By this time, it was already 5:45 AM! Starting from Ning Shou Palace, passing through the Imperial Garden, and then to Cining Palace, Harigana felt like her legs no longer belonged to her.

No wonder women in ancient times often couldn't give birth to healthy children; aside from the lack of sleep, which is detrimental to pregnancy, the amount of exercise was simply too much. How many people could endure it? This wasn't just once or twice, but every single day!

Granny Hu and Su Rina each held one of Harigana's hands, fearing that something might happen to her.

Li Dequan had already ordered the Imperial Household Department to prepare a sedan chair, but the previous one was made according to the rank of a concubine. Now that she is a Noble Consort, the rank is no longer high enough, so a new one is being made at an accelerated pace.

Fortunately, the Empress Dowager and the others were also walking; otherwise, it would have been truly embarrassing for her to be the only one without a sedan chair.

Upon arriving at Cining Palace, the Empress Dowager had already risen. She went in first to pay her respects, and soon they were led into the inner hall by the head palace maid beside her.

This was Harigana's first time entering the inner palace of the Cining Palace, and the decorations and furnishings were truly extravagant. However, her Qingxi Palace was no less impressive, and it now appears to have exceeded the standards for a Noble Consort.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to the Empress Dowager!"

Bumbutai waved her hand, and Sumalagu invited them to rise, and then they took their seats in an orderly manner.

Harigana naturally took the head seat, the first one on the left. However, this used to be the seat of Tongjia, but now she could only sit in the first one on the right.

"Qiqige, how did you rest yesterday? You haven't been back for a while, are you getting used to it?"

The Empress Dowager looked at the Empress Dowager sitting beside her, and the two began speaking Mongolian. Tongjia couldn't understand it, but Harigana did. So although she didn't speak and kept her head down, she was actually eavesdropping!

However, the more she listened, the more uneasy she felt. After all, Hu Mama had just said that the Empress Dowager also needed to be served tea, and that the tea was prepared by the Empress Dowager's people.

She's been sitting here for two hours now, and she hasn't said a word. The two old men upstairs are still chatting, and the people downstairs are sitting quietly.

"Granny Hu!"

Harigana turned his head to ask her a question, but he was stopped by the Empress Dowager as soon as he moved.

"Borchijin, what's wrong? Is something urgent?"

Harigana felt a lump in his throat. "Borchijinshi, that's a really awful name."

Whether she admits it or not, the title of Consort Kang is already hers. Is calling her that now meant to imply she doesn't acknowledge her position, or is it a way of giving her a warning?

Regardless of which one it is, she and this old hag have a long-standing feud!

"Your Majesty, I only wish to ask Granny Hu whether the tea should be served! I grew up on the grasslands and am not very familiar with palace etiquette. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

Harigana didn't kneel; she merely squatted in the middle of the hall. While there wasn't anything seriously wrong with her manners, most people would have knelt down and apologized at this point! Her insistence on not apologizing, yet also saying "please calm down," left everyone present completely bewildered.

The Empress Dowager, in particular, slammed her hand on the low table beside her, causing all the water in the teacup to overflow.

"Borchijin, are you complaining about me?"

Bumbutai was also angered by Harigana's words. What did he mean by saying that she grew up on the grassland and didn't know the rules? Was he saying that she knew the etiquette but deliberately picked a fight?

She had made things difficult for Tongjia Shi in the same way before, just to give her a warning. Even with Tongjia Shi's arrogant nature, she hadn't dared to say a word then, but today she was being lectured by a woman from a small Mongolian tribe!

"I didn't!"

Harigana lowered his head after speaking, glancing at the time, thinking that Kangxi should be arriving soon. Even if he didn't arrive, since the Empress Dowager had provoked him first, she wouldn't blame him for going along with it.

I was just thinking about how to avoid this annoying greeting, but I didn't expect that this old hag would come up with an excuse for her.

"How dare you! Kneel down before me!"

The Empress Dowager had only intended to humiliate Harigana with the tea ceremony from the start, given that Harigana was carrying Kangxi's child. But her demeanor just now was exactly the same as that of Hailanzhu and Dong Eshi before her; her affected manner was truly nauseating.

So, in a fit of anger, she immediately reprimanded him in a stern voice.

Harigana raised her head and looked at the Empress Dowager with an incredulous expression. Just as she hesitated, she seemed to sense that Emperor Kangxi was right beside her, and without thinking, she knelt on the ground.

Although she hated kneeling, she was old enough that kneeling wouldn't hurt.

"Your Majesty, I don't know where I went wrong! I really just wanted to ask Granny Hu if we didn't need to serve tea anymore! I had no other intentions, please calm down, Your Majesty!"

Harigana's voice was aggrieved, but extremely clear. Not only those present, but even Emperor Kangxi outside the door could hear it clearly.

"His Majesty has arrived!"

Upon seeing the Emperor, the chief eunuch of Cining Palace immediately informed him, fearing that the Empress Dowager might say something that would anger the Emperor.

Kangxi glanced at him, then turned around and strode inside.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects! Your servant greets Your Majesty!"

For a moment, the room was filled with various sounds of greetings.

But Kangxi only heard the words choked with sobs: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects!"

The Empress Dowager's face was gloomy; she hadn't expected Kangxi to arrive so quickly.

Seeing the Emperor and the Grand Empress Dowager's gloomy faces, the Empress Dowager and Sumalagu sighed inwardly. They had wanted to offer some advice to Bumbutai, but as the Empress Dowager, they couldn't say much and could only watch as things unfolded.

"Get up, all of you!"

After Kangxi finished speaking, he walked over to Harigana and helped her up. Looking at her pitiful appearance, he felt extremely sorry for her. Especially seeing her biting her lip and shaking her head, he felt a surge of anger towards the Empress Dowager.

"What's wrong? Why does Grandmother look so unwell!"

After settling Harigana in, Emperor Kangxi took his hand and sat down below the Empress Dowager.

Harigana kept his head down and remained silent, while Tongjia and the others watched with amusement, though they didn't show it.

"I am well!"

The Empress Dowager wanted to say something, but since she was in the wrong first, she could only swallow her anger. Besides, with Kangxi present, she couldn't afford to harm that woman in the slightest, no matter what she did.

However, Bumbutai's aversion to Harigana has now reached its peak.