Chapter 57 Consort Hui Visits Relatives
Building their own residence outside the palace made the couple instantly wealthy.
Needless to say, Emperor Kangxi, as a benevolent father, gave each prince 200,000 taels of silver when he established his own residence, treating everyone fairly.
The rest depends on my mother's support.
Although Yunyun's family was not powerful and she did not have a generous dowry, she had accumulated a considerable amount of money from Kangxi's private treasury through years of managing her affairs in the palace, not to mention some hidden income.
When her son finally moved out to live separately, she was so happy that she gave him 80,000 taels of silver.
With money in hand, Baoqing and his wife became generous, and their standard of living rose sharply. The charcoal in their room was all made of the finest silver wire charcoal, making the whole room warm and cozy.
The First Princess Consort was talking with the Third Princess Consort when she heard a maid come in to report that the Fourth Princess Consort had arrived. She immediately stood up with a smile, "Speak of the devil! I was just wondering with your Third Sister-in-law why your Fourth Sister-in-law hadn't arrived yet, and here you are!"
"Come and sit down," the First Princess Consort said, reaching out to pull her in. Her fingertips touched the other's slightly cool hand, and she quickly had a maid add a hand warmer and put it in her arms. "It's so cold. I don't like drinking teas like Pu'er or Biluochun. You can try the almond milk from my residence and give it a taste for me."
As soon as the Fourth Princess Consort entered the room, her silver fur cloak was quickly removed by a maid, and she was given a rabbit fur hand warmer that had appeared in her hands at some unknown time. Before she could even bow, the enthusiastic First Princess Consort pulled her to sit on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).
After a smooth combo, the Fourth Princess Consort looked dazed, as if she didn't know where she was.
Why did she sit down in such a dizzy state?
The air was filled with the sweet aroma of roasted sweet potatoes.
The Third Princess Consort didn't treat herself as a guest at all, squatting down by the stove without any hesitation. She used iron tongs to scoop out two sweet potatoes: "I'm really in luck today. The palace doesn't allow this or that, and we can't even move a decent stove out. I've been thinking about this for a long time."
Ignoring the heat, the Third Princess broke the sweet potato in half while making muffled noises.
The half that was handed to the Fourth Prince's wife was even peeled, wrapped in a handkerchief, and then handed over.
As for herself, she had the whole thing to herself.
Then, her mouth was burned so badly that she seemed to be dancing, and she put on a silent performance.
Fourth Princess Consort, holding the sweet potato, seemed at a loss. Seeing Third Princess Consort's expression, which seemed to be in pain but not quite, she carefully handed her a handkerchief: "Third Sister-in-law?"
The Third Prince's wife waved her hand, started chewing, and finally swallowed it.
"Fourth sister-in-law, don't mind me, I just had a craving."
The third wife, Lady Dong'e, was the only daughter in her family. Her father was a military officer, and she grew up on horseback, living a rough and carefree life with her father, brothers, and other relatives.
Originally, her family wanted to select a military officer from among their subordinates to prepare for her future, but unexpectedly, the emperor appointed her as the wife of the Third Prince.
Isn't there supposed to be a prejudice against the surname Dong'e?
Why did she have to give it to her own son?!
Helpless, the family could only urgently train the Third Prince's wife in etiquette, not expecting her to be dignified and virtuous, but only hoping that she could put on a good show in public.
Thus, the Third Princess Consort truly became two-faced, both inside and outside the palace.
The First Princess Consort was already used to this and simply urged the Fourth Princess Consort to eat and drink. "These sweet potatoes were taken from the Imperial Household Department by the First Prince and me when we left the palace. They said that they would melt in the center when roasted thoroughly. Have some to tide you over, as there's still a while before lunch."
The Fourth Prince's wife had eaten sweet potatoes from the Imperial Household Department.
However, it's always just something added to porridge for flavor; she's never had a whole one before.
Taking small bites, the Fourth Princess's tense body unconsciously relaxed.
With sisters-in-law on either side, who were relatives, the Third Princess Consort didn't hide her envy at all.
"I wonder when we'll be able to leave the palace and establish our own residence. I'm so suffocated in the palace. I wanted to practice my whip skills in the main courtyard, but the nanny kept telling me to go back, saying things like I might hurt myself or startle others. What nonsense! I've been practicing since I was a child, how could I hurt myself? The main courtyard is my territory, who are these 'others'? They're just relying on the Third Prince—"
The last sentence was hard to say, so the Third Princess swallowed it down and continued, "In short, it's still better outside the palace. Look at your residence, how spacious and free it is."
She could only say these things to her two sisters-in-law. Others only said that becoming a prince's wife was a great thing, as if being betrothed to a prince meant that she herself would become a proper member of the royal family, rising to the top in one step, while ordinary people were just mud underfoot.
But the Forbidden City is not such a comfortable place to live.
Not only were the rules strict, but the only place they could move around was the small area of the prince's quarters. If they went out and encountered a concubine or empress, they had to bow to her.
Above her were the Empress Dowager and Consort Rong, two powerful figures weighing her down. Living in the palace and paying respects to the emperor morning and evening was the duty of a Fujin (principal wife), and managing the inner quarters was an obligation beyond obligation. She was questioned for any major or minor matter, and was constantly pressured to have children.
Can she give birth to a child on her own?
The Third Prince just likes to visit other princesses; what can she do about it?
If he were actually tied up and taken to the main courtyard, Consort Rong would definitely be even more unhappy.
The Third Prince's wife was filled with resentment.
"I'm just hoping my husband can make a name for himself soon. Even if he only gets a leisurely job and earns a Beizi title, as long as he can leave the palace and establish his own residence, I'd be happy to stay home and roast sweet potatoes every day. It's better than being cooped up in the palace!"
The First Princess comforted her, "Alright, Father Emperor knows what's going on. Prince Prince was also eighteen years old when he came out of the Imperial Study to take up his post. Just wait another two or three years."
"I... sigh," the Third Princess sighed, "I'll just have to bear it. Well, today is a good day, let's not talk about this."
The Third Prince's wife never made things difficult for herself; instead, she pulled the Fourth Prince's wife along to study the architecture and all the expenses of the Prince's residence with great interest.
Everyone will have to come out sooner or later, so it's better to ask first and be prepared.
The women in the backyard were enjoying themselves in harmony, while the front yard was also bustling with activity.
Bao Qing spoke loudly, one hand on his hip and one foot on the stool, looking radiant.
"At that time, I was surrounded by three armored enemies. Seeing that there was no way out, I felt my blood rushing up. I turned around and knocked the enemy on the left off his horse. Then a big sword came down, but I dodged it with a somersault. I then killed two more people. The cavalrymen around me were dumbfounded and kept praising me as a god descended to earth, a reincarnation of Lü Bu."
The eighty or ninety-three princes sitting around Baoqing stared wide-eyed, occasionally letting out a gasp of amazement.
Especially the Ninth Prince, who seemed to have awakened some strange attribute after the last storybook incident.
First, he asked his mother, Consort Yi, to raise three foxes for him. Then he climbed over walls and trees, saying he wanted to learn light-body skills and roam the world.
Hearing Baoqing's battlefield experiences, which were even more exciting than those in a storybook, she clapped her hands until they were red, exclaiming, "Big brother is so amazing! I want to be a great general when I grow up!"
The tenth prince chimed in, "I want one too! I want one too!"
The Eighth Prince's face was full of admiration for his eldest brother, but he was more gentle in nature. "Then I will serve as your advisor and minister, and assist you in devising strategies."
The three cheerleaders made Bao Qing beam with joy.
Since his younger brothers are so interested, he might as well say a little more.
The Third Prince and the Fourth Prince, two excellent students of the Imperial Study, were past the age of being easily fooled by their eldest brother. At this moment, they were sitting at a long table on the other side, admiring each other's calligraphy.
"Fourth Brother's calligraphy of 'Tranquility Leads to Far-Reaching Vision' is quite good. The strokes are smooth and natural, with a well-ordered pace, and have captured the essence of Dong Qichang's style."
"Not at all, Third Brother's running script is the best. I still have a long way to go to catch up with Third Brother."
The prince sat in the middle of the grand chair, listening expressionlessly to the chattering on his left and the friendly flattery on his right, thinking that it was indeed better for the strong to act alone.
Or perhaps he arrived too early.
Baoqing had a strong sense of ownership. Although she was very happy to be pampered by her three younger brothers, she still reluctantly gave up on them when she caught a glimpse of the Crown Prince sitting alone.
“Sitting here is boring. You haven’t seen my Prince’s Mansion yet, have you? I’ll take you on a tour.”
Bao Qing's strong arm hooked around the Crown Prince's shoulder with such force that the Crown Prince felt he wanted to strangle him and then inherit the throne.
The crown prince looked disgusted, like a cat that had been covered in dog odor, wishing he could stay far away from the culprit.
But her body still honestly followed Baoqing's pace.
A scene that was very clearly divided.
Baoqing and the Crown Prince walked at the front with their arms around each other's shoulders. Although the Crown Prince looked unwilling, he did not actually push him away.
Eighty-ninety-three sycophants walked together. The Ninth Prince and the Tenth Prince darted around, sometimes teasing the thrushes hanging under the eaves, sometimes pulling down the decorative lanterns by the roadside. The Eighth Prince couldn't keep an eye on both of his younger brothers at the same time, so he could only catch one at a time, busy as a spinning top.
The Third Prince and the Fourth Prince lagged behind, occasionally stopping to comment on the plaques and couplets in the mansion, and sometimes even composing a poem for each other to appreciate, inspired by the scenery.
It's truly a scene of order amidst chaos, a testament to the deep bond between siblings.
As the group passed through the covered walkway and the moon gate, they bumped into the late-arriving Fifth Prince, Seventh Prince, and two little boys under the age of seven.
"You've finally arrived," Baoqing said, walking over and patting the Fifth Prince on the shoulder, then also patting the Seventh Prince on the shoulder as well.
Facing the two little rascals, Twelve and Thirteen, Bao Qing bent down and patted their heads.
After greeting everyone, Baoqing asked the Fifth Prince, "Isn't the Eleventh Prince here?"
The eleventh prince and the fifth and ninth princes were born to the same mother, but he was physically weak and often asked for leave while studying in the Imperial Study, so he was not very noticeable.
The Fifth Prince shook his head. "The Eleventh Prince is sick again, and Mother has confined him to Yikun Palace."
Bao Qing expressed his understanding.
"Now that everyone is here, let's start the feast. I just got a few jars of good wine from Father Emperor, let's drink until we drop!"
-
After the luncheon, the princes returned to the palace by carriage.
Several carriages of similar size with blue curtains kept a proper distance and slowly drove towards the Forbidden City, while the one that was entirely golden and decorated with cloud and dragon patterns drove in the opposite direction.
A few days ago, Suo'etu broke his leg. After the emperor ordered the imperial physician to examine him, he said that Suo'etu needed to rest for a month and should not move.
Now that he had just left the palace, and both the First-Class Duke's Mansion and the Prince's Mansion were located in the West District, only two streets apart, he felt it was only right and proper for him to visit them.
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