Rebirth: I'm a Daddy's Darling in the Qing Dynasty

Chapter 155 But... he's the Crown Prince!

As for the point about getting along well with his other brothers, that's even easier to understand. Yinzhu himself doesn't have much ambition. Although they weren't born to the same mother, they have no grudges or enemies. Yinti and the others have always treated him quite well. Why would he give up a good life and go out of his way to make things difficult for them?

Yin Zuo could tell whether Yinreng's words were sincere or not. Since the other party genuinely cared for him, Yin Zuo was naturally willing to accept his kindness. So he turned his gaze to Yinreng, who was sitting by the bed, and smiled.

"I've remembered what you said, Second Brother. Don't worry, I'll be careful when I talk to Father Khan in the future and try my best not to upset him."

Yinreng did what he was supposed to do, and whether Yinzuo listened or not was none of his concern. Hearing Yinzuo's words, he simply nodded and said nothing more. The brothers turned around and started chatting about other topics. The atmosphere in the room immediately lost its previous seriousness. Someone among the brothers said something, and soon Yinti's loud laughter could be heard from inside the room!

If the atmosphere inside the house was cheerful and harmonious, the atmosphere outside the door was absolutely deathly still. Yinzhen, Yinzhen, the thirteenth, and the fourteenth stood in the courtyard, not daring to breathe loudly as they looked at Kangxi, whose face was grim, at the door of their sixth brother's bedroom. They regretted not leaving sooner after being kicked out, instead of waiting for their elder brothers to come out and ask about their sixth brother's condition. Now, even if they wanted to leave, they couldn't!

Yinzhen and the others were standing under a tree in the courtyard, some distance from the door, so they naturally didn't hear what Yinreng and Yinzuo were saying inside. But Kangxi was standing right at the door, only a door away from them, and he heard everything clearly.

Kangxi's feelings at this moment were extremely complicated. The shock that Yinreng's words brought him was no less than that of Yinti and the others. He stood at the door for a long time, listening to his brothers chatting inside, and hearing their joyful laughter constantly reaching his ears through the closed door. In the end, he could only sigh softly, and then waved to Yintang and the others, signaling them to come with him.

Kangxi stopped and turned to Yinzhi and the others who were following him not far behind, after walking a certain distance from Yinzhi's room. He spoke solemnly.

"Remember this: I have not been here today, understand?"

"Understood! How could we not understand after you've said that?" Yin Tang and the others nodded hurriedly upon hearing this!

"Father, rest assured, I understand. Father did not come to Sixth Brother's place today."

With something on his mind, Kangxi's expression and tone were naturally not very pleasant. Yinzhen, Yinzhen, and the others were already afraid of him, and seeing him like this made them even more terrified. Kangxi originally wanted to say a few more words to them, but seeing their frightened appearance, he swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

"Alright, stop standing around here. Your older brother and the others probably won't be out yet. You should go back first."

To Yinzhen and the others, Kangxi's words were like a pardon, and they hurriedly bowed and took their leave. Seeing them flee as if they were escaping, Kangxi felt even more conflicted.

"Liang Jiugong, let's go back to the council hall first."

Kangxi had only been handling official business when he suddenly decided to return to see Yinzhi. Little did he expect that his visit would lead him to overhear such a conversation between the brothers. Kangxi ascended the throne at the age of eight and began ruling in his own right at sixteen. He had experienced countless hardships along the way, and he naturally knew the principle that there were no fathers and sons in the imperial family and no kinship in the royal family. However, he was still a human being, and as such, he had feelings. Although Kangxi understood perfectly well that Yinreng's words were absolutely true, he still felt a chill run down his spine.

"Father, Khan first, Father second"—this phrase kept swirling in Kangxi's mind all afternoon. The usually strong-willed Kangxi suddenly felt a strange sense of fear at this moment. He was afraid that Yinreng, the son he had raised, would become estranged from him, and he was also afraid that Yinzuo, the son who truly regarded him as a father and relied on him, would become distant from him.

"Liang Jiugong, have the boss and the others gone back?"

Having served Emperor Kangxi for so many years, Liang Jiugong could at least glean some insight into his thoughts, if not read his mind. Although he didn't know what the princes inside had said that made His Majesty's face turn so pale, he still had someone keep an eye on the situation there after returning. And look, it came in handy now.

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince, Prince Zhi, and the others left Shaoguang Courtyard an hour ago. Do you wish to return now?"

When Kangxi returned, Yinzhu was strolling in the courtyard with Dexi's help. When he saw Kangxi coming in from outside, he quickly broke free from Dexi's support and went to greet him!

"Father, you're finally back! You must help your son keep an eye on my older brothers. I'm tired of lying in the house and want to go out for a walk, but they won't let me. I finally managed to get them to agree, but they still insist on having Dexi help me walk. Look, I'm almost fully recovered, I don't need anyone to help me anymore... Oh, Father, why do you look so pale? Who made you angry again!"

It must be said that Yinzhuo's actions, which were no different from usual, did relieve Kangxi's anxiety and eased his gloomy expression that had been sullen all afternoon. He turned his head to look at Yinzhuo, who was holding his arm, and reached out to gently tap his forehead as usual.

“A head injury is no small matter. Although you seem fine now, it’s always good to be careful. The imperial physician said you need to rest for a while. Judging from your appearance, you’ve probably been wandering around for a while now. Come on, let’s go inside and rest with Father.”

After returning indoors, Liang Jiugong first very perceptively helped Yinzhuo back to bed and sat him down, then moved a chair to the side of Yinzhuo's bed before turning around and leaving the room.

Kangxi sat on the chair beside Yinzhuo's bed, watching Yinzhuo play with the nine-linked rings in his hand, and quietly watched for a long time before speaking.

"Yinzhuo, I came this afternoon..."

Upon hearing Kangxi's words, Yinzhuo paused in his actions of fiddling with the nine-linked rings. He then looked at his father and wondered why he seemed so preoccupied upon returning home. It turned out that he had been provoked by their conversation that afternoon.

"Well, I saw you come back from outside looking unhappy, and I thought someone had upset you again. It turns out it was because you overheard what my second brother said to me this afternoon. Good heavens, my second brother was just trying to keep his son from getting too spoiled, so he gave him a few pointers. Please don't take it to heart."

Although Yinzhuo could tell from Kangxi's current appearance that the other man had taken his second brother's words to heart, he still felt that Yinreng had said those words for his own good, and regardless of whether it worked or not, he had to say a few words in defense of him.

"Yinzuo, I can assure you that as long as you continue to treat me as you are now, I will always be your father..."

Well, now Kangxi wasn't the only one in the room with mixed feelings. Yinzhuo's emotions were churning, but he couldn't quite define whether he was happy or disappointed. To him, his father would always be his father…

"What about my second brother?"

Kangxi remained silent for a long time after hearing this, so long that Yinzhuo thought he would not answer the question before he finally spoke.

"But...he's the crown prince..."