Chapter 446: Chapter 446

In this world, for every winner, there will inevitably be a loser.

Looking at the person sitting high upon the imperial throne before her, at the moment of her death, although there was still unwillingness, Murong Qing was actually not that surprised in her heart.

Ever since her attempt to eliminate the other party with poison had failed, Murong Qing had known that her chances of winning this game were already slim.

From the very moment the Grand Princess had a successor, unlike the emperor who was overjoyed because it was a daughter, Murong Qing had understood very clearly who her true opponent was.

And this person was not someone she could confront head-on.

Political maneuvering, military strategy, and plotting—these were undoubtedly what she currently lacked.

Even if she learned countless things using the information obtained from her system, it was merely book knowledge, never truly applied in practice. How could she compare to the Grand Princess, who had fought her way through the power struggles?

Only by becoming the Empress Dowager and truly touching power could she gradually make up for this shortcoming through application.

What a pity. Now, there was no longer any opportunity for her to learn step by step.

In truth, her earlier urgency in eliminating the Second Prince's faction was also partly because she wanted to ascend to power sooner, to grasp authority, even if it was just the most basic harem authority.

Only then would she have had a chance to strike against the person before her.

Since even her strong suit couldn't truly destroy the other party, how could she possibly have a chance to win?

At the moment of death, staring fixedly at the resplendent golden dragon throne before her, Murong Qing asked herself:

Actually, no. The power over the world, standing above millions—Murong Qing knew that even if given ten thousand more chances, she would still fight for it, even at any cost.

Even if the possibility was only one in ten thousand, she would spare no effort...

Carrying such regret and ambition, Murong Qing soon closed her eyes. Once the host died, within the spiritual sea, the system instinctively wanted to detach. However, the very next second after emerging, the entire... the entire system was sucked into a strange array disk beneath the ground.

Unfortunately, before it could even react, the entire system was swiftly destroyed by the newly activated formation on the array disk.

Seeing this scene clearly and confirming that this system had truly been destroyed, An Ning finally let out a deep sigh of relief.

What a joke. Putting aside the grudges from the original body's previous life, this was most likely a Palace Struggle System. Palace struggle, palace struggle—who exactly was the target? That went without saying.

What if it remained in this era?

Her mother-in-law and her daughter were going to become emperors in the future.

Inside the bathing pool, An Ning couldn't help but exhale a heavy breath of turbid air.

This meager amount of spiritual energy, even though she had used her spiritual awareness to activate the contract and remotely trigger the array disk she had prepared long ago, was still quite draining.

After gulping down several mouthfuls of spirit spring water and taking spirit-replenishing pills, seeing that her complexion had returned to normal, An Ning slowly rose from the bathing pool.

Outside the door at that moment, mixed with visible excitement and joy, the expressions of the maids and attendants became even more respectful.

It wasn't until the turmoil in the palace was completely quelled and the news came that the Grand Princess was about to ascend the throne that Xie Huai finally let out a huge sigh of relief. Then, the couple first enjoyed a good, long sleep before being safely escorted into the palace in a soft sedan chair under the heavy protection of numerous guards.

Suppressing the rebellion, ascending the throne, conferring titles...

Everything that followed seemed to have been put on fast-forward. However, the chaos in the imperial court was clearly unrelated to An Ning and her husband. By the time the couple adapted to their new environment and came to their senses, they had successfully advanced a step, becoming the newly appointed Prince and Princess Consort.

Their princely title was Yongle.

Contrary to everyone's expectations, the first thing the Grand Princess did after rectifying the imperial court was not to appoint a Crown Prince, but a Crown Prince's Heir—the Crown Prince's grandson.

The chosen candidate was none other than Xie Jun, who was only eight years old this year. No, she should now officially be called Shangguan Jun. Not only was she taken under the Grand Princess's personal tutelage, but a group of important ministers' children were also swiftly assigned as her study companions, along with a series of officials for the Eastern Palace.

The intention to cultivate a successor couldn't have been more obvious.

However, the court ministers weren't particularly surprised by this. After all, everyone had seen over the years how Lord Xie's—no, now Prince Yongle's—health had been.

For many years, he had only one daughter, and even she had nearly not survived in her early years. It was clear that regarding offspring...

But now, not even appointing her own son, and directly appointing her granddaughter—it seemed Her Majesty was very satisfied with this sole heir!

The ministers exchanged glances, their eyes flickering with unspoken thoughts. One sharp-eyed middle-aged man couldn't help but cough lightly:

"Ahem, Brother Jiang might not know this. On the night of the... ahem, I mean, the night the Late Emperor felt he had failed and abdicated, this eight-year-old Crown Prince's Heir showed not a hint of timidity. She followed Her Majesty all the way, charging straight through the palace gates.

She even shot down the head of the imperial guard commander at the time with a single arrow from dozens of meters away!"

Simply... terrifying!

The middle-aged official with a goatee unconsciously stroked his beard. The people who had secretly gathered around couldn't help but prick up their ears.

Oh? Isn't that even more formidable than the Grand Princess in her youth?

Although they found it hard to believe instinctively, considering how earlier in the court, the ministers who followed the Grand Princess had been scrambling to send their descendants to the Eastern Palace...

Well, it wasn't impossible!

Contrary to expectations, after the imperial edict appointing the Crown Prince's Heir was issued, apart from some stubborn old ministers in the court and those within the Imperial Clan with ambitions, there wasn't much dissent in the imperial court at that time.

In fact, the transition of imperial power was even smoother. It was certainly much better than the rivers of blood on the court floor that a certain system had imagined.

The resistance encountered during the succession was also far less than what the system had imagined.

You must know that earlier, even for its own host to ascend the throne, it had to rely on high-yield seeds to truly stabilize the court and the country.

Hearing the other party's confusion, gently twirling a flower branch in her hand, An Ning couldn't help but laugh:

"Because the Grand Princess's prestige was built bit by bit on the battlefield in her early years. It was genuine military authority earned through countless instances of leading from the front and countless illustrious military achievements."

"She is also the true meritorious hero who spared our dynasty from being ravaged by foreign powers."

Otherwise, why would emperors throughout history be so wary of those with outstanding military achievements?

Besides, unlike others, the Grand Princess genuinely possesses royal blood, and her methods are extraordinary. Over the years, she hasn't lacked followers in the court!

Of course, there was one more point. An Ning couldn't help but smile:

"If I'm not mistaken, Jun'er's identity as a woman also played a significant role."

The system was completely dumbfounded this time.

What? The Crown Prince's Heir? How could being a woman possibly be an advantage? Shouldn't it be a hindrance?

"Because people cherish their lives and their families. No matter how stubborn someone is, as long as they haven't reached a dead end, they won't think of fighting to the death, of mutual destruction."

Not giving the other party a chance to speak, An Ning's tone carried obvious amusement.

What to do? It didn't understand.

Unfortunately, before the system could ask more, a familiar voice suddenly came from outside the hall:

"Master, the Changping Countess has just submitted her name card. She is currently outside the palace requesting an audience!"

Finally, Amber, who had come to deliver the message, quietly added: "According to the little eunuch who relayed the message, the Countess seems quite anxious at the moment, as if she has encountered some urgent matter..."