It might be easier to control the Long family if they show weakness now. But if we also weaken the Yuwen family's power to some extent, and considering the relationship between Xiaojiu and the Grand Elder, we needn't worry about controlling the Yuwen family. Su Wan'er had considered this ever since she saw Xiaojiu's feelings that day.
"You woman. You've probably won too many battles and are having wild ideas. Who are the Yuwen family? They've schemed and painstakingly managed for hundreds of years and finally usurped power to get Southern Border. Do you think they'll just hand it over to the Jin Kingdom? Do you know why this war started? Do you think the Yuwen family doesn't know they can't defeat the Jin Kingdom? But the fact is, they'd rather fight head - on with the Jin Kingdom than submit. "
"Yes, I know that there are indeed some ruthless and power - hungry people in the Yuwen family. But not everyone in a family is the same. Take the Su family for example... I'm sure you've heard that when I first came to the army, my cousin, Deputy General Su, deliberately made things difficult for me and even colluded with foreign forces. But most of the Su family are loyal and good generals. " Su Wan'er tried to convince him. "Maybe because the Yuwen family has been suppressed by the four major families for too long, most of them are ruthless. But you've seen that even Xiaojiu could speak so highly of the Grand Elder, who is her family's sworn enemy. This shows that the Grand Elder might be spared. "
Si Junlin looked at her coldly. "What do you mean by 'even Xiaojiu'? Your Xiaojiu is deeply in love now. How can you believe what she says?"
Su Wan'er said righteously, "Xiaojiu is not such a person. Don't wrong her. You saw it back then. She even asked me to marry her in person. But even with those feelings for me, every time she helped me and the soldiers of the Jin Kingdom to remove the gu poison, she always reminded me not to use her methods against the people of Southern Border. She always remembers that she is the Holy Maiden and always keeps the common people of Southern Border in mind. If the Grand Elder were really as heinous as the other Yuwen family members, Xiaojiu would never have spoken like that. "
Moreover, since the Grand Elder has feelings for Xiaojiu, there must have been a lot of close contact between them. With Xiaojiu's ability, if she really couldn't stand the Grand Elder, she would have avenged her family long ago, even at the risk of her life. How could she have let the Grand Elder live until now?
"Wan'er, why do we have to argue over irrelevant people?" Si Junlin suddenly softened his tone.
"How can this be irrelevant? This concerns Xiaojiu's future life. " Su Wan'er naturally thought this statement was wrong. Xiaojiu was so important to her. How could it be irrelevant?
"Fine, then spoil your Xiaojiu. You risked your life to sneak into the Southern Border Palace just to meet your Xiaojiu!" Si Junlin was clearly jealous. He had felt extremely uncomfortable seeing the two of them so intimate today.
"Si Junlin, I didn't mean that. But Xiaojiu has really been kind to me. Moreover, I'm the marshal of the Jin Kingdom. I will naturally consider the interests of the Jin Kingdom. Why do you have to worry about this?" Su Wan'er was puzzled. Even if she had a good friendship with Xiaojiu, she wouldn't ignore the interests of the Jin Kingdom.
"You woman. Who said you're ignoring the interests of the Jin Kingdom?" Si Junlin was extremely angry.
"Then what are you blaming me for?!" If he wasn't worried about this, why was he so angry?
"I!" Si Junlin was even more annoyed and couldn't speak. This woman was still so obtuse. Couldn't she stop thinking only about the Jin Kingdom and her Xiaojiu? Couldn't he blame her for not thinking about him?
"Alright, alright, Miss. I've made the crab - roe soup dumplings. They're just cooked. Come and eat them while they're hot, Your Majesty. "
Just then, Qingcao came in with the crab - roe soup dumplings she had painstakingly made in Southern Border these two days, having finally gathered all the ingredients. Originally, she remembered that Si Junlin had also fallen in love with this snack like her miss for a while. But Si Junlin didn't even look at them and stormed out angrily.
"What's wrong with the miss? Why is the Emperor so angry?" Qingcao subconsciously worried that she had ruined their good time. But she saw that her miss also seemed to be in a bad mood.
"Who cares about him? He's so strange! Xiaojiu is such a nice girl. It's rare that she can be an ally for the Jin Kingdom in Southern Border now. But Si Junlin always has a gloomy face when he sees her. Today, he inexplicably lost his temper at her. "
Qingcao kept silent, but she actually knew something. She had also witnessed how close her miss and Miss Xiaojiu were. Even she, who had grown up with her miss since childhood, felt a twinge of jealousy seeing them so close, let alone the Emperor. But this kind of thing was the most inexpressible and couldn't be said at all. So she could only rely on her miss to figure it out herself.
"Do you think he's not acclimatized to Southern Border and has gone crazy? Just now, I thought he was worried that I would be partial to Xiaojiu and thus ignore the interests of the Jin Kingdom and favor Southern Border. But unexpectedly, he clearly said it wasn't that. Then what on earth is he angry about? Isn't he being crazy?"
The more Su Wan'er thought about it, the angrier she got. She thought Si Junlin must be out of his mind because he wasn't acclimatized to Southern Border. It was a pity that he was using her body now. She hoped he wouldn't hurt himself when he went crazy, or she wouldn't forgive him.
"Um, Miss. Don't think about this. The dumplings will get cold soon. Hurry up and eat them. " Qingcao tried not to laugh.
"Miss, do you still remember what I said to you the other day? Maybe... Maybe the Emperor is just blaming you for not thinking about him. Maybe Miss can think more about the Emperor. " Qingcao was extremely euphemistic, but she was afraid she wasn't clear enough, so her words were really disjointed.
"Think about him? What's there to think about? Qingcao, we're now deep in enemy territory. He's an emperor, not a child. How can I have the time to think about him?" Su Wan'er was very confident and thought it through clearly.
"Yes..." Qingcao was speechless.
"Wait. Do you mean... Si Junlin is... jealous?" Su Wan'er finally realized it later.
"Shh, Miss. Keep your voice down. " Qingcao quickly looked around the courtyard. Seeing that the guards looked normal, she came in. Couldn't this kind of thing be handled more carefully?
"Just tell me if it's true or not." Su Wan'er seemed even angrier.
"Miss finally understands... Well, are you happy?" Qingcao couldn't help asking.
"Happy? I'm so angry! How can Si Junlin be so childish? As the emperor of a country, he doesn't know how to prioritize things. What's there for me to be happy about?"
Qingcao looked at her and stammered, "What if... you are his top priority and his most urgent concern?"
"Hmm? Then... then..."