Chapter 1875 Imperial Judgment
Inside the palace, Consort Tong was shocked to hear Shu Rong say that the Fourth Prince's wife had come in crying. She wondered if something had happened to the twins. After Shu Rong continued to report, Consort Tong was both amused and exasperated.
Qingyan did a good job; she knew when to show weakness.
"Your Majesty, do you think we should send the Fourth Prince Consort here first?" Shu Rong was somewhat worried when she heard that Qingyan had gone directly to Kangxi's place.
"No need, the Empress Dowager is with the Prince. Let's go there first. Qingyan will definitely not give up, and we can at least offer some support," Consort Tong said directly.
Shu Rong noticed that Consort Tong looked quite happy, and felt helpless. Sure enough, the two of them, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, had the same idea.
In Kangxi's courtyard, the Empress Dowager, who rarely had the leisure to come and see Kangxi, heard Qingyan entering the palace with a wronged expression. The mother and son exchanged a glance. The Empress Dowager liked Qingyan very much. On the one hand, Qingyan treated her extremely well, not just superficially. On the other hand, Qingyan gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, and the children were very healthy.
"Xuan Ye..." The Empress Dowager's expression turned grim. "Could something have happened to the children?"
“Mother, don’t worry. Imperial Physician Yuan examined the children today, so there’s definitely nothing wrong. It must be something else,” Kangxi said directly.
After hearing Kangxi's assurance, the Empress Dowager was completely relieved. However, she was still pondering what exactly was going on.
"Li Dequan, quickly summon the Fourth Prince's wife. Also, tell the Fourth Prince to get over here right now." Kangxi felt inexplicably worried.
The three precious children in the Fourth Prince's mansion got along best with him, and he would feel very sad whenever any of them got into trouble.
"Yes, sir." Li Dequan quickly bowed and replied.
Upon hearing what Li Dequan's men had said, Yinzhen quickly came out from a courtyard not far away, which had just been converted into a temporary office for the Ministry of Revenue.
"Little darling, what's wrong with you?" Yinzhen asked, looking at Qingyan.
"Hmph, you still dare to talk back? The two Censor's wives said that Censor Zhuang and his entourage will make you look bad at tomorrow's grand court assembly." Qingyan sneered.
Upon hearing this, Yinzhen found it utterly absurd.
"What?!" Yinzhen sneered. "You're coming with me to Father Emperor's place."
Yinzhen was quite clear that Qingyan's antics this time were absolutely approved by his father, otherwise, he wouldn't have allowed Qingyan to enter the imperial palace so easily.
The two entered the hall one after the other. After Qingyan and Yinzhen politely bowed to the Empress Dowager and Emperor Kangxi, they stood up and stood respectfully.
"Little darling, what's wrong?" the Empress Dowager asked directly.
Qingyan looked helplessly at the Empress Dowager and said, "Grandma, I..."
At this moment, Qingyan found it difficult to speak. If she made the old lady anxious, wouldn't that be considered unfilial?
"Sulan, you follow your master, speak properly!" Kangxi said to Sulan. Qingyan clearly did not want to upset the Empress Dowager.
Su Lan reported the truth, even mentioning how the two censors' wives had argued with Consort Tong the day before.
"Little darling, are you worried that I will be angry? You dare not speak?" The Empress Dowager's eyes were very gentle. Qingyan probably wanted to come and complain, but when he saw her, he became timid.
Qingyan gave a bitter smile: "Grandma, I didn't want you to see this side of me. I really don't know what to say. I'm worried that the children might be affected by what I've done, so I have no choice but to come and apologize!"
Emperor Kangxi waved his hand and said, "Get up. There is no such thing as divorce in the royal family. You have given birth to another child for the royal family. Fourth Prince, this is a matter of oath, which can never be changed."
Previously, Kangxi was somewhat dissatisfied with Qingyan. However, after the birth of the twins, Hafeng was born. All three children lived very healthily, which made Kangxi very happy.
“Father, I know I did something wrong, but I really don’t want to affect the children. The two censors’ wives said that my reputation is very bad. If it affects Hutuli Fengsheng Zhalafen’s marriage, I will feel really guilty.”
Emperor Kangxi knew that Qingyan loved his children very much and naturally did not want Qingyan's life to be affected.
"Li Dequan, summon the two censors to me. Now that the investigation is complete, let them come and file their complaint with me ahead of time." Kangxi had no goodwill towards the two censors; they were fixated on Yinzhen's matter and wanted to create some trouble.
At the previous grand court assembly, these two had already made their move. Kangxi had even discussed it with the princes outside the Great Wall. Yinzhen's vow was absolutely not to be broken; otherwise, the fate of the twins would be uncertain.
For the sake of long-term stability and security for the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Kangxi would not easily choose to destroy it.
Later that evening, two imperial censors arrived with their wives. The Empress Dowager, Consort Tong, and all the palace concubines sat on either side, and the princes and their primary wives also came.
The two censors had never seen such a scene before, and they were somewhat puzzled.
After the four paid their respects, the hall was very quiet, and no one spoke first. After the censors returned, they told the censors what they had said to the Fourth Prince's wife, and the censors did not think it was too much.
"Two censors, please enlighten me: when did the emperor's primary consort become a matter for censors to appoint and dismiss?" Kangxi slammed his teacup down on the imperial table, launching his attack.
After the Golden Festival, Yinzhen and others will ascend the throne. Kangxi intends to first clear up the future prospects of Yinzhen and Qingyan to prevent anyone from causing trouble behind the scenes.
"Your servants dare not!" The two censors knelt on the ground, begging for Kangxi's forgiveness.
"I dare not, but I think you are very bold. The primary consort should be appointed and dismissed by me personally. Now, I have lost that power and it is up to you people from the Censorate to make the decision." Kangxi was truly furious.
The two men not only touched the imperial power behind the scenes, but also angered him. Who knew what kind of people were behind them?
"We wouldn't dare, we wouldn't dare!" the two quickly apologized.
"Your Majesty, this servant truly intends this for the good of the Fourth Prince's wife. Rumors are circulating that she is not virtuous and that she made the Fourth Prince swear an oath because of her private affair. Now that the Fourth Prince is about to ascend the throne, the harem cannot consist of only the Empress." Imperial Censor Zhuang still had a sliver of hope.
Bang!
Emperor Kangxi smashed the teacup on the carpet. This was all because of this reason—using the health of the twins as a pretext. Emperor Kangxi was truly furious.
"It seems your Censorate is truly too idle. Even the princes beyond the Great Wall know that if they break their oath, the ones who might suffer retribution are the twins, a boy and a girl. These two children are the first of their kind in the royal family." Kangxi glared at the two men and reprimanded them, "Tell me, who exactly said that?"
As soon as the words were spoken, the two looked at each other in horror; they had truly fallen into a trap this time.
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