Wan Anran's caution impressed Consort Xuan, who said, "You're finally starting to act like a mother. The Eleventh Prince is still young, so you must be careful. Heaven knows what Consort Miao is hiding in her heart."
Consort Xuan was happy to speculate about the palace concubines with the utmost malice, and Wan Anran wholeheartedly agreed. In Xianfu Palace, she could relax, but after living alone in Chuxiu Palace, Wan Anran gradually became more serious in her dealings with others—except for the matter of her large intestine.
Wan Anran felt guilty for a moment.
Then her expression turned serious, and she nodded solemnly: "Don't worry, Sister Xuan!"
Having already walked quite a distance, the two strolled around the garden for a while. Compared to the Forbidden City, where it was rare to see even a single tree except for courtyards and the Imperial Garden, the West Garden was a picturesque sight at every turn.
There were even docks and small boats.
Wan Anran's eyes lit up, and she ran forward in a few quick steps, waving to Consort Xuan: "Sister Xuan, look, there are still small boats!"
She then turned around and asked, "Can I sit here?"
The little eunuch nodded repeatedly: "Of course, no problem, Master Qi."
Wan Anran was about to praise her for being quick-witted.
She glanced at the young eunuch and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "I remember you are... Shi Shun?"
Shi Shun nodded repeatedly.
He could not hide his excitement, and almost choked up as he answered, "This servant is indeed her. I never expected that Master Qi would still remember this servant..."
"Aren't you working at Jingyang Palace? What are you doing in the West Garden?" Wan Anran asked.
Xiyuan is nothing like the Forbidden City.
When no master is around, the palace servants here have to do more than just sweep and clean; they also have to cut grass and feed the livestock. They are exhausted, and their food, lodging, and salaries are far inferior to those in the palace.
If Jingyang Palace wasn't a good place, then Xiyuan was an even worse place.
Shi Shun said with a bitter face, "Reporting to Your Highness, Jingyang Palace is currently under renovation, so I was sent back to the Imperial Household Department and reassigned... and ended up here in the West Garden."
To put it bluntly, it's because we have no money and no people.
People who came from Jingyang Palace, if they couldn't get into any other place, would end up in the West Garden. It was already a miracle that they weren't sent to sweep and clean Jingshan Park.
Wan Anran felt conflicted.
Shi Shun was quite cheerful and quickly put the matter behind him: "But it's good that Xiyuan is peaceful, there's not so much strife among everyone. And Da Hua and Er Hua are doing quite well here too."
Big Flower and Second Flower are the cats in Jingyang Palace.
Having not been to Jingyang Palace for a long time, Wan Anran naturally hadn't seen them either. Upon hearing this, her eyes lit up: "Dahua and Erhua are here too?"
Shi Shun nodded with a smile.
Wan Anran laughed: "I'll bring them to my room later. I haven't seen them in a long time."
Shi Shun let out a soft "Ah."
His hands moved swiftly, pulling the small boat over: "Master Xuan, Master Qi, be careful going aboard."
The scenery in Xiyuan is beautiful everywhere.
Sitting in a small boat, swaying gently on the lake, Wan Anran murmured as she gazed at the lush green lotus leaves just beginning to sprout on the water, "It would be so much better if it were a little warmer."
Consort Xuan knew what she was thinking with just one glance: "Are you thinking of making stir-fried lotus root slices, sweet and sour lotus root slices, pan-fried lotus root cakes, glutinous rice lotus root, or fried lotus root balls?"
Consort Xuan quickly rattled off a list of dishes.
She crossed her arms and looked down at Wan Anran: "Don't you think so?"
Wan Anran shook her head seriously: "Wrong, wrong, wrong."
Under Consort Xuan's questioning gaze, she shook her finger: "What I'm thinking of are lotus seeds with sugar, lotus seed milk cake, lotus seed sticky rice cake, and lotus seed stewed milk with peach gum..."
"How is this different from what I said?"
“The difference is huge!” Wan Anran snorted, then her eyes darted around. “Shi Shun, Shi Shun, row the boat over so I can collect some lotus leaves.”
What do you need lotus leaves for?
"How about we make lotus leaf rice, lotus leaf glutinous rice stewed pork ribs, lotus leaf stewed chicken... or even dry some leaves to make lotus leaf rice dumplings?"
Consort Xuan sighed, rubbing her forehead.
Seeing Wan Anran skillfully picking lotus leaves, Consort Xuan thought for a moment and then picked some as well.
Okay, don't get it wrong.
She was just trying to speed things up so others wouldn't see and embarrass her; she definitely wasn't thinking about getting a share for herself :)
After gathering the lotus leaves, Wan Anran and Consort Xuan leisurely went ashore. After instructing Shi Shun not to forget to bring Da Hua and Er Hua over, Wan Anran happily carried the lotus leaves back to her courtyard.
Just drying the leaves is quite a hassle.
Wan Anran, Consort Xuan, and Noble Lady Nara were all busy, while on the other side, Emperor Kangxi summoned his court officials and held a rare spring outing banquet. Now that the situation in the Rebellion of the Three Feudatories was firmly in his favor and even more pressing, with the momentum to strike at the heart of the enemy, Emperor Kangxi, unusually, put aside important matters and decided to enjoy this rare spring outing.
The grand feast is temporarily unrelated to the imperial concubines and others.
They all used their best beauty tools, applying face masks and massaging their faces before going to bed early, preparing to enter this battle without gunpowder the next day with the best appearance and demeanor.
As for Wan Anran...
She carefully counted the number of lotus leaves, washed away any with pests, and prepared to start making delicacies tomorrow. Just then, the young eunuch Shi Shun brought over Da Hua and Er Hua.
Da Hua and Er Hua are both a size thinner than before.
Their eyes were bright and they were full of energy. However, when they saw Wan Anran, their temper was the same as before. Even when Wan Anran held them in her arms and teased them, they only made soft meowing sounds. They were extremely well-behaved and cute.
Wan Anran even moved the cat in front of Mao Tao.
She waved her hand: "Mao Tao, this is a kitten, meow~!"
The dog-like Prince Yinzhen was ruthless and heartless.
He lazily withdrew his gaze, and even turned over so that his backside was facing Wan Anran and the cat.
Big Flower meowed.
It leaped down from Wan Anran's arms, its little paws landing right in front of Yinzhen. The kitten's soft little feet looked so cute to squeeze, and Yinzhen instinctively reached out and placed his hand on them.
Big Flower pulled out her foot.
It was placed coldly and ruthlessly in Yinzhen's hands.
Yinzhen withdrew his hand.
He was determined to place it on the cat's feet.
A fight breaks out between a human and a cat for no apparent reason.
Wan Anran looked at Kele, instructed the palace servants to take care of Maotao, and then tidied up the messy lotus leaves. After she had prepared most of the things, she turned around to check on Maotao and found that Maotao was hugging Dahua and Erhua was sticking to its back. The two cats and the cat had fallen into a deep sleep.
Wan Anran cupped her cheeks.
I think besides practicing calligraphy, she should also start practicing drawing, right? Otherwise, how can we preserve such a lovely scene as a memento?
Xiyuanli has been bustling with activity lately.
However, it seems that everything has nothing to do with Wan Anran, Consort Xuan, and Noble Lady Nara.
Just as the concubines were racking their brains, each thinking about how to seize this opportunity to win the emperor's attention, Wan Anran and the other two chose to prepare a feast of lotus leaves and then enjoy it.
While the concubines dressed up in their finest attire, trying to win the emperor's favor, Wan Anran and her two companions were busy petting cats and, incidentally, drying lotus leaves.
While the imperial concubines were displaying their unique skills and were almost fighting to the death, Wan Anran and her two companions hurriedly began wrapping lotus leaf rice dumplings, making sure that the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, and the Empress were all included.
When the imperial concubines...
After spending several days making zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), Wan Anran, Consort Xuan, and Noble Lady Nara decided to relax a bit, so they went to Zhaoxiang Garden to see the animals.
This place was a breeding ground for various animals; you could think of it as a zoo within the Qing Dynasty palace. However, because the more ferocious lions and tigers were kept in the tiger enclosure, Zhaoxiang Garden was much quieter, and the emperor, concubines, and other nobles rarely appeared here.
It was a rare occasion to see two imperial concubines arrive, so the eunuchs of Zhaoxiang Garden were giving their best to serve them with utmost care and attention.
Upon entering Zhaoxiang Garden, the eunuch in charge of feeding the three led them to a small square. As soon as they sat down, several monkeys jumped onto the stage. Amidst the sounds of gongs and drums, they either played drums and made bows or jumped and climbed poles. Their agile and adorable appearance caused Wan Anran and the other two to exclaim in surprise.
Next, a black bear wearing a small hat rolled and jumped on a high stool, a performance as spectacular as the animal training shows of later generations.
It wasn't just the animals; next up came a group of young eunuchs. They first performed a series of somersaults, then stacked themselves high on top of each other. Their agility was astonishing, and their physical dexterity was unimaginable.
Wan Anran clapped so hard her hands almost hurt.
Upon closer investigation, it was discovered that animal training performances were too dangerous. Therefore, unless the emperor granted permission, or people like Wan Anran came to Zhaoxiang Garden to enjoy the performances, they were unable to perform in various parts of the palace on ordinary days, resulting in meager income.
The eunuchs of Zhaoxiang Garden were not to be outdone.
So they found a group of young eunuchs to practice—unfortunately, the task had already been divided, and despite practicing so many times, it was still their first performance.
Seeing the exceptionally diligent eunuchs, Wan Anran rewarded them with two large purses, making them kowtow repeatedly. The other eunuchs were also exceptionally attentive, leading Wan Anran and Consort Xuan inside.
Aside from the animal trainers, the interior was essentially the Qing Dynasty's zoo. All sorts of animals were kept in iron cages, from lions and tigers to black bears, from leopards to Pallas's cats and lynxes, from red foxes to Tibetan foxes... a truly dazzling array, with everything imaginable.
A black and white animal in particular made Wan Anran freeze in her tracks; her eyes widened, and her breath seemed to stop for a moment. Wan Anran rushed to the railing: "This is... a panda?"
The eunuch in charge of feeding the child let out a sound of surprise.
He quickly introduced, "This is a panda, also known as a bamboo bear. Locals like to call it the iron-eating beast. Its teeth are so sharp that they can even bite through an iron pot!"
Yes, that's a panda!
Wan Anran stared intently at the panda, her feet practically glued to it. Xuan Pin, however, showed little interest, completely baffled as to what Qi Pin was so excited about—it was just a black and white bear, wasn't it?
The eunuch in charge of feeding the child hesitated for a moment.
Then he cautiously asked, "If Consort Qi likes it, would you like to hold and see the cub?"
Wan Anran froze completely.
She froze on the spot, her pupils dilating in shock. Wan Anran clutched her chest, feeling as if her heart was about to leap out of her chest, her voice trembling as she asked, "Little, little, little panda?"
“That’s right.” The eunuch in charge of feeding the animals nodded.
"I... hiss... of course I want to!" Wan Anran's lips trembled, and after a long while, she finally managed to utter four words with unwavering determination.
The eunuchs were indeed responsible for raising the child.
He left in a hurry, and in less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, he appeared before the two of them carrying a bamboo basket.
Wan Anran looked down.
A fluffy little creature was fast asleep on the soft cushion of the bamboo basket. It was tiny and round, like a black and white ball of fur—it really was a panda!
Wan Anran felt as if her feet were floating on clouds. She smiled foolishly and reached out to carefully touch the little panda's back.
Soft and warm.
This place, perhaps, is heaven?
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