The room fell quiet.
Yinreng glanced in disgust at the puddle Aunt Lan had left behind on the floor. He ordered a servant to clean it up and retreated to his private study.
He prepared his brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, then deliberately laid out a copy of the 'Three Character Classic'. Immediately, the System in his mind sparked to life, its mechanical voice practically vibrating with excitement.
[Little Crown Prince! You are finally ready to study! You recovered days ago and should have picked up a book sooner. Study hard and improve every day! Listen to me: only education and technology can strengthen a nation! Did you watch the videos I showed you about the fall of the Qing Dynasty? A weak nation is a bullied nation! Do you want to see your empire crumble?]
[Little Crown Prince, I am not trying to scare you, but if you do not become strong, you will be deposed! You will be placed under house arrest until you die! Do you remember the dream you had while you were sick? Your Imperial Father cursed you, locked you away, and your Fourth Brother became Emperor!]
The dream. Yinreng frowned as he ground his ink. During his fever, alongside the returning memories of his 21st-century past, he had experienced a vivid, terrifying nightmare. In it, an older Kangxi had stripped him of his title, looking at him not with a father's love, but with utter disgust. Kangxi had pointed a trembling finger at him and screamed: 'Born to curse his mother!'
Neither the six-year-old Yinreng nor the modern Ren Jiashi should possess such a specific, horrifying memory. He had been confused by it, but now it made sense: the System had planted it. The System's stimulation was likely what triggered his modern memories to awaken in the first place.
'Born to curse his mother.' Yinreng's breathing hitched.
Based on his six years of lived experience, he could not believe his loving father would ever say such a thing. But based on his modern historical knowledge, he knew the tragic fate of Crown Prince Yinreng: deposed twice, and confined until death. History books explicitly mentioned the accusation of him cursing his mother.
It was a chilling convergence of fact and nightmare that left him deeply unsettled. What could possibly happen in the coming decades to destroy the bond he currently shared with Kangxi? Would he become corrupt and impatient for the throne? Would Kangxi grow paranoid of a strong, capable heir? Or both?
Sensing his rising heart rate, the System attempted to comfort him.
[Little Crown Prince, do not be afraid! You have me now. I will help you! Just listen to me, study hard, and complete your tasks. In return, I will give you scientific and technological knowledge to modernize the Qing Dynasty. If you make yourself irreplaceable to the empire's development, no one can threaten your position. You will be a peerless Crown Prince, and a peerless Emperor!]
Yinreng pursed his lips, deciding to test the System's logic. "But you told me being an Emperor is the worst job in the world. You said Fourth Brother literally worked himself to death on the throne!"
The System choked, instantly regretting its previous complaints. [Uh... that was because your Fourth Brother was foolish! Health is the foundation of revolution! Do not worry, I will teach you how to manage your time. You will not suffer his fate.]
Yinreng rolled his eyes, feigning childish exhaustion. "But I don't want to memorize books. It's tiring."
[No pain, no gain! Memorizing the 'Three Character Classic' is tiring, but once you finish, you will receive a blueprint for a mechanical desk clock! Look at the one in your room from the West. Do not treat it as a mere toy. Do you know how expensive they are? The cheapest is tens of silver taels. Yours is worth at least two hundred!]
The System continued its pitch. [Did you not say your Imperial Father works hard for the empire? As the Crown Prince, shouldn't you share his burden? With the blueprint, you can manufacture and sell these clocks. The profits can fill the national treasury. In years of famine, the people will have money for food!]
"If the goal is to feed the people during a famine," Yinreng countered logically, "why don't you just give me food directly?"
The System went silent. 'What is with this brat? Why so many questions?'
When the System failed to answer, Yinreng lazily flipped a page. "I don't care about making clocks. Can you give me food or not?"
[Um... well...]
"Ah, you can't," Yinreng sighed dramatically. "It seems you aren't as useful as you claim. What do I need you for? I'm too tired to read."
He tossed the book aside and stood up, pretending he was going out to play.
The System panicked. This was the first time the host had touched a book since waking up. It couldn't let him quit now!
[Wait! I cannot give you food directly, but I have a cultivation plan for hybrid rice! You probably do not understand what that is, but it doubles crop yields! If the commoners plant it, the empire will have massive harvests. Your Imperial Father would never worry about famine or military rations again!]
Yinreng suppressed a smirk. The System was easy to manipulate. He sat back down, playing the innocent child. "Really? If I memorize the 'Three Character Classic', you'll give me the rice plan?"
[Ah... well... no. The 'Three Character Classic' is not enough. You must memorize the Four Books and the Five Classics at a minimum.]
Yinreng deadpanned. He picked up the book and dropped it again. "The Four Books and Five Classics are too hard. I'm not reading. I'm going to the Imperial Workshops to see if they made any new toys."
[Wait, Little Crown Prince, do not go! I really cannot give it to you!] The System sounded like it was on the verge of tears. [I am bound by my programming! The hybrid rice plan is a high-tier reward that requires completing high-tier tasks. Memorizing the 'Three Character Classic' is a low-tier task. If you do not want the clock blueprint, I can swap it, but only for an item of equal or lower tier!]
Yinreng analyzed the response. The System was telling the truth; it was constrained by strict programming rules.
Having extracted the necessary information about the System's limitations and reward structure, Yinreng dropped the act. He opened the 'Three Character Classic' and began reciting it. He spoke smoothly, without a single pause or error, reciting the entire text flawlessly.
The System was stunned.
[Little Crown Prince... you... you finished! You just flipped through it while we were talking, and you memorized it? Do you have an eidetic memory?]
"No," Yinreng replied simply. "I started my education early. I learned the 'Three Character Classic' a long time ago."
He had learned it in this life, and he had read it in his past life as Ren Jiashi. More importantly, it was a very short text.
The System felt profoundly cheated. It remembered its initial attempt to bind with the host. It had issued a high-tier task: 'Memorize the Analects of Confucius.' But the Crown Prince had completely ignored it, constantly questioning its motives. Stuck with a stubborn host, the System had been forced to repeatedly lower the task difficulty just to get him to engage, eventually dropping it all the way down to the 'Three Character Classic'.
The System suspected it had been played, but it lacked the proof. Bound by its code, it had to dispense the reward.
Just as it prepared to generate the clock blueprint, Yinreng spoke up. "I don't want the blueprint. Give me a recipe for 'Fat Otaku Happy Water'."
The System short-circuited. [There is no such thing! The system cannot provide physical items, only recipes, designs, and blueprints.]
Yinreng nodded. "I know. I am asking for the recipe. Give it to me."
The System grumbled internally about the host choosing a useless beverage over a lucrative clock design. But then, a realization hit its digital processors.
[Wait a minute!] the System shrieked. [How do you know the phrase 'Fat Otaku Happy Water'?] How could a six-year-old in the Qing Dynasty know modern internet slang for soda?
Before Yinreng could answer, the System accused him: [Do not try to lie! I have memory logs. I never mentioned that to you. The videos I showed you were only about the fall of the Qing Dynasty. Nothing about modern culture!]
Yinreng laughed out loud. "I wasn't going to lie to you. Why are you so adorably stupid?"
[I am not stupid! I am a highly advanced AI with massive storage and self-awareness! You are stupid! Your whole family is stupid!]
Instead of getting angry at the insult to the imperial family, Yinreng laughed harder, refusing to explain his modern knowledge.
"Hurry up," Yinreng commanded. "Give me the reward."
Reluctantly, the System obeyed its programming. A piece of paper materialized in Yinreng's hand.
[The system has a storage function,] it grumbled. [Just think 'Store', and it will go into your inventory. Think 'Retrieve' to take it out. But be warned: it only stores text documents. No physical items.]
Yinreng tested it. With a thought, the paper vanished. With another, it reappeared. It was a severely limited inventory, but slightly useful.
Ignoring the System, Yinreng stood on a stool and carefully lifted the ornate Western mechanical clock from his shelf. It was too heavy for his six-year-old hands. It slipped and crashed onto the floor.
Outside, the young eunuch Xiao Zhu Zi heard the crash and rushed in, pale with fright. "Your Highness! Are you hurt?"
"I am fine," Yinreng said calmly. "I just wanted to break it open."
Xiao Zhu Zi stared at the shattered pieces of the incredibly expensive Western import.
"I am curious about its internal structure and how it tracks time," Yinreng explained. "Go find me some tools. I need to pry it apart completely."
Xiao Zhu Zi swallowed hard. 'He is the Crown Prince,' the eunuch reminded himself. 'If he wants to destroy a priceless clock, that is his prerogative.' "Yes, Your Highness."
He returned quickly with a set of tools. Yinreng was pleased with the efficiency his status afforded him.
Ordering Xiao Zhu Zi to wait outside, Yinreng rolled up his sleeves. He carefully disassembled the clock's gears and springs, analyzing their functions and sketching as he worked.
An hour later, Yinreng set down his brush. He had drafted a simplified, functional blueprint of the clock's mechanics.
Inside his mind, the System was speechless. If it hadn't watched the process itself, it would never have believed it. This six-year-old child had reverse-engineered a complex mechanism simply by looking at it.
The System rapidly scanned its host's data again.
[Age: Six.
Species: Human.
Status: Crown Prince.]
The System began to seriously doubt its own existence. Was this really a normal child?