My father-in-law is Kangxi

Chapter 1745: Coming Out (asking for guaranteed monthly ticket)

The date for the banquet at the mansion was set for September 13th.

However, on the afternoon of September 12, a steward from the mansion came over and mentioned that the date for the banquet had been changed to September 20.

It turned out that Concubine Xi died on the morning of September 12.

The Emperor suspended court for two days.

Although it was not a national mourning, even the emperor had to miss court, so it was certainly not possible for his ministers to feast.

Because Concubine Xi's surname was Hesheli, some people would inevitably say that she was a member of Empress Yuan's clan, but in fact she was not.

He was also born into a bondservant family in the Imperial Household Department. His elder brother on his mother's side had once served as a lieutenant commander of the bondservant army, but he had died of illness. His nephew was now a lowly military officer, and his family had fallen into decline before it could even rise.

Shushu had never dealt with this concubine. Her impression of her was that she was a mistress with a miserable look and little sense of presence.

No children, no favor.

It’s bad to say that this concubine has bad luck, because Liangpin and Hepin both came from her palace; it’s good to say that she has good luck, because she has no relationship with those two, and Qixiang Palace is just like Xianfu Palace, with no sense of existence at all.

When the Ninth Prince comes back, he will mention this person to Shushu.

"He fell ill on the fifth day of the first lunar month, and was moved to the back hall of Jingshan on the sixth day. He disappeared without a sound, and the news never spread. He died early this morning..."

The Ninth Prince did not have a good impression of Concubine Xi. The mother of the Seventeenth Princess was originally from Qixiang Palace. As a result, Concubine Xi embezzled the Seventeenth Princess's regular ice, and it was the Ninth Prince who exposed the matter.

"My master feels uncomfortable after hearing this. He died at the age of forty-five, which means he is only four years older than our queen..."

The Ninth Prince sighed and said, "Let's be more filial to the Queen in the future. Birth, aging, sickness and death are really unpredictable..."

Shu Shu said, "Okay, sir, don't talk about this, it's unlucky."

The Ninth Prince thought about it and said, "Our queen has an open-minded personality and is destined to live a long life..."

Shushu felt the same way.

Even in history, due to the burden of her troublesome son, the Ninth Prince, Concubine Yi lived until the later years of Emperor Yongzheng's reign and died at a ripe old age.

Shushu asked, "When will the funeral be held?"

The Ninth Prince said, "He is now temporarily enshrined in the rear hall of Jingshan. The Eighteenth Prince will be sent away soon..."

When a concubine died, she would be buried in the concubine cemetery in the emperor's mausoleum.

The imperial mausoleum was completed twenty years ago. Now, three concubines are buried in the concubine garden, namely Concubine Hui who died in the ninth year of Kangxi's reign, Concubine Wenxi who died in the thirty-third year, and Concubine Ping who died in the thirty-fifth year.

Concubine Xi's coffin will be sent to the concubines' cemetery and buried on a chosen day.

"Now it is the twelfth prince who is taking the lead in handling the affairs of Concubine Xi's mother, which can be considered as giving her a decent look..." said the ninth prince.

Shu Shu: "..."

This prince has started arranging funeral ceremonies so early?

*
Qianqing Palace, Xinuang Pavilion.

Kangxi wore plain clothes and looked a little depressed.

Even though they were prepared and knew that Concubine Xi was about to leave, they still asked people to move away when she approached.

As a result, his disgust towards Concubine Liang was reduced a little.

Liangpin was also an old lady in the palace. In the 14th year of Emperor Kangxi's reign, she was selected to enter the palace along with Defei, Wanliuha Guiren and Daijia Guiren.

Was I too harsh towards Concubine Liang?
Women have narrow minds and can only see what is in front of them. Some small calculations are not unforgivable sins.

Because of Concubine Liang, Kangxi looked through the letter of greeting that the Eighth Prince had submitted a few days ago and summoned the Eighth Prince into the palace.

The last time the Eighth Prince saw the Emperor was half a month ago when he went to Shunyi to welcome him.

It has only been half a month, but seeing that the emperor's father looked tired, he showed his worry and said, "Khan Ama, please accept my condolences."

Kangxi called him up and looked him over. He was no longer the frail man he had been two years ago. He asked, "Do you still draw the bow every day?"

The Eighth Prince hurriedly said, "I dare not slack off. I shoot two hundred arrows every afternoon. I am afraid my hands will get old."

Whether it is hunting in the future or other things, whether one's riding and archery skills are good or not will be treated differently in the presence of the emperor.

The Eighth Prince saw clearly that his father still preferred a son who was both civil and military.

The reason why the Thirteenth Prince is favored is also due to this reason.

This was also the reason why he had enjoyed such respect in the imperial court in the past.

Although the Eighth Prince was like a trapped beast during this little year at home, he did not forget to practice archery, knowing that he could not lose his strengths.

If your background can't make up for it, you have to improve your own abilities.

Kangxi nodded slightly, somewhat satisfied, and asked, "What about the calligraphy homework?"

The Eighth Prince's homework is not perfect and his handwriting is not very beautiful.

The Eighth Prince said with a smile, "I also write twenty pieces of big characters every day."

Kangxi snorted lightly, not very satisfied.

He thought of He Zhuo, a "talented man in the countryside" recommended by Li Guangdi, the governor of Zhili Province, who was good at regular script and could be a study companion to the Eighth Prince.

Considering the Eighth Prince's contribution this time, he deserves to be appointed as a study companion.

But the Eighth Prince took the initiative to ask for a job at the Ministry of Internal Affairs...

The little kindness that had arisen in Kangxi's heart was mostly extinguished.

He looked at the Eighth Prince and said, "I will set up a Minister of Administration in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Since you want to go there, you can take over the Fengchen Garden!"

The Eighth Prince suppressed his excitement and said hurriedly: "My son will do his job well..."

Kangxi saw that his eyes were shining and he could not hide his ambition. He thought it was meaningless and waved his hand and said, "Kneel down!"

The Eighth Prince responded and withdrew from the imperial presence.

After leaving the Qianqing Palace, he went straight to the Imperial Household Department.

The twelfth prince is talking to several doctors and managers.

The funeral of Concubine Xi will be held tomorrow, and the coffin will be carried out at the age of eighteen. The total funeral will last seven days.

All members of the royal family and women of the third rank and above had to mourn in the imperial city.

By then, carriage guides and changing rooms should be fully prepared to avoid panic.

Seeing the Eighth Prince arrive, the Twelfth Prince was a little surprised, but he still stood up and said respectfully: "Eighth Brother..."

Several doctors and managers also greeted him respectfully.

The Eighth Prince said, "Twelfth Brother is busy? Then you guys talk first, I'm not in a hurry."

The twelfth prince said, "I'm almost done here."

Several doctors and officials knew what to do and apologized.

The Eighth Prince glanced at the empty seat in the duty room, then looked at the Twelfth Prince.

It has been half a year since the Ninth Prince resigned from his post in the Imperial Household Department. The Twelfth Prince is one of the best in the Imperial Household Department without being the chief eunuch, but he does not even have a regular position.

The twelfth prince is too cautious.

However, the Eighth Prince also understood the Twelfth Prince.

His biological mother was of low status, and he was a young prince who never showed his face in front of the emperor, so he had to be cautious in his actions.

"Twelfth brother, Khan Ama asked me to be in charge of Fengchen Garden. I want to ask, what does Fengchen Garden manage? How many officials are there under it? Who is in charge of it?"

The Eighth Prince asked.

The Twelfth Prince was also a little surprised when he heard that the Eighth Prince was in charge of this matter.

There are many places in the Ministry of Internal Affairs where staff are scarce.

Fengchen Garden is not short of people, with several levels of management.

He did not show it on his face and answered honestly, "The palaces set up in Jingshan, Xiyuan, Nanyuan, Changchun Garden, Diaoyutai and the river were previously managed by Fengchenyuanqing, one was a selected guard, one was an official from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, there were 40 lower-rank officials and 15 scribes, and the duty room was set up in Jingshan..."

As the Eighth Prince listened, the smile on his face faded.

Fengchen Garden is one of the seven departments and three courtyards under the Imperial Household Department. It sounds good, but everyone knows that important places such as Nanyuan and Changchun Garden have ministers in charge appointed by the emperor.

Even Fengchen Yuanqing had his own guards assigned to him, and nothing that happened in the entire yamen could be hidden from the emperor.

He asked for a job. Does that mean he has to oversee the maintenance and repair of each garden?

The repair matters were under the jurisdiction of the Construction Department, so it was not his turn to take charge.

The Eighth Prince was disappointed, and he heaved a sigh of relief, saying, "Then I'll go to Jingshan to take a look. If there's anything I don't understand in the future, I'll have to ask my Twelfth Brother."

The twelfth prince bowed and said, "My eighth brother, you are welcome."

The eighth prince left the Imperial Household Department and went to Jingshan.

The twelfth prince sat down and looked at the seat of the ninth prince. It was another day that he missed his ninth brother.

Although they are both brothers, the twelfth prince only trusts and feels close to the ninth prince, but he wants to keep his distance from the eighth prince.

Shushu was pregnant, so she could skip the usual greetings and decline the small banquets outside, but she had to attend the condolences.

Although the funeral organized by Concubine Xi was not a national mourning, it was a family mourning for the prince and his wife.

A stepmother is also a mother, let alone a stepmother of high status.

If you are disrespectful to your stepmother, you are also failing in filial piety.

She changed into plain clothes, put on silver jewelry, and followed the crowd to the back hall of Jingshan to mourn.

The lady of the earl's family is a daughter of a noble clan, so she has to show up in public.

The mother and daughter went out together, but when they arrived at Jingshan, they separated.

As for the lady of the earl, she went to meet up with the other daughters of the clan.

Although there were many daughters of the clan from Fumeng, there were also many who stayed in the capital. In addition to those who married into the noble families of the Eight Banners, there were also some daughters of the clan from Fumeng who lived in the capital with their husbands.

Here, Lady Bo was mainly talking to her niece, Princess Shushen.

Seeing that Princess Shushen's face was pale and she looked a little haggard, Madam Bo asked with concern, "You... haven't recovered yet?"

Princess Shushen had a miscarriage before the Mid-Autumn Festival and spent a short period of confinement.

Princess Shushen said, "I'm still a little tired. The doctor said I need to rest for a while."

Madam Bo patted her hands and said, "You have Yongshou, so there is no need to worry about having children. You should take good care of your health."

Princess Shushen nodded.

She was feeling depressed. She had failed to save the baby, but the doctor diagnosed her with pregnancy...

Shushu went to meet her sisters-in-law.

Except for the "ill" Eighth Concubine, all the other princes' wives were present.

The Third Lady held Shushu's hand and looked at her belly, feeling sour in her heart: "This, she looks like a prince!"

Everyone heard this and looked over.

Shushu felt uncomfortable being stared at, and said, "Both the prince and the princess are good. If she is a princess, she will be like my third sister-in-law, with both sons and daughters. Two good words!"

Although many people say this, there is no guarantee until the fruit is ripe and falls off the stalk.

After hearing this, the Third Lady felt relieved.

Yes, I have both a son and a daughter, which is one of the best blessings among my sisters-in-law.

Shushu's family background is not as high as mine, and the Ninth Prince is not as good as the Third Prince. It would be great if they could be as lucky as I am and have both a son and a daughter.

When Shushu returned to his seat, he sat right below the Fifth Lady.

The Fifth Lady looked at the smoke-filled mourning tent, and with concern, she turned sideways and whispered to Shu Shu, "Do you want to go outside to get some fresh air?"

This was because they knew she had a cough and were afraid of triggering her illness.

Shushu shook his head and said, "There are so many people outside, and there is no place to rest. Just bear with it for a while, then we will disperse."

After about two quarters of an hour, the ladies outside the court finished their mourning and left one after another...

(End of this chapter)