The Struggle for the Crown: You Can Have the Crown Prince's Seat, but I Want the Empire

Of all the books I've read, this is one of the few that I felt compelled to write something about after finishing it. It doesn't have any clichéd, melodramatic plots or cringe-worthy moments; the writing is very genuine.

It's a good read for relieving stress, but I'm too lazy to look for more. To be fair, it doesn't have the kind of plot where the female lead is given away or taken away, which I particularly hate. The female lead isn't just a pretty face; she's capable and powerful, and so is the male lead.

Overall, it's not bad, though occasionally I feel the villains' personalities are too much for the sake of the plot and to highlight the protagonist's plot armor. The third brother's current status is not only due to his obvious ambition, but also his cunning and the fact that he usually has capable people assisting him.

The later parts are quite interesting. Perhaps the author wanted to give readers a shocking opening, so the beginning was written somewhat idealistically. For example, the eunuch could have easily brought a few trusted men and forced the male protagonist to drink drugs.

It's really well-written and engaging. Nowadays, most online novels about time travel involve systems or cheat codes, but it's rare to see a protagonist with such a creative idea. The protagonist is a special forces soldier but hasn't shown any special skills.

Finally, it's not the kind of story where the protagonist is fighting for supremacy and unification while collecting women everywhere. The female lead is a general and won't hold the male lead back, but the male lead could learn more from the female lead in terms of military command, since it's a large-scale military operation in ancient times.

The Prince of Yan reminds me of Zhu Di, but this one should be even more formidable than Zhu Di.

Regardless of the power struggles among the princes, certain social classes and rituals still existed, making it impossible for anyone to challenge the imperial authority. Even if someone outwardly complied but inwardly defied the rules, they still maintained a facade of respectability.

Has the third prince gained so much power? He actually killed someone right in front of his father and even had his ministers force the execution of the crown prince.

The protagonist is decisive but doesn't indiscriminately kill innocents. He's good at using people, and he's fair in rewards and punishments but not a saint. He's the kind of intelligent and satisfying protagonist I like to read. I don't know if he's going for a behind-the-scenes story, but I still hope he can go to the battlefield. He's fine in individual combat, but his command skills might be a bit lacking.