The year was the thirtieth year of the Qianlong Emperor's reign.
Emperor Qianlong announced his tour of the south of the Yangtze River, and Ji Huan was unsurprisingly on the list. However, she knew that this trip would not be good, so she stayed in the palace before leaving because she was diagnosed with pregnancy.
Her rivals mostly followed her.
Emperor Qianlong was even more shameless than his grandfather, Emperor Kangxi. Although Emperor Kangxi was lustful, he still had some semblance of decency. His trips to the south of the Yangtze River were partly for leisure, but also for serious business.
When Emperor Kangxi went on his southern tours, he would bring his concubines with him, but the number was very small. This was mainly due to political needs, such as the need to receive the wives of officials, which required the concubines to be present.
Emperor Qianlong followed suit, taking most of his harem to Jiangnan. He was someone who valued pomp and circumstance, so the expenses on the journey can be imagined.
No wonder later generations always say that Yongzheng saved money while Qianlong spent it.
This shows the importance of a good father.
Enjoy a carefree and leisurely pregnancy.
Three months later, the Empress returned, having cut her hair short, and with her came news of her.
Although there was no explicit decree to depose the empress, all the empresses and their previously conferred titles and seals were taken away, and the new empress herself was confined to her quarters and forbidden from going out.
Ji Huan received the news that Empress Nara wanted to persuade Emperor Qianlong to accept the marriage proposal, the two argued, and that led to Ji Huan cutting her hair.
Manchus cut their hair for two reasons: first, to mourn the loss of their country, and second, to mourn the loss of their husbands.
Both of them were cursing Emperor Qianlong, and the result was predictable.
Upon receiving this news, Ji Huan was not surprised at all. Emperor Qianlong was already over fifty years old, but his performance in bed was still impressive, thanks, of course, to Ji Huan's help.
He had been to Jiangnan many times before, but now that he's older, he probably wants to try something different and seek excitement.
The Empress had a duty to offer advice, so it's really not fair to say that Empress Nara did anything wrong in this matter.
Ji Huan had long lost patience with the old man, who was in his fifties and almost sixty. If it weren't for the fact that she didn't want her children to be too close in age, she would have stopped serving him long ago.
After giving birth to this child, she will no longer wear the green plaque. As for whether her life will be difficult without the emperor's favor, there is no need to worry about that.
Consort Shu is now frail and sickly, and Consort Ling has worn herself out from having so many children over the years, and has lost favor with the emperor.
The four concubines below are all quite old.
The young Emperor Qianlong preferred mature women, but as he aged and felt the effects of time, his tastes changed, and he became extremely fond of the young and beautiful concubines and young ladies-in-waiting.
At this age, these high-ranking concubines should take a break.
With her enemies no longer favored, it naturally became less important whether Ji Huan received any favor.
Emperor Qianlong returned two months later than Empress Nara, mainly because he had enjoyed himself to the fullest before returning.
As the saying goes, "a son sells his father's land without a care," meaning he's truly unafraid of losing his empire.
When Emperor Qianlong returned, he quickly went to the Yuanmingyuan Garden to escape the summer heat. Although Ji Huan was pregnant, her pregnancy looked good, and she went to the Yuanmingyuan Garden with him. It was like a natural painting.
When Ji Huan was about eight months pregnant, she felt it was time. So, at a banquet, she was pushed down by Consort Ling's personal maid. In front of everyone, Ji Huan held her belly and cried out.
As for why she was Consort Ling's maid, and not Consort Shu's or anyone else's maid, it was simply because she accidentally learned that Consort Ling was behind that batch of medicine for the mentally challenged.
Now that she has shown such great favor, Ji Huan naturally wants to make sure she remembers it forever!
Ji Huan was immediately sent to a temporary delivery room, and then, a day and a night later, she did her best to "give birth" to the eighteenth prince.
During this period, she was diagnosed with difficult childbirth by the imperial physicians several times and almost died in the delivery room. It can be said that it was a miracle that she survived, especially since her child also survived, although the diagnosis said that the child was weak and needed to be carefully cared for.
At the same time, the imperial physician also said that after this difficult childbirth, Ji Huan would probably have a hard time getting pregnant again.
Emperor Qianlong said nothing about this.
Ji Huan had three sons and three daughters, all of whom survived. If he couldn't have more children, so be it; his harem was full of women who had never given birth or had only one child.
After she gave birth, Emperor Qianlong's punishment for Consort Ling was also announced.
Honestly, Emperor Qianlong didn't think Consort Ling would do something so obvious, but that's exactly what happened. No matter how you investigated, that palace maid was Consort Ling's confidante.
As the investigation progressed, Emperor Qianlong began to suspect that Consort Ling had indeed acted out of madness.
Thinking of Consort Ling's children, Emperor Qianlong's punishment for her was to demote her to the rank of concubine and strip her of her title. Now, Consort Ling has become Consort Wei.
Consort Wei, who had been demoted and stripped of her title, was filled with resentment upon learning of this outcome.
She couldn't understand how things had turned out this way.
She was the concubine who gave birth to the most children in the harem, but in the end, her beauty faded and her status declined. She could not accept such a fall from grace.
In her vision of the future, she should have been living a life of prosperity and glory. But if she had to suspect someone, her first thought would be Ji Huan. But then she felt that wasn't right. After all, Ji Huan wouldn't risk her own safety. It was neither necessary nor worth it.
Doubt and unease now fill Consort Wei's heart.
On the other hand, after Ji Huan gave birth, the imperial physician concluded that she needed to rest. Emperor Qianlong compensated her by granting her the title of Imperial Noble Consort.
The following year, Empress Nara passed away, and her funeral was conducted with the rites due to an Imperial Noble Consort.
Ji Huan became the woman with the highest rank in the Forbidden City.
At the same time, Emperor Qianlong was no longer young.
Ji Huan's family seems to have developed quite well in recent years. This "quite well" mainly refers to the fact that her half-brother is quite successful. As for the original owner's father, he and Liu Shi tormented each other. Although he had some power, he didn't seem like a good person.
Ji Huan had met her father and stepmother, Liu, on important occasions. The weariness in their eyes was undeniable, and they looked like they didn't have many years left to live. Ji Huan was very satisfied with Aunt Wang and her son.
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