Chapter 125: Visiting Slender West Lake. Waiting for Qi Buchen to wake up after a good sleep, the sky was already bright...
When Qi Buchen woke up from his sleep, it was already bright outside and Yinzhen was nowhere to be seen.
Asked Lan Hui: "Where is my father?"
He replied, "Your Majesty? Someone came to call you early this morning."
Qi Buchen pounded his fist into his own hand: "Oh no! What time is it? I have to go pay my respects to the Queen Mother and the ladies."
Lan Hui and Rui Xiang both smiled and pursed their lips. They both felt privately that since leaving the capital, Fu Jin had become much more lively. She would never have been able to do such actions in the past.
"It's just past 9 o'clock," Ruixiang said with a smile as she combed her hair. "Don't worry, Madam. Eunuch Sun went to inquire early this morning. Yesterday, the Empress Dowager and the ladies all said there was no need to get up early to pay respects today. The ladies next door haven't gone either."
Qi Buchen breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good."
Lan Hui painted her eyebrows and lips, and then she reported, "It's just that the palace now delivers meals on time. Master saw you were tired and didn't send you. There's no stove in the yard to warm you up. Knowing you don't like to waste, we servants will use it. Master said that when you wake up, you can ask Eunuch Lin to go out and buy some."
"What do you want to eat?"
Qi Buchen thought for a moment and shook his head. "Forget it. It's only my first day here, so why not? It's too ostentatious. I'm not hungry either. Let's wait for lunch."
When lunch was served, Qi Buchen's stomach was already growling with hunger. There were actually some snacks in the room that could fill her stomach, but when Qi Buchen took a bite, she found it was too sweet and almost vomited. She drank two cups of tea to relieve the greasiness.
Ruixiang was puzzled by Qi Buchen's reaction. "I heard this is a famous Yangzhou pastry called Ruyi Su, and it was specially found by the palace steward. Isn't it delicious?"
Qi Buchen patted his chest with a lingering fear and said, "It's too sweet. I don't like sweet things."
"Why hasn't Master come back yet?" she asked again.
Lan Hui and others could only shake their heads to indicate that they didn't know. Yinzhen was always with Kangxi, and they didn't dare to inquire about the emperor's whereabouts and situation.
Of course Qi Buchen would not let them find out about this. After sitting for a while, Qi Buchen became a little restless. This is Yangzhou, the Yangzhou with fireworks in March. If she doesn't go out to take a look, then her trip would be in vain!
"Go out and find out what the other concubines are doing and whether any of them have gone out." Forget about the concubines. The restrictions on them are much greater than those on the concubines who are daughters-in-law. At most, Kangxi can take them out for sightseeing if he is interested. It is absolutely forbidden for them to go out on the streets by themselves.
Sun Liangping returned not long after he left: "Madam, none of you ladies have left the house."
Tsk, Qi Buchen felt a little regretful. Why were everyone so timid and there was no one to take the lead?
Idly, I strolled around the small courtyard assigned to them. It was really small, not even as big as the main courtyard of the Fourth Prince's Mansion.
"Do the Third and Fifth Concubines live next door?" Qi Buchen asked.
Sun Liangping replied, "No, our courtyard is on the easternmost side of the palace, and there are similar courtyards all along this stretch. The Third Prince lives in the front, followed by the Fifth, Seventh, and several other princes. The Ninth, Tenth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Princes, because they didn't bring their wives, share a courtyard."
"The Empress Dowager and the ladies live in the back half of the palace. The southwest corner is the townhouses, where the ministers accompanying the emperor live."
As for Kangxi, needless to say, of course the entire atrium area is included.
Qi Buchen nodded and looked at Sun Liangping with appreciation: "Not bad." This kind of subordinate is so considerate.
Sun Liangping smiled broadly: "Thank you for the compliment, Madam."
Qi Buchen had been staying in the yard for so long that hair had almost grown on his face when Yinzhen came back, looking exhausted.
"Where have you been?" Qi Buchen wiped his face and told the servants to prepare bath water.
Yinzhen was in a good mood: "Gaojiayan."
Qi Buchen is no longer a newbie. He has read so many books on river engineering. Of course he knows the name of Gaojiayan, which is said to be the earliest artificial dam in history. It was originally called Hongze Lake Dam. Just hearing the name makes one feel its imposing manner.
"How is it?" Qi Buchen asked excitedly.
Yinzhen smiled and said, "You live up to your reputation."
Qi Buchen said with some longing: "I really want to see it with my own eyes." Although he had seen the grandeur of the Three Gorges Dam in his previous life, Gaojiayan could certainly not compare with it, but the dam at that time was not made of cement, but was poured out bit by bit with glutinous rice juice. It should have a different kind of charm.
"Are you going out tomorrow?" she asked again.
Yinzhen nodded: "Not only that, we will go to Guiren Dike tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow..." He briefly explained the itinerary for the next few days.
"Okay." Qi Buchen was a little dejected. She might have to stay in this small courtyard for a few more days.
Yinzhen rubbed her head and said, "When these few days are over, I'll take you out for a nice stroll." He added, "If you have nothing to do, you can go and keep the Royal Madam company. The Royal Father is afraid that the Royal Madam will be bored, so he has arranged many performances. You probably haven't seen them before, so go and have a look."
Qi Buchen didn't want to bother him with such a small matter, so he immediately agreed happily: "Okay."
Because the road to Guiren Dike was long, Yinzhen had to get up early the next day. That night, the two did not make out, but just slept in each other's arms.
When he opened his eyes and didn't see Yinzhen again, Qi Buchen rolled lazily on the bed twice, then got up with all his energy, intending to go to the Empress Dowager to perform.
After arriving, she found that many people had the same plan as her. The Queen Mother said, "It's very lively here."
The Queen Mother perhaps understood everyone's thoughts and didn't mind. She looked at the time and thought it was about time, so she signaled to her subordinates to arrange the program.
In fact, the types of performances nowadays are still relatively scarce. Pinghua, tanci, qingqu, and opera can almost all be included. However, there are many subcategories within each category. For example, there are Huagu Opera, Xianghuo Opera, Huangmei Opera, etc. in opera. In addition, because there are many wealthy businessmen in Yangzhou, the trend of raising opera troupes has been formed, so there are many famous opera troupes. Even if it is the same play, different troupes will perform it with different feelings.
Qi Buchen followed the Queen Mother for a few days and feasted her eyes, especially the mainstays of several opera troupes. Their appearance, figure, voice, and strength, if it weren't for the time and gender, she would have shouted, "Sister, I can do it!"
She really wanted to give money to the beautiful "sisters", but unfortunately she was only the fourth lady and did not dare to compete for the "number one" or even the "number ten".
Yinzhen goes out early and comes back late every day. He doesn't know that his wife dreams of being intimate with male "sisters" every night. It was strange to hear his wife talking in her sleep and calling her "sister" when he woke up one day. Is there anyone in this palace who can make his wife call her "sister"?
When Yinzhen finished his work, he came back and told Fu Jin that he could take her out for a walk the next day: "You never like watching plays. You must be bored these past few days, right?"
Qi Buchen smiled timidly: "It's okay, some of them are quite interesting."
Yinzhen didn't realize it. He had been a vegetarian for over a month. It was rare for him not to have something important to do tomorrow, so how could he bear it? As for going out tomorrow? Well, not every time could be used.
"Do you miss me?" The hot breath of Yinzhen sprayed into Fu Jin's ears.
Qi Buchen shrank his neck, took the initiative to hug the person, and said lingeringly: "I want~"
Yinzhen's heart trembled and his breathing became heavier.
Perhaps it had been too long since he had experienced this, Qi Buchen felt a little uncomfortable and couldn't adapt at all. Seeing this, Yinzhen had to suppress his restless heart and end it hastily.
Not satisfied!
Yinzhen collapsed on the bed, hugged the person, kissed him, and asked, "What happened?"
"I don't know." Qi Buchen frowned, "I just feel uncomfortable."
Yinzhen asked, "Where do you feel uncomfortable?"
Qi Buchen himself couldn't explain it clearly: "Stomach? Not really, I can't explain it."
Yinzhen was helpless: "Then let's ask a doctor to take a look tomorrow." Of course, Kangxi always had a royal physician with him, but Qi Buchen's illness was not a serious problem, so it would be better to find a local doctor to take a look.
Qi Buchen resisted a little: "No need." What do you want her to say when the doctor asks why she feels uncomfortable?
"Take it easy and try again tomorrow." She offered a compromise.
Yinzhen sighed: "Okay."
He went to bed early and got up early. When he thought that he could finally go out after several days, Qi Buchen was extremely happy. While picking clothes for Yinzhen, he hummed a little song that he had heard a few days ago.
Yinzhen looked at her with a smile. He also found that Fu Jin had become much more lively since coming to Hangzhou.
When the two of them were almost at the palace gate, Sun Liangping, who was staying behind in the courtyard, suddenly caught up with them and said, "Master, Fu Jin."
The two of them stopped, and Sun Liangping took a breath and said, "The Emperor sent someone to say that he wants to take the Empress Dowager to visit Slender West Lake today, and asked all the princes to go."
Qi Buchen looked at Yinzhen and pouted lightly. Yinzhen took her hand and squeezed it: "Let's go."
As the name suggests, Slender West Lake means "thin". Boats sail in the narrow waterway, creating ripples on the water. Willows on both sides are swaying in a myriad of ways, and the water sways softly in the breeze. The lush green is interspersed with white magnolias and black eaves, which is a breathtaking beauty.
Qi Buchen stood by the boat, closed his eyes and enjoyed the fragrance of grass and flowers floating in the air, feeling so comfortable.
Yinzhen stood beside her, feeling relaxed and happy.
"Fourth brother, fourth sister-in-law."
Qi Buchen turned around and saw that it was Yinxiang: "Thirteenth brother."
"Is there something?" Yinzhen asked directly.
This time the boat trip was not divided into groups. All the princes and their wives were on the same boat, but they did not gather together. They were scattered in groups of three or four.
Yinzhi pulled Yinqi to recite poems and compose couplets, but Yinqi could only recite poems now, and it was obviously difficult for him to do so, so he focused on supporting his third brother; the Third and Fifth Concubines sat on one side, eating and drinking happily; Yinyou sat in the cabin alone, with the Seventh Concubine beside him, but seeing that she looked at the deck from time to time, it was obvious that she wanted to come out and see the beautiful scenery; Yin'er and Baya were bickering at the stern, Yinsi tried to mediate, and Yin'e stood bored by the side, looking around; Yinzhen stood alone on the other side, looking at Qi Buchen, and quickly looked away when Qi Buchen looked over.
Yinxiang scratched his head and smiled dryly, "Nothing, I just came to say hello to my fourth brother and his wife." Actually, he'd wanted to bring Yinzhen along. He'd never noticed it before, living in the palace, but this time, he'd discovered Yinzhen's atrocious attitude toward his fourth brother. On the way, when they'd been on the same boat together, they'd never even said hello. He was a kindhearted child, and believing there was some misunderstanding between the two brothers, he wondered if he could act as a go-between to resolve it. After all, he'd been raised by Concubine De and felt it was his duty.
Unfortunately, when Yinzhen heard him mention his fourth brother, he rolled his eyes and said sarcastically, "If you want to go, go by yourself. Don't drag me along."
Since there was no way to get ahold of Yinzhen, Yinxiang wondered if he could find a way through his fourth brother, and that's why he came over to say hello.
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