The princes returned to their tents to rest. Their tents were all set up around Kangxi's imperial tent, so that Kangxi could summon them at any time.
Prince Zhi brought only one princess, the Third Prince brought two princesses, the Eighth Prince brought one princess, the Ninth Prince brought two princesses, and the Tenth Prince brought Shuhui. In addition, the noble ladies and concubines brought by Emperor Kangxi all had their own tents. Just from this, one can imagine the countless amounts of food, manpower, and resources the army consumed daily.
At the banquet, Kangxi did not immediately accept Baoyue as his concubine, claiming she was too old—a mere casual remark. In fact, any one of the young noblewomen accompanying Kangxi was roughly the same age as Baoyue.
Several princes and trusted ministers followed Kangxi into his imperial tent and sat on the ground according to their rank.
“Your Majesty, what is the meaning of Prince Darhan Bandi’s offer? Your Majesty sends beauties as soon as you arrive. What we need are not beauties, but food to sustain our army and weapons and soldiers to fight,” Zhang Tingyu said.
“Yes, they say they support the Emperor’s personal campaign against the Dzungars, but the first thing they send is Princess Baoyue,” Chen Jingting said.
"My cousin never makes a losing deal. You see, his sons are all grown up; it's time for a princess to be betrothed to them. Let me think... are there any noble ladies of marriageable age in the imperial clan? If necessary, I'll have to arrange a marriage for him." Kangxi looked exhausted. Seeing the emperor's displeasure, the crowd dared not say another word.
After Prince Zhi returned to his tent, the eunuchs who were serving him removed his armor and asked in a low voice, "Your Highness, shall we have Consort Wang come and serve you?"
Prince Zhi thought of Lady Wang, but the image of that red figure lingered in his mind. Feeling guilty towards his primary wife, he said irritably, "No need, I'm going to ride a horse. Put on your cloak."
Having said that, Prince Zhi put on his silver leopard-print cloak, lifted the tent flap, ran to the temporary stable, ordered his servant to bring his mount, mounted it, and galloped across the grassland.
The boundless grassland stretched out beneath his feet as Prince Zhi ran, a surge of boundless joy and excitement welling up within him. For years, he had only favored his primary wife and her daughters. Finally, his primary wife had given birth to a prince, but her health deteriorated. Today, that "moonlight of the grassland" in red had suddenly captured Prince Zhi's heart. He had fallen for this radiant and captivating woman almost instantly.
But how could such a young woman fall in love with the Emperor? Why? Why?
Prince Zhi couldn't help but tighten his grip on the whip, causing the horse to gallop faster in pain. If she weren't in love with his father, the Emperor, he could still try to win her over, relying on his influence with the Emperor. But now, was he really going to compete with the Emperor for a woman?
Prince Zhi was in a bad mood and rode his horse wildly across the grassland.
Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of a purple figure flash by; it appeared to be a woman. Prince Zhi immediately followed, not knowing why he did so, but acting purely on instinct.
After running out of Bandi's tent, Baoyue rode her horse wildly across the grassland. She wondered how she could persuade Kangxi to help her become his concubine. Baoyue felt an overwhelming reluctance to leave this grassland. She didn't want to go to the deep, dark palace; she only wanted to reclaim her father's throne and avenge her father, mother, brothers, and sisters.
As she ran, she realized she could hear the sound of horses' hooves behind her, which were closing in on her step by step.
Bao Yue turned around and saw a man wearing a silver leopard-print cloak behind her, who seemed to be one of the princes.
At this moment, Prince Zhi had already seen the person in front of him clearly, and it turned out to be Princess Baoyue. Overjoyed, he desperately urged his horse to chase after the person in front of him.
Bao Yue revealed a mocking smile, turned her head and quickened the pace of her whip.
On the horizon, two black horses, one purple and one silver, galloped wildly across the grassland. The woman ignited the heroic spirit within Prince Zhi, and he quickened his pace, finally catching up with Baoyue, almost running alongside her.
"Are you a prince of the Qing Dynasty?" Bao Yue asked, glancing at Prince Zhi with her beautiful eyes.
"I am Prince Zhi of the Great Qing Dynasty, and I wish to ask for the princess's hand in marriage. What do you think?" At this moment, Prince Zhi was so focused on Princess Baoyue that he had no more reservations. Besides, his father, the Emperor, had already refused in front of so many people and even asked him for his opinion.
Bao Yue burst into laughter, gave Prince Zhi a charming smile, and said, "Then please let Prince Zhi catch up with Bao Yue first."
After saying that, she gave a sharp rebuke and quickened the pace of her whip.
When Prince Zhi saw Bao Yue say those words and then looked at the captivating smile on her face, he was immediately encouraged and quickly followed after her.
After resting for a while, Kangxi ordered Liang Jiugong to summon all the princes to his tent.
Everyone had arrived except for Prince Zhi.
“Your Majesty, according to the servants who attend to Prince Zhi, Prince Zhi has gone riding a horse,” Liang Jiugong said.
Upon hearing this, a hint of displeasure flashed across Kangxi's face.
"I summoned you here to say that I intend to select one of my granddaughters to be made a princess and marry Bandi's eldest son. She will become his principal wife, the mistress of the Khorchin grasslands. All princesses in your households who are twelve years of age or older must report their names. This matter must be handled immediately. Order the post stations to send the birth dates and times of all eligible princesses to me for my perusal," Kangxi said. He had no idea how many granddaughters and grandsons he actually had.
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately and consciously stood in two rows in front of Kangxi, saying in unison, "Your subject obeys the decree."
Actually, only the Prince Zhi and the Third Prince have princesses of childbearing age. The Fourth and Fifth Princes also have some. The Seventh Prince only has one princess who is under nine years old, the Eighth Prince's princess is only three years old, and the Ninth Prince's princesses are all very young. The Tenth Prince's princesses are even younger. The Thirteenth and Fourteenth Princes have no children yet.
"Liang Jiugong, once Prince Zhi returns, you can simply tell him my decree." Kangxi's expression was clearly unpleasant. After saying a few more words to the princes, he dismissed them.
"Nine merits, it seems that my Baoqing has taken a fancy to that Princess Baoyue, and now she's gone." Kangxi said, looking at the memorials piled up on his desk.
"Princess Baoyue has already chosen the Emperor. Surely Prince Zhi wouldn't be so foolish?" Liang Jiugong sighed inwardly.
"Even heroes have found it hard to resist the charms of a beautiful woman. My eyes aren't so old that I can't see clearly. Back then, Baoqing's eyes were fixed on that Baoyue." Kangxi said.
“Your Majesty, why ruin your relationship with Prince Zhi for the sake of a woman from the grasslands?” Liang Jiugong asked cautiously, glancing at Kangxi.
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