The Unyielding (Part 1)

  Fu Guangcheng and several others have been paying close attention to the movements of the Ula Nara clan in recent years, especially the Zuo Lingfu and Naerbu Fu. They have been secretly visiting each other frequently, including some households with this year's showgirls, some with sons serving as palace guards, and some with good relations within the Imperial Household Department. All these were carefully told to Yunzhu.

  "You must have a plan in mind, or you'll be outsmarted by others." The men of the Fuca family may seem calm and composed at home, but that doesn't mean they don't understand the intrigue within the inner palace. It's precisely because the Fuca men have always been close to the emperor that they are well aware of the ruthlessness of the competition among the women in the palace. Because he loves Yunzhu so much, he is also wary of Ulana, who was supported by the late Empress Xiaojing. Niemu Yi, this concubine, has been secretly paying attention to her daughter (sister), ready to offer advice at any time.

  Fu Heng listened thoughtfully beside him, "The palace guards?" What did the Ulanara family want to do after all?

  "Guards? Yunzhu's eyes flashed, and she furrowed her brow: "Since the assassination attempt during Yonghui's full moon celebration, the Emperor and Fourth Brother have indeed tightened up the palace patrols. I seem to recall Feng Yisu mentioning that they asked about guards paying special attention to Qianxi's second residence... Brother, please discreetly keep an eye out for me."

  "Hmm?" Several people furrowed their brows after hearing this, as rumors of illicit relationships between men and women in the palace were often the most effective way to frame someone. It didn't require direct evidence; a hint of suspicion was enough to make the emperor's already suspicious heart grow darker. At first, it might not seem like much, but over time, it could become the root of losing favor.

  According to legend, the palace guards were all from the Eight Banners and were of noble birth, with strict rules in every aspect. If I hadn't often asked Feng Yi and Suo to ask them to send some fruit and food to Yangxin Hall and Chongqing Palace, I'm afraid... that one day the rumors would spread throughout the imperial palace and no one would have heard about it from me.

  Her face was pale, but in her heart, she thought, Wu Lala Nian Mengyi had never given up on this frame-up. She didn't know if Gao Shi would still join forces with her. Today's trip only proved that the Wu Lala family and those guards had reached some sort of agreement, determined to carry out the trick they had planned with Gao Shi three years ago.

  Being associated with someone can be damaging to a woman's reputation, especially one who is a future empress. It goes without saying how much harm it can cause. People are all the same, strict with others but lenient with themselves, expecting perfection from those in higher positions while also hoping for kindness and benevolence... That person doesn't even need to respond himself, just mentioning the times he unintentionally showed favor will make him remember and not dare forget... Even someone as narrow-minded as Hongli would feel uncomfortable at heart, and if things get serious, wouldn't that just make oneself look worse?!

  Three years ago, I finally understood the plan of Wu Lanala and Gao. I directly ruined Wu Lanala's selection, damaging her reputation. Gao tasted the pain of a broken bone... Now, since they are so stubborn, I'll just fulfill their wishes, so they won't be stuck with this idea and get mental illness.

  "It's a small matter, let your brother and them handle it, as for people..."

  "Let it be, my daughter will take care of it, so that no one else will dare to have ideas about me in the future. Other book friends are reading:"

  Everyone in the room had a disapproving look on their faces, "You're playing with fire." With the influence of the Fu family in the Imperial Guard, it would be easy to find an excuse or create one to quietly squeeze out one or two palace guards without her having to put in that much effort.

  "No, I must let the Emperor and the Fourth Prince know that my life is not all smooth sailing. Besides, there's no such thing as a thousand days of being a thief without a thousand days of prevention. With this precedent set in the Fourth Prince's heart, whoever tries to frame me again will only end up making a fool of themselves." All things in the world have two sides, and if managed well, not only can they eliminate evil and disease, but also reveal oneself and strike down enemies, achieving multiple gains at once.

  "Do you have confidence?" Li Rongbao was slightly moved, his daughter wasn't a careless person, and since she said so, she must have made meticulous arrangements. Throughout the ages, even if the empress sat stably in the central palace, it was rare to gain the emperor's favor at the same time. After all, the empress had power in her hands, and the image of governing the harem was too rigid, while men often tended to pity those they saw as "weak".

  "Of course." She flashed a smile, her eyebrows flying up in an expression that was like a little fox waiting for its prey to fall into the trap, cute and lovely. Li Rongbao and Fu Guangcheng had rarely seen this side of her before, and after a moment's pause, they both smiled with relief, thinking to themselves that their daughter/sister was truly born to be royalty, with a temperament that treated palace struggles as an entertaining game, which not many women could do.

  She thought that as the eldest son's legitimate wife, and being pampered and trusted by the fourth prince, she would develop a sense of exclusivity or exclusion over time. Unexpectedly, even after giving birth to a son, her mindset remained as calm and composed as it was before marriage.

  Yunzhu and her father and brother chatted in the study for a while, after dinner the guests dispersed one after another. Hongli came over to pick up Yunzhu, Li Rongbao accompanied by his son saw them off. Yunzhu took the opportunity to give out the cosmetics she had brought with her to Guwalgiya and several of her sisters-in-law, and also gave some extra portions to Ruiqin Wang Fujin as well as Juan Ya and Hui Zhu, who were close relatives that they often kept in touch with.

  The end of the banquet and the arrangement of gifts are all taken care of by the servants and nurses, so there's no chaos.

  Mingliang, Mingren and several others were more interested in the dried fruits, fruit preserves and honey brought by Yunzhu. Guwalgiya gave each of them some and had the things put away, not daring to give too much, especially to the younger ones, lest they spoil their proper meal.

  Yunzhu briefly explained some makeup techniques and had Suwen find a maid to practice, while she herself pulled over a few nephews and nieces to chat, even having someone bring over gifts.

  Ming Li was born last December, when the triplets were full moon and Ming Li's three-month-old and full-moon ceremonies were not held, only Ye and Ming Xin came to take a look. "Looks more robust than Yong Xiang."

  Ma Jia heard and turned her head, saying: "Stupidly, not as clever as Second Brother." Yun Zhu's triplets were all raised to be fair and tender, looking at them made one feel that they had more spirit than ordinary children.

  "I think it's fine, kids change every day, who knows when they'll suddenly understand. Don't always say in front of the kid that he's stupid or foolish, even if they don't understand yet." Ming Li was three months younger than the triplets, and looking at them, they seemed about the same size. After holding him for a while, she felt a bit strained, too lively, where did "stupid" come from?

  Shu Mu Lu and Gua Er Jia, Rouqin Wang Fu Jin were a bit older than the others. They didn't have much interest in makeup, but they were amused by the triplets playing around them. Upon hearing this, they glanced over and smiled: "Big sister is indeed good with children, all the kids love to be close to her."

  Everyone listened, and the fairy changed her appearance with makeup. The girl's face turned around to take a look, and indeed, Minghui, Mingde, Mingyi, and several other little radish heads were leaning against her side, chattering non-stop. She smiled and agreed with a few words, then pulled Suwen up again, especially Huirou and Baolan, the princess of Borjigit Aodeng. They had been married for less than two years and were in their prime, so they were particularly interested in this.

  Happy times always pass quickly, and before long the sun sets, with Yunzhu reluctantly bringing triplets and Hongli back to the palace amidst the farewell of their family.

  By the end of April, Prince Gong Yinxiang's illness had largely recovered, but Prince Xian Xin's illness was still dragging on, and Princess Yu Yunhui fell ill again. Yongzheng was somewhat stimulated, not only bestowed some excellent medicine, but also ordered the imperial physician to carefully treat her.

  Think of the auxiliary country, Gong Yun Yu, who has performed well in recent years, and their titles have been promoted to two levels, reaching the solid mountain Beizi. The eldest son of Yun Yu, Hong Zhen, was granted the title of Feng En Jiangjun, while the fifth son Hong Ding and the son of Yun Xiang, Hong Wang, were promoted from the second-class town general to the non-entry eight-part auxiliary country Gong's rank, good-looking:.

  By the end of May, the selection was over, and it is unknown what tricks Hongli had done. In history, Emperor Qianlong's Yi Pin Huang Shi and Yi Pin Bai Shi were not assigned to either Qianxi or Qianer. Instead, Huang Shi was assigned to Beizi Yun'e as a gege, and Bai Shi was assigned to Beizi Yunbi as a gege.

  In the past two years, Prince Zhuang's concubine Li died. Yongzheng knew that his brother was a sentimental person and had taken note of this. Coincidentally, during this selection of imperial consorts, Princess Zhuang requested Zhang as her choice. He thought to himself that Zhang Xunren was a second-grade official who performed well among the Han officials, and Zhang also looked beautiful and elegant, performing well in the selection process. Therefore, he generously granted Prince Zhuang an additional concubine, Zhang.

  Assign Suolunala's daughter Ulanara to Prince Bao Hongli as a secondary consort; assign Xiufei Zhou to Hongyou as a gege; assign the daughter of Grand Scholar Changlanga, Nalan, to Ningjunwang Hongyan as an inherited consort; assign Deng Wenjin's daughter Deng to Beile Hongxuan as a secondary consort; assign Shang Yude's daughter to Yongzheng's ninth son, Third-Class Attendant Hongshan, as a primary consort...

  The two famous women, Bi Lu and Na Mu Du Lu, entered the palace as consorts. Bi Lu became Chun Yu and was assigned to Cheng Qian Palace, while Na Mu Du Lu became Na Yu and was assigned to Yan Xi Palace.

  ……

  Since Huang and Bai had nothing to do with Ganxi, Yunzhu threw it aside after listening, and called Shu Duan to his side: "You go and find out who Kael Rott Gilan is referring to?"

  Keruluote. Jilan is the second daughter of Langdun, a humble family with no notable background, but still has a good reputation. She has an older sister who was betrothed to Honghuan, the sixth son of Yongzheng, as his primary wife. Keruluote is elegant in appearance and gentle in temperament, capable of managing household affairs. Gualgiya had initially taken a liking to her and planned to propose a marriage if she were to be eliminated from the selection process. However, after the re-selection, Yunzhu noticed that Keruluote was actually retained and participated in the final review.

  Fu Chajia's current position in the court is becoming increasingly sensitive, Fu Qian said that his close relative Li Rongbao would have revealed it to Yongzheng in advance, Yunzhu was not too worried from the start, and sure enough, on the third day, she received news from her uncle Fu De, that Keluo Teji Lang had appointed Third-Class Imperial Guard Fu Qian as her husband.

  It seems that Yongzheng also does not object to the marriage between Fuca and this family.

  "Go with Guo to draft the list of congratulatory gifts, and bring it back for me to take a look." Yunzhu instructed Suwen. Every year after the selection of concubines, these gifts would be sent out endlessly, from members of the imperial clan to relatives, all going out but none coming in. Fortunately, this year there was a new secondary consort, so they could make up for it a bit.

  "Yes."

  After finishing all these, Yunzhu had the leisure to ask about the reaction of Chengqian Palace. Xi Guifei made a great effort to pick out Huang and Bo, but neither Yongzheng nor Hongli pointed at them... Yunzhu thought of Yun'e and Yunxu with joy.

  The author has something to say: The following is the main text:

  Fu Guangcheng and others have been paying attention to the movements of the Ula Nara clan in secret over the years, especially the Zuo Lingfu, Nalubu Fu and other households that are close to the imperial court. They frequently come and go privately, among them there are several households with this year's Shu Nu, several households have sons serving as guards in the palace, and several households have good relations with the Neiwufu, all of which were told to Yunzhu in detail.

  "You must have a plan in mind, or you'll be outsmarted by others." The men of the Fuca household may seem calm and composed, but that doesn't mean they don't understand the intrigue within the inner palace. It's precisely because the Fuca men have always been close to the emperor that they are well aware of the ruthlessness of the competition among the women in the palace. Because he loves Yunzhu so much, he is also wary of Ulanara Nianemengni, the concubine who was favored by the late Empress Xiaojingxian, and secretly keeps an eye on her, ready to offer advice to his daughter (and sister).

  Fu Heng listened thoughtfully beside him, "Palace guards?" What did the Ulanara family want to do after all?

  "Guards? Yunzhu's eyes flashed, and she furrowed her brow: "Since the assassination attempt during Yonghui's full moon celebration, the Emperor and Fourth Brother have indeed tightened their surveillance within the palace. I seem to recall Feng Yisu mentioning that they asked about guards paying special attention to Qianxi's second residence... Brother, please discreetly keep an eye on it for me."

  "Hmm?" Several people furrowed their brows after hearing this. In the palace, rumors and private matters were often used to frame men and women in illicit relationships. It didn't require direct evidence; a hint of suspicion was enough to make the emperor's already suspicious heart give rise to dark thoughts. At first, it might not seem like much, but over time, it could become the root of losing favor.

  According to legend, the palace guards were all from the Eight Banners and were of noble birth, with strict rules in every aspect. If it weren't for me often letting Feng Yi and Suo Wen ask them to send some fruit and food to the Nurturing Heart Palace and Chongqing Palace, I'm afraid... that one day, rumors would spread throughout the imperial palace and no one would know where they came from.

  She had a pale face, but in her heart, she was thinking about Ula Nara. Ni Mengyi really never gave up on framing me, I don't know if Gao Shi will still collaborate with her. Today's trip only proved that the Ula Nara family and those guards reached some kind of agreement, determined to carry out the trick they had discussed with Gao Shi three years ago.

  Being associated with someone can be damaging to a woman's reputation, especially one who is a future empress. It goes without saying how much harm it can cause. People are all the same, strict with others but lenient with themselves, expecting perfection from those in higher positions while also hoping for kindness and benevolence... That person doesn't even need to respond himself, just mentioning the times he unintentionally showed favor will make him remember and not dare forget... Even someone as narrow-minded as Hongli would feel uncomfortable at heart, and if things get serious, wouldn't that just make oneself look worse?!

  Three years ago, I finally understood the plan of Wulana and Gao, so I directly ruined Wulana's selection and damaged her reputation. Gao tasted the pain of a broken bone... Now, since they are so stubborn, I'll just fulfill their wishes, so they won't be stuck with this idea and get mental illness.

  "It's a small matter, let your brother and them handle it, as for people..."

  "Let it be, my daughter will take care of it, so that no one else will dare to have ideas about me in the future."

  Everyone in the room had a disapproving look on their faces, "You're playing with fire." With the influence of the Fu family in the Imperial Guard, it would be easy to find an excuse or create one to quietly squeeze out one or two palace guards without her having to put in that much effort.

  "No, I must let the Emperor and the Fourth Prince know that my days are not all smooth sailing. Besides, there is no such thing as a thousand days of being a thief without a thousand days of prevention. With the precedent of framing someone set in the mind of the Fourth Prince, whoever tries to do something like this again will only end up making a fool of themselves." All things in the world have two sides, and if operated well, not only can they eliminate evil and disease, but also reveal oneself and strike down enemies, achieving multiple gains at once.

  "Do you have confidence?" Li Rongbao was somewhat moved, his daughter wasn't a careless person, and since she said so, she must have made meticulous arrangements. Throughout the ages, even if the empress sat stably in the central palace, it was extremely rare to simultaneously gain the emperor's favor. After all, the empress had power in her hands, and the image of governing the harem was too rigid, while men were more inclined to sympathize with the "weak" in their eyes.

  "Of course." She flashed a smile, her eyebrows flying up in an expression that was like a little fox waiting for its prey to fall into the trap, cute and lovely. Li Rongbao and Fu Guangcheng had rarely seen this side of her before, and after a moment's pause, they both smiled with relief on their faces, thinking to themselves that their daughter (sister) was truly born to be royalty, as she treated palace politics as an entertaining game - not many women could do that.

  She thought that as the eldest son's legitimate wife, and being pampered and trusted by the fourth prince, she would develop a sense of exclusivity or exclusion over time. Unexpectedly, even after giving birth to a son, her mindset remained as calm and composed as it was before marriage.

  Yunzhu and her father and brother chatted in the study for a while, after dinner the guests dispersed one after another. Hongli came over to pick up Yunzhu, Li Rongbao accompanied by his son saw them off. Yunzhu took the opportunity to give out the cosmetics she had brought with her to Guwalgiya and several of her sisters-in-law, and also gave some extra portions to Ruiqin Wang Fujin as well as Jinye, Hui Zhu and other female relatives who were close to her family.

  The end of the banquet and the arrangement of gifts are all taken care of by the servants and nurses, so there's no chaos.

  Mingliang, Mingren and several others were more interested in the dried fruits, fruit preserves and honey brought by Yunzhu. Guwalgiya gave each of them some and had the things put away, not daring to give too much, especially to the younger ones, lest they spoil their proper meal.

  Yunzhu briefly explained some makeup techniques and had Suwen find a maid to practice, while she herself pulled over a few nephews and nieces to chat, even having someone bring over gifts.

  Ming Li was born last December, when the triplets were full moon and Ming Li's three-month-old and full-moon ceremonies were not held, only Ye Nainai and Ming Xin came to take a look. "Looks more robust than Yong Xiang."

  Ma Jia heard and turned her head to say, "Stupidly, not as clever as Second Brother." Yun Zhu's triplets were all raised to be fair and tender, looking at them made one feel that they had more spirit than ordinary children.

  "I think it's fine, kids change every day, who knows when they'll suddenly understand. Don't always say in front of the kid that he's stupid or foolish, even if they don't understand yet." Ming Li was three months younger than the triplets, and looking at them, they seemed about the same size. After holding him for a while, she felt a bit strained, too lively, nothing like "dumb".

  Shu Mu Lu and Gua Er Jia, Rouqin Wang Fu Jin were a bit older than the others. They didn't have much interest in makeup, but were busy playing with the triplets. When they heard this, they glanced over and smiled: "Big sister is indeed good with children, all the kids love to be close to her."

  Everyone listened, and the fairy changed her appearance with makeup. The girl's face turned around to take a look, but it was not, Minghui, Mingde, Mingyi and several other small radish heads were leaning against her side, chattering non-stop. She smiled and agreed with a few words, then pulled Suwen up again, especially Huirou and Baolan, the princess of Borjigit Aodeng, they were newly married for less than two years and it was the prime time, so they were particularly interested in this.

  Happy times always pass quickly, and before long the sun sets, with Yunzhuan reluctantly bringing triplets and Hongli back to the palace amidst the farewell of their family.

  By the end of April, Yongzheng's illness had almost recovered, but Yongqi's illness was still dragging on. Princess Yu allowed to fall ill again, and Yongzheng was somewhat stimulated, not only giving some of the best medicine, but also ordering the imperial physician to carefully treat her.

  Consider the good performance of Yonggui, Yuyi and others in recent years. They have been promoted two ranks to Fuguo Beizi. The eldest son of Yonggui, Hongzhao, was granted the title of Feng'en General, while the fifth son Hongding and the son of Yuqi, Hongwang, were promoted from Second-Class Town Country General to a rank equivalent to that of a non-entering eighth-rank Fuguo Gong.

  By the end of May, the selection was over, and it is unknown what tricks Hongli had done. In history, Emperor Qianlong's Yi Pin Huang Shi and Yi Pin Bai Shi were not assigned to either Qianxi or Qianer. Instead, Huang Shi was assigned to Beizi Yun'e as a gege, and Bai Shi was assigned to Beizi Yunbi as a gege.

  In the past two years, Prince Zhuang's concubine Li died. Yongzheng knew that his brother was a sentimental person and had taken note of this. Coincidentally, during this selection of imperial consorts, Princess Zhuang requested Zhang as her candidate. He thought to himself: "Zhang is a second-rank official who has performed well among the Han officials, and Zhang's daughter is also beautiful and talented, performing well in the selection." So he generously granted Prince Zhuang an additional concubine, Zhang.

  Assign Suolunala's daughter Ulanara to Prince Bao Hongli as a secondary consort; assign Xiufei Zhou to Hongyou as a gege; assign the daughter of Grand Scholar Changlang'a, Nalan, to Ningjun Wang Hongyan as an inherited consort; assign Deng Wenjin's daughter Deng to Beile Hongxuan as a secondary consort; assign Shang Yude's daughter to Yongzheng's ninth son, Third-Class Attendant Hongshan, as a primary consort...

  The two famous women, Birlu and Namdulu, entered the palace as consorts. Birlu became Chunying and was assigned to Chongqing Palace, while Namdulu became Naying and was assigned to Yanxi Palace.

  ……

  Since Huang and Bai were no longer related to Gan Xi, Yunzhu threw it aside and called Shu Duan over: "Go and find out who Kalos is referring to."

  Kerlot Gioro is the second daughter of Langdun, a humble family with no notable background. However, her family's reputation is still decent. Her older sister was betrothed to Honghuan, the sixth son of Yongzheng, as his primary wife. Kerlot Gioro has a delicate appearance and a gentle temperament; she also manages household chores well. Guwalgiya had initially taken notice of her, intending to propose a marriage if she passed the selection process. After the re-selection, Yunzhu noticed that Kerlot Gioro was among those who were retained for the final review.

  Fu Chajia's current position in the court is becoming increasingly sensitive, Fu Qian said that his close relative Li Rongbao would have revealed it to Yongzheng in advance, Yunzhu was not too worried from the start, and sure enough, on the third day, she received news from her uncle Fu De, that Keluo Teji Lang had given the third-class guard Fu Qian as a wife.

  It seems that Yongzheng also does not object to the marriage between Fuca and this family.

  "Go with Guo to draft the list of congratulatory gifts, and bring it back for me to take a look." Yunzhu instructed Suwen. Every year after the selection of concubines, these congratulatory gifts were sent out endlessly, from members of the imperial clan to relatives, all going out without any coming in. Fortunately, this year there was a new secondary consort, so they could make up for it a bit.

  "Yes."

  After finishing all these, Yunzhu had the leisure to ask about the reaction of Chengqian Palace. Xi Guifei made a great effort to pick out Huang and Bo, but neither Yongzheng nor Hongli pointed at them... What about Yun'e and Yunsi? Yunzhu thought about it with joy.