Chapter 107 The Attack
"He will surely achieve great wealth and honor in the future..."
Emperor Kangxi looked at the words on the memorial with a cryptic expression. After staring at those few lines for a while, he put the memorial recommending Yinzhi aside and continued to read the other memorials.
One letter after another—and this was only the first day of the court officials' recommendations, yet so many memorials had already been accumulated.
Among them, a few recommendations were for Yinzhi, Yinzhi, and Yinzhen. The recommendation of the eldest son was due to his status as the eldest son, which Kangxi could understand. The three or four recommendations for the third son were from civil officials who had worked with him on compiling history, which Kangxi could also understand.
As for recommending Yinzhen, there is currently only one person, Suhe, the Minister of Revenue, one of the six ministers. His reason is quite straightforward: he believes that Yinzhen is the best at protecting the national treasury.
When Kangxi saw this, he smiled. Recalling Suhe's stingy and miserly nature, he didn't think that Suhe was colluding with the fourth prince.
If Emperor Kangxi could rationally deal with the memorials recommending these three sons, then he could also tolerate the remaining memorials, where 20% recommended the Seventeenth Prince, considering he had personally helped him rise to power. However, the fact that 80% of the memorials recommended Yinzhi (the seventh son) made Kangxi's feelings quite complicated.
“Tong Guowei…” Kangxi raised an eyebrow, feeling rather uneasy when he saw that the memorial recommending Yinzhi was actually written by the long-silent Tong Guowei.
His uncle is looking to place another bet. Yinzhi certainly knows how to win people's hearts…
The fervor surrounding the recommendation of the crown prince hadn't yet subsided when, at Kangxi's request, even officials serving outside the capital were given the right to submit memorials. As a result, a deluge of memorials poured into the capital in the following period.
Kangxi merely observed without uttering a word. The officials could only suppress their restless hearts, daring not to urge him on. But the tone revealed in their memorials made it clear to everyone that the Eighth Prince was the most powerful contender.
Yinzhi could not hide his excitement, as he had been quite uneasy about the rumors circulating about Zhang Mingde's fortune-telling. But seeing that Kangxi showed no sign of anger, did he tacitly acknowledge the omen of "great future honor"?
Born into a humble family and wearing a mask all the way to where he is now, this is the closest Yinzhi has ever been to imperial power and the position of crown prince, and it is also the most glorious moment. How could Yinzhi not be happy and overjoyed?
He longed to share his pent-up emotions with someone, but unfortunately, Yinzhen was assigned to guard the deposed crown prince and was often in the palace, making it difficult to meet with him in critical moments.
He wondered what his fourth brother would think when he heard the news. But Yinzhi believed that even if his fourth brother was disappointed, he wouldn't hold a grudge. The two brothers were competing fairly, and even if he won in the end, he wouldn't mistreat his fourth brother.
One day, when he... he won't be as wary and difficult as his father was of his fourth brother. He will work with his fourth brother to create a peaceful and prosperous world!
But no matter how wildly Yinzhi imagined things, he still had to put on a show in front of Kangxi. The situation was still uncertain, and he needed to leave a good impression.
On this day, Yinzhi brought the results of his investigation to the Qianqing Palace. Without the arrogance that comes with being recommended by others, he respectfully reported back to Emperor Kangxi.
As Kangxi flipped through the documents in his hands, he observed the tall and elegant Yinzhi standing below him. The Eighth Prince was indeed handsome, and his personality was also quite good, it was just a pity…
No matter how hard he tried to hide it, with Kangxi's discerning eye, he could still see the ambition in Yinzhi, and the confidence and pride he felt after being recommended by everyone.
"Is this all the results you've found?" Kangxi asked coldly, his tone devoid of any emotion.
Yinzhi didn't mind, after all, Kangxi always did this, and respectfully replied, "Father, since Lingpu took office as the head of the Imperial Household Department, all the people and things involved in the corruption have been recorded here."
"Smack!"
Kangxi threw the files onto the table and suddenly launched an attack on Yinzhi.
"What a wise and benevolent Eighth Prince, who cultivates good relationships and treats the virtuous with respect! No wonder a fortune teller dared to predict that you would achieve great wealth and honor!"
Yinzhi was confused, but he could tell that Kangxi was not really praising him. He immediately knelt down and said, "Father, please calm down. They are just charlatans from all walks of life. So-called face reading is nothing but nonsense and should not be believed."
"So, you're using this so-called fortune teller to create momentum?"
"Your subject wouldn't dare," Yinzhi quickly denied. This topic was far too dangerous, and besides, he really hadn't done it!
"I dare not! I think you're quite bold!" Kangxi threw the dossier in front of him and scolded, "I see that this dossier clearly shows that the investigation was incomplete. You dare to conceal things for your own good reputation, and you're trying to gain false fame everywhere. This is yet another act of the Crown Prince!"
"Your Majesty is wise; Yinzhi would never dare to conceal anything!"
Seeing Yinzhi's pale face and denial, Kangxi remained unmoved and shouted outside, "Guards, take the Eighth Prince away and temporarily confine him in the side hall!"
"Father! Father! Your son is innocent!" Yinzhi was shocked and did not understand how things had suddenly developed to this point, and why he was going to be imprisoned.
"Liang Jiugong, issue an imperial edict ordering the Ministry of Justice to arrest and interrogate Zhang Mingde! Summon all the princes to the Qianqing Palace for an audience!"
Seeing Yinzhi being led away by the guards, Kangxi issued two orders in quick succession. Liang Jiugong hurriedly responded, sensing that a storm was brewing, and rushed off to deliver the decrees.
Before long, the princes arrived at Qianqing Palace. The nineteenth and twentieth princes were still too young, so Kangxi did not allow them to be brought along. The other princes, except for the deposed Crown Prince Yinreng who was concerned about Yuqing Palace and the thirteenth prince Yinxiang who was under house arrest, all came.
The last time all the brothers were present was when the deposed crown prince was alive. What will they discover this time? The group exchanged bewildered glances, their expressions grave.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty."
After bowing, the group stood quietly to one side at Kangxi's signal. Among them, Yinzhen frowned slightly, exchanged a glance with Yinzhen, and worriedly wondered why the Eighth Prince had not yet appeared.
Seeing that all the princes had arrived, Kangxi finally spoke, saying, "Bring the Eighth Prince along."
These words shocked everyone. Could it be that today's events were all for the sake of the Eighth Prince? Knowing his recent surge in power, could it be that he had offended the Emperor?
The princes' thoughts were largely the same, but Yin Tang was the most anxious. He turned his head to look outside and soon saw Yin Si being escorted in by two guards.
"Your subject... pays respects to Father Emperor." Seeing that many of his brothers had been summoned by Kangxi, Yinzhi had a bad feeling. He knelt heavily on the ground and slowly performed a grand salute.
Kangxi did not call him to rise, but simply stared coldly at his figure. The princes beside him also sensed the heavy atmosphere and dared not speak for a moment.
"After deposing the Crown Prince, I allowed my court officials to recommend a successor. Half of the ministers submitted memorials praising Yinzhi, and even the fortune teller said that Yinzhi 'will surely achieve great honor in the future.' As brothers, what are your thoughts?"
Kangxi suddenly asked a question to the princes, and they all fell silent, unsure of Kangxi's attitude, and dared not speak.
"Boss, you speak." Since no one spoke, Kangxi directly called on him.
Yinzhi, whose name was mentioned, was taken aback. He hadn't been involved in court affairs for a long time, and Yinreng was no longer the crown prince. It could be said that he had no other ambitions. It didn't matter who was the emperor; he had no desires and no ambitions, so he had no scruples.
“Father, Yinzhi has been ill for a long time and does not understand politics. As for the crown prince, you can choose whoever you want. The court officials value the eighth brother, which is naturally because there are benefits to the eighth brother.”
"So, you're also recommending your eighth brother?"
Facing Kangxi's gaze, Yinzhi laughed heartily and said, "I think Eighth Brother is quite good, but the Crown Prince is not something I can decide. It concerns the fate of the country, so naturally it is up to Father Emperor to make the decision."
Yinzhi's words seemed to recommend Yinsi, yet they also seemed not to. In short, it was a meaningless statement.
Kangxi gave the slippery eldest prince a deep look, his gaze sweeping over him, past the evasive Yinzhi, lingering for a moment on the expressionless Yinzhen, then looking at the inconspicuous Yinqi and Yinyou, and finally settling on the furrowed brows and hesitant Yintang.
"Ninth Brother, you tell us."
When Emperor Kangxi called out his name, Yinzhen's heart skipped a beat. Looking at Yinsi's kneeling back, his heart pounded. Ignoring the dissuasive gaze of Yinzhen beside him, he decided to speak clearly and plainly.
"Your Majesty, I believe that since most of the court officials have recommended the Eighth Prince, then the Eighth Prince is the one everyone wants and is fit to shoulder the great responsibility of the Crown Prince!"
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