Despite his reluctance, Liang Jiugong gritted his teeth and went inside to report.
"Your Majesty, someone from Yonghe Palace just came to say that the Thirteenth Prince has a persistent high fever and would like Your Majesty to go and see him."
Emperor Kangxi put down his brush, rubbed his temples, and for a moment couldn't recall who the Thirteenth Prince was.
When Liang Jiugong mentioned that Consort Zhangjia, who lived in the side hall of Yonghe Palace, had just given birth to the Thirteenth Prince a few months ago, he was a little older than the Fourteenth Prince.
Kangxi then recalled that the woman in his memory was gentle and weak, with the gentleness of a woman from Jiangnan, without any temper, like a bullied little white rabbit.
Such concubines were a dime a dozen in his harem; they had no distinguishing features that would make him remember them. They were gentle, weak, and very obedient. After eating this kind of food for a long time, Kangxi naturally lost interest in them.
Kangxi's tone was weary, and his eyes were narrowed.
"How could the Thirteenth Prince have a fever? He's only a few months old. How have the servants been taking care of him?"
Kangxi tried hard to find a trace of the thirteenth prince in his memory, but after searching around, he couldn't find any trace of him.
Kangxi opened his eyes, surprised, and asked Liang Jiugong with a questioning tone.
"Haven't I ever met the Thirteenth Prince? I have absolutely no recollection of him."
After thinking it over carefully, Liang Jiugong realized that he had never seen it before. Yonghe Palace hadn't held a grand celebration for the Thirteenth Prince's full moon celebration. When the news first came, His Majesty simply told him to prepare a simple gift and send it over, and the matter was forgotten.
When I went to Yonghe Palace to see the Fourteenth Prince, I never saw the Thirteenth Prince.
Consort De has always said that the Thirteenth Prince is in poor health and cannot be exposed to the wind, and has been recuperating.
The Emperor didn't insist on bringing the thirteenth prince out for a look. He didn't have much of an impression of him to begin with, and with the lively and adorable Fourteenth Prince in front of him, he naturally had no desire to see the frail Thirteenth Prince.
To avoid the tragedy of something dying prematurely and causing unnecessary heartache, it's better to never see it in the first place.
Emperor Kangxi generally had the same attitude towards his unfavored concubines. Even the children born to Empress Tong were not something he wanted to have much contact with.
Moreover, since this was an unfavored concubine, Kangxi had no desire to see her.
When Kangxi received Liang Jiugong's accurate answer, he felt a little uneasy. He thought about Consort De's recent behavior and how she had been so ruthless to the Fourth Prince.
Moreover, this is not even her own son, the Thirteenth Prince. If she doesn't go this time, Kangxi might hear the news of the Thirteenth Prince's early death by tomorrow morning.
Consort De certainly wouldn't take good care of him. "A prince born to a concubine," Kangxi sighed, stood up, flicked his sleeves, and strode out.
Upon receiving the imperial decree, Liang Jiugong hurriedly followed, ordering the imperial carriage to be brought over, and led a large entourage towards Yonghe Palace.
Consort De of Yonghe Palace had received the news early and was already waiting at the palace gate. Although she was under house arrest and not allowed to leave the palace, the guards standing by the gate all lowered their heads and dared not make any moves when His Majesty arrived.
Consort De, of the Uya clan, saw a yellow sedan chair slowly approaching from afar, and her eyes immediately lit up.
She hurriedly checked to see if her clothes and jewelry were in order. Granny Wuya nodded quickly and said that everything was fine.
The Empress looks stunning today, elegant and refined, especially the jade hairpin in her hair, which makes her appear even more gentle and virtuous.
Consort De, of the Uya clan, was very pleased with what she heard. She was dressed especially elegantly today, not only because Empress Tong had just passed away, but also because His Majesty always praised her for dressing elegantly, like a chrysanthemum in the autumn wind, understated and unassuming, pure and refined, unlike the other women in the harem.
The moon-white cheongsam worn by Consort De, of the Uya clan, was recently made, and today was the first time she wore it. A gentle smile graced her face, and her eyes were full of affection.
When Consort De, of the Uya clan, saw that Emperor Kangxi had alighted from his sedan chair, she quickly stepped forward to pay her respects. The angle of her bow was just right, revealing her fair and jade-like nape, which showed her gentleness.
Consort De, of the Uya clan, was very adept at pleasing Emperor Kangxi; otherwise, she wouldn't have risen to the rank of consort in just a few years.
Emperor Kangxi was a very stingy emperor, especially when it came to the ranks of women in the harem. There were still a lot of women in the harem who had no official titles or ranks.
It is evident that Consort De, of the Uya clan, was indeed highly skilled in this regard.
I don't know why she treated the Fourth Prince Yinzhen as if she had lost her mind, constantly making foolish moves.
As Kangxi looked at the woman bowing before him, the sight of her fair neck still made him momentarily lose his composure.
To be fair, he did dote on this woman for a while. If he didn't really like her, why would he have gone to the trouble of turning her from a lowly palace maid into a concubine of the lord of the palace?
Looking at the already swaying Consort De, Uya, Kangxi's anger subsided somewhat, and he reached out to support her.
"Alright, get up."
Emperor Kangxi glanced casually at Consort De, who had already stood up, and then paid her no further attention.
She strode into the main hall of Yonghe Palace, sat down on the chair at the front, and although the anger in her eyes had lessened considerably, she still looked sharply at Consort De, Uya, who had entered from behind.
Consort De, of the Uya clan, quickly took the tea handed to her by a palace maid and served it to Emperor Kangxi with tender affection.
"Your Majesty has not visited my Yonghe Palace for a long time, and the Fourteenth Prince misses his father."
Consort De, of the Uya clan, mentioned herself and the Fourteenth Prince briefly, then avoided discussing any other topics. She knew that His Majesty was currently in a bad mood, and she needed to find a way to calm him down. She immediately changed the subject and started talking about the Thirteenth Prince, who had a fever.
Consort De, of the Uya clan, shed a few fake tears from the corners of her eyes, wiping them away with her socks while feigning sympathy.
"Thirteenth Prince, the imperial physician has just examined you. I don't know which servant was negligent and let you catch a cold, which is why the young Thirteenth Prince has developed a high fever. His Majesty didn't see how pitiful the Thirteenth Prince is; his whole little face is flushed red."
"Your Majesty, you must go and see Little Thirteen later. Although he was not born to me, I still cherish him in Yonghe Palace."
“Recently, the Fourteenth Prince has been too unruly, and my heart has been focused on him, so I have inevitably neglected other matters.”
"If I have done anything wrong in other matters, Your Majesty, please tell me directly. Ever since I gave birth to the Fourteenth Prince, I feel that my mind has become much duller and I can't take care of many things."
After Consort De, of the Uya clan, finished speaking, she raised her tear-streaked face and looked pitifully at Emperor Kangxi, her eyes red and swollen, as if she wanted to be bullied.
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