I relied on a system to prolong my life in ancient times.

Chapter 321 The Prince Offers Congratulations

The Xiao family has such a joyous occasion today that Lin Qin was so happy that she gave some rewards to all the servants in the mansion.

The Xiao family also had a rare gathering that evening to celebrate. Old Master Xiao said that it was all thanks to the blessings of their ancestors, and that they must return to the ancestral hall in Xiaojia Village to pay their respects during the Spring Festival this year, so that their ancestors could continue to bless them.

That night, the men of the Xiao family drank quite a bit, almost missing the morning court session the next day.

The next day, the sign for the Xiao residence was changed to that of the Marquis of De'an.

The Xiao family has been bustling with visitors these past two days. Many people from the capital have come to offer their congratulations, while others have come to try and win over Xiao Qinian, such as the princes who have already come of age.

"Congratulations, Lord Xiao. I am honored to have come uninvited today. May I disturb you?" The First Prince, dressed in white brocade robes, held a teacup with an elegant demeanor.

The royal family of the Great Zhou Dynasty had the surname Xuanyuan, and the eldest prince was named Xuanyuan Shuo.

"I am already flattered by the presence of Your Highness, how could it be an intrusion?" Xiao Qinian replied humbly. This prince was a smiling tiger. Don't be fooled by his respectable appearance now; behind the scenes, he was a nightmare.

He hadn't expected that the First Prince would take notice of him so soon after his promotion, and even come to his door. But don't be fooled by the First Prince's kind appearance; he was no pushover and he had to be treated with caution.

"It's good that you haven't disturbed me. I know that Lord Xiao is very knowledgeable and has made outstanding achievements. I have a favor to ask. I wonder if I would have the opportunity to learn from Lord Xiao?" The eldest prince was really humble. He not only changed his address to Shuofeng, but also said that he wanted to learn from Xiao Qinian.

"Hehe, Your Highness, you flatter me. How could my limited abilities possibly teach you?" Xiao Qinian quickly refused. He wouldn't do something so thankless, and he didn't believe the prince genuinely wanted to learn from him.

"Lord Xiao is too modest, you..." The First Prince was about to speak when he was interrupted by a voice.

"Hahaha, eldest brother has really been pretending for too long, he's lost all sense of shame."

Xiao Qinian looked over and saw the Second Prince Xuanyuan Qi striding in, followed by Lai Xing.

Xiao Qinian looked at Lai Xing. What was going on? Why wasn't the Second Prince notified when he arrived?

Lai Xing was also very aggrieved. How could he dare to stop the Second Prince? The prince was so fast that he couldn't even keep up with him.

Xiao Qinian noticed Lai Xing's troubled expression and could only gesture for someone to leave.

Looking at the Second Prince, he was truly at a loss for words. What was going on? Did all these princes have nothing better to do? Why were they all running around here? One First Prince was enough, but he didn't expect the Second Prince to come too.

No matter what he was thinking, Xiao Qinian could only put on a smiling face and say, "Your Majesty, please have a seat."

"Get up." The second prince waved his hand and sat down opposite the first prince with an arrogant expression.

"Why did the Second Prince come here too?" The First Prince ignored the Second Prince's previous words and simply asked.

"What, you're allowed to come, but I'm not?" The Second Prince raised an eyebrow and said in a very irritating way.

"The Second Emperor's temper is still as volatile as ever. My brother was just asking casually." Although the First Prince disliked the Second Prince's tone, he still replied with a smile.

"Hmph, doesn't the eldest prince get tired of wearing a mask all day? Or has he come to believe he's a kind person after all this time? If that's the case, then I really have to congratulate him properly." The second prince disliked the eldest prince's mask the most.

"Second Prince, you really have a deep misunderstanding about me." The First Prince could barely maintain his fake smile. This fool is truly detestable.

Xiao Qinian sat below the two princes, watching them go back and forth, pretending not to hear. He had been thinking about how to deal with the two princes, but now he didn't need to do it at all, and he was happy to be more relaxed.

Tsk tsk, I knew these two princes didn't get along, but I didn't expect them to not even bother to pretend in front of an outsider like me.

He was thinking that he should send the two away as soon as possible. They were not people he could afford to offend. If they went crazy, he wouldn't be able to control them. Besides, he didn't want to get involved in the struggle between these princes.

"Lord Xiao, the congratulatory gift has been delivered, so I will take my leave now." The First Prince knew that with the Second Prince present today, nothing could be accomplished, so he had no choice but to leave first and wait for a chance to try to get closer to Xiao Qinian and bring him to his side.

"It's time for me to leave as well. I'll give the congratulatory gift to Lord Xiao and we'll go." The Second Prince had come today because he had heard that the First Prince was coming and wanted to sabotage things. Of course, he also had the intention of winning over Xiao Qinian, but today was not a good time, so he left.

Xiao Qinian saw the two princes off and sighed. Although the two princes did not make things difficult for him, he already knew that he would definitely have a lot of trouble in the future.

There are good and bad aspects to this promotion, but the benefits outweigh the bad.

In the Hall of Diligent Governance of the Imperial Palace

Emperor Zhou was reviewing memorials when he said in a calm tone, as if talking to himself, "What happened?"

Suddenly, a man in black appeared, clasping his hands in a fist salute: "Your Majesty, the First Prince and the Second Prince both went to the Marquis of De'an's residence today."

"Oh? Do you know what they did?" Emperor Zhou didn't even look up, dipping his brush in ink and continuing to review the memorials.

"The two princes presented Lord Xiao with congratulatory gifts and left after staying for less than a quarter of an hour."

"Yes, I understand. You may leave."

Upon hearing this, the man in black immediately disappeared from the hall.

Emperor Zhou then raised his head, a smile on his face, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"My two sons are really impatient; they've already started so openly trying to win over the court officials."

After speaking, Emperor Zhou lowered his head and resumed his work, seemingly not paying much attention.

The two princes probably don't know that the moment they left the Xiao residence, Emperor Zhou already knew what they had been doing.

Their actions were all under the Zhou Emperor's watchful eye, and the Zhou Emperor was already aware of their intentions.