The Empress Dowager

With the two people she loathed most standing before her, the Empress Dowager looked so vicious she wished she could strangle them.

The Qi Emperor checked his son from head to toe, only relaxing once he found no wounds. He glanced at the woman kneeling on the floor.

"Bring everyone. We're leaving."

His disregard enraged her. "Did I give you permission to leave?!"

"Emperor! You've grown up, your wings have hardened, and now you don't even take me seriously?!"

The Qi Emperor never broke stride, treating her words as nothing more than a dog's barking.

After everyone left, the Empress Dowager collapsed onto her couch, tears streaming down her face. She dug her fingers into the hand of the senior palace maid beside her and demanded shrilly,

"What right does he have to ignore me?! I am his mother! Why does he always oppose me?!"

"I went through untold hardships to give birth to him, and now I can't even raise him or discipline him?!"

"The imperial family... the imperial family! Hahahahaha!!"

The Empress Dowager stared wide-eyed, crying and laughing, her face as twisted as her heart, like a demon clawing its way out of the earth.

The Empress Dowager spent a long time smashing and throwing things to vent her fury. The servants of the Palace of Nurturing Origin were ashen-faced. Many were struck by the objects she hurled, yet dared not move even with their heads split and bleeding.

Only when dusk fell did the Empress Dowager finally calm down. Facing the Little Buddha Hall, she gazed into a mirror.

"I am tired. Help me unwind."

At those words, everyone in the Hall of Nurturing Origin seemed to lose their souls, their bodies trembling involuntarily.

The senior palace maid beside the Empress Dowager went cold all over.

"Yes..."

They filed out, their footsteps hurried. As night closed in, several people dressed as eunuchs entered the Hall of Nurturing Origin.

Before the Little Buddha Hall, where sunlight never reached, silk and velvet covered the floor. The bodhisattva lowered his eyes, gazing compassionately upon the debauchery spread before him.

The Empress Dowager indulged her madness in perfect calm.

Forbidden pleasure, dangerous and alluring...

The crown prince shared His Majesty's bed that night.

The servants of the Hall of Inherited Blessing attended them with utmost care.

Those keeping watch outside dared not let their guard down all night.

Qi Yuanzuo slept without a care in the world, his limbs sprawled in every direction.

The Qi Emperor was kicked awake. He opened his eyes to find that his son had rotated a full hundred and eighty degrees, one leg draped over him with its foot airing out, the other stretched wide in a split.

Clearly, the boy had the makings of a fine martial artist.

"You little brat."

The Qi Emperor felt rather sorry. Once his son grew a little taller, they would no longer be able to share a bed; there simply wouldn't be enough room for Qi Yuanzuo's nightly martial arts practice.

Speaking of martial arts, the Qi Emperor gently parted his son's clothes to inspect the wound on his chest. A thick scab had formed. It would certainly leave a scar.

He had purged the palace in blood, and half its people were his now. Everyone around Qi Yuanzuo was his as well. He himself had grown up beside his imperial grandfather; what had he ever wanted that he couldn't obtain?

But those had all been lifeless things. Feelings were the hardest thing to control.

His imperial grandfather had treated him very well, but it was a child's nature to yearn for his parents.

His father had been a hypocrite, and his mother had never loved him. Only his wife had shown him what selfless care felt like.

He didn't want Zuo'er to suffer the anguish and pain he had endured.

Zuo'er had no mother, no imperial grandfather who doted on him. Zuo'er had only him, his imperial father.

If he didn't cherish Zuo'er either, who would care about this child?

The Qi Emperor watched over him lovingly for a long time. Only when dawn began to break did he dress and prepare to leave, beginning another day of political maneuvering.

The sun was already high when Qi Yuanzuo woke. At the first movement behind the bed curtains, a group of servants streamed in. Simiao lifted the curtains and picked up her little master, efficiently dressing him and gathering his wild hair into a little topknot.

Bolao had been generously rewarded by the Qi Emperor for saving the crown prince yesterday. Today, he had been assigned to put on His Highness's shoes.

Any task that brought a servant close to their master was a good one. If they caught their master's eye while serving him, they would have someone to rely on in the future.

Once the last shoe was on, Qi Yuanzuo set his feet on the floor and bounced a few times.

Bolao kept his eyes lowered meekly, looking nothing like the butcher bird he would become.

Keeping this eunuch close was unsettling, but letting him out of sight was even more unsettling. In the book, Bolao had another master behind him.

Apart from his master's intentions, Bolao's own private schemes were hardly innocent either. Whatever the case, both meant to destroy the crown prince.

He would keep him around and watch for now. At present, Bolao was the only one who wasn't his father's spy.

Breakfast consisted of Glazed Shrimp Dumplings, Hibiscus Jade Pearl Soup, rice porridge, egg custard with milk, and finally a bowl of herbal medicine to nourish his constitution.

It was so bitter he wished he could spit out his tongue.

Twice a day, in courses of half a month. The imperial physician had vaguely said that stopping the medicine would depend on his condition, which Qi Yuanzuo's ears automatically translated into drinking it for the rest of his life.

He knew his own condition. The pain in his chest whenever he ran or jumped too vigorously was reason enough not to stop taking it.

He hoped he would be well enough to practice martial arts by the age of six.

Entrusting his life to someone else was never as good as working hard himself.

He stayed out of court affairs. Even if he wanted to interfere, it would be useless.

As for advancing agriculture or technology, his mind was completely empty; he had no knowledge stored away. Besides, he hadn't forgotten that there was another transmigrator in this world, a woman.

At that thought, Qi Yuanzuo's eyes lit up. He remembered that the Transmigrated Woman had already arrived by this point. If he could find her, wouldn't that put the unpredictable factor under his own control?

The Transmigrated Woman had a system, and later she had even exchanged for black gunpowder, giving wings to the male lead's great rebellion and letting him steamroll his way to victory.

But how was he supposed to find her? His eldest brother had been reborn; there was no way he hadn't thought of this too.

What a headache.

Once he was done fretting, he went to the Colorful Fragrance Courtyard to see San'er.

If he didn't take the chance to bully this fellow while he was little, how could he do justice to the cuckold's green hat on his own head?

When the crown prince arrived at the Colorful Fragrance Courtyard again, Lady Zhou's smile was strained.

"Where's San'er? May I see him?"

Lady Zhou tried to coax him away. "The third prince is asleep. Why don't you come another day, Your Highness?"

Qi Yuanzuo looked disappointed. "I'll only take a look, then leave."

With no other choice, Lady Zhou had someone take him in. The third prince was awake, but he pretended to be asleep.

Qi Yuanzuo touched his hand and his face, then left regretfully.

Of course he knew the third prince was very likely pretending to sleep, so an incense stick's worth of time later, he came charging back. Without waiting to be announced, he made his way straight to the third prince's room.

"Oh! Little brother wet the bed."

The third prince went rigid, murderous intent flaring within him.

He came back? Why did he come back again?!

"Little brother's wee-wee is so tiny."

"Aah! Aah!" The third prince cried out twice. You shameless bastard! What are you saying?! My dick is longer than yours!

When they were little, the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth princes had once held a contest to see who could pee the farthest. Unfortunately, the crown prince had witnessed it. At the time, they had thought nothing of it and had even tried to get him to join them.

As they grew older, the memory became more and more humiliating. It had even become one of their reasons for killing the crown prince.

"Little brother is so lively. Do you want to play with me?"

Once the third prince had been cleaned up, the crown prince took a rattle drum and waved it before his eyes to amuse him. The third prince angrily swatted at it twice.

Qi Yuanzuo grew even more excited. "Do you want the little tiger, little brother?"

After bringing out every toy in turn, Qi Yuanzuo was thoroughly satisfied, while the third prince ground his teeth.

Author's note: Revised it. The pacing was a little fast, so I decided to lay a bit more groundwork.