Chapter Eleven
"I know, I know all of this, Fulin is not a good father, nor a good son, nor a good emperor." He abandoned his mother and son, handing over the Qing Dynasty to an eight-year-old child before leaving. He is unqualified, utterly unqualified.
"My dear wife, my dear wife, this time, it may not be over. I'm just worried about you, worried that you and Baocheng are both from the imperial family, where there is no father-son relationship. But I believe that you and your father are different..."
Holding Kangxi's hand, her eyes red and her voice slightly choked, she said, "I'm leaving. I should go find them."
"Grandma, Xuan Ye, Xuan Ye still needs you. You, you can't abandon Xuan Ye!" Kangxi was extremely flustered. He tightly grasped Grandma's hand, his tone tense and urgent.
"Xuan Ye..." I can no longer stay with you.
Before she could finish speaking, feeling tired and weak, she took the medicine and began to close her eyes, which startled Emperor Kangxi, who quickly called for the imperial physician. But it was impossible; she had just caught a cold.
The imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital arrived and quickly stepped forward to take her pulse. They found that she was simply asleep, and the cold sweat on her forehead stopped pouring out. They immediately reported to Emperor Kangxi, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager has taken her medicine, and the medicine has taken effect, causing her to fall asleep."
"Yes, you all stay here and keep watch." Kangxi didn't care who in the harem might urgently need the imperial physician; right now, no one was more important than the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager's illness came on suddenly and she was bedridden. No one knows where Kangxi came up with the term "chongxi" (a marriage alliance to bring good fortune) and thought of Princess Fucha. He immediately issued an imperial edict to bestow a marriage upon her.
At this moment, all he could think of was Bao Cheng, not the already betrothed Yinzhen and Guarjia.
With the imperial decree of marriage already issued, the position of Crown Princess has been awarded to the Fucha family, and there is no going back. The Fucha family is now more popular than ever before.
Chen Jialuo also had no hope of becoming a salted fish.
Emperor Kangxi, however, paid no attention to any of this. All he knew was that the Empress Dowager's fever had broken as soon as the imperial decree for the marriage was issued. The imperial physicians said that the fever hadn't subsided despite taking medicine for so many days, but the imperial decree had brought joy and dispelled the bad luck. As the saying goes, good news makes people feel refreshed...
Blah blah blah, but the gist of it was that we shouldn't praise ourselves now that we're better, because we don't have the ability to do so. We're just afraid that the Empress Dowager, this frail old woman, might fall ill again one day. It's better to blame others than to blame them.
This small credit should be given to the Crown Princess.
Listening to the imperial physicians' words, Kangxi's expression did not change. He knew that his maternal grandmother was quite satisfied with Princess Fucha. Although it was said to be a marriage to bring good luck, he had actually observed Fucha for the past two months. If she was not suitable, she would naturally not be included in the list of crown princesses.
However, the headmistress and his men also reported that Fucha's manners and temperament had indeed improved a lot. This was mainly because Fucha Misihan and his wife had spoiled the child in the past, making her somewhat lively and carefree. Recently, she had been making great efforts to make up for it, and her behavior had become dignified and composed.
In fact...
Who hasn't been caught by a teacher during their school days? In front of the supervising teacher, Chen Jialuo humbly taught and worked hard, treating it all as if she were preparing for the college entrance examination.
After all, once the headmistress was satisfied, she could rest. Sigh, even if the little lazybones wanted to slack off, she still had to pass the headmistresses' test. Chen Jialuo was thinking of resting early because she was too tired.
Unexpectedly, she performed too well. As a result, Emperor Kangxi thought that Princess Fucha was also a good choice. He trusted the Empress Dowager's judgment. Weren't Empress Hesheli and Empress Niohuru chosen by the Empress Dowager back then?
It would also make the Empress Dowager happy, and maybe... If it really doesn't work out, we can find another candidate. Kangxi was very willful about this. He could pick and choose his own candidates, but he didn't think about the princess of the Fucha family. If she was rejected by the Crown Prince, how would she get married in the future?
The Fucha family, on the other hand, didn't have so many worries. They all breathed a sigh of relief after receiving the imperial decree for the marriage.
It's finally settled.
Even though the Emperor had previously bestowed four nannies upon them, subtly hinting that their family might produce a Crown Princess, it wasn't really confirmed yet, and they were still feeling uneasy.
“Jialuo, now... in the near future you will be the Crown Princess, you can’t be so lazy and irresponsible anymore. The palace is not like our backyard.” Wuya sat down beside her, carefully instructing her cold daughter who would marry into Yuqing Palace in the future.
I used to be able to spoil her and keep those demons and monsters out, but not anymore. I wish I could cram all those methods of preventing harm into my daughter's brain.
"Mother, I know, I will try my best." Chen Jialuo wasn't nervous or afraid. What difference did it make who she married? Did she think there wouldn't be any sordid affairs in the inner quarters of aristocratic families and poor but noble men?
Why are they described as aristocratic families and noble sons from humble backgrounds? The key is that ordinary people would not be considered suitable by the Fucha family, much less marry their eldest daughter to those impoverished families.
"Mother, if I become the Crown Princess, will I still need to learn how to run a shop?" Even if I become the Crown Princess, can't I still eat, drink, and dress up like a wealthy lady every day...?
In her opinion, well... what she saw while watching videos and reading novels was the kind of life she wanted to live. She didn't want to be a superwoman; she was already tired enough in her previous life.
"Of course I want it, silly girl. Having money in hand will put my mind at ease. Besides, you'll be managing the affairs of Yuqing Palace in the future." If the mistress of the house doesn't manage the household affairs, she has no say. How can she control the concubines below her?
"I heard that there are already several princesses in Yuqing Palace. After you marry in, don't rush. The most important thing is His Highness the Crown Prince..." Fucha Fujin was instructing her daughter on how to handle men. What about the dignified demeanor of a lady from a wealthy family? That's only in front of others. In private, she can't be like a wooden fish.
Chen Jialuo listened to her mother's teachings, somewhat taken aback. Weren't people in ancient times supposed to be very conservative? This...
Seeing Chen Jialuo's expression, not knowing how to hide her emotions at all, how could that be allowed? If she went to Yuqing Palace and let the princesses know whatever she wanted, what would happen?
Next, Chen Jialuo had another course to learn: how to conceal her micro-expressions.
Yuqing Palace.
His Highness the Crown Prince received a gift from Suo'etu, which was a box that was opened to reveal an exquisite music box with a European-style castle pattern on it. When the chain clip at the bottom twisted, it would sing and spin at the same time. There were also four or five 10,000-tael banknotes pressed under the music box.
His Highness the Crown Prince scoffed lightly. A music box? His uncle probably still thinks of him as that four or five-year-old child from back then?
The Crown Prince, who had been raised in luxury since childhood, had no concept of how much money was involved in the forty or fifty thousand taels of silver. He simply felt that Suo'etu's way of coaxing him was very casual.
However, recalling his thoughts when he last met Suo'etu, how could His Highness not be heartbroken?
But all his emotions were hidden behind that mask of perfect, noble etiquette. His father had said that no matter what, he must never lose the demeanor of a crown prince.
Therefore, Songgotu did not realize that the crown prince he so desperately wanted had begun to drift away from him.
Right now, he is praying for the Empress Dowager and copying scriptures. He is one of the few people in the palace who hope that the Empress Dowager can continue to live. After all, he knows that she is genuinely good to him.
The Emperor Kangxi, who was extremely controlling, naturally knew what Suo'etu had given to the Crown Prince, and that the Crown Prince was copying Buddhist scriptures for the Empress Dowager. He was very comforted, saying that the Crown Prince was indeed the child he had raised, and that he was filial.
Before long, rumors about the Crown Prince's filial piety spread in the palace. Consort Hui was furious in Yanxi Palace. She thought, "Why does everything revolve around the Crown Prince? Doesn't my eldest son, Yinqi, have any filial piety?"
Then, Yinti copied Buddhist scriptures for the Empress Dowager until late at night.
Third Prince, Fourth Prince, Fifth Prince...
One by one, they went to Cining Palace with great diligence. How could Kangxi not know what they were thinking? However, seeing that the Empress Dowager's condition was gradually improving, he thought it was because her children and grandchildren were filial and surrounded her. He was happy and warm-hearted, so he did not stop them. Instead, he occasionally said a kind word.
This made the concubines in the harem seem to be on steroids, attending to the Empress Dowager in hopes of gaining the Emperor's favor.
Chen Jialuo didn't pay much attention to the affairs of the harem; she had only overheard her mother mention it occasionally, and was currently working on the account books.
It's really a headache. The current account books are a mess, unlike the monthly income and expenditure records of later generations. The amounts are written in traditional Chinese characters, which makes it very difficult for her to understand them.
change!
It must be changed!
She is the boss. Employees should adapt to their bosses, not the other way around.
She copied it again. Since she wasn't used to using a brush, she used charcoal pencils. It was made by a combination of craftsmen from the kitchen and the Fucha family. They had it made a month ago, and it took more than a month to finish. She was very satisfied.
The nannies noticed that Princess Fucha was diligently learning about account books. Although they didn't show it on their faces, they secretly liked Princess Fucha quite a bit.
If I could be assigned to work for Princess Fucha at that time, and if she treated the servants well, and if I were to serve the Crown Princess, the future mother of the nation, I could rise in rank by serving her.
After copying the account books, Chen Jialuo noticed the discrepancies in the amounts and cried out, "Mother, Mother!!!"
Their shop was embezzled at least tens of thousands of taels of silver!
"The ledgers of our shop are not right. I'm going to deal with them." When Chen Jialuo's face turned cold, her gentle and pretty face was not fierce enough, but her acting skills were improved by the Empress Fucha's influence. She had a superior gaze that carried an invisible sense of oppression.
"Jialuo, you must know that water that is too clear has no fish. Being overly harsh on those below you will not win their hearts." For this reason, Consort Fucha taught her daughter the principles of conduct. Did she not know this?
They just turn a blind eye to it.
"Mother, I dare not keep a shopkeeper who embezzled tens of thousands of taels of silver from our family. I want to replace him in my dowry shop." Chen Jialuo thought her mother wanted to keep such a person. She refused, fearing that after a while, the shop would not only fail to make a profit but also cause her to lose money. She would have to send him to the authorities for punishment!
(End of this chapter)
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