Chapter 100 Wen Shan truly didn't expect that she would actually...
Wen Shan really didn't expect that she would have the opportunity to be promoted.
She always thought that the next promotion would come when Yinzhen ascended the throne and she would directly become the Empress Dowager.
Wen Shan still couldn't understand why Kangxi had promoted her to Imperial Noble Consort when the auspicious robes for the Imperial Noble Consort were delivered.
"Mother, please don't worry. The position of Empress has been vacant for a long time, and it's time for an Imperial Noble Consort to manage all the affairs of the palace," Yinzhi said with a smile.
Wen Shan: "...Don't try to fool me. Do you think I don't know what the Imperial Noble Consort represents?"
The Imperial Noble Consort held a position equivalent to that of a secondary empress. Especially now that the position of empress was vacant, the greater political significance of Kangxi's appointment of her as Imperial Noble Consort was that it further solidified Yinzhen's position.
Looking at the records now, Yinzhen's birth mother is listed as the Imperial Noble Consort, and his former adoptive mother is Empress Xiaoyi. So, Yinzhen is not much different from a legitimate son.
As expected, the moment the news of the promotion broke, not only the imperial harem but also the court began to stir.
However, the ministers who opposed the promotion could not find a suitable reason to stop Wen Shan from being promoted to Imperial Noble Consort.
Wen Shan possesses all the necessary qualifications, background, and offspring, making her truly deserving of the title of Imperial Noble Consort.
In addition, Kangxi was always good at pretending to be confused when faced with such chaotic situations, leaving everyone wondering what the emperor was really thinking.
It was rare for all three brothers, Yinzhen, to come to Xianfu Palace for dinner together today. Yinxiang, on the other hand, was a regular truant. The tutors in the Imperial Study had completely given up on the idea of keeping the thirteenth prince in school, because Kangxi had surprisingly stated that as long as Yinxiang did not fall behind in his studies, he could skip classes.
Wen Shan and the others all knew that it was because Consort Min was ill that Yinxiang was always concerned about her and often went to visit Kangxi, so he turned a blind eye.
Meanwhile, Yinzhen and Yinsi have been extremely busy lately, with a ton of matters to attend to in both the court and the harem. In particular, Yinsi has been constantly approached by Tong Guowei and Aling'a, who have been taking turns seeking his advice on how to proceed. Yinsi is well aware that these two old foxes are just looking to gain more benefits for their families. Dealing with them isn't a big problem, but the downfall of the Crown Prince has caused many officials who supported him to switch their allegiance to the First Prince and Yinzhen and Yinsi, making the two of them exceptionally busy.
Yinzhen was in an exceptionally good mood recently because his two children had just been born. Yi'an and Hongxi were both well-behaved children, and the wet nurses often remarked that they rarely saw such obedient children. They rarely cried or made a fuss, and they would smile no matter who held them. This made things much easier for Lady Fucha.
Yinzhen, as the father, had to see the two children every day. Wenshan would also take time to go to Chonghua Palace to hold the two children. Since Fucha had not yet finished her postpartum confinement, Wenshan temporarily took over the affairs of Chonghua Palace. Naturally, most of the work was handled by people arranged by Yinsi, and she was just a figurehead.
“Yi’an has grown much faster than Hongxi, and she looks much bigger now,” Wenshan said with a smile. “Fortunately, Hongxi is also very healthy.”
Yi'an was a size bigger than Hongxi in the womb, and now she drinks much more milk than Hongxi. Children grow up so fast, it's practically visible to the naked eye.
Yinzhen just smiled when he heard this: "It's good that they are stronger. Lady Fucha is always worried about the two children's health. It will be more reassuring for our son if they grow up to be strong."
“But Hongxi looks more like Fourth Brother,” Yinzhi added. “Yian looks like Fourth Sister-in-law; they are both beauties.”
“It would be troublesome if Yi’an were like your fourth brother,” Wen Shan said with a smile.
Yinzhen was naturally handsome, but his features were more angular, which would look strange on a girl's face.
Yinxiang cupped his face and said, "One looks like Father and the other like Mother. Everyone is happy. Fourth Brother is living such a comfortable life."
After chatting and laughing for a while, Wen Shan asked why the Emperor had not yet issued an edict on how to deal with the Crown Prince.
With Yi'an and Hongxi almost a month old, the Crown Prince is still confined to Yuqing Palace, with no other activity taking place.
"Father is waiting for someone to offer a way out." Yinzhi picked up a piece of chicken and said slowly, "It's a pity that Li Guangdi didn't take the bait, leaving Father stuck there."
Kangxi originally intended to use Li Guangdi, a pillar among the Han officials, to contact other Han officials to speak to the Crown Prince. However, Li Guangdi took feigning ignorance to the extreme, and would pretend not to understand unless Kangxi explicitly stated it.
Promoting Wen Shan was also intended to appease Yinzhen's faction.
Anyone would know that the crown prince is destined to be deposed. Standing up for the crown prince at this time would only offend the next crown prince.
Such things should naturally be avoided if possible; Li Guangdi is no fool.
So Kangxi was furious but there was nothing he could do about it.
Wen Shan suddenly realized, "No wonder the Emperor has been in a bad mood lately. I saw Consort Mi a few days ago, and she said that she has been much more apprehensive when she goes to serve him recently."
Since Kangxi couldn't vent his anger on Li Guangdi, it naturally had to find another outlet, and at that point, it all came down to luck.
So these past few days, concubines and eunuchs have been frequently reprimanded by Emperor Kangxi, making everyone feel insecure.
Wen Shan thought to herself, no wonder Kangxi's mood has been so unstable lately, it turns out he was angered by Li Guangdi.
After finishing his soup, Yinzhen washed his hands and said, "This can't go on forever. We need to find a way to get Father Emperor to make a decision sooner."
With such a major issue unresolved, it's no wonder that people in the imperial court are filled with anxiety.
Yinxiang said listlessly, "It'll be soon, Father Emperor won't be able to delay much longer."
“That’s right, we don’t need to think of a solution. I reckon Father has already come up with one by now,” Yinzhi added.
Hearing that they both said so, Yinzhen put the matter aside for the time being and turned to Yinxiang to ask, "Thirteenth Brother, how is Consort Min now?"
"Is Mother's condition stable now?" Yinxiang still couldn't help but feel sad when he mentioned Consort Min. He forced a smile and said, "Father wants to arrange a marriage for Fifth Sister. Although Mother only raised Fifth Sister for less than a year, she was still worried about her and her spirits have improved a lot."
However, Yinxiang and Yinzhen knew that this was Consort Min's attempt to make some further arrangements for the Fifth Princess.
When the topic of the Fifth Princess's marriage came up, Yinxiang rarely mentioned that he wanted to ask Wenshan and Yinzhen and Yinsi for a favor.
"Do you still want Fifth Sister to marry someone from the capital?"
Yinxiang hadn't even said anything yet when Yinsi guessed it.
“Yes, Mother’s health is not good now, and she truly loves Fifth Sister. If Fifth Sister marries and goes to Mongolia, which is thousands of miles away, I’m worried that Mother won’t be able to handle it,” Yinxiang said, pursing his lips.
Although Consort Min and the Fifth Princess were adopted mother and daughter, Consort Min inexplicably liked the Fifth Princess very much, even more so than her own two daughters. This can be seen from the fact that she was willing to run around the palaces to find people to help the Fifth Princess on that turbulent night.
Wen Shan understood Yinxiang's meaning, but a few days ago Kangxi had already come to discuss the marriage of the Fifth Princess with her, and seemed to have already chosen a son of a Mongolian prince.
Wen Shan didn't think this matter was that important to Yinzhen and the others, so she didn't tell them. But today, when Yinxiang brought it up, she told him the truth: Kangxi had already chosen a candidate.
“As long as there is no explicit decree, it can still be changed,” Yinxiang said. “That’s not a big problem. It’s just that I don’t know how to get Father Emperor to marry my fifth sister to a man in the capital.”
When Yinxiang visited Consort Min recently, Consort Min was also deeply worried about the Fifth Princess's marriage to a distant place. She knew that the princesses before the Fifth Princess had all married far away to Mongolia, and the Fifth Princess was no exception. She could only do her best to prepare things for the Fifth Princess's wedding.
Yinxiang, seeing this, casually asked Consort Min if she would be happier if the Fifth Princess could marry into the capital.
Consort Min laughed and said he was a silly child, and that no matter how you looked at it, the Emperor would never make such a precedent.
Consort Min was telling the truth. The Fifth Princess's birth mother and younger brother were now considered criminals, and even princesses with better backgrounds and favors than her were sent to serve in Mongolia. The Fifth Princess was no exception.
After saying that, she continued to work despite her illness to prepare the dowry for the Fifth Princess.
Yinxiang then made a decision that even for the sake of Consort Min, the Fifth Princess had to continue to marry in the capital.
"It's not impossible to keep Fifth Sister in the capital, but we might have to trouble Mother to plead with the Empress Dowager on her behalf." After thinking it over, Yinzhi felt that this was the only solution.
Only the Empress Dowager could intervene in matters concerning a princess's marriage.
Yinxiang looked at Wenshan, who patted his head and said, "Your mother will do her best, don't worry."
"Should we still let Fifth Sister marry into the Tongjia clan?" Yinzhi had finished his dinner and gestured for the palace servants to come in and clean up.
Yinzhen and the others went to sit on the couch in the main hall to talk, while Yinxiang moved a chair and sat down below.
"Who she marries is not so important. Which family would dare to mistreat a princess who marries into the palace?" Yinxiang said.
No matter which family could marry the Fifth Princess, they would have to treat her with the utmost respect. How could anyone dare to disrespect a princess under the emperor's nose?
Yinzhen nodded in agreement, agreeing with Yinxiang's assessment. However, the mention of the Tong family reminded him of something else entirely.
Tong Guowei originally planned to use Tian Wenjing's memorial to severely punish the Crown Prince in order to make Kangxi dislike Yinzhen as well, but this also failed.
Even without Yinzhi's reminder, Tian Wenjing was no longer the person who only knew how to rush forward with his head down; sowing discord no longer had any effect on him.
Tong Guowei racked his brains but couldn't understand how Tian Wenjing, who had only served as an official in Henan for four or five years, could have changed so drastically.
Yinzhen was somewhat surprised by this matter and privately inquired about it with Tian Wenjing.
Tian Wenjing smiled rather naively, which was uncommon: "My wife instructed me that now that I am an official in the capital, I cannot act impulsively anymore, and I must think more about Your Highness before I do anything."
Madam Tian was a typical example of someone who was bold yet meticulous. She appeared carefree but was actually incredibly thoughtful. She was also much better at interpersonal relationships than Tian Wenjing. If it weren't for Madam Tian mediating things between them, Tian Wenjing would probably have run into a lot of trouble in Henan.
Yinzhen laughed and said, "It seems you really did marry a good wife."
Tian Wenjing is now content with his wife and daughter, and following a like-minded lord, he feels he has nothing more to ask for. Therefore, he is extremely comfortable in his position as the Prefect of Jingzhao.
When Yinzhen remembered this, he told Yinsi and the others about it, praising Lady Tian as a woman who was just as capable as any man, and saying that Tian Wenjing was truly fortunate to have married her.
Wen Shan said, "I remember that Tian Wenjing's family had a daughter, who is only a few months older than Yi'an and Hongxi. In a few months, when the child is a little older, if we have time, we can have Madam Tian bring her into the palace so that she can play with Yi'an and Hongxi together."
Wen Shan liked Madam Tian very much, and she was also curious about what her daughter looked like since she had never seen her before.
Yinzhen nodded in agreement. It was no big deal. Lady Tian was a lady of the inner palace, and she could come to the palace at any time if Lady Fucha sent an invitation.
The next day, Wen Shan went to Ning Shou Palace and told the Empress Dowager about the Fifth Princess.
The Empress Dowager stopped fiddling with her prayer beads and looked up at her.
"For Yinxiang?"
Wen Shan said, "That's right. Your Majesty, you don't know how much Consort Min dotes on the Fifth Princess. Sometimes I even wonder if they were mother and daughter in their past lives?"
The Empress Dowager put down her prayer beads and took a sip of tea.
"I have also heard about what happened that night. For Consort Min, who is so unambitious, to go to such lengths for the Fifth Princess truly shows her love. It's just a pity for Yinzhi... Never mind, I won't say anymore."
Ultimately, it was all a matter of chance, and since Emperor Kangxi didn't pursue the matter, this old woman naturally wouldn't say anything either.
Wen Shan took off her shoes and climbed onto the bed. She went around to the Empress Dowager's side and knelt down to massage her shoulders. "So I have come to beg you. Consort Min's illness is mainly a mental one. If the Fifth Princess could marry into the palace, it would ease her mind a bit."
The Empress Dowager squinted and nodded: "That makes sense. Yinxiang also grew up in my presence. Although he was raised in your palace since childhood, he also has a close relationship with Consort Min. It would be heartbreaking for me to see him lose his mother at an early age."
"Very well, I will go and give it a try."
Wen Shan smiled and said, "I am relieved to hear you say that."
Just then, Aunt Ruyu came in.
"Your Majesty, the Fourteenth Prince has finished his studies and wishes to come and pay his respects to you."
Wen Shan paused for a moment before remembering that Kangxi had released the Fourteenth Prince from the Imperial Clan Court and handed him over to the Empress Dowager for supervision and discipline.
The Empress Dowager also had a headache with this grandson who was always causing trouble.
"Let Yinzhen go back to his room and rest. He doesn't need to come over."
Aunt Yu responded with a "yes" and lifted the curtain to go out.
"Of all of Wuya's children, only Yinzhen has learned her ruthlessness and viciousness perfectly." The Empress Dowager sighed, "Yinzuo was also spoiled by Wuya back then, but he was much better than her in terms of character."
The Empress Dowager could not possibly have a good impression of the Fourteenth Prince simply because he intended to murder Wen Shan.
As the person involved, Wen Shan naturally found it difficult to have any goodwill towards the person who wanted to kill her, especially since he was such a young child.
The Empress Dowager patted Wen Shan's hand and said, "Before my mother passed away, she insisted that the Emperor register Yinzhen under your name. Now it seems that my mother was indeed insightful and farsighted."
If Yinzhen's birth mother on his imperial genealogy is still from the Uya clan, then the current situation would be quite troublesome.
Wen Shan pursed her lips: "Next year is the final memorial service for the 12th anniversary of the Empress Dowager's death. I was thinking of personally going to offer my respects."
"Of course, if it weren't for the fact that I've been feeling a bit unwell these past few days, I would have gone with you," the Empress Dowager said with a sigh.
Kangxi had to give face to the Empress Dowager, especially since she hadn't made any requests to him over the years, making it difficult for him to refuse. In addition, Consort Min had been well-behaved all these years, and Yinxiang resembled Kangxi in appearance, and Kangxi loved this son. So he agreed to the Empress Dowager's request without much hesitation.
As for the choice of consort, it was the same as in the previous life: Tong Guowei's son, Shun'an Yan, was chosen as the consort.
Yinxiang brought this good news to Consort Min, who was indeed much happier upon hearing it.
"Yinxiang, did you ask the Imperial Noble Consort to do this?"
Consort Min, dressed in a moon-white qipao, sat by the window. A light snow began to fall outside. Yinxiang stepped forward to close the window, but Consort Min stopped him.
"This little bit of snow is no problem; it's perfect for enjoying the snowy scenery," Consort Min said with a smile.
Yinxiang sat beside Consort Min and said, "I only mentioned it to the Empress Dowager, and she was thinking of me, so she went to ask the Empress Dowager for help."
“The Imperial Noble Consort is a magnanimous person. She wouldn’t implicate Wen Xian because of the Fourteenth Prince and Uya Clan. Mother knew this long ago,” Consort Min said. “I just didn’t expect the Imperial Noble Consort to go to such lengths.”
"So Mother, you need to get better soon. Fifth Sister won't be able to get married for another two years, and you have to see her off," Yinxiang said with a smile.
Consort Min nodded: "Yes, we need to cheer up. I can see Wenxian off now that she's married in the capital."
Yinxiang poured Consort Min a cup of warm tea, and remembering that he hadn't seen Wenke and Dunke for a while, he asked where the two little maids had gone.
"They must have gone to Consort Mi's palace to play. These days, Consort Mi has been helping me look after the two of them because she sees I'm busy," Consort Min said.
Yinxiang nodded. At this moment, Yunlan came in, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, the Fifth Princess has arrived."
Upon hearing that the Fifth Princess had arrived, Yinxiang took his leave. As he was leaving, he happened to see the Fifth Princess taking off her cloak in the outer room.
The Fifth Princess was still a little uncomfortable when she saw Yinxiang, but Yinxiang called her Fifth Sister in a very generous manner.
"Mother is waiting for Fifth Sister inside. I have something to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
The Fifth Princess nodded, watched Yinxiang's departing figure, sighed, and went into the inner room.
As for Kangxi, the Empress Dowager's plea for the Fifth Princess gave him some inspiration. Seeing that Li Guangdi was not going to take the lead, and with the New Year approaching, the matter of the Crown Prince could not be delayed any longer. Helpless, Kangxi could only announce at the court meeting that the Empress Dowager had appeared to him in a dream the previous night, saying that the Crown Prince was not such a heartless and rebellious person, but had stopped because he was deceived and instigated by Suo'etu. The Empress Dowager could not rest in peace in heaven after seeing the Crown Prince like this.
Ministers: "..."
The Emperor would say anything for the sake of the Crown Prince.
Yinzhen, now the only prince, stood at the very front. Upon hearing this, he turned his head to glance at Yinsi, who gave a helpless twitch at the corner of his mouth.
He said that his father was about to lose his temper and would try to find a solution himself.
This tactic isn't exactly new; in the previous life, when the Emperor wanted to reinstate the Crown Prince, he also used the excuse of the Empress Dowager appearing in his dream. He's certainly used it skillfully.
Everyone knew that Kangxi was simply being a scoundrel. Those involved, such as Suo'etu and Tuoheqi, had already been executed, leaving no way to testify against him. Yet Kangxi could claim that the Crown Prince had been coerced with a mere word. Where could anyone reason with that?
Fortunately, Emperor Kangxi was not completely heartless. He continued, "Although Yinreng is frivolous and incompetent enough to be the Crown Prince, considering that he was forced by traitors like Suo'etu and that he is the legitimate son of Empress Yuan, I will only depose him from the position of Crown Prince and appoint him as Prince Li. Let him continue to be confined and reflect on his actions."
Emperor Kangxi handled the situation very well. For the past month, he had not mentioned the matter of the Crown Prince at all, which made all the ministers feel uneasy. They were all about to give advice to Kangxi to deal with the Crown Prince as soon as possible. At this time, Kangxi took the initiative to depose the Crown Prince, but instead of imprisoning him, he gave him the title of Prince of the Second Rank. If Kangxi had wanted to do this when he had just returned from the war, many ministers would have opposed it.
The crown prince has already rebelled, how could it be that he is merely stripped of his title and given a princely title instead?
But now most ministers think that it's fine, at least the crown prince should be deposed.
Whether he becomes a prince or a nobleman, there's no chance of him turning things around, so it doesn't matter anymore.
Compared to staying in the position of crown prince, it's nothing at all.
The proposal was then quickly approved.
The crown prince was officially deposed and became the Prince of Li, and Kangxi still did not give any indication of when the crown prince would be released.
However, the Imperial Household Department has been ordered to select a residence in the capital as the residence of Prince Li, presumably to have this newly appointed Prince Li move out of Yuqing Palace.
The dust finally settled in the imperial court, and the harem began to bustle again.
To Wen Shan's surprise, the grand conferment of titles upon the six palaces was surprisingly calm in the harem. Everyone seemed unmoved by the event and proceeded with the usual congratulatory gifts for the newly promoted concubines. Naturally, Xianfu Palace received the most gifts.
Secondly, there's Xiao Tongjia, who is only one rank below Wen Shan but has surpassed many senior concubines to rise to the rank of Noble Consort. She can be said to be riding high lately and is even more energetic in managing palace affairs.
Only Consort Hui was somewhat unwilling, feeling that since the eldest prince had made meritorious contributions in this expedition, her rank should be promoted as well. There were clearly two positions for Imperial Concubine, but Kangxi only conferred the title of Xiao Tongjia. Xiao Tongjia had only been in the palace for a few years and had no children yet. It was all thanks to Tongjia that she was able to assist in managing the six palaces as soon as she entered the palace, and now she had surpassed them, the older women, by being conferred the title of Imperial Concubine.
Everyone says that at their age, a mother should be valued because of her son, but why doesn't she feel it at all?
Consort Hui only vented her anger in her own palace and didn't really cause a scene. Xiao Tongjia knew Consort Hui's temper and didn't take it to heart. There was no need to have a conflict with the concubines in the harem at this time.
Besides, the most glamorous one was Consort Mi, who had just given birth to two princes and was promoted to the rank of Consort. Consort Mi had been on good terms with Consort Min for the past two years, and often visited Consort Min when she was ill. Therefore, she was indifferent to this promotion.
Just when everyone thought the structure of the harem was settled, Kangxi suddenly held a long-awaited imperial concubine selection to enrich the harem. He also took in the daughter of Human, a third-rank official, from the Guarjia clan, and immediately conferred upon her the title of Consort He.
Along with Lady Guarjia, a daughter of the Sehetu family was also brought into the palace and was granted the title of Noble Lady with the honorary title of Jin.
These two are the most outstanding in this election. The rest are a few concubines and palace maids. In total, nearly ten people were selected to enter the palace this time.
As the Imperial Noble Consort, Wen Shan naturally had to be present throughout the entire selection process. Looking at these beautiful young women, Wen Shan could only sigh inwardly.
During this imperial concubine selection, Emperor Kangxi also assigned two concubines to Prince Li and told Consort Wenshan and Consort Tongjia that although the Crown Prince had been deposed and demoted to a prince, his wedding would still proceed as planned.
Wen Shan: "..."
Poor Guarjia clan member, she still couldn't escape it.
Moreover, she went from being the Crown Princess to the Princess of a County.
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