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Near the Fengxian Hall of the Temple of Heaven, Qingyan turned to look out the window. Rows of Imperial Guards had already surrounded both sides of the road. The road was paved with yellow cloth and covered with yellow curtains. The people kneeling on the ground on both sides could only hear the sound of the convoy's hooves, but could not see the convoy at all.
The shouts of "Long live the Emperor!" were deafening.
"Fourth Prince, how do those common people know that it is the Emperor's entourage passing by?" Qingyan had always been very curious about this matter. Every time the Emperor went on an inspection tour, it seemed that the common people could see through the yellow curtains as soon as the entourage passed by.
Yin put down the memorial in his hand and looked outside in the direction Qingyan was looking. The sounds of greetings grew louder and louder.
"Among the crowd are servants dispatched in advance by the Imperial Household Department; they can all recognize the sound of the imperial carriage's hooves," Yin quickly explained.
This idea was conceived by Su Mo'er. When they first arrived in Beijing, the Empress Dowager said that it was to continue the Ming Dynasty's rules that if the royal convoy was to travel, it had to be covered by yellow curtains, but the people still needed to shout "Long live the Emperor!"
"Huh?!" Qingyan Liudai glanced outside in disappointment, then turned back to her storybook. If Yinruo said something else, she might be able to chime in with a sentence or two.
Having heard about the servants of the Imperial Household Department, Qingyan definitely didn't have a good impression of them.
"Alright, we're almost there. It's only this lively on the first day of the Lunar New Year near the Temple of Heaven," Yin said with emotion. "On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the royal family holds ancestral worship ceremonies. Those who followed the Qing army from outside the Great Wall into the Central Plains can only do so in this way."
Unable to return to the area outside the Great Wall to pay respects to their ancestors during the Spring Festival, even the princes came directly to the capital.
He was pleased by the admiring look in her eyes.
"In a moment, you will be going to join the procession of the Fujin (consorts). I had the head nanny specially bribe the servants to install some copper dates on your prayer mat and make the mat thicker. It definitely won't hurt the baby!" Yin knew that the people the head nanny found would definitely be able to handle this matter well.
“Every year, you ask the head nanny to find someone, right?” Qingyan had participated in the ancestral worship several times, and each time she left, the prayer cushion was still warm.
The Third Princess Consort always complained that the prayer cushion was too thin, and that by the time she was halfway through kneeling, it was already cold and her legs would get chilled. She would have to spend a lot of time getting rid of the cold when she went back.
"Yes, someone will take care of you every year!" Yin squeezed her little hand. He didn't want Qingyan to suffer too much. However, Yin Zhi didn't care at all. He treated even his own wife this way, let alone others.
Qingyan grinned: "Every time I hear the Third Princess complaining, I feel like life is infinitely good!"
The struggles between sisters-in-law are always carried out in secret. The Third Princess Consort has caused Qingyan a lot of trouble. In front of the Empress Dowager, the Third Princess Consort appears to be good-tempered, and the Empress Dowager simply ignores her. In the eyes of the other concubines, it is the latter who are being unkind.
"Little darling, we're almost there. Wake the children up." Yin checked the time; there was still about half an hour before they were supposed to stop.
Qingyan walked around the screen and went behind it, where the twins were still fast asleep.
"Yiken'e! Hutulifengshengzhalafen, wake up! We're almost there!" Qingyan patted the two children's chests to wake them up.
Yiken sat up groggily, rubbed his sleepy eyes, looked at Qingyan in front of him, and smiled.
"Mother, why are you up so early?" Yiken asked, puzzled. Usually, Qingyan was the last to get up.
"You little rascals, your mother has been waiting to call you. Come on, put on your clothes first!" Qingyan personally dressed the two little ones in their everyday clothes, and then took two small warm jade pendants and put them on Yiken'e's belt and Hutulifengshengzhalafen's cheongsam.
Yiken touched the jade and found it was very warm, looking at Qingyan in confusion.
"If you feel cold, touch this jade pendant. Remember, you mustn't let the maids of Cining Palace see it, otherwise you won't be able to see this jade pendant!" Qingyan said to the two children.
Hutulifengshengzhalafen tightly clutched the warm jade in her small hands. She was worried that when they went to worship their ancestors, they, the little princesses, would be gathered together and made to kneel before the Buddha in the Buddhist hall. Although Songkelierha was by her side, she couldn't say anything when she felt cold.
"Mother, I really like it. It's so cold kneeling in the Buddhist hall!" Hutu Lifengsheng Zhalafen said incoherently.
"Hutu Lifengsheng Zhalafen, isn't your prayer mat warm?" Yin walked around the screen, picked up his daughter, and asked.
"It was warm, but my fifth uncle's illegitimate daughter tried to take it. At first, my prayer mat was taken away, and Songkri Yierha even helped me get it back. That person said that this one was what she wanted and should have belonged to her." Hutu Lifeng Shengzha Lafen was young at the time and was a little scared when she saw the older ones.
What? !
Qingyan was somewhat annoyed. Hutuli Fengsheng Zhalafen had mentioned that the concubine's daughter was the daughter of Guarjia Gege, who was greatly favored by Yinqi.
"Not this year!" Yin recalled that Kangxi had already said that, apart from the direct descendants, illegitimate sons and daughters were not allowed to participate in the ancestral worship at the Fifth Prince's residence! Yin smiled coldly. If Yin Qi dared to let someone bully Hutuli Fengsheng Zhalafen, he should be prepared to be retaliated against.
"Father, really?" The daughter looked up at her with a worried expression.
Yin nodded, giving the little girl confidence. The palace maids had also been disciplined by Shu, so there would definitely be no more problems.
"Fourth Prince, I want to change the things for Yinqi's residence!" Qingyan asked, looking at Yin.
On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the women will still be escorting New Year's gifts. Except for the Fifth Prince's wife, whose gifts will remain unchanged, the gifts for the rest of the women will be changed. Qingyan will not give anything to those who bully his daughter.
Seeing Qingyan's firm attitude, Yin agreed.
"Grandpa said we can't go too far in public!" Yiken'e was taught by Kangxi to consider the overall situation and not to make any mistakes in public, but to take action in private.
“Little guy, your sister is being bullied, aren’t you going to fight back? Some people only get what they deserve by publicly humiliating them; you can’t teach them a lesson in secret,” Qingyan said directly.
Yin also agreed, saying, "The two princesses in your fifth uncle's residence are like that. Your mother is of noble status, so it's fine if we don't prepare New Year's gifts for the two princesses."
The twins nodded in understanding, realizing that what Yin said was correct.
"Mother, I also want to teach that person a lesson. If he dares to mess with me, I won't let it go!" Hutuli Fengsheng Zhalafen's face showed a serious expression, and he clenched his small fist with his left hand and waved it in mid-air.
"Alright, if our daughter wants to take revenge herself, Father will support her!" Yin dotes on his daughter and will definitely stand by her side.
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