Rong Fei is not honored

Ji Nai blinked, sat up, and tentatively asked, "Why do I feel like your reaction is a bit off?"

"What's wrong?"

"Shouldn't you reward me, praise me, and, by the way, speak from the bottom of your heart to me because I put you first?" Kangxi laughed in exasperation and retorted, "If I'm speaking from the heart to you, what about you?"

Ji Nai thought Kangxi was being unreasonable and said indignantly, "What's wrong with me? When would I ever hide anything..." His voice trailed off.

"Speak up, why aren't you saying anything?" Kangxi sneered.

Ji Nai hesitated for a moment, then tentatively asked, "What do you know?"

"Hmph! Let me tell you, those who confess will be treated leniently, and those who resist will be punished severely."

Which matter are you referring to?

Kangxi was so angry that he couldn't speak. Seeing this, Ji Nai panicked and spilled all the little secrets he had been keeping from the other party.

“Every time Sainchahun makes a mistake, I discipline him in your name, and then… I hug him and we talk badly about you together. I don’t like any of the jewelry you sent me, so I put it away, instead of telling you before that I couldn’t bear to wear it.”

And... (several items omitted here)

Emperor Kangxi was so angry he laughed. He never expected that Ji Nai would have so many ulterior motives in private.

Kangxi tapped Ji Nai on the forehead and said helplessly:

"I won't hold it against you for pretending to be a good person in front of Sainchahun. Anyway, no one but me can control that brat. But you don't like the things I gave you? Why don't you just say so? Why should I hold it against you?"

And what do you mean by "sometimes you find me annoying and deliberately try to provoke me so you can have a few days of peace?" I've been saying that your temper is getting worse and worse, and you often get angry for no reason..."

Ji Nai said innocently, "What you gave me is a reward to outsiders, but it also shows your good intentions. If I said I didn't like it, wouldn't that hurt your feelings?"

Furthermore, even though you say you don't care, why don't you look in the mirror and see the expression on your face when you said that? You clearly do seem to mind a lot.

As for deliberately trying to spite you… there’s a saying, “Distance makes things better.” I think things were much better before; I could see you every few days. But now, ever since you stopped restraining yourself, you come every day, even if you don’t stay overnight.”

"You think I'm coming too often?" Kangxi found it unbelievable. He didn't think Ji Nai was ungrateful; he just thought that if it were anyone else, they would have been grateful and knelt down to thank heaven and earth for such favor.

However, Kangxi did not say this aloud. Subconsciously, he knew that if he did say it, Ji Nai would definitely turn against him.

Driven by his survival instinct, Kangxi retorted, "You brought up the past, but there was a period of time before when I came every day. What, you're not used to it now because Yinzhi gave me the cold shoulder for a while?"

It was Ji Nai who coined the term "Cold War," and Emperor Kangxi remembered it clearly. At the time, Ji Nai specifically pointed out the drawbacks of the "Cold War," emphasizing that conflicts should be resolved promptly, rather than remaining silent and unresponsive.

Emperor Kangxi was furious. It was Ji Nai who said that the cold war shouldn't have happened, and now it was Ji Nai who was looking down on him because of that period of cold war.

Yes, it's disdain. It's not just the concubines in the harem; what woman in this world would dislike her husband for spoiling her too much? So, what she disliked was herself.

"What does this have to do with Yin Zhi?" Ji Nai was almost in shock.

Kangxi also felt wronged, "I only mentioned Yinzhi once. Didn't my exclusive favor begin before I was pregnant with Yinzhi? Didn't the cold war begin after I was pregnant with Yinzhi? Does this mean that from now on, I can't even mention him?"

Ji Nai looked guilty and muttered, "That's because you never have a good word to say about Yin Zhi."

"You despise me." Kangxi was too lazy to argue with Ji Nai about Yin Zhi's problem; the most important thing right now was that he was being disliked.

"No! I... I used to be healthy and had the energy to keep up with you, but now... I just can't take it anymore. And yet you're always hooking me up... If this continues, my body will definitely become even more depleted."

Kangxi's anger subsided, and he became somewhat smug. It was no wonder that Ji Nai avoided him; it was simply because he was too bold.

As for his dislike, that's a misunderstanding. Ji Nai himself admitted that he was tempted by him, so how could he dislike him?

It's unclear who made the first move, but by the time Kangxi came to his senses, he was already snuggled up to Ji Nai.

Realizing he had been corrupted by Ji Nai's sweet talk, Kangxi reluctantly pushed the person in his arms away and said seriously, "Are you deliberately changing the subject?"

Ji Nai feigned ignorance and said, "What do you mean by changing the subject? Haven't I already confessed?"

"I'm giving you one last chance."

Ji Nai's expression was priceless. Finally, faced with Kangxi's question, "Guess why I asked that?", he conceded and confessed:

“When I first entered the palace, I was used to telling you everything, but later I encountered more and more troubles. Even when I was just staying in my own palace, troubles would come knocking on my door.”

I was afraid you would get impatient, so I'll only tell you what I need to tell you, and then I'll handle it myself.

I really want to tell you everything, but I'm worried... After all, in your heart, I'm just an ignorant fool. But if you know I have the ability to protect myself, what if you think everything I did before was just an act...?

At first, Kangxi found what Ji Nai said somewhat amusing, but as he listened further, he realized that Ji Nai's concerns had been there all along, even though he couldn't see them.

Emperor Kangxi felt sorry for someone again, and as everyone knows, a man's thought process is different when he feels sorry for someone compared to his usual way of thinking.

At this point, Kangxi no longer cared about Ji Nai's concealment of him; he became concerned about something else entirely.

"You think I'd get impatient? Is that how you see me, this scoundrel?"

Ji Nai looked at Kangxi with a complicated expression. Was this scoundrel too confident in himself?

In his past life, Ji Nai fell out of favor partly because the successive deaths of his children affected their relationship, and partly because Ji Nai frequently mentioned his son's death in front of him.

Even the pain of losing a son eventually made Kangxi impatient, let alone some scheming and quarreling that did not have serious consequences.

"Putting everything else aside, just look at those baseless rumors, which one month doesn't have new ones? You've just finished dealing with the affairs of the court, and now you have to listen to me ramble on about these things and then help me resolve them. Aren't you tired?"

"Could it be that all those rumors are directed at you?" Kangxi's meaning was clear; he didn't concern himself with everyone. "Besides, do you think I lack even that much magnanimity to only like those idiots whose true nature can be seen through at a glance?"

"Then... don't blame me for having my own little schemes."

"If you don't even have the ability to protect yourself, then I'll have to worry."