The day of international tribute had finally arrived, and the Fourth Prince was busy. He had to frequently answer Emperor Kangxi's summons to the palace to receive delegations from various countries. The palace banquet was scheduled for this day. Lady Nian and Lady Lanqin, as secondary consorts, were both allowed to enter the palace with the Fourth Prince and his wife to attend this unique banquet for entertaining foreigners.
Lanqin, dressed in her finest attire, once again met with the wives and concubines of Kangxi's princes, only this time the eldest prince and his family were absent. The Crown Prince, on behalf of Kangxi, received the foreign delegations, exchanging pleasantries with each delegation member as they entered, together with the Crown Princess.
The palace banquet was held on the most expansive lawn in the Imperial Garden. Every seat and every serving maid was perfectly positioned, a testament to Consort De's meticulous preparation. She was speaking with several stewards, while the other concubines attending the banquet with Emperor Kangxi were gathered together, their busy schedules immediately apparent in comparison. Lanqin couldn't help but admire Consort De's abilities. Although not the Empress, she managed the harem for Emperor Kangxi, strategizing and planning his banquets—her duties were almost identical to those of the Empress.
Lanqin and Lady Nian followed behind the Fourth Prince and sat in their respective seats. She saw Prince Indal again, but only nodded and did not speak. The fact that Indal had been betrothed to the youngest daughter of Prince Yu was naturally known throughout the capital.
Lanqin recalled her misunderstanding with the Tibetan Toast Prince, which had caused Fourth Master to be extremely jealous and even disrupted her peace. She couldn't help but find it a bit ridiculous.
"Consort Niu, what are you laughing at?" Consort Ma, the Fifth Prince's wife, sitting in the same row, asked as she looked at Lanqin with a smile.
"It's nothing, it's just that seeing so many foreigners with high noses and blue eyes makes me feel like they look so different from us," Lanqin said, naturally not telling the truth.
“Indeed, these people all look really strange. And their language is like bird language, we can’t understand a word of it,” said Consort Ma, covering her face with a handkerchief.
When Lanqin heard Consort Ma say that foreigners' languages sounded like "bird language," she immediately burst into laughter. It turned out that the term "bird language" came from this Consort Ma.
"Consort Niu, what are you laughing at again?" Consort Ma asked.
“I think those foreigners’ languages are incomprehensible. Just as Consort Ma said, they are like ‘bird language’. That’s a very apt description,” Lanqin said.
“That’s right, these foreigners are speaking in a lot of gibberish, we can’t understand a word they’re saying,” Ms. Nian added.
"They all speak different languages. Some are English; some are Tehran and speak German; those over there are red bears and speak Russian; and those who look a lot like us but are very stiff are Ryukyuans and speak Japanese," Lanqin couldn't help but explain to these noble ladies.
"Consort Niu, how do you know so much?" Consort Tian asked.
"Well, I used to like Western studies. I once read a book on world geology that said the place we live in is spherical. We live on this side of the sphere, but there are other people living on the other side as well," Lanqin said. These noblewomen only know how to fight amongst themselves in their inner quarters; they are completely ignorant of the outside world. In fact, the idea that the Earth is round wasn't first proposed by Westerners; it was already put forward as early as the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods.
"That's utter nonsense! If the place we live in is round, wouldn't those living on the other side of the sphere fall off?" Madam Nian said coquettishly, covering her face with her handkerchief.
“Yes, Consort Niu, how could the people over there live like us?” Consort Tian said. She had always been somewhat interested in Lanqin, but Lanqin did not want to associate with her, so she had always avoided Consort Tian.
"Our planet is a giant magnet; it has a gravitational pull on anything that lives on it. That's why our tables and benches don't fly around everywhere," Lanqin couldn't help but say.
“Niohuru, you mustn’t talk nonsense.” The Fourth Prince’s wife could no longer contain herself and let Lanqin continue. She was afraid that people would think that the Fourth Prince’s mansion had produced a heretic. Kangxi had banned Christianity two years ago. If she continued to talk like this, wouldn’t it be as if Niohuru was also a missionary who spread Western teachings?
Lanqin never expected that the Fujin would reprimand her in such a setting. She suddenly realized that she seemed to have said too much, far beyond what these noble ladies could accept. Moreover, Kangxi did not like Western missionaries. She wondered if he would be pleased to hear her strange and unusual remarks.
The envoys from various countries, introduced by the Crown Prince, came before Emperor Kangxi to introduce themselves. It was their first time entering such a beautiful and magnificent garden, and seeing so many noblewomen dressed in elegant Manchu attire, they were all so excited they were almost speechless. Lanqin found it utterly hilarious to see the foreigners imitating Chinese etiquette, bowing to Kangxi at Liang Jiugong's instruction.
“Look, their knees don’t even bend,” said Mrs. Nian.
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