Chapter 1 The Wedding
(This is a parallel universe, a fictional time-travel story, not a historical one.)
In the beautiful spring of March, the wind rolling down the mountain gently caresses the tender green grass, and some tenacious, nameless wildflowers are budding and waiting to bloom despite the lingering chill.
A young man rode a fine horse, cheering as he crossed the meadow, his whip raised high, piercing the sunlight.
"Sister, sister!"
In the direction the galloping horse was heading, not far away by the stream, a group of horses grazed and leisurely swished their tails.
Several men who looked like guards were patrolling the area.
Within the patrolling circle, maids grilled meat, filling the air with the aroma of freshly roasted meat.
Following his voice, a girl sitting on a blanket in the very center of the crowd turned her head.
The girl was eleven or twelve years old, with an oval face and eyes that were clearer and brighter than the stream behind her.
Upon hearing this, the little girl stood up.
She was tall and slender with a slim waist. Her outstretched arms lifted her skirt as she took a few steps toward the young man riding towards her on horseback.
"elder brother!"
"You actually came back at this time! Why didn't you tell me beforehand?!"
The young man reined in his horse and dismounted, casually tossing aside the reins.
His handsome face was adorned with a hearty smile.
It was early spring, but the young man was already wearing a single shirt, which outlined his tall figure.
In his presence, Jialuo didn't seem like a younger sister, but rather like a daughter.
However, the age gap between the two siblings was large, which was common in ancient times, let alone on the grasslands.
The young man walked up to her, and before Jialuo could even bow, she felt her waist tighten as he grabbed her and lifted her up.
Her heart tightened suddenly, and she instinctively reached out and grabbed her brother's wrist tightly.
Sure enough, my gaze suddenly shifted.
The azure sky, the lush green grass, and the stream reflecting the surrounding scenery all rippled before her eyes.
For a moment, I couldn't distinguish between heaven and earth.
The sounds of maids laughing and guards cheering filled the air, carrying with them the vastness and unbridled spirit of the grasslands.
But what she heard most often was her brother's hearty laughter.
Jialuo was also happy; she liked it here.
Freedom, happiness.
She involuntarily closed her eyes, stretched her body, and opened her arms.
Enjoying the free wind, the warm sunshine, and the joy of those around me.
"Hehe, little sister."
When the young man put her down, there was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead.
"Brother, you've returned from your trip to the capital so quickly this time."
Jialuo sat on the felt rug, looking at her brother with a smile, and handed him the embroidered handkerchief in her hand so that he could wipe her sweat.
"Because this time things went exceptionally smoothly."
The young man took the embroidered handkerchief and wiped his face with it.
He smiled at her with an exceptionally bright smile.
"Sister, you are the brightest pearl on our grassland! You are like the purest snowflake on the mountain peak, and you will be the most dazzling queen of our Mongolian tribe in the future!"
Jialuo was stunned, and her smiling face slowly stiffened.
Benbaqi looked at his sister's expression with some curiosity and couldn't help but ask, "Could it be that Mother didn't tell you that Abu and I went to the capital this time for your marriage?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he seemed to remember something and immediately smiled again, saying, "Even if you don't know, I can tell you now."
"This is fantastic news!"
Do you know who your future husband will be?
Jialu looked at her brother's face, which was filled with uncontrollable joy and laughter, and felt somewhat helpless.
She couldn't help but remind him, "Brother just said that I will be the future empress."
"Ah, yes, yes, yes."
"I was so happy to give it to my brother that I forgot about it."
Looking at his sister's slightly stiff face, he said with amusement, "You're still young, you don't understand anything."
"This time, my father and I went to the Forbidden City and saw the young emperor."
"The emperor ascended the throne at the age of six, and it has been exactly eight years since then."
"It's just the right size for you."
"The emperor is a man of great talent and extraordinary demeanor. Even the bravest man in our Borjigit family cannot compare to him."
"You are the most beloved jewel of our grasslands, and in the future you will be the most beloved empress of our entire Qing Dynasty!"
"Not to mention that the current Empress Dowager is our own aunt..."
"elder brother,"
Jialu couldn't help but interrupt him.
"Brother, is the marriage settled so quickly?"
"I'm still so young, and the emperor isn't much older either. When will we get married?"
The moment the first question left my lips, I knew I shouldn't have asked it.
The second question, once uttered, carried an undercurrent of expectation in its tone.
Benbazi was taken aback as he looked at his sister.
He couldn't see even a trace of joy in her eyes regarding the marriage.
My younger sister was like a precious gem bestowed upon our family by God from a young age; she was incredibly sensible even as a little girl.
Despite being the youngest daughter in the family, she never fought or competed, and she knew how to comfort people and was well-liked.
This was the first time she had ever shown such a stiff expression.
Inappropriately, this reminded him of the day his sister was born.
My sister should have been born during the day.
But for some reason, the mother was in pain from morning till evening, and the child who had been obediently staying in her womb clung tightly to her mother.
It's as if they didn't want to come into this world, unwilling to be born.
Until Abu went to invite the high shaman.
He didn't know what the high shaman said to Abu, but he saw Abu's expression change from worry to solemnity.
He and his two older brothers tensed up, thinking that even the great shaman couldn't save their mother.
Abu ignored them, and simply came out of the tent where the high shaman was being housed, handing a small jade bottle to the maid standing at the entrance of Eji's tent.
Less than a quarter of an hour after the maid entered the mother's tent, the sound of a baby crying could be heard.
"Who knows what kind of mischievous little devil he'll become in the future."
But what if there's a little devil there?
She's like a little honey pot.
However, she would have to leave them after tomorrow.
The siblings suddenly fell silent.
Even the maids gradually stopped what they were doing and quietly retreated.
Just then, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from afar.
Before long, the guards beside his father arrived. He dismounted, bowed, and said...
"Princess, Third Prince, the Prince and Princess are waiting for you."
Jialuo and Benbaqi exchanged a glance, then got up and rode back separately.
By the time they reached their father's tent, it was already dusk.
Torches were lit around the camp, and the twilight sky and the brilliance of the torches made everything around them appear yellowish.
As Galo passed through the tent, countless people stopped and bowed to her, their faces beaming with joy.
Until she reached the royal tent in the very center.
The maid standing at the door smiled warmly at her.
"Little princess, hurry inside."
Abu's hearty laughter and Eji's soft, fragmented voices could be heard coming from inside the tent.
The maid gently lifted the felt curtain, and Galo entered the tent.
In the center of the tent was a large couch, on which was covered a huge tiger skin.
A tall and imposing man sat on the couch.
The man had a full beard and a shiny black braid tied behind his ear.
A bright yellow imperial edict was placed on a knee-high table.
The man is Borjigit Wu Keshan.
He is also Garo's father.
Wu Keshan was truly fortunate; the woman whom Huang Taiji loved so much was from the Borjigit clan.
The current Empress Dowager is his younger sister.
And her own daughter would later become the Empress of the Qing Dynasty.
Besides the fact that the Borjigit clan was originally the "Golden Family" of Mongolia, the members of this clan were also known for their outstanding appearance.
Wu Keshan has thick eyebrows and big eyes, and his well-defined features exude masculine charm.
The woman sitting beside her was dressed in the traditional clothing of the Khorchin tribe. She had beautiful features, and even the fine lines at the corners of her eyes seemed to be an embellishment to her beauty.
Upon seeing his beloved daughter enter, Wu Keshan immediately stood up, walked to her, bent down, and gently ruffled her hair with a smile.
"New Sari, look what your father brought you from the capital!!"
Jialuo pursed her lips, looking at her father who seemed overjoyed, and then at her mother who sat in the chair with a gentle expression.
"Father, my third brother already told me."
Her expression made Wu Keshan pause in his smile.
He took his daughter's hand and led her towards the head of the class.
“You are still young. Your family has only raised you for eleven years. Abu is also reluctant to part with you.”
He sighed slightly; in truth, he didn't want his daughter to marry so early.
The main issue is the current unclear situation in the imperial court.
Before paying homage to the Emperor, he first met with the current Regent Prince Dorgon on his trip to the capital.
Dorgon is now the one who truly holds the reins of the Qing Dynasty.
"I have heard that the Prince has a young daughter who is intelligent, beautiful and of the right age."
"And His Majesty is of good age. He has been on the throne for eight years and is now of marriageable age."
If the emperor were in power, Wu Keshan would certainly want his daughter to reside in the empress's palace.
But who truly owns this world now? How can we say for sure?
Whether it is a blessing or a curse for a daughter to marry into the empress's palace at this time, who can know?
But now that the imperial edict has been issued, it is difficult to disobey the emperor's command.
The forced smile that had been on her face all the way finally faded away under the gaze of her daughter's clear eyes.
The woman standing nearby stood up.
She took her daughter's hand, squatted down, and looked at her.
The woman's beautiful eyes seemed to hold a pool of warm spring water as she looked at her daughter with tender affection.
“Xinsairi, Eji knows you are intelligent, Abu and Eji can’t bear to part with you.”
"But this matter is not something you, Abu, can control."
"Besides, being the empress is a glory that countless women in the world dream of but cannot attain."
Upon hearing this, Jialuo looked into her mother's loving eyes and silently exhaled.
Her nickname is Xinsa Ri.
Meaning: New hope.
Abu was loving and full of blessings, but by sheer coincidence, her second life was indeed a rebirth, full of hope.
From the moment she was born, she was the most beloved child in the family.
Before the age of three, he had never walked on the ground outside of a carpet.
They grew up either in their mother's arms or in the robes of Abu and their brothers.
She had seen snow-capped mountains stretching for thousands of miles and vast grasslands in the arms of Abu and her brothers.
The afterglow of autumn, the sunset of spring.
She grew up surrounded by the boundless love of her family and never felt a chill.
Carefree and growing freely.
She's eleven years old, which is an age when people on the grasslands can get married.
Actually, marrying Shunzhi wasn't so bad.
However, she thought it wasn't her, since Abu has many daughters, and several of his older sisters are still unmarried.
She doesn't remember who the deposed empress in history, Consort Jing, really was.
All that is known is that she is a woman from the Borjigit family.
There are several daughters of marriageable age who are not yet engaged.
It wasn't her.
She didn't know when Emperor Shunzhi would get married.
But this time, when she heard that Abu and her third brother had gone to the capital, she felt a little uneasy.
After all, all the horses on the grassland know that Emperor Shunzhi has not yet married an empress.
The position of empress will surely belong to their Borjigit clan.
She didn't want to be herself.
But, as expected, it was her.
After a moment of silence in the room, she walked to the table and looked at the contents of the bright yellow imperial edict.
She glanced at it once, then turned around and, under Abu's slightly surprised gaze, walked to the table, placed her hands on her forehead, and kowtowed in greeting.
"My daughter is willing to marry the Emperor and shoulder the responsibilities of a Borjigit woman."
A note from the author:
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Hey hey, the story's officially started!! Welcome everyone to add it to your favorites and leave comments—it's still a romance story, and the pacing should be a bit more delicate this time, as I'm practicing my plot rhythm, hehe~
When Daiyu first visited her maternal grandfather in the capital, she was invited into the palace without even entering his house, and was told that she was to become a little princess.
As soon as she entered the palace, the kind and gentle emperor pulled her in front of him and asked her to call him "Father".
Then, pointing to the brothers who were standing properly to the side, he called them "brother".
Daiyu felt timid, but she obediently called out.
This shout kept her in the palace for over ten years.
Later, the emperor said he would choose a prince for her as a husband.
Daiyu's gaze involuntarily fell on her brothers.
Her brothers treated her very well.
He was even willing to marry her as his principal wife.
...
The young master, her childhood sweetheart, looked at her gently and said, "Yu'er, you can choose for yourself."
The eldest prince, who was next door, smiled gently at Daiyu and said, "You and your brother grew up together, and your brother will protect you for life."
The gentle and learned Third Prince, holding the rare book he had searched far and wide for for her, said earnestly, "Little sister, you and I are the ones who can talk to each other the most. They are all brutes."
The aloof and arrogant Fourth Prince stood with his hands behind his back, his dark eyes fixed on her without uttering a word.
The wealthy young master, the Tenth Prince, with a dashing air about him, smiled and sighed, "They all care about their own power, but I, your younger brother, only care about my sister's desire to travel the world and see all its beautiful landscapes."
The handsome and youthful Fourteenth Prince walked up to her and said in a low voice, "Sister, your little brother is a lot of fun."
Daiyu twisted her embroidered handkerchief, looking at her brothers, but felt extremely angry.
"Who has been writing her love letters all this time?!"
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