Chapter 80 When Yinzhen came back from studying with him, Qi Buchen didn’t even dare to recognize him…
When Yinzhen came back, Qi Buchen didn't dare to recognize him. He was so tanned that his hands and wrists were two completely different shades.
Su Peisheng complained on his master's side: "We haven't stopped on this journey, visiting different places every day. My legs are worn out."
"You're too talkative!" Yinzhen scolded. "The Emperor hasn't said anything yet, and you're the one complaining."
Su Peisheng apologized in a low voice.
Qi Buchen didn't care about the matters between the master and servant: "Then take a good rest. Has the emperor arranged any errands?"
Yinzhen shook his head, "Not yet." He then asked Lin Changqing to bring up a few boxes. "I've been so busy on this trip that I didn't have time to bring you any gifts. These are gifts from people along the way. That box is from my third sister. Take any that you like and keep them. Give the rest to mother and younger sister."
Qi Buchen nodded, without even looking at it, and simply gestured for Baozhu to put the things away. "You must be tired from the journey, go and rest."
Yinzhen was indeed tired, but he didn't say anything after hearing this. He went to the front yard and slept until the next day. He came to the main courtyard to have breakfast with Qi Buchen.
After the meal, Qi Buchen went to the small study to copy scriptures, and Yinzhen followed him in.
During Yinzhen's absence, Qi Buchen had developed a habit of copying two volumes of scriptures on her own. When Yinzhen offered to help, she refused. Yinzhen had no choice but to take the book and sit on the couch beside him to read. As he read, he looked up at Qi Buchen again.
This time, unlike last time, he didn't stay in one place for a long time. He was basically on the road all the time. He was so tired that he fell asleep every day and had no time to think about anything else. When he thought about Fu Jin occasionally, it was quickly squeezed out by the business. Now that he was finally free, he watched Fu Jin wandering off and thought about some things he had neglected.
Come to think of it...Fu Jin didn't write him a letter this time, right?
He wanted to ask, but seeing Fu Jin concentrating on copying books, he inexplicably didn't want to ask. Asking for the same thing over and over again was not something he could do.
Yinzhen stopped looking at the person who made him feel emotional and turned his gaze back to the book, but the hand holding the book was clenched tighter than before.
After Yinzhen returned, Qi Buchen had more time to see him because he had no errands and did not need to go to the study. They would eat three meals a day, digest food after meals, study in the afternoon, etc. At first, he was a little uncomfortable, but over time, Qi Buchen learned to ignore it and just focus on his own work.
Yinzhen seemed to have forgotten the previous quarrel and just stayed quietly, occasionally saying a word or two, which was just a daily routine.
His attitude made Qi Buchen feel relieved.
Two days later, the Empress Dowager's birthday arrived, and this time the palace sent a special message, inviting Qi Buchen to enter the palace. So, early that morning, Qi Buchen experienced the feeling of getting up at four o'clock for the first time in a long time.
Kangxi ruled the country with filial piety, so his birthday celebrations were celebrated with great ceremony each year, and this one was no exception. However, the birthday empress dowager, unlike usual, wasn't merely a lucky charm. During the crown prince's birthday celebration, she spoke up, quite unusually: "Your Majesty, the crown prince is now twenty. Isn't it time for a grand wedding? I'm looking forward to having a great-grandchild."
Kangxi said respectfully, "What the Empress Dowager said is true. I was negligent. Tomorrow I will summon the Ministry of Rites to discuss it."
Qi Buchen was a little confused. The empress dowager could have just mentioned this matter to Kangxi in private, so why did she bring it up publicly at the birthday banquet? It seemed as if Kangxi didn't value the prince.
In response to her doubts, Yinzhen answered: "There has never been a precedent for a crown prince's wedding in this dynasty. The Ministry of Rites has been unable to determine the standards, so it has been delayed until now."
In feudal dynasties, rituals were always determined by ritual officials according to the ritual system, and the emperor could not make arbitrary decisions. Therefore, Kangxi was not in a position to intervene, but with the empress dowager's words, he had the reason to make the decision.
With his decision, things progressed faster. Sure enough, within two days, both the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Astronomical Observatory were in action. The Ministry of Rites began to perform ceremonies, while the Imperial Astronomical Observatory calculated an auspicious day.
These were none of Qi Buchen's business, and the two continued to live a leisurely life. Unfortunately, it didn't last long before Yinzhen was summoned to the palace. When he returned, he asked Qi Buchen to pack his bags: "The Confucius Temple has been completed, and the Emperor has ordered my third brother and I to go and pay tribute."
The Confucius Temple was built in Qufu, not far from the capital, but it took half a month to go back and forth, which meant that Yinzhen could only celebrate his birthday on the road this year.
This is fine, Qi Buchen thought to herself. Last year she was still able to spend time celebrating Yinzhen's birthday, but this year the relationship between them was awkward, so she didn't dare to spend any more time on it. But if she was too perfunctory, it would make her seem too heartless.
It's hard to grasp the right balance here. It's really God's blessing that I can get away with it.
When Yinzhen was about to leave, he hesitated to speak. Qi Buchen pretended not to notice and smiled and said a simple reminder: "Be careful on the road."
He didn't even say he would come back early.
Yinzhen was in a very depressed mood during this trip. In addition, the annoying Yinzhi disgusted him again on his birthday, which made him feel depressed in the second half of his mission. He had a stern face all day long and the air conditioning was on for free, which made Su Peisheng bend his waist lower and lower in front of him.
When he came back again, Qi Buchen made up for it by giving him a birthday gift, but the gift didn't show the care and effort he put into making it last year, and Yinzhen didn't feel much better after receiving it.
However, he did not have time to say much to Qi Buchen. After returning from the Confucius Temple, Kangxi praised him and Yinzhi and let them choose which government office they wanted to work for.
Yinzhi chose to go to the Hanlin Academy. He was fond of Confucian scholars, and the Hanlin Academy was the most famous place for its integrity, so this choice was expected.
However, Yinzhen chose to stay in the Ministry of Works, but not in the Tuntian Qinglisi, which was in charge of repairing the imperial mausoleum last time, but in the Dushui Qinglisi, which was in charge of civil engineering and water conservancy projects.
"On my way to Qufu to pay respects to the temple, I saw people killing locusts in the fields along the way. Fortunately, this locust plague broke out during the harvest, otherwise it would have been disastrous." Yinzhen sighed as he explained his desire to join the Ministry of Works. "Ever since I entered the Imperial Study, every year the Emperor has issued decrees exempting local taxes due to floods, droughts, and locust plagues. But this is only a drop in the bucket. If we could mitigate the occurrence of disasters at the source, it would be a blessing for the Qing Dynasty. Unfortunately, I'm only a child in the art of water management, and I'm only here to learn more."
The young man's words were sincere, and one could tell they were from the bottom of his heart. Qi Buchen was moved. What was she doing at fifteen? Just eating and playing. But Yinzhen was already worried about the people's livelihood. Some people are born different.
"Li Bing and Zheng Qu also learned and accumulated experience after entering officialdom, which led to their later great flood control projects. You are only fifteen now, so there is no need to rush." Qi Buchen said sincerely, "I believe you will make great achievements in flood control in the future and let the people live a good life."
Yinzhen could tell Qi Buchen wasn't just saying this to please him; she truly believed he could achieve success in flood control. He was delighted, not only because of her trust and encouragement, but also because she truly understood his reasons for wanting to do this, unlike others who assumed he chose flood control simply to please the Emperor. After all, the Emperor's emphasis on flood control was well known, and for several years, the palace examination had featured questions related to it.
This trust and encouragement dispelled Yinzhen's depression caused by his birthday, and made him feel extremely ambitious. He just wanted to do a great job and achieve results as soon as possible.
"Don't worry, I will never let you down." Yinzhen looked at Qi Buchen seriously, with unconcealable joy in his eyes.
Qi Buchen turned his head away uncomfortably: "It has nothing to do with me, just don't let yourself down."
Yinzhen disagreed with the first half of her sentence, but felt that the second half of Fu Jin's sentence touched his heart. He certainly would not let himself down. He always did what he thought.
The same goes for Fu Jin.
But there are some similarities between Fujin and flood control. Both require gradual progress and cannot be rushed.
Thinking of this, Yinzhen did not refute Qi Buchen's words and ended the topic at the right time: "I will start working in the yamen tomorrow. The time will be the same as before. I will have lunch in the yamen and dinner at home."
"Okay." Qi Buchen nodded in agreement.
Yinzhen stood up and said, "I'm going to the study to read for a while. You should rest early."
After going to the Du Shui Si, Yinzhen became much busier than before. Even when having dinner together, he rarely spoke. He always had a slight frown on his face, and it was unknown what official business he was thinking about. After dinner, he hurried back to the study in the front yard. According to Su Peisheng, Yinzhen brought back many of the Ministry of Works' previous years' water control records and read them until late at night every day.
Qi Buchen did not try to persuade her, but just paid more attention to her food, clothing and other expenses. It felt like there was a senior high school student in the family.
The New Year was just around the corner. After dinner, Qi Buchen stopped Yinzhen, who was about to return to the front yard, and asked, "Would you like to prepare a New Year's gift for your colleagues in the Ministry of Works as well?"
Yinzhen pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Let's get ready."
"Then you can make a list and ask Su Peisheng to deliver it. If there is anything that requires special attention, please let him know." Qi Buchen said.
Yinzhen stood up and said, "I'll list them right away. There's nothing that requires special attention." He is now in the Ministry of Works. Although it is difficult to determine his rank due to his status as a prince, he is actually doing the work of a doctor, and the people he works with are also doctors and principals. As for the Shangshu and Shilang and the like, they usually just greet each other when they meet and don't work near each other.
Qi Buchen got the list, and there weren't many people on it, with only a dozen doctors and officials combined. She didn't set the festival gifts directly according to the rules, but asked Xie Hanshan to inquire about it first. She found out that most of these officials came from poor families, and only a few had good family backgrounds.
For those with good family backgrounds, Qi Buchen would give them the usual festival gifts, while for those with poor family conditions, he would replace the flashy items with practical things such as rice, meat, cloth and silk.
After the festival gifts were prepared, the government sealed the papers, and Qi Buchen had completed his six-month house arrest, so he no longer had any reason to avoid various banquets. This made her very regretful. Why didn't Concubine De keep him under house arrest for a longer period of time?
However, when she entered the palace to attend the annual banquet this time, Qi Buchen also keenly felt that De Fei's attitude towards her was much worse than half a year ago. However, as long as De Fei didn't deliberately find fault with her, she didn't bother to find out what had offended her.
Anyway, there have been few good relationships between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law since ancient times. Besides, Concubine De doesn't like her son Yinzhen, so isn't it normal for her to dislike her?
Because she had already moved out of the palace, she still went back to her parents' home on the second day of the New Year.
When only the mother and daughter were talking, Jueluo asked bluntly, "Have you decided on a study partner for the Fourteenth Prince?"
-----------------------
Author's words: Yinzhen: Fujin, today is Children's Day~
Qi Buchen: Whose children are getting married? [Cold.JPG]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
