[Qing Chuan] Yongzheng's embarrassing empress

"Having said that, we still have to have the ostentation that we should have. We are all princes, the eldest brother and the third brother are so extravagant, and we will be laughed at if we make it too shabby." The fourth elder brother said.

"Shabby? If I give them a good meal, they will be grateful! If I really stingy, they will all lie on the ground and cry!"

The fourth elder brother asked enthusiastically: "Oh? How else can you be stingy?"

Shuwan smiled and said: "Then I have too many ways, the first is the meal sharing system!"

The fourth elder brother has heard the term meal sharing system. Before the Tang Dynasty, meals were shared, and so were foreigners.

"It's very troublesome to share meals!" said the fourth elder brother.

They hold banquets with rich dishes, plus desserts and fruits, and there must be stacks of dishes on the dinner table.If you eat in separate meals, there will be no room for the meals, and you have to buy more bowls, plates, and cups. Isn't that more expensive?

Shuwan smiled and said: "The meal sharing system, as the name suggests, everyone's meals are different. I will divide the guests into three, six, or nine grades according to the gift money. For those with a lot of gift money, eat bird's nest and shark's fin as you like, and give them the lesser ones." Eat chicken, duck and fish, eat cabbage leaves first, and pickle porridge at the last."

The fourth elder brother shook his head and laughed, "It turns out that this is how meals are divided!"

Shuwan smiled and said, "It's okay if you don't want to share meals, I'll organize an auction meal."

"auction?"

Shuwan said: "Yes, the auction is for the highest bidder! Whoever pays the most money will win the first prize, and he will have the opportunity to have a meal with Lord Sibeile. Not only can he see Sibeile with his own eyes, but he can also listen carefully to Sibeile. Baelor's teachings."

The fourth elder brother poked Shuwan's forehead, "Why do you have so many wonderful ideas?"

Shuwan waved her hands again and again and didn't dare to take the credit. All of this is thanks to the explosion of information in her previous life, and she didn't come up with it herself.

The fourth elder brother picked up Shuwan, and he sat on the chair, letting Shuwan sit on his lap.

"I don't think Fujin is stingy, you have a good way of making money!"

Shuwan nodded triumphantly, "Well... you are not wrong to say that! I still have a lot of ways to make money! Would you like to hear it?"

The fourth elder brother said: "Okay! Let's hear it!"

"I found that the fastest way to get rich is to hold a wedding banquet. Look at Kangbao's first birthday. Although there is no big event and many guests are not invited, but a lot of gift money has been collected. Many people are so gifted that they don't show up. Waiting for next year we will It will be more convenient to hold a wedding banquet when you are out of the palace. Let's be more conservative and hold ten banquets every month!"

The fourth elder brother buried his head on Shuwan's shoulder and smiled sullenly, "Ten games! Does our family have so many happy events?"

"Of course there is, the solution is all thought up by people! Someone in the family celebrates a birthday, invite one; Kang Bao can talk, invite one; you have been praised by the emperor, invite one. You see, excuses are easy to find! "

Shuwan thought for a while and then added, "If you think these excuses are unseemly, I have a solution. You can take a few more concubines, one of them, and within a year, our family will become the richest man in the capital!"

The fourth elder brother finds it novel, although Shuwan has always been very magnanimous, but the fourth elder brother knows that she is actually the most jealous, even more jealous than the eighth daughter-in-law.

It's just that Bafujin's methods are more domineering, and Shuwan's methods are more gentle, but they are all the same in essence.

"You are so kind, you want to give me a concubine?"

Shuwan twisted her body and put her arms around Si Age's neck.

"Look at what you said, I've always been kind!"

The fourth elder brother looked at her with a half-smile, expressing his disbelief.

Shuwan sighed: "Oh, you have misunderstood me all this time. I admit that I don't want to give you a concubine, but I do it for your own good! Indulging in lust hurts your body, I am thinking of your body."

"really?"

Shuwan said: "It can't be true anymore! Having too many concubines is especially bad for the kidneys!"

Shuwan touched the fourth prince like a fairy, "How kind I am to you! Are you still not satisfied? In order to let you experience more happiness, I pretended to be a fairy and a bandit! To please you, I have made so many shady clothes that the dowry is almost empty!"

The fourth elder brother patted her buttocks, "Hmph, you are quite wronged!"

"After leaving the palace, I will give Lord Belle a concubine, and we will share the gift money [-]-[-]. After taking the concubine, we will divorce on the same day. After we divorce the concubine, we will hold a breakup banquet. We will still split the bill. As long as the money is in place, The servants are not wronged at all!"

"Just ruin my reputation! When you become the richest man in the capital, my reputation will be ruined."

Shuwan smiled and said: "Look at what you said, who wants fame when you have money!"

Shuwan got up to take off her make-up and wash up, and the fourth elder brother watched Shuwan wash her face with her arms crossed.

Although the method of raising money just mentioned is all a joke, but after leaving the palace, you should be more frugal.

The fourth elder brother said: "I have been to the house of the eldest brother and the third brother, and I will pay for it when I come back. There are hundreds of masters and slaves in this mansion, and so many people want money for eating and drinking. Not to mention anything else, this I don’t even know how much rice and noodles I have to eat a day!”

"Isn't it!" Shuwan wiped her face with a towel, "eating, drinking and drinking are just the most basic, such a large house must be refurbished and maintained, and the carriages, horses and sedan chairs used for travel also need to be maintained, and the window screens and bed curtains in the house need to be maintained regularly. Replacing... these trivial things look inconspicuous, but they add up to a lot of money!"

The fourth elder brother said: "There is not much income in the mansion, and my salary is not enough to spend at all. Apart from the salary, it is the filial piety of the subordinates."

Shuwan frowned, "If it's not necessary, why don't you accept bribes? Those people who give you money must be asking for something from you."

The fourth elder brother smiled, "The filial piety of the subordinates has nothing to do with what you think."

The emperor not only granted titles to the princes, but also distributed their power to them.

Shuwan has been trapped in the inner house, and she doesn't know much about the outside world.Since the fourth elder brother said it was irrelevant, she didn't care.

"When I was unmarried, my mother's family had Zhuangzi in the suburbs of Beijing and outside the customs. Every year, the Zhuangzi produced enough food for our family. Will the emperor give us the Huangzhuang?"

The fourth elder brother shook his head, "Probably not, I think the eldest brother bought the property of Zhuangzi himself."

Shuwan thought for a while and said: "Then... let's buy some land and manors too! It would be good to buy some shops and rent them out for rent. If there are people around you who are available, let them find them slowly. We will You have just left the palace, and the food and drink expenses for the first year after leaving the palace are all given by the emperor, let's buy the property slowly, don't worry."

The fourth elder brother nodded, "I'll let my baby brother do it."

Shuwan and the fourth elder brother are indeed a natural couple, they are both people who live a life, and they start to think about the trivial details of life before they leave the palace.

After Sanfujin moved away, Shuwan felt that the palace was much deserted.

San Fujin owes a lot, loves to pinch, and also likes to add insult to injury, he is not very likable.But when she was still around, it was fun to argue with everyone, but now that she's out of the palace, she's still not used to it!

Ba Fujin's illness gradually recovered, and when autumn came, she came out to walk again.

Shuwan, Wufujin and Qifujin don't like to get along with her, and Bafujin doesn't like to be around them either.Everyone greets each other and smiles kindly. This is the limit.

After experiencing the previous events, Bafujin was much calmer than before.She was still courting the Queen Mother, Concubine Hui and Crown Princess as diligently as before, but she was not as flamboyant as when she first entered the palace.

The queen mother thought she had seen the true face of the eight blessings, and always ignored her.The old man is a little narrow-minded, and it is useless to let the eight blessings please him in every possible way.

In addition to these changes, Bafujin also changed his attitude towards Wei.Now she treats Wei Shi as filial as her own mother, and treats Wei Shi with all kinds of consideration and tenderness.

In the palace, Wei Shi was still favored, but she knew she had a bad background, so she was always timid, like a docile and timid rabbit.Ba Fujin treated her so well, which made her a little at a loss.

Most people in the palace didn't know what Fujin had done before, so seeing the transformation of Fujin, their evaluation of her became better and better.

Of course, the eighth elder brother also saw the efforts of the eighth elder brother. She is such a proud person, in order to save the family and the eighth elder brother's heart, she has made so many efforts, and the eighth elder brother is of course moved.

The couple got back together again, and their love remained the same.

The fourth elder brother returned home and scolded the eighth elder brother for being worthless, "He still dares to take such a scheming poisonous woman, remember to eat but not beat, there will always be times when he regrets it."

Shuwan had long expected that they would reconcile one day, "Prince An's mansion hasn't fallen yet! The eighth elder brother can't divorce his wife, and he can't reconcile. No matter what, life has to go on. He and his wife live awkwardly. , I feel uncomfortable in my heart, it is better to get back together, and the two of them will continue to work together."

The fourth elder brother can't agree, that kind of poisonous woman shouldn't be given a chance to reconcile.

This is the difference between the fourth elder brother and the eighth elder brother. The fourth elder brother can't rub the sand in his eyes, while the eighth elder brother is more tactful, and he is not so particular.

Shuwan said: "Don't just stand and talk without pain in your back. If I do something wrong, you have to forgive me even if you are angry for a few days. Who asked me to be your wife! There are many couples who have made do with each other in this world!"

The fourth elder brother said: "Your mistakes are also unintentional. I know you are not that kind of person."

Shuwan couldn't help laughing: "You will coax me!"

The fourth elder brother asked Shuwan, "You seem to seldom play mahjong recently, what have you been doing?"

"Fifth Sister always invites me over. I take Kang Bao to play with her, and sometimes go to Erniang's place with Fifth Sister."

The fourth elder brother sighed: "You have time to visit the fifth younger sister. Sooner or later, the girl will belong to someone else's family, and only the unmarried have a relaxing time in the past few years."

"Don't worry, every day I'm in the palace, I'll spend the whole day with my fifth sister. It's strange to say that the eighth and tenth princesses always go to play with my fifth sister recently."

"It's not surprising. The eighth princess and the tenth princess are both children of Zhang Jia's mother. Zhang Jia's mother is good with her. I am good with the old thirteenth princess. The eighth and tenth princesses are naturally good friends with the fifth sister."

Shuwan nodded, still feeling a little strange in her heart.

In the past, she always went to the Fifth Sister's place, so why didn't she see the Eighth and Tenth Princesses?

A few days later is the autumnal equinox, Shuwan takes Kang Bao to Yonghe Palace to play.

The fifth princess, the eighth princess and the tenth princess were all there, and Shuwan brought the three sister-in-laws to make apricot tea.

Autumn is dry, almonds nourish yin, dissipate wind and heat, and have the effect of beautifying and dampness.

Apricot Su Tea only needs basil, sweet almonds and licorice. The recipe is simple and mild, perfect for drinking in autumn.

Set up a small earthen stove, pour the almonds and washed fresh perilla leaves into boiling water, cook for a while, add licorice at the end, and cook for a while to start the pot.

The fifth princess first poured one for Concubine De, and then poured another one for Shuwan.

Shuwan smiled and declined: "You guys drink first, don't worry about me!"

The eighth princess smiled and said: "The elders and the younger are orderly, it's better for the sister-in-law to drink first."

Shuwan thanked the eighth princess for her kindness, and she took a sip of the tea cup.

The tea has the fragrance of perilla leaves and the sweetness of licorice. Unfortunately, Shuwan doesn't like licorice, nor does she like perilla. Drinking it is like boiling water with green grass, tasteless.

Concubine De smiled and said: "This is the tea recipe passed down from my mother's family when I was not in the palace! Health preservation must follow the seasons and solar terms. Now that the weather is getting colder, it's best to drink a bowl of this tea warmly in the morning."

Everyone quickly echoed, "Your Majesty is absolutely right."

The eighth princess smiled and said: "After drinking, my body feels warm and my throat is not dry anymore."

Concubine De smiled and said: "This tea is for moistening dryness, and our eighth princess knows what to buy."

After drinking tea, everyone played with Kang Bao.

Kang Bao is walking very steadily now, but he doesn't like to talk. Shuwan taught him to call him Ama Erniang, and when he was happy, he called Ahe Er, and most of the time he treated Shuwan and Si elder brother as air.

Grandma in Manchu is Mamu. Shuwan taught her a few times, but Kang Bao always ignored her answers and didn't bother to learn.

Shuwan guessed that Concubine De should have taught her many times, but she also failed.

Shuwan taught Kang Bao to call grandma yesterday, this cool kid learned it in one go, today she has to show off at Concubine De.

Kang Bao ran after the fifth princess, and the maids chased after him to protect him, fearing that he would fall.

Shuwan went over to catch him, and Kang Bao writhed in her arms, refusing to give in.

Shuwan hurriedly said: "Kangbao Kangbao, where is grandma? Call grandma!"

Kang Bao stopped making trouble, and stood in Shuwan's arms, pointing at Concubine De and shouting childishly: "Grandma, grandma..."

Concubine De was very moved when she heard the sound of grandma covering her mouth.

Shuwan hurriedly said: "I taught him once yesterday and he learned it."

Concubine De smiled and said: "So it's not that our Kang Bao can't shout, it's because we teach it too hard! Oh, my good grandson, come quickly and let grandma hug you."

Kang Bao ran up to Concubine De's side, hugging her thigh and giggling.

The Eighth Princess smiled and said, "Kang Bao is so smart! He must be a filial and promising child when he grows up."

Concubine De put her arms around Kang Bao and said with a smile: "You were smarter than Kang Bao when you were young! You will definitely find a good son-in-law in the future."

The fifth princess covered her mouth and smiled, while the eighth princess blushed and hid behind Shuwan.

Kang Bao played with the three aunts, panting heavily from exhaustion, with sweat on his forehead.

Princess Ten wiped his sweat with a small handkerchief, and mixed warm water for Kang Bao to drink.

After playing for a while, Kang Bao was tired, hugged De Fei's leg, lay down on her lap and closed his eyes.

Concubine De waved her hands at everyone, hugged Kang Bao up and put her to sleep.

The three princesses saluted and said goodbye, Concubine De nodded at them, signaling them to go back first.

When Kang Bao fell asleep, Concubine De put him on the soft couch, and their mother-in-law and daughter-in-law went outside to talk.

Shuwan said: "Recently the eighth younger sister and the tenth younger sister have gotten very close to the fifth younger sister! Their little sisters are having a good time! It's just... the eighth younger sister seems to be very attentive. I'm not good at getting along with this kind of people, because I am not smart, I am always afraid of being tricked by smart people."

The eighth princess is still a child, and a child is more innocent and cute, and it will not be very pleasing to have an adult-like worldliness.

Concubine De sighed, "Don't say that, they are all poor children, we can help as much as we can."

Shuwan frowned, "What happened?"

"Zhang Jia's health is not good, and she spends half a year recuperating from her illness. Now she is holding on with one breath, and she can live a few more days."

Zhang Jiashi is the mother of the thirteenth elder brother, the eighth princess and the tenth princess. The thirteenth elder brother is okay, the prince is more valued than the princess, and his life will not be too sad.

It's difficult for the two princesses, they are still young and live in the harem, and they don't know who to rely on!

Concubine De said: "The two princesses are very sensible, the eighth princess has a sweet mouth, and is very popular with the emperor. The tenth princess is more silent, not as favored as the eighth princess. This child has a real heart. Look at how careful she is when she takes care of Kang Bao.

In the past, the two princesses seldom came out to hang out, and they knew to stay by their mother's side to wait for illnesses at such a young age.It should be Zhang Jiashi's idea to come out and walk around frequently now.

Taking advantage of forming good karma now, in the future... someone will take care of her. "

Shuwan followed Concubine De and sighed, the two princesses are indeed pitiful.

Knowing the inside story from Concubine De, Shuwan treated the two princesses a little more sincerely.

Shuwan felt that being a princess was much worse than being a prince.

Being a prince doesn't matter whether they will get involved in the battle for the heir apparent in the future, or whether they will end up in confinement, at least they have the right to be rich in the first half of their lives, and live a vigorous life.

The princesses have been bored in the Forbidden City since they were born. Although the palace is big, they are not allowed to wander around. They can only go to the Ningshou Palace to pay their respects and take a stroll in the Imperial Garden.

The princesses usually learn the virtues of women and women, as well as the book "Nei Ze Yan Yi" compiled by Emperor Shunzhi, and then they learn Manchu, Chinese, Mongolian, and feudal ethics.

The imperial palace is like a cage, imprisoning the freedom of the princesses, but the imperial palace is also their protective cover, where they are well-clothed and live a good material life.

It would be fine if they could continue to be rich, but the emperor wanted to stabilize his rule and marry them to Mongolia.

Most of the princesses in the early Qing Dynasty were relatively long-lived, while in the middle and late Qing Dynasty, more princesses died.

The five princesses were all educated in feudal ethics, which was very different from the thinking of Mongolian nobles.Although the emperor will build a princess mansion for them in advance and try to provide the same living environment as the palace, but the ideological gap will make the princesses fall into a huge sense of loneliness.

Far away from their hometown and in a depressed mood for a long time, it is strange that the princesses live so long.

With pity for the princesses, Shuwan ordered someone to send them to the three princesses when she got good things, and her relationship with the three princesses became more and more intimate.

One day, Shuwan was reading the account book at home, and Zhang Jia sent someone over to ask Shuwan to sit down.

The account book can be read at any time. After all, Mrs. Zhang Jia is an elder, and he sincerely invites him, so it is not good not to go.

Shuwan took the newly baked dim sum and went to Zhang Jia's residence.

Zhang Jiashi wore a brown jacket and stood at the door to meet her personally.

Shuwan hurriedly greeted her with a smile, "Look at you, you actually greeted me personally, it really breaks my heart."

Zhang Jiashi smiled, "I don't care if others come, but I will come out to greet you when you come."

Entering the room, Shuwan first smelled a smell of medicine.She put down the dim sum, and said to Zhang Jiashi: "Look, this is a dim sum freshly baked in my dining room. It is not greasy and easy to digest. Try it."

Zhang Jiashi touched it, "Yo, it's still hot!"

She called the maids and told them to quickly take it down and put it on the plate.

Zhang Jiashi held her heart and let out a sigh of relief. She painted some rouge and gouache on her face, but it still couldn't cover her sallow complexion.

Her cheeks were sunken, and her neck and wrists were terrifyingly thin.When Shuwan first entered the palace, she wasn't like this. She didn't expect that in just two years, she would be tortured like this by her illness.

Zhang Jia said with a smile: "I heard from the eighth and tenth princesses that you often send them good things, thank you for taking care of them."

"Hi! They're all gadgets, for my younger sisters to play with."

Zhang Jia said with a smile: "There are so many princesses in the palace, if you only give them two, I will accept your affection."

Zhang Jia specially invited Shuwan to come over, just to thank her, which made Shuwan feel very embarrassed.

"I really don't dare. I won't be able to live in the palace for a long time. When I can take care of her now, I will take care of her a little bit more. In the future, I will leave the palace and I won't be able to take care of her if I want to."

What Shuwan was telling was the truth. In the future, when she leaves the palace, she will come back to greet her at most once on the [-]th day of the Lunar New Year. If there are other things, it is not uncommon for her not to come for a month or two.Although she felt pity for the two princesses, the two princesses still had to rely on Concubine De in the future. Relying on Shuwan was unreliable.

Zhang Jia sighed, "I know...my body is useless. I take medicine on time every day and eat as much as possible. I just want to live longer. It's a pity that the imperial doctor in the palace got sick and couldn't cure it. Life."

She just held her breath and made more plans for the princesses.Not only did she only ask for Shuwan, she also asked for all the concubines in the palace who had a good relationship with her.

"I invited you here, firstly, to thank you, and secondly, after the princess gets married, you and the fourth elder brother can often write to them to let them know that there are still people in the natal family."

Having said this, Zhang Jiashi lowered her head, her heart was sore that she could hardly speak.

"It's a pity that I come from an ordinary family. I have lived in the deep palace for a long time. Every grass and needle is given by the emperor. I really can't give you anything to thank you."

After speaking, Zhang Jia stood up and saluted Shuwan.

Shuwan was so frightened that she quickly got up to avoid it, and returned the gift to Zhang Jiashi.

"You are an elder, don't do this, I can't stand it."

Zhang Jiashi smiled, "I have nothing to repay, I can only salute you, why can't you bear it?"

She said seriously: "I dare not make too many demands, as long as you can write a letter to the princesses after they get married."

Shuwan hurriedly said: "Don't worry, I will definitely fulfill your request."

Zhang Jia was a little relieved. Among these people, she felt that Sifujin was the most reliable.

She thought to herself, I still have to instruct Shisan to make friends with the fourth elder brother.Not for myself, but also for the sake of my sisters.