On the tenth day of the third lunar month, the talent show had been going on for ten days.
Early in the morning, Lanqin and Holland, supported by their respective nannies and personal maids, boarded two carriages parked at the gate of the mansion. Lanqin smiled when she saw Holland adorned with pearls and jade.
The weather was still a bit cold; the late spring chill could sometimes be more unbearable than the dead of winter. Lanqin wore a pink qipao, her hair simply styled in two buns, adorned with a few simple pearl flowers on each side, and she wore a pair of pearl teardrop earrings.
Xue'er, worried that she was cold, draped a white cloak with a padded jacket over her shoulders and tucked a small hand warmer into her hands. She and Granny Tian sat near the carriage curtain, blocking some of the cold wind from outside.
"Xue'er, Granny Tian, I'm fine. You two, come and warm your hands." Lanqin pushed a charcoal brazier placed in front of her toward Xue'er and Granny Tian.
"How can you do this, Princess? I can still handle it, but you mustn't catch a cold." Granny Tian immediately moved the charcoal brazier to Lanqin's feet again.
"Then you two come a little closer and use the bundle to weigh down the curtain so the wind can't get in." Although Lin Mengyao had been "Niohuru Lanqin" for almost a month, she still couldn't quite accept this privilege that she took for granted. Even now, whenever she saw Xue'er serving her day and night, she felt extremely sorry for her.
Xue'er and Granny Tian exchanged a glance, and then, as the princess instructed, used the heavy objects they carried to weigh down the carriage curtain before they moved a little closer to the inside.
"Princess, your hair is too plain. You should wear more jewelry." Granny Tian didn't know Anjia's thoughts, and of course, she couldn't know Lanqin's thoughts either. Seeing that she was dressed simply, she advised her.
"Yes, I just saw the Second Princess at the door. She looked like she was wearing everything on her head," Xue'er said softly.
"Everyone is dressed up for the election, and they all put a lot of thought into their hairstyles. I'm just being simple, which makes me stand out." Lan Qin thought to herself: I just don't want to attract the attention of Uncle Kangxi. Holland is already quite good-looking, and with her outfit, she really is the one Rongguang is looking for, attracting a lot of attention.
Outside the Shenwu Gate of the Forbidden City, the carriages of young women from all over the country had already formed a long line.
Lanqin and Holland, supported by their respective maids, had just put their feet on the ground when they heard a eunuch shouting loudly: "Daughters of the imperial concubines from each family, two in a row, line up one after another. Hurry up and accept them, or you'll have to wait another three years if you miss the auspicious time."
After handing their cloaks to their respective personal maids, the two sisters followed the grand procession, passing through Zhenshun Gate and entering the magnificent Forbidden City.
Wow! The Forbidden City, here I am again! Although Lin Mengyao, as a history doctoral student at the Capital University in the 21st century, had visited the Forbidden City many times to conduct research, the Forbidden City two or three hundred years ago still excited her.
Lanqin looked up and saw that she couldn't see the end of the line. She turned around and looked behind her and saw that people were still coming in from the doorway with the group.
Oh my! With so many women selected for the imperial concubine examination, the emperor probably only keeps twenty or thirty at most each time. That's truly one in a hundred. Lin Mengyao thought to herself: Women in feudal society really have no human rights. They are picked over like commodities before they can get married.
Lanqin and her group were divided into several groups at a place called Chuxiu Palace. She and her sister, along with about thirty others, were led by a woman named Aunt Dai into a side hall on the left side of Chuxiu Palace.
"Ladies, you must all be pampered by your parents at home. But things are different in the palace; everything must be done according to the rules. This preliminary selection is a preliminary screening of your status, appearance, voice, and figure. Now, I will begin calling out names. Those whose names are called, come to me," said Aunt Dai.
Lanqin glanced around slightly and saw that there were indeed many talented people, each with their own strengths.
"Ma Jia He'er'e!" A gruff-voiced old woman began calling out names and verifying identities from the list handed over by the Ministry of Revenue.
A short little girl walked out from the crowd and approached the gruff-voiced old woman.
She asked Ma Jia to pay her respects first, and Ma Jia curtsied and said, "Her'e greets Granny!"
Aunt Dai, who had been standing behind the rough-voiced old woman, frowned and said to Ma Jia, "Go back. You're not tall enough and your voice isn't pleasant enough."
And so, a palace maid behind Aunt Dai led the disappointed Lady Ma out.
"Guarjia Xiulan!" the gruff old woman continued calling out the next one.
This time, after the woman named Xiulan finished paying her respects to the nanny, Aunt Dai nodded, and she was led by a palace maid into a room inside the side hall.
It seems quite strict! Was Lady Guarjia taken to the inner room to take off her clothes? Lin Mengyao started to have wild thoughts again. She had seen it in TV dramas, where the imperial concubines were stripped of their clothes by eunuchs and measured with rulers.
Damn it, no way!!
"Niohuru Holland!"
Ah! Lanqin snapped out of her reverie and saw that her second sister had already walked up to the gruff old woman. Before she could speak, Holland gave a graceful curtsy in a sweet and charming voice, her melodious voice like that of a nightingale, which made Aunt Dai take a few more glances at her.
When the second sister went in, Lady Guarjia was brought out. She was blushing and looked confused.
Seeing her like this, Lanqin felt a little uneasy. So, the person examining her really was a eunuch!
"Dong'e Zhu'er!"
"Ulanara Zharfen!"
"Tian Jia Chun'er!"
"Nalan Xiufang!"
...
As the names of prominent figures in Qing Dynasty history echoed in her ears, Lanqin felt a surge of excitement! She was actually standing on the list of candidates for the Kangxi Emperor's selection, a woman awaiting the imperial concubine selection. At this moment, she felt her future was completely beyond her control. Even though she knew that according to the course of history, she would become a princess of Yinzhen, who was still a prince at the time, standing before these living, breathing women, the towering palace walls, and the solemn and stern-faced eunuchs and matrons, she felt utterly insignificant!
"Niohuru Lanqin!" the gruff old woman read aloud, but no one stepped forward.
"Niohuru Lanqin!" The gruff old woman raised her voice again.
Everyone looked around, but still no one answered.
Holland glared at her younger sister beside her and whispered, "Third sister, she's calling you!"
Lanqin was suddenly jolted out of her reverie and quickly stepped out in front of everyone.
Aunt Dai glanced at the woman who had been daydreaming during the talent show, and then looked her up and down after hearing her surname.
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