As the days went by, the brothers' health improved day by day.
The Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, has fully recovered, but he has lost a lot of weight and looks rather frail.
His complexion was yellowish, a far cry from when he was still a chubby, rosy, and healthy little bun.
However, he has recovered well and only needs to be isolated for a period of time to ensure a full recovery.
...
Duofu got up very early today because it was the day the princes were released from their confinement. All the princes who had survived had now fully recovered.
The prince was about to be released from quarantine. The smallpox in various parts of the harem had already been dealt with, and those who had contracted smallpox had been thrown out of the palace for isolation long ago.
The smallpox outbreak in the palace was largely resolved, but the outbreak outside the palace was not completely eradicated. However, with the introduction of the smallpox vaccination program, the number of people who survived smallpox was eight or nine times higher than before.
Emperor Kangxi was quite satisfied with the result. During the entire smallpox outbreak, apart from his sixth son who contracted smallpox and died, the rest of the population was healthy.
When Kangxi thought of that, the soft spot deep in his heart still couldn't help but ache.
Kangxi was lost in thought.
"Liang Jiugong".
Liang Jiugong rushed in first and knelt on the ground to reply.
"Your Majesty, Consort De fainted upon hearing the news that the Sixth Prince did not survive smallpox."
Liang Jiugong was in a bad mood. After living in fear for more than half a month, another unpleasant thing happened today.
Since the Sixth Prince died of smallpox, none of the servants who served him dared to mention him in front of His Majesty.
Who dares to mention it!
His Majesty is unhappy.
Even the servants in the Hall of Mental Cultivation were not enough for His Majesty to execute. Liang Jiugong himself was flogged twice, not to mention the others.
Many who were unlucky enough to lose their lives also did.
Especially the day before yesterday, a pretty tea-serving maid flirted and pranced in front of His Majesty, hoping to win his favor.
Liang Jiugong couldn't help but admire her courage. At this time of year, she dared to provoke His Majesty. She really had a lot of luck.
As Liang Jiugong expected, the somewhat attractive tea-serving maid was dragged out and beaten to death.
At that time, Liang Jiugong stood behind a pillar not far from the Emperor, carefully shrinking his figure and not daring to make a sound, pretending that he was a pillar.
That place allows one to see the Emperor so that any orders can be received immediately, while also preventing one from disturbing the Emperor and potentially getting a beating.
When Liang Jiugong saw a palace maid serving tea rushing forward to cause trouble, he breathed a sigh of relief. The Emperor had already lost his temper today, so it wouldn't be his turn to be targeted.
Where did you expect that?
That palace maid had just been dragged out not long ago, and hadn't even been hit with the paddle many times yet.
The Emperor then labeled him as someone who had behaved improperly in front of the Emperor.
They also dragged him out and gave him a beating. Although the people below tried to be lenient, no matter how much they tried to be lenient, the blows still hurt.
Since then, Liang Jiugong has never allowed those fools to appear before Kangxi again.
Unless it was Kangxi's intention, nothing was possible.
This added several obstacles to the path for the tea-serving palace maids in the Hall of Mental Cultivation to compete for the Emperor's favor.
Kangxi strode out of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, but turned back to look at Liang Jiugong, who was still kneeling on the ground.
"You dog slave, hurry up and follow me, or I'll give you a beating!"
Liang Jiugong struggled to his feet and quickly followed Kangxi's steps.
The injury on his buttock hurts with every step he takes; he must have knelt down really hard just now, his knee must be bruised.
When Kangxi arrived at Yonghe Palace, he found it empty; Consort De, of the Uya clan, had gone to the Princes' quarters in a sedan chair.
According to the palace maids serving at Yonghe Palace, Consort De fainted. Before the imperial physician arrived, she slowly woke up and ordered people to prepare to go to the princes' quarters, saying that she did not believe that the Sixth Prince had not survived smallpox.
It must be that the people below spread the wrong message. The people in the palace couldn't dissuade the Empress, so they prepared a sedan chair, which has already been gone for half an hour.
Kangxi's eyes were cold and devoid of any emotion. He turned and left, leaving behind a single sentence before he departed.
"These useless lackeys should not be kept in Yonghe Palace; they should be dragged to the Shenxing Division."
In Yonghe Palace, servants of all ranks knelt and kowtowed, begging for mercy. Kangxi had already gone far away and had no intention of retracting his order.
---
The princes' quarters were bustling with activity today, not only with the princes but also with the empresses from various palaces, all following the principal empress to congratulate the princes on surviving smallpox.
Consort Tong's postpartum confinement is almost over, and today the Fourth Prince Yinzhen, whom she received, came to Chengqian Palace to cultivate their relationship and make up for the estrangement they had experienced recently.
The Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, has just recovered from a serious illness and is feeling empty inside, making him an easy target for others to take advantage of. This is the best time to try and mend the rift between them.
Consort Tong also had this plan, since the Fourth Prince Yinzhen had survived smallpox.
This proves that she was still a blessed person; after raising her for so many years, Consort Tong still had some affection for her.
You develop feelings for even a cat or dog you raise; after all, you've raised them yourself.
Consort Tong felt a sense of satisfaction looking at Consort De, whose belly was slightly swollen and whose face was full of grief.
It would be best if I were even more heartbroken, because I couldn't even keep the baby in my belly.
Consort De, of the Uya clan, looked at the empty bed; the small figure of the Sixth Prince was no longer there.
The servants who served the Sixth Prince had long since been punished by Emperor Kangxi.
Since they failed to take good care of the Sixth Prince who had contracted smallpox, they should also die with their master.
Those who served the Sixth Prince all contracted smallpox and died in agony without any medicine.
Consort De, of the Uya clan, lost her footing and fell onto the palace maid who was serving her, bursting into tears.
"How could this happen? How could this happen?"
"My sixth prince, my sixth prince."
While crying, she suddenly raised her head, her eyes filled with malice as she looked at the Fourth Prince Yinzhen beside Consort Tong, her voice full of malice.
"How are you not dead? How are you not dead?"
"You debt collector, why wasn't it you who died?"
...
As he spoke, he tried to go up and grab the Fourth Prince, Yinzhen.
At that moment, the Fourth Prince Yinzhen was completely terrified. He knew that his own mother did not like him, but he had never known it before.
It turned out that his own mother wanted him dead.
Looking at Consort De, who was hysterically cursing.
The Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, stood there dumbfounded, as if he had been frightened into a stupor.
A furious roar rang out.
"Why aren't you letting anyone stop her? Grab Consort De for me."
Those serving nearby were all extremely careful, afraid of accidentally harming Consort De's unborn child, for fear that even ten lives wouldn't be enough to warrant beheading.
Consort Tong seemed to realize what was happening, and pulled the Fourth Prince Yinzhen into her arms.
He offered words of comfort.
"Fourth Prince, Mother, don't be afraid, don't be afraid, you are Mother's child."
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