Emperor Kangxi urgently summoned Yinreng because of his unfilial son, Yinzhi.
Yinreng's precious day off was ruined, and he was starving and in a bad mood.
He kept his bad mood to himself in front of Emperor Kangxi, but he exploded when Kangxi explained why he had been summoned.
"You lustful devil!" Yinreng roared.
Kangxi and Yinreng shared the same idea. The father and son cursed loudly at the memorial presented by the secret guards, one smashing a cup and the other kicking the table, yet they were quite harmonious.
After they had vented their anger, the servants cleaned up the mess on the floor, and the two gradually calmed down.
But that only calmed things down a little; the anger still simmering beneath the surface was about to erupt.
"Father, what Yinzhi did is truly hard to judge. Fourth Brother, you shouldn't have mentioned it in front of Elder Brother. With so many people around, it's easy for gossip to spread. What if the Dong E family finds out? That would be terrible." After scolding Yinzhi, Yinreng scolded Yinzhen.
The former was genuinely cursing, while the latter was exonerating someone.
Emperor Kangxi loved to settle scores later. If Yinzhen did something wrong in the future, and Emperor Kangxi thought of Yinzhi's affair, he might scold Yinzhen as a gossip. That would be bad.
In a fit of anger, Kangxi directed his fury at Yinzhi. When he heard Yinreng scolding Yinzhen without even knowing the facts, he immediately defended him, saying, "The fourth prince is a good child. Without his reminder, I don't know how long I would have been deceived by that unfilial son. Baoqing is an adult; he knows what he should and shouldn't say."
Since Kangxi protected Yinzhen himself, any future disputes would be pushed onto Yinti and Yinzhi.
Yinreng secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then said to Kangxi, "Father, I think that Li Jia's appearance is nothing special, not a beauty at all. How could she have bewitched Yinzhi to the point of disregarding the rules? Among us brothers, she has the most concubines, and the princes' quarters can't even accommodate them all. And that's not enough, she even wants to keep a mistress."
This was what angered Emperor Kangxi. He could simply bestow any woman his son desired, as long as she was of good character. Even if she was of humble status, as long as she didn't take the place of a primary wife or secondary wife, she could have her way with anyone else.
"I ordered an investigation into Lady Li Jia, and this investigation uncovered quite a few things. Even the Lady Li Jia that I bestowed upon you is not a good one," Kangxi said with great distress.
Yinreng was stunned. He hadn't seen Consort Li for a long time, and apart from remembering that she was somewhat sensible, he didn't have much of an impression of her.
"Father Emperor?" Yinreng was worried that he might say something wrong, so he could only express his doubts and play the innocent and unaware crown prince.
Emperor Kangxi sighed heavily: "The Li family wants to emulate my maternal clan and your maternal clan by using women to climb the social ladder and occupy the capital."
“This is inevitable; both the Manchu and Han ethnic groups probably share this thought,” Yinreng said.
Emperor Kangxi was displeased: "How could that be? Whether it is the Tongjia clan or the Hesheli clan, there are always outstanding members who serve the country. What kind of talents does the Lijia clan have that they have the audacity to compete with the old Manchu clans?"
Yinreng shut his mouth; it would be unwise to provoke Kangxi at this time.
Kangxi, holding his teacup, praised the Tongjia clan again before returning to his original point: "I have sent someone to Lijia's courtyard in your palace to search for some unsuitable items. While those things may feel comfortable to use, frequent use can be harmful to one's health. Baocheng, are you feeling unwell?"
Yinreng's ears turned slightly red, relieved that he hadn't actually stayed at Consort Li's place.
He blushed and feigned shyness, saying, "My son has been looking a bit tired lately, I wonder if it's because..."
He was indeed tired, but it was from revising memorials.
Emperor Kangxi panicked, and cursed Yinzhi and Lady Lijia a few more times before ordering the imperial physician to be summoned.
The imperial physician, unaware of the situation, carefully examined Yinreng's pulse, left with a vague diagnosis of "deficiency of qi and blood," and then took his leave.
Emperor Kangxi, with tears streaming down his face, said, "The old monk at Tanzhe Temple is right. I shouldn't have given you so many people. From now on, I will give you fewer, and I will choose carefully."
Yinreng shook his hand and silently said in his heart: Thank you, Third Brother. You are truly a selfless and good brother.
"I understand Father Emperor's kindness towards his son. You mean well, but there are too many greedy people in the world. Fortunately, I didn't visit Li Jia's place often, so there's nothing serious. Please don't worry. Let's talk about how to keep Yinzhi's matter a secret." Yinreng skillfully brought up Yinzhi to divert Kangxi's attention.
After being reminded, Kangxi continued to tell Yinreng what he had discovered.
It was nothing more than that Xiao Lijia found someone who trained Yangzhou's "slim horses" (women who were known for their promiscuity), learned the skills well, and obtained a secret formula for conceiving from a wandering Taoist priest.
She's been relentlessly pressuring Yinzhi these past few days, hoping to take advantage of his affections for her to steal a royal prince's child.
Even if she couldn't marry into a wealthy family, she was destined never to marry into one anyway. It would be better for her to rely on Yinzhi's illegitimate son and receive the protection of a future prince.
Lady Li Jia's plan was meticulously calculated. If the person in power were not Yin Zhi's biological father, or if Yin Zhi had already been married for many years, her scheme could have succeeded.
Unfortunately, he was born in the wrong year, which immediately earned him the hatred of Emperor Kangxi.
Yinreng listened quietly to Kangxi, and thoughtfully handed him a clean handkerchief from time to time to wipe away the tears of his heartbroken father.
"The Li family and the Li clan are not a concern, but Yinzhi's temperament needs to be changed. Also, Dong'e must be kept in the dark, lest it damage the relationship between the Emperor and his subjects," Yinreng said after drinking two cups of strong tea and swallowing a small pastry.
"Bao Cheng's intentions are exactly what I was thinking. Foreign officials are not a concern, but Yin Zhi is ultimately my son." Kangxi scolded him, but he would not abandon a son who could help him with state affairs.
Yinreng understood, and he volunteered, saying, "I am not capable, but I can keep Yinzhi by my side to keep him in check."
Kangxi originally had this idea, but looking at Yinreng's considerate reaction, he suddenly regretted it.
He was unwilling to let his most beloved son suffer because of his disappointing son.
"That unfilial son is not worth your time. You are my crown prince, not a wet nurse raising a child. Even if you were to raise him, it is my Hongzhao who you should be focusing your efforts on educating." Kangxi felt very uncomfortable.
Seeing that he had escaped a calamity, Yinreng offered a suggestion: "What about the eldest brother? The eldest brother has been practicing martial arts for many years and has an extraordinary aura. I have noticed that Yinzhi is usually quite afraid of the eldest brother. It just so happens that Yinzhi's health has deteriorated. He can practice martial arts with the eldest brother and run around in the military camp. Perhaps this will help him to straighten out his temperament."
You can sit at home and disaster can strike from the sky.
Yinti was happily cuddling his primary wife and playing with his daughter in the mansion when he suddenly sneezed.
The First Princess looked at him with a mixture of reproach and worry: "Has Your Highness caught a cold?"
"My body is stronger than a tiger, how could I catch a cold? I probably got some dust in and my nose got itchy." Yinti patted his chest, showing off his exceptional strength.
He pounded his chest loudly, but the sound was no match for a shrill cry.
"Big brother, save your little brother!" Yin Zhi ran to Yin Ti's residence crying, begging for help.
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