Do you know: I am Qi Heng

"Heng'er!"

As Qi Heng returned home after school and entered the front yard, Princess Pingning greeted him with a broad smile.

"Mother!"

Qi Heng bowed respectfully and asked with a puzzled look, "Is there some joyous occasion?"

"Let's talk in the main hall!"

Princess Pingning stepped forward and pulled Qi Heng inside. Reaching the main hall, she dismissed the servants and announced with a beaming smile, "News has come from the palace today: Her Majesty is pregnant!"

Qi Heng was overjoyed upon hearing this and exclaimed, "Truly, Heaven blesses the Great Zhou!"

"Who can argue with that!"

Princess Pingning smiled and said, "Not long ago, someone from the palace came to say that there would be a reward tomorrow, and specifically instructed you to wait at home."

"I?"

Qi Heng exclaimed in surprise, "If anyone should be rewarded, it should be Father and Mother!"

"I'm already a princess, how can I possibly receive a reward?"

Princess Pingning smiled and said, "Your father also holds the title of Duke, so it's difficult to bestow an official position upon him. Therefore, I can only give it to you!"

Although the reward was intended for Qi Heng, Princess Pingning was even happier than if it had been given to him.

Qi Heng thought about it and agreed; Princess Pingning was different from other ladies of high rank.

A Lady of Imperial Decree has a rank that can be promoted. But a Princess is the same as a title of nobility, and the next step up is a Princess.

Although it was just a title, Princess Pingning was, after all, a member of a different family, so to be given the title of princess was already an extraordinary favor.

As for Qi Xuan, the title of Duke is already the highest rank, and there is no higher he can be.

Moreover, the Duke enjoys the treatment of a first-rank official, so any reward would only add some honorary titles, which would not be very meaningful. It would be more convenient for Qi Heng to bestow the reward.

"Then let Buwei go to Gaoge early tomorrow morning!" Qi Heng said.

"Um!"

Princess Pingning smiled and nodded, gave Qi Heng a few instructions, and then sent him back to do his homework.

Rewards are rewards, but studies cannot be neglected.

Qi Heng bid farewell to his mother and returned to Zizhuyuan. As soon as he entered the courtyard, the bamboo shoots in the bamboo grove, which were carrying bamboo shoots, heard Qi Heng's footsteps, dropped their shoots, and crawled towards the distant gate.

"Be gentle, don't tear my clothes."

Qi Heng looked at the bamboo shoot clinging to his leg and said speechlessly.

The bamboo shoots seemed to have a spirit; they could not only recognize his footsteps, but they would also run to greet him every time he returned.

She also knows how to control her strength, slowing down when she gets close and not using too much force when hugging Qi Heng's legs.

She's grown up quite a bit, and the more I look at her, the less cute she seems.

Upon hearing this, a hint of grievance appeared in the bamboo shoot's small eyes.

"Alright, alright, you're such a drama queen."

Seeing its aggrieved look, Qi Heng softened even though he knew it was faking it.

He squatted down, rubbed its head, and played with it for a while before it let Qi Heng go.

Qi Heng shook his head, went into his study, and pondered the potential chain reaction that Empress Cao's pregnancy might bring.

Empress Cao's pregnancy should have been a joyous occasion for the Emperor and all the officials.

As for the Emperor, it goes without saying that even though the officials in the court are constantly pressuring him to establish an heir, they also very much hope that the Emperor can have an offspring.

After all, the succession of the emperor's sons is the least controversial, and it is easier for them to implement the emperor's governing philosophy.

The transfer of power has the least impact on the turmoil in the imperial court.

From both a public and private perspective, this was the best choice in the eyes of the officials.

But the Prince of Yong and the Prince of Yan were different; both of them were already adults and had passed the age of thirty.

Regardless of who ultimately succeeds to the throne, consolidating power is inevitable in order to solidify their own position.

It's not that the son of an official doesn't need to reclaim power after succeeding to the throne, but rather that he's not in a hurry to do so and his methods are more gentle.

A new emperor brings a new court; even with changes in imperial power, there are significant changes in the officials in the court.

But that's a top-down interpretation. If you interpret it from the perspective of a subject, the sentence means that each emperor has a different temperament and personality.

When a new emperor arrives, a subject must change his attitude toward the emperor and his usual way of doing things.

In reality, if the transfer of imperial power is very smooth, most new emperors will seek stability in the early stages and will not cause major upheavals.

After the initial period, the high-ranking officials in the court who were supposed to retire did so, and the newly appointed officials adapted to the new emperor's temperament and personality.

However, the Prince of Yong and the Prince of Yan were not the emperor's biological sons. After they ascended the throne, they would lack a sense of security and would naturally try to consolidate their power.

Therefore, it had a great impact on the turmoil in the court and on the court officials.

However, since the emperor had no son, even though they knew that such a situation would arise, they had no choice but to urge the emperor to establish an heir.

Now that the emperor has offspring, it is naturally something they are happy to see.

As for the common people, they didn't care at all who would inherit the throne.

Whether an emperor is virtuous or not, and whether he treats the people well or not, can only be seen after he ascends the throne.

It can be said that the entire world either didn't care whether the emperor had a son or supported him.

The only families that might be unhappy are the Prince of Yong and the Prince of Yan.

The throne was originally right in front of them, although both of them had a 50/50 chance.

But there's also a chance it won't be.

Now, it's all over; there's absolutely no chance left.

Qi Heng never believed in any innate ambition; the throne was very tempting to most people.

But wanting to and having the opportunity are two completely different things.

The Prince of Yong and the Prince of Yan were the kind of people who had already seen the opportunity, and it was within reach.

If hope is suddenly cut off, can they bear it?

If Empress Cao really gives birth to a prince, completely extinguishing their hopes, then they will have no choice but to endure it.

But what if she gives birth to a princess, or dies young again?

Will one of them eventually ascend the throne and take revenge on the Qi family?

Upon considering this possibility, Qi Heng's expression changed slightly. He suddenly realized that he had oversimplified the problem.

The Prince of Yong and the Prince of Yan are probably furious now; it would be strange if they didn't retaliate in the future.

"Things have come to this point, we can only hope that Empress Cao will be more capable," Qi Heng murmured.

However, he wasn't too worried. Even if Empress Cao didn't give birth to a prince, it would just be back to square one.

If the Prince of Yong and the Prince of Yan were to fight, the Prince of Yong would most likely emerge victorious.

The fact that the Prince of Yan did not have many heirs was his fatal flaw, or perhaps an unchangeable one.

In the succession to the throne, bloodline inheritance is more important than ability.

Especially since the emperor himself had experienced this situation, it was impossible for him to choose the Prince of Yan.

This can be seen from the fact that when Prince Yong abducted Rong Feiyan, the Emperor did not investigate the matter further.

It should be noted that at that time, the emperor was leading his civil and military officials to admire the lanterns on the city wall.

It was practically like kidnapping people right under the noses of the officials.

That was the younger sister of the emperor's favorite concubine; this action completely disregarded the emperor's authority.

If it were any other emperor, he most likely wouldn't have spared Prince Yong.

After all, although the emperor had no sons, he did have several daughters.

If the Prince of Yong dared to act this way while the Emperor was alive, how will his daughter's life be any better after he dies?

But the emperor was too benevolent. He felt that the Prince of Yan was not suitable. If he did not choose the Prince of Yong, but did not want to establish the Prince of Yan, he would have to choose a new person.

Doing so would throw the court into chaos again, and his health might not be able to withstand it.

In the end, they chose Prince Yong.

Given the Prince of Yan's temperament, even without the Rong family's help, he would most likely still rebel.

Controlling the palace is unrealistic, but killing the Prince of Yong is something that can be accomplished.

With that thought, Qi Heng was no longer worried.