Zongxue
On this day, Li Qingping took the eldest girl to pay respects to Princess Xuan.
Princess Xuan's belly is already showing signs of pregnancy. A few days ago, she was reportedly suffering from severe morning sickness and was not feeling well. The Emperor specially appointed an imperial physician who was good at gynecology to come to the mansion to be responsible for the princess's pulse.
When Li Qingping arrived, the imperial physician had just finished his daily pulse check. Huixin escorted him out the door and then welcomed Li Qingping and the eldest daughter into the main courtyard.
As soon as he entered the room, he saw two unfamiliar maids. Li Qingping went over to sit down and said with a smile:
"I heard that two maids with rich experience in caring for women have come to our house. I guess they are these two, right?"
The two maids quickly bowed to her and said, "Greetings, Madam."
Li Qingping nodded kindly.
Princess Xuan waved the two away, and Li Qingping then asked, "Why haven't I seen the concubine? She used to be the most active one."
"She wanted to stay cool last night, so she asked the servants to put ice cubes close to her bed. This morning, she woke up with a heavy head and called a doctor. But he was afraid of passing the disease on to me, so he didn't come." Princess Xuan said, "You and the eldest girl should also be careful and don't stay cool."
"We know."
"The eldest girl is almost five years old, right?"
The eldest girl replied, "Mother, I will be five years old this October."
Princess Xuan supported her forehead and said, "The master came back from court today with news. Someone in the palace said that all the royal family members in Beijing, including their children, will have to go to the clan school starting in September."
Li Qingping was surprised: "Even the girl is going? Why so sudden?"
The older girl also looked up in surprise.
Emperor Taizu established the Imperial Academy as a place for the royal family's children to study. Occasionally, ministers would receive special favors and send their children and grandchildren there. However, the Imperial Academy mainly taught the Four Books and Five Classics, as well as the principles of governance. Most families felt that their daughters didn't need to learn these, even if they could already read. Over time, the daughters of the royal family hired female teachers to teach them at home, and no longer attended the Imperial Academy.
"I heard that a girl from the royal uncle's family entered the palace illiterate. Unfortunately, the emperor asked her a few questions, and the truth was exposed. The emperor was displeased and thought that the royal family was neglecting the girls, so he issued the decree."
Princess Xuan sighed, "But let them go. I don't think the girls will be asked to attend classes with the young master, nor will they teach anything too profound."
"That means there's less than a month left."
"Yes, so everything has to be prepared now."
Princess Xuan beckoned the eldest daughter over to her side and gave her careful instructions, "My dear child, you are the only girl in our family who will be attending the clan academy right now. Your brothers and sisters will be able to go in a year or two. You are your father's eldest daughter, the first girl of this generation, and the eldest granddaughter of His Majesty and His Majesty. You must not let others look down on you, and you must not bring shame to your father and the royal family."
The older girl responded obediently, "I know, mother."
Li Qingping said, "Since she's going to the clan academy, shouldn't we choose a study partner and a tutor for Yujin?"
"Yes."
Servants were not allowed in the imperial academy, and only food could be brought in during recess. Therefore, most families would choose a tutor for their children: it didn't need to be high-ranking, just someone who could read a few characters and provide basic care would be enough. As Princess Xuan had just said, the eldest daughter was not only the eldest daughter, but also the eldest granddaughter of the Emperor, the eldest sister among the Emperor's grandchildren. She would at least be a princess in the future. It made no sense that the other Emperor's grandchildren would have something that she didn't, so a tutor was necessary.
Princess Xuan was a little worried: "Yu Jin is now registered under my name. She is the legitimate daughter of Prince Xuan's palace. I originally planned to choose a companion from our family."
Li Qingping thought about the names of the Li family members and said, "There are not many girls in our family who are around the same age as the eldest girl."
This is what Princess Xuan was worried about. She added, "There are a few suitable people in my mother's family, but my sister knows about it. Unless it is necessary, I don't want to get involved with them, for fear of corrupting the young lady."
The two adults looked at each other obscurely, and only the eldest girl was confused.
Princess Xuan was lost in thought for a moment, and Li Qingping did not disturb her. He drank tea and ate snacks with the eldest girl.
"...How about asking my sister's family to come over and take a look?"
Li Qingping opened his eyes slightly, hesitant. "There's nothing wrong with my mother's family. It's just that their status—isn't it a little low?"
Li Qingping was the eldest daughter of the second branch of the Li family. She lost her mother at a young age, and after her stepmother came into the family, she was raised by the old lady alongside the Princess Xuan and her sister. Without her biological mother, gifts were often given to Li Qingping during festivals, so Princess Xuan was aware of the situation in her family. Li Qingping's biological mother, Wei, married into the Li family through high status. The eldest brother of the Wei family held a sixth-rank position, while the others were petty and unimportant, not even worthy of the attention of the wealthy. Fortunately, the Wei family was honest and well-behaved, allowing them to maintain a stable footing in the capital.
Princess Xuan said, "It doesn't matter. Sometimes it's just right to be of a lower birth."
Li Qingping agreed temporarily, and then asked Prince Xuan about it. After hearing the princess's opinion, he decided to do so. Li Qingping then wrote a letter to ask his uncle to send the girls over to see him.
When Uncle Wei received the news, his first reaction was joy. After calming down, he said to his wife:
"Although my sister passed away long ago, we are Madam Li's uncle after all. It would be bad if we were to implicate Madam Li with one inappropriate act. Therefore, we must carefully consider the girls in our family. There is no need to send those who do not behave properly to the palace for further examination."
Mrs. Wei also thought so: "Yes, I must not make things difficult for you, Madam."
In the end, only three people were sent to Prince Xuan's mansion. One was Madam Wei's own daughter Wei Zhi, one was the concubine's daughter Wei Rong, and the other was Li Qingping's uncle's eldest daughter Wei Ying.
Li Qingping asked the eldest girl to read it herself and asked her which one she wanted to keep as a reading companion.
Li Qingping himself had seen it. Wei Zhi was gentle and generous, Wei Rong was innocent and lovely, and Wei Ying was quiet and dignified. No matter which girl stayed, it would be good.
The eldest girl looked at them one by one, and because she was choosing a study partner, she asked a few questions, but then turned around and hesitated. Li Qingping saw this and asked the girls to go home and wait for good news.
"Yujin, tell your aunt which girl you want to choose as your study partner?"
The eldest girl raised her eyes and stammered, "I think... they are all good, but I am afraid of embarrassing my aunt."
Li Qingping was surprised, and the older girl said nervously, "I want Wei Ying to be my study partner."
Li Qingping understood what she said. Of the three women present, only Wei Ying was from the second wife's family, and Wei Zhi was the legitimate daughter of the first wife. Therefore, Wei Zhi was the most suitable based on her status. Furthermore, Wei Zhi had answered the questions most fluently, and her answers were quite appropriate, without any mistakes. Therefore, choosing Wei Zhi seemed a natural choice.
But now the eldest girl said she wanted to choose Wei Ying. Li Qingping understood her concerns as soon as he heard it:
The current Wei family's eldest uncle, Wei Shanglan, is the one with whom Li Qingping has a closer relationship. Naturally, the eldest wife is also the one with the first wife's family, while the younger uncle of the Wei family merely holds a sinecure. If Wei Ying from the second wife's family were chosen, the eldest daughter feared a rift between the eldest wife and Li Qingping. Born in a royal palace, the eldest daughter must be cautious and prudent in everything, so it's not surprising that she's overthinking things.
After thinking it through, Li Qingping smiled and rubbed the girl's head, comforting her, saying, "This is your own study partner. It's good that you like her. Besides, since the Wei family can send several girls here, it means that any one of them is fine for you to choose."
The older girl said she understood.
Since the selection had been made, Li Qingping informed the Princess of Xuan, who then sent someone to deliver a message to the Wei Mansion: the eldest lady had chosen Wei Ying as her study partner.
After receiving the confirmation, the other two girls who were not selected did not care, but went to congratulate Wei Ying happily.
The matter of a tutor was settled. Princess Xuan and Li Qingping reconsidered their decision to appoint a tutor for the eldest daughter. The tutor was the daughter of a manager in the Imperial Household Department. Her aunt was a court lady in the palace, so they knew her well. Furthermore, tutors from other families would likely have some connection to the palace, so this one wouldn't be too conspicuous in Prince Xuan's palace.
The tutor was named Lan Xin. Princess Xuan sent someone to inform her, and Lan Xin came from home with her aunt to express her gratitude, and then moved into the palace in advance.
During this period, Li Qingping asked someone to prepare the writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstone for the eldest girl to go to the clan school. He also personally made a small crossbody bag for the eldest girl that could hold all the four treasures of the study.
The older girl couldn't let go of the cross-body bag as soon as she got it, and said that the other girls must be envious.
Speaking of girls from other families, Li Qingping asked Princess Xuan about the girls who were going to the clan school this time.
The Dao Zong School of Princess Xuan of Prince Xuan implemented a grade-based system, and there were only seven or eight girls in the same grade as the eldest daughter.
First up were the two youngest daughters of the Emperor, the Tenth and Eleventh Princesses, who were of the perfect age. While the princes could attend school in the imperial study, the princesses could not, so this opportunity presented itself as a model for the royal family.
In the generation of the emperor's grandson, the eldest daughter leads the group, and there are also the eldest daughter of the crown prince, the second daughter of Princess De'en, and the twin daughters of Princess Huaiwen.
The others were only the granddaughter of Prince Yun and the youngest daughter of Prince Wen.
Li Qingping told the girl about it later, and she took note. Her fearful look made Li Qingping laugh, "No need to be like that. We're going to study, so we can just do everything else as usual."
The older girl let her hug her, and her shoulders couldn't help but relax.
A message arrived from the front yard, saying that Prince Xuan would dine with Madam Li tonight. Li Qingping released the young lady and gave orders to the kitchen to prepare some dishes that the prince would like.
When Prince Xuan heard that his eldest daughter had chosen a study companion, and thinking that she would be going to the clan school soon, he came to show his concern and give her some advice.
When the eldest daughter was born, her existence was actually embarrassing. At that time, the Princess of Xuan had not yet married, but the Prince of Xuan had already had a concubine daughter, and the concubine kept it a secret for three months before revealing it to anyone. This made the Prince of Xuan very angry for a while, and he also did not like this daughter very much. Later, when Li became the Princess of Xuan, she took the eldest daughter to her side according to the etiquette, and the Prince of Xuan had more contact with this daughter. Looking at the face that looked so much like his own and was so well-behaved, the Prince of Xuan could not bear it. After all, the child was innocent. With the Princess of Xuan's mediation, he finally accepted the child and gave her a long-awaited name.
Yu Jin, which means beautiful jade, is the eldest daughter of Prince Xuan.
The eldest daughter had always been respectful but reserved towards Prince Xuan, perhaps because the constant talk about her status had weighed too heavily on her shoulders. Now that she was listening to him intently, she even dared to glance at him secretly, and her innocent look made Prince Xuan smile.
"Your mother and aunt have prepared a lot for you, and your father has nothing else to do. You can even learn horse riding and archery in the clan school. Later, your father will take you to pick out a pony."
The older girl's eyes lit up: "Really? Thank you, Dad!"
Prince Xuan touched her head and wondered if telling her all the rules in the past had caused the child to have wild thoughts.
After the eldest daughter returned to her room, Prince Xuan sat across from Li Qingping and said, "Yu Jin has become more lively with you, which is good. Her status as the eldest daughter still makes her feel restrained."
Li Qingping smiled and said, "As a young lady, it's only natural for you to be calm and composed. But to me, you're just a child, and children are lively."
Prince Xuan nodded, obviously agreeing, and smiled again: "You are good at raising children. They are good ones."
Li Qingping thanked him for his praise.
Prince Xuan glanced at the sky and said, "I will stay here with you today."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the yard started to move.
The servants in the courtyard were all very happy. After all, it had been several months since Prince Xuan had stayed overnight.
Although their master was protected by the Princess Xuan and Concubine Li, and they dared not neglect all the other rules, Prince Xuan was the real backer in this palace. Who in this palace hadn't seen the jokes in the courtyard? If the master could be favored, it would be the best. If not, it would be good to take care of her body and occasionally have a few nights to conceive a child.
The noise in the room continued until midnight, and it took a long time before someone called for water.
Li Qingping hadn't slept with Prince Xuan for nearly half a year, and Prince Xuan was always energetic. She was too tired to move, so she lay on the soft pillow, squinting her eyes and gasping for breath. She was sweaty all over, as if she had just been pulled out of the water.
Prince Xuan took a look at her and knew that she was extremely tired. He was in a very good mood and felt pity for her, so he asked Li Qingping to lie down for a while and went to take a shower first.
Li Qingping calmed his breathing and asked Yun Su, who was on duty, to help him get up. Yun Lian then took someone to change the bedding. When Li Qingping came back, Prince Xuan was already lying there in his pajamas.
Before going to bed, Prince Xuan thought again: "Yu Jin needs to take food to the clan school. Time is tight, so there is no point in waiting for the main kitchen to prepare it. Tomorrow I will pick a good chef and use the small kitchen in your courtyard to cook specifically for you and Yu Jin."
Knowing that he was thinking of his eldest daughter and that he was taking advantage of the opportunity to use the small kitchen, Li Qingping agreed lazily and fell into a deep sleep.
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