The Chief Eunuchs had controlled the court, the regional military districts had each gone their own way, and the Son of Heaven had been more like a seal stamped on an imperial edict.
Now, however, things were completely different. Through the Luoyang Palace Coup and the subsequent Purges, Lin Cuo had eliminated large numbers of bureaucrats and independent military and political blocs. Many institutions that no one had previously been able to manage directly had been brought back under the Secretariat and the Imperial Audit.
As Kaguya Sumeragi looked at her, she suddenly felt a pang of envy. Although she had regained her status as Area 11's Imperial Lineage, she had yet to truly reclaim her homeland.
Jiang Lihua, however, had already gone from a Son of Heaven manipulated by others to a sovereign personally governing a vast country.
"Your Majesty really is... remarkable now."
"Why are you saying that all of a sudden, big sister?"
"Because you can already decide so many things. Back when those eunuchs controlled the court, who could have imagined Great Han would become what it is today?"
Jiang Lihua looked at the documents. After a while, the corners of her mouth slowly turned down.
"But I have so, so many things to read every day now."
"That's a responsibility you have to bear when governing a country."
"I know! The problem is that treacherous minister Lin Cuo keeps giving me more work every day while he's out there! Today it's the Aerospace Force, tomorrow it's strategic weapons, and the day after that he's making a complete mess of someone else's country. Then everyone comes to me for a countersignature."
Kaguya Sumeragi couldn't help laughing.
"But hasn't Your Majesty always wanted to truly govern the country?"
"I wanted to govern the country, not have that