With Kangxi away from the palace and the Grand Empress Dowager spoiling them rotten, the two mischievous children were basically the monkey kings of the Monkey Mountain. Absolutely no one could keep them under control.

After Nalan Xingde was handed over to Yinreng, he had to report to Qianqing Palace every day to babysit.

The moment he came on duty today, he was faced with dreadful news.

"The Eldest Prince is going out of the palace, too? Did His Majesty approve this?" Nalan Xingde tried to refuse tactfully.

Yinreng held up a sign: "I approve!"

The Eldest Prince folded his arms. "The Grand Empress Dowager approves too."

Nalan Xingde: "...This minister will go find Cao Yin. Your Highnesses, please wait a moment."

Nalan Xingde was very reluctant to take the Eldest Prince out with them. Just handling the Crown Prince alone already gave him headaches so severe that he couldn't even indulge in his usual melancholy poetry anymore. Add on top of that the highly reputed Eldest Prince... Would the little braid at the back of his head survive intact?

He didn't want to become a monk, yet at this rate, he'd be forced into the monastery!

But what could he do?

The emperor wasn't here, and the Grand Empress Dowager indulged them. What else could he possibly do?

Nalan Xingde wanted to recite a poem or compose a verse to express his inner suffering, only to realize that after spending so much time with these little demons, his literary inspiration had temporarily dried up.

Nalan Xingde: Miserable.

Cao Yin was quite miserable too.

He glanced at his fellow sufferer and kindly warned, "Your highnesses, after leaving the palace, please don't run around recklessly. The streets are chaotic. If kidnappers abduct you..."

"Alright, alright, I know already. Stop nagging and let's go!" Yinzhī waved his sleeve impatiently.

It was already getting late. Once they left the palace, they'd eat lunch first, and after lunch, there wouldn't even be much time to play before they had to come back. Yet this man was still wasting time yammering endlessly!

Cao Yin's heart skipped a beat, and his chest started hurting a little.

The Eldest Prince really was difficult to deal with. He simply refused to listen to anyone. Cao Yin could only resolve to keep a constant eye on him.

He and Nalan Xingde exchanged a grief-stricken look.

Far away, Kangxi sneezed violently several times, seized by a bad premonition. Just as he turned to gaze in the direction of the capital, Yinreng and Yinzhī had already boarded the carriage leaving the palace.

They changed into the clothes of an ordinary wealthy household, and their first stop was the most famous restaurant in the city.

Yinzhī often played with Yinreng and their two younger brothers. To avoid accidentally bumping or hurting the little ones, he usually didn't wear jade pendants or jeweled ornaments.

Now that he was decked out like a human jewelry rack, he was extremely annoyed.

He tugged at the gold and gemstone peace lock hanging around his neck, adjusted the gold and jade belt at his waist, and yanked at the palace tassels dangling with gemstones and golden beads from his robes. His expression grew darker and darker.

"I hate wearing all this stuff."

Earlier, Yinreng had instinctively hugged him and was poked so badly by all the jewelry that red marks appeared on his face.

"Eldest Prince, dressing richly makes it safer to go out," Cao Yin advised. "If you dress too plainly, not only might kidnappers target you, but ignorant people might also accidentally offend you."

Yinzhī frowned deeply. "Who would offend me? Wouldn't that be perfect? I could help Imperial Father rectify public morals!"

Cao Yin: "..."

How was he supposed to respond to that?

"Big Brother, hold hands." Yinreng grabbed Yinzhī's hand. "It's okay. I'm a little jewelry person too. We're the Jewelry Brothers."

Yinzhī glanced at the jeweled forehead band and gem-studded hat on Yin's head, and his mood immediately brightened.

"Good. Sit closer to me. The carriage is bumpy, be careful not to fall."

"Mhm!" Yinreng obediently sat beside him. His little legs were too short to reach the carriage floor, so they swung back and forth with the rattling motion of the carriage.

Yinzhī couldn't sit still for long. After riding quietly for a while, he started scrutinizing and nitpicking Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin.

By now, he had already (against his will) read many books. Hearing people praise Nalan Xingde as the greatest literary talent of the Qing Dynasty, he wanted to test whether the man truly deserved the reputation.

Of course, with Yinzhī's current amount of knowledge, there was no way he could genuinely stump Nalan Xingde.

Still, Yinzhī nodded with reserved approval. "You're not bad. Better than Mingzhu."

Nalan Xingde: "..." He didn't even dare express his gratitude.

Yinreng reminded him, "Brother, don't insult someone's father in front of his son. He can't respond. If word of it got out, it would count as unfilial behavior."

Yinzhī immediately misunderstood and glared at Cao Yin.

"What?! Are you going to spread my words around? You want to snitch?!"

Cao Yin, caught in the crossfire for no reason: "???"

Nalan Xingde failed to suppress his laughter, causing his shoulders to tremble.

Cao Yin said helplessly, "No, no, I wouldn't. His Highness means that once we're outside, the Eldest Prince should be more careful about what you say. There are many ears in public places."

"Oh." Yinzhī answered coolly.

Cao Yin: "..."

The prince didn't even say anything else, but why was he still so infuriating?!

Cao Yin decided that he would no longer complain inwardly about the little Crown Prince. After meeting the Eldest Prince, he couldn't help but appreciate how obedient and sensible the Crown Prince was.

Seeing that Yinzhī didn't think much of Cao Yin, Yinreng squeezed his hand and said, "Big Brother, test Cao Ziqing too. Ziqing is very learned. His ancestors can be traced all the way back to the Cao family from the Three Kingdoms period."

"Really?" Yinzhī perked up with interest. "The Cao family of Cao Mengde, the one famous for 'liking other people's wives'?"

Cao Yin: "???"

Nalan Xingde: "???"

They had barely left the palace, yet the question marks over Cao Yin and Nalan Xingde's heads were practically enough to flood the carriage.

Who taught the Eldest Prince that line?! Surely not his tutors?!

Yinreng coughed awkwardly. "Uh... well... yes."

Sorry. I admit it. Sometimes, when telling stories to Big Brother, I let things slip.

The Eldest Prince asked curiously, "Cao Yin, do you also like other people's wives?"

Cao Yin: "I..."

Nalan Xingde's shoulders started shaking with laughter again.

Yinzhī spoke earnestly and solemnly, "Our Great Qing isn't that strict about such things, but if you really do like other people's wives, you should at least marry widows properly. Don't go around abducting married women by force. Cao Mengde sent soldiers off to war and then immediately had their mothers and wives taken away to bear children for other men. That's unacceptable."

Cao Yin forced a smile. "I don't like other people's wives. Truly, I don't."

Yinzhī sounded disappointed. "So you didn't inherit that part from Cao Mengde."

Cao Yin: "..."

What exactly was I supposed to inherit?! When normal people hear "the Cao family," shouldn't they think of literary talent first?!

Yinzhī continued, "Still... what's the use of benevolence? Liu Xuande was benevolent enough, wasn't he? In both Wei and Jin histories, he's the only ruler recorded as never massacring cities. Meanwhile, Cao Mengde committed countless atrocities. But what happened in later generations? Liu Xuande spent his whole life being virtuous, but people insisted that he must have been a hypocrite. Cao Mengde massacred cities and slept with other men's wives, even forcing women whose husbands were still alive to remarry repeatedly for the sake of population growth, switching husbands again after they gave birth..."

He paused and sighed.

"Calling Cao Mengde a ruthless hero is one thing. But now, people praise him for being genuine and unpretentious. As long as you succeed, countless people will speak well of you. The victors become kings, the losers villains. That's all it is. So in the end, methods don't matter. Winning is all that matters."

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin were astonished.

They assumed Yinzhī was merely an unruly child and didn't expect that he would have such insightful views. 

Yinreng felt smug.

That's right! I'm the one teaching Big Brother!

I don't want to be Crown Prince anymore. I'm switching careers to become a royal tutor!

What transmigrated youth doesn't have lofty ambitions? Changing the future starts with educating children!

"What Yinzhī says is absolutely true," Nalan Xingde agreed. "If Cao Mengde failed, his crimes would probably have been reviled for ten thousand generations. It's precisely because he succeeded that those stains became insignificant blemishes on the road to greatness."

Cao Yin rubbed his nose.

Since every Cao family in the world could probably trace themselves back to one clan several hundred years ago, he wisely chose not to comment.

Yinzhī asked again, "And the current Great Qing is the same. In your opinions..."

"Ahem." Yinreng interrupted with a crisp cough. "Brother, don't ask them that. Questions like this should be left for Imperial Father to think about."

Yinzhī nodded. "True enough. If we already think through everything ourselves, what's left for Imperial Father to do?"

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin discreetly wiped away the cold sweat on their foreheads.

Though they had no idea what Yinzhī was about to ask, both felt like they had narrowly escaped disaster.

Cao Yin hurriedly changed the subject, talking about delicious food and entertaining sights outside the palace to divert Yinzhī's attention.

Unfortunately, Yinzhī gave him no face whatsoever.

Everything Cao Yin described sounded far less interesting than the stories told by his little Crown Prince brother.

And since his brother had told him to test Cao Yin, he fully intended to do so.

So Yinzhī continued acting as examiner while Cao Yin answered helplessly.

Although Cao Yin was still too young to be considered truly encyclopedic, among people his age, he was already exceptional.

Yinzhī was highly satisfied with the results and officially upgraded his form of address to "Cao Ziqing."

He even reminded him, "Ziqing, are you really sure you don't like other people's wives?"

Cao Yin: "...No! Absolutely not!"

He was genuinely worried that with Yinzhī's loose tongue blabbing nonsense everywhere, his reputation would be ruined.

Nalan Xingde was busy enjoying Cao Yin's misery when Yinzhī suddenly turned his gaze toward him.

Sensing danger, Nalan Xingde immediately straightened up.

Yinzhī asked, "Nalan Xingde, was your poem 'If Life Could Remain as When We First Met' really not written for a woman in the palace? I've even heard rumors it was written for my mother."

Nalan Xingde nearly performed a live carriage jump on the spot.

"That's nonsense! Who said that?!"

I'm going to beat them to death! How can people spread rumors like that?!

Yinzhī replied, "Imperial Father did. When he was telling Mother this amusing story, he jokingly named every woman connected to the Nara clan, including my mother."

Nalan Xingde: "...There's no such thing. That poem was truly written for a friend."

"Oh. Then next time, bring that fellow named uhh..." Yinzhī looked at Yinreng.

"Gu Zhenguan," Yinreng filled in.

"Yes, him. Bring him next time too. I want to test him. Even I think that poem is good, but it still wasn't written for my mother."

Nalan Xingde was practically speechless.

Cao Yin asked curiously, "Wouldn't rumors like that damage Her Highness's reputation?"

"How would that be damaging? It's great." Yinzhī looked perfectly matter-of-fact. "Nalan Xingde admiring my mother has nothing to do with the fact that she entered the palace long ago. It only proves that my mother has an excellent reputation. Imperial Father doesn't mind at all."

Yinreng: "..."

Actually, it was precisely because there was nothing between them that Father could joke about it so casually with Consort Hui...

Nalan Xingde: "..." Just kill me already.

Cao Yin: "..." Compared to Rongruo, my reputation doesn't seem to have suffered as much damage.

People often find comfort in comparison.

Fortunately, Yinreng was quick-witted enough to rein in Yinzhī's runaway train of thought in time.

He didn't expect that his brother's curiosity would head in such bizarre directions.

If Imperial Father and Consort Hui ever heard about this conversation, Big Brother's backside would definitely bloom with bruises.

And this time, no amount of copying punishment texts would save him.

Still, Yinreng also didn't expect that while he himself occasionally let things slip, Imperial Father apparently did too.

The emperor actually gossiped about Nalan Xingde with Consort Hui, and even let his son listen in? As a father, he truly was unreliable.

Probably because he had heard so many stories, Yinzhī was now especially fascinated by gossip.

Since Yinreng wouldn't let him continue tormenting Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin, he started asking about gossip involving other people in the capital.

Especially household and harem gossip. That was the most entertaining.

Apparently, one could judge a person's true character by observing their inner household. No matter how glamorous they seemed outside, if their household was a mess, then they were definitely no good.

Nalan Xingde breathed a sigh of relief.

His father and mother were deeply devoted to each other, and their household was unusually peaceful among the capital's nobility. No gossip was going to land on his family this time.

Cao Yin relaxed too.

The Cao family lived far from the capital, so the gossip had nothing to do with them either.

Neither of them knew much about the domestic affairs of the capital's powerful families, nor had they ever cared to learn.

Since Yinzhī was curious, they could only talk about marriage alliances among the nobility.

And when they mentioned that the Tong clan and the Heseri clan were considering a marriage alliance as well, Yinreng, who had been getting sleepy from all the gossip, felt his eyelids twitch sharply.

"The Heseri clan?" Yinreng looked toward Cao Yin, who had brought it up.

Cao Yin immediately clarified, "Just a branch family of the Heseris."

Though branch family was a relative term, it wasn't so distant that they would be unworthy of Longkodo, the younger brother of Noble Consort Tong.

Among the Heseri clan, the only branch capable of marrying into the current Tongjia clan was the line descended from Sonin.

The Heseri woman destined to marry Longkodo was the unfortunate principal wife who, in later generations, would be described as having been treated like a human swine.

The moment Yinreng remembered this matter, darkness churned inside his heart.

People all said it was the result Li Si'er's cruelty, but any sensible person would know that a woman confined to the inner household could never truly dictate Longkodo's actions.

Li Si'er's evil merely followed Longkodo's preferences, carrying out the things he himself didn't dare to openly do.

Even the deposed Crown Prince under house arrest had heard of Lady Heseri's suffering.

How could he not know?

Just like Narsu barging into the Heseri household and whipping their servants after Songgotu's downfall, Longkodo's killing of his principal wife was likewise political in nature.

But that Heseri woman understood everything clearly and still refused to die.

She gritted her teeth and kept living. No matter the humiliation, she endured it, living long enough for everyone to witness her miserable condition and use her suffering to impeach Longkodo.

She couldn't commit suicide. She had to die at the hands of Longkodo and Li Si'er.

Yongzheng later executed Longkodo for political reasons as well. But once Longkodo fell, everyone pushed him down further. Many officials unrelated to him demanded his death, and among the charges they cited was precisely treating his principal wife like a human swine.

Lady Heseri's son, Yuexing'a, was also spared in the Longkodo case because of this charge against his father.

That wise woman had already foreseen Longkodo's downfall while he was still at the height of his glory, and she used everything she had to take revenge on her husband and protect her son.

"Little Brother, what's wrong? Do you dislike that Heseri girl who's getting married? Or Longkodo? Tell Big Brother, I'll beat them up for you!" Feeling Yinreng's hand tighten around his own, Yinzhī immediately spoke up.

Yinreng shook his head. "I'm fine. It's nothing. It has nothing to do with them. Big Brother, I suddenly remembered that Grandfather is seriously ill. Will you go visit him with me?"

Yinzhī's eyes widened. "What? Songgotu's going to die?!"

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin clutched their chests at the same time.

"Not Songgotu. He's my grand-uncle," Yinreng explained. "I mean my actual maternal grandfather, Gabula."

Yinzhī looked puzzled. "How come I've never heard this person's name before?"

"Grandfather has been frail and sickly since childhood," Yinreng said. "Although he holds an official rank, he spends most of his time recuperating at home."

Yinreng's maternal grandfather was Heseri Gabula, Sonin's eldest son.

Gabula had been weak and chronically ill since birth, so the political resources of the Heseri clan had been entrusted to his younger brother Songgotu. As a result, Songgotu's branch became the clan's main line.

Because Gabula accomplished little throughout his life, later generations often assumed that he lacked talent.

Yet Gabula's son Changtai possessed exceptional military ability. He improved modern firearm formations and excelled at drawing battle formations and maps.

Changtai was personally raised by Gabula as the heir of the main branch. Considering Changtai's abilities, it seemed unlikely that Gabula would have been foolish. It was simply that his health prevented him from pursuing his ambitions, forcing him to place his hopes in his son instead.

Yinreng suddenly thought of the Shunzhi Emperor.

He lightly tapped his own forehead, shocked at how much he was affected by the dark emotions in his heart.

Really, after telling lies too often, even he started believing them himself. Just moments ago, he was actually lamenting that Emperor Shunzhi was also an ambitious man trapped by poor health, pitifully reduced to firing up his son and grandson with motivational speeches.

"If you want to go, then let's go," Yinzhī said. "Still, it's strange. He's your real grandfather, yet he doesn't seem close to you at all. Songgotu jumps around so actively every day that I thought he was your grandfather."

Yinreng smiled. "He's in poor health."

"What does poor health have to do with it?" Yinzhī scrunched up his little face in thought. "Could it be... he's deliberately keeping a low profile? My mother always says she doesn't mind her natal family lacking talent, as long as they stay low-key and don't cause trouble."

Yinreng continued smiling. "Who knows? But it definitely can't be because he dislikes me."

Yinzhī rubbed his little brother's chubby cheeks. "Little Brother is the best. Nobody could dislike you. Anyone who dislikes you is a bad person. I'll beat them up for you!"

Yinreng nodded vigorously. "Okay!"

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin wished they could curl themselves into tiny balls.

They absolutely did not want to hear the affairs of the Heseri family!

In feudal society, hierarchy was strict. As imperial princes, the Eldest Prince and the Crown Prince had no reason to care about the feelings of two pitiful bodyguards.

Yinzhī immediately made the decision: forget the restaurant. Since Crown Prince Brother wanted to visit his grandfather, then they'd eat at his grandfather's house!

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin tried to tactfully persuade him otherwise.

"If the Eldest Prince and Crown Prince suddenly visit, they may not be properly prepared."

Yinzhī waved dismissively. "It's fine! Whatever they eat, I'll eat too. Surely the family of Empress Renxiao can't possibly have bad food?"

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin had no idea what to do anymore.

They could only place their hopes on the Crown Prince, who seemed extremely sensible in comparison to Yinzhī.

But Yinreng merely smiled sweetly and said, "If Grandfather's house doesn't have good food, we'll complain to Imperial Father that Grandfather deliberately starved us!"

"Exactly!" Yinzhī agreed immediately.

Then Yinreng added, "Tomorrow, we should leave the palace again and visit Big Brother's maternal family too, okay?"

Consort Hui's father was Solho, a seventh-rank treasury official of the Imperial Household Department and a bondservant of the Plain Yellow Banner.

Later generations mistakenly confused this Solho with another man of the same name, a grandson of the Yehe Nara leader Gintaisi, and thus assumed that Consort Hui came from a prestigious background.

In reality, the Yehe Nara Solho currently served as Vice Minister of Rites and held the hereditary title of first-class baron. But Consort Hui's father, Solho, was recorded in the imperial genealogy of the 15th year of the Kangxi reign as a mere seventh-rank treasury official who only later rose to a fifth-rank official. He could only be the Solho of the Ula-Nara clan, a great-grandson of Taifeika.

Consort Hui's natal family was not well-off, which was why they sought closeness with the Yehe Nara branch and secretly aligned themselves with Mingzhu.

Yinzhī frowned. "My mother's natal family isn't doing well."

"If they're not doing well, we'll go beat them up too, so they won't cause trouble for Consort Hui," Yinreng encouraged. "As for food, surely they can spare enough for two children? We don't even eat much."

Yinzhī's expression brightened. "Little Brother is right! Today we visit your grandfather's family, tomorrow mine. Ah, Third Brother is still too young to be brought outside. Otherwise, we could visit his maternal family the day after tomorrow."

Yinreng said, "We can ask Consort Rong. If she agrees, we'll bring Third Brother along. Third Brother can already talk and run around now, so he's old enough to leave the palace."

Yinzhī nodded enthusiastically. "Little Brother is right! That's what we'll do."

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin made one final desperate attempt.

"Eldest Prince..."

Yinzhī domineeringly waved his sleeve again. "My mind is made up! If anything happens, I'll take responsibility!"

Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin wanted to roar.

Can you even handle the responsibility?!

Yinreng smiled cheerfully. "Once we return to the palace, Big Brother and I will explain everything to the Grand Empress Dowager together. Rongruo and Ziqing don't need to worry."

Only then did Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Fine, fine. If the Grand Empress Dowager approved, then they had no objections.

Both of them selectively forgot that today's sudden outing of the Crown Prince and Eldest Prince didn't actually receive the Grand Empress Dowager's approval either.

Thus, the carriage rattled leisurely toward the residence of First-Class Duke Gabula.

Songgotu's Heseri residence bustled with visitors every day, but the residence of First-Class Duke Gabula, the father of Empress Renxiao and the Crown Prince's actual maternal grandfather, was deserted by comparison.

When the plain-looking carriage arrived outside the ducal manor, the gatekeeper servants were dozing off.

The moment they heard that Imperial Bodyguards Nalan Xingde and Cao Yin had come to visit, they were so startled they nearly rolled on the ground.

Their household had always been cold and quiet. Why would imperial bodyguards visit their master instead of Grand Secretary Songgotu?

The gate servants immediately sent someone inside to report the matter while respectfully opening the side gate to admit the carriage.

Gabula was drinking medicine when he received the report. He sprayed out a mouthful instantly.

"Open the main gate at once! No, the side gate, just the side gate."

Supporting himself on the arm of his eldest son Changtai, who was attending him during his illness, Gabula said, "Help me up. I need to change clothes."

Changtai asked in confusion, "Could it be that His Majesty has sent an oral decree through the imperial guards?"

Gabula coughed several times. "If only it were that simple... Open the windows and air out the smell of medicine. No, forget it, we're changing rooms. Quickly!"

"Father," Changtai said, "whoever has come to visit knows you're ill. They won't mind."

Gabula replied faintly, "They may not mind, but I do."

Changtai froze, then his body trembled slightly.

"C-Could it be...?"

Gabula said, "Two days ago, Songgotu mentioned that the emperor assigned Mingzhu's son to serve as the Crown Prince's guard."

Changtai muttered blankly, "The... the Crown Prince? Why would the Crown Prince come here? Shouldn't he go to Uncle's residence instead?"

They had done everything possible to downplay their relationship with the Crown Prince. They didn't even inform him that Gabula was gravely ill.

"We'll know once we see him." Gabula wiped his eyes.

His beloved daughter died in the prime of her life. How could he not long to see the grandson who was said to resemble her so closely?

But one Songgotu in court was enough. The Heseri clan could not afford to have two branches acting as the Crown Prince's maternal relatives.

If their power became too overwhelming, disaster would surely follow.