The Child Emperor

The Cui manor was decorated festively, but it had little to do with Prince Donghai, making him deeply feel the fickleness of human relationships. His excitement about returning to the Capital instantly vanished.

He walked toward the inner quarters. Though seeing familiar faces felt intimate, their smiling faces disgusted him, like a jealous husband seeing his wife smile warmly at others.

Prince Donghai had grown up in the Cui manor and could freely enter the inner quarters without anyone stopping him. He first went to his mother’s quarters, but near the entrance remembered she had left for the palace, her fate uncertain. Growing more melancholic, he decided to visit his grandmother, who had always doted on him, hoping for some comfort.

The old lady’s room was packed with people wearing ambiguous smiles, like archers ready to loose their arrows – needing just one signal to unleash various types of laughter from gentle chuckles to roaring guffaws. When Prince Donghai arrived, an old maidservant misread the timing and burst out laughing inappropriately, earning everyone’s contempt and shrinking away in embarrassment.

Normally, Prince Donghai wouldn’t have noticed such details, but now he did and even felt sympathy for the old maidservant .

“The Champion Marquis…”

Hearing these words, Prince Donghai immediately knew he had come to the wrong place. Like the rest of the Cui manor’s festivities, his grandmother was also celebrating the marriage alliance with the Champion Marquis.

He turned to leave but was already spotted. As usual, many warmly greeted him. At his grandmother’s command, several maidservants hurriedly escorted him into the room like presenting a treasure.

His grandmother sat on her couch, embracing two granddaughters, beaming with joy. “My dear grandson, your third sister is getting married. Why have you only now come to offer congratulations?”

Prince Donghai forced a smile: “I won’t congratulate her in front of all these maids and servants – how vulgar. I want to do it privately and send her off.”

The maids and servants, though supposedly insulted, laughed even more merrily. His grandmother particularly enjoyed his arrogance and said, “Your third sister is promised to the Champion Marquis – you can’t congratulate her privately anymore.”

Prince Donghai stomped his feet and clutched his chest in an exaggerated display of anguish. “All my sisters who I grew up with are getting married. What’s left for me here? Grandmother, you only think of your granddaughters, forgetting about your grandsons. Neither Cui Teng nor I are married yet.”

The more childish her descendants acted, the happier the old lady became. She pointed at Prince Donghai and scolded playfully, “You’re an imperial prince – if you can’t find a wife, how is that my fault? Why don’t you go ask the Bureau of Imperial Clan Affairs?”

Prince Donghai feigned dejection while everyone around laughed. Except for two eunuchs, the room was filled with women. After staying a while longer, he formally congratulated his third sister on her upcoming marriage to an excellent match and took his leave.

He walked slowly, still hearing bursts of laughter from inside. “The Cui clan is destined to produce an empress!” his grandmother’s voice rang out clearly. Prince Donghai quickened his pace but didn’t go far, waiting by a side door.

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Before long, the person he was waiting for emerged.

“Hey, Sister Xiaojun, leaving so quickly?”

Cui Xiaojun turned and coldly sized up Prince Donghai. “Speaking of ‘leaving quickly,’ how could I compare to you?”

Prince Donghai’s face reddened slightly, knowing she was mocking how quickly he had abandoned the Weary Marquis and returned from the frontier. “We’re in the same boat – let’s not mock each other.”

“Who’s in the same boat as you?” Cui Xiaojun glanced at her maid, indicating she was leaving.

Prince Donghai hurriedly said, “Everyone in the Cui household thinks the Champion Marquis will surely become emperor. Aren’t you worried?”

“What exactly do you want to say? I don’t have time for idle chat.”

Prince Donghai sighed. In his memory, the Cui daughters had all been close to him. He hadn’t expected them to change so completely after marriage. “The Weary Marquis will return soon. Tell him this isn’t the time for internal strife – he and I still need to work together.”

“So you can betray him again?”

Prince Donghai said seriously, “Only subjects can ‘betray’ – don’t use that word with me. Sister Xiaojun, to achieve great things, one must learn to compromise. Don’t you visit the Cui household daily, forcing smiles, just to beg money and resources for the Weary Marquis and plead for the Cui family to show him leniency?”

Cui Xiaojun snorted softly and left with her maid without another word.

“I forgive you!” Prince Donghai called out loudly. “You’ll come asking for my help someday!”

Prince Donghai returned to his quarters. Though everything was familiar, he felt no attachment.

Lin Kunshan arrived, quietly entering and standing silently by the door.

“I lived in the Cui manor for over ten years, thinking it was my home,” Prince Donghai lightly traced the spotlessly clean table surface. “But it turns out that I was just an outsider.”

Prince Donghai turned to Lin Kunshan. “Why are you still following me? The situation is clear – the Champion Marquis will become emperor. Shouldn’t a fate seer follow the prevailing trend? Go support the Champion Marquis.”

Lin Kunshan smiled. “Trends are like the flow of waves- no one knows when they might suddenly change direction. In my view, Prince Donghai hasn’t lost everything. You still have a chance, and not a small one.”

“Heh, you fate seers created this ‘princes competing for the throne’ situation, making us compete for the throne by currying favor with officials. This is really… Regardless, before the competition has even begun, the Champion Marquis already has victory in hand. Which court official doesn’t support him?”

“Is that really so?” Lin Kunshan asked.

Prince Donghai fell silent for a moment. Though each fate seer had their own agenda, their influence was indeed gradually expanding and rising. “What do you know?”

“What do you know? If you can’t be frank with me, how can I assist you and offer advice?”

“Assist me?” Prince Donghai gave a soft laugh. “Doesn’t the Champion Marquis have fate seers by his side too?”

“Of course.”

“Fate seers are just like the Cui clan, placing bets everywhere, thinking they’ll benefit no matter who wins. But there’s no such good fortune in this world. Throughout history, emperors have always demanded exclusive loyalty. The Cui clan rejoices today over their daughter’s good marriage, but tomorrow they’ll pay the price for insufficient loyalty. The same goes for fate seers – you assist many people, but in the end, none will consider you their confidants.”

“Before that ‘end’ comes, both fate seers and the Cui clan will make their final choice. At this moment, I choose Prince Donghai and will help you defeat the Champion Marquis and the fate seers by his side. Just as you refuse to submit to others, why would I enjoy losing to my peers and accepting their charity and humiliation?”

After they stared at each other briefly, Prince Donghai laughed heartily and took out a letter from his robes. Instead of handing it to Lin Kunshan, he placed it on the table. “My mother left this for me before entering the palace. She knew I would return and had already made plans for me.”

“Oh?” Lin Kunshan didn’t take the letter, waiting for Prince Donghai to explain.

“The Champion Marquis originally had a proper wife, his partner from humble times, not from a noble family but from the Tan family. You must have heard of them.”

“The Three Heroes of the Imperial Court – ‘the Handsome Marquis, the Ugly Prince, and the Commoner Tan’ – everyone in the pugilist world has heard of them,” Lin Kunshan said.

“To marry the Cui daughter, the Champion Marquis must either divorce his wife or demote her to a concubine.”

“The Tan family would rather take their daughter back than let her become a concubine.”

“Mother has already contacted the Tan family. If I propose, they will marry their daughter to me – not the Champion Marquis’s former wife, but another daughter closer to my age. But Mother didn’t explain in her letter what the purpose of this is. If it’s just to shame the Champion Marquis, it’s unnecessary. If it’s truly to curry favor with the Tan family, I don’t understand – they have no power or officials at court. What benefit could they bring me? If there were benefits, why would the Champion Marquis give them up?”

“Haha, the Empress Dowager Cui truly has insight. This is a brilliant move.”

“I don’t know much about the Tan family. Tell me, if they’re commoners, why are they called heroes of the court, ranked alongside the Handsome Marquis?”

“The Tan family is no simple family. In earlier years, they traded in the eastern regions and amassed enormous wealth. Later, some clan members went north to raise livestock, accumulating countless animals. The Tan family was known for their generosity, helping many people. Both the pugilist world and the court have benefited from their kindness. During the Martial Emperor’s reign, when war with the Xiongnu was imminent and military funds were insufficient, the Tan family voluntarily donated half their wealth and ninety percent of their northern livestock to the government, shocking the realm. The Martial Emperor was delighted and wanted to richly reward them with noble titles and official positions of their choosing, but the Tan family refused, preferring to continue in commerce and herding. They said defeating the Xiongnu would benefit them greatly, so contributing was only right.”

“Hehe.” Prince Donghai chuckled. “Continue – the official histories record little of this.”

“The Martial Emperor couldn’t accept benefits from commoners without return. Within ten days, he ennobled three Tan family members as marquises and granted various titles to over twenty others.”

“The Tan family must have quite a large clan.”

“The Tan family prospers in numbers and excels in trade, herding, and farming – they just don’t like holding office.”

“Three Tan marquises? I’ve never met them.” Prince Donghai knew all the Capital’s nobility intimately but had never heard of any Tan marquises.

“In his later years, the Martial Emperor purged pugilists throughout the realm, but made an exception for the Tan family. They petitioned to exchange their remaining wealth and all their titles to save the lives of dozens of pugilists.”

“Such a thing happened? The Tan family was truly bold.” Prince Donghai grew interested. “The Martial Emperor wouldn’t have agreed, right?”

“Of course not. He stripped their titles, confiscated their property, and relocated them to the Capital under his direct supervision. He didn’t spare a single pugilist.”

Prince Donghai admired the Martial Emperor’s methods.

“After this ordeal, the Tan family’s reputation grew even greater. They vowed that no descendant would ever hold office, living as commoners in the Capital. Within a decade, they became extremely wealthy again.”

“Does the Tan family know how to turn stone into gold?”

“The Tan family’s most valuable asset is their credibility. Anyone doing business who wants to establish trust seeks the Tan family as guarantors. Many people, purely out of admiration, bring profitable ventures to partner with the Tan family, and it always ends well for all parties. The Tan family continues their generous ways, having helped many descendants of those killed during the Martial Emperor’s time. This is why they married their daughter to the Champion Marquis when he was still a commoner.”

“I see, but how can the Tan family benefit me? I need to win over officials, not commoners.”

“This is where the Champion Marquis shows his shortsightedness. He thinks having the Chancellor’s support means all court officials are in his pocket, but officials don’t exist in isolation – they all have friends and relatives who don’t hold office. These people all have some connection to the Tan family. When the Tan family speaks – which they rarely do – their influence on court officials might rival Chancellor Yin’s.”

“If the Tan family is so formidable, how did the Champion Marquis miss this?”

“The Tan family’s reputation spreads through the pugilist world – perhaps the Champion Marquis didn’t notice. Most importantly, the Tan family rarely involve themselves in court matters, as it would violate their ancestral instructions. Even if Prince Donghai marries into the Tan family, gaining their support would be difficult – the Champion Marquis is proof of this.”

“But Mother has already thought of a way…” Prince Donghai murmured, the fog before him beginning to clear.