After some time, the Emperor and the Empress Dowager returned to Beijing. There were many pregnant concubines in the palace now, so everyone just went to the palace gate to greet them, stood for a while, greeted the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, and then went back to the palace. Yinzuo didn't even get the chance to ask his father for the golden lotus. If his father forgot, he didn't want anything else, just a real "golden" lotus as compensation.
After Kangxi took a short rest, the first place he went to was the Chengqian Palace of the Imperial Noble Consort.
"Your Majesty, I respectfully welcome you."
"No need to bow, just sit down and talk." Kangxi took two steps at a time, supported the imperial concubine's arms, and looked at her belly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. You have worked hard on this journey. I heard that Mount Wutai has beautiful scenery and is full of holy monks. Unfortunately, I am burdened by this baby in my belly and do not have the blessing to accompany Your Majesty on this journey."
"It's okay. There will be plenty of opportunities in the future. Wouldn't it be better to take our little prince with us?" Kangxi's tone sounded as if he really hoped that this was a prince.
The Imperial Concubine lowered her eyes, her heart tightening. She had been accompanying the Emperor for more than ten years, and she knew that accompanying the Emperor was like accompanying a tiger. Even though the Tong family was the Emperor's maternal family, the Emperor was also wary of the dictatorship of foreign relatives. If she gave birth to a prince, it would inevitably involve a fight for the throne in the future, and this was not what the Emperor wanted to see.
Tong Jia smiled and stroked her belly, saying softly: "I hope it's a princess. Xiaoliu has always wanted a well-behaved and lovely sister, and I also think a daughter is more caring."
"That's good too. As long as it's our child, whether it's a prince or a princess, I like them all. By the way, what about Xiaoliu?"
"I went to play in the Prince's Palace."
Kangxi nodded and chatted with the Imperial Concubine about what he saw and heard in Mount Wutai.
"My Royal Highness, Xiaoliu is back~~"
Before anyone saw him, they heard his voice. Kangxi and the Imperial Noble Consort stopped talking and smiled at each other.
"This Xiaoliu, during the time I was away, he was like a wild horse that had broken free from its reins. From hearing his loud voice, I can tell that he is in good spirits."
Yinzuo saw an old acquaintance at the door. He stopped and said with a smile, "Long time no see, Eunuch Liang~"
"I pay my respects to the Sixth Prince and the Fourth Prince. The Emperor is inside. Please go in quickly, both princes."
The Sixth Prince was the easiest to get along with. Although he wasn't seen very often, he would always greet him every time he saw him. Liang Jiugong liked him from the bottom of his heart.
"The Emperor really cares about me the most. He must have come to fulfill his promise!" Yinzuo ran into the hall with full anticipation.
"Greetings to the Emperor~"
Kangxi heard everything Yinzuo said outside just now. He was embarrassed because he really didn't remember the agreement with Yinzuo. He even forgot the name of that stupid flower, let alone bringing it back to Yinzuo from thousands of miles away.
Kangxi coughed twice and then asked his two sons to stand up.
Yinzuo immediately threw himself into the arms of his father, tilted his head back, looked at him expectantly with starry eyes, and asked, "Father, where is the golden lotus?"
"...Liang Jiugong!" Kangxi intended to divert the blame.
Liang Jiugong, who was waiting at the door, walked in quickly and asked, "Your Majesty, are you calling me your servant?"
"Where is the golden lotus that I brought back for the Sixth Prince?" Kangxi glanced at Liang Jiugong while the little guy in his arms was not paying attention.
Liang Jiugong was an old man around Kangxi, so he naturally understood it immediately. When the emperor was in Mount Wutai, he didn't remember the golden lotus.
"I asked the servants who accompanied you to put them away, but Your Majesty you just came back and the things haven't been sorted out yet. I'm afraid it will take some time to find them." Liang Jiugong pretended to be embarrassed.
The Imperial Noble Consort and Yinzhen at the side understood in their hearts that the Emperor had probably forgotten and was teaming up with Liang Jiugong to fool Xiao Liu. However, they could not say anything at this time. The more important thing was that if Xiao Liu knew the truth, he would be very sad, so they all spoke out to help cover it up.
"Xiao Liu, this time your Royal Father and your Ukumama went to Mount Wutai together and brought a lot of things. It will naturally take some time and effort to pack up so many things. We just need to wait patiently for some time." The Imperial Concubine comforted him with a smile.
"But what if the golden lotus withers if it's not taken care of for too long? It's the beginning of summer now, and those flowers and plants are most likely to rot and wither." Yinzuo pouted a little worried.
"No, even if one or two wither, they won't all be ruined. I'll plant them with you then." Yinzhen also spoke up.
"How about this, if you are not satisfied at that time, I will send someone to Mount Wutai again, and ride as fast as possible to bring back some intact golden lotus for you, okay?" Kangxi suddenly had an idea and thought of a way to remedy the situation.
Yinzuo nodded and said, "Okay then~"
Of course, half a month later, when Yinzuo met his royal father again and asked about this matter, the answer he got was that all the flowers had died. He had already sent someone to Mount Wutai to bring back a batch of flowers, which would arrive at the palace soon.
Since the emperor has returned to the palace, all government affairs should naturally be handed back. Now there are two people working hard at their desks in Yuqing Palace, one is the prince and the other is Yinzhen. As for Yinzuo, he is completely free. He enjoys the ice in the prince's ration every day, eats fresh fruits, and occasionally asks the prince for a small snack. Although he can't eat to his heart's content, it can at least satisfy his craving.
In June, the Imperial Concubine launched the rebellion.
Unfortunately, after the child was born, she looked extremely weak, and her crying was not even as loud as a kitten's meow. The imperial concubine was extremely nervous, and she stayed with this little princess who was finally born all day long.
Yinzuo had not been able to speak to his Imperial Mother for more than ten days. Every time he paid his respects to her through the door outside the palace. Today, he and his brother came to the main hall again.
"Is the Imperial Mother okay? Is my Eighth Sister okay?" Yinzuo asked the maid standing outside the palace.
The maid hesitated for a moment before nodding.
"Sixth Prince, don't worry too much. The Queen is fine, and the little princess is also fine."
Yinzhen frowned when he heard this. Yinzuo was a little at a loss and could only turn to look at his brother and let him make the decision.
"In that case, go in later and tell the Royal Noble Mother that the Sixth Prince and I have come to pay our respects to her."
The maid bent her knees slightly and said, "Don't worry, Fourth Prince. I will report this to the Empress."
At this moment, a cry of surprise suddenly came from inside: "Little Princess! Little Princess! Go and get the imperial physician!"
The door was opened from the inside and a eunuch came out. He didn't even have time to greet the two brothers before he ran away in the blink of an eye.
Yinzuo was a little scared. He couldn't help but grab his brother's sleeve and leaned closer to him. The seventh sister born by his mother last time was also in poor health. One day she suddenly disappeared from the palace. The eighth sister seemed to be in even worse condition than the seventh sister.
Yinzhen noticed his movements, took his hand and said to him, "Don't be afraid, brother is here."
"Brother, I...I want to go in and see the Royal Mother and Eighth Sister. Can you come with me?"
Yinzuo was afraid that if he didn't go in to take a look, he would never see her again. The imperial physician said that the eighth sister was weak and strangers should not get close to her. He had only seen her once from a distance on the day she was born.
"Little Six, be good. Let's wait here for a while. When the doctor has examined Eighth Sister and the situation is better, we can talk to the Imperial Noble Mother about it."
Yinzhen was afraid that the Imperial Mother would blame Xiaoliu for the death of the Eighth Sister. After the Eighth Sister was born in the previous life, the Imperial Mother did not allow anyone to get close to her. A new palace maid came in to clean the house, and coincidentally, the Eighth Sister died the next day. In the end, the innocent palace maid was secretly executed by the Imperial Mother.
After all, it was the Imperial Concubine's oral order, so how could the people from the Imperial Hospital dare to delay? Not long after, an imperial physician carrying a medicine box ran in, panting.
The door was open. Yinzuo had good eyesight, so he quietly poked his head in and stretched his neck to look inside. He saw Eighth Sister being held on the couch. The imperial physician took a long needle and poked it into Eighth Sister's body, poking more than ten times in a row.
"Brother! How could the imperial physician poke my eighth sister with a needle? It would definitely hurt my eighth sister! Why didn't the Royal Mother stop him?" Yinzuo anxiously pulled his brother's arm and threw out several questions.
Yinzhen patted his back and explained to him: "That's acupuncture, it's used to treat diseases, it doesn't hurt."
Half-believing and half-doubting, Yinzuo quickly continued to lean on the door frame to peek inside.
"My Lady Imperial Concubine, the little princess is fine now. She just needs to take good care of herself. It's a hot summer day now, so the palace should be ventilated frequently. It's not good for the little princess to be stuffy all the time."
"I am worried and confused. I am in confinement now and cannot see the wind. I am also worried about the little princess. I will always feel uneasy if I don't see her in person. I never thought that it would almost cause a disaster. Thank you very much, imperial physician, today."
"You are too polite, Your Majesty. This is my humble servant's job. I will take my leave now."
When Tong Jia watched the imperial physician leave, she suddenly spotted Xiao Liu leaning against the door. When he saw her, he waved at her happily, and his pure eyes lit up. Tong Jia felt a little guilty because she hadn't seen the two brothers for a long time because of the little princess's safety.
"Xiaoliu, come in with your brother." Tong Jia smiled and hooked her finger at him as she did before.
Yinzuo immediately pulled his brother and walked inside impatiently, but he did not dare to get close to his eighth sister and stood still three steps away.
He called out obediently: "My dear mother, Xiaoliu misses you so much~~"
Tong Jia continued to beckon him, and said with a smile: "Come here, come to me, let me take a good look at you."
Yinzuo bit his lower lip lightly and then walked to the Imperial Concubine's bed.
Tong Jia pinched his little face and said with some concern: "Why have you lost so much weight? The flesh on your face has been reduced, but you are picky about food again?"
Yinzuo was very worried when he saw that the Imperial Concubine had bulging cheeks, sunken eye sockets, and a pale face, which was in stark contrast to the plump and healthy appearance of his mother when she was in confinement after giving birth to his seventh sister.
"The Imperial Mother is even thinner than Little Six. The Imperial Mother is the one who doesn't eat well. If the Imperial Mother doesn't take good care of herself, how can she take care of Eighth Sister?" Yinzuo said angrily.
Tong Jia, who was disciplined by the child, said with a smile: "Okay, okay, I will listen to Xiaoliu and eat well. Xiaoliu will also be good."
Tong Jia rubbed Yinzhen's head again and said to him, "Xiao Si, you have to keep a good eye on him for me. If he doesn't behave himself, I will punish him after I am out of confinement."
"Yinzhen will take good care of his brother for the Royal Noble Mother, please rest assured."
Although he already knew what was going to happen next, Yinzhen was powerless. He could not change anything. His eighth sister was weak and he could not keep her. His imperial mother was sad and he could not help her. He could only watch.
Yinzuo stood on tiptoe and kissed the Royal Mother gently on the face, then said very sensibly: "Royal Mother, the nanny said that you can't work too hard during the confinement period. Royal Mother, lie down and rest quickly. Xiaoliu will wait for you obediently."
When the Imperial Concubine heard these words, she was both happy and sad. She had not been able to take care of her two children these days, but the children still cared about her and missed her. Her eyes immediately became moist.
"Good children, both of you are good children, so go ahead." The imperial concubine didn't want the children to see her losing her composure.
Yinzuo walked halfway and suddenly turned back and said to her: "My dear mother, you must be well, and my eighth sister must be well too~"
"Yes." The imperial concubine nodded with a smile while shedding tears, and she agreed.
No matter how carefully she was taken care of, the Eighth Princess still did not live to see her full month, and Tong Jia fell ill again before she was out of confinement.
Yinzuo never left Chengqian Palace again, and ran to the bedside of the Imperial Concubine early every day.
"Royal Mother, are you awake?" Yinzuo opened the bed curtain, stuck his little head in, and asked in a very low voice.
Tong Jia, who had been pretending to be asleep with her eyes closed, had to open her eyes and wiped the corners of her eyes inadvertently.
"Xiao Liu, didn't I tell you? You don't have to get up so early and come to me. You can sleep a little longer. Didn't you love sleeping in before?"
"Xiaoliu has slept enough. Could it be that the Royal Mother dislikes Xiaoliu coming too often?" Yinzuo asked her pitifully with his big eyes open.
The Imperial Concubine quickly sat up, touched his little face, and explained: "How could that be! I have never disliked Xiaoliu! Then what shall we do today?" She immediately changed the subject.
"My dear lady, please get up and dress first, then Xiaoliu will tell you~"
"You're still keeping me in suspense. Never mind. I'll just do as you say."
After experiencing the pain of losing her daughter, the imperial concubine was completely hopeless and fell ill. Unexpectedly, this little guy was like a little housekeeper, coming every day to urge her to eat and take medicine, read poems to her, tell jokes to her, and later even dress up for her, saying that he wanted to give her a surprise. The makeup she put on... Let's not talk about it. From then on, she was not so depressed.
"The Imperial Concubine is so beautiful~" Yinzuo did not hesitate to praise the Imperial Concubine who had just finished dressing up.
Tong Jia laughed and scolded: "You are so smooth-talking. Why do you insist on me dressing up today?"
"My dear lady, drink the medicine first~"
"I am already well. The medicine is very bitter, so please don't drink it!"
"That won't do! The imperial physician didn't say that we can stop taking the medicine. If the royal mother doesn't drink it, the disease won't be completely cured. If the royal mother can't get better, Xiao Liu will be sad, and when Xiao Liu is sad, he wants to cry~"
As he spoke, Yinzuo's eyes were filled with tears.
Tong Jia quickly wiped his tears, and then said softly: "Okay, okay! I'll drink, okay? Xiaoliu, please don't cry, your crying is breaking my heart."
Yinzuo was also a man of extraordinary talent. His tears stopped as soon as they came. Then he looked at the medicine bowl held by the maid, and then looked at the Imperial Concubine. His meaning was obvious.
The imperial concubine hardened her heart, picked up the medicine bowl and drank it all, then frowned and covered her mouth with a handkerchief.
"Xiao Liu invites the Royal Mother to eat some sour and sweet plums~" Yinzuo had already taken a plum from his pouch and held it high in his hand.
The imperial concubine squatted down very skillfully and let him feed her.
"These plums taste a little more sour than yesterday's."
"Really? Then I'll ask Shunshui to go to the imperial kitchen and get a box of sweets~"
"That's not necessary, so you don't have to eat too much and get a toothache later." The imperial concubine deliberately made fun of him.
"Oh~ The Royal Mother saw through me~~" Yinzuo had a look of regret on his face.
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