"What are you running so hurriedly for?"
The man smiled warmly, with a hint of tenderness in his expression.
The young man seemed eager to draw closer, yet restrained himself with all his might, cautiously hiding his thoughts. "Sir, I've done it!"
The man gave a hum. "Just as expected."
The young man waited a while but heard no further praise. His expression fell, and he said somewhat dejectedly, "In your eyes, was all this already a predetermined future, so it's lost its freshness?"
"I do not possess the ability to see the future."
The young man asked directly, "If that's so, why don't you seem happy for me? My elder and second brothers are both gone, and their disfavored mother followed them as well. Now Father King's most favored consort is my mother, and his most favored son is me."
His gaze burned brightly, roiling with undisguised ambition.
"Of course, I'm also closer to the throne."
Because Madam Mi, that gentle flower who understood people's hearts, had enjoyed unflagging favor for years and was best at reading Wu Xian's thoughts, while her two sons were also skilled at acting spoiled and foolish, she made Wu Xian feel the long-lost warmth between husband and wife and harmony between father and sons. As the days passed, he devoted some thought to these two sons born of concubines. Though Madam Mi's sons could not compare to that legitimate pair of brothers, compared with the other children of concubines who saw Wu Xian only three or five times a year, the fatherly affection and partiality the brothers received were enough to make others envious.
The former had enjoyed deep father-son affection as a child.
The latter relied on their unthreatening status as sons of concubines and received no less—indeed, more. Most importantly, they