, the Princess Consort fainted due to a combination of anger and accidental fall into the pond, which caused her great shock. However, the Princess Consort's health is not very good to begin with, so she still needs to be carefully cared for..."

Hearing that his mother was alright, Zhao Jihua finally felt relieved.

After politely seeing the physician off, she coldly glanced at the woman and ordered, "Guards, arrest her!"

The woman shouted, "How dare you! I am your aunt, personally sent back by the Third Prince. How dare you touch me?"

Zhao Jihua raised his hand in greeting.

The servants immediately pushed the other woman in front of them, and Su Ying even kicked her knees twice.

The woman knelt down in front of Zhao Jihua with a "plop!"

Zhao Jihua grabbed the other person's chin: "Gu Yinzhu, is it? Who do you think I'm afraid of? The Third Prince?"

She shoved the man's face aside and said, "If I hadn't been worried about interfering with the imperial physician's treatment of my mother, do you think I would have tolerated your barking like a dog?"

"How dare you treat me like this? Believe me or not, I'll tell the Prince!"

Zhao Jihua chuckled: "This is the first time I've ever seen someone willingly walk into my door looking for a beating."

Gu Yinzhu was startled: "What do you mean?"

Zhao Jihua smiled meaningfully: "Have you ever heard of 'beating a dog behind closed doors'?"

After saying that, her expression changed. "Guards, slap him!"

"How dare you! I was brought back by the Third Prince..."

"The Prince of Jin's darling, is that it?" Zhao Jihua replied with a smile. "Beat him! I'll take responsibility if anything happens!"

During this brief moment, the princess's wet nurse came out and said to her, "Princess, you must avenge the princess! She deliberately said those nasty things to the princess to anger her. Originally, the princess just didn't want to talk to her, but who knew that she would rush up and fight with the princess and even deliberately push the princess into the pool... She deliberately wanted to harm the princess!"

Zhao Jihua quickly patted the wet nurse's hand: "Wet nurse, you go in and take care of Mother first. I'll take care of things here."

After seeing the wet nurse off, her face was ashen. She grabbed Gu Yinzhu's hand with one hand and held her neck with the other, forcing her against a water vat. "You like water, huh? I'll let you experience it too!"

Gu Yinzhu was truly frightened now. She said in a panic, "I didn't mean to, she just accidentally fell into the water."

"I didn't mean to!" Zhao Jihua said as she forcefully pushed the other person's head underwater!

No matter how much the opponent struggled, they were no match for Zhao Jihua, who had practiced martial arts.

Zhao Jihua pulled the person up just as they were about to suffocate.

Are you more awake now?

Gu Yinzhu was furious: "Do you believe I'll tell your father...?"

Before he could finish speaking, he was pushed back down.

Zhao Jihua lifted the person up and then pressed him down again.

Repeat this process three times.

Gu Yinzhu finally became completely obedient, begging for mercy repeatedly: "I was wrong, please forgive me, Princess! I really know I was wrong!"

"Now you know you were wrong? It's okay, your son has already atoned for your sins."

"W-What do you mean?"

Seeing the other person's disheveled and miserable state, Zhao Jihua felt his pent-up anger dissipate somewhat.

Zhao Jihua whispered in the woman's ear, "What I mean is, on my way here, I already ordered someone to throw your son into the lotus pond, right where my mother had the accident!"

As if suddenly remembering something, she said...

She continued, "Oh, by the way, I didn't arrange for anyone to rescue him. If you hadn't been so arrogant and domineering here, your son might not have suffered so much. But you just had to keep nagging. I wonder if your son has drowned yet? Hahahaha..."

"You! You're a complete madman!" Gu Yinzhu exclaimed in exasperation.

"Oh! It seems Aunt Gu misses her son! Well then, I'll grant your wish, what can I say, I'm kind-hearted~" Zhao Jihua smiled kindly. "Guards, take her to the lotus pond where Mother had her accident, and let her accidentally fall in too. Remember to send dozens of guards to watch over her, make sure Aunt Gu doesn't lose her chastity..."

The guards pushed Aunt Gu away.

Zhao Jihua then asked:

"Where is Father? Such a terrible thing happened to Mother, and he hasn't even shown up?"

The maid explained tremblingly, "The prince went out during the day, saying he had arranged to go sketching with his colleagues."