On the road, Kangxi ordered Tulichen to speed up his horse and instructed the Imperial Astronomical Bureau to choose a new time to prepare for spring plowing, so as not to give the Mongol leaders any leverage within the Court of Colonial Affairs.
The leader who got into trouble was Suhe, a prince from the Right Wing Prince Tribe. He was a renowned figure among the Mongol cavalry and had distinguished himself in battle during his youth. Even Emperor Shunzhi valued him highly.
When Sukh was 40, he married his wife, Uyu, and completely lost his heroic spirit, instead spending most of his time in the backyard.
At that time, the Empress Dowager was still alive. When she encountered such a situation, she would naturally not allow it and would often issue imperial edicts to reprimand her.
"Wuyou, what about the rules?" Consort Tong's face darkened. Wuyou's disrespect towards the Fourth Prince's wife clearly indicated that he had some complaints about her.
Uyu is only around thirty years old, 20 years younger than Sukh.
"This humble woman knows her mistake." Wuyou sincerely admitted her error, but her attitude was very firm. "Your Highness, am I not allowed to inquire?"
Consort Tong found Wu You's words extremely grating.
“Princess Consort, can the Prince really ignore the imperial edict issued by Father?” Qingyan asked, looking at Wuyou.
Wuyou was stunned. Qingyan spoke in Mongolian, which clearly showed that this princess's Mongolian was excellent. Everyone outside said that the fourth princess's Mongolian was the worst among all the languages she spoke.
"Fourth Princess Consort, what do you mean?" Wuyou looked at Qingyan angrily, "Does the leader not have anyone to cause trouble for him?"
“Prince Suhe always makes appointments with Batu Buhe at 9 PM. According to Batu Buhe’s schedule, he should be asleep by then. Batu Buhe is not even 10 years old. Does Suhe want Batu Buhe to die young? How can you do this to the Left Wing Prince?” Qingyan said bluntly.
The sisters-in-law all turned their heads in surprise. Qingyan was actually implying that the Right Wing Prince wanted to use this opportunity to ruin Batubuhe's health.
“Which child of the grasslands doesn’t run around outside all day? Fourth Master, you’ve confined the Left Wing Prince to the courtyard. Is this the rule of Fourth Master’s residence?” Wuyou said angrily.
Qingyan's clear almond-shaped eyes were fixed on Wuyou, as if she wanted to know what he wanted to do.
On the surface, everyone knows that the rules in the Fourth Prince's mansion are very strict, and the children's schedules are strictly regulated. Once Batu Buhe entered the Fourth Prince's mansion, he was basically bound to the schedule of Prince Yiken'e.
“Alright, the rules in the capital are that the grasslands should be more fertile,” Consort Tong said directly.
Wuyou knelt on the ground, his heart filled with resentment. From the very beginning, Consort Tong had been saying that they were the ones who had no manners.
"Your Highness, let's deal with the immediate matter first. Prince Suhe needs the imperial physician to examine his pulse, but to our surprise, none of the imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital are on duty," the Crown Princess quickly said.
To be honest, with Consort Tong directly managing palace affairs, the Crown Princess had less and less power. When the Mongolian princes and their wives pleaded with the Eastern Palace, the Crown Princess was refused.
"Hmm? Shu Rong, go to the Imperial Hospital yourself and see what's going on. Have the imperial physicians come to your aid immediately." Consort Tong feigned ignorance.
Wuyou knelt on the ground, filled with resentment. Why didn't the Crown Princess step in earlier? Otherwise, Suhe wouldn't be in so much pain.
"Thank you, Your Highness. I had no other choice. I tried to ask the Crown Princess to spare you any trouble, and she sent me to the Imperial Hospital to fetch a physician. I returned home immediately, but after waiting for several days, no one has come." Wuyou and Suhe had a good relationship, so she was naturally angry that the Crown Princess hadn't handled things well.
The Crown Princess was secretly surprised. This Princess Consort of the Prince was not someone to be trifled with; she had actually gone to such lengths.
After the imperial physician came to pay his respects, Consort Tong released Wuyou and told her to return to the Court of Colonial Affairs as soon as possible. She said that Suhe's situation must be bad, otherwise Wuyou would not have abandoned Yanmian and insisted on coming over.
Seeing that only her sisters-in-law remained in the hall, Consort Tong's face darkened as she looked at the Crown Princess.
"Your Highness, Wuyou came right to you, and you still can't even handle this simple matter?" Consort Tong sneered.
The Crown Princess immediately knelt on the ground, looking at Consort Tong with a face full of fear.
"My dear mother, your daughter-in-law has sent me to fetch the imperial physician. I've already said he'll be making a house call early the next morning," the Crown Princess said with a wry smile.
Ever since the Crown Prince was disliked by Emperor Kangxi, the Crown Princess felt that it was faster to get things done by going together, and even the servants would occasionally be negligent.
Consort Tong knew the nature of her servants well, so she didn't say much about the Crown Princess.
"My dear mother, please forgive me this time. I will definitely handle things properly in the future," the Crown Princess said to Consort Tong.
Consort Tong nodded slightly: "Do better next time. Let's call it a day. Little Darling, you stay."
Qingyan sat down in the chair and quickly agreed.
After the sisters-in-law left, Qingyan turned to look at Consort Tong. Since the beginning of the year, the Court of Colonial Affairs had been making a lot of noise, which had kept them somewhat overwhelmed.
For several days in a row, Consort Tong received reports from the chief stewards of the Imperial Household Department that Mongolian princes were causing trouble at the department, and the servants were unable to control them. In the end, all the reports were brought to Consort Tong's attention.
"Little darling, do the Mongolian leaders often visit Yuelai Inn and Linglong Pavilion?" Consort Tong asked Qingyan.
Qingyan was stunned: "There should be a lot. All the private rooms at Yuelai Inn have been booked for Mongolian leaders these past few days. It's said they're going to host banquets."
By this time, most of the Mongol leaders had returned to Mongolia, and very few were actually left behind.
"Hmm!" Consort Tong nodded, indicating that she understood who the Mongol leaders were inviting. "Little one, when these families have banquets, have the managers and waiters keep a close eye out. They're probably hosting banquets for the young master."
The Mongol leaders returned to the grasslands, and many of them purged their own heirs to avoid angering Emperor Kangxi.
The Crown Prince?!
Qingyan looked at Consort Tong: "Mother, don't all these people have sons? Besides, they weren't involved in this matter, so how could they...?"
“These young masters aren’t any better,” Consort Tong sneered. “It depends on whether the leaders can be ruthless enough.”
Qingyan listened to Consort Tong's words with a secret shock. It turned out that the Mongolian leaders were willing to give up their carefully cultivated heirs in order to gain Kangxi's support.
"Mother, I will have someone record it clearly." Qingyan nodded.
Consort Tong had complete confidence in Qingyan's work, as he always completed the assigned tasks efficiently.
"Little darling, spring plowing is coming soon. Has Beiyuan Mountain Village been prepared?" Consort Tong asked Qingyan.
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