Reborn Into The Harem Of A Prince From An Enemy Country - Chapter 9

When Crown Prince Chu Ziqian arrived at the Jiang family estate, Jiang Chengjin was still lying face down on his bed, wailing miserably despite having nursed his injuries for several days.

“It hurts! It hurts me to death!”

“Chengjin, are you alright?” Chu Ziqian pushed open his bedroom door and walked over to the bedside with a concerned expression.

“Your Highness the Crown Prince, you’ve finally come!”

Seeing him as if a savior had arrived, Jiang Chengjin flipped back the quilt to reveal his battered, lacerated backside.

“Just look at how badly that bastard Chu Lianmo beat me! He is completely out of line. Even knowing I am your friend, he still dared to beat me like this. People say you must check who the dog belongs to before hitting it; he’s simply showing zero respect for you!”

Hearing this, Chu Ziqian secretly found it rather amusing. Who compares themselves to a dog?

On the surface, however, he put on an expression of distressed fury. “My fourth younger brother’s actions were indeed excessive. I will help you teach him a lesson.”

“With Your Highness’s word, I can finally rest easy!” Receiving Chu Ziqian’s promise, Jiang Chengjin’s resentment dissipated by a few fractions.

“Then you should get some proper rest, Chengjin. I won’t disturb your recovery any longer.”

With that, Chu Ziqian left Jiang Chengjin’s room and headed in the direction of another bedchamber.

At that moment, Jiang Chengjin’s third younger brother, Jiang Yingnan, was sitting inside his room painting.

He was sketching a portrait of a young nobleman admiring a book. The nobleman in the painting sat upon a large rock, engrossed in a text with refined and scholarly features that bore a striking spiritual resemblance to Jiang Yingnan himself.

After finishing the figure, he paused in thought before adding a martial youth standing nearby. The nobleman was reading, while the youth watched him with a gaze full of intriguing affection.

Hearing the sound of someone pushing open the door, he looked up and saw that the newcomer was none other than the living prototype of the martial youth in his mind: Chu Ziqian.

“Ziqian, you’re here.”

Jiang Yingnan immediately set down his brush, a radiant and joyful smile blooming across his face as he hurried over to help Chu Ziqian take off his outer robe and hang it on the wall. “Are you staying the night this time, alright?”

“Alright.” Chu Ziqian smiled gently, sat down on the edge of the bed, and pulled Jiang Yingnan onto his lap, wrapping both arms around him while his hands began to wander with a hint of mischievous intent.

Jiang Yingnan’s initially pale cheeks instantly flushed a bright crimson, yet he obediently allowed Chu Ziqian to have his way with him.

“I went to check on your second brother just now. His injuries are truly not light.”

“What?” Jiang Yingnan suddenly frowned with displeasure, brushed away Chu Ziqian’s arm, and stood up from his lap. “You went to see him first when you arrived at the Jiang estate?”

Chu Ziqian chuckled, pulling him back into his embrace once more. “Are you always this jealous, treating your own home like a contest for favor against your second brother? A good-for-nothing spendthrift like him could never hold a candle to you in my heart. I went to see him for official business.”

“What official business?” Jiang Yingnan asked, a lingering trace of unhappiness in his voice.

“Still sulking with me?” Chu Ziqian reached out and pinched his cheek. “I am exhausting myself and racking my brains entirely for your sake, securing your position as the heir of the Jiang family.”

Jiang Yingnan’s expression instantly shifted from irritation to pleasant surprise. “What do you mean by that?”

Since childhood, Jiang Chengjin had been a reckless prodigal. General Jiang was constantly so enraged by him that his beard would bristle, and he had lost count of how many times he had beaten and scolded him over the years. However, Jiang Chengjin’s mother always shielded him, preventing General Jiang Zhenxiong from striking too hard, which meant his behavior was never truly corrected. Regrettably, Jiang Chengjin was the only legitimate son of the Jiang household, making him the sole heir to the title.

Consequently, Jiang Yingnan had always harbored deep resentment, secretly vowing to usurp the position of heir one day.

Chu Ziqian smiled lightly. “Your second brother asked me to help him get back at Chu Lianmo, so I’ve decided to hire an assassin to kill him.”

Jiang Yingnan was startled. “What?! Why on earth has it escalated to murder? Besides, isn’t your fourth younger brother said to possess peerless martial arts? How could he be easily killed?”

“Of course it won’t be easy,” Chu Ziqian’s smile turned increasingly cunning. “If he actually gets killed, that would be for the best. But if the assassin fails and gets captured, he will confess that Jiang Chengjin ordered the hit. Tell me, when that happens, will Jiang Chengjin still be fit to hold the title of the Jiang family heir?”

Jiang Yingnan finally grasped Chu Ziqian’s intentions. Given this prior conflict with Jiang Chengjin, Chu Lianmo would likely be deeply convinced that Jiang Chengjin had indeed hired an assassin. By then, any possibility of repairing the relationship between the Jiang family and Chu Lianmo would be completely severed, while he himself could effortlessly eliminate his rival, Jiang Chengjin. However…

“I only want to strip Jiang Chengjin of his heirship; I don’t want him to die. Furthermore, assassinating a Prince is no minor crime. Will this implicate the entire Jiang family?”

“Rest assured, I have already considered all of these factors,” Chu Ziqian maintained his confident smile. “Given how much the Emperor values and trusts the Jiang family, how could he possibly implicate the entire clan over a mere Chu Lianmo? As for your second brother, your father spoils him so much that even a near-fatal beating is the worst he’d face; would he actually bear to kill his own son?”

Jiang Yingnan frowned, doubt still lingering in his heart.

It sounded as though Chu Ziqian wasn’t entirely certain whether Jiang Chengjin would survive or not. Chu Ziqian’s methods had always been more ruthless than his own, and when the time came, he probably wouldn’t care at all.

“What’s wrong?” Chu Ziqian raised an eyebrow. “I went through all this trouble to devise such a brilliant multi-purpose plan to pave the way for your succession, and you’re still not grateful? Wasn’t it you who originally approached me for cooperation precisely for the sake of the heirship?”

Jiang Yingnan could not help feeling a silent wave of self-mockery. Indeed, approaching Chu Ziqian in the first place was meant to be a partnership; his intelligence clearly made him a far better asset to him than Jiang Chengjin, which is why our alliance was struck so quickly.

When Chu Ziqian first demanded his body as part of the arrangement, Jiang Yingnan had felt a degree of reluctance, but he had gradually sunk deep into the embrace of this overbearing yet tender-hearted man, ultimately becoming the one who loved more deeply.

“I didn’t mean it that way,” seeing Chu Ziqian speak in a cold tone, Jiang Yingnan immediately softened his voice. “Then I will leave all the arrangements in your hands, Ziqian.”

“That’s a good boy.”

Smiling with satisfaction, Chu Ziqian swept Jiang Yingnan up in a horizontal embrace and carried him toward the bed.

Early the next morning, Chu Ziqian departed for the morning court session as usual.

Since Jiang Yingnan held no official post or peerage and had a completely leisurely schedule, he intended to sleep in a bit longer. Suddenly, however, someone kicked open his bedroom door, stormed inside, and delivered a fierce slap across his face.

Waking up abruptly from his slumber, Jiang Yingnan instinctively sat up to dodge, opening his eyes in utter bewilderment to assess the situation.

Standing before him was a young noblewoman draped in swaying jade hair ornaments. While she possessed delicate features, her expression was extraordinarily fierce, and she was flanked by two burly guards.

“Shameless little vixen!” the woman planted her hands on her hips and cursed loudly. “My husband spent the night sleeping in your room again last night, didn’t he?”

“So it’s the Crown Princess.”

Though deeply displeased and annoyed, Jiang Yingnan had no choice but to get out of bed and offer a bow. “Greetings, Princess…”

“Greetings my foot!” The Crown Princess delivered another harsh slap to his other cheek. “Today I am going to beat this scourge to death!”

This time, Jiang Yingnan reacted swiftly, lunging forward to grab her wrist with a chilling gaze. “This is the Jiang estate. Even if you are the Crown Princess, you have no right to run amok here.”

“Release the Princess!” one of the burly guards barked, throwing a heavy punch straight at Jiang Yingnan’s arm.

Overcome by pain, Jiang Yingnan was forced to release his grip on the Princess. Before he could recover, the guard kicked him ruthlessly behind the knee, driving him to the ground while the second guard rushed in to pin both his arms so he could not move.

“Hahaha, the Jiang estate?” the Crown Princess laughed with stinging disdain. “Your father is a high-ranking pillar of the imperial court, yet he actually condones his own son playing the role of a seducing vixen! I am going to have a proper discussion with him about this today! Ada,” she commanded, turning to one of the guards, “go fetch Jiang Zhenxiong.”

“There’s no need to disturb my father over this!” Jiang Yingnan began to panic.

In truth, his relationship with the Crown Prince was no secret within the Jiang household, but such affairs were hardly glorious. If a huge scene was made, it would inevitably incur his father’s deep displeasure. He couldn’t afford a scandal right at this critical juncture of the succession struggle.

“My father is currently under the weather, so let’s not disturb him, shall we?” This was the exact reason Jiang Zhenxiong hadn’t attended court today. “I will offer the Princess my sincere apologies.”

“Hoh, feeling guilty now, are you? I insist on seeing him.”

At that moment, just as the guard named Ada turned to fetch him, a stern, authoritative voice rang out from the doorway: “There is no need to call anyone. Old man I am here.”

As it turned out, the Crown Princess had forced her way through the gates, and the estate guards hadn’t dared lay a hand on her people, so someone had hurriedly run off to report the incident to Jiang Zhenxiong.

Jiang Yingnan lowered his head in utter mortification, not daring to meet his father’s eyes.

“Crown Princess, what is the meaning of this?” Jiang Zhenxiong asked with a solemn expression. “Please order your men to release my son at once.”