Chapter 104: On the New Year's Eve of the 35th year of Kangxi's reign, Qi Buchen and...
The New Year's Eve of the 35th year of Emperor Kangxi's reign was the first year that Qi Buchen and Yinzhen stayed up together to celebrate the New Year, but their way of staying up was not very formal.
Qi Buchen pushed him and said, "Stop making trouble. I have to go to the palace early tomorrow morning. I'm sleepy."
Yinzhen said reluctantly: "You have been hiding from me for so many days."
"Be good, I'm really sleepy~" Qi Buchen kissed him ingratiatingly.
Yinzhen's face still looked grim, but he had already turned over and lay down. After hugging the slippery kitten, he said harshly: "You've just waited for a few days."
Qi Buchen no longer had the energy to worry about what would happen in the next few days. She hastily kissed Yinzhen on the chin twice and said, "Happy New Year, good night."
"You're becoming more and more perfunctory." Yinzhen complained, but still gave the kitten in his arms a kiss on the forehead, "Good night." But what he heard was someone's snoring.
...Okay, it seems you are really tired.
After a few days of socializing at the palace, Qi Buchen thought he could finally sleep in, but was severely punished by Yinzhen, who was taking revenge after the event. Qi Buchen bit him anxiously, "Can you take it easy? You promised to let me live two more years."
"It has grown very well." Yinzhen said vaguely.
Seeing that biting was useless, Qi Buchen reached out and twisted the tender flesh on his waist: "Moderate, moderate! You won't grow taller if you indulge yourself like this!"
Yinzhen was pinched so hard that he gasped for breath. He chose to bite her in revenge: "I am tall enough."
Tall ass! Not even 1.8 meters tall!
"What's the point of calling yourself tall if you can't catch up with big brother?" Qi Buchen said without thinking.
Yinzhen narrowed his eyes and said sinisterly, "You seem to particularly like mentioning big brother's height and figure?" If he is unhappy, Fu Jin will not be able to feel comfortable either.
"Ouch!" Qi Buchen realized he had said the wrong thing and quickly begged for mercy. "I didn't say that. I didn't. It's just that the Emperor praised you as the number one Baturu. I have high expectations of you."
"Hmph!" Yinzhen thought she was just talking nonsense, so he stopped talking and just buried his head in his work.
Qi Buchen lay limp on the bed, sobbing, "You are not a human being."
Yinzhen was in a good mood and didn't bother with her. He stroked her long hair and asked, "I will accompany you to your parents' home in the next two days."
Speaking of this, Qi Buchen became more serious: "No, just go ahead and do your thing."
"Why?" Yinzhen was very confused. His wife never liked him to accompany her back to her parents' home, and even his wife herself didn't like to go back to her parents' home.
Qi Buchen said, "This is what I think. If you don't accompany me back to my parents' home, they will think that our relationship is not good and I don't have your favor, otherwise you wouldn't even give me this little face. This way, my parents won't easily come to me to ask for anything, because they know that since I don't have face in your eyes, even if they ask, it's useless. This will save a lot of trouble."
"Just for this?" Yinzhen was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
Qi Buchen nodded: "Don't think this is a big deal. With such a big family, there are so many trivial matters that they can annoy you to death. In fact, what I am more afraid of is that they will use our name to stir up trouble outside. I have some nephews whose characters are not very good."
Some of Qi Buchen's nominal nephews were older than she was, typical playboys, and she didn't want to clean up after people she didn't know well. The only two people she needed to take care of in the Ulanara family were Jueluo and Wu Ge.
Yinzhen smiled and said, "Nothing else?"
"Why else?" Qi Buchen tilted his head and asked in confusion.
Yinzhen bent down and nuzzled her nose affectionately. "For example, since you're not favored, you can't stop me from taking a concubine. So it's understandable that you haven't conceived for several years. It's not intentional contraception."
Qi Buchen's eyes lit up: "Hey, this is a good idea, sure."
"What can I do?" Yinzhen bit her nose angrily. "Oh, if I don't favor you and I don't take anyone in, what will outsiders think of me? Am I not capable, or do I have other fetishes?"
Qi Buchen hugged him and flattered him: "Hey, it's not up to them to decide whether it's okay or not. I think you are very capable, isn't that enough? This idea is quite practical. Didn't you say before that you would help me think of a reason to prevent me from being gossiped about? I think this is very good. Let's do it this way, okay?"
"No." Yinzhen bit her lips again, "I see you don't think I'm capable at all."
Yinzhen once again proved that he was capable, and Qi Buchen was more obedient than ever because he had something to ask for, but unfortunately Yinzhen did not agree in the end.
"Then what are you going to do?" Qi Buchen was very tired and asked coquettishly while half asleep and half awake.
Yinzhen patted her to soothe her to sleep: "I have my own plans, don't worry about it."
Qi Buchen fell asleep mumbling.
After Yinzhen began reporting to the government office, Kangxi and the Empress Dowager moved to Changchun Garden, and he was busy running around, delivering daily necessities to the elders. It was a tedious and meticulous job; if something was not delivered properly, it would be a crime. Of course, the blame could not be brought against Yinzhen, the prince, but he was in charge of the matter, and if he did not do his job well, he would be embarrassed.
Because of this, Yinzhen's daily work content is almost all about arguing with all kinds of people, and his signature black face does not apply here. The relationships between the people inside are complicated and have close ties with the harem. Mainly, he said that he was in charge of the work of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but he did not have a specific position, and he did not even belong to a specific department. He just did whatever task he was temporarily assigned to do.
For the impatient Yinzhen, 80% of his time in the Imperial Household Department was spent arguing and buck-passing with others. This was simply unbearable for him, who was a pragmatic person.
But he couldn't punish anyone for it. We were all experienced people, so why couldn't he find a reason not to get angry? Yinzhen, who was good at getting things done efficiently, had more headaches the longer he stayed in the Imperial Household Department.
But there was no way to reorganize the Imperial Household Department. Firstly, it was not a matter of one day or one night. Secondly, the Imperial Household Department was Kangxi's personal housekeeper. Even Yinzhen, as a prince, could not take charge without Kangxi's explicit order. If he rashly intervened, Kangxi would only think that Yinzhen was overstepping his bounds and being disrespectful.
Qi Buchen felt distressed when he saw his brows furrowing more and more every day: "Why not find a way to change places?"
Yinzhen agreed half-heartedly and was still busy every day. Qi Buchen could only try his best to take care of the rear area so that he would not have to worry about anything.
After the Lantern Festival, good news came from Yuqing Palace. The Crown Princess was diagnosed with pregnancy, and Qi Buchen hurriedly sent her a generous gift.
Unexpectedly, just a few days after this good news, bad news came from Yinqi's mansion. The Fifth Lady, who was already seven months pregnant, suddenly gave birth prematurely. After struggling for two days and one night, she gave birth to a stillborn baby, a boy. The Fifth Lady was also injured and had difficulty in getting pregnant in the future.
This incident even alarmed the Empress Dowager, who personally sent people to the Fifth Prince's residence to investigate, but in the end only punished a few maids and eunuchs.
When Qi Buchen went to visit her, the Fifth Lady was lying on the bed with a dead heart, oblivious to everything in the outside world.
Qi Buchen offered a few words of comfort, but as he spoke, he felt his words were becoming increasingly powerless. The Fifth Lady wasn't a prominent Manchu surname, and her father was only a fifth-rank official. Her family couldn't offer her much support. Now, with the loss of her child, for a woman of this era, the Fifth Lady no longer had any confidence to remain in Yinqi's family. Her future was visibly bleak.
Qi Buchen finally left a message: "If you feel that you have nothing left, then you should live well. No matter what, it won't be worse than it is now."
After she left, the Fifth Lady's eyelids moved, but she did not open them in the end.
Because of the Fifth Lady's matter, Qi Buchen was very depressed for a while, but he didn't let Yinzhen find out. He was already busy enough and didn't want him to worry about his little thoughts.
But Concubine De, who had been quiet for a long time, suddenly came out and made trouble.
Over the past year or so, because she presented many new and beautiful things to Concubine De, which made her famous among the concubines in the harem, and made the Fourteenth Princess and the Ninth and Twelfth Princesses, born to Concubine De, happy, Concubine De's attitude towards her became slightly better, and the two of them had been living in peace.
Qi Buchen went to the palace to pay his respects that day as per usual. He thought it was just a formality, and to make things go smoothly, he even brought some new products from the cosmetics shop to present. But after he finished paying his respects, Concubine De didn't wake him up, but instead asked condescendingly, "You've been sleeping with Yinzhen for nearly half a year now. Are you pregnant?"
Ever since Kangxi reprimanded Concubine De, she had never asked about the couple's affairs again. This time, the question was sudden. Qi Buchen was completely unprepared. He was stunned for a moment and answered stumblingly, "No, no."
"Have you asked the imperial physician to check the cause?" Defei continued to ask coldly.
Qi Buchen had recovered from his shock and realized that Concubine De was looking for trouble again for some reason, so he answered politely, "I didn't specifically look for it, but the imperial physician who checked my pulse on a daily basis didn't say anything wrong."
Defei raised her eyelids, ignored her, and directly ordered: "Go and call the imperial physician." Then she fell silent and stopped talking.
Qi Buchen: ...
Qi Buchen was very upset. She had been kneeling all the time. Although there was a cushion for her support, she had not knelt for such a long time in a long time!
She didn't know what was wrong with Concubine De, she could only bear it. She didn't believe that when the imperial physician came, Concubine De would make her kneel down to take her pulse!
The imperial physician arrived quite quickly. Before he entered the palace, Concubine De finally remembered to ask Qi Buchen to get up. She even pretended to blame the palace maid in the palace: "Why didn't you remind me?"
The matter ended with the palace maid's apology, and Qi Buchen, the person involved, had nothing to do with it.
Qi Buchen: “…” She continued to endure.
"Let the Fourth Lady take a look." After the imperial physician came in, Concubine De said expressionlessly.
Perhaps he had been instructed on the way here, because this unknown doctor directly asked Qi Buchen about his menstrual period and frequency of intercourse, right in front of the palace full of palace servants!
Although Qi Buchen has a soul from the afterlife and is open-minded, even in modern times, when gynecologists ask these questions, they ask the patient alone in the clinic! They won't ask such questions in front of a bunch of irrelevant people!
At this moment, Qi Buchen's eyes were really filled with anger.
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