After some discussion, Qianlong decided to first ask the Empress Dowager about the situation. "Alright, you all go back first. I'll go ask the Empress Dowager myself. If we need to add other people, we'll talk about it later."
After bowing, the group left the Qianqing Palace and returned to their respective posts.
Yongqi rushed back to Yonghe Palace. "Greetings, Fifth Prince." As Yongqi returned, Xiaomeng happened to pass by the door and greeted him. "The Princess Consort got up at 7:00 AM, ate the purple rice porridge you made, and then went back to her room. She is sleeping in her room now."
"Sleeping? Sleeping at this hour?" Yongqi was a little puzzled. Usually, Xiaoyanzi wouldn't be sleeping at this hour.
He didn't linger and went straight to the bedroom.
Little Swallow was lying casually on the bed, completely covered by the blanket. Yongqi helplessly stepped forward and revealed Little Swallow's head. "Little Swallow, wake up."
It seemed that Yongqi's actions made Xiaoyanzi feel a chill, so she woke up. When she opened her eyes, she saw Yongqi standing in front of the bed looking at her. "You're back. How did things go with your discussion with Father Emperor and the others?"
Yongqi laughed and said, "You don't need to worry about other things. Anyway, you're definitely going to come with us."
"What about the two children?" Little Swallow, this do-gooder mother, couldn't help but think of her four-month-old son and daughter. "Are they staying at home, or with us?"
"I think it's better to stay at home. If you come with us, there's bound to be times when we can't take good care of you..." The chances of encountering assassins outside the palace are many times greater than inside!
Xiao Yanzi thought about it and felt that Yongqi's words made sense. In the palace, there were so many people to take care of her, so the problems were smaller than outside the palace. Moreover, if the manpower was arranged properly, it was still very safe in the palace. "Alright, then I'll listen to you!"
By this time, Yongqi's body had warmed up a bit, so he sat on the edge of the bed and let Xiaoyanzi lean against him. "Why did you fall asleep again?"
Little Swallow sighed, "After eating the purple rice porridge you made this morning, I went back to reading my storybook, but I got angrier and angrier, so I didn't want to read anymore and fell asleep..."
"What kind of storybook made you so angry?" Yongqi couldn't help but be curious. He glanced at the storybook casually and spotted it.
He reached out and took the storybook, flipped through a few pages at random, and then tossed it aside, saying, "This storybook is really bad."
"If you want to read it, I'll write it for you when I have some free time..."
Little Swallow was stunned, then looked up at him and asked, "You can write storybooks?"
Yongqi scratched his head. "In the years you were gone, I learned to write and even made a little money."
Little Swallow frowned and said, "Really? Why didn't you mention this before?"
"...Um, I'm afraid you'll say I'm not doing my job properly..." Yongqi laughed awkwardly. The main problem was that what he wrote was a bit inappropriate, and he was afraid that if Xiaoyanzi caught him, he'd be in big trouble!
"Then why are you telling me now?" Little Swallow glared at him. "Why didn't you keep it a secret?"
"That's because you're now my wife, the mother of my son and daughter, so it's naturally different!"
Once Yongqi explained it, she realized that what he had written was not quite proper!
"You didn't actually draw a picture, did you?" Xiao Yanzi's probing question left Yongqi speechless!
He quickly retorted, "What a joke! How could that be? Do you think I have the time or inclination for that?"
It's already a miracle if I can find even a tiny bit of time to write stories, okay? Where would I find the time to draw illustrations?
The picture of him and Xiao Yanzi can only be imagined in their minds, and only they can see it together!
As for other people's drawings, he didn't have the time or inclination to draw them; he was afraid of getting a sty!
"What about the stories you wrote before? I haven't read them. Or have I actually read them but didn't know they were written by you?"
But that doesn't make sense either, she recognizes Yongqi's handwriting, unless Yongqi deliberately changed his own handwriting!
"This... when I was writing it, I deliberately changed the handwriting and the name..."
"So what's your name?" Little Swallow stared at him, as if trying to see if he was going to try to fool her again.
Seeing that he couldn't fool them, Yongqi had no choice but to tell the truth, "Just the character 'Yan' is enough, let them call me Young Master Yan!"
"That name sounds familiar. It's like when I went to that Zhimei Restaurant back in the day, the waiter called you that!"
Yongqi nodded, "Yes, it's that Young Master Yan!"
"So, Young Master Yan, where are your storybooks?" Little Swallow stared straight at him, stretching out her hands to ask for her storybooks.
Yongqi's lips curled into a smile, and Xiaoyanzi immediately regretted it. Yongqi reached out and put his arm around her waist, hooking her chin, "What's the point of reading storybooks? Reading me is much more interesting!"
What's the point of reading stories? It's much more interesting to actually do it!
Without a word, Yongqi kissed her. Because Xiaoyanzi had been curled up in bed and wasn't dressed very warmly, Yongqi quickly found his way inside. "Yongqi, don't..."
She'd already done it twice yesterday, and if she did it again today, she was afraid she'd die in bed!
"I'm hungry, I want to eat!" Little Swallow tried to push him away and begged him to let her go. "Please, I'm really hungry, I have no strength left!"
"Husband, please spare me!" In the end, Xiao Yanzi managed to persuade Yongqi to let her go by using her charm, and her waist was temporarily saved!
"Fine, I'll let you off the hook for today!" He'll have his chance once everything is arranged for the inspection tour, which will take a few more days!
Yongqi stopped his mischievous hand, withdrew it from her clothes, and helped her put her clothes back on. "You sit down first, I'll go to the small kitchen to see what we have to eat..."
If the small kitchen doesn't have enough ingredients, or if there's nothing he wants to make today, he'll have to go to the imperial kitchen.
Fortunately, he was lucky today. The small kitchen still had enough ingredients, and there were some dishes he wanted to make. He used the ingredients in the small kitchen to make a few simple dishes, and then Xiao Shunzi and Xiao Guizi took the food to the dining room.
Little Swallow found the restaurant by the aroma. "Just the smell of Yongqi's cooking is enough to make anyone starve."
"Little glutton, hurry up and wash your hands and eat." Yongqi brought out the last dish of winter melon soup and placed it in the center of the table.
Consort Yu came to the dining room only after watching the two children finish eating and go to bed.
When she arrived at the restaurant, she saw Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi feeding the animals.
"Yongqi, I heard about the imperial tour today. If the Emperor needs to take his concubines with him, you should tell him that I am not going."
Xiao Yanzi frowned, but Yongqi understood his mother's thoughts. "Mother, do you want to stay in the palace to take care of the two children?"
Consort Yu nodded. "Yes, the two children are only four months old. It's not suitable for them to travel far. Besides, there are more dangers outside the palace than inside. It's better to keep them in the palace."
"Not to mention, the Emperor is going on an incognito tour to observe the people's conditions. Bringing concubines along would obviously make the Emperor forget his original purpose..."
Ultimately, the reason was that she no longer wanted to serve the emperor in bed, nor did she want any further interaction with Qianlong. For the rest of her life, she just wanted to spend it with her grandchildren.
She can't count on her son and daughter-in-law anymore; after all, their ambitions are too lofty, and she's too old to keep up. So all she can do is stay at Yonghe Palace, taking care of their children and their home!
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