Yin Yi adapted very well to his time studying in the Imperial Study.
He was the youngest son of Emperor Kangxi. Kangxi liked his intelligence and did not demand as much of his studies as he did of the previous princes.
Anning didn't mind, nor did she require Yinyi to be particularly diligent. She said that he could just read the books slowly, but the big picture couldn't be learned just by reading books.
Yin Yi was very perceptive, even more so than she had imagined.
Yinyi: "Your son greets Mother."
An Ning smiled and said, "Get up."
After getting up, Yin Yi sat down on the other side of the kang without any politeness, lying on his side rather improperly, with a somewhat unruly look on his face.
An Ning didn't even look up from her book before asking directly, "Did something happen that brought you here at this hour?"
Yinyi: "Mother is so wise. Recently, both the thirteenth and fourteenth brothers have been frequently approaching me. The fourteenth brother is close to the eighth brother, while the thirteenth brother often visits Yuqing Palace. The fourth brother values the thirteenth brother very much. Mother thinks that I should be close to whomever he is."
Anning still didn't look at him, and asked, "What are you thinking?"
Yin Yi chuckled: "My son is still young and doesn't understand much. Whether it's Thirteenth Brother or Fourteenth Brother, they are both my son's older brothers. Since they are older brothers, they should be treated equally. If an older brother is good to his younger brother, the younger brother will naturally be close to his older brother as well."
An Ning looked up after hearing this: "That's not wrong, but don't get too involved. If you need anything, tell your mother first. If your mother can't help you, then there's your father. He dotes on his youngest son and doesn't need you to owe your brothers any favors."
"I understand, Mother, please rest assured. But I really didn't expect that the struggle between my eldest brother and my second brother, the Crown Prince, would affect me."
Yin Yi was intelligent. At the age of six, An Ning never hid the affairs of the previous dynasty from him, so he knew about the struggles of the previous dynasty, but he did not expect them to be so intense.
He hadn't read enough books, but he had a vague feeling that if things continued like this, the brothers might not be able to resolve things amicably.
"Mother, if my eldest brother and my second brother, the Crown Prince, continue to fight like this, whoever wins in the future, I'm afraid they'll end up killing each other, right?"
An Ning nodded, recalling how Emperor Yongzheng treated his brothers after ascending the throne, which could be described as fratricide, but in a way, it was the Eighth Prince's faction that brought it upon themselves.
"It's good that you understand. You don't need to think too much right now. Just focus on your studies."
An Ning is ambitious, but she doesn't tell Yin Yi about her ambitions. He's still young, and telling him now wouldn't be a good thing.
Studying makes one wise. As the son of Emperor Kangxi, when he grows up and enters the imperial family, he will inevitably have to compete for power; there's no time to rush it.
Three years later, Yin Yi was already ten years old. The situation in the court became increasingly complicated. As his older sons became disobedient, vying for power and causing Kangxi to feel uneasy, Kangxi grew to favor his youngest son more and more.
Kangxi originally favored the Fourteenth Prince, but as he grew older, married, attended court, and participated in politics, he began to associate with the Eighth Prince, which gradually made Kangxi less fond of him. However, he still gave him some power.
Compared to Yin Yi, the Fifteenth Prince's family background was not as high. As the only Han Chinese among the princes, it is unknown whether he was intelligent or not, but he was quite mediocre.
I like calligraphy and painting, but I'm not particularly good at academics.
Yinyi was the youngest and indeed very intelligent. He could learn many things quickly and apply them to other situations. His horsemanship and archery skills were also excellent. This reminded Kangxi of the Crown Prince in his early years, who was also like this, proficient in both literature and martial arts.
I can't think about it, the more I think about it, the angrier I get. The Crown Prince has changed!
Because of Emperor Kangxi's high regard for Yin Yi, both the Crown Prince and the First Prince were eager to win him over.
No one considered Yinyi a rival. Kangxi was already over fifty years old. No matter how outstanding Yinyi was or how much the emperor favored him, he was still too young.
Therefore, the main approach is to win them over.
Yinyi once again feigned ignorance to get rid of the Eighth Prince and arrived at Changchun Palace.
Anning was dealing with palace affairs when she called him in, but he didn't even look up.
Yinyi: "Greetings to Mother."
Anning: "Sit down and talk. What's wrong? What happened?"
Yin Yi said, "My brother Ba has been coming to see me frequently lately, which is very annoying."
An Ning couldn't help but laugh, and looked up: "Your reputation for gentleness and virtue is known both inside and outside the palace. What, you don't like it?"
Yin Yi scoffed, "Eighth Brother's little tricks can't fool anyone. Only Ninth Brother is naive. Tenth Brother may not be truly following Eighth Brother. It's just that those ministers think Eighth Brother is easy to manipulate. Eighth Brother has Ninth Brother providing him with money, and he bought his reputation with money. I really don't think much of him. He's not as good as Fourth Brother!"
An Ning asked in surprise, "The Fourth Prince has also been in contact with you?"
Yin Yi shook his head: "Fourth Brother didn't personally contact him, but Thirteenth Brother is as good to me as ever. Although he wants to win me over, it's genuine. Fourteenth Brother is not so good. I can't even bear to look at the scheming in his eyes. Everyone says that Consort De doesn't like Fourth Brother and prefers Fourteenth Brother, but in my opinion, Fourth Brother is more like Consort De."
Anning asked him, "Consort De is known for her gentle and virtuous nature. She doesn't like to argue with people and always has a smile on her face. Fourth Prince, on the other hand, always has a cold face and focuses on the issue, not the person. Why do you think Fourth Prince is more like Consort De?"
Yin Yi: "Fourth Brother is deep-thinking and calculating, but he hides it with a cold face. Consort De is also deep-thinking and calculating, but she hides it with a gentle smile. Aren't they mother and son? But I still can't understand why Consort De dislikes Fourth Brother and prefers Fourteenth Brother?"
Yinyi can understand some things, but he doesn't understand why things are like this.
In truth, An Ning couldn't fully understand either; the relationship between Consort De and the Fourth Prince couldn't be explained in just a few words.
"Even your mother doesn't understand! But human nature is always complicated. You'll understand as you encounter more things in the future. There are many things in the world that you can't comprehend."
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