Showing weakness

A while back, the Qi Emperor had gone to see the Third Prince after Qi Yuanzuo pestered him. On returning, he had offered only one remark.

"Not as good-looking as Zuo'er."

The Qi Emperor was indifferent to all his sons, treating them like strangers. Even in the later stages of the succession struggle, after deposing the crown prince, he had shown his other sons no warmth.

He deposed him, reinstated him, then deposed and reinstated him again. By the third round, everyone thought the crown prince was surely finished.

His brothers, watching like hungry tigers, would not allow the crown prince to rise again. Every one of them did his part to get him killed.

And how had it ended? He was still the crown prince.

Ever since transmigrating into the novel, Qi Yuanzuo had kept wondering: what exactly was going on inside that old geezer's head?

When the crown prince arrived at the Colorful Fragrance Courtyard, the Eldest Prince was there too.

Lady Zhou had never imagined that two princes would grace the Colorful Fragrance Courtyard in a single day.

No one in the Colorful Fragrance Courtyard dared neglect them. Lady Zhou hurried to rise and greet the crown prince.

Qi Yuanzuo climbed down from Bolao's arms. "There's no need to bow. I only came to see my little brother."

"I didn't expect you to be here too, Eldest Brother."

The Eldest Prince observed the proper etiquette. "Greetings, Your Highness."

The crown prince clasped his little hands behind his back. "No need for such ceremony."

He stood on tiptoe to look at the Third Prince in his cradle.

The twenty-day-old little fellow was tiny, with only a few wisps for eyebrows. His fleshy eyelids really could not be called attractive.

System 88 spoke up at just the right moment. "Another one who's been reborn."

Qi Yuanzuo quietly watched the baby in the cradle.

This little fellow might not look like much now, but one day he would have the heart of a bear and the gall of a leopard.

To get involved with the crown prince's principal consort in this era, and even have the crown prince raise his child for him, took both brains and ruthlessness.

The Eldest Prince committed incest, and the Third Prince seduced his sister-in-law. What a deranged imperial family.

He stroked the little fellow's fist, then pinched his cheek. The servants around them watched, terrified that the crown prince might be too rough, yet not daring to stop him.

Only when they saw that the crown prince was merely touching him out of curiosity, and very carefully at that, did they relax.

The Third Prince had his eyes open, but all he could see was a blurry, rounded silhouette. His hearing was normal, however. The person touching him was the crown prince.

Relying on the fact that no one could understand him, he cursed passionately in baby talk.

In his previous life, Qi Yuanzuo had killed his mother, killed his wife and daughter, raided his Prince's Residence, framed him for secretly possessing dragon robes, and even bestowed the title Prince Li on him!

His reputation, both in life and after death, had been ruined at Qi Yuanzuo's hands!

Still, he had not lost out entirely. The Crown Prince Consort had tasted quite good, and Qi Yuanzuo's first legitimate son had been his seed.

Hahahaha!

All everyone else could hear was the Third Prince's unusually lively babbling.

"Awoo! Eeya waa!"

Lady Zhou said flatteringly, "The little one likes Your Highness."

Qi Yuanzuo slipped a gold bracelet off his wrist.

Anyone could have a gold bracelet, but the crown prince's had a dragon carved on it!

Lady Zhou's eyes immediately fixed on it. She was rather greedy for money, and even greedier for power.

The tiny raised dragon's head was exquisitely lifelike. She liked it at first sight.

Qi Yuanzuo handed the bracelet to Lady Zhou.

"I came in a hurry and didn't prepare a gift for my third brother. Let this be my first-meeting gift to him. Once I return, I'll send him some more presents."

Lady Zhou truly loved the little bracelet. "On behalf of the Third Prince, I thank Your Highness."

The Eldest Prince removed the jade pendant he wore. "This was a birthday gift from Father. Although it isn't as precious as the crown prince's gift, it is a small token of my affection."

Naturally, Lady Zhou accepted it with a smile.

The Eldest Prince asked, "Why did you pick so many chrysanthemums, Your Highness? Are those for Lady Zhou too?"

Qi Yuanzuo shook his head. "After picking flowers while passing through the imperial garden, I suddenly decided to visit the Colorful Fragrance Courtyard. Once I've made these chrysanthemums into Chrysanthemum Cakes, I'll send some to Father for him to try."

He paused after saying that. "I'll send some to you and Lady Zhou too."

The Eldest Prince said, "Thank you, Your Highness."

Lady Zhou declined. "Chrysanthemums are cooling in nature. I cannot eat them yet."

Qi Yuanzuo's gaze darkened slightly.

The Eldest Prince had spent too long as an adult. He still adhered to adults' perfunctory courtesies.

The suspicions in the Eldest Prince's heart instantly dispersed.

If the crown prince also remembered his previous life, he would probably want to eat the treacherous little brother who had cuckolded him alive.

How could he possibly stroke him and give him gifts?

The crown prince was normal, but the little one did not seem normal.

The Eldest Prince pondered privately. If all their future brothers and sisters were reborn... wouldn't that leave the crown prince with no way to survive?

After seeing the Third Prince, the two left together.

To display his princely bearing, the crown prince refused to be carried. His two short legs scurried along the ground, while the Eldest Prince followed behind out of courtesy.

Qi Yuanzuo had not gone two hundred meters before he was panting.

The wound in his chest had damaged his constitution. It would not fully heal anytime soon.

The gaze fixed on the back of his head was making his skin crawl, too.

"Is there something you need, Eldest Brother?"

At first, the Eldest Prince had stared at the round back of his head. Later, his gaze had involuntarily drifted to his round little belly.

The little crown prince flushed. He instinctively sucked in his belly, then abruptly relaxed it again.

He defended himself. "I'm not fat. Father said that when I grow up, I'll be the most handsome young man in Great Qi."

The adult Qi Yuanzuo would only have said:

"What, do you have a problem with me, Eldest Brother?"

"You're right, Your Highness. I had a little belly when I was young too. Even now, I get one after eating my fill. It's nothing to worry about."

The little crown prince beamed. "Mm!"

He tipped his head back and said sincerely, "You don't have to call me Your Highness in private, Eldest Brother. I really like you."

The Eldest Prince was both surprised and amused. "You like me?"

That was truly the funniest joke he had ever heard.

Yet the child before him answered with utter seriousness.

Qi Yuanzuo nodded emphatically, as if afraid he would not believe him.

He even removed his other golden dragon bracelet and gave it to him.

His smile was like a sweet rice ball with a molten filling.

"My favorite thing, for my favorite brother."

The Eldest Prince accepted the bracelet, his scrutiny carefully concealed in his eyes.

He believed no one could escape his discerning gaze, yet the little crown prince's affection suffused every inch of his smile.

Its sincerity drove him into the shadows.

Qi Yuanzuo liked him?

The Eldest Prince held the bracelet, which still retained its wearer's warmth.

Thinking about it, that was not so hard to accept.

If he did not like him, why had he not killed him in their previous life, when he had had so many chances?

Although the crown prince had used their father's hand to slaughter him, he had not allowed the historians to record his incest.

He had let him be buried intact in the imperial mausoleum, and had even given him the title Prince Ai.

It did not sound particularly good, but that depended on whom you compared him with. His other brothers had been made Prince Li, Prince Shang, or Prince Qi. Even worse was Prince Dian.

Besides, Qi Yuanzuo only ever called other people by their names, but always called him Eldest Brother.

What was that, if not affection?

If that still was not enough, he had been close to the Third Prince. Yet even when the little fellow seduced the Crown Prince Consort, the crown prince had not vented his anger on him.

As for the possibility that the crown prince was actually lying...

He was only three. Could he even lie?

There had not been much enmity between him and the crown prince anyway.

He had only framed him a few times.

Thrown a few stones down the well when he was already trapped, and falsely accused him a few more times.

Compared with the others' poisonings, conspiracies, and assassinations, his efforts had been child's play.

Besides, with this second chance, he no longer wanted to fight for the throne.

Before, he had merely resented the fact that their father only cared about the crown prince. He had wanted their father to acknowledge that he was better.

In the end, it had been proven that their father saw only two kinds of people: his son Qi Yuanzuo, and everyone else.

Even if Qi Yuanzuo rebelled, he would still be crown prince. If anyone else dared rebel, even a son would have to die.

The Eldest Prince looked at the little bean before him and sighed softly.

Very well. Since the crown prince actually liked him so much, he would not compete with him this time.

But if Qi Yuanzuo lacked the ability to be heir apparent, he would still fight for it.

Until then, he would watch over him and assist him.

Having settled on his future path, the Eldest Prince suddenly felt his heart grow lighter.

He picked the little crown prince up and tried to bounce him in his arms... but could not manage it.

"Since you like me so much, I suppose I'll take you back to the Hall of Inherited Blessing."

"Since you call me your brother, I'll supervise your reading and writing from now on."

"One day, you must become Great Qi's wisest crown prince. Do you understand?"

Qi Yuanzuo nodded obediently and clung to him like a koala.

The Eldest Prince felt rather gratified. He really does like me.

Qi Yuanzuo liked Qi Chengyou because he was brainless and easy to manipulate.

In the succession struggle, someone like the Eldest Prince had to be kept until the end.

In the meantime, he could serve as a spiked club to knock down plenty of little kiddies. Hehe.

88 came out and circled around, then asked curiously, "What's this move called?"

Qi Yuanzuo did not even lift his eyes. "Showing weakness to the enemy."

"He already didn't want to compete. If he's lived an entire lifetime and still can't figure out even that much, he should stop being a prince. I merely gave him a step to climb down on."

The Eldest Prince would not submit or show weakness to his old rival, but facing the "weak" young crown prince, he would never consider his behavior a show of weakness.

88 said awkwardly, "Host, he committed incest with your Little Aunt."

Qi Yuanzuo said, "He's not doing it with me. What's there to fear? He's still better than the one who seduced his sister-in-law."

Besides, Qi Chengyou had another virtue: he did not use underhanded tricks or target other people's wives and families.

88 downed a bottle of data baijiu, unsure what to say.

Forget it. Once the host saw what his Little Aunt looked like, he would understand.

88 browsed the saved records from the previous world. This was better than that whatever-it-was Chronicles.

Not one of them was normal. Truly, not a single one.