The Qing Dynasty’s Most Ambitious Fourteenth Prince

Coming soon: "Auntie Raises the Crown Prince in the Qing Dynasty." The kid is Crown Prince Yinreng. Please add it to your collection~ Mwah~ -Story blurb: Gu Qing wins the lifetime achievement award for overachieving transmigrators. After binding to a favorability System, he is born into the Qing Dynasty, hoping to enjoy a leisurely retirement as Yongzheng's son and Qianlong's brother, living a rich and carefree life. Who knew the System would crash halfway through and send him into the wrong body? Instead of becoming Yongzheng's son, he becomes his brother, the one who gets along with him worst of all: his own younger brother, the Fourteenth Prince, Yinti. As a baby in swaddling clothes, Gu Qing wails at the top of his lungs: Waaah, his face is so dark! According to the historical record, years from now Gu Qing will endure the Qing Dynasty's bloodiest succession struggle, become a staunch member of the Eighth Prince's faction, and support the Eighth Prince in his failed bid for the throne. Yongzheng will imprison him, his actions will drive Consort De to suicide, and his family will be destroyed, leaving him with a tragic end. Seeing the full favorability scores above Kangxi and Consort De, Gu Qing chews on his fingers in tears. Then he turns and spots the young Yongzheng peeking at him through the window, with a perfect score over his head too. Gu Qing gasps for air: There's still hope for me! But his status as the beloved child of everyone with a perfect score lasts only a few days. After that, one person after another comes to see him. The Eighth Prince, with a score of zero, smiles shyly at him. The Ninth Prince, also at zero, waves a rattle to entertain him. The Tenth Prince, another zero, takes his little hand and calls him Fourteenth Brother. Their mothers all have zeroes above their heads, too, despite their warm smiles. Gu Qing closes his eyes: So it was all a lie! The enemy is strong and I'm weak. If I want to win, I can only outwork them. So Gu Qing returns to his old ways, dragging his Fourth Brother into the grind and getting everyone else to work harder too, setting off a frenzy of overwork throughout the Qing Dynasty. Kangxi: "I hold court at the hour of the Dragon." The Third and Eighth Princes: "We, your sons, begin studying at the first quarter of the hour of the Tiger and never miss a day." The Ninth and Tenth Princes: "We, your sons, only just woke up at the hour of the Tiger. Eighth Brother is amazing!" The First and Second Princes: "Huh? We still have to study?" Gu Qing: "Fourth Brother and I had already memorized next month's lessons by the first quarter of the hour of the Tiger." Everyone: "You're not even three yet! Do you have to work this hard?" Years later, after punishing corrupt officials and replenishing the treasury, controlling floods and helping farmers, lifting the maritime ban and boosting the economy, and expanding the realm until every nation comes to pay tribute, Gu Qing works Kangxi so hard he abdicates: "I can't keep this up. Find someone to take over, quickly." The princes: "We're exhausted, we're exhausted! We still want to live a few more years!" The Fourth Prince, a doting older brother: "Fourteenth Brother, why don't you..." Kangxi and Consort De: "You take the hard job. Fourteenth can stay with us and keep us company in retirement." Gu Qing looks at the rows of perfect favorability scores in front of him: Hm? Why is there still a zero? His childhood sweetheart, struggling to force a smile: ? P.S. 1. The couple is Wanyan Zhao (Wu Zetian reincarnated). They're a bickering couple who love to hate each other. 2. The story starts with them working hard as children, then keeps up the grind while they fall in love in their twilight years. 3. This is not a System story. The golden finger just lends a helping hand. 4. This is an alternate-history Qing transmigration story. Everything serves the plot, so please don't nitpick the history. -Another upcoming story: Transmigrating as the half-sister of Wu Zetian, the first empress regnant, Wu Xu looks at her pretty little sister: I've hit the jackpot! That is, until imperial guards arrive to arrest someone and her stepmother pushes her forward to take her sister's place. Only then does Wu Xu realize that this plot doesn't match history. "Mother, the person they're here to arrest is..." Her little sister doesn't get to finish before her stepmother covers her mouth and drags her away. Wu Xu: The future empress is all right by me. After being taken away, Wu Xu is locked in a small courtyard with a hot spring and flowers blooming in every season. Whenever it rains, a tall, handsome man comes to bathe in the hot spring. He looks young, but his body is covered in old injuries, and he has to rely on the spring to heal. The man is kind to everyone here, but treats her as if she isn't there. Wu Xu: This stand-in just wants to stay alive. Later, Wu Xu uses her golden finger to cure the old injuries and illnesses of the female steward and guards. From then on, she enjoys a life of being waited on hand and foot, content as can be. After all, every day she's kept under lock and key is another day of cover for the empress. The more useless she is, the safer the empress will be. * Li Shimin is reborn. He knows exactly what the Tang Dynasty went through after his death. The first thing he does after being reborn is search for the Wu woman. As luck would have it, he finds her quickly. Li Shimin is too proud to kill a young girl. He simply has her locked up. He's curious how someone so sweet and innocent managed to take the Tang empire from Li Zhi. But as time passes, Li Shimin realizes something is wrong with him. One day, Li Shimin asks the female steward, "Has she ever asked about me?" The steward shakes her head, confused. He asks the guards on duty, "Was she the one who healed your old injuries?" When they nod, he presses them: "Then why won't she heal mine?" Everyone: ... * Years later, Li Shimin's old injuries are healed, but bathing in the hot spring has become his greatest pleasure. He goes when it rains, he goes when the sun shines. He can't get enough of it. Everyone thinks he has a beauty hidden away, but only he knows what it's like to want someone who won't have him. "Xu Xu, why don't you come back to the palace with me?" With his old flame burning anew, Li Shimin lowers himself to ask. Wu Xu politely declines: "Your Majesty, you forgot that I'm the one who brings chaos to the country." Li Shimin gives a low laugh. "You really think I don't know who you are?" With no one else around and the curtains drawn, Wu Xu suddenly thinks: I want to usurp the throne! #ToCoverForTheEmpressIRuleAlongsideTaizong# Theme: Life has no limits. Tomorrow can only be better.