noffsinger Chapter 324 My Fate...
Chapter 324 My Fate...
It's not surprising that Kangxi was so sarcastic. The main reason was that Yinreng's behavior was exactly as Kangxi had said. Not only did he not show any sadness on his face, but even his concerned gaze towards Yinzuo contained a smile. His indifferent attitude left Yinzuo completely bewildered.
"Father, please stop making things difficult for Sixth Brother. Everyone knows that our Sixth Brother's childhood dream is to be a playboy who eats, drinks, and has fun. He doesn't understand these things at all. Besides, you are the Emperor of the Great Qing Dynasty. Who will become the Crown Prince in the future is up to you. Please let Sixth Brother off this time."
Yinreng leaned closer to Yinzuo and carefully examined his forehead, which had been reddened by Kangxi's slap. He poked it twice, and only withdrew his hand with satisfaction after seeing Yinzuo wince in pain. Yinzuo rubbed his forehead, looked at his unscrupulous father, and then at his brother, whose conscience was clearly not much. He was speechless, choked with emotion, and only five words echoed in his mind—"My fate..."
Kangxi was already annoyed by Yinreng today, and seeing how carefree Yinzuo was, he couldn't help but want to make things difficult for him. If Yinreng hadn't pleaded for him, the matter would have been over. But the problem was that Yinreng brought up Yinzuo's dream, the one that had caused his father so much distress over the years. Good heavens, now his good intentions had backfired, adding insult to injury for Yinzuo.
"Let him go this time? You're dreaming. Not only will I make things difficult for him today, but I also have no intention of letting you go. Yinreng, didn't you want to resign as crown prince? Fine, then recommend a suitable successor for me. Yinzuo, have you recovered yet? If you have, then seriously consider the question I just asked you. If your second brother doesn't want to be crown prince anymore, then who do you want to take this position?"
Yinreng was initially gloating and watching Yinzuo's misfortune with great interest, but after only a few words, he himself became the subject of the spectacle. Yinzuo, on the other hand, felt that his father seemed to have some serious illness today, otherwise why would he insist on getting an answer from him?
There's a saying, "What's meant to be will be." Since he couldn't avoid it, he might as well speak his mind. However, he felt that before getting to the point, he should give his father a heads-up to avoid him bringing up old grievances later.
“Father, if you insist on letting your son give his opinion, that’s fine, but we have to make this clear from the start. What we’ve said today is what we’ve agreed to. We can’t bring up the past. In short, once we leave this Qingxi Study, whatever we said here today, your son will never admit to it.”
Seeing that Yinzhi still dared to bargain with him, Kangxi's hand suddenly felt itchy again. He looked around but didn't find anything handy, so he could only pick a grape from the fruit plate and throw it at Yinzhi.
"Why are you talking so much nonsense? Just say what I told you to say."
Yinzhuo casually took the grapes his father tossed to him, popped them into his mouth, chewed a few times, spat out the skins, and placed them on the porcelain plate on the table. He completely ignored Kangxi's mild reprimand.
"Look, you're getting anxious again. Didn't your son tell you this already? You're getting all worked up, why won't you listen? You just want to know who's suitable to take on this responsibility if Second Brother doesn't become Crown Prince, right? I'll tell you, it has to be my Fourth Brother."
Upon hearing Yinzhuo's words, both Emperor Kangxi and Yinreng were taken aback. Although it is said that one should recommend virtuous people without avoiding relatives, is it appropriate for you to recommend your own brother so casually? Is this right?
"Oh, then tell me, why does it have to be your fourth brother?"
Upon hearing this, Yinzhuo glanced sideways at Kangxi and Yinreng, noticing their puzzled expressions. He then pinched the bridge of his nose, adjusted his posture slightly, and slowly began to speak.
"Father, are you perhaps bewitched by Second Brother today? Look at that question, how tactless it is. Why must it be Fourth Brother? Well, it's because if Fourth Brother becomes the emperor, it will be most beneficial for me. Although I have a good relationship with my eldest brother and the others, Fourth Brother is, after all, born of the same mother. We are naturally closer than the other brothers. Also, if the other brothers become emperor, my mother can't control them. Who will I complain to if I suffer injustice in the future?"
You have to admit, after Yinzhuo's analysis, Kangxi and Yinreng both felt that his recommendation was quite reasonable. However, at this moment, a question arose in their minds: why couldn't this person be the Fourteenth Prince? Wasn't he born of the same mother as you?
"Why can't it be the Fourteenth? That's a good question. Of course, it's because this kid can only be bullied by me his whole life. If he becomes the emperor, wouldn't he be standing on my head? Also, Father, Second Brother, do you really think our little Fourteenth has the brains to become the emperor?"
That's obviously impossible. Let alone the crown prince of a country, have you ever seen an heir from a powerful family who is already twenty years old and can still be easily fooled by his older brother? Whenever Kangxi thought about how he was completely fooled by Yinzhuo when he was fourteen years old, doing things like cleaning the courtyard and grinding grain for him, his brows immediately furrowed.
"That's certainly not possible. With his mind, I've basically ruled him out as the successor to the throne."
Whether the Fourteenth Prince in history was suitable to be Emperor Yinzuo is unclear, but their own Fourteenth Prince is definitely not suitable. This boy in their family was protected by his mother and two older brothers since he was a child. To put it nicely, he is simple-minded; to put it bluntly, he is reckless. His mind is full of fighting and killing. If he were to become emperor, he would be completely bewildered by the intricate schemes of the civil officials in the court.
"We've already come this far, Second Brother, can you tell me what you think? The position of Crown Prince is second only to the Emperor, and we can just resign like that?"
If you had asked Yinzhuo who he hoped would be emperor when he first transmigrated, he would have given you his answer without hesitation—Yinzhen. But as the saying goes, everyone has a heart. If you ask yourself honestly, Yinreng has indeed been quite good to Yinzhuo over the years. He didn't treat Yinzhuo differently because Yinzhuo was favored by Kangxi, and even reminded and protected him at crucial moments. As an elder brother, he was undoubtedly qualified. That's why Yinzhuo hesitated when Kangxi asked him who he hoped would be the crown prince if Yinreng didn't become the crown prince.
Yinzhuo had never met any of the nine princes in history. Although he was very familiar with the story of the struggle for the throne among the nine princes, it was just a story to him in his previous life. But this life was different. The characters from the story had come to life. Those people from the struggle for the throne had become his brothers. They were flesh and blood, and had feelings for each other. They had been together for more than twenty years. How could Yinzhuo want them to continue fighting to the death like in history? If he could, Yinzhuo even thought it would be good if his second brother stayed in this position.