The Ninth Prince was an anomaly among the princes. While others were scrambling to secure positions, he was making money. While others had retainers who were scholars preparing for the imperial examinations, his retainers were mostly shopkeepers, the kind who were extremely shrewd at business.
When Shen Ming claimed to be a man of the Ninth Prince, Kangxi was not angry. He remembered that Huo Ying's sister, whom she had always longed for, had once been the Ninth Prince's concubine. Now that another of the Ninth Prince's retainers had appeared, it was perfectly "normal".
"Summon the Ninth Prince." Kangxi did not ask any further questions.
Yinzhen arrived quickly, looking hurried. A closer look revealed that the buttons on his clothes were all fastened incorrectly. He said, "Your subject greets Your Majesty. May I ask why Your Majesty summoned me here so late at night?"
"Do you know this person?" Kangxi gestured for Liang Jiugong to bring him a stool. Ever since that serious illness, the Ninth Prince's health had been poor, and he looked even thinner than Kangxi himself.
Yinzhen sat on a third of the stool and carefully looked at the kneeling person: "Replying to Father Emperor, this person looks somewhat familiar to me. He seems to be the shopkeeper of some shop, or perhaps I have mistaken him for someone else."
"You haven't mistaken him for someone else. His name is Shen Ming. He disguised himself as a eunuch in the middle of the night and conspired with Consort Huo to harm me. Were you aware of this?"
Yinzhen was stunned by these blunt words. After a long while, he rolled off the stool and knelt down: "Father, I am innocent!"
"Your subject admits that it was through my efforts that Consort Huo was sent to the palace. As you probably know, her younger sister unfortunately passed away. Before she died, her only thought was of this older sister. In order to let Ying'er rest in peace, your subject fulfilled Consort Huo's request."
"Since Consort Huo entered the palace, I have not had any contact with her. This can all be verified, Father Emperor."
"As for Shen Ming, I really don't remember him. Father, you know that I like doing business. I have at least eight hundred or a thousand shops under my management. He is using my name to frame me, Father!"
"Cough cough cough!" When he got to the emotional part, Yinzhen coughed incessantly, and finally spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted at Kangxi's feet.
"Ninth Prince!" Emperor Kangxi was surprised that his son's health had deteriorated to such an extent, and immediately summoned the imperial physician.
The imperial physicians of the Imperial Medical Academy had thought they could finally get a good night's sleep, but they were invited to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Seeing that it was to treat the Ninth Prince, they were somewhat relieved.
Upon taking the pulse, the imperial physician's eyelids twitched. They exchanged glances, inwardly realizing the gravity of the situation.
The Ninth Prince's body has clearly been severely damaged and is extremely depleted. They had just come into contact with the medicine that caused this condition, which is the opium ointment that Kangxi can no longer give up.
As they were worrying about how to tell Kangxi, Yinzhen woke up. He grabbed the hand of the nearest imperial physician, holding it tightly, and with all his might, he uttered a sound from his throat: "Shut up if you don't want to die!"
After saying that, Yinzhen fainted again.
The imperial physicians quickly reached a consensus: the Ninth Prince's illness should be kept secret. They might as well lose their own lives, but behind each of them stood a large family.
Furthermore, the Ninth Prince's illness had always been treated by the Imperial Medical Academy. Although Imperial Physician Jiang had personally prescribed the medicine and never delegated the task to anyone else, the Imperial Medical Academy was bound to rise and fall together. If the Emperor suspected them of knowing something but not reporting it, or even deliberately concealing it, they would all be executed.
After all, the Emperor's emotions have been too unstable lately.
******
During the time that Yinzhen was unconscious, the spies that Kangxi had sent out to investigate the Huo sisters and Shen Ming returned. He looked at the few thin sheets of paper, the words of which he knew by heart. His breathing gradually became heavier, and he closed his eyes, as if he was trying to hold back something.
However, he simply couldn't resist. With a flick of his sleeve, Kangxi knocked over all the neatly arranged memorials, writing brushes, ink, and tea on the table, scattering them all over the ground.
Kangxi tore the paper in his hand to shreds: "Liang Jiugong, imprison these two men in the Censorate and make sure they talk. Also, imprison the Eighth Prince in the Imperial Clan Court, with Prince Yu and Prince Yong guarding him. The trial will be held at a later date!"
Having not rested all night, Kangxi's spirit had reached its limit. He forcibly suppressed the urge to slaughter everyone in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, canceled the morning court session the next day, and wanted to rest as soon as possible to regain his sanity.
The more one tries to sleep, the more awake one becomes. Kangxi's forehead veins bulged, and even with his eyes closed, he would think about what the spies had found out, making him extremely agitated.
"Liang Jiugong, convey my decree: Consort Liang is of lowly birth, lacking virtue and ability. She is stripped of her title and demoted to a lower rank." Kangxi vented his anger on the inner palace, which made him feel a little better.
After silently counting a thousand numbers in his mind, Kangxi got up again: "Liang Jiugong, summon the Crown Prince and Hongzhao to an audience!"
"Yes." Liang Jiugong remained highly tense all night. He didn't know what the spies had found out, but judging from the fact that Ninth Prince was safe and sound, Eighth Prince was arrested, and Consort Liang was demoted, the Emperor had almost convicted Eighth Prince without even conducting a trial.
An angry emperor is difficult to serve, let alone an angry emperor whose emotions are highly unstable due to medication.
The Crown Prince was not asleep at this time. After all, such a commotion had occurred in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, and he was also living in the palace. If he was completely unaware of it, then he, as the Crown Prince, could be dismissed immediately.
He never expected that one of his brothers would be so ruthless as to directly target the Emperor, but this was a golden opportunity for him.
Thinking of what Lin had said about "the second deposition of the crown prince," Yinreng's heart raced, and two paths seemed to appear before his eyes.
One path leads to the emperor's throne, the other to an abyss of confinement.
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