"And where did you all come from?" Zhou Yuqing looked at the eldest prince, the second prince, and the third and fourth princesses, showing none of the respect that a courtier should have for the royal family.
"Can't you be a little more polite?" Qi Jiejing rolled her eyes at him. "We're all Mom's children."
"Then let's sit down and talk together." The eldest prince glanced at everyone, his aura imposing.
The second prince took a sip of tea and looked at his elder brother, the emperor of this lifetime: "I never asked before, but I guess you were a cultivator before, right?"
"A demon cultivator," the eldest prince said succinctly, "who inherited his mother's demon bloodline."
"Are there really cultivators?" Qi Jiejing looked at them curiously. "So you've cultivated in this life too?"
“No, this world does not allow cultivators to be born,” the Third Princess explained. “The people in this world were all sent by Mother from the world we lived in. The Heavenly Dao of that world collapsed, and Mother and I separated cultivators from mortals and sent them to two different worlds. We left first and did not know where Mother went. It was only after arriving in this world that we finally found out, based on various legends.”
"Then you must have lived for many years? And spent a lot of time with your mother? That's so cool," the fourth princess said enviously. "My society is a modern democratic society that has overthrown feudalism and is developing in the direction of technological evolution."
“Then our world should be about the same.” Qi Jiejing raised her glass to her. “When I die, our country will already have astronauts landing on Mars and is trying to break out of the solar system.”
Listening to their conversation, Zhou Yuqing suddenly felt as if he was the one with the shallowest understanding, because the world he lived in was similar to this one, neither advanced nor democratic.
However, he has a good mindset. They are all children of the same mother, so who is worse than whom?
At least he knows the inside story; there's still someone in this world who doesn't understand anything!
"Your Highness, Your ...
"General, there's no need for such politeness. We apologize for the intrusion. Where is your mother?"
"My mother said she wanted to treat them well, so she went to cook for them herself."
Everyone's eyes lit up, and then they all stood up: "How can we let our elders work so hard by themselves? Why don't we go and lend a hand?"
Feng Shao was taken aback: "Your Highnesses, how can we accept this?"
"What's there to be embarrassed about? Today, regardless of rank, let's just treat each other as ordinary brothers and sisters."
"How could I dare..."
“Brother Shao, it’s nothing.” Zhou Yuqing put her arm around him. “I think the First Prince, the Second Prince, the Third Princess, and the Fourth Princess are all very easy-going people. You have to be so formal. It’s making everyone uncomfortable.”
"That's right, it's better for everyone to be a little more unrestrained in private."
Feng Shao felt he had misunderstood the royal family. Hadn't he always heard that Consort Chen and Consort Shu didn't get along? And that the eldest prince and the second prince were constantly vying for the position of crown prince? How come everyone seemed so harmonious now?
Feng Shao was in a daze: "This royal family is not what I imagined."
Zhou Yuqing patted his shoulder: "Not all royal families have to follow the history books. The harmony between the eldest prince and the second prince is a good thing for the court, isn't it? Moreover, I think neither the eldest prince nor the second prince is mediocre. We don't have to worry about being hindered by the Prince Xun in the future."
Feng Shao nodded as if he understood, but for some reason, he had a feeling that everyone present today was hiding something from him.
But then he thought it was unlikely; at least he was certain that Zhou Yuqing had never known anyone from the royal family before.
But they were so familiar with each other that they seemed to disregard the distinction between superiors and inferiors. Even their mother treated them all the same, calmly directing the eldest and second princes to do their work. This world must be insane.
By the time all the dishes were ready, it was already afternoon. Eating the familiar flavors, everyone except Kai Fengshao had slightly red eyes.
The eldest prince cleared his throat: "Come, let's all toast Madam Song."
Song Xia was also deeply moved. Although she didn't remember anything, she was certain that everyone was a good kid.
"Today, let's set aside our differences in rank. For the past two years, I often went out of the palace incognito under the name Song Luo. From now on, when I'm not in the court, everyone will call me by this name."
“My sister and I also have aliases, Shi Liuchuan and Shi Shuangzhi.”
The Fourth Princess smiled slightly: "Mine is Song Xinghe."
Qi Jiejing raised her glass: "Song Lingling."
Everyone looked at Song Luo, Song Xinghe, and Song Lingling with envy, because only the three of them shared their mother's surname.
"Should I also choose an alias?" Feng Shao asked, bewildered.
Then Song Xia slapped him on the back, "Do you usually need to appear under a different identity? The eldest prince, second prince, third princess, and fourth princess are not to be revealed casually because of their royal status. Lingling, as a woman, needs to deal with many people to manage the family business. What about you?"
Feng Shao chuckled: "I'm just trying to fit in, aren't I?"
"I've heard that Prince Xun has been interfering in the border wars?" The eldest prince squinted. "Although Prince Xun has made great contributions to the court, Father has also treated him well. How can we allow the border soldiers and civilians to make fearless sacrifices because of power?"
The Second Prince sneered, "It seems we've kept a low profile for too long, making Prince Xun think we brothers are useless, and that he really believes he's the only one who knows how to fight this battle?"
"Eldest and Second Princes should pull themselves together. I've heard that Prince Xun is in contact with Consort Xian recently." The Fourth Princess blinked as she looked at the stars in the sky. "Fifth Prince is the youngest, so he's definitely the easiest to control."
"He's dreaming," the Third Princess declared with equal confidence. "We're not dead yet!"
"Tsk, there's a little bug eavesdropping." Feng Shao saw that the eldest prince and the second prince were moving at the same time, their movements were very fast, and they were obviously people who had practiced martial arts for many years. He admitted that he was not as good as them.
In just a few breaths, the two men dragged out two spies and threw them on the ground, their clothes not even wrinkled.
Feng Shao fell silent. No wonder the two princes dared to make such bold statements earlier; they were indeed formidable.
Is it because he hasn't practiced martial arts hard enough? I feel like my skills are far inferior.
Therefore, when the two princes said they wanted to lead troops into battle, they were not just talking nonsense. There are many capable people in this world besides Si Hengnian. Both His Majesty and the common people would like to see the princes who are good at both literature and martial arts, rather than being completely overwhelmed by their ministers.
Historically, only capable monarchs can lead the court to prosperity. However, if court officials wield too much power, it can easily cause turmoil in the court and instability, leading to frequent wars and suffering for the people.
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