Last night, when Emperor Yongchang summoned Prince Qing into the palace for questioning, the officials of the various ministries had already finished their shifts. Except for the on-duty imperial guards and some palace servants inside, almost no one knew about the matter. The guards and servants who were in the know were well-versed in the survival rule of keeping their mouths shut and absolutely did not dare to spread the news without authorization.
There was no morning court session the next day. Officials would not be considered late as long as they arrived at their offices before eight in the morning.
Usually, Prince Kang would arrive about two quarters of an hour early. Today, thinking that his imperial father might summon him and his third brother early for questioning, Prince Kang entered the palace gates at seven in the morning and sat in the public office of the Ministry of Revenue to wait.
As time ticked by, Lord Liu, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue who shared the same office, was the second to arrive.
Lord Liu was just forty years old. Like the left and right vice ministers of the other five ministries, he had the ambition to continue rising in the ranks. Thus, besides needing good annual performance evaluations, he could not afford to be late or leave early during his daily duties. Coupled with the fact that there was a Prince Kang in the office who liked to arrive early and leave late, Lord Liu insisted on arriving right on the heels of Prince Kang every day.
He had no choice. Minister Meng Bing didn't need to show off in front of Prince Kang, and the Left Vice Minister, Lord Gu, was practically half a father-in-law to Prince Kang and didn't have to worry about being disliked for arriving late. Lord Liu, however, had no such connections on either side.
Having persisted for so many years, Lord Liu did not slack off just because Prince Kang went out on official business. He didn't know that Prince Kang had returned to the capital either. When he came in and suddenly saw the familiar figure sitting inside, Lord Liu was startled at first, secretly rejoicing that he hadn't been lazy, and then he stepped forward to greet Prince Kang.
After a while, Lord Gu arrived. Seeing Prince Kang, who was tanned even darker than when he returned from inspecting the canals last winter, Lord Gu was stunned for a moment.
His stunned reaction made Prince Kang feel a bit embarrassed. He didn't feel it was hard when he was working, nor did he have the mind to admire himself in the mirror. When he returned to the manor yesterday, his three children almost didn't dare to recognize him, and the Princess Consort looked as shy as when she first married him, too embarrassed to look at him much. Only then did Prince Kang realize just how dark he had gotten.
Lord Gu asked about the details of the land reclamation in Lingshan. Upon learning that it was feasible, he felt deeply gratified.
At this time, Emperor Yongchang's oral decree finally arrived, ordering Prince Kang to go to the imperial study.
Because the Ministry of Revenue was right next to the Ministry of Rites, Prince Kang deliberately waited a while on the palace path after coming out, occasionally glancing south towards the Ministry of Rites.
The message-delivering eunuch guessed something and whispered, "Your Highness, the Emperor has only summoned you."
Prince Kang was slightly startled, but then thought, perhaps his imperial father wanted to question him and his third brother separately?
He quickened his pace and walked towards the inner palace.
Last night, when Emperor Yongchang saw his tanned third son, all he could think about was whether the third son was involved in the destruction of the canal in Liangzhou. Now, seeing his tanned and thinned eldest son, Emperor Yongchang felt nothing but full pride and gratification. Over five thousand mu of barren forest, dozens of hills—a hard task that most local officials would be too lazy to undertake—yet the eldest son, a prince, could actually bear the burden without complaint.
If the second son couldn't step out of the shadow of his leg injury, and he had to choose between the eldest and the third son, Emperor Yongchang would pass the throne to the eldest. This was because the eldest had a righteous mind. As long as he left a few capable ministers for him, the eldest could be a monarch who maintained the legacy with their assistance. Although Consort Xian had some ambitions, she wouldn't be muddled when it came to major matters of right and wrong.
If it were the third son, Emperor Yongchang could also leave him a group of capable ministers, but the moment he passed away, the third son would dare to dismiss them because their honest advice grated on his ears, and then promote treacherous officials who were accustomed to flattery. Such a third son would surely ruin the state and society that he and the late emperor had worked so hard to revitalize.
After asking about the situation of the Polygonatum and land reclamation, Emperor Yongchang asked, "What do you think of Xu Dongyang?"
Prince Kang did not stint on his praise and commended Xu Dongyang thoroughly.
Emperor Yongchang nodded. "What about your third brother? How did he handle his duties this time?"
Prince Kang thought of his third brother's grumbles and complaints, but said, "Third Brother is still young. At first, he was a bit unaccustomed to the hardships of being exposed to the wind and sun, but he persevered through it all. After this experience, if there are similar tasks in the future, Third Brother should be able to take charge on his own."
He had personally demonstrated it for his third brother once. If the third son still couldn't learn it like this, then he truly bore the reputation of his childhood intelligence in vain.
He was honest about his third brother's laziness because he didn't want to deceive his imperial father, and he praised him because he didn't want his father to suspect him of having the intention to slander his brother behind his back.
Emperor Yongchang inwardly praised the eldest son's kindness again.
"Alright. On the Dragon Boat Festival, I will summon Xu Dongyang to the palace for a banquet, and I will reward you all together then. Before the festival, you should rest at your manor and spend more time with your wife and children. After the festival, I will transfer you to the Ministry of Personnel for some practice."
Distinguishing the truth and falsehood of local officials' performance evaluations was also an art. The eldest son was meticulous enough in his work and could not tolerate the sand of high-ranking officials' nepotism in his eyes. He would still be able to play to his strengths when he went to the Ministry of Personnel.
Compared to verbal praise, this kind of actual official transfer and the increase in experience opportunities better illustrated his imperial father's satisfaction with him!
Prince Kang's eyes reddened. "This son is foolish and can only share Imperial Father's burdens through this kind of manual labor. This son is not tired and does not need a vacation."
Emperor Yongchang laughed. "If you don't rest, your third brother won't dare to rest either. Aren't you afraid he'll complain about you?"
Only then did Prince Kang accept the order.
Before leaving the palace, he first went to pay his respects to Empress Zhou and Consort Xian.
Consort Xian and Consort Rou both lived in the Western Palace. Being close, they could detect any commotion, especially a major event like Zheng Yuanzhen and her son staying in Consort Rou's palace for an entire day.
Consort Xian, as usual, first asked about the conversation between Emperor Yongchang and her son. Learning that Emperor Yongchang was still covering up for the odd behavior of Prince Qing and his wife, she silently cooperated and smiled, telling her son to rest well.
Prince Kang happily took his leave from his mother consort. On his way out of the palace, thinking that he hadn't seen his second brother in a month, Prince Kang deliberately detoured to the Ministry of Works just to catch up with him.
"Time really flies. Yun'er's features must have grown out a bit more, right?"
"Yes. If Big Brother misses him, you can bring Brother Dun over to our place for a visit on your rest day in a few days."
Prince Kang: "Alright, it's a deal."
After separately mentioning the Polygonatum of Lingshan and the progress of the heavy gunpowder in the armory, the two brothers parted ways.
Prince Kang didn't mention much about Prince Qing, so Prince Hui naturally had no way of knowing what had happened to Prince Qing, who lived in the east of the city. Not seeing Prince Qing at the morning court, he just assumed that Prince Qing, like Prince Kang, had been given leave by their imperial father.
On the twenty-eighth of the fourth month, at dusk, Prince Hui returned to the prince's manor. He had just changed into his casual clothes in the front yard and came out to see the Princess Consort unexpectedly sitting in the main hall waiting, looking as if she had something to say to him.
Zhao Sui pushed his wheelchair closer and asked, "What happened?"
The wheelchair stopped by the side of the Princess Consort's armchair.
Yao Huang held Prince Hui's hand resting on his knee and said, "My mother came to see me this morning and mentioned that both the eldest princess and the Marquis of Jining have fallen ill. The gates have been closed these past few days, declining all visitors. Even my mother knows about it, which shows that even more people outside are spreading this matter."
Her father was still a regular sixth-rank Centurion, but it couldn't stop some official's wives from taking the initiative to curry favor with her mother because the Yao family had produced a Princess Consort and a son-in-law of the Duke of Zhenguo's manor. There was no need to send gifts; just playing cards, admiring flowers, and drinking tea together to add a bit of superficial friendship was good enough. Among them was Li Tingwang's mother, Madam Wang, who was very afraid of being suppressed and retaliated against by her.
Having been a battalion commander's wife for over twenty years, Madam Wang had built a much wider network among the officials' wives than her mother. This time, a lady Madam Wang knew happened to live in the same alley as the Marquis of Jining. Noticing the unusual atmosphere at the Marquis's estate, she leaked the information to other ladies. As the gossip spread, they discovered that Princess Fucheng's estate was in the exact same situation.
Eventually, the news wound its way to Madam Wang's ears. Madam Wang then hurried over to inform her mother. If the information was useful, it would be a favor; if not, it was just idle gossip.
"Does His Highness know about this?" Yao Huang asked. Whether the illness was real or feigned, the whole thing seemed suspicious.
Zhao Sui did not know. The Marquis of Jining held a noble title but a low official rank, making him ineligible to attend court assemblies. Since he was rarely seen, how could Prince Hui have noticed? The same logic applied to the Princess.
However, Zhao Sui also realized there was likely a hidden story behind this.
He said to his princess, "If it were truly a severe illness requiring a visit, the Princess's estate would report it to my imperial father and mother, and my mother would remind us to go pay a visit. Since my mother hasn't said anything, we shall just pretend we don't know."
Yao Huang nodded. Prince Hui understood the affairs of the imperial relatives better than she did. Anyway, she had already shared the information; Prince Hui would arrange whatever needed to be done.
Curiosity aside, it was highly unlikely that the Princess's affairs would implicate their own household, so Yao Huang was not overly worried.
A day later was a rest day. Prince Kang and his wife, Chen Ying, came over with the young heir, Brother Dun.
Chen Ying was now five months pregnant. Her belly was showing, but it did not restrict her movements too much. After Prince Kang held Yun'er for a bit, Chen Ying followed Yao Huang to the backyard to chat.
Once the women had left, Prince Kang's expression turned grave. Frowning, he asked his second younger brother, "Do you know about our aunt closing her doors to guests?"
Yesterday was the minor birthday of Secondary Consort Gu's mother. Secondary Consort Gu had gone to offer her congratulations and brought back a huge piece of news for him.
Therefore, something must have happened in the capital during the month he was at Mount Ling.
Zhao Sui looked surprised. "Closing her doors to guests?"
Prince Kang immediately understood that his brother was also kept in the dark, so he quickly explained the situation.
Zhao Sui thought for a moment and shook his head. "I have been busy with testing formulas at the weaponry workshop and haven't paid attention to anything else."
Prince Kang did not doubt him, for his brother indeed had a personality that never cared about matters unrelated to himself.
He continued with his speculation, "This time, Third Brother and I handled the assignment together. Logically, our imperial father should have summoned the two of us together for questioning. However, I didn't bump into Third Brother on my way to or from the imperial study that day. Could it be that Third Brother is also involved in our aunt's seclusion?"
Given their aunt's nature, she would immediately summon an imperial physician for even a minor headache or fever, just to let their imperial father know she was ill and quickly show his concern. If she wasn't sick, then only their imperial father could force her to stay indoors.
But what grave mistake could their aunt have committed to make their imperial father so angry?
Prince Kang could not figure it out no matter how hard he thought.
Zhao Sui pointed out, "The Dragon Boat Festival is coming up soon. If our aunt and Third Brother are fine, they will attend the banquet."
If they didn't attend, it meant something was wrong. Since their imperial father hadn't brought it up, they shouldn't ask too many questions.
Despite this, the two princes still sent their Dragon Boat Festival gifts to Princess Fucheng's estate as usual. The Princess's steward appeared to receive them and, per custom, invited the servants delivering the gifts to drink tea. Not a single extra word was said. The servants only went as far as the first courtyard and did not notice any obvious anomalies.
In the blink of an eye, it was the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.
Prince Hui's estate arranged two carriages. Yao Huang and Prince Hui sat in the front carriage, while the wet nurse sat in the back holding Yun'er. After entering the palace and letting Emperor Yongchang dote on his little imperial grandson, the wet nurse could take the young grandson to rest in a side hall. After all, a child just over two months old could neither understand willow shooting and polo nor eat the royal banquet food.
The carriages stopped in front of the palace gates. Yao Huang, with Qing'ai's help, pushed Prince Hui out of the carriage. Upon arriving at the Qianyuan Hall, they saw that Prince Kang's family and Prince Qing's family were both there.
As she got closer, Yao Huang was secretly alarmed.
She had seen Prince Qing and Zheng Yuanzhen looking arrogant, and she had seen them looking depressed after a setback. But today, the couple shared an identical, deathly lifelessness on their faces that no amount of forced smiles could conceal.
