Quick Transmigration: What to Do When the Male Supporting Character You Saved Becomes Obsessed with

Chapter 275 The Ruthless and Disabled Crown Prince (175)

Ji Shuling has been confined to his residence for the past few days. It's been very quiet. According to the guards outside, there's been no noise or commotion. The residence is so quiet that it's as if you can't even hear the sound of a living person.

The mansion is not only imprisoning the Second Prince Ji Shuling, but also his wife, concubines, and relatives. However, they have not been heard from inside for the past few days.

At first, the guards felt quite at ease, but as time went on, they became uneasy, especially at night.

"Why is it so quiet inside? And why does it seem like none of the lights are on?"

"Nonsense! Isn't that a light over there?"

"But... why does it look so eerie? There's not a sound at all. Could the Second Prince be in the mansion..."

One of the guards lowered his voice, and by the end, the hairs on the back of his head stood on end.

"Don't scare yourself like this! It's the middle of the night, if you keep talking nonsense, don't blame me for being rude!"

The other two who were keeping watch with him were also shivering from his words, as if they had been chilled to the bone by the cold wind.

The group exchanged glances, and finally looked at each other, all with the same thought in their minds: It's so quiet, could it be that the Second Prince, along with his family, committed suicide in his residence?

Once the thought took hold, it was impossible to suppress. If something happened while they were on duty, each of them would be held responsible!

"What...what should we do? Could it really be...should we report this to our superiors?"

"We can't confirm that either. If we overthink it, wouldn't that be lying?"

The group exchanged glances, and finally one of them spoke up: "How about this, we all go to the mansion together to check? If something has really happened, we can report it quickly!"

Ji Shuqin did not allow anyone to look directly into the mansion, nor did he humiliate Ji Shuling in the way one would treat a criminal; instead, he preserved his dignity.

"Okay, let's go take a look!"

The group reached an agreement and walked closely together into the mansion.

The mansion was indeed gloomy. The wind blew through the gaps in the artificial hill in the garden and made a hissing sound. What looked elegant during the day now looked somewhat ghostly.

"Why...why is this place so eerie?"

"Don't squeeze me!"

The group lingered until they reached the courtyard outside the Second Prince's bedroom. Through the paper windows, a dim light shone through.

There wasn't even a servant to attend to them. As I stepped inside, the lamplight on the window paper flickered inexplicably.

"What are you doing, sneaking around like that! Come in, I have no dignity left either!"

Just as they reached the door, they suddenly heard a hoarse voice coming from inside.

The moment their hearts relaxed, the group tensed up again. The Second Prince's tone seemed to carry a sinister undertone.

"Greetings, Your Highness the Second Prince."

Upon entering, one is struck by the fact that despite the freezing weather, there is not a single brazier or stove in the room. The Second Prince's hair is disheveled, and he appears to have neglected his appearance for several days. He walks barefoot on the icy floor, which is littered with torn pieces of paper and letters, some reduced to shreds and others crumpled into a horrifying mess.

The second prince looked emaciated and insane, as if he hadn't slept for days. His eyes were bloodshot, his cheeks were sunken, and his clothes were disheveled. When he looked at you, people couldn't help but take two steps back.

"What? Who sent you to see my miserable state?" He lowered his head, only rolling his eyes upwards as he looked at the group.

"We're here to confirm your safety," the leader hurriedly said, clasping his hands in a fist salute.

"Hahahaha! Safe? You've come to see if I'm still alive! What, are you disappointed to see I'm still alive?!" The Second Prince suddenly darted forward a few steps.

"Your Highness the Second Prince..."

"Or have you come to confirm if there are any living people in my household?" Ji Shuling seemed to want to laugh, but she couldn't. Her lips were twisted into a ferocious grimace: "I told everyone in the household that they're all going to die sooner or later! Give me a few days of peace and quiet, or I won't mind sending them on their way myself!"

"Who told them to be so unlucky! Hahahaha! With me, I can't beat Ji Shuqin and Ji Shumin, I can't beat them. If they want to take my life, they can take it now! Do they think they can torture me now?"

The guards thought the Second Prince had completely gone mad.

They didn't dare linger. Seeing that the Second Prince was still alive, they hurriedly took their leave.

They breathed a long sigh of relief when they got back to the gate of the mansion. What had happened inside the mansion had almost scared them out of their wits!

"His Highness the Second Prince is truly frightening. I should report back tomorrow... I should report back tomorrow."

The next day, the matter concerning the Second Prince's residence was presented to Ji Shuqin. Ji Shuqin looked at it and frowned.

He didn't intentionally leave Ji Shuling out in the cold; it was just that the emperor's funeral was in full swing these past few days, and there was simply no time to attend to anything else. Ji Shuqin had indeed considered whether or not to have Ji Shuling attend the funeral, but in the end, Ji Shuqin felt that Ji Shuling didn't seem to have any respect or grief for his father.

The entire funeral was conducted in accordance with proper etiquette and customs, and was deeply honored.

After the funeral, Ji Shuqin looked at Ji Shumin's indifferent expression, reached out and tied the mourning sash around his waist, and handed it to a palace servant without much concern.

“Min’er…you, with your father’s passing, are you grieving?” Ji Shuqin couldn’t help but call out to him.

Ji Shumin looked at him, and suddenly the corners of his mouth lifted slightly: "What does Your Majesty want to hear me say? That I am extremely sad, but I just don't show it?"

Ji Shuqin shook his head. He didn't want to hear Ji Shumin's lies, but he also didn't know what answer he wanted to hear.

"Does Your Majesty feel sorrow?"

Ji Shuqin paused for a moment, then nodded.

“This is only human nature. It’s normal for you to feel sad, Your Majesty. It’s also normal for me not to feel sad,” Ji Shumin said calmly.

Ji Shuqin never inquired in detail about what had happened to Ji Shumin over the years. From Ji Shumin's occasional remarks, Ji Shuqin could tell that his father did not actually have any pity or love for his younger brother.

Ji Shuqin didn't think Ji Shumin shouldn't be so cold-hearted. After learning what his father really wanted, Ji Shuqin understood from the bottom of his heart that everything his father did for him was an illusion, a deliberate act to coax him. His father had no pity for him.

In fact, Ji Shuqin had long known that if his father truly cared about him, how could he have remained indifferent for so many years? It was just that Ji Shuqin had never been willing to think about it deeply.

He wasn't questioning Ji Shumin, but rather himself. Should he feel sad?

He had only spent a short time with his father, the emperor, and had been deceived and schemed against. He probably hadn't received a single bit of genuine affection from him. Yet, at the funeral, as he held his father's coffin, looking at the gilded and silvered decorations and listening to the mournful chanting of the master of ceremonies, he still felt his eyes welling up with tears and couldn't help but shed them.

Others praised the Crown Prince for his benevolence and filial piety, but only Ji Shuqin himself knew in his heart that he was confused about whether he was unable to distinguish right from wrong and was weak and easily bullied.

"Does Your Majesty feel that you shouldn't be sad?"

Seeing that Ji Shuqin hadn't spoken, he asked softly after a while.

“Everyone sees things differently. I see ugliness, my brother sees love, I see scheming, and perhaps my imperial brother sees compassion. That’s why I don’t feel sad. My imperial brother feels sad because he saw it. Why should he blame himself?” Ji Shumin said gently.

Ji Shumin never expected that his brother wasn't thinking he was cold-hearted, but rather doubting him.

Ji Shumin was initially a little impatient with his question, thinking that he was going to lecture him like he used to. But Ji Shuqin's self-reflection softened Ji Shumin's heart.

Their voices softened.

“Now that you are the Emperor, you should be able to cry when you want to cry, laugh when you want to laugh, grieve when you want to grieve, and rejoice when you want to rejoice. You should be able to do whatever you want. Why doubt yourself like this?” Ji Shumin stood up and helped Ji Shuqin stand up.

“How can that be?” Ji Shuqin held his arm, looked at his younger brother who was slightly taller than him, and said seriously, “No matter what position you hold, you must be self-aware.”

Ji Shumin sighed: "Hmm, alright, whatever you say."

Ji Shuqin: ...

I sensed the perfunctory attitude from my younger brother.

"Are you returning to the manor today?" Ji Shuqin coughed lightly and turned to ask.

"I'll be back later tonight. Take a bath in the courtyard first." Ji Shumin replied, "Don't bring bad luck back to Li Ruan."

Watching Ji Shumin's retreating figure, Ji Shuqin inexplicably felt a sense of being abandoned, a feeling that came on rather subtly.

The next day, Ji Shuqin received a report from the Second Prince's residence: "How is Consort Liu doing these days?"

The Dowager Consort sent someone to inform Consort Liu of the situation.

"Don't worry, Your Highness, I'm watching over her. Nothing will happen to her." The Empress Dowager's intention was to reassure Ji Shuqin.

In fact, Ji Shuqin was somewhat unable to face the Empress Dowager.

The situation was urgent that day. The Empress Dowager took out the blank imperial edict and let them choose for themselves. In front of the Empress Dowager, he wrote his name on the edict.

Others may not know, but Ji Shuqin himself knew that this imperial edict was indeed not from his father.

Ji Shuqin felt ashamed about this. He was an extremely upright person. Even if others didn't say it, Ji Shuqin's own standards for himself were higher than the common standards of the world. He was a true gentleman.

When he faced the Empress Dowager, he would still feel his cheeks burning, as if the Empress Dowager had witnessed his illegitimate status.

The Dowager Consort was a perceptive person; she saw through Ji Shuqin's thoughts that day, but he did not say anything.

This matter is known only to a few people, and it's better to keep it a closely guarded secret than to bring it up; there's nothing wrong with that.

The more it is brought up, the more it will become an insurmountable obstacle in the new monarch's mind. Perhaps he feels guilty now, but as time goes by, will this guilt turn into dislike and regret? Regret letting others know his secret? At that time, what will he think of him? It is unknown.

The Empress Dowager dared not gamble with human nature, nor was she willing to trust again.

What deep-seated entanglement exists between him and this new emperor...?

All she wants now is to live out her remaining years peacefully in the palace, and not care about anything else.

"Have someone take good care of Consort Liu," Ji Shuqin instructed.

Because of the new emperor's words, no one in the palace dared to mistreat Consort Liu. Even though she made a ruckus all day long, everyone tolerated her.

When Ji Shuling was seen again, he stood in front of Ji Shuqin with bloodshot eyes and tattered clothes.

The voice was sinister: "What, you want me to worship you? No way!"

"How is my mother! Ji Shuqin, if you dare to mistreat my mother..." Ji Shuling clenched his fists in hatred. He looked at Ji Shuqin's calm and composed face, which showed no anger whatsoever, and for some reason, he felt extremely frustrated!

He still doesn't understand why he lost to Ji Shuqin!

Even when he lost to Ji Shumin, he was not this unwilling.

But what is Ji Shuqin anyway?

He fought with Ji Shumin for so many years, but in the end, it was Ji Shuqin who benefited the most...

"When did I say I would mistreat Consort Liu?" Ji Shuqin said gently, ignoring his angry glare.

"Ha... Who knows what a hypocrite like you might do behind the scenes?"

"Are you judging others by your own standards? When you worry about Consort Liu in the palace, have you ever thought about the concubines and relatives in your own household? When you worry about Consort Liu, have you ever thought about how their parents and relatives are also worried about them now!" Ji Shuqin looked at his angry face and spoke to him sharply for the first time.

"Does it mean you're the only one with a strong sense of family and righteousness, while everyone else is devoid of them? Are you the only one with human dignity, while everyone else is just a bloodless piece of paper? You're always trying to manipulate others, yet you never respect them. You think that no matter how you treat them, they should all bow down and worship you because of your status and your prestige?"

"But in the end, you've never won people's hearts. How did things get to this point? You still don't understand why?"

When Ji Shuling was reprimanded by Ji Shuqin for the first time, he was stunned for a moment...

He looked up at Ji Shuqin, but even though he tried his best to look, he couldn't see any mockery or belittlement on Ji Shuqin's face. Instead, it was as always.

"Hmph! Hypocritical!"

Ji Shuling snorted through her nose.

"Ji Shuling, you're really putting on airs like an imperial brother! Who do you think you are! You think you're qualified to teach me? You're only good at teaching your crippled younger brother!" Ji Shuling spat.

"Do you think Ji Shumin truly supports you? Do you think Ji Shumin wants to see you ascend the throne?" Even now, Ji Shuling is still mentioning Ji Shumin.

"If he weren't so pitifully disabled, if he weren't unable to walk and could only sit pathetically in a wheelchair, pitifully groveling before his wife and feigning loyalty to you, all so that you could be his puppet, allowing him to live like a shadowy rat in his pathetic imperial dream!"

Before Ji Shuqin could even speak...

In his excitement, Ji Shuling only felt a figure walk out from the side before he could see it clearly.

"Slap—" A solid slap landed squarely on his face.

Ji Shuling tilted his head to one side, and after a moment he turned his head back in disbelief, the movement so big it looked like he was about to twist his head off!

"Ji Shumin... Ji Shumin, you... you can walk now!"

He murmured, almost doubting his own eyes.