Why Are They Coveting This Prince?

I was the last surviving descendant of the previous dynasty, but when I was born, a palace servant switched me with the current Sixth Prince.

To take down the Crown Prince and claim the throne, I deliberately cultivated alliances with the other princes, while looking down on the Second Prince, He Jing.

He Jing was born lowly and had no favor from the emperor. After I rejected him, he joined the Crown Prince.

I thought He Jing was a foolish nobody, but because of him, I lost everything.

After the Crown Prince ascended the throne, all my trusted aides were dead, and the person I loved had become empress.

He Jing confined me outside the palace, leaving me no better than an invalid.

One winter solstice, I drank the poison sent by the Crown Prince and resolutely chose death.

*

When I awoke, I had been reborn at the age of eight.

I saw He Jing being bullied and stepped in to help him.

This time, I would use his intelligence to ascend the throne, and I would also poach the Crown Prince's talented men.

Unfortunately, nothing went as I expected.

For one thing, those talented men were unruly and always jealous of one another. For another, the princes always looked at me strangely.

And then there was the time someone set me up. He Jing pulled me, feverish and flushed, into his arms and murmured, "Zhixu..."

I saw the desire in his eyes and slapped him several times, trying to bring him to his senses. "He Jing, get a grip! I'm your Sixth Imperial Younger Brother!"

He Jing ignored me. "A-Xu, nothing will stop me in this life."

Unable to control myself, I turned red and cursed, "You bastard, disregarding all proper relations!"

*

Only later did I learn that all those bastards coveting me had been reborn...

Reader's guide:

1. A wicked, straight shou whose only goal is to ascend the throne, and who attracts everyone.

2. All gongs are virgins, and they're all villains. Melodramatic forced love, pseudo-incest.

4. The main text is written in third person.

Theme: Perseverance brings victory