Chapter 401 Yinqi
There's something wrong with Lao Ba! A really big problem!
Known for his "kind nature and honest character," Aisin-Gioro Yinqi, the fifth son of Emperor Kangxi, died of illness in the tenth year of Emperor Yongzheng's reign at the age of 54.
Compared to his other brothers, Yinqi's life was relatively smooth. Raised under the Empress Dowager's care, he naturally lost his right to succession. Therefore, although he was not highly regarded by his father, the Emperor, he was never feared either.
Having lived to 54, Yinqi was already very content. The only unresolved issue in his heart was the death of the Ninth Prince.
Sometimes he resented Yinzhen's ruthlessness, but he also knew that the victor is king and the loser is villain, and he knew that Yintang himself had gotten to where he was today.
Therefore, what he couldn't let go of was that he was clearly the ninth prince's biological brother. But Yinzhen only had the eighth prince in his heart, and he followed the eighth prince to his death without ever turning back.
Of course, whose life is without regrets?
But Yinqi never expected that he would have another chance.
He was reborn when Yin Tang was a month old.
Therefore, he felt that he might have been reborn because of Yinzhen, and in this life he would keep an eye on Yinzhen and prevent him from having any contact with the Eighth Prince!
However, he was a man who had lived a whole life, so he still had some basic patience. Therefore, he began to observe quietly and slowly, trying to find ways to isolate Yinzhen and the Eighth Prince from any possible contact.
Good news: Yinzhen and the Eighth Prince did not run into each other;
Bad news, it seems there's something wrong with this Lao Ba!
How come everyone, from the eldest brother Yinzhi to the fourth brother Yinzhen, has such a good relationship with him? And Yinzuo, who should have died young, has also become the eighth prince's follower?
What's wrong with this world? Is Lao Ba really that popular?
It seems that the Eighth Prince's charm has increased in this lifetime. Worried that Yinzhen will repeat the same mistake, Yinqi, with a heavy heart, decides to get involved!
Yinqi, who still hates going to class after living his whole life, would never have agreed to enter the Imperial Study so early if it weren't for the need to find an opportunity to thoroughly investigate the "enemy's situation."
Feeling deeply that he had given so much, Yinqi planned to launch an offensive on his very first day, but... he couldn't find a chance to speak.
The next day, he pretended not to speak Chinese and copied ten large characters, but he couldn't find a chance to speak.
On the third day, they cut corners and copied ten more pages, without even getting a chance to speak.
On the fourth day, I copied ten large characters, but didn't get a chance to speak.
On the fifth day, I copied ten sheets, but I didn't have a chance.
...
On the tenth day, he had already filled a stack of large characters, but he still hadn't gotten a chance!
No, what's so charming about Lao Ba that everyone's always surrounding him? If you're so capable, let him experience it for himself!
No, he can't just sit here and wait to die!
Having figured things out, Yinqi decided to take a different approach. If the Imperial Study was out of the question, the Cining Palace would be his domain! He was a "Mongol" prince, and once he was in the Cining Palace, who could possibly get past him?
Okay, Second Brother Crown Prince, that's fine.
Seeing Yinreng laughing and joking in front of the Empress Dowager and his grandmother, Yinqi couldn't help but frown.
No, Second Brother Crown Prince, what's wrong with you? If you're just entertaining your parents, why bring Yinzhi along? Are you raising a younger brother or a son?
Even Hongxi didn't receive this kind of treatment in his past life, did he?
Yinqi was quite upset about the failed plan. He had previously avoided Yinsi because of Yintang, but now that he suddenly found himself unable to get close to him, he became rather displeased.
The plan to "get involved personally" had failed, so Yinqi decided to postpone it, as keeping an eye on Yintang was more important. After all, that kid was old enough to run around freely!
However, fate is sometimes so strange. When he tried every means to contact Yinzhi, he just couldn't run into him. But when he gave up, it seemed like he could run into him anywhere.
"Yin Si and Yin You?"
Wandering around to a secluded spot in the palace, Yinqi, having regained his senses, was about to leave when he inadvertently spotted two people in a corner.
Yinzhi was sitting calmly on the ground, while Yinyou stood in front of him, walking slowly.
Curious about how the two of them ended up together, Yinqi moved to a more sheltered spot and continued watching.
Yin You's steps seemed somewhat slow and awkward. Each step seemed like he was struggling against his own body, but he did not give up. He would stop from time to time to adjust his posture and try to make his steps smoother and more natural.
As time went by, Yin You's steps gradually became steady. Although he was not as light and agile as an ordinary person, he dared to take bold steps, and his limping was gone. His back also gradually straightened up.
His eyes gleamed with excitement. He quickly walked up to Yinzhi, his voice trembling slightly with excitement: "Eighth Brother, did you see it?"
Yinzhi smiled, his eyes full of laughter, and nodded heavily, saying gently, "I saw it."
Yin You's face instantly lit up with a bright smile, as radiant as the warm spring sun. The smile was filled with relief and joy: "Thank you, Eighth Brother, for helping me practice walking all this time, and for the shoes you gave me. They really helped a lot, making me look just like everyone else."
Yinzhi shook his head gently, his tone soft yet firm: "Seventh Brother, you've always been perfectly normal."
Upon hearing this, Yin You's expression darkened, and he sighed with a bitter smile: "But I won't leave."
Yinzhi stood up, looked sincerely into Yinyou's eyes, and shook his head again, saying, "Seventh Brother, you're wrong. You've been on the move, and you've been doing very well."
Yinyou was moved by Yinsi's words, and his eyes instantly reddened. The grievances and inferiority he had suffered in the past because of his walking posture seemed to vanish in this moment.
He let out a long sigh of relief, a relieved smile on his face, as if he had matured and accepted himself in an instant.
“You’re right, I will keep going. Thank you, Eighth Brother.”
Yinqi, who was watching this scene quietly from a short distance away, felt a mix of emotions.
He had always been prejudiced against Yinzhi, but this scene before him forced him to admit that Yinzhi's sincere and warm demeanor towards others did indeed have a unique charm, and it was no wonder that so many people were willing to get close to him and like him.
But he didn't want to see Yinzhen go down a path of no return. So even though he felt some guilt towards Yinsi, he still decided to separate Yinzhen from him.
With so many people already liking Yinzhi, surely we don't need another Ninth Prince?
Before his feelings of gratitude could last long, Yinqi was subjected to a "triad trial".
"Tell me, when did you get back?"
What do you want to do after coming back?
"You have a problem with Xiao Ba?"
Faced with the three questions from Yinzhi, Yinreng, and Yinzhi, Yinqi's mouth dropped open slightly as he looked them over from left to right, from one to three, and exclaimed, "You... you've all been reborn?"
Yinreng nodded and asked in return, "Isn't it obvious?"
Seemingly to prove that he wasn't the only one with a mental disability, Yinzhi hurriedly asked, "If the second prince and I can't tell, then forget it. But the third prince doesn't stutter anymore, didn't you notice?"
Yinqi nodded, then shook his head. "I thought it was because of Yinsi."
Yin Zhi leaned back casually, his young age giving him an air of scholarly elegance. “You’re not wrong to think that way; it is indeed because of Xiao Ba.”
Yinzhi's existence strengthened the stutterer's inferiority complex, freeing him from the shadows and leading to the unburdened Yinzhi we know today.
"You have a problem with Xiao Ba?"
Yinreng asked casually, a smile playing on his lips. But Yinqi felt a chill run down his spine and quickly shook his head: "It's not that I have a problem with him, it's just... I just don't want the Ninth Prince to go down that path again."
The room fell silent immediately after he said that.
To be honest, none of the three of them—oh, including Yinqi—had any ambition for the throne. But they couldn't guarantee that Yinsi wouldn't have such ambitions when he grew up.
Even as they watched their brothers being reborn one after another, they couldn't help but wonder if one day, Yinzhi would also be reborn.
But because the thought of it was painful, they tried their best to avoid it, only to be exposed by Yinqi from another angle.
Sensing the tense atmosphere around him, Yinqi changed the subject with difficulty: "By the way, how did you find out about me? Apart from paying a little attention to Yinsi, I was clearly very good at disguising myself."
Yin Zhi looked at him with pity and said, "In your past life, when you first entered the Imperial Study, your calligraphy wasn't this good."
a bolt from the blue!
Yinqi's face darkened. Was he really that bad at learning in his past life? Ah... well, he was indeed very bad.
Feeling awkward, Yinqi wiped his face, as if he had exposed some of his embarrassing past. He looked at the three of them with a resentful expression and asked, "So, what are you trying to do by reopening my wounds?"
The three of them felt a little awkward under his gaze. They hadn't meant it, it was just that... Yinqi's handwriting in his previous life was indeed so ugly that it left a deep impression.
"It's nothing, just confirming your willingness to start over."
"My idea is simple: to live out this life peacefully with Yinzhen and not let my mother worry."
They could hear the firmness in Yinqi's words, which separated Yinsi and Yintang. The three exchanged glances but made no move to interfere. As long as he posed no threat to Yinsi, they were even happier to have one less brother vying for favor.
I hope your wish comes true.
"I can do it!"
...
On the other hand, they are brothers after all, so it's not impossible to turn enemies into friends.
"Just separate the Ninth Prince and Yinzhi. All you need to do is stand between them," Yinqi said stubbornly.
There was nothing he could do; the enemy's sugar-coated bullets were so powerful that he unknowingly swallowed them, and the bullets pierced his defenses.
On the 25th day of the 12th month of the 26th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, the Grand Empress Dowager passed away.
The matter of life and death, which is a matter of natural causes, cannot be changed by their rebirth.
Witnessing the passing of this respected elder once again saddened Yinqi, but he knew that his grandmother was even more heartbroken.
But at this moment, everyone's attention was focused on the grieving emperor and crown prince.
Although both were of noble status, the emperor and the crown prince were more important than the empress dowager, who had no real power, and it seemed that their sorrows were also greater.
But the Emperor still has countless children and concubines, and the Crown Prince still has brothers and maternal families to rely on. Only the Empress Dowager has lost her only support in the deep palace; she has nothing left.
All Yinqi could do was quietly stay with her, watch over her, and tell her that he was there for her to rely on.
But his grandmother was visibly growing more and more haggard each day, and Yinqi was certain that she cared about him deeply. However, the bond between him and his grandmother could not ultimately compare to the lifelong companionship of his grandmother and the Empress Dowager.
Until a portrait appeared.
The portrait of the Empress Dowager, dressed in Mongolian attire and riding a horse on the grassland, was so vivid and full of life that it stunned the Empress Dowager for a moment before she suddenly burst into tears. "How wonderful! My mother has returned to the embrace of the Eternal Heaven."
That was the first time Yinqi saw his grandmother smile after the passing of the Empress Dowager.
Later, upon learning from the palace servants that it was sent by Yinzhi, Yinqi wasn't actually that surprised. After all, in this palace, the only person who was so sensitive and considerate was Yinzhi.
But from that moment on, Yinqi began to waver.
Actually, it's not necessary to completely separate the Ninth Prince and Yinzhi. Making Yinzhi his friend wouldn't be a bad idea either. The Ninth Prince can't possibly compete with his own brother, can he?
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