Kangxi and his entourage traveled quickly, reaching the Khorchin grasslands in northern Mongolia in just over half a month, and stayed at the Borjigin clan's residence again. Ban Gu dispatched a thousand-strong ceremonial guard to welcome Kangxi and his princes.
After Kangxi ordered the camp tents to be set up, he joined Ban Gu at the place Ban Gu had prepared for a grand feast of drinking, singing, and dancing. Having won such a great victory, a celebration was naturally in order. Prince Zhi was still at the front lines pursuing the enemy, so the banquet to welcome Kangxi and his entourage had not yet taken place.
After Ban Gu sat down at the head of the table to greet Kangxi, he stood up and said to him, "Congratulations, Your Majesty! Since the great army marched out last year, in just one year, you have defeated most of the bandit leader Galdan's forces, removing a vicious wolf from the grasslands. I, Ban Gu, on behalf of the herders and people of the Khorchin grasslands, express our highest respect to the Heavenly Khan." After he finished speaking, a pair of beautiful young grassland women presented Kangxi with white hada scarves.
Emperor Kangxi was overjoyed, having finally overcome this formidable obstacle. Although he had rushed over with some concern that Prince Zhi might seize control of the army and cause trouble, he was still pleased to acknowledge Prince Zhi's military achievements.
"Your Majesty, it is said that one of the reasons why our Qing warriors were able to conquer Galdan's tribe so quickly was that Galdan's uncle, Jeli, rallied a group of nobles within their ranks to cause trouble. This led to Galdan being beset by internal and external troubles, which made him unable to cope and accelerated his collapse." Dohar, the eldest grandson of Ban Gu, stood up and said.
When the Eighth and Ninth Princes heard him mention his past contributions, they were slightly pleased and both watched to see how Kangxi would respond.
Upon hearing this, Kangxi laughed and said, "This was a brilliant strategy proposed by the Eighth Prince. By instigating Jieli to rebel within Galdan's ranks, Galdan was forced to fight on two fronts and lost his composure. Only then was our mighty Qing army able to destroy him so quickly and smoothly."
When the Eighth Prince heard that Emperor Kangxi had affirmed his past achievements in front of so many nobles from the grasslands, he was overjoyed. He stood up, cupped his hands and said to Emperor Kangxi, "This is all due to the Emperor's boundless grace. Your son was merely following the Emperor's teachings and dared not take credit."
The Manchu nobles sitting on the other side, including Ban Gu, all cast admiring glances at this Eighth Prince. He was talented, humble, good-looking, and kind.
Kangxi took in everyone's gazes and smiled, "There's no need for such modesty. Eighth Prince has rendered meritorious service, and I will reward him accordingly when I return."
One sentence put the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince's minds at ease again: "Is it just a reward? Does the Eighth Prince not have the talent to be the Crown Prince?" The Eighth Prince said some polite words to Kangxi again before sitting down.
After the welcoming banquet, Emperor Kangxi, supported by palace maids and eunuchs, returned to his imperial tent to rest. Being of advanced age, and having not rested well during the long journey, his energy quickly waned. Several of the younger princes accompanied him; they were all still minors, and their father, the Emperor, remained their pillar of support.
The Eighth and Ninth Princes stayed behind to continue drinking and merrymaking with the nobles from Ban Gu's side. The nomadic people of the grasslands are known for their generosity; they won't leave until they've had their fill of drinks. While the Eighth Prince was kept behind by Kangxi for social engagements, Ban Gu's group had been secretly monitoring the power struggles within the Qing court through the Empress Dowager. This time, Kangxi had indeed deposed the Crown Prince, but hadn't yet appointed a new one. The powerful nobles of the Khorchin grasslands began speculating about the Crown Prince's successor, and the Eighth Prince was one of their key candidates. Dohar's earlier praise of the Eighth Prince in front of Kangxi was a test of Kangxi's attitude towards him. Seeing that Kangxi had kept the Eighth Prince in his place for social engagements, they became even more convinced that the Eighth Prince would be the Crown Prince.
"Eighth Prince, I, Dohar, offer you a toast." Ban Gu's eldest grandson ran down and raised his cup to the Eighth Prince. He was actually the son-in-law of Prince Zhi, whose eldest daughter had been betrothed to him as his wife three years ago. However, it was said that Prince Zhi's eldest daughter and Dohar had never had a good relationship, and at this moment, Dohar clearly favored the Eighth Prince more, and didn't even seem to think much of his father-in-law.
"Thank you, Prince Dohar!" The Eighth Prince gladly accepted Dohar's kindness. This young prince was granted the title of prince by Emperor Kangxi because he was the eldest grandson of Ban Gu and related to Prince Zhi by marriage. His rank was already the highest among Ban Gu's grandsons.
“Uncle Ba, I’ll call you Uncle Ba along with Ailanzhu. I heard you really like gyrfalcons?” Dohar continued chatting with Uncle Ba.
"Hehe, yes. Father Emperor loves gyrfalcons, and we like gyrfalcons too," said the Eighth Prince.
"My nephew has acquired a few gyrfalcons, all trained by the best hunters on the grasslands. Would you be interested in taking a look, Eighth Master?" After exchanging a few drinks, Dohar and Eighth Master became quite familiar with each other.
Upon hearing that there were excellent gyrfalcons, Eighth Master became interested and said to Dohar, "Alright, why don't we go and take a look now?"
"Alright, Uncle Ba, come with me to take a look. Those gyrfalcons are quite rare." Dohar hurriedly led the Eighth Prince to his tent to see his new gyrfalcons.
After everyone had drunk their fill, Ninth Master and the others returned to their camp to rest. Eighth Master had gone with Dohar to see the gyrfalcons and hadn't returned. Ninth Master remembered that Mei'er was now serving Emperor Kangxi, so he went out of his tent alone to see if he could find her.
After returning to his tent, Emperor Kangxi had several palace maids massage him, as his energy was waning.
"Your Majesty, how about I give you the medicine that the renowned physician prepared to relieve your fatigue?" Liang Jiugong said, noticing Kangxi's tired expression.
"Hmm, go prepare, let me soak in the warm water." Kangxi also felt weak all over. He had only been holding on with Ban Gu, but he was actually exhausted.
Liang Jiugong quickly agreed and instructed several eunuchs to fetch hot water and move bath tubs, preparing for Kangxi's bath. Mei'er, Yufen, and Jindie all came along this time. Mei'er was still responsible for brewing tea for Kangxi, with Yufen and Jindie assisting her. Liang Jiugong had just sent a eunuch to deliver a message, instructing Mei'er to quickly brew a pot of Da Hong Pao tea, Kangxi's favorite, so that Kangxi could drink it immediately after his medicinal bath.
"Sister, this time when you come out, the Emperor might favor you. You must seize the opportunity!" Jin Die whispered to Mei'er as soon as Yu Fen left.
"What opportunity?" Mei'er had long given up hope, and now pretended not to know what the Golden Butterfly meant.
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