Yinzhen secretly revealed this to Kangxi. He had been keeping an eye on his younger brother, the Eighth Prince, and knew about it when the Eighth Prince first started doing those things, but he kept quiet and waited until things got out of hand.
It was clear that Yinzhen had succeeded. With someone deliberately reminding him, Kangxi quickly discovered Yinsi's political ambitions.
Most importantly, Kangxi discovered that after his son became the acting head of the Imperial Household Department, he was trying to win people over and gain a false reputation. He even attributed the favors bestowed upon him by the emperor to himself, thus abusing imperial power.
Such a heinous crime was not only a mistake, but also a challenge to the authority of Emperor Kangxi, his father.
Enraged, Emperor Kangxi showed no mercy and arrested Yinzhi on charges of forming cliques and engaging in factionalism. Yinzhi was handed over to the Council of State for trial, and his title of Prince was stripped from him, demoting him to Beile.
Yinzhi had worked so hard for so many years to finally ascend to the rank of Prince, but now he was back to square one, becoming a minor Beile, even lower in rank than his brothers Yintang and Yinzhi. It was an extreme humiliation.
When the ministers who were on good terms with Yinzhi learned that Prince Lian had been arrested, they were "outraged" and submitted memorials to the Eighth Prince to plead for him, saying that he was innocent.
It would have been better if he hadn't pleaded for mercy. Only after he did Kangxi realize how many ministers his eighth son had won over—the number was terrifying.
Although he was furious, Kangxi did not show it. He only instructed the investigators to act impartially, without favoritism or corruption.
This action put everyone at ease. It seems that the Eighth Prince was indeed innocent. The Emperor wasn't angry at all, probably because someone framed the Eighth Prince. The Emperor arrested his own son only to better investigate the truth, not because he was truly furious.
But these ministers seem to have selectively forgotten that Yinzhi had just been demoted from a prince to a beile. If he wasn't really angry, why would Kangxi humiliate his son like that?
The matter of the Eighth Prince has caused quite a stir, and the Council of State is also in a state of great difficulty in investigating it. They are really unsure of the Emperor's attitude, whether he wants them to investigate more thoroughly or just go through the motions.
Ultimately, based on their past good impression of the Eighth Prince, everyone unanimously decided to investigate him lightly. How could such a good person as the Eighth Prince do such a thing? Someone must have wronged him.
Half a month later, the investigation results came out, which made Kangxi furious. He really did not expect that the Eighth Prince's influence was so deep. Ministers in all parts of the court were extremely friendly to him, and even the council office he set up had been infiltrated.
What is this investigation about? The Eighth Prince is loyal to the emperor and loves his country. All the charges against him are fabricated by others and are completely unfounded.
But what he secretly discovered was not like that. If the Eighth Prince hadn't done these things, where did he get the money to win people's hearts? And how could these ministers who followed him be so loyal to him?
Kangxi slammed the report containing the investigation results to the ground. Instead of being angry, he laughed and called Liang Jiugong forward to give him instructions.
The ministers of the Council of State Affairs were in dire straits because they misjudged the situation and protected the Eighth Prince, and were all arrested and imprisoned by Emperor Kangxi.
Kangxi then selected another trusted confidant to investigate the matter. All of them were loyal to him, so the previous situation would not occur.
However, this time the investigation did not only involve the Eighth Prince Yinzhi, but also the officials of the Council of State who had just been arrested by Emperor Kangxi.
With so many officials arrested, everyone understood the Emperor's intentions. The Emperor was actually furious, but his inscrutable expression made it impossible to discern his true thoughts.
The second group of investigators were all Kangxi's true confidants, who only obeyed the emperor's orders. No matter how outstanding the Eighth Prince was, or how likely he was to ascend to the throne, these people acted impartially and conducted a very thorough investigation.
The results of this investigation satisfied Kangxi greatly. It thoroughly investigated everything that the Eighth Prince had done throughout the year, and several of the charges hit Kangxi's sore spots.
Despite the irrefutable evidence, Yinzhi's supporters were still clamoring that he was innocent, which made the already furious Kangxi even angrier. He had to say "good" several times to suppress his anger.
The next day at court, Kangxi sternly rebuked the Eighth Prince for his previous actions and recounted his crimes. He then issued an edict to strip his son of all his titles and honors, demoting him from a prince to a bald prince and confining him to his residence. It was uncertain when he would be released.
Now that the Eighth Prince, the most powerful contender for the position in the court, has been confined to his quarters, the remaining princes are all overjoyed, feeling that it's their turn to take the throne.
Yinzhen remained the same as before, quiet and unassuming, standing out from his brothers who were eager to show off.
But his obedient and dutiful demeanor touched Kangxi's heart. He felt that the fourth son was the best and his good son, while the other sons were all villains who coveted his position.
Moreover, the fourth son was the most conscientious in his work, and he completed the tasks assigned to him very well. Unlike his other sons, he only cared about winning over the ministers, was passive in his work, and even turned a blind eye to certain things in order to befriend some ministers. It was really outrageous.
Emperor Kangxi was a diligent and benevolent ruler, and naturally he could not tolerate his sons disregarding the common people for the sake of power and status.
Therefore, without their knowledge, the princes had already been removed from the list of candidates for succession by Kangxi. Such successors who were not concerned about the country and its people were not the kind of people Kangxi wanted.
With the downfall of the Eighth Prince, the affairs of the previous dynasty came to a temporary end. However, good news suddenly came from Yinzhen's backyard: Princess Wang, who had entered the mansion last year, was pregnant.
Yinzhen did not have many children, only seven sons and five daughters in total. Among them, his wife Yunyi had five sons and one daughter, while the rest were the children born to his concubines and other women.
The number of his children was relatively small compared to Kangxi's other sons, and even fewer compared to Kangxi himself. However, most of Yinzhen's children were born of the principal wife, which gave him an advantage over the other princes.
Wang was born into the Han Banner Army and was always cautious and prudent in the household. Because they were both of Han surname, she was very close to Consort Zhong, Consort Song, and others.
Now that she is pregnant, and with the lessons learned from the previous princesses, Wang Shi clearly understands the situation in the inner quarters. She does not become arrogant because of her pregnancy, and remains as obedient and well-behaved as ever.
This behavior made Yinzhen look at this Princess Wang with higher regard and feel more affection for her.
Yunyi didn't make things difficult for Wang Shi, and all her food, clothing and daily necessities were arranged so that she could focus on her pregnancy.
Time passed while Wang was pregnant, and the year turned to the 49th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign.
Just after the New Year, Emperor Kangxi made another big move, ordering a southern tour.
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