"Second brother, are you alright yet?"
Jiang Ming was furious: "Little Six, you need to understand, it's this prince who's helping you, what are you yelling about?"
"But you're too slow, and it hurts me a lot."
"It is an honor for you to ask me for help. How dare you complain of pain? I have never served a single person in my life."
Jiang Gu chuckled: "Then wouldn't I be the second prince's first time?"
Jiang Ming's lips twisted slightly upon hearing this, then he ruthlessly pushed him up: "Dress yourself, this prince won't help you anymore."
Jiang Gu casually threw on his outer garment, not caring whether it was neat or not, and jogged after him, constantly asking, "Second brother, why are you angry?"
"I've been angry the whole time, can't you tell?"
"But the anger just now was different from before."
"Why so much talk?" Jiang Ming quickened his pace and soon arrived at the small kitchen of their prince's residence.
The Prince's Residence was not originally the residence of princes; it was a place where ministers of the previous dynasty held meetings. Sometimes, when the emperor and his ministers held meetings late into the night, the ministers would stay overnight in this area. To prevent the ministers from going hungry, a small kitchen was provided.
After the establishment of the dynasty, this place was converted into the princes' residence. The small kitchen is still there, but it has not been used for a long time. What the princes did not notice was that the small kitchen, which had not been used for a long time, was clean and tidy, and was also equipped with various ingredients and firewood.
As Jiang Ming and Jiang Gu approached, they were shocked by the smoke filling the room: "What's going on? Are you trying to burn this place down?"
The Third Prince Jiang Zhen coughed twice: "No, Second Brother, it's just that neither we nor the Eldest Brother know how to start a fire."
The usually elegant and composed Fourth Prince Jiang Jun had black and gray smudges all over his face. Looking at the room full of smoke, he looked desperate, as if he couldn't believe that he hadn't even been able to start a small fire.
Jiang Ming glanced around and asked, "Where is the eldest brother?"
"Still inside."
Jiang Ming took a deep breath: "You can't even start a fire, yet you talk about heating up food. Everyone wait outside; you're not allowed to come in."
"Second brother, be careful."
The palace servants standing around were extremely anxious. What if a fire broke out and the princes were injured?
Before long, the eldest prince, Jiang Jin, was also kicked out. He looked extremely frustrated. He had originally wanted to take good care of his younger brothers, but it had all been ruined by starting a fire. He wondered if his sixth brother would go hungry. He hoped his second brother would be alright.
Just as he was blaming himself, Jiang Gu came over and took his hand: "Eldest brother, you are already very capable. It doesn't matter if I go hungry. I'll just sleep it off and there will be something to eat tomorrow morning."
Jiang Jin felt a pang of emotion, a bittersweet feeling welling up inside him. In truth, his initial visit to his younger brothers was driven by a sense of responsibility, a desire to spare his aunt from excessive criticism. He admitted that he didn't have much affection for them, given their long-standing rivalry and the strained relationship between his mother and the various concubines during his mother's lifetime.
But now, he felt that his trip was worthwhile. His younger brothers were still young; what bad intentions could they possibly have? It was just that they had different people behind them, which was why their positions were different before. No one had any choice in the matter.
He suddenly understood his aunt's words. As the eldest son of the legitimate wife, he had to shoulder the responsibilities of the eldest son. This meant not only taking the throne and bearing the heavy burden of the world, but also taking on the responsibilities of an elder brother to his younger brothers.
"It's alright, let's see if your second brother can start a fire. We'll find a way to get some food."
After waiting for a while, the smoke slowly dissipated, and the Second Prince Jiang Ming came out and looked at them coldly: "What do you want to do now?"
Jiang Jin was taken aback: "The fire is on."
"It's on fire."
Jiang Jin ran over and punched his shoulder, praising him generously: "Second brother, you're really amazing."
Jiang Ming's cold face froze for a moment, and he pursed his lips somewhat awkwardly. Then, the Third Prince Jiang Zhen walked over, his eyes filled with admiration: "Second Brother, you've lit a fire that none of us could. How did you do that?"
Then the younger ones nodded in agreement, chattering and praising, "Second Brother is indeed amazing."
"Second Brother can actually start a fire!"
Jiang Ming twitched his lips. Is being able to start a fire a powerful skill?
He unconsciously curved his lips into a smile, but being praised like this by these people made all the hard work seem worthwhile.
He followed at the back, and by then everyone had gathered around Jiang Jin: "Eldest brother, how do we heat up the dishes now?"
Jiang Jin didn't know either, so she glanced at Jiang Ming, who shrugged and said, "Don't look at me, I really don't know."
The fourth prince, Jiang Jun, tentatively said, "I once saw my mother steam bird's nest for my father. She should put some water in the pot, then put the vegetables on the steamer and wait for a while."
"Then let's give it a try." Jiang Jin put water in, but fearing failure, he only put half of the food in the steamer. Then Jiang Ming added firewood.
The six princes stared intently at the steamer, their expectant expressions causing the palace servants to unconsciously smile. Several princes from opposing camps exchanged glances, the tension of the past vanishing completely.
They all agreed that this was what a child should be like. The young prince's life had indeed been too repressed before. No matter what conflicts might arise in the future, at least he was happy now.
As the steamer began to emit white smoke, Jiang Gu, who was the hungriest, licked his lips and asked, "Eldest brother, is it ready yet?"
"I don't know, let me open it and see."
Jiang Jin, lacking common sense, burned herself first before using a rag to lift the lid of the steamer. Once lifted, the aroma was irresistible. Not only Jiang Gu, who hadn't eaten dinner yet, but even the little ones who had already eaten dinner were tempted.
Jiang Jin took a bite first, and nodded amidst everyone's expectant gazes: "It's hot now, it should be ready to eat."
He carried the dishes down one by one and placed them on the small table to the side, and then put the remaining dishes back in. By the time he finished, Jiang Ming and Jiang Zhen had already prepared bowls and chopsticks for everyone, but no one had started eating, waiting expectantly for him to come over.
Jiang Jin felt a warmth in his heart again, picked up his chopsticks and said, "Are you all hungry? Let's start eating. We're all brothers, don't be shy."
Jiang Ming, Jiang Zhen, and Jiang Jun paused for a moment upon hearing this, while Jiang Rui and Jiang Gu, being young and carefree, wolfed down their food.
Jiang Jin ignored the three of them and started eating on his own. Luckily, they were princes, so they had a variety of meals every day; otherwise, there wouldn't have been enough for them.
Seeing that his expression was natural, Jiang Ming, Jiang Zhen, and Jiang Jun started eating. Jiang Jin even went to get more food halfway through. It was the first time they had ever eaten leftovers, but they ate them all cleanly, and no one complained.
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