Forced into Marriage, This Young Master Only Wants to Live as a Widower

[Former title: Idly Tapping the Chess Pieces as the Lamp Flowers Fall! I'm changing the title lately, so don't mistake it for another book!]

A scheming prince who plays dumb, gong VS a sharp-tongued but soft-hearted, flirtatious playboy, shou

Ji Xianchuan, the son of a wealthy merchant, had spent years making his way in the capital. He was just one step away from a government post, with a rise in status within reach.

Then an imperial marriage decree destroyed everything.

The late emperor had left a final edict, and it turned out he had promised Ji Xianchuan to a man. After the wedding, Ji Xianchuan would have to move to the man's fief and could not return to the capital without imperial permission.

That man was none other than the third prince, His Highness Prince Shen!

A man who would achieve great things could not afford to be softhearted.

The only way to stop the marriage was to get rid of Prince Shen.

Prince Shen: "I'm frail and out of favor. When I came of age, I was made a prince and sent to a residence outside the capital. Since then, I've been kept away from court. Father doesn't care about me, and I haven't seen my mother in years."

Ji Xianchuan: Forget it... The poor man has had a rough life.

He had only just given up on killing him when he heard mocking voices outside the door:

"I'm frail and unfit for a long journey. As for Ji Xianchuan, he's an idiot."

Ji Xianchuan regretted it immediately. He should have killed him then and there! But it was too late; he'd missed his chance.

Forced into the bridal sedan, Ji Xianchuan was seething with resentment. The first thing he said after lifting the curtain was, "When are you going to die?"

The frail Prince Shen turned around and, coughing up blood, said, "Don't worry. I won't die just yet."

Ji Xianchuan: ...At this rate, I won't have to do anything. He'll cough himself to death.

_

Ji Xianchuan gave up struggling and looked forward to a comfortable life in the fief, where he could ignore the court and wait for Prince Shen to die.

But at a banquet before their departure, the emperor was brutally poisoned to death.

The real culprit leisurely played out a chess game with Ji Xianchuan and said, "Take Prince Shen and never show your faces in the capital again. Otherwise, you'll be blamed for the emperor's murder."

Those words reignited Ji Xianchuan's fighting spirit.

He swept the chess pieces from the board and said, "If there's no room for me in this game played on the board of the world, then no one gets to play!"

He who lies low for long will soar high.

Ji Xianchuan looked at Prince Shen, who was traveling with him to the fief, and asked, "You had plenty of ways to stay in the capital."

"I've heard the fief is nice and comfortable to live in," Prince Shen said. "Besides, this is the only way I can keep you safe."

From the day they met, Prince Shen had always known how to say the right things, while using Ji Xianchuan mercilessly behind his back.

Ji Xianchuan: "At this point, you don't need to lie and make us both sick."

Prince Shen chuckled. "I truly want to keep you safe."

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