Joy of Life: Me, the Second Prince? Summon Yuan Tiangang!

Fan Xian looked down at his boots, then at the ground where Li Chengze had just walked barefoot, and a playful smile appeared on his lips.

"Uncle Wuzhu is right, everyone in Kyoto is indeed a lunatic."

He sat back down in his chair, picked up his chopsticks, and popped a peanut into his mouth.

"However, this lunatic... seems to be stronger than I thought. A ninth-rank swordsman as a bodyguard, the Second Prince Li Chengze, that's interesting."

Fan Xian chewed on peanuts, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"It seems like coming to Kyoto was the right decision."

……

On the carriage.

Xie Bi'an, holding his sword, frowned slightly: "Your Highness, why didn't you let me test him just now? That Fan Xian, although he tried his best to hide it, I could feel that there was a very domineering true energy in his body."

"I know." Li Chengze leaned back on the soft couch, closing his eyes to rest, still toying with the bunch of grapes in his hand. "But..."

"Bi'an, killing is the most basic method. Fan Xian is a double-edged sword. He's just arrived in the capital, his edge is fully exposed, and anyone who touches him will bleed. We just need to sit on the shore and watch them struggle in the water. Once they've fought to the death, Fan Xian's sword will be sufficiently sharpened, and then..."

Li Chengze picked up a grape and held it up to the sunlight streaming through the car window.

The purplish-red grapes glistened in the sunlight, resembling a beating heart.

"At that time, this sword hilt will naturally fall into my hands."

"Now let's go to the other courtyard."

Royal villa, back garden.

This place, which should have been a tranquil spot, was now shrouded in an oppressive atmosphere. Since the imperial decree of marriage was issued, the number of imperial guards outside the villa had doubled, ostensibly for protection, but in reality for surveillance.

Lin Wan'er sat on the swing, her hand tightly gripping the bright imperial edict, her knuckles turning slightly white from the force. Since being cured by Li Chengze with the "Marrow Cleansing Pill" eight years ago, she was no longer the sickly princess, but had become the most dazzling and unique person in the capital.

"Second brother, if you don't come soon, I'm going to take this imperial edict and jump into the moat." Lin Wan'er said without turning her head when she heard the familiar, barefoot footsteps, her voice filled with a hint of stubbornness and grievance.

"It's so cold to jump into the river. I'd be heartbroken if you got frostbite."

Li Chengze emerged from the shadows and casually sat down beside the swing, reaching out to embrace the girl's slender waist. His movements were domineering and practiced, completely disregarding the imperial edict that represented imperial power.

Lin Wan'er turned around and hugged Li Chengze's neck tightly, her eyes slightly red: "Uncle... how could he do this? He clearly knows that I only have you in my heart, yet he still insists on betrothing me to someone I've never even met! He's clearly trying to drive you crazy, to force you to defy the imperial decree!"

"Gone mad?" Li Chengze sneered, gently wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes, his tone as cold as ice. "He wants to see me defy imperial orders for a woman, then I'll show him!"

He took out a white jade bottle from his pocket and poured out a pill that emitted a strange fragrance and shimmered with a faint golden light—this was the "Youthful Radiance Pill" worth 50,000 reputation points from the system shop.

"Be good, eat it." Li Chengze held the pill close to Wan'er's lips. "In this world, no one but me, Li Chengze, has the right to make you frown. Not Fan Xian, not even Father Emperor. From now on, I will set the rules for this capital."

Lin Wan'er trusted him almost blindly, and swallowed the pill with her small mouth open. Instantly, a warm power spread throughout her body, and her face, which had been slightly pale from anger, turned rosy red, and her eyes became as bright as stars.

"Second brother, you are so good to me." Wan'er leaned against his chest, feeling the heartbeat coming from his broad chest.

Li Chengze lay on the swing without any regard for appearances, letting Wan'er feed him grapes. The two whispered to each other, as if the heavy imperial guards outside the villa and the stormy weather in the capital had nothing to do with them.

This scene was witnessed by the Imperial Guards commanders stationed at a distance, yet none dared to step forward to stop him. They knew that the Second Prince would kill without batting an eye.

Lin Xiangfu, study.

Lin Ruofu, that old fox, was staring intently at the intelligence report on the table. With a "crack," he crushed the two walnuts in his hand into powder.

"You mean, at Yishi Residence, His Highness publicly declared that he wanted to kill Fan Xian?" Lin Ruofu's voice trembled.

"Yes, Your Majesty." The steward's face was deathly pale, and cold sweat poured down his back. "The whole capital is buzzing with the news that the Second Prince is determined to fight Fan Xian to the death for Princess Wan'er! And... after leaving, the Second Prince went straight to the villa and stayed there for a full three hours!"

Lin Ruofu slumped down, a hint of fear flashing in his eyes.

"Li Chengze... he's not vying for favor, he's declaring war!" Lin Ruofu muttered to himself. "He knows this marriage is His Majesty's arrangement, yet he dares to be so blatant. What cards does he hold in his hand? Or is it that woman who made him do this? Is her purpose to test him with Li Chengze?"

Lin Ruofu knew very well that if he supported Fan Xian, he would be supporting the imperial edict, but he would completely offend the powerful Li Chengze. If he tacitly approved of the relationship between Li Chengze and Wan'er, he would be defying the imperial edict.

"The sky over Kyoto is about to change." Lin Ruofu immediately picked up his pen to write a letter. He had to make a choice between Fan Xian and Li Chengze, and this choice would determine the life and death of the entire Lin family.

The Fan residence, the inner quarters.

Fan Xian was sitting at the table, staring blankly at the bowl of braised pork in front of him.

At their first meeting at Yishiju, Li Chengze put immense pressure on him.

"Father, what kind of person is that Second Prince?" Fan Xian asked, looking at Fan Jian sitting to the side.

Fan Jian's expression was solemn, and his tone was more serious than ever before: "He is the most prodigy prince in the Qing Kingdom in the past hundred years. He became famous throughout the land at the age of five for writing the Stone Inscription, and entered the court to attend to state affairs at the age of thirteen. He seems absurd and unruly, but in reality, half of the officials in the capital have secretly pledged their allegiance to him. Xian'er, this marriage is a pit of fire. Li Chengze's obsession with Lin Wan'er has reached the point of madness."

Fan Xian touched his neck, as if the lingering power of Xie Bi'an's earth-shattering sword strike still remained there: "I could feel it. The way he looked at me was like he was looking at a dead man. But then he said he didn't want me to die too soon... Father, he was planning to play me to death."

"He has the ability to do so." Fan Jian sighed. "He is deeply favored by His Majesty and has the support of the Eldest Princess. Xian'er, in the capital, you can offend the Crown Prince, but you must never offend Li Chengze."

Fan Xian sneered, a fierce fighting spirit igniting in his eyes: "But now, he's not going to let me go. Since that's the case, then let's see who's the fastest blade!"

There's one more thing Fan Xian didn't say: the Second Prince is also a time traveler, just like him. But time travelers meeting each other don't have that tearful feeling.

You have received a new chapter update: Chapter 36 Emperor Qing's Test, here is the reading link.

It was late at night in the Imperial Study.

Emperor Qing was still dressed in a white robe, his long hair flowing freely, holding a slender knife in his hand, carving a huge, hard bow.

"Did the second prince go to the other residence?" Emperor Qing's voice was unreadable, yet it made Eunuch Hou tremble all over.

"Your Majesty, the Second Prince stayed at the villa for three hours. When he left... he also beat up the commander of the Imperial Guards at the villa's entrance, saying that he complained that they were guarding too strictly and disturbing the princess's peaceful sleep."

"Heh, this kid's temper's getting worse and worse." Emperor Qing put down the knife, a complex light flashing in his eyes. "He's showing off to me. For Lin Wan'er, he dares to trample on my dignity."

"Your Majesty, what about Fan Xian...?"

"Fan Xian is a fine stone, but the Second Prince, this whetstone, seems to have become too hard to handle." Emperor Qing stood up, walked to the window, and looked in the direction of the Second Prince's residence. "Does he think that with Yun Rui's help, he can challenge me? He's too naive."

Emperor Qing's lips curled into a cold smile: "Issue my decree that the Imperial Academy will open in three days, and Fan Xian will be appointed as its headmaster. In addition, the Second Prince is hereby appointed as the 'Supervisor of the Imperial Academy.' I want to see if he dares to actually kill Fan Xian right under my nose."

Emperor Qing didn't care about his sons' infighting; what he cared about was a sense of control.

If Li Chengze truly escapes his control, then this whetstone becomes unnecessary.

The three-day period passed in the blink of an eye.

The weather in Kyoto was somewhat gloomy, with low-hanging dark clouds that seemed ready to press down at any moment, much like the oppressive and restless atmosphere that had permeated the city in recent days.

The Imperial Academy, the highest institution of learning in the Great Qing Dynasty, was exceptionally bustling today. The vermilion gates were wide open, and the stone lions on both sides stood majestically. Those coming and going were not only students dressed in Confucian robes, but also many high-ranking officials in their official robes, as well as the entourage of imperial relatives.

By His Majesty's decree, the Imperial Academy will open today, with the newly appointed Academician Fan Xian presiding over the classes, while the Second Prince Li Chengze will serve as the "Supervisor of the Imperial Academy" to oversee the proceedings.

This is hardly the start of the school year; it's as if His Majesty has set up a stage and forced two tigers to fight in a cage for the entire court to watch.

In front of the Imperial Academy, an inconspicuous carriage slowly came to a stop.

Fan Xian lifted the curtain, jumped off the carriage, looked up at the plaque with the words "Imperial Academy" written on it, and took a deep breath. He was wearing a brand-new official robe today, which made him look a little restrained, but his eyes revealed a nonchalant attitude.

"My lord, are you really going in?" Wang Qinian followed behind, his neck hunched, carrying a stack of files, which were the "lesson plans" prepared by Fan Xian. "I just saw that His Highness the Crown Prince's entourage had already arrived, and that good-for-nothing Guo Baokun had brought a bunch of troublemakers from the Imperial Academy, all eager to get started."

"Now that I'm here, I can't possibly run away," Fan Xian straightened his collar, a cold smile playing on his lips. "The Second Prince wants to kill me, the Crown Prince wants to trample on me, and His Majesty wants to watch a show. If I don't go in and put on this act, wouldn't I be letting down all this commotion?"

"But..." Wang Qinian wanted to persuade him again.

"Old Wang, remember this." Fan Xian patted Wang Qinian on the shoulder and lowered his voice, "Those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who have something to lose. The Second Prince wears shoes, the Crown Prince wears shoes, only I am barefoot."

After saying that, Fan Xian strode into the gate of the Imperial Academy.

Hundreds of students from the Imperial Academy stood in neat rows, but the atmosphere was far from solemn; instead, it was filled with whispers and gloating glances. At the very front of the crowd were two grand chairs.

In one of the chairs sat a young man dressed in an apricot-yellow python robe. He had a handsome face, but it carried a hint of gloom and arrogance. He held a teacup in his hand, and his gaze would occasionally sweep towards the doorway, his eyes revealing undisguised disgust.

It was none other than the current Crown Prince, Li Chengqian.

Beside the Crown Prince stood Guo Baokun, the son of the Minister of Rites, and a group of powerful and influential sons who were attached to the Eastern Palace.

"Your Highness, Fan Xian is nothing but an illegitimate son. What merit does he possess to serve as the head of the Imperial Academy?" Guo Baokun said with a fawning expression. "Today, we will make him lose face and get him out of the capital!"

The Crown Prince snorted coldly and put down his teacup. "Second Brother has been too prominent lately, so Father Emperor pushed Fan Xian forward to maintain balance. Hmph, the person Second Brother wants to kill, I'll trample under my feet first, and show Father Emperor who the future master of Daqing truly is!"

Just then, a commotion arose in the crowd.

"Fan Xuezheng has arrived!"

With a notification, Fan Xian appeared in everyone's sight. He walked calmly, and despite facing hundreds of ill-intentioned gazes, he remained unfazed and walked straight to the front of the Minglun Hall.

"This humble official, Fan Xian, greets Your Highness the Crown Prince." Fan Xian bowed slightly, performing a perfectly impeccable salute.

The prince didn't even lift his eyelids, continuing to sip his tea leisurely, as if the person in front of him didn't exist.

silence.

Dead silence.

This was the most direct humiliation. Since the Crown Prince didn't tell him to stand, Fan Xian had to keep bowing. The surrounding students chuckled softly, and Guo Baokun looked at Fan Xian with smug satisfaction, as if he were looking at a drowning dog.

Fan Xian maintained his bowing posture, but inwardly he sneered. This childish trick was far too low-level.

He slowly straightened up, and without waiting for the Crown Prince to speak, he said to himself, "Since Your Highness is enjoying tea, then I will not disturb you any longer. Today is the first day of school, and there are many matters to attend to, so I will take my leave first."

After saying that, he actually turned around and started to walk into the lecture hall.

"stop!"

Guo Baokun shouted angrily, jumped out, pointed at Fan Xian's nose, and cursed, "How dare you, Fan Xian! His Highness the Crown Prince did not tell you to rise, yet you dare to stand up on your own and disregard His Highness! This is utter disrespect! According to the law, you should be slapped!"

Fan Xian stopped and turned around, looking at Guo Baokun as if he were an idiot: "Compiler Guo, this is the Imperial Academy, a place for reasoning, not your backyard. I am the Imperial Academy's Director, personally appointed by His Majesty. I have official duties to perform, and His Highness the Crown Prince, out of concern for his subjects, will naturally not blame me. But you, shouting and yelling here, what kind of behavior is this?"

"You!" Guo Baokun was furious. He turned to the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, look at him..."

The Crown Prince finally put down his teacup and slowly stood up. He walked up to Fan Xian, staring at him with a cold gaze, releasing the oppressive aura of a crown prince.

"Fan Xian, you certainly have a sharp tongue," the Crown Prince said coldly. "But don't forget, this is the capital. If I order you to kneel, you kneel. If I order you to die, you die."

"Guards!" the crown prince suddenly shouted.