After sorting through everything, Jiang Chen finally pieced together the whole story and learned the cause of the previous Jiang Chen's death.
"Well, well! It looks like the previous Jiang Chen really died unjustly. He let out a fart and it brought a death sentence? The King of this Eastern Kingdom is truly absurd. A Heaven-Worshipping Ceremony? Ha! I was once the Son of the Heavenly Emperor—I've seen the Myriad Heavens, and I've never heard that taking a bath, changing clothes, and burning a few sticks of incense could win you the Heavens' blessing. The Heavenly Dao has its order: the virtuous receive much aid, while the wicked invite heavenly punishment. Sigh, never mind. In a way, this tyrannical king killing the old Jiang Chen actually paved the way for my fortune."
Jiang Chen sighed. Lying inside his coffin, emotions churned within him. He felt grief and indignation on behalf of his predecessor, yet secretly rejoiced at his own rebirth.
Still, he had heard the conversation between those two men just now with perfect clarity. One of them was naturally the previous Jiang Chen's father—more precisely, his current father.
Seeing this life's father fly into a rage over his son's plight, ready at any moment to rebel, Jiang Chen felt an inexplicable warmth in his chest. This doting paternal love felt familiar across both his past and present lives.
"Who would have thought that in both past and present, I'd be lucky enough to have the same kind of overprotective father. Marquis Jianghan, a lord of his own domain—yet he's willing to rebel just to avenge his son. He's got spine, all right."
Perhaps because this body shared flesh and blood with Jiang Feng, Jiang Chen's first impression of Jiang Feng as a father was one of genuine admiration.
At the very least, this was no sycophantic fool blindly devoted to his sovereign.
Of course, Jiang Chen had no intention of letting things spiral into outright rebellion.
A regional lord waging war against the king might sound exhilarating, but from a strategic perspective, it was practically suicide. Jiang Feng wasn't even in his own territory at the moment.
Even if he were, even if he commanded a million soldiers, a single lord defying the entire kingdom would be nothing more than a moth flying into the flame.
In his previous life, Jiang Chen had been the Son of the Heavenly Emperor, well-versed in classics and keenly aware of the maxim "revenge is a dish best served slow." He naturally wasn't going to let this life's father do something so foolish.
Being the Son of the Heavenly Emperor in his past life was all well and good.
But that former identity was worthless now!
If his father Jiang Feng rebelled and the kingdom collapsed, who would be left unscathed? Jiang Chen had struggled through soul transmigration to be reborn—he didn't want to die the moment he woke up.
So, seeing his father on the verge of storming out of the Royal Capital, Jiang Chen couldn't help but let out a soft "Mm"—a sound that made Jiang Feng freeze solid.
Jiang Feng did freeze completely, eyes locked on Jiang Chen lying in the coffin, the fury in them dissolving instantly into deep paternal love.
A father's love is like a mountain. Jiang Feng practically pounced forward, grabbing Jiang Chen's hand. "Chen'er, you… you're not dead?"
The face was unfamiliar, but the feeling of a father's love was identical across past and present—a familiarity that struck Jiang Chen to his core.
"Father, I've caused you trouble."
Right now, Jiang Feng was entirely consumed by the joy of regaining his lost son. Who cared about floods and disasters behind him?
"Don't be ridiculous! You are Jiang Feng's son—how can you ever be trouble? Chen'er, you're alive, and that's all that matters! So what if you farted? His daughter from the Dongfang family has an incurable disease—is a ceremony going to fix that? If the Heaven-Worshipping Ceremony could cure the incurable, why would we need doctors at all?"
"And besides—is his Dongfang Lu's daughter's life more precious than my Jiang Feng's son? His daughter is sick, so he performs a ceremony to the Heavens. My son accidentally lets one slip, and he orders him flogged to death?"
Jiang Feng's resentment poured out freely in front of his son, unguarded. He addressed the King of the Eastern Kingdom by name without a shred of deference.
It was clear that Marquis Jianghan was truly furious. Jiang Chen was certain that if he really had died, Jiang Feng would have rebelled without hesitation.
This was a man who'd dare poke a hole in the sky for his son.
"Having a father like this really isn't bad at all." Jiang Chen's opinion of this father rose considerably.
"Chen'er, don't worry. Now that you're awake, as long as your father still draws breath, I will never let you suffer another indignity. I'm going to reach out to the lords I know and submit a joint petition, demanding that Dongfang Lu absolve you of those outrageous charges."
Defiling the altar, desecrating the sacred hall, blasphemy against the gods, ruining the Heaven-Worshipping Ceremony!
Each of those charges hung over his head. Even if Jiang Chen had come back from the dead, the fallout would keep coming relentlessly.
Jiang Chen knew that to survive in the Eastern Kingdom, he couldn't afford to carry these accusations. Wherever he went, they would follow him like a death sentence.
"Father, there's no rush to clear the charges. The Dongfang family is in a rage right now. Give it a few days—once his temper cools, we can go then. He already had me flogged once; surely he can't throw away all royal dignity just to have me flogged again?"
To be honest, Jiang Chen had countless ways of handling the current situation.
But he wasn't in any hurry. He needed time to adapt to this new identity and familiarize himself with this body.
Jiang Feng was about to speak again when his ear twitched slightly. He lowered his voice. "Chen'er, lie back down. Someone's coming."