When the Fourth Prince arrived at the Qianqing Palace, Emperor Kangxi was reviewing memorials. Liang Jiugong bowed and went in to report. Kangxi nodded, but his expression was not good.
Liang Jiugong turned and went back outside, whispering to the Fourth Prince, "His Majesty seems rather displeased. Fourth Prince, be careful when you go inside."
Fourth Master clasped his hands in a fist salute to Liang Jiugong and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Eunuch."
Liang Jiugong raised his hand in a gesture of invitation and led Fourth Master inside.
Of all Kangxi's princes, he favored the Fourth Prince the most, which is why he gave him more guidance. He didn't want anything in return; he just instinctively looked at the Fourth Prince differently.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty!" The Fourth Prince patted his sleeves, knelt down, and paid his respects.
"Get up, Fourth Prince, come and take a look at this!" Kangxi's expression was indeed displeased, though it wasn't directed at the Fourth Prince.
The Fourth Prince quickly got up, bowed, and walked to Emperor Kangxi's desk. He picked up a memorial piled on the table and looked at it. He then read several more memorials, all of which discussed the construction of churches and the expansion of Catholics in various places.
"Fourth Prince, please sit down," Kangxi said, putting down the memorial in his hand and gesturing to a seat.
"Your Majesty, I thank you for the seat." The Fourth Prince bowed respectfully again before walking to the first seat on the left side of the imperial desk and sitting down on one side.
"Am I being too lenient with these Westerners? They are building churches everywhere, expanding their congregation, and even encouraging them to heed God's call and pray every day," Kangxi said with a stern face.
When the Fourth Prince went out on official business, he had witnessed Western missionaries spreading their faiths everywhere. Now, when Emperor Kangxi inquired about it, he said, "Your Majesty, I privately believe that the Catholicism preached by Western missionaries is a completely different religion from our Buddhism. If it is allowed to develop unchecked, I fear it will affect the prestige of Buddhism and the court. I believe the court should issue regulations to restrict the activities of Western religious sects in our Great Qing."
Upon hearing this, Kangxi realized it aligned with his own thoughts and finally smiled, saying, "Fourth Prince, you and I are thinking the same thing."
The Fourth Prince quickly raised his hands in a fist salute and said, "Your Majesty is wise; I was merely lucky."
Emperor Kangxi's expression visibly improved, and he said, "Over the past year, I have received numerous reports from the Fujian and Guangzhou regions, stating that Westerners there are defying the court's control, illegally cultivating land, recruiting Christians, and causing disturbances. This is utterly outrageous. I have been far too lenient with them."
After pondering for a moment, the Fourth Prince interjected, "Father, I believe we can set a limit: each region can only build a certain number of churches, and the number of converts should also be limited. Western missionaries must undergo inspection and restrictions by our relevant authorities before they can preach."
Upon hearing this, Emperor Kangxi pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly, agreeing with the Fourth Prince's proposal.
"Liang Jiugong, take out some of the newly presented white tea and give it to the fourth prince to take back and drink," Kangxi said.
Liang Jiugong quickly agreed, smiling as he said to the Fourth Prince, "His Majesty didn't give this tea to anyone else, but only to the Fourth Prince."
Emperor Kangxi chuckled and scolded, "Your tongue has grown unusually long lately; you should get it trimmed."
While Liang Jiugong went to fetch tea, Kangxi asked, "What brings you to see me?"
Upon hearing this, the Fourth Prince immediately sat up, walked to the front of Emperor Kangxi's desk, and said, "Father, I have come today to ask for your grace."
Kangxi squinted and said, "Fourth Prince, how often do you ask me for anything?"
The Fourth Prince, still with his head bowed, said, "My concubine, Lady Niohuru, gave birth to a princess. I wish to request that she be granted the title of secondary consort. I humbly request Your Majesty's permission."
Emperor Kangxi smiled and said, "I want to go see the princess born to that little princess. Haha."
The Fourth Prince knew that Emperor Kangxi had a good impression of Lanqin, and thought that there was still hope of getting Lanqin made a concubine. That's why he brought it up with Emperor Kangxi. After all, having given birth to a son gave her even more reason to ask for a title. Back then, Lady Li had given birth to the Second Princess first, and then the Third Prince, before the Fourth Prince was able to get her made a concubine.
The Fourth Prince made an excuse, saying, "Father, Lady Niu is very much to my liking, and she almost had a difficult childbirth when she gave birth to the little princess. I would like to promote her rank."
Kangxi narrowed his eyes, pondered for a moment, and said, "What does the Fourth Prince's wife think? Promoting a princess is important, but the Prince's wife's opinion is also crucial."
The Fourth Prince's heart stirred. From Kangxi's tone, it was clear that he was considering the Ulanara family's wishes. The reason he had initially requested a title for Lady Li was because she had given birth to two children, a son and a daughter, and her maternal family was of Han Chinese descent. The Fourth Prince also favored her, so his wife had agreed. Now, the Niohuru clan was one of the eight great Manchu clans, so elevating the Niohuru clan carried a different meaning, especially since she had only given birth to a daughter.
"Replying to Your Majesty, my wife has been helping me raise two princesses and a prince, working tirelessly and needing a secondary consort to assist her. Lady Niu is intelligent and obedient, and she shares my heart and mind. I humbly request Your Majesty to grant my request." The Fourth Prince bowed to Emperor Kangxi again.
Seeing the Fourth Prince's seriousness, and thinking of Lanqin, Kangxi pondered for a moment before saying to the Fourth Prince, "Very well, since you value Lady Niu so much, I grant your request. However, you must not neglect your Fourth Consort. You must distinguish between the importance of the principal wife and the concubines, understand?"
The Fourth Prince bowed to Emperor Kangxi again and said, "Please rest assured, Father Emperor, I understand."
Kangxi nodded and then instructed the Fourth Prince to select an auspicious day to submit Lanqin's birth date, surname, and other details to the Ministry of Rites.
When the Fourth Prince returned to the Fourth Prince's residence, he first went to the main courtyard to tell his wife about promoting Lanqin's rank.
Although the Princess Consort had known for some time that the Fourth Prince had this plan, she was still quite upset to hear that he had already gone to the palace to propose it so quickly. However, she naturally couldn't show her reluctance in front of the Fourth Prince. Because of Li Momo's matter, the Princess Consort urgently needed to curry favor with the Fourth Prince, so she couldn't object too much to Niu's promotion.
After speaking with his wife, the Fourth Prince only stayed for a cup of tea before hurriedly leaving.
"See how unwilling he is to stay here? He left so quickly, as if he was afraid I would ask him to stay for dinner?" the Fujin said quietly, leaning against the door frame.
“Madam, you have given birth to the Fourth Prince and two princesses. Lady Niu has only given birth to one princess, she cannot compare to you,” Lingxiu said from behind.
"Alas, without imperial favor, I can only rely on my family and offspring to secure my position," the princess sighed, a rare occurrence for her.
“How long can this favor last? Even the former Lady Li never came. There will always be younger newcomers. But you, Madam, will always be Madam. I think you need not worry,” Lingxiu advised.
“You’re right, I will always be the Fujin (Prince Consort). They will always be concubines.” The Fujin gazed at the horizon, where the dark sun was setting in the west.
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