Consort Wang, through her daughter-in-law, established a connection with the Crown Prince. She was no longer the most frequent attendant of the Emperor, having been replaced by Consort Shu. She knew she was over thirty, her eldest son was married, and she was no longer a young woman. Yet, she remained a lowly consort, with no one speaking to her. Therefore, Consort Wang harbored resentment towards Emperor Kangxi, feeling ignored and bitter about the neglect she and her son had received. Originally, the Eighteenth Prince was favored by Emperor Kangxi, but tragically, he died of a fever. Consort Wang subsequently fell out of favor.

"Wenchuan, I asked you to go to the forbidden chambers to find that Eunuch Wen. Have you gone to find him?" Consort Wang asked.

“Your Excellency, I’ve already gone to him and slipped him a gold bracelet. That eunuch is quite cunning. Even though he accepted our gift, he still said he could only move Your Excellency’s nameplate forward a bit, but he can’t guarantee whether the Emperor will actually choose you,” said the palace maid Wenchuan.

"Hmph, old fox. When I was favored, he was always busy trying to curry favor with me. Now that Shu Qinchun is favored, he's got his eyes on the top of his head. You dog of a servant, you deserve to be a rootless, lowly slave," Consort Wang cursed.

"My lord, should we still slip him some silver?" Wenchuan asked timidly.

"Of course I have to give it to him. That lackey is always currying favor with the powerful and stepping on the weak. If I don't give it to him, he'll put my green plaque last!" Consort Wang said angrily.

"My lord, it's almost time. Would you like to take a bath?" Wenchuan asked.

"Serve me as I bathe. What if the Emperor remembers me?" Consort Wang said, clinging to a sliver of hope, exhausted from her tirade.

Behind every palace in the Forbidden City lived concubines like Lady Wang, who yearned night after night for the emperor's favor, hoping to rise in rank and become a phoenix. But how many could maintain their positions as securely as Consort Huirong and Consort Deyi? Very few. In fact, among Kangxi's consorts, besides having children, their birth and family background were paramount in gaining status and position. The emperor didn't choose women arbitrarily; he selected from various powerful families to balance power. Those high-ranking officials who had helped establish the empire or guarded its borders all desired long-term glory and power, naturally wanting to send women to the emperor to secure his favor.

"Consort Wang, Consort Wang!" A high-pitched eunuch's voice rang out in a side hall of Qixiang Palace.

"Oh. It's Eunuch Wen. Our Lady is taking a bath. You are here?" The palace maid Wen Fang hurriedly came out and said.

"Congratulations, Consort Wang! The Emperor has chosen Consort Wang today. Please come with me to accompany him!" Eunuch Wen was all smiles, a far cry from the cold and ruthless demeanor he displayed towards the other concubines who were out of favor.

"Yes, please have a seat, Lady Wen. I will go and tell our Lady right away." Wenfang knew that Lady Wang had recently fallen out of favor, so she was overjoyed.

Meanwhile, upon learning that Emperor Kangxi had indeed chosen her, Lady Wang was overjoyed and immediately sent Wen Chuan to deliver another purse to Eunuch Wen. She also made sure to dress herself up in a youthful and vibrant manner before accompanying Eunuch Wen to the Qianqing Palace.

Perhaps Emperor Kangxi remembered Lady Wang, or perhaps for some other reason, in any case, Lady Wang seemed to be showing signs of regaining favor. As a result, she began to frequently visit the Qianqing Palace again.

On this day, Emperor Kangxi ordered Lady Wang to accompany him. He was sitting in the west room reading memorials, while Lady Wang and a young palace maid were peeling walnuts for him. She insisted on personally placing each walnut neatly on a plate.

At this moment, Chun Guan'er, the palace maid who served Hongli, hurriedly followed Liang Jiugong in.

"Your Majesty, the young prince is ill," Chun Guan'er hurriedly knelt down and said. Because Hongli was not Kangxi's son, all of them who served him called him the young prince.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Kangxi couldn't help but rebuke him, "I went to check on him this morning, and he was perfectly fine. How come he's sick now?"

Chun Guan'er was so frightened that she dared not raise her head and could only say tremblingly, "We servants did not know either, the little prince has a fever now. The imperial physician has already gone there."

Kangxi immediately stood up from the couch and was about to go see Hongli when he heard Wang say, "Your Majesty, don't worry. It's normal for children to have headaches and fevers from time to time."

"You stay here and wait, I'll go take a look!" Kangxi hurriedly walked out, and the official immediately got up and followed him out, as did Liang Jiugong.

"He's not even your own son, why are you treating him like such a precious thing!" Consort Wang said in a low voice, flicking the handkerchief in front of her chest, and said to the palace maids who were peeling walnuts, "You lot are not allowed to stop, keep peeling."

Meanwhile, Kangxi arrived at the side hall where Hongli was staying, and saw that Imperial Physician Wang was examining Hongli.

"Your Majesty, the young prince has caught a cold and has a slight fever. I am about to prescribe some medicine to dispel the fever and chills; he will take three doses first," Physician Wang hurriedly reported to Emperor Kangxi.

"Alright, go in and brew medicine for Hongli!" Kangxi raised his voice.

After Physician Wang left, the wet nurses, palace maids, and eunuchs who had been kneeling in the room finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"How have you all been taking care of the young prince? Liang Jiugong, all of you, drag them out and give them twenty strokes of the cane." Kangxi didn't give them a chance to catch their breath.

“Your Majesty, if you take them out and beat them, who will take care of the young prince? This servant thinks it would be better if you recorded their punishments and punished them after the young prince recovers!” Liang Jiugong hurriedly said. He was pleading for these servants, hoping that once Hongli recovered, Kangxi might forget about it or not be as angry as he was now.

"Fine, I'll write down your punishments. Take good care of Hongli, or it won't be just twenty strokes," Kangxi said angrily.

That evening, Hongli's fever had subsided. Kangxi, still worried, came to check on him several times. Although Consort Wang accompanied him, she was largely ignored and eventually returned to Qixiang Palace.

Consort Wang returned to her palace, already harboring resentment towards Hongli. She hated that her son was dead, while Kangxi had begun to dote on his grandson. During her time accompanying the emperor, she noticed that whenever Ji Changming from the Imperial Observatory came, Kangxi would dismiss everyone around him to prevent anyone from hearing their conversations.

"Wenchuan, isn't Ji Changming of the Imperial Observatory a Han Chinese? I remember he had a few apprentices. Do you know their names?" Wang asked.

"My lord, how would this servant know?" Wen Chuan's eyes flickered a few times before she lowered her head and said.

"Smack!"

A slap landed on Wenchuan's face from above.

"You lowly servant, do you think I don't know about your relationship with that Jin Shikang from the Imperial Observatory?!" Wang said angrily.