After the Qin Shengtian passed away, one bell toll after another spread from the imperial palace throughout the entire imperial capital.

This bell would only ring when Qin’s ruler died—no more, no less, exactly nine times.

Hearing the bell from the imperial palace, ordinary commoners looked at one another, each person’s eyes filled with disbelief.

Your Majesty had always been fine—how could he suddenly pass away?

But that bell was not fake. Whoever dared to strike the bell at random would face extermination of nine clans.

“Your Majesty!”

After some of the commoners in the imperial capital accepted reality, their eyes reddened, and they spontaneously knelt on the ground facing the direction of the imperial palace.

To the commoners, Qin Shengtian absolutely counted as a wise ruler. In their hearts, his standing was second only to the founding ancestor.

The officials in their residences, upon hearing the bell, first reacted by going blank, suspecting they had misheard.

Very quickly, after they came back to themselves, they hurried toward the palace.

The ruler’s death.

This matter was simply too great, and far too sudden.

No one could have imagined that not long ago His Majesty had still been so vigorous, yet today his soul had returned to the nine heavens...

And the most crucial point was that His Majesty had now died, yet His Majesty still had not determined the choice of Qin’s future ruler.

At this moment, among the princes and princesses in the palace, only one remained—the Third Princess...

What were they supposed to do?

It was very likely that all of Qin would fall into turmoil because of this.

At the same time, Prime Minister Li, Baili Xi, and Jian Shu also hurried into the palace.

Although ministers could not enter the inner palace without the ruler’s command, the situation was urgent, and they could not care about that anymore.

The three arrived at the courtyard where Empress Shi had lived, and there they saw Qin Shengtian seated on the stone stool, while the Third Princess Qin Siyao kept vigil beside her father.

Prime Minister Li and the three knelt before Qin Shengtian and made a deep salute.

“Your Highness the Princess, please restrain your grief. The urgent matter next is to take out His Majesty’s final edict, to stabilize the court.”

Prime Minister Li Ge spoke to Qin Siyao.

Even though they also knew that Qin Shengtian’s death dealt Qin Siyao a tremendous blow, and no matter who it was, it would be hard to have any mind left to worry about anything else.

But this concerned affairs of the state, and not a moment could be delayed.

“Final edict?” Qin Siyao turned around, forcing down the grief in her heart as she looked at the three. “But Father never told me anything about a final edict.”

“There is one.”

Baili Xi let out a sigh and shook his head.

“His Majesty once summoned the three of us to the Imperial Study and told us he had written a final edict, and he gave the three of us tokens. In the end, only with the imperial seal would we be able to take the final edict out. But as for where this final edict was placed, His Majesty never told us. His Majesty only said that when the time came, Your Highness the Princess would definitely know. Your Highness the Princess—do you have any idea?”

“What do your tokens look like?” Qin Siyao asked.

The few of them took the tokens out.

Looking at the tokens, Qin Siyao thought for a moment, and her eyes lit slightly. “Perhaps... I really do know where it is. I’ll go with you to take it.”

“Yes, Your Highness the Princess.” The three saluted together.

After Qin Siyao moved her father’s body into her mother’s sleeping quarters, she followed Prime Minister Li and the three to the Imperial Study.

On Qin Siyao’s desk, there happened to be four indentations.

As for these four indentations, from beginning to end Qin Siyao had never paid them any mind. Back then, she had only thought it was some peculiar design.

But when Qin Siyao saw the size and patterning of those four indentations, nearly identical to the tokens in their hands, she understood what it was.

Qin Siyao had Baili Xi and the three place their tokens into the indentations on the desk, then she picked up the Qin imperial seal on the desk and set it on top.

In an instant, the desk began to tremble. Immediately after, the jade plate in the very center opened, and a final edict appeared before everyone.

“By now, the civil and military officials should already have arrived in the great hall. Please, Your Highness the Princess, take up His Majesty’s final edict and go with us to the great hall to read it aloud.”

Baili Xi cupped his hands in a salute and requested.

“I know.”

Qin Siyao nodded, picked up the edict, and held it tightly to her chest.

......

In the great hall of Qin’s imperial capital.

The civil and military officials were basically all present, each person’s expression uneasy.

If His Majesty had already established a Crown Prince, that would have been one thing.

But now, with the Crown Prince position vacant, at the first moment they did not even know what to do.

And just as the officials were whispering among themselves—

Li Ge, Baili Xi, and Jian Shu walked into the great hall.

And at their very front was the Third Princess—Qin Siyao.

Seeing the four, the ministers hurriedly made way, then stood properly in their places, and everyone quieted down.

All ministers’ gazes landed on the edict held to the Princess’s chest.

Qin Siyao stopped, turned around, and faced the crowd.

With Li Ge and the three taking the lead, they called out, “Please, Your Highness the Princess, read aloud His Majesty’s final edict!”

The other ministers reacted and hurriedly called out together, “Please, Your Highness the Princess, read aloud His Majesty’s final edict!”

Qin Siyao nodded, opened the edict, and read it out word by word. Her voice was clear and pleasant, echoing through the great hall:

“We have received Heaven’s mandate and ascended the utmost pole. Morning and night We have been vigilant and cautious, never daring to forget the weight of the ancestral temples and the altars of state.

“In former days, We trod the throne in Our tender years, and to this day more than one hundred years have passed.

“Though We lack the virtue of Yao and Shun, yet We have, as far as We could, been diligent in governance and compassionate to the people, never daring to slacken.

“Several years ago, We forced a breakthrough toward the Jade-Polished Realm. Regrettably Our Dao foundation was not firm; true essence collapsed and reversed, the five viscera all injured, the meridians entirely ruined.

“Fortunately, relying on the Great Dao’s pity, We were left with a remnant breath at the brink of collapse, and further borrowed spiritual medicines and rare treasures from the Four Seas to continue Heaven and extend life, until today.

“Yet life and death have their decree—how could metal and stone make one remain?

“Now qi is exhausted and spirit withered. Knowing Our lifespan limit has arrived, We specially issue these final instructions. You civil and military ministers shall listen with care and carry them out with prudence:

“After Our passing, the mourning rites must be frugal and plain.

“Do not raise earthworks and timber to build a separate dark palace; bury Us only beside Empress Shi’s tomb. Before the tomb, let the steles bear no carved merit and virtue.

“All eunuchs in the palace are granted thirty mu of good farmland and one hundred taels of silver, and are to be sent back to their native places.

“For the duty of assisting court governance, We specially elevate three men:

“Chen Jin, county magistrate of Xiang County in Jing Prefecture—upright in nature and proficient in common affairs.

“General Su Qin—a fierce general, loyal and brave, inheriting his ancestors.

“Lin Xinhan, governor of Bohai Prefecture—clean and frugal, benevolent to the people.

“Summon them into court this very day, to jointly participate in state affairs.

“Frost King Xiao Mo—Our arms and legs. Bestow additionally the authority to command with tally and axe, and the Nine Bestowals. Appoint him Commander-in-Chief of all civil and military affairs within and without. Specially permit him to wear sword and shoes in the great hall; to enter the palace without unfastening armor and arms; and when seeing the sovereign, not to call himself a minister.

“Third Princess Siyao—of flawless jade quality, clever and steady, assisting the court’s reins for three years. In clarifying prisons and punishments, she is as solemn as autumn frost; in managing levies and taxes, she is precise to the tiniest fraction. Her talent in ordering warp and weft is truly not inferior to Crown Prince Jingsu and Second Prince Jingyuan.

“The sacred vessel cannot be left empty. We resolve to pass the great seat to—”

As Qin Siyao read word by word, all at once, her voice stopped.

She stared blankly at the final edict in her hands.

Quite a few officials raised their heads, looking toward the Third Princess at the front, only to see her eyes trembling; even the delicate hand gripping the edict could not help shaking.

Everyone’s minds tightened.

What they cared about most was who His Majesty would pass the throne to.

This concerned Qin’s altars of state.

“Your Highness the Princess...” At this moment Prime Minister Li Ge spoke. “His Majesty’s final edict—you have not yet finished reading it, have you?”

Baili Xi and Jian Shu also bent at the waist and cupped their hands in salute. “Please, Your Highness the Princess, continue reading.”

Qin Siyao looked at Prime Minister Li and the three, took a deep breath, and continued:

“We resolve to pass the great seat to the Third Princess Qin Siyao.

“All officials must exert their utmost sincerity in assisting her, and regard it as if We still stand present.

“If there are those who defy the decree while harboring duplicity, secretly binding party feathers and shaking the foundations of the state, Frost King may take Our posthumous sword and execute them—exterminate their nine clans. Heaven and earth bear witness.

“We have once read the historical records, and there has never been a woman who faced court. This act will certainly meet with public criticism.

“Yet how could one, because man and woman differ in their paths, discard worthy talent?

“Siyao holds ravines and ridges within her breast, rivers and mountains within her belly. You old ministers should cast aside prejudice and, with one heart, cross hardship together.

“We go now. We hope all of you unite in purpose, and guard Our Great Qin so that its mountains and rivers stand forever firm.

“Yin and yang, clear and cloudy, waxing and waning—ten thousand things are constant. Sun and moon revolve; an age of flourishing can be expected.

“Do not grieve, do not panic. Each of you keep to your post, and then We will smile in the Yellow Springs.”

As Qin Siyao’s words fell,

the ministers on the court floor, for a time, looked at one another, all doubting whether they had misheard.

His Majesty passed the throne to... the Third Princess?

How could that be?

The Third Princess was a woman.

There had never been such a precedent under Heaven!

For a time, whispers rose again in the great hall, as if, in the short term, they could not accept this outcome.

Yet in their hearts, they also felt that His Majesty would indeed set down such a final edict.

Otherwise, why would His Majesty not have chosen an heir to adopt into the line long ago? ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) How could he have kept silent all this time?

Perhaps His Majesty already knew that this decision would have enormous impact, involving far too much.

Since that was the case, it was better to set down a final edict and have it read after his death. In that way, the wood was already carved, and no one could refute it.

Qin Siyao still stood at the very front of the great hall, staring blankly at the ministers.

For Qin Siyao, she had also never imagined such an outcome.

She was to take on her father’s burden and become Qin’s ruler?

Could she truly be this ruler?

Did she really have this ability?

Father had her help handle court affairs—was it for today?

Gradually, the voices around her grew more and more muffled in Qin Siyao’s ears.

In the end, Qin Siyao seemed to be able to hear only her own heartbeat.

And just at this moment, outside the great hall, the sound of one person’s footsteps came.

That abrupt sound made everyone turn to look.

A tall, straight figure walked step by step into the great hall.

When this man appeared, the officials quieted again, and some ministers did not even dare to meet his eyes.

Originally, this man’s authority and prestige had already reached Qin’s very peak.

After the edict was declared, even if this man one day claimed the throne to rule Qin, they would not feel surprised!

And even if this man did not claim the throne, as Your Majesty’s consort husband, the prince born of him and Your Majesty in the future would inevitably be Qin’s next ruler.

And when this man appeared, a trace of light flashed through Qin Siyao’s eyes. Her delicate hand clutched the edict tightly.

At last, the man passed through the ministers, knelt on one knee before the woman, and his deep, powerful voice spread through the great hall:

“This minister, Xiao Mo! Welcomes Your Majesty!”

The ministers still had not reacted when Li Ge, Baili Xi, and Jian Shu bent in salute and said loudly:

“This minister and the others welcome Your Majesty!”

Seeing that the Frost King and the Three Excellencies had all taken their stance, the officials looked at one another—what objections could there be?

At last, the civil and military officials all bent and made a deep salute, shouting in unison:

“This minister and the others! Welcome Your Majesty!”

As the ministers’ voices fell, the entire court hall sank into silence. Qin Siyao still stood there without moving.

“Please, Your Majesty, ascend the throne!” Xiao Mo spoke again.

“Please, Your Majesty, ascend the throne!” Li Ge, Baili Xi, and Jian Shu echoed together.

“Please, Your Majesty, ascend the throne!” The ministers echoed together.

Qin Siyao looked at Xiao Mo, looked at the ministers, lowered her head, and looked at the edict.

At last, the woman turned around and looked toward Qin’s throne—originally not high, yet as if it rose into the heavens.

Finally, the long legs beneath the woman’s skirt stepped out, and she walked toward the stairs...

“Third Sister, second brother is leaving. From now on, you have to take good care of yourself.”

One step.

“Third Sister, this time going to war against Jin, eldest brother can’t guarantee whether I’ll come back. Father and Mother will be in your hands.”

Two steps.

“Jingsu, Jingyuan—Mother is coming to see you. Only... after this, Siyao will have to work hard. Can Siyao... really hold up?”

Three steps.

“Siyao, from today onward, you’ll help Father handle governance. You don’t know how? It’s fine. Father will teach you well.”

Four steps.

“Siyao, actually you really are very smart. Your talent is not inferior to your eldest brother and second brother at all.”

“Daughter, everything about you is good, but you are too kind-hearted. You must remember—within the court, you cannot be kind.”

“In the future, if anything happens, tell Xiao Mo. You may not trust other people, but Father believes Xiao Mo will never betray you.”

“Daughter... from now on, the matters of the court will be handed to you...”

Five steps, six steps, seven steps...

With every step Qin Siyao took, the words her second brother, eldest brother, mother, and father once said to her replayed in her mind.

“Siyao... Dad... has wronged you...”

When Qin Siyao’s final step landed,

she had already reached the high dais, with Qin’s throne right before her.

Qin Siyao turned around. Below the high dais were the person she loved most, and the full court of civil and military officials.

“Xiao Mo, I don’t want to keep hiding behind you anymore.”

“I’m going to cultivate well! I want to stand with you! To shoulder everything together with you!”

“I also want to protect you!”

Qin Siyao clenched her small hands and sat down on the dragon throne of Qin’s ruler!

At the instant Qin Siyao sat down, above Qin’s imperial palace, dynastic fortune gathered without end. A massive golden dragon coiled and circled above the palace.

“ROOOAR!”

The dragon’s roar spread outward.

Outside the imperial city, the commoners of Qin’s imperial capital lifted their heads, staring at the golden dragon above the palace.

A thick imperial majesty pressed down from the cloud layers, making the commoners in the imperial city unable to resist kneeling toward the palace.

The officials’ hearts all jolted.

Now, before Your Majesty had even held the ascension ceremony, such a heaven-and-earth omen had already been drawn out. Across the history of the various states for thousands of years, this was also rare.

“This minister, greets Your Majesty!”

Xiao Mo’s voice echoed through the great hall.

“This minister and the others! Greet Your Majesty!”

The Three Excellencies and the civil and military officials all shouted in unison.

“Father, Mother, eldest brother, second brother... rest assured...”

Qin Siyao sat upon the throne, gazing toward the sky beyond the great hall.

“This Qin... your daughter and Xiao Mo... will guard it for you...”