Chapter 79 Chapter 79 Everyone in the palace

was stunned.

Wen Shan hadn't expected such chaos tonight.

Concubine De was stunned for a moment before rushing to the inner hall. Kangxi, startled, hurried inside.

Concubine Yi's heart sank, and she almost lost her balance. Fortunately, the Fifth and Ninth Princes stayed by her side and supported her.

"Mother, mother, please be careful," the Fifth Prince said worriedly.

The Fourteenth Prince glared at them and followed them inside. Concubine Yi gritted her teeth.

With the Seventh Princess passing at this time, the Emperor's grief would surely make things difficult. Concubine Hui

, Concubine Rong, and Concubine Tong were also shocked, unsure whether to continue the trial or hold the Seventh Princess' funeral first.

"Your Highness, what do you think we should do now?" Concubine Tong regained her composure and grabbed Wen Shan, demanding a decision.

Wen Shan: "..."

With Kangxi present, she couldn't say anything. She could only wait for the Emperor's decision.

"Let's have the Imperial Household Department prepare for the Seventh Princess's funeral first," Wen Shan sighed.

Concubine Tong nodded and ordered the maids beside her to hurry.

Concubine Hui glanced with a hint of smugness at Concubine Yi, slumped in her chair beside her. She thought to herself that the Seventh Princess's death couldn't have come at a worse time. Now it was difficult for Concubine Yi to recover.

"Your Majesty..."

Concubine Yi stood up and walked over to Wen Shan, whispering anxiously, "

Your Majesty, please save me." Wen Shan replied, "Don't worry. The

Emperor will surely see justice for you." Wen Shan knew that Concubine Yi had never done this before, and even Yinsi had made some preparations. She wondered if the Seventh Princess's death at this critical juncture would make the situation unmanageable.

Soon, several imperial doctors came out dejectedly. Concubine Yi stopped them and asked, "What happened to the Seventh Princess? How did you serve her?"

"Empress Yi, the Seventh Princess was already seriously ill. We have tried our best but still failed to save her."

The imperial doctors were trembling with fear. They had just been reprimanded by the Emperor inside, and now they felt even worse when they came out and saw the room full of concubines. They were all experienced people who had been in the harem for many years. When they saw the situation tonight, they knew that the Seventh Princess's death would cause a big uproar.

Imperial Physician Zhang naturally came for the consultation. Seeing Wen Shan here, he stepped forward and said before the Emperor and Concubine De came out: "Your Majesty, the Seventh Princess is seriously ill, so I didn't go to Xianfu Palace to check on her pulse today. I wonder if she is feeling okay?"

Feicui knew from Imperial Physician Zhang's expression that he probably had something to report, so she said: "The lady had a cold yesterday, and she coughed twice this morning."

Imperial Physician Zhang: "I'm afraid we won't be able to help after we go back. If it's just a cold, I'll take your pulse and prescribe a medicine."

Wen Shan nodded and went aside with Imperial Physician Zhang. Imperial Physician Zhang took out the pulse scanner and felt Wen Shan's pulse for a while, and said softly: "Your Majesty, the Seventh Princess's sudden death is probably a bit strange. Although the Seventh Princess's illness was serious, we have done our best in the past two days and she has stabilized a lot. Her sudden death today must be something wrong."

Wen Shan was startled. Could it be that Imperial Physician Zhang meant Concubine De herself...

Concubine Hui glanced at her twice, and Wen Shan nodded and let Imperial Physician Zhang leave first.

Concubine Yi was restless, wondering how to break the deadlock. The crying in the inner hall gradually faded, and Kangxi came out with an unexpectedly calm expression.

"Yinqi, Yin'er, go back to Ganxi Wusuo."

Kangxi's first words were to send the Fifth and Ninth Princes away, which made Concubine Yi even more panicked.

"Your Majesty..." The Ninth Prince also sensed the danger and shouted.

"Didn't you understand what I said?" Kangxi said calmly.

Kangxi felt the most oppressed at this time. Concubine Yi shook her head at her two sons.

"Go, your Eleventh Brother is still in the Yikun Palace. Go and help mother take care of your Eleventh Brother."

Concubine Hui sneered. It seemed that Concubine Yi had no choice but to move the Eleventh Prince out now.

Although Concubine Yi had Wenshan's reminder, she had never expected that the Seventh Princess would die at this time. Now, no matter what she said or did, she was suppressed.

The Fifth and Ninth Princes could only leave anxiously.

"Ninth brother, I'm going to Ningshou Palace to see the Empress Dowager!" the Fifth Prince thought for a moment, clenching his fists. The

Ninth Prince, also deeply troubled, could only nod and say, "I'll go find Eighth Brother. We'll meet at Yikun Palace later."

Sobbing filled Yonghe Palace. Concubine De hadn't emerged. Concubine Tong observed Kangxi's expression for a moment and then tentatively said, "Your Majesty, please accept my condolences. I will begin preparations for the Seventh Princess's funeral."

Kangxi nodded and looked at Wen Shan.

"The Seventh Princess's funeral rites will be handled by Concubine Tong, with the Imperial Concubine assisting."

Wen Shan had never been good at such matters; this arrangement was made simply because she now held the highest position and had to take on many responsibilities.

Concubine Rong looked confused from beginning to end, just a bystander. Concubine Hui looked around and said tentatively: "Your Majesty, the Seventh Princess died as a result of a conspiracy. Your Majesty must speak up for the Seventh Princess and her younger sister, Concubine De."

Concubine Yi lowered her eyes and said nothing, but she seemed to be sitting very still.

Kangxi lightly tapped the cup at hand: "The servant in the Ministry of Punishment will ask her one last time. If she still doesn't say it, let her be buried with the Seventh Princess."

Liang Jiugong took the order and asked the eunuch beside him to do it.

"Your Majesty, under severe punishment, there will be unjust imprisonment. Please think twice."

What surprised Wen Shan was that these words actually came from Concubine Tong's mouth.

Concubine Tong had been keeping a distance from the matter tonight, but she didn't expect that she would speak up for Concubine Yi.

Concubine Yi and Concubine Hui were also a little surprised.

Kangxi glanced at her and said coldly: "Even if no one ordered her to do so, it was my fault for not taking good care of her. She deserves to die."

Concubine Yi took a deep breath, knowing that the emperor was furious and that nothing she said would help. She could only wait and see if there would be any improvement in the future.

Concubine Hui took advantage of the situation and continued to plead with Kangxi to investigate the matter thoroughly. Concubine De also came out of the inner hall, crying and breathlessly begging Kangxi to make a decision on behalf of the Seventh Princess.

"Sister Defei, the Seventh Princess has just passed away and her body is still warm. Why not let her rest in peace first?" Concubine Tong said, "The Emperor has always loved the Seventh Princess and will definitely give you and the Seventh Princess justice."

As the saying goes, the dead are the greatest. The Seventh Princess's body is still lying inside and it is really outrageous to leave such a mess outside. Concubine

De was somewhat surprised why Concubine Tong would speak up for Concubine Yi. Tears welled up in her eyes as she said, "Your Majesty, the Seventh Princess died a violent death. As her mother, how could I not let her rest in peace?"

Both of them argued with reason, and Wen Shan felt a headache listening to them, let alone Kangxi, who had just endured the grief of losing his daughter.

Kangxi rubbed his brow and ordered the maid from Concubine Yi's palace to be brought over.

...

In Chonghua Palace, the eldest prince was also absent-mindedly awaiting news, expecting to hear Concubine Yi's punishment, but instead received word of the Seventh Princess's death.

"What did you say?" The Crown Prince frowned, looking at the eunuch who had brought the news. "Seventh sister has passed away?"

Yinsi and Yinxiang both looked at Yinzhen. Although the Seventh Princess wasn't very familiar with their fourth brother, she was still their biological sister.

Yinzhen's brows knitted slightly, surprised by the Seventh Princess's sudden passing, but he remained composed.

"Your Highness, the Seventh Princess has just fallen seriously ill and has passed away. The Emperor has ordered the Imperial Concubine and Concubine Tong to prepare for the funeral."

Yinsi, remembering that Kangxi had gone to Xianfu Palace that evening, asked, "Is the Imperial Concubine currently in Yonghe Palace?"

The eunuch replied, "The Imperial Concubine and several other consorts are in Yonghe Palace." The eldest

prince raised an eyebrow at this and, taking advantage of the opportunity, asked, "What were the other consorts doing there?"

"It seems...it seems to be related to Concubine Yi being accused of plotting to murder the Seventh Princess. I'm not entirely sure." The eunuch, merely delivering a message, felt a little panicked by the relentless interrogation from the princes.

"You dog slave are talking nonsense!"

The Ninth Prince happened to come back. As soon as he entered the room, he heard the little eunuch gossiping and kicked him to the ground.

"What do you mean by 'seemingly'? You dare to frame Concubine Yi for something that doesn't exist!"

The Ninth Prince was not satisfied after kicking him and wanted to kick her a few more times but was stopped by Yinsi.

"Ninth brother, don't be impulsive."

The eldest prince stepped forward leisurely: "Why are you back again, Ninth brother? If Concubine Yi is not with you now, I am really worried that Concubine Yi will not be able to bear it."

The Ninth Prince thought of Concubine Hui's face just now and knew that it was Concubine De and Concubine Hui who jointly framed his mother. The eldest prince must have known something with this look on his face.

Yinzhen rubbed his forehead. He had originally wanted to invite his brothers to dinner but ended up in chaos.

The Crown Prince and the Third Prince exchanged a few words in a low voice, then the Crown Prince said, "Since we're all in the palace, as brothers, we should go and see the Seventh Sister."

"It's getting late. I'm afraid it wouldn't be appropriate," Yinsi said.

It wasn't time to rest yet, but it was already dark. It probably wouldn't be appropriate for them to go to the inner palace.

Yinzhen nodded, "Eighth Brother is right. It's getting late. Why not go and pay your respects tomorrow?" Unexpectedly,

the Crown Prince insisted, saying he couldn't let go now that he knew, even if it meant just a glimpse from afar outside Yonghe Palace.

Yinxiang rolled his eyes and whispered to Yinsi, "When did the Crown Prince and the Seventh Princess become so close as siblings?"

The two of them probably hadn't even exchanged three words.

But since the Crown Prince insisted, they had no choice but to go along.

When the Crown Prince and his brothers arrived at Yonghe Palace, Kangxi had just finished interrogating Guier, the maid in Concubine Yi's palace. She was trembling all over and insisted that Dongyue was a spy planted by Concubine Yi in Yonghe Palace. She even revealed some details of the private dealings between Dongyue and Concubine Yi.

The more Concubine Yi listened, the colder her heart became. Defei and Huifei came prepared this time. It seemed that she was really going to jump into the Yellow River and never clear herself.

When the palace servant came to report that the Crown Prince and several princes had arrived, Kangxi was annoyed. He frowned and said: "What are they doing here? Aren't they making enough noise?"

He just asked the Fifth Prince and the Ninth Prince to leave because he didn't want the dirty things in the harem to implicate the princes. But why did Yinreng come here with his brothers?

"Your Majesty, your sons heard about Seventh Sister... and came to see her." After the Crown Prince entered Yonghe Palace and paid his respects to Kangxi, he looked over to Defei, who wept with her face buried in her hands, and offered his condolences: "Your Majesty ,

accept my condolences." "Thank you, Your Majesty," Defei sobbed.

"It's late, Your Majesty, and it's inappropriate for you to linger in the inner palace. Return," Kangxi said gravely.

The Fourteenth Prince suddenly burst out from the inner hall: "Your Majesty, your sons ask Your Majesty to make things right for Seventh Sister."

Kangxi: "..."

For the first time in his twenty-plus years as a father, Kangxi felt his sons begin to lose control.

Defei and Huifei clearly intended to make the night as chaotic as possible. While he didn't know why the Crown Prince had gotten involved, he and the Eighth Prince were enemies, so even if they were enemies tonight, it didn't matter.

Yinsi, Yinzhen, and Yinxiang observed the chaos and quietly approached Wenshan.

"Mother, what's going on?" Yinsi asked softly.

Wen Shan briefly recounted what had just happened, focusing on what Imperial Physician Zhang had said to Yinzhen and Yinsi.

"I just can't understand. If Imperial Physician Zhang could see that..."

"Why didn't he tell the Emperor?" Yinzhen interjected.

Yinsi glanced at the sullen Kangxi and whispered, "Certainty of illness is inherently difficult to predict. It happened so suddenly, and there's no concrete evidence. Telling it now wouldn't just cause trouble."

Yinxiang sighed, "We assumed Defei and Huifei would act swiftly, leaving Concubine Yi no time to react, but we didn't expect them to go so far."

From the discovery of the Seventh Princess's tampering with her medicine to her death, it took only noon to evening. Concubine Yi had no time to make any arrangements, having been pushed step by step to this point.

The current situation was unfavorable for Concubine Yi, especially since the Crown Prince and the other princes had arrived at Yonghe Palace. A resolution was required tonight.

Kangxi was getting a headache from the arguing, and Concubine Yi was at a loss for words in her defense. Concubine Tong said, "Your Majesty, it's getting late today and it's inappropriate to continue arguing like this. Why not let Concubine Yi be temporarily confined to the Yikun Palace and bury the Seventh Princess properly before we discuss other matters."

Tong's suggestion was indeed a compromise. Defei and Huifei didn't know why Tong would defend Concubine Yi today, but at this point, simply confining Concubine Yi would give her a break, which would make things difficult, so they would never give in.

The Crown Prince, raised by Kangxi's side, understood his father well. Seeing Kangxi's increasingly bad complexion, he felt that Defei and Huifei had gone too far. If they continued to argue, the Emperor would probably suspect that Defei had staged this incident herself.

The Crown Prince must be trying to bring down Concubine Yi and the Ninth Prince, so he offered a rare helping hand to Defei and Huifei.

"Empress Tong is right. The Emperor has to attend court early tomorrow, so it's not convenient for me to stay here. Empress Defei, please accept my condolences and bury my seventh sister first."

After saying this, the prince glanced at the princes in Xianfu Palace who had been silent the whole time. Seeing Yinsi's faint smile, he suddenly felt something was wrong.

Yinzhen and Yinsi seemed too quiet tonight. They had been led around by the nose one after another. This was not like their style, especially Yinsi.

Kangxi breathed a sigh of relief after hearing what the prince said. Fortunately, Yinreng was sensible. Looking at the bustling crowd in the palace with ulterior motives, he was about to let everyone go back to the palace when something went wrong again.

Xuelu, the personal maid of Concubine Yi, suddenly dragged a maid from Yonghe Palace into the palace.

"Your Majesty, I just saw this palace maid outside, acting suspiciously, as if she was hiding something in her arms, about to leave through the corner gate. I was worried she might be taking

advantage of the chaos to steal, so I stopped her." Xuelu had been outside the palace, and when she heard the commotion inside, she was extremely anxious. Turning around, she saw a palace maid from Yonghe Palace trying to sneak out, and she immediately grabbed her. Fortunately, the maid didn't struggle much, so she pulled her into the palace.

Whatever the maid was hiding in her arms, the situation wouldn't get any worse for them in Yikun Palace.

Concubine De was startled and glanced at Xia Yun. Xia Yun hadn't expected to be encountered by Concubine Yi's men. Hadn't they instructed her to quietly exit through the back door?

Kangxi also found the maid, clutching a bundle tightly and trembling with her head bowed, somewhat strange.

"Which palace are you from?"

With so many people in Yonghe Palace now, it was hard to tell whose servant she belonged to.

"Your servant... your servant..."

The maid's words trembled, her words barely coherent. Concubine De saw this and hurried forward, saying, "Your Majesty, this is Ruizhu from my palace. She serves the Seventh Princess. I just sent her to collect some of her belongings."

"You foolish servant, what's so frustrating about you?"

Concubine De scolded Ruizhu softly. Concubine Yi, with her years of experience battling Concubine De, sensed something was amiss. This little maid was definitely not simple.

"Your Majesty, it's just collecting some of the Seventh Princess's belongings. Why are you so frightened? But this servant was so dishonest and took advantage of the crowd to steal the princess's belongings?" Concubine Yi also became a little nervous.

Concubine Tong chimed in and said that the Seventh Princess should be thoroughly investigated after she had just gone.

Even Wenshan thought it was a coincidence that the maid came out, but she was also familiar with Ruizhu, who had indeed served Concubine De for many years.

"Could this be arranged by you?" Wenshan asked Yinzhen and the others with her head down.

Yinzhen pointed at Yinsi: "Mother, you have to ask my eighth brother about this."

Yinsi smiled but said nothing.

Wenshan knew from his expression that she was being played around by Yinsi again.

Concubine De couldn't defend Ruizhu too much, and Kangxi glanced sideways at Ruizhu's arms.

"Take the things out."

Ruizhu shook her head frantically and refused to let go of the package. Liang Jiugong stepped forward and held her down.

"You unruly servant, put it down!"

Two young eunuchs restrained Ruizhu and took the package out of her arms.

Liang Jiugong held the package up with both hands: "Your Majesty."

Kangxi lifted his skirt and sat down: "Open it."

Defei's heart sank, and she thought to herself, "This is not good!" She wondered how she would explain it

later. Liang Jiugong opened the package, and everyone in the palace was drawn to it. Inside were several neatly folded pieces of the Seventh Princess's clothing, along with a few bracelets and longevity locks. It looked exactly as Defei had said, that she had asked the maid to pack up some of the Seventh Princess's daily necessities.

Rongfei, who had been watching the show for a while, also said, "They're just some everyday things. Did Defei really ask this servant to pack them? Why are you so flustered?"

Kangxi also felt something was amiss. Was she really planning to steal something?

Ruizhu's face was pale and she couldn't speak clearly from beginning to end, her guilt written all over her face.

Concubine Yi, naturally not wanting to miss this only possible lifeline, took a closer look and found what looked like a piece of paper at the bottom.

"What's that at the bottom?" Concubine Yi asked loudly.

Wen Shan looked over and saw a small corner of what looked like a piece of paper.

Kangxi raised his chin, and Liang Jiugong understood and pulled out the piece of paper.

Concubine Yi didn't know what was written on it. She glanced at Concubine De's expression and saw that she seemed calm and composed. She wondered if this thing was useless.

Wen Shan and Kangxi were sitting at the top, on Kangxi's left. She was also curious about what was written on it. She leaned forward and was stunned when she saw it.

Wen Shan looked up at Concubine De and then at Concubine Yi.

This was really a sudden turn of events...turn after turn.

Kangxi's hands gradually clenched, but he put the piece of paper on the table with no expression on his face.

Concubine Yi was the most anxious. She looked up and could only see some vague red words. Concubine

Rong and Concubine Tong had eaten their fill of melons tonight. They were both looking forward to what explosive news this little palace maid who suddenly appeared would bring.

The Crown Prince saw Kangxi's expression and felt a sense of foreboding. He began to regret not taking the opportunity to leave when the Emperor had asked them to.

"Defei, do you know what's written on this?" Kangxi asked calmly.

Defei nodded and said softly, "This is a memorial I wrote. I asked Ruizhu to keep it with me."

Wen Shan glanced at it again and asked, "Is this really your handwriting?" Defei

sensed something was amiss and said cautiously, "I only wrote the memorial, nothing else."

The Seventh Princess's illness was beyond remission. The Imperial Physician had told Defei two weeks ago that even the best medicine would only prolong her life. At best, she could only survive another six months until the end of the year.

Upon learning this, Defei pondered the matter for a long time, finally making a hard decision. Since her daughter was destined to die, it would be better to let her go in a more worthy way. This

would pave the way for her younger brother. If Yinzhen ever ascended the throne, she could then honor Xiaoqi with posthumous honors. This would allow Xiaoqi to die a worthy death.

Even after personally cutting off the Seventh Princess's medicine, Concubine De still felt a surge of anxiety. She had never imagined that one day she would personally send her own daughter to her doom.

She pondered over this, still feeling uneasy, so she composed a memorial and prepared to send some of the Seventh Princess's daily necessities to pray for her soul to ascend to heaven.

Furthermore, the master instructed that the memorial must be completed on the day of the Seventh Princess's death for it to be effective. So, Concubine De planned to take advantage of the chaos in Yonghe Palace by having Ruizhu sneak out through the back door, but she was surprised to find the servant in the front hall.

Seeing Ruizhu being captured by Concubine Yi's maid, Concubine De suspected that something was amiss with Ruizhu. If she had sneaked out through the back door, no one would have noticed. With the palace in chaos and the few influential masters in Yonghe Palace, no one would have noticed.

If Ruizhu was truly ill, then the memorial the emperor saw... might not have been the one she had written.

Kangxi said coldly, "Liang Jiugong, go and summon all the doctors who treated the Seventh Princess."

Kangxi threw the paper in front of Concubine De.

"Take a look for yourself."

Concubine Yi and the others couldn't help but lean forward to take a look.

The front was indeed a memorial, but the back was actually a few words written in blood.

It was written in Concubine De's tone to the Seventh Princess.

It clearly stated that it was Concubine De who cut off the Seventh Princess's medicine, which led to her sudden death.