After seeing Imperial Physician Jiang off, Ruyi returned to the main hall. She saw Consort De coaxing the Sixth Prince, feeding him sweet soup, while Jixiang, the senior palace maid who served alongside her, was arranging the midday meal with several other maids.
The Fourth Prince stood to the side, the wound on his wrist already bandaged. His face was as cold as usual, his eyes devoid of any emotion as he stared blankly at the carpet beneath his feet.
Ever since the Fourth Prince returned from the Palace of Heavenly Purity, he had been like this. Your Highness showed no warmth toward the Fourth Prince, and the Fourth Prince held no affection for Your Highness either. Mother and son maintained this lukewarm relationship, which sometimes felt awkward to Ruyi. They were biological mother and son, and he was her first child. Logically, after years of separation, their reunion should have been joyful, or at least not so frosty.
Ruyi glanced at Yinzhen, pressed her lips together, and stepped forward to report, "Your Highness, Imperial Physician Jiang has been escorted out."
The Sixth Prince had earlier complained of hunger, so Consort De hurriedly ordered sweet soup to be brought. However, the Sixth Prince threw a tantrum and refused to open his mouth for his favorite sweet soup. Consort De had no choice but to coax the little master into eating a little, then urged Jixiang and the others to quickly prepare the meal.
Hearing Ruyi’s words, Consort De didn’t turn her head. She scooped another spoonful of sweet soup for the Sixth Prince, carefully wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, and then asked indifferently, "Everything has been taken care of, right? Make sure he doesn’t spread any unnecessary talk."
With today’s incident, the Emperor and the Grand Empress Dowager might already think she favored Yinzuo and mistreated Yinzhen. She couldn’t afford to let such rumors spread now.
Ruyi replied, "Your Highness, rest assured. Imperial Physician Jiang is a sensible man."
Imperial Physician Jiang had no reason to oppose their Yonghe Palace. Consort De was currently highly favored by the Emperor, and both the Sixth Prince and the recently born Ninth Princess were deeply cherished by His Majesty. In contrast, the Fourth Prince’s only reliable support was the Imperial Noble Consort, who was critically ill and unable to care for herself. As long as Imperial Physician Jiang wasn’t a fool, he would know which side to choose.
Consort De nodded. Seeing that the midday meal was ready, the Sixth Prince stopped drinking the sweet soup, jumped off the couch, and went to eat. Only then did Consort De free her hands and turn her attention to Yinzhen, who had been standing silently to the side.
"Yinzhen, since your hand is injured, E’niang won’t keep you here for the meal. I’ll have someone send the food to your room later."
Consort De rose with Jixiang’s support and said in a calm tone, "Remember from now on, your sixth brother is young and bound to be mischievous at times. As the older brother, you should look out for him more, not mix with those improper brothers and gang up to bully your own younger brother."
Yinzhen’s lips twitched, his palms clenched tightly. He pressed his lips together and remained silent. Consort De knew he was resisting her, so she said nothing more, merely staring down at him quietly and imposingly.
After a long while, Yinzhen finally yielded.
He let out a long breath and lowered his head slightly. "Your son acknowledges his mistake."
Only then did Consort De show a faint smile. "It’s good that you know your mistake. Apologize to your sixth brother, and let this matter be over."
Yinzhen felt as though his fingernails were digging into his palms. The pain in his hands was sharp, but his heart felt so cold it seemed numb. In the end, he still had to bow his head to his sixth brother.
E’niang’s words in Cining Palace were nothing but hypocrisy. He should have understood this long ago and should no longer harbor any expectations.
The Sixth Prince, who had already taken a small bite of a date paste pastry, turned to look at Consort De upon hearing her words, his face also wearing a proud expression as he held his head high, waiting for Fourth Brother to apologize to him.
"Sixth Brother, today I was too rash. I apologize."
Yinzhen released his tightly clenched hand, his expression returning to calm as he spoke the words Consort De wanted to hear, almost devoid of any emotion.
The Sixth Prince nodded with an air of arrogance, reluctantly accepting the apology.
Consort De was also somewhat satisfied and waved her hand, signaling Yinzhen to withdraw. She then stepped forward and gently reminded the Sixth Prince not to eat too many pastries, lest he lose his appetite for the meal later.
Yinzhen bowed properly and took his leave. Just before departing, he heard a palace maid emerge from the inner chamber to announce that the Ninth Princess had woken up and was crying for Consort De. The Sixth Prince was quite fond of his little sister, and since Consort De had already lost one daughter, she doted on this youngest one.
The palace attendants brought out the nearly eight-month-old Ninth Princess, and Consort De took her, soothing her gently. The Sixth Prince, forgetting about his meal, tugged at Consort De’s robes to catch a glimpse of his sister. Consort De smiled and bent down so he could see.
Yinzhen glanced back for a moment before turning away and leaving without looking back.
This was a family. There had never been a place for him in Yonghe Palace.
In Changchun Palace, Yinsi had already eaten his fill and was beginning to doze off. The current rule for imperial princes was to formally begin their studies at the age of seven, after which they would only have five days off each year, embarking on a rigorous schedule of studying classics and history in the mornings and practicing riding and archery in the afternoons. Those under seven would start their education in the Imperial Study at the age of three, attending classes only in the mornings with no arrangements for the afternoons. Thus, Yinsi could still take an afternoon nap.
After lulling Yinsi to sleep, Yunxiu gently touched his rosy little face and quietly retreated from the bedchamber before heading to Cining Palace.
The Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager, both advanced in age, rarely took afternoon naps. When Yunxiu arrived, the two venerable elders were in the inner hall enjoying tea and conversation, with calming incense burning to soothe the mind.
"Why have you lit this incense again, Grandmother? Didn’t you say it smelled too cold and lonely?"
Baolin entered the hall with a smile, bowed in greeting, and then signaled Doukou behind her to hand the food box she had brought to Sumalagu.
The Grand Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes slightly, listening to the ticking of the Western clock behind her, and closed an exquisitely crafted sandalwood box on the table.
"I knew you would come," the Grand Empress Dowager said, glancing at the food box Yunxiu had brought, her curiosity piqued for once. "What have you brought this time?"
Yunxiu replied, "It’s still the gastrodia elata chicken soup. This morning, with so many people around, you only had one bowl. You should drink more of this soup—it helps with your headaches."
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "Empress Mother, Yunxiu has some knowledge of medicine. Drinking this is much better than bitter medicinal brews. Please have some more."
Sumalagu had already deftly served a bowl each for the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager. The Grand Empress Dowager raised an eyebrow slightly upon seeing it. "Why are there more red dates in this than in the morning’s batch?"
Yunxiu sighed helplessly. "I noticed you didn’t eat much this morning, so I added some red dates to encourage you to drink more."
As the saying goes, the elderly are like children, and the Grand Empress Dowager had indeed reached that age.
The Grand Empress Dowager shot Yunxiu a glare, but with the added red dates, she did end up drinking a bit more.
Yunxiu looked around and, not seeing the Fifth Prince, asked, "Where has Yinqi run off to this time?"
The Empress Dowager finished a bowl of soup, took a handkerchief to wipe her mouth, and said helplessly, "He's sulking. After lunch, he ran off to his own quarters. Suma went to check on him just now and said he's fallen asleep."
The Fifth Prince was purely childlike in temperament—he would sulk on his own, and as he sulked, he’d drift off to sleep.
The Grand Empress Dowager then asked about Yinsi as well. Yunxiu shrugged, "He was upset for a while too, but he’s fine now. He had lunch and is also asleep."
After saying this, Yunxiu tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, aren’t you angry with Yinqi and Yinsi?"
Today, these two children had caused quite a stir, and in the Grand Empress Dowager’s eyes, they were likely meddling in matters they shouldn’t—simply making trouble.
The Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager exchanged a glance and smiled.
"Why should I be angry with them?" the Grand Empress Dowager said, speaking of her two great-grandsons whom she had watched grow up, her expression kind and affectionate. "Although as imperial princes, it would be best for them to be shrewd and calculating, they’re still so young."
"At their age, what matters most is having a righteous heart, knowing what is right and what is wrong. The fact that they were willing to stand up for Yinzhen—I think that’s very good."
Yunxiu hadn’t expected the Grand Empress Dowager to say such things. She had thought the Grand Empress Dowager would disapprove of the two brothers causing trouble and bringing trouble upon themselves.
After speaking, the Grand Empress Dowager thought of Consort De and couldn’t help but frown. "Besides, Consort De has gone too far. No matter what, Yinzhen is her own flesh and blood, born after ten months of pregnancy. Even if he wasn’t raised by her from a young age, that was the Emperor’s decree. What does it have to do with Yinzhen?"
"Indeed," the Empress Dowager added. "Yinqi was brought to Cining Palace as soon as he was born. I see that Consort Yi, now that she has Yintang, still cares for Yinqi just as much."
Yunxiu couldn’t understand Consort De’s way of thinking either. All she could say was that people’s hearts are fickle—who can truly understand them?
Moreover, from a historical perspective, after the Sixth Prince passed away, Consort De gave birth to the Fourteenth Prince and became even more biased. Even when Yongzheng ascended the throne, she jumped out to cause trouble, refusing to become Empress Dowager and claiming she never expected Kangxi to pass the throne to Yinzhen.
It could truly be said to be pure resentment.
Such complicated mother-son feelings were probably unclear even to those involved, let alone outsiders like them.
Yunxiu sighed, "It’s a pity the Imperial Noble Consort has fallen ill. Otherwise, there would still be someone to stand up for the Fourth Prince."
Yunxiu had entered the palace early and knew most of the palace affairs inside and out. For example, although the Tongjia clan had adopted Yinzhen, in the early years, they seemed to care for him deeply, showing warmth and affection. However, after she became pregnant with her own child, she grew much colder toward Yinzhen, especially after the Eighth Princess passed away and the Imperial Noble Consort fell ill—she simply couldn’t spare any attention for Yinzhen.
Still, the Imperial Noble Consort was far better than Consort De. At least she had put effort into raising Yinzhen. When she had her own child, it was only natural that she couldn’t treat them equally, but she never went so far as to mistreat Yinzhen—she simply didn’t have the energy to care for him as much.
The Grand Empress Dowager patted the rosewood box she and the Empress Dowager had been looking at when Yunxiu entered and said meaningfully, "This was just sent over by the Imperial Noble Consort. Come and take a look."
Hmm? Sent by the Imperial Noble Consort to Cining Palace?
Yunxiu was genuinely curious. Opening it, she found a statue of Guanyin bestowing children carved from mutton-fat jade.
Presenting a Guanyin bestowing children statue to the Grand Empress Dowager and Empress Dowager was obviously not a prayer for these two elderly ladies to bear children in their old age. The Imperial Noble Consort was pleading with the two matriarchs to protect Yinzhen.
The Empress Dowager was peeling fruit and even handed a small plate to Yunxiu, sighing, "Despite her severe illness, the Imperial Noble Consort still considers Yinzhen. It truly shows a mother's love."
The Grand Empress Dowager sneered and said slowly, "Unfortunately, the Emperor has been swayed by Consort De. What can an old woman like me do?"
This was clearly the Grand Empress Dowager venting her anger. Today, Kangxi had protected the Sixth Prince, upsetting Yinsi and the Fifth Prince, which naturally displeased the Grand Empress Dowager as well.
Yunxiu closed the sandalwood box, feeling somewhat moved. However, although the Grand Empress Dowager's words were spoken in anger, they were also true. Kangxi protected Consort De. If the Grand Empress Dowager were to act seriously, she could certainly take Yinzhen out of Yonghe Palace. But for her, it wasn't necessary to clash with Kangxi over Yinzhen.
Poor Yinzhen could only endure under his own birth mother.
At that moment, the Grand Empress Dowager suddenly asked, "What is the Emperor doing now?"
Sumalagu replied, "His Majesty returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to review memorials. Shortly after, he summoned the Crown Prince to dine together. They are still talking now."
The Grand Empress Dowager let out a meaningful "oh" and said nothing more.
The group then stopped discussing matters of Yonghe Palace. After a while, Yinsi and the Fifth Prince woke up and also came to Cining Palace. Having slept, the two brothers were less angry. They spent the afternoon cheerfully chatting with the two matriarchs, until the Grand Palace Night Banquet in the evening, when Yunxiu took Yinsi back to their palace to change clothes before heading to Jiuzhou Qingyan.
Upon arriving, they noticed that Consort De had only brought the Sixth Prince, with no sign of Yinzhen.