Chapter Sixty-Six
Jialuo is not a sensitive person, and she would not think that there is something wrong with her body just because she feels greasy. She is simply thinking: Have I been eating too much meat these days?
"Grill me two skewers of vegetables." Jialuo also believed that a combination of meat and vegetables was the most nutritious way to eat, so she put down the meat skewers in her hand and turned to instruct the person.
Upon hearing the Crown Princess's order, the servant who was in charge of grilling meat for the princesses immediately bent down and went to grill vegetables for her.
"Are you full?" Seeing the Crown Princess's unique taste, the First Princess thought that the Crown Princess was full. "Indeed, eating vegetables all the time is not good. I also feel a bit tired of it. Give me two skewers."
"Indeed." The Crown Princess nodded, eating her grilled vegetables, occasionally glancing at her chubby son across the table. Could a child really eat so much grilled meat? Wouldn't it cause him to get a sore throat? In the sweltering summer heat, would Yinreng be able to take good care of Hongyao?
I'm worried.
Little Hongyao, oblivious to his mother's worry, happily snuggled between his father and uncle, munching on the delicious food until his belly was full.
After eating his fill, little Hongyao clung to Yinreng, his sweet little voice babbling, "Father, Hongyao is sleepy."
"Tired? Then go to sleep." Because Hongyao was crowding around, Yinreng didn't drink any alcohol. He held his chubby son and let Hongyao slowly fall asleep.
Hongyao is also a remarkable sleepyhead; no matter how noisy others are, they can't wake her up.
At this moment, Ala Daqige, who was happily dancing the Yangko with Yinzhi, was overjoyed. She felt that even the Crown Prince was not as charming as her brother.
Yinzhi also quite liked these passionate and fiery Mongolian princesses. In his opinion, each of them had her own unique charm, but the princesses in his own backyard didn't have this style.
With a sense of novelty, and a gentle and refined manner in his speech, some men who like the strong and burly Mongolian men, and naturally some who like the style of Prince Yinzhi, are drawn to him.
The most proactive one was Ala Daqige. She had just taken the initiative to invite His Highness the Crown Prince to dance, and now that she felt so compatible with him, she naturally wanted to be with him.
No sooner had she finished dancing than Ala Daqige knelt excitedly before Emperor Kangxi, “Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I beg Your Majesty to grant my request. My love for the prince is mutual. I am willing to marry him.”
As the most favored daughter, Ala Daqige naturally does whatever she wants, just like she does now.
As soon as Aladachige finished speaking, well... when Aladachige knelt in front of Kangxi, she already attracted a lot of attention, and everyone subtly turned their gazes to her.
However, after Aladachige finished speaking, everyone fell silent, looking at Aladachige with slight shock, and occasionally glancing at the Tumed tribe's prince.
Abu, the daughter of Ala Daqi Gege… could this be how he taught her? Tsk, even if he wanted to marry his daughter into the royal family, he didn't need to be so eager, did he?
When the prince of the Tumed tribe saw his most beloved daughter behaving this way, he smiled happily. Wasn't this a good thing? As the saying goes, the first to strike wins. If his daughter had her eye on something, he would fight for it, snatch it, and grab it.
Besides, marrying into the royal family is not an opportunity that ordinary people can have.
Yin Zhi never expected that his actions would cause such a big misunderstanding for Ala Daqige.
Kangxi's expression was also somewhat unpleasant. He glanced at Prince Yinzhi, then at Aladachige kneeling on the ground, and then at the Tumed Prince. "Prince Tuhanbusaktu, what do you think?"
The Tumed prince quickly stood up, saying, "I leave it to Your Majesty to decide."
Although that's what I said, it was clear from the lines that I also agreed with my daughter's approach.
Emperor Kangxi glared at Yinzhi with a look of exasperation, thinking that Yinzhi was so foolish that he didn't even realize he had been tricked.
Yin Zhi was completely bewildered. He didn't have any particular feelings about having another woman in his life. At most, he felt that Ala Daqige's initiative made him feel inferior.
"Granted. Aladachige, daughter of Tumed Tuhan Busaktu, is bestowed upon Prince Yinzhi as a secondary consort." As a woman from a tribe, it was impossible for Kangxi to directly make Aladachige a princess; that would be disrespectful to the Tumed prince.
"Thank you for your permission, Your Majesty."
"Thank you for your permission, Your Majesty."
The Tumed prince Tuhanbusaktu and his daughter Aladachige immediately knelt down to thank the emperor for his kindness. After realizing that she had achieved her goal, Aladachige immediately went to her brother.
The Fourth Prince Yinzhen and others sitting nearby quietly stepped away, as men and women should not touch each other.
"Alataqige, the women's quarters, it's over there." Prince Yinzhi had a strong scholarly air about him. Most of the tutors in the Imperial Study were Han Chinese, and Yinzhi had learned quite a bit about the rules and etiquette of the Han people.
When Ala Daqige approached her with such clinginess, she had already been bestowed upon him by the Emperor as his concubine, so she was now his woman.
If she were the daughter of Prince Tuhanbusaktu, he would have offered a more friendly reminder, but now, his expression was full of seriousness.
“Brother, the Emperor has already bestowed our marriage upon us. I am now your concubine. Is there any problem with me staying by your side?” Ala Daqige seemed not to understand human speech. She liked the prince and wanted to stick close to him. Was there any problem with that?
Before Prince Yinzhi could speak, the eldest prince interrupted him, "Haha, that's right, old man. The princess likes you so much, what's wrong with you playing with her for a while?"
The eldest son's words made Prince Yinzhi glare at him angrily. What could he do? There was nothing he could do.
Apart from that, everyone else felt they were having a pretty good time.
The Fifth Prince, Yinqi, watched as his brother was entangled with a Mongolian princess, so clingy and seemingly unable to understand human speech. He was relieved that it wasn't him who was being entangled.
It seems that showing tenderness and compassion to women depends on the circumstances...
Yinzhen pretended that he knew nothing, since it was none of his business, right?
The women in the women's area watched this farce with some astonishment, especially Jia Luo, who couldn't help but want to click her tongue twice. To cover up the sound she couldn't help but make, she took a big gulp of milk tea and pretended that she had just made the sound while drinking milk tea.
Oh dear, it seems the Emperor intends to promote the Tumed tribe. Could it be that there's another war going on somewhere?
Having been around Yinreng for so long, Jialuo naturally felt that she had a little bit of political acumen.
"If my sister-in-law were here, she would be furious to see this," the First Princess Consort whispered to the Crown Princess.
"What's there to be angry about? Aren't there enough princesses in the prince's harem?" The Crown Princess looked at the First Princess Consort with a blank expression. If she were angry, how could she still be angry? She would have miscarried long ago.
“You don’t understand. That’s a princess bestowed by Father Emperor and Consort Rong. This one, the prince found her himself. Do you see any of the other princes having any designs on her?”
Seeing that the Crown Princess seemed genuinely confused, the First Princess Consort ultimately remained silent.
The prince's secondary consort was a Mongolian princess. Given the emperor's fear of the various Mongolian tribes, he naturally did not want the next emperor to favor a Mongolian concubine. If she gave birth to a grandson, the emperor might even exclude the prince from the selection of the heir.
However, this is a very rare occurrence, since the Emperor currently favors the Crown Prince greatly, and the Crown Prince's position as heir apparent is very secure.
Perhaps this is the protection that the prince has found for himself, who knows?
Who can be certain about the future?
The next day, the Qing Dynasty's Baturu (a high-ranking official) and the Baturus of various Mongolian tribes held a hunting competition.
In any case, what the emperor wants is someone who can completely crush the Mongol tribes in every way; otherwise, wouldn't he be unable to suppress the restless hearts of the Mongol tribes?
Don't think he's unaware of the Dzungar rebellion; in recent years, various Mongol tribes have been secretly in contact with the Dzungars.
Kangxi simply pretended not to know and turned a blind eye, as speaking out would not benefit anyone.
Jialuo was just a tool to clap and cheer, because her riding skills were not very good, so she couldn't go in with them. She just sat there and watched, occasionally chatting with the First and Fourth Princesses and others next to her.
There were also many wives of Mongolian princes. Fortunately, everyone could understand Mongolian, so there were no communication barriers.
To be honest, sitting here all day is quite boring. I can't even play cards, lest people see me and think that this is what the Grand Consort and Crown Princess of the Qing Dynasty are like.
Xiao Hongyao was a restless person. At first, he pestered Kangxi to go hunting with him, but in the end, he was suppressed.
When Kangxi went out, he had someone bring Hongyao over.
The young prince became the focus of everyone's attention, but unfortunately he couldn't understand what the Mongolian princess was saying and just stayed close to his mother.
However, the Mongol wives all noticed that the young imperial grandson seemed quite intelligent, loved to laugh, loved to talk, and was not afraid of strangers.
The next day, Jialuo had some free time and didn't need to do anything else. She and the First Princess Consort often went out for walks.
Unfortunately, Hongyao was summoned to see Emperor Kangxi again, and neither Yinti nor Yinreng had time to attend to him.
Finally, they returned to Beijing in a grand procession.
Jialuo was very satisfied with her trip and was still very happy on the way back. However, Jialuo found that she did not get carsick when she came, but she started to get carsick on the way back.
vomit--
Really, it must be because I ate too much today, or maybe... the road back was a bit bumpy? Did I bump into something and stumble?
"Xiaoqing, Meizi, bring me some plums to soothe my stomach. Tell the coachman outside to be careful; why is he swaying like this?" Jialuo ordered, her temper rising as she spoke.
Xiaoqing quickly went to get plums for the Crown Princess and went out to tell the coachman to be careful. Although Xiaoqing herself did not feel that the carriage was shaking, if her master said it was, then it was!
After eating two sour plums, Jialuo felt the nausea subside, and lay down in the carriage, her initial happiness gone.
I still don't understand why I get carsick in carriages.
Does that mean we won't be able to go out and play anymore? When Hongyao came to find his mother, he was so worried when he saw how uncomfortable she was. He clung to Jialuo and asked, "Mother? Mother? What's wrong? Why do you feel so unwell?"
"I'll go find my father." Hongyao didn't know what to do. At this moment, the only thing Hongyao could think of was to ask his father for help.
"Stop the carriage, stop the carriage, Father, Father!" Hongyao lifted the carriage curtain and shouted at the coachman, but he couldn't jump down himself, so he could only shout loudly outside.
Although Yinreng was not here, the young prince's urgent calls for the Crown Prince still worried the servants around him, who hurriedly went to report to the Crown Prince.
When Yinreng heard that his son was anxiously looking for him, he was also worried that something might have happened to Hongyao.
After quickly informing Yinti, he rode over and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Father, Mother, I don't feel well, I keep vomiting, what should I do?" No matter how much Hongyao acted like a little genius, he was still just a one-year-old baby, and at this moment, he could only rely on his father.
"Feeling unwell? Go find the imperial physician. Xiao Chenzi, quickly get my token and summon the imperial physician." After instructing Xiao Chenzi, Yinreng dismounted and hurried into the carriage.
Seeing the Crown Princess lying unwell in the carriage, His Highness the Crown Prince was extremely worried. "Jialuo? How are you? Why are you feeling unwell? How are you all taking care of your mistress?"
Yinreng angrily questioned the servants around him: Why didn't you go to the imperial physician when the Crown Princess was unwell?
"Your Highness, I'm fine." Jialuo waved her hand uncomfortably. I just get carsick. How could I tell everyone about something so embarrassing?
Oh dear... a horse-drawn carriage?
When Yinreng heard this, he was silent for a few seconds. "You're in so much pain, yet you say you're fine. You can't be so indifferent to yourself. Hongyao will worry."
Then, she turned to Hongyao and asked, "Hongyao, don't you think so?"
Still ashamed? Is saving face more important, or your health?
"Yes, Mother, Hongyao will worry." Hongyao puffed out his cheeks. Mother doesn't know how to take care of herself at all. What will Mother do without Hongyao by her side? Sigh, what a worrying mother she is.
When the imperial physician heard that the Crown Princess was unwell, he rushed over.
The Crown Princess said she was nauseous because of carriage sickness. They looked for some medicine to soothe her stomach. After taking her pulse, they said, "Congratulations, Your Highness! Congratulations, Crown Princess! You are pregnant. According to your pulse, you have been pregnant for over a month."
"What? You're pregnant? I get carsick!" Upon hearing this, the Crown Princess looked at the imperial physician in shock. No wonder I felt the meat was greasy before; I thought it was because I ate too much meat.
Jialuo had no choice, because she had only been pregnant once before. When she was pregnant with Hongyao, Hongyao was very filial and she didn't have any pregnancy symptoms. Who says that someone who has been pregnant once should know everything?
"The Crown Princess is pregnant?" Upon hearing the imperial physician's report, His Highness the Crown Prince's face lit up with a bright smile.
Only Hongyao, sitting there, looked at Yinreng and then at Jialuo with a blank expression. What? Why didn't you tell Hongyao?
"Father, Father, what's wrong with Mother?" Hongyao reached out and tugged at Yinreng's clothes unwillingly. How could you not tell Hongyao?
"Our Hongyao is going to be a big brother!" Yinreng happily reached out and hugged Hongyao, who sat on his lap. "Your mother is going to give you a younger brother or sister."
Hongyao looked at Yinreng with some confusion, "Huh? Younger brother? Younger sister? Is Hongyao going to be a big brother?"
“Yes, that’s right. From now on, Hongyao will be the older brother, and you will be in charge of educating the younger brother. If the younger brother is disobedient, you can hit him, okay?” Yinreng remembered that when he was a child, he thought he was the emperor’s favorite, but who knew that he had an older brother.
Yinreng still remembers how he felt at that time, so when it came to educating Hongyao, he was worried that Hongyao would not like a second child, so he had to start educating him from that point on.
"Huh? Really?" Hongyao was shocked when he heard his father's words. Could he hit his younger brother?
“Our Hongyao is the elder brother. How do you want to educate Hongyao?” Yinreng also realized that what he said just now was inappropriate. What if he corrupted Hongyao?
"I want to take him out to play."
"Um."
"I also read the 'Character Classic' to my younger brother, and we studied together."
"Um."
"Let's eat something delicious together."
"Wow, Hongyao is so generous? It seems my little brother will definitely like our Hongyao brother."
Upon hearing the words "Brother Hongyao," Hongyao's face lit up with a shy smile, a smile that was both sweet and proud.
"So, starting today, Brother Hongyao, you must work hard to learn how to be a well-liked older brother." Yinreng assigned his little chubby boy a task, "I'm entrusting Mother to Hongyao's care."
"Hongyao will definitely take good care of Mother." Hongyao, who had no sense of self-awareness, patted his chest confidently. You can rest assured and leave it to Hongyao.
"What if it's a sister?" Jialuo listened to the conversation between Hongyao and Yinreng. Although it would be better to have a brother, no one could be sure that they would have a daughter.
Is it wrong to instill the preference for sons over daughters in Hongyao's mind before he was even born?
"It's definitely a younger brother." Hongyao doesn't like younger sisters. Like the sisters in his uncle's family, none of them can play with him. He wants a younger brother.
"Really? If it's a little sister, our brother Hongyao will have to work hard to teach her well." Jialuo chuckled when she saw Hongyao's resolute attitude, and didn't bother to tutor him in biology.
But I've heard that children can see unscientific phenomena that others can't. Could it be that it's a son?
Looking down at her belly, Jialuo didn't care whether it was a boy or a girl, but she would be reluctant to let the princess go after hearing that she was to be married off to Mongolia for a political marriage.
The daughter he raised with such care for over a decade has married and moved to Mongolia, and he doesn't know how many years it will be before she can come back...
Because the imperial physicians were not silenced, the entire procession quickly learned that the Crown Princess was pregnant again after the New Year, the year since she gave birth to Prince Hongyao!
This time was of little concern to others, but for the eldest prince, Yinqi, who was most interested, his eyes lit up as soon as he heard the word 'year'!
Yes, that must be the Crown Prince's secret formula for having a son.
Now, we just have to wait for the Crown Princess to give birth to this child. If it is indeed a son, does that mean that the Crown Prince's secret formulas for conceiving a child are real?
When the First Princess Consort heard that the Crown Princess was pregnant, she was filled with envy and reached out to touch her own belly.
I don't know what got into the eldest prince, but he actually believed the Crown Prince's secret formula for having a child.
In all her life, she had only ever heard of women taking fertility remedies, never of any man taking them. And for years…
However, the First Princess Consort did not shatter the First Prince's fantasy; at most, she would blame the Crown Prince.
She's had four children in so many years, she definitely needs to take care of her health. She should have one more while she's still healthy... or two more if necessary.
There's no reason why Consort Rong and Consort De could give birth to five or six children and remain so young, while I've become such a haggard woman.
Besides envy, the Fourth Prince's wife, Lady Guarjia, was also jealous and envious. Why was Lady Fucha pregnant again?
She even sent someone to summon the imperial physician, saying she was feeling unwell, but actually she wanted to know if she was pregnant. Unfortunately, the physician said she wasn't.
At first, the imperial physician thought that the Fourth Prince's wife might be feeling unwell, but after taking her pulse, he found that she was perfectly fine. Then he heard the Fourth Prince's wife stammering about whether she was pregnant, and he immediately understood. He then quietly indicated that she was not pregnant.
However, the princess is in good health...blah blah blah, so the dialogue essentially means one thing: the princess is not pregnant, you should try harder.
The Fourth Princess felt ashamed and sent the imperial physician away, then buried herself in her carriage, too embarrassed to face anyone.
Clearly, no one else knew that she had called the imperial physician to check her pulse to see if she was pregnant.
When Emperor Kangxi learned that the Crown Prince was pregnant, he recalled the medicinal herbs he had sent to the princes some time ago. The concubines of the fifth and seventh princes were pregnant, the eldest prince's wife was pregnant, and now the Crown Princess was pregnant as well.
Not bad, not bad, it must be because of your good fortune.
He had over twenty sons! (Including those who died young)
Overjoyed, Emperor Kangxi immediately bestowed a batch of gifts, and then ordered that the eldest prince, Yinti, and the fourth prince, Yinzhen, be given a batch of medicinal herbs.
The eunuch in charge of delivering the medicine also conveyed an imperial edict: "The Crown Prince, the Fifth Prince, and the Seventh Prince have all used these medicines, and they are all pregnant in the harem. You must work harder, understand?"
Upon hearing this, the expressions on the faces of the First Prince and the Fourth Prince became somewhat subtle. They smiled and thanked him, but inwardly they were thinking, "Father, we're still outside! Saying this in front of so many people, are you trying to announce to the entire Qing Dynasty that your son isn't very capable?"
angry.
Jialuo didn't care what others thought. On the way back recently, Hongyao seemed to have been tricked by Yinreng into becoming lame. He stayed by Jialuo's side every day and even recited the "Character Classic" and "Great Learning" to her, as if he was afraid that his younger brother wouldn't be like that when he was born.
Even when Emperor Kangxi sent someone to summon Hongyao, Hongyao refused, saying, "Hongyao wants to teach his younger brother to read, so Grandfather, please don't disturb Hongyao."
When Emperor Kangxi heard the report from his subordinates, he was speechless. Teach his younger brother to read? He was still in his mother's womb, and they didn't even know if the fetus was fully formed yet!
Oh well, let the kids do whatever they want.
It's always better to care about your younger brother than to end up like Bao Cheng and Bao Qing, who argue the moment they meet.
Emperor Kangxi remembered that when Baoqing first returned to the palace, he had even fought with Baocheng...
When Prince Yinzhi's concubine, Ala Daqige, heard that the Crown Princess was pregnant, she came over in person to deliver a gift. Her eyes kept glancing at Jialuo's belly. "I really envy the Crown Princess. It's a pity that I haven't conceived my master's child yet after all this time."
Jialuo: ...
What does it matter to me if you're not pregnant?
"Don't rush, you and your brother just got married...you've only been together for a short time, and Hongyao is already 20, and I'm pregnant with my second child." Jialuo quickly took back the word 'married,' as that was not something to be said, and comforted her.
Moreover, don't you think it's appropriate for you, as a concubine, to come to me and complain about these things?
“That’s true. The Crown Princess’s pregnancy is progressing much faster. I heard that His Highness only has Prince Hongyao as his sole heir in the Crown Prince’s harem.” Aladachige nodded, thinking that she was the beloved daughter of a prince and could say whatever she wanted.
Upon hearing this, Jialuo's face darkened. "Consort, I have other matters to attend to. Please leave."
"Also, after marrying a prince, as a secondary consort, you must refer to yourself as a concubine, not with those utterly disrespectful 'I, I, I'." Jia Luo found it really annoying to chat with someone who couldn't understand human language. What her Yuqing Palace was like was none of his business!
Ala Daqige never expected the Crown Princess to have such a bad temper. "Crown Princess, how can you speak like that?"
"How can the Crown Princess speak like that?" Yinreng, who had just returned to check on the Crown Princess's health, heard the old concubine's arrogant tone. His expression darkened, and he impatiently chased her away.
"You are not welcome here." I need to have the old man teach his concubine a lesson later. Since she married into the Qing Dynasty royal family, she should abide by the royal rules. She is so disrespectful.
Ala Daqige is now considered the highest-ranking of Prince Yinzhi's women. Normally, the other princesses don't dare to compete with her, and the prince treats her with great courtesy.
So they all thought they were something special, and that's why they left with a cold snort.
She was even planning to go back and whisper sweet nothings in her brother's ear, still thinking that this was the Tumed tribe, still that beloved daughter of the prince...
"Don't worry about her anymore." After Alaqige left, Yinreng went over to coax Jialuo, "Did she upset you just now? Honestly, how do you raise your concubine?"
As she spoke, she glared at the stupid servants around her who, seeing that the Crown Princess had been angered, did not even know to drive away the concubine.
"No, it's just that I don't like what she's saying. I'll just ignore her. She'll get what's coming to her in the future." After chasing her away, Jialuo didn't want to pay any more attention to her.
Jialuo knew that the Fujin was no delicate woman; she was a daughter of a military family and quite shrewd. The princesses in her brother's harem were certainly not to be underestimated either.
With Ala Daqi's foolish nature, if she went to that cannibalistic place, she would be devoured until not even bones were left.
Yinreng naturally understood what the Crown Princess meant, and in the end, he didn't say anything more to her. Instead, he asked about Jialuo's belly, "Are you still feeling nauseous today?"
Upon hearing this, Jialuo immediately reached out to stop him, saying, "As long as you don't mention it, I won't feel like throwing up."
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
