Chunying: "Your Majesty, I accidentally saw Consort Hui's eyes, and I almost couldn't help but want to eat someone alive. And the Crown Prince, the way he looked at the Fourteenth Prince was very unfriendly. Oh, and Consort De, I always felt that she was sinister..."
When Chunying returned to Chuxiu Palace, she began to recount the scene she had witnessed at the banquet. In short, she concluded that the people outside were not good people and were very hostile towards Chuxiu Palace.
Wu Lingzhu said cheerfully, "We've done so much, they should be unhappy. If they're friendly, then we should be the ones crying. We should give the palace servants a good talking-to. The Emperor is currently showing great favor to the Chuxiu Palace, and I don't want to hear from others one day that the Chuxiu Palace is abusing its power. Also, everyone will receive an extra month's salary this month."
Chunying said with high spirits, "Your Majesty, rest assured, with me here, Chuxiu Palace will be perfectly safe."
"Go ahead, I don't need to stay here."
Seeing Chunying so lively, Wulingzhu was also happy.
Chunying was more than just a loyal palace maid to Wulingzhu; their relationship couldn't even be described as simply like sisters. Only if Chunying lived a peaceful life could Wulingzhu feel at ease knowing that she wouldn't repeat the mistakes of her past life.
Having a child was the first step Wu Lingzhu took towards success.
She still has a lot to do: protect Yinzhi's safety, safeguard herself in the harem, and maintain her image in Kangxi's heart.
There are two intelligence squads, and she's doing a great job.
That day, Consort Cheng came over.
She brought up something: "Have you heard that the First Prince and the Crown Prince got into a fight?"
Wu Lingzhu knew about this, but only from her intelligence team. She shouldn't have known about it openly, as Consort Cheng's family were bondservants and had excellent information networks.
She shook her head and said, "I'm not as well-informed as my sister, how come?"
Consort Cheng then explained the reason, glancing at Wu Lingzhu as she spoke, her gaze probing.
"Because of a horse, the eldest prince took a fancy to it. The horse groom said that the crown prince had to choose first, and only if the crown prince didn't want it could the eldest prince have it. The eldest prince was unhappy when he heard this, and kicked the horse groom and broke his leg. When the crown prince found out about this, he said a few words to the eldest prince, and the two got more and more worked up and started fighting."
Wu Lingzhu stared wide-eyed in disbelief: "This doesn't sound like something the Crown Prince would do. It's too reckless. Has the Emperor said anything about it?"
"I don't know. I came to tell you as soon as I received the news. I wonder what Your Majesty thinks about this?"
Wu Lingzhu feigned ignorance: "How can I see it? This matter depends on the Emperor's opinion."
Consort Cheng continued to probe: "This time, the Emperor will probably be very angry, angry at the Crown Prince."
Wu Lingzhu chuckled: "Sister, you're overthinking things. The Crown Prince is someone the Emperor has carefully groomed. Getting angry once or twice is just a minor squabble between father and son, nothing serious."
Consort Cheng understood somewhat, but not quite; she didn't really understand what Consort Cheng's attitude towards the Crown Prince was.
When the Empress Dowager passed away and Emperor Kangxi was seriously ill, she was frightened by Wu Lingzhu during her visit. At first, she thought Wu Lingzhu was mentally unstable, since she had entered the palace and fallen in love with the emperor.
But upon closer observation, she felt that Wu Lingzhu didn't seem like someone with a mental problem; otherwise, she would have tortured herself to death in this deep palace long ago.
Looking back at her initial statement, Consort Cheng felt that something was off and strange about it.
This time, she wanted to test what Wu Lingzhu really thought of the Crown Prince. She was taking sides, but more importantly, she wanted to side with the Crown Prince.
Emperor Kangxi's favor towards the crown prince was evident to both the court and the harem, and it was not something that could be faked.
But the more she looked, the more she felt that Wu Lingzhu's attitude was ambiguous.
She asked with some uncertainty, "I have a niece on my family who admires the Crown Prince. Does Your Majesty think this is a good match?"
The topic had already gone astray. Wu Lingzhu's smile faded, and she said, "It's definitely more comfortable outside the palace than inside. Although Yuqing Palace is nice, it's too magnificent. It looks crowded when there are too many people. With an elder like you, young lady, isn't anywhere a good place to go?"
Consort Cheng had never really intended for her niece to become the Crown Prince's concubine, so upon hearing this, she nodded and said, "Your Majesty, I will do as Your Majesty says."
She understood Wu Lingzhu better than anyone else. When Kangxi was seriously ill, Wu Lingzhu did not choose the Crown Prince, seemingly not intending to stay with him. Yet, she was from the Hesheli clan.
Thinking of the Fourteenth Prince, does she really want to raise a baby?
But upon closer reflection, why not?
If anything were to happen to the Crown Prince, Hesheli would undoubtedly give her full support to Wulingzhu.
The more Consort Cheng thought about it, the more she realized it made sense, and her face turned a shade paler.
The Crown Prince and Wu Lingzhu are in a difficult position.
But upon further reflection, she realized she had no other choice but to side with Wu Lingzhu.
For a long time afterward, Consort Cheng didn't come. After some time, she came again. Wu Lingzhu didn't say anything, but Consort Cheng's attitude became even friendlier and more submissive.
The aftermath of the fight between the Crown Prince and the First Prince was that Emperor Kangxi intervened and severely reprimanded the First Prince for not being friendly to his younger brother, disrespecting the Crown Prince, being unkind as an elder brother, and disloyal as a subject.
Emperor Kangxi didn't say much to the Crown Prince, but the Crown Prince wasn't happy at all.
The atmosphere between him and the eldest prince was like a powder keg. Before, they would barely exchange a few polite words when they met, but now, except in front of Emperor Kangxi, the atmosphere was so tense that they could almost come to blows.
Emperor Kangxi knew, but pretended not to.
The Crown Prince and the First Prince were at loggerheads, and the forces behind them were also vying for power. Even those in the inner palace could often hear people talking about the affairs of the previous dynasty.
After the death of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, the Qing Dynasty basically did not allow the empresses to interfere excessively in politics. The Kangxi Emperor was even more sensitive to this. Even so, the struggles of the court could be discussed in the empresses' palace, which shows how intense the struggles of the court were.
The Crown Prince returned to his study in Yuqing Palace in a fit of rage once again. After closing the door, he couldn't contain his temper and kicked over a chair. The eunuch beside him knelt on the ground, trembling.
"Yinti, he deserves to die—"
"Master, please calm down, please calm down..."
The Crown Prince went mad in his study. The First Prince had always been at odds with him, but recently it had gotten even worse.
His relentless pressure made the crown prince feel unprecedented stress.
What terrified him most was not the eldest prince's targeting, but the attitude of his father, Emperor Kangxi.
The eldest prince dared to act so recklessly because of Kangxi's indifference and indulgence.
The Crown Prince didn't think the First Prince would replace him, but the First Prince didn't think so either; he was determined to fight for it, and Kangxi's attitude made him feel that there was a possibility of success.
If Emperor Kangxi had maintained this attitude from the beginning, it would have been fine. There are many instances in history where emperors and crown princes did not get along. However, this was not the case in the past few years.
Emperor Kangxi was genuinely good to his crown prince in the past.
To put it bluntly, the Crown Prince was more afraid of Kangxi's change of attitude than the First Prince's aggressiveness.
Previously, the Crown Prince had the confidence to act independently, but the First Prince was acting recklessly, so the Crown Prince didn't need to do anything; his good father, Emperor Kangxi, would reprimand him on his behalf.
Now that Emperor Kangxi has lost his way, the Crown Prince lacks confidence.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
