IDWBE -Chapter 11 Brothers

After the meal, Hong Ying came to report that the Sixth Prince, Prince Dai, had sent congratulatory gifts.

Lin Yi stood up, straightened his clothes, and said with a smile, “I didn’t expect the first one to arrive would actually be him. That’s interesting. Let’s go. Since he’s come to present gifts, we should at least keep up appearances and go greet him at the gate.”

Hong Ying replied, “Yes.”

Lin Yi walked along unhurriedly, glancing at the gift list as he went. By the time he reached the entrance, the carriage of Prince Dai had just come to a steady stop.

Lin Yi thought to himself that the man had clearly timed his arrival, waiting for him to come out and receive him.

He stepped forward and, before the carriage curtain was even lifted, cupped his hands in greeting. “Greetings, Sixth Imperial Brother.”

A hand reached out from inside the carriage and lifted the curtain. Without waiting for the guards to place the footstool, Prince Dai jumped down himself and said with a smile, “Old Ninth, being this polite isn’t like you, is it?”

“Well, when you eat someone’s food, your mouth grows soft; when you take someone’s gifts, your hands grow short. Elder Brother has brought so many presents that this younger brother feels quite embarrassed,” Lin Yi said frankly.

Seeing Prince Dai reaching out as if to put an arm around his shoulder, Lin Yi instinctively wanted to dodge.

If it wasn’t necessary, he really didn’t want to walk beside this Prince Dai!

He was genuinely afraid of being outshone and having his confidence dented, leaving him depressed for days!

In terms of looks, their facial features were not very different, and both were fairly well-proportioned.

But the strange thing was their bearing. Lin Yi had no idea where he fell short compared to him, yet somehow he always seemed a step lower.

Words like elegant and unrestrained, graceful and composed, dignified and imposing seemed tailor-made for this Prince Dai.

But then Lin Yi thought about the generous gifts the man had brought.

In the end, he decided to be magnanimous for once—fine, let him put an arm around him if he wanted!

“Haha…” The Prince Dai laughed, patting Lin Yi’s shoulder. “Among all these brothers, I like talking with you the most. Straightforward, no beating around the bush.”

“Imperial Brother, please,” Lin Yi said. Seeing that the Prince Dai had no intention of actually putting an arm around him, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and led him into the main hall.

After tea and pastries were served, Hong Ying and the maids withdrew.

The Prince Dai casually waved to his attendants as well. Soon, only the two brothers remained in the spacious hall.

Prince Dai cupped his hands toward Lin Yi. “Old Ninth, let me congratulate you once again.”

Lin Yi sighed. “Sixth Imperial Brother, you clearly know what kind of place Sanhe is, yet you still tease me.”

The Prince Dai smiled, shook his head, loosened his robe, slipped off his boots, and sat with one foot on the ground and the other propped on the chair. After taking a sip of tea, he said, “Everything I say is the truth—truer than real gold.”

“You’re even copying the way I speak and still say you’re not teasing me?” Lin Yi rolled his eyes at him without politeness. “Sanhe is a poor, remote backwater, full of barbarians who refuse instruction. Who knows how many headaches there will be in the future… My face is clean, isn’t it? Don’t stare at me like that—it makes me embarrassed.”

“Old Ninth, you’re a fool blessed with good fortune,” Prince Dai suddenly said.

“What?” Lin Yi didn’t understand.

Prince Dai took another sip of tea and set the cup back on the table. “I envy your luck. Sanhe is like a blank sheet of paper—you can write or draw on it however you wish.”

“Imperial Brother, I don’t quite understand what you mean,” Lin Yi said, his guard immediately rising.

Prince Dai asked, “Do you know why the Gao Emperor established the system of feudal princes?”

“To guard the borders externally and assist the court internally,” Lin Yi replied with the standard answer. “And to prevent local officials from becoming arrogant and tyrannical.”

“Correct. By enfeoffing princes to guard the frontiers, he replaced meritorious generals and avoided the situation of military governors from the previous dynasty amassing troops and becoming independent,” the Prince Dai said with a faint smile. “But the most important reason was that the Gao Emperor loved his sons deeply and planned for his descendants. He came from poverty and did not wish for his nineteen sons to suffer hardship again.”

“That does make sense,” Lin Yi admitted, suddenly feeling the logic was sound.

“Golden edicts, golden seals, stipends of ten thousand dan of grain, command of frontier armies, building cities and opening farmland, with guards numbering from a thousand to ten thousand—truly lords of a region. Even dukes and high ministers had to bow in their presence. How glorious it was.”

The Prince Dai continued, “But in the third year of Emperor Xianzong, when the Prince of Ying rebelled, the court no longer allowed the princes to hold fiefs and subjects, though their stipends and lands were not reduced. Fifteen years ago, when the Prince of Liang rebelled, Father Emperor hardened his heart. By the time the Fourth and Fifth Imperial Brothers were enfeoffed, they no longer had the chance to lead troops to the frontier. After going to their fiefs, they could only submit to the authority of the provincial governor, living off stipends without handling affairs—no different from useless men. And without special cause, they could never return to Ankang City for life.

How tragic!”

Lin Yi understood—this was lamenting being born at the wrong time, unlike the Second and Third Princes who had caught a better era.

Looking at the faint sorrow on Prince Dai’s face, Lin Yi didn’t know how to comfort him.

“Do you know how many imperial princes and commandery princes our dynasty has now?” Prince Dai asked again.

“I really don’t know,” Lin Yi admitted, trying to count on his fingers but failing. The dynasty had stood for over two hundred years, hereditary succession continuing endlessly—who knew how many members of the Lin clan there were?

Prince Dai continued, “I’ve read the records of the Imperial Clan Court. Princes like you and me—excluding those too young to establish households or those demoted—number thirty-six! You and I are only two among them. There are four hundred and twenty-seven commandery princes! As for the remaining imperial relatives—Generals Who Guard the State, Generals Who Assist the State, county lords, commandery ladies, imperial sons-in-law, and so on—there are more than a hundred thousand people! Even the lowest-ranking Fengguo Zhongwei receives a stipend of one hundred and fifty dan!”

“More than a hundred thousand?” Lin Yi was so shocked his mouth hung open. He had expected many, but never this many. “That stipend is higher than a county magistrate’s… They’re all rich.”

More importantly, they were all large landowners, wealth accumulating generation after generation.

“Hmph!” Prince Dai snorted coldly. “Last year alone, stipends for the imperial clan totaled one and a half million dan of grain. Ridiculous! General Yuan Qing has already returned victorious, yet even the mere thirty thousand taels of frontier pay haven’t been made up. If not for General Yuan’s high prestige in the army, there would have been a mutiny long ago. There would be no great victory today.”

Lin Yi was stunned. He had known nothing of these matters—after all, he only cared about money.

“Do you know why I’ve told you all this today?” Prince Dai asked.

“Please enlighten me, Imperial Brother,” Lin Yi said. That was exactly what he wanted to ask.

“In a few days, I will go to Jiangnan to take up my fief and live out the rest of my life as an idle prince,” Prince Dai said gloomily. “I don’t know whether you and I will have another chance to meet in this lifetime. So today, I’ve been a bit long-winded.”

“Imperial Brother jests. A lifetime is long—how could we never meet again?” Lin Yi still didn’t believe that was the only reason.

Prince Dai suddenly snorted coldly. “To speak a treasonous truth—Father Emperor is old. The times are about to change.”

Lin Yi listened in a daze, not knowing how to respond. Though they were brothers, they were not close enough for such talk!

Prince Dai suddenly said in a sinister tone, “Old Ninth, remember my words. No matter whether the Fourth Imperial Brother, Old Eighth, or Old Twelfth inherits the throne—even if it were you—that would be fine. But the Crown Prince, the Third Imperial Brother, and the Seventh Brother must never ascend the throne. Otherwise, brothers like you and me will die without a burial place!”

“Imperial Brother, those are serious words,” Lin Yi said. He truly hadn’t expected Prince Dai to dare say such things in front of him. Wasn’t he afraid of being betrayed?

“The Crown Prince is suspicious, the Third Imperial Brother is harsh and ungrateful, and as for the Seventh Brother—he’s too pedantic. Talking about bringing blessings to all under heaven—that may be a blessing for the common people, but it would be a disaster for people like us.”

Prince Dai slowly put on his boots, pushed himself up from the chair, looked back at Lin Yi, and said with a smile, “That’s all I have to say. Old Ninth, until we meet again.”

With that, he laughed loudly and departed.

“Farewell, Imperial Brother,” Lin Yi said.

Watching Prince Dai’s carriage gradually disappear, Lin Yi said in a low voice, “We depart for the fief the day after tomorrow.”

“Your Highness…” Hong Ying was startled, not knowing what had happened. “Isn’t that a bit too hasty?”

“We can’t wait any longer,” Lin Yi said, waving his hand. “Go make preparations.”