QT: The Rescue Of The Miserable Bigshots-Chapter 319 - 10.20

"Father-in-law has arrived? Attendants, what are you waiting for! Quickly invite the Imperial Father-in-law inside to rest!"

After a brief hesitation, Xiao Jinan still did not wake Jiang Jiamian.

Instead, he steadied himself, quickly adjusted his appearance, and hurried to the front hall to receive him.

When he arrived, the middle-aged general stood outside, his armor gleaming coldly in the morning light. His imposing presence was as unyielding as a pine, showing no trace of fatigue despite having traveled through the night.

At the sound of Xiao Jinan’s voice, Jiang Qingshan slowly turned around and offered a shallow fist salute. "Greetings, Your Majesty."

The salute was distant and restrained, carrying an unmistakable hint of anger.

Xiao Jinan understood and did not take it to heart. He merely turned his gaze toward the hall. "Father-in-law, please come inside."

"I would not dare accept such honor."

Jiang Qingshan’s expression was stiff, and he did not move an inch.

Xiao Jinan’s expression cooled slightly. "Father-in-law, the respect I show you is indeed because you are Jiamian’s father. But that does not mean I will set aside the dignity of the throne. In the end, I am the ruler and you are the subject, only after that comes our familial bond. What do you think?"

Jiang Qingshan glanced at him, his lips parting as if he wished to speak, only to hesitate. His eyes flicked briefly toward the eunuchs standing silently nearby, hands folded at their sides. In the end, he said nothing and stepped into the hall.

"Father-in-law, please sit."

Since Jiang Qingshan was willing to step down and meet him face-to-face, Xiao Jinan naturally did not wish to treat him coldly. Jiang Qingshan’s status was special. If their relationship became too tense, it would not benefit his relationship with Jiang Jiamian in the slightest.

Jiang Qingshan sat down with a cold expression. His first words were blunt and direct.

"What will it take for Your Majesty to release my son?"

He had been waiting at the King of Huainan’s residence, genuinely believing that his son had reached some form of agreement with Xiao Jinan, and that the previous marriage decree was merely a means to force him out of the capital.

It was unpleasant, but for the sake of the bigger picture, he could endure it.

After all, once the Jiang family helped the Huainan King seize the throne, his son would naturally regain his freedom. Even the worst reputation would eventually be washed away together with the injustice suffered by the Jiang family.

But he had never expected this outcome.

He waited and waited, only to receive news that Xiao Jinan had successfully taken the throne, and that his son, his only son, the sole heir of the Jiang family, was to be made Empress.

How could he possibly accept this?

Xiao Jinan clearly still harbored resentment over those four years when his path had been blocked. Otherwise, why would he continue to humiliate his son by conferring a woman’s title upon him?

It was even possible that the Jiang family army’s tremendous contribution during the coup had made Xiao Jinan feel threatened. Fearing that the Jiang family would become too powerful, he deliberately used the title of Empress, seemingly an honor, but in reality a shackle, to sever the Jiang family’s influence.

Once his son became Empress, he would inevitably face countless restrictions. The Jiang family army would gradually be suppressed. And as for descendants, wasn’t Xiao Jinan ensuring that the Jiang family would have no successor at all?

A single title of Empress could suppress the Jiang family forever. The method was clever. The intent was malicious.

Xiao Jinan frowned slightly. "What do you mean by that, Father-in-law? Jiamian and I are mutually in love. There is none of the suspicion or scheming you imagine between ruler and subject."

"None?"

Jiang Qingshan sneered. "Then may I ask Your Majesty, was my son not forcibly made Empress by you? Do you know what this looks like to the world? A man of noble birth submitting to another, his pride crushed. And what of the Jiang family’s descendants?"

Descendants... This was something Xiao Jinan had never seriously considered.

Not Jiang Jiamian’s descendants, nor even his own.

He had never wanted heirs.

Ascending the throne was never about establishing a dynasty that would last for generations. It was simply to ensure that he and Jiang Jiamian would no longer live under another’s control.

Given their former identities, one a traitorous general, the other a rebellious king, the old emperor would never have tolerated them.

If they could not advance, they would both have died without burial.

There had never been another path.

Seeing Xiao Jinan fall silent, Jiang Qingshan’s expression darkened further.

"Who wouldn’t understand this? If my Jiang family line is severed, the Jiang family army will inevitably disintegrate. Does Your Majesty truly think I am a fool, incapable of seeing through this method of dismantling power?"

"I..." Xiao Jinan closed his eyes briefly, steadied himself, and then opened them again. "I have absolutely no such intention. My feelings for Jiamian are sincere. As for offspring..."

He clenched his teeth. "Father-in-law, you may choose a child to be adopted into the Jiang family. I will immediately issue an edict declaring that I will never interfere with the Jiang family’s military power in my lifetime."

"How can an adopted son compare to a biological one?"

Jiang Qingshan’s face was ashen. "And how convincing would that be? I beg Your Majesty, considering my son’s merits in conquering the capital, please forgive those four years of confrontation and show magnanimity. I will be eternally grateful."

Xiao Jinan grew agitated. "Father-in-law, I have said that I mean no harm! Jiamian and I are truly in love!"

What could he do?

If it were anyone else, he could simply kill them.

But this was Jiang Jiamian’s father.

If he offended Jiang Qingshan, his Empress would likely turn around and abandon him.

Explanation failed. Authority could not be used. Even as emperor, he had to treat Jiang Qingshan with respect.

"Mutual affection?" Jiang Qingshan said coldly. "Even if it were true, Your Majesty should understand what it means. It means confining Jiamian to the harem as a woman and destroying his future. Meanwhile, Your Majesty may take concubines, have countless heirs, and even depose him once your interest fades."

"No."

Xiao Jinan gripped his wine cup tightly. "I can issue an edict right now, declaring to the world that I will never take concubines, never depose an Empress, and will even select a young prince to raise as Crown Prince."

He paused, then said resolutely, "No, why don’t I simply give the throne to Jiamian and become the Empress myself?"

"Hahahaha! Good! Very good!"

Xiao Jinan was entirely serious when Jiang Qingshan suddenly threw back his head and burst into laughter.

Xiao Jinan: "..."

Jiang Qingshan stopped laughing, stood, and clasped his fists toward Xiao Jinan. "With Your Majesty’s resolve, this old general is reassured. As for my son, I entrust him to Your Majesty."

Xiao Jinan: "..."

This was too sudden. He hadn’t even processed it yet.

Seeing his expression, Jiang Qingshan sat back down, shaking his head. "Your Majesty doesn’t truly believe I am blind, do you?"

Xiao Jinan narrowed his eyes. "What does Father-in-law mean?"

"I stayed at the King of Huainan’s residence for nearly a month." Jiang Qingshan sighed. "Though Jiamian said it was merely a scheme, during that time, I saw your interactions."

He lowered his gaze. "Your eye contact alone would make even a blind man understand."

Only then did Xiao Jinan finally grasp it. Relief washed over him, followed by confusion.

"So Father-in-law already knew? Then why test me so harshly?"

Jiang Qingshan sighed. "Because you are now the Emperor. If one day you change your heart, my son will be the one who suffers. As his father, I had no choice but to test your sincerity, even if it meant offending imperial authority."

When he first heard at the King of Huainan’s residence that Xiao Jinan had made his son the Empress the moment he ascended the throne, he couldn’t help but feel a jolt of shock.

Though he had seen through the scheme early on, he still clung to a sliver of hope that he had misunderstood, that it wasn’t truly the case.

Yet on second thought, the Jiang family had long been suspected by the late Emperor and deliberately framed. If not for Jiamian and the King of Huainan’s covert maneuvering, three generations of the Jiang family’s single-line descendants would have already perished at the old Emperor’s hands.

That he and his son had survived at all was already a miracle. What right did they have to worry about descendants?

After long, agonizing deliberation, Jiang Qingshan finally managed to convince himself.

His only remaining concern was how much sincerity Xiao Jinan, now Emperor, truly held toward his son, and just how far he was willing to go for him.

"Your Majesty endured all this questioning without suppressing me by force. That alone shows how much you truly care for Jiamian. For now, my heart is at ease. As for the rest..."

Jiang Qingshan hesitated briefly.

Xiao Jin’an spoke up earnestly, meeting his gaze without flinching. "As for the rest... I will use the years to come to prove it with my actions."