On the first day of the new year, the palace was filled with festive decorations, red lanterns and window grilles, and even the hairbands on the palace maids were red.
Early in the morning, Su Malagu personally brought the black jade Qilin that the Empress Dowager had awarded to the Sixth Prince yesterday. The Imperial Concubine was still dressing up, so she sent someone to call the Sixth Prince over to receive the reward.
Yinzuo insisted on taking his brother with him, so what Su Malagu saw were the two little princes coming in hand in hand.
"Good morning, Su Malagu~~"
"Good luck to the Sixth Prince, Good luck to the Fourth Prince. The Empress Dowager specifically asked me to bring the black jade Qilin that was given to the Sixth Prince yesterday. Would you like to take a look at it?"
"Black jade Qilin? That is black. Xiaoliu has never seen a black Qilin. Okay~" Yinzuo nodded with a smile.
Su Malagu raised her hand to signal two eunuchs behind her who were carrying a large wooden box to come forward, and they carefully opened the box.
Inside was a black jade Qilin that was about as long as an adult's forearm and as wide as an adult's palm. The jade was delicate and warm, and the carving technique was even more ingenious, bringing out the full beauty of this top-quality black jade. The lustrous and smooth texture displayed the Qilin's majesty and divinity to the fullest.
"This Qilin is so fierce. It doesn't look like Xiaoliu at all." Yinzuo muttered to himself in a low voice.
Su Malagu at the side smiled quietly. Last night's Sixth Prince was more like an ignorant and cute baby, but this black jade Qilin showed the might of an adult mythical beast, even a little bit ferocious. The two styles were completely different.
Yinzhen, who was standing by, was worried that Su Malagu would think that Xiao Liu was dissatisfied with the reward from the Grand Empress Dowager, so he calmly explained, "Only the fierce can suppress the evil spirits. The Grand Empress Dowager wanted this black jade Qilin to protect Xiao Liu's safety."
"What the Fourth Prince said is right. There are only five colors of Qilin, namely red, white, blue, yellow and green. They are usually gentle in temperament and are regarded as auspicious. The black Qilin is not among them. It usually symbolizes military force and power, and has a greater meaning of protection." Su Malagu explained with a smile.
"It turns out that Ukuma Ma is so good to Xiaoliu~ Xiaoliu wants to thank her in person, Su Malagu, is it okay?" Yinzuo asked with a smile.
"Of course you can. The Empress Dowager will be very happy to see the Sixth Prince."
"Then Xiaoliu will go and tell the Imperial Concubine's mother, and then go to the Cining Palace with you, Sumalagu, to express your gratitude~" After Yinzuo said this, he jumped and ran to the door of the Imperial Concubine's bedroom.
"Imperial Mother~" The Imperial Concubine was dressing up inside. Seeing the little guy peeking at the door, she smiled and waved at him.
Yinzuo ran in with a smile and lay on Tong Jia's lap.
"Have you seen Su Malagu? Does the black jade Qilin look good?" Tong Jia asked with a smile, rubbing his soft little face.
Yinzuo put his two hands to his mouth and said softly: "I saw it, but Qilin is a little fierce~"
Tong Jia was amused by his cautious little appearance.
"Is he more vicious than your fourth brother?"
Yinzuo widened his eyes, thought seriously for a while, then shook his head solemnly. Objectively speaking, that was not the case. In comparison, his brother was more fierce.
Tong Jia put her arm around his shoulders and laughed so hard that she bent over backwards.
"Xiao Liu, you are so funny. Aren't you afraid that your fourth brother will hear you and stop being friends with you?"
"But he can't hear~" Yinzuo felt a little embarrassed. It seemed a little bad to say this about his brother behind his back, even though what he said was the truth.
"Aren't you afraid that I will tell him?" Tong Jia continued to tease him.
"The Imperial Noble Mother is not that kind of person~" After a while, Yinzuo tentatively added two words at the end, "Right?"
"No, I just like to watch the fun. I'll tell him when I get out."
"No~ Royal Mother~~" Yinzuo drew out the last syllable of the sentence very long. He pulled Tong Jia's sleeve and shook it, pouting his little mouth and begging.
"Okay, okay, I won't say anything, you little sweetheart!" Tong Jia smiled and scratched Yinzuo's little nose.
"Hehe~" Yinzuo raised his little face and let her do what she wanted. As long as she didn't tell his brother, it would be fine.
"My dear mother, Xiao Liu wants to go to the Cining Palace to express his gratitude in person. It's just right for me to go there with Su Malagu."
I almost forgot about the important matter, Yinzuo said it quickly.
"It just so happens that I have some palace affairs to take care of later, so I won't go with you. Let Xiao Si go with you. Come back early and don't play around outside. Be careful not to catch a cold."
"I know~" Yinzuo ran out with a smile.
Tong Jia smiled as she watched the little girl's cheerful back, and suddenly felt that this was a good thing. The emperor had already said that he felt that he was a wife-killer and did not want to appoint another queen. If nothing unexpected happened, she would always be the most honorable one in the harem.
Although Xiao Si and Xiao Liu were not her children, they were still close. In the future, she would ask the emperor to register either of the two brothers under her name. Both children were excellent and he would definitely not treat her harshly. This way, she would have someone to rely on when she was old.
What else is she not satisfied with?
As for the future of the Tonggiya clan, they used to rely on their aunt, but now they rely on her. The sons should also be more motivated on their own. They can't always rely on nepotism to maintain the family's glory.
Afterwards, Yinzuo was carried to the Cining Palace by Sumalagu, and Yinzhen naturally went with them.
The Cining Palace is quite far from the Chengqian Palace, almost spanning the entire Forbidden City. One has to go around the Imperial Garden first and then pass through the Six Western Palaces. Plus, today is New Year's Day, so they did meet quite a few concubines along the way, but everyone was very careful to avoid their group.
Yinzuo heard someone say, "It's the Sixth Prince! Everyone stay away from him. Don't be fooled by his fairy-like appearance and soft smile. He is not someone you can easily mess with. Not long ago, Concubine Xi ran into him and was even confined by the Emperor. He was not even released during the New Year."
Has his reputation been spread to such a terrible extent as a little devil? But it's better this way, so he doesn't have to deal with them with a smile.
Finally arrived at the Cining Palace.
However, when Yinzuo was led into the hall by his brother, he found that his two sisters were also there.
"Greetings to Ukuma Mama."
The two little kids knelt together and kowtowed. They looked so well-behaved and sensible. Who wouldn't like them? The Empress Dowager immediately laughed and called out to them.
"Why are you here so early? You must be tired from the journey. Come on, serve some delicious food to the two young princes."
"Not tired at all~" Yinzuo was not talking nonsense, he was held in the arms the whole time and his feet did not even touch the ground, so how could he be tired?
"Thank you Ukuma Ma for gifting Xiaoliu with such a mighty Qilin. My brother and Su Malagu both said that Ukuma Ma wanted it to protect Xiaoliu, so Xiaoliu will also become a little Qilin to protect Ukuma Ma~" Yinzuo came here to express his gratitude, so naturally he had to do this first, so as not to forget it when eating later.
"Good boy, you are the best."
Before the food was served, Yinzuo shifted his gaze to a sister he had never seen before, sitting next to Ukuma Ma.
"Hello, Second Sister. Eh? This sister is so beautiful. Xiaoliu has never seen her before."
The second princess on the side said, "Why? I am not beautiful because I am your second sister?"
"No, no! Second sister is beautiful, this sister is beautiful, Ukuma is also beautiful, you are all prettier than Xiaoliu~"
"Ukuma Ma is old, how can she compare to your two younger sisters who are young and pretty? This is your eldest sister. When her biological mother was ill, she took care of her in Prince Gong's mansion. Speaking of which, Xiaoliu probably hasn't seen your eldest sister yet."
"Xiao Liu pays his respects to the eldest sister~"
"Yinzhen has met the eldest sister."
One of the brothers is naive and active, while the other is mature and quiet. The eldest princess thought: It's interesting that they are both born to Concubine De, but have completely different personalities.
"I came out to pay my respects to Grandma Ukuma today, but I didn't bring any gifts for my two brothers. I will make up for it when I go to Chengqian Palace to pay my respects to the Imperial Concubine another day. I hope my two brothers don't mind."
The eldest princess has a very good temper and speaks softly. After all, she is not the emperor's biological daughter, and is obviously different from the spoiled second princess.
"It's okay, my brother and Xiaoliu don't mind at all. However, it would be even better if the eldest princess is willing to change the gift into something delicious, hehe~"
With Yinzou by his side, Yinzhen avoided many situations where he had to speak. Yinzou was lively by nature and loved to interact with people, which was different from Yinzhen.
The Empress Dowager and Su Malagu both laughed.
"You've just met him, so you probably don't know, but he's a little glutton. Every time he comes back to my palace, his eyes seem to be glued to cakes." The Empress Dowager patted the eldest princess' hand beside her and joked with her.
The eldest princess was a little surprised, because there was no other prince in the palace with such a personality. After all, being gluttonous was not a good reputation. The Sixth Prince was particularly different. Not only was he not shy about it, even the Empress Dowager indulged him in it.
"Since Xiaoliu likes delicious food, I will make some cakes for you some other day, okay?"
Yinzuo nodded immediately, muttering: "Okay, okay~"
"You are in for a treat. Even your father praised your eldest sister's cooking skills."
"Then Xiaoliu will be even more looking forward to it~" Yinzuo smiled, and his dimples on both sides were revealed. His lively eyes seemed to have light, and he looked very cute.
The eldest princess could see the eager anticipation in his eyes, which showed that he really loved to eat from the bottom of his heart.
As they were talking, the food for the Cining Palace was brought up by the palace servants.
"It smells so good! The milk cake here from Ukuma is even more delicious than the one made in the imperial kitchen!" Yinzuo praised, and then couldn't wait to pick up a piece and start eating.
"If you like it, send someone to let me know and I'll have it made and sent to you. There's no need to come all the way here in person."
"No, it tastes best when it's fresh out of the oven. Could it be that Ukuma Ma doesn't like Xiaoliu to come often?" Yinzuo pouted, seeming a little sad.
"Look at you, of course I like you. I'm afraid you'll get tired. You're even angry with me. You're small but have a big temper. If you want to come, just ask the servants to carry you. I welcome you anytime."
The Grand Empress Dowager liked talking to this little girl the most. It was more interesting than talking to other juniors. This child really treated her as a close Ukuma Ma rather than the honorable Grand Empress Dowager of the Qing Dynasty.
Yinzuo then smiled again and continued to eat the snacks happily.
The two princesses saw how happily he was eating and for the first time, without caring about their manners, they could not help but pick up a piece and put it to their mouths. It really tasted delicious.
"Just as Xiaoliu said, this milk cake tastes very delicious." The eldest princess said with a smile.
"When I came to pay my respects to Ukuma Ma before, I just remembered to follow the rules and behave properly. This is the first time I'm eating this, and it's so delicious!" The second princess was a lively person, and her true nature was completely revealed when she opened her mouth.
"I originally thought that you girls didn't like to eat this. We are all family. When you come to my place, you don't have to follow the rules. Eat whatever you want. Look how happy Xiaoliu is eating."
The Empress Dowager loves her girls very much, so they can relax a little before they get married. In the future, princesses will have to be raised and raised. Going to a place thousands of miles away where they are unfamiliar with everyone will certainly not be as good as staying in the palace. Let them relax when they can.
"By the way, Xiaoliu, I heard that the emperor plans to invite all the ministers to attend the palace banquet during the Lantern Festival this year. At that time, the palace will be decorated with various lanterns. Do you want to come out and take a look with me?"
"Fourth brother comes too~" Yinzuo looked at his brother who hadn't said much since he came in.
"Um."
"It's more fun when there are more people. Can the eldest sister come too?"
"...Okay." The eldest princess naturally hopes to have a good relationship with her younger brothers and sisters. It is rare that the second princess takes the initiative to invite her.
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