The man lying on the bed nodded.

The burly eunuch ordered the two eunuchs behind him to lift the person off the bed!

"Let's go, Her Highness Consort De invites you!" the fat eunuch said.

As they approached the entrance to the Crown Prince's Palace, a figure in moon-white blocked their path.

It was none other than the deposed crown prince. He was no longer wearing the pale yellow clothes that represented his status as crown prince, but only a moon-white robe.

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince!" The burly eunuch, upon seeing him, still addressed him with the old title, and for no reason, the bravado he had just displayed weakened a bit!

"Where are you taking him?" The Crown Prince didn't even glance at the eunuch, but stared at A Bao. His feelings were complicated. This eunuch, who had once been his most favored, knew too many of his secrets. Handing him over now would undoubtedly give the other party a hold on his throat!

"This servant is acting on the orders of Consort De to invite Eunuch Abao to see Her Highness! Please, Your Highness, do not make things difficult for us!" The fat eunuch had recovered from his earlier show of weakness; he had no reason to be too afraid of a deposed crown prince!

The Crown Prince frowned. He knew that Li's death had aroused Consort De's suspicion; otherwise, she wouldn't have arrested and interrogated all of Li's palace servants. He had acted impulsively when he killed Li, and now, looking back, he felt a pang of regret.

"I have a few words to say to Abao, you all please excuse yourselves!" said the deposed crown prince.

The fat eunuch hesitated, for the deposed crown prince's request was beyond their tolerance. What if the deposed crown prince took advantage of the opportunity to meet A Bao alone to kill him, or to give him some instructions? It was all uncertain!

"What? Can't I even say a few words to my own people?" the deposed crown prince said to the fat eunuch with a sinister look.

"Well, Your Highness, we can only say that in front of us!" the fat eunuch said with an awkward smile.

The saying "a tiger fallen into the plains is bullied by dogs" perfectly describes this situation. The former crown prince, now a prisoner! Even a eunuch can disobey his orders!

"Your Highness, please rest assured, I will not say anything I shouldn't!" Ah Bao, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke up, unable to bear seeing the Crown Prince being harassed by a eunuch. His back was still not fully healed, and he could only barely stand. Facing his former Crown Prince, he still couldn't bear to see him in any discomfort.

The deposed crown prince looked at A Bao in surprise, his heart filled with mixed feelings! He thought A Bao must hate him terribly. Hate him for being cruel and heartless, hate him for falling in love with someone else, but after hearing his words, the deposed crown prince truly believed that he would keep his mouth shut.

Under the Crown Prince's watchful eye, A Bao was dragged away. He knew that when Consort De saw him, she would definitely try to pry him open and reveal more of the things the Crown Prince had done! When the news of Li's suicide reached his ears, he knew that he might also be killed by the Crown Prince to silence him.

However, the Crown Prince didn't come looking for him, which meant he still harbored some feelings for him. Thinking this, A Bao decided that even if it meant death, she would never say anything to Consort De; she would simply protect the Crown Prince!

When A Bao entered the Department of Punishments, he was still afraid when he saw all sorts of horrifying instruments of torture.

"Abao, you wait here. Consort De will be here soon. She instructed us not to use torture yet," the fat eunuch said.

Ah Bao was thrown into a cell covered with weeds, and then he was abandoned, only hearing others being executed, while he himself fell asleep to the sound of screams.

Meanwhile, Consort De had already investigated and had a pretty good understanding of several matters related to the Crown Prince. The drowning of the Fourth Prince's third son, Hongjun, and the unexplained serious illness that Hongli had contracted were both related to the Crown Prince.

"Your Majesty, news has come from the Ministry of Justice that they've made sure that Ah Bao hears enough of the terrible things. He's probably so scared he's wet his pants," said Granny De.

“Abao has been by the Crown Prince’s side for many years. If he can speak up, the truth about what the Crown Prince did will surely come to light,” said Consort De.

“Yes, all these years, the Crown Prince has been behaving erratically and acting tyrannically in the palace. Now he has finally gotten his comeuppance!” said Granny De.

"You mean her?!" Consort De turned her head and looked at Granny De.

"Does Your Majesty still remember what she did?" asked Granny De. "As the mother of the nation, I deeply feel that she is unworthy, unworthy to be the Empress!"

“She’s been dead for over thirty years, it’s retribution, her second child was born with a difficult birth!” Consort De said, squinting her eyes.

“It’s retribution! Usually, difficult births happen with the first child, but she’s already had one, and she still has a difficult birth! If you ask me, it’s because she’s done too many bad things and is being haunted by evil spirits. She feels guilty, which is why she has a difficult birth!” said Granny De.

"It's a pity that the Emperor has always trusted her so much! He won't allow anyone to say a bad word about her," said Consort De.

"Her Majesty's temperament is the best in the entire harem. Tell me, who else can be as magnanimous and proper as Her Majesty? In all these years of managing the harem, what mistakes has she made? In what way can anyone compare to her?" said Granny De.

"Don't talk nonsense. I dare not compare myself to the late Empress Dowager. I only wish to live a peaceful and healthy life, and for my descendants to continue in peace!" Consort De said. "Let's go, it's time to go see this Abao!"

“Your Majesty, you must not act too hostile towards the deposed Crown Prince at this time! Otherwise, the Emperor…” said Granny De.

"I know! I'm going to investigate Consort Li's affairs, so naturally I won't mention anything else!" Consort De said.

“Exactly! Alas, Your Majesty, if I may be so disrespectful, I fear the deposed Crown Prince will never have a chance to rise again. Our Fourth Prince is favored by the Emperor, and the Fourteenth Prince is also very much loved by the Emperor!” said Granny De.

"Granny, you mustn't interfere in this matter. The Emperor is a man of his own mind; he won't listen to others' opinions. The fate of the Fourth Prince and the Fourteenth Prince must be earned by themselves. The only thing I can do for them now is to ensure that the deposed Crown Prince has no room for maneuver!"

When Consort De and her entourage arrived at the Department of Cautious Punishment, A Bao had already been brought out and taken to the interrogation room.

"This servant has come to pay respects to Consort De!" Abao couldn't refuse to pay his respects to Consort De, so he quickly knelt down and said.

"Help him up! I heard that you entered the palace at a young age and have been serving the deposed crown prince ever since!" Consort De said calmly.

"How could Your Majesty trouble your lowly body! I have always served by the side of the former Crown Prince," A Bao said.

"If that's the case, why did I hear that you were beaten by the deposed crown prince? Why?" Consort De asked.

A Bao was surprised that Consort De didn't ask about anything else, but only about how she got all these injuries! She truly lived up to her reputation as Kangxi's favorite concubine; her way of doing things was indeed different from ordinary people.

"Your Majesty, this servant accidentally broke the former Crown Prince's most cherished possession. The slight punishment is nothing!" Abao said.