Dong E made all the necessary preparations, including deliberately distancing herself from Consort Rong.

The reason she was able to become the Third Prince's Consort in her previous life was because Emperor Kangxi was considering starting to give Dong E a more important position.

During the Shunzhi era, due to the trouble caused by Consort Dong'e, the women of the Dong'e clan had no good prospects, and the men of the Dong'e clan were also neglected.

The Dong E clan was divided into several branches and was a large and prosperous family. When Emperor Kangxi needed to employ people, he chose a princess from the Dong E clan to be the consort of a prince. This represented Emperor Kangxi's attitude towards the Dong E clan.

Besides this consideration, there was another important reason why she became the Third Prince's wife: her outstanding appearance. The Third Prince was a very good scholar and loved having beautiful women by his side. He had very high standards for the appearance of the palace maids around him.

In her previous life, she became the Third Prince's wife because the Third Prince took the initiative to ask Consort Rong for help. Consort Rong was always willing to grant requests from her only surviving son, so she asked Emperor Kangxi, and the two hit it off immediately.

As for this lifetime!

Looking at her dignified appearance in the mirror, concealed by makeup, Dong Eshi found it quite unlike the Third Prince's ideal of having a beautiful woman by his side.

At the same time, she also instructed the palace maids serving Princess Shumulu to specifically guide Princess Shumulu to exhibit many of the characteristics that Consort Rong and the Third Prince liked, suggesting that Princess Shumulu had a greater chance of becoming the Third Prince's consort than she did.

For this talent show, Dong Eshi pulled many strings. It can be said that she calculated everything within the safe limits and was just waiting for the results.

Before entering the palace for the second round of selection, she unusually prayed to God.

In the small room, Dong E murmured, "Since Heaven has granted me a second chance, it must be to let me walk a different path. I hope everything will go as I wish."

She had barely finished speaking when a palace maid knocked on the door and said, "Princess, it's time to go to the palace."

Lady Dong'e stood up, straightened her exceptionally dignified clothes, and carefully examined herself in the mirror. The person in the mirror was elegant and beautiful, the type of daughter-in-law that Emperor Kangxi liked.

Dong Eshi knew that Kangxi felt that the Fourth Prince was somewhat different because he had been raised by Empress Xiaoyi. Now she only hoped that Anning would not be able to participate in the selection.

In Yanhui Pavilion, Anning has recovered, but the imperial physician says she is not fully recovered. Since she herself is unwilling to participate in the imperial concubine selection, she has no choice but to recuperate.

It started getting noisy outside early in the morning.

"Chunlan, why is it so noisy?"

"Today's talent show is crowded and noisy, so it's inevitable that it's a bit chaotic. If Your Highness feels uncomfortable, I can take you to a secluded place for a stroll."

Ordinary princesses entering the palace naturally cannot freely wander around the palace, but Anning is special! Emperor Kangxi said that he would try his best to ensure that Anning is always comfortable and not wronged, so Chunlan's suggestion was very natural.

An Ning immediately refused. Although she didn't know the detailed rules of the palace, she had read some palace intrigue novels and watched some TV dramas before the apocalypse. On the day of the selection, she was a sick candidate. Even if she didn't have to participate, why would she go out and cause trouble? It's not like she was having too much fun.

"It's good to be lively. There are too many people today, and it's inevitable that we'll bump into each other if we go out, so I won't go out."

Chunlan thought it was better for Anning not to go out, since there are many people and much trouble. She was responsible for Anning's safety and was ordered by Kangxi, but Kangxi only asked her to protect her secretly. If they really encountered the masters in the palace, she, as a palace maid, might not be able to protect Anning in time.

"It's good that you think this way, Princess."

An Ning listened to the scattered noises outside and flipped through the travelogues that Chunlan had taken from the Jingyang Palace library. They weren't very interesting; they were written in a semi-vernacular style, and if it weren't for the original owner's memories, she would have had a lot of trouble reading them.

Eating the pastries that Chunlan brought, feeling the smooth texture on my tongue, I felt completely at ease.

In the apocalypse, everything is scarce. Except for the initial period when we could still eat some decent food, later on we ate all sorts of things, and the taste was really unacceptable.

Resources were scarce, and she was only a wood-type ability user, not particularly outstanding. Her life was just enough to keep her from starving, but it wasn't exactly comfortable.

During her days of recuperation, she didn't know whether the feng shui of the Forbidden City was good for people, but the imperial kitchen in the Forbidden City was certainly good for fattening up!

After the talent show ends and she returns home, given her family background, even if she gets married, she will have a dowry and will be able to live a life of plenty. She doesn't have much ambition; being a wealthy and leisurely person for the rest of her life is perfectly fine.

Thinking this, the snack in my mouth became even more delicious.

"Your Highness is very happy. It seems that these pastries are quite good. If Your Highness likes them, I will go to the Imperial Kitchen to get some more later."

"The food in the imperial kitchen is all good; I'm not picky about food."

Chunlan thought about Anning's situation these past few days. Indeed, Anning was not picky about food, and not only was she not picky, she also had a very good appetite.

Yanhui Pavilion is located in the Imperial Garden, and the imperial selection also takes place in the Imperial Garden, but the venue is Jiangxue Pavilion. Consort Tong originally arranged for Yanhui Pavilion to be the venue, but since Anning was recuperating there, the venue changed to Jiangxue Pavilion.

Inside Jiangxue Pavilion, the first step was to select beautiful women from among the Manchu bannermen.

It is now the thirty-third year of Kangxi's reign. Kangxi is almost forty years old according to the traditional Chinese age system. He has many children, and he generally does not keep Manchu banner women for official positions. Therefore, Manchu banner women are basically used to select candidates for his sons or members of the imperial clan.

Emperor Kangxi sat in the very center, with Consort Tong closest to him. Consort Wen was ill and unable to attend, and below her were the four consorts.

Once all the leaders are in place, the talent show can begin.

The young women entered in rows, and Emperor Kangxi would consider their options and either keep their nameplates or discard them.

Soon it was Dong E's turn, and next to her was Shumulu.

Standing together, the two women made Shumulu's appearance even more striking.

Both of their family backgrounds naturally needed to be recorded, so Kangxi asked a couple of casual questions and then recorded their names.

In the afternoon, after the talent show ended, Consort Rong couldn't wait any longer and invited him over.

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