The next morning, Qingyan accompanied Yin to Changchun Garden. Tong entered the courtyard, and Consort Tong placed the screen in the reception hall. When the court ladies came to pay their respects, the first thing they would see was the screen.
Qingyan noticed that the screen was facing the sunlight, and the children on it were all adorable, bearing a striking resemblance to Yiken'e.
"My dear, this screen is quite nice too." Consort Tong always hoped to have such a screen; the one she had before was now a painful memory.
Because of that screen, the Empress Dowager gave her the cold shoulder several times. Consort Xin had always been the hope of the Khorchin and Borjigit clan, but because of that screen, the hope of the grasslands was completely extinguished.
As time went by, Emperor Kangxi stopped allowing Mongolian noblewomen into the palace. They wanted to send another woman into the palace to help Consort Xin, and ideally, to leave her with a child to raise.
Emperor Kangxi directly blocked the status of Mongolian noblewomen at its source. Apart from the Crown Prince's harem, where there was one Mongolian noblewoman as a secondary consort, there were basically no Mongolian noblewomen of high lineage in the harems of the other princes.
"Mother, do you like this screen?" Qingyan's smug little expression made Consort Tong smile. It had been a long time since the little girl had acted so affectionately towards her.
"It must have been drawn by Xiao Guai?" Yin quietly pointed at Qingyan, and Consort Tong smiled.
Emperor Kangxi walked in from outside the palace and overheard Consort Tong talking about the screen, which piqued his interest.
"Did Xiaoguai design it herself?" Kangxi asked curiously.
Yesterday, Su Peisheng delivered the screen, and Emperor Kangxi was immediately drawn to the Spring Festival celebration scene on it. The children's appearances were somewhat reminiscent of Yiken'e's, and the overall composition was more vivid than the previous Spring Festival celebration scenes.
"Yes, Father Emperor." Qingyan quickly bowed and greeted him.
"Please sit down. Your mother likes it very much. It was placed here as soon as it arrived. This is a good New Year's gift." Kangxi nodded in satisfaction.
Qingyan received praise from Emperor Kangxi, and her little face turned rosy.
"Father, my little darling made preparations six months in advance and even specially sent the items to the south, and had the embroiderers use Suzhou double-sided embroidery to complete them." Yin directly asked Qingyan for credit.
Emperor Kangxi and Consort Tong nodded in satisfaction; the large screen made up for Consort Tong's regret.
"Father, should we give Grandmother another one?" Yin asked with a hint of difficulty.
Such exquisite screens are rarely found together.
"No need. Just prepare a generous gift for the Empress Dowager. We can leave this exquisite screen out of the question." Kangxi spoke directly, and the screen was saved.
Consort Tong was secretly delighted. The Empress Dowager often made trouble for Consort Tong. There were two spies in Chengqian Palace. At Kangxi's suggestion, Consort Tong also put them under surveillance. However, the best decorations in Chengqian Palace were basically taken by the Empress Dowager to Cining Palace under various pretexts.
At the beginning, the Empress Dowager was still alive. She had spoken to the Empress Dowager many times. However, the Empress Dowager was desperate to give more rewards to the Khorchin. Not everything that the concubines put in each year was of the highest quality.
"Yes, the Empress Dowager sent a lot of imported goods," Yin quickly replied.
Imported goods?!
Kangxi's eyes lit up. The Western items brought by Giuseppe Castiglione looked exquisite, and some of them were quite practical.
"Father, there is a very exquisite imported ship." Yin hoped that Kangxi could put aside his prejudices against the West and learn some advanced things from those imported goods.
Now, under his secret arrangements, the firearms have been slowly put into operation, and Dai Zi, who was once trapped and died outside the pass, is now able to have a space to make his mark.
"Hmm?!" Emperor Kangxi was eager to establish a navy, which was an important branch of the Ming Dynasty's military.
Yin had submitted a memorial early on about the Ming Dynasty's navy. Since the Qing Dynasty entered the pass, the navy had been completely ruined. The Eight Banners cavalry were very fierce, but they were all landlubbers, which was the fundamental reason why the navy could not develop successfully.
"Fourth Prince, where did you acquire these imported ships from?" Kangxi asked directly.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, it's from the Netherlands!" Yin had asked Qingyan beforehand that the ship was a 1:1 model of a Dutch warship, and even the cannons inside were movable.
Dai Zigen invented a repeating firearm in the armory, which was clearly many years earlier than Western firearms.
"Yes, send this ship to the armory to prevent missionaries from misleading us!" Kangxi was also wary of missionaries. In addition to the possibility of an accident, even Giuseppe Castiglione was being watched by the Dragon Guard.
In fact, the imported goods brought by Giuseppe Castiglione were all carefully selected; the most advanced items were never brought to the Qing Dynasty.
"Yes, Father Emperor, I will be extra careful. The study in Yuanmingyuan has been surrounded by the Dragon Guards, but some servants still haven't given up!" Yin hesitated for a moment and decided to tell the story of the servant who was beaten to death before the New Year.
Kangxi nodded. Yinzhi did have some tricks up his sleeve. He was still young and might be tricked by the missionaries.
"Alright, the festival is almost here, and there's a lot to do at the Yuanmingyuan. Let's go back quickly after lunch." Kangxi didn't want two annoying third wheels.
After lunch, Qingyan was taken out of Changchun Garden by Yin. Judging from Kangxi's tone, he didn't seem to mind trading with the West. Yin even brought up the construction of the navy again.
Back at the Yuanmingyuan, Yin was unusually relaxed and accompanied Qingyan to see the two children.
Looking at their adorable sleeping faces, his mood gradually calmed down.
"Little darling, go to the study first!" Yin took several ship codes he had bought from the Netherlands at great expense from the shopkeeper of Linglong Pavilion. These were the important things.
Emperor Kangxi dispatched the Dragon Guards to strengthen security. His ministers were closely watching every move at the Yuanmingyuan Garden. On one hand, there were the twins, and on the other hand, Yinzhi's study was suddenly under tight security. Even the missionaries from the Court of Colonial Affairs bribed the servants outside the Yuanmingyuan Garden.
Yin kept a close eye on them, and the missionaries of the Court of Colonial Affairs became somewhat preoccupied. Some of them were even thinking of their own country and kept sending news of the Qing Dynasty back to their home countries.
Since returning, Yin has also used business as a means to send his people to Western Europe, gradually infiltrating their upper echelons. These naval forces were obtained at great expense in terms of manpower and resources.
The people of the Court of Colonial Affairs were always on guard against the Qing Dynasty having advanced naval forces that would gradually weaken its firearms. Such a vast and resource-rich land was a rare find.
"My dear, Father Emperor intends to put all the warships and military equipment in the study. Put them all in your place, and when I need them, I will come and get them for you myself." Yin noticed that his study had been disturbed again, and the documents on the table had also been moved.
He had to find a way to make these people selfish; it seemed they had their eyes on his study. (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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