Chapter 24 Consort Hui is not angry
The young prince was the apple of Emperor Kangxi's eye. He was raised in the Qianqing Palace with great care and privilege from a young age, and Emperor Kangxi knew his appetite very well.
Seeing that he was unusually sullen during the meal and seemed to have little appetite, Kangxi frowned slightly: "Let the Crown Prince's wet nurse come in."
The eunuch who delivered the message responded and left. The prince's wet nurse bowed and entered the warm pavilion, feeling somewhat apprehensive.
She knew how much the Emperor valued the Crown Prince. Although she dared not look directly at the Emperor's face, she could still feel the heavy atmosphere in the warm pavilion.
Although her heart was pounding, she dared not slow down even a fraction, speaking carefully and respectfully, "This servant greets Your Majesty, may Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings."
"Get up," Kangxi said, his attention still on the Crown Prince. He only glanced at the wet nurse and said in a light tone, "Tell me in detail what Baocheng did today, without omitting a single detail."
It's good that they're not being punished.
The wet nurse breathed a sigh of relief, composed herself, and, not daring to be negligent, recounted the Crown Prince's itinerary for the day in detail.
"His Highness rose at dawn and had a small bowl of barley porridge, a milk bun, and half a bowl of steamed egg custard for breakfast, all his usual portions. After breakfast, His Highness played with Luban locks and tangrams for a while. It was snowing outside, so we didn't go out for fear His Highness would catch a cold. For lunch, His Highness had a bowl of green rice porridge, three small bamboo-shaped steamed buns, and some braised beef and mutton, about half a bowl's worth. In the afternoon, the Fifth Prince came to see His Highness the Crown Prince..."
After a pause, recalling the incident in the afternoon, the old woman became even more cautious and recounted the whole story of building the snowman in detail, in a straightforward manner, without any personal emotions.
She must have had some skills to survive being the Crown Prince's wet nurse for so long without being dealt with by Emperor Kangxi.
At the very least, their ability to read between the lines is superb.
Upon hearing that Baoqing had run back to Yanxi Palace, Kangxi turned the thumb ring on his hand.
He had his share of interactions with his brothers. He was the third son of the late emperor. His eldest son had died young, and his second son, Fuquan, was about the same age as him. The two had occasional disagreements, but they were all minor. Overall, they could be considered to be on good terms with each other.
So he understood what was going on with Baoqing and Baocheng as soon as he heard it.
The Crown Prince's sullen appearance is most likely due to Bao Qing's departure without saying goodbye.
The Qianqing Palace fell silent for a moment, with the palace maids and eunuchs holding their breath and lowering their heads.
Just as he was pondering this, a eunuch from the Imperial Household Department entered carrying a tray containing dozens of green plaques engraved with the surnames of the concubines of each palace. He presented the plaques to Emperor Kangxi and respectfully said, "Your Majesty, it is time to choose a concubine."
Kangxi didn't even lift his eyelids, waved his hand, and said in an unquestionable tone: "No need, go to Yanxi Palace."
Liang Jiugong understood his master's thoughts at least three-tenths, if not five-tenths. Seeing that the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department was still standing there in a daze, he quickly gave him a wink and glared at him with disappointment.
Didn't you see that the Emperor's mind was entirely on the Crown Prince and the Fifth Prince?
The affairs of the concubines are nothing compared to the affairs of the two young masters!
So clueless about the Emperor's mind, no wonder that even though we were all serving the Emperor at the same time, I was the chief eunuch serving him personally, while he was only in charge of the Imperial Household Department.
The head eunuch only realized what was happening after being glared at by Liang Jiugong, and hurriedly led his eunuchs out with bows.
There was still some afterglow of the setting sun when we had dinner, but by the time we arrived at Yanxi Palace, it was already dark.
Yun Jun had already received the notification and was waiting outside the palace with her palace servants.
"Your Majesty, may Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings."
Kangxi did not help her up as he usually did, but simply said, "No need for formalities."
Upon entering the main hall, the charcoal fire in the warm pavilion was burning brightly, and a faint fragrance of melons and fruits filled the air.
Without waiting for the palace servants to attend to him, Kangxi went straight to the heated kang and sat down. His imposing posture exuded imperial majesty. As soon as he was settled, he got straight to the point: "Where is Baoqing?"
Yun Jun stood to the side, unable to help but mutter to herself.
Although I had guessed that he was most likely coming to Yanxi Palace to protect the Qing Dynasty, there was no need to be so blunt, without even a word of greeting.
Do you really think Baoqing made a mistake?
Did he feel that Baoqing was disrespectful to the Crown Prince, or did he want to use this incident to teach his two children to be more respectful to each other?
Yun Jun was speechless.
Although Baoqing ran back to Yanxi Palace on his own, he hadn't done anything wrong on the surface. Both children were still young, so what could Kangxi do? He couldn't really beat Baoqing to make him remember the difference between superiors and inferiors.
That would completely destroy the brotherhood.
"Your Majesty, Baoqing has just finished his dinner. I was worried he might catch a cold, so I sent him back to the side hall to play with building blocks," Yunyun replied calmly, her eyes lowered.
She knew she couldn't show the slightest dissatisfaction at this moment, so she could only go along with Kangxi's words and say, "If Your Majesty wishes to see Baoqing, I will have someone go and fetch him right away."
The distance between the main hall and the side hall is only a few steps; if she shouts loudly from here, Baoqing can hear her.
Of course, such improper behavior was not allowed in the palace.
Emperor Kangxi nodded.
Looking at his inscrutable expression, Yun Jun couldn't help but roll her eyes inwardly.
Just say what you have to say. What's the point of keeping me hanging like this?
Don't assume that being an emperor makes you a riddle teller.
Yunyun pondered this and that, but in short, she had already formed a preconceived image of Kangxi as a biased old father.
The silence in the hall was broken only when Baoqing entered and respectfully curtsied.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty, may Your Majesty be blessed with ten thousand years of happiness and peace."
Upon seeing Baoqing, Kangxi's brows relaxed somewhat.
Even if he were an emperor, he couldn't bring himself to put on any imperial airs when faced with his son who was not yet six years old.
After all, he's not even a veteran yet, not even a mid-level player.
He was just an emperor with few children, only three offspring.
Kangxi beckoned to Baoqing, "Come, come to Father Emperor."
Yunyun felt that he was beckoning the puppy.
Baoqing ran over happily, climbed onto the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed), and sat down next to Kangxi.
Emperor Kangxi gently ruffled Baoqing's hair, his tone calm, "The Imperial Observatory has already chosen an auspicious day. In five days, you will begin your studies at the Imperial Study. Your father has already selected some beaded beads for you; they are all sons of noble families from the Eight Banners. How about having them come to Yanxi Palace to see you tomorrow?"
Yun Jun already knew about this matter, but never intended to ask about it.
Haha Zhuzi, also known as the prince's study companion, was traditionally selected from among the nobles and bondservants of the three banners, and would become the prince's connections.
As a concubine in the harem with little real power, she was neither able nor able to interfere.
Kangxi continued, "The tutors in the Imperial Study were also carefully selected by me. They are all learned and upright civil and military officials. Baoqing must behave himself when he goes there."
Baoqing has no expectations for the teacher, but he is really looking forward to Haha Zhuzi.
He looked up at Kangxi, full of curiosity, "Mother told me that Haha Zhuzi would accompany me in studying and practicing martial arts, right?"
So Kangxi told him some interesting stories about his time studying and his interactions with Haha Zhuzi.
Baoqing listened with great interest, and the father and son got along very harmoniously, with one speaking and the other listening.
Until Kangxi suddenly asked, "This afternoon, why didn't you say goodbye to your younger brother, the Crown Prince, and go back to Yanxi Palace by yourself?"
Yun Yun's heart skipped a beat, and she couldn't help but look at Kangxi.
Why are you playing tricks when talking to your own son?
As a father, can't you be a little more frank and honest?
It's absurd for an emperor to be so suspicious of his six-year-old son.
Bao Qing paused for a moment, his smile fading, replaced by a sullen expression. "I'm a little angry because the little eunuch is disobedient."
Regardless of what he was thinking, this was indeed one of the reasons.
Emperor Kangxi stroked Baoqing's hair and asked gently, "Is Baoqing angry with the Crown Prince?"
As a true six-year-old child, Baoqing shook his head, "Your subject likes the Crown Prince and is not angry with him. Your subject just dislikes that little eunuch who acted on his own initiative. He started doing things even though the Crown Prince hadn't said anything."
He looked up at Kangxi, his clear eyes full of sincerity, "Your subject likes to play with your younger brother, the Crown Prince, but that little eunuch is so annoying. He makes me feel that I have lost face as an older brother in front of my younger brother, the Crown Prince, so I can't help but go back to Yanxi Palace."
Yunyun almost wanted to applaud Baoqing for what he said.
These words were spoken frankly yet politely, explaining the speaker's grievances without disparaging the Crown Prince, and most importantly, highlighting the speaker's status as the elder brother in front of the Crown Prince.
Two little kids, what do they know about the crown prince?
Looking into Baoqing's sincere eyes, Kangxi's doubts completely disappeared.
Kangxi said gently, "Your Majesty has already punished the little eunuch for acting on his own initiative, but because Baoqing left without saying goodbye today, Baocheng thought you were angry and couldn't even eat."
Actually, I only ate a little less.
Upon hearing this, Baoqing immediately became anxious and tugged at Kangxi's sleeve, saying, "Then Father, you must tell my younger brother, the Crown Prince, that I am not angry. Tomorrow, after I see Haha Zhuzi, I will go to play with him."
Emperor Kangxi smiled and agreed.
It seems that his trip to Yanxi Palace was solely to inform Baoqing about the Haha Pearl. Before the palace gates were completely locked, Kangxi returned to Yanxi Palace.
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Anything the emperor did would spark discussion among the concubines, and Consort Tong was especially keen on knowing the emperor's whereabouts.
"Did His Majesty go to Yanxi Palace last night?"
Zhao Mama replied respectfully, "I went there after dinner and stayed for about the time it takes for two incense sticks to burn before returning to the Qianqing Palace."
Two incense sticks burned in less than half an hour.
Consort Tong scoffed, "Could it be that Consort Hui angered my cousin? Otherwise, why would she return to Qianqing Palace so late?"
Although Consort Tong was well-informed, her influence did not extend to the Qianqing Palace or even to the Crown Prince, so she was unaware of the minor conflict between the Crown Prince and Baoqing.
However, Consort Tong was ultimately pleased that Emperor Kangxi did not stay at Yanxi Palace.
"Alright, Uya, you can go down now."
Consort Tong slowly and deliberately finished the rules that Consort Wuya had to follow.
She argued that Wuya, though originally a palace maid, still needed to be taught the proper etiquette of a concubine, and instructed Zhao Mama to teach her properly.
The rules for paying respects to imperial concubines, how to walk, how to eat, and most importantly, how to remain humble in front of high-ranking concubines.
These past few days, when it was time to pay respects, Uya had been constantly bruised on her knees.
It seemed that Emperor Kangxi had completely forgotten about her after that incident, and never chose her again.
Even if she came to Chengqian Palace, she would only go to the main hall. Of course, Consort Tong would not allow her to have the opportunity to appear in the Emperor's sight.
Whenever Emperor Kangxi was about to visit, Wuya would be kept under close watch by Chunxiang and could only stay in her room.
but.
Uya agreed and limped back to her residence.
Her periods are usually very regular, but she hasn't had one for a month now.
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