Li Lingyue did not deny it.
Of course she understood.
Li Longji was not her weak fourth brother. He had ambition, cunning, and the fortune of being chosen by the Son of Heaven Sword. He had not acted yet not because he did not want to, but because he could not. Once he could, he certainly would.
She realized she had misjudged him. She had thought she would have at least a year or two of peace, yet he had barely become Crown Prince before his subordinates began "acting up," impeaching her on his behalf and using the opportunity to strip away her power.
And what about her?
Could she act?
Yes.
But she could not make up her mind.
It was not out of affection between aunt and nephew. Things had already reached this point; whoever clung to old affections would die sooner! She could not make up her mind because she was uncertain-what would she gain after winning?
Power? She already had it.
Status? She was already Princess Taiping Who Guards the Nation, equal in rank to a Prince. Above that lay only that chair.
But she did not want to sit in that chair.
She had seen with her own eyes what her mother had become after sitting in it-betrayed by her followers, deserted by her family, utterly alone. When she was finally driven from power, she had not even had anyone to talk to.
She did not want to become like that.
But if she did not take that chair, what good would defeating Li Longji do her?
Replace the Crown Prince? What would be the point?
She had already replaced two emperors, directly or indirectly!
Perhaps she might once have been tempted, but now, that chair had long ceased to be what she wanted.
What