While Kangxi was in the Southern Study, discussing the selection of the new crown prince with his trusted ministers, Yinreng's Prince Yi Mansion welcomed his second, third, fourth... fifth wave of guests.

Yinreng originally planned to hold the housewarming party after his old man's birthday. After all, at this critical moment, he didn't want to attract attention.

However, he had just moved in for one day when several brothers who were participating in the fight for the throne came to his door, smelling something.

At first, Yinreng thought they wanted to win him over to a certain camp, so he didn't take their visit seriously.

Until the eldest, third, fourth, eighth and ninth brothers joined forces and blocked him in the study.

Only then did Yinreng realize that something was wrong.

These people were fighting each other to the death in the court, wishing to eat each other's flesh, but why was the atmosphere here so... harmonious?

He didn't even roll his eyes.

Before Yinreng could figure out the reason, he caught a glimpse of Yinzhen driving out all the servants in the room and carefully closing the door.

Yinreng: “…”

What are you doing?

A group of princes surrounded Yinreng, and each of them had an extremely solemn expression.

This situation... looks like the situation in the future when parents get divorced and surround their children to ask who they are with...

Yinreng shrank himself, trying to reduce his presence, and even put on a flattering smile on his face.

"Well, can we talk it out? There are so many of you, I don't think I'm suitable to be with any of you..."

Yinreng didn't want to follow any of his brothers.

He was extremely lucky to have escaped from this drama of succession without any injury, and he didn't want to step into the quagmire again.

The princes looked at each other, and the smiles on their faces unconsciously deepened.

There was a feeling of a weasel paying a New Year's visit to a chicken with ill intentions, and Yinreng instinctively felt a chill on his back.

"Second brother, tell me the truth, why did this old man abolish your position as crown prince?"

The first to speak was Yinzhi.

"Isn't the reason obvious? I...I don't have a son!"

Yinreng answered confidently, but he still claimed that he was not very proficient in it.

Habits formed over two lifetimes are not so easy to change.

The corner of Yinzhi's mouth twitched for a moment.

"Don't try to fool me with that kind of talk. I don't believe it!"

"If you don't believe me, I can't help it..."

Yinreng stabbed Yinzhi, then reacted.

"Hey, that's not right. You're not the one who's been crippled. Why are you so excited?"

Yinzhi pursed his lips and said nothing.

Seeing that he was defeated, Yinsi pushed him away.

"Second brother, how much spoils did Yinxiang harvest on his latest voyage?"

"Three thousand ounces of gold, a number of gold, silver, and jewelry, and over nine thousand kilograms of ore, timber, and grain."

"What was the name of the warship built in Weihaiwei last year?"

"The Celestial Empire ship."

"Which craftsman made the grenade?"

"You Jinfu."

"Do you want to be emperor?"

"think……"

Yinsi clapped his hands.

"It's done!"

Yinzhen was amazed at this.

"It still has to be you, my dear..."

Yinzhi and the other two also looked at Yinsi with admiration.

"No, wait a moment... What was the question you just asked?"

Yinreng mumbled the word "I want to" in response.

But when I saw the expressions on my brothers' faces and thought about it carefully, I realized something was wrong.

This brat Yinsi set a trap for him!

"It doesn't matter, second brother. I know what you're thinking, and I'll do my best to make sure you get what you want!"

Yinsi looked at Yinreng with a serious expression.

The others also nodded solemnly.

"Second brother, I know you're feeling frustrated. Just wait at home and let us handle everything else..."

Yinreng looked bewildered.

"Aren't you political enemies?"

Yinzhen: "We are political enemies! Isn't it obvious?"

"No, you guys wait a moment, let me sort out my thoughts!"

This wave of information was too much, and Yinreng was completely confused. He wanted to get some space to organize his thoughts, but how could Yinzhi and others give him a chance?

"Take your time, I have something else to do, so I'll leave first!"

Yinzhi patted his shoulder.

"Wait until I figure this out before you leave..."

Before Yinreng and Erkang could stretch out their hands, Yinzhi pressed them down.

"My brother has to go home to recuperate, so he's leaving now."

The other three also had their own excuses, and soon only Yinreng was left in the study. Even without the cold wind, the room was still unusually messy.

"What do you mean by 'let me get what I want'? What did that kid Yinsi ask?"

"Hey! He asked if I wanted to be emperor!"

Yinreng slapped him on the forehead.

The princes who walked out of Prince Yi's Mansion rolled their eyes at each other and left.

In the carriage of Yinsi and Yin'er, the two were also discussing how to make the next move.

They originally planned to clean up the court and let Yinreng take over the throne legitimately after the old man passed away.

However, plans cannot keep up with changes. Before the old man passed away, Yinreng was deposed first.

How can this be possible?

To be honest, if it wasn't the second brother sitting in that position, they wouldn't feel at ease if any of the other brothers sat in it.

When Yinreng was first deposed, Yinsi had considered taking that position himself, but he quickly rejected the idea.

A big part of the reason why Yinzhen was willing to follow him was because of the planning of his brothers. If he really turned the table over and went it alone, the first one to disagree would be Yinzhen.

Family members know their own business. At least half of his team is supported by Yinzhen.

Once Yinzhen left his camp and became his enemy, he would basically have no chance of winning.

Because by then, all the brothers will point their spears at him...

Yinsi didn't know what his other brothers were thinking, but they were probably the same as him. They were all in a trap now and could not regret it, otherwise they would be attacked by everyone. It would be safer to stick to one path until the end.

Not long after the princes left Prince Yi's Mansion, results came out from Kangxi's side.

Kangxi originally thought that the support rates of Yinzhi, Yinzhen, and Yinsi would be roughly evenly matched, but reality gave him a resounding slap in the face.

Among his close confidants and important ministers, more than 70% supported Yinsi.

And... he had always been expecting someone to mention Yinreng. Even if only one person mentioned him, he would be satisfied.

But Yinreng's name was never mentioned once.

Kangxi couldn't help but feel shocked, panicked and angry.

He always thought that Yinsi's status in the court was not as good as Yinzhi's!

Kangxi asked them why they supported Yinsi, and these 70% of them were very respectful and praised Yinsi to the highest level.

His face became darker and darker as he heard the praises.