Kangxi reviewed the signed confession in his hands while Head Eunuch Liang Jiugong delivered the final report. The chain of causality was finally clear, revealing a tragic cascade of human error and desperate self-preservation.
"Chunying did purchase the Freesia extract through the guard Li Ping, but only *after* the Princess had died," Liang stated carefully. "Under interrogation, she broke and outlined the entire sequence."
The logic of the disaster unfolded with grim precision:
Days ago, Chunying visited the Internal Affairs Department to collect supplies. During her visit, she was shown a new batch of unreleased, lightly scented powders. Unbeknownst to her, ambient Freesia dust in the storage room clung to her clothing. She returned to Chengqian Palace, unknowingly bringing the lethal allergen directly into the sterile environment.
When the infant Princess died, Chunying was initially oblivious to her role. However, upon noticing Consort Tongjia developing an allergic rash—a symptom identical to her childhood Freesia allergy—Chunying connected the variables.
Chunying's Deduction: She was the vector. If this accidental contamination were discovered, her execution was a certainty. Furthermore, Tongjia's rash would eventually spread, leading the Consort to the same conclusion.
"To ensure her survival, Chunying engineered a frame-up," Liang concluded. "She procured the Freesia extract through Li Ping and planted it on the wet nurse, Bushunda. Her objective was simply to shift the blame to a disposable servant. She did not anticipate that Bushunda's random interaction with Consort De would drag a high-ranking concubine into the crossfire, escalating the situation beyond her control."
The truth was devoid of a grand conspiracy. It was merely a lethal accident compounded by a maid's panicked attempt to survive.
Kangxi smashed his fist onto the table, sending the confession scattering. A single maid's negligence had killed his daughter, and her cowardly cover-up had driven an innocent Consort De to attempt suicide.
"Has Consort Tongjia been informed?" Kangxi demanded, his voice dangerously low.
"No, Your Majesty. As Chunying is her head maid, I maintained strict information control," Liang replied.
Before Kangxi could issue his next order, a eunuch sprinted to the threshold. "Your Majesty! Consort Tongjia is in critical condition!"
***
The Biological Cost
Kangxi arrived at Chengqian Palace to find Tongjia unrecognizable. In less than twenty-four hours, the psychological shock of her daughter's death and the sudden arrest of her most trusted confidante had triggered a severe physical collapse.
"Report," Kangxi ordered the kneeling physicians.
"Severe postpartum hemorrhage," the Head Physician stated grimly. "Her Ladyship's constitution was already severely depleted from the difficult birth. The compounded emotional trauma has shattered her physical stability. We are losing her."
Kangxi's expression hardened. "Fix it."
The Head Physician hesitated. "Standard medicine is failing. We must utilize immediate acupuncture to stabilize her vitals. However, the requisite acupoints require disrobing her."
Imperial protocol dictated that no male subject could view a Consort's bare skin. It was an absolute systemic rule.
"Summon the eldest daughter of the Liu family," Kangxi ordered, bypassing the bottleneck with clinical efficiency. "She is trained in acupuncture. She will perform the physical insertion while you dictate the coordinates from behind a privacy screen."
The emergency procedure consumed two grueling hours. Finally, the physicians emerged, their expressions exhausted but relieved.
"The hemorrhaging is contained. Her vitals are stabilizing," the Head Physician reported. "However, Your Majesty, there is irreversible systemic damage. Her Ladyship will never conceive again."
Kangxi processed the information in silence. A biological dead end. He had hoped for another child to bridge his bond with Tongjia, but her survival took priority. He issued a strict gag order. "She is not to know of her infertility. Lock down the information."
***
The Anatomy of a Sacrifice
When Tongjia finally awakened, her voice was a fragile whisper. "Chunying... did she..."
Kangxi sat beside her, gently relaying Liang Jiugong's findings. He explained Chunying's accidental contamination and her subsequent frame-up, framing it as a tragic betrayal of Tongjia's trust.
Tongjia stared blankly at the canopy, tears slipping down her pale cheeks. Outwardly, she appeared to be a grieving mother mourning a servant's betrayal. Inwardly, her mind was operating with brutal clarity.
Tongjia's Internal Analysis: Chunying had executed a flawless tactical sacrifice. By confessing to accidental contamination and a subsequent panic-induced frame-up, Chunying had provided a perfectly logical, self-contained narrative. An accident required no prior motive. This effectively severed any investigative link to Tongjia's original, intentional murder plot against the infant. Chunying had chosen to die in a way that guaranteed her master's absolute immunity.
"She has failed your kindness," Kangxi sighed, misinterpreting her silence. "I will not spare her for this. But if you wish to dictate her execution method, I will allow it."
Tongjia suppressed the surge of grief for her most loyal asset. She had to maintain the facade of a betrayed superior.
"No," Tongjia whispered softly. "I do not wish to see her. Just... please leave her corpse intact. Let that be the final end to our shared history."
It was the most pragmatic request she could make. Pushing for a harsher punishment would seem forced; asking for a complete corpse was a subtle acknowledgment of their past bond that Kangxi would find emotionally reasonable.
***
The Predator's Assessment
In Yonghe Palace, Consort De calmly snipped the burnt wick of her candle. Her maid, Yuchan, stood nearby, visibly frustrated by the day's intelligence.
"Consort Tongjia sacrificed her maid and successfully detached herself from the fallout," Yuchan noted bitterly. "She survived the medical crisis, and now the Emperor pities her. Our maneuver with the guard Li Ping barely scratched her."
Consort De smiled, a cold, calculating expression. "You are looking at the immediate surface, Yuchan, not the strategic exchange."
Yuchan frowned in confusion.
"Tongjia survived, yes. But look at what she lost," De analyzed sharply. "In this palace, power requires capable agents. Who in Chengqian Palace possessed Chunying's operational competence? No one. Chunying was her tactician, her enforcer, and her shield. Tongjia has lost her right arm. Her operational capacity is crippled."
De set the scissors down. "Furthermore, the Emperor's pity is a depreciating asset. With her reproductive system destroyed, she can never produce an heir. In the harem, a barren woman without a competent inner circle is a ship without a rudder. She has lost her foundation."
De felt no remorse. For years, she had maintained a passive, stoic template, absorbing Tongjia's covert aggressions. But when Tongjia began repeatedly targeting De's biological son, Yinzhen, utilizing him as a pawn, the parameters of their conflict changed. De's calculated suicide attempt had not just been self-preservation; it was a calibrated counter-strike designed to force Kangxi's hand and dismantle Tongjia's power base.
***
Consolidating Leverage
With Tongjia bedridden and physically broken, a power vacuum emerged. Kangxi efficiently redistributed the administrative duties of the harem, temporarily granting authority to Consort De, Hui, and Rong.
During a rare moment of respite, Kangxi visited Yonghe Palace.
"I wronged you," Kangxi admitted, sipping the restorative broth De had prepared. "Tongjia's grief blinded her, leading to your false accusation."
"I hold no resentment, Your Majesty," De replied smoothly, deploying her practiced humility. "As a mother, I understand the madness of losing a child. My heart only breaks for Her Ladyship."
Her absolute lack of vindictiveness cemented Kangxi's guilt. By refusing to attack a weakened rival, she secured her position on the moral high ground.
"Since you entrusted me with reviewing the palace personnel rosters," De continued, seamlessly transitioning to administration, "I noticed a severe redundancy in the outer courtyards. We have hundreds of aging, idle servants draining resources."
De looked at Kangxi, her expression softening into engineered empathy. "I wish to propose a mass dismissal. We release the elderly and the homesick back to their families. We can dedicate this act of mercy to the late Princess, generating karmic merit for her soul. Perhaps this accumulated goodwill will guide her safely into her next life."
The proposal was a masterstroke of systemic manipulation.
Kangxi, desperate to alleviate his own guilt regarding his daughter's death, immediately agreed. "A compassionate and efficient proposal. Show me the roster."
De handed him the finalized list. It was populated with obscure, low-ranking names. However, buried in the middle were two specific entries: 'Ilha' and 'Tana'.
Kangxi's eyes caught the names. "These two... they were the Princess's surviving wet nurses."
"Yes," De confirmed calmly. "They were dragged into the Internal Affairs prison, tortured, and subsequently abandoned once Chunying's guilt was established. They failed in their duties, but they were innocent of malice. If we are to generate true karmic merit, ending their suffering and releasing them from the palace seems appropriate. Sparing them prevents further unnecessary bloodshed in the Princess's name."
Kangxi processed the logic. Leaving them to rot in prison served no purpose now that the truth was known. Releasing them under a general amnesty of mercy was politically clean.
"Approve it," Kangxi decided. "You have handled this with remarkable grace."
"The grace stems from Your Majesty's benevolence," De deferred flawlessly.
As she put the roster away, securing the lives of the innocent wet nurses without raising a fraction of suspicion, De smoothly redirected the narrative.
"We must look to the future, Your Majesty. Consort Yi is nearing her term. The palace needs the joy of a new prince."
Kangxi's attention shifted immediately from the tragedy of Chengqian Palace to the impending birth at Yikun Palace. De lowered her eyes, masking a victorious smile. Tongjia thought she could monopolize the Emperor's attention through tragedy and illness. It was a flawed hypothesis. In the empire of the harem, efficiency, utility, and new life would always overwrite the dead.