With the advent of glass, all the windows in Muqing Garden have been replaced with glass windows.
As for other places, they are being decorated. Muqing Garden was originally built according to the specifications of an imperial palace, so it will take time.
Besides the place where Emperor Kangxi lived, which had already been furnished, the second place was where the Empress Dowager lived, followed by Jingxing Pavilion, and then the places where the princes and princesses lived.
Then the glass began to be discussed inside Jingxing Pavilion.
"This glass is really nice. From now on, we won't need to light candles in the winter when we don't open the windows."
Candlelight is naturally not as comfortable to look at as natural light.
"Yes, I don't know who made this glass. Even the Imperial Household Department couldn't get a clue from them."
"Who cares? Glass is a matter of great importance. Father Emperor won't sit idly by. We'll find out eventually. Maybe one day the Imperial Household Department will be in charge."
If Youqing were an ordinary merchant, he would naturally not be able to keep the glass formula. Money is a powerful motivator, and either it would be seized by other merchants through various means, or the formula would be handed over to the royal family.
The second approach is generally the one taken by smart people.
This kind of thing is not uncommon, so when a few people talk about it, they don't hold back.
Glass windows were installed one after another at Muqing Garden, and the Forbidden City followed suit. As for the cost...
Except for the items originally intended for Emperor Kangxi, which were free, everything else required payment.
Youqing and Kangxi understood this very well.
Having a glass window wasn't enough for Youqing; she wanted more. Recently, she's been working on glass products, such as glass cups, glass bowls, glass handicrafts, mirrors, and so on.
While Youqing was pondering these things, the Forbidden City was bustling with activity.
As the saying goes, women are like wolves in their thirties and tigers in their forties. It is said that men are lustful, but women also have certain needs. If there were no more than three thousand concubines in the imperial harem, plus the scattered ones, there would be about twenty or so. Among so many women, there was only one man who could satisfy them, and that one was not even in the palace.
These women in the harem have been abstaining from meat for several years now.
Most women are better than men at enduring loneliness, but there are always some exceptions.
"Good brother, why are you so late today? You've kept me waiting."
"Good sister, it's all my fault. Please punish me as you see fit. Do whatever you ask, good sister, please forgive me!"
"Then it's settled, brother." After saying that, a woman hooked her arm around the man's shirt button and led him into the secluded artificial hill.
It was already past midnight, and with the two "great Buddhas" of the Kangxi Emperor and the Empress Dowager gone, the palace was much less guarded, even though there were many concubines in the harem.
At this time, apart from the occasional chirping of insects, there was no other sound in this small garden.
Just as all was quiet, sounds of human procreation, pleading, flirting, and teasing, came from behind the artificial hill.
The sound lasted for about 15 minutes before stopping.
Inside the artificial hill, a man and a woman were standing. On the ground was a cloak, covered in a mess, and the air still carried a pungent, musky scent.
The man embraced the woman and said, "My dear sister, did you like the apology I just gave you?"
"Brother is so naughty~"
The woman spoke in a sweet voice, pounding the man's chest with her hand as she spoke. Before the hand could land on his chest, the man grabbed it.
"The brother is only mean to his sister."
The wild mandarin ducks in the artificial hill couldn't stay hidden from the light forever. Before long, they came out one after the other, leaving only a patch of flattened grass as a testament to the spring.
“Sister Lüqin, I was on duty last night and woke up once during the night. I saw that Your Highness had returned from outside. I thought Your Highness had gone to the toilet, but after thinking about it carefully, I felt that it was not right. Your Highness does not need to be dressed so neatly and wear a cloak when going to the toilet.”
Upon hearing this, Lüqin immediately covered Hongmei's mouth: "You shouldn't say such things."
Hongmei had only been in the palace for a short time, while Lüqin had been there for quite some time. Lüqin used to work in the Imperial Household Department, and later she and the newly arrived Hongmei were assigned to serve Consort Shi. Not long after they arrived, the two old servants who originally served Consort Shi reached the age of twenty-five and were released from the palace. The two of them had just filled their vacancies.
In the Imperial Household Department, Lüqin was accompanied by Hongmei, who trusted Lüqin completely.
Luqin is not a bad person. In a place like the palace, it's a good thing to have someone to support each other.
Hongmei looked bewildered: "Why can't I say things like that?"
Luqin said solemnly in a low voice, "Remember this: if you are on night watch again in the future, drink less soup the night before so you don't have to get up in the middle of the night. Sleep soundly until dawn and pretend you don't know anything. Also, remember this: you didn't get up in the middle of the night last night. You slept soundly until dawn and didn't know anything. Do you understand?"
Hongmei seemed to understand something upon hearing this. She was just a little slow to react, but she wasn't stupid. After Lüqin said that, she realized what was going on.
"Thank you for your guidance, sister. I understand now."
Luqin sighed: "It's good that you understand. In the palace, pretending to be confused when you know is also a way to survive. If you encounter anything new in the future, keep it to yourself and don't shout it out."
"My sister is right."
Red plum blossoms express this sentiment.
Luqin had more experience living in the palace than Hongmei, and she noticed the signs earlier than Hongmei. However, she dared not make a fuss. She was already planning to find an opportunity to leave Shichang. She didn't mind going to a more difficult place, but she was afraid of losing her life!
Now that Hongmei has also discovered this, Lüqin plans to discuss with her how to get out of Shichang's place. Sharing the burden together isn't necessarily a bad thing.
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