TPITWOHEF

Chapter 187

Princess Yunwu looked at Xiao Yunzhou with a sense of caution.

Had her identity been discovered?

But that was impossible; she hadn't mentioned anything about the imperial palace.

"Brother Yun, I mean no harm," Xiao Yunzhou said, narrowing his eyes. "It's just that as the head of a household, I'm well aware that the future well-being of those who depend on us is determined by the leader's ability, vision, and character."

Xiao Yunzhou chuckled, "The position of family head should be held by the capable. When it is, peace and prosperity reign. When it's held by the incompetent, everyone suffers."

Princess Yunwu's pupils constricted.

Indeed, her desire to become emperor wasn't born of inherent ambition.

Rather, it was after overhearing the royal tutor teaching her younger brother, the crown prince, about the ways of a wise ruler that she gradually came to understand what it meant to be an enlightened monarch.

She knew very well that her younger brother, born five years after her, lacked both virtue and ability.

Being the only legitimate prince and sickly since childhood, both the emperor and empress didn't dare to reprimand him harshly.

While she, as the emperor's first child, was seen as a good omen for her brother's birth and now enjoyed a life of luxury.

Her younger brother, the crown prince, had been spoiled and pampered to the point of uselessness!

She still knew the importance of studying, but her brother wasn't even pushed to read by the emperor, for fear of tiring or sickening him.

As time passed, the crown prince grew accustomed to play and refused to study diligently, even showing great disrespect to the royal tutor who taught the ways of kingship.

At the age of ten, he was caught by the empress and herself in the midst of a dirty act with a young eunuch!

But even then, the empress blamed the eunuch, covering up the crown prince's mistake, still unwilling to punish him.

As a result, years later, her crown prince brother was still secretly cavorting with young eunuchs!

Yunwu closed her eyes in pain at the thought.

Watching her brother grow up like this, she always wondered why she, clearly more intelligent and driven than him, couldn't be the ruler of Chu State.

She felt resentful, unwilling, and indignant!

Indignant for herself, for all the excellent women like her who had to give way, and for the people of Chu State.

"Brother Yun, I pity not only the unfulfilled women in your household but also the unfortunate people who depend on your family. I observe your extraordinary bearing, clearly from a noble family, and I worry for those poor souls who rely on you!" Xiao Yunzhou sighed, "When the nest falls, how can the eggs remain unbroken?"

Yunwu took a deep breath.

Although Jing Country and Chu State had been at odds for years, with no diplomatic relations.

Why did every word this Jing Country emperor said resonate so deeply with her?

Yunwu couldn't help but look at Xiao Yunzhou, "I am from Chu, and you are from Jing. You just asked me why I wanted to help the severely injured hunter from Jing Country. Now I want to ask you a question in return."

"If a noble family in Chu State falls, Chu State will surely be greatly weakened. You, as someone from Jing Country, why are you concerned about this? What does the fate of us Chu people have to do with you Jing people?"