Chapter 323: The Workplace Overachiever, Second Young Master Jiang
After the group finished meeting, the Emperor arrived.
If Jiang Changtian hadn’t been eavesdropping outside, he wouldn’t be surnamed Jiang.
Even if he hadn’t been eavesdropping, the eunuchs likely reported everything live to the Emperor.
Looking at the princes and the handsome Second Young Master Jiang, the Emperor noted one common trait: they were all young.
It made him feel terrible.
Growing old was a terrifying experience, impossible to describe in words.
In fact, sometimes he knew that taking elixirs was bad, and that he was even becoming dependent on them.
But compared to the side effects of the elixirs, he feared aging more—the feeling of being old, the feeling of being sick.
That sense of fear was like a bottomless abyss, constantly surrounding him.
He couldn’t find an exit.
This fear grew day by day.
It twisted his personality.
He felt an inexplicable hatred whenever he saw his young sons.
He was even more tolerant toward strangers.
Because in his eyes, every son was an enemy—an enemy who wanted him to die sooner.
Yet he was also a sensible man; he knew this line of thinking was terrifying and abnormal.
If he couldn’t trust his own sons, who could he trust?
He was the Emperor, he was the lonely one.
He was the monarch, he was the father.
When the princes saw their Imperial Father emerge, they all felt a bit nervous.
Because they had experienced their Imperial Father’s fickleness.
One day he might be a doting father, and the next, he would be telling them to go die.
It forced the princes to become twisted; those who studied Buddhism studied Buddhism, those who indulged in vice indulged in vice, those who were love-struck were love-struck…
Second Young Master Jiang, on the other hand, was the most normal among them.
His attitude remained as respectful as ever.
When the Emperor approached, Second Young Master Jiang earnestly showed him the gifts he had received from the princes.
In truth, the Emperor already knew.
But he listened to it all over again anyway.
He also wanted to see if the palace servants’ reports had any discrepancies.
Seeing the Buddhist scriptures sent by the Fifth Prince, he snorted, “Stingy to death. He calls himself a student of Buddhism, but he’s only learned the surface; he hasn’t learned a thing. Lady Zhang is quite generous—the head ornaments she sent to Princess Caiyi last time were very expensive—how did she give birth to such a stingy son?”
When he saw the precious jade sent by the Sixth Prince, signifying reunion, the Emperor nodded, “Good, good, good.” Inside, he thought, ‘The Sixth Prince has many good things. I wonder which official sent them? Is he already so impatient?’
Regarding the Seventh Prince’s property deeds, the Emperor disliked the Seventh Prince. For the sake of a poisonous woman’s daughter, he refused to have children or take a concubine, putting on a display of deep affection. The Emperor didn’t know if it was real or fake, but he found it unpleasant to look at.
The Emperor didn’t even change his expression.
When the 9th Prince gave him silver notes, the Emperor scolded him, “You money-grubber, competing with the common people for profit—is that how a prince should behave?”
The 9th Prince retorted directly, “If I don’t earn this money, other servants will. Those servants live better than I, a dignified prince, do. Why should that be?”
The Emperor’s expression softened slightly. Although he had scolded the 9th Prince, it seemed he actually favored him more.
“You are all brothers. In the future, get along well. Do not fight over petty profits and make a laughingstock of yourselves.”
The princes and Jiang the Second knelt and agreed.
That was the downside of talking to the Emperor.
Even if he was your biological father, you had to kneel while talking to him.
The princes were worthy of being princes; the meal was far from dull.
They were knowledgeable.
The Fifth Prince, who appeared devoted to Buddhism, was actually talkative and well-informed.
The Sixth Prince was eloquent, every sentence a classic.
The 9th Prince cracked jokes.
Only the Seventh Prince was relatively taciturn, sometimes misspeaking; he seemed inarticulate.
Jiang Changtian observed carefully and felt that this Seventh Prince was particularly sinister.
If not for learning from Jiang Wan that he was the final winner, one would never be able to tell. He was the ultimate cynical manipulator.
During the meal, Second Young Master Jiang sat next to the Emperor, while the Sixth Prince occupied the other side.
The Sixth Prince meticulously picked food for his Imperial Father.
There were basically no dishes on the table that the Emperor disliked.
But there was a difference between liking something and liking it even more.
The Sixth Prince was very attentive and filial; if the Emperor chewed a bit more on something, he would remember it and serve more of it.
The princes dined elegantly, but Jiang the Second was actually the most elegant among them. Looking at the table, it seemed as if they were the children who had just been found, and Jiang the Second was the one who had been raised in the palace all along.
While they were eating hot pot and chatting—a rare moment when the Emperor was in a good mood.
Suddenly, an Earthquake struck.
The epicenter was right in the capital. Usually, if an Earthquake was far away, everyone would feel a slight swaying from side to side, with the table moving in small arcs. But this time, it was an up-and-down shaking; the entire table full of food and the hot pot tipped over directly.
The entire palace was shaking—swaying up and down—and the beams overhead creaked.
Everyone was in a panic, thinking only of escaping with their lives.
No sooner said than done, Jiang the Second, as if he had predicted the Earthquake, rushed to the Emperor’s side immediately, pulled the Emperor, and hid in a safe corner.
The Seventh Prince, following closely behind, grasped at empty air.
Even the palace maids, eunuchs, and secret guards hadn’t reacted.
In this critical moment, Jiang the Second, without a second thought, threw himself toward the Emperor to protect him.
Everyone else was rushing outward.
One could only hear Jiang the Second speaking to the Emperor: “Your Majesty, are you alright? Rest assured, as long as I am here, I will never let anything happen to you. Your humble servant is willing to go through fire and water, and sacrifice his life for you…”
Palace maids and eunuchs:…Their minds went blank. Shouldn’t they be running for their lives right now? Why was Jiang the Second’s first thought to pledge loyalty and suck up to the Emperor? He’s such an overachiever…
The princes:…Jiang the Second, you are truly a scoundrel.
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