Concubine of the Eastern Palace (Qing Dynasty Time Travel)

Liang Jiugong was now old, his braid thin and streaked with white, and his face deeply etched with wrinkles. He had served by Kangxi’s side for decades. Upon hearing the command, he hurried forward. Seeing the deposed Crown Prince’s lips and face blackened from the cold, he couldn’t help but feel pity—this was the Crown Prince he had once carried on his back every day, the same one he had watched grow up, now reduced to this state. Liang Jiugong’s tears streamed down as he supported him, crying out softly, “Crown Prince… Second Master, please go back! Come back with this servant! How could it have come to this, Second Master, how could it have come to this!”

The deposed Crown Prince remained motionless. He turned his head slightly to look at the now stooped Liang Jiugong, and softly said, “Eunuch Liang, thank you, but I have nothing left now, except for Side Concubine Cheng…”

Snowflakes swirled around them. He dropped the broken arrow in his hand and, leaving a trail of blood with each step, walked ten paces toward Kangxi—he couldn’t go any further. Longkodo and the surrounding personal guards had drawn their swords, and the cold gleam of the blades cut through the air. They all positioned themselves in front of Kangxi.

It turns out that the Emperor really did consider him a traitor and a rebel, preparing to deal with him as such? The deposed Crown Prince couldn’t help but laugh aloud at the sky, then quickly raised his robes and knelt in the painfully cold snow, kowtowing deeply toward Kangxi. “Father.”

He didn’t call him Emperor, but that made Kangxi’s heart even more complex. In this moment, there were no rulers and subjects, only father and son… was that it?

“You’ve caused all this today just for that Han woman, Side Concubine Cheng?” Kangxi’s face grew darker, and his expression became increasingly unfavorable. “A woman who sows such discord in people’s hearts should be executed!”

“You are wrong, Father.” The deposed Crown Prince raised his eyes, now burning red from fever. “Without her, I would have died long ago.”

He had been suppressed by excessive fatherly love and twisted imperial favor for so many years. Now that he had lost everything, he finally dared to break free from all the shackles and chains, deciding to tear open his chest and show Kangxi the lonely, hopeless heart inside.

“Father.”

“If you kill her, it will be like killing me all over again.”

“You probably don’t know, but for a long time, I envied Ninth Brother for being able to act spoiled in front of you, I envied Tenth Brother for being able to joke around with you, I envied Fourteenth Brother for running straight to Yonghe Palace when he made mistakes, and I especially envied them for having mothers who would protect them with their lives.”

Snow silently fell, rustling as it landed on the heads and hats of those present. No one dared speak, and in the midst of the wind and snow, only the deposed Crown Prince’s voice, seemingly frozen by the ice and snow, could be heard.

“I could never do those things. I am the Crown Prince. I must hold myself upright, be a model for others. Since I was six, when I entered the study hall, you rarely held me anymore. When you named the Sixth Brother, who died young, ‘Yinzuo,’ and carried him to court, I stood at the side, each time Eunuch Liang couldn’t bear it and would carry me back to Yuqing Palace.”

“Let’s not talk about these old matters… You thought I had everything, but I felt nothing but loneliness. From beginning to end, I only had Cheng Wanyun. It’s laughable, really. She’s a woman with no great qualities, and the most she ever asks is whether you’re happy today, whether you’re too hot or too cold. Sometimes, when she’s lazy, she’ll even playfully keep you in bed, refusing to get up. She knows nothing of poetry or Buddhist scriptures, her writing is terrible. But she’s like a light in my heart because she’s the only living person in this palace.”

“Only she didn’t treat me as the Crown Prince, but as a human.”

“And only with her by my side did I feel like a person.”

The deposed Crown Prince bowed deeply, his forehead on the ground. He was no longer the Crown Prince, stripped of everything but a life barely hanging on. So, he cast aside his life and future, only wishing to keep the one he loved alive, even if it meant defying his harsh father.

“All the blame is mine, and mine alone. It has nothing to do with anyone else. Please, Father, for Hongxi’s sake, spare her.”

Why only mention Hongxi? Because E Linzhu was already gone… As a guest from the dream, Yinreng, seeing everything unfold, almost wanted to rush over and drag the now-ailing deposed Crown Prince off the ground. He cried out in anguish: “Stop kneeling! Don’t beg! If it comes to it, we’ll die together!”

No one could hear his voice, just as no one could see his figure. This was the wind of the past, the snow of the past, and his own dying struggle, a struggle too weak to reverse his fate.

But before he could touch the bloodstained sleeve, his entire body was swept up by the wind, and in the blink of an eye, he found himself in the official quarters of the Zongrenfu, a place specifically used for punishing guilty members of the imperial family and their offending wives.

The dimly lit room had no windows, and Yinreng fell onto the moldy, rotting straw. It took a long while for his eyes to adjust to the dark, and as he propped himself up, he looked around. The room felt as cold as an ice cellar, and there wasn’t even a brazier to warm it.

In the corner, he saw a frail silhouette. She was wrapped in an old quilt, so tattered that the cotton stuffing was exposed. She hugged her knees tightly, curling herself into a ball, yet she still trembled with the cold. Her head was buried in her arms, making it impossible to see her face, but the figure, shrouded in darkness and the cold winter, appeared increasingly lonely and desolate.

Yinreng stared at her in a daze, his legs feeling as heavy as lead, almost unable to bear walking over to her. The way she curled up tightly seemed to suggest a pain so unbearable it might break her.

“A Wan…” He tried to speak, but his voice caught in his throat, and in the end, no sound came out.

At that moment, the heavy sound of footsteps came from the corridor outside. The sound of keys jingled, and the heavy door lock was undone layer by layer. The long-awaited light seeped in, casting the flickering light of a candle. In that moment, a harsh-looking woman stood in the doorway, holding a bundle of paper and a pen. Her voice was gruff: “Side Concubine Cheng, His Majesty has issued an order. He asks you to recall whether the deposed Crown Prince committed any acts of rebellion while at Yuqing Palace. The Emperor, in his great mercy, has said that if you write down the deposed Crown Prince’s many crimes, he will spare your life.”

The figure slowly lifted her head.

“Crimes?” Side Concubine Cheng’s face, so thin that it seemed to be hollowed out, held eyes that gleamed like two burning flames. It seemed that she had made up her mind, and she smiled with the corner of her mouth: “Fine, I’ll write.”

The woman then ordered someone to bring a candle, set up a small table, and threw the paper and pen on top. Snorting from her nose, she said, “You’re sensible. Hurry up and write! I’ll come back for it later! If you don’t, you’ll regret it!”

She locked the door again, and once the woman had left, the dreamlike figure of Side Concubine Cheng appeared surprisingly calm. She slowly walked to the table. Yinreng saw her thin, bony wrist swinging under her sleeve, and a pang of sorrow pierced his heart.

A Wan had become so thin.

How much had she suffered?

The dreamlike figure of Cheng Wanyun walked up to the small table. There was no cushion, no stool; she knelt directly on the cold ground. Looking down, she picked up the pen and, without hesitation, dipped it into ink and wrote a sentence that shocked Yinreng greatly:

“Criminal woman Side Concubine Cheng kneels before the Emperor.”

“Let me list the Crown Prince’s crimes, all of which are false accusations and slander! I beg His Majesty not to listen to the malicious words of these people, and I weep and pray that His Majesty will make a fair judgment and reopen the case of the deposed Crown Prince!”

“First, on the journey to the siege, the Eldest Prince accused the Crown Prince of spying on His Majesty with ill intentions, claiming that the Crown Prince approached the cracks of the Bu City every night, peering inside to conspire against His Majesty. This is a false accusation! I implore His Majesty to see clearly. The Crown Prince has been the heir for nearly forty years, and he has always remembered His Majesty’s teachings, and he has never had any disloyal thoughts! That day, the Crown Prince was misunderstood by His Majesty and rebuked multiple times, causing him great pain. No one was there to mediate the situation, and the Crown Prince only hoped to reconcile with His Majesty and express his feelings, which is why he wandered outside the Emperor’s tent. He never spied on His Majesty, let alone plotted rebellion. There were hundreds of guards outside the tent, with nearly half of them controlled by E’Luntai, the brother-in-law of the Eighth Consort. The other half was under the control of Long Kedo, who was also from the Tong family. How could the Crown Prince have bypassed these layers of protection to spy on His Majesty’s tent?”

Second, the Eighteenth Prince was seriously ill, and the Ninth and Fourteenth Princes reported that the Crown Prince had been drinking and indulging in pleasure within his tent… This matter had its reasons. During the time when the Eighteenth Prince was gravely ill, the Crown Prince’s two children—Third Prince and Fourth Princess—died in infancy before reaching a hundred days old. The two children had been frail from birth and didn’t live even a full day, dying in the Crown Prince’s arms! When the Eighteenth Prince was on his deathbed, the Crown Prince, unable to bear the sight of his younger brother’s passing, hid in his tent drinking. It wasn’t for pleasure, but because the death of his two children had stirred painful memories, and he turned to drink to drown his sorrow, not out of disrespect for his younger brother!

Third, the Eldest Prince and the Eighth Prince, among others, accused the Crown Prince of being violent and unkind, abusing his power to strike the royal family and officials. They called for the Emperor’s judgment. This matter was also related to the deaths of the Third Prince and the Fourth Princess. At the time, the Crown Prince was in immense grief, yet he overheard E’Luntai, drunk, discussing how “the children born during the celestial alignment of the comets, even if they hadn’t died, were still stars of misfortune, unlucky.” Enraged, the Crown Prince had struck E’Luntai and the grandson of Prince Yuchen, Guangshan, who had been drinking with him.

As she wrote, tears fell onto the paper. Side Concubine Cheng’s hand trembled as she held the pen.

“I, the guilty woman, know my sins are deep, and I dare not ask for the Emperor’s pardon. I only ask that His Majesty not take his anger out on Hongxi. Hongxi has been graciously allowed by His Majesty to reside in Qianqing Palace to listen to the Emperor’s teachings and has no fault…”

The Third Prince and Fourth Princess…

The comets’ alignment… the stars of misfortune…

Dying before a hundred days… Hongxi residing in Qianqing Palace…

Each word on the paper made Yinreng dizzy.

No wonder… no wonder!

It turns out that at this time, after losing E Linzhu, Cheng Wanyun had not even been able to enjoy the company of Hongxi at her side. Instead, he had been taken by Kangxi to stay in Qianqing Palace, far away from her, mother and son separated… That’s why she was writing these words here—this was a desperate act.

She… no longer wanted to live.

The desk in front of her was filled with the paper meant for her to write down charges that could bring about his death, yet she wrote only words defending him. Yinreng felt the pain of it, unable to bear it.

After taking several deep breaths, Yinreng focused on the paper again. Cheng Wanyun had taken a fresh sheet, paused for a long time, and slowly began to write the final farewell message meant only for him.

She was still the same, as if she had never changed since they first met, nagging him not to sit too long, reminding him to eat on time, drink water, and dress warmly. Each word was tender and meticulous, filled with warmth.

In the final strokes, she wrote, “Second Master, since entering the palace, I have been blessed with your kindness and protection, and my life has been very good…” By this point, she had been crying so much she couldn’t hold the pen. With both hands, she pressed against her eyes, which were shedding tears uncontrollably. After a long while, she managed to compose herself and continued to write with trembling hands, “You must eat well, live a long life! You have no guilt, even though you are imprisoned now, do not admit to any crimes. Take care of your health, and there will surely come a day when you will be vindicated!”

It turned out that when he risked his life and dignity to plead for a slim chance of survival for her, she too was gambling with her life to prove his innocence in this earthquake-like predicament.

Yinreng didn’t know why he hadn’t left the dream. He remained in that prison with Cheng Wanyun, the place dim and desolate. Cheng Wanyun hardly spoke, merely sitting there staring at the faint light leaking through the crack in the door. Occasionally, she muttered things he couldn’t understand: “At least it’s enough… it was always a matter of picking up something discarded…”

“When the Crown Prince comes out, we can ask Father and Huai Zhang to resign their posts and return to Huizhou to farm…”

Yinreng, hearing this, was torn between wanting to laugh and cry. His silly girl still believed he would be reinstated.

Wait… Yinreng’s mind seemed to be struck by a flash of lightning. Could it be that he had been deposed twice? Had the dream he had of being confined in Xian’an Palace behind high walls been…

Later, after an unknown number of days and nights, he occasionally overheard the guards and eunuchs outside drinking and talking. One day, he suddenly heard them discussing how the Fourth Prince had found evidence of the Eldest Prince’s plot to harm the deposed Crown Prince. The Fourth Prince, who had always been close to the Crown Prince, dared not report it, fearing the Emperor might misunderstand and think he was trying to exonerate the deposed Crown Prince. Instead, he persuaded the usually non-contentious Third Prince to present the evidence to the Emperor on his behalf.

Upon hearing this, Yinreng suddenly understood. He had indeed been deposed twice!

This was the first time!

This caused a great uproar outside. The decision on the Eldest Prince’s fate had not been made yet, but it was reported that Imperial Concubine Hui had already gone to the gates of Qianqing Palace, removed her hairpin, and asked for forgiveness. However, the Emperor did not meet with her. She was older and had kneeled in the snow for some time before fainting.

“The Emperor must regret it,” a guard muttered, chewing on peanuts and lowering his voice.

Indeed, Kangxi regretted it. Everyone could see it. He realized he had wronged the Crown Prince, but admitting his mistake was impossible—he couldn’t back down. When he saw Side Concubine Cheng’s confession from the officer’s house, and after recalling his fatherly bond with the Crown Prince, he fell into deep silence. Then, when Yinzhen suddenly reported that Yunti and the Mongolian prince Alima Bahangrong had conspired to oppress the deposed Crown Prince, making his words and actions absurd, Kangxi found the reason to release the deposed Crown Prince.

In October, Kangxi issued an imperial edict to release the deposed Crown Prince, allowing him to return to Beijing from his detention at the temporary palace and live again in Yuqing Palace. He was granted food, clothing, medicine, and repeated visits from Liang Jiugong to check on him.

It was at this time that Yinreng drifted away into the sky. He knew he was about to leave. He saw the deposed Crown Prince still lifeless, lying on the bed, staring blankly at the writing desk in the bedroom—on the desk were several small pieces of paper, each filled with Cheng Wanyun’s handwriting, not particularly beautiful, but full of care. Some said, “Drink eight cups of water every day,” others, “Don’t forget to eat fruit,” and some simply said, “Dress warmly in spring, let your body cool in autumn…”

Kangxi, who had quietly entered the palace to visit the Crown Prince, also saw various little items Cheng Wanyun had prepared for him in the Crown Prince’s study: a small wooden mallet for neck massages, a curved back chair suited to the Crown Prince’s body, and stacks of dietary menus neatly kept in a chest.

The menus dated from the 34th year of Kangxi’s reign to the 47th year. Each day, each meal, accumulated into a whole box of them. Side Concubine Cheng had spent ten years, without interruption, carefully managing the Crown Prince’s digestion…

Kangxi looked at the menus, and after so many years, he thought of Empress He, remembering the difficult days they had once shared. During every solitary, late-night hour, Empress He had whispered gently to him, putting his coat on him, and cutting the candle wicks together.

As an emperor, Kangxi looked down on Side Concubine Cheng’s background and disliked her lack of literary talent, feeling that she was just a woman who had won the Crown Prince’s favor because of her appearance. He thought she was nothing compared to the Crown Princess, who came from a prestigious family, was talented, well-educated, and exhibited grace, filial piety, and generosity. Why would the Crown Prince abandon a pearl and instead favor a fish-eye?

But now, today, having witnessed everything firsthand, Kangxi finally understood the meaning of the words the deposed Crown Prince had spoken while kneeling in the snow.

How could one person give so much—day and night, in every detail, with such care and attention? Some people are skilled at public achievements and can easily present their accomplishments, while others shine in the quiet, everyday moments. They show no grand gestures, but their love is deep and silent, often misunderstood or overlooked. Only those who are close to them can truly understand.

To be with someone day in and day out, never leaving their side, is not something many people can do. Kangxi silently left Yuqing Palace, returning to the Yangxin Hall, and finally spoke, “The deposed Crown Prince’s crimes were all the work of small-minded people stirring trouble. Since that is the case, release Side Concubine Cheng as well.”

When the deposed Crown Prince received the news, he immediately went to personally bring her out.

Before Yinreng vanished into the dream world, he saw the deposed Crown Prince holding an umbrella, standing outside the Zongrenfu office waiting. Cheng Wanyun was led out to meet him. The two of them froze for a moment, gazing at each other silently for a long while. Then, it was Cheng Wanyun who could no longer hold back, pouting and biting her lips, trying to hold back tears, but she couldn’t stop herself from crying out loud.

“If you keep crying, you’ll look ugly,” the deposed Crown Prince smiled, wiping her tears away.

She angrily slapped him.

But the deposed Crown Prince just laughed, squatting down to carry her on his back.

“Cheng Wanyun, let’s go home.”

The snow fell like dust. The two of them, who had lost everything, slowly walked through the long palace corridors with red walls and golden roofs. Before long, their heads were covered in white.

#

Yinreng’s vision in the dream began to blur. The jostling of the carriage woke him from the almost all-consuming trance he had been in.

So much time had passed in the dream, but in reality, it had only been a short nap.

He saw Cheng Wanyun, sitting in the carriage, holding a thermos cup in both hands, contentedly drinking milk tea. Her eyes were still pure and peaceful, unaffected by the pain of losing a child, the agony of separation, or the unjust imprisonment caused by his actions. She was still the same, complete and happy Cheng Wanyun.

It was so good.

Yinreng’s eyes reddened.

He suddenly remembered how he had once dreamed of Cheng Wanyun’s death. That time… he had been imprisoned in Xian’an Palace, and it seemed like he had been there for a long time. This time, though, he had stayed in the temporary palace before returning to Beijing.

And he was soon released.

Cheng Wanyun, however, had remained imprisoned at Zongrenfu. The two of them had not been locked away together in Xian’an Palace.

So… this sixth dream was actually the first time he was deposed. The dream where Cheng Wanyun passed away… must have been after he had been deposed for the second time.

After realizing this, his mind went blank, and he couldn’t think of anything.

Dynasties had risen and fallen for thousands of years, but it seemed that only he, the Crown Prince, had set the precedent for being deposed and reinstated twice.

Yinreng sat numbly in the carriage.

He had always wondered why Cheng Wanyun would leave her two children behind to enter Xian’an Palace and accompany him during his imprisonment. Now, he finally understood—it was because Cheng Wanyun had lost everything except for him.

She didn’t have her children with her.

They only had each other.

Yinreng lifted his heartbroken gaze and looked at Cheng Wanyun, who was angrily getting out of the carriage and pulling E Linzhu’s ear. He couldn’t help but let tears fall.

After seeing the dream version of Cheng Wanyun, Yinreng clearly realized that the real Cheng Wanyun in this life was different from the one in his dreams.

The Cheng Wanyun in this life didn’t place all her hopes of survival on him, so she didn’t… love him.

But the Cheng Wanyun in his dreams had loved him with an intensity that was like desperately clinging to a piece of driftwood in the middle of a storm, a love that was like seeking a glimmer of light in the depths of pain. Her love had been so heavy, so painful.

In the persimmon grove, Yinreng and Cheng Wanyun were embraced in the deep autumn forest. The autumn sunlight leaked through the trees like fragments of gold, and a sudden gust of wind shook the branches. The air was filled with the sweet fragrance of persimmons, and Yinreng gently caressed Cheng Wanyun’s full, soft cheek, closing his eyes to kiss her cherry-red lips, which had been kissed by the light filtering through the forest.

She, to him, needed no words from anyone else.

No matter the entanglements in their past lives, he had loved her deeply, just as much in this life as he had in the last. Now, knowing the events from his dreams only deepened his respect and determination to never let her go.

The swaying light in the forest danced between him and Cheng Wanyun.

In the end, Yinreng pulled back just in time and, with his other clean hand, embraced Cheng Wanyun.

Cheng Wanyun couldn’t help but pause for a moment. She instinctively adjusted her clothes, looking up at the Crown Prince in confusion. “Your Highness? You…”

How…

“You’re troubled about the children. Let’s wait a few years before having any more. Let’s not have children for now.” Yinreng wiped his hands with the coat he had placed under him, then gently ran his hand through Cheng Wanyun’s hair, his gaze filled with tender affection. “I already have Hongxuan and Hongxi. It’s not an issue. When everything is better, if you still want to have children, we can try again, okay?”

Cheng Wanyun stared, completely dumbfounded. She almost doubted that the Crown Prince had been possessed by someone else! Was this really something a prince from a feudal dynasty would say? It was so unbelievable!

But Yinreng simply didn’t want Cheng Wanyun to suffer the pain of losing a child again. She was already upset about it, and the only thing he could do for her was this.

Women were already at a disadvantage in these matters, so why not let him bear the burden? His future wasn’t looking good, and if he couldn’t prevent his eventual deposition, then at least Cheng Wanyun would suffer less during this time. That was a good thing.

If Cheng Wanyun were happy and untroubled all the time and didn’t love him, then so be it. He wouldn’t force her to love him.

Yinreng hoped she would never have to experience that kind of suffering again. That way, even if everything ultimately failed, he wouldn’t have any regrets. Of course, his first priority was still to catch the treacherous scoundrels who had slandered and framed Cheng Wanyun! But unfortunately, his dreams didn’t reveal why Cheng Wanyun had been imprisoned at Zongrenfu, or why even He Baozhong had lost his life…

They lay together quietly until Wang Cai suddenly jumped out of the low bushes, followed by E Linzhu, Hongxuan, and Hongxi, who were loudly calling for their father and mother.

“Haha! Father! Mother! We found you!”

The two of them jumped in surprise. At the sound, Wang Cai excitedly jumped onto them, barking and licking their faces. Cheng Wanyun was tickled and laughed as she tried to dodge, but then realized: thankfully, she had already put on her clothes earlier; otherwise, she would have been too embarrassed to face anyone!

“Wang Cai! Stop licking! Your mouth stinks! Hey! Hey! Don’t lick me!” Yinreng hurriedly picked up Wang Cai to rescue Cheng Wanyun, but he was also licked in the face. He quickly threw Wang Cai onto the ground and ran a few steps away, only for Wang Cai to chase after him.

“Stinky Wang Cai! Don’t come over!” The Crown Prince ran around but couldn’t shake off Wang Cai, so he had to run back.

The setting sun hung at the horizon where the sky met the grassland, like a soft blush, and faint stars began to appear in the distance. In this golden sunset, Cheng Wanyun gathered all three children into her arms and sat with them on the grass, laughing at the Crown Prince’s awkward appearance as he stumbled and fell over.

After a while, E Linzhu ran over to join the Crown Prince and Wang Cai, laughing, jumping, and playing in the forest. Later, the Crown Prince carried E Linzhu on his shoulders, running wildly while Wang Cai chased them with even more enthusiasm, barking non-stop.

The sunset stretched their shadows long.

Cheng Wanyun smiled as she watched them. Suddenly, a thought popped into her mind: this day would be hard to forget. Perhaps, when she was old and had white hair, she would look back and remember today, remember the persimmons on the tree, and the laughter that echoed through the forest.