Yinzhi was dragged out of bed in the middle of the night and then taken to the Imperial Clan Court. He stared at the empty cell, pulled his clothes up, and looked completely bewildered. He had been keeping a low profile lately, so what had angered the Emperor this time?

Fortunately, his doubts didn't last long, as Prince Yu and Prince Yong arrived together.

Yinzhen lagged behind Prince Yu by half a step, adopting an attitude of respecting Prince Yu above all else, and refrained from speaking whenever possible.

When Yinzhi saw someone arrive, he quickly stood up and said, "Uncle Wang, please save your nephew. I really don't know what I did wrong."

Prince Yu sighed, glanced at the expressionless Prince Yong, and could only speak up himself: "Eighth Prince, you're confused."

Yinzhi: ?

"Even now you still show no remorse!" Prince Yu was furious. "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the Emperor is not only your sovereign but also your father. How dare you lay a hand on the Emperor! If anything were to happen to the Emperor, you would be a sinner of the Aisin Gioro family!"

"Wait a minute." Yinzhi's head was buzzing. He had indeed used many means to seize the position of crown prince and had even turned against his brothers, but how could he possibly turn against the emperor? He simply did not have the ability to do so!

"Uncle Wang, even if I had the guts of a bear and the gall of a leopard, I would never have shown the slightest disrespect to Father Emperor. Please tell me what happened from the beginning. I am completely baffled." Yinzhi was extremely anxious. He was truly flustered this time. If the charges were proven, he would be lucky to be imprisoned like his elder brother.

Seeing that Yinzhi's confusion seemed genuine, Prince Yu briefly recounted what had happened in the palace: "Eighth Prince, not only does the Emperor suspect you, but even I can't deny it for you."

"You were the one who sent the Huo sisters to Lao Jiu's side in the first place. What are you planning to do with them?"

"That shopkeeper surnamed Shen has secretly pledged allegiance to you long ago, hasn't he? His sister is your concubine. Although she doesn't have a formal title, things will be different once she has a child."

"The recipe for this Ointment can only be found in the palace. When you were in charge of the Imperial Household Department, how many secrets of the previous dynasty and the harem did you uncover?"

"Old Ninth was seriously ill before, and now he's all sickly. Could it be that he was given this thing?"

"You used the Ninth Prince as an experiment, adjusted the dosage, and then began to plot against the Emperor. Are you planning a rebellion?!"

Yinzhi was shocked and immediately knelt down before Prince Yu: "Uncle, I admit that the Huo sisters were bait I deliberately laid out, just for intelligence purposes."

"Uncle Wang also knows that in the early years, the ninth and tenth sisters were close to me. Later, they gradually aligned themselves with the fourth brother. I was unwilling to accept this, so I set a trap for the ninth sister. But I have no idea what those two sisters did afterward!"

“This is a frame-up. Nephew, please investigate thoroughly, Uncle Wang.”

"Uncle Wang, your nephew requests an audience with Father Emperor. I beg Father Emperor to grant me a chance to explain myself in person. I beg Uncle Wang to grant my request!"

Prince Yu glanced at Prince Yong again, then said uncertainly, "His Majesty is currently consumed by anger, and it's hard to say whether he'll be willing to see you. You should reflect on your actions."

As the two got up to leave, Yinzhi suddenly asked loudly, "Fourth Brother, you have truly mastered the art. I am in awe."

Prince Yu pretended not to hear this and ordered the jailer to strengthen the guard. The Eighth Prince was in his own territory; he could neither run away nor die.

As they emerged from the Imperial Clan Court's prison, dawn was breaking. Prince Yu said, "I heard your wife is ill. I have some top-quality ginseng at my residence; I'll get it for you when we get back."

"Nephew thanks Uncle Wang," Yinzhen said respectfully, without declining the offer.

“You’ve heard what the Eighth Prince said. In my opinion, the Emperor will see him. You… be prepared.” Prince Yu hesitated for a moment before speaking in a voice that could only be heard by the two of them.

Neither of his nephews was easy to deal with. Prince Yu did not want to get involved in his nephews' struggle for the throne. He had never had such thoughts when he was young, and now he kept his distance from them.

However, it's okay to give a little favor to someone you like.

Yinzhen turned around, looking in the direction of the prison, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

******

After being ravaged by the drugs, Kangxi's health deteriorated significantly. The most obvious manifestation of this was that his eyesight was now failing, even with the help of Western medical equipment.

This was a fatal blow to Kangxi. For someone who had spent his life engrossed in books, asking him to put them down was like taking half his life.

Most importantly, he could no longer read the memorials. As a result, the Crown Prince practically lived in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Every day, the memorials to the Emperor had to be reviewed and categorized by him, and the unimportant ones were dealt with directly.

In just a few days, Kangxi felt that his control over the court was not as good as before. Fewer and fewer memorials were being submitted to him, and the Crown Prince was becoming increasingly busy, only sending Hongzhao to keep him company in a hurry.

"Liang Jiugong, is the fourth prince's wife better now? Has Honghui been studying in the palace these past few days?" There was a charcoal fire burning in the Yangxin Hall, and Kangxi had to put on a thick cloak to keep warm.

"Your Majesty, Princess Yong woke up yesterday, but Prince Honghui has not yet entered the palace, saying he is attending to the sick."

"A decree was issued to the Prince Yong's residence, ordering Honghui to enter the palace immediately to serve him, and to reside in Yonghe Palace."

"yes."

Upon hearing the imperial decree, Yi Hua disregarded her still weak condition and directed everyone to help Hong Hui pack the things he needed to bring into the palace.

"Honghui, be careful. Your safety is the most important thing. The Empress is trustworthy, but be wary of everyone else." Yihua pulled Honghui aside and carefully instructed him.

"Don't be afraid, your mother and father will find a chance to come to the palace to see you."

"His Majesty's emotions are unstable right now. There are some things he doesn't want to do; he's being controlled by medication. Don't gamble on his love for you; you can't afford to!"

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