Chapter 64: Suo Etu

Chapter 64 Suo Etu

Kangxi's illness was not serious, and he recovered during the southern tour. On the first day of his return to the palace, Lady Uya came to see him, bringing Yinti along.

Yinreng did not come until the third day to inquire about his health, which Kangxi found rather perfunctory.

Kangxi did not point it out directly, as sometimes confrontation is not good. He couldn't help but wonder why Yinreng had become so cold and indifferent.

Perhaps Yinreng sensed his displeasure, because for the next month, he came daily to pay his respects, sometimes alone and sometimes with his younger brothers.

Kangxi stopped dwelling on the matter.

They returned to the capital in May, and he planned to go to the newly built Changchun Garden at the end of June to escape the summer heat. When he mentioned this to Lady Uya, she naturally agreed.

Sometimes, Kangxi saw Lady Uya reading books or chatting with others, leisurely passing her days, and he felt a twinge of envy. As the emperor, he had so many tasks to handle every day that he rarely had truly idle moments.

Having been emperor for so many years, he inevitably grew tired and annoyed by the fawning ministers in the court. Sometimes, he even felt like abandoning his duties.

These feelings, he could only confide in Lady Uya. In front of others, he remained the diligent emperor.

Lately, Kangxi was truly weary of reviewing memorials. For less urgent ones, he passed them on to Yinreng to handle.

On June 10th, it had rained heavily the previous night in the capital, and a light drizzle continued into the day. The palace's brick floors were thoroughly soaked.

After finishing most of the memorials, Kangxi ordered Liang Jiugong to prepare the palanquin for Jingren Palace. He rode there in a sedan chair and found Lady Uya sitting on the corridor railing without a mantle, dressed very lightly.

He couldn't help but scold the servants around her: "How do you take care of your mistress? Her health is poor, and you let her sit here in the wind to cool off?"

The servants were so frightened they immediately knelt down.

"Your Majesty, I wanted to sit here. It's stuffy inside, and I'm not cold. Don’t make a fuss."

"You’re too lenient with these servants," Kangxi couldn't help but say. "Come inside quickly, and be careful not to catch a cold. The changing seasons are when people are most susceptible to catching cold and catching a chill. You must not fall ill again."

Lady Uya truly didn’t feel cold. She just wanted to sit and watch the rain outside. She wasn’t that delicate—a little wind wouldn’t make her catch a cold.

The room was indeed stuffy and hot, and she just wanted some fresh air.

"Your Majesty, don’t worry about me. I’m fine. But you—why come here at this time? What if you get caught in the rain? You’ve just recovered from your illness. You’re the one who shouldn’t be acting recklessly."

Kangxi took her hand and led her inside.

"Since you’re free, keep me company for a game of chess."

"Then Your Majesty must let me have three moves first."

"Alright, that’s fine."

Kangxi sat down to play chess with Lady Uya. Although her skills were not as good as his, she could hold her own and didn’t deliberately let him win.

After half an hour, Lady Uya clapped excitedly: "Your Majesty, am I about to win?"

Kangxi had to put down his piece and smiled: "Yes, you’ve won."

"It seems my chess skills have improved. I actually beat Your Majesty. If I had known I could win, we should have placed a bet."

Kangxi looked at Lady Uya helplessly: "You still want to place a bet? Is there anything you lack here?"

"It’s just for good luck. It’s not necessary to lack something to place a bet. Your Majesty, you lost, so you can’t hold a grudge. You must accept defeat gracefully."

Kangxi wasn’t resentful. He had played chess with Lady Uya many times, and losing once or twice was nothing. Besides, he had been distracted lately due to his worries.

He looked at Lady Uya and asked: "Do you think the Crown Prince is suitable to be the Crown Prince?"

Lady Uya paused her movement of collecting the chess pieces upon hearing this. The Emperor was putting her on the spot. How should she answer this? As a palace consort, she certainly couldn’t speak ill of the Crown Prince.

"Your Majesty, I dare not speak out of turn."

"It’s fine. I permit you to speak out of turn."

Lady Uya just wanted to brush it off: "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince is suitable to be the Crown Prince. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be the Crown Prince."

"In what way is he suitable? Many people say the Crown Prince’s temperament is too cruel, and he won’t be a benevolent ruler."

Lady Uya continued evasively: "The Crown Prince is talented and can share the burden of court affairs with Your Majesty. He has been assisting in governance since childhood by Your Majesty’s side. Your Majesty values the Crown Prince, so he must have his strengths. As for what Your Majesty said about his cruel temperament, I have little interaction with the Crown Prince and don’t know his temperament well. There are many rumors in the palace, some true, some false, and I dare not make rash judgments. I believe Your Majesty is the one who knows the Crown Prince best."

"I find that I am beginning to not understand the Crown Prince anymore."

"Your Majesty, has the Crown Prince done something wrong?"

Kangxi sighed and did not continue questioning Lady Uya, only discussing the trip to Changchun Garden at the end of the month with her.

"Which princes does Your Majesty plan to bring along this time?"

"Changchun Garden is right in the capital. There’s no need for them to accompany us. I’ll just bring you all."

Lady Uya nodded and said she understood.

What the Emperor said was true. For this trip to Changchun Garden to escape the heat, the Emperor said all the consorts and concubines in the inner court could come along. Of course, some found it troublesome. For them, Changchun Garden was no different from the Forbidden City. Having been in the palace for so long, some no longer cared about serving the Emperor. The round trip required packing many things, so they simply chose to stay in the palace.

By the end of June, only five consorts from the inner court followed: the Imperial Noble Consort, Noble Consort Niuhulu, Consort Hui, Consort Ping, and her. The others remained in the palace.

Changchun Garden had just been recently built, and it was Lady Uya’s first time there. She found everything in the garden novel. There was even a lake in Changchun Garden with several small boats moored by the shore.

In her free time, Lady Uya would go to the lake, take a boat out on the water. Sometimes, servants who could row would do the rowing, and sometimes she would row herself.

In early July, the weather turned hot, and she wished she could swim in the lake. But as a favored consort, she couldn’t disregard propriety, so she could only stay on the boat, dabbling her hands in the water. The entire boat floated on the lake, and with the gentle breeze, it was quite delightful.

One day, Lady Uya went out with her servants and headed towards the lake again when the Imperial Noble Consort called out to her.

"Consort De, where are you going?"

"To Qianming Lake."

"I’ll go with you."

Lady Uya was surprised.

"What, can’t I go?"

"Of course you can. Qianming Lake doesn’t belong to me alone. Naturally, you can go. In that case, let’s walk together."

Tongjia Wangshu was actually bored. She had nothing to do and, seeing Consort De going to the lake every day, she also wanted to go to pass the time. After wandering around Changchun Garden for a while, it felt almost the same as the palace.

The group walked together, and when they reached the lake, Lady Uya asked the Imperial Noble Consort if she wanted a boat.

"Without a boat, how would I get on the water? Isn’t that an unnecessary question?"

Lady Uya was older than the Imperial Noble Consort. In her opinion, the Imperial Noble Consort was rather short-tempered, so she would yield to her a little. Anyway, it didn’t cost her anything.

"Then let's separate, one boat each. These servants all know how to paddle; just have them do it."

Tongjia Wangshu didn't know how to swim. She wanted to play but was afraid of falling into the water. Upon hearing Consort De's arrangement, she immediately retorted, "No, this consort will share a boat with you. Have your servants take the other boat."

"As you wish, Your Highness. This consort will share a boat with you. Guiyun, you take the other boat with the rest."

They were helped by the servants and seated securely in the boat. At the bow were two servants who could paddle and swim.

Fang Yu had already been on the boat several times, so the gentle rocking didn’t bother her at all. In contrast, the Imperial Noble Consort held onto the side of the boat tightly.

"Your Highness, you won’t fall into the water. There’s no need to be afraid."

Caught, Tongjia Wangshu said irritably, "Who said I’m afraid? Consort De, don’t talk nonsense."

Fine, she wasn’t afraid. Fang Yu puckered her lips, not looking at the Imperial Noble Consort. She moved outside the cabin and sat by the edge of the boat, dabbling her hand in the lake water.

The summer lake water was cool and refreshing, very comfortable.

Seeing Consort De so at ease, Tongjia Wangshu also wanted to play in the water, so she slowly moved out of the cabin as well.

"Your Highness, you need to sit on the other side."

"Why?"

"For balance. If both of us sit on one side, the boat will tip over."

Tongjia Wangshu reluctantly moved to the other side, still gripping the boat’s railing tightly. After a while, she imitated Consort De by dipping one hand into the water to play.

She didn’t dare to put both hands in like Consort De or lean out too far.

"Isn’t it fun?"

"It’s alright."

Fang Yu clearly saw the Imperial Noble Consort’s lips curl upward, her eyes bright with obvious amusement. Having been in the palace for so many years, it was rare to have such fun with the lake water. Naturally, she was happy. Most women in the inner court found life boring and restrictive, especially those without children. Day after day, living the same routine with nothing to do, they surely longed for freedom.

Tongjia Wangshu tried to adjust her position to make herself more comfortable but accidentally lost her footing. She tilted sideways and fell into the lake, her face pale with fright as she began to scream.

Seeing the Imperial Noble Consort fall into the water, Fang Yu hurried over to her side, reaching out to pull her up. But the Imperial Noble Consort was too panicked, gripping Fang Yu’s hand tightly and instead dragging her down too.

In the end, it was the servants who knew how to swim who rescued them, pulling them back onto the boat. Both were soaked through, water dripping from their clothes, looking utterly disheveled.

"Consort De, it’s all your fault! This is your doing!"

Fang Yu widened her eyes. How was it her fault? Clearly, the Imperial Noble Consort had fallen into the water herself. Fang Yu had even tried to save her. How could she turn around and blame her?

"How is this my fault? Didn’t you fall in yourself?"

"It was you! You’ve always been against me. Our eight characters must be incompatible."

Fang Yu was also a bit angry. "Your Highness and I are indeed incompatible. Next time, please don’t come to the lake with me. I don’t want to 'harm' you."

"Consort De, I detest you."

"I don’t care for you either, Your Highness."

They squabbled like children, and after their argument, they ignored each other.

When they reached the shore, Tongjia Wangshu walked ahead, hiding her face in humiliation as she hurried forward.

Fang Yu walked behind, thinking to herself that since she was already drenched, she wished she had swum a while longer in the lake before coming ashore.

Fang Yu didn’t feel she had lost dignity. Her clothes were disheveled, but it was just wet clothing—no skin was showing. She walked naturally.

Passing servants bowed to her, but she paid no attention to their glances. Only after returning to her own palace did she bathe and change into clean clothes.

As for the Imperial Noble Consort, Fang Yu had no intention of apologizing or seeking reconciliation. She carried on as usual.

However, the next day, the Imperial Noble Consort came on her own initiative to see her, not empty-handed but bringing some pastries.

"Your Highness, these pastries aren’t poisoned, are they?"

Tongjia Wangshu couldn’t help but get angry upon hearing this. "Consort De, don’t you dare overstep. If I wanted to poison you, I would have done it long ago. You wouldn’t have lived to see this day."

"Your Highness, I was poisoned once. Why don’t you have a piece first?"

Fang Yu had to be cautious. She was very surprised that the Imperial Noble Consort would suddenly bring her pastries. What if she had gone mad and actually poisoned them? She only had one life.

Tongjia Wangshu hadn’t expected that her kind gesture would be met with suspicion. Her goodwill was treated as malice, and she was so angry she wanted to scold Consort De, but she held back.

"If I wished you poisoned, would I personally deliver the pastries? If you died, wouldn’t the Emperor easily trace it back to me? Do you think I’m a fool?"

Back then, it was rumored that Empress Xiaozhao had poisoned Consort De, nearly sending her to the gates of hell. The Emperor was furious. It was said that Empress Xiaozhao had taken her own life, but who knew if it was really suicide? What if she was executed by the Emperor?

Lady Niuhulu was the Empress at the time, backed by the Niuhulu Family. Yet the Emperor, in a fit of rage for his beloved, had her killed. That alone showed how important Consort De was to the Emperor, not to mention years of undivided favor.

Tongjia Wangshu was getting on in years. Why would she cause trouble for Consort De at this stage or try to poison her? She simply wanted to make peace.

Seeing Consort De’s suspicious expression, Tongjia Wangshu suppressed her anger and picked up a pastry to eat.

"Alright, are you satisfied now? If anyone dies, it’ll be me first."

Fang Yu waited a while longer, and after seeing that the Imperial Noble Consort was fine, she picked up a pastry to eat. She could tell that the Imperial Noble Consort wanted to reconcile. There were no major conflicts between them now. Previously, it was about favor, but now the Imperial Noble Consort seemed to have let it go and sought reconciliation. She extended an olive branch, and Fang Yu was willing to accept it.

"The pastries Your Highness brought are delicious—sweet but not too rich. After falling into the water yesterday, did you take a chill?"

Tongjia Wangshu gave a long look at Consort De. She did want to make peace, and Consort De, clever as she was, had seen it and accepted her gesture. In truth, given Consort De’s current status in the palace, she could have continued their feud. As the Imperial Noble Consort, Tongjia Wangshu could no longer do much to harm her. Yet Consort De had accepted her peace offering. She was beginning to understand why the Emperor favored Consort De—this woman was intelligent yet possessed a tolerant and kind heart, willing to forgive and forget.

"No, I didn’t take a chill, but I was utterly embarrassed yesterday. I’ve never been so disgraced. I’m not like you... you..."

Tongjia Wangshu had been about to say "of low birth" but stopped herself in time. She coughed awkwardly and said, "Whenever you have time, Consort De, we can go boating again."

"Your Highness isn’t afraid of falling into the water again?"

"What is there to fear? The servants are watching. They can swim and will save us. Besides, it was my carelessness yesterday. If I’m careful, I won’t fall in. The summer heat is stifling; sitting on the lake is much cooler."

Fang Yu nodded and replied, "Alright, whenever I have time, I’ll come find you, Your Highness."

Tongjia Wangshu smiled and did not linger at Consort De’s place, soon taking her leave.

In reality, neither of them had the chance to go boating again because something happened at the Changchun Garden—though it did not actually occur at the garden, the Emperor, who was at the garden, found out about it.

It was said that Suo'etu had suddenly mobilized the Plain Yellow Banner guards to station covertly near the Changchun Garden, and the Emperor had detected it.

The Emperor had not brought a large guard to the Changchun Garden since it was located in the capital.

Worried Suo'etu might be plotting rebellion, the Emperor hurried back to the palace.

They never got another chance to go boating before returning to the palace.

Fang Yu didn't dare approach the Emperor to ask whether the matter was true or false. In any case, it was not unfounded. Seeing the Emperor suddenly return to the palace, she knew something must have happened. Originally, they were supposed to stay at the Changchun Garden until mid-September.

The Crown Prince was Suo Etu's grandnephew and had always maintained a close relationship with him. Suo Etu's sudden, secret deployment of so many guards to surround the Changchun Garden gave the Emperor good reason to suspect a rebellion.

If anything happened to the Emperor, the Crown Prince would succeed him. Therefore, it was not impossible for Suo Etu to take a desperate gamble, especially in the past two years, as the Emperor had begun to suppress the Crown Prince and weaken his influence. Suo Etu probably also feared the Crown Prince's position might change.

The Emperor clearly had control over the forces in the capital. Before Suo Etu could act, the Emperor caught wind of the situation in advance and hurried back to the palace. The palace was undoubtedly much safer than the Changchun Garden.

It was heard that the Emperor directly called in troops from the Fengtai Camp and the Tongzhou Camp to the capital. Not long after, the Emperor imprisoned Suo Etu directly.

Many court officials were slow to get the news and failed to perceive the changes in the court situation in advance. They were surprised by Suo Etu's imprisonment and did not know what had happened.

First, it was Na Lan Ming Zhu, and now Suo Etu. They were getting nervous. Those in Suo Etu's faction were even more apprehensive and terrified.

Yin Zhen, being in the front court, could naturally sense the change. He actually did not know what crime Suo Etu had committed to anger the Emperor so greatly. However, Suo Etu had served as a counselor for many years and could not have been entirely clean. If the Emperor wanted to investigate his crimes, he would surely find plenty.

But the Emperor's sudden imprisonment of Suo Etu left Yin Zhen uneasy, as he did not know the reason. He had thought his sources of information were quite reliable, but now he realized they were far from sufficient.

After several days of inquiry, Yin Zhen finally learned a little news: the Emperor suspected Suo Etu of planning a rebellion because Suo Etu had secretly mobilized troops.

Was it Suo Etu who wanted to rebel, or was it the Second Prince?

Yin Zhen did not dare to delve deeper. For now, the Emperor had only imprisoned Suo Etu. Perhaps the Emperor had not yet found evidence of the Second Prince's involvement, or Suo Etu had acted on his own without the Second Prince's knowledge.

He felt that Suo Etu would not escape punishment this time.

In recent days, the Emperor had been summoning trusted ministers frequently. Even the number of patrolling guards and imperial soldiers in the palace had increased significantly.

The palace at this time was like a thick, impenetrable wall. Martial law was imposed both inside and outside the capital, and some troops from the nearby capital region were recalled. The Emperor was guarding against rebellion.

Suo Etu was now imprisoned in the Imperial Clan Court (Zongrenfu). Yin Zhen also sent people to the Imperial Clan Court to find out information but only learned that Suo Etu was being interrogated under torture. The Emperor undoubtedly wanted to extract the truth from him.

The Second Prince asked him what he should do. Yin Zhen knew that at this time, he and the Second Prince were still in the same boat. He and the Third Prince were currently aligned with the Second Prince.

Rebellion was no small matter. Whether Suo Etu had mobilized troops intentionally or unintentionally, to the Emperor, it was an attempt to rebel and must be severely punished.

If Suo Etu took all the blame himself, the Second Prince might still have a chance. Conversely, the Second Prince could not plead on Suo Etu's behalf at this time, or the Emperor would think the rebellion was instigated by the Second Prince.

Yin Zhen advised the Second Prince to do nothing for now and not to plead on Suo Etu's behalf. Preserving himself was the most important thing.

While the Second Prince was trying to protect himself, the Eldest Prince, who had always been at odds with him, sought to confirm the Second Prince's involvement in the rebellion and repeatedly accused him in court of being involved in the matter.

The court was in turmoil.

By August 5th, the tenth day of Suo Etu's imprisonment, news spread that he had committed suicide. He was dead, and the Crown Prince wasn't implicated.

The Emperor convicted Suo Etu of forming factions and engaging in treacherous acts, declaring him the greatest criminal of the Qing Dynasty.

Suo Etu's death was not the end. The Emperor executed all of Suo Etu's sons over the age of ten and exiled those under ten, along with their families.

Not long after, Suo Etu's faction members, such as the Minister of War, Geng E, were executed by the Emperor, while others were stripped of their positions and exiled.

In just three months, the majority of Suo Etu's faction was annihilated by the Emperor.

Though they were called Suo Etu's faction, everyone knew they were the Crown Prince's power. The Emperor's move was equivalent to weakening the Second Prince's influence in the court.

Yin Zhen suddenly realized that although the Second Prince held the noble position of Crown Prince, he might not ultimately ascend the throne. If the Emperor did not allow the Second Prince to succeed, the one who would become emperor would be another of the Emperor's sons, including himself.

Yin Zhen had always supported the Second Prince, but now the Second Prince's position was precarious. He began to wonder if he too had a chance to take that position.

Who would ascend the throne depended on the Emperor's will. By uprooting Suo Etu's faction, the Emperor had cut off one of the Second Prince's main supporters. Although the Second Prince had narrowly escaped this time, he was undoubtedly severely weakened.

Yin Zhen thought that since anyone could contend, he would also go for it. He did not believe he was inferior to the Eldest Prince.

With this in mind, he found time to visit his mother to pay his respects. In front of her, he did not need to hide his thoughts. His mother would not harm him, so he mentioned his desire to contend for the throne.

He had expected his mother to be surprised, but she was not surprised at all. She simply told him: "The winner becomes king, the loser becomes an outlaw."

Yes, the winner becomes king, the loser becomes an outlaw. If he lost, what awaited him might be the destruction of his family. It might not only affect his wife and children but also implicate his mother and Yin Zhu.

If he never contended, as the Emperor's son, he would still be a prince and could live a life of wealth and luxury.

"The winner becomes king, the loser becomes an outlaw"—these four words were indeed too fitting. This was destined to be not a smooth path but one filled with life and death, thorns and challenges. His hands might be stained with bloodshed.

"Then, Mother, will you support me?"

"Yin Zhen, at my age, life and death no longer matter. I am not afraid of you implicating me, but I am afraid you will implicate others. This is not just your matter. If you have thought it through, then be resolute. Think carefully before acting, plan before moving."

Yin Zhen smiled. "I will remember your teachings, Mother. Your son will not disappoint you."

Yin Zhen decided to contend!