By the time the second and fourth princes "finally arrived", the scroll had been reduced from twelve to nine paintings. Everyone knew this, so no one would say no.

The person in the scroll might not be the one they liked or were willing to choose, but since it was placed there, it meant that they could only choose one of them. Therefore, the two brothers had calm expressions and pretended to look around the scroll before deciding on the candidate.

The second prince chose a lady from the Ling family, and the fourth prince chose a lady from the Zeng family. Their brothers were tutors to the eldest prince and the third prince respectively, so this marriage brought the four of them closer together.

Queen Yan looked at the candidate they had chosen with satisfaction, and then said.

"After you get married, you two should also go to the court to do some work. Concubine Hui's family is not powerful, and there are no fathers or brothers who can help you, so I will ask the people in the Earl's Mansion to take good care of you."

At this point, both of them could only express their gratitude.

The eldest prince stood aside, still looking at his brothers calmly. However, the third prince said something that stood out.

"Didn't Fourth Brother say that he liked the navy? When you get married, ask Mother to find a way to send you to Quanzhou. Isn't Third Uncle training the navy there? Who knows how happy you will be when you go there."

Upon hearing this, the Fourth Prince looked up at Queen Yan and the Third Prince, as if he was also confirming the possibility of this matter.

Queen Yan was thinking about the current situation in the court, so she was determined to win over the Second Prince and the Fourth Prince. So she nodded and followed the Third Prince's words.

"It's not impossible, but you still have to calm down before getting married."

These words gave the Fourth Prince enough hope, so he felt more grateful to Queen Yan at this moment.

The matter of selecting concubines for the brothers was almost settled that morning, the Second Prince and the Fourth Prince said as they left Changchun Palace.

"It's a rare trip to the palace, and we have to go see our mother. Are the eldest brother and the third brother leaving the palace now?"

"Well, my father assigned me some homework a few days ago, and I haven't finished it yet. My eldest brother said he would supervise me and not let me slack off."

The Third Prince's words made the Second Prince and the Fourth Prince show envy in their eyes, but they also knew that people cannot be compared with each other, and the most important thing for them now is to save their lives, so they would not reveal their true attitudes too much.

So they nodded and went their separate ways.

On the way to Haining Palace, the Fourth Prince was still immersed in the promise that Queen Yan had just made, but the Second Prince's face became much more gloomy, and he was carefully thinking about the current situation.

My father has many children, including several princes.

The eldest brother and the third brother were born to Empress Yan. The status of being legitimate children alone was not something they could easily compare to. In addition, they were protected by the Earl's Mansion and were about to marry into other families, so they had great follow-up power.

Now looking at the seventh and eighth brothers, although they are still young, they have both a favored mother and powerful in-laws to protect them, so they are naturally safe and worry-free.

Poor him and his fourth brother, their father doesn't love them and their mother is powerless.

If he doesn't find a suitable helper, life after marriage will be even more difficult. Therefore, compared to the naivety of the Fourth Prince, he now shows the worries that an adult prince should have.

"Second brother, what are you thinking about?"

"Think about our future path."

"What's there to think about? It's just following Big Brother and doing our own thing. You and I can't compete for that position. Instead of wasting time doing those things, it's better to put ourselves in the right position now and do what we should do. Big Brother and the Queen will see it and will give us what we deserve."

His idea was simple, but it made sense.

However, the Second Prince still felt that he was placing the weight of his entire life on others, so he was always worried. However, it was useless to argue with his Fourth Brother, so he stopped talking.

After seeing their mother, the two brothers talked about today's selection of the concubine.

Concubine Hui sighed. She knew very well that her children made such a choice in order to survive, but she was powerless to help them. So although she felt distressed, she could only comfort them in a good-tempered manner.

"Since you have been chosen as your principal wife, you should live a good life in the future. Mother doesn't have anything valuable to give you, but these two hairpins were sent by His Majesty when he conferred the title. They have good meanings, so I will give them to you two and add them as betrothal gifts to the young ladies of Zeng and Ling's families."

After saying that, he asked the palace maid beside him to take out the box.

The box was made by the Inner Court. Because it was specially made when the concubine was conferred the title, even the box was inlaid with gems, making it extremely luxurious.

Looking at the box, the second prince felt indescribable sadness in his heart.

My mother has worked hard for them all her life, but in the end even the best jewelry has to be used as gifts for them. It feels unfair just thinking about it.

But they can be said to have suffered such grievances since childhood. Although they are all sons of the emperor and the noble princes of the Daxing Dynasty, when compared with each other, the eldest brother and the third brother are noble, and the seventh brother and the eighth brother are also noble.

There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!

The only princes who were not noble were probably him and his fourth brother.

So when he thought of this, he secretly decided in his heart that he couldn't just live his life like this. Either he would fight to the death or live a mediocre life.

He chose the former.

After figuring out these things, he felt a lot more relaxed. However, this road was destined to be difficult and one could be doomed if not careful. But for the Second Prince, these were all predictable, so he was not afraid.

After taking the box, he kowtowed solemnly to his mother and then said.

"I have taken note of your kindness, mother. When I get married, I will do my best to help you enjoy the happiness of having children and grandchildren."

Concubine Hui was not a person with great ambitions, so she felt very lucky to be able to reach the position of one of the four concubines in this life. Therefore, when she heard the words of the second prince, she was so moved that she almost cried, and then she said something.

"Okay, mother is waiting for your child to be born. I will pick a few easy-to-get-along-with maids to prepare for the birth. Then I will send them to your respective wives to help you."

"Thank you, mother."

The two brothers stayed in Haining Palace for lunch before leaving the palace.

The fourth prince looked like a carefree little god, which made the second prince next to him look bitter and vengeful. This scene happened to be seen by Guo Silang who came to the palace to report on his work.

Thinking of what his grandfather said to him before he left, Guo Silang had some other thoughts in his mind.