The Princess's "Gentle" Counterattack
After being "educated" by her parents, Qin Yuti returned to the Prince's mansion, but instead of becoming "docile" as Zhao Jingyi had expected, she displayed a calmness that sent chills down his spine. She no longer confronted him, and even... became unusually "gentle and considerate".
First move: The power of knowledge
Zhao Jingyi discovered that the books he used to decorate his study were beginning to disappear in various "reasonable" ways. In their place were all sorts of classic texts that Qin Yuti had "thoughtfully" prepared for him.
When he wanted to find a travelogue, Jinshu would respectfully present him with the Zizhi Tongjian: "The princess said, since Your Highness cares about the world, you should read history to clarify your aspirations."
When he only wanted to read some supernatural tales to pass the time, his maid would bring him "Collected Annotations on the Analects": "The princess said that Your Highness is a model for the royal family and should deeply study the ways of the sages."
The most terrifying thing was that every night, Qin Yuti would "gently" ask him about his reading: "Your Highness, did you gain any insights from today's reading of the *Book of Documents*? What is the meaning of 'Pride goes before a fall, humility brings benefit'?" When Zhao Jingyi stammered and couldn't answer, she would silently gaze at him with a look that seemed to say, "I pity his misfortune, but I'm angry at his lack of ambition," which was even more unbearable than being scolded. He felt like he was about to be drowned out by all this classical Chinese nonsense!
The second tactic: economic sanctions
Zhao Jingyi was known for his extravagant spending, and Qin Yuti, "worried" about his wasteful ways, "voluntarily" reported to the palace that, under the pretext of "helping the prince cultivate his character," she requested to manage the palace's accounts and Zhao Jingyi's monthly allowance. The emperor and crown prince, who were already worried about who could control his purse strings, immediately granted her request.
Zhao Jingyi then discovered that his allowance had shrunk dramatically. Want to go to a restaurant for drinks? No money. Want to buy the newest crickets? No money. Even tipping the servants had become stingy. He protested, and Qin Yuti took out the account book and meticulously calculated each item for him: "Last month, Your Highness spent eighty taels of silver on drinking and lost one hundred taels on cockfighting. If you don't restrain yourself, I'm afraid the Prince's mansion will have to pawn everything by the end of the year. I'm doing this for the long-term benefit of the Prince's mansion." Zhao Jingyi stared at the densely packed accounts, his head spinning, experiencing for the first time the pain of being penniless.
The third tactic: social isolation
Qin Yuti showed great "enthusiasm" to Zhao Jingyi's group of cronies. Whenever they came to see Zhao Jingyi, Qin Yuti would personally greet them, then speak softly and gently, "Young Master Zhang, I heard your father is testing your studies recently?" "Young Master Li, that ancient painting you lost to the Prince last time, it's probably a fake, would you like me to help you authenticate it?" Her speech was elegant, yet every word was sharp and cutting. After a few times, those纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy families) became like mice before a cat when they saw Qin Yuti, no longer daring to come to Zhao Jingyi's door to fool around. One of Zhao Jingyi's sources of joy was thus cut off.
Fourth tactic: The ultimate "for your own good" approach
What drove Zhao Jingyi to the brink of collapse was Qin Yuti's sudden and all-encompassing concern for his "health." She used the excuse that "Your Highness has recently been suffering from excessive internal heat" to force him to drink a bitter, pungent herbal decoction every day; under the guise of "strengthening his body," she required him to practice the Five Animal Frolics every morning, personally "supervising" him, making him redo the movements if they weren't performed correctly; and even under the pretext of "concentrating the mind and calming the spirit," she wouldn't let him go to bed early at night, forcing him to copy the *Tao Te Ching*...
Zhao Jingyi protested, and Qin Yuti blinked her innocent big eyes, saying in a tone that could shut him up, "Your Highness, I'm doing this all for your own good. You see, Father and my parents all hope that you can be steady and ambitious. If I don't do my best to urge you on, wouldn't I be letting down my elders? Or... does Your Highness want to tell Father that you don't need me to be so 'considerate'?" She deliberately emphasized the word "considerate".
Zhao Jingyi was completely defeated. He felt as if he were tightly bound by a large net called "gentleness," unable to move. Fight? He couldn't win. Curse? He couldn't win an argument. Complain? He would only be met with even more "considerate" treatment. Now, whenever he saw Qin Yuti carrying the medicine over, he reflexively wanted to run away.
That day, he lay sprawled on the chaise longue in his study, utterly dejected, complaining to his personal eunuch, "Fugui, tell me... is this a wife I married? It's more like I've married an ancestor, an accountant, a physician, and a tutor all in one!"
The young eunuch Fugui suppressed a laugh and whispered, "Your Highness, this servant thinks... Her Highness the Princess's methods are quite ingenious."
Zhao Jingyi sighed deeply, staring at the roof, and uttered a question from the depths of his soul:
"Is it too late for me to go and exchange princesses with my fourth brother?"
Meanwhile, in the study of Prince Rui's residence, Zhao Jingming and Su Wanqing were dining facing each other. Apart from the clinking of bowls and chopsticks, the room was completely silent. The cold, suffocating silence made even Crown Prince Zhao Jingchen, who occasionally came to discuss matters, feel uncomfortable.
In contrast, although Prince Yi's mansion was in complete chaos, at least it was... full of "life".
Looking at his sixth brother, who was completely subdued by his sister-in-law but dared not speak out against her, and thinking about his fourth brother's stagnant backyard, the Crown Prince suddenly felt that perhaps his father's "random matchmaking" was not entirely without reason.
However, it will take our poor Prince Yi a very long time to understand this. And his "good days" are clearly far from over.
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