Chapter 137 I choose myself and marry the Sixth Princess, and then I am promoted to Beizi,...
He was granted marriage with the Sixth Princess and promoted to Beizi. Such a great favor moved Celeng to tears and he immediately bowed his head to express his gratitude.
Emperor Kangxi asked Celeng to stand up and told him, "After you return to your hometown, you should guard the northern desert like Tushetu Khan and his men. From now on, we are all family. If you have any difficulties, just go find your fourth sister and her husband."
Emperor Kangxi turned his head slightly and looked at Muxue. He rarely called her by her name, and said lovingly, "Elunzhu, you are now very important in the Mobei grassland. Please help your sixth sister and her husband when the time comes."
The original homeland of the Celeng family also belonged to the territory of the Tushetu Khanate. However, he had been in Beijing for many years and had not returned, so those pastures were probably occupied by someone else. It would take some effort to sort them out.
Mu Xue subconsciously glanced at Dorji, who was sitting next to her. He was smiling modestly. Noticing her gaze, he said nothing, but his hands behind his back quietly moved closer to hers. In the dark under the brocade table, his fingertips found her hand and slowly closed in on it.
Thanks to the cover of the brocade, no one noticed that Mu Xue's tense shoulders relaxed slightly.
A smile appeared on her face: "Please rest assured, Khan Ama, I will help you settle it."
The scent of lamb wine mixed with the smell of grass after being dried in the sun lingered on the tip of the nose. After the feast, we set up camp on the spot and waited for the next day's dawn to set off.
After sending the Mongolian prince Taiji out of the city, Muxue and the other princes served Kangxi into the big tent. Kangxi was also a little tired, and looked around at his children: "Where is the prince?"
The eldest prince immediately reported: "The prince just ate for a long time, and he is probably fast asleep in his tent now."
Emperor Kangxi frowned and said, "He has been drinking more and more excessively recently. It is disgraceful for him to be so drunk in front of so many Mongolian princes and nobles."
The eldest prince stopped talking. The Thirteenth Prince looked a little unhappy. He wanted to defend the Crown Prince, but he couldn't think of a decent excuse.
At this time, Emperor Kangxi caught a glimpse of the Eighteenth Prince standing behind him. He was young and it was his first time to accompany Emperor Kangxi on a long journey. His face was also red, and it was obvious that he had drunk too much.
"How many drinks did you have? You all look drunk."
The Eighteenth Prince came forward dazedly and said in a childish voice, "I was very happy to see everyone riding horses and wrestling today, so I drank two more glasses of wine."
The eldest prince added: "He was sitting behind the prince just now. Maybe he was in high spirits and drank a few more glasses of wine."
Emperor Kangxi could tell that the eldest prince was complaining in a veiled way, but he didn't want to get angry, so he just said, "Don't do this in the future. You are young, and you drank so much. What if you get sick when you set off tomorrow morning and get caught in the wind? Baoqing, the same goes for you. Since you saw it, why didn't you try to persuade him? What's the point of talking after the fact now?"
The eldest prince said, "I have made note of this, but my advice may not be of any use."
Emperor Kangxi was too lazy to pay attention to him and ordered the imperial physician to prepare more sobering soup and send it to the Crown Prince and the Eighteenth Prince later.
Everyone left only after Emperor Kangxi had rested.
Mu Xue slowly walked out of the Man City and saw thousands of tents lit up with lights.
After leaving Mancheng, the night on the grassland finally became even darker, and silence enveloped the vast wilderness. Muxue stood on the grass for a while, letting the evening breeze blow through her hair. The evening breeze on the grassland was a little cool. Her followers also stood quietly behind her.
After standing for a while, Mu Xue finally walked towards her tent.
Yunqi Qiuhua were both in the tent. When they saw the princess come in, they immediately stood up and congratulated her.
"Congratulations, Princess, on your promotion to Princess Gulun. This shows how much His Majesty values you." Yunqi said happily.
According to the Qing system, the daughters of concubines were given the title of Heshuo Princess when they got married, which was equivalent to a county king. Only the daughters of the empress were given the title of Gulun Princess, which was equivalent to a county king. Only with special favors could one be promoted to the next level. The fourth princess was able to be promoted from Heshuo Princess to Gulun Princess because of her achievements in stabilizing the area since she married into Mobei.
Mu Xue smiled and sat on the couch: "It is indeed a happy event."
I would have been even happier if nothing had happened later.
Yunqi observed her expression and combined it with what he had heard. He had an idea in his mind. After the palace maids serving tea left the tent, he lowered his voice and asked, "Princess, do you seem worried?"
At this time, the tent was full of Mu Xue's confidants. She curled her lips and said, "I'm thinking about my situation."
Although Dorji also followed his wife's example and rose from a Heshuo prince consort to a Gulun prince consort, Celeng's sudden return obviously brought another force to the Tushetu Khanate, or in the northern desert.
This was a silent wake-up call for Mu Xue. She and Dorji, Tushetu Khan of Mobei and the princess of the Qing court, were in the final analysis a political marriage. Although the situation at this time was far from being as serious as a war, the weighing of interests and calculations always existed.
She couldn't help but smile bitterly. When she was young, she hated these impure things the most. But the world always mixed up.
Yunqi whispered, "Your Majesty also wants to take this opportunity to warn you. It is indeed a bit difficult. My father's family and my husband's family always have their own thoughts."
The princess's embarrassment was understandable. His Majesty was her father, the source of all her confidence. If she had a mediocre relationship with her husband like other Fumeng princesses, there would be nothing to say. Naturally, the interests of the Qing court would come first. But Tushetu Khan treated the princess very well, and the two of them had a very good relationship. It was hard to say that she completely ignored her husband.
Seeing the princess in a dilemma, Xiao Luan said, "Although it is difficult, the princess must think clearly about her own priorities, her husband's family or her father's family. Who should be prioritized?"
Xiaoluan had a personal experience of this. During the Three Feudatories Rebellion, she had just married and had lived with her husband's family for only two years, but according to the law, she was sent to be a slave as a wife of her husband's family. Her father's family couldn't bear to see her being humiliated, and perhaps they didn't want their own reputation to be tarnished, so they gave her a chance to lose with dignity. She refused. From then on, they lost contact.
Xiaoluan was angry when she thought about it. As a woman, she felt like she had no home. She lived in her father's house for more than ten years, and in her husband's house for a few more years, and then in her son's house. She had severed all these relationships. Fortunately, Yunqi Qiuhua and other sisters still cared about her and took her to Guihua. With the grace of the princess, she was given a house and a way to make a living, which allowed her to establish her own family. Because of this, Xiaoluan only hoped that the princess would be smooth and safe.
After hearing Xiao Luan's words, the princess did not answer directly, but just murmured "husband's family" and "father's family" twice, and then asked: "Then what do you think?"
Xiao Luan bowed and said, "Based on the princess's situation and the overall situation, it is best to put His Majesty first and stand on the side of my father's family. There is an allusion in the Spring and Autumn Period, 'A man can be a husband, but his father is the only one.'"
As she spoke, she felt that this story was a bit inappropriate. In the Spring and Autumn Period, it was true that if a husband died, she could pick any man to be her husband, but she could only have one father. But according to today's rules, there can only be one husband, and she must be faithful to him for life. Why is it getting more and more ridiculous?
Yunqi saw Xiaoluan suddenly got stuck, and continued: "Now the Tushetu Khanate has submitted to the Qing Dynasty and dares not make any unusual moves. You have also lived in Guihua City for a long time instead of Kulun in Mobei. In this case, it is natural that you prefer your father's family."
Husband's family, father's family...choose one side, right?
Mu Xue sneered.
"Why should I choose between my husband's family and my father's family? If I have to choose one side, then-"
She raised her head, her eyes bright, the candlelight shone on her face, dancing with orange-red light.
"I choose myself. I'll always stand by me."
As Princess Fumeng's duty and out of her friendship with Dorji, she would try her best to take it into consideration, but she would always stand on her side.
After briefly explaining a few things that Celeng needed to sort out when he returned to his hometown, Mu Xue asked everyone to leave and have a sleep first.
I didn’t sleep well before, so I felt sleepy and fell into a deep sleep without having any dreams.
It was not until Rong'er came to urge her, saying that it was almost dawn, that Muxue got up, yawned, got dressed, and went to Mancheng where Emperor Kangxi lived to wait.
At dawn, Emperor Kangxi returned to the palace, and Mu Xue accompanied him for a long distance.
"Okay, it's getting late, you should go back. Otherwise, it will be dark by the time you return if you keep going."
Emperor Kangxi reined in his horse and said to her, "I know you are a gentle person with a strong heart. You have your own ideas, which is good. I believe you will handle things properly."
"My daughter will remember Khan Ama's teachings."
The holy chariot moved forward majestically, getting farther and farther away.
Mu Xue rode on the horse until she reached the end of the grassland and could no longer see the shadow of the emperor, then she turned her horse around.
Dorji turned his horse's head according to her movement, and the two rode side by side.
Amid the clatter of horse hooves, Dorji suddenly said, "Look, the golden lotus over there is blooming beautifully."
Muxue looked in the direction he pointed, and sure enough, there was a large patch of golden lotus swaying in the wind on the grass over there.
Memories are easily evoked by the same objects. When she looked at the golden lotus, it seemed to overlap with the one she saw when she first got married.
She pulled the reins to make the horse walk slowly, staring at the golden lotus in a daze.
The next moment, a gust of wind blew around him for no reason. It turned out that Dorji was riding his horse and galloping out. His robe was blown slightly by the wind, and he was dressed in bright clothes and riding a vigorous horse.
Once again he picked a large bunch of golden lotus flowers for her.
Mu Xue took it with a smile: "I haven't said anything yet, go pick the flowers first."
"I wanted to give you this as a token of my love." Dorji's eyes fell on her. "Your smile is finally more genuine this time."
Muxue lowered her head, put the flower on the saddle, and slowly drove the horse forward. Dorji glanced back and signaled everyone to move away.
So the two men on two horses led the followers for a distance, walking on the vast grassland.
"You don't need to be embarrassed." Dorji said, "It's just that one more family has returned. Celeng was my old friend. I'm happy that he can come back."
"I know, I'm just afraid that you will be embarrassed."
"It's inevitable," Dorji laughed, "I'll take care of my own business, don't underestimate me."
Mu Xue nodded and smiled: "Okay."
They rode side by side back to the princess's mansion, getting along as usual, and calmly discussing the resettlement of Celeng's old place. Mobei was vast and sparsely populated, so it was not difficult to reorganize the area.
A few days later, a messenger suddenly arrived at the princess's residence on a galloping horse, dismounted, revealed his identity, and hurriedly reported that the eighteenth prince fell ill on his way back to the palace, and asked the doctor in Guihua City if he had any good medicine, as soon as possible.
Mu Xue hurriedly led Doctor Qiuhua, Doctor Zhang and other good doctors, loaded two carts with medicinal materials, and rushed to the place where Emperor Kangxi was temporarily staying.
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