Chapter Thirty
"Grandma, Fourth Sister, is Uncle pregnant?" In the Cining Palace, the twelfth child, nestled in Grandma's arms, stared at Prince He and uttered a startling question. Unaware of Prince He's changed expression, the twelfth child continued, "Didn't Fourth Sister say only women can get pregnant? Why is Fifth Uncle's belly so big?"
The Fourth Princess's lips twitched, then she smiled ingratiatingly at the Prince, "Uncle, Twelfth Prince was just joking." The Fourth Princess looked at the Prince's belly, then turned her head away. Prince, you really can't blame Twelfth Prince for being suspicious, your belly is indeed very big!
The Empress Dowager was amused by the twelfth prince's innocent words and said, "Hongzhou! I think you've gained quite a bit of weight recently."
"Your Majesty has a discerning eye. She has only gained a little weight, yet she noticed it. Indeed, she is very skilled at needlework." After saying this, Prince He did not forget to glare at his twelfth nephew.
Little Twelve turned and threw herself into the Empress Dowager's arms, turning her back to Prince He, crying out, "Grandma, Grandma, Uncle is bullying me."
The Fourth Princess watched Little Twelve's actions, suppressing the urge to twitch her lips. She turned away from the Prince, for Little Twelve was like tableware on the table.
"Oh, Grandma Empress helped Little Twelfth scold him, let's see if he dares to bully my Little Twelfth again next time."
Little Twelfth nodded very seriously from the Empress Dowager's arms, "Grandma Empress Dowager will give him a severe scolding. In ancient times, Mencius' mother moved three times to educate her son, and now Grandma Empress Dowager is scolding the Imperial Uncle three times as a grandson."
Standing beside the Empress Dowager, Qing'er was amused by Twelfth Prince's earnest expression. The Empress Dowager covered her mouth with her handkerchief and laughed, while Prince He stared wide-eyed at Twelfth Prince. Fourth Princess, however, shook her head inwardly. Twelfth Prince was too likely to attract attention.
"What are you all laughing about? I heard it all outside." Emperor Qianlong walked in with a laugh. "Your Majesty looks very well."
"May Your Majesty be blessed."
"Get up, all of you! Fourth Princess, tell me what you're laughing about." Qianlong looked at the Fourth Princess and sighed that she was growing more and more beautiful, and that she would be of marriageable age next year.
"Reporting to Father Emperor, Twelfth Brother just said that Uncle has gained weight." Fourth Princess looked at Prince He's belly and sighed; it was indeed quite large.
"Oh?" Qianlong looked at the twelfth prince, "What did Yongqi say?"
"Father, I wonder if my uncle is also carrying a baby. Father, isn't a big belly something only women can have? Why does my uncle have a belly too?" The Twelfth Prince looked at his father with admiration, hoping his father could answer his question.
"This..." Qianlong looked at Prince He's belly, "Yongqi..." Qianlong began to quote from classic texts about the differences between men and women, while the twelfth prince listened in a daze.
"Father Emperor is so amazing!" He talked so much without taking a sip of water, unlike Fourth Sister who would take a sip of water after every few words, leaving her wanting more.
The twelfth prince's words brought a smug smile to Qianlong's face, while the fourth princess inwardly grimaced, feeling a pang of sympathy for the emperor from the prince.
"Hongzhou, I heard you are going to Mongolia. The journey is long, so please take care of yourself."
~~~~
Outside the palace, the Shuo Prince's residence was desolate. Haoxiang was being forced by the Prince to study under both civil and martial arts masters. The Prince hadn't held out much hope, only wishing that his youngest son would have a good reputation once the truth came out. Haoxiang did indeed boost the Prince's morale; after only a few days of lessons, the martial arts master went to the Prince to resign. The Prince initially thought Haoxiang had gotten into some trouble, but after questioning him, the master explained that Haoxiang already had a natural talent for martial arts and only needed a little guidance these past few days. The Prince was overjoyed, thinking to himself, "He truly is my son."
"Your Highness, Your Highness, the eldest young master has broken out!" A servant ran in, panting, with red handprints and scratches on his face.
"Is anyone following us?"
"The young master's two servants followed."
"What are those two servants doing? Tell the guards to bring the young master back."
Haozhen, who had run away, wandered aimlessly through the streets searching for Xueru. He needed to know where Yinshuang had gone, Yinshuang, his kind and beautiful Yinshuang.
From afar, a young woman stared wide-eyed at the utterly dejected Haozhen. "I remember you, sir," she thought, "that day you called me wicked. Well, I'm broke, so I'll show you how wicked I can be." This woman was none other than the famous Little Swallow. Little Swallow eyed Haozhen's purse and jade pendant, her eyes darting around before she approached him. Before she could even bump into him, Haozhen grabbed her. "Have you seen my Yinshuang?" he demanded.
"Who is your Yinshuang? Let go of your aunt!" Xiao Yanzi raised her foot to kick Haozhen, but was pulled back by two servants behind Haozhen. Xiao Yanzi shouted, "Help!" Xiao Yanzi's shout actually attracted some people, who surrounded Haozhen and accused him of his lewd behavior.
Haozhen, whether suddenly smart or stupid, looked at Xiaoyanzi's face and it looked more and more like her Yinshuang. Haozhen grabbed Xiaoyanzi's shoulders and shouted, "Yinshuang, you are my Yinshuang, how could you leave me! You are so kind."
"What Yinshuang? I am Xiaoyanzi, not Yinshuang." Xiaoyanzi was startled, but quickly shouted back, even louder than Haozhen.
Caught between right and wrong, Haozhen and Xiaoyanzi started arguing in the street. More and more people gathered to watch. The guards from the Prince Shuo's mansion, who had come out to look for someone, heard Haozhen's voice from afar, rushed into the crowd, grabbed Haozhen, and headed towards the Prince Shuo's mansion. Taking advantage of the chaos, Xiaoyanzi stole Haozhen's purse and jade pendant.
Opening her purse and seeing the loose silver inside, Xiao Yanzi muttered a few curses, grabbed the silver, and tossed the purse aside. She weighed the jade pendant in her hand before heading to the pawnshop where she usually sold stolen goods.
~~~
The people in the Sticky Rod Office were very frustrated. Back then, the late emperor always used them to investigate important matters, unlike now where they were always investigating trivial matters. In their hearts, they cried out, "Late emperor, we servants want to follow you to the afterlife!" Despite their complaints, the work had to be done. The Sticky Rod Office was incredibly fast; they uncovered the truth in just two days and then spent another day compiling a complete account of the events and submitting it to the emperor.
When Qianlong saw the truth revealed by the investigation, he realized that Empress Zhasuli had gone too far, throwing the imperial concubine to the entrance of Chunxiang Courtyard, while the fake one was disgracing the royal family in the street. He wondered how Prince Shuo had managed his household.
Emperor Qianlong summoned the senior officials of the Imperial Household Department and the Ministry of Rites to the palace with the memorial in hand to discuss how to handle the situation.
The ministers of the Ministry of Rites argued that confusing the imperial bloodline was a grave crime, while others pointed out that Prince Shuo was a prince of a different surname, and that it would be better to reduce his status as a prince. Emperor Qianlong was quite concerned about reducing the status of princes, but felt that it might be too early. Some even went so far as to say that the prince deserved to be executed, and that his entire family should be implicated.
After discussing it all night, Qianlong mentioned the matter the next morning when he paid his respects to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager no longer favored the Shuo family, but Qing'er's marriage was still weighing on her mind. The concubines who were paying their respects to the Empress Dowager mostly remained silent; these were matters that were not for them to comment on.
"Such a beautiful love, why doesn't the Emperor grant them his blessing?" In fact, some people are often unaware of their own status and speak out of ignorance, uttering astonishing words. The speaker was Princess Xinyue, raised under Consort Ling's name. This princess hadn't made a mistake for some time, but today, for some reason, she suddenly appeared again, shouting about the beauty of love. "Qing'er is so kind and noble; she will surely grant them their love, which transcends worldly prejudices."
The Fourth Princess, standing next to the Empress, twitched her lips. "Xinyue, you actually came from another time, didn't you!"
"Grandma, Lanxin has a question for Sister Xinyue." Before the Empress Dowager could get so angry she'd order someone to slap her, Lanxin, who had always maintained a well-behaved demeanor, suddenly spoke up. The Empress Dowager looked at Lanxin suspiciously, then nodded slightly, acknowledging her request. "Sister Xinyue is talking about some kind of love that transcends worldly concerns. Lanxin doesn't understand. Lanxin wants to ask Sister Xinyue, does transcending worldly concerns mean not needing to eat when hungry, not needing to drink when thirsty, and not needing to rest when tired?"
"Princess Lan, Xinyue doesn't know why you have such a vicious idea. How can you not eat when you're hungry? Wouldn't you starve to death?" Xinyue looked at Lanxin in shock.
Crescent Moon's words made those who understood lower their heads. "But aren't these all worldly matters? If you've transcended them, why do you still do worldly things?"
"Consort Ling, from today onwards, Xinyue should not eat anything. I am a mortal, how can I compare myself to Xinyue who is beyond the mundane world?" The Empress Dowager's eyes turned cold as she looked at Consort Ling.
Emperor Qianlong was somewhat displeased with Consort Ling because she had stopped him from ordering Xinyue's execution several times. Remembering Consort Ling's previous promise, he said, "Consort Ling, you shouldn't eat anymore. You can eat again when Xinyue has developed dignified character!"
Consort Ling swayed and fainted.
Whether Consort Ling was truly fainting or feigning it was not something Qianlong pondered. He was preoccupied with the matter of Prince Shuo, and the question of whether or not to reduce the power of the princes had always been a source of anxiety for him. He had to consider the dignity of the imperial family while also wanting to strip Prince Shuo of his title. He had no time to care about Consort Ling's life or death.
The Fourth Princess sat quietly to the side, watching the spectacle unfold. She shook her head inwardly at Consort Ling's self-inflicted misfortune; Consort Ling had only sought a small amount of power under the influence of Prince Duan. Keshan, having reached a certain age, would be granted the title of Beile according to the system. Although he wouldn't have any real power, he was still worth winning over. However, Consort Ling hadn't considered whether Keshan still wanted such an older sister. The Fourth Princess lowered her head, playing with her twelfth son's cloth tiger.
"Fourth son, tell your father, if you were Qing'er, what would you do?"
"Damn it, what are you thinking, Qianlong?" Fourth Princess cursed inwardly. "Father, I'm not old enough to think about such things."
"Si'er is thirteen now, she should be thinking about it."
...The Fourth Princess stared at the cloth tiger, thinking how wonderful it would be if it were real, so she could bite open Qianlong's head and see if his left brain was missing. "Your Majesty, if this person is gone, how can he get married?"
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