Kangxi’s face was colder than his, but he spoke gently, “This journey north, I’ve been thinking carefully about the relationship between us as father and son.”
“When you were born, your Imperial Mother was gone, and I myself was in dire straits. Making you Crown Prince was both for her sake and to stabilize the dynasty. I truly didn’t give you a choice—that was my first mistake.”
“Later, I always demanded the standard of a Crown Prince from you, being harsher than warm. I was afraid you’d be sad because of it, and ensured all your needs in Yuqing Palace were met. You may have forgotten, but I have never been only your father—that was my second mistake.”
“I knew perfectly well that Suo’etu, though brave, was short-sighted and narrow compared to Soni, but I still allowed you to be influenced by him, even feeling disappointed when you became close to him instead of trusting me. Yet I never spoke to you of it—that was my third mistake.”
With Kangxi’s weak but honest self-examination, Yinreng—who had been gritting his teeth in a “let everything fall apart” attitude—bit down so hard it seemed his teeth might shatter, but he still couldn’t hold back the tears.
But he made no sound.
When Kangxi finished, he fell silent for a moment, sipped some warm water, and his voice gradually grew cold.
“Yinreng, the deeper the love, the harsher the criticism—that’s a fault of all fathers. If only you’d always seen me as your most trusted person, like when you were born, as I treated you, you wouldn’t have been led astray by Suo’etu.”
“You schemed against the imperial heirs, framed consorts, even allowed traitors who could destroy the dynasty to flourish. I was disappointed in you, but I never thought to give up on you—yet you wished me dead, even targeted the Imperial Noble Consort!”
Yinreng suddenly raised his head, glaring fiercely at Kangxi, then burst out laughing.
He wiped rain and tears from his face with rough movements, sneering, “Before Father says all this, why not ask me—knowing it was Uncle Suo’etu’s machinations, why did I still go along?”
“Because no matter his motives, he was the only one I could rely on!” His laughter grew more frenzied, the bitterness in his voice intensifying.
“You put me on that high pedestal as Crown Prince, but allowed Yinzhi to provoke me over and over. Each time he disrespected me as Crown Prince—why didn’t you see it, Father?”
“If you truly never thought of abandoning me, why did you allow Zashuhu Li to later become Imperial Noble Consort? Where does that leave my Imperial Mother? How will the world see me?”
“You always speak of love, but if I had seen the slightest hope, I wouldn’t have ended up on this path of self-destruction. Do you know how many times I’ve been disappointed in you, Father?!”
Kangxi nodded, “You’ve kept these words in your heart for a long time, haven’t you?”
Seeing Yinreng sneer and stay silent, Kangxi stayed calm, but his disappointment only deepened.
“In your eyes, I let Yinzhi provoke you, turning a blind eye, playing peacemaker. If the Crown Prince can’t handle challenges from others, how will you face the treachery of the court?”
“You think that my repeated pressure on you was because I couldn’t accept you as Crown Prince, and that my favor to the Imperial Noble Consort and her son was to replace you. So you struck first—is that it?”
Kangxi was furious now, coughing violently, and brushed away Liang Jiugong’s hand.
He slammed the desk heavily.
“Everything others do is wrong—you only feel wronged. Do you think you’re still a three-year-old? Or do you think being emperor means never having to suffer grievances?”
“You only see the glory of being emperor, and treat any setback as humiliation. If I really let you be emperor, there will always be things and ministers that make you unhappy—are you planning to kill everyone, destroy your ancestors’ legacy?”
Yinreng remained silent.
Kangxi’s gaze turned completely cold, “I see that you were spoiled from birth, never tasted what it’s like to fall from grace—so when things go against you, you blame everyone and lose all reason.”
Yinreng sneered and bowed his head and said, “Say whatever you want, Father. You tricked me into coming just to depose me, right?”
With a crash, Kangxi kicked over the desk, making Yinreng start and collapse onto the ground, even more wretched.
Kangxi slowly stood, glaring coldly at Yinreng, each word sharp as a knife.
“If I wanted to depose you, I could have had you locked up at Rehe Palace for treason the very first day you colluded with Chenghui!”
“You think you can control Jingjiao Daying and the Imperial Guards Headquarters and no one opposes you—are all those officials in the court scared of you?”
“Before calling you here, I still hoped you’d understand my intentions. But now… I truly regret giving you so many chances!”
Yinreng’s eyes shrank suddenly, frozen in place.
So all his dealings with Nala Chenghui had been under Father’s watchful eye!
The hatred in his eyes only deepened.
So, Father had been laying a snare for him all along, waiting to depose him and give the position to Yin Hui!
Kangxi saw that stubborn hate in Yinreng’s eyes and knew that no matter what he said, Yinreng would never wake up from his obsession, and he lost the desire to say any more.
He pressed his lips together tightly and waved his hand, instructing Zhao Chang to take Yinreng away.
“Keep this beast in your own tent—without my order, no one may enter or leave!”
Zhao Chang immediately went forward, restrained Yinreng, and dragged him out.
Before the curtain even fell, Kangxi suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed backward, his face ashen.
Liang Jiugong was so shocked he almost blacked out, rushing to catch Kangxi and shout—
“Hurry! Call the Imperial—quick, call Lu Yuanpan over!”
At the door of his own tent, Yinreng heard the commotion, turned his head coldly toward the imperial tent, his sneer deepening.
For Father to scheme so hard to depose him—how painstaking.
But none of it mattered anymore.
At worst, he’d die with him.
He had no desire to live anyway.
The light and madness in Yinreng’s eyes dimmed, turning ashen.
***
When Fang He woke again, the tent was so dark she couldn’t even see her own hand.
She struggled to sit up and asked Jinghao by the lamp, “What time is it?”
Jinghao replied softly, “Mistress, it’s already halfway through the You hour.”
Fang He pressed her stuffy chest and sat up in confusion.
“It’s past dinnertime—why didn’t you wake me?”
“If it delays His Majesty’s meal—” She suddenly stopped mid-sentence, looking up sharply at Jinghao and asked, “Did the Crown Prince make a move… no, did you drug me?”
Fang He had Fule by her side, and had heard Fule describe the symptoms of poisoning and drugged incense, so she could recognize the signs.
Now, she was weak all over, with a headache and nausea—the classic reaction to sedative incense.
Jinghao knelt, “Mistress, by His Majesty’s order, I only wanted you to sleep longer and used some calming incense.”
Fang He’s face darkened.
She didn’t want to say another word to Jinghao.
Knowing that bastard as she did, if he didn’t want her to hear anything, he must be taking risks—doing something she’d be furious about.
She got up quickly, not bothering to wash up, and rushed for the imperial tent.
Jinghao hurried to block her, “Mistress, His Majesty isn’t seeing anyone right now.”
Fang He sneered, “Then let’s see who dares stop me!”
She turned back to grab her horsewhip and, legs weak but full of momentum, stormed toward the imperial tent.
At the entrance, Li Dequan didn’t even have time to speak before Fang He lashed out with the whip—while he turned away to dodge, she burst inside.
Li Dequan: “……”
‘Godfather, I did my best. I really couldn’t stop her.’
Liang Jiugong, hearing the commotion, hurried out.
Seeing the whip in Fang He’s hand, he didn’t dare say a word—just retreated inside and knelt protectively by the bed.
One extra word was disrespect to the whip; better leave the Imperial Noble Consort’s wrath for His Majesty to handle.
But Kangxi had fainted again, and Lu Wuning was giving him acupuncture.
Fang He, stifling sudden irritation and the discomfort from the muddy smell brought by the rain, sat nearby with a dark expression and waited.
When Lu Wuning finished the acupuncture, she asked, “How is His Majesty?”
Lu Wuning, sneaking glances at the whip, replied very respectfully, “Reporting to Imperial Noble Consort Zhen, just now His Majesty was overcome by anger and spat out congested blood, which actually helped to dispel the pent-up evil winds. This is a good sign.”
“I’ve already given His Majesty Cinchona powder. As long as his fever doesn’t return, and with half a month’s rest, he should recover.”
Fang He nodded coldly, looking at Liang Jiugong she asked, “Why did His Majesty have sedative incense lit for me?”
Lu Wuning’s heart skipped—’so the incense from before was for the Imperial Noble Consort?!’
Liang Jiugong also sneaked a glance at that fiery whip and whispered, “The Crown Prince was planning to have Zhang Ziqin use fake medicine, while secretly taking Cinchona powder, to see if…”
Lu Wuning almost fainted—this was way above his pay grade!
Fang He didn’t care about Lu Wuning, only asked, “Why did he change his mind?”
“Zhang Ziqin, following the Crown Prince’s order, had Qi Sanfu deliver a dish containing a weakening poison… that’s why His Majesty lost control, took down the Crown Prince directly, and then was so angered by the Crown Prince’s stubbornness that he vomited blood.”
But that couldn’t be said so bluntly, so Liang Jiugong only said tactfully, “The Crown Prince misunderstood His Majesty’s intentions and, overcome with negative thoughts, made His Majesty furious—Mistress?”
Seeing Fang He get up and head outside, Liang Jiugong hurriedly got up and asked, “Where are you going?”
“To the Crown Prince,” Fang He said calmly.
“It seems the Emperor’s methods can’t get through to him. He still calls me Zhen Niangniang—I’ll talk to him.”
Liang Jiugong sensed something was wrong, scalp tingling as he tried to block her.
“Mistress, in matters of your temper, His Majesty instructed that no one is to enter the Crown Prince’s tent without his order—”
As he finished, he saw Kangxi open his eyes, give Liang Jiugong a small nod, then shut them again.
To put it simply, at this moment, the little tigress was in full force.
Using a disobedient son as a shield was perfectly fine—Kangxi didn’t mind at all.
Liang Jiugong swallowed, forcing a fawning smile at Fang He.
“—But Mistress, you are an exception. Please, watch your step—let me get an umbrella for you.”
Fang He: “……”
She shot a meaningful glance at the ‘sleeping’ Kangxi on the bed, gave a cold laugh, then strode out, whip in hand.
Kangxi opened his eyes at last, ignoring Lu Wuning, who was feigning death with eyes closed.
There was hesitation in his eyes.
He knew Yinreng was no longer fit to be Crown Prince, but after all, he was a child Kangxi had raised himself, and he could sense Yinreng’s death wish.
He couldn’t bear to watch the child walk toward ruin.
Now, with the war against Gualdan underway, it really wasn’t the time to stir up chaos by deposing the Crown Prince, which would shake the court.
He could only hope Fang He might use her way to make Yinreng come to his senses and not do anything foolish—deal with it after the war.
But he forgot—plans never keep up with changes.
Soon after, Liang Jiugong rushed in, grabbing Lu Wuning without even greeting Kangxi.
“Hurry! Hurry! There’s blood!”
Kangxi paused, not all that surprised, slowly sat up and asked, “Did Yinreng get beaten badly?”
Liang Jiugong stamped his foot anxiously, “It’s Mistress Zhen who’s bleeding! Mistress didn’t even get to… do anything, just clutched her stomach and fainted.”
Before he’d finished speaking, Kangxi was already sitting up, stumbling hurriedly outside.