Her Majesty Chose Violence, They Chose Her

The Little Emperor wasn’t the only one who slept poorly that night; many people found it difficult to get any sleep.

The Emperor turning into a woman was a preposterous affair, but the Emperor was still the Emperor. All in all, the political situation remained relatively stable.

But the miracle at the Imperial Ancestral Temple was so utterly shocking that people couldn’t help but wonder, ’Can ancestors in this world truly manifest their spirits?’

For a time afterward, many people would run off to go bother their own ancestors.

Of course, that was a story for another time.

In any case, the appearance of that miracle made the public much more receptive to a female emperor.

The revered ancestors of the Xiao Family had manifested their spirits to grant their approval. In the face of this, all worldly objections seemed feeble, unless someone had the power to drag the Emperor from the throne themselves.

The next day’s court session was unusually boisterous, with everyone arguing and clamoring endlessly over matters of state.

The Little Emperor sat on the Dragon Throne, lazily listening to the two sides lock horns. The newly promoted officials were brimming with vigor, feared nothing, and were ready to fight the moment they opened their mouths.

They could turn any trivial matter into a full-blown argument.

Xiao Yang didn’t stop them. ’If a proposal is flawed, it must be argued over.’ They would criticize each other’s weaknesses, and as they argued, their ideas would gradually merge. The best solutions were hammered out through this very process.

Only when they had argued themselves to a near standstill would she speak and make the final decision.

Despite admitting she was a woman, the Little Emperor didn’t change a thing. Her clothes were the same, and her attitude was the same.

She remained decisive in all matters, clear in her rewards and punishments. When it was time to draw her sword, she was just as swift and efficient. The Emperor’s Sword stood beside the throne, ready to be drawn at a moment’s notice. To her, cutting a man down was as easy as slicing a pumpkin.

That sheer ruthlessness often made people forget the Emperor was a woman.

People are not more reverent or loyal simply because a man sits on the Dragon Throne; they bow and grovel because a person of strength sits there.

The positions of the court officials had been settled. The most important matter now was the war at the border. Li Wei had won, and Changlu Pass could be reclaimed, but the Xirong had slaughtered so many civilians. That was a score that could not be so easily settled.

The peace faction and the war faction each argued their case.

Beyond the war, there was also the spring planting and various ritual ceremonies to attend to.

As an emperor, Xiao Yang earned every bite she ate.

But just as she was buried in political affairs, the direction of the rumors outside shifted once more.

They were saying the Emperor was actually a man who liked other men. Afraid the world wouldn’t accept him, he claimed to be a woman so he could openly fool around with men.

The rumor was absurd on its face.

Putting aside how ridiculous it was to suggest the Emperor would pretend to be a woman just to be with men, she hadn’t been the one to reveal it in the first place. The Empress Dowager and those rebels had used it to attack her. If she wasn’t a woman, why would she have ever admitted to it?

All she would have had to do was prove she was a man, and all their attacks would have crumbled on their own. Why go to any extra trouble?

She had been determined to reveal the truth, prove her identity, and rule as a proper female emperor. But now that she had, the situation had flipped. Many people now suspected she was actually a man.

Xiao Yang was speechless. A very serious thought suddenly occurred to her. ’If this keeps up, I’ll end up being seen as neither man nor woman.’

’How will history record me? As the Demon Emperor?’

Xiao Yang’s eyelid twitched. ’Oh, this is bad.’

Realizing this, she hurriedly summoned Xiao Jinsu. "Quickly, have a female-style Dragon Robe made for me. It should be form-fitting but not cumbersome. It must leave no doubt in anyone’s mind that I am a woman."

In Xiao Yang’s mind, the men’s robes had already felt no different from a dress, but now she realized that wasn’t enough. She had to conform to this world’s aesthetic standards.

She couldn’t keep wearing men’s clothes only to be labeled the Demon Emperor by history.

Xiao Jinsu hadn’t thought that far ahead, but since she was a female emperor, it was only natural that her attire should be altered.

"This subject obeys."

On the way back, Xiao Jinsu happened to run into Xie Liuzheng. The two had already developed a deep friendship. Having no immediate ideas, she asked Xie Liuzheng for help. Xie Liuzheng was instantly energized, pulling Xiao Jinsu into an all-night research session, determined to design the most beautiful and commanding Dragon Robe imaginable.

----

Liu Shixu and Chen Qian were locked away in the Heavenly Prison, but the Empress Dowager remained confined to her Cian Palace.

Almost everyone assumed the Emperor would not move against the Empress Dowager. After all, she was her birth mother.

But on the third day after the incident, Xiao Yang went to Cian Palace.

The tightly sealed palace gates swung open, and Xiao Yang stepped inside at a measured pace.

She herself hadn’t been here often, but with Xiao Jin’s memories, she was all too familiar with the layout.

As the inner doors opened, the thick scent of medicine wafted out.

The Empress Dowager had been so enraged that day that her illness had taken a turn for the worse.

When Xiao Yang entered, all the servants in the room dropped to their knees.

By now, the Empress Dowager had not a single confidant left. Those who had chosen to remain loyal to her were dead; the ones who remained cherished their lives and knew who was the true master of the empire.

Xiao Yang walked into the inner chamber, where Nanny Yang was already helping the Empress Dowager sit up.

Though it had only been two days, the Empress Dowager seemed to have grown even thinner. She barely had any flesh on her bones, and her eye sockets were so sunken it looked as if they could no longer hold her eyes. She was like a living skeleton.

The moment Xiao Yang entered, the Empress Dowager’s resentful eyes locked onto her. They held not a trace of a mother’s love for her daughter, only the ferocity of a demon glaring at its mortal enemy, as if she wanted to leap forward and devour her flesh and blood.

"What are you doing here?"

Xiao Yang sat down. "Why, I’ve come to pay a visit to the Empress Dowager, of course."

She looked up at the Empress Dowager. "And to hear your last words, while I’m at it."

A flicker of change crossed Nanny Yang’s eyes, and she immediately led everyone out of the room.

The Empress Dowager sneered. "Have you only just secured your claim, and you already wish to murder your own mother?"

Xiao Yang replied, "You are fortunate to have lived to see this day, Empress Dowager."

Rage flared in the Empress Dowager’s eyes. "So it’s true! You do want to kill me! I am your birth mother!"

Xiao Yang said, "I am well aware of that."

The Empress Dowager’s eyes filled with venom. "Matricide is a crime against heaven itself! Aren’t you afraid of descending into the eighteen levels of hell when you die?"

Xiao Yang merely smiled. "That’s a matter for the afterlife. I won’t trouble you to worry about it."

She sighed softly. "I did want to kill you before, but I let you live. For a moment, I thought you should stay alive. Alive to watch me secure my throne, alive to watch me, a woman, achieve the highest imperial authority. But today, I find that notion laughable."

Her gaze, as light as a feather, fell upon the Empress Dowager, filled with cold contempt.

"Who do you think you are? Why would you be worth the effort of me proving anything to you?"

Xiao Yang raised a hand, revealing a small bottle. "You should be quite familiar with this poison, Empress Dowager."

The Empress Dowager stared at the bottle. She was indeed familiar with it. This was the very same Mandarin Duck Knot poison she had given the Emperor.

Xiao Yang rose to her feet. "Tomorrow is an auspicious day. This child shall send you, my Mother, to be reunited with my Father Emperor."

The Empress Dowager’s already pale and gaunt face instantly turned ashen.

"No, Emperor, you can’t... I am your mother... I am the one who gave you life..."

"Xiao Jin... Jin’er... Mother was wrong..."

Xiao Yang walked away without a backward glance. She went to the Imperial Study Room and drafted an edict, officially changing her name to Xiao Yang. From that moment on, the life of Xiao Jin was well and truly over.