Between 1696 and 1697, when the Kangxi Emperor was away twice on military campaigns against Galdan Khan of the Zunghar Khanate, Yinreng was appointed as regent to supervise affairs in the imperial capital, Beijing.

Despite scandals and accusations of immorality, Yinreng remained in his father's favour and was given the Western Gardens (西花園) of Beijing as his residence.

In 1703, Yinreng's granduncle Songgotu was found guilty of attempting to murder the Kangxi Emperor, along with a series of corruption charges, and was imprisoned and died shortly afterwards.

In 1708, during a hunting expedition in Rehe, the Kangxi Emperor accused Yinreng of immorality, sexual impropriety, usurping power, and treason.

The bitter factionalism between the Kangxi Emperor's sons and the dispute over the succession prompted the Yongzheng Emperor to establish a practice of writing a secret imperial edict on who would succeed to the throne, and sealing the edict in a box behind a tablet in the Palace of Heavenly Purity in the Forbidden City.