Zhu Zhanhe brought breakfast to A’Lei. A’Lei was startled: “You… why are you wearing Zhu Zhanji’s clothes?”

At first glance, she had thought it was Zhu Zhanji.

He wore a plain blue round-collar robe with not a single embroidered decoration, looking ascetic and aloof—Zhu Zhanji’s usual style.

Zhu Zhanji was tall and lean, while Zhu Zhanhe was robust, but ancient clothing was loose and generous with fabric. Any garment was easily a size XXXXXL, perfect for concealing one’s build. Zhu Zhanhe wearing his elder cousin’s clothes wasn’t too conspicuous.

Not only that, even the hairpin binding his hair was Zhu Zhanji’s—a simple white jade pin without any carving. Blue robes and white pin, like a bowl of plain noodles in clear broth.

If Zhu Zhanji was a large bowl of dragon whisker noodles, then Zhu Zhanhe was a large bowl of belt noodles.

Besides this, he also wore a black hair net over his topknot, gathering all loose strands neatly so they wouldn’t fly about—meticulous to the extreme.

Zhu Zhanji valued cleanliness and orderliness. Whenever wearing regular clothes, he would don a hair net throughout all four seasons.

Zhu Zhanhe found it hot and the hair net too tight, pressing his forehead uncomfortably, so he almost never used one. She didn’t know why he had suddenly taken a liking to the accessory he had previously detested most.

At this moment, Zhu Zhanhe completely adopted Zhu Zhanji’s dressing and grooming style. No wonder A’Lei was surprised.

“I just took a bath to refresh myself and casually put on elder cousin’s clothes. We cousins are so close we could share the same pants—wearing each other’s clothes is nothing. It’s just regular attire without dragon patterns, so it’s not presumptuous.” Zhu Zhanhe brought out a bowl of rice porridge. “Military rations are limited, so eat simply for now. When Earl Pingjiang comes to our aid, you’ll leave with his ships.”

A’Lei sipped the thin porridge: “What about you two?”

Zhu Zhanhe said: “Ships are limited, so we’ll retreat in two batches. You, elder cousin, the Japanese pirate prisoners, and half the Youth Army will withdraw first. I’ll stay behind with the Imperial Guards as rear guard, waiting for Earl Pingjiang’s return voyage to pick us up.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Zhanji entered and said: “Are you the commander or am I? You and A’Lei will retreat in the first batch.”

Zhu Zhanhe immediately turned hostile: “No! You’re the commander—we must ensure your safety first. Those Japanese pirates who just escaped under Great Ming Navy banners could return at any time. With only half the Youth Army left, it would be too dangerous for you.”

Zhu Zhanji said: “Precisely because I’m the commander, I cannot leave first. Earl Pingjiang will bring warships. Besides escorting our retreat, he’ll also leave part of the navy to assist in defending the island. The Youth Army isn’t skilled in naval warfare, but the Great Ming Navy is.”

Zhu Zhanhe adamantly disagreed: “You just look down on me! You think I have no ability to command independently and must forever follow behind you, obeying all your arrangements.”

Zhu Zhanji replied: “I don’t.”

Zhu Zhanhe said: “How can you say you don’t? Even you yourself said Earl Pingjiang would send the navy to assist the Youth Army in defending the island. If so, why can’t you give me one chance to achieve merit independently?”

A’Lei, drinking her porridge, said: “Don’t argue. Sit down and discuss this properly—don’t create internal strife.”

Zhu Zhanhe sat in a chair: “Fine, I propose I stay to defend the island while you and A’Lei leave first.”

There was nothing to discuss. Zhu Zhanji fell silent, left the group chat, and walked away.

Anyway, I’m the commander. Without my approval, you have no options.

Zhu Zhanhe swelled up like an angry frog, pointing at Zhu Zhanji’s retreating figure: “Sister A’Lei, look at his attitude—he won’t listen to any suggestions that differ from his views. He runs an autocracy. Ever since he’s had a few soldiers under his command, he’s changed, become arrogant.”

A’Lei finished the rice porridge and set down the bowl, saying: “I only understand machinery, not military matters, so I can’t follow your argument. But he’s definitely not someone who’s obstinately self-willed. If he were that type of person, he could never be Crown Prince, and His Majesty wouldn’t have organized the Youth Army for him—even the Crown Prince doesn’t get this treatment. You haven’t slept these past two days. Sleep deprivation makes one irritable and short-tempered. Rest here for a while—I’ll wake you in half an hour.”

“I can’t sleep.” Zhu Zhanhe took out a ginseng pill, dissolved it in water, and drank it down. Staying up the longest nights, eating the most expensive supplements. He collected the porridge bowl and put it in the food box. “I’ll argue with him some more. Even if he disagrees, he’ll have to agree.”

Zhu Zhanhe carried the food box with one hand and pushed the door with the other, but the door wouldn’t budge. The door ring made a clanging sound—it turned out Zhu Zhanji had stealthily locked the door when he left!

“Open up!” Zhu Zhanhe flew into a rage, frantically pounding the door.

Zhu Zhanji’s voice came from outside: “You and A’Lei stay right there. Don’t move around—I’ll arrange everything.”

Zhu Zhanji was meticulous. Even Zhu Zhanhe had vaguely guessed the truth—how could he not know?

After two months of investigation, Zhu Zhanji had identified the Japanese pirates’ patterns and lairs. There were indeed still small scattered accomplices on land who provided supplies to the pirates under the guise of being merchants, but their strength and numbers absolutely couldn’t match the fleet that had bombarded the harbor’s floating bridges and escaped that morning.

They hadn’t attacked the island to rescue their comrades when the Youth Army was exhausted and caught off guard—they had only fired at the floating bridges before fleeing.

The fake Great Ming Navy had clearly entered the harbor but turned back and fled halfway.

They obviously knew the Youth Army wasn’t skilled in naval warfare—they could have won.

They even knew the Great Ming Navy’s rendezvous codes.

They had every advantage of timing, terrain, and support, yet unexpectedly gave up.

Why?

There was only one truth: originally Zhu Zhanji was supposed to welcome the Great Ming Navy, but it unexpectedly became Zhu Zhanhe instead.

These people weren’t Japanese pirates—they were Prince Han’s men, wanting to fish in troubled waters to eliminate Zhu Zhanji while disguised as pirates.

They planned to fire cannons from ships while Zhu Zhanji was at the harbor welcoming them, blowing him up. Since the Youth Army wasn’t skilled in naval warfare, they’d have enough time to destroy all the Youth Army’s vessels before escaping, without worrying about the Youth Army catching up and exposing their masks. They could pin the blame for killing the Imperial Grandson on the Japanese pirates.

But the brothers had switched places. Prince Han’s people wouldn’t kill Zhu Zhanhe, so the plan failed and they fled in panic.

Zhu Zhanji knew that this time his cousin had saved his life. If his cousin hadn’t felt sorry for him being sleepless all night and wanted him to rest more, he wouldn’t have gone to the harbor in his place to welcome Earl Pingjiang.

Without his cousin, he would already be dead, his body blown to pieces. His cousin and A’Lei would be crying at the harbor, collecting fragments to piece together his corpse.

Zhu Zhanji was grateful to Zhu Zhanhe. How could he bear to let Zhu Zhanhe risk danger for him again? He would rather lose his freedom and dreams than fail to protect Zhu Zhanhe and A’Lei’s safety.

Zhu Zhanhe vaguely guessed the truth—his father still wouldn’t give up trying to eliminate elder cousin, actually resorting to such poisonous schemes!

Between his biological father and elder brother, Zhu Zhanhe silently chose to protect elder brother. He had bathed and deliberately put on Zhu Zhanji’s clothes, even imitating elder brother’s appearance and staying close to him to atone for his father’s sins, confusing the situation so assassins would be wary and not easily strike at elder brother.

Once Earl Pingjiang arrived, he would immediately put elder brother and A’Lei on ships, far from this place of trouble. With Earl Pingjiang’s abilities, dealing with mere death warriors disguised as pirates would be no problem.

Zhu Zhanji, with his honeycomb-like cunning mind, saw his cousin put on his clothes and imitate his appearance and walking habits (the custom of walking with chest out, head high, hands behind his back), understood what his cousin intended to do, and felt even more moved and reluctant to part with him.

So Zhu Zhanji would rather be scolded than relent. He turned and left without arguing, letting Zhu Zhanhe rage and curse in the room:

“My fate, my responsibility—I’ll bear it myself! Do you think being Crown Prince makes you so great? Must you shoulder everything alone? What about your dreams? Your freedom? Your… love? Don’t you want any of it?”

A’Lei: What exactly does this kid know? Did Zhu Zhanji tell him about our embrace?

Also, Zhu Zhanhe was too abnormal today. His words suggested Zhu Zhanji wanted to stubbornly “shoulder everything alone.” What exactly had happened? Was Zhu Zhanji in danger?

No matter how Zhu Zhanhe cursed, the door remained unmoved.

“Stop.” A’Lei beckoned to Zhu Zhanhe. “Come here, I have questions for you.”

Zhu Zhanhe continued pounding the door: “Sister A’Lei, I’m anxious to get out. We’ll talk later.”

Zhu Zhanhe certainly wouldn’t tell A’Lei the truth. It was better she didn’t know such things.

A’Lei wasn’t easily fooled and asked: “Do you want to get out or not?”

Zhu Zhanhe: “Of course I do! If I don’t get out, elder brother will be in great danger—he could face assassination at any moment.”

A’Lei, being clever, had a flash of inspiration: “No matter how much you shout, it’s useless. I can help you.”

“Just you?” Zhu Zhanhe glanced at A’Lei’s left foot, swollen like a pig’s trotter.

A’Lei chuckled and suddenly raised her voice in a shrill scream: “No! Don’t!”

Zhu Zhanhe: ?

A’Lei continued screaming: “Come back! You’ll fall to your death! There’s a cliff outside the window! One rope won’t reach the bottom!”

Zhu Zhanhe: Sister A’Lei is too clever!

A’Lei continued screaming: “Ah! Dangerous! Climb back up—the rope can’t hold! You must weigh over 160 pounds now!”

Hearing that Zhu Zhanhe was apparently trying to jump out the window and cross the cliff, Zhu Zhanji quickly took out his key to unlock the door: “Brother—you… you actually conspired to deceive me!”

Zhu Zhanhe hid behind the door. When Zhu Zhanji stepped inside, he immediately pounced from behind with a rope and tied Zhu Zhanji to a chair.

Zhu Zhanji: What should I do when my brother and the person I like conspire to deceive me… Of course I should forgive them.

Zhu Zhanhe instantly turned the tables, even pointing at A’Lei sitting on the bed: “It was all her idea—nothing to do with me.”

A’Lei laughed in exasperation: “You’ve learned to be ungrateful, burning bridges after crossing the river.”

Though Zhu Zhanji bound up looked really attractive… A’Lei bit her tongue tip, driving away the unseemly thoughts of taking advantage of someone’s predicament.

Zhu Zhanji said: “A’Lei, help me untie the rope.”

Zhu Zhanhe said: “Sister A’Lei, don’t listen to him. He’s in great danger now—the assassinations will continue.”

Zhu Zhanji: “Don’t listen to him. This is his first battle—he’s eager for glory and more dangerous.”

A’Lei looked at both brothers, unsure whom to believe.

Seeing A’Lei hesitate, Zhu Zhanhe steeled himself and said: “Someone wants to assassinate elder cousin. There’s a traitor in the Youth Army who leaked the rendezvous information to—”

Zhu Zhanji quickly interrupted: “Shut up! Don’t talk nonsense or believe every rumor—don’t create suspicion randomly. This isn’t the time for imperial family infighting.”

Unfortunately, with Zhu Zhanji tied up, he couldn’t stop Zhu Zhanhe’s mouth.

Zhu Zhanhe continued: “These people are none other than my father. My father has spies in the Youth Army, so he knows elder cousin’s movements intimately. He even planted mines along elder cousin’s retreat routes beforehand, nearly killing Sister A’Lei by mistake. This morning’s ships disguised as the Great Ming Navy were also my father’s men. Seeing I was the one welcoming them, they retreated in panic.”

Hearing this, A’Lei’s expression changed drastically. No wonder this morning’s harbor scene occurred.

Zhu Zhanji said: “A’Lei, don’t believe his nonsense.”

Zhu Zhanhe said: “Earl Pingjiang will soon arrive with the Great Ming Navy. With Earl Pingjiang’s methods, it’ll be even harder for traitors and death warriors to succeed. They’ll certainly make a desperate gamble, even using mutually destructive suicide attacks. As they say, ‘things don’t happen more than three times’—elder cousin has already escaped two assassination attempts. Will he be so lucky the third time?”

A’Lei chose to believe Zhu Zhanhe and asked: “You’ve tied up Zhu Zhanji—what’s your countermeasure?”

“First, eliminate the most dangerous traitor assassins. The ships at sea have no spies, so they’re blind and won’t dare rashly attack the island.” Zhu Zhanhe pointed to his outfit. “I’ll use elder cousin’s name to go out on inspection, using myself as bait to lure out the traitors. Once they’re exposed, I’ll immediately reveal my identity. The traitors, mindful of my status, can’t kill me since they couldn’t explain it to my father. I’ll seize the chance to subdue them and catch them all. Only then will elder cousin be safe.”

This was righteous destruction of family for the greater good! A’Lei was quite shocked and said: “In that case, your father’s crime of attempting to harm the Crown Prince would be confirmed. Regicide is punishable by death.”

Zhu Zhanhe’s pupils dilated sharply. After a pause, he said: “My father brought this on himself. When the time comes, I’ll plead with His Majesty. As a dutiful son, I’m willing to trade one life for another, pay any price to atone for father’s sins, and beg His Majesty to spare father’s life—let him be imprisoned for life in Fengyang to repent!”

With that, Zhu Zhanhe took out a piece of cloth and gagged Zhu Zhanji, saying: “Luring out the traitors is something I must do—it’s the method that minimizes casualties. With my status as Prince Han’s heir, my life isn’t in danger. Don’t worry.”

He also instructed A’Lei: “Sister A’Lei has always been the most rational. I’ve explained everything clearly—you should know I’m doing the right thing and won’t help elder cousin untie the rope. Elder cousin always takes everything on himself, bearing pressure alone. At sixteen, he lives like a sixty-year-old man. It’s so hard for him. I want to share his burden. Now it’s my turn to protect him.”

A’Lei struggled internally, torn between choices, but outwardly appeared convinced: “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

Actually, I think this needs consideration. After all, what Zhu Zhanhe is doing also carries considerable risk.

Zhu Zhanhe walked to the door, then returned, taking out another rope and cloth to tie up A’Lei as well, binding her to the bedpost and gagging her!

With her injured foot, A’Lei had no strength to resist.

Zhu Zhanhe said: “Sorry, Sister A’Lei. In special times, I trust no one—especially since you just deceived elder cousin, acting so convincingly. Sister A’Lei, you’ve been learning bad habits lately.”

A’Lei: I must have been blind to help such an ungrateful wolf!

Zhu Zhanhe left, thoughtfully closing the door and telling the guards outside that the Crown Prince was napping—unless there was urgent business, don’t disturb His Highness.

As soon as Zhu Zhanhe left, Zhu Zhanji toppled over with his chair, landing right by the bed. He had carefully observed earlier—under the bed was a broken porcelain shard from the teapot A’Lei had accidentally broken yesterday. The guards had only cleaned the floor surface, overlooking fragments under the bed.

Zhu Zhanhe’s long limbs proved advantageous. His slender fingers successfully hooked the porcelain shard, then lying on the ground, he slowly cut through the hemp rope binding his wrists…

Just as Zhu Zhanhe predicted, Ji Gang made a desperate gamble for his final strike. How could he lure Zhu Zhanji out?

Ji Gang urgently devised a plan. He ordered death warriors disguised as pirates to kill the guards watching the prisoners, release about a thousand Japanese pirate captives, throw them weapons, and turn them against the Youth Army.

I refuse to believe that with such commotion, Zhu Zhanji will still cower and not come out.

The death warriors took their orders. Once the release succeeded, they would signal with yellow smoke.

Ji Gang waited anxiously for the signal when Youth Army personnel found him: “Sir, the Crown Prince has arrived at the harbor to inspect the bombing damage and is looking for you to speak.”

What? This was like wearing out iron shoes searching everywhere, only to find what you seek effortlessly—the fat meat had actually jumped into his mouth?

The messenger pointed to a gun platform at the harbor: “Right over there.”

From a distance, in blue robes with jade hairpin, tall and standing like a banished immortal—it was indeed the Crown Prince. Ji Gang nodded: “Good, I’ll go immediately.”

Ji Gang climbed onto the gun platform: “Your servant Ji Gang pays respects to Your Highness.”

The figure in blue slowly turned around: “Commander Ji.”