Chapter 153: Want to Be Emperor? I'll Help You

"I am not deaf!" Xiao Jingxuan straightened up coldly.

"What if I do, and what if I don't?" Xiao Jingxuan looked at Su Jingluo with guarded wariness. His gaze carried an unfriendly chill and annoyance.

Su Jingluo was taken aback; Xiao Jingxuan's mood shifted far too quickly. Could it be that he was only interested in having children, while caring nothing for royal power, wealth, or grand imperial ambitions?

"By the look of it, you don't want to then." Su Jingluo let out a sigh of relief. In truth, she had no desire to be an empress or noble consort—it was simply too exhausting. As for Yunbai, her thoughts were quite simple: it would be wonderful enough for him to happily grow up as a wealthy second-generation heir.

"How do you figure that?" Seeing Su Jingluo heave a sigh of relief, Xiao Jingxuan's expression grew even more solemn. He became increasingly suspicious that Su Jingluo was sent by the Emperor to sound him out. A dull ache bloomed in his chest. Whether he wanted to be emperor was one thing, but whether Su Jingluo might betray him at any moment was a matter of grave importance.

Xiao Jingxuan's hands and feet turned ice cold, despair slowly devouring his reason. Su Jingluo, were you destined to turn your back on me and side with the Emperor's faction after all? Was his profound devotion truly misplaced in the end?

"Did I say something wrong? Well then, do you want to or not?" Seeing Xiao Jingxuan acting so mysterious, Su Jingluo was utterly baffled. *My good man, what on earth do you mean?*

"What if I do, and what if I don't?" Xiao Jingxuan clenched his fists tightly, doing his utmost to suppress his anger and pain. He wanted Su Jingluo to reveal the answer quickly, yet he was terrified that her answer would break his heart.

"Look at you, making such a mystery out of it. If you want it, I'll help you—though I can't be sure we'll succeed. But we would certainly stand and fall together. If you don't want it, then we'll make ourselves so powerful that even the Emperor wouldn't dare lay a finger on our family. I know you've suffered a great deal of unfairness, and I understand your lack of a sense of security, but true security is something one builds for oneself. We must reach a point where if the Emperor moves against us, it shakes the entire realm, carrying the risk of destroying the nation. We may have no intention of rebelling, but we must possess the power to rebel." Su Jingluo leaned in close and whispered, her eyes darting around as she scanned their surroundings.

"Are you speaking from the heart? How do you intend to help this prince?" Xiao Jingxuan relaxed instantly, a glimmer of light returning to his lifeless eyes. Regardless of whether Su Jingluo was still testing the waters on the Emperor's behalf, at least every word and syllable she uttered was biased toward him. Even if it were a lie, it at least hurt a little less.

"Of course I'm sincere, though I don't quite know how to help yet. But I've thought it through: if you want it, I will restrain our edge, court the wives and concubines of the officials, and simultaneously develop our economy, using wealth as your backing.

If you don't want it, then that's even easier. We'll just focus on making money, money, and more money, and become the richest people in the entire country—no, the richest in the entire world! As for you, you can do whatever you please, and strive to hold military power in your hands. If the royal family wants to touch you, let them try. By then, we can strut through life however we please, and teach anyone who acts unruly toward us a lesson in how to behave.

Once we have money, we'll buy, buy, buy—houses, land, and manors. When we grow old, we can retire wherever we please. As for Yunbai, no matter what decision you make, what I truly hope for is to leave the choice of his future in his own hands. Since he could not choose the circumstances of his birth, he should at least be able to choose how he lives." Su Jingluo's eyes shone with bright anticipation as she envisioned the wonderful life awaiting them after acquiring wealth. In her past life, she had wanted to be a physician who saved the world, but deep down, she had greedily desired to be a physician with plenty of money who saved the world.

After all, who wouldn't want to live out their ideals as a cherished dream rather than as a desperate struggle for mere survival?