99, choose (below)

  99, choose (below)

  After leaving the Chengqian Palace, Yunzhu brought Ling Xusuo to the Xianfu Palace and first went to visit Hehui and Duanyun. The two people they were engaged to had basically been determined, Hehui was given to Kelk Bogorchijit Dorji Sebuteng, son of Kelk Danjin Dorji; Duanyun was given to Khorchin Bogorchijit Dorji Chimedtseren, son of Prince Lobzang Darje. Both were sons of princes appointed by the Yongzheng Emperor.

  According to history, in the 11th year of Yongzheng, Danjin Dorji was guilty of falsely claiming military achievements and misleading the army during the war between Qing and Junghar, which led to his son being implicated and stripped of his title. By the 13th year of Yongzheng, he had passed away at a young age. Now that Junghar has been pacified, it is likely that Dorji Sebuteng would not have died prematurely either. Moreover, with the strong character of He Qi, she must have made many preparations for her future life under his guidance and should not have died so early.

  There's no need to worry about her anymore. From the limited historical records, it can be seen that she had a relatively good life after marriage, but unfortunately died young at the age of 41.

  There's still two years' time before getting married, whatever you want can be slowly prepared.

  Xianfu Palace is a two-court courtyard, with a main hall and east-west wing halls in the front court, and also a main hall and east-west wing halls in the back court. The layout of the rooms is no different from that of the other six palaces. Hehuan and Rongyue lived in the east-west wing halls of the front court of Xianfu Palace, and the main hall became a common reception hall for the two of them. The side rooms on either side of the main hall were also arranged as their respective studies, small living rooms, and places where they would play, write, and do needlework every day. After Princess Zixing moved in, she lived in the main hall of the back court, which was very convenient.

  When Yunzhu arrived, both Yi Qinwang Fu Jin and Zhuang Qinwang Fu Jin were present. The matchmaker had made the selection, and it felt like their daughter was no longer their own. Yongzheng also turned a blind eye to the frequent visits of the two Fu Jin to the palace. The two Fu Jin, who had been separated from their daughters for so long, could only express their maternal love through the dowry prepared by the Imperial Household Department according to the princess's standard, and then added more dowries in the name of the Qinwang Mansion.

  "Fourth Sister, you've arrived." He Hui's face turned red as she stood up, and together with Duan Rou, they greeted her with a bow. The two madams also stood up with smiles, "Greetings, Fourth Madam."

  "Have seen thirteen aunt sixteen aunt." Yunzhu returned the courtesy, pursed her lips and glanced at He Hui, sat down and asked on purpose: "What were you talking about?"

  He Hui's face turned even redder, "Fourth Aunt!" The embarrassed look was quite adorable.

  Although the flexible son is quite refreshing, he also feels a bit embarrassed.

  "It's said that the marriage partners for the two princesses have already been decided, so I invited 13th sister to come over and share some experiences with them." The wife of Prince Zhuang didn't seem to mind at all.

  Also, the late Empress Xiaojing had ordinary feelings towards the three princesses (there was also Princess Shushen who married into Khorchin in the fourth year of Yongzheng and was the daughter of the former emperor's deposed crown prince Yunreng) raised in the palace. Apart from the portion, education, and servants that the princesses should have had, nothing else was taken care of.

  Yunzhu soon discovered that the two princesses, apart from having the etiquette expected of imperial princesses, were only taught some feminine accomplishments such as needlework and music. They didn't even know how to ride or shoot properly, let alone manage a household or interact with others. Not to mention leading by example, she could have at least hired someone to teach them, but she didn't.

  It's no wonder such a princess would not live long after marrying into Mongolia.

  It's no wonder that Yongzheng's respect for her became increasingly lukewarm.

  Yunzhu understands the Empress's state of mind. Her only son is dead, and she doesn't like any of Yongzheng's children, even if they were raised by her. But she must have a son, and the Yongpin Wangfu also needs to have a Manchu-blooded prince, so she chose the seemingly honest and loyal Nian Xialing, and had her raise the newborn Hongli. As the Empress who became the model for the world, without children of her own, the only people she could rely on were the Emperor and the future Emperor, so why would she bother with anyone else? Even Hongli, she was also filled with love and hate...

  People are selfish. If it weren't for the fact that she only had these two princesses to interact with in the palace, Yunzhu wouldn't have been so kind as to guide them. Since they would be the ones she interacts with the most in the next few years, she invested her time and energy, and didn't want to waste it. The two princesses living a better life in Mongolia is not only beneficial for the Qing dynasty but also for her own future.

  Although the two princesses and the princess had few opportunities to meet, they also discovered this good change after one or two times, and it's not necessary to mention their gratitude to Yunzhu.

  Apart from Empress Xiaoxian, apart from the consorts of Yongzheng and the concubines of Qianlong, which princess or prince in this palace did not have a good impression of her? This is an invisible investment.

  However, no matter how she guides the two princesses' attitudes towards life, it is impossible for her to explain to them how couples should interact - she herself has just gotten married for the first time, and the groom is a famous philandering emperor in history, whether he has a brain or not is uncertain, and she doesn't have romantic notions about embracing love either. The situation is different from others, and she is still exploring it herself. However, there is one sentence that suits most women throughout history: "No desires, no worries". If you don't ask for a man's heart or his love, then to some extent, you won't live too badly.

  In the blink of an eye, many thoughts flashed through her mind, and Yunzhu also listened to a few sentences. To sum it up, Yi Qinci's wife is the type who "worries with her husband and delights in his joys", the secret lies in putting men's likes, dislikes, sorrows, and joys in her heart, even if it's just a stone, holding it for a long time will make it warm. Zhuang Qinci's wife took the route of being dignified and virtuous, she pointed out to Zhuang Qinci that before he had a concubine named Li Shi, with whom he was deeply in love, but she managed to slowly pull him to her side from Li Shi's hands, relying on her upright and generous personality, occupying the position of the first wife. As long as she didn't harbor malicious intentions, she dared to speak out whatever she wanted, pursue whatever she wanted, this way, those who dared to give her a hard time would often end up hurting themselves, destroying their own defenses.

  In short, we must grasp the power of the housekeeper and also grasp the hearts of men. The two princesses have gained a lot, and in the future, they will rely on their own understanding and adaptability to do what is right.

  "I think it's better to ask Sixteenth Uncle to carefully select a few serving women as dowry. Now that the Prince of Zhuang is in charge of the Imperial Household Department, it's quite convenient."

  What does it mean? The two princesses and the prince's consort were somewhat at a loss.

  "Now, the wet nurses beside Ronghua and Hui are those with families, right? I heard that most of the wet nurses selected by the Imperial Household Department for princesses are those without family burdens. Without family burdens, they specialize in teaching palace rules to palace maids. They have no family to support, can't get good jobs, and don't have feelings for their masters. What's most important to them? Of course, it's money or power. The weak princess is easy to control. The suffocating marriage life of the Qing princess wasn't exposed until the Daoguang era, right? Anyway, history has been altered, she doesn't mind adding another butterfly wing. Moreover, Sixteen Auntie, I heard that even when a princess wants to summon her husband for an overnight stay, she needs to get the wet nurse's consent, is that true?"

  The two princesses first blushed, then turned pale, and looked embarrassed, if it were a close nanny, it would be fine, but if they encountered a stricter one who was not familiar with them, how could they open their mouths?

  The Empress Dowager hesitated for a moment, "The rules of the Qing Dynasty..." were to protect the princess from being bullied by her husband, so her husband had to get the consent of the nanny before entering the palace, but didn't the nanny's words mean the same as the princess'?!

  What does it sound like the Fourth Mistress is saying, but it seems to mean more than that? The two mistresses are not foolish people, they know there must be something unpleasant to say, but Yunzhu doesn't say it clearly and they can't ask either. This is the ancestral rule, ordinary people won't think about what's wrong with it.

  "You talk, I'll go take a look at Xiaozhiyan."

  As soon as she entered the main hall, Yunzhu heard the sound of a child learning to speak, "Ma, Ama", and the little palace maidens all greeted her with auspicious wishes. Yunzhu smiled slightly in response, leaving Suwen to chat with them, and led Lingzhui into the next room, where she saw a chubby white baby crawling around on the bamboo couch, with Autumn Shi, the wet nurse, sitting on a small stool beside her, teaching her to speak one sentence at a time.

  "Fourth Mistress, Fourth Mistress." The little girl was very quick-witted and immediately ran over to her as soon as she saw her, startling Autumn Auntie who hastily caught hold of her. Turning around, she hurriedly paid her respects, "Your humble servant has seen Fourth Mistress, may Fourth Mistress be auspicious."

  "No need to be polite." Yunzhu walked over and took Xiaopangwa from Autumn's hand, sat down on the couch, saw that her body was refreshing, her small face round and white, and kissed her, "Xiao Zixi, do you miss Fourth Sister?"

  "...sister-in-law." Her strong legs bounced up and down on her thighs, looking very happy. The word "think" couldn't be said, so she directly expressed it with action. With a "slurp", the small mouth that was drooling saliva stuck to Yunzhu's face.

  The autumn wind is very cool.

  Children love to imitate, and this behavior pattern was also learned from Yunzhu. Maybe because Yunzhu has the breath she likes, Xiaoci always loves to pounce on her, climb on her, and stick to her when she is around.

  Yunzhu playfully teased her while asking Qiu Ayi, "Has she finished drinking her goat's milk every day?"

  "Yes, as the Fourth Imperial Concubine instructed, the princess likes to drink it, and also loves to eat egg drop soup." At seven months old, the little princess began eating various supplementary foods as instructed by the Fourth Imperial Concubine. At first, this wet nurse who had been trained in the inner palace didn't think much of it, but after a period of time, the little princess didn't seem to have any adverse reactions and was still very healthy and lively. They were rewarded by the Emperor for their good service.

  "Great. Now that spring is in full bloom, it's neither too hot nor too cold every day, take her to the garden for a walk, and talk to her about flowers and birds, kids are happy."

  "Yes."

  "Has anyone else come to see the princess recently?" It's more like a disturbance than a visit. Zhiyan still remembers when Qifei was in power, those concubines would go to Xianfugong every day, thinking that by getting close to Zhiyan first, they could win Yongzheng's favor and get the princess for themselves.

  Autumn Aunt hesitated for a moment and said: "Concubine Qi has come twice, both times she sat beside her and watched the little princess for a while before leaving."

  Yunzhu was slightly startled, then smiled again. "Qin'er is registered under her name, so she's Qin'er's legitimate mother. You don't have to be too nervous, and if she wants to play with Qin'er in the future, you don't need to stop her. Just take good care of the princess."

  "I've remembered it."

  As the draft is nearing its end, the messages sent by Linghui and Shu Diao are about which family's noble daughter has what kind of talent, which family's concubine-born daughter is so beautiful, and how gentle her temperament is. Then it becomes which draft girl had an accident, or was injured, or lost face... In short, the show is full of twists and turns, and the program is extremely wonderful.

  It's always more enjoyable to watch from the sidelines than to be personally involved. Yunzhu sometimes uses her spiritual power to observe the palace maidens secretly competing with each other, forming cliques and confronting one another, setting traps and plotting against each other... Unbeknownst to them, the eyes and ears of the various imperial consorts and the emperor are all watching clearly from behind the scenes.

  This time, in addition to Hui Zhu, there was also Fu Cha's third granddaughter, Fu Cha Niuting, who is Yunzhu's cousin; and from her maternal family, the second elder brother of Weiyong Houfu, Shilihe's daughter Gualjia Minki, were all this year's Xiunu. The Gualjia family had already entered the palace to greet her and let her take a look.

  Yunzhu's father, Li Rongbao, was the youngest son, and her mother, Guwalgiya, was the youngest daughter. Yunzhu herself was a late-born child, born when her parents were already advanced in age. This made her a senior among her peers, with most of them being one or two generations younger than her... except for Juan Ya and Hui Zhu, everyone else had to show their respect by performing the junior's courtesy when meeting her.

  After becoming the fourth son of the emperor, due to her seniority, she needs to take care of "younger generations", and a large number of them suddenly appeared.

  When she started selecting, she sent Mingxin and the aunt who was in charge of Xiuniang and the eunuch to say a word, and also secretly observed for several days. She found that the three were all born into good families, and the concubines had been taught the necessary etiquette. They were clever and not easily deceived by others' provocations and small obstacles, so she let go of her hand.

  It was just this time of secretly observing for a few days that made her discover a conspiracy against her...

  If she gets her way, maybe she'll really never be able to turn things around for the rest of her life. Unfortunately, her luck in this life is just too good.

  Since they chose to be at odds with her, she wouldn't hold back!