Book 15: Chapter 85
He encountered people from more than ten different groups along the way. Although he never interacted with any of them for long, he gained something out of each encounter. The composure and the upward curve he wore on the corner of his lips was the best proof.
Li Zizi never knew his second brother was a master with words, especially when the latter never made any attempts to hide his condescending attitude towards who he spoke to. Li Zizi always considered his second brother as a stranger he never knew. From memory, Li Chengzhi was snobbish even towards his elder brother since his mother was the Empress, and he firmly believed he was going to succeed his father. Strangely, nobody ever disliked his haughty attitude; instead, they had an unbelievable amount of faith in him. Li Zizi didn’t even know when his brother initially planned to revolt.
Among all the Princes, Emperor Yuansheng doted on Li Chengzhi more than any of the other Princes. After all, besides Red Prince, who had to stay in the capital in order to fulfil the duty of state proctor, all the other Princes were sent off to their fiefs, while Li Chengzhi had the privilege of staying in the capital. Li Zizi wasn’t convinced that Emperor Yuansheng did so in order to supervise the two eldest Princes. Almost nobody knew that Li Zizi was there when his father ordered Li Chengzhi to stay in the capital, so he saw how glad his father was to keep his second brother in the capital.
Li Zizi wasn’t privy to how much power could be gained from a promotion to official Prince. He only knew his father and brother, which was why he could tell that his father didn’t keep Li Chengzhi in the capital for some lofty goal but simply because he wanted to take care of his son.
Li Zizi could see the resentment hidden in his brother’s mind as he watched his brother speak to the unkind folks. It pained him and it lit… a fire in him. The pardon Li Chengzhi was granted didn’t teach him what his parents wished for him to learn. Anyone who was watching what he was doing would’ve immediately discerned that he wasn’t planning anything beneficial for anyone besides himself. Quite frankly, Li Zizi was annoyed that his brother didn’t learn anything when Her Majesty knelt in front of His Majesty for ages to save his life.
“Calm down.” Bu gently rubbed Li Zizi’s head with his cold hand that carried a unique scent, calming the latter down.
Li Chengzhi wrapped up his conversation and continued on his way with, “I’ll show you,” written all over his smug face. It wasn’t clear who he was targeting, but they certainly weren’t going to appreciate whatever he was planning to offer them.
Perhaps Li Chengzhi never changed. He wholeheartedly believed that he was going to be the next Emperor, and he always insisted on getting whatever he wanted. Therefore, if he wasn’t going to be given the throne, then he was going to take it. He failed in his attempt, but he was still alive, so he had to try again. Maybe by some definition, he truly was an important character.
“Your brother is linking up with some real folks.”