The truth of Aunt Lan's betrayal did not remain a secret. By the next morning, Yinreng deduced the entire situation without needing to ask. The Emperor had made his fury a public spectacle.
Last night, Kangxi had stormed into Chengqian Palace. Shortly after, an imperial decree stripped Noble Consort Tongjia of her rank, demoting her to a mere Concubine. The palace exploded with gossip. Ambitious opportunists, such as Concubine Hui, attempted to capitalize on Tongjia's fall by delivering restorative soups to the Emperor. Kangxi ruthlessly rebuffed them all, instantly confining Concubine Hui to her quarters.
Yinreng analyzed the political landscape. Tongjia was clearly the mastermind. However, since she was only a child when Aunt Lan first began serving the late Empress Hesheri, Tongjia could not have planted the nanny from the start. Aunt Lan had been subverted recently. As for Concubine Hui and the others, their punishments were not merely displaced anger. Kangxi had discovered several other spies within Yinreng's Yuqing Palace. These concubines had likely fanned the flames of the rumors, and Kangxi was now indiscriminately purging anyone who threatened the Crown Prince's stability.
To permanently crush the rumors, Kangxi summoned the Imperial Astronomy Bureau and several high monks. They performed a grand divination for the palace, specifically targeting Yinreng and the Sixth Prince, Yinzuo. Unsurprisingly, the official decree declared both princes possessed magnificent, mutually beneficial fates. The "clashing fates" narrative was officially dead.
The crisis was averted for Yinreng, but the architect of the chaos was suffering the consequences.
***
Chengqian Palace.
Concubine Tongjia lay weakly on her chaise lounge, pale and emaciated.
"Your Highness, you have not eaten in a day. Please have some porridge," her trusted maid, Chunying, pleaded.
Tongjia pushed the bowl away. "I am not hungry."
"You cannot let yourself fall ill! That will only satisfy your enemies," Chunying urged. "The Emperor is merely in a fit of rage. Given his past affection for you, once his anger cools, you can coax him back."
"His affection?" Tongjia scoffed, her eyes darkening. "Chunying, do you truly believe I was demoted solely for spreading rumors and inciting conflict with Yonghe Palace? If that were true, he would have only grounded me. By stripping my 'Noble Consort' title, he is telling me he suspects I orchestrated the Crown Prince's recent brush with death!"
Chunying paled, quickly checking the doors. "Your Highness, speak carefully. The Emperor never explicitly said that."
"He did not have to! I know him." Tongjia smiled bitterly.
Chunying fell silent, unable to refute the logic. Tongjia's methods had been too ruthless. Aunt Lan was the highest-ranking servant in the Crown Prince's inner circle; gold could not buy her treason. So, Tongjia had orchestrated a lethal trap. She had framed Aunt Lan's beloved nephew for murder, holding the young man's life hostage to force the nanny's compliance. It was a vicious, calculated move that shattered Tongjia's carefully cultivated facade of gentle innocence. Without hard evidence tying her directly to Yinreng's sickness, she was only demoted. If Kangxi had proof, she would be dead.
"My mother warned me not to give my heart to my cousin," Tongjia whispered, referring to her familial tie to Kangxi. "But I thought he loved me. I was wrong. I can never compete with a dead woman. Empress Hesheri has been in her grave for years, yet he still reveres her! If I had been born a few years earlier, I would have been his Empress, not her!"
"Your Highness, please!" Chunying clamped a hand over Tongjia's mouth. "This is treasonous!"
Tongjia yanked her hand away, her expression turning arrogant. "This is my palace. If I cannot even speak my mind within my own walls after surviving these years, I might as well be dead."
Venting her resentment brought a small measure of relief. She patted Chunying's hand. "I know you advised against this scheme. But I could not tolerate it! What is Uya? A lowly maid who became Concubine De! Yet she churns out sons, while I am left with nothing."
The root of her hatred was humiliating. Earlier that year, a delayed menstrual cycle led Imperial Physicians to declare Tongjia pregnant. She had been ecstatic. Days later, she bled. It was a misdiagnosis—a phantom pregnancy born of sheer desperation. She became the laughingstock of the harem.
Simultaneously, Concubine De gave birth to a son. Kangxi joyously named him Yinzuo—a character meaning "blessing" or "throne." The contrast broke Tongjia's sanity. She hated the beloved Crown Prince, and she hated the newborn Sixth Prince. Her scheme was designed to make the two brothers destroy each other. Instead, it destroyed her.
"Do not worry, Your Highness. You are still young. You will have a child of your own eventually," Chunying comforted.
'Eventually? When is that?' Tongjia looked down at her flat stomach, her eyes hollow.
***
Outside, the sound of childish laughter approached. Tongjia scowled, turning her back to the door.
A small, white puppy trotted into the room, jumping near Tongjia's feet. Already consumed by rage, Tongjia snapped. She kicked the animal violently.
"Die, you little beast!"
The puppy slammed into the table leg, yelping in pain.
At that exact moment, the Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, ran into the room. Barely a year and a half old, he gasped, scooping the whimpering puppy into his arms. He stared at his adoptive mother with wide, fearful eyes. "Mother?"
Tongjia froze, her face cycling through several emotions, but no apology came.
Chunying immediately intervened, shielding Yinzhen from the tension. "Do not be afraid, Fourth Prince. Her Highness is feeling unwell. She is not angry at you."
"Mother sick?" the toddler asked in broken speech.
"No, she will be fine," Chunying smiled smoothly. "Why don't you take the puppy to the maids outside to make sure it isn't hurt?"
Yinzhen nodded hesitantly and left the room. Tongjia let out a long breath.
"Your Highness," Chunying advised softly. "The Fourth Prince may not be of your blood, but he is raised in your name. If you treat him with genuine care now, he will support you when he comes of age."
Tongjia gave a noncommittal hum. She understood the logic, but her heart rejected it. The difference between having a biological son and an adopted son in the harem was monumental. Worse, Yinzhen was the biological son of her most hated rival, Concubine De.
Tongjia provided for Yinzhen perfectly—the best food, clothes, and education—but she invested no emotion. She feared that once the boy grew older and learned his true lineage, he would inevitably side with his birth mother. A borrowed child could never replace her own blood.
She touched her stomach again. To survive and secure her future, she needed her own biological son. And to achieve that, she had to find a way to reclaim the Emperor's favor.