The Virtuous Concubine

Before everyone had time to find out more, another big event happened in the harem.

The emperor will set out for the newly built Mulan Hunting Ground in two months for the autumn hunt. This is the first time that the emperor will lead the princes, ministers and soldiers of the Eight Banners to the Mulan Hunting Ground for hunting. The concubines in the harem are very excited because they will also have the opportunity to accompany him and witness the spectacular scene of the royal hunting.

Mulan Hunting, also known as Mulan Autumn Hunting. The term Autumn Hunting originated from Zuo Zhuan, which means hunting in autumn. It was originally a hobby among nobles of various vassal states during the Spring and Autumn Period. The Mulan Autumn Hunting in the Qing Dynasty was unique. Before the Qing army entered the pass, the Manchus mainly lived by hunting, and they were traditionally good at riding and shooting.

In order to uphold the martial tradition of his ancestors, consolidate the imperial power, and strengthen the alliance with the Mongolian kings, Emperor Kangxi specially designated the Bashang Grassland in Chengde as the "Mulan Hunting Ground". He led the nobles and soldiers of the Eight Banners of Manchuria and Mongolia to the Mulan Hunting Ground for hunting and military training, which was called the "Mulan Autumn Hunt".

This year, Mulan Hunting Ground was newly built and hunting was held for the first time. Kangxi first sent a message to inform the court and the harem that he was going to hold the autumn hunting ceremony in Mulan. The entourage included members of the royal family, military ministers, important poets, and various guards and soldiers. The emperor would continue to handle state affairs during the autumn hunting trip.

The concubines in the harem were all excited when they heard the news. Many of them would have the opportunity to go with the emperor, and although they would stay in the palace most of the time and not show up easily, even so, it was enough to make them feel extremely excited. After all, this was a rare opportunity to go out.

Concubines who had sons hoped that their children could go with the emperor, so that they could show their faces in front of the princes and ministers and try to get close to him. Concubines who did not have sons hoped that they could go with him, even if they could only watch from afar in the palace or in the carriage, which was better than the monotonous life in the palace day after day. In short, no matter if they had sons or not, every concubine in the harem was looking forward to going out with Kangxi this time.

Although the palace has the best wealth and splendor in the world, the long-term closed life also makes people yearn for the freshness and freedom of the outside world. Who doesn't want to go out and experience it occasionally? Even if you can't see the boundless grassland, the deer running freely, and the cool breeze in autumn, it's good.

Since this was the first year for the autumn hunt at Mulan Hunting Ground, Kangxi hoped that the event would be grander to show the power of the Qing Empire. He decided to bring along everyone he could. Imperial Noble Consort Tong was supposed to go, but unfortunately she was not in good health and was not pregnant, so she could not stand the long journey and had to stay in the palace to recuperate. As a result, her position was taken by other imperial concubines and the four concubines, as well as several concubines with prominent family backgrounds and favored concubines, all of whom were selected as entourage.

The same goes for sons. Those who can mount a horse should be taken along. Even those who cannot mount a horse and need to be carried should be taken along as long as their biological or adoptive mother is there.

Everyone was very happy, and they were busy making new clothes and packing their luggage for the trip. The palace was very lively. No one wanted to fight in the palace. If you cause trouble at this moment, you can't blame others for not being able to leave the house!

Because of Kangxi's act of bestowing blessings, the harem entered an unprecedented state of harmony. The most excited among the concubines and princes were Concubine Hui and the eldest prince.

As the biological mother of the eldest prince, Concubine Hui was extremely excited to go to Mulan Paddock with her son. She knew that this was a great opportunity to fully demonstrate her big brother's bravery and talents in front of the princes, ministers and Mongolia. The eldest prince himself was even more excited. He was far ahead of the other princes in riding and shooting. When hunting, he must suppress his second brother in front of everyone.

Today he will let the second brother know that there is no such thing as a crown prince or not, the elder brother is the elder brother, and the younger brother is always the younger brother!

He was eager to practice riding and archery, and practiced harder every day. The prince was naturally unwilling to be outdone, and he had his own exclusive practice place, not with the other brothers. He practiced hard every day, and blisters appeared on his hands. Kangxi was very distressed and severely punished the people around the prince, thinking that they were unable to persuade the prince and did not care at all.

The third and fifth princes, one is a Wenquxing who is known to the world, and cannot be carried on the shoulders or lifted by the hands. The other is a beloved grandson of the empress dowager, and has never ridden a horse. As long as they do not behave disrespectfully in front of others, they are satisfied. The two brothers mainly went out shopping, and their mentality was very peaceful.

As for our little Si Er, his face never looked good after he knew about Mulan's autumn hunt. He went to the study room with a gloomy face all day and came back only when it was dark.

When the Fourth Prince was resting, Malu asked Jingyi softly, "Where has the Fourth Prince been these days? Why can't I see him around? When I went to see him yesterday when everyone was about to go to sleep, he wasn't in Yonghe Palace."

Jingyi couldn't help laughing and replied, "Si Er-ge was so anxious since he heard about the autumn hunt that he would go too. He had several large blisters on his mouth and he didn't allow me to tell the Majesty, saying that he was afraid that the Majesty would worry."

Malu laughed out loud: "You little bastard, you're still hiding this from me! Isn't it a happy thing that you can go? Why are you so anxious and angry?"

Jingyi pursed her lips and smiled: "Your Majesty also knows the character of the Fourth Prince. He has always been strong and unwilling to show weakness in front of others. Isn't this autumn hunt a time for the princes to compare themselves? I asked the imperial physician Rong for a tea recipe that can clear the heart and reduce internal heat. I made it and gave it to the Fourth Prince to drink every day, but it was useless. Later, it was Dachun who came up with an idea, saying that it is better to practice more than to worry. So the Fourth Prince went to the training ground to practice more after finishing his lessons in the imperial study every day."

Ma Lu was a little curious: "Si Er is so concerned about his reputation, why would he practice with the eldest prince? Wouldn't that put more psychological pressure on him? Aren't you afraid of the contrast?"

The eldest prince's riding and archery skills are beyond words. Everyone in the harem has seen it, so why isn't Xiao Si'er afraid of comparison? As expected by Malu, Jingyi laughed even harder, as if she had thought about all the sad things in her life and couldn't suppress it.

"Your Majesty is smart. Our Fourth Prince really doesn't want to be outdone like this. He always finishes his homework in the Imperial Study Room first, and then practices quietly after the eldest prince has finished..."

Malu laughed so hard that her tea spurted out. This kid is really too narrow-minded! He is not honest at all.

Jingyi quickly wiped her clean and helped her change into new clothes before she carefully made a suggestion: "How about your Majesty, try to persuade the Fourth Prince? In my opinion, our Fourth Prince is not bad at riding and shooting. No matter what, there are still the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince behind him. There is really no need to be so nervous."

Malu certainly understood, and she also knew what Jingyi didn't say - the eldest prince and the crown prince were competing with each other, and the fourth prince had better not get involved. Even if we take a step back, because the crown prince practiced alone, no one knew how good the crown prince was at riding and shooting. If the fourth prince surpassed the crown prince, not only would he become the target of the eldest prince, but Kangxi and the Empress Dowager would also be unhappy.

Thinking of this, Malu looked up at Jingyi and said, "You are right. Yonghe Palace does not need him to compete for first or second place. It is more important to have a good rest. I will talk to Xiao Si'er later. He is a little obsessed."

Jingyi was relieved to see that Malu understood what she meant. The Fourth Prince would always listen to the Empress, as long as the Empress was not in a hurry to take the lead now, that would be fine.

After all, in Jingyi's view, water does not compete for the lead, but for the continuous flow.