The Qing emperor couldn't give them a definite answer, which made the people from Khorchin increasingly uncertain.
The Emperor's attitude was unclear, but they had come with a mission, and they couldn't just go back in such a muddle. Moreover, Khorchin and the Qing Dynasty were far apart, and who knew how long it would take to travel back and forth? What if the Qing Emperor had already betrothed his princess when they came back next time?
Fortunately, they still had the Empress Dowager as an ally. The person from Khorchin was the brother of the current prince of Khorchin. In terms of relationship, he might have to call the Empress Dowager "aunt".
However, the blood relations in the Khorchin region are complex, and the Manchu people in the past were also known for their chaotic social structures. There were cases of women marrying their deceased husbands' brothers, so the generational hierarchy is indeed somewhat confusing.
The Khorchin people have long had an unbreakable blood relationship with Emperor Kangxi and his family. Starting from Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang and even further back, they have been intermarried. So it is really hard to say what generation Emperor Kangxi should be ranked with them.
Take the First Consort of Emperor Taizu, for example. Wasn't she originally from the Khorchin? In terms of their relationship, the First Consort was also the aunt of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang. It's not uncommon for an aunt and niece to marry the same person.
The prince's younger brother was actually a carefree and irresponsible person in Mongolia, but he didn't dare to act recklessly in front of Emperor Kangxi. Otherwise, he would really like to try to establish a relationship and call him "cousin"!
But there's nothing we can do; he's a king now, so we have to follow the etiquette of a king.
The Empress Dowager was naturally delighted that the Khorchin could marry a precious princess! She had left the grasslands when she was very young, and she still longed for them. Especially as she got older, she became more nostalgic. The thought of her eldest granddaughter marrying into the Khorchin made her extremely happy.
However, she couldn't figure out what the emperor's plans were. She was just the legal mother, and while she was respectful to the emperor, she wasn't very close to him. She didn't dare to ask too many questions about the emperor's affairs, since the sign that "the empress dowager must not interfere in politics" still stood at the door!
Even Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang didn't cross that line, so what could she possibly do?
She listened to Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang her whole life, which is why she was able to sit firmly in the position of Empress Dowager. She was the Empress before, and after Emperor Kangxi ascended the throne, she smoothly became Empress Dowager.
Although there was an Empress Dowager Tongjia in the middle, she died young, so no one ever stood above her.
She wasn't exceptionally beautiful, nor was her personality particularly likable, but she had one remarkable talent: she was born into the Khorchin people of that era, becoming the niece of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang…
Although he did not receive the late emperor's favor, he lived a life of comfort and ease, never lacking food or clothing. However, even when facing Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, Emperor Kangxi was never at a disadvantage—Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang and Emperor Kangxi had clashed in earlier years, including over the distribution of power.
As the Kangxi Emperor grew stronger, he was eager to break free from the control of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang. In the end, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang relented, after a period of struggle.
When she saw the two fighting, the Empress Dowager was already terrified and dared not put herself in their shoes!
In her mind, Emperor Kangxi was like a monster, who wielded power with great ease even at a young age.
She was just a mere woman in the inner palace. If the emperor gave her face, she could certainly enjoy great prestige; if he didn't, she couldn't do much.
Therefore, she did not dare to easily agree to the request from the people from Khorchin. She simply reassured them and promised to try to find out the emperor's opinion and see what he was really thinking.
Even if the intention is to let the young men from the Khorchin region compete, at least they'll know the direction of the competition and won't just wander around aimlessly like headless flies...
Even though this disappointed the people of Khorchin, they knew that this was the maximum the Empress Dowager could do for them. They were no longer the Khorchin of the time of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, and the Qing Dynasty was no longer the Qing Dynasty of decades ago.
Consort Yi had no daughter, so of course she didn't need to worry about this matter.
******
On this day, Emperor Kangxi came to Yikun Palace and happened to catch Xiao Jiu learning to walk. In fact, he was such a small child that he was not learning to walk at all. He was just stubbornly trying to be helped to stand up!
Moreover, he was very enthusiastic about this matter. Xiao Jiu may be a bit mischievous in the past, but he has one thing in common: he is very persistent. This kind of perseverance sometimes surprised Consort Yi and Jing Rou.
Consort Yi had said before that he was a stubborn mule, and if there was a way to change his mind, there would be no way to change him!
When Jingrou heard him say that, her heart skipped a beat, especially when she thought about what would happen later, and whether the prince's fate would just be a perfect example of what he said!
It was precisely because the Ninth Prince was so stubborn and single-mindedly followed the Eighth Prince that he got involved in the struggle for the throne among the nine princes, and ultimately ended up in such a state.
Otherwise, with an aunt as clear-headed as her, she would never have allowed her son to do such a foolish thing. Could it be that her aunt had actually tried to persuade him in the past, but he just didn't listen?
The thought of this terrified Jingrou, and she couldn't sleep for several days. The next day, she pinched her little cousin's cheek hard. With her there, she would definitely keep an eye on him and not let him do such a thing again!
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