The prince is more stable

Chapter 938 The Threat of Imperial Power
Zhao Hao is a complete scumbag, this is certified by his own son, more accurate and authoritative than official certification.

The father and son have completely different attitudes toward women.

Zhao Xiaoqian was a man who had lived two lives, but deep down he was more traditional than Zhao Hao, the ancient man. He would give any woman he slept with a proper title and a legitimate ending.

But Zhao Hao is different. If such a person lived a thousand years from now, he would have been cyberbullied online long ago until he died.

When it comes to women, Zhao Hao is absolutely capable of denying everything after he's done with them.

Of course, there are many times when he can't admit it, since many of the women he slept with have husbands and he can't take responsibility.

Empress Dowager Xiang was a woman of noble status, a widow, and the eldest sister-in-law. It could be said that she had all the advantages, and each of them perfectly suited Zhao Hao's tastes.

So when he first got together with Empress Dowager Xiang, Zhao Hao was very infatuated with her, whether it was her body, her status, or even his twisted desire to sleep with his sister-in-law. In short, if there weren't too many ups and downs in his life, Zhao Hao was willing to spend the rest of his life with Empress Dowager Xiang.

Unfortunately, the Empress Dowager was no ordinary woman. She had her own and her family's interests to protect, as well as her own ulterior motives. She was not a love-struck woman who believed that having a relationship with a man meant she had to be devoted to him.

A middle-aged woman is no longer naive. She no longer harbors great fantasies about men and will not gamble her future on them. She only believes that what she holds in her own hands is what truly belongs to her.

At this moment, Zhao Hao stared at Empress Dowager Xiang with a ferocious expression, tightening his grip on her neck.

Xiang Tai's face turned purple. She struggled instinctively, but her strength was no match for a man's. As Zhao Hao tightened his grip, she felt utterly hopeless and her life was slowly slipping away.

Just as the feeling of impending death surfaced in her mind, Empress Dowager Xiang noticed that Zhao Hao's hand suddenly loosened.

Empress Dowager Xiang collapsed to the ground, clutching her neck with both hands, her mouth wide open, greedily panting, cherishing every breath of air she inhaled.

Zhao Hao squatted down in front of her, staring at her coldly, and slowly said, "Empress Dowager, have we been too polite to you, giving you too much face? Now you seem to have forgotten who you are?"

Empress Dowager Xiang's eyes were filled with terror. This man, who had been her lover day and night, who had made so many vows of eternal love to her, now seemed like a demon crawling out of hell to take her life. Every word and every action of his was aimed at killing her.

"I, I..." Empress Dowager Xiang's voice was hoarse, and she tried to explain something with a frightened expression.

Zhao Hao shook his head and said coldly, "Your position as Empress Dowager was bestowed upon you by my father and me. Remember, it was 'bestowed'. Don't forget that my son's own mother has no official title or status to this day. This position should have originally belonged to her."

"And you, it seems you really think you're something special, daring to interfere in court affairs and even arguing with my son to his face."

Zhao Hao's previously calm expression turned ferocious again: "Do you know that you have touched the imperial power? Is this something you can touch?"

"After my son ascended the throne, I, as his biological father, never interfered in court affairs. How dare you, a woman who is not related to him, interfere? Who do you think you are? Just because I slept with you?"

Empress Dowager Xiang trembled with fear at that moment, finally realizing that she had made a grave mistake.

Imperial power was the most untouchable thing; anyone who touched it, except the emperor, would die.

Throughout history and across dynasties, imperial power has always been the emperor's Achilles' heel, the most sensitive and taboo thing, something that outsiders absolutely cannot touch.

Perhaps it was because Zhao Xiaoqian was usually too polite and courteous to her that he listened to her without caring about any trivial matters.

This led Empress Dowager Xiang to believe that the emperor was easy to control and would listen to her in everything. That's why she told him a few days ago to suspend the Fangtian Equal Tax Law. When Zhao Xiaoqian did not agree, she actually argued with him in person.

Thinking back now, Empress Dowager Xiang realized that, just as Zhao Hao had said, she really took herself seriously.

After Zhao Xiaoqian ascended the throne, he listened to her in all matters, big and small, in the palace because these matters were not important at all. Moreover, the harem should have been managed by the Empress Dowager and the Empress. Zhao Xiaoqian did not want to waste his energy on this, which gave her the false impression that he was obedient to her.

Zhao Hao's severe punishment today has finally woken her up.

Yes, even fathers and sons know to avoid suspicion. The father never interferes with his son's political decisions. What right does an empress dowager who is not related to him have to point fingers?
Besides feeling deeply regretful, Empress Dowager Xiang also felt very sad.

The man before me had made vows of eternal love, but I never imagined his promises would be so easily broken.

It was a wrong payment after all.

"King Chu, I...I was wrong, and I promise I won't do it again." Empress Dowager Xiang immediately decided to compromise and admit her mistake. Having navigated the ups and downs of the harem for so many years, a woman like Empress Dowager Xiang was naturally very pragmatic. When the situation was not right, she had to admit her mistake; this was her survival experience in the harem.

Zhao Hao was clearly not so easily fooled. He had more experience with women and his understanding of them was clearer and deeper than that of ordinary men.

At this moment, the Empress Dowager's apology did not dispel Zhao Hao's murderous intent; it was simply not the right time to kill her.

“We’re all old foxes, there’s no need to hide anything. You and I can speak frankly.” Zhao Hao said coldly, “You oppose my son’s implementation of the equal land tax because you and your maternal relatives own more than 120,000 hectares of land, isn’t that right?”

Empress Dowager Xiang was startled, and her face turned pale again.

She hadn't expected that just their last argument would have been so memorable, and that he would have quietly investigated her and her family thoroughly. Indeed, anyone who could become emperor couldn't be without some shrewdness and ability.

It's terrifying to be an enemy of such a person.

Zhao Hao squatted down in front of her and patted her cheek in a seemingly gentle manner.

This flirtatious gesture, which used to seem sweet, now appears so insulting.

"No one noticed you before, and they were too embarrassed to do anything to you or your maternal family, after all, she is the Empress Dowager, and there are some things they have to turn a blind eye to, haha. But now that you have taken the initiative to jump out, then don't blame us, father and son."

“My son just needed to make an example of someone to warn others, and he was still wondering who to target when you appeared.”

Zhao Hao suddenly reached out and grabbed her chin hard, staring at her with cold eyes. He slowly said, "You and your maternal relatives have 120,000 hectares of land under your names. You'd better give us an explanation yourself. Don't force my son to take action against your family."

"Active and passive are two different things, and two completely different treatments. Think it through yourself."

After saying that, Zhao Hao remained squatting in front of her, then suddenly raised his hand and slapped her hard across the face again.

A sharp crack rang out, making Empress Dowager Xiang's ears ring and her mind go blank; she had no idea how to react.

Zhao Hao moved closer to her face and said coldly, "This is my last warning to you. Don't touch my son's imperial power, Your Majesty. You don't want to die suddenly in the palace for no reason, do you?"

As Empress Dowager Xiang watched Zhao Hao's obese figure disappear into the Qingshou Hall, she remained limp on the ground, her body drenched in cold sweat.

This heartless man, this man who treats vows of eternal love like empty words, this cold-blooded and ungrateful man...

She no longer had time to resent this man.

At this moment, her mind was filled with thoughts of the 120,000 hectares of land owned by herself and her maternal relatives, and she still remembered Zhao Hao's warning.

If she wanted to live, she had better show sincerity and support Zhao Xiaoqian in implementing the new policies and reforms; otherwise, she, the Empress Dowager, might really die suddenly in the palace for no apparent reason.

She had a strong feeling that Zhao Hao's words were not meant to scare her.

Thinking about how foolish she had been a few days ago, Zhao Xiaoqian hadn't even noticed her before, but she herself jumped out to interfere in court affairs, which finally alerted Zhao Xiaoqian. Upon investigation, the land properties under her and her relatives' names were finally exposed.

Empress Dowager Xiang collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down her face.

How incredibly stupid of me I was!
What should we do now?
Empress Dowager Xiang has been targeted by Zhao Hao and his son Zhao Xiaoqian, and their eyes are full of murderous intent. It can be said that there is a knife hanging over her head. If she shows the slightest abnormality or does anything that does not meet the expectations of the father and son, that knife will fall mercilessly.

Zhao Hao had already clearly told her the only way to remedy the situation.

At this moment, let go when it's time to let go.

Those 120,000 hectares of farmland cannot be kept. We are about to lose our lives. What use is there in keeping these farmlands?

Moreover, from now on, Empress Dowager Xiang must be a staunch supporter of the Emperor's new policies and a reformist. In order to support the Emperor's new policies, she is even willing to sacrifice her own family's land.

Principles, stances, interests... none of that matters anymore, all that matters is survival.

…………

The next day at the court assembly, the emperor, who had been absent from court for many days, finally appeared before his ministers.

A few days ago, Shi Zhongxian, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, committed suicide. This was truly disgusting. It not only tarnished the Emperor's sacred name but also tarnished the imperial power.

Fortunately, the imperial court was discerning and the State Council and the Imperial City Guard worked together to investigate, finally bringing the truth to light. The incident was reversed, the emperor's reputation was cleared, and the world was restored to its former glory.

So Zhao Xiaoqian finally appeared at the court assembly, his expression as calm as ever, as if nothing had happened.

Zhang Dun and Cai Jing of the State Affairs Hall reported to Zhao Xiaoqian in front of all the civil and military officials the cause and effect of Shi Zhongxian's suicide.

Finally, Cai Jing delivered his closing statement, defining the nature of Shi Zhongxian's suicide.

Shi Zhongxian, who owned a large amount of land, was very anxious because the imperial court was about to implement the Fangtian Equal Tax Law.

In addition, officials of the Censorate had noticed Shi Zhongxian's many illegal acts during his tenure and began to investigate him. With nowhere else to turn, Shi Zhongxian committed suicide in front of the palace gate out of fear of punishment.

On his deathbed, he fantasized about leaving behind a reputation for "loyalty and integrity, even unto death," so that the officials and the court would be wary of his illegal activities and would no longer investigate him, thus leaving his vast fortune to his descendants.

(End of this chapter)