Concubine of the Eastern Palace (Qing Dynasty Time Travel)

Cheng Wanyun’s knowledge of cowpox didn’t come from various internet articles, but rather from reading a piece of prose by Xun Ge’er, titled “My Smallpox Vaccination.”

The article detailed his childhood experience with smallpox vaccination and his observations over several decades. It even clearly described how this “foreign pox” was resisted when it first arrived in China and how it was eventually promoted and spread.

After pulling the heavy bed curtains shut and waiting for the palace maid to blow out the lamp and leave, Cheng Wanyun turned slightly to avoid putting pressure on her leg injury. She leaned against the Crown Prince’s shoulder and whispered, “Second Lord, I’ve noticed you’ve been studying medical books intensely these days, such as ‘The New Collection of Prescriptions’ and ‘The Complete Guide to Smallpox Treatment’… Is His Majesty asking you to help figure out how to treat smallpox? I have a brilliant idea. Would you like to hear it?”

Emperor Kangxi was a forward-thinking man. He had set up a smallpox laboratory in the Imperial Medical Institute and had been fighting smallpox for over ten years. He came up with the idea of using smallpox scabs from infected people, grinding them into a fine powder, and having people inhale it through their nostrils to provoke the disease. This method, known as “variolation,” involved the vaccinated person enduring a week or more of illness. If they recovered, the vaccination was considered successful.

However, the biggest problem with this method was that it couldn’t guarantee the smallpox used as the “vaccine” was fully deactivated. If it still had live virus, there was a high chance the person being vaccinated could die. Even if the person survived, there was no certainty that they wouldn’t still be contagious. There were rumors of cases where people who had been vaccinated and seemed to recover went on to infect their families, with the vaccinated person surviving, but their wife and children tragically passing away.

So, later on, Emperor Kangxi added a new regulation: people who underwent variolation had to be isolated in a special “pox clinic” during the process. Even after recovery, they had to stay there for a month or so to ensure they were fully healed before they could leave, and the royal family was no exception. This “pox clinic” was located thirty miles outside the capital, a kind of quarantine hospital in the Qing dynasty.

With such a high death rate and severe side effects during the variolation process, the Qing court had not yet widely promoted the practice. Most people chose to avoid the palace to prevent exposure to smallpox or relied on praying to the Pox Goddess for protection.

This was even more absurd, relying on the gods as a form of desperate resignation, seeking comfort for the mind in the face of such an overwhelming problem.

“Second Lord, when I was still in my hometown, I once heard a story. It was about a Western missionary who rode a big green ox around spreading the gospel. However, he was an unlucky man who couldn’t even drink cold water without suffering, and he ended up contracting smallpox! Not just him, but his ox also caught it. In the end, he died, but the ox survived.” Cheng Wanyun began to recount the story, “Though the ox had smallpox, it was still lively and jumping around. A cruel merchant bought it cheaply and took it back, as the government had decreed that infected cattle could be slaughtered. The merchant planned to kill the ox and sell the meat at a restaurant. But heaven had its eye on him — as the merchant was pulling the ox, he stepped on some cow dung and fell flat on his face. In the process, he accidentally broke one of the pox scabs and touched it with his palm. He returned home and soon started running a fever…”

In fact, cowpox was supposed to have been invented by a British missionary named Edward Jenner, and his method for vaccination wouldn’t reach Macau and Guangzhou for a few more years. However, at the time, it didn’t receive much attention. Many people even feared that after being vaccinated, they might grow “cow horns.” Later, the book was translated into Chinese and gradually made its way to the capital.

She told the story with such detail and charm that it completely captured Yinreng’s attention. He immediately commented, “Indeed, karma is inevitable! He made his money through unscrupulous means, and heaven made sure he faced the consequences. Did he die of smallpox in the end?”

Cheng Wanyun hesitated, a little embarrassed by the Crown Prince’s gaze that seemed to expect a moral lesson: “Well… the merchant burned for two days and developed only a few pox, but he recovered. Later, when smallpox broke out in Panyu, the merchant’s whole family perished. He himself survived, though, and people started talking about it as a strange story. They said he had caught cow smallpox and accidentally underwent ‘cowpox vaccination,’ which is how he survived.”

Yinreng mulled over the words “cowpox” repeatedly.

“If the Second Lord has matters to attend to, perhaps you could try this ‘cowpox’ method to see if it works. It’s just another option, and there’s no harm in trying,” Cheng Wanyun said casually, as though she were just telling a small story.

But Yinreng felt that it was worth a try.

He couldn’t help but think about the regret and sorrow he had seen in the dream, thinking about how Cheng Wanyun might have been regretting not thinking of this odd story earlier, and not advising him to “try cowpox.” If cowpox truly worked, then E Linzhu would not have left her.

But at that time, how could she have known what the future held? How could she have known that E Linzhu would contract smallpox? It wasn’t something to blame her for, but as a mother, she would still think, “What if… what if…” and struggle to escape the nightmare.

Perhaps everything, even down to the smallest detail, was predestined. And now, at this very moment, after dreaming of his past life, he had desperately searched through medical books to find a glimmer of hope for E Linzhu’s survival. That was when he heard Cheng Wanyun say, “I once heard of a cow that had smallpox…”

Almost everyone in the inner court believed in Buddhism, and Yinreng held the divine with deep reverence. At this moment, he truly hoped that cowpox would work. Perhaps it was the grace of Heaven, offering him and Cheng Wanyun a sign of mercy.

“I will send someone to find that smallpox cow and try the cowpox method,” Yinreng said solemnly, reaching out in the dark to touch her hair. “If it yields results, I will definitely tell the Emperor that all the credit is yours. Then my Wanyun will be remembered for generations to come!”

When Cheng Wanyun heard that the Crown Prince was willing to try it, she quietly exhaled, feeling relieved. Then, hearing him say that she would be remembered for generations, she couldn’t help but laugh lightly. “I’m just telling a story. How could that be considered an achievement? You should leave that to the physicians who risked life and limb, overcoming great difficulties to develop the cowpox method!”

Yinreng insisted, “Their contribution won’t be overlooked, but this method was proposed by you, so your name should be engraved in the history books as well!”

“Then I thank you in advance, Second Lord. I’ll wait for your good news,” Cheng Wanyun replied with a smile, though she secretly thought, ‘Master Kangxi wouldn’t approve of this!’

Once she had introduced the idea of cowpox to the Crown Prince, Cheng Wanyun felt relieved. She left the rest to the Crown Prince and his men to deal with, not wanting to worry about it. While she focused on resting her leg and nurturing her pregnancy, the day of her delivery was quickly approaching. Meanwhile, the “plot to harm the heir on New Year’s Eve” case gradually began to take shape.

The version from Lady Tang’s side was that Gao Daiying had entered the palace the same year as Wang, but she couldn’t compare to Wang in beauty. Every time she heard that Wang had the Emperor’s favor, she became very jealous. Moreover, Wang had the support of the Noble Concubine Niu, which made her favored in the court and was courted by the Imperial Household Department. Gao, however, couldn’t even get a basket of silver frost charcoal, and during the winter, her fingers became sore from the cold. She was convinced that Wang’s ability to burn so much charcoal every day was due to the Imperial Household Department using her share of the supplies to flatter her. She had suffered greatly because of it!

The seeds of trouble had already been sown.

On ordinary days, Noble Concubine Niu kept a close watch on everything, and Wang Daiying was always surrounded by attendants when she went in and out. Gao Daiying, unable to find an opportunity to act, became even more envious of Wang Daiying, who wore all kinds of imperial gifts and was dressed more lavishly than the regular concubines. Like a venomous snake, she hid in the shadows, spying on Wang Daiying’s every move. Not only did she spread rumors and gossip, but she also secretly cursed her. It was said that under her bed, there were several straw effigies, each with Wang Daiying’s name and birthdate, stabbed with silver needles, leaving them riddled with holes!

“It’s truly terrifying, people like that,” Lady Tang sighed, her hand on her chest. “She hasn’t done anything to her, yet because of jealousy, she creates so much trouble!”

Soon, an opportunity appeared before Gao Daiying—Wang Daiying had secretly dismissed her maid and walked alone to the back of the crowd. Everyone was focused on the fireworks, jostling one another, and no one paid attention to her.

This led to a pushing incident. Gao Daiying may have only intended to cause Wang Daiying to fall and have a miscarriage, but instead, it involved Cheng Wanyun as well. Both the heir and the Crown Prince’s palace were affected, and Kangxi was determined to thoroughly investigate and find out the truth.

Gao Daiying was soon arrested, and the punishment awaiting her was not just legal retribution, but Kangxi’s judgment—her title was revoked, she was demoted to commoner status, and given a white silk ribbon to end her life immediately. Her body was wrapped in a mat and thrown into a mass grave.

As for Concubine Hui—she had been with the Eldest Prince and the First Consort at the time, far away from the scene of the incident. Numerous witnesses testified that she had been ill and had missed her daily audience for two months, and that she hadn’t summoned Gao Daiying for a long time. Once the grand banquet started, she never spoke a word to her again.

However, Concubine Hui still personally went to the Qianqing Palace to apologize, saying that, as the Mistress of the Yanxi Palace, due to her recent illness, she hadn’t noticed Gao Daiying’s evil intentions and hadn’t realized she had committed such a terrible deed. She begged Kangxi to punish her.

Kangxi helped her up and sighed, “You’ve been too lenient, which is why you can’t control those beneath you. From now on, you need to balance kindness and authority.”

Concubine Hui wiped away her tears and thanked him for his grace.

When the Crown Prince returned, he told her a different version: Gao Daiying’s backer was Prince Kang, Jieshu. Gao Daiying’s family had a long and complicated relationship with Prince Kang’s followers.

“Prince Kang has held a grudge against me ever since the battle at Uzhumuqin,” the Crown Prince said coldly. “He lost the battle and blamed me for not sending supplies in time. Later, when the Emperor neglected him, he suspected that I had spread rumors against him.”

The Crown Prince only said part of the story. He didn’t dare mention that during his regency, he had only followed Kangxi’s instructions. Matters like supplies were always delivered to the army quickly, and Kangxi made the final decisions.

Prince Kang did not dare to blame the Emperor, so he vented his anger on the Crown Prince. The Emperor knew the truth about the supplies, and after hearing those rebellious words and excuses, how could he ever trust him again?

Moreover, Prince Kang had accumulated a lot of land and even killed a few of his bodyguards. Recently, Kangxi had severely reprimanded him, but considering his past contributions in quelling the Geng Jingzhong rebellion and driving Zheng Jing back to Taiwan, Kangxi only ordered him to reflect in seclusion and reduced his salary for three years. Yet, Prince Kang had lost much of his dignity.

Now, Gao Daiying was likely a pawn in Prince Kang’s revenge scheme—Kangxi was firmly convinced of this.

However, the Crown Prince didn’t fully believe it. He suspected that Prince Kang was probably hoping to see Gao Daiying become favored again and return to the court. Without Wang Daiying, Gao Daiying’s beauty could easily win her favor in time, and it was only a matter of when she would gain it.

But then, a sudden figure like Wang Daiying appeared. In front of Wang Daiying, others truly seemed like mere shadows, unworthy of comparison.

With no more opportunities to stand out, it wasn’t surprising that Gao Daiying had lost all rationality in her jealousy.

But with Concubine Hui now involved, although no matter how much they investigated, Concubine Hui appeared innocent, the Crown Prince still harbored doubts and unease. What if Yinzhi had already allied with Prince Kang’s family?

Had Yinzhi started relying on the royal family? Or had the royals chosen him? In such a complicated situation, the Crown Prince grew even more vigilant.

After hearing the two versions, Cheng Wanyun could only conclude that the inner workings of the palace were indeed exceedingly complicated.

And this matter wasn’t over yet. It was announced that Prince Kang had been stripped of his position as the commander of the Manchu Right Banner by Kangxi and was left idle at home.

Less than a month later, even the prince’s son’s position at the Imperial Clan Court was revoked.

It seemed that Kangxi had only cooled down by this point.

The Crown Prince was somewhat satisfied with this outcome. “Given the connection, the Prince’s family had to pay a price! Just because they’re of royal blood doesn’t mean they can do whatever they want!”

If it weren’t for the fact that Prince Kang was a descendant of Dai Shan, and the plot had failed without significant consequences, Kangxi might have been even harsher in his punishment.

The Crown Prince could guess the relationship between Prince Kang’s family and Yinzhi, and Kangxi surely knew as well. He was much more perceptive in these matters than the Crown Prince. In fact, Kangxi even suspected that they had likely started conspiring after the battle with Galdan.

Kangxi had always been strict when it came to matters like this!

This incident brought another change to Cheng Wanyun and the Yuqing Palace, as Yuqing Palace naturally grew closer to Yongshou Palace. Mainly because of Wang Daiying, although she had suffered some bleeding from her fall and needed to stay in bed for an extended period to rest, she often sent people with gifts.

Cheng Wanyun didn’t refuse her kindness, and the gifts were always small, playful items that the child liked. For example, she sent a small bamboo waterwheel that turned, which E Linzhu adored.

However, the Crown Prince didn’t particularly like her. Even though it wasn’t her fault that day, the Crown Prince still harbored some resentment over her recklessness.

If she wanted to thank her, why couldn’t she just send a trusted eunuch to deliver her message? Why did she have to say those things at that moment? With so many people at the banquet, it was bound to attract attention! Didn’t she have any caution?

Thus, the Crown Prince was somewhat cold towards Wang Daiying.

Cheng Wanyun could understand Wang Daiying. She had just entered the palace and must have had no one of her own by her side, all her attendants were sent by Noble Concubine Niu. How could she have found any trusted eunuchs?

The Crown Prince scoffed, “That’s her incompetence. She couldn’t even manage her own servants. No one else is to blame for her downfall.”

Cheng Wanyun replied, “…Yes, yes.”

The Crown Prince could sometimes be as unreasonable as Master Kang when it came to protecting his own, truly a father-son relationship.

However, Yongshou Palace took this opportunity to engage in proper dealings with Yuqing Palace. After this matter, Cheng Wanyun received various rewards from the Empress Dowager, Kangxi, and Noble Concubine Niu.

Noble Concubine Niu even sent her senior eunuch to deliver the gifts, which showed how much she valued her.

Once the eunuch left after delivering a pile of valuable items, Cheng Wanyun remembered to mention to the Crown Prince, who was standing there, extremely critical as he picked up a makeup box to examine it, the matter of the charcoal cushion from the banquet that day.

Yinreng narrowed his eyes upon hearing this.

Was Noble Concubine Niu trying to use his influence? Why? The Niu family was already flourishing, their fortunes were high, and they had experienced the fall of the Ao Bai faction. They had maintained a respectful and cautious relationship with him, the heir apparent, so why was the consort suddenly acting so urgently?

Was it for the Tenth Prince? But the Tenth Prince was still too young to serve, and had not even opened his own residence yet. There was no need to start planning so early for him, especially since the future was uncertain.

Cheng Wanyun didn’t understand these matters, but as soon as he heard it, Yinreng realized that Noble Concubine Niu was too hasty. What was she worried about?

After leaving the back room, Yinreng summoned E Chu.

“You go to the Imperial Hospital quietly, and ask Doctor Qi to keep an eye on the pulse records of Yongshou Palace, to see if there’s anything unusual.”

“Yes!” E Chu was shocked. Doctor Qi was someone placed by Yuqing Palace, but the Crown Prince rarely called on him for anything important.

Yinreng said no more and dismissed E Chu.

He hoped it wasn’t as he feared. The situation in the harem was stable now, and he didn’t want anything to happen to Noble Concubine Niu. Without a crown prince in her line, she wouldn’t be biased in managing the harem, and her tacit support for Yuqing Palace was a good thing. But if something were to happen to Noble Concubine Niu, the power would shift entirely to the four concubines, and that could be disastrous.

The women of the Niu family didn’t seem to live long, and Empress Xiaozhao had passed away early…

Yinreng quietly made a note of this.

Since the hour was still early, he called E Chu to ask about the cow that might have contracted smallpox.

Ever since hearing that cowpox could possibly prevent smallpox, he had sent out his four trusted subordinates to find such a cow. He left the arrangements to E Chu.

Yinreng had not yet reported this to the Emperor. He planned to find the cow first and confirm the possibility before drafting a detailed memorial to the Emperor. Otherwise, relying on hearsay alone wouldn’t be enough to convince the Emperor.

Of course, if it turned out to be ineffective, there wouldn’t be any embarrassment.

Hearing the summons, E Chu hurriedly entered the palace, looking troubled, and kneeled to report, “Please punish this servant, Your Highness. I am useless. I couldn’t find a single cow in the capital that is currently afflicted with smallpox. I had previously found one, but it had already recovered, and all the pustules had fallen off, leaving only scars, so it couldn’t provide usable pustules for inoculation. I was considering sending people outside the city to search again, but I’m worried the journey is too far. Even if we find a sick cow, we can’t be sure it won’t die on the way. I have many concerns, and I beg Your Highness for guidance.”

E Chu was truly baffled by the Crown Prince’s sudden decision to find a cow with smallpox. He was already horrified by the disease, even though he had survived it himself.

But when the master gives an order, even if it means jumping into a sea of fire or climbing a mountain of blades, E Chu must obey. He sighed inwardly, hoping the smallpox cow would appear soon so that he could finish the task and stop worrying.

“It seems that obtaining cowpox is not easy at all,” Yinreng said, sipping his tea and placing the cup on the table. He furrowed his brows and continued, “What you said is correct. Continue searching in the outskirts of the capital, in the rural areas, and in Hebei. Don’t worry about the travel expenses, the cost of the cows, or the journey. I will allocate an additional five hundred taels of silver for you. Send more people to search beyond the borders. Apart from the smallpox cows, check if there are any smallpox-infected sheep or horses. As long as you can bring any infected livestock back to the capital, you will have accomplished a great task! You will also be rewarded when you return.”

E Chu quickly accepted the order and left.

Yinreng returned to his study and continued browsing through medical books. He had read numerous methods for preventing and treating smallpox in the past few days, but none of them were effective. There was no method that could completely cure smallpox.

The method of inoculation through human smallpox, which the Emperor had come up with, was already the best option. However, even he was unwilling to let E Linzhu risk her life with this method. According to the records in the Imperial Medical Bureau, about 30 to 40 percent of the executed prisoners who underwent the inoculation died. In other words, out of every 10 people, 3 would die due to the procedure.

If they could not find a suitable cowpox or if the cowpox proved ineffective, Yinreng was also unwilling to let E Linzhu risk her life trying this method. But across the entire world, there seemed to be no other alternatives!

Yinreng became more anxious, but he knew this wasn’t something that could be solved overnight. He stood up, trying to force himself not to dwell on it. He ordered a carriage to be prepared and decided to check on the progress of the repairs for the Fourth, Fifth, and Eighth Princes.

Although he had delegated most of the actual work to his brothers, Yinreng couldn’t afford to be a completely hands-off manager. If something went wrong with the repairs, he would be the one blamed.

The main issues with the Hall were the leaking roof tiles, the water mold growing on the walls, and the columns and gold-painted decorations being chipped and falling off. The flagstones inside and outside the hall had also been damaged.

He had assigned the Fourth Prince to handle the roof repairs, the Fifth Prince to take care of the mold and clean the roads, and the Eighth Prince to manage the gilding and repainting of the columns.

When he arrived, he found his three brothers sitting around a table in the workshop, looking at their respective blueprints with troubled expressions. The tea on the table had already gone cold, and no one had bothered to drink it.

“What’s going on?” Yinreng asked, entering without waiting for an announcement. “Is there some difficulty?”

The three of them quickly stood and greeted him. Yinzhen had already planned to go to Yuqing Palace to discuss strategies with the Crown Prince, but seeing his brother come over, he immediately spoke up: “Second Brother, before, the roof tiles of the Hall were only maintained regularly, but no one ever lifted them up to check. A few days ago, I had the workers lift the tiles, and it turned out that the beams underneath were all filthy and rotting. Fortunately, we found out in time, or the roof would have collapsed! The leak wasn’t due to the tiles, but because of the beams!”

The Fifth Prince, Yinqi, also stood up, his face pale. “Second Brother, underneath the flagstones, there are interconnected drains and channels. And guess what? When we were clearing the drains, we unearthed several broken pieces of white bones, and two or three skulls! Oh heavens… should we report this to the Ministry of Justice?”

When the bones were first unearthed, Yinqi was so terrified that his soul seemed to leave his body. He immediately turned and fled, shouting for his Fourth Brother to save him as he rushed into the main hall. In a single leap, he jumped straight onto Yinzhen, who had hurried out to see what was happening.

Yinti, on the other hand, was fine. The youngest of them all, he waited until his brothers had finished speaking before standing up and quietly saying, “Second Brother, the gold pieces sent by the Ministry of Works don’t seem to be of good quality…”

Great. Nothing was going smoothly. The Fourth Prince had discovered that all the wooden structures in the Crown Prince’s palace were in poor condition, meaning a major repair was needed, and they’d have to ask the Ministry of Finance for additional funds. Asking the Ministry for money was almost like pulling teeth. The Fifth Prince’s matter was even worse; a case had been involved, and now the Ministry of Justice had to be brought in. The Eighth Prince likely had a corruption issue on his hands.

Yinreng sat next to his brothers, almost sighing himself. “Forget it, these matters aren’t for us to decide. We’ll write a detailed memorial for Father to explain everything clearly. Who has a blank memorial? You all start writing now. Once it’s done, we’ll head to see Father right after lunch. We can’t delay this. Especially with Yinzhen’s roof—spring brings a lot of rain. We must begin repairs immediately to prevent the roof from collapsing.”

The brothers all nodded in agreement and quickly began to write their memorials.

Yinreng left them to it and went to the study to supervise the younger princes, who were still studying. He would correct their work. The princes still in the study were the Ninth, Tenth, Twelfth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Princes, along with the Mongolian little black dog, Harinauhai.

Thinking of Harinauhai reminded Yinreng of E Linzhu, and he couldn’t help but grind his teeth.

Once they dealt with Galdan, he planned to advise the Emperor to send that little black dog back to the grasslands. It shouldn’t keep staying in the palace. There were so many princesses; the eldest already had four children, so why was he so close to E Linzhu? (Yinreng conveniently forgot that his eldest brother had left the palace and established his own household, with his children living outside the palace.)

It wasn’t comfortable to have his prize cabbage eaten by a dog! If it weren’t for the dream, he would have thrown Harinauhai out of the palace already.

Just as Yinreng was thinking about this, Harinauhai got into trouble.

Yinreng, under the spring sunlight, had been in a fairly good mood. But before he could even reach the study, a damp book came flying toward him.

Instinctively, he tilted his head to dodge, and the book brushed his face before hitting the ground. He bent down to pick it up and saw that it was a copy of the ‘Analects’. The pages were stuck together and wet, ruined beyond recognition.

Then, he heard loud noises coming from the room. The teacher who was supposed to be supervising had disappeared, and Yinreng’s face darkened. He stormed inside and saw—wow! The princes were a sight. Some were standing on the table, others were tiptoeing to watch, some were cheering and egging them on, and some were secretly taking sides.

In the center of the group, the Thirteenth Prince, Yinxiang, and the black dog, Harinauhai, were locked in a fierce struggle, unable to separate.

The Thirteenth Prince, who was a year or two older than Harinauhai, had a natural talent for martial arts, whereas the little black dog was thin and weak compared to other Mongolian princes. Without defense, he had already been knocked to the ground by Yinxiang, who pinned him down with his elbow, pressing his face into the ground. Yinxiang shouted at him, “Do you give up? Do you give up?”

Harinauhai struggled desperately, his eyes fierce like a wolf cub. He clenched his teeth, refusing to admit defeat. Looking for an opening, he used his waist to powerfully push off with his legs and broke free from the Thirteenth Prince’s hold. Before Yinxiang could pounce on him, he swiftly got up, lifted a leg, and kicked the Thirteenth Prince hard, sending him flying.

“Ha… ha…” Harinauhai panted, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. Despite his young age, his gaze was as sharp and cold as a blade—he was a true wolf of the grasslands!

Yinreng’s gaze shifted to his brothers, who were still clapping and cheering. His anger boiled over, and he became even more furious—so many people ganging up to bully someone, using their size to overpower the smaller one! His brothers had certainly become quite bold!

Silently, Yinreng walked behind them, hands behind his back, his expression cold. Surprisingly, no one noticed his approach, but the palace eunuchs around them quickly dropped to their knees.

The eunuchs exchanged glances, wanting to alert their masters, but before they could speak, He Baozhong gave them a glare so sharp it could kill. They immediately lowered their heads and trembled in fear.

In their hearts, the eunuchs all sighed, ‘My Lord, may you find your own way out of this!’

At this moment, Yintao (Twelfth prince) and the Fourteenth Prince Yinsi were the most unruly, jumping on the table, shouting and waving their arms: “Thirteen! Thirteen! Don’t back down! Beat him! Go on, beat him!”

Egged on by his brothers, the Thirteenth Prince, feeling embarrassed, finally charged at Harinauhai, as though he had no choice but to fight.

Harinauhai wasn’t scared. His eyes were steady, lips tightly pressed together, and he lowered his body, preparing to wrestle. Yinreng was surprised. This kid had guts! Despite being at a disadvantage in both age and weight, he was planning to throw the oncoming Thirteenth Prince to the ground!

They couldn’t let this go on any longer! It was fine if they were just playing around, but now that things had escalated into real fighting, it had to stop.

Without hesitation, Yinreng marched up behind Yinsi and Yintao, took out his folding fan, and sharply hit both of them on their heads. With a cold voice, he demanded, “Who are you fighting?!”

“Which of you dare hit my head?! Who is it?”

Yinsi and Yintao quickly turned around in a panic. They both immediately lost their nerve, swiftly climbing down from the table and kneeling before Yinreng, both sporting awkward smiles. “Second Brother, you’re here?”

Yinreng grinned, cracking his knuckles, and took the horsewhip from He Baozhong’s hand, swinging it through the air with a sharp crack. “Have your manners and shame gone to the dogs? Crawl over here and kneel properly!”

While the Crown Prince was dealing with his brothers in the study, Cheng Wanyun had been comfortably sitting in a reclining chair, enjoying her rice rolls. But suddenly, without warning, she felt that familiar wet sensation, and when she looked down, it wasn’t her water breaking—it was bleeding.

She still had the presence of mind to feel a bit regretful: she had worn her new light lotus-colored outfit today, and now it was ruined!

She calmly finished her last bite of rice rolls, set the bowl down, and said, “Go fetch the midwife and have someone inform the Crown Prince—I’m going into labor.”

This time, with experience, Cheng Wanyun walked to the delivery room by herself, her belly swelling.