Transmigrating into a book to save her best friend, her sickly husband vies for her affections every

"Who did you take care of?" Zhao Fucang's voice turned cold.

Zhang Zhan had already stood up. “Your Majesty doesn’t mean to acknowledge me. He feels that the matter is unsolvable and therefore wants me to resolve it myself, to completely resolve everything, to satisfy Prince Fan, to make the Marquis’s family willing, and finally to make him your son. He also wants your favorite son to have some ambition and be willing to inherit your position.”

"No, what do you mean by inheriting your position? It means helping you deal with the Yan family, that in-law family, so you can be the emperor comfortably. Then we'll see which son is obedient and let that son live a few more years."

Disgust flashed in Zhang Zhan's eyes. "What you want isn't a son, but a pawn. You're making your son do things you yourself wouldn't dare do. If things get out of hand, just kill your son. As long as you live, you're still the emperor, and nothing else matters."

"Zhang Zhan!" Zhao Fucang grabbed the teacup in his hand and threw it at him. "I've always indulged you because I thought you were obedient—"

“When have you ever indulged me? It’s Zhao Siwei who has always indulged me, not you, the emperor. Now you say you are my father, and you even silence people who point fingers at you in broad daylight. Isn’t it because you think Prince Fan is hard to deal with? Your position was given to you by Prince Fan, and you dare not offend him.”

"Then what can we do? Sacrifice me, his son, and deal with him whether we acknowledge him or not? How do you expect me to deal with him? Don't you know what kind of filthy thoughts he has about me?"

"Bah! The saying 'there are no fathers and sons in the imperial family' is indeed true."

Zhao Fucang slammed his fist on the table and stood up, "Don't think I won't dare to deal with you!"

"You want to deal with me? Do you dare to deal with me now? Prince Fan wants me. If you deal with me, what will Prince Fan think of you? He will think that you just don't want to go along with him and won't even help him with this little thing. You are brothers, and I am supposed to be raising the son in front of you. You know in your heart what I am. I won't guess. Maybe my guess is even a bit too noble."

Zhao Fucang could no longer contain his anger and raised his hand to slap Zhang Zhan across the face.

Zhang Zhan wasn't afraid; he stepped back to avoid the slap.

He's not stupid, why should he get beaten up?

"You dare to hide?" Zhao Fucang was furious, pointing at Zhang Zhan, "You come here right now! It's true that Old Nine has made you completely lose your composure!"

"To be beaten and allowed to be beaten at will, what family would have such rules for their child?" Zhang Zhan was determined to avoid the question. "Why doesn't Your Majesty just tell me what you want me to do now?"

Hearing the strange noises inside, Zhao Siwei, who was outside, simply rushed in as well.

Seeing Zhang Zhan being grabbed by the arm by Zhao Fucang and about to be slapped, he stepped forward and said, "Why is Father hitting him?" He pressed down on Zhao Fucang's hand. "Can't we talk things out? Zhang Zhan's brain has been badly injured recently. Does Father think he's sick?"

Zhao Fucang was even angrier. He had just grabbed the person and hadn't even hit him yet.

He simply slapped Zhao Siwei on the head several times without any mercy, yelling, "You idiot!"

Zhao Siwei let out a couple of howls after being hit, and Zhang Zhan was also displeased. "Your Majesty, if you have a problem, come at me. Why hit Zhao Siwei? What kind of father would do something like this?"

"Zhang Zhan!"

Zhao Siwei shielded Zhang Zhan behind him, separating the two. "Father, if there's anything you need Zhang Zhan to do, I'll do it."

Zhang Zhan was blunt, "I'm afraid you're not up to the task. Your father wants me to deal with Prince Fan, and you're probably not someone he'd like."

Zhao Siwei's face immediately darkened. "Father, are you serious?"

Zhao Si was so angry that her heart ached. She simply went back and sat down. "I... I asked Zhang Zhan to tell me himself how he wanted things to end. This kid jumped up and down as soon as he heard the name Prince Fan. What did I do?"

He was so angry that he tapped his knee with his finger, as if he didn't even want to use the word "I" anymore. "Do you think I don't know what Zhang Zhan went through at the age of nine? If I don't acknowledge him, then Prince Fan will say that Zhang Zhan is his son. No, regardless of whether I acknowledge him or not, Prince Fan will say to the world that Zhang Zhan is his son. You two tell me, how do you plan to resolve this? Kill Prince Fan?"

"Does Father Emperor want to kill Prince Fan?" Zhao Siwei said, glaring at Zhang Zhan who was about to speak, pointing at his mouth and warning him to shut up. "Father Emperor, why don't you tell me what you want Prince Fan to do, or what you hope Prince Fan will do?"

“Over the years, Prince Fan has relied on his support for your ascension to the throne to completely control the Ministry of War. Now that there are wars everywhere, in my opinion, Prince Fan is very resistant to Zhang Zhan going to the Ministry of Revenue, just because he is afraid that Zhang Zhan will find out about him.”

"Who wouldn't want Zhang Zhan?"

Zhao Siwei's words eased the tense atmosphere.

"As for whether Father Emperor wants Zhang Zhan as a son, it's not important. As long as the son is alive, Zhang Zhan will be fine. Isn't that enough? Revealing his identity at this time won't do any good, so it's better to keep it a secret."

"Even if the whole city is in turmoil later, wouldn't that be better? That way, the royal family won't need to say anything; everyone outside will know."

"If Prince Fan says Zhang Zhan is his son, then is that right? Can I also find someone else and say that Zhang Zhan is someone else's child? As for rumors, as long as they are outrageous, that's fine."

"Why should Father Emperor get angry with Zhang Zhan? He's lost his mind lately, and he's made his son half-dead."

Zhao Siwei was adept at appeasing his father, pouring him tea and handing it to him, saying, "Don't take it to heart."

“I told you to keep him in check before.” Zhao Fucang drank his tea and glanced at Zhang Zhan standing beside him, noticing a hint of composure in his eyes.

Zhang Zhan had always given him the impression of a respectable person, someone who had never made a mistake. Now, it seemed that he knew Zhang Zhan had family, and it was as if he had found a real support.

Hearing his father chuckle, Zhao Siwei was a little confused. "If you can handle the Yan family, I'll grant you a promise, how about that?"

"The Yan family? Your Majesty might as well let me and Zhao Siwei go to heaven." Zhang Zhan said irritably. "I could just slit my own throat with him. The Yan family, the Yan family that even Your Majesty fears, me, him?"

Your Majesty: "What if I were to give you the Northern Garrison Command?"

“If one Northern Garrison Commander can succeed, what does His Majesty need the two of us for?” Zhang Zhan was not fooled.

Moreover, Zhao Siwei could easily move the people in the Northern Garrison Command if he wanted to; what difficulty was there in that?

Zhao Siwei stepped back two steps, letting the two of them play Tai Chi.

He thought Zhang Zhan and his father had gotten into a fight, and said he was coming in to break it up.

Zhao Fucang: "Then what do you want?"

Zhang Zhan was quite direct: "Just grant him the title of King. That would make him a prince, and the status would be equal. Your Majesty didn't see the arrogant attitude of Prince Fan."

Zhao Fucang said, "Being granted the title of king? Does that mean elders are no longer elders? If a prince doesn't know the rules, I can tell him to be taught properly, but if a prince misbehaves, that will cause a major disaster."

“Zhao Jiu is shameless. He doesn’t care about elders. Besides, what Fan Wang is doing is a disgraceful thing,” Zhang Zhan said.

The air was quiet for a moment.

"Alright, but it's not easy to convince the people if a king is conferred without cause."

Zhang Zhan: "I'll go back and think about it. If Your Majesty has nothing else to say, we'll be leaving."

Zhao Fucang nodded, then looked at Zhang Zhan, "Do you want to be a prince?"

Zhang Zhan: "No, I'm fine the way I am now."

What's the point of being a prince? Being a prince means you have no control over your own life.

**

Zhao Siwei walked in the night, no longer needing to sleep. He strode forward, not caring whether Zhang Zhan could keep up.

He left the camp and headed towards a hillside.

Zhang Zhan couldn't keep up. "Zhao Siwei!"

Zhao Siwei strode forward, completely ignoring him.

Zhang Zhan grabbed a snowball and threw it at him, "What are you so angry about!"

"It's nothing," Zhao Siwei said. "Did I get in your way by coming out for a walk?"

Zhang Zhan ran up to her in two strides, "Now that you've been made a prince, you don't have to stay in the palace anymore. Didn't you want to marry Ji Tingyao? You can submit a petition and make the decision yourself then."

The princes were subject to too many restrictions; they needed their parents' approval for everything.

Zhao Siwei looked at him and said, "Can you stop always making decisions for me?"

"This is for your own good. You care about more people now, don't you want to move up to the next level? Or do you have a better way?"

Zhang Zhan looked at him with clear eyes, waiting for his explanation.

"Do you intend to kill Prince Fan?"

Zhang Zhan: "You want to keep him?"

Zhao Siwei: "Are you planning to use me to kill the vassal king? Answer me."

Zhang Zhan turned his head away.

Zhao Siwei: "Zhang Zhan, answer me."

Zhang Zhan turned his back. "I want to kill him. Ever since I realized what he wanted to do to me that day, I've wanted to kill him, but all these years he hasn't sent a message back, and he hasn't come near me either."

But now the vassal king has come again.

In his view, it was even Consort Xian who instructed him to do it.

If it weren't for Zhao Siwei, he would have definitely caused some trouble.

This planted a seed of doubt in Zhao Sifu's heart.

This made him believe that Consort Xian and Prince Fan were having an affair.

In any case, once suspicion arises, Consort Xian's days will not be easy.

It wasn't that Prince Fan was invincible; it was from the moment he realized that Consort Xian and Prince Fan were in cahoots.

Moving against Prince Fan would mean moving against Zhao Siwei, so he was hesitant to act rashly.

"If you want to kill, then kill. Why bother telling Father Emperor?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhan suddenly looked up.

“You said it, so we have to bear this crime. Father Emperor likes me now, and he likes you too. But what if he doesn’t like us anymore in the future? This is the knife he can use to kill us.”

"Why are you so stupid sometimes?"

Zhao Siwei looked at the moon and said, "Father summoned you today to tell you that he can acknowledge you or not, it all depends on what you want him to do."

"You're angry about this?" Zhang Zhan looked at him. "What are you thinking? We're all worried sick, and you still act like it doesn't matter."

"I don't know why you're all panicking. Look, I'm still the Ninth Prince. Who can do anything to me? As long as I don't do anything serious, no one can do anything to me."

"What you're worried about is how the Crown Prince will treat me in the future. The Crown Prince won't kill me, and he's also afraid of interference from the Empress Dowager's relatives. So, even if he ascends the throne in the future, he will keep me in the capital."

Just like how he insisted on keeping Zhang Zhan despite everyone's opposition.

From a broader perspective, Zhang Zhan was someone who had to stay; only in this way could another emperor remain.

After all, he didn't have any children at the time, and even if he did, they were still young and needed a regent.

There is no one more suitable to be regent than Zhang Zhan.

"I really don't know what you guys are panicking about," Zhao Siwei said again. "And you, you've been quite unsteady lately too."

Zhang Zhan didn't respond to that.

Zhao Siwei naturally knew why.

Zhang Zhan's only weakness was himself; he had already arranged for his grandparents to be placed in a safe place.

Right now, he's like a stubborn donkey on the move.

The Marquis's mansion dared not offend him, and because he had to observe mourning, he could not marry. Those who wanted to bind Zhang Zhan through marriage were helpless.

What he needs to do now is to help his elder brother, the emperor, to consolidate his power, so that he himself can also benefit.

In fact, Zhang Zhan probably didn't think about any of these things.

Zhang Zhan was simply afraid of dying.

"I probably can't be with you every day these days. Since I'm not around, you should go and stay with Father, okay?"

Zhang Zhan: "What are you going to do?"

Zhao Siwei: "I haven't figured it out yet. If we don't do something about this great opportunity, we'll really regret it. Anyway, don't do anything reckless, understand?"

A night breeze blew by, and Zhang Zhan looked at the lake below the hillside. His eyes lit up, and he said, "Is that the imperial tomb over there? Everyone says that the imperial tomb has good feng shui, and I think I can see it now."

Speaking of the imperial tombs, Zhao Siwei felt a tightness in his chest.

"Yes, the imperial tomb. Do you like it?"

Zhang Zhan disliked it, saying, "I never want to go to the imperial tombs in my life. I hate that place."

Zhao Siwei looked at him and said, "Actually, if you could see quickly, could I use what you learned at nine years old to do something?"

Zhang Zhan said it was up to him.

Zhao Siwei stood with him on the hillside. "Zhang Zhan, will you be my enemy?"

Zhang Zhan: "Am I so full that I have nothing better to do?"

"Then remember what you just said. If you ever dare to betray me in this lifetime, I will lock you up in the imperial mausoleum and put you in the same room as the memorial tablet of Prince Fan."

Zhang Zhan's eyes widened. "Are you even human?"

Zhao Siwei looked at him and said, "I'm serious. I saved you and even broke off relations with my mother. You never listen to me and always do things that you think are good for me. Who knows, we might suddenly fall out someday. You have so many ideas, how can I possibly handle them every time?"

“I don’t think Ji Tingyao can always be so lenient. You’re so magnanimous towards her, but why are you so petty towards me?”

"She's not like you. She's a girl, and you? Before she does something, she has to think about whether I'll get angry, but you act like I won't even bother with you."

Zhao Siwei's eyes were calm. "Remember, don't do anything reckless this time. As for what Father Emperor just said, I have my own plans. You just have fun."

Zhang Zhan reluctantly hummed in agreement, "It's none of your business."

Zhao Siwei said, "If it weren't for me, what would you be like now?"

Zhang Zhan said he didn't know, and then smiled, saying, "It's probably a joke, a joke in the capital. Even if your father knew who I was, he wouldn't want to hear it."