Upon learning that the Princess Consort had devised this plan—to have everyone in the Prince's mansion who knew how to make riddles write them down and stick them on a wooden frame in the garden for everyone to enjoy—it became clear that everyone in the mansion, regardless of rank, came to join in the fun.
The maidservant serving Zhang Gege was the happiest. Previously, she had looked down on the princess for always carrying a book of poems, reading it day and night. She thought those things were neither food nor clothing, just a pastime for rich people. Who would have thought she would have such good fortune now?
She quickly fetched a lot of paper and pens, her face beaming with excitement as she bustled about: "Princess! My dear Princess! Now your chance has come! As long as you do well on the riddles, the Princess will reward you handsomely! If you can truly catch the Princess's eye, we'll have someone to rely on in the future!"
Zhang Gege was also very excited, but this was not in line with her usual image as a refined and talented woman, so she only showed a faint expression on her face, but was overjoyed inside.
As she took the pen from the maid, she still spoke in a tone of voice: "Alas, this Prince's mansion is full of hidden talents, and I may not be the only one who stands out. Don't talk nonsense."
The young maid knew perfectly well that she was always saying one thing and meaning another, so she smiled and flattered her, "Who doesn't know that our Princess Zhang is the most talented? She can publish a collection of poems every year, which is something those fools can't compare to. My dear princess, you should be serious and do two good things so that they will all envy you!"
As they were talking, Zhang Gege stopped being coy and immediately started writing four or five poems, which she had already prepared in her mind!
When Gao Gege heard this news, she was furious. She had just become so fluent in Manchu and Chinese, so why did she have to do riddles again? She didn't know how to do them, and she was unwilling to see others take the lead, so she ran over to find Zhang Gege again.
Having lived together for so many years, the two had developed some affection for each other, so she begged Zhang Gege to write one for her, and she would exchange it for a special moisturizing cream from North Korea.
After enduring her flattery for a while, Zhang Gege finally "reluctantly" agreed.
Not only were they excited, but the children were also very excited.
They had only ever played the lantern riddle game in the palace before. While it was available in the markets outside, they had to go to the palace every year for the Lantern Festival. Fortunately, this year the Emperor decreed that they didn't need to go to the palace for the New Year's banquet, so they could finally celebrate the festival peacefully at home.
Hongmin and Hongchen will be three years old after the New Year, reaching the age to start school and receive their early education. Yinzhen will take them to live in the front courtyard.
Yinzhen specially chose adjacent rooms for his two younger brothers.
Like their two older brothers, the two little ones were doing well. They went to school happily, played with their brothers, and every three or four days they would go back to the main courtyard to be pampered by their mother. Their days were very fulfilling.
They were all chattering around Changning, like they were in kindergarten.
"Mother! The lights outside are so big! So beautiful!" Hongchen grabbed Changning's hand, wanting to take her outside to see them.
Hongmin grabbed Changning's other hand: "Mother! Mother! It's cold outside! Put on some clothes!"
Changning smiled and patted her two sons' little faces: "Good boy, Hongmin and Hongchen know it's cold outside and they need to wear clothes, right? Do you want to wear clothes too?"
They both nodded, and then went to get dressed by the wet nurse.
Hongzhao watched from the side and laughed: "Mother, my brothers are so annoying! They're like little ducks, always following me and my brother around."
Changning tapped Hongzhao's forehead with her finger: "And you still dare to talk! Didn't you draw a big turtle on Hongmin's back last time?"
Hongzhao stuck out his tongue and quickly ran away: "I'm a big kid now! I can't play with little brats!"
Changning rolled her eyes at him: "Little kid? Aren't you a little kid too?"
Saying he's seven or eight years old is just asking for trouble.
Hongzhao is at that age now, and he has a kind of adolescent angst that makes him feel like the world is his own. Changning has to keep an eye on him from time to time, afraid that he will end up like the Fourteenth Prince.
She didn't have the magnanimity of Consort De, who was kind and gentle to unruly children.
Hongyan has grown into a tall and handsome young man, with the air of a gentleman. Changning felt a sense of satisfaction upon seeing him.
Today is the Lantern Festival, and Changning invited Honghui and Yierha over again to have some fun together.
When she saw Honghui, she noticed how thin he was and couldn't help but worry: "Honghui, have you not been eating properly these past few days?"
Honghui gave a handsome smile: "Mother Chun, you don't need to worry. I just feel cold in winter, so I wore more clothes, which makes me look thinner."
"You should still eat the nourishing medicinal food I've prepared for you every day." Changning didn't say much more. All she could do for Honghui was take care of his health. His daily life was taken care of by others, and Yinzhen was also watching over his physical and mental well-being.
She already has enough children of her own, and simply doesn't have the energy to take care of each one.
Yierha is already fourteen years old, and Yinzhen plans to ask the Emperor for permission next year to arrange a marriage when she comes of age.
When Yinzhen arrived at the main courtyard, he found that everyone was there. Apart from the triplets who had gone to bed early, even Hongyang was dressed in bright red and looked particularly energetic, clapping and laughing in Changning's arms.
Upon seeing him, the children rushed forward, calling out "Father!" Hongyang also shouted "Father!" very loudly.
Yinzhen was overjoyed to hear this.
"Let's take a look at those riddles. I just came over and saw quite a few." Yinzhen picked up Hongyang and led everyone to the garden.
There's another room over there, a place to rest and enjoy the sights. Right now, there's a charcoal brazier burning, making it warm and cozy inside.
Along the way, everyone saw that the garden was decorated with novel and beautiful things everywhere. There were various kinds of ornaments and exquisite ice sculptures carved by special craftsmen. They were all paired with the colorful palace lanterns, making it a fairyland.
After it was finished, Changning instructed people to bring the wooden frame over, and then led the children to guess any remaining riddles.
There were a few that were indeed well-written, and Changning instructed Zhao Fuhai to write down their names as a reward. There were also a few with crooked and messy characters, and Changning frowned when he saw them: "This was written by Hongchen? Your handwriting is the worst."
Hongchen chuckled and tugged at her sleeve: "I wrote it very carefully! It's not bad!"
"You, you need to study harder now that you're in school."
Unlike Changning, Yinzhen was not as kind and gentle. He directly punished Hongchen by making him write ten large characters the next day.
He couldn't bear to look at this broken character; he couldn't understand it. Could it be that Hongchen wrote it with his feet?
Hongchen's face immediately fell, but he dared not disobey his father's wishes.
Since he started school, his father was no longer the father who could give him a big horse ride.
Hongmin covered his mouth and chuckled to himself. The two of them had a love-hate relationship, gloating over each other's misfortunes, but they were also willing to help each other when there was a real problem.
They guessed one riddle after another. Changning opened one and saw that it read, "A life of hardship followed by happiness."
That's interesting. It should be the character for "tea".
Upon turning it over, I saw that the signature was Zhang.
It was her.
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