Chapter 119: Truly a Noble Soul

Xue Fanzhi asked with confirmation, "Are you truly... going to save the Crown Prince? If he survives, you won't be able to achieve your heart's desire!"

Xiao Yi laughed. His heart's desire was simply to marry her—that was all!

"Do you think I want to be Emperor?" Xiao Yi lowered his voice, but his tone remained light and breezy. "You are mistaken. I have no desire to be Emperor!"

His tone became increasingly relaxed. "What is so great about being Emperor?" he said. To others, this might sound like a boast, but to Xue Fanzhi, he sounded entirely sincere.

Xiao Yi continued, "You do not know the drawbacks of being Emperor. You are burdened with a thousand tasks every day and never have a moment of peace!"

He went on, thinking of the constraints: he would be forced to marry women he did not love, and it would be unacceptable not to have heirs. Even if he sacrificed everything and compromised in every way, he still could not reclaim the lost territories, and the people would curse him as an incompetent ruler. He could never satisfy every minister, so there would always be someone opposing him. He could not even protect the woman he loved, eventually losing her to the divide between life and death.

It was meaningless! Being Emperor was truly pointless. He had grown cold and weary; he had had enough. In this lifetime, let the barbarian cavalry trample the homeland—there would always be someone taller to bear the weight; he was done worrying himself to death. His only life goal was to marry A-Zhi, live as a carefree prince, and enjoy a loving marriage with her, undisturbed by anyone.

"I truly do not want to be Emperor!" Xiao Yi repeated.

Xue Fanzhi pondered this, frowning. "That doesn't add up. That day in my garden, you admitted to your ambitions, which is why I became your retainer. Now you tell me your thoughts were false? Or perhaps I shouldn't call them false—if you never intended to be Emperor, were you just toying with me back then?"

Xiao Yi felt a jolt in his heart. Why was this stubborn girl so sharp when she remembered such distant details, yet so dense about other things? It was infuriating!

"Times change!" Xiao Yi could hardly admit that he had said those things just to draw her closer. He spoke smoothly now: "I visited the Crown Prince yesterday and suddenly changed my mind. After all, he is my brother; we are siblings for this lifetime only, with no next life. How could I take advantage of his misfortune? How could I bear to watch him die? Therefore, I don't want the throne; I only want to save my brother!"

*Siblings for this lifetime only! I want to save my brother!*

These words echoed in Xue Fanzhi’s mind. It was as if a halo appeared above Xiao Yi’s head. He was so kind, perhaps even a little bit great! Was this really Xiao Yi?

Xue Fanzhi still felt there was something off. Had she misunderstood him? Was Xiao Yi not the type of person who would stop at nothing for the throne? People change, and men's hearts are fickle—life truly is...

Xiao Yi’s intentions were so noble that Xue Fanzhi felt like a sinister villain. She felt unworthy to speak to the gentleman before her and didn't know what to say.

"Then, Your Highness, please see me to the shore."

Xiao Yi, fearing she might catch a cold in the impending rain, nodded. "Aren't we already heading toward the shore?"

Xue Fanzhi: "..." That was true!

***

In the Qian Palace, Emperor Wanhong, dressed in his dark imperial robes, was secretly using an abacus. It was a golden abacus, finer than any accountant’s. He was tallying the empire's expenses against its total income, only to conclude that the expenditures far exceeded the revenue.

Emperor Wanhong furrowed his brows. If this continued, wouldn't the nation collapse? He had to make money! But how? There were only two ways: increase revenue or cut spending. Increasing revenue was difficult; they were already taxing the people for almost everything. That left only cutting spending. But how, when so many people had to be fed?

Before he could find a solution, his chief eunuch, He Cong, approached with a whisk. "Reporting to Your Majesty, the Ninth Prince has sent Tianshan snow lotus to the Crown Prince, claiming it is for medicinal use. The Crown Princess is unsure what to do and has sent me to ask for your instructions."

*The Ninth? Xiao Yi! How dare he!*

Emperor Wanhong exploded. It was true he had thirteen sons, but three were already dead. Of the ten remaining, the eldest and second were also gone. Fortunately, the third son was intelligent, humble, and studious—a natural candidate for the throne—so he favored him. Of course, he also liked the sixth and seventh sons, as their mothers were women he had loved, but that affection was different from the expectations he placed on the third.

The third son was the Crown Prince—the one he had painstakingly selected after deep deliberation. The boy was perfect in every way, except for his frail health. Yet, no matter how sickly, he was the Crown Prince, and the Emperor would protect him. If anyone dared to use the Crown Prince’s illness to commit treason, he would show no mercy.

And that Ninth son was sinister and cunning. Don't think he didn't know; would he really be kind enough to provide the Crown Prince with precious, priceless medicine?

"Scoundrel!" Emperor Wanhong cursed fluently. "He isn't trying to save the Crown Prince; he is attempting murder, for certain!"

The topic was too explosive for He Cong to comment. Emperor Wanhong was merely talking to himself. After cursing, he added, "Go to the Crown Prince. With me presiding, I will ensure no one bullies him!"

When Emperor Wanhong arrived at the Eastern Palace, he saw a sight that stunned him. His son, the Crown Prince, who had been bedridden, was sitting on the edge of the bed in casual attire. His face had a healthy flush, and his spirit was excellent. The "sinister and cunning" son he had just cursed was sitting on a stool, talking to the Crown Prince.

Seeing him, both stood to pay their respects. *Look at that, the Crown Prince stood up too.* Heavens, was this a final flicker of life before death?

Emperor Wanhong rushed to the Crown Prince and asked, "My son, why are you out of bed?"

The Crown Prince, thirty years old and in his prime, looked delicate; his illness had given him an air of scholarly refinement. He spoke with gentle courtesy: "Reporting to Father, this is all thanks to the Ninth Brother. He sent me a priceless Tianshan snow lotus and brought the reclusive master physician Li Daguan. My illness is cured!"

*Truly cured?*

Emperor Wanhong looked at Xiao Yi with disbelief. "Li Daguan?"

Xiao Yi knew his father disliked him and understood what he was thinking. "It is not entirely healed yet," Xiao Yi said. "Master Li says I must take the medicine for two more days."

*We shall see in two days,* the Emperor thought.

Two days later, the Crown Prince was no different from any healthy man, proving Xiao Yi had not lied. Emperor Wanhong stood in the hall, feeling bewildered. Had he misjudged the Ninth Prince? But he had clearly caught the boy showing ambition before. What exactly was he up to?

The Crown Prince was not as suspicious as the Emperor. He embraced the Crown Princess, who had cared for him all this time and was now weeping with joy at his recovery. "The Ninth Brother is truly kind-hearted, and his character is so noble," the Crown Prince said. "I misunderstood him all these years. From now on, he is my own dear brother!"

The Crown Princess nodded gratefully. "Indeed!"