Chapter 477

Chapter 477

Can a Strategist Not Ascend the Throne? Extra Chapter 10 (Final)

Book: Can a Strategist Not Ascend the Throne?

Chapter 477 Extra Chapter 10 (Final)

The graduation ceremony in the 20th year of Yuanzhao was destined to be anything but ordinary.

As Qiao Yan had mentioned when Qiao Huan brought up this graduation ceremony, it also marked the nominal 30th anniversary of the founding of Leping Academy.

As the founder of Leping Academy and the Son of Heaven of Da Yong, Qiao Yan was obliged to attend this graduation ceremony.

Of course, even as a parent, she should have come.

Hearing that Jiang Wei’s father had specifically requested leave from Qiao Yan to attend this graduation ceremony, while Sun Luban’s father Sun Quan was too far away in Jiaozhou to make the trip, and her mother Bu Lianshi would attend instead, Qiao Huan couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

Earlier, she had thought that if she behaved a bit more in the last two years before graduation, the impression of her at the graduation ceremony would have been mostly replaced, and it wouldn’t matter if her mother sat in the audience.

But what had she done in these two years?

Qiao Huan scratched her head, feeling that things had gotten a bit out of hand.

She had come up with a tomb sealing plan in that engineering course and even managed to convince the teacher to give her a passing grade with a bunch of smooth talk.

After making a fortune with the Leping Academy-style protective helmets, she had set up an unofficial scholarship in the academy last year.

Considering that the issue of girls’ education was already being ensured by Her Majesty and the two deans, it wasn’t appropriate for her to overstep, so she had set up this scholarship to reward those with independent spirit and creative talent in the academy. Thanks to her collaboration with Mi Si, she had found the right person to manage this scholarship long-term.

Although there was nothing wrong with the purpose of setting it up, it was hard not to suspect that she was encouraging others to be as rebellious as she was.

But if Qiao Huan were to speak for herself, she was just investing in talent early, what harm could there be?

After consulting with Lu Lingju and Sun Ren, she had also improved a set of self-defense techniques more suitable for girls under twelve, which had been put to use in the academy’s year-end competition, and she had joined forces with the female students in the academy to launch a hundred-day martial arts training event.

There was nothing wrong with that.

Her mother had already been gradually building an army with more female soldiers, so how could she be blamed for reinforcing training in the academy?

This was just to expand the idea that women could become generals and soldiers after the birth of firearms, starting from Leping Academy.

At the beginning of this year, probably because it was almost time to leave, and Deng Ai had already graduated and left the academy two years ago, she had lost a helper for her writings, so she set up a challenge task in the academy’s library corner.

The goal of the challenge was naturally the two great works she was trying to complete.

As for whether this would bring any strange influences to the academy, Qiao Huan temporarily put that thought aside.

After all, Dean Cai had said in their first year that as long as it didn’t violate the principle of unity within Da Yong, any creation was free.

Just like the tomb-building project, she could always find the right talent, right?

Moreover, she had taken the position of the sixth-grade class president, renowned for both literary and martial talents.

So it was no surprise that her frequent astonishing deeds had inspired a few juniors to follow her example.

When the academy’s teachers were troubled by this, they inevitably attributed some of the leading influence to her.

Thinking of this, Qiao Huan sighed.

Ah, how difficult it is to be an excellent student and stay out of trouble.

But what had she done wrong?

She was just promoting some of the goals her mother wanted to achieve gradually in her own way at Leping Academy.

Oh right, she wondered if Cai Yong had ever complained.

Her dealings with Cai Yong had always been reciprocal, but Sun Luban still thought that they hadn’t been held accountable for stewing Cai Yong’s pheasants just because their performance in the academy was impressive enough.

The result was that every time she had someone clean up their “picnic” traces, it felt like covering up a crime.

Then, someone decided to follow their example and reached out to Cai Yong’s food stash, and even managed not to get caught, making Cai Yong furious.

This couldn’t be blamed on her… right?

Anyway, all these dramatic events hadn’t affected the fact that as the June graduation ceremony approached, Qiao Huan had unsurprisingly become the outstanding representative of the graduating class, set to give a speech at the ceremony, drawing a perfect conclusion to her six years at the academy.

This representative status was well-deserved, not just because Cai Qiong and Cao Ang knew her identity and could secure it for her.

Qiao Huan leisurely pinned the gold badges onto her academy uniform, then recalled the speech she had carefully prepared several times in her heart, before heading towards the hall.

In the twenty years since the founding of Da Yong, her mother’s harsh methods had mostly been used in external conquests and suppressing disobedient noble families, while internal development had always progressed at a steady pace. But looking back at the changes over these twenty years, even Qiao Huan could feel the earth-shaking transformation.

On the faces of the students coming and going, one could no longer see the famine and suffering recorded in the late Han texts. Even those from ordinary families no longer considered cotton cloth as a fabric only nobles could wear as a trend.

In their hands, they naturally carried lightweight books, allowing them to stride forward with light steps, no longer needing carts to carry books, and the days when books were monopolized by noble families were gone.

The hall they were heading towards was a large building recently constructed.

In this hall, a rare dome-shaped ceiling was used, located directly above the meeting place.

The umbrella-shaped dome was supported by intricate brackets, surrounding the central spiral dragon and auspicious clouds pattern, named by His Majesty as the Spiral Dragon Caissons.

This was both a culmination of contemporary mathematical mechanics and…








Leping Academy represents the cultural center of the world.

It conveys in the most straightforward way to those who have come here for this graduation ceremony—

Look, another epoch-making change is happening!

Thinking of this, a faint smile unconsciously appeared on Qiao Huan’s face.

Then, instead of heading directly to the main hall, she first entered her preparation room.

But to her surprise, when she pushed the door open, she saw a familiar figure standing by the window, looking out at the students heading towards the hall.

Qiao Huan’s eyelids twitched, and without thinking, she blurted out, “Empress Mother.”

“You don’t have to act like a mouse seeing a cat when you see me, do you?” Qiao Yan turned to look at her and spoke. “Don’t want to see me?”

“Of course not,” Qiao Huan quickly adjusted her mood after the initial shock and walked towards her mother, “You had already mentioned you would come, so I wouldn’t be startled by this. I’m just curious, why did you suddenly appear here?”

As she spoke, her gaze subtly shifted towards the nearby tea table, where a pair of used tea utensils were placed.

It was hard not to guess that someone from Leping Academy had been here before her arrival.

Could it really be that someone had already complained to her…

“Enough, stop worrying about these trivial matters,” Qiao Yan could guess from Qiao Huan’s expression what the child was fretting about at this moment.

She reached out and blocked Qiao Huan’s view elsewhere, making her turn her gaze back, “I came here to ask you one thing.”

The seriousness on Qiao Yan’s face made Qiao Huan realize that what her mother was about to say was definitely not something ordinary.

Sure enough, the next moment she heard Qiao Yan say, “You know, as half a teacher to the students of Leping, I will inevitably give a speech at the end of today’s graduation ceremony.”

This is a tradition every five years.

At the end of Qiao Huan’s first year, during the 25th anniversary celebration of Leping Academy, Qiao Yan did the same.

But obviously, this time was different.

Qiao Yan asked, “If—I were to announce at the end of my speech that I intend to make you the rightful heir of Da Yong, could you handle the storm that follows?”

Qiao Huan was stunned.

This was really sudden!

Her mother said she would announce her as the rightful heir of Da Yong, so—

Was she to be named the crown princess?!

This shouldn’t have been brought up so early, and it should have been announced in Luoyang!

Perhaps, given her age, she wouldn’t truly enter the center of the court so quickly, so announcing this decision among the young crowd at Leping Academy seemed indeed a more appropriate choice.

And in the face of the fact that her mother had no other children after her, Qiao Huan had long engraved in her heart the goal of inheriting her mother’s cause and continuing to strive.

But she never expected it to be at this moment!

However, after a moment of shock, Qiao Huan looked into her mother’s eyes and gave a resolute answer, “Yes.”

She could.

How could she not?

She wouldn’t forget Wei Yan’s earlier remark about her “cherishing life,” and it was after this watershed that she clearly understood that this challenge, which would eventually fall upon her, must not become a limitation that hinders her progress, nor a glory and power that allows her to indulge in her mother’s protection.

It was just a ticket of admission.

A ticket that, at least for now, had not yet taken effect, requiring her to show corresponding performance and to treat it with a normal mindset.

Qiao Yan was clearly satisfied with her answer.

She reached out and patted Qiao Huan’s shoulder, saying, “Then, let me see the demeanor of you, the graduate leader. Before I say those words, I want you to make a striking entrance.”

Qiao Huan looked up, with a tone even more resolute than the previous “Yes,” and said, “Naturally!”

——————

When Qiao Huan walked onto the stage, everyone clearly saw that the playfulness that might have been seen in her before was now, in this exceptionally dignified and formal occasion, replaced only by the youthful vigor of a young person.

And on her still tender face, perhaps because she was representing today, it showed not just leadership, but also something that might be called the demeanor of royalty.

But her full-on charisma today was probably not the only shocking thing.

When she stood on the podium, the reflective sounds formed by the surrounding walls and the ceiling’s caisson clearly transmitted Qiao Huan’s voice to everyone’s ears, with an opening line that was truly unexpected.

“Perhaps more people know the name Mu Huan, but today, with many spectators and on the occasion of Leping Academy’s 30th anniversary, I, as the representative of the 20th graduating class of Leping Academy, speak here, hoping that everyone will remember my original name.”

Qiao Huan paused, and as her gaze swept below, she heard a murmur of discussion, but when she spoke again, all sounds vanished at that moment.

The sunlight outside Leping Academy’s hall, shining through the gaps above, cast onto the walls and further diffused into the hall.

This indirect light allowed Qiao Huan to clearly see the faces of those in the front row, among which the most distinct was Qiao Yan, who had just asked her if she could bear this responsibility.

She also saw many familiar faces looking at her at this moment.

The expectation wrapped in those gazes was enough to make anyone present feel their blood boiling.

This was definitely not because summer had arrived.

She took a deep breath and spoke loudly, “I am Qiao Huan.”

The Qiao of Leping’s Qiao family, the Qiao of Da Yong’s royal surname.

——————

History will record this as the true debut of Da Yong’s future crown princess.

Under the gaze of Da Yong’s founding monarch, this heir stepped forward.

(The End)