A few days later, before Tong Cheng'er could make any moves, Yinzhen's investigation into the matter that Kangxi had asked him to uncover began to show results.
Because there was already a suspect, it was relatively easy to investigate. However, when he saw that the results were exactly as he had expected, he began to worry.
"What's wrong?"
With a sigh, Yinzhen said, "Do you still remember the kidnapper you encountered in Bo County and the prefect of Jiangnan who cheated on the imperial examinations?"
It happened not long ago, so of course she remembers it.
"I remember, this worry is related to this matter. Father Emperor asked you to investigate, but who did you trace it back to?"
Judging from his expression, Tong Cheng'er knew that the man probably had some issues.
Yinzhen sighed again: "Suo'etu."
Tong Cheng'er was stunned.
"How could it be him?!"
"Yes, why is it him?"
Yinzhen was extremely worried.
This news is like a bombshell; if it were thrown into the court, it would surely cause a huge uproar. And his currently amicable relationship with the Crown Prince is likely to come to an end.
He really doesn't want to go against the Crown Prince right now.
Tong Cheng'er understood his concerns: "So what do you plan to do?"
Knowing this person as she did, it was impossible for her to let him ignore it. If he hadn't found out, fine; but now that he had, how could he just let it go?
If we let this go, what about the children who were abducted? What about the future of students from Jiangnan?
No, it doesn't count.
It doesn't count either.
"What else can we do? We'll just hand over what we've found to Father Emperor, and I won't worry about the rest."
Of course, there's nothing we can do about it.
The Crown Prince's faction has Suo'etu backing them up. If he were to fall now, the Crown Prince would be severely weakened. The First Prince's faction would not stand idly by. If they were to take any action, the court would surely be plunged into chaos and bloodshed.
Tong Cheng'er sighed and said, "It's good to leave it to Father Emperor. You've done your best with the Crown Prince, so don't worry about it."
Even so, I still feel uncomfortable.
The next day, Yinzhen went to the Qianqing Palace, presented what he had found, and then stood aside waiting for his father to get angry.
As Yinzhen had predicted, Kangxi was furious after reading it.
"This Suo'etu is truly audacious."
After saying that, he was so angry that he smashed the cup in front of him.
Speaking of smashing cups, the empresses in the harem also liked to do it. The most consumed items in the Imperial Household Department were tea sets, which seems to have been learned from Emperor Kangxi.
Emperor Kangxi liked to smash cups when he was angry; if he smashed one cup, the whole set would be "ruined".
The emperor's belongings must be complete, otherwise it would seem shabby.
After smashing the cup, Yinzhen calmly said, "Please calm down, Father Emperor."
"Calm down! How can I calm down? How could he do something like this? What is Suo'etu trying to do?!"
What do you want to do?
Naturally, they wanted to increase their political capital and strengthen the princeling faction.
The imperial examination cheating schemes made money, and the abducted little girls played an even greater role.
Emperor Kangxi was furious for nearly half an hour, and Yinzhen listened in the study for half an hour.
Perhaps they were tired of talking, which is why they stopped.
After stopping, Kangxi summoned Liang Jiugong: "Go to Yuqing Palace and call the Crown Prince over."
Upon hearing this, Yinzhen said, "Father, may I take my leave now?"
Kangxi shook his head: "No need, it's time for lunch, let's eat together!"
Yinzhen thought to himself that there was no need for that, but he couldn't refuse.
"yes"
When Liang Jiugong arrived at Yuqing Palace, the Crown Prince was with his concubine, who was ill.
"Master, Eunuch Liang has arrived."
Upon hearing that it was Eunuch Liang, the Crown Prince knew he was referring to Liang Jiugong: "What is it you want to say?"
"Eunuch Liang has come to invite the Crown Prince to the Qianqing Palace."
The Crown Prince nodded: "Alright, I'll go right away."
After saying that, he turned to Consort Li and said, "Take good care of yourself and I will come to see you again later."
Upon hearing this, Consort Li looked pale and weak, and said shyly, "My lord, you have important business to attend to. Don't worry about me. It's all because of my poor health that I've wasted so much of your time."
The Crown Prince felt a warmth in his heart upon hearing this. Even when she was ill, she was still thinking of him. Looking at her delicate face, he couldn't help but feel even more pity for her.
The Crown Prince patted her hand: "What nonsense are you talking about? It's important to take good care of yourself. I'll be right back and come see you again tonight."
Upon hearing this, Consort Li's face immediately lit up with surprise: "Really?"
Seeing her like this, the Crown Prince couldn't help but smile: "Of course it's true, would I lie to you?"
After the Crown Prince finished speaking, Consort Li's expression suddenly changed. She lowered her head and whispered, "Perhaps Your Highness shouldn't come. It wouldn't be good if my illness were to pass to Your Highness." Her tone was extremely pitiful.
These words warmed the prince's heart even more. Others who were sick would be eager for him not to leave, but this silly girl was afraid of passing on her illness to him.
"Don't worry about illness, it's nothing. Just get some rest."
Consort Li nodded shyly, "Mmm."
Before leaving, the Crown Prince said to the servants in the room, "Take good care of the Consort. If anything goes wrong, I will hold you all responsible."
All the palace maids, eunuchs, and matrons: "Yes!"
After the Crown Prince left, Consort Li dismissed most of the people in the room, leaving only two trusted confidants. She said coldly, "Have you found out who did it?"
The old woman said, "This servant has traced it back to Consort Tong."
Consort Li scoffed, "That idiot, he's probably been tricked by someone. He's been in Yuqing Palace for so long and hasn't improved at all. He just does stupid things. Keep investigating. I don't believe that someone could have tricked me like that."
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