Jiaojiao is getting married, and the male leads fall for her and fight over her.

Chapter 306 Nobody thought highly of him, yet he became the Crown Prince.
Consort Xian clearly did not expect Emperor Jinglong to suddenly announce this.

Today's dragon boat race was led by six princes, and Li Yi was one of them.

Judging from His Majesty's words, Li Yi is also one of the candidates for Crown Prince? She quickly told herself not to panic, it must be because there are not enough princes, and Yi'er is just used to make up the numbers.

Thinking of this, she returned to her son and said softly, "I think you're just there to make up the numbers. Just do your best later and don't feel pressured."

Li Yi wondered if it was possible that he really would win in the end.
However, he felt he really couldn't win the dragon boat race.

Should he try a little harder later, so he doesn't lose too badly?

Or will they just give up and get last place?

Pei Dongzhou told him to just sit back and win, so shouldn't he not work too hard? It's really worrying. Other princes have a bunch of strategists, but he doesn't have a single person he can talk to. It makes him feel disheartened.

Li Yi stood there blankly for a moment, but ultimately decided to follow the "easy win" principle.

He felt that his father could have announced the selection of a crown prince after the competition. But to suddenly announce it before the competition—wouldn't his aggressive stance contradict his previous laid-back persona?
Therefore, he is the same as he was before.

After all, the Emperor hadn't said he would choose a prince who won the dragon boat race as the crown prince.

Just as Li Yi and Consort Xian were having a private conversation, Emperor Jinglong suddenly came up to Li Yi and asked, "Does Prince Jin have the confidence to win this dragon boat race?"

Li Yi shook his head decisively: "No!"

Emperor Jinglong was delighted by this honest answer and laughed out loud.

He patted Li Yi on the shoulder and then asked the other princes the same question. Li Yi pricked up his ears to eavesdrop and found that even the Ninth Prince confidently answered "yes".

Li Yi stared blankly at the lake, lost in thought, not wanting to think about anything anymore.

As expected, when the competition began, Li Yi's dragon boat team lagged behind at the very back.

Li Yi felt a little embarrassed, so he put in all his effort to promote the product, but the result was still unsatisfactory, and he came in last place.

The winner was Pei Nanzhou.

Li Yi looked at Pei Nanzhou, who seemed calm and composed, as if everything was under his control, and thought that if he were his father, he would definitely choose an outstanding man like Pei Nanzhou as the crown prince.

Li Yi wasn't the only one who thought this way; everyone else thought the same.

Pei Nanzhou is simply too outstanding. Whether it is his appearance, temperament, or ability, such a person is of course the best candidate for the position of Crown Prince. Besides Pei Nanzhou, who else can be qualified for the position of Crown Prince?

Compared to the undercurrents at the dragon boat race, Fusangin was much calmer.

Shen Shuyi looked at Pei Shizi, who was swatting mosquitoes for her, and asked curiously, "Cousin Shizi, do you think Prince Jin can win?"

Just before that, they received news that, according to Emperor Jinglong, the crown prince would be chosen after the dragon boat race today.

Her thought at the time was that she should go watch the dragon boat race, at least to see the excitement in person.

"There's a very high chance," Pei Dongzhou replied calmly.

Shen Shuyi chuckled upon hearing this: "Why does it seem like my cousin, the young master, is quite nervous?"

Pei Shizi was merely feigning composure in front of her. Pei Dongzhou was genuinely nervous. He was already pondering what his next move would be if Li Yi truly lost to Pei Nanzhou, and Emperor Jinglong ultimately chose Pei Nanzhou as the crown prince.

If Pei Nanzhou were to ascend the throne, his next move would undoubtedly be to try and steal his cousin away, something he could not tolerate.

If things really come to this, it seems he only has one way: to overthrow the Great Qi dynasty.

He held Shen Shuyi's hand and bit her finger, which drew a glare from Shen Shuyi: "If Li Yi doesn't win, he can only take another bloody path. In any case, I can't possibly lose the wife I've already got."

Pei Nanzhou wants to take his person away, unless he dies!

Upon hearing this, Shen Shuyi hugged Pei Dongzhou tightly: "Don't be afraid, everything will be as you wish, Cousin Prince. I have faith in you. If you believe Li Yi can win, then he definitely can."

She knew that Pei Dongzhou was used to everything being under his control, and this was probably the first time he had placed his hopes on someone else, so he was a little apprehensive.

But she unconditionally trusted Pei Dongzhou.

Pei Dongzhou chuckled in a deep voice: "My cousin must be head over heels in love with me."

Shen Shuyi punched him directly, thinking to herself that he was really narcissistic.

However, at this moment, she didn't rush to undermine him. It would be good to make him happy and divert his attention.

Back to the dragon boat race, when Wang De finished reading the imperial edict appointing the crown prince, everyone was stunned and turned to look at Li Yi, who was standing at the very end.

Li Yi himself was still in a daze, because he did not expect that he would actually be named the crown prince despite his poor performance.

The first thought that popped into his mind was, how could Pei Dongzhou be so amazing? Everyone else was pessimistic about him, but Pei Dongzhou said he could win without lifting a finger.

Isn't he currently in a state of effortless victory?
Moreover, judging from Wang De's reading of the imperial edict, it was clear that the edict had already been drafted and was only waiting to be read aloud.

Consort Xian was also stunned. Her first thought was that it was all over, and someone would try to harm her son. Her second thought was, why would His Majesty push her child into such a dangerous situation?

I wonder if refusing the imperial edict at this time will result in punishment from His Majesty.

Pei Nanzhou never expected that Li Yi would become the ultimate winner.

He has been monitoring Li Yi's every move recently, as well as Pei Dongzhou's. Neither of them has made any unusual moves. In particular, apart from no longer indulging in sensual pleasures as before, Li Yi has not changed in any other way.

He initially thought he was overthinking things, but now it seems that Li Yi simply corrected his lecherous ways, which pleased Emperor Jinglong.

He was clearly better than Li Yi in every way, yet he still lost to Li Yi, that good-for-nothing.

"Your Highness Prince Jin, receive the decree!" Wang De looked at Li Yi with a smile.

Li Yi suddenly realized what was happening and hurriedly stepped forward to receive the imperial decree and express his gratitude.

But he still didn't understand, so he asked directly, "Why did Father Emperor appoint me as Crown Prince?"

His question was exactly what everyone was wondering: why did Emperor Jinglong choose Li Yi when he had better options?
Other princes would certainly not have dared to ask this question, but Li Yi had always been disrespectful to Emperor Jinglong, and the emperor was used to it.

He coughed twice loudly: "From now on, as the Crown Prince, you should act like one and not be willful anymore. As the Crown Prince, you should shoulder the responsibility of inheriting the throne. There is still much for you to learn, so you must not slack off!"

Li Yi thought to himself that his father had avoided his question, and perhaps it was true, as Pei Dongzhou said, that he had just won by doing nothing.
(End of this chapter)