In the warm pavilion of the Qianqing Palace, Kangxi looked at the memorial in his hand, raised an eyebrow, and uttered a question that sounded like an inquiry but was actually a statement of certainty.
"The fourth prince wants to promote Lady Guarjia to the rank of secondary consort. This Lady Guarjia is the mother of Hongxuan and the fifth prince who made the fourth prince's face turn black the other day, right?"
Li Dequan: Please grant her the title of Consort. Her background and current situation must be clearly stated. What you're saying, Master, is quite redundant.
Kangxi wasn't originally speaking to Li Dequan; he only read the beginning of the memorial and didn't see the rest, so he just made a momentary remark.
She picked up her pen and quickly wrote the words on the memorial in one stroke. Then she put it aside and waited for it to dry before closing it.
Not long after, news of the approval of the memorial reached the ears of the Fourth Prince, who immediately had an idea.
He personally went to the Old Summer Palace and brought Jiaming and Hongjing back.
Jiaming and Hongjing were reluctant to leave Yuanmingyuan, but since the master had come to fetch them personally, how could they refuse?
As Jiaming and Hongjing were personally escorted back to the manor by the master, the manor immediately became abuzz with excitement.
The women in the backyard were all quite astonished.
Just when everyone thought the Guarjia clan was doomed, the prince actually brought them back, and he even went to fetch them in person. This showed that their previous assumptions were wrong.
Thinking about it, he couldn't help but look towards the direction of the Pear Academy, a mocking smile appearing on his face.
Upon hearing the news, Li Shi was initially shocked, but then went into a frenzy, refusing to believe it.
He repeatedly questioned the person who answered, hoping to get a reply from him: "This servant was mistaken. It was not Your Highness who personally brought Guarjia and the Fifth Prince back."
But things didn't go as planned, or rather, they didn't go as Li's wishes.
"Your Majesty, this servant is absolutely certain. It was indeed His Majesty who personally escorted Consort Guarjia and the Fifth Prince back, and they even rode in the same carriage. His Majesty alighted first, and then reached out to help Consort Guarjia out of the carriage..."
At this moment, the person finally realized that something was wrong with their master. The ferocious expression frightened the person who had spoken, and they dared not say the rest of their words.
But that was enough. Li heard his words clearly and distinctly.
“My lord, please don’t be so pessimistic. Just because the master personally brought back Consort Guarjia and the Fifth Prince doesn’t necessarily mean he has forgiven them. The position of concubine may no longer be theirs. Perhaps…”
Seeing Li's frightening expression, Li's confidant was somewhat afraid of incurring her wrath, but still tried to comfort her and find excuses for her to appease her.
Then, the confidant paused, thought for a moment, and suddenly said, "Perhaps, perhaps it's almost the New Year, yes, it's almost the New Year, so the Prince's mood has improved and he's no longer so concerned about the Fifth Prince's dishonorable act of selling vegetables, which lowered his status, and he's brought them back."
Upon hearing this, Li immediately felt that it made sense.
“Yes, it’s the New Year, a time for family reunion. It’s only right that Your Majesty brought Guarjia and the Fifth Prince back. Besides, the imperial grandsons also have to go to the palace on New Year’s Eve, so even if Your Majesty was still angry with the Fifth Prince, you still brought him back.”
Even as she listened to her master's words, her confidante still felt something was amiss.
Suddenly, she realized that even if they were to bring back Consort Guarjia and the Fifth Prince, if the Prince was still angry, he shouldn't go in person; it would be better to send someone to fetch them.
She opened her mouth to tell her master, but was suddenly stopped by someone beside her, who was also a confidant of her master, who grabbed her sleeve.
"Don't say that. Just think about what happened to the master's former confidants."
She shuddered immediately, then remembered that her master was prone to taking his anger out on others. Although he had changed after being reprimanded by the master, it had only lessened.
It doesn't mean it's gone.
After thinking it over, she glanced at Li Shi with a look of fear in her eyes, then quickly withdrew them. She lowered her head, concealing her expression and eyes, and decided to act like a wooden doll.
In the Peach Garden, the Fourth Prince took Jiaming and Hongjing back to the Peach Garden. After sitting down, drinking tea and eating snacks, and resting for a while, the Fourth Prince said to Jiaming, "Be careful these next two days. Prepare some reward money. If an imperial edict comes, accept it and remember to give the reward money to the eunuch who delivers the edict."
Jiaming was taken aback. How could an imperial decree have reached her?
She stared blankly at the Fourth Master, who raised an eyebrow and said, "You can't guess?"
Jiaming pondered for a moment, then shook her head. "I can't think of that." Immediately, she looked at Fourth Master with a questioning gaze.
Fourth Master kept everyone in suspense, saying, "You'll find out when the time comes."
Jiaming was a little annoyed, but then she returned to normal and said nonchalantly, "We'll know in a few days. Anyway, judging from your expression, it's not a bad thing."
Fourth Master sighed helplessly, "You really have no curiosity at all?"
Jiaming shook her head: "It's not that I'm not curious, but it's best not to be too curious about this matter. Otherwise, you'll definitely make fun of me, and I won't fall for it!"
Fourth Master: "..."
The next morning, even though it wasn't the usual day to pay respects to the Fujin, she and Hongjing had just returned from the Yuanmingyuan. It didn't matter that they hadn't gone the night before, but they had to see the Fujin this morning.
So, Jiaming took Hongjing to the Duan Courtyard to pay their respects to the Fujin!
The princess did not make things difficult for them. After speaking gently with Jiaming for a while, she also spoke with Hongjing for a while before letting Jiaming and Hongjing go back.
In the afternoon, Jiaming was preparing to continue her daily guzheng practice when Xiao Hezi rushed over and reported, "Master, an imperial decree has arrived. Please hurry back to the main hall of Taoyuan to receive it."
Upon hearing this, Jiaming recalled what the Fourth Master had said yesterday. Without any hesitation, she got up and walked towards the main hall of Peach Courtyard.
Then, Jiaming, who had just received the imperial decree, smiled with joy. Although she was happy to become a concubine, she did not forget that the eunuch who delivered the decree had not yet left.
She immediately gave a wink to Xiao Hezi, who was also delighted. Xiao Hezi quickly realized what she meant and handed the prepared reward money to the eunuch who was delivering the imperial decree.
The eunuchs accepted the gifts with smiles, exchanged a few words, and then left.
As soon as the eunuchs left, the news that Jiaming had become a concubine spread throughout Prince Yong's residence.
The women in the backyard, after a moment of stunned silence, felt that it was something they had expected.
After all, since the Emperor personally brought Lady Guarjia and the Fifth Prince back, he certainly wouldn't bring up the matter of the Fifth Prince selling vegetables anymore. Lady Guarjia, with her two favored sons, was still the most likely candidate to become a secondary consort. After all, she was more favored than Lady Li.
Upon hearing the news, Li Shi, her eyes red and her expression ferocious, kept muttering, "Impossible, impossible! How could Guarjia become a concubine? I should be the concubine, I should be the concubine..."
He was like a madman!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
