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"If you dare to keep a concubine, I will never talk to you again."
Qingyang admired Weiyuan Hou and was also good friends with Meng Yao. Knowing that the marquis' wife was seriously ill, he wanted to visit her.
Emperor Xingwu thought for a moment and said, "Go ahead. Call your elder sister and second brother along, and have your second brother take you back to the palace."
Qingyang took Jie Yu back to the Imperial Garden and ended the birthday party early after explaining the situation.
Outside the Yanxi Gate on the east side of the imperial city, Qingyang called his elder sister and Meng Yao onto his carriage. After saying goodbye to Lu Wenrong and the other two who were standing by to see them off, he told the coachman to set off, with Qin Bing following beside the carriage on horseback.
Qingyang took a side seat and comforted Meng Yao, "Father has already agreed to summon you back to the capital. Perhaps if Madam is happy, her condition will improve. Don't be too sad."
This good news truly gave Meng Yao hope. She looked at the little princess in front of her with gratitude, "Thank you, Your Highness."
Princess Yongkang, who was one year older than the two girls combined, sat alone in the main seat. Looking at this scene, her thoughts were naturally different from those of the girls.
During her years outside the palace, Yongkang had interacted with many noble ladies. She had met Lady Xia, the wife of the Marquis of Weiyuan, several times. She was a woman of bright beauty, bold in laughter and anger, a woman of true character. Because they were not of the same generation, and Lady Xia did not actively flatter her, Yongkang and Lady Xia had only superficial courtesy, but no friendship.
Since they had no friendship, why would Yongkang care so much about Xia's illness? She was surprised when her second brother hugged Meng Yao. Could it be that her second brother actually fell in love with Meng Yao?
Even though his younger brother had already been crowned Crown Prince, Yongkang remained vigilant as long as he remained on the throne, especially since his father would frequently lecture him. The only two brothers who could threaten his younger brother's position as Crown Prince were his two younger brothers. The third brother was neither civil nor military, but he had a favored mother and a beloved sister. The second brother, a skilled martial artist, had a concubine and a prime minister. If the second brother also had a father-in-law who was a great general on the frontier...
Yongkang touched the red corners of Meng Yao's eyes and said softly, "Smile more quickly, otherwise when you meet the Marquis's wife later, she will think you have been wronged in the palace."
Meng Yao smiled cooperatively.
Yongkang lifted the curtain again, asked Qin Bing to come closer, and winked at Meng Yao: "You are already seventeen years old, but you still don't know the rules. You actually hugged Yaoyao in front of so many people. Why don't you apologize to Yaoyao quickly."
Meng Yao, who was immersed in sadness at the time, didn't think of this at all. Upon hearing this, she subconsciously glared at Qin Bing, who often made her angry.
Qin Bing felt even more wronged, his face full of dissatisfaction: "I was afraid she would cry and faint, so I didn't think too much about it. If she was fine, I wouldn't hug her even if she asked me to."
Meng Yao: "Bah, who wants to be hugged by you? You stink of bird droppings!"
Before Qin Bing could explode, Qingyang quickly lowered the curtain to block his second brother's fierce face.
Yongkang was relieved to see that the boy and girl had no interest in each other.
They arrived at Weiyuan Marquis' Mansion. When getting off the car, Qingyang specifically instructed the manor's steward not to disturb the marquis' wife from resting. Then he and his elder sister followed Meng Yao in. Qin Bing stayed in the front yard to drink tea.
The group arrived at the backyard, and Mrs. Xia, the marquis' wife, only then received the news. However, her daughter ran in and held her shoulders, not allowing her to get up.
Amid the strong smell of medicine, Qingyang finally saw the seriously ill marquis' wife. The rosy and beautiful face in his memory had become pale and yellow, and she was as thin as a stick.
Seeing the little princess staring at her blankly, Xia raised her sleeves to cover her face and said in panic, "I appreciate your kindness, Your Highnesses. However, I have been ill in bed for a long time and look haggard. Your Highness should take the little princess away quickly to avoid frightening me."
Yongkang looked at his sister.
Qingyang came to his senses, walked to the bedside, and said to Xia, "Madam, don't worry. I'm not afraid of you. When the emperor heard that you were seriously ill, he specially ordered my sister and me to come and visit you. He also said that he would issue an order to summon the Marquis back to the capital. Please rest assured and wait for your return."
Xia's tears rolled down her cheeks and she buried her head in her pillow, sobbing uncontrollably. Meng Yao cried and comforted her mother.
Yongkang took his sister away, said goodbye to the nanny beside Xia, and then left. He was so sick that it was not suitable for too many social engagements.
The eldest princess's carriage followed the younger princess's carriage all the time. After coming out, Yongkang got on his own carriage and returned home.
Qingyang was sent back to the harem by his second brother. He first went to say hello to his father, and then went to Xianfu Palace to find his mother.
When Concubine Li heard about Xia's illness, she sighed, "What a beautiful woman with a tragic fate! The women of the capital envy her and Su Ge'er's mother the most. Her husband is so handsome and powerful, yet he only loves them. I never thought that the Marquis's wife would contract this incurable disease before she even reaches forty."
Qingyang leaned on his mother's shoulder, looking at the distant window without saying a word.
She already understood why these local generals left most of their families in the capital and went to take up their posts alone. It was not that they really didn't want to, but that the emperors needed to use this method to prevent the generals from raising troops and establishing their own regimes, so that the generals would be concerned about the safety of their families and would not dare to rebel.
Qingyang also knew that many generals would keep several concubines when they went to the countryside, so they might not miss their wives in the capital.
"Doesn't Marquis Weiyuan have concubines in Liaozhou?" Qingyang asked.
Concubine Li: "Probably not, otherwise the news would have come long ago."
Qingyang looked at her mother and leaned close to her ear to ask, "Then why do other officials take concubines?" Including her father.
Concubine Li smiled, patted her daughter's shoulder and said, "Look at the peach blossoms, crabapples, peonies and peonies in the garden. They are all beautiful, so we all like to appreciate flowers. Men appreciate women just like they appreciate flowers. As long as they have money and power and can get more beauties, most men will go for it. Only those who are devoted to the girl they like will not mess with other women."
Qingyang: "If a princess keeps a male favorite, it will hurt her husband's heart. Aren't those men afraid of hurting their wives by keeping concubines?"
Concubine Li: "Some men don't like their wives to begin with. Some men like their wives, but taking a concubine makes them very happy. They think their own happiness is more important, so they don't care what their wives think."
The little princess pursed her lips.
Concubine Li didn't want her nine-year-old daughter to be thinking about the relationship so early, so she mentioned the Zhang family: "The Duke of Wei is going on a long journey. Let Su Ge'er stay outside the palace tonight and go back to the palace with the Duke of Wei tomorrow morning."
Qingyang: "Well, I'll go talk to him this afternoon."
.
The afternoon of the second day of the Lunar New Year was the day when the little princess went to the front court for a stroll. After resting for half an hour, Qingyang got on the sedan chair and said, "Let's go to the Imperial Medical Bureau."
Jie Yu who was following beside him: "..."
The Imperial Medical Bureau is very large. There is a courtyard for drying medicinal materials, a warehouse for storing medicinal materials, offices where imperial doctors work, and young doctors who are still learning and have not yet graduated.
The medical skills of the Imperial Medical Bureau are divided into thirteen departments, and the young doctors are also led by the imperial doctors of the thirteen departments to practice and learn. Qingyang only takes Jie Yu around to listen to medical theories from all sides. When she gets tired of standing and listening, she sits down. Anyway, she does not disturb the imperial doctors, and the imperial doctors dare not expel this little princess who is almost spoiled by Emperor Xingwu.
As dusk approached, Qingyang took the sedan chair to the martial arts hall again.
Qin Ren and Zhang Su's martial arts class was about to end today. Thinking that the little princess would not come, they both took off their outer robes and wore only a white skin-tight singlet. Qin Ren, who was lazy and playful, had his chest wet with sweat, and Zhang Su's singlet was tightly attached to his body, inadvertently outlining the thin muscle lines unique to young men.
Qin Ren naturally would not appreciate his companion's body. Relying on the fact that Mr. Wu did not dare to hit him, he sat cross-legged on the ground and gasped for breath. Zhang Su continued to squat in horse stance for the last quarter of an hour.
The bright and soft sunset shone from the west. Zhang Su lowered his eyelids to avoid direct sunlight, so the little princess was close enough. Zhang Su was startled by the familiar footsteps. For the first time, he ran to a horizontal bar in the distance without waiting for Mr. Wu to stop, took off his outer robe, turned his back to the little princess and put it on quickly.
Qin Ren was too lazy to move, especially since she was his own sister. He could just take a look at her. He didn't expose his chest or back.
"Why is my sister here?" Qin Ren licked his dried lips, squinted his eyes and asked.
Qingyang: "Let's talk about it after you finish practicing."
Zhang Su, dressed neatly, walked over again and continued to squat in horse stance.
Qingyang looked at his slightly red face from the sun, his straight nose, and then his beautiful thin lips.
Zhang Su quickly raised and lowered his eyes. The little princess had seen him practice martial arts before, but this time the little princess's eyes seemed a little strange.
Qin Ren also felt that his sister seemed to be finding fault with Zhang Su, and looked back and forth between the two of them in confusion.
Mr. Wu finally called for a stop.
Qin Ren jumped up and respectfully saluted Mr. Wu together with Zhang Su.
Mr. Wu glared at him, bowed to the little princess, and turned away.
Qingyang asked his third brother to put on his outer robe and forbade Jie Yu to follow. He then took Zhang Su to the north martial arts viewing platform alone. Not wanting to go around and take the stairs, Qingyang opened his arms and said, "Carry me up."
Zhang Su pinched the little princess's armpits and lifted her up.
Qingyang pointed to the dusty table and said to Zhang Su, "It's too dirty. Spread your outer robe over here. I want to sit down and talk to you."
Zhang Su was silent for a moment, turned his back, untied his outer robe, spread it out according to the little princess's instructions, and then stepped back five steps.
Qingyang sat down, and when she looked up she was able to look directly at Zhang Su's neck. For some reason, she felt disgusted by her second brother's sweaty appearance, while Zhang Su looked quite good with his underwear tightly attached to his chest. Perhaps it was because she knew that Zhang Su was usually very clean?
Without thinking too much, Qingyang first told her that the Duke of Wei was going to Liaozhou to guard the border because of her words: "Will you blame me?"
Zhang Su: "It is my father's honor to serve His Majesty. I would like to thank Your Highness for recommending me."
Qingyang smiled: "I knew you weren't that kind of person."
Even though Zhang Su lowered his eyes, due to his height, he could still see the little princess's two feet hanging down and swaying mischievously.
Then, he heard the little princess mention something that was beyond his expectations: "I heard that for children of your age from official families, the elders would arrange for a concubine to serve you. Do you have one?"
She overheard it from her mother. After her second brother moved into his mansion, the imperial concubine gave him two palace maids.
Last year, my second brother was sixteen years old, only one year older than Zhang Su in front of him.
Zhang Su's ears were slightly hot. He said, "The Zhang family has a family rule that men are not allowed to be lustful, so the elders in the family will not arrange concubines for the younger generation. My two brothers don't have it, and neither do I."
Qingyang: "Then do you want it?"
Zhang Su shook his head.
The little princess was satisfied and warned him, "If you dare to keep a concubine, I will never pay attention to you again."
Jie Yu advised her not to keep talking about wanting Zhang Su to be her husband. Qingyang knew the pros and cons, but in her heart, Zhang Su had always been her husband.
Zhang Su: “…”
Qingyang: "Okay, carry me down."
【Author’s words】
Put a stamp early!
100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow~
ps: The eldest and second brothers both had concubines before marriage because they had no need to refuse the arrangements of their elders, but after marriage they did not have concubines and there was no mention of the concubine role. The third brother did not have a concubine because he was kind!
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