Chapter 31 The Succession Struggle

After seeing off the absent-minded Yinzhi, Yinzhen leaned back lazily, a smile playing on his lips, his expression relaxed. What a day of acting... truly interesting.

The story from the first three months was named "Rou Ze Incident" by 555 and written into a fanfiction. Yinzhen found it interesting and used it.

The "Rou Ze Incident" resulted in three main outcomes: the demotion of Lady Wuya, the alteration of the imperial genealogy by Yinzhen, and the elevation of Yixiu to the position of Empress, along with a series of minor additional benefits. Even before this matter was completely resolved, Yinzhen already harbored the idea of ​​causing further trouble.

So, the only thing he did in this process that he didn't let other spies discover was that he established a close relationship with the Eighth Prince, Yinzhi.

Based on the memories, the original owner's relationship with the Eighth Prince is more in line with history. At least during this period, the relationship between the Fourth and Eighth Princes was quite good. The original owner's friendship with Yinzhi is currently greater than that with the Thirteenth Prince, Yinxiang.

It's worth noting that, based on memory, the Fourth Prince, who was always well-mannered from a young age, would teach the Eighth Prince to deliberately write ugly characters to attract Emperor Kangxi's attention. The Eighth Prince also intended to establish his residence next to the Fourth Prince's, and the two were inseparable.

If Emperor Kangxi hadn't been so inhumane, insisting on placing the two men in the two factions of the First Prince and the Crown Prince, keeping them on opposite sides, they probably wouldn't have met such an end, or at least not so tragically.

The thought of the Eighth Prince's fate kept Yinzhen from stopping his mischief. So, taking advantage of the "Rou Ze Incident," he spent the two months in seclusion reflecting on his mistakes. During this time, Yinzhen used some subtle methods to dispel the estrangement that had just arisen between the two, successfully playing the role of a patient and good older brother, and his relationship with Yinsi became even closer.

As a result, the "pure and innocent" image of him gained considerable popularity. Yinzhen took this as a compliment to his acting skills and gladly accepted it.

After meeting these princes at the full moon banquet, Yinzhen's thoughts gradually took shape. If the original owner of this body, a big, fat orange, could become emperor, there's no reason why he couldn't.

And so it was decided. The second major event was the struggle for the throne.

In this grand drama, he also has to follow his established persona and become emperor with impeccable integrity. Although it's challenging, it's also more interesting.

So the first act is to win people's hearts, starting with the brothers. Win over Yinzhi, whom Kangxi specially placed behind the eldest prince, and bring over Yinzhen, the good son of Lady Uya. Add to that the already close thirteenth prince, and the ninth and tenth princes who are by Yinzhi's side… it's quite interesting to think about.

Yinzhi seems to be doing alright; let him be a loyal follower, serving Cao Cao's army while his heart remains with Liu Bei, and offer him some support every now and then. Yinzhen's mindset is pretty much set... and since Rouze hasn't entered the palace yet, we can use her to add fuel to the fire...

Manipulating people's hearts, huh? That's a perfect fit for her profession...

Yinzhen leaned back on the soft couch, taking advantage of the fact that no one was watching, his wicked and unrestrained aura becoming increasingly apparent. 556, inside his consciousness, trembled with fear. Who was the Great Demon King plotting against this time?

【Little Five…】

【Um? 】

"Big...Big Brother," 556, enduring the kitten's haughty demeanor, asked, "Big Brother, what did Master do before?"

[Little Six, your memory is terrible! I already told you, the host used to be a great mage, a top magician at the magic academy, the male lead's best friend and teacher...] 555 sighed. There was nothing it could do; after all, it was its little brother, so it could only dutifully explain the host's achievements to it.

556 Silent Scream: Don't you want to see what kind of devil Yinzhen looks like before you speak? What has blinded you, a person from a legitimate system? How does he resemble a good person at all?

556 sighed silently, unable to bear watching 555 showering it with compliments. In the end, it had to bear it all alone; it couldn't help but take on the role of the eldest brother.

...

The next day, Yinzhen returned to his post at the Ministry of Revenue, behaving as always, still the cold-faced Fourth Prince who showed no compassion.

He diligently completed his work and, after leaving office, avoided cultivating relationships with others, preferring to work alone. Due to political disagreements, his relationship with the Eighth Prince, Yinzhi, appeared to have become quite distant. He also completed the tasks assigned by the Crown Prince very well, showing no signs of arrogance despite his involvement in altering the imperial genealogy.

After a while, everyone watching him, including Emperor Kangxi, the Crown Prince, and Suo'etu, relaxed considerably.

Not long after, because Yinzhen performed well in the Imperial Study, and because Yinzhen pleaded for her in private, Uya was not reinstated, but at least she was no longer confined to the side hall and could move around freely.

However, given her current rank, she had no intention of going out much. After three days of peace, she suddenly sent a letter to the Fourth Prince's residence. Now that the imperial genealogy had been changed, she wisely addressed the letter not to Yinzhen, but to Yixiu.

After all, she was Yixiu's aunt, so no one could say anything if she sent a letter. But what she didn't expect was that several groups of people were watching her move closely, anticipating what would happen next.

"Madam, is there a problem?" Seeing that Yixiu's expression was not good after reading the letter, Jianqiu asked carefully.

"What a wonderful aunt Rouze is..." Recalling the contents of the letter, Yixiu couldn't help but feel angry. Consort Wuya had actually written a letter specifically to remind her to let Rouze into the manor.

"Even though the Prince has changed his imperial register, he still wants to control me..." Yixiu was annoyed. Although Yinzhen had mentioned this matter before, it had been delayed due to his confinement. Yixiu simply pretended nothing had happened and wanted to let it pass. Who knew that Consort Wuya was still persistent? But even though the Prince had changed his imperial register, she just wouldn't agree. What could she do to her?

Before Yixiu could think of a way to refuse, Xiuxia, who was guarding outside the door, walked in with a familiar envelope. "Madam, a letter has arrived from the manor."

"Let me see it." With a bad feeling in her heart, Yixiu picked up the letter from Xiuxia's hand and opened it to find her father's familiar handwriting.

"Madam, what's wrong?" Jianqiu asked anxiously. Anyone would be worried if their mistress suddenly burst into tears.

“Jianqiu…” Yixiu crumpled the letter into a ball, her eyes brimming with tears, “Am I not Father’s daughter? Why does Father only have Rouze in his heart? It’s not easy for him to only think about Rouze, but is it easy for me…”

Yixiu burst into tears, the letter fluttering to the ground. Jianqiu picked it up and stared in disbelief. A letter had come from the Ulanara residence, also requesting her mistress's help to bring Rouze into the household. "This, this... the master is too... Madam, what are we going to do?"

"What can I do? What can I do? If I ignore Consort Wuya, can I ignore my father? Can I ignore the clan?" Yixiu wiped away her tears, her heart filled with resentment. Her affection for Feiyanggu had completely vanished. This was the last time. From now on, the Ulanara clan would never again try to gain any advantage over her.

"Madam, are you really going to let the eldest young lady enter the manor?" Jianqiu asked anxiously, and also with some dissatisfaction.

"If she wants to go in, let her go in. The position of concubine is just wishful thinking. The Prince will not agree to it. At most, she will be a princess, and she will still have to live under my command. I hope Rouze will not regret it in the future."

Yixiu sneered, laughing at Consort Wuya and her father's wishful thinking. She knew Yinzhen; he would never agree to marry someone who had harmed him as a concubine. Rouze could only ever be a minor princess. Once she entered the Fourth Prince's residence, she would teach Rouze to be obedient.

"Let's go, we need to discuss this with the Prince..."