Chapter 159 Chapter 159 Question: What does it feel like to receive Kangxi...
Q: What was it like to receive Kangxi?
Answer: Tired!
It was tiring in every sense of the word. Kangxi arrived with a full set of ceremonial guards, and Qi Buchen and Yinzhen also welcomed him according to the full set of rules for receiving the emperor. There were ceremonial officers watching every step of the way. Qi Buchen not only had to pay attention to his own demeanor at all times, but also had to use three-tenths of his eyes to pay attention to the triplets, so as not to let these evil stars cause any trouble.
Fortunately, the eldest brother Honghui was very responsible and took on most of the responsibility of restraining the triplets, so nothing happened that caused Qi Buchen any headaches.
As for Yinzhen, he naturally put all his energy into dealing with Kangxi.
After a rough tour of the garden, Kangxi was invited to sit down at Jiuzhou Qingyan, where he enjoyed the lake view and listened to opera on the lake.
"Did you design this garden yourself?" Kangxi asked casually.
Yinzhen replied, "Yes, it was inspired by the style of Jiangnan gardens."
Kangxi nodded slightly: "Is this also the design you made for the third brother and the others?"
"No." Yinzhen shook his head. "They chose a style they generally liked, and I made some minor changes to the details."
"When I came in, I noticed that your garden didn't even have a plaque," Kangxi asked. "Hasn't the name been chosen yet?"
Yinzhen bowed slightly and said, "I would like to ask Your Majesty to give me a name."
Kangxi shook his head slightly. "I've only had a cursory look at your garden today. It's inappropriate to come up with a good name in such a hurry." He glanced at Honghui, who was caring for his three younger brothers. "Honghui, what do you think your father's garden should be called?"
Honghui stood up and bowed, then glanced at his father and mother, and said with a sense of shame, "Your Majesty, this is my first time visiting this garden. Your Majesty couldn't think of a good name on such a short notice, and I couldn't think of one either. I beg your forgiveness."
Kangxi remained silent and asked, "Now that you've seen it today, what do you think of your father's garden?"
Honghui scratched his head shyly. "I'm ashamed to say I can't think of a specific adjective. I just think this garden is very fresh and natural. The stacked stones and water arrangements have a poetic quality. It's very different from the heavily-hewn eaves of the mansion."
Kangxi remained calm and said, "Since you find it so poetic, I will give you a task today. Write a poem about this garden."
Honghui was full of energy. He had been learning to write poetry for some time and was in the middle of it. He did not feel embarrassed at all. "Yes, grandson, obey your command."
Qi Buchen looked at his son with sympathy and took over the care of the triplets so that his eldest son could concentrate more on writing poetry.
Kangxi turned his gaze back to Yinzhen: "Your garden, you can name it yourself, don't always rely on me."
"Yes." Yinzhen lowered his eyes and pretended to think about the name.
Kangxi looked at the triplets again and asked, "Have the three of them been enlightened?"
"Replying to the Emperor, I hired a teacher at the beginning of the year and have started formal enlightenment." Her husband and eldest son were busy, so Qi Buchen had to come out and answer on her own.
"Well, you are more concerned about it than Honghui was at that time." Kangxi didn't know whether it was intentional or not, but he brought up the past.
Qi Buchen was a little embarrassed: "Father, please forgive me. Honghui was the first one. It was inevitable that my daughter-in-law doted on me at that time. Now I know I was wrong."
Of course, Kangxi couldn't possibly blame his daughter-in-law for this. He looked at his three grandsons for a while and asked, "Is the blue one Hongyu?"
Qi Buchen's mouth twitched. It seemed that Emperor Kangxi hadn't remembered who was who when the triplets came to pay their respects. "Yes, the cyan one is Hongyun, and the red one is Hongshi."
The triplets don't look exactly the same, but in order to tell them apart, Qi Buchen didn't dress them the same, and the colors they wore were chosen by themselves.
"Hongyu," Kangxi called out, "what have you learned from the teacher?"
Before today, Yinzhen, Qi Buchen and Honghui had taken turns teaching the triplets, so Hongyu stood up obediently and saluted in a similar manner. When Hongyun and Hongshi saw him move, they didn't know whether they were nervous or just wanted to move forward and retreat together, but they also stood up and saluted like Hongyu.
Hongyu ignored his two learned brothers and loudly answered Kangxi's question: "I learned the basics of prosody and memorized poems!"
"Oh? You can also recite poems. How many poems can you recite?" Kangxi asked with interest.
Hongyan puffed out his chest and said proudly, "I can recite eighty-nine poems! I'll soon be able to recite a hundred!"
Kangxi raised an eyebrow: "Why do I have to memorize a hundred poems?"
Hongyun then responded, "My father said that if you memorize 100 poems, you will become a great king!"
Kangxi looked at the other two: "Really? Then how much can Hongyun and Hongshi memorize?"
Hongyun smiled so hard that his teeth were visible and his eyes were invisible: "I can recite eighty-seven poems."
Hongshi, perhaps tired from standing, placed one hand on the desk and said slowly, "I know ninety-three poems."
Kangxi smiled and said, "It seems that Hongshi is the most powerful. How come you two, as elder brothers, are not as good as your younger brothers?"
Qi Buchen was a little unhappy when he heard this. What's wrong with this old man? He is trying to sow discord among a few four or five-year-old children. Isn't he too dark-hearted?
He looked at his three sons with some worry.
Hongyu said nonchalantly, "It doesn't matter. I can run faster than him."
Hongyun nodded in agreement: "Hongshi is too lazy. I eat more than him and I am taller than him."
Qi Buchen was upset when he heard this. My good son, is eating a lot something to be proud of?
Kangxi chuckled: "Hongshi, your third brother said you were lazy, do you think he was right?"
Hey, this old man isn’t done yet, Qi Buchen thought to himself.
Hongshi nodded slowly: "Yes."
Fortunately, my son is very capable, Qi Buchen thought happily. He wanted to play but it felt wrong. What good would it be if my son was lazy?
One is lazy, one is greedy, and one has ADHD. Just thinking about it makes me cry.
Forget it, at least the child has a clear understanding of himself. Qi Buchen can only comfort himself in this way.
Kangxi probably didn't expect Hongshi to agree so readily, and was a little choked up for a moment. Fortunately, at this time, his good son Yinzhen came out to rescue him: "Your Majesty, I have thought of a name, please taste it."
Kangxi raised his chin to signal him to speak.
"What about 'Yuanmingyuan'?" Yinzhen explained. "Round and enchanting, it represents the righteousness of a gentleman; bright and all-encompassing, it represents the wisdom of a sage.[Note 1]"
Kangxi thought for a moment and nodded, "Not bad."
Yinzhen bowed again and asked, "Please write an inscription for me, Father."
Kangxi did not refuse again: "Pen and ink are at your service."
The palace maids standing by quickly brought out the pen, ink, paper and inkstone and spread them out. Yinzhen ground the ink himself. The triplets ran to their father and stood on tiptoe to look around.
Honghui also wanted to go over, but he saw that his mother was still standing there without moving: "Mother, go over."
Qi Buchen finally recovered from the shock of hearing the words "Old Summer Palace": "Oh, oh."
She walked to the side and stood still, looking at the inscription by Kangxi, but her heart was still shocked. The Old Summer Palace, she knew that it was built by Yongzheng, but she didn't know the specific time when it was started. Considering the financial problems of the palace, she once thought that Yongzheng should have started construction after he ascended the throne.
Who would have known that she would suddenly be told that the garden under her feet was the Old Summer Palace?
Stop joking, please. Although this garden is nice, it is still far from the Garden of Gardens!
But watching the calligraphy gradually take shape under Kangxi's pen, Qi Buchen couldn't help but believe that this was the Yuanmingyuan in history. As for why it was so different? It might be because Yinzhen at that time had no money, and it was only after he ascended the throne that he gradually expanded it to its historical appearance.
However, it is highly likely that Yinzhen will not be able to ascend the throne in this lifetime. Will the Old Summer Palace still exist?
Qi Buchen thought absentmindedly, if the butterflies in the Garden of Ten Thousand Gardens were gone, she wouldn't become a historical sinner, right? After all, the fate of the Old Summer Palace later on wasn't good either.
"The Emperor's calligraphy has reached its peak, with rhythmic strokes and a restrained edge." Yinzhen praised without blinking.
Kangxi casually threw the brush into the brush washer and sneered, "You, the cold-faced Prince Yong, have also learned to flatter?"
Yinzhen remained calm and said, "I am telling the truth."
Hongyan suddenly said, "Where are you flattering me, Father? I want to flatter you too. Last time, I tried to touch my brother's horse, and it kicked me!"
"I want to flatter you too!" Hong Yun perfectly interpreted the role of a lackey.
Hongshi didn't say anything, but he never loosened his grip on Hongyun's sleeve, making sure that his two brothers would not let him get rid of him.
Kangxi laughed heartily: "Okay, let your father take you to flatter the emperor today."
Yinzhen's face darkened and he glared at the triplets: "Your Majesty, stop joking with your sons." As he said that, he was going to collect the calligraphy left by Kangxi and send it back to have someone make a plaque.
Kangxi restrained his expression and asked, "Am I a joker?"
Qi Buchen's expression changed slightly, and he couldn't help but look at Yinzhen, but saw that Yinzhen was still calm: "Everyone knows how to joke."
After he put away the calligraphy, he saw that Kangxi still had an unpredictable look on his face, and his shoulders slumped. "Well, since Your Majesty insists on seeing me make fun of you, I will have no choice but to embarrass myself for once. I just don't know if these brats will still listen to me after this embarrassment."
"Hmph, you're useless." Kangxi scolded him, but he didn't mention the flattery again.
After another meal, Kangxi left. Qi Buchen and others of course stayed in the Old Summer Palace.
Qi Buchen collapsed on the couch exhausted. Looking at the triplets who were still full of energy chasing and playing around the house, he couldn't help but envy them: "It's good to be young."
Yinzhen was explaining to Honghui what was wrong with the poem he wrote today, and he took the time to reply to Qi Buchen: "You are still young."
Qi Buchen curled her lips. Although she was only twenty-six years old this year, she should be considered a young person. But when she looked at her four sons, she couldn't find the feeling of being young. She always felt that she was already very old.
After Yinzhen finished speaking to Honghui, he sent him off to look after his brothers. Turning back, he saw Fu Jin's forlorn expression and couldn't help but laugh, "What are you mourning about again?"
"I miss my lost youth~" Qi Buchen sighed artificially.
Yinzhen was speechless and broke through her pretentiousness with one word: "Honghui will be ten years old next year, and it's time to vaccinate him."
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The author has something to say: Note 1: From Baidu, Yongzheng's explanation of the name of Yuanmingyuan
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