[Various] The Deposed Crown Prince's Survival Story

Qin State, Xianyang Palace. This novel, updated extremely quickly and stably, is by [author's name/platform name]. First published here.

Ying Zheng sat on his throne, leaning against a huge screen embroidered with the maps of the seven kingdoms. He looked down at the kneeling palace maid and said, "Say what you just said again."

His voice was as calm and even as usual, seemingly devoid of any emotion, but upon closer listening, it was not difficult to detect the murderous intent and anger hidden within it.

"Your Majesty, Lao Ai and the Empress Dowager have agreed to launch a rebellion during the King's coming-of-age ceremony, kill the King and his eldest son, and then install their eldest son as the King of Qin," the palace maid said respectfully.

If Fusu were present and recognized this palace maid, he would know that she was the one who had been with Zhao Ji for many years, was very much liked by Zhao Ji, and had even hugged her.

Sure enough!

Ying Zheng's heart sank.

Because Zhao Ji unusually wanted Fusu to stay with her, Ying Zheng immediately ordered the Black Ice Guard to thoroughly investigate the situation in the Zheng Palace. As a result, they discovered that Zhao Ji was plotting a rebellion.

Her biological mother, who had always been her only family since childhood and had always doted on her, even saving every piece of meat for her to eat, actually wanted to kill her for a man and two bastard children...

Ying Zheng felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar. If the situation hadn't prevented it, he would have rushed to Zhao Ji and loudly questioned her.

What did I do wrong? Ever since I became sensible and realized how hard my mother worked to support the family, I have always agreed to whatever Zhao Ji asked of me.

I never imagined that my love and respect for my mother would be rewarded in this way.

But Ying Zheng also knew that Zhao Ji, who was once incredibly loving, was no longer just his mother. She had two young and adorable new sons who were more obedient and well-behaved than him, and who were more likely to win Zhao Ji's favor.

He had experienced Zhao Ji's deep maternal love before. He knew that Zhao Ji was a crazy woman who was willing to sacrifice everything for her sons—including her other son.

The more Ying Zheng thought about it, the heavier the sour feeling in his heart became, and the more gloomy his eyes grew.

"Tell me, who are the people who have made agreements with Lao Ai?"

Ying Zheng was clearly filled with anger and grief, but his voice remained calm and composed, revealing no emotion whatsoever.

"Your Majesty, Lao Ai, with his retainer Leng Qi as his strategist, persuaded the palace guards..."

Each time a palace maid called out a name, Ying Zheng would lightly tap the long table with his fingertips.

“Pah…pah…pah…pah…”

The hall was deathly silent, as if in a vacuum, with only the sound of Ying Zheng's fingertips lightly tapping the long table echoing in the air, each tap like a blow to the heart, almost suffocating one.

"You did a good job." Ying Zheng praised the palace maids below, then turned to ask, "How is Fusu?"

When his eldest son was mentioned, Ying Zheng's voice softened considerably, as if his son were right in front of him and he was afraid that his voice would be too cold and disturb his son.

Although another concubine gave birth to a son for Ying Zheng during this period, compared to his second son who was prone to crying and making a fuss, Ying Zheng, who had little patience for children, did not show excessive affection for his second son, who was right in front of him, because "the squeaky wheel gets the grease." Instead, he missed Fusu, who was well-behaved, honest, and had the demeanor of an elder brother even at a young age, and who was forced to stay in Yongcheng as a "hostage."

Alas! I am truly not a good father. I have clearly stated that I will never allow any of my children to live in such precarious circumstances as I have, becoming hostages to others.

"Your Majesty, the eldest son is doing well. He can eat and sleep well, and he can even eat his meals. The wet nurse has already weaned him."

Seeing that Ying Zheng's face lit up with joy because of her words, the palace maid quickly told him a few more amusing stories about Fusu, which finally cheered Ying Zheng up a bit.

"Take good care of Prince Fusu. After this matter is over, you can choose whether to enter the palace or leave," Ying Zheng said in a good mood.

Upon hearing this, the palace maid smiled sweetly and immediately kowtowed to Ying Zheng, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

When Ying Zheng emerged from the palace, night had already fallen. The sky was like a curtain, with stars and the moon shining brightly. Thousands of lanterns in the Xianyang Palace emitted points of light, dispelling the darkness and illuminating Xianyang as if it were daytime.

Ying Zheng boarded the royal chariot without uttering a word, letting Zhao Gao drive it forward.

After a while, Ying Zheng noticed that the road was not right and said, "Let's go to Lady Mi's place."

"Yes, sir." Zhao Gao responded, and Wang Che turned around and walked to the other side.

Hearing that Ying Zheng suddenly turned his royal carriage around and went to Mi Ji's palace on his way to his own palace, Lady Zhao, who had just given birth to Ying Zheng's second son and was now in favor, slammed her hand on the long table in anger, "Hmph! What use is the eldest son? Everyone in the palace knows that the child never cried after he was born, he's probably an idiot! The child is still young now, but when he grows up, let's see how Mi Ji will cover up a stupid son!"

"Achoo!" Fusu sneezed loudly, then rubbed his nose, thinking angrily to himself.

Who's talking about me again? Are they spreading rumors that I'm stupid? How am I stupid? I'm super smart! What little baby can eat by themselves at just one year old like me?

After the palace maid wiped Fusu's face, Fusu climbed back to his small table, picked up his small spoon, and continued eating the meat soup, ignoring the worried expression on his wet nurse's face behind him.

They arrived in May. It was clearly agreed that they would only stay for a few months, and that Prince Fusu would be brought back to Xianyang Palace after the King's coming-of-age ceremony.

However, in Qin, October is considered the first month of the year. Now, October, November, December, January, February, and March have all passed, and half a year has gone by in the ninth year of King Zheng of Qin's reign. Yet, Lao Ai has yet to set a date for the King of Qin's coming-of-age ceremony, and the King of Qin has yet to send anyone to fetch his eldest son.

Having lived in the inner palace for many years, the wet nurse naturally knew more than others. At present, the atmosphere in the Zheng Palace was becoming increasingly tense, so she guessed that it was probably not because the King of Qin did not send someone to pick up the eldest son, but because the King of Qin had come, but was stopped by Zhao Ji.

It's truly pitiful to talk about the eldest prince. As the eldest prince of the mighty Qin Dynasty, his first birthday should have been a grand occasion worthy of a lavish banquet in Xianyang Palace. However, on Fusu's birthday, even Zhao Ji didn't show up. She only instructed the kitchen to add an extra egg for him, which she considered a birthday gift.

So pitiful! This is his own grandson! A grandson is never as good as a son!

Having lived in the Dazheng Palace for a long time, and with the people there not deliberately hiding the fact that Zhao Ji had a child, the wet nurse had also vaguely learned about it, and knew that a storm was about to break.

It's not unusual for an empress dowager to have a child through an affair; the previous empress dowager Xuan had also had one. But the wet nurse didn't think that Zhao Ji, this foolish woman, could have the shrewdness of the empress dowager Xuan.

"Sigh!" The wet nurse sighed, looking at Fusu who was happily eating with a small spoon.

Compared to the great storm to come, the wet nurse was more worried about Fusu. The child was already a week old, but he still couldn't walk or talk. All he did all day was eat and sleep, or just stare blankly. It would take a long time for him to respond when called, and he would look at you with a blank expression. He didn't have the vitality expected of a child his age. He was easy to take care of, but he looked like a little fool... No, no, no! Prince Fusu was just growing a little slower; he was definitely not a fool.

Hearing his wet nurse sighing behind him, the clever and wise Fusu knew perfectly well what she was thinking, but he couldn't tell her.

Firstly, by not walking, not talking, eating, and sleeping, one can reduce physical activity and accumulate more energy to be used when needed.

Yes, Fusu is now like a rechargeable battery, needing to be recharged every minute, and the dormant state is the most energy-efficient.

Anyway, the experienced members of the forum all told him that as long as his boss was alive, Lao Ai wouldn't kill him, and he could sleep with him however he wanted; but if his boss died, no matter how much he tried to cause trouble, he was destined to be a one-day wonder—one day on a planet, a year on Earth. His only worry was if his boss won, and Lao Ai, cornered, would resort to desperate measures, which would be when the seemingly fragile but actually powerful infant would come into play.

I want everyone in the Great Qin to know that I'm not just someone who eats porridge—I can also eat meat.

As for spacing out and looking blankly at people's expressions, that happens when you're browsing forums and having a great time debating couples, and someone suddenly switches you out of forum mode, so of course it takes you a while to react.

Secondly, pretending to be mentally challenged was a self-defense tactic taught to him by his fellow forum members.

A netizen named "Roll Over, General Liang" said that when he went to Earth, he was too smart and witty, and as a result, he was... well, you know, given that he was given a one-day trip by a powerful minister who was jealous of his intelligence.

Another netizen named "I Want to Go Back to Sichuan" said that he pretended to be mentally disabled so that he could still enjoy the title of duke after the country fell, happily eating and playing, and finally lived happily to his sixties.

It's just pretending to be mentally challenged, I can do that too.

After finishing a bowl of meat soup, Fusu waved his hand and ordered someone to bring another bowl.

Finally, I don't have to drink milk anymore, so of course I should eat more meat. Unfortunately, the adults won't feed me big pieces of meat.

Just as Fusu was complaining that there was too little meat in the meat soup, he heard someone outside announce, "The Empress Dowager has arrived."

Huh? Why is Zhao Ji here? Hasn't she come to see me in ages?

Lao Ai and those two unruly children were still by Zhao Ji's side.

Fusu felt disgusted at the sight of those two brats, because every time they came, they would treat him like a toy and keep tormenting him.

These kids are at the age where even giant aliens like Baymax and Doraemon would find them annoying. They don't know their own strength when they touch someone, and since Fusu has good skin, even a single touch from one of these kids would leave a red mark on his face. Not to mention, these two kids have never even known what "touching" means.

Sure enough, as soon as they saw Fusu, the two mischievous children cheered and rushed over, shouting, "Let me hold my little nephew!" They insisted on snatching Fusu from their wet nurse's arms.

Seeing Fusu's face turn pale with fright from the mischievous child, the wet nurse was about to refuse when she heard Zhao Ji speak up: "What are you all standing there for? Didn't you hear what the two young masters said? Hurry up and give Fusu to them!"

The little bear insisted on holding Fusu, but he was only six years old and couldn't possibly hold Fusu, a big white meatball who ate and slept all day and was as fat as a ball of flesh. So, with a "splat", the little bear let go and sat down on the ground with a thud, crying loudly.

Fusu reacted quickly, grabbing the big bear's belt and using the big bear as a cushion, then sat down on the big bear's chest.

Before he could even settle in, he heard Zhao Ji's shrill scream from above, "Fusu, how could you be so inconsiderate? You're pressing down on Bao'er!"

Then, Fusu saw Zhao Ji raise her foot towards him.