Jīn Shì (Upper)

  The imperial physician Sun reported back: "Your Majesty can rest assured, the Fourth Prince has not been poisoned."

  "This is good." Yongzheng finally put his mind at ease, seeing Hongli's face change from initial puzzlement to gradual calmness, and his worried eyes still turned on himself, feeling a warmth in his heart, he said: "I'm fine. Su Taizhong, tell the Fourth Prince about this again."

  Dr. Su had no choice but to recount the events again.

  Hongli was taken to the Palace of Mental Cultivation immediately after returning from the Ministry of Works. He was then examined by Imperial Physician Sun. When he heard the words "poisoned", Hongli thought that Emperor Qianlong had been poisoned and wondered if Hongxiang wanted to usurp the throne directly.

  As Su Taizhen spoke, his face grew increasingly somber, and it seemed he was still talking about himself... or perhaps his own backyard? But as long as Yunzhu is fine! "What about the child? Is there any impact on Yongheng and the fetus in Madame Su's womb?"

  After the relief, doubts came again. Who is the mastermind? Why are only Yunzhu and Gaoshi unaffected by this poison in my backyard? The emperor's father was not poisoned, apparently his food and clothing had been checked and found no problem, and now I have also proven that nothing is wrong with me. So, the person behind the scenes targeted only my backyard? What do they want to do? Do they want to monopolize favoritism by eliminating their opponents with this method, or do they want me to become a wife-killing and child-killing person?

  Dr. Sun and Dr. Su exchanged a glance, saying: "The child will definitely be affected, and their physical health may not be as good as that of ordinary people."

  "Isn't there a way to detoxify this poison?" Hongli furrowed his brow, after all it was his bloodline.

  "This one still needs some experimentation with moonroot grass to be certain." Fortunately, the imperial hospital currently has no shortage of death row inmates for testing...

  "I have secretly sent people to search for the Moon Root Grass in Yunnan, this matter should not be spread." Yongzheng pondered, as one of the only two women in the palace who had not been poisoned, Yunzhu was suspicious, even though he himself did not think she could do such a thing. However, as the Emperor, being cautious and suspicious was the rational and correct approach.

  Although Yunzhu was not poisoned, she was completely unaware of the danger to herself. Hongli couldn't help but worry again, "Imperial brother, should we also let Yunzhu prepare for this?" He didn't believe that she would do such a thing, but after hearing Dr. Su say that this poison could be applied to people's clothing and make them unknowingly weak and damaged, until a simple cold or minor illness could take their life, he felt a chill run down his spine... Wait, clothes? No, his Yunzhu was probably blessed by heaven and not the target of that person... Was it Gaoshi or the yet-to-enter-the-palace Wulana? His heart gradually turned cold and hard, he hadn't forgotten that it was the Empress Dowager's poisoning of Fuhui that led to her estrangement from the Emperor - that was also a kind of drug that could corrode a person's vitality. With her scheming, it wasn't impossible that she would leave that drug for Wulana, who was destined to become his side consort, Niemengyi.

  Yongzheng thought, don't you suspect her? Turning his head to look, the person asking the question fell into deep thought again, and asked: "What are you thinking?"

  "The son was thinking of Yunzhu or also the target of the poisoner, but his purpose was not achieved."

  "What did you say?" Yongzheng raised an eyebrow, sat back on the couch, picked up his tea and took a light sip. After hearing Hongli's speculation, he couldn't help but agree in his heart. He believed that Yunzhu's ability to transform plants into delicious and nourishing flowers and fruits was a gift from heaven, proving that she was a person favored by heaven. This kind of person had a strong aura of good fortune that ordinary people couldn't compare with, and could unknowingly avoid various evil invasions.

  As for Hongli's suspicion of Gao and Wulana, he did not make any excessive judgments. Who let the empress have a previous conviction? Moreover, in order to seek his family, she was able to ask him to give Niemengyi to Hongli as a side concubine, so how could it be determined that she didn't leave other hidden hands?

  At this time, Su Peisheng said outside the door: "Your Majesty, Ye's nanny has arrived."

  "Let her in."

  "The slave girl pays her respects to Your Majesty, may Your Majesty live for ten thousand years and ten thousand more." Yeh Liu had been nervous since she was summoned to the Nurturing Heart Palace. When she entered the room, not only were the Emperor and the Fourth Prince present, but also Sun Taizhen and Su Taizhen. She thought that something big must have happened. However, as someone who had been placed in the imperial court by Fuca's clan for generations to cultivate loyalty, she knew that Empress Fu had not done anything to frame or harm anyone since entering the palace, so she was also calm at heart.

  Yongzheng saw her with a calm face, eyes quiet, and without letting her get up, asked: "Is it you and Shang Ayi who help the Fourth Imperial Concubine with various palace affairs, distributing shares, and granting rewards?"

  "Yes." Yehai replied, "The four of us have different responsibilities. Shangai is in charge of distributing the silver and money for internal affairs as well as rewards given by the master; I am responsible for handling matters related to the two palaces and the various princesses, including the fabrics and treasures bestowed upon them by the emperor and empresses, which are all stored in the warehouse under my supervision. The four consorts also give rewards to the lower-ranking gege from my hands. Tuhai is in charge of all kitchen affairs; Guohai is in charge of personnel matters within the inner courtyard."

  "What about Guo and the four imperial consorts' attendants? Don't they have the right to use these things?"

  "Guo's female officials beside the four consorts could use the treasury to reward, generally the four consorts would ask them to take out what they wanted, even so, the slaves still had to follow and confirm, and also needed to add and modify the accounts clearly. However, this situation was rare, Su Xun and Ling Shuo, their daily necessities were mostly taken from the inner treasury that the four consorts brought with them when entering the palace, the things that the four consorts rewarded to the gege (princesses) were rarely from the inner treasury."

  Indeed, the division of labor is clear, but also meticulous. Yongzheng nodded and said: "The clothing and decorations given to several gege by the four fujin were also taken out from the outer warehouse?"

  "It's true." Yehua replied, "The annual allowance and rewards given to the Fourth Prince and the Fourth Princess by the palace are all stored in the outer warehouse. Only a few things that the Fourth Princess likes will be taken out and placed in the house for display. The fabrics, furs, and clothes made by the Fourth Princess herself for the Emperor, Empress, and the princes and princesses are mostly taken from the outer warehouse, with only a small portion coming from the Fourth Princess's own inner warehouse."

  "What about the medicine and food under the Fourth Lady's reward?"

  "The four consorts rarely give out medicine or food," Yehua said, now more cautious in her response. "If they do, the imperial physician will examine it in person and ask if it's suitable for the recipient to use, only giving it out after confirming there are no dietary restrictions. As for food, it's usually taken from the Imperial Kitchen. If the masters have a craving for something specific, they'll instruct the kitchen of Qianxi to make it. As for the consorts themselves having special cravings, if the kitchen has the ingredients, they'll provide them, but the consorts must cook it themselves in the adjacent stove room. Idle personnel unrelated to the kitchen are not allowed to enter or exit the kitchen at will."

  Yongzheng asked many more trivial questions, and after getting a clear answer from Ye's nurse, he said: "You can go back now. No one is allowed to reveal tonight's interrogation."

  It is clear from these conversations that the Fourth Imperial Concubine is a virtuous, generous and methodical person. No matter what happens in Qianxi, these housekeepers and stewards follow the clues to investigate, and soon the truth will be revealed. Sun Taifu and Su Taifu are deeply impressed. It's good that someone doesn't have a heart to harm others, but it's even more impressive that she can manage the imperial prince's mansion so neatly without giving anyone a chance to frame or trap her.

  At this moment, Hongli was somewhat relieved that Ye Yigong was the emperor's father. This can prove Yunzhu's innocence. He originally thought that Ye Yigong was a pawn planted by the empress in Qianxi Second House, but since Yunzhu had always trusted her, he didn't think of removing her. After all, the harem still took Yunzhu as the main one, and his arbitrary intervention was distrust of her.

  "Yes." Yehai curtsied and backed out. She returned to Qianxi's quarters, but didn't dare report the events of the evening to Yunzhu right away. Who knew if there were still people lurking around? Fortunately, this matter seemed unrelated to the master, she thought. Maybe tomorrow or the day after, she'd find an opportunity to inform the master.

  She didn't know that all of this was within Yunzhu's expectations. So the next day, Ye Xiaojie found an opportunity to reveal the news to her, but she was interrupted and hinted that Fourth Brother had already told her himself.

  Yè yí yí finally put her mind at ease.

  Yunzhu did not deceive Ye Nainai, last night she returned to Ganxi Second House, Hongli indeed informed her of this matter and took away all the needlework made by Gao's family for her early next morning, reminding her to be careful and guard against it, pretending not to know about this matter on the surface.

  The father and son are going to "draw silk from cocoons" and "cast a net to catch fish".

  In the main hall, in the second room on the right, Yunzhu sat on a couch slowly sipping bird's nest congee. On the flower pear wood inlaid silver and ivory bed table, Xuetuan was busily peeling peanuts and pine nuts to eat, occasionally tossing one or two into the glass jar to feed Xiaojin and Xiaoyu.

  Ling Xue and Shu Diao sat on the embroidered stool below, drawing silk threads for embroidery while reporting on the movements inside and outside the imperial palace over this period of time.

  "...You said that Gao's family cut off all the threads? Heh, he wouldn't dare to silence all the people who know about it, that would make too much noise."

  "The master said that when it comes to catching mice, one must be careful not to use too much force, as there are always one or two powerful families that are not easy to deal with. However, they can also be considered as people on the same rope... As for the others, apart from our own people, I reckon they will all disappear one by one after a while."

  "It's also good this way, it's not possible to have a big harvest if you collect too early." Yunzhu put the empty bowl aside, took a cotton cloth to wipe her mouth, and stopped her uncle from refilling another bowl. She didn't have much appetite now, but she kept thinking of eating something sour one moment and something sweet the next. Fortunately, there were many things in the space that could satisfy her various tastes, such as fruits and nuts. "Now Gao Shi is still pregnant, even if they want to make a move on her, they will wait until after she gives birth... Besides, the Gao family still has Gao Bin."

  It's really not a loss that Yongzheng used Gan Jiang, it was neat and efficient from the start. Thinking about it, if this matter hadn't come out, the Gao family had Gao Bin in power, and also had connections with the imperial family through marriage (one daughter as the consort of Hongli, one daughter as the daughter-in-law of Ertai), Gao Heng would have definitely continued to thrive until the mid-Qianlong period, even if Gao Heng and his son Gao Pu were convicted and executed... afterwards, the Gao family would still have risen and fallen throughout several dynasties, including Qianlong, Jiaqing, and Daoguang, and could be considered a noble family, all thanks to Gao Bin and the Empress Xiaoshengxian's connections.

  Of course, Xiang Huo is still skeptical about this. You say that Gao Heng and Gao Pu are what kind of temperament and talent? The positions they hold are all related to salt administration, river management, weaving and taxation, all of which are lucrative posts. Isn't it obvious that they are being set up to break the law, so that they can be slaughtered after being fattened up?!

  The unfortunate Gao Bin, his nephew Gao Jin is more like his son than Gao Heng in terms of talent and official cleverness. Unfortunately, the line of Gao Jin was also cut off by several Qing emperors...

  However, if the Yongzheng Emperor were to find out about this matter that Gao Qizhuo and his brother Gao Heng had done together, given the emperor's temperament, it would be difficult to say whether the Gao family could continue to receive imperial support as before.

  "Even if Gao Bin can destroy all the evidence in Suzhou, the Imperial Household Department is not a place where he can cover up everything with one hand. As long as some clues arouse the Emperor's suspicion, that would be enough... Let's not intervene in this matter for now, let it be for the time being." Sometimes, seeds of doubt can grow into towering trees if left to sit for a while.

  She took the warm water from Uncle Tong and rinsed her mouth, then took a warm towel from Ling Xiu to wipe her face and hands. Yunzhu got up and started walking around the house. "Is there any other news?"

  "The slave has received news that it seems like they are selecting attendants for the Fourth Prince in Chongjian Palace..."

  Yunzhu glanced at Lingzhui's worried and angry face, smiled lightly and said: "Has the candidate been selected?"

  Ling Xuan paused for a moment, and the master was still as sharp as ever, so he could only say: "It's Jin Li, the third daughter of Sanbao, the head of the Nei Wu Fu Upper Department. She entered the palace last year after being selected in the small selection and became an attendant in the Chengqian Palace. Now she is a third-grade palace maid by the side of Xi Guifei. Her brother, Jin Jian, is preparing to take the civil service examination for the position of Biantie Shi in the Nei Wu Fu."

  In fact, apart from the imperial consorts born into the aristocratic families of the Imperial Household Department, there were also many talented individuals who came from humble backgrounds within the department. People like Gao Bin, Gao Jin and this Jin Jian were all skilled in practical matters and were considered quite capable for their time. Unfortunately, since she wanted to cut off the path for future generations of palace women born into the Imperial Household Department's aristocratic families from becoming imperial consorts, she couldn't help but hinder their own paths to success.

  Yunzhu said: "It's not the Jin family, there will be others. Next year, it'll be time for the selection of imperial concubines again. One branch alone can't make a spring, only when there are thousands of purple and red flowers can it be lively, right? Anyway, we have our people around the Jin family, you let someone give a push in the Chengqian Palace... also to let the Fourth Prince feel his mother's concern and love for him."

  "Yes." The mistress was relieved, and she also felt at ease. Now the most important thing is that the little prince and princess in the mistress's belly can be born safely. Ling Shuo still had hidden worries in her heart, and after she and Su Wen took the mistress's pulse, they found that the mistress might be pregnant with twins, but since it was still early, they couldn't confirm it, so they didn't mention it to the mistress.

  In royal families, aside from dragon and phoenix twins, having twins isn't necessarily a good thing...

  "All right, I'll go inside and take a rest. Let Servant Mo come over and play the zither for me for a while... No need to stay too long... Just leave one servant on duty here."

  "Yes." Ling Xiu and Shu Diao went down. After a while, Shi Mo carried the zither and came in with Si Gui, one playing the zither, the other making small clothes and quilts for the future young master in Master's belly, very peaceful.