At the end of the Youshi period, the late autumn sky outside the window had turned completely dark.
Qingyan watched the last mahogany carved box being locked with a copper lock by the palace staff. She couldn't help but sit down on the armchair in the hall and looked around at the large and small boxes placed on the ground like building blocks.
He breathed a long sigh of relief and said with a smile:
"Hey, we have been really busy all afternoon, and we didn't even dare to take a break. We have to go to Nansansuo and Yuqing Palace tomorrow to see how Xiaosi and Baocheng's luggage has been packed by the palace people.
Already."
Bai Lu carefully counted the boxes on the ground from beginning to end. Holding a very fine brush in her right hand, she traced the list of items in her left hand one by one for final confirmation, making sure that nothing was left behind.
Put it properly in the box.
Hearing the feeble words coming from the imperial concubine sitting behind him, he couldn't help but burst into laughter. He turned around and looked at his disheveled empress, and said with a teasing smile:
"Master, aren't you very strong on weekdays? Why do you get tired so easily today?"
Qingyan heard the teasing from her confidant, the eldest maid, and stretched out her arm to pick up the purple clay pot on the table and poured herself a cup of warm tea. While drinking, she said helplessly to her:
"I'm not physically tired, I'm mainly mentally tired. You guys are really too particular. You have to bring everything you see. If I hadn't stopped you, I'm afraid the entire Chuxiu Palace would have been moved onto the carriage by you."
When Bai Lu heard her mother-in-law's words, the corners of her mouth curled up even more. She leaned down and tugged on the copper locks on the box one by one. While checking, she answered the imperial concubine's words without raising her head:
"Master, this is the first time we have traveled far away after entering the palace. Naturally, it is not as convenient as being in the palace. Don't just think that we bring a lot of things. I can guarantee that the other ladies in the palace will give me a guarantee."
Prince, the princesses have only packed a lot more luggage. With all the things they have brought, they can live more comfortably on the road. You are not particular about it, but you can't let our thirteenth and fourteenth princes do the same.
Is it a rough life?"
When they heard Aunt Bailu calling them, Little Thirteen and Little Fourteen were lying on the carpet at the base of the wall playing with puzzles, and slowly crawled to E Niang's side on all fours, each hugged one leg, and began to open their mouths and yawn.
"Hey, are you sleepy?"
Qingyan put the tea cup in her hand back on the table, bent down and hugged the two brothers on her lap. She couldn't help but stretch out her eyes when she saw a thin layer of mist coming out of the brothers' big eyes due to drowsiness and yawning.
He took out his right hand and tapped the tips of the twins' noses one by one, and said softly with a smile.
"Ang~"
The two brothers made milky nasal noises, rubbed the imperial concubine's shoulders with their fluffy fetal hair, closed their eyes and leaned into their mother's arms, planning to sleep.
"Don't sleep yet. Look at how dirty you two are. Let's go. I'll take you two to take a hot bath first and then go to bed to rest."
Qingyan resignedly hugged the two brothers and stood up from the armchair. She greeted Aunt An and Aunt Wu and planned to go to the clean room.
Unexpectedly, a few people had just walked to the door of the hall. Two little palace maids, about fifteen or six years old, wearing blue clothes and about the same height, walked in hurriedly.
One of the two little maids was named "Mangzhong" and the other was named "Xiaohan".
Ever since Grandma Li and Li Xia followed Xiao Si to the Nansan Institute to take care of him last year, Bai Lu had been observing them for a long time and promoted them from among a dozen little palace maids to take care of the twins.
Mangzhong has a lively and cheerful temperament, and has a round face like Bailu, while Xiaohan is restrained and steady, with a melon-seed face.
Qingyan saw that both of them were frowning and angry. It would be fine if it was Xiao Han, but Mang Zhong, who was smiling all day long, also had a gloomy look on his face. She couldn't help but asked in confusion:
"What's wrong? What happened?"
Xiaohan glanced at the imperial concubine, then bowed down respectfully and whispered:
"Master, I'm afraid we won't be able to leave on time the day after tomorrow. Brother Ten accidentally hit his head on the back of a chair in the main hall of Yongshou Palace in the afternoon and hurt his head. He is still unconscious now."
"What? How could this happen? What do the palace people of Yongshou Palace do for food?"
Qingyan became anxious when she heard this. Xiaoshi was only two years old, and he was still a little boy who had just begun to enlighten himself. The head was so important. If he accidentally hit a fatal part like the brainstem, he would die young.
!
Xiao Shisan, who was lying on E Niang's left shoulder, heard E Niang's suddenly raised voice. He could not help but flutter his eyelashes twice and slowly opened his eyes. He turned his furry little head to look at Xiao Han who was speaking.
Bai Lu, who was standing next to a pile of boxes, quickly put the brush and the list of items in her hand on the huanghuali wood table, and quickly walked to the imperial concubine's side.
Qingyan saw that Little Thirteen was woken up, and was about to say something. The straightforward Mang Zhong, with a round face red with anger, couldn't help but said cheerfully:
"Master, you are wrong this time."
"The tenth prince was injured not because the people in the palace were not careful, but because of Concubine Niu Hulu. The news I heard was that Concubine Niu Hulu wanted to leave the palace and entrust the tenth prince to the care of the Queen Mother.
But the Tenth Prince wanted to sit in our carriage with the Ninth Prince. Because mother and son had a disagreement, Concubine Niu Hulu was so angry that she stretched out her arms, grabbed the Tenth Prince and pressed her down on the chair.
The 10th Prince's nanny was still in the process of trying to dissuade her, but Concubine Niu Hulu scratched her face with a nail sheath. Blood was seen on the spot, and the 10th Prince was also frightened.
I accidentally hit the back of the chair and hit my head and fell into a coma."
"Niu Hulu Mingya is so crazy!"
After listening to Mang Zhong's words, Qingyan frowned and realized why the two of them were so angry. She was innocently implicated!
With a headache, she put the two brothers in her arms into the arms of Aunt Wu and Aunt An behind her. She ordered the two people to take the two brothers to the clean room to take a bath, and then took Bai Lu and raised her legs to cross the threshold in a hurry.
Go outside.
After the master and servant quickly walked along the palace road to the Yongshou Palace in the south, they were dumbfounded as soon as they entered the main hall.
The last time Xiao Shi had a high fever, this place was in a mess. Now it seems like the scene has reappeared. The whole hall is as chaotic as a vegetable market. The ground is a mess. The maids, eunuchs, and nuns don't clean it up, but they all look like
Like a quail, he knelt on the ground with his neck curled up and his head lowered.
There were broken porcelain, tea, broken handkerchiefs, and shards of glass on the ground. There was no place to put her feet. Qingyan rubbed her fingers and walked around the palace people on the ground, picking a clean place and walked straight to the door of Xiao Shi's room.
As soon as she reached the door, Kangxi, with a gloomy face and eyes closed, sitting on a carved chair next to the north wall, broke into her sight.
Wearing a rose-red dress with large epiphyllum flowers embroidered with gold thread, Hulu was facing away from the door, kneeling in front of Kangxi and crying out of breath.
The two heads have long been loosened, and several strands of black hair hang down to the white neck.
The last time Qingyan came to see Xiao Shi who was sick, she could still feel from Kangxi his unabashed anger towards Xiao Niu Hulu, but this time he seemed to treat Niu Hulu Mingya
He was like air. No matter how much Concubine Niu Hulu grabbed the hem of his bright yellow dragon robe and begged in a plaintive voice, Kangxi didn't even look at her in return.
For a moment, the door couldn't tell what the two people were doing. Qingyan took two more steps forward, turned her head and glanced to the right, and saw that Xiao Shi was indeed pale, lying quietly on the bed with his eyes closed.
Doctor Zhang is sitting by the bed, holding a thin-mouthed white porcelain bottle in his hand to apply medicine on Xiao Shi's bruised and swollen forehead. A young woman dressed in blue clothes and dressed as a nanny is looking nervous.
He looked at the small breast dumplings on the bed.
The right half of her face was hastily bandaged with white gauze, and there was still obvious redness on her chin, as if the blood had dried on it and had not been wiped clean.
Seeing all these scenes in her eyes, Qingyan understood that the news Mang Zhong said should be absolutely correct. She leaned slightly towards Kangxi and saluted:
"I, my concubine, pay my respects to the Emperor."
When Kangxi heard the familiar female voice, he immediately opened his slender red phoenix eyes. Xiao Niu Hulu also turned his head and stared at the imperial concubine standing at the door with angry red eyes.
Qingyan saw that Xiao Niu Hulu didn't even bother to pretend this time, and stared at her with a stern look that wanted to eat her own flesh and drink her own blood, and her brows furrowed even more.
I can't understand how I can offend her like this.
The next moment, Kangxi stood up from the armchair and answered her doubts:
"Yan'er, you came just in time. Xiao Niu Hulu is an unkind mother. I don't plan to let her raise Xiao Shi anymore. After Doctor Zhang has finished applying medicine to Xiao Shi and bandaging his wounds, you can take him to the hospital.
Let's raise them together with Little Thirteen and Little Fourteen in Chu Xiu Palace."
Kangxi's tone was sparse and ordinary, but the content was like a thunder, shocking the master and servant standing at the door.
Bai Lu's eyes widened in an instant, and she glanced to the right at the haggard Eleventh Brother lying on the bed, and then at Concubine Niu Hulu, who was kneeling on the ground sobbing. She never expected that as the son of a concubine, her mother's family was
The powerful Tenth Brother of the Niu Hulu clan was unexpectedly brought up by the emperor. The relationship between Chuxiu Palace and Yongshou Palace is not an exaggeration to say that it is like ice and fire! How could the Emperor treat the Tenth Brother like this?
How about placing my brother under the master’s lap and raising him?
Qingyan was also shocked and didn’t know what to say. Xiao Shi was a cute little boy. Although she liked the child very much, the situation of Xiao Shi and Xiao Si was different. If the Niu Hulu clan outside the palace
After hearing this news, you must not explode?
"Why, Yan'er, you don't want to?"
When Kangxi saw that the imperial concubine was silent, he couldn't help but stepped forward and stood in front of the imperial concubine and asked again.
Before Qingyan could think of how to speak, Xiaoniu Hulu burst into tears in an instant. She hurriedly walked up to Qingyan and kowtowed to Kangxi with a loud bang.
cried:
"Your Majesty, you can't do this. You should know how much I suffered during the birth in order to give birth to Xiao Shi. Yiner is my lifeblood. I can't lose it no matter what.
Him!"
The corners of Xiao Niu Hulu's mouth trembled, tears and snot were all mixed together, and her forehead became as blue and purple as Xiao Shi's. She stretched out her hand to cover her heart in pain and looked up at Kangxi helplessly, not feeling at all.
When Chuchu entered the palace, she looked like a Manchu noblewoman from a prominent family.
Kangxi looked condescendingly at Xiao Niu Hulu who was kneeling on the ground and crying bitterly. Then he bent down and pinched the lower half of Xiao Niu Hulu's face with his big calloused hands, forcing her to be with him.
Eye to eye.
Xiao Niu Hulu's chin was just right on Kangxi's tiger's mouth. She looked at the emperor's cold eyes as if looking at a dead man, and her heart almost jumped out of her throat.
Qingyan also looked at Kangxi who was extremely angry in front of her, and listened to him say in a cold voice word by word:
"You brought this on yourself. I remember I told you last time that you are not irreplaceable. Take good care of Xiao Shi and don't commit suicide. But how did you do it? You kept saying that you loved Xiao Shi, but you
Dare to touch your heart and think about it, do you love him, or do you love the fame and fortune he can bring you in the future? What has been your attitude towards him in the past six months since Xiao Shi's high fever damaged his brain?
, don’t you know?”
"Haha~ Among the fourteen princes in the palace, except for Xiao Shi, I have never seen the second one who was deceived like this by his own direct relative, my mother-in-law. When I look at you, my mother-in-law, I even think that Xiao Shi is still...
Might as well jump out from the cracks in the rocks!"
After Kangxi finished speaking, he threw away his arms in disgust. Xiao Niu Hulu also followed Kangxi's strength and lay limply on the ground like a puddle of mud, still crying stubbornly:
"Your Majesty, it's not like this, it's not like this. I really didn't mean it. Is there any mother in the world who can't spank a child? Because Xiao Shi talked back to me, I suddenly fell into disbelief.
You only get mad and reach out to spank his butt to teach him a lesson. If he didn't move around and struggle, how could he get hurt?"
"I'm too lazy to listen to your sophistry."
Kangxi turned around and walked towards the bed. Qingyan hesitated for a moment before raising her feet and followed him.
"Zhangyuan, how is Xiao Shi?"
Kangxi stood at the head of the bed, looking at Xiao Shi's forehead with a circle of white gauze wrapped around it. Doctor Zhang was already bending down to organize the medicine box, and he hurriedly asked.
Doctor Zhang leaned over slightly and said respectfully:
"Back to the emperor, Brother Ten's injury is not serious. It's just that he is too young and his skin is too delicate, so the wound on his forehead looks a bit scary. But when he wakes up, it is estimated that it will last for several days.
They all have symptoms of nausea and dizziness, which are normal symptoms of head injury. Wei Chen suggested that Brother Ten should stay in bed and rest for half a month. If you take good care of yourself for a while, you will be completely healed."
Kangxi was relieved when he heard this.
Qingyan couldn't help but look at Xiao Eleven with distress, why did this sound like a slight concussion?
Xiao Niu Hulu, who followed her kneeling over, also had an astonishing look of joy in her eyes.
After a while, Xiao Shi moved his eyelids and woke up leisurely.
"Xiao Shi."
After Kangxi saw it, he hurriedly leaned down and called out warmly.
Following the voice, Xiao Yiner turned her head and glanced to the right, looking at Kangxi and the imperial concubine with a confused expression.
Kangxi and Qingyan noticed Xiao Shi's unfamiliar eyes and couldn't help but feel "thumping" in their hearts.
"Who are you?"
Xiao Shi licked his lips and asked softly weakly.
Kangxi was completely confused. He frowned and said hurriedly: "Xiao Shi, what's wrong with you? I'm your Khan Ama!"
Qingyan also quickly turned to look at Dr. Zhang beside her.
Doctor Zhang quickly reached out and pressed Brother Ten's wrist, carefully diagnosed his pulse, frowned first and then relaxed, and then added:
"Your Majesty, the Imperial Concubine, Brother Ten's memory doesn't matter. His mind is very confused now. Give him some time and wait until the wound on his forehead has completely recovered, and he will probably remember it."
Little Niu Hulu, who was kneeling on the ground, tried her best to stretch her neck but could not see her son in the bed. Listening to the conversation of the three adults in front of her, she suddenly panicked. Could it be that her son had accidentally injured his brain?
Have you become a fool? She quickly raised her hand to wipe away the tears on her face, stood up and pushed Qingyan over.
Xiao Shi was feeling sick and wanted to vomit due to the concussion. He was just pressing his hands on the bed to get up when a face with blood-red eyes, full of tear stains, makeup, and messy hair stuck to his face suddenly appeared in front of him.
Immediately, Xiao Shi was so frightened that he leaned against the corner of the bed, trembling with fear.
Standing at the end of the bed, Grandma Liu looked at her big-breasted mistress with a panicked look on her face. Her heart ached so much, and she burst into tears. She couldn't bear to look at him and turned her head away.
"Xiao Niu Hulu, are you really impatient with life?"
Kangxi was so angry at this idiot that he almost went to heaven.
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu, you are a monster, go away."
Xiao Shi waved his little fists and curled up in the corner of the bed, crying like a wounded cub with his eyes closed, retching uncomfortably while crying.
Qingyan's eyes couldn't help but turn red when she saw Xiao Yiner like this. Among the princes and princesses in the palace, how could any of the princesses be as miserable as Xiao Shi?
"Xiao Shi, I am E Niang, how can you not remember E Niang?"
Seeing Xiao Shi's reaction, Xiao Niu Hulu was really flustered and felt like she was about to lose her son forever. She couldn't even pay attention to Kangxi's scolding. She burst into tears and wanted to crawl onto the bed like crazy and give Xiao Shi to her.
Take him into your arms, shake his little shoulders, and let him take a good look at who you are!
The more she shouted, the louder the little Yiner cried. She wished she could hang her whole body on the wall to escape from the terrible monster.
Kangxi's upbringing could not allow him to hit a woman himself. Qingyan couldn't stand it any longer. She stretched out her hand and pulled down the little Niu Hulu who had climbed onto the bed with one leg. She threw it to the ground and pointed with her finger.
She cursed angrily:
"Do you still have any humanity at all? He is your biological son, and now he is so scared. If you don't be gentle, you still approach him recklessly like a female ghost. Are you trying to give Xiao Shi to Xiao Shi?
I'm scared to death, are you satisfied?"
Xiao Niu Hulu really didn't know what to do at this time. She never expected that her son would wake up and not recognize her after knocking his head. She was so sad that she lay on the ground, her shoulders trembling and crying bitterly.
Qingyan was also confused. Just when she didn't know what to do, Bai Lu suddenly remembered that when she was packing things in the afternoon, because there were two sticks of maltose leftover by the twins on the table, she stuffed them into her arms.
In her inner pocket, she remembered the two candies wrapped in translucent white oil paper. She hurriedly reached out and took them out, hurried to the bedside and handed them to the imperial concubine.
"Master, children all like to eat sweets. Try using sweets to coax Brother Ten."
The maltose that the twins ate was specially made by Chef Bai, with a small wooden stick inserted underneath that could be easily held and licked. The candy on top was specially made into various small animal shapes using molds, and the shape was very cute.