A few days passed quickly, and on the first day of June, Ali Khoja arrived at the palace with his daughter Hanxiang and son-in-law Mardan.
"Hanxiang and Mardan greet the Emperor of the Great Qing." Hanxiang and Mardan bowed to Emperor Qianlong in fluent Chinese.
"Please rise." Emperor Qianlong waved for them to rise. "So you are the Hanxiang and Mardan that Xiaoyanzi mentioned. Indeed, no wonder you were able to become friends with Xiaoyanzi."
Standing below, Little Swallow looked at Qianlong triumphantly, "Father, I told you, aren't they a match made in heaven?"
Emperor Qianlong laughed heartily for a while, "You, you really are a matchmaker."
Ali and Zhuo also chimed in, "If this girl hadn't insisted on bringing us together, I really wouldn't have agreed to this marriage!"
Hanxiang glared at Ali Hezhuo, "Father!"
"Haha, I heard that they already have children. You should stop saying things like that."
Mardan smiled awkwardly, "It's alright, Your Majesty, I'm used to it!"
He knew perfectly well that if it weren't for Xiao Yanzi's help back then, Ali Hezhuo would never have agreed to him being with Hanxiang!
Although he agreed to marry Hanxiang after being persuaded by Xiaoyanzi, he was still ridiculed by Ali and Zhuo.
"Godfather, why do you still dislike Mardan? I heard that he and Hanxiang gave birth to twins for you, a boy and a girl. Why are you still not satisfied?"
"You are my good godfather, Hanxiang's good father. You can ensure your daughter's happiness and also allow your people to live a good life. Isn't this the best of both worlds?"
"Now, you have your grandchildren with you. You should enjoy these family moments. As for the important matters, leave them to Mardan and the others to handle!"
Hearing what Xiao Yanzi said made Ali and Zhuo feel a little better. "Alright, for your sake, I won't say anything more about him!"
Mardan and Hanxiang exchanged helpless glances, then both thanked Xiaoyanzi.
Xiao Yanzi held Hanxiang's hand and smiled, "Your father is my godfather, so we are sisters. Isn't it only right for sisters to help each other? You thanked me for helping you and Mardan get together, and I thank you in return. If it weren't for you, my relationship with Yongqi wouldn't have been so easy!"
Yes, if it weren't for Xiao Yanzi persuading Ali Khoja to write a letter of state promising that as long as the Qing Dynasty did not invade the Hui region, the Hui people would remain loyal forever!
Similarly, he would keep an eye on his clansmen and prevent them from harming the people of the Qing Dynasty!
Emperor Qianlong smiled and said, "We'll talk about your story later. Let's go inside first and try the meal that Yongqi and his men have prepared for you. See if it suits your taste."
After Ali Khoja and Hanxiang tasted it, Hanxiang was very surprised, "Fifth Prince, you are amazing!"
Yongqi said modestly, "No, no, I couldn't have made something like this if it weren't for Xiaoyanzi's help."
Yes, although Yongqi was the head chef, he only managed to prepare the meal under Xiaoyanzi's guidance.
Of course, Yongqi only made two or three dishes; the rest were mostly prepared by the imperial kitchen staff.
If we let the Fifth Prince do everything, what are the people in the Imperial Kitchen for?
Ali and Zhuo couldn't hide their smiles either. "Little Swallow, it seems you have a really good eye!"
"That's right!" Little Swallow smiled smugly. "So you all should eat more."
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After they finished eating, Ali Khoja was taken away by Emperor Qianlong to carry out their activities.
Hanxiang and Mardan were naturally taken away by the young people like Xiaoyanzi and Yongqi.
"Hanxiang, now that you're here, let's go out of the palace and take a walk in the sea of flowers."
"A sea of flowers? The name sounds beautiful." Hanxiang smiled and looked at Xiaoyanzi. "Is that place very big?"
"You'll see when you get there!" Little Swallow smiled mysteriously.
The group arrived at the scholar's residence and invited the Fu brothers, Xia Ziwei, and Saiya.
Everyone sat in the carriage. Xiao Yanzi looked at Saiya and said, "Saiya, let me introduce you. This is Princess Hanxiang from Xinjiang and her husband."
Saiya looked at Hanxiang curiously, "I've heard of you, but I never expected that you and Xiaoyanzi would be so familiar with each other..."
Hanxiang smiled slightly, "I can only say that without Xiaoyanzi's help, there would be no Mardan and I today."
Saiya sniffed the air carefully, somewhat puzzled. "I used to hear my father say that you, Princess Hanxiang, had a fragrance. Why doesn't it anymore?"
Mardan explained, "It was Little Swallow who suggested it, saying that Hanxiang's fragrance has been preserved, making it inconvenient for us to go out."
If they want to keep a low profile when they go out, the fragrance will attract attention.
If someone were to stage a scene in public that attracted butterflies, what would that be like?
Saiya then understood, "Oh, I see."
Little Swallow exclaimed, "This carriage is so lively! There's a Mongolian princess, a Uyghur princess, the Emperor's precious daughter, and the Empress Dowager's darling. It seems like I'm the only ordinary person here..."
And their respective partners were all extraordinary people, as if she were the most ordinary one!
Xia Ziwei was speechless. "Little Swallow, if you say that, what are the disciples in the sect supposed to think? If you were an ordinary person, how are they supposed to live?"
Qing'er chimed in, "That's right. If we're talking about being ordinary, I'm the one who's ordinary, aren't I?"
Xiao Jian covered his face, "Weren't we out for a stroll today? Why are you guys competing?"
"And Little Swallow, who said you're ordinary? If you say that, the Xiao family army will be the first to disagree!"
Yongqi put his arm around Xiaoyanzi's waist and comforted her, "Alright, don't belittle yourself!"
We've finally arrived at the sea of flowers.
After everyone disembarked from the carriage, Hanxiang looked at the vast sea of flowers and laughed heartily, "Little Swallow, I never knew your flower fields were so beautiful!"
Xia Ziwei explained, "This is one of Erkang's secret bases."
Fu Erkang smiled and said, "If you have the opportunity, you can also visit my other three bases in the next few days."
Mardan looked at Yongqi curiously, "They all have secret bases, so you, the Fifth Prince, don't have one either?"
Yongqi raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Are you kidding? How could I not have one? I'll take you to see it sometime!"
Little Swallow looked at Saiya's belly and smiled regretfully, "I originally wanted to go horseback riding with everyone today, but unfortunately, Saiya is pregnant, so we can only take a walk and chat here today."
"It's all Ertai's fault!" Saiya was completely stunned when she found out she was pregnant.
For someone like her who loves martial arts so much, to prevent her from using violence for almost a year is practically killing her.
Little Swallow noticed Saiya's gloom and comforted her, "Just enjoy this time. You're waited on hand and foot, and he wouldn't dare say anything against your will. Isn't this a wonderful life?"
"Really? Is it really that good?" Saiya looked at Xiao Yanzi, Xia Ziwei, and Qing'er curiously. "Ziwei, Qing'er, is what she said true?"
Xia Ziwei and Qing'er almost burst out laughing, but thankfully their respective partners pulled them apart.
Little Swallow looked at Saiya with very sincere eyes, "Of course it's true, you can ask Yongqi if you don't believe me?"
Yongqi didn't dare disobey his wife, so he could only nod and say, "Of course it's true!"
Several months later, after giving birth and finishing her postpartum confinement, Saiya said: Little Swallow, I'm going to have a fight with you!
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