On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, Qingyan got up early and sat with Yinduan in the main seat to wait for the Laba porridge bestowed by Emperor Kangxi. This event was held every year.
Inside the mansion, the servants all came to pay their respects, and the two men even gave generous red envelopes as rewards to the people below.
During the brief exchange of greetings, the two hastily ate their breakfast. Just as they put down the ivory hairpin, Emperor Kangxi bestowed upon them Laba porridge. Yin led Qingyan to the front to express their gratitude and immediately set up the Laba porridge. Everyone would set up a porridge whenever it was personally bestowed by Emperor Kangxi.
"Sisi, aren't we going to eat that Laba porridge?" Qingyan looked at the porridge that was being offered up and felt very curious.
At the Ulanara residence, Emperor Kangxi bestowed gifts upon them every year, and Fei Yanggu and his two sons all drank the Laba porridge.
"Hehe, no need. Just put it on a pedestal. We just had breakfast. Don't you think we'll feel too full if we have more Laba porridge?" Yin didn't care much about these things.
“But… Father and the others all drank it!” Qingyan said, tilting her little head.
During the previous Laba Festival, Yin and Qingyan were going to the palace to receive a banquet, so these Laba porridges were definitely offered as offerings.
"My father-in-law and brothers-in-law are both very capable. These Laba porridges must have been made according to Father Emperor's taste. The porridges are very sweet!" Yin doesn't like sweet food, so Qingyan specially had savory porridge prepared so that the two of them could eat it together.
"We'll be going up the mountain soon." Yin changed into a royal blue casual outfit, while Qingyan wore a royal blue longevity pink peach-patterned casual outfit and a set of kingfisher feather-decorated silver hair ornaments.
Qingyan, all dressed up, stepped into the golden sedan chair, her shoes made of flowerpot soles.
Hongluo Temple was a royal temple, and those who came here to burn incense and worship Buddha were mainly members of the royal family and the imperial clan.
Qingyan was very curious about this place. Yesterday, she had said that she would come with Yin, but who would have thought that Yin was busy until midnight before he could deal with those tricky things.
Later, the carriage stopped at the foot of the mountain. Yin and Qingyan got off the carriage and stood still. She looked up at the stone steps. If she stepped on the flowerpot soles, she would probably be ruined.
"Sulan, go and get the deerskin boots!" Qingyan prepared to change her shoes.
"No need," Yin said with a smile, watching the sedan chair speeding down from the mountain.
Qingyan sat in the sedan chair, playing with the hot water bottle in her hand. Yin always said that they had to strictly follow the rules, so the two of them had to ride in the sedan chair.
She peered through the crack in the window at the scene outside. There wasn't a single civilian in sight. Could the rumors be true?
Upon arriving at the temple courtyard, Qingyan alighted from the sedan chair and discovered that Hongluo Temple was very different from the modern one. The trees she had seen at Hongluo Temple before were now just saplings.
"Master, shall we go in now?" Qingyan turned his head and asked.
Qingyan noticed that people were still kneeling and praying in the main hall. Qingyan often worshipped Buddha and noticed those restless people who wanted to control their masters at any moment.
"Let's go." Yin Ke hadn't heard that anyone was coming to offer incense. Tonight, Father Emperor was going to make an appearance. What if someone was overlooked behind his back?
The moment the two stepped into the hall, a shout rang out.
"Fourth Brother... what brings you here today?" Yin asked, standing to the left of the two.
"Where did you come from? You weren't here when I came over." Yin was startled and asked directly.
"Stand on the left side the whole time..." Yin was very dissatisfied. If he hadn't come to accompany his wife to draw lots, he definitely wouldn't have come.
Yin was exasperated; they insisted on waiting for him to speak before they came to cause trouble.
"Don't be angry," Yin said in a fawning tone.
"Greetings to Fourth Brother, greetings to Fourth Sister-in-law..." Before Ninth Princess could finish speaking, Qingyan and Yin helped her up.
"Sister-in-law, you've come so early today!" Qingyan remembered that Ninth Prince's wife must have come to pray for a child.
"Fourth Sister-in-law, if I could, I wouldn't want to come here!" Ninth Princess Consort has always been afraid of crowded places, which may be related to her life.
Qingyan smiled and said, "If you don't come, I'll definitely have to do it myself."
As dawn broke, tables were set up in front of Hongluo Temple, filled with large buckets of Laba porridge. Many people came from far and wide to eat the Laba porridge before entering Hongluo Temple to worship Buddha.
As Laba porridge became increasingly scarce, Qingyan felt it was time to find a host.
"Fourth Princess Consort, do you have something to discuss with this humble monk?" The abbot asked as he saw Qingyan approaching.
Qingyan nodded: "Abbot, how many hours a day does your porridge take to prepare?"
The abbot scrutinized Qingyan, and soon he abandoned his nonchalant attitude and began to look at her from a different perspective.
"Noon will be fine!" the abbot replied.
The temple has limited supplies, so providing congee for three consecutive days is a token of Hongluo Temple's goodwill.
"Sulan, go and tell them to pack up half an hour early," Qingyan said to Sulan.
The abbot felt a warmth in his heart. Previously, many wealthy ladies had said they would definitely support him, but in reality, these ladies all suffered from amnesia.
“Madam, you don’t need to meddle in this matter yourself!” the abbot said to Qingyan.
Yin sat down next to Qingyan, listening to Qingyan use the words of the Fujin to correct Qingyan's mistakes.
"Thank you for your guidance, Abbot!" Qingyan watched the Abbot's departing figure, feeling increasingly lost.
She hurried into the main hall, and Yin walked ahead of her.
"Fourth Brother, shall we begin the sacrificial ceremony?" Yin asked, looking at Yin.
At this moment, Yin was in a dilemma. What should he do if he had really been bribed?
Emperor Kangxi valued the abbot's opinions highly, and Yinzhi also hoped to cooperate more with the abbot.
"Let's begin." Yin nodded to Yin. Qingyan was Yin's primary consort, and it was truly rare for the Ninth Prince to bring his Ninth Consort out with him.
"Fourth Brother, let's go back in a few days. The palace is in a lot of chaos right now. Some powerful families want to take advantage of this chaos to send messages out directly," Yin said directly.
"Business is very good for the shops in the south, but for the shops in the north, you have to do everything yourself for a long time," Qingyan explained to Yin.
Without any hesitation, Ninth Master knelt directly on the prayer mat and began to silently worship Buddha.
Qingyan closed her almond-shaped eyes, lost in thought.
"The concepts of North and South are so different." Qingyan noticed that the Laba Festival celebrations made by the North and South were somewhat different.
"Little darling, what's the point of saying this?" Yin couldn't resist Qingyan's pleading, so he took the opportunity to see what these people were up to.
“Of course it’s useful. There are foreigners who come here to worship Buddha. Wouldn’t it be better if this shop could attract more people from the West?” Qingyan asked in return.
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