Finally learned to write my name
Yao Jing has always been reluctant to forget her birth name, and she can't quite remember her current one either. Anyway, not many people call her by her current name, so as long as she knows they're calling her, that's all. Anyway, there's no teacher. Oh, judging by her current age, it should be the kindergarten teacher who calls out "Yao Jing" and asks her to answer "Here." And, to this day, no one has told her her last name.
She never expected that such a situation would happen. She was a pseudo-child, and her learning level in Manchu and Mongolian was slightly better than that of her elder sister, but her Chinese could only be described as magical.
Mr. Jiang was a bannerman and knew about the selection process. Thinking about the family's status and the fact that this legitimate daughter was precocious, he put all his efforts into raising Yao Jing well and bringing her honor to the master's family. Even if she couldn't carry the banner in the future, she could still show her merits to the master's family and gain their favor.
Yao Jing also brought him honor. She had the same homework as her sister who was three years older than her, but she understood things quickly and had a good memory. The problem lay with her writing.
This gentleman was nearly forty, with no beard, only two rat-like whiskers at the corners of his lips. Two thin whiskers extended from the outer edge of his nose, and his nose was completely bald. He looked like a scoundrel in a government office, as shabby as could be. It was said that this was the standard beard style for men of this age in this dynasty.
Damn it! Originally this gentleman had decent features and a bit of a scholarly air, but now...
I've strayed off topic. Mr. Shuxu taught them how to write. First, they traced the characters in red ink, writing "Shang Da Ren Kong Yiji." The strokes were simple, and it was fine. Their little hands were quite strong now, and they wrote neatly. Don't force children's handwriting; generally speaking, it was passable. However, formal schooling meant learning to write your own name.
This is quite a stretch. My eldest sister's name is Shuxian. Well, that's not the point, but she's a few years older and bigger, so her control is better, and she can write her own name properly. Yao Jing, while better than her peers, is ultimately limited by the hardware and tragically fills up the inch-long rice-shaped border. If it were other complex characters, I'd give up for now, but writing your own name is essential.
Even worse, their names weren't taught by their teacher—girls' names were strictly forbidden to be revealed—but by their brothers. Fu Dali was demanding, while Qingde was eccentric and irritating. But they shared one thing: the need to write well. They took the task seriously, naturally.
People these days are so practical, emphasizing solid fundamentals. Can't you do homework? Read! Copy! If you don't get it right once, do it again until you get it right. Can't write well? Write! Practice! If you don't get it right ten times, do it again ten times. There was an old oil seller who used to say, "Practice makes perfect." You'll get it right if you write more.
Yao Jing blushed as she watched the little girl, Shuxian, write well. She felt ashamed that she couldn't compare to the little girl, but she gritted her teeth and continued writing. Besides her normal homework, she wrote every day—writing, writing, writing! As she wrote, she mentally drafted the draft. With a foundation in understanding the strokes of complex Chinese characters, she was now much more capable at writing simple words. It was an unexpected bonus.
A hundred times a day, a hundred times a day, from August to October. Besides her normal homework, she also had to write her own name every day. She wrote so hard that the two characters didn't even look like Chinese characters anymore. Finally, she could write them on a notebook. While still a long way from graceful, it was neat. Knowing how difficult it was for her, her two brothers, who had let her practice for various reasons, breathed a sigh of relief.
Yao Jing finally remembered her current name—Shi Shujia. Every word was etched with blood and tears, and she would never forget it.
————————I will call you Shujia from now on. I am just following the good advice and changing the protagonist’s name to the dividing line————————
On October 22nd, Shujia finished reciting a short passage from the Analects and writing calligraphy, then went to the main room for dinner. She and her older sister, Shuxian, went to school in the outer courtyard. They woke up early, ate, went to school, and returned home after class. Since she was young and a girl, she only had to study for half a day.
Arriving at the main room, Qing'er and Ah Fu were rummaging through Xiluo's attire, from her court cap to her court boots. Shuxian and Shujia greeted and asked to sit down. Xiluo smiled and said, "Are you all here?" Then she asked Shuxian, "How was your day? What did the teacher say about your studies? Has your sister been naughty?" Shuxian stood up and replied, "The teacher said my studies were okay. My sister has always been very good."
Xiluo Te said, "That's all right. I didn't expect you to become the top female scholar. I heard from your nanny that you've been sewing at night lately. You're still young, and the dim lights at night can damage your eyes over time. You're still young and don't know the consequences. If you damage your eyes now, it will be a lifelong problem." She also instructed Shuxian's nanny, "From now on, the young lady is not allowed to sew at night. She's young and naive, and don't you understand either? At least wait until she's older."
He then said to Shuxian gently, "From now on, if you have nothing to do at night, go to bed early and get up at 1:00 AM. You are not allowed to go to bed later than 1:00 PM. You are still young. Even if you can't sleep, writing two pages of big characters is better than this. Don't write small characters." Shuxian agreed.
Xiluo Te then turned to Shujia and said, "How are you today? Was the lunch snack delicious?" She then teased Shujia about writing her name for over two months, and Shujia blushed. Being teased like this...
Shuxian asked Xiluo: "Mother, are your sisters packing clothes here? Are you busy with something?" Xiluo smiled and said, "It has nothing to do with you. I have something to do in the palace tomorrow." When children ask questions, adults always give vague answers and are unwilling to tell the truth directly.
Shujia thought, she's going to the palace again, and this time she wonders what's going on. After hesitating for a moment, she finally asked in a soft, sweet voice, "What is mother doing in the palace?" This time, Xiluo Te replied, "You wouldn't know even if I told you."
Shujia: ...It’s the same as not saying anything!
The next day, Xiluotai rose early, dressed, and rode to the palace. Shuxian and Shujia also rose early. Since there were no televisions or computers here, they went to bed early and woke up early in the morning without being called. Shuxian, being the older, rose at six, while Shujia, being the younger, was allowed an extra half hour. Then they washed, dressed, and paid their respects—Xiluotai had left early today for something, so she didn't see him in person. They went to their grandfather's room to pay their respects, greeted Fudali and Qingde, and then the two boys went to school while the two girls ate breakfast. They then rested for a while to review their lessons and eat breakfast.
I arrive at the classroom around 9:00 a.m., and classes begin. They end at noon, and I come home for a snack, sometimes taking a nap. In the afternoon, I get up to do homework and review, and then it's time for dinner. After dinner, it's usually around 4:00 or 5:00 p.m., giving me plenty of time to play or do other things. If I'm hungry, I'll have a midnight snack, digest my thoughts, and then go to sleep.
That’s just a typical day.
Today, everything was normal except that Mother was busy. When the two sisters returned at noon, Mother had not yet returned. Shuxian asked Qing'er, who was left behind, "Sister Qing, did Mother say when she left home when she would be back?" Qing'er bowed and said, "Madam didn't say, she just said it wouldn't be too late, and the girls didn't need to worry." Shujia then asked, "What on earth did Mother do?"
Qing'er bent down and picked off the thread stuck to Shujia's clothes. "The palace is going to appoint a concubine today. I heard it's called Depin, right? She's the noble lady who gave birth to the little prince last year. The palace has appointed her as a major, and a lady like our wife should go to offer congratulations."
Shujia was stunned. So... I'd been there at the birth of Emperor Yongzheng and hadn't known about it? The Qing officials were incredibly enthusiastic about Yongzheng and the Eighth Prince, and Shujia had also learned that Yongzheng's mother was Consort De, and the Eighth Prince's mother was Consort Liang. It was said that Consort De favored the Fourteenth Prince, and that the Fourth Prince, raised by the Empress, wasn't close to his mother and often got bullied by her instead.
That's probably it, right? A title can only correspond to one person, right? So Defei and Depin should be the same person. Um, Concubine is probably higher than Concubine? So she's called Defei just because she got promoted later? Probably, right...
Indeed, before dinner, Xiluo returned, changed into her coat, asked about household chores, and ordered dinner to be served. She ate with her son and daughter, keeping silent while eating until they were finished. Shujia kept asking about what had happened today, but Xiluo couldn't resist, as it wasn't a secret, so she said, "It's indeed the son of the virtuous master. Of course, a concubine is higher than a concubine. Well, this one gave birth to..." She did some math in her head, figuring that the life and death of Master Kang's sons was a bit complicated. After a while, she said, "The Fourth Prince..."
Sister!
It was actually him! The Cold-Faced King, how many time-traveling predecessors had fought tooth and nail to be his "only beloved"—a concubine, occasionally a principal wife, or even a concubine who wasn't even considered a wife—Prince Yong! No matter how much they said at the beginning that they didn't want to have anything to do with the prince, in the end, nine out of ten times they still... I held my head in my hands, it was so embarrassing! I can only say that this world is so embarrassing! Does this baby know what he will be like after more than three hundred years? If he knew, then that face that was said to be cold, stylish, and forbearing would probably look like the word "embarrassing" from now on, right?
Jiong Si's mother, Concubine De, was known as Dezhu'er and Dezhuzi. According to the eyewitness Xiluo Te, she was "a very noble person..." But that was as good as saying nothing. What did she actually look like? Shujia lost interest. After a while of talking, everyone went back to their rooms.
Thanks to her precocious intelligence, Shujia's application was approved, and she no longer had to sit in the stroller. Well, she had both a bed and a kang in her room, and since it was cold, she'd sleep on the kang first. She was teased, "Well, you're grown up now, you can read, you're not a child anymore, so go sleep on the kang. Chunxi and Xiaxi will stay up all night, and we'll have a nanny sleep on the big bed outside to keep you company."
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In the eighteenth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, it wasn't just Consort De who finally "became official"—officially entering the pecking order—who had happy events. In December, Consort Yi, who had been officially promoted earlier than Consort De, also gave birth to a son. This wasn't something the ladies of state had to congratulate—for one thing, they weren't high enough in status, and secondly, given the current probability of Kangxi's son being taken away by the devil, it was better to wait and see. It was simply a topic of conversation after dinner.
Shujia counted on her fingers. As far as she knew, Master Kang's family had fourteen sons, practically a football team with substitutes, hence the nickname "The Legion of Numbers." Now... the fourth son was followed by the fifth, like a barely formed basketball team with no substitutes.
Alas, alas, the numbers are not yet complete, the master still needs to work hard!
With the birth of another prince, the eighteenth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign came to a close. Overall, aside from the victories on the front lines, this year wasn't a particularly good one. For example, the very month the fifth prince was born... the Hall of Supreme Harmony caught fire! It burned to the ground, and within a short while, the entire city knew about it. Master Kang must have been sick with worry.
It's worth mentioning that during the 18th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, drought followed by prayers for rain and then an earthquake. Then, in winter, drought returned, with not a single snowflake falling. The people of the capital were even more unfazed, accepting the drought and waiting to watch the emperor pray for rain... Ahem, I'm wrong. After all, we all live in the capital, so how could the Emperor ignore us? So, let's just get on with our lives.
Being so calm, I can only say that he is worthy of the demeanor of the imperial capital!
In such a calm atmosphere, Shujia stepped into the nineteenth year of the Kangxi reign through the dry winter of the eighteenth year of the Kangxi reign.
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