TPNCQ CHAPTER 47
Your Majesty’s arrival is just in time
The Empress Dowager looked through the crowd and saw Yongqi standing politely below. With a kind and gentle expression, she said, "Yongqi, come over here and let your Imperial Grandmother have a good look at you."
Hearing this, Yongqi stepped forward and greeted the Empress Dowager.
"I hear you've started reading the Mencius. Can you tell your Imperial Grandmother which sentence you like the most?" The Empress Dowager began to test his knowledge.
Yongqi pondered for a moment, then replied in a clear and confident child's voice, "Replying to the Imperial Grandmother, I like the sentence 'To treat the old as we would treat our own old, and to care for the young as we would care for our own young.'"
"Oh? Can you tell your Imperial Grandmother why you like these two sentences?" the Empress Dowager asked with a smile.
"Replying to the Imperial Grandmother, the meaning of these two sentences is that when we support and respect our own elders, we should not forget other elderly people who are not related to us. When we raise and educate our own younger generation, we should not forget other children who are not related to us by blood," Yongqi said, then turned to look at Yu fei below and smiled.
"Oh? Listen to this, a five-year-old child knows more than you all," the Empress Dowager continued, looking at the concubines. "To care for the young as we would care for our own young, I want you all to treat these princes and princesses as your own and love and nurture them. If I find out that any of you have a wicked heart, I and the Emperor will not forgive you. I am over fifty years old now, and I just want to spend my days enjoying my grandchildren. Whoever makes me unhappy is asking for trouble."
The Empress Dowager's words were very serious, and the concubines immediately stood up and said that they would definitely follow her instructions and treat the old as they would treat their own old, and care for the young as they would care for their own young.
Seeing everyone's response, the Empress Dowager put away her stern expression and looked at her grandchildren with kindness.
After sitting for a while, she dismissed everyone.
The concubines all left, and Su Limo looked at Yongrong sitting in Qianlong's lap and gave him two winks, but Yongrong pretended not to see and sat still on Qianlong's lap.
Su Limo had no choice but to step forward and say, "Jingshun, Yongrong should go back."
Jingshun often came to the Cining Palace and knew that she couldn't disturb the Empress Dowager, so she obediently let Su Limo lead her away. Yongrong, however, still didn't move, so Su Limo had to reach out and pick him up. She said gently and respectfully to Qianlong, "Yongrong is being clingy with Your Majesty, and I can't even get him to move."
"It's good to be affectionate. When he grows up a little more, even if the Emperor wants to hug him, the child won't let him," the Empress Dowager said with a smile.
Su Limo took Jingshun and Yongrong back and left the Cining Palace. As soon as they went outside, Yongrong leaned over to Su Limo and whispered, "Imperial father really loves me."
"Silly child, of course, Your Imperial father loves each of you, and the Empress Dowager loves each of you as well, especially Yongzhang. Do you know that? So, you must be especially filial to the Emperor and the Empress Dowager. Mother wants you to be a good and filial child," Su Limo smiled and said to Yongzhang.
"Son knows, E'niang has said this many times. Son will definitely be very filial to the Imperial father, the Imperial grandmother, and Mother, and take good care of his younger brothers." Yongzhang finished, took Yongrong's hand, and said to Su Limo , "Then we sons will go back to the Prince's Residence first, and come to greet Mother another day."
"Okay," Su Limo couldn't bear to part with them and carried Jingshun all the way to the gate of the Prince's Residence.
Yongrong also patted Jingshun's little head and said, "You must come to the Prince's Residence to see Sixth Brother another day. Sixth Brother will play tangrams with you."
"I know, I know, brother, brother," Jingshun giggled.
Back in Jingren Palace, Su Limo settled Jingshun, had the wet nurse feed her until she was full and asleep, and then returned to the warm pavilion to have breakfast. All the important things to do in the first month of the year had been done, and she could finally relax.
As soon as Su Limo finished her breakfast, the eunuchs who were delivering gifts came one after another. The Empress Dowager, the Emperor, Empress Fucha, and Xian guifei had all sent gifts, and Su Limo asked Shuangjiang to lead people to register them one by one, and then had her own well-prepared gifts counted and asked Shuangjiang to lead the little eunuchs to send them to the various palaces.
Each concubine received two gifts: a piece of fabric and a string of pendants. Different materials were prepared according to their ranks, and everyone was treated equally without any partiality.
In Chunxi Palace, Jia fei looked at the gifts sent from Jingren Palace and sneered, disdainfully saying, "What a bunch of shabby things, throw them away."
Lamei knew that Jia fei was unhappy about what happened in the Cining Palace today, so she had people put the gifts away in a place that was not easily seen, and then stepped forward with a flattering smile and said, "Niangniang is not happy?"
"You didn't see how Sixth Prince, who is so young, clung tightly to the Emperor's neck and wouldn't let go. He was so clingy that the Emperor couldn't help but keep holding him. He didn't even hug our Eighth Prince once. What's even more annoying is Yongqi. He has only been studying for two years, and he has already read the Mencius thoroughly and dared to show off in front of the Empress Dowager." Jia fei complained, looking very impatient. Seeing how the princes were growing up one by one, how could she not be anxious? "That Yu fei looks like a piece of dead wood, but she gave birth to such a clever son. I underestimated her before."
"Niangniang, calm down. A child who is only five years old can't be seen through, and no matter how much he flatters, he can't compare to the Fourth Prince. Being smart and clever when he was young doesn't mean he will be a capable person when he grows up." Lamei comforted her.
"That's right, maybe he will be like the story of A Young Prodigy Who Spoiled Himself." Jia fei sneered. Her Yongcheng was the best, and no one could compare to him.
*
Feeling bored in the afternoon, Su Limo had people invite Chen guiren, Shu pin, and Ling pin to play mahjong. During the Spring Festival holiday, her favorite thing to do was to play mahjong.
Shortly after, the three of them arrived. Chen guiren was wearing the pendant that Su Limo had sent over that morning, and it seemed like she really liked it.
"The last time I played mahjong here was in autumn. It seems like just yesterday, and now it's already the first month of the new year. Time flies so fast," Chen guiren smiled and began to draw a tile.
"The seasons change, and so do the situations in the palace," Su Limo said with a smile, looking at the shiny trim on Chen guiren's new palace gown.
This remark was directed at both Chen guiren and Ling pin.
"Niangniang has a clever mind. Why don't you think about planning for yourself?" Ling pin said as she played a tile. Chun guifei could give her a direct hit, so why wouldn't she plan for herself and strive to maintain the Emperor's favor? Ling pin had been thinking about this for days.
"I'm over thirty, and I've already let go of many things. I just hope to raise my three children well and see them marry and have children, and then my life will be complete. It's just that my younger sister is in her twenties and is at the peak of her youth and beauty. Her future is limitless," Su Limo said, emphasizing the word "future."
"Six bamboos," Shu pin looked at the cards in her hand and played a tile.
"Hu!" Ling pin picked up the six bamboos and pushed the tiles open with a smile. After that, she looked at Su Limo and said, "Thank you for your auspicious words, niangniang."
"Oh no, I was thinking about not playing this six bamboos and feeding it to the wall, but I didn't expect to actually win," Shu pin said as she counted the money and placed it in front of Ling pin. "Let's play again, I don't believe I can't win a round today."
The four of them ended the topic and began to focus on playing cards. They were all smart people, and some things, once said and heard, were clear, and there was no need to say more.
After resting and having some refreshments in Changchun Palace, thinking about how Sixth Prince Yongrong had clung to him like a little girl like Jingshun in the Cining Palace earlier, Qianlong became annoyed.
How could a good prince be raised to be so clingy and spoiled? What would happen to him in the future?
Leaving Changchun Palace, he ordered Li Yu to prepare the carriage for Jingren Palace.
Knocking on the palace gate and entering, Qianlong saw four eunuchs on duty in the corridor, each of them looking very alert. Qianlong's furrowed brow relaxed slightly. It seemed that Su Limo had taken his words to heart and had not continued to disregard the rules and indulge the servants.
When the eunuchs saw the Qianlong and were about to greet him, he stopped them, so they could only return to their original positions and stand at attention.
Li Yu lifted the curtain, and as Qianlong was about to step inside, he heard a lot of noise coming from the warm pavilion.
"No, no, I didn't mean to play this two of bamboos, the tile hasn't even landed yet, so it doesn't count."
“How can it not count? I’ve already called out ‘two of bamboos,’ and it matches perfectly with the one in my hand. I’ve won, so how can it not count?”
“It’s possible to call out the wrong tile by mistake, but if it hasn’t been played on the table, it doesn’t count.”
“You heard that? She’s trying to back out of her play and cheat!”
“Chen guiren, once you’ve played a tile, you can’t take it back.”
“That’s right, I never thought that sister guiren would be so dishonest.”
…
"…" Qianlong’s expression turned cold instantly. Li Yu, his trusted servant, cautiously said, “From the sound of it, it seems like Chen guiren, Shu pin, and Ling pin are inside.”
Qianlong glanced at Li Yu and walked straight into the warm pavilion.
The five or six palace maids serving nearby noticed Qianlong first and knelt down to greet him, deliberately raising their voices, “Your servant greets Your Majesty.”
Hearing this, the four people at the mahjong table had different expressions on their faces, which was quite a sight.
Ling pin, who was facing the direction Qianlong was coming from, was the first to react. She stood up and greeted him, her voice as sweet and melodious as a nightingale, “Chenqie greets Your Majesty. May Your Majesty enjoy eternal happiness with great health.”
The remaining three also hurriedly stood up and greeted him. Su Limo suppressed her disappointed expression, then looked up with a gentle and amiable smile, “Your Majesty, why are you here at this hour?”
“Why can’t I come at this hour? Am I disturbing your enjoyable game of mahjong?” Qianlong walked to the brocade couch and sat down, looked at the four piles of silver on the table, and then looked at the four concubines kneeling on the ground. His emotions fluctuated several times before finally settling on Su Limo.
“Of course not, of course not. No, no. Your Majesty’s arrival is just in time…” Su Limo swallowed the rest of her words. She was thinking, wouldn’t it be fun if the Emperor joined them for a game?
Seeing Su Limo’s gentle and amiable smile, Qianlong felt his irritation rising again. “Withdraw.”
Hearing these three words, Ling pin looked at Qianlong’s expression and was the first to stand up and leave Jingren Palace. Seeing this, Shu pin and Chen guiren also retreated.
Looking at Su Limo, who was kneeling on the ground and still smiling tirelessly, Qianlong impatiently said, “It’s bad enough that you yourself don’t do your duties properly or follow the rules…” He had never known that Chen guiren would be so dishonest and cheat at cards. Everyone was following her bad example.
Su Limo was puzzled by this statement and pondered for a moment before softly asking, “Is playing mahjong not doing one's duties properly? Your Majesty, I don't understand what you mean."