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Inside the flower hall, the old wives chatted with Consort Tong. They were not grateful to the Empress Dowager. In their view, if it weren't for their daughters' marriage to Mongolia, they would have had both sons and daughters long ago.
"Your Highness, let's not beat around the bush. How is the Empress Dowager doing?" The two old wives felt sorry for their daughter's lonely situation. Occasionally, she could go back to her parents' home for a short stay. This was a holiday that Kangxi negotiated for them under great pressure.
Qingyan sat to the side and took advantage of the space to learn a little about the two old wives. Their daughters were both legitimate daughters of extremely high status. The Empress Dowager did not seek the consent of the princes and wives, but directly issued an imperial decree to bestow marriages upon them. Although those Mongolian Qin princes came from very good families, they were all philanderers. Although the two noble ladies had legitimate sons, they were not favored by the Mongolian princes. They also had to be wary of being drugged by their concubines.
"Grandma Empress Dowager is very angry about our visit for the New Year!" Consort Tong said helplessly.
Early this morning, Emperor Kangxi specifically instructed Consort Tong to make sure she cried pitifully in front of the two wives, so that none of the wives from outside the Great Wall would stand by the Empress Dowager and the Crown Prince's side.
"Even the twins are being made difficult!" Consort Tong glanced at Qingyan and decided to use the twins as an excuse.
In the eyes of the princes and their wives outside the Great Wall, the birth of twins symbolized the prosperity and strength of the Qing Dynasty, and it was not an exaggeration to cherish such children even if it meant heartache.
"What?!" The two wives looked at Consort Tong simultaneously. "What is she going to do?"
"Hutulifengsheng Zhalafen has been taught exceptionally well by Xiaoguai. The Empress Dowager has never given up on the idea of having her marry into the Mongol tribe, but His Majesty has long rejected this decision. Now, he has already chosen a consort for the little girl," Consort Tong said regretfully. "This is a last resort to avoid the Empress Dowager's success!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Qingyan became anxious. Her two children were her bottom line. If the Empress Dowager dared to harm the children, Qingyan would not hesitate to make the Empress Dowager leave early.
"That won't do! None of the Mongolian princes are good!" the two wives objected simultaneously. "Fourth Princess, you must keep a close eye on the little princess. Those Mongolian princes are extremely wicked!"
Qingyan nodded obediently: "My two wives, I've also heard the master mention this before. Every time he talks about this, he gets angry."
Consort Tong was satisfied with the Qingyan's cooperation. In Kangxi's view, the princes from Mongolia and beyond the Great Wall could not be associated with each other.
Now, the twins are the best way to break their alliance. Although Consort Tong felt sorry for them, she still did as Emperor Kangxi instructed.
Qingyan noticed a faint sense of guilt emanating from Consort Tong and was startled. Could it be that Emperor Kangxi had sold Hutulifengshengzhalafen?
After learning the reason for Consort Tong's guilt, Qingyan was completely relieved.
"Your Highness, don't be discouraged. With us, the wives from beyond the Great Wall, here, the Empress Dowager won't dare to do anything!" The wives comforted Consort Tong, and the other concubines entered one after another.
As a junior, Qingyan began to establish herself among the palace concubines. When Consort Yi appeared, she kept her head down, seemingly aloof and not even sparing Qingyan a glance.
"Fourth Princess Consort, it's rare for you to arrive so early. If it weren't for the Fifth Prince's wife being confined to her residence, you wouldn't be in such a hurry!" Consort Yi directly used Qingyan as a pretext, believing that if it wasn't Qingyan who instigated things, it was Consort Tong who instigated things.
Qingyan smiled slightly and said, "Your Highness is too kind. The ladies have all been brought to their residences so that they can come to Changchun Garden to pay their respects during the New Year."
"Little Darling is absolutely right, Consort Yi. I heard that the two princesses of the Fifth Prince's family are pregnant. Now that you're a madam, you should properly train your daughters-in-law!" Consort Hui chimed in from the side.
After he finished speaking, the wives of the princes outside the pass all frowned slightly. The fifth prince's wife was not in the villa, but the fifth prince's two most successful and beloved concubines were. This was obviously a slap in the face to the royal family. Instantly, the wives began to have doubts.
When Consort Yi heard Consort Hui's sarcastic remarks, she rolled her eyes at her. How could she say such a thing!
“Empress Yi, both princesses are pregnant. I even went to deliver some gifts and found that Princess Guarjia is in charge of the affairs in the other courtyard. She is also good at dealing with people. After all, she is the Crown Princess’s half-sister, so she must have been strictly trained!” Consort Yi couldn’t stand Consort Yi’s appearance. Consort Hui kindly reminded Consort Yi that Yinqi’s favoritism towards his concubines over his wife was a well-known fact in the upper-class families, and there was no need to make excuses for him.
Consort Yi was speechless after being choked by Consort Hui and her daughter-in-law. The Crown Princess's face also turned ugly. Consort Yi was more trouble than she was worth. She was clearly targeting Qingyan, but she ended up dragging Guarjia into it.
"Consort Yi, is this true?!" The two old wives were wives of princes with iron-capped hats, and their status was comparable to that of Consort Tong. Now that they had asked, Consort Yi could only answer under duress.
"You two consorts may not know this, but the Fifth Consort comes from a rather humble background and has not been properly taught many things. Both of you princesses have been well-educated by your governesses!" Consort Yi quickly explained.
The Fifth Prince's wife was betrothed by Consort Tong, but behind the scenes, Emperor Kangxi appointed her. Consort Yi's words clearly express her dissatisfaction with Emperor Kangxi.
"Guo Luoluo! Watch your words!" Consort Tong was furious. If Emperor Kangxi were to be implicated this time, Consort Yi's days were numbered.
Consort Tong's rebuke was like a bucket of cold water poured directly onto Guo Luoluo's head, instantly calming her down.
"Imperial Consort, I have overstepped my bounds!" Consort Yi quickly rose and bowed to admit her mistake. If Emperor Kangxi thought that Consort Yi or the Fifth Prince were dissatisfied, the consequences would be severe.
Because of the naval port incident, Yinqi and Yinzhi were completely neglected by Emperor Kangxi. If it weren't for Consort Yi being one of the four consorts, the two princes would have been in an even more difficult situation.
"My dear mother, Fifth Sister-in-law is also good; she cares a lot about her younger brother!" Ninth Prince's wife quickly got up to make amends. Both Fifth Prince and Ninth Prince favored their concubines over their wives, but their two primary wives had a very good relationship and would occasionally get together to complain.
Whenever the two princes went too far, Consort Yi would summon their wives to the palace and reprimand them.
The two wives had many complaints about Consort Yi. In addition, the matter of the Eighth Prince's wife had completely dashed the two princes' hopes of advancement. How could the two wives feel good?
The Guoluo clan could not even tolerate such concerns near the dam; how could their family's upbringing be any better?
"Ninth Prince's wife, why don't you go and wait for your fifth sister-in-law for a moment?" Consort Tong also gave Ninth Prince's wife a way out, making things a bit difficult for Consort Yi's two daughters-in-law.
"Thank you, Noble Mother!" Ninth Princess Consort was in a very good mood. As long as she was not with Consort Yi, she felt better.
The two wives still needed to discuss how to refuse the Empress Dowager's suggestion. The Fifth Prince and the Ninth Prince already had enough women in their harems, and there was no need to add more noble ladies from Mongolia.
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