Chapter 42 Chapter 42 Palace Maid's Forty-Two Days
The crying of the baby broke the tranquility in the room. The wet nurse quickly picked up the eldest prince, put him on her shoulder, patted his back and comforted him. With anxiety on her face, she even forgot to check if the eldest prince was feeling unwell or to feed him.
The only concern was to wake up the emperor who was sleeping on the couch.
Shen Qing looked worried when she heard the crying, and she also realized why the wet nurse was like that.
Now a quarter of an hour had passed since she left the couch. Although the time was short, it was indeed not good to be woken up, but it would be better to wake up now and go back to the Qianqing Palace to continue sleeping.
In order to prevent the Emperor from getting backaches while lying on the couch, they were waiting here in fear, and the eldest prince would have one less wet nurse to serve him.
So she spoke up to calm the nanny and said, "Don't worry, your duty is to take good care of the eldest prince, don't worry about anything else. First check if the eldest prince has urinated, he may be hungry, wait until he stops crying so urgently before feeding him."
The wet nurse said "good" twice and managed to calm down.
She had more experience than Shen Qing, and she was panicking because she was intimidated by the emperor's majesty. Today, when the emperor came to see the eldest prince, his face was very serious, and he even frowned, making people not know what to do with their hands and feet. He also asked her to stay and take care of the eldest prince, and the others went out. As a wet nurse, she would be under even greater pressure.
The emperor was woken up not long after he fell asleep. Even if it was because of the eldest prince's crying, it was still the wet nurse's fault.
Now that Shen Qing spoke, she suddenly remembered that Shen Qing had just gone behind the curtain and stayed with the emperor for a long time. Mainly, she had been thinking about this matter silently in her heart just now.
Slaves can be divided into those who are noticed by their masters and those who are completely ignored. The masters may even remember the names of the former and forgive them if they make mistakes, while the latter will not even have the chance to protest their innocence or defend themselves even if they are implicated.
Shen Qing is the former. The emperor trusts her and the empress is close to her. The most important eldest prince is handed over to her, and she does not have to run around. She just needs to watch others work. Generally, palace maids who can reach this status have been in the palace for decades, from a little palace maid to an aunt, and from an aunt to a nanny, before they can get a leisurely and decent job.
With Shen Qing standing in front, even if the emperor is angry, the punishment will not be too severe...
The wet nurse was thinking about this matter intently, and her hands were also swiftly cleaning up the dirt on the eldest prince's body. She changed him into clean clothes, held him in her arms to feed him, turned her back, and leaned towards Shen Qing.
It seems that only in this way can I feel at ease.
Even though she was several years older than Shen Qing, came from a good family, and was carefully selected to be a wet nurse in the palace, survival in the palace was not about this.
Seeing that the eldest prince had been coaxed, Shen Qing was relieved. Just now, the eldest prince's face was red from crying, and he looked very pitiful. Anyone would be worried, let alone her who had watched the eldest prince grow from a small boy to a slightly bigger boy.
The eldest prince fell silent while drinking milk, and then a voice came from behind the curtain: "Call Qian Ji in and help me wash up."
His voice was steady and even, as if he wasn't grouchy at all.
Shen Qing raised his voice and said yes, then went out to find Qian Ji.
No wonder she didn't see Qian Ji and others when she came back. It turned out that they were waiting in the tea room while drinking hot tea. The tea room was not in the direction she came back from. Even if the thick gray door curtain of the tea room was folded up to make it easier to hear when called, it was still out of her sight.
The palace maids from the Qianqing Palace went in to help the emperor wash and groom himself, and Shen Qing also called in a wet nurse to serve the eldest prince.
A baby is very troublesome, and one wet nurse is definitely not enough. Ji Chen wants to drive them out for peace and quiet. Does he expect Shen Qing to serve the eldest prince carefully? Let her go. There are four wet nurses, and she is not a big deal. She can only play the role of keeping an eye on them and giving orders.
As more and more people came in to serve, Shen Qing quietly did her job, thinking that so many people wouldn't notice her.
Fortunately, the emperor did not mention Shen Qing again until he left. He left the eldest prince's place surrounded by servants from the Qianqing Palace. Shen Qing stopped when he reached the doorstep, but turned around and went back to the eldest prince after a while.
At this time, the eldest prince, who had eaten and drunk his fill, stopped crying and making a fuss. Instead, he looked around with his bright eyes.
Such a well-behaved little guy, but the emperor didn’t even hug him when he left.
Surprised, Shen Qing picked up the toy next to him and started teasing the eldest prince, making him laugh out loud with a sound as sweet as a silver bell.
The nurse also said, "Just by listening to the eldest prince's voice, we can tell that he is in good health. No wonder the queen always rewards the people who serve him whenever she sees him."
The most proud palace maids in Kunning Palace are the ones who take care of the eldest prince. They will follow him wherever he goes, whether to the kitchen or anywhere else.
Fortunately, they lived up to the Queen's trust and raised the eldest prince to be fat and healthy. He has been three months old and has never been sick.
When the wet nurse saw that the eldest prince was not asleep, she started talking about this topic.
Shen Qing watched them chatting with a smile on her face, thinking, the Queen is worried about the eldest prince, and the imperial physician who is good at pediatrics comes to take the eldest prince's pulse every day. Even if the eldest prince wants to get sick, he has no chance. Besides, any wet nurse here is so experienced that they can tell him everything if the eldest prince frowns. When he leaves the palace again, he will definitely be a guest of honor in the homes of the powerful and wealthy.
Everyone in the palace is like this. Even if it is their own credit, they like to attribute it to their master, trying to prove that their master is excellent.
At this time, the thick door curtain was lifted, Qian Ji half exposed his body, and respectfully called out, "Miss Shen Qing."
Shen Qing turned his head and saw that it was Qian Ji, but Qian Ji had no intention of coming in, so he put down the things in his hands, said he would be right there, and walked out quickly.
Qian Ji held the door curtain and waited until Shen Qing came out before letting it go.
"But what did the emperor leave behind?" After the emperor left, Shen Qing had no time to go to the soft couch to check, and he stayed with the eldest prince until now.
Judging from the time Qian Ji took to go back and forth, he probably turned back in a hurry as soon as he arrived at the Palace of Heavenly Purity.
Qian Ji smiled and said, "It's not that I lost something, I just forgot to leave something for you."
As he spoke, he took out a long wooden box. On the box was a landscape painting carved by a craftsman. It was simple yet complex and very exquisite. The wood used was also golden nanmu. The box alone was worth collecting.
Only the emperor can afford such wealth.
Shen Qing didn't want to accept it at first. There was nothing between her and the emperor, and it was not for the eldest prince, so what would be the point of her keeping it?
But a light bulb went off in her head: beads! She thought of beads!
The emperor did not keep the beads!
Last time she said it would take three months, but now it's only been a month. Maybe she had slept so much on the couch that her head became numb and she forgot about it. When she remembered it, she had already arrived at the Palace of Heavenly Purity. She didn't want to make another trip, so she put the things into a savvy wooden box and asked Qian Ji to send it to her.
After all, it's not glorious, so we have to use something to cover it up.
Shen Qing pursed her lips and took the box. Since she knew everything, she didn't ask anything and just said, "Thank you for your trouble."
When Qian Ji saw Shen Qing took it, he took out a brown purse with a little dragon embroidered on it. Shen Qing had a good memory and recognized that this was the purse the emperor was wearing today.
"The emperor said that you know what's inside." Even though he didn't know what the emperor was talking about with Shen Qing, Qian Ji still had a smiling look on his face.
Shen Qing was confused. How could she know? Hadn't she already taken over the beads?
She looked at Qian Ji in confusion, not ready to take the purse.
Qian Ji waited patiently for her to react.
After a moment, Shen Qing reached out and pinched the purse. Inside was something familiar to her, something she could feel through various fabrics. After all, she had been wearing it for a month. Fortunately, the winter clothes were thick, so she couldn't see it even if she was very close to it.
Shen Qing lowered his head, wondering what was in the box?
All of a sudden, the thing in my hand felt heavy.
Her relationship with the emperor was not good enough for her to send gifts. Even if the queen gave her something, it was in the form of a reward. This box was more like a gift, without any reward or gift.
Shen Qing asked directly: "Eunuch Qian Ji, I am confused. What is in this box? Is it for me? Or did you misunderstand the emperor's intention?"
Qian Ji shook his head: "There is no need for the two of us to come here, I heard it clearly, it's all for you. Is there another palace maid named Shen Qing in Kunning Palace?"
"If not, that's right."
As for the instruction to give the box first and then the purse, there was no need to explain it so clearly to Shen Qing.
Qian Ji folded his hands. Since the things had been given away, there was no reason to bring them back to the Palace of Heavenly Purity.
Shen Qing would not let him fool around and pointed out: "No, the wooden box is wrong, the purse is right."
She put away her purse with one hand and handed the wooden box out with the other. Although she lived alone in a room, it was difficult to keep the emperor's things. A string of beads was enough to torment her.
Qian Ji still didn't stretch out his hand: "Speaking of purses, the emperor also said that Shen Qing, you are not good at sewing, how can you make things for the prince? He wants you to embroider a purse first to practice, and the style should be the same as this purse, and it must be exactly the same. Someone will deliver the silk thread later. Well, the emperor also said, thank you for your trouble."
The word "trouble" choked back Shen Qing's refusal, which he had not yet been able to utter. The last time he said "trouble" was when he refused to respond to the emperor's words.
Shen Qing: “…”
"…My embroidery skills are not very good, and I am afraid it will take me a long time to complete one. If I fail, will I not return the purse?"
She held the embroidery frame for a while, but someone noticed her.
Qian Ji said: "The emperor also said that as long as you don't get lazy, it's still a practice. You can embroider anything, no matter how long it takes, as long as you can see the finished product. If you can't embroider it for years, it shows that you are not sincere. If you are not sincere, how can you work for the eldest prince? And this purse must not be handed over to others. I believe the emperor knows the girl's skills."
Shen Qing was deflated and revealed a smile that was uglier than crying.
It's simply threatening the eldest prince.
There was no way she would give up such a good job, and she had to do it until she left the palace.
Isn't it just embroidering a purse? It's a palm-sized piece of cloth, and it doesn't take much effort. Since I know her skills, I can just fool her.
Humph.
Shen Qing snorted and laughed in his heart. Seeing that he couldn't refuse, he decisively agreed: "What are you talking about, eunuch? The emperor ordered me to do it. It won't take long for me to present the finished product with both hands."
As for dragons turning into snakes and snakes turning into insects, those were not within her consideration.
Qian Ji was naturally satisfied when he heard this. Now that Shen Qing said this, he had something to say when he returned to the Qianqing Palace.
At that moment, without Shen Qing's help, he made the excuse that the emperor couldn't leave without someone by his side and went back quickly.
The wooden box naturally remained in Shen Qing's hands, and Qian Ji did not give her any chance to return it.
Shen Qing took the things back to her room. Since the things were left behind, she opened them without any burden.
There was indeed the familiar string of beads in the purse - since the emperor came today, he would definitely not come to see the eldest prince tomorrow, so he should put it on in two days.
Shen Qing put the beads back into his pocket with a lucky hope.
Then he opened the wooden box, which was a push-pull type and very smooth, and a jeweled gold hairpin was revealed.
Shen Qing took it in his hand and examined it in shock. The two strands of the gold hairpin were engraved with slightly raised patterns. The head of the hairpin was a butterfly with flapping wings coiled around fine gold threads. The four wings and body of the butterfly were inlaid with blue-green gems, which instantly made the vulgarity of gold look much more elegant.
This hairpin is both intricate and beautiful, and the butterfly looks so agile that it seems to be about to fly away. Just by looking at it, one can imagine how much effort the craftsman put into making this showpiece that can be passed down from generation to generation.
If you had told me this treasure earlier, would she have refused?
Even if you give her a hundred pieces, she would still accept them!
It's a pity that this gold hairpin and the jade hairpin on the head do not match in temperament and cannot be worn together.
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