Chapter 37 Relocation of the Palace...
Si Rui was breastfed by a wet nurse, and Gan Cao did not need to be fed. Therefore, after the postpartum period, the effects of the physical transformation began to fade.
With his strength restored, he had more energy to shape his body, and he had precise requirements for his sleep time and movements; he also controlled the types and amounts of food and tea he drank, and spent almost all his other time exercising, except for playing with the little prince.
After more than a month of such a demanding plan, his physique finally recovered to a barely acceptable state.
Only then did he report to the Empress and His Majesty that he had recovered.
The lockdown was lifted naturally.
The first thing he had to do was take the Second Prince, Si Rui, to pay his respects to the Empress.
Si Rui was a healthy prince. In the past two months, he ate well, slept soundly, and cried out whenever he needed something. More than a dozen palace servants swarmed around him, and he grew quite a bit bigger.
Even though Gancao's biological father wanted to take care of her, he couldn't really get involved.
In his memory, boys were only given a few bites of food and were able to take care of their younger siblings and help their fathers with chores by the age of five or six. But this experience was completely unsuitable for a noble prince.
His fatherly love could only be expressed by holding him and playing with him, caring about whether he had eaten or slept well, and vaguely planning to teach him to read when he was four or five, to teach him male virtues when he was seven or eight, and to take him to maintain his health and exercise when he was a teenager.
Fortunately, the bond formed during the ten months of pregnancy connected them by blood. Although the little prince was cared for the most by the palace servants, he still loved his father the most.
As soon as he picked him up, the little prince laughed happily.
Gan Cao was even more reluctant to let him go, and almost carried him all the way to Changning Palace.
After Si Rui reminded him again, Gan Cao handed the child to him.
He got up very early today because he had to pay his respects, but when he arrived at Changning Palace, he was met with more than forty pairs of envious and jealous eyes.
These palace servants arrived even earlier than him.
Gan Cao chuckled lightly. He wasn't dressed up today, which made many palace servants secretly curse him as a vixen.
But seeing his noble-ranking palace attire, even if the junior palace servants were resentful and unwilling, they had to be the first to carry his belongings.
In the past, seeing so many noble men from high-ranking families bowing to him would have made him panic, but now he felt completely at ease.
The second prince was his source of confidence.
"No need for such formalities, brothers and sisters." He nodded slightly, then walked gracefully to Liang Zhaoxun's side and gave a slight curtsy. "Your subject greets Zhaoxun."
Liang Zhaoxun slightly turned half his body to accept the greeting.
Some people were jealous and unhappy, while others wanted to befriend them. But for the same reason, they came from different backgrounds, had different tastes, and couldn't talk to each other. All they could do was give each other jewelry as gifts. But because she gave birth to the second prince, all the palace attendants gave gifts, and Gan Cao couldn't tell the difference between them at all.
Soon after, the Queen, dressed in her finest attire, emerged from behind.
All the palace attendants bowed in unison: "Your Majesty, we pay our respects to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty live a thousand years."
"No need for formalities." The Queen looked at Gan Cao and the Second Prince who was being held by Momo. "This must be Rui'er. Bring him here so your father can have a look."
Gan Cao's heart tightened, but then he gradually relaxed: The Queen is the child's legal father, so it's time to see her.
Momo obediently led the Second Prince to the Empress's side and bowed.
"He's a healthy child, Lady Gan, you've raised him very well." The Queen praised him, then placed a longevity lock next to the swaddling clothes. "Our Second Prince will surely grow up safe and sound."
As soon as he finished speaking, the palace servants laughed and echoed his words, praising the queen's kind fatherly heart.
"I will treat all of you equally if you give birth to an imperial heir." The Empress waved for Momo to carry the Second Prince away, then looked at Gan Cao, "Noble Lady Gan, have you recovered?"
Licorice Blessing: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. My health has basically recovered."
"Then starting tomorrow, report the green plaques to the Imperial Bedchamber Bureau," the Empress casually announced, causing several palace servants to grit their teeth.
Licorice was both pleased and worried, but she still bowed and said, "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."
In the past, when the emperor wanted to serve him in bed, he would choose whoever he wanted. After the chief eunuch presented the green nameplates, the emperor would then choose the person to serve.
If the green plaque isn't posted in the Imperial Bedchamber Bureau, it will be difficult for His Majesty to remember it.
He was worried about this matter, but the Queen solved it casually.
"How are Consort Wei and the First Princess doing now?" The Queen asked again, concerned about the two who were not present.
A palace servant bowed and replied, "She still needs to rest quietly and avoid the wind."
"Tell the imperial physicians that they should use any medicinal materials, as long as they are effective," the Empress sighed softly.
Only after reprimanding the two palace servants who had argued the day before did the Queen send them away.
On the way back to Anle Palace, attendants greeted him with smiles and compliments, praising the Second Prince for being healthy and obedient.
Gan Cao smiled and agreed, and only left when she saw more and more servants gathering around, making the excuse that the Second Prince needed to eat.
Back at the Jade Pavilion, after feeding the little bubble-blowing fellow to his wet nurse, he led the palace men to begin the relocation of the palace.
He chose Anping Hall, the largest side hall in Anle Palace.
The Shanggong Bureau had already gone in ahead of time and arranged everything according to the rules for dignitaries. He only needed to check whether the beaded curtains, emerald screens, precious vases, golden goblets, and seasonal flowers and plants suited his taste.
As soon as he approached Anping Palace, he smelled the faint fragrance of orchids, and the palace men immediately smiled.
Upon entering the hall, one sees large, blooming orchids, their purple-red and orange-yellow blossoms vibrant and charming. Si Rui, upon seeing them, exclaimed "Ah~ Ah~ Ah~" and tried to catch them.
"Let the imperial physician take a look. If Arui can handle them, then these flowers can be kept."
Mao Gen nodded and noted it down.
Upon entering the hall, Gan Cao's first impression was that it was spacious and bright.
I used to think that Cuiyuxuan was already quite large, but after Si Rui came along, I felt that it was still too cramped.
Anping Palace seems to be able to accommodate Si Rui's maids and eunuchs.
The screen is grand, the beaded curtain is beautiful, and the flower and bird paintings on the wall are exquisite and unique.
The entire palace gives people a sense of openness and comfort.
The room where the second prince lived was decorated even more lavishly, with the floor covered with felt and all the edges of the utensils wrapped.
Even he himself couldn't have imagined it to be so comprehensive.
“I am very satisfied,” Gan Cao said to the male officer from the Shanggong Bureau. “Thank you for your trouble.”
Mao Gen quickly took out his purse as a reward.
Afterwards, the imperial physicians were consulted, and after confirming that there were no problems, the palace was officially moved.
There were quite a few things in Cuiyuxuan. After carefully examining them, Gancao decided to take away only the gold, silver, jewelry, and cloth from the storeroom, in addition to his personal belongings.
He has better things now, and since he doesn't need these things, he can't give them away, so he won't regret keeping them.
After the palace was moved, the Shanggong Bureau brought young palace men for him to choose from.
The original Jade Pavilion was too small, and he had to take care of Si Rui first, so he didn't assign a palace maid with the rank of Noble Lady for the time being.
Now that they've moved to Anping Palace, it's natural to have a full complement of palace servants.
Gan Cao promoted both Mao Gen and Xiao Li to the rank of Da Gong Nan. Although they did not have a rank, they could still receive a monthly allowance of the ninth rank, which greatly improved their status and treatment.
After that, he selected ten less attractive palace boys and assigned them to Oguri and Kagane to manage.
Of these ten people, Fu Ping is Cui's adopted son and can be trusted; Juan Er was originally a palace servant who swept and cleaned the Zi Chen Palace, and he had shown favor to the palace servants when he was still the head of the palace, so he can be trusted to a limited extent; the other palace servants need to be carefully observed.
However, as a fifth-rank nobleman and their master, he had a natural advantage due to his status, and with the assistance of Xiao Li and Mao Gen, he was not afraid of any demons or monsters.
As for Si Rui, the palace servants who served her were all sent from Zichen Palace, so he was naturally at ease.
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