Chapter 196 The Decision to Return to the Palace

Upon reaching the second floor, Yin'e, guided by the waiter, indeed saw many smooth, crystal-clear mirrors that could reflect people in perfect detail.

Yin'e was no stranger to these Western peculiarities. Even without considering his previous life, he had seen them many times in the palace in this life, so he didn't find them strange, let alone eye-opening.

However, the fact that this shop not only sells clocks (although they are not in stock and can only be ordered) but also has so many peepholes is enough to show that the shopkeeper was not lying or exaggerating. This shop, located in a prime location on Qianmen Street, is indeed very powerful and sells the most complete range of imported goods.

Before the Imperial Household Department began purchasing foreign goods and doing business with foreigners in Macau and Guangzhou, the people in Beijing who knew the most about the situation in Guangzhou were probably the caravans that traveled to and from Guangzhou through this shop. They were the ones who had the most contact with foreigners in Guangzhou.

Just now, the Ninth Prince asked if it was possible to do business with foreign goods. Yin'e replied directly that to do this business, he would need to set up a caravan to go to Guangzhou and Macau to do business directly with foreigners. Indeed, Yin'e wanted to find out the situation in Guangzhou and what kind of business foreigners in the Guangzhou and Macau area were doing.

If it weren't for the fact that princes are forbidden from leaving the capital by imperial decree forty li (approximately 20 kilometers), Yin'e would have genuinely wanted to travel to Guangzhou himself when he grew up. There are some things he simply couldn't bear to do without seeing and investigating them for himself.

When Yin'e was confined to the palace to study, he knew he couldn't leave and could only wander around the Forbidden City. So he could carefree and not think about these things, focusing only on living his own little life.

But Yin'e left the palace today, no longer confined to the palace and unable to go anywhere. He breathed in the outside air, came to the outer city, saw the bustling crowds on Qianmen Street, heard the familiar yet unfamiliar Beijing dialect, and saw far more people and more things than in the palace.

In this life, for the first time, Yin'e emerged from the shell that both protected and restricted him, and saw the people, things, and events outside. He could no longer pretend he had never been out and hide away from the world as before.

However, some things we want to do require careful consideration and gradual planning.

Yin'e was not in power, nor did he intend to participate in the struggle for succession. He did not want to fight for power and profit, so he had no way to directly intervene in or even change the policies being implemented in the country, and it was impossible for him to mobilize the entire nation to launch reforms.

But he was, after all, a prince, a member of the powerful elite. Yin'e could subtly influence those in power, using more roundabout and indirect methods, to quietly change history and nip certain events in the bud.

Fortunately, it's still early, and Yin'e has enough time to plan carefully. Let's see if this butterfly can change anything by flapping its wings, and what kind of storm it can stir up.

Well, the first step is to make the business bigger and stronger, expand the business territory, and build a business empire.

Yin'e also figured it out. Since he couldn't strike at the enemy politically, he would restrict them economically, using commercial means to squeeze out trade between foreigners and the Qing Dynasty, and secretly monitor and control the flow of foreign goods into the Qing Dynasty.

After wandering around the second floor twice, and with the shopkeeper's enthusiastic sales pitch, Yin'e bought two uniquely shaped Western-style mirrors to take back as gifts for the Imperial Concubine. He then lost interest in shopping any further and pulled the Ninth Prince out of the two-story shop, which was in a prime location and had a very luxurious interior.

Standing on the street, Yin'e stretched and relaxed. Amidst the bustling crowd and the cacophony of voices, he looked up at the Ninth Prince, his smile bright and sunny, his almond-shaped eyes sparkling like stars: "Ninth Brother, which shops would you like to visit? I'll go with you!"

"Your mood seems to have suddenly improved; you're not unhappy anymore." The Ninth Prince stared blankly at Yin'e for a while before grinning and revealing a smile.

Yin'e felt a warmth in his heart knowing that the Ninth Prince had been worried about him ever since he noticed something was wrong.

With a soft "hmm," Yin'e and the Ninth Prince walked hand in hand down the street. Yin'e said in a low voice, "I've made some decisions and figured out some things, so I'm not unhappy anymore."

He didn't know how far he could go or what things he could change, but he didn't want to take on everything. He only wanted to have a clear conscience and do his best.

When Yin'e and the Ninth Prince returned to the tavern, the First Prince, who had an excellent capacity for alcohol, had unknowingly drunk a whole pot of liquor while drinking alone. However, he was only slightly tipsy, and his eyes were still clear. He was not very drunk.

Besides the eldest prince, the fourth, seventh, and eighth princes were also at the tavern. They had already finished shopping. The late prince and the ninth prince returned one step at a time to meet up with the eldest prince and waited at the tavern for the other brothers to arrive.

After glancing around the tavern's main hall, Yin'e and the Ninth Prince sat down next to the Seventh Prince. Yin'e asked, "Where are the Third and Fifth Brothers? Haven't they returned yet?"

Yin'e and the Ninth Prince were mainly concerned about the Fifth Prince. As for the Third Prince, he only asked casually and didn't really care where the Third Prince was. Although the Third Princess pointed out that the Third Prince had shown friendly signals to Yin'e after their marriage, they simply stopped arguing, and their relationship didn't improve much.

The Seventh Prince shook his head slightly and replied with a cool expression, "The Third Brother is in a bookstore nearby; I don't know about the Fifth Brother, he hasn't been seen coming back and I don't know where he's gone."

Rolling his eyes, the Ninth Prince muttered speechlessly, "Is Fifth Brother's stomach a bottomless pit? He's been out shopping and eating for so long, and he's still not full?"

These words could only be spoken by the Ninth Prince, who shared the same mother as the Fifth Prince, but not by any of the other princes. The princes in the tavern remained silent, not responding to the Ninth Prince's words.

The eldest prince put down his wine cup, laughed and said, "No rush, it's not time for the palace gates to close yet. It's rare for the fifth brother to leave the palace, so let him enjoy himself."

His gaze swept over the guards following Yin'e and the Ninth Prince. Seeing that the guards were carrying a lot of things in their hands, the First Prince couldn't help but smile knowingly: It was indeed the Ninth and Tenth Princes' first time leaving the palace. Everything seemed new and interesting to them, and they had bought quite a lot of random things.

Instead of mocking Yin'e and the Ninth Prince for being ignorant bumpkins, the First Prince felt some sympathy for them.

Those whose birth order was too late received less attention from Emperor Kangxi.

Emperor Kangxi did not spend much time in the capital during the year, and even when he was in the capital, he did not stay in the Forbidden City all the time. He would often go out of the palace to hunt or escape the summer heat, and stay temporarily in the suburban palaces.

Needless to say, the Crown Prince was always present when Emperor Kangxi went on his travels. Princes with higher birth order also had the opportunity to be chosen by Emperor Kangxi to accompany him, but princes with lower birth order did not have this honor. They were pitifully confined to the palace and could not go out, and their lives were not as lively as those of ordinary people.

Yin'e suddenly felt unwell and shuddered, his whole body trembling with a chill.

He raised his head and looked around, trying to find the reason for his unease. But after looking around for a while, he couldn't figure it out, so he lowered his head again with a belly full of doubts, wondering if the sudden discomfort was just his imagination.

The princes waited a while longer before the Fifth Prince, carrying large and small bags, finally returned to the tavern to meet them.

The Fifth Prince also bought a lot of things, but unlike Yin'e and the Ninth Prince, the Fifth Prince did not buy souvenirs to take back to the palace, nor rare items that had never been seen in the palace, nor trinkets popular among the common people. He bought all food, and his large and small packages were full of food.

Upon learning that the Fifth Prince had bought only food, the Ninth Prince was speechless with astonishment: "Fifth Brother, you bought so much food, are you sure you can finish it all? Aren't you afraid it will spoil?" Many foods cannot be preserved for long. Even if the Ninth Prince had a large appetite, it was impossible for him to finish all of this before it went bad.

With a radiant smile, the Fifth Prince said, "Here is a portion for my Imperial Grandmother. She may like these local snacks, or perhaps she has never tried them before. It's a good opportunity for her to have a taste."

Seeing that the Fifth Prince seemed to have a plan, the Ninth Prince didn't ask any further questions. The other princes also didn't intend to interfere when the Fifth Prince mentioned the Empress Dowager.

They went to the bookstore and dug out the Third Prince, who was engrossed in searching for ancient books and looking for them with great excitement. The First Prince then led the other princes back to the palace on horseback, escorted by guards, and sent his younger brothers back to the palace unharmed.

It was already evening when we entered the Forbidden City through the Shenwu Gate. The sun hung in the western sky, seemingly about to set, painting the western sky a magnificent and splendid orange-red. The sunset was so beautiful that it looked as if it had been painted by immortals, like a meticulously crafted masterpiece.

The other princes had spent the entire day outside the palace, welcoming Tong Guogang's coffin and strolling along Qianmen Street. They were tired, so after exchanging a few pleasantries with the eldest prince, they all went straight to their respective residences to rest.

Apart from the eldest prince, the other princes still have to go to the Imperial Study tomorrow. The rule in the Imperial Study is that morning reading starts at 3:00 AM, leaving them little time to rest.

The eldest prince had already graduated from the Imperial Study, so he naturally didn't need to rush there tomorrow. However, today, as the leader, he took his younger brothers out of the palace on official business and then led them to stroll along Qianmen Street. Upon returning from outside the palace, he naturally had to report to Emperor Kangxi and update him on the progress of the official business.

The eldest prince was going to the Qianqing Palace, and for the first half of the journey, he traveled along the same route as the third, fourth, fifth, and seventh princes.

The five brothers chatted occasionally as they walked. When they arrived at the Qianqing Palace, they parted ways outside. The eldest prince went straight into the Qianqing Palace, while the third prince and his three companions dragged their tired but satisfied steps back to the Gandong Fifth Palace.

As the eldest son favored and loved by Emperor Kangxi, the First Prince was quickly welcomed into the Qianqing Palace. Kangxi, who was preparing for dinner, smiled and said, "Baoqing is back. Have you had dinner yet? If not, come and keep your father company."

"Thank you, Father, for your kindness. Your son is very hungry." In order to return before the palace gates were locked, the eldest prince had skipped dinner, and his stomach was growling with hunger. Now that he was invited by Emperor Kangxi, he did not stand on ceremony and sat down opposite him.

After finishing his dinner in silence, the eldest prince reported to Emperor Kangxi the errands he had run outside the palace that day.

Without mentioning Longkodo's arrogance and haughtiness, and omitting his friendship with Orondai, the eldest prince only said that he wanted to go to the Tong residence to offer incense to Tong Guogang, but forgot that he had brought his younger brothers with him on this mission. He lowered his head and said with considerable shame, "It was my carelessness. Please punish me, Father."