The Pheonix and The Dragon

1.Death of the Emperor

Not long after Jieun's divorse, when she had been horse-riding and admiring flowers with other women in the capital, an able person said that she was "a phoenix flying through the nine heavens, and indescribably noble."

So not even two months after this event, Jieun was summoned into the imperial palace by the emperor. At the start, she was titled a zhao yi*. In less than two years, she gave birth to twins, a son and a daughter. The emperor titled her empress in his happiness. It was no wonder the emperor had been so rash. Because of all his women, other than Jieun, no other woman had ever had any news.

[zhao yi- a woman who serves the king (for you know what)]

But the good did not last for long. The twins passed away prematurely one after another. At most, everyone would lament, the previous emperor was fated to have no children.

Everyone had complicated emotions about having had an emperor like this. Fortunately, while this emperor had been slightly muddle-headed on matters of governance, and dissolute in his private life, he hadn't been a ruthless person. So the prestigious families of the capital did not make any waves or conspiracies. They maintained a peaceful and harmonious Yi Dynasty.

"But now... what if there is disorder?" Jennie frowned. She showed no panic at discussing the imperial house.

Lisa, who was watching from the side, knew that while the aristocratic families were usually respectful of the imperial family, they were not reverent. They were ruthless in gossiping behind closed doors.

In reality, second- and third-tier aristocratic families like theirs were not bad. First-tier aristocratic families like the Jung and Lee families could not make any mistakes in their elegant actions and speech. They had to be polite and friendly to others, but the pride engraved in their bones would be felt by people even if it wasn't on display. Ordinary members of the imperial family would be polite in front of them, with no airs of the imperial family.

Lisa had interacted with the Jung and Lee families. In conclusion, these families were the textbook of etiquette of the Yi Dynasty. People respected and feared them. Her relationship with the misses of the two families was only so-so, so she could not state any opinions except that the misses of the two families were not easy to be close to.

Seeing the three women in the room were slightly worried, Lisa couldn't help but comfort, "The two brothers of the previous emperor... I think they cannot cause disorder even if they want to."

The three women turned to look in unison at Lisa. They hadn't expected Lisa to speak.

Being stared at by three bright gazes, Lisa coughed and said, "Prince Cheng's personality is usually... soft. His health has not been good recently and his lands are not very wealthy. Even if he wants to, he has no power."

"You are correct." Chaerin nodded. Her daughter saying Prince Cheng* was soft was a polite way of speaking. In reality, this Prince Cheng was weak and useless. After he had been titled a prince and went to his lands, he had done nothing. If this one had the daring to rebel and fight for the throne, this would be an odd event in the Yi Dynasty.

[Prince Cheng- 1st rank Prince]

"Prince Rui is crippled, and even less likely." Lisa blinked and smiled adorably. "Also, Father and my brothers are helping Aunt in the capital. How can disorder occur?"

Fortunately, while the emperor was muddle-headed, he was not so bad he was brainless. A few months ago, he had received the sons of the two princes in the capital. While the two princes did not have many sons, they still managed to get five between the two of them. They were much better than the emperor in this respect.

"You are right. We are panicking in concern." Chaerin saw her daughter's smile and the worry on her mind disappeared. "No matter which son becomes the new emperor, it will not have much to do with us."

An hour later, someone came to report the new emperor had been welcomed into the imperial palace by the emperor's personal guard.

The one who entered the palace was the eldest son of Prince Cheng

"Eldest son of Prince Cheng..." Chaerin sighed. This son had been born to the first wife of Prince Cheng but this princess-consort had passed away long ago. The other two sons and three daughters of Prince Cheng came from his second wife and his concubines.

She seemed to understand why the empress chose this child.

"The new emperor... is relatively young." The aristocratic families knew the relationships between families like the back of their hands. So Jisoo and Jennie quickly recalled the situation of Prince Cheng's eldest son and spoke meaningfully.
Lisa heard this but still kept a sweet and innocent smile on her face, as though she did not hear the deeper meaning in the words.