Chapter 19 Consort Hui, Uya

Time flies, and it's Laba Festival in the blink of an eye.

It has been almost half a year since Baoqing returned to the palace, and just as Consort Rong said, Yanxi Palace has become lively again.

Not only in Yanxi Palace, but also because of Kangxi's words, Baoqing often went to Qianqing Palace to play with the Crown Prince. The two of them visibly got better and better. With Baoqing's help, the Crown Prince gradually became more lively.

Granny Sun was busy wrapping Baoqing in a cloak, layering cotton and satin, making sure he was completely covered.

"Granny, nanny, hurry up, my little brother the Crown Prince is still waiting for me."

Baoqing kept urging him on, wishing he could grow wings and fly out of Yanxi Palace in the next second.

He had made plans with his younger brother, the Crown Prince, to go see ice skating together today.

Until New Year's Eve, there would be such activities in the palace, such as archery and ice skating on ice. In short, these were things he had never seen before, and he wanted to go and see them with his younger brother, the Crown Prince.

After being wrapped up like a rice dumpling, Baoqing protested, "Granny, don't wear so many layers, I can't walk anymore!"

Granny Sun dared not indulge this little tyrant, and quickly coaxed him, "It's cold in the morning now, we can change when we get to the Qianqing Palace and feel warm."

In the past six months, her skills in soothing children have become increasingly refined.

After getting dressed, Baoqing happily said goodbye to Yunyun: "Mother, I'm going to the Qianqing Palace. I'll be back for dinner."

Yunyun felt like her child was starting kindergarten early.

The Qianqing Palace is practically a childcare center for the Qing dynasty.

However, she still had to go and pay her respects.

It's really commendable that Baoqing left home even earlier than her; she's so proactive, not even staying in bed in this cold weather.

-

For the imperial concubines, there is another big piece of news today.

Kunning Palace was unusually quiet, at least before Consort Tong arrived.

Yunyun sat quietly in the chair, while Consort Xi beside her seemed restless, looking left and right as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

Consort Yi and Consort Rong no longer disliked each other; they even exchanged a glance, their mutual curiosity quite obvious.

In this strange atmosphere, the protagonist of the incident arrived late.

As soon as Consort Tong entered, she felt the secret scrutinizing gazes of the other concubines, which made her already bad mood even worse.

The force in her hands increased, and Consort Tong almost lost her temper and lashed out on the spot.

These people, all of them are laughing at her.

However, showing anger at this moment will only make you lose face.

Consort Tong took a deep breath, took the hand of a palace maid, and sat down expressionlessly.

The concubines then looked at another protagonist.

She had been timidly following behind Consort Tong, and now that Consort Tong had sat down, she wisely stood behind her, side by side with Consort Tong's personal maid, Chunzhi.

However, Chunzhi seemed a little disgusted and subtly moved away, creating a half-foot distance between them.

Consort Xi and Consort Yi exchanged a glance. At this moment, they were no longer enemies and joined together to watch Consort Tong make a fool of herself.

Finally, Consort Yi could no longer contain herself. She coughed lightly while holding her teacup and asked, "Your Highness, may I ask what this is...?"

Consort Tong hadn't slept well the night before, and now being laughed at by a concubine she looked down upon only made her even more annoyed. She said coldly, "This is the newly appointed Consort Wuya by His Majesty."

"Oh?" Consort Xi's eyes lit up instantly.

It turns out that the rumors circulating among the palace servants this morning were true.

Last night, the Emperor actually slept with a palace maid in Chengqian Palace!

Although it was not uncommon for palace maids to be promoted to imperial concubines in the harem, and Consort Hui and Consort Rong were both originally palace maids, those people were either in the Imperial Garden or the Imperial Study. No one was like Uya, who was originally a palace maid serving imperial concubines, but she rose to her position in Consort Tong's Chengqian Palace.

Who in the harem doesn't know Consort Tong's temperament?

With such high aspirations and a strong sense of pride, how could they possibly actively seek out a rival to solidify their favor?

From this perspective, it must have been an unexpected surprise that Consort Tong herself could not have foreseen that Consort Wuya could gain favor.

Consort Xi couldn't help but take a closer look at Lady Uya standing behind Consort Tong.

She looks so delicate and weak, with a hint of timidity in her eyes. How could she have such audacity to climb into Consort Tong's bed right under her nose? Not to mention that the Emperor favored her in Chengqian Palace. Anyone would be furious if they were in her shoes.

The concubines in the palace were mostly thinking the same thing; even Consort Xi and Consort Yi exchanged a knowing look.

"If I remember correctly, this young lady Wuya was previously a second-class palace maid in Chengqian Palace, wasn't she?" Consort Rong suddenly spoke up. "Did the Noble Consort specially select her to serve the Emperor?"

Consort Rong's words were a real stab in the heart.

Consort Tong was so angry she almost vomited blood, but what could she do? Was she supposed to say that she hadn't managed Chengqian Palace well and that someone had taken advantage of her?

Since the deed was already done, she might as well save face for herself. The imperial concubine practically spat out a sentence through gritted teeth, "Yes."

Just as her emotions were about to reach their limit, the Empress came out, supported by a palace maid.

Everyone quickly stood up to greet them.

The Empress was wearing a plain cloak embroidered with dark patterns. Her face was somewhat pale. Since the beginning of winter, she had not been feeling well and would cough occasionally.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace."

Everyone curtsied in unison.

The Empress habitually raised her hand, her voice gentle yet tinged with weakness: "Get up, all of you."

Today's greeting procedure had one more step than usual.

After the Empress took her seat, her gaze slowly swept across the hall, finally landing on Consort Tong's maid, Lady Wuya, and she asked, "Which one is Lady Wuya?"

This morning, just as she got up, she received a report from the Imperial Household Department that the Emperor had slept with a palace maid in Chengqian Palace last night and had even issued an edict to bestow upon her the title of "Consort".

The Empress became more curious at that moment.

Consort Tong has always kept a tight rein on Chengqian Palace. Could it be that she really took the initiative to recommend someone to the Emperor?

However, seeing Consort Tong's unpleasant expression, the Empress realized that the Consort had been taken advantage of.

Wuya agreed to step out from behind Consort Tong, kneel in the center and bow to the Empress, her voice soft yet clear.

"This concubine agrees with Lady Wuya to pay her respects to Her Majesty the Empress. May Her Majesty enjoy boundless blessings."

Newly appointed concubines are required to perform a full kowtow to the Empress on their first day of receiving her greetings. This is a sign of respect for the Empress and a way to uphold her authority.

The Empress said some platitudes about serving the Emperor and ensuring the continuation of his lineage, then changed the subject and mentioned the accommodation arrangements: "You are originally from Chengqian Palace, and now there is only one Consort in Chengqian Palace, so you should continue to live in Chengqian Palace."

These words sound like they're following the rules, but everyone knows that the Empress's arrangement is partly to follow the custom of returning old concubines to their old places, and partly to see Consort Tong make a fool of herself.

After all, allowing a palace maid who climbed the social ladder to remain in the main wife's palace would likely lead to more excitement in Chengqian Palace in the future.

It's rare to have anything new to talk about in the palace, especially since the Imperial Concubine has suffered a major setback, which will probably be brought up for years to come.

Consort Tong now felt like an actress in a theater, with all the other concubines mocking her.

The fact that the palace maid climbed into her bedchamber really made her lose face.

No matter how much flattery Wuya showed her after agreeing, and no matter how eloquently she spoke and how much she cried, the reality was what it was.

She, Consort Tong, became the laughingstock of the entire palace because of a palace maid.

She couldn't even dispose of this palace maid at will, because she had crossed that threshold and become a concubine in the harem.

Consort Tong had never felt so stifled before, and she hated Consort Wuya even more.

Throughout the entire greeting process, Consort Tong kept a cold face and tried to comfort herself.

The people around her were in Chengqian Palace, right under her nose. Although they couldn't do anything openly, as a Noble Consort, she couldn't very well teach the lower-ranking concubines anything wrong.

Don't think that just because you've suddenly risen in power, you're really in charge.

-

When Baoqing arrived at the Qianqing Palace, the Crown Prince had just finished his breakfast.

Upon seeing Baoqing, the Crown Prince greeted him happily, "Fifth Brother!"

The heated chambers in the Qianqing Palace are well-equipped with charcoal, making them warm and cozy as soon as you enter.

Baoqing was quite familiar with the place. Feeling a bit hot, she took off the cloak that was wrapped tightly around her without Sun Mama's help.

I feel so relaxed.

It's still early, and there's a long time before the ice skating performance. The nanny can't possibly let a three-year-old and a five-year-old run around outside, so their activity area is the Qianqing Palace.

After playing with toys with the Crown Prince for a while, Baoqing became restless. She moved closer to the Crown Prince, covered her mouth with her little hand, and whispered in his ear, "Crown Prince, shall we go out and play?"

The crown prince was young, and in the past, his wet nurse would always lead and carry him when he went out. He never thought about going out on his own.

Hearing Baoqing say this, he blinked his round eyes and, imitating Baoqing, leaned his little face closer and whispered, "Fifth Brother, where are we going to play?"

This question stumped Baoqing.

He didn't stay in the palace for very long, and he visited very few places.

He knew Yanxi Palace best; he had already explored every room and corridor inside and out.

Although he often visited the Qianqing Palace, he was always confined to the warm pavilion by the nannies. At most, he would walk around the open space outside the palace a couple of times. As for the other side halls of the Qianqing Palace, he never even stepped into them.

Therefore, he wasn't that familiar with the Qianqing Palace.

Moreover, Granny Sun had already instructed him not to wander around in the Qianqing Palace.

However, this doesn't count as running around randomly.

Baoqing had his own logic: Yanxi Palace was his territory, and Qianqing Palace was the territory of the Crown Prince's younger brother. So, was it considered wandering around when he and the Crown Prince's younger brother walked around Qianqing Palace?

Of course not.

He convinced himself with great conviction and then came up with a good idea.

Baoqing secretly peeked outside the door. Granny Sun and the Crown Prince's younger brother's nanny were both outside the room. He had told the Crown Prince's younger brother not to disturb them when they were playing with toys.

So he immediately took the prince's little hand and whispered mysteriously, "Little prince, how about we shake off the nanny and go for a walk by ourselves?"

As she spoke, Baoqing glanced at the prince's short legs and added, "It'll only be a little while, I'll be back soon!"

Although it was said to be a way to get rid of them, the Qianqing Palace was actually full of palace maids and eunuchs, and there were guards in yellow jackets standing under the corridors, their eyes were very sharp.

Not to mention Baoqing and the Crown Prince's attire: bright yellow casual clothes embroidered with dragon patterns, and given their age, they were easily recognizable as princes from the palace.

But children don't care about these things.

For them, the mere act of sneaking out was enough to excite them.

A note from the author:

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