Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 231 Establishing a female household

And this matter didn't end there. Emperor Jingtai did something that shocked everyone: he took it upon himself to have the Second Prince's wife, Qin Wanniang, divorce the Second Prince!

Yes, you heard right, a woman divorced her husband, and it was a prince no less! This was truly unprecedented! Those who heard it for the first time thought they had misheard; they never expected this. Immediately, some officials wanted to petition His Majesty, saying this was against reason, but considering His Majesty's ruthlessness in executing even his own son without batting an eye, and their lack of kinship with him, they feared being executed as well.

And so the matter was left unresolved. But Emperor Jingtai was truly capable of stirring things up; his next step was to issue an edict that all women in the Great Jing Dynasty could establish their own households and become their own heads!
This should have been a major event, but when everyone learned of the changes in the Northern Frontier Women's Army, no one uttered a sound. Everyone knew that the Northern Frontier Women's Army was top-notch and reliable. Although there were currently 200,000 strong troops in the Northwest, their factions were complex. Besides the officials dispatched by His Majesty, there were also many soldiers and generals from the previous dynasty. After all, the entire nation had been fighting against the barbarians back then, and the Great Jing Dynasty had only been established for thirteen years; it was impossible to so quickly dismiss so many former soldiers and generals. Furthermore, in the late years of the previous dynasty, the Great Jing Dynasty had been fighting against the Northern and Southern Barbarians, dealing with internal strife, and natural and man-made disasters, resulting in massive deaths. Emperor Jingtai was unwilling to abandon so many soldiers and generals.

Only the women's army left behind by the former general Ying Chongming was the purest and most ferocious. Strangely enough, despite women's inherent physical weakness compared to men and the added burden of menstruation, this constantly dwindling women's army was far stronger than any other army on the grasslands! It was said that when the northern barbarian soldiers galloped across the grasslands, their greatest fear was seeing a sudden splash of red! Because every splash of red could be the figure of the women's army reaping their heads!

Now, the women's army is in a state of panic due to the great changes in the capital, and needs to be appeased. Therefore, it is not so difficult to understand His Majesty's decree to change the status of women. Moreover, in order to appease the border regions, His Majesty has decided to send someone to inspect the troops.

In fact, the moment His Majesty issued this order, many people already had a suitable candidate in mind, and that candidate was none other than Ying Jiuque, who was currently enjoying great influence. After all, it would be difficult to find someone with a suitable position and status who would not provoke any resistance from the women's army.

It's strange, really. Ying Jiuque's luck is just too good! How long has it been? He's already in the cabinet and been granted the title of earl. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he's risen through the ranks. Now he's even going to inspect the border on behalf of His Majesty. Shouldn't his status be elevated even further?
Despite the gossip surrounding her, Jiu Que wasn't as happy as one might expect. She was secretly attending a funeral. Although His Majesty had personally ordered Qin Wan Niang's innocence, the old master Qin had already resigned, and the Qin family had no other descendants, naturally leading to their decline. As the saying goes, once someone leaves, their influence fades; very few people attended Qin Wan Niang's funeral, it was practically deserted.

Jiu Que had originally intended to discreetly accompany the poor woman through the crowd, but upon arrival, she discovered she couldn't hide at all. There was no one there. At this point, there was no need to hide anymore. She straightened her clothes and, with a string of little boys following behind her, quietly walked inside.

Old Master Qin and his wife were burning paper money for their daughter in the mourning hall. At this point, what did they care about etiquette? They only wanted their daughter to live a peaceful and prosperous life in the afterlife. Hearing footsteps, they looked up in surprise and found that the person who had come was none other than Ying Jiuque, who had been making waves recently!

"Your humble servant greets the Earl of Zhen'an."

Old Master Qin, staggering unsteadily, still tried to bow to Jiu Que. Jiu Que couldn't bear it and quickly helped the elderly couple up, his expression filled with sorrow.

"Mr. Qin, there's no need for such formalities. I'm just here to see Sister Wan Niang off."

"Lord Zhen'an, you flatter me. Wan Niang is no longer a prince's consort..." Old Master Qin was somewhat flattered. After all, they were no longer relatives of the emperor, and Wan Niang had not died of old age. Even remote relatives who occasionally kept in touch were unwilling to come to the funeral, let alone Ying Jiu Que, whom they had never had any contact with before.

It has to be said that Jiu Que's visit this time really made people suspicious of her intentions. She herself knew this, and sighed softly, first offering incense to the poor woman.

Then he spoke softly to Mr. Qin and Mrs. Qin.

"Although I have never met Wan Niang before, I am also a woman. Wan Niang's actions were the epitome of benevolence and righteousness, yet she entrusted herself to the wrong person. How can this not be lamentable? I think His Majesty also feels guilty, otherwise he would not have ordered the establishment of female households at this juncture. Now, Wan Niang can be buried in the Qin family ancestral tomb, and will not have to be buried with criminals. This is a stroke of good fortune amidst misfortune."

Mr. Qin gave a wry smile.

"The Qin clan does not agree to bury Wan Niang in the ancestral cemetery. After all, she had no children..."

Moreover, although it sounds nice that Wan Niang divorced the Second Prince, everyone actually knows that the Second Prince was still alive when Wan Niang died.

Jiu Que didn't understand what was so difficult about this. Was it really necessary to be so particular about bloodlines? If they weren't allowed to be buried in the Qin family's ancestral tomb, wouldn't it be better to find a burial site with good feng shui on their own? Why did they have to compete with so many people for a plot of land? However, when in Rome, do as the Romans do, and of course she wouldn't force others to do things her way.

“If you two really mind, why not choose a well-behaved child and register him under Wan Niang’s name, and build a grave for your mother in the name of her offspring, so that you can worship him at home all year round.”

Mr. Qin was completely taken aback by this tactic and was stunned when he heard about it. But the next moment, his heart pounded wildly. Although his reason told him it was wrong, his emotions were screaming that it was possible.

He didn't want to choose this child from a collateral branch of the Qin family. Those heartless, ungrateful wretches—how many favors and benefits had Wan Niang given them when she was the Second Prince's consort? They shouldn't have forgotten her so quickly. If he could, he'd rather choose a complete stranger…

Just then, Jiu Que's eyes darted around and he spotted a green figure kneeling quietly to the side, burning paper money. He had seen her once before in the main hall, but the events had unfolded so suddenly he hadn't had a good look. Now, seeing her up close, he noticed the girl was petite, probably only thirteen or fourteen years old. Such a beautiful girl, her face burned, and a large scar on her head—how much pain she must have been in! That damned Second Prince was truly inhuman! Being forced to commit suicide by the old emperor was too good for him!
(End of this chapter)