Spring Remains the Same - Chapter 96

Lying in the same bed with Wei Xiu, Puyang seemed to have endless things to say. It wasn’t until the hour of Zi, when the watchman’s clapper for the third watch sounded from a distance, that Puyang reluctantly fell silent. She needed to rise early tomorrow and should return to her own bed on the other side of the screen.

Wei Xiu’s hand rested on her waist, stroking it gently. Even through a layer of nightclothes, Puyang could feel the warmth of her palm. In observance of the mourning period, they had not shared such intimacy for a long time. Puyang cherished it all the more. Her mind was exceptionally clear; the mourning for the late Emperor was not yet over. As his daughter, she should not be thinking of the pleasures of the bedchamber, yet her heart refused to follow reason.

In the dimness of the night, Wei Xiu’s eyes were serene, her gaze upon Puyang exceptionally focused. Puyang couldn’t help but lean over and kiss her on the lips.

Wei Xiu’s breath caught for a moment, then she began to return Puyang’s deep affection. They had been married for nearly two years, yet they had rarely been intimate. First, there was Wei Xiu’s grave illness, then the late Emperor’s passing. Even while sharing a room, they had seldom experienced such a complete union. But seldom did not mean without desire. At first, it was just lips touching lips, both of them seeming unpracticed. Soon, however, distant memories awakened in both their minds simultaneously—the moans of their wedding night, the soft gasps, their bodies entwined, the sticky, wet kisses—exploding like fireworks in the equally deep night. Even someone as composed as Wei Xiu lost her restraint. She was not content with a light touch of the lips and teeth; she eagerly sought to conquer more territory. She lingered on Puyang’s lips, caressed her cheeks, and sucked more desirously, her tongue probing, seeking Puyang’s response.

This Wei Xiu was nothing like the gentle one who whispered to her about “raising a few fish in the pond,” nor the elegant one who played the flute by the window in the night. She seemed a bit more worldly, and also a bit more real.

Puyang liked this Wei Xiu too. Whatever Wei Xiu was like, Puyang liked it. She closed her eyes, unable to stop herself from responding to her, indulging her, letting her take what she wanted.

Their breathing grew heavier, the air they exhaled hotter. The friction and suction between their lips and teeth created lewd sounds.

Passion burned hot; a single kiss was enough to send one into a daze. Puyang clung tightly to Wei Xiu’s shoulders as if she had nothing else to hold onto, and dazed moans, thick with a nasal tone, escaped her unconsciously.

It was not until Wei Xiu’s hand slipped inside her nightgown that Puyang shuddered, suddenly coming to her senses. She quickly grabbed Wei Xiu’s hand, panting, “A Xiu… we can’t…”

Halted, Wei Xiu looked at her blankly. In her confusion, a rare hint of grievance appeared in her eyes, but she quickly understood why Puyang had stopped her. She held Puyang and made no further move. Puyang couldn’t help but feel a pang of pity. Three years was too long, too unfair to A Xiu. But her father was gone. If she couldn’t even observe the three-year mourning period, how could she be a worthy daughter?

She tried to calm her desire, gently patting Wei Xiu’s back. “A Xiu,” she bit her lip shyly and hugged Wei Xiu’s arm, her voice soft and gentle. “Please bear with it for a while. Once the three years are over, I’ll make it up to you properly…”

Her voice grew quieter and quieter. The meaning behind her words was obvious, and she was ultimately overcome with shyness. But she was not an ordinary woman of the inner quarters. Even in her bashfulness, she did not shy away. She looked up at Wei Xiu and saw that Wei Xiu was also smiling at her. Those deep eyes had not yet shed their desire as they gazed at her meaningfully. In a low, ambiguous voice, Wei Xiu said, “Alright. Once the three years are over, you will make it up to me properly.”

Puyang felt her cheeks burn as if on fire. She truly loved this slightly wicked side of Wei Xiu. She tried her best to appear calm, but the words that came out were soft and alluring, “But you’re not allowed to be too wicked.”

Wei Xiu’s smile deepened. “I will obey Your Highness’s command.”

After this interlude, the night grew even deeper. Puyang had to leave. She groped her way back in the dark as she had come, but her mood was entirely different—joyful, satisfied, and full of anticipation for the future. She did not see that the moment she turned away, the light in Wei Xiu’s eyes fell like a shooting star, growing dim.

The three-year period was not far off. In the context of the eternal cosmos, it was but the blink of an eye. In the context of a long life, it would also pass quickly. But in the turbulent years of an unstable political situation, three years was enough for the world to be turned upside down.

Wei Xiu had already made up her mind. Once everything was settled for the princess, she would reveal everything. Whether she would stay or go, live or die, would be entirely up to the princess’s will.

Puyang was swamped with court affairs and could not be in two places at once, but Wei Xiu would not forget the young emperor in the palace, nor the princes who had not yet given up hope. The Princes of Zhao, Dai, and Jing were manageable. Seeing that great power had fallen into Puyang’s hands, and that although she suppressed them, she had not sought to eliminate them entirely, still allowing them to remain at court, their ambitions for the throne gradually faded.

But the Prince of Jin was different. The other three princes were not in mortal danger, so they could not resolve to fight to the death. The Prince of Jin, however, knew that if he fell into Puyang’s hands, death was certain.

During this time, while Puyang was preoccupied, he had been frequently contacting the great families. The princes had always had deep connections with the old aristocratic clans. When the late Emperor first ascended the throne, he still had use for the great families and did not suppress them heavily. At that time, the princes were no longer young and, to consolidate their own positions, they all formed marriage alliances with the great families. Later, once the late Emperor had secured his throne, he began to centralize imperial power, and the great families who had shared the world with the imperial clan naturally suffered. Forced into dormancy by the late Emperor’s suppression, the great families intended to bide their time and preserve their strength for a comeback. Who would have known that after more than a decade, they had truly decayed.

But no matter how decayed, a centipede dies but never falls stiff. They still had many members at court and still had the strength to fight. Seizing the opportunity of this transition between old and new, with the situation not yet fully stabilized, they were determined to make a desperate gamble to restore their ancestors’ glory.

Grand Princess Puyang was carrying on the late Emperor’s legacy and would not allow them to flourish. The young emperor could not even look after himself, and the Prince of Zhao and the others were feigning retirement. After weighing the options, the ambitious Prince of Jin, whose foundations were still intact, became the best candidate for them to support.

The court appeared calm, but it was in fact a boiling cauldron. In such a situation, the best course of action was to cut the Gordian knot. The Wang family was the head of the great families, and Chancellor Wang was among the regents entrusted with the throne. His stance was therefore of utmost importance. Many great families had already contacted him, attempting to persuade him to change his allegiance and switch camps.

Even though Wei Xiu trusted the Chancellor, she had to make a trip to his residence. Firstly, their ambition was great, and the Chancellor was well-versed in government affairs. His direct assistance would surely double their results with half the effort. Secondly, at this point, to not visit the Chancellor’s residence and speak with him frankly would seem insincere and would surely disappoint him.

Wei Xiu chose a day of rest and, taking Puyang with her, went to the Chancellor’s residence.

Chancellor Wang had been waiting for a long time. Seeing that they had indeed come, he was greatly pleased.

This was a man who had navigated the court for the better part of his life. Even if he had not seen through Puyang’s intentions at first, at this critical juncture, he saw them with perfect clarity. If not for this, Chancellor Wang, as the head of the regency council, would not have yielded to Puyang on every matter, allowing power to shift into her hands.

As soon as Puyang and Wei Xiu arrived at the Wang residence, they were ushered into a secret chamber. Seeing this, they were both immediately relieved. The Chancellor’s actions showed that he wished to speak with them with utter frankness, and this frankness was clearly built upon a foundation of supporting Puyang.

“The decline of the great families is irreversible. My Wang family is unwilling to be dragged down with them, so we must choose another enlightened ruler to support,” Chancellor Wang sighed.

Those people had not yet given up, but he had already seen the truth. What monarch enjoys sharing glory with his subjects? Even if the Prince of Jin were to ascend the throne, who could guarantee that he would not follow the late Emperor’s path? And the great families were no longer the great families of old. In the past, they were elegant and talented, filled with men capable of being generals and chancellors. Now, several families combined might not be able to produce a single figure who could hold his own. In those days, the realm was in turmoil, and the imperial family could not rule alone, which led to the situation of co-governance with the great families. Now, those times were long past.

Although Chancellor Wang felt a sense of sorrow, he had to plan for the future. Since they could not return to their peak, what better choice was there than for his own granddaughter to ascend the throne?

If Puyang became emperor, the Wang family would still be imperial relatives by marriage. Wang Gun and the others would be imperial uncles. They could not hope for their titles of duke and marquis to last ten thousand generations, but to be illustrious for three generations was a reasonable expectation. What was even better was that Zhongmeng was not close to the Wei family, so there would be no need to worry about new imperial relatives by marriage competing for glory.

What Chancellor Wang wanted now was a promise from Puyang.

Puyang smiled. “The Wang family and I are one and the same. With Maternal Grandfather in the chancellorship, the court is stable inside and out. The great prosperity of Wei today is largely due to your immense contributions. After you, I intend for my maternal uncle, Wang Gun, to become Chancellor, to continue Wei’s golden age.”

Good! This was exactly what Chancellor Wang wanted.

“The current emperor has no obvious virtue and often speaks in a muddle-headed way. With the country in his hands, the people will not be at ease,” Chancellor Wang said directly, no longer holding back. “But his incompetence is still confined to the court. The officials, remembering the late Emperor’s instructions, have done much to cover it up, so the world is still in the dark.”

To carry out a deposition and enthronement, one naturally needed a reason, which was invariably that the Son of Heaven’s virtue was unworthy of his position, making him unfit to rule over the people. But Xiao Dewen was simply too young, had issued few edicts, and with his limited abilities, had no direct access to state affairs. He couldn’t do anything to provoke the wrath of heaven and the people even if he wanted to.

An army without a just cause is an army of injustice. One misstep, and they could be “overthrown to restore the rightful order” by others.

Wei Xiu frowned. It was indeed difficult, but not the most difficult part. She had another purpose for coming here. “The Tiger Warriors and the Feathered Forest Guard were left to His Majesty by the late Emperor. These two units are particularly stubborn. Does Maternal Uncle have any reliable men in the Feathered Forest Guard, which he commanded for many years?”

Of course, he did. Chancellor Wang stood up, took a list from a bookshelf behind him, placed it on the desk, and pushed it toward Wei Xiu and Puyang. “They are all on here. These few are reliable. There are others who have likely turned their coats, so there’s no need to mention them.”

Wei Xiu glanced at it. More than ten names—not a small number, but unfortunately, they were all in the middle ranks.

“The new Middle General of the Feathered Forest Guard is not easy to deal with. The late Emperor always had a knack for judging people,” Chancellor Wang smiled, but his eyes were grim. “Unless he makes a mistake, it will be difficult to have him transferred.”

Puyang pondered for a moment. “The Tiger Warriors and the Gold Guard are the same.”

“And the Black Armor Army outside the capital,” Chancellor Wang said, looking toward Wei Xiu.

Wei Xiu understood. “I will go.” The Black Armor Army was commanded by Wei You; it was most appropriate for her to go.

Chancellor Wang’s expression relaxed slightly. In the palace coup more than twenty years ago, he had been the strategist. This time, it was much easier than that occasion.

Wei Xiu had also made preparations. With Puyang and the Chancellor at court, there were no major problems. If the Tiger Warriors and Feathered Forest Guard submitted in time, all would be well. If not, they would have no choice but to lead the Black Armor Army into the capital.

They did not want a major upheaval and wished to keep the turmoil to a minimum. But the Prince of Jin would not care about such things. While no one was paying attention, the Prince of Jin had actually managed to get involved with Xiao Dewen.