Before lunch, Qingyan returned to her tent and saw Yin reviewing documents at his desk. The Mongol wives were probably getting impatient and were preparing to dig pits for the princes and their wives.
"Fourth Sister, I'm back!" Qingyan took a deep breath, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.
Yin noticed that Xiao Guai's expression was not good, so he quickly asked, "Xiao Guai, go and see what happened to Grandma Huang!"
Yin put down his pen and looked at Qingyan pouting. Those Mongolian wives were simply despicable.
“Those wives said we were unfilial for not accompanying the Empress Dowager.” Qingyan was getting a headache from being bullied by the Mongolian wives, and she hoped to return to the capital safely.
Now, she felt that this small wish could not be fulfilled. She had some idea of what the Mongolian wives were thinking. If the Mongolian wives could grasp their weaknesses and let their daughters accompany the Empress Dowager, they would definitely be able to gain a better reputation.
"Grandma Empress Dowager will probably talk about them." Yin knew that the Empress Dowager had a very bad relationship with the Khorchin.
Qingyan stared at him in surprise. He probably didn't see her, right?
"Surprised?!" Qingyan's expression amused him.
She nodded quickly. He understood the unresolved issue between the Empress Dowager and the Khorchin. Back then, the Khorchin had relied too much on the Grand Empress Dowager and treated her poorly. Now that the Grand Empress Dowager was gone, they had turned to the Empress Dowager to plead for mercy.
"Yes, the Empress Dowager has a bad relationship with the Mongolian wives, so she won't grant their requests. They've even offended the princes' wives," Yin said with a cold laugh.
The Mongol leader and his wives had planned it out. Since they couldn't get any benefits from the Empress Dowager, they would squeeze them out from the wives. The royal wives joined forces to deal with the Mongol wives.
This autumn siege was different from the past. The situation on both sides was very tense. Kangxi dispatched Yin Jitai's army, which can be regarded as a heavy blow to these people.
"Fourth Brother, what do you think these women want? We've investigated all the legitimate daughters of the Mongol tribes, and there aren't any who are your age," Qingyan said softly.
She pouted slightly, thinking that the Mongol wives were planning to adopt their illegitimate daughters under the names of their principal wives, and that the illegitimate daughters would likely be included in the Mongol banner women's selection process during this year's imperial concubine selection.
"Huh?!" Yin glanced at Qingyan. The women awaiting the imperial concubine selection were crowding around them. The Mongol leaders had all mentioned that they were the legitimate daughters of their respective tribes. "Are you telling the truth?!"
"It was my sister-in-law who found out. Moreover, those girls who were to be selected for the imperial concubines were not originally qualified. Only after they were registered under the name of the primary consort were they allowed to enter the capital for the selection!" Qingyan noticed that the leaders and consorts of the various Mongol tribes were getting anxious, and the rewards here were decreasing day by day.
“Father has reduced this year’s rewards quite a bit; they must be getting anxious.” Yin took a sip. “Moreover, Father has stated directly that the Mongol tribes will no longer marry princesses from the royal family.”
Yin put down his teacup and rubbed his temples with his left hand. Earlier, when they accompanied Kangxi to meet the Mongol leaders, these people had complained to Kangxi many times. In addition to asking for rewards, they also had their eyes on Hutulifengsheng Zhalafen. Yin's face had not been good that day.
"Father Emperor has issued an imperial edict!" She was a little surprised that Kangxi would say this so early in the autumn.
"Yes, quite a few things have happened in Qiu Mi. You rarely go out, and Yin Jitai's army is guarding the area around the camp," Yin said in a low voice.
She turned and glanced at him. Weren't there Mongolian soldiers everywhere outside?
"They're people wearing Mongolian robes?" Qingyan was somewhat surprised. Were these people Yin Jitai's men?
Yin laughed and said, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do!"
At first, he was also surprised that he was wearing a Mongolian robe. Yin Jitai said that in case the Mongolian tribes took action, he specially selected soldiers who were fluent in Mongolian. They would record everything the guards of the Mongolian tribes said.
From the words of these people, one can glean some of the leaders' plans, and it cannot be ruled out that there was an element of deceiving Kangxi.
Qingyan pursed her lips and listened as Yin recounted the information gathered by Yin Jitai's men. Most of it was related to the upcoming autumn festival. Besides the arrival of members of the Mongol sect, many others wanted to persuade Kangxi to give in and allow the various tribes on the grasslands to gain some benefits.
Hearing the leaders' schemes, she had to admit that they only cared about their own interests and didn't consider the consequences.
"Fourth Brother, are we being monitored too?" Qingyan asked.
Every time he went out, he felt that someone was secretly following him, recording her every move in detail. Otherwise, the wives would never have spoken of her whereabouts over the past few days.
He nodded, agreeing with Qingyan's answer.
"I only found out these past two days. When did you find out?" Yin was puzzled. How did Xiao Guai know?
“I noticed it a few days ago. The Mongol wives were able to plead my whereabouts, and even knew how many times I left the tent!” She was most afraid of being plotted against behind her back, and she never expected that she would eventually fall into the hands of these people.
Yin listened attentively to her little complaints, and he pondered each sentence several times.
Ultimately, he concluded that the Mongol leaders were plotting a larger conspiracy. After the royal family arrived on the grasslands, their every move was being watched by the leaders. Apart from the Kangxi Emperor's tent, any slight movement in the tents of the other princes would reach the leaders' ears.
"Little darling, try to take more people out in the future. If Eshuo and Saito have time, let them accompany you!" Yin decided to have his two brothers-in-law look after Little darling. The Mongol leader would definitely make them his primary target, after all, their Hutuli Fengsheng Zhalafen was the target.
Qingyan nodded. The two Ahhun were highly respected, and many tribal leaders valued them highly, some even wanting to marry their tribe's girls to them.
"Fourth Brother, Ah Hun must protect Father Emperor!" Qingyan shook her head. She would rather stay in the tent than cause trouble for Ah Hun.
"No, Father Emperor has Tulichen by his side, I have Erlu by my side, and you have two children by your side, Eshuo and Saito, which is just enough!" Yin directly rejected Qingyan's request. With familiar people by her side, Yin felt more at ease.
"Alright, you can rest for the next few days?" Qingyan turned to look at Yin.
He disliked Qiu Mi and would follow him from a distance during every hunt. Unless Kangxi ordered a competition, Yin would certainly not kill any more animals.
“No, starting tomorrow, I must go hunting with Father Emperor every day,” Yin said quickly.
Since arriving in Mongolia, their lives had slowed down considerably. Besides cultivating relationships with the people there, Kangxi spent the rest of his time with Yinzhen, meticulously analyzing the pros and cons of dealing with the Mongol leaders. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
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