Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 1408 - 1408 0798 Establishing the Emperor _2

Chapter 1408: Chapter 0798: Establishing the Emperor _2 Chapter 1408: Chapter 0798: Establishing the Emperor _2 The emperors of the Great Zhao Nation were destined to cultivate to the Gold Core Realm unless they encountered some special catastrophe. One could generally deduce whether or not a person was capable of reaching the Gold Core Realm by observing if their age matched their cultivation level; however, the royal descendants presented by Zhang Dengkui all fell short; their cultivation levels were usually lower than what their ages would suggest.

Regarding this, Zhang Dengkui and the others felt helpless. The royal blood of Great Zhao did indeed possess abundant cultivation resources, but most of these resources were concentrated within the royal family. Other royal descendants, especially those with a distant blood relation to the reigning emperor, actually received very few cultivation resources. Without these resources, even those with exceptional talents would find it difficult to achieve great success.

Qi Tian understood this better than any of them, yet he was unwilling to relax the criteria in this matter. It was essentially impossible for him to provide any subsidy to the selected emperor. Without such supplementation, it would be hard for them to restore the foundational gaps they missed earlier, almost ensuring they could never cultivate to the Gold Core Stage. It wasn’t that Qi Tian was stingy; he simply didn’t see any exceptional talent among these royal descendants that would justify the extensive resource expenditure that the supplementation would require.

Afterward, Zhang Dengkui repeatedly presented two more lists of candidates to Qi Tian, but none could satisfy him. Finally, having no other alternatives, they knelt before Qi Tian, requesting him to directly appoint an emperor himself—as long as they were from the Zhao family and possessed the bloodline of the Grand Ancestor Emperor, they would accept any legitimate heir to the throne.

During this time, Qi Tian seemed to be spending his days in the palace perusing various classic texts, giving the impression of disinterest in the succession of the Great Zhao throne. In reality, he had sent his agents across the country to investigate every royal offspring, including unregistered illegitimate children, but regrettably, none met his standards.

Finally, Qi Tian settled on a name; after pondering for a long time, he summoned Zhang Dengkui and the others and then read out the person’s name.

Zhao Qian.

When this name reached the ears of Zhang Dengkui and the other high-ranking officials, they initially did not recognize it. But being well-versed scholars familiar with the royal lineage, they quickly realized whom Zhao Qian was—wasn’t this the Prince of Zhangbei?

Zhao Qian was indeed a member of the royal family and a prince. However, Zhao Qian was a woman. Her previous appointment as a prince had a profound connection with Qi Tian. Originally, when Qi Tian supported Prince Zhao against the eldest prince, Zhao Qian’s father, the then Prince of Zhangbei, supported the eldest prince and Qi Tian’s rivals along with Zhao Qian’s brother and several other heirs. When Qi Tian’s choice, Prince Zhao, defeated the eldest prince and ascended to the throne, the Prince Mansion of Zhangbei naturally faced retribution. Zhao Qian’s father and her brother were all stripped of their inheritance rights, and exceptionally, the title of prince was historically bestowed upon a woman. This incident had caused quite a stir in the Great Zhao Nation, but under Qi Tian’s influence, supported by the head nod from Prince Zhao, no amount of opposition could reverse this outcome.

Appointing Zhao Qian as a prince had already been shocking; now, Qi Tian even proposed that Zhao Qian become the emperor of the Great Zhao Nation, which effectively threatened to shatter everyone’s traditional views.

Zhang Dengkui and the others presented all kinds of opposition to Qi Tian, arguing that Zhao Qian was a woman, historically there had been no precedent of a female emperor in the Great Zhao Nation, that Zhao Qian’s father and brothers were traitors, and questioning how Zhao Qian’s rule as empress could possibly command public support, among many other objections. Yet, none of these persuaded Qi Tian to change his mind.

Qi Tian understood Zhao Qian quite well; whether in terms of character or talent, she was exceptional. If there was one regret about her, it was the disappointing father and brothers she had been burdened with. They had the opportunity to build a close relationship with Qi Tian early on, yet they disregarded Zhao Qian’s advice, choosing instead to support the eldest prince wrongly, which now continues to hinder Zhao Qian.

Qi Tian was firm in his stance; if Zhao Qian were to be the emperor, he would support her unconditionally. However, if anyone other than Zhao Qian were appointed as the emperor of the Great Zhao Nation, his support would be tentative. Once a new emperor ascended to the throne, he would wash his hands of the entire affair, dissociating himself from the matters of the Great Zhao Nation henceforth.

Qi Tian’s threat was very effective. Zhang Dengkui and his associates truly did not dare to act without Qi Tian for now Qi Tian had proven his significance to the Great Zhao Nation by slaughtering over ten thousand cultivators; if they angered Qi Tian and he decided to leave, the Great Zhao Nation would lose a pillar, which would be very detrimental to the nation.

Zhang Dengkui and the others had no choice but to gather all the senior cabinet members to discuss whether to accept Qi Tian’s decision and, if acceptance was unavoidable, how to go about it.

In the end, Zhang Dengkui and his group could only compromise. However, they also set forth a condition: if Zhao Qian were to become the empress of Great Zhao Nation, she would either remain unmarried for life, and after her demise or abdication, the throne must pass to another royal family member, or, if Zhao Qian took a husband, their children could not take their father’s surname. Instead, they must take their mother’s surname and be listed in the royal family’s genealogy, with no ties to their father’s family. Only in this way could Zhao Qian choose her successor from her own children.

Zhang Dengkui’s demands were of no concern to Qi Tian, so Zhang Dengkui immediately dispatched officials to King Zhangbei’s Manor to escort Zhao Qian to the Capital City.

Several days later, escorted by a large entourage, Zhao Qian entered the Capital City and, under the witness of Qi Tian and presided over by Zhang Dengkui, she donned the imperial robe and officially became the first empress in the history of the Great Zhao Nation.

After becoming the empress, Zhao Qian, who had moved out of the imperial palace, invited Qi Tian to visit the palace, and the two sat in silence facing each other.

Once, Zhao Qian and Qi Tian had a very good relationship, but due to a series of unfortunate misunderstandings, their relationship had degraded from friends to mere acquaintances, largely because of Zhao Qian’s father and brothers.

Zhao Qian had much to say, but when it came time to speak, she did not know what to say and could only pick up her drink and toast Qi Tian as a way to apologize and give thanks.

Qi Tian fulfilled his promise and brought out a large number of cultivation resources that were very precious to Zhao Qian, placing them all into a Storage Bag and handing it over to her. With these cultivation resources, as long as no accidents occurred, Zhao Qian’s progression to the Gold Core Realm would be a logical outcome.

Furthermore, Qi Tian told Zhao Qian that he would provide her with the necessary protective forces. If Zhao Qian still wished to have a National Master Manor like the previous dynasty, then Qi Tian could help establish one in the Capital City. If Zhao Qian felt that the National Master Manor was a restraint, Qi Tian could also help build a worship institute or some other institution.

Qi Tian’s conversation with Zhao Qian was strictly professional and did not touch on any personal matters, which made Zhao Qian even more confused. But by now, it was too late for regrets.

Without any hesitation, Zhao Qian directly indicated that she wanted Qi Tian to mediate and have the Imperial Master Mansion relocated to the Capital City. From then on, the Imperial Master Mansion would be the only National Master Manor in the Great Zhao Nation, and she would fully support the Imperial Master Mansion.

Qi Tian readily agreed to Zhao Qian’s request, but mere agreement was not enough—it also required the cooperation of the Imperial Master Mansion. Thus, Qi Tian once again sent a message to the Mansion Master of the Imperial Master Mansion, Xiao Xiaowu.