Chapter 194 194 Concubines and Foreign Goods
Whether intentionally or unintentionally, Emperor Kangxi restricted the Crown Prince's social circle, creating a disconnect, distance, and difficulty in getting close to him from others in the palace. Even the other princes were not close to their brother, the Crown Prince.
Apart from Emperor Kangxi, the Crown Prince had very few close associates.
Before the Crown Prince began his education, all his needs, including food, clothing, housing, and transportation, were taken care of by the widower Emperor Kangxi. Apart from Kangxi, the Crown Prince had no one else he could confide in or have normal interactions with.
After the Crown Prince began his studies, he finally had a trusted advisor and strategist by his side, Songgotu. After placing his trust in his maternal uncle Songgotu, the Crown Prince finally had someone to consult and work together to find solutions to problems.
However, after Songgotu gained the Crown Prince's trust and became his confidant, he was not scolded by Emperor Kangxi for his close relationship with the Crown Prince. Instead, Emperor Kangxi found fault with him and repeatedly demoted and suppressed him, even implicating the entire Hesheli clan.
As the crown prince grew older, the Heseri clan, his maternal family, fell into decline and their situation became increasingly precarious. Both their prestige and power were far less than before. Apart from Suo'etu, who was repeatedly suppressed and reinstated by Emperor Kangxi, not a single member of the Heseri clan held an important position in the court.
The gradual decline of his maternal clan's influence was one of the reasons why the crown prince became increasingly anxious and impatient as he grew up and came to understand the meaning of power and influence.
— Apart from the Hesheli clan, other prominent Manchu families and noble clans did not support the crown prince and were not fond of him as the heir apparent.
Emperor Kangxi initially established his eldest son, Yinreng, as crown prince during the Rebellion of the Three Feudatories, when he needed to appease and win over the Han Chinese officials and scholars in the south. However, the Manchus did not have the custom of succession by the eldest son, and many princes, relatives, and nobles of the Eight Banners objected to the fact that the crown prince was established as the heir simply because he was born to the empress.
Although the Crown Prince had the support of Han Chinese officials, he did not want to give up his base of support from the Manchu nobles, so he absolutely could not afford to lose the support of the Heseri clan. Every time Kangxi suppressed the Heseri clan, it was equivalent to weakening the forces supporting the Crown Prince, which inevitably drew the Crown Prince's resentment and grievances.
After inquiring about the Crown Prince for quite some time, asking about all aspects of his life, including his clothing, food, housing, and studies, Kangxi, who was getting a little hoarse from talking, picked up the hot tea that Liang Jiugong had served him and took a sip of the clear, sweet Taihu Biluochun tea to moisten his throat.
Sipping Biluochun tea, Emperor Kangxi, having shown concern for the Crown Prince from beginning to end, couldn't find another way to express his fatherly affection. So he thought of changing the subject and discussing politics with the Crown Prince, specifically the issue of rewards and punishments after the recent battle against the Dzungars, which had been the subject of much debate in the court.
Just as Kangxi was about to discuss his plans with the Crown Prince, he suddenly remembered that his original intention was to demote Suo'etu. He swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue and casually uttered a meaningless remark: "Baocheng has grown up and is not young anymore..."
In a flash, Kangxi had a sudden inspiration and found a point in the Crown Prince that he had overlooked: "Baocheng, it was your father who neglected to think that you are getting old and should get married. You should also have someone to serve you."
Empress Hesheli passed away too early, and the Crown Prince's daily life was entirely taken care of by Emperor Kangxi alone. Although Emperor Kangxi was both a father and a mother to the Crown Prince, he was extremely devoted to him. One person could not be as thorough as two, and there were bound to be oversights.
The eldest prince has been married for several years and has two legitimate daughters; the third and fourth princes will also be married next year, but the crown prince's marriage has not yet been decided, and it really cannot be delayed any longer.
Thinking about the Crown Prince's marriage and the fact that the Crown Prince would definitely get married in the future, Kangxi felt somewhat uncomfortable and was reluctant to arrange a marriage for the Crown Prince and let him marry a Fujin and start a small family.
Having been a widower for many years, Emperor Kangxi harbored a strong possessive and controlling desire for his carefully raised crown prince. He wanted the crown prince to be close only to him, his father, and did not want the crown prince to have other close people around him. He also did not want the crown prince to have a wife and children after his marriage, which would dilute the crown prince's feelings for him, his father.
However, although Emperor Kangxi had a possessive and controlling nature towards the Crown Prince, he also genuinely loved the Crown Prince whom he had personally raised since childhood, and truly wanted what was best for him.
Emperor Kangxi was hesitant to make a decision about the arranged marriage, partly because there was no suitable candidate available.
Secondly, the Crown Prince is the first Crown Prince since the founding of the Qing Dynasty. His wedding as the heir apparent must not be taken lightly. We cannot simply copy a set of existing etiquette and regulations. We must carefully study and research them to make them as perfect as possible, so as not to wrong the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince couldn't marry his consort anytime soon, but he still needed servants. In this regard, Emperor Kangxi was unwilling to wrong the Crown Prince.
"I'll first select two concubines for you from among the selected ladies who have kept their names on the list." Gently setting down his teacup, Kangxi smiled kindly at the Crown Prince and said, "Baocheng, tell your father what kind of women you like, and your father will choose two for you according to your wishes."
The Crown Prince lowered his head, his gaze fixed on the ground below, and said calmly, "I am satisfied with whatever Father Khan has chosen. It is up to Father Khan to decide."
Satisfied with the Crown Prince's answer, Kangxi's smile widened, and he nodded, saying, "Alright, then I'll help you choose, and I'll send the person to your Yuqing Palace in a couple of days."
"Thank you, Father." After expressing his gratitude, the Crown Prince fell silent again.
Emperor Kangxi doted on his crown prince, and the crown prince also had a deep affection for Kangxi, who had personally raised him. The crown prince respected, admired, and was close to Kangxi, always regarding him as the closest and most important person to him.
When he was a child, the Crown Prince would be proud and pleased with himself every time he won the competition for Emperor Kangxi's favor. However, as he grew up, the Crown Prince also wanted to be independent and longed for freedom. Even though he was very close to Emperor Kangxi, he would sometimes feel suffocated by Emperor Kangxi's fatherly love.
The people around the Crown Prince were all sent by Emperor Kangxi, and none of the palace servants serving him were his own confidants. Kangxi would immediately know what the Crown Prince did. Everything about him was under Kangxi's control, leaving him no room to struggle.
As he grew older, the Crown Prince found himself restricted and unfree in every way, and occasionally couldn't help but think: "If only my father hadn't doted on me so much." Perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing that he received less of Kangxi's attention like the other princes; at least they were free and had autonomy over their lives.
The Crown Prince pursed his lips and sighed inwardly: However, it was a good thing that his father had relented on his wedding plans. With the First Prince having children after his marriage, the Crown Prince felt considerable pressure and didn't want to be at a disadvantage compared to the First Prince because he had no offspring.
Qianmen Street, outside the outer city of Beijing.
In a prime location and luxuriously decorated two-story shop, Yin'e stood in front of the most prominent shelf in the lobby on the first floor, looking up at the neatly arranged and dazzling array of goods on the shelf. His eyes widened involuntarily: "This is..."
The waiter, who was bowing slightly beside Yin'e and the others, quickly smiled and said ingratiatingly, "Young master, this is perfume, an imported product from Guangzhou. It's a rare item. I'm not bragging, but our shop is the only one in the entire capital that sells it. You can't buy it anywhere else!"
His eyelashes trembled slightly, and Yin'e blinked, a thoughtful glint in his bright, clear almond-shaped eyes. He tilted his head slightly, pondering for a moment, before asking a question the waiter hadn't expected: "Besides perfume, what other imported goods are sent from Guangzhou? Are there... many foreigners in Guangzhou?"
Unexpectedly, Yin'e didn't ask about the price of the perfume or how many scents it had. Instead, he asked some unrelated questions, leaving the waiter speechless for a moment before he came to his senses after being reminded by the guards.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, the shrewd shopkeeper put on a careful smile and said with a forced smile, "We have a lot of imported goods from Guangzhou. We also sell wine, peep shows, enamelware, ivory, and sandalwood in our shop. They are all transported from the south by waterway."
"As for whether there are foreigners in Guangzhou, and how many there are, I really don't know." The waiter was all smiles as he carefully answered the questions, afraid of offending the two young masters who were accompanied by a dozen or so guards and looked like they were not to be trifled with.
“Guangzhou is too far from the capital. Although our boss does business with foreigners, he only cares about the foreign goods they sell. Nobody cares about the foreigners themselves. They just hear that they look strange, with blond hair and blue eyes, which sounds weird, just like those Russians who came to the capital a few years ago.”
Raising an eyebrow, Yin'e couldn't help but look at the waiter with newfound respect. No wonder he worked in the best shop on Qianmen Street; he was not only well-informed but also had a wealth of knowledge.
A few years ago, a group of Russian prisoners did come to Beijing. After the Qing Dynasty went to war with Russia in the 24th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, the Qing Dynasty captured more than 100 Russians in succession during the Battle of Yaksa. After those Russian prisoners were escorted to Beijing, they were settled in Hujiayuan Hutong in Dongzhimen.
Last year, the Qing Dynasty signed the Treaty of Nerchinsk with Russia. More than fifty Russian prisoners of war were unwilling to return to Russia and instead settled down in the capital.
Those Russians even built an Orthodox church in the capital, their faith was satisfied, and they lived a good life. They were so happy that they didn't want to go back to Russia. They were determined to leave everything behind and stay in the Qing Dynasty to live a peaceful life.
Although the number of missionaries in Beijing was still small, and they mostly stayed in the palace to teach Emperor Kangxi and the princes, ordinary people rarely saw them.
But foreigners were no longer a rarity in Beijing. When the Russians first arrived, they attracted a lot of attention, with many people going to Hujiayuan Hutong near Dongzhimen to see what was going on and follow the foreigners to see what was so unusual.
But after seeing them, people found that foreigners were just a bit strange-looking. They neither ate nor bit people, and there were no interesting rumors. Gradually, no one went to see foreigners anymore, and the people of Beijing lost their initial curiosity about them.
Having not found out about the situation of foreigners in Guangzhou, Yin'e was already prepared and not disappointed. He simply looked up at the wide variety of perfumes on the shelves, turned to the Ninth Prince and said, "Ninth Brother, these things are quite novel. Let's buy a few bottles to take back."
Yin'e wanted to bring a few bottles for the Imperial Concubine. Although he didn't know if she would be used to them, they were something that the Imperial Household Department didn't have. It would be good to buy them and let the Imperial Concubine see something new.
The Ninth Prince shifted his gaze from the shelf next to him, glanced at the perfumes, and nodded: "Then let's buy some as gifts."
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