Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved
Chapter 338: Because You Are By My Side

Chapter 338: Chapter 338: Because You Are By My Side

The Fourth Prince, whose mother was Consort Duan Pin of the Ye clan, was the daughter of a minor official. Her appearance was above average, and she had no significant talents, but she was selected to enter the palace.

Initially, Consort Duan was nearly omitted from selection, but during her group’s presentation, another imperial maiden, aiming too high, tried to seduce the Emperor on first sight by throwing him coquettish glances and speaking provocatively, even with the Empress Dowager present. Naturally, the Emperor was thoroughly repulsed and chose the conservatively dressed Consort Duan Pin among that group of imperial maidens to stay.

However, the Emperor then seemed to forget about her existence, merely granting her the title of Daying, and didn’t let her serve in his chamber for years.

Daying Ye initially had no intention of vying for favor; however, something later changed her mind, and she started to use all her available silver coins to bribe eunuchs and palace maids for the Emperor’s schedule, eventually being favored by the drunken Emperor, who mistook her for a palace maid.

Since her appearance wasn’t remarkable, the Emperor only visited her for a few nights before again forgetting about her.

But Ye became pregnant.

She hid her pregnancy until it became too obvious to conceal, and only then did the imperial harem and the Emperor learn of her condition.

Later, naturally, she also suffered attacks from other concubines but miraculously managed to avoid any harm and finally gave birth to the Fourth Prince.

Upon the birth of the Fourth Prince, Ye was merely promoted to the rank of consort.

Afterward, she no longer sought the Emperor’s favor and didn’t cause any trouble in the palace; under her guidance, the Fourth Prince appeared quite mediocre, failing to impress his teachers in either academics or anything else, as they would shake their heads in private.

The Emperor, who already held no affection for Consort Duan, paid even less attention to this mediocre prince who rarely appeared before him.

But unexpectedly, the mediocrity of the Fourth Prince was just a facade.

In reality, he was very intelligent, grasping lessons quickly as taught by Consort Duan, who instilled in him the principles of keeping a low profile and protecting himself wisely; hence, from a young age, he suppressed his own capabilities, never standing out.

Murong Jiu didn’t know if this would twist his character but knew that suppressing one’s nature could certainly cause psychological issues.

Indeed, her predictions were not wrong.

As the Fourth Prince grew older, the years of repression culminated in an outburst during which, in a fit of extreme anger, he strangled the nanny who had cared for him since childhood.

From that act of cruelty, he experienced an extreme thrill and pleasure.

Whenever he felt agitated, he would torture people or the beloved pets of the concubines in the palace.

He secretly gathered a lot of power, and the other princes, oblivious, never saw him as a threat; his perceived mediocrity served as his camouflage.

As the other princes engaged in fratricidal conflict, Murong Jiu once again "witnessed" the death of Jun Yuyan.

Then, it was the Third Prince’s turn.

The Second Prince successfully became the Crown Prince, with the throne nearly within his grasp, and the Fourth Prince appeared submissively loyal to him, even helping the drunk prince with his shoes—a testament to his endurance.

At that time, the Second Prince was full of vigor.

By then, Murong Jiu had already accidentally "fallen into the well" and died, while Murong Man became the Crown Princess Consort.

She naturally also "saw" the pleased expression of Murong Man.

Soon, under the impatient urging of the Second Prince, the Emperor’s death was hastened, but the Fourth Prince had already prepared everything.

Just as the Second Prince was about to ascend the throne, old officials accused him of regicide and forging the imperial edict. Then, the two eunuchs closest to him suddenly attacked, slashing his throat and killing him in the Golden Throne Hall.

He became one of history’s shortest-reigning emperors.

Why say one of the shortest? Because there was another whose reign was also brief, that being the Fourth Prince.

The Second Prince died a bitter death, leaving only the Fourth Prince as the sole heir to the Imperial Family.

Everyone thought the Fourth Prince had fortuitously picked up a great opportunity, but in fact, by the end, he had everything under his control.

However, it seemed even the heavens couldn’t bear to watch, for right after the Fourth Prince donned the Dragon Robe and before he could ascend the throne, a crossbeam fell from above and killed him.

Isn’t he one of the Emperors with the shortest reign?

This time, Murong Jiu didn’t remain unconscious for long; it was still dark outside when she opened her eyes.

As she moved her hand, she suddenly touched another hand, and then she heard Jun Yuyan sit up and quickly ask if she was feeling unwell.

Murong Jiu shook her head, her voice a bit hoarse, probably because he had stayed awake by her side the whole time.

"Ah Jiu, we can enter the Capital City by dawn; don’t be afraid, I won’t let you encounter any danger again."

"So soon?"

The carriage had barely halted, and the horses were changed batch after batch; thus, traveling day and night, they naturally moved fast, and since Murong Jiu had been asleep so long, she didn’t know how far they had traveled each day.

"Did we encounter any danger on the way?"

"I and your father-in-law had long arranged manpower along the route back to the Capital City. The Fourth Prince, audacious as he was, wouldn’t dare mobilize a large number of men around the outskirts of the Capital City."

Murong Jiu was thoughtful. She thought, the Fourth Prince she saw in her dreams was exactly like the one she remembered. After she lost her memory, the Fourth Prince indeed changed his character, showing his true nature.

He believed he had everything under his control, but the moment Murong Jiu killed Mo Yu, he knew he no longer had control of the situation, and therefore, he must kill her.

What she dreamt and what she was currently experiencing felt like two different worlds.

But over a year ago, everything was not much different from what she had dreamt.

Had she been reborn after drowning in the well?

And then, did the subsequent events change?

Many things she learned from Jun Yuyan’s master were quite different from what she had dreamt, and they all revolved around her. Plus, given that the Fourth Prince later insisted on her death, it could be inferred that she was the one who changed it all.

Thus, the Fourth Prince felt she had ruined his plans, giving herself a thin escape, causing her to lose her memory, yet sparing her life because he wanted her to trust only him, using her as leverage against Jun Yuyan and her demonic brothers.

Just like in her dream, where the Second Prince also used her and her two children to threaten Jun Yuyan and her father and brothers.

Murong Jiu took a deep breath and suddenly gripped Jun Yuyan’s hand tightly.

"Prince, I still can’t remember what happened over this past year, but I remember many other things. I don’t know if they were dreams or what, but I want to use everything I saw in those dreams to eliminate the Fourth Prince! This person must be eliminated; he will be the greatest threat!"

"I believe you, Ah Jiu, don’t get worked up, Uncle Zhai said you shouldn’t get too emotional. Don’t worry, whatever you want to do, I will help you."

Murong Jiu looked at him, and as the night light filtered in, she could clearly see his gentle and profound gaze, filled with undissolvable affection.

Yet she recalled that in her dream, for her sake, he was willing to compromise to become the Crown Princess Consort and met a tragic end.

Her nose turned sour, and suddenly, she felt an impulse to throw herself into his arms.

Jun Yuyan, surprised yet nervous, said: "Ah Jiu, Ah Jiu, are you feeling unwell?"

"No, I just... just feel very lucky because you’re by my side."