My Emperor Father Can Read Minds
Chapter 5

Wei Yu had been the Ninth Prince of Great Wei since birth.

But, in truth, he hadn’t always been.

Because, from a soul-level perspective, he had lived an entire previous life.

There wasn’t much to say about that past life—it was nothing more than the mundane daily grind of an office worker whose dreams had been crushed by reality.

After arriving in Great Wei, the thing Wei Yu was most grateful for was his golden finger—the tablet in his mind.

Wasn’t that how novels always went? When the protagonist transmigrates, they always get some kind of cheat—a system, great fortune, or a massive harem…

Wei Yu didn’t care for any of that. He was perfectly content with his tablet.

Sure, he couldn’t send comments while watching dramas, couldn’t leave reviews on novels, and couldn’t reply to messages on social media… but none of that really mattered.

What mattered was that having a tablet made life in this entertainment-starved ancient world much more bearable!

And as a prince—though not a favored one—he was still royalty. For fifteen years, he had never lacked food, clothing, or servants.

Simply put, in this life, Wei Yu was a top-tier aristocrat with no material worries.

And with his tablet providing endless entertainment, he had even less motivation to strive for anything.

He was already a prince!

Why would he need to strive for more?

To fight for the throne?

Ha—did no one notice the eight older brothers above him?

He wasn’t Emperor Yongzheng.

Power struggles were exhausting, not to mention life-threatening. And even if he miraculously became emperor, what was the reward?

As a prince or a royal duke, he already had all the food, luxury, and authority he needed. If he stayed out of trouble, who would bother him?

Becoming emperor meant dealing with scheming ministers at court and handling the endless affairs of the harem afterward. Did he look like he had the energy for that?

He just wanted to lie flat and be a salted fish!

Even just thinking about being emperor felt like a hassle.

Wei Yu had no ambition.

Ever since he transmigrated and became the Ninth Prince of Great Wei, from the moment he understood his circumstances, he had only one goal—to be an unremarkable, low-profile prince.

And ultimately, to live as a free-spirited, carefree royal duke who could roam the world.

—

After parting ways with the Third Princess, Wei Yu and the Eighth Prince went to stand with the other princes.

There were many princes, each accompanied by their own servants. When the two of them arrived, the older brothers in front didn’t pay them much attention—except for the Seventh Prince.

The Seventh Prince was the same age as the Eighth Prince but was born to Consort Xian and was the full younger brother of the Second Prince.

“You two sure know how to run off.”

The Seventh Prince gave them a sidelong glance, threw out that remark, and then turned away.

Who even knew what he meant by that?

Wei Yu had always been a background character. Aside from the Eighth Prince, he rarely interacted with his other brothers.

So he nudged the Eighth Prince, signaling for him to respond.

The Eighth Prince secretly rolled his eyes but still stepped forward respectfully. “Seventh Brother, you’re joking. My Ninth Brother and I simply went to see our Third Sister.”

The Seventh Prince said nothing—he didn’t even turn his head.

Since he wasn’t engaging, the two brothers naturally didn’t press the issue. After the Eighth Prince finished speaking, he simply stepped back and stood with Wei Yu to wait.

Wei Yu stared at the Seventh Prince’s back for a moment.

Why?

Because his Seventh Brother was gorgeous.

He had delicate, almost feminine features, with an exceptionally handsome face and pale skin. His fox-like eyes, especially when he stared at someone, made him look like a literal seductress.

Wei Yu liked looking at him.

Who didn’t enjoy admiring beautiful people?

Even though his Seventh Brother was as ruthless as their mother, that didn’t stop Wei Yu from staring.

Since he couldn’t see his face, he could only admire his back. After glancing a couple more times, he regretfully clicked his tongue, turned away, and opened his mental tablet to continue watching anime…

Slacking off was a survival skill for corporate workers.

He had been slacking off since childhood.

—

In the end, he didn’t even finish an episode.

Just as he was about to reach the climax, someone beside him elbowed him.

“They’re coming out! Stop zoning out!”

Wei Yu snapped out of it, closed his tablet, and looked ahead.

Sure enough, the tightly shut doors of the imperial bedchamber had opened, and the ministers were walking out.

They were a bit far away, and the crowd in front blocked his view, so he couldn’t clearly see the ministers’ expressions. However, he could sense that their steps seemed… heavy?

Did they get scolded?

Wei Yu blinked and saw Eunuch Li Cheng walking toward them.

Beside him, the Eighth Prince whispered, “Eunuch Li is coming. Father is probably summoning us. Whatever you do, don’t zone out this time!”

Having grown up together, the Eighth Prince—who was only a year older—knew exactly what kind of person his Ninth Brother was.

He looked obedient, but in reality, he was reckless.

“It’s bad enough that you don’t focus in class, but now that we’re finally meeting Father, you better pay attention!”

Ugh, nagging.

He was barely a teenager and already turning into a mother hen.

Oblivious to his own lack of ambition, Wei Yu nodded rapidly. “Mm-hmm, got it, got it. Eighth Brother, stop talking—Eunuch Li is here.”

Noticing that Eunuch Li had already reached the older brothers, the Eighth Prince immediately shut up.

Up ahead, Eunuch Li Cheng’s expression barely held a trace of a smile. After bowing to the princes, he delivered the summons.

“His Majesty invites the princes inside. His Majesty has just woken up and is not in good spirits. Please, Your Highnesses, do not keep His Majesty waiting.”

On the surface, it seemed like a simple statement, but everyone who understood, understood.

Wei Yu fell silent.

Eunuch Li never rushed them like this.

If the Emperor was truly in poor health, shouldn’t he not be seeing anyone?

Rushing them like this… it was more likely that his father was in a bad mood!

As expected, the Prime Minister and the others had definitely been scolded.

Up front, the First Prince nodded slightly. “Thank you, Eunuch Li. We’ll head in now.”

With that, he took the lead and strode toward the imperial bedchamber.

The other princes followed closely behind.

Wei Yu was the last to enter.

Being the youngest, he wasn’t particularly noticeable. He had assumed that this visit would just be a formality and wouldn’t involve him at all. But the moment he stepped in, knelt down, and was just about to greet his father—

A cup shattered right in front of him.

“Smash!”

The crisp sound of the cup hitting the floor echoed through the chamber, cutting off the princes’ greeting before they could even finish.

Before they could react, the Emperor’s furious voice followed immediately after.

“Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!”

“Father, please calm your anger!”

Wei Yu: ???

Joining in the chorus of “Please calm your anger!”, Wei Yu was utterly confused.

What the hell is going on?

What did they even do?!

Why had His Majesty suddenly exploded like this?!

Whatever his older brothers had done—how was any of it his fault?!

This was an injustice worse than Dou E’s!