Chapter 192 - 193: Feigning Incompetence
Hua Manman had actually been quietly keeping an eye on the Fourth Prince, Li Ying.
According to rumors, Li Ying’s birth mother was a Dancing Girl with the surname Wang, a woman of lowly birth.
Not long after Mrs. Wang gave birth to the Fourth Prince, Li Ying, she passed away quietly from an illness.
According to palace rules, Li Ying should have been sent to be raised by one of the other imperial concubines.
But for some reason...
The Emperor never even mentioned having one of the other concubines raise him.
It was as if the concubines, too, had come down with a case of collective amnesia, forgetting that a person like the Fourth Prince even existed.
No one offered to raise the child.
The Fourth Prince was tossed aside to be cared for by an old nanny. It wasn’t until he was three years old that he was finally given his own name: Li Ying.
Among all the princes, the Fourth Prince had the humblest birth, the weakest presence, and was also the son least favored by the Emperor.
Almost everyone was certain that the Fourth Prince had absolutely no chance of inheriting the throne.
But Hua Manman, who had read *Palace Intrigue* from cover to cover, knew better. She knew that this very same unremarkable Fourth Prince was not only an extremely important supporting male character in the novel but had also relied on his own strength to rise above his brothers and become the next emperor.
A true dark horse, without a doubt.
Seeing him staring at the chessboard now, Hua Manman couldn’t help but ask.
"Would the Fourth Prince like to play as well?"
Her question was rather sudden, immediately drawing the attention of everyone else present.
Li Ying clearly hadn’t expected anyone to notice him. He was taken aback for a moment before he spoke.
"That won’t be necessary. My skills are rather poor, so I’d rather not make a fool of myself."
But Li Ji heard Li Ying’s thoughts—
’If I were the one playing against Prince Zhao, I’m not so sure I would lose.’
A corner of Li Ji’s mouth lifted in a smile. "It doesn’t matter if your skills are poor. We’re just having a bit of fun."
Now that he’d put it that way, Li Ying could hardly refuse. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he silently sat down across from Prince Zhao.
Hua Manman stared at the game without blinking.
In *Palace Intrigue*, the new Emperor, Li Ying, grew wary of the Regent King’s immense power. He employed numerous schemes, both overt and covert, to eliminate the Regent King who had monopolized authority.
Of course, Li Ji wouldn’t just take it lying down.
An intense power struggle had ensued between the two.
*Palace Intrigue* was written from the perspective of the female protagonist, Hua Qingqing, so the overt and covert struggles between the new emperor and the Regent King weren’t described in great detail.
But from the few snippets provided, one could still sense the brutal, bloody politics of the imperial court at the time.
That was why Hua Manman was so eagerly anticipating this game.
With Li Ji’s and Li Ying’s cunning and strategic minds, they were sure to wage a spectacular, earth-shattering battle on the board.
However, the reality was a great disappointment.
From the very beginning, Li Ying’s white stones were at a disadvantage, completely pinned down by the black stones.
Within moments, the white stones were utterly routed.
The loss was utterly devoid of suspense.
It wasn’t entertaining to watch in the slightest.
The onlookers all found it quite boring.
Li Ying silently stood up and retreated to the side.
Li Ji shot him a look that was not quite a smile.
"Is this your true skill?"
Li Ying nodded. "Yes."
Others couldn’t tell, but Li Ji could clearly hear Li Ying’s inner thoughts.
This wasn’t Li Ying’s true skill level at all.
He had been deliberately holding back just now.
Li Ji waved his hand, gesturing for everyone to go amuse themselves.
The Sixth Prince, Li Yi, mustered up his courage and asked.
"Aren’t you going to teach us horsemanship and archery?"
Li Ji said lazily, "Haven’t you all learned horsemanship and archery already? Just keep practicing what you were taught before."
Li Yi thought, ’This new teacher is far too lazy.’
But he didn’t dare to say it out loud, so he could only leave the Octagonal Pavilion with the others.
Only after everyone had left did Hua Manman dare to speak.
Full of curiosity, she asked, "Your Highness, what do you make of the Fourth Prince?"
Instead of answering, Li Ji asked back, "You seem very interested in the Fourth Prince?"
Hua Manman knew she had been a little too obvious, so she simply admitted it.
"Yes, I am quite curious about him."
’He’s the future emperor! How could I not be curious?!’
Hearing her thoughts, Li Ji’s long, narrow eyes narrowed slightly.
’How can she be so certain that the Fourth Prince will inherit the throne?’
He was suspicious, but he didn’t let it show, saying impassively.
"He’s just some young brat. What’s there to be curious about?"
Hua Manman thought, ’You’re only two years older than the Fourth Prince. How do you have the nerve to call him a young brat?’
She put on an embarrassed expression and said in a sweet, demure voice.
"I’ve never seen him before and know nothing about him, so it’s only natural that I’m a bit curious."
Li Ji was noncommittal.
He stood up. "Come on, I’ll teach you archery."
Hua Manman hadn’t expected the topic to suddenly switch to her lessons.
She asked sheepishly, "We still have to practice archery?"
Li Ji shot her a sidelong glance.
"You don’t want to?"
Hua Manman nodded frantically in her head. ’I have more than enough schoolwork already! Even a senior cramming for final exams doesn’t have it this rough.’
But outwardly, she had to maintain a docile appearance.
"Not at all. If Your Highness is teaching, I’m willing to learn."
Hearing her thoughts, Li Ji nodded in satisfaction.
"Excellent."
Hua Manman dejectedly followed Prince Zhao out of the Octagonal Pavilion.
Li Ji selected a relatively light bow and placed it in Hua Manman’s hands. Then, he stood behind her, covering her hands with his, and began to teach her, step by step, how to draw the bow and shoot an arrow.
Since they were standing so close, every time Li Ji lowered his head to speak, his warm breath would wash over Hua Manman’s ear.
Before long, her ears were tinged with red.
The princes and princesses standing not far away all had different reactions to the scene.
Upon seeing this, Li Yi’s suspicions were confirmed. ’That little book boy must be Lady Hua,’ he thought. ’Otherwise, Prince Zhao would never be so intimate with a mere attendant student.’
Li Hao, on the other hand, was green with envy.
’Prince Zhao’s archery is incredible! I wish I could learn from him too!’
A thoughtful expression crossed Li Ying’s face.
He’d already felt something was off about the attendant student by Prince Zhao’s side. Now, seeing Prince Zhao treat the young man with such intimacy, his suspicion deepened.
As for the other three princesses, they were huddled together, gossiping in hushed tones.
"Prince Zhao and that attendant student are so close! Would a normal person be that intimate with their attendant?"
"Oh my, don’t tell me the rumors are true."
"What rumors?"
"I’ll tell you, but you can’t repeat this."
"Stop being so mysterious and just tell us!"
"I heard a rumor once that Prince Zhao is a ’cut-sleeve.’ That’s why he still hasn’t taken a principal wife, and none of the women in his rear courtyard have ever gotten pregnant."
"Good heavens, I can’t believe it!"
"To think Prince Zhao looks so handsome and dignified, but he’s actually into *that*."
"My mother was planning to pull some strings to introduce her niece to Prince Zhao. Their statuses and ages are a perfect match. But it looks like that’s impossible now. I have to tell my mother when I get back. I can’t let her ruin my cousin’s life."
"Just make sure you don’t say it was me who told you!"