Chapter 483: Congratulations (Part 1)
Eleventh Lady thought about it and felt that it made sense, so she nodded slightly.
Seeing her, Xu Lingyi smiled and ruffled her hair: "It's getting late, go to bed! Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, and we have to stay up all night."
Eleventh Lady smiled and gave the letter to Qiuyu, asking her to give it to Manager Bai, and find a way to send it to Yuhang. Then she went back to the house with Xu Lingyi to rest. The next day was New Year's Eve, and the main gate of the Xu Mansion was wide open, and the door gods, couplets, and plaques were all set up. After breakfast, Xu Lingyi went to Sixiang Hutong and came back at 9:00. "I told Zichun about it." He changed his clothes and prepared to go to the lady. "Look at Zichun's expression, he really doesn't know. This matter should be discussed by the couple behind closed doors. Don't let it spread to the Wang family and make it difficult for Aunt Twelve." Eleventh Lady was very surprised. In her heart, the reason why Wu Niang became the current one was because she married Qian Ming. She was a little biased in imagining this way... Eleventh Lady's mind flashed with the image of Fifth Lady's study in Yuhang - in such a large room, there was only a large black lacquered painting table piled with famous calligraphy works, and a black lacquered imperial concubine couch covered with half-new brocade.
After the New Year's Eve dinner, the family went to the ancestral hall to worship their ancestors, led by the dowager. Jiange was still young, so Gu Mama carried him back to the main house. Xu Siqin, Xu Siyu, Xu Sijian, Xu Sizhen, and Xu Siyi were led by Xu Lingyi to set off fireworks in the yard. Zhen Jieer and Xin Jieer, together with their mother, followed the dowager to eat dumplings and stay up late in the house.
The old lady barely managed to hold on until midnight, then went back to her room to rest. The second lady went back to Xinhua Courtyard, the fifth lady handed the fast-asleep Xin Jie'er to Shi Mama, and took Zhen Jie'er to watch Xu Lingyi and others set off fireworks. Eleventh Lady and Xu Lingyi were worried about Jiange'er, so they went back first. "What should we do tomorrow?" Eleventh Lady and Xu Lingyi discussed the specific itinerary for tomorrow, "Should the child follow you or me?" "Follow you!" Xu Lingyi said, "We'll wait in Danchi. If the child is hungry or wet, there's no place to feed him or change his diaper. You guys should stay in the side hall, and you're all female relatives." He added, "I've already made arrangements in the palace. If the Empress Dowager comes to congratulate you after you enter the main hall, If you summon her before, that's fine. I'm afraid the Empress will be very busy that day, so you can summon her after you congratulate her in the main hall. Only those who can enter the main hall have a certain rank, and Mother Gu is definitely not allowed to enter. When the time comes, the eunuchs will lead Mother Gu and the child to the warm room to rest. After leaving the main hall, you can stay in the warm room with the child and wait. "Eleventh Lady agreed, and the next morning she dressed according to her rank, took Jiang'er with her, and left Mother Du at home to take care of the New Year. The group entered the palace in a grand manner. Eunuch Lei, the eunuch beside the Empress, was already waiting at the palace gate.
"…They said the weather was cold and they were worried that the Sixth Young Master would freeze. They asked the Madam Dowager and the wife of the Marquis of Yongping to enter the palace and take the child to see the Empress at Cining Palace."
This was exactly what the couple wanted. Mother Gu held the child, and Eleventh Lady supported the Lady Dowager, and they went to see the Empress Dowager.
The ladies in the inner palace were waiting outside the palace to congratulate the Empress on bringing in the child. The concubines all looked over here, and someone whispered, "Did you see that? The one wearing the pink brocade cloak is the wife of the Marquis of Yongping." There were many rules in the palace, so the Eleventh Lady did not dare to look back. She left Mother Gu waiting outside and went into the warm room with the child in her arms and the Dowager Lady.
The Empress was sitting on the throne in her formal dress, while the eunuchs and palace maids were serving her bird's nest porridge.
Seeing the Dowager and Eleventh Lady coming in, she stood up without waiting for them to greet her. "Hold the child up to me." The warm room was filled with the tinkling of jewelry. Aunt Huang smiled and came forward to hold up the baby wrapped in a sable fur cape. The Dowager and Eleventh Lady took the opportunity to greet her. The eunuchs beside them helped them up and brought the golden stool over. "This child looks so much like my fourth brother." The Empress gently stroked the shaved head of the baby, looked up at the Dowager and Eleventh Lady and smiled, "He's very brave. He's not afraid at all after such a long journey, and he's sleeping soundly." Eleventh Lady was a little embarrassed. Last night, she and Xu Lingyi had just laid down when the baby fell asleep. She couldn't hold on any longer and went to sleep. Xu Lingyi played with him until the 13th hour before going to bed. "She's a little naive." She said hurriedly and respectfully, "Eat and sleep, sleep and eat." "It's just been a month. She's at the age of eating and sleeping, sleep and eat." The Queen Mother smiled. A eunuch came in and reported, "The Crown Princess has arrived." "Let her in quickly." The Queen Mother smiled and ordered the eunuch. Then she said to the Lady Dowager and Eleventh Lady, "Sister Fang is now six months pregnant." She looked very pleased.
"This is the blessing of the Empress Dowager." The lady said, and Fang Jie'er, who was pregnant, came in with the help of the palace maid. She wore a four-panel phoenix crown and a royal blue dress embroidered with a phoenix. Maybe because of her pregnancy, she has become a lot plumper, with a round face, a peaceful look, and a steady behavior, which is very dignified. The phrase "face like a full moon" popped up in Shiyi Niang's mind. The Empress exempted her from the gift and asked the eunuch to bring a brocade stool to help her sit down. She then smiled at Shiyi Niang - her eyes flashed, and she had her usual cunning. For some reason, Shiyi Niang felt relieved when she saw it. The Empress asked about Fang Jie'er's food, clothing, and daily life these days. Knowing that everything was fine, she smiled and nodded. Just as she was about to say something, Eunuch Lei came in: "Empress Dowager, the time has come!"
Eleventh Lady knew that this was to urge the Empress Dowager to take the throne, so she stood up together with the Lady Dowager and Sister Fang.
The Empress hesitated for a moment, then said to Eleventh Lady, "Let the nurse hold Jin'er in the warm room!" Eleventh Lady knelt down to thank her, supported the Dowager Lady, and followed the Empress and Fang Jie'er to the main hall. First, the inner ladies came to pay their respects to the Empress, and then the outer ladies came to pay their respects. After the whole ceremony, it was already noon. Everyone was a little exhausted. The Dowager Lady was old, and Eleventh Lady was weak, so they felt even more tired. Both of them looked a little pale. They had to go to the warm room to hold the child. The Fifth Lady said to the Dowager Lady, "I'll take you to the door." Eleventh Lady looked at the Fifth Lady with gratitude, and supported the Dowager Lady on both sides to the warm room. Jin'er had just been carried by Eunuch He to see the Emperor. The Queen laughed and said, "You are even more impatient than me." She gave tea and snacks to the Lady Dowager and Shiyi Niang. "At least you should think about your stomach." The Lady Dowager took two sips of hot tea before she could catch her breath, while Shiyi Niang ate two pieces of pea yellow without any hesitation. Fang Jie'er smiled as she saw this.
The third prince and the eldest princess came to pay their respects to the Empress. "This is the Taifu of the Yongping Marquis's Mansion. This is the Madam of the Yongping Marquis's Mansion." The Empress held the princess and pointed at the Taifu and the Eleventh Lady, "The Taifu is your grandmother, and the Madam is your aunt. Remember this clearly." Her voice was very gentle. The three-year-old eldest princess nodded obediently and repeated her mother's words in a coquettish voice: "The Taifu is my grandmother, and the Madam is my aunt." Then she blinked and looked at the Empress, "Then are they going to give me a red envelope?" Everyone laughed. The Empress smiled and pinched her daughter's cheek, "Who did you learn this from? You are so petty! You are a princess!" The eldest princess cried out in pain, but her eyes were shining, and she looked like a mischievous girl. The lady took out the purse with the gold screws that she had prepared long ago and handed it to the princess: "It's for the red envelope." She also gave one to the fifth prince who had been standing beside her with a smile, "It's a little gift from this old woman." The third prince was already fourteen years old this year, and was the same height as Xu Siyu. The cousins looked very similar, but Xu Siyu looked elegant while the fifth prince looked noble. He smiled and took the red envelope. Eleventh Lady also took out the reward purse. The eldest princess shouted happily and ran to Fang Jie'er: "Sister-in-law, there's one for you!" Fang Jie'er smiled and touched her head, and also took out a red envelope. The eldest princess took it and ran: "I'll go find my father - he hasn't given me a red envelope yet!" "Furong," the queen called out the eldest princess's name, and the eldest princess turned around and smiled at her mother, and continued to run out. "Don't worry, mother." The third prince bowed hastily and followed the eldest princess out of the warm room. "I will go with my younger sister. She won't get into any trouble." The queen sighed helplessly and said to the lady-in-waiting, "This child has been spoiled!" But her tone was full of doting.
The eldest princess was born after the fifth prince's death. She was the bearer of the empress's guilt towards the fifth prince, so naturally she was pampered more.
The Dowager Lady smiled and said, "The eldest princess is smart, lively and everyone likes her. It is natural for the Empress Dowager to love her." The Empress Dowager talked to the Dowager Lady and Eleventh Lady about the eldest princess, and then asked about the story of Jin Ge'er in detail. After talking for a long time, the eldest princess and the third prince did not come back, nor did the eunuch bring Jin Ge'er back. Everyone was inevitably a little anxious, and the Empress Dowager even ordered Aunt Huang, "Go and have a look. It's time for lunch." Aunt Huang left in response and returned quickly. "The Marquis asked the eunuchs around the Emperor to come and tell him that he and the Sixth Young Master were already outside the East Gate. He asked the Madam Dowager and the Marquis of Yongping to go to the East Gate after leaving Kunning Palace." The Empress was a little dumbfounded: "Why didn't they come to say hello and just took the child away like this!" She added, "I haven't given him my meeting gift or New Year's money yet!" The Madam Dowager and Eleventh Lady also looked at each other. Eleventh Lady even guessed that Xu Lingyi and the Emperor parted on bad terms, so he didn't even want to see the Empress Dowager, and left the palace with the child? The Madam Dowager didn't know what happened, she just wanted to see her son as soon as possible. Hearing this, she stood up and said, "The New Year is over after the Lantern Festival. In two days, Shiyi Niang will bring Jin Ge'er to pay New Year's greetings to the Empress and the Crown Princess." The palace etiquette was complicated, and Jin Ge'er was still young, so it was a hassle for him to enter the palace. If there was any Empress, she would not want to lose the big picture because of the small one. She smiled and told Aunt Huang, "Send the things I prepared for Jin Ge'er!" The implication was that she did not need to enter the palace again. The Dowager and Shiyi Niang were relieved. Seeing this, Fang Jie'er also told the people around her, "Send the things I prepared for Jin Ge'er!" The female official replied respectfully, "Yes." The Dowager and Shiyi Niang had to thank them and then left Kunning Palace.