Chapter 11
"Meet the prince."
"No need to be so polite."
Jun Qingxuan waved his hand, indicating that there was no need to be polite.
Zhang Yunniang received the order without pretending to be polite. It was none of her business anyway, so she obediently took the small hoe and went to the side to continue her work.
The two orchids at her original residence had bloomed, so they were transplanted here.
Jun Qingmo likes the fragrance of orchids, so she moved here specially.
To put it bluntly, she is really good to herself. She keeps all the good things she grows for herself and moves the leftovers to the front yard.
Now that I no longer live there, I've just transplanted some good things out.
In the past, she really couldn't bear to do it.
"Second brother, look, he's in better spirits."
Jun Qingmo didn't want to deal with it, so he asked bluntly, "Brother, why did you come here today?"
"We are all brothers. I just want to come and see you."
"Thank you for your concern, Brother. Now that you have met me, please make yourself at your leisure."
Jun Qingmo now just wants to live a simple life in a corner. The struggle for power and title has nothing to do with him.
Others looked down on him, belittled him, and didn't want to see him, and he didn't want to have anything to do with anyone.
It would be fine if we just lived in peace and didn't interfere with each other.
"Later, the young master of the Li family in the Imperial Court is holding a poetry gathering at his residence. You two were good friends before, do you want to go and join us?"
Jun Qingmo shook his head. "It's inconvenient for me to travel right now, so I won't go."
"If you want to go, I'll make the arrangements."
"Our friendship was just ordinary at first, and I won't be a threat to you in the future. You don't need to come and test me."
Jun Qingmo found that his mood had become increasingly impetuous recently, and the slightest movement would make him unable to calm down for a long time.
"The throne should have been yours, but now it's on my head. I know you're angry and don't want to see me."
“But I didn’t ask for this.”
Jun Qingmo raised one corner of his lips, seemingly mocking but not quite, and glanced over with a hint of questioning in his eyes.
"Oh, my brother, life must not be easy after becoming the crown prince."
It would have been fine if Jun Qingxuan was born to a prostitute, but he became pregnant before Prince Anle married his first wife. Powerful and wealthy families would look down upon such filth the most.
Although he is now the crown prince, none of the young men and women from the truly powerful aristocratic families really look up to him.
He was forced to attend various banquets and flatter others, and was always ridiculed and mocked.
Jun Qingxuan admitted it generously, "My birth is destined to be like this. What else can I do except accept it?"
"You can still find someone to take the blame for you, right?"
Jun Qingmo pulled a fake smile at the corner of his mouth, "Why? You pushed a useless person like me out, and there's someone even worse than you to attract attention. You're trying to divert the trouble away and protect yourself. Big brother's thinking is no less than your mother's back then."
Hearing this, veins popped up on Jun Qingxuan's forehead. All the tragic circumstances in his life were caused by his mother. But no matter how unbearable his mother was, she was still his mother.
He clenched his fists, took several deep breaths to calm himself, and said in a hoarse voice, "I mean no harm, how can you say that to me?"
"Hehe," Jun Qingmo chuckled sarcastically.
"No ill intentions? Why didn't I see you before he was crowned as the Crown Prince? And you came to show off in front of me right after he was crowned as the Crown Prince? No ill intentions? Big brother, do you think my legs are broken and my brain is stupid?"
"Everyone in the palace knows that my mother passed away when she was still the Crown Prince's Consort. She was so worried about me that she couldn't close her eyes for a long time. My father promised with tears in his eyes that as long as I live, the throne of Crown Prince will definitely be passed on to me."
"Now that I've accepted my fate, I just want to live in peace in a corner. Why can't you let me go? I'm stuck in the mud, barely surviving, and you're still not satisfied? What? Are you using my unhappiness to cover up your own unhappiness and gain psychological comfort?"
Jun Qingmo was not hysterical, but his contemptuous and artificial expression and pursed lips all revealed his harshness and rudeness.
Jun Qingxuan looked at the man who had been forgiving and helping him out from time to time with disappointment, but now he had become like this.
"How do you know I haven't come to visit you? Don't you understand until now?" When he was in the mansion before, he was not even as good as a servant. How could he enter the courtyard of this favored young master?
The people in the courtyard were all arranged by Princess Anle, and they all followed her lead. He was not liked by anyone in the mansion, and it was common for him to be bullied in private, let alone being expelled.
Often the servants were afraid that he would offend his master, so they would privately decide not to let him in.
Over time, he no longer dared to come here without permission.
"My lack of progress is my business, and your interruption is yours. If you were truly capable, you wouldn't have come to compete with a useless person like me. I overestimated you. How could someone who crawled out of the gutter learn to be upright?"
"Jun Qingmo, when did your words become so hurtful?" Jun Qingxuan looked at the person in front of him, the person he had always looked up to. The once gentle and elegant person had become sarcastic and mean. His eyes were hot and covered with a layer of white mist.
This person was once the only kindness he felt in this mansion besides the old princess, but now, he has become so unreasonable.
"If I remember correctly, our friendship was just average before, never quite to the point of confiding in each other's hearts, and only a hair's breadth away from being as cold as water. You're right to be happy that something happened to me. Power truly is a powerful tool for transforming a person, but are you letting your guard down so early?"
"You are not the only young master in this mansion. Although the third son is not very ambitious, he is in the eyes of our father. The sixth son is about to come of age. If you want to show off, wait until you have secured the position of Crown Prince."
Jun Qingxuan stood up and turned his back to Jun Qingmo. He didn't speak for a long time, and his heart was not at peace.
His life had just gotten a little better, and he no longer had to hide in the mansion like before.
Now I come to visit with good intentions, but I am misunderstood like this.
Zhang Yunniang held a small hoe in her hand, secretly looked up at the two brothers, and continued with her work without saying a word.
Just treat those quarrels as background noise.
Jun Qingxuan remained calm for a long time, and just when Jun Qingmo thought he would not say anything else, he spoke, his voice filled with sadness and vicissitudes.
"Of course I am happy."
Jun Qingmo understood what was being said, but he didn't expect that person to admit it so frankly.
"From childhood to adulthood, everyone in the world has bullied me, insulted me, slandered me, despised me, laughed at me, looked down on me, and hated me."
"I have nothing, not even parental love, not even sibling love, not even status, not even wealth, not even connections."
"The only thing I can show off is a bit of literary talent, but you always outshine me in every aspect, and I'll never be able to stand out."
"Shouldn't I be happy that you've fallen? Speaking of misery, what kind of life was I leading before? Now that things are finally looking up, shouldn't I be happy?"
Jun Qingxuan thought of the miserable years before, clenched his fists, endured and controlled his tone, and his voice was filled with resentment and anger.
"I am also a prince of the palace, but I live worse than a servant. When my grandmother was alive, I could still barely make ends meet. But in the two years since she passed away, I was bullied by the servants as a young child, and having my expenses deducted was a common occurrence."
"You are favored, you are precious, so naturally you cannot understand the feeling of being kicked into the water in the cold winter; you cannot understand the despair of having a fever and no one to take care of you and having to endure it; you cannot understand the feeling of being pressed to the ground and kicked at will; you cannot understand the disgusting feeling of having dirt mixed into your food and having people shit and piss on your bed.
It seems that the more pain I suffer, the happier they are. Now that I am in power, why can't I be happy? "
"Hahahahahaha, why can't I be happy? Now that I've turned over, why can't I be happy?"
Jun Qingxuan spread his hands and faced Jun Qingmo. He looked like he was smiling, but there was sadness in his eyes. The light in his eyes flickered, just like the first half of his life.
Jun Qingmo was once a favored legitimate son. He had a gentle character, treated people kindly, and was also close to those illegitimate sons and daughters.
In front of him, everyone is trying to curry favor with him, so how could they bring those dirty things to the table?
He only knew that his half-brother was not favored by his father because of his biological mother, but he didn't know that his previous life was so sad.
Thinking about what happened to him after he fell out of favor, Jun Qingmo also understood that what he had just said was just the tip of the iceberg.
In fact, Jun Qingxuan’s previous life was probably even more miserable.
"In that case, I believe you can understand my current state of mind. There is no need to come here again. Now, I just want peace and stability."
Jun Qingmo stood still, closing his eyes to hide the pain. If he might not have been able to feel Jun Qingxuan's pain before, now he understood.
"It's only now that I have to come over more often." Jun Qingxuan took a few steps forward, the melancholy on his face faded, and his tone became much lighter.
"I've been bullied and oppressed since I was a child, but things are only getting better now. Our fates are so similar, it must be fate. We should keep in touch and build our relationship."
Although Jun Qingxuan now has the title of prince, he still obeys the orders of King Anle in the mansion, and he often has no say.
Those slaves act politely on the surface, but they are actually disobedient behind the scenes.
Having this title only means being respected on the surface.
He had wanted to ask for two more servants to serve Jun Qingmo, but when Princess Anle found out, she scolded him and rejected his idea.
Jun Qingxuan walked back to the other person and said, "I originally thought that it was because of my mother that my father particularly disliked me.
It was not until now, after seeing your situation, that I truly understood that he was a good-for-nothing at heart.
What family affection? All he cares about is power and status.
Whoever can bring him benefits is his good son or daughter. If you can't bring benefits, he would wish you to die soon."
Jun Qingmo fell silent. He had truly experienced the love between father and son before, and only then did he feel the sadness in his heart.
How loving and compassionate they were before, how cold-blooded they are now. The behavior of Prince Anle and his wife is truly chilling.
"Okay, I won't disturb your rest today. If you need anything in the future, send Yunniang to let me know, and I'll do my best to help you."
Jun Qingxuan stood up and walked out. He turned back at the door with a look of pity, "Do you really think you can live a peaceful life here without any harm?"
Jun Qingmo looked at the man's disappearing back and fell into deep thought again.
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