According to custom, on the first day of the Lunar New Year, the princes and princesses would enter the palace to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager.

As soon as Hongxi and his companions arrived at Shou Kang Palace, led by Guarjia, they heard laughter coming from inside.

There are already quite a few people who want to get in.

Hongxi secretly yawned, as did Hongyu beside him.

Only Qingqing and Wenxi looked energetic, which made the two young boys take notice.

As soon as the group entered the inner hall, everyone's eyes turned to them. No one spoke, but they all scrutinized them with an almost appraising gaze.

Hongxi frowned, sensing that these people's gazes were mostly fixed on Qingqing.

"Hongyu, Hongxi, Wenxi, and Qingqing greet Grandma Wukuma and wish her a happy new year and good health."

The four little ones knelt down together. They were all the old lady's favorite children, and they were all dressed up beautifully. The old lady was so happy that her smile was almost overflowing.

"Get up, get up!" the Empress Dowager called out happily.

"Qingqing looks so beautiful in her palace dress today." Ever since Qingqing entered the room, the Empress Dowager's eyes have been fixed on her.

Qingqing also ran up to the Empress Dowager and said coquettishly, "This dress was a gift from Your Majesty the Empress Dowager. It looks beautiful on Qingqing."

Her words made everyone present burst into laughter, and some of the high-ranking concubines gained a deeper understanding of Qingqing's high emotional intelligence.

The Empress Dowager happily hugged Qingqing and looked at the concubines below, saying, "As expected of Duanjing's child, she is indeed eloquent."

Consort Yi smiled and said, "Yes, Duanjing is such a lovable child, and Qingqing is just like her mother now."

The concubines echoed her sentiments, showering the old lady with compliments as if they were free.

Just as everyone was laughing and joking, a discordant voice came from the corner.

"What's so great about being granted the title of Princess Heshuo as soon as you enter the palace?"

The entire room fell silent as everyone turned to look at the source of the sound, which was Princess Wenke, who was standing beside Consort Min.

The little girl is Yinxiang's younger sister, and she will be 13 years old after the New Year.

Because there are not many princesses in the palace at present, and they are usually very favored, they are somewhat spoiled.

Now that he saw Qingqing being granted the title of Princess Heshuo as soon as she entered the palace, he was already furious.

In addition, the trouble caused by her servant in the main hall last night made the little princess even more determined to teach him a lesson.

Consort Min, who was drinking tea, immediately changed her expression upon hearing Wen Ke's words and scolded him in a low voice, "Wen Ke, what nonsense are you talking about?"

Wen Ke was unconvinced. "My daughter isn't lying. Last night, it was her guard who caused trouble and almost ruined everyone's New Year's celebration. Not only did she not apologize, but she also acted like nothing happened."

Consort Min immediately rose and knelt down, kowtowing to the Empress Dowager in a panic, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. It is all because I have not taught Wen Ke well that she has become so presumptuous."

The Empress Dowager's face also darkened.

Everyone knows that Qingqing comes from Khorchin, the hometown of the ancestors and the Empress Dowager, so the old lady was particularly fond of this child.

As for Emperor Kangxi bestowing the title of Princess Heshuo, it was naturally intended to bring the two sides closer, and judging from the situation, it seems that a marriage alliance is about to take place.

When Wen Ke suddenly spoke up at this moment, wasn't he clearly trying to give the Empress Dowager a hard time?

Seeing that no one spoke, Qingqing shook the Empress Dowager's sleeve and said with a smile, "Grandma Wukuma, don't be angry. What happened in the main hall last night not only frightened my aunt, but also terrified Qingqing. Who would have thought that the guards who came all the way would be so unruly? Fortunately, Guoluoma Fa dealt with him in time, otherwise Qingqing would have asked Mother Consort to deal with him as well."

These words were much more pleasing to the Empress Dowager's ears.

Afterwards, Emperor Kangxi sent someone to explain the events that occurred in the main hall last night.

The man was ostensibly Qingqing's bodyguard, but in reality, he had been bribed by the Dzungars and his purpose was to sow discord between the Khorchin and the Qing Dynasty.

But there are some things that these people should keep to themselves and not publicize.

Therefore, no matter how you look at it, you can't blame Qingqing for what happened last night.

“Consort Min, you have a prince and two princesses. You should raise them well so that they don’t make a fool of themselves.”

The Empress Dowager's words weren't particularly harsh, but saying them in front of all the concubines, princes, and princesses made Consort Min extremely embarrassed.

"Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty. I will remember it."

The Empress Dowager didn't want to argue with a child during the New Year, so she waved her hand to tell everyone to get up, and then looked at the younger children.

"You all go play in the side hall. Su Ma has prepared a lot of food for you."

Today, there are princes and princesses from the imperial harem, as well as princes who have left the palace to establish their own residences and are bringing their families into the palace, so there are an unusually large number of children.

These children are hard to see even once a day, so let's just let them be.

The children happily thanked the emperor and walked together toward the side hall.

Wenxi tugged at Qingqing's sleeve and said, "I guess she wasn't so much concerned about what happened last night. Maybe she was upset that you were granted the title of Heshuo Princess while she was just an ordinary princess."

Qingqing nodded and smiled. "I guessed it too. But the title was given by Guo Luoma Fa, so what can she do if she's not satisfied?"

The two sisters chatted and laughed as they walked toward the side hall, followed by Hongyu and Hongxi, who were also whispering to each other.

“Auntie seems to be quite unhappy with Qingqing.” Hongyu pouted. “You’d better keep a close eye on Qingqing and make sure she doesn’t fall into Wen Ke’s trap.”

Even though they were about the same age, one was a child who grew up carefree on the grasslands, while the other was a princess who grew up amidst the intrigues and scheming of the imperial harem.

If it really comes down to ruthlessness, Qingqing will definitely suffer.

Hongxi rolled her eyes. "Why do I have to watch over her? Why didn't you go and tell Wenxi?"

Hongyu glanced at Hongxi and said, "Why are you pretending with your brother? I'm just trying to be helpful, but you don't appreciate it."

Just then, Hongsheng walked over with Hongshi and Hongsheng.

“I wanted to talk to you during the palace banquet last night, but unfortunately, such a thing happened. Mother, please don’t let us run around.” Hongsheng explained.

He is the heir of Yinzhi, and even at a young age, he has a remarkable demeanor.

Hongshi, who was following behind him, was still a little awkward when he saw Hongxi, but he still respectfully called him "brother".

After that, Hongsheng always seemed carefree, obediently calling out "brother" to anyone he saw so he could hug him.

Hongyu reached out and hugged Hongsheng, while Hongxi asked Hongli why he hadn't come.

Hongshi stammered, "My younger brother is sick and is resting at home."

Hongxi patted his little head, "You're six years old now, it's time to act like a big kid. Why are you talking so timidly? Do you think I'd eat you?"