He was a highly-accomplished ruler.
However, she knew well that the Emperor’s current gentleness was only a facade.
Long Yang was never a gentle person. He was as ruthless as a thunderbolt.
If she were to be blinded by the Emperor’s rare show of gentleness, then she could no longer fight for Weiwei’s matters.
“You flatter me, Your Majesty.”
Long Yang’s expression was aloof. “You’ve spent your life accomplishing great things for the Great Shang Kingdom. You have contributed to the kingdom and even more so to the court. I respect you very much, so there is no need to be humble, Madam.”
Hearing him bring up the past, the Dowager Duchess was a little emotional.
Through the memories, she could see her once young self striding across the battlefield on horseback and harvesting the heads of enemy generals.
During those days, she was so energetic and heroic, but those were all in the past…
She gathered her thoughts. “My accomplishments are nothing worth mentioning. Now I’m already over seventy years old; I’m really getting old.”
Long Yang listened to her quietly without interrupting.
The Dowager Duchess continued, “… Actually, I don’t have any more regrets. The only worry I have left is my granddaughter Weiwei. You must have heard of how my granddaughter did a lot of foolish things in the past and made herself a laughing stock, Your Majesty.”
Long Yang was naturally aware of it.
Although he paid little attention to such trivialities, he had indeed heard of it.
Was Lu Liangwei that stupid in the past?
When he remembered that she had once hanged herself for Long Chi, the light in his eyes dimmed.
Did she reject him repeatedly because she still had not forgotten Long Chi?
As Long Yang considered this possibility, a layer of frost shrouded his features, and a wave of unpleasantness arose in his heart.
“…To tell you the truth, Your Majesty, Weiwei’s reputation has already soured because of the foolish things she did in the past. It’s getting more and more difficult to seek a good marriage for her, so that’s why I set up an arena to select a groom for her. We don’t expect her to marry into a wealthy family. We only hope that she can live a peaceful and happy life, even if it’s a little ordinary.”
“You exaggerate, Madam. Second Miss Lu is a wonderful person,” Long Yang suddenly spoke, looking at the Dowager Duchess with his deep eyes.
The Dowager Duchess shuddered and hurriedly lowered her gaze, pretending not to understand the meaning of his words. She decided to explain the purpose of her visit today straight away.
However, before she could open her mouth, Long Yang had already continued, “If you find it agreeable, Madam, I would like to marry Second Miss Lu as my empress.”
When Lu Liangwei said that the Emperor wanted to marry her as his empress, the Dowager Duchess was very surprised, though she was still a little doubtful. However, hearing it from the Emperor himself now made her shocked and uneasy at the same time.
So the Emperor was indeed harboring such intentions!
She did not expect the Emperor to make his intentions clear so soon without even waiting for her to finish.
The Dowager Duchess was astounded and horrified, but she quickly collected her emotions and knelt on the floor.
“Your Majesty, Weiwei is still young. Moreover, that girl has always been reckless and foolish, and because of the Duke and me spoiling her, she has no respect for rules. The Empress is the kingdom’s mother, and Weiwei really doesn’t have the aptitude for the position. I beg you to take your order back, Your Majesty.”
Long Yang sat in his chair, looking at the Dowager Duchess kneeling on the floor in fear, his face emotionless.
This time, he neither helped her up nor told her to get up. Instead, he said, “Madam, although Weiwei is only fifteen, she’s already come of age and is no longer considered young. Moreover, she has a good personality. Although she may be reckless at times, for me, it’s merely a result of her liveliness as a young girl. If you’re worried that she won’t respect the rules, that’s completely unnecessary. I will tolerate everything about her.”