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

After strolling around with Lin Wan'er for a while, Li Chengze called for a carriage, and the two boarded it.

The carriage slowly drove away from the bustling city, its wheels rolling over the bluestone pavement, making a monotonous yet rhythmic sound.

Inside the carriage, Lin Wan'er nestled beside Li Chengze, clutching the half-eaten candied hawthorn skewer tightly in her hand.

"Second cousin, where are we going?" Lin Wan'er asked softly, looking at the gradually familiar scenery through the crack in the car window.

Li Chengze leaned lazily against the cushion, casually peeled a grape and put it in his mouth, saying indistinctly, "I'm going to see my aunt. After all, it's been a while since I paid my respects to her, and if I don't go, she might blame me for being disrespectful."

Upon hearing this, Lin Wan'er's eyes lit up, and a happy smile appeared on her lips: "Really? I haven't seen my mother in so long either."

Looking at her radiant appearance, Li Chengze's eyes flashed with a hint of doting affection, and he reached out to gently tidy up the stray hairs at her temples.

The carriage stopped in front of the magnificent gate of the Princess's residence.

Li Yunrui did not tie her hair up today; her long black hair was casually draped behind her. She wore a pure white gauze palace dress with silver patterns embroidered on the wide sleeves and hem, which seemed to flow like moonlight as she moved.

She was sitting by the window trimming a pot of precious orchids when she heard footsteps. Her scissors paused slightly, and she turned around, her face breaking into that signature, warm smile.

"Chengze, Wan'er, what brings you here?"

Li Yunrui put down the scissors, took light steps, and walked up to the two of them.

Her gaze lingered on Lin Wan'er for a moment, and seeing her daughter's rosy complexion and bright eyes, a genuine sense of relief flashed in her eyes.

Then, her gaze fell on the string of candied hawthorns in Lin Wan'er's hand. She did not show any disgust, but instead smiled helplessly and took out a handkerchief to gently wipe the candy stains from the corner of Lin Wan'er's mouth.

"You're such a grown-up, yet you still act like a child, indulging in gluttony." Li Yunrui's tone was gentle, with a hint of indulgent reproach. "Aren't you afraid of getting a toothache from eating too much?"

Lin Wan'er stuck out her tongue shyly, then took Li Yunrui's arm and said coquettishly, "Didn't my second cousin buy this? Besides, I don't eat it often, just occasionally, so it won't hurt my teeth."

Li Chengze chimed in with a grin, "Auntie, Wan'er is growing a lot right now, so eating something sweet will lift her spirits."

Watching the two of them working together, Li Yunrui's smile deepened. She pointed a finger at Li Chengze and said, "You should just spoil her."

The three of them sat down, and a maid served them fragrant tea.

After chatting for a while, Li Yunrui seemed to remember something and turned to Lin Wan'er, saying softly, "By the way, Wan'er, a few days ago, several bolts of fine Yun brocade were sent from Jiangnan. The patterns complement your skin tone perfectly. I had several new outfits made and placed in the back hall. Go and try them on to see if they fit. If you don't like them, I'll have them alter them."

Lin Wan'er was an intelligent woman. She keenly sensed that her mother seemed to have something to say to her second cousin alone. She glanced at Li Chengze and then obediently stood up and bowed, saying, "Yes, Mother. Wan'er will go and see it right away; it must be extremely beautiful."

As soon as Lin Wan'er's figure disappeared merrily behind the screen, the atmosphere in the main hall instantly became somber.

Li Yunrui picked up his teacup, gently blew away the foam, and casually asked, "I heard you ran into Fan Xian on the street just now?"

"Aunt's information network is indeed impressive." Li Chengze was not surprised, still sitting in a lazy posture, even putting one foot on the edge of the chair, showing no signs of a prince. "We've run into each other."

"What do you think of Fan Xian?" Li Yunrui raised his eyes, staring intently at Li Chengze.

She didn't care that Fan Xian came to the capital, but the purpose of Emperor Qing's bestowal of a marriage between Fan Xian and Lin Wan'er was self-evident: to sow discord between her and Li Chengze, and at the same time, to take the Imperial Treasury from her and give it to Fan Xian.

This was undoubtedly a thorn in Li Yunrui's side, who regarded the Imperial Treasury as his own private property.

Li Chengze smiled faintly and flicked the grape skins in his hand into the spittoon in the distance with perfect accuracy.

"Aunt, there's no need to worry." He stretched and said casually, "Fan Xian is nothing to me. I've already made arrangements. He can't cause any trouble."

"Oh? You had this planned in advance?" A hint of interest flashed in Li Yunrui's eyes. "I heard that you stood up for the Crown Prince a few days ago."

Li Chengze said, "Fan Xian is still too immature and needs to grow. If we were to break this tender seedling now, it would be too boring."

Li Yunrui gave him a deep look, but didn't press him further about Fan Xian. She had only been testing Li Chengze's attitude towards Fan Xian.

She neither asked about nor mentioned Si Lili's matter.

As far as she was concerned, she didn't care who Li Chengze took into his household, as long as it didn't affect her plans. After all, it was common for men to have multiple wives and concubines.

A brief silence fell over the hall.

A moment later, Li Chengze suddenly sat up straight, his playful expression vanishing. He looked directly at Li Yunrui and slowly spoke:

A moment later, Li Chengze suddenly sat up straight, his playful expression vanishing. He looked directly at Li Yunrui and slowly spoke:

"Auntie, if you stop now, there's still a chance."

These words came abruptly, yet they were like a thunderclap, exploding in Li Yunrui's ears.

Li Yunrui paused for a moment, his eyes, which were always smiling, instantly turned cold, and the teacup in his hand gently tapped on the table, making a crisp sound.

"Stop?" She looked at Li Chengze with a half-smile. "Chengze, what nonsense are you spouting? Why would I need to stop?"

"Aunt is a smart woman, why pretend to be confused?" Li Chengze leaned forward and lowered his voice, "Does Aunt really think Father Emperor knows nothing about your little tricks?"

Li Yunrui's pupils contracted slightly, but she quickly regained her composure.

She gave Li Chengze a deep look, then a bright and alluring smile appeared on her face.

"You're still as smart as ever, kid."

She stood up, walked to Li Chengze, and looked down at him, her long skirt trailing on the ground like a blooming white lotus.

"Tell me, what do you know?"

Li Chengze shook his head, looking up at the crazed woman: "I don't know much, I just want to advise you, Aunt. Even if you secretly collude with the Crown Prince, you have no chance of winning on your own."

"No chance of winning?" Li Yunrui laughed heartily, as if she had heard the biggest joke in the world. When Li Chengze exposed her collusion with the Crown Prince, she stopped pretending. "I have managed the Imperial Treasury for many years, and my protégés and former officials are all over the court. The Crown Prince is dependent on me. Why would I have no chance of winning?"

She suddenly leaned down, her stunningly beautiful face almost touching Li Chengze's nose, her breath sweet as orchids, yet carrying a chilling aura:

"What? Do you think that having one more person will give you an advantage? My good nephew, although you may be able to outmaneuver the Crown Prince in everything now, have you really grasped everything you have? Anything not firmly grasped is just a pile of loose sand; it will scatter with the slightest breeze."

In Yunrui's view, the power in Li Chengze's hands came from her and from Emperor Qing, who intended to support Li Chengze. None of it was truly in Li Chengze's own hands. Li Chengze was like an empty pavilion; if just one pillar was removed, the entire building would collapse.

However, Li Chengze's reaction was beyond her expectations.

Faced with Li Yunrui's aggressive questioning, Li Chengze remained calm and even smiled.

He smiled calmly and confidently.

He neither refuted Li Yunrui's words nor explained his own trump card.

He simply watched Li Yunrui quietly, his gaze lingering on her pure white, yet alluring, gauze dress.

"Auntie's clothes look so nice today."

Li Chengze's voice was soft, carrying a hint of something inexplicable, "Pure white and flawless, yet concealing a sharp edge. Just like Auntie herself."

Li Yunrui was slightly taken aback, not understanding why he suddenly changed the subject.

Li Chengze slowly stood up, straightened his robes, and leaned close to Li Yunrui's ear, speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"If you lose and one day find yourself unable to stay in the palace, remember to come to the Second Prince's residence wearing this outfit. Although I don't have any great abilities, I can still ensure your safety and provide you with a place to live."

Upon hearing this, the hall fell into a deathly silence.

presumptuous!

That's outrageous!

This is not just teasing, but a blatant act of contempt and control.

He was telling Li Yunrui: Everything you rely on now is worthless in my eyes. When you have nothing left, you can only rely on me.

Li Yunrui looked down at her clothes, then at Li Chengze who was standing right in front of her.

She was not angry.

"Such arrogance." Li Yunrui narrowed her eyes, her gaze shifting. "Then I'll wait and see."

Just then, soft footsteps came from behind the screen.

Lin Wan'er is back.

Li Chengze instantly concealed all his sharpness, and his face returned to its lazy, gentle smile. He turned around, naturally facing Lin Wan'er, and took her hand.

"Finished reading? Let's go then. We've received some good new books at the manor; I'll read them to you when we get back."

"Hmm." Lin Wan'er, not understanding what was going on, nodded obediently and bowed to Li Yunrui, "Mother, Wan'er takes her leave."

Li Yunrui stood there, watching the two figures disappear into the distance.

The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the entrance of the main hall, casting long, intertwined shadows of the two people.

Only after the two figures had completely disappeared did the smile on Li Yunrui's face slowly fade, replaced by a deep and unfathomable melancholy.

"The tiger cub has grown up..."

She murmured softly, her slender fingers gently stroking the orchid she had pruned until only bare branches remained.

"Want to test the sharpness of your claws? Interesting..."

"Li Chengze, I hope you can give me a big surprise. Otherwise... people can die in this arena of imperial power."

"Snap!"

With a sharp scissor, he severed the last orchid stem.

"Snap!"

With a sharp scissor, he severed the last orchid stem.

……

The Fan residence.

Fan Xian's courtyard was unusually quiet.

Fan Xian locked himself in his room.

He held a charcoal pencil in his hand and was drawing something quickly on the paper.

The paper was covered with names: Emperor Qing, Crown Prince, Second Prince, Eldest Princess, Lin Wan'er...

These names are connected by countless complex lines, forming a huge network of relationships.

"call……"

Fan Xian let out a long breath, threw the charcoal pencil on the table, and rubbed his throbbing temples.

"The first step has been successfully completed."

He looked at the words "Poetry Gathering" and "Imperial Academy" on the paper and a bitter smile appeared on his lips.

Thanks to his performances at the Imperial Academy and the poetry gatherings, his reputation in Kyoto was firmly established. The name "Poet Immortal" spread like wildfire, and his status in the literary world was secured.

This also completely exposed him to the spotlight.

"The tallest tree in the forest will surely be felled by the wind."

Fan Xian stared at the three words "Second Prince" on the paper, his expression becoming extremely serious.

The scene on the street during the day kept replaying in my mind.

"What is this? He clearly said he was going to kill me before, and now he's introducing Lin Wan'er to me. Is this some kind of show of force?" Fan Xian muttered to himself. "What exactly is the Second Prince up to?"

Compared to the Crown Prince, who was ruthless but whose actions were still somewhat predictable, Li Chengze made Fan Xian feel an unprecedented sense of crisis.

"I'm a sitting duck right now."

Fan Xian calmly analyzed the situation: "The Crown Prince wants to deal with me, the Eldest Princess wants to kill me, and the Second Prince is toying with me. As for me, besides Uncle Wu Zhu, I only have Teng Zijing and Old Wang. I have no one else, and Old Wang certainly won't help me deal with the prince. You could say I'm a blank slate."

A head-on confrontation? That's suicide.

"I must extricate myself from this vortex first. Otherwise, I'll be in a dangerous situation dealing with these guys who can break the rules at any time."

"Sometimes, retreating doesn't mean giving in, but rather preparing for a better punch."

Fan Xian closed his eyes and began to frantically deduce the possibilities in his mind.

Emperor Qing put him on the hot seat to temper the Crown Prince and the Second Prince, and also to test his limits.

Since that's the case, he'll deliberately do things differently.

"They want to see me fight, they want to see me struggle. Well, I'll just refuse to fight, I'll just refuse to struggle."

"I want to be a 'leisurely person'."

Fan Xian suddenly opened his eyes, a glint of shrewdness flashing within them.

"I need a perfect persona."

Fan Xian picked up the charcoal pencil again and wrote four large characters heavily on the paper: "Not doing his proper job."

"Since you think I'm here to seize the imperial treasury and fight for power, then I'll deliberately act as if I have absolutely no interest in any of that."

A sly smile curled at the corner of his lips. "I want everyone in the capital to know that my greatest hobbies, besides writing poetry, are eating, drinking, and having fun, frequenting brothels, and being a rich man with no ambition."

"Only when you feel that I pose no threat, that I am a hopeless case, will you lower your guard slightly. And that will be the time for me to secretly accumulate strength and look for an opportunity to break the deadlock."

The Second Prince's residence, study.

Li Chengze, barefoot and with an unseemly posture, squatted on the armchair, holding a bunch of crystal-clear grapes and popping them into his mouth one after another.

On the large desk in front of him lay a huge sheet of Xuan paper.

The paper doesn't contain any landscape painting, but rather several names.

His other hand held a brush covered in cinnabar, its tip hovering over the paper, yet it hesitated to fall.

There were only four names on the paper.

Emperor Qing, the Eldest Princess, Fan Xian, and himself.

"There are too many people at the table, it's a bit crowded."

Li Chengze made a stroke with his pen.