Chapter 71 The Intention of Establishing an Heir Apparent

Watch your words.

After a long silence, the system suddenly spoke. Hongzhao's pupils contracted, and he glanced to the side with a knowing look before smiling knowingly.

No, that's not it!

"This servant wouldn't dare!"

Seeing the panic on their faces, Hongzhao waved his hand and patted their shoulders lightly—"It was just a joke, I understand what you mean."

As he spoke, he deliberately turned to the side, controlling the angle so that half of his face could be seen from the outside, and put on a sincere smile—"Mother has been worried and anxious about Hongzhou's cough these past few days, and she herself has been feeling unwell. I have been really worried for days, but today I learned that it is a happy event."

But as he spoke, the smile on his face became less genuine, and a hint of worry crept into his eyes—"But to say that I'm completely happy is certainly not true."

Yinzhen frowned slightly, and then heard Hongzhao say again, "When Mother gave birth to Hongzhou, I secretly slipped out of Xianfu Palace to take a look. That day I quietly peeked through the window, but I couldn't see anything. I could only hear Mother's cries of pain inside, and the palace maids hurrying around carrying basin after basin of bloody water."

As Hongzhao spoke, it was as if he could still recall the shocking events of that day even with his eyes closed. His eyelashes trembled slightly, inadvertently revealing the panic in his heart.

Yinzhen clenched his fist, suppressing his urge to hug the child. He had always known that his fifth son was precocious, but at only seven years old, he was already so sensible.

Seeing that neither Amur nor Lü Jiusi reacted, Hongzhao sighed at his own overthinking, shaking his head and chuckling softly, "I was just worrying unnecessarily. Mother has always been healthy, and she will surely be safe and sound this time as well. As for the rest..."

He deliberately drew out his words, and the bright yellow hem of his robe swayed slightly as he looked out. He smiled to himself, but his face still held the same smile that Yinzhen often saw, a smile filled with deep affection and filial piety in the sunlight. "With Father Emperor here, I'm not afraid of anything."

Just like these past two days, when Consort Xian was ill and unable to attend to Hongzhou, Yinzhen brought her to his side and personally took care of her.

Perhaps long ago, after he cried in the apricot grove, he inexplicably regarded Hongzhao as his younger self. At that time, Consort De had the Fourteenth Prince to dote on, and Empress Xiaoyiren of the Tongjia clan also had her own little daughter. The little princess was weak and needed to be taken care of. Kangxi did not show him much affection or attention.

He understood all too well the bitterness he felt back then, and therefore did not want his beloved son to repeat his mistakes.

Seeing that Hongzhao could now confidently say with a smile, "With Father Emperor by my side, I'm not afraid of anything," his heart softened instantly, as if burned by something, and his throat became so dry that he could barely speak.

He finally moved his somewhat stiff body, pretended to linger at the door for a moment before stepping inside—"What are you three talking about? Tell me so I can hear it too."

He may not even realize how soft his voice has become, but Su Peisheng behind him subtly raises his head, a different thought forming in his mind.

"Greetings, Father Emperor. Why have you come at this time? If it were to test your studies, the tutors would have already left."

Yinzhen did not speak, but walked closer and stood in front of Hongzhao. He knelt down, supporting his knees, and looked at Hongzhao's bright eyes. He reached out and affectionately rubbed the back of Hongzhao's head a couple of times, and then smoothed his neatly braided hair, as if he didn't know what to do with it.

Hongzhao obediently let him do as he pleased. He was still young and his hair was not very long, so he did not add any hair ornaments. Yinzhen did not answer his question, but suddenly sighed, "You'er's hair is well grown. Since we can't tie it with hair ornaments now, let's put two gold bells at the ends of his hair. It looks noble and lively."

His seemingly random question elicited a smile from Hongzhao, who replied with a narrowed eye: "Alright, I'll ask Mother for two gold bells to hang up when I get back."

Yinzhen smiled and tapped his forehead, then stood up—"Why bother going to your mother? Su Peisheng, go and order the Imperial Household Department to make a pair of these for our Prince Rui using pure gold. Make sure they are exquisite."

"Okay." Su Peisheng smiled and looked at Hongzhao, agreeing.

"Your mother is pregnant, do you know that?"

Hongzhao rolled his eyes inwardly, thinking to himself, "Didn't you just hear everything?"

His face still held a childlike innocence, but his words carried a hint of seriousness—"I know, Father Emperor was just saying that as long as Mother is healthy, I will be happy no matter what."

Yinzhen didn't bring this up casually. He nodded approvingly and gently flicked the white jade tweezers in his hand. "Now that your mother's energy is waning, You'er, you should continue your studies in the Imperial Study as before. I've ordered someone to prepare a side hall in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. If you study late, you don't need to rush to the Prince's residence; you can rest nearby."

"Yes! Thank you, Father!"

——

Hongzhao was good at taking advantage of opportunities. Since his father had made the offer, he naturally wouldn't let go of this great opportunity. That very day, he openly slept in the side hall of the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

The emperor and the harem silently elevated Prince Rui's favored status once more. After all, only the former crown prince had ever enjoyed such an honor; no one in the current court could rival him. Did the emperor intend to establish an heir apparent...?

Empress Jingren Palace said that there were many henchmen outside, but the communication was not as smooth as before. Since strangers could not enter every day, the accumulation inevitably caused some delays. By the time she learned of this, Hongzhao had already been sleeping soundly in the side hall of Yangxin Hall for more than half a month.

Hearing Jianqiu's words, she paused, and a black dot appeared on a perfectly fine page of Buddhist scripture written in delicate, elegant calligraphy.

Her eyes darkened as she put down her pen, sat quietly for a long while, and then slowly said, "Does the Emperor truly favor him so much?"

Yixiu had held Hongzhao when he was little. She still remembers his soft little hands holding her when he was born, his warm little body crying desperately in her arms at the full moon banquet, and the fruits he loved to eat whenever he came to her when he was even younger.

If you put everything else aside, she might actually like this child.

But she couldn't let go. If anyone was to blame, it was that the child had been born into the wrong family and shouldn't have come to this Forbidden City with its red walls and yellow tiles.

“My eldest son can already talk and laugh, and he is very intelligent. He is the eldest son, yet the Emperor has never shown him even a tenth or a twentieth of such favoritism. Now he has obtained it so easily.” Her eyes welled up with tears, and the Buddhist scriptures in front of her became increasingly blurry.

Jianqiu looked at her with heartache, pursed her lips, and didn't know what to say.

"What else is there to say?" Yixiu asked, staring at the Buddha statue in front of her.

Jianqiu came to her senses and recalled what the palace maid had just said, repeating, "Although His Majesty has promoted Consort Hua and Consort Wan these past few days, he still spends most of his time resting in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, perhaps because of Prince Rui... the Fifth Prince. He only visits Consort Xian and Consort Wan occasionally during the day, and he's only been to Consort Hua's place two or three times."

She paused, then continued, "And... just now, General Nian's wife fell ill, and General Nian summoned all the imperial physicians away..."

Yi Xiu looked at her in surprise—"Not a single one was left?"

Jianqiu shook her head.

Yi Xiu turned to look at the tightly closed door, her mind made up. No matter how much she had to do, she had to plan how to get out first.

She raised her hand to her forehead and said in a drawn-out tone, "Jianqiu, it seems my headache has flared up again. Go and call the imperial physician."