Chapter 49: What was the reason behind the weeping in the Western Six Palaces following Consort Hui's death...?
Bao Qing had no idea what his father, the Emperor, was saying about him. All he knew was that the wolf king specimen finally had a place to go.
He knew the layout of the Qianqing Palace like the back of his hand. He walked around, looking left and right, trying to find a good place to put the wolf king specimen.
Kangxi watched as his eldest son, brimming with inexhaustible strength, moved the specimen to a position within easy reach on his left.
She smiled at him with great filial piety, saying, "Father, this is a good spot. If you get tired from reviewing memorials, you can touch it to relieve some pressure."
Given the position and distance, Kangxi turned his head and his eyes met the wolf's head.
Liang Jiugong looked at the Emperor, whose expression was indifferent, and then glanced at the First Prince, who treated the Qianqing Palace as his third home. He cleared his throat and said, "Oh dear, the officials from the Six Ministries will be coming in to discuss matters later. It's not appropriate to leave him here. This servant will have someone carry him to the west wing."
As they were talking, two eunuchs tiptoed in and moved the large item away.
Kangxi neither agreed nor disagreed, saying, "If there's anything else, say it quickly. Don't stand here wasting my time."
Bao Qing was very sincere. He had said what he wanted to say and done what he wanted to do. As for the wolf king specimen, since it had been given to the Emperor, it was up to the Emperor to decide what to do with it.
“Your subject has nothing to report,” Baoqing said, quickly bowing and taking his leave.
Based on his father's intuition, Kangxi felt something was amiss. "Go and investigate what Baoqing has been doing since he came back."
Liang Jiugong was as efficient as ever. Knowing that the wolf king specimen had gone to Yanxi Palace first and then to Qianqing Palace, Kangxi vaguely guessed what was going on and snorted, "That kid."
He knew it wouldn't be good.
I suppose that since I was scolded by Consort Hui and it wouldn't be appropriate to take him back to the East Third Palace, I decided to use this as a pretext to send him here.
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Two or three days later, it was thought that there would be no follow-up, but unexpectedly, the Ninth Prince and the Tenth Prince visited Yanxi Palace the next day.
On the day of Baoqing's wedding, he let the two little ones taste the wine with silver chopsticks, and they took a liking to this elder brother. They also heard from somewhere that the elder brother had given Consort Hui a wolf king specimen, so they immediately decided to come and see it together.
Their trip wasn't in vain; each of them held a delicate pink peony, picked from who-knows-where, and they held hands, saying, "Your Highness, this is a gift for you."
Yunyun's heart softened instantly when she saw two children with round eyes and sweet, childlike voices looking up at her.
She took the peonies from their hands and then looked behind them.
Suddenly it dawned on me—where are the people who serve them?
Consort Yi and Consort Gui wouldn't allow two children to run around the palace so freely, would they?
Yun Jun whispered an order, "Send someone to Yikun Palace and Yongshou Palace to tell them that both of the young princes are here with me."
No matter how they slipped out, she couldn't let anything happen to the two children in Yanxi Palace.
The sun was shining brightly outside, and the shadows under the eaves had shrunk considerably, the air carrying the unique heat of summer.
Yunyun then let the two children go inside to rest for a while, lest they catch a heatstroke.
The two children had a good relationship. They were close in age and often played together, even doing naughty things together. They were not reserved at all, sitting side by side on chairs and talking back and forth.
Ninth Prince: "I heard that my elder brother was very successful this time. He not only hunted down the wolf king, but also a tiger!"
The Tenth Prince waved his chubby fist and said, "Big Brother is very powerful."
Ninth Prince: "Your Highness, we want to see the wolf king that our eldest brother hunted."
The Tenth Prince nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, we want to see."
Yun Jun was amused by the two of them and had tea and snacks served. She said gently, "But you may have made a wasted trip. The wolf king specimen is not with me. Bao Qing sent it to the Qianqing Palace. If you want to see it, you will have to go to your father."
The two children pouted in disappointment, but as they ate the spiced dried meat from Yanxi Palace with cool plum juice, their disappointment vanished, and they ate with gusto.
They were exhausted and thirsty after walking for so long.
On the other side, the maids and servants who had lost two princes were extremely anxious.
They were just bringing the two princes to the Imperial Garden for some exercise as usual, but suddenly both princes disappeared!
They initially thought it was just a mischievous prince hiding in the Imperial Garden, but after searching the entire area, they couldn't find him. Even though they were afraid of taking responsibility, they had no choice but to send people back to Yikun Palace and Yongshou Palace to report that the two princes had gone missing.
Upon receiving the news, Consort Yi was both anxious and frightened. She hurriedly changed her clothes and rushed out, saying, "Find them for me! Turn the Imperial Garden upside down and find both princes!"
There are many places to hide in the Imperial Garden. Now that it is summer, the trees are especially lush, and there are plenty of places to hide in the rockeries, caves, and corners of the corridors.
Yikun Palace and Yongshou Palace are right next to each other. When the two met on the road, they were even more anxious and went around in circles. They even went to Fubi Pavilion, which is rarely visited, but they still couldn't find the child.
Yunyun sent someone to Yikun Palace and Yongshou Palace first, and received a reply that the two empresses had gone to the Imperial Garden. Then, the person walked to the Imperial Garden, panting, and said: "May Your Highness the Noble Consort be blessed with good health and peace, and may Your Highness the Consort be blessed with good health and peace. Both princes are in Yanxi Palace. Your Highness sent this servant to inform you so that you two may rest assured."
Upon receiving the news, Consort Yi's chest heaved violently. In the sweltering heat, they were all in such a hurry, almost sending someone to report to the Emperor that they were looking for their child. Meanwhile, the others were probably leisurely enjoying snacks in Yanxi Palace.
Even the usually gentle and kind-hearted Consort Gui had a rare dark expression. The two of them, followed by a large group of people, went straight to Yanxi Palace.
The two children sat on chairs, their feet off the ground, swaying back and forth as they happily ate.
Yun Jun sat on the couch, gently stroking Yun Duo's long back fur, and said to the two children with a smile, "If you like it, I will give you the recipe, and you can have the kitchen make it when you get back."
I haven't seen a child eat so much in a long time; it makes me happy just looking at them.
The two children's eyes sparkled as they nodded quickly, saying that Consort Hui was a good person just like their elder brother.
A voice came from outside: "Your Majesty, the Imperial Concubine and Consort Yi have arrived."
The two children, unaware of the impending disaster, were happily eating. Yun Jun suppressed a laugh and said, "Please come in quickly."
Upon seeing the Ninth Prince, Consort Yi could no longer contain her anger. She stormed over and pinched his ear, yelling, "Yin Tang, are you asking for a beating?!"
He seems genuinely furious.
The Imperial Concubine remained silent, nodded to Yun Jun, and then directly shooed the Tenth Prince off the chair, taking the seat herself.
The Tenth Prince, tired of eating, picked up the teacup beside him and gulped it down. Then, without any hesitation, he squatted down at the feet of the Imperial Concubine. He noticed the golden glittering pattern of the Eight Treasures and Water on the hem of her dress and used his hand, which had just been holding spiced dried meat, to pick at the gold thread.
They didn't sense anything was wrong with the atmosphere.
The imperial concubine was truly at her wit's end.
She tried to hold back, but couldn't resist picking up the tenth prince again and using some warm water to moisten a handkerchief to wipe his hands.
On one side, Consort Yi was glaring angrily, while the Ninth Prince was crying his heart out; on the other side, Consort Gui was looking on with restraint, while the Tenth Prince was laughing heartily.
It's kind of funny.
Fortunately, Baoqing has grown up.
The two concubines were in a hurry to go back and educate their children, so they only exchanged pleasantries with Yunyun for a short while before leaving in a large group.
All that could be heard that day was the faint sound of weeping coming from the Western Six Palaces.
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