Even though they lost, Emperor Kangxi was still happy.
This proves that Yinreng's thinking is meticulous and no less than his own. Having a worthy successor is a cause for celebration.
"Fortunately, I begged Father Emperor to give me a handicap of one move. If you had only given me a three-move handicap, I wouldn't have been able to win." Yinreng smiled proudly, his eyes shining like light.
Kangxi casually tossed the jade pendant hanging from his waist to him, saying, "Haven't you wanted this jade pendant for a long time? Consider it a loss to you today."
A jade pendant carved from top-quality mutton fat jade, a fine piece indeed.
Yinreng accepted it with both hands, beaming with joy.
"Father Emperor loves his son the most," Yinreng said sweetly.
Kangxi deliberately glared at him and said, "Every time you come to my place, you always manage to take something with you. And when you take something, you only pick the good stuff, and you don't even give the bad stuff a second glance."
Yinreng smiled without saying a word; he had already gained an advantage and couldn't pretend to be innocent anymore.
After exchanging a few casual words, the father and son continued to review the memorials piled on the table, their heads aching.
After accompanying Kangxi in revising a few unimportant memorials, Yinreng couldn't help but complain, "All they do is sing praises and eulogize, they barely mention anything important, and the wording isn't very elegant either. It hurts my eyes to stare at them."
Emperor Kangxi shared the sentiment: "I told them to be more concise in their writings several years ago, but even emperors don't always have to obey their words. For those scholars, not letting them write more and showcase their poetic talents is like taking their lives. Fortunately, I still have you."
Kangxi made it clear that Yinreng was doing hard labor for him, and that he deliberately threw those trivial memorials into Yuqing Palace.
Yinreng smiled on the outside, but kept complaining in his heart.
His father, the Emperor, was openly bullying him, yet he couldn't refuse.
Seeing Yinreng's frustration, Kangxi laughed out loud with delight.
Even emperors have their quirks; they also enjoy teasing their sons.
Yinreng was in a good mood because he was making Kangxi happy. After all, he was his father, so he had to tolerate and spoil him. He couldn't let his father suffer his son's temper all the time just because he was young.
Yinreng willingly dressed up in colorful clothes to entertain his parents, demonstrating his filial piety, which Kangxi could not help but appreciate.
That's just how it feels; things get better and better, and they get worse and worse just as quickly. Right now, the relationship between Kangxi and Yinreng is at a point where it's sweeter than sugar.
When men are busy with political affairs, they often lose track of time, and Emperor Kangxi and Yinreng were no exception.
In Ning Shou Palace, when the Empress Dowager saw that Yinreng had not come to pick up Tong Wanyan for a long time, she guessed that Yinreng must have something to do.
Tong Wanyan was sweet-talking and eloquent, describing the affairs of the grasslands in vivid detail. The Empress Dowager was not satisfied with hearing it once or twice. Taking advantage of the fact that Yinreng could not come, she kept Tong Wanyan for dinner at Ningshou Palace so that she could hear more about the beauty of the grasslands.
Hongzhao and Tana speak fluently now, and their legs run with great power.
The two of them brought life and excitement to Ning Shou Palace, and are now considered the most precious treasures by the Empress Dowager and everyone else in the palace. Even Tong Wanyan and others have to give way to these two little darlings when they meet them.
After finishing her meal with the Empress Dowager, the old lady kept glancing at Tong Wanyan's belly.
Tong Wanyan wanted to pretend she didn't know, but the Empress Dowager's behavior was too obvious. She was such a smart person, it would be too fake for her to suddenly pretend to be stupid.
"Tana and Hongzhao are both two and a half years old, right?" The Empress Dowager posed a question first, gently probing.
Tong Wanyan looked at the two chubby little boys running around in Ning Shou Palace and couldn't help but smile gently: "Yes. Before we knew it, my granddaughter-in-law has been in the palace for more than three years."
"When I first met you, you were a shy little girl hiding behind the Imperial Noble Consort. Now you are a mother of two," the Empress Dowager said.
"Since my daughter-in-law entered the palace, she has been taken care of by the Imperial Noble Consort first, and then by Your Majesty, and her journey has been smooth and without any setbacks. I am extremely grateful." Tong Wanyan's eyes reddened as she thought of the deceased Imperial Noble Consort.
The Empress Dowager didn't want to make her cry; she had come to urge her to have another child.
"People's fingers are of different lengths, and hearts can be biased. You are pleasing to my eye, and you always know your place. I'm not afraid to spoil you no matter how much I love you. That's why I can't help but think more about you. The royal family can never have too many offspring; more children bring more blessings, and the more children a mother has, the more secure her position. The Crown Princess that the Emperor has chosen for Bao Cheng will be marrying into Yuqing Palace next year. The future is uncertain, and I think you and Bao Cheng should have another child," the Empress Dowager said earnestly.
The same thing was said by Consort Tong when she came to the palace a couple of days ago.
Over the past year, Tong Guogang and Shi Wenbing have grown increasingly close, and the two occasionally visit each other.
Tong Fujin naturally accompanied Tong Guogang to the Shi family as a guest, where she met Shi Fujin and Shi Xiuzhu.
After several exchanges, they concluded that once Shi Xiuzhu became the Crown Princess, she wouldn't make things difficult for Tong Wanyan, the favored concubine. They knew their own daughter well; she was a bit spoiled, but not arrogant. In terms of intelligence, she was no less than any ordinary man.
As for the future Crown Princess, her temperament was truly unpredictable. If she hadn't looked like a girl, they would have thought the person before them was a man of exceptional literary talent and learning.
Her vision is too broad and her temperament too stable; she doesn't seem like someone who could compete for favor.
Even so, Consort Tong was still worried and hoped that Tong Wanyan could further consolidate her position.
"It's my granddaughter-in-law who has worried my grandmother," Tong Wanyan said gratefully.
The Empress Dowager was afraid that if she urged Tong Wanyan to have a child, it would displease her.
Seeing that Tong Wanyan was sensible, she smiled kindly, with the wisdom she had gained from her experiences in the deep palace.
"The world belongs to men, and men's hearts are fickle. The imperial family is the most ruthless. I hope Bao Cheng will be loyal, but in the decades to come, the temptations of the royal family will be the greatest. The emperor has three palaces and six courtyards, which the people and ministers beg him to take. Now that you two have a good relationship, having more children is the most appropriate thing to do." The Empress Dowager dismissed the palace maids and then said to Tong Wanyan.
"I have seen your medical records. When you gave birth to Tana and Hongzhao, although they were twins, the birth was good and the delivery was smooth, leaving no lingering health problems. After more than two years of recuperation, your body has grown stronger and you are even better than before."
The Empress Dowager did not casually suggest that Tong Wanyan give birth on a whim. If Tong Wanyan were to give birth every year like the First Consort, which would harm her health, she certainly would not have said such a thing.
As an elder, the Empress Dowager did her best.
"Granddaughter-in-law, please listen to Grandmother. Actually, after Grandfather returned from Mongolia, he also mentioned that it was time to give Tana and Hongzhao a younger brother or sister. Before, we thought they were still too young and didn't want the two brothers to be so close in age. Now that they are both a bit more sensible, if all goes well, we estimate that when we have another child, these two will be able to go to the Imperial Study to attend classes and study." Tong Wanyan explained softly to the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager's furrowed brows turned into a smile, as if she could see Tong Wanyan heavily pregnant, and then giving birth to a lovely great-grandson.
"I know you and Baocheng are both sensible children. This plan is very good. In the future, let Hongzhao take care of his younger brother. The elder brother and younger brother will have a deeper bond," the Empress Dowager said.
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