A moment later, the palace maids approached the pavilion, and she noticed that the two maids were quite good-looking, seemingly trained. She sensed that Si Si's gaze was unfriendly, and couldn't help but feel a little nervous.
The palace maids carried fruit up to the pavilion. Qingyan looked at the two leading maids, whose appearances were very delicate. Their faces were painted with light makeup, which formed a strong contrast with the exquisite makeup of the concubines.
Qingyan felt that the freshness of these palace maids was very different from the refinement of the imperial concubines. No wonder Emperor Kangxi favored Han women in his later years.
She sat side by side with Yin at the round table in the pavilion, her small lips slightly pouting. These two men were clearly more mature than her. Yin probably wanted to find someone like them if he wanted to advance to the East.
"This servant greets the Fourth Prince." Li Shi's soft Jiangnan accent made Yin frown. Seeing that Yin was not going to give her a second glance, she quickly and timidly glanced at Qingyan.
If someone were to come, it would seem as if Qingyan had done something terribly disrespectful.
The banquet has begun. Is this the "slender horse" of Yangzhou?
Back then, she had seen many characters like this in novels: oval face, willow-leaf eyebrows, cherry lips, and slender waist.
All of these qualities are concentrated in Li, coupled with her soft, gentle Jiangnan accent; it has to be said, she is a powerful weapon against men.
"You two are so ill-mannered! Why don't you pay your respects to the princess? Put your things here and get out of here!" Yin was disgusted by the two of them; the humiliation he brought from his past life still bothered him.
Li was supposed to be sent to Yinzhi's courtyard, but with the appearance of Jia Tanchun, Yinzhi quickly forgot about Li.
The palace maids who trained with Li were all laughing at her. She heard that Qingyan had been taken to the Imperial Garden by Yin and that the servants of Chenggan Palace had prepared fruit to send over. She then instigated Song to come with her.
The two girls were already 16 years old. In a few more years, the best years of their lives would be over. In order to avoid being sold off by their families like commodities, they had no choice but to take the risk.
Qingyan looked at the two of them with a smile. Li Shi didn't recognize her own status, while Song Shi was quite obedient.
She skewered the peaches with a silver fork and chilled them with ice cream; they were still a bit cool.
"Don't use too much, and eat less iced drinks in the summer." Yin was very strict with her and rarely allowed her to use iced drinks.
snort!
She pouted her little mouth and turned her face away. Yin looked at her timidly.
Li remained kneeling on the ground without waking up, and the faces of Song and the others turned extremely ugly. They all understood that Li was being used as a warning by Yin.
If they don't behave, the Fourth Prince wouldn't mind using them as punching bags.
"Fourth, let them scare you, it's upsetting to look at them!" Qingyan sneered.
Yin waved his hand, signaling them to leave quickly.
Li bit her lower lip unwillingly; she longed to win Yin's favor.
Song and Li were close friends at home, and their mothers were once best friends. Now that they have both been selected to enter the Fourth Prince's harem, their relationship has become merely a facade.
"Mao Mao, don't be like this!" Madam Song and Madam Li slowly sat down in a dead corner of the Imperial Garden, their little faces tense.
Li looked at Song, whose eyes were slightly red. She relied on her looks and didn't get along well with the palace maids.
Of the six palace maids trained at the same time, the other four went to the prince's backyard, while only the two of them became a laughing stock.
“I don’t want to either,” Madam Li said with a bitter smile. “We’re both getting on in years. What do you think we’ll do if we don’t find a way out here with the prince and go back?”
When Li was born, she was very weak. In order to make her easier to raise, the old man gave her a humble name, Mao Mao. When she was a month old, Grandma went to Lin Yin Temple to worship Buddha. The monk said that she should be renamed Mao Mao, which would bring her greater success in the future.
"This is fate..." Song smiled bitterly. Mao Mao's father and mother still loved her.
Even if Lady Li left the palace at the age of 25, she would not be married off haphazardly.
Her situation was different; her mother loved her two brothers more and had little to do with her.
"Fate?!" Lady Li looked up at the azure sky. After entering the palace, who would believe in fate?
Aren't there plenty of infighting and backstabbing among the imperial concubines? Palace maids are losing their lives every day; those are all vibrant, living beings.
“I don’t agree. Tell me, besides the Fourth Prince, do we have any other way out?” Li thought of the Third Prince.
Back then, Consort Rong came to Chenggan Palace intending to take her away with Consort Tong. If it weren't for Consort Tong's obstruction, she probably wouldn't be in the position of a palace maid anymore.
“Alright!” Madam Song smiled. Consort Yi had met with her twice. One of the palace maids guiding Yinqi was an entertainer and was in poor health. Consort Yi hoped to replace her.
The number of palace maids trained by the Imperial Household Department was still very small, and the palace maids undergoing training were not yet fully competent.
"Really?!" Li's eyes lit up. As long as there was a way out, she could live a stable life from now on.
On the other side, Qingyan was glaring angrily at Yin, furious that he had concealed such important information.
"Little darling, didn't the governess tell you that I had already refused to guide the palace maids?" Qingyan hadn't had any conflicts with the two of them, but he disliked having anyone staring at Yin.
She turned her face away, not even glancing at him.
“We don’t need to be angry with those two. Next month, I’ll send them to my brother’s courtyard, just like Jia Tanchun did.” Yin patted her little hand.
"Really?!" Qingyan turned her face towards him, her phoenix eyes filled with seriousness.
Yin nodded seriously. Consort Tong was on his side, and even if Kangxi was unhappy, he would not refuse.
In the evening, Li Dequan came to the Imperial Garden to find the two of them, and they followed him to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
Seeing that the adults' expressions had softened, Qingyan breathed a sigh of relief. She wouldn't interfere with how the people from the Imperial Household Department should be dealt with.
After dinner, Fei Yanggu and Kangxi had a better understanding of each other, and Fei Yanggu's fiery temper had been calmed down.
On the carriage, Fei Yanggu looked at his daughter, still feeling uneasy.
"Father, did you know that Yin had been guiding palace maids?" She believed that Yin had refused, but she was very worried that the Consort would send the two women to the Prince's quarters after their marriage.
Fei Yanggu was stunned for a moment. Every prince would have one. After Yin refused, he told the three of them, father and son, to keep it a secret from Qingyan and not let her think too much.
"Yes, he refused. His Majesty and Consort Tong will not cause you any trouble." Fei Yanggu nodded, as long as Kangxi and Consort Tong's attitude was clear.
Fei Yanggu had already made arrangements with Kangxi long ago, so he certainly wouldn't make things difficult for Qingyan.
"Father, I saw those two police officers. They're still serving at Chenggan Palace," she said, dissatisfied.
Yin's words soothed her wounded heart, but left a knot in her heart. (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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