Chapter 5: The Legendarily Melancholy Second Brother

"Love-brained?"

"Supporting male lead?"

What is "love-brained"?

And who is this "supporting male lead"?

Why would the Great Qi fall?

What on earth happened? And...

When exactly did I die, and who killed me?!

Emperor Qixuan instinctively wanted to ask for clarification, but just like before, he couldn't open his mouth at all.

Forget it. In the future, he would keep Yaoyao by his side at all times; he would surely find out the reason eventually.

Suddenly, a flash appeared before Chu Yaoyao’s eyes, and the next second, she was embraced.

"Thank you, thank you our Yaoyao, thank you for saving the Crown Prince, and for saving me."

The Empress’s tone was full of gratitude.

Jun’er was her life; if anything happened to him, she wouldn't want to live either.

Though she possessed the soul of an adult, acting spoiled in her mother’s arms was one thing, but being held by another beautiful lady made Yaoyao blush with embarrassment. Her toes were curling so hard she felt like she could dig out an entire Qionghua Palace.

Head Physician Zhang had finished checking the pulse.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, the Crown Prince’s pulse has stabilized, and his life is no longer in danger. I believe that with this miraculous medicine, his asthma will never flare up again."

Having said that, Head Physician Zhang stared fixedly at the white medicine bottle on the table.

Such a wonderful thing, he really wanted to study it.

"Good, good, good."

Emperor Qixuan nodded, repeating the word "good" several times, which showed just how excited and happy he was.

Hearing this good news, Chu Yaoyao once again passively felt the Empress’s suffocating gratitude.

[Oh my, so shy.]

The Empress looked at Consort Shu and nodded approvingly, "You have raised Yaoyao very well."

Consort Shu: Was she... being praised by the Empress?

After the joy passed, Consort Shu’s face showed worry.

Yaoyao had produced the medicine out of thin air, and with so many people here, many must have seen it.

If someone with ill intentions wanted to make an issue of this...

Emperor Qixuan naturally thought of this as well. He immediately swept his sharp gaze across the crowd, the majesty of an emperor fully displayed.

"Did you all see anything just now?"

The palace servants had already retreated. In the bedchamber, there were only the Emperor, the Empress, Consort Shu, Yaoyao, a few remaining imperial physicians, and Chief Eunuch Su.

The physicians exchanged glances before trembling and replying, "We saw nothing, Your Majesty."

"Hmm?"

Emperor Qixuan narrowed his eyes and hummed in a way that was hard to interpret.

Su Maowen stepped forward respectfully.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this servant saw the Little Princess produce a heaven-sent medicine to save the Crown Prince. The Little Princess is blessed by the immortals; this is the fortune of our Great Qi and the fortune of the people."

The physicians glared at him—only you would know how to suck up like that!

"Is that so?"

Although it was a question, the aura around Emperor Qixuan became much more pleasant.

Since it had been put this way, and none of those present were deaf or stupid, they all chimed in

"We saw it with our own eyes! The Little Princess is blessed by the immortals, which is Heaven’s affirmation of Your Majesty’s diligent governance. This is the fortune of our Great Qi!"

Who didn't know how to flatter?

"Hahaha!" Emperor Qixuan was satisfied now, his vanity greatly fulfilled. He waved his hand to dismiss everyone, "Remember, don't go around talking nonsense."

He reached out and plucked Yaoyao from the Empress’s arms. Looking at her fair, tender, chubby baby face, the more Emperor Qixuan looked, the more he liked her.

So what if the country falls?

So what if he was poisoned?

Wasn't there still six years left? Now that the Crown Prince was safe, the empire had a successor, and with a little treasure like Yaoyao who was favored by immortals and could foresee the future, why should he worry about the Great Qi not flourishing?

"Father."

Walking in was a youth of thirteen or fourteen, dressed in green brocade. He had a handsome face and long, slender eyebrows, but those peach-blossom eyes—which should have made young girls’ hearts flutter—were filled with melancholy.

Seeing the unnatural way he walked, Chu Yaoyao remembered.

[Is this my Second Brother who is working hard in the wrong direction?]

Where did that voice come from?

Chu You, who was about to pay his respects, paused slightly, but quickly returned to normal.

Looking at his second son who walked over to bow, Emperor Qixuan’s expression was indifferent.

[Looking at cheap Father’s nonchalant appearance, anyone would think he doesn't like Second Brother. But actually, that’s not true. Cheap Father is still very concerned about Second Brother. It’s just that every time Second Brother saw Father when he was little, he looked timid and fearful. Over time, cheap Father’s overflowing paternal love cooled down.]

Chu You looked up abruptly, his eyes reddening as he stared at Emperor Qixuan not far away.

Was it really like that? He had always thought his father despised him for being a cripple... and that was why he wouldn't promote his mother’s rank?

Being stared at like that, Emperor Qixuan let out a soft breath and walked over to pat his shoulder, "Don't worry, the Crown Prince is fine now."

He was his child too, how could he not like him?

Counting them up, the Crown Prince was his third child and the only one he had raised, but he suffered from asthma.

He had held high expectations for Chu You, hoping he would be a healthy and strong prince.

But he didn't expect... Heaven did not grant his wish. He had bestowed the name "You" (blessing) in the hope that Heaven would protect him.

But for some reason, this child had never been very close to him since he was young. Because of this, he took his anger out on Noble Lady Meng; even though she had given birth to a prince, he hadn't raised her rank for many years.

[Sigh, I originally thought that the "not speaking up" trope only appeared in cheesy romance stories. I didn't expect it to happen between father and son too.]

[One clearly cares but is too stubborn to say it, and the other listens to outsiders and distances himself from his own father, yet secretly works hard in an awkward way, wanting to get his father’s attention.]

[Awkward, truly awkward.]

[He wants to prove himself, but he’s working in the wrong direction.]

Chu You lowered his head in shame, his secret thoughts laid bare.

When Emperor Qixuan heard the words "provoked by outsiders," he struggled to suppress his anger.

Good, very good.

[I remember the plot said that cheap Father is skilled in both literature and martial arts, and his horsemanship is even more remarkable.]

Emperor Qixuan lifted his chin slightly. That’s right, I am just that excellent.

Continue, if you know how to praise, praise more.

Seeing him like this, Consort Shu couldn't help but laugh.

[So Second Brother is desperately practicing martial arts just to receive Father’s praise. But his left leg has a defect; no matter how hard he tries, it’s useless. So every time Father praises the Crown Prince and the Third Prince, he always hides away and cries secretly.]

Hearing his embarrassing secret being spoken aloud, Chu You lowered his head even further.

[This child who craves praise, oh my.]

Consort Shu looked at Chu You with great affection.

"Brother, what is this?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Chu You looked up and met a pair of bright, grape-like eyes.

So that voice was Yaoyao?

But seeing what was in Yaoyao’s hand, Chu You panicked.

Oh no, he forgot to put it away. Father hated it most when they played with toys and lost their ambition.

"This is a Luban lock."

Chu Yaoyao fiddled with it a few times, unable to play with it, "Teach me."

Chu You first glanced at his father with a guilty conscience, then took it and absentmindedly solved it.

"Wow, Brother is so amazing! So great!"

[Isn't it just praise? I can do that.]

Meeting her bright eyes, Chu You smiled shyly.

[Actually, Second Brother is very smart. He often makes little gadgets like mechanisms. If he focused on invention and creation, he might become the number one inventor of the Great Qi.]

[But how can I stop Second Brother from being so stubborn?]

Chu Yaoyao silently popped a candy into her mouth and scratched her head.

It’s so itchy. No, I can’t go on; if I keep thinking, my brain is going to grow right out of my head!

(End of chapter)