Chapter 40 Returning Home
Inspecting the Yongding River was not a long journey and would not take more than a few days. If Emperor Kangxi had not been planning to conduct a secret investigation into the lives of people living around the dikes, he might have returned that very day.
After a seven-day trip, Emperor Kangxi and his entourage returned to the palace. Yinzhen and Yinsi took their leave and went back to their respective residences. Because their residences were in the same place, the two brothers, who appeared somewhat estranged to outsiders, returned home side by side without arousing any suspicion.
Riding horses was forbidden in the capital, even for princes, who followed the rules and rode slowly. Some of the accompanying servants returned to their residences ahead of time to report, while others lagged behind. Only Yinzhen and Yinsi rode their horses quite close together, seemingly exchanging a few words from a distance.
"Thank you, Fourth Brother." Yinzhi looked around with a gentle gaze, speaking casually but with deep gratitude in his voice.
"No need to thank me, it's just a matter of fate. In the end, it still depends on your performance." Yinzhen's expression was as cold as ever, seemingly keeping people at arm's length. But Yinsi, who knew him well, could completely feel the concern and gentleness in his words.
Everyone says that the Fourth Prince is cold and aloof, while the Eighth Prince is gentle, but only Yinzhi himself knows that beneath his gentle exterior lies a hard and indifferent heart. But beneath the Fourth Prince's cold exterior lies a gentle and affectionate heart.
As the one treated with such gentleness by Yinzhen, Yinsi could hardly help but be moved by this tenderness. Others approached him only because of his feigned gentleness, but only Yinzhen had protected him since childhood. Even after seeing through his facade, Yinzhen continued to care for him as always.
This time was no different. If it weren't for Yinzhen's efforts, he wouldn't have known that his father was going to bestow titles upon the harem again, and he wouldn't have been able to join this inspection tour. No matter how well he performed, his father wouldn't have seen him...
"A mother's status rises with her son's, but she shouldn't relax now; she should continue to perform her duties diligently."
"Yes, Yinzhi knows."
Yinzhi nodded, moved. The usually eloquent and charming Eighth Prince was now tongue-tied and unsure how to express his gratitude.
His mother's status as a concubine due to her birth was a lifelong source of pain for Yinzhi. His burning desire to rise above others stemmed from a desire to provide a better life for his mother. Now that Yinzhen had offered him this opportunity, he would never waste Yinzhen's kindness…
"Fourth Brother, Yinzhi is returning to the manor now."
"Um."
As they approached the residence, Yinzhi clasped his hands in a respectful bow to Yinzhen, then spurred his horse away. Yinzhen merely nodded indifferently. To outsiders, the two brothers' relationship seemed rather strained; the Fourth Prince hadn't smiled once the entire way. They truthfully reported back to their respective masters, who nodded knowingly. It seemed the Eighth Prince's participation in the inspection wasn't the Fourth Prince's doing. Was it merely a whim of the Emperor? Or was it to bolster the First Prince's power?
"Host, host, how did you know that Emperor Kangxi was going to bestow titles and honors upon the harem?" As soon as Yinzhi left, 555 couldn't wait to ask, even though no one else could see it. It was very aware of its surroundings and wouldn't bother its host, no matter how curious it was, when outsiders were present.
【Master, how can you guarantee that Consort Wei will definitely be promoted? If Kangxi doesn't elevate her rank, then everything you've done now will have been for nothing.】556 seemed concerned, but was actually secretly eager to see the Great Demon King suffer a setback.
Yinzhen raised an eyebrow, unconcerned about its little schemes. Systems, after all, are interesting only when they have their own quirks. Having gone out for some fresh air and witnessed some sights different from the original world, Yinzhen was in a fairly good mood. So, in a moment of mercy, he directly told them the truth.
"I actually only did one thing: following Kangxi's wishes, I slightly favored the Crown Prince."
【Huh? What do you mean?】 Both small systems looked completely bewildered.
"Kangxi said he valued the Crown Prince, but with a strong son and a weak father, he wasn't entirely without reservations about the Crown Prince, which is why he promoted the First Prince's faction. Although he wanted to groom me to be the Crown Prince's right-hand man, he would still feel uneasy if a prince who had already altered the imperial genealogy and had the Tongjia clan as his backer actually sided with Yinreng. So at that time, he would subconsciously lend a hand to the First Prince's faction..."
【The Eighth Prince, Yinzhi, is a supporter of the First Prince.】Having hosted so many different hosts and seen so much, 556 was the first to realize this.
“That’s right,” Yinzhen said, glancing approvingly at the little dumpling. “He was a perfect straight man. At this time, as long as we reminded Yinsi about the imperial conferment of titles, Yinsi would naturally take the initiative to appear before Kangxi. So the task of inspecting the Yongding River, which usually only involved Yinzhen and Yinxiang, the two princes who were part of the Crown Prince’s faction, was expanded by one more person.”
【Host is really amazing, but how did you ensure that Emperor Kangxi would definitely establish a new harem?】555 admired Yinzhen's abilities while still being puzzled.
“I don’t need to think of a way.” Yinzhen smiled and continued, “In December of the thirty-ninth year of Kangxi’s reign, Consort Wei was promoted to Consort Liang, and then to Imperial Concubine Liang. This is a record that is completely consistent between the official history of Emperor Yongzheng and the memory of Emperor Yongzheng in ‘The Legend of Zhen Huan’.”
"Master, you're trying to get something for nothing... Hahaha..." 556 blurted out, but then suddenly realized that it didn't sound like a nice thing to say, and his voice immediately went weak.
[What do you know? This is called perfect planning. Host is amazing, host is so great—] The happy little kitten started circling in its sea of consciousness again.
"Sycophant..." 556 cursed inwardly, then smiled and followed 555 around. The pink little dumpling swayed back and forth, its fawning nature impossible to hide.
As expected of their master, the master is outstanding, knowledgeable, quick-witted, resourceful, and exceptional...
After ignoring the four-character compliments from 556, Yinzhen handed the horses over to the gatekeeper and greeted the female relatives waiting inside the mansion.
"Greetings, Your Highness."
A group of beautifully dressed women stood together according to their rank and bowed to Yinzhen.
"Get up. It's cold. Didn't we say you didn't need to wait at the door? Your hands are cold." Yinzhen reached out and helped Yixiu up, holding her hand and speaking with gentle concern.
Yi Xiu's smile widened, and she replied softly, "With Your Highness back at the manor, my sisters and I naturally want to see you as soon as possible."
"It's only been seven days since I left home, what difference could there be? It's cold, everyone go back. I'll have my meal in the main courtyard." Ignoring Rouze's hesitant gaze, Yinzhen dismissed the others and followed Yixiu back to the main courtyard.
Yixiu was naturally delighted. Upon returning to the courtyard, she personally helped Yinzhen change his clothes. Although she didn't want to interrupt the warm atmosphere between the couple, as the wife of the deceased, she had to suppress her displeasure and report the good news to Yinzhen.
"I haven't had a chance to tell you yet, but Princess Song from Yunshui Residence is pregnant." Yixiu lowered her eyes and smiled as she straightened his clothes.
"Yeah?"
"It was diagnosed by Physician Xu a couple of days ago, and it's been over a month already," Yixiu looked up at Yinzhen, displaying the dignified and kind demeanor of a mistress. "Today, when I met with Your Highness, I didn't let Consort Song come. Would Your Highness like to go to Yunshui Residence to see her?"
Yinzhen glanced at Yixiu's expression and said calmly, "No rush, I'll go tomorrow. Where's Yuankang? I'll go see him."
“Yuan Kang is sleeping in the side room. I will have the nanny bring him here.”
"No need, the two of us will go and take a look."
"Yes." Yixiu followed Yinzhen to her feet and walked out. The smile on her face was now even more genuine. If the Prince was indeed watching Yuankang, then she would not allow anyone to steal Yuankang's favor...
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