Chapter 57 Reactions from All Sides (Part 1)

The concubine entered the household the day after the primary wife's wedding?!

Emperor Yongzheng's expression was grim. He took the memorial handed back by Yunli and saw the words "Prince Bao's primary wife will be married on the eighth day of the eighth month, and his secondary wife will be married on the ninth day of the eighth month" in a conspicuous manner. Emperor Yongzheng was shocked and furious!

How come he didn't notice at all?

He threw the memorial in front of Liu Qing and angrily rebuked, "Liu Qing, is this the auspicious date given by your Imperial Observatory! The concubine enters the palace one day after the primary wife's wedding..." It's as if the primary wife and the concubine are trial brides. There has never been such a reason or rule since the founding of the Qing Dynasty!

"Is the Imperial Observatory truly united under someone's bribery, or do you, as the head of the Imperial Observatory, have a powerful patron behind you?"

Liu Qing immediately knelt down on the ground. "Your Majesty, it was my oversight, but I am loyal and have no disloyal intentions!"

Liu Qing was flustered and confused. This shouldn't be happening. He had clearly read the memorial before it was submitted, and he hadn't noticed anything amiss at the time. Could it be that someone in the Imperial Observatory was deliberately plotting against him?

"Is this something that can be resolved with just the word 'oversight'?"

"Your Majesty, please forgive me! Your Majesty, please forgive me!"

Yongzheng was clearly furious. He felt that if the Imperial Observatory hadn't been so careless, he would have been able to discover it, and that the Seventeenth Prince had pointed it out. Yongzheng felt that he had completely lost face.

"Since this was an oversight, then he should not serve as the chief envoy! Su Peisheng!"

"Your servant is here."

"Drag him out of here and order the Imperial Observatory to choose a new date. If there are any problems again, they're all fired!"

"Your servant obeys the decree."

Su Peisheng instructed two eunuchs to drag the limp Liu Qing away. One visit to the Hall of Mental Cultivation and he'd lost his official hat, but Su Peisheng wasn't disappointed at all; on the contrary, he thought the Emperor had done a good job! This was a clever move—using the primary consort's face to curry favor with the secondary consort was also a slap in the face to Prince Bao.

Not in the mood to play chess with Yunli, Yunli tactfully took his leave.

Once the hall was empty, Yongzheng's face darkened completely. These kinds of things happening one after another—could the aftereffects of the epidemic be so strong? Could he be so old and blind as to be this senile?

Yongzheng now suspects that he may be possessed by some evil spirit. He tightens his grip on the Buddhist prayer beads and wants to summon lamas and monks to exorcise the evil.

When Su Peisheng returned, Yongzheng ordered him to secretly invite Master Jiyuan into the palace. Su Peisheng accepted the order and, while going out to deliver the decree, also spread the news that the emperor had almost gone mad again and had placed Prince Bao's concubine in the palace one day after the primary wife's wedding.

It's impossible not to spread the word; not only does the Emperor think he's abnormal, but Su Peisheng also thinks he's abnormal.

The time before last, when he went mad, the three princes held a selection of concubines at Jiangxue Pavilion; the last time he went mad, Princess Qingying became Prince Bao's concubine; this time, if Prince Guo hadn't intervened quickly, Prince Bao's face would have been humiliated again. He was truly afraid of it happening again. As a mere servant, he was powerless and could only watch the methods employed by the Empress, Consort Hua, Consort Jing, Lord Nian, Prince Dun… his allies in the harem and the court.

However, when Su Peisheng connected the three incidents, he paused and suddenly felt that it wasn't the emperor who had gone mad, but rather this Princess Qingying who was acting strangely.

No, this news has to get out too!

...

At Jingren Palace, two messages were delivered by Su Peisheng—one accurate and one speculative.

Yi Xiu naturally dismissed his speculation about Qing Ying; she didn't believe Qing Ying had that ability.

“It is fear,” Yixiu rubbed her temples. “I was right, the Emperor has indeed become suspicious.”

"Could it be a coincidence? Didn't the Emperor grant the Fourth Prince the title of Prince of the First Rank separately?"

Looking at the Emperor's attitude towards the Fourth Prince over the past few years, Jianqiu felt it didn't seem quite right.

Yixiu shook her head. "It's true that Hongli is still the heir the Emperor favors, after all, he is now... But the Emperor's suspicion and possessiveness of imperial power are beyond our imagination... The late Emperor used to dote on that prince in Xian'an Palace, the rightful crown prince, the legitimate son, but wasn't he also deposed?"

"What is the Emperor doing?"

"The father is weak and the son is strong. The Emperor doesn't seem to have any intention of abandoning Hongli at the moment, only resorting to these petty tricks. But I can't wait, what if he changes his mind one day..."

Yi Xiu fiddled with the incense ash in the incense burner and smiled slightly, "I remember that Consort Yi has excellent incense-making skills. Such skills should be enjoyed by Consort Wan of Suiyu Pavilion."

Over the years, Zhen Huan has remained Yongzheng's shield, and to show his favor, Yongzheng has promoted her to the rank of concubine.

"Your Majesty is right. I imagine that Huanbi, who serves Consort Wan, would be happy to help with this."

Jianqiu smiled, thinking that even Consort Wan probably never imagined that her trusted head maid would hate her so much that she would actively seek refuge with the Empress.

"That's right. His Majesty works tirelessly day and night for the country. After visiting Consort Wan and smelling the fragrance, he should be able to sleep better..."

In Yikun Palace, Nian Shilan summoned Cao Qinmo and asked her for advice.

Those who understand the times are wise. Cao Qinmo was already closely tied to Consort Hua because of Wenyi, and she was even more delighted to learn that the Nian family supported the Fourth Prince. After all, the Fourth Prince was clearly the future heir, and cultivating a good relationship with him would also be good for Wenyi's future.

"Old man! You're really getting blind!"

Cao Qinmo was far more accepting of Nian Shilan's insults towards the Emperor than Songzhi was; she shared the same sentiment. What if the Emperor were to go mad again, affecting the Fourth Prince's position and consequently Wenyi's future?

The thought of that possibility made Cao Qinmo feel suffocated, and she wished she could curse along with him.

But the key now is how to handle this matter. As the only "brain" in Consort Hua's camp, her primary task is to solve the problem.

"Your Majesty, it seems that the Emperor is living too leisurely, which is why he has the time to make things difficult for Prince Bao."

Yes, even Cao Qinmo, the only "brain" in Consort Hua's camp, felt that this was intentional on the Emperor's part, a sign of his fear of the Fourth Prince. In her eyes, both the inner palace and the court were too quiet. Therefore, the Emperor's attention was focused on the princes, and upon discovering that the Fourth Prince was too outstanding, he inevitably developed other thoughts.

"You're right, the Emperor is just too idle."

Nian Shilan adjusted her hair and nodded in agreement, “In the harem… the Emperor only likes to visit Consort Wan. Since she is a favored concubine, she should show some of the airs of a favored concubine and keep the Emperor entertained for longer…”

Nian Shilan had already discovered that the Emperor was incapacitated and knew that Zhen Huan was a shield. But a shield should at least fulfill its purpose.

She didn't care how Zhen Huan tried to keep the Emperor; she only asked Zhen Huan to keep the Emperor around as long as possible.

"Your Majesty, I understand." Cao Qinmo nodded with a smile. She was quite familiar with this matter; it had been a long time since she had caused any trouble in the harem, and she was even a little excited. "And the imperial court..."

"I will send a message to my brother. Since Your Majesty is so diligent in your duties, please devote more attention to the affairs of state and the people's livelihood."