TPNCQ CHAPTER 28
Qianlong is a Tsundere Emperor
The next day, after a nap, Su Limo asked Shuangjiang to bring water for her to wash up. She then sat in front of a copper mirror and applied a small amount of powder to her face to cover her rosy complexion. However, this time she did not apply shadows under her eyes to create a haggard look. This trick had already been discovered by the Empress Dowager, and she could no longer pretend in the future. But in the eyes of others, she could not immediately reveal herself without any disguise, so she could only slowly reduce her disguise and gradually get better.
"Is niangniang going out? I'll go prepare a big umbrella to shade you," Dong Xue asked.
"No, go get some silver and get a pot of clean ice from the internal affairs department, and come back to make afternoon tea," Su Limo said while drawing her eyebrows. Qianlong was filial, and she was sure the Empress Dowager's meaning yesterday must have been known to him. Today, or at the latest tomorrow, he would definitely come to Jingren Palace. She had to prepare in advance.
Dong Xue took the silver and went to the internal affairs department to get ice. Su Limo finished tidying up and instructed Shuangjiang to fetch fresh milk and high-quality rain-after Longjing to brew milk tea.
After the aroma of milk tea filled the air, she added some tapioca balls and poured them into a glass cup to cool for later use. The excess was poured into small bowls for Shuangjiang and Dong Xue to taste.
After doing all this, there was still some time left. Su Limo sat on the couch, holding a brocade box, picking up beads and matching silk threads to make another string of pendants. Shuangjiang and Dong Xue sat on the lower stools on the embroidery frame, sewing new palace dress for Jingshun.
The weather was getting hotter and hotter. Although there was a lot of ice in Jingshun's bedroom for cooling, and there were palace servants fanning to bring coolness to the entire hall, it was still hot after all. The thin gauze given by the Empress Dowager, besides the silver-red set that had already been cut and made, there were two more bolts. Su Limo asked them to take them out and make two new sets of clothes for Jingshun to wear. Little children could be as comfortable as possible, adults could endure the heat, but not so for little ones.
Su Limo compared the excess scraps and found that they were neither big nor small, just enough to make a large and a small sunhat. She asked Shuangjiang to cut them according to her requirements, leaving a three-inch edge at the edge of the regular hat shape to make it look like a modern sunhat, and to have a parent-child look with Jingshun.
In the afternoon, Qianlong finished his morning court and, thinking of the Empress Dowager's words yesterday, set off for Jingren Palace.
In other palaces, the sound of cicadas occasionally bothered people, but Jingren Palace was peaceful, probably because for Jingshun, Su Limo had specially asked people to remove them all.
Qianlong got off the sedan chair and stepped into the palace gate. He saw that there was no one in the courtyard, only two eunuchs guarding the door, who were sitting on the ground and dozing off at the moment.
Hearing the sound, the eunuch guarding the door suddenly looked up and saw that it was the Emperor. He was about to speak, but was stopped by Li Yu, so he could only kneel silently on the ground, his big head full of big questions. What the hell, why did the Emperor come at this time?
Li Yu personally lifted the curtain, and Qianlong, displeased, did not call for anyone to announce him, but walked straight in.
He saw Su Limo and her two maids, one stringing beads and the other sewing clothes, completely unaware of his presence. He couldn't help but quicken his pace.
Hearing the sound, Dong Xue was the first to turn around. Seeing that it was the Emperor, she quickly dropped her needlework and pulled Shuangjiang to kneel and greet him.
Hearing the sound, Su Limo put down the beads in her hand, then looked up with a proper smile, gentle and compliant, and stood up to greet him, "Chenqie greets Your Majesty. How come Your Majesty is here at this hour? It's so hot outside."
As she spoke, Su Limo gave Dong Xue a glance, and Dong Xue went to take out the glass cup soaked in ice, added a few more pieces of ice, and brought it over.
Qianlong said nothing, sat on the other side of the brocade couch, and raised his hand, motioning for Su Limo to get up.
Su Limo stood up and took the glass cup that Dong Xue brought over, and handed it to him personally, "Your Majesty, please try the Longjing iced milk tea I made."
Qianlong had been walking all the way here, and his back was sweaty. Although the bedroom of Jingren Palace had a large basin of ice dripping and melting to cool things down, it was still a bit cooler compared to the Qianqing Palace, but it was still hot. At this moment, seeing the iced drink that Su Limo handed over, which was quite unique, he took it and silently ate two spoonfuls.
Seeing that Qianlong didn't speak, Su Limo naturally didn't say anything either. Sitting on the brocade couch, she continued to pick up beads and match silk threads. They were all workers. At least she only had to deal with people and things in the harem. Qianlong worked the day shift in the front court and still had to come to the harem for overtime. Which of the ministers in the front court and the women in the harem was easy to deal with? They were worse off than her.
Moreover, Qianlong wasn't voluntarily working overtime now; it was the Empress Dowager who ordered him to do so. He had no choice but to clock in.
"Last year's old tea? It has a musty smell."
Su Limo looked up upon hearing this and was about to say, "Chenqie didn't even taste it, Your Majesty, please put it down..." Who knew, Qianlong took one spoonful of tapioca ball and one sip of tea, then another spoonful of tapioca ball and another sip of tea. After three or four mouthfuls, it was empty, and he even dug out a thumb-sized piece of ice and put it in his mouth, crunching it. "..." Well.
"Bring me another cup."
It was nothing. Su Limo signaled Dong Xue to bring another cup.
Perhaps the sweat had subsided, Qianlong ate the second bowl much slower. Su Limo had picked out the silk thread and started stringing the beads.
At this moment, Qianlong finally had time to look at Su Limo in front of him. She was wearing half-new, half-old casual clothes, her cloud-like hair was not combed into a hairstyle, but was simply tied into a bun with a white jade hairpin. She was taciturn, picking up beads, stringing beads, and tying silk threads. Her movements were flexible and varied, and she was quite gentle and graceful.
When Qianlong's gaze fell upon the jade bracelets on her wrists, his eyes suddenly turned cold, and he felt a momentary dizziness. "I'll go back first. I'll come see you another day."
"Chenqie will see Your Majesty off," Su Limo quickly put down the beads she was stringing, stood up to see him off, and only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the bright yellow corner of his robe disappear from Jingren Palace. Today's overtime task was finished, and she could finally relax.
"Dong Xue, quickly bring me a cup of milk tea to cool down," Su Limo immediately put away the brocade box on the desk and waited for Dong Xue to bring the milk tea.
Dong Xue added some ice cubes and brought it to Su Limo.
"There are still two extra small bowls. You two, each of you have one and drink it quickly. Once the ice melts, the taste will be halved," Su Limo took a big sip of milk tea and scooped up a spoonful of tapioca balls, satisfied. Hers was added with honey, sweet and icy. Summer is for drinking iced milk tea.
Shuangjiang and Dong Xue also sat on round stools with their iced milk tea and drank. Dong Xue ate while saying, "His Majesty finally came, why didn't niangniang talk to His Majesty for a few more words, just stringing beads?"
"His Majesty has been nagged by the ministers in the front court for a whole day, and he is very annoyed by the heat. I don't want to make idle talk," Su Limo said. There is no need to rush.
"However, how come I didn't taste any musty smell in this tea? Is there really? I'll pour out everything in the box and smell it later," Dong Xue took a sip of tea, hesitant, "It shouldn't be. I stored it well, there shouldn't be any mistakes."
Before Dong Xue finished speaking, she heard a series of footsteps rushing towards them.
"A reward from His Majesty, please come out to receive it, Guifei niangniang." The leading eunuch, Xiao Hezi, said in a high-pitched voice, followed by four other eunuchs.
"A jar of top-grade snow-capped jade, a jar of various kinds of jade beads, two embroidered silk pouches, and two bolts of cloud shadow gauze," Xiao Hezi chanted one by one.
"Chenqie thanks Your Majesty for the reward," Su Limo thanked him according to the etiquette. Qianlong had only left for two quarter of an hour, and the reward had already been sent. It seemed that he had rushed to have someone do it on the way back to Yangxin Palace, so as to show the whole palace that he had visited Jingren Palace today.
Shuangjiang handed a brocade bag containing two taels of silver to the leading eunuch, Xiao Hezi, and said, "Eunuchs have worked hard, it's so hot today, take this to buy tea."
Xiao Hezi flipped it in his hand and smiled contentedly, and in pinched voice, "Thank you, Guifei niangniang. If there's nothing else, we'll retire first, there's still a lot of work to do in Yangxin Palace."
Shuangjiang personally sent him out, returned and checked with Dong Xue one by one.
"Snow-capped Jade, I heard that this is an extremely fine tea, worth a thousand gold. Only the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, the Empress, and Jia Fei have it in the palace," Dong Xue said, picking up the jar and smelling it, "It's really good tea, the fragrance is refreshing and there's a hint of coldness, it must be delicious. I must keep this well this time, and I must not let it get moldy like that rain-after Longjing."
Hearing this, Su Limo burst out laughing. Even if the Longjing in the milk tea was moldy, you couldn't really taste it. The taste was covered by the milk, and ice was added.
Of these rewards, only that jar of Snow-capped Jade was the most valuable, the others were just so-so. However, Su Limo liked that jar of various kinds of beads, and it was probably because Qianlong saw her stringing beads that he casually rewarded her with a jar. Su Limo took it and looked at it, she was just worried that she had too few, and now a jar had come, just right for matching colors.
"Niangniang, these two bolts of peach pink cloud shadow gauze are just right for making curtains. how about making them into curtains and replace that green one on the bed?" Shuangjiang took a look and compared it to the bed curtains, and it also matched the surrounding furnishings.
"Okay, you can change it," Su Limo scooped up a spoonful of tapioca balls and chewed, she also felt that the green curtain was too plain, and there had been no better replacement before. Now that there was, she would use it. There was no need to leave it in the warehouse to gather dust and mold. She should enjoy it when she could.
"you cank take this green one and use it. It's at least lighter and more breathable than what you're using, and it won't be stuffy," Su Limo said as she finished the last spoonful of tapioca balls and put down the glass cup.
"Your servant thanks niangniang for the reward," Shuangjiang thanked her, her hands never stopped.
*
In Chunxi Palace, Jia Fei was lying on the bed while Moli applied a slimming cream to her back. Although her waist and abdomen were still slender after giving birth, her skin was not as firm as before, so she could not let her guard down.
Lamei lifted the curtain and entered the bedroom, walked to the bed, and said in a low voice, "Niangniang, the Emperor just went to Jingren Palace and stayed for about half an hour, and then the eunuch who delivered the reward also went in..."
"Why did the Emperor go to Jingren Palace?" Jia Fei raised her hand to signal Moli to pause, propped herself up on her elbow, and asked puzzledly.
"I heard that yesterday, the Empress Dowager rewarded Chun Guifei with a pair of jade bracelets with extremely good lustre, and a fist-sized pigeon blood ruby raw stone. At night, she also called the Emperor to talk." Lamei told her what she had just found out.
"A fist-sized pigeon blood ruby raw stone? That's a treasure that was tribute from foreign countries a few years ago. There were only six in total, one is with the Empress, and the other five are with the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager actually rewarded Chun Guifei with one?" Hearing this, Jia Fei couldn't lie down anymore, she sat up wearing her nightgown, her eyebrows furrowed.
"I can't figure it out either. In the past six months, Chun Guifei has rarely come out of Jingren Palace to see people, except for the days when she went to the palace to pay her respects and went to the Prince's Residence. She couldn't be more honest and law-abiding. Why did she receive such a great favor from the Empress Dowager?" Lamei sat on the footstool, pursed her lips, and looked puzzled.
Title - Qianlong, An emperor who says on thing but does another
Chenqie - A humble way for a women (concubines) to refer to herself when speaking to a ruler.