Chapter 140.1 – A Night of Sweet Dreams 

Qi Yang’s teeth ached because of Lu Qipei’s words, but she had to admit that latter was right. In history, officials who assisted with governance rarely met a good end. Although they might look close to the Little Emperor, there were actually a lot of hidden dangers.

Of course, after this conversation, Qi Yang also understood that not only did Lu Qipei not lust for power, she also hoped that the two of them could run off as soon as possible. This was not surprising – originally, they had discussed leaving the capital after the Crown Prince ascended the throne, to travel the world and eventually settle down in Qi Yang’s fief. If it weren’t for the assassination and a new Emperor ascending the throne, she would have resigned from her official post and they would’ve packed their bags by now!

Unfortunately, the world was unpredictable, and now they would have to stay in the capital for a few more years.

Seeing that it was getting late, Qi Yang pulled Lu Qipei and began to go back. Halfway through their trip, she thought carefully and said, “Ah Pei, I know what you meant. Whether for Ah Qi or anyone else, I won’t take these few years lightly. We don’t have to stay in the capital too long, just wait for Ah Qi to get married and take over the government, so I won’t let down Royal Brother’s entrustment.”

Speaking of this, Qi Yang looked at Lu Qipei again and sincerely said, “For the next few years, I have to ask Ah Pei to teach Ah Qi well together with me, so he can become a good Emperor.”

In fact, Qi Yang’s words were not abrupt. A few years… It could be said that in this past one year, Qi Yang finally saw a Lu Qipei that was completely different than the one that had been in her impression.

In their previous life, she died early on, and Qi Yang’s impression of her had always been that of a gentleman. And because she died so easily, Qi Yang had always thought of her as innocent and easily deceived. But looking back at it now, she said that she would kill Lu Qicheng, and the latter died. She said that she wanted to kill Xie Yuan, and she ended up getting rid of him.

For the former, she personally did the deed, when her methods were still immature. For the latter, she borrowed someone else’s hands to kill him, and the latter even took revenge on the wrong party!

No matter how biased Qi Yang perceived her lover, she had to admit that Lu Qipei indeed had pretty cunning means and was ruthless enough, it just depended on whether she was willing to do it or not.

And where did these cunning means come from?

No one was born knowing how to do it, so she must had learned it too – Qi Yang finally remembered that Lu Qipei grew up getting the same teachings as Lu Qicheng, and the Lu and Xie families were scheming families, so it was not hard to imagine that they would teach their children.

Qi Yang herself was personally taught and raised by the Crown Prince, but between princes and princesses, between men and women, they inevitably learn and teach differently. Qi Yang was afraid that her methods would be too one-sided and she would mislead the Little Emperor, so she sought Lu Qipei, who had received the “orthodox education” for an heir, and wanted her to help teach the Little Emperor together.

As always, Lu Qipei would not say no to Qi Yang, so she nodded and agreed, “Since Your Highness asked, I will do my best.” After saying that, she paused for a bit before continuing, “But the future is unknown, and we don’t know when His Majesty would get married and take over the government. Let’s make a contract. Whether it’s three years of five years, we must have a clear timeline.”

Hearing this, Qi Yang turned around and looked at her with deep gaze.

Lu Qipei blinked and said innocently, “If we set the date early, we can also make plans early. Plus, after we set the date, we can also inform His Majesty about it, so he won’t grow up in the future and think that we are greedy for power, and end up with unnecessary speculations.”

Her statement sounded impressive, but why did Qi Yang not really buy it?

But following Lu Qipei’s statement, Qi Yang also thought about it for a while and felt that making an agreement with the Little Emperor in advance would indeed save a lot of trouble – the Little Emperor was the Crown Prince’s orphan, and she really didn’t want to have trouble with him in the future.

At the same time, there were upsides and downsides to it. If the Little Emperor had self-discipline and motivation, he would work even harder to learn and grow when he heard that they had agreed on a time to let go. But if he was dull and lazy, thinking that he would be in power sooner or later while his Uncle and Aunt paved the way for him, he might slack off and his future would be uncertain.

After considering the upsides and downsides for a while, Qi Yang finally decided to believe in the Little Emperor’s character and said, “So be it.”

The two then discussed the time – right now the Little Emperor was twelve, although he was young, he wasn’t too young either. It wouldn’t be considered too early to marry in three years. But to teach him about government affairs, they’re not sure if three years would be enough, so in the end the two didn’t set a specific date. It would only be a range from three to five years, and if the Little Emperor’s performance was still unsatisfactory after five years, they would not stay any longer.

Five years later, the Little Emperor would be seventeen, the age of a young man full of vigor. He would probably not be willing to be controlled by his elders anymore. If they really didn’t let go at that time, conflicts would probably start to rise, and in the end the aunt and nephew might not be able to get along anymore.

Qi Yang was persuaded, and as she nodded in agreement, she saw Lu Qipei suddenly sighing in relief.

She felt a bit amused and took a few steps, then suddenly turned around and squinted at Lu Qipei, saying, “Ah Pei, you told me so many things today. Are you really worried that Royal Brother left a message behind as a precaution?”

Lu Qipei remained silent, looking at Qi Yang with an innocent face.

How could Qi Yang not understand her? Seeing how Lu Qipei looked, she knew that she had guessed right. She was both amused and angry, so she stepped forward and grabbed Lu Qipei’s clothes, saying exasperatedly, “What are you dreaming about all day? Do you really think I’m greedy for power?”

Lu Qipei was not annoyed by her actions, and just said with a smile, “How could I? Ah Ning is the most trustworthy.”

That was what she said, but how many princesses of a royal family could truly see power as if they were fleeting clouds? They were born rich and powerful, and it was normal for the to become hungry for power.

Lu Qipei believed in Qi Yang, but she still decided to pour two basins of cold water on her from the start.

Qi Yang also couldn’t get angry, and after horsing around with Lu Qipei for a bit, this matter was brought to a close.

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