As December approached, the palace grew increasingly cold.
Every few days, the snowfall turned the entire palace complex into a blanket of white, the world draped in silver and silent.
Inside the east hall, Du Chenghui was instructing Song Xibai.
"The plum blossoms look somewhat like peach blossoms, but they are mostly double-petaled, the flowers are smaller, and the edges of the petals are slightly tapered... I like to embroider red plum blossoms, and the silk thread I chose is a little darker than true red."
Song Xibai listened and nodded repeatedly. After she finished speaking, he couldn't help but sigh.
"Indeed, everyone has their own expertise. I really don't have any talent in needlework. It's already quite good if I can embroider a flower, unlike Du Chenghui, whose embroidery has a certain spirit."
Du Chenghui blushed and smiled, then taught her the needlework for embroidering flower stamens.
"By the way, tomorrow is the Little New Year. The palace is granting an honor, allowing family members to come to the palace for a visit. Consort Xi, you must tell the Crown Princess as soon as possible, otherwise it will be several days later!"
Song Xibai was stunned.
Family?
Her family is enduring the harsh conditions in the Northeast!
Song Xibai's hand clenched tightly.
After a moment, she put aside her longing and smiled at Du Chenghui.
"My family doesn't live in Beijing, so there's no need for that."
Du Chenghui was somewhat flustered: "I'm sorry, I misspoke."
"Why apologize? You reminded me because you meant well, didn't you? You're right. Although I don't need to see my family, there are always palace servants I want to see. I'll have Fuliu make a list later and report it to the Crown Princess."
Song Xibai thought of something else.
Du Chenghui breathed a sigh of relief and scratched his cheek somewhat embarrassedly.
After Du Chenghui left, Song Xibai immediately summoned Fuliu and brought up the matter.
The willow branches swayed, their faces showing emotion.
"Thank you, Master!"
Then, she quickly ran out to find the other people.
Then, Wei Hong brought in a Ru kiln porcelain bowl with a lid on.
"My lord, this was sent by His Highness."
Song Xibai glanced at it. What could such a small porcelain bowl possibly hold?
Wei Hong walked to her side, put down the porcelain bowl, and then opened the lid.
In the porcelain bowl, there are two bright red fruits.
It's strawberry!
Song Xibai's eyes widened considerably.
Although these two strawberries are not large, they are bright red and glossy, with emerald green sepals on the stems, and they have not lost any moisture.
"Where did these strawberries come from in the dead of winter?"
Strawberries are one of the most difficult fruits to transport; they will rot if they are bumped or the weather changes even slightly.
In her previous life, Song Xibai had tried growing strawberries herself! But she could never quite get the amount of fertilizer right. Either she applied too little fertilizer and the fruit was very small, or she applied too much fertilizer and burned the entire strawberry plant to death.
It was also because she had eaten the strawberries she grew herself that she lost interest in the large strawberries sold in the market.
They all taste different.
In ancient times, let alone fruit, even fresh vegetables were hard to come by in winter.
Having lived in the Song family for over a decade, Song Xibai was used to eating cabbage and radishes in winter, occasionally supplemented with dried vegetables and bean sprouts.
"I heard that they were grown in the greenhouse of Prince Wu's mansion, so I picked a small basketful. Most of them were sent to the Qianqing Palace, but I gave a plate to His Highness in private. His Highness had them divided up: three for the Crown Princess, two for the Master, and one for Consort Guo."
Wei Hong inquired in great detail.
Song Xibai was speechless upon hearing this.
She remembered seeing something online before, saying that Emperor Qianlong gave his concubines one lychee each.
Now Song Xibai understands.
It wasn't that Emperor Qianlong was stingy; it was simply that there wasn't enough to go around for everyone!
"Which empress was the son of the King of Wu?"
Song Xibai picked up a strawberry, took a bite, and ate it with great satisfaction, squinting her eyes.
"The King of Wu is the only son of Consort Shu, and the third son in his family."
Wei Hong replied.
"Consort Shu?" Song Xibai paused. "Consort Shu and Prince Wu, were you on good terms with His Highness before?"
Wei Hong shook her head: "When the Prince of Wu was young, he was quite close to His Highness, but after he got married and established his own residence, he became estranged from His Highness."
Song Xibai held another strawberry in her hand, playing with it thoughtfully.
"It seems that Consort Shu's days in the palace are not easy either!"
Originally, the three consorts were in charge of the six palaces, but Consort Shu and Consort De lost the palace intrigue and were squeezed out by Consort Gui, and rarely came out anymore.
Now, not long after the Crown Princess began to assist in managing palace affairs, Consort Shu's son, Prince Wu, eagerly sent a plate of strawberries to the Crown Prince.
Tsk tsk, as expected, everyone will rush to curry favor with those in power.
The greenhouse wasn't just built, so it's not like we're only getting strawberries this year, right?
The King of Wu has been married for six years...
"How many children did the King of Wu have?" Song Xibai suddenly asked.
"Two sons and three daughters, the oldest is five years old and the youngest is just one month old."
"They're really good at having babies."
Song Xibai clicked her tongue twice, ate the remaining strawberry, and didn't ask any further questions.
Wei Hong didn't say anything more.
Song Xibai liked this about Wei Hong: she was obedient and never asked questions on her own initiative.
About half an hour later, Fu Liu returned.
As soon as she entered, she rattled off a string of names.
"This is a palace maid who wants to see her family."
Song Xibai nodded: "Make a list, and come with me to see the Crown Princess later."
The Crown Princess and the Imperial Concubine assist with palace affairs in the morning, returning no later than the end of noon.
After all, the New Year is approaching, and the Crown Prince has a lot of things to decide.
Fu Liu quickly copied the list, carefully dried the ink over the fire pit, and then immediately folded it up.
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