The Virtuous Concubine

Malu sighed softly: "That being said, her willfulness is still worrying. She is so outspoken, I am afraid she will fall into trouble because of a villain."

Jingyi comforted Malu softly: "The princess has so many people protecting her, she will be fine. Besides, the princess is growing up slowly, and she will naturally learn to restrain herself after experiencing many things."

Malu nodded slightly, but her eyes were still filled with deep worry. She looked at the two children in the cradle and whispered softly, "I hope so. These children are all my concerns. I just hope they can be safe and have a smooth life. You two little ones can't cause people to worry like your brothers and sisters."

The baby in the cradle seemed to have heard Malu's expectation, and waved his little hands babblingly, as if responding to Malu's words.

The sky was clear, the sun was rising and the breeze was gentle. It was a good day. Ma Lu was sitting at her desk practicing calligraphy when she suddenly heard the sound of a powerful horn in the distance. She put down her pen, knowing that it was the signal for Kangxi to lead his army to go to war.

This time, Kangxi personally led the expedition against Galdan, and the vanguard troops actually set out two days ago. The eldest prince followed the left wing led by Chang Ning, and the fourth prince followed the right wing led by Tong Guogang.

I wonder how the Fourth Prince is doing now... Ma Lu lowered his head and picked up the brush again to continue copying the calligraphy.

At this time, flags were flying outside the palace gate, covering the sky and the sun. The golden dragon flag fluttered in the wind, demonstrating the royal majesty.

Kangxi was wearing heavy metal armor and a helmet. The red tassel on the top of the helmet fluttered slightly in the wind like a burning flame.

At this time, he did not sit in a carriage like Jiangnan, but rode on a tall warhorse. The horse had shiny black fur, smooth muscle lines, and steady and powerful hooves, as if it could trample through mountains and rivers. However, the horse was a little impatient, snorting from time to time, as if it could not wait to gallop away.

The Crown Prince and the Third Prince who stayed behind to supervise the country had already been waiting at the palace gate to see off the troops. The Crown Prince was wearing a bright yellow robe, a jade crown on his head, and a solemn look on his face.

The Third Prince behind him was wearing a blue brocade robe and had an excited look on his face. It seemed that seeing such a spectacular sight had inspired him to write poetry.

At the reminder of the eunuch from the Imperial Household Department next to him, the prince stepped forward and saluted respectfully, saying: "Your Majesty, your son respectfully sends you off to the battle. May your Majesty be victorious and return triumphantly soon." Kangxi nodded slightly and looked at the third prince beside him.

The Third Prince also stepped forward and said, "Father, I hope you will succeed and make more military achievements for the Qing Dynasty. I will also assist my brother, the Crown Prince, to protect the capital."

Kangxi looked at his two sons and said solemnly: "You two must remember your duties and not slack off in the slightest." The Crown Prince and the Third Prince responded in unison: "Your sons will follow your father's instructions."

After completing this process, Kangxi gave an order and the army set off immediately. The sound of horse hooves sounded like thunder, shaking the earth slightly.

The Third Prince was looking at the army going further and further away and was about to say something sentimental, but the Crown Prince didn't even look at him. When he couldn't see Kangxi's procession clearly, he turned around and left, which made the Third Prince feel very bored.

"What are you showing off..." The Third Prince muttered quietly, with a hint of dissatisfaction on his face. Among all the brothers, the Crown Prince has always been high and mighty, and always seemed to have a sense of alienation towards them.

The prince's attitude made the third prince feel unhappy. He didn't understand why the prince was always so arrogant as they were brothers.

Rong Fei naturally has high hopes for the Third Prince as the regent. Rong Fei knows that this regent is a rare opportunity for the Third Prince, and she hopes that the Third Prince can show his talents and responsibilities in the process and win more opportunities and status for himself.

Rong Fei repeatedly told the Third Prince to be careful with his words and deeds, and to assist the Crown Prince in handling state affairs with all his heart and soul. The Third Prince also understood Rong Fei's good intentions, but the Crown Prince did not treat him well at all, and he was also very proud!

But now, he could only follow the prince in shame. Who knew that the prince did not do any work, but just sat in the sedan chair and strolled around the palace!

This really pissed off the Third Prince who was following behind. During the reign of Emperor Kangxi, the princes usually walked around the palace. Generally speaking, the princes rarely rode sedan chairs around the palace unless they were ill or had special circumstances.

Riding in a sedan chair in the palace was often a means of transportation used by people of high status such as the emperor, empress, and queen mother on specific occasions. The status of the princes was far from enough to allow them to ride in a sedan chair at will.

Except the prince.

The Third Prince just followed the Crown Prince closely on his own two legs, but he gained nothing except sweating and eating dust.

After following the crowd around for two more times, the Third Prince was filled with indignation, but he had no idea what to do, so he had no choice but to turn around and go back to his residence.

He was sweating all over at the moment, and would be scolded by the teacher if he went to the study room. Thinking that he had wasted so much time and lost such a big person, the third prince was even more furious, and his pace could not help but speed up a bit.

Seeing that the Third Prince had gone far away, Chen Xin tiptoed over and reported to the Crown Prince quietly, "Your Highness, the Third Prince should have gone back."

The prince supported his head with one hand, raised the corner of his mouth and revealed a disdainful smile: "The fly finally flew away."

Then he told Chen Xin: "Go to Yonghe Palace first."

The prince on the sedan chair narrowed his eyes slightly, his annoyance towards the Third Prince not reduced by a bit because of his departure. In the eyes of the prince, the Third Prince was always jumping up and down, eager to show off his knowledge, but lacked real talent and strategy.

How can such a fool be worthy of competing with me?

Unfortunately, the prince came back empty-handed, and Bai Xia respectfully reported to the prince that the queen had gone to the imperial concubine.

Malu is very busy now. Before the emperor went to war, he entrusted all the affairs of the palace to her. Malu had no choice but to take on this heavy responsibility because Concubine Niuhulu was ill.

She had to handle palace affairs, pay her respects to the Empress Dowager every day, care about the illness of Concubine Nianhulu, look after the princesses and princes of all ages in the palace, and deal with the daily frictions and lawsuits of the noble ladies under her. There was a lot to do.

Fortunately, with the help of Wen Xian, she assigned some work to Concubine Hui and Concubine Rong, but she also had to supervise and inspect, and was busy every day.

The prince was not angry. He was very familiar with the Yonghe Palace and just sat there and waited for a while. After listening to Bai Xia's report, he strode into the main hall and sat at the top.

Bai Xia secretly complained and had to serve tea to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince in person. The Crown Prince asked Bai Xia a few trivial questions, and then saw that the tea he was serving was the Thousand Island Longjing tea he brought back from Jiangnan for Concubine De. He took a sip and showed his first sincere smile of the day.

I just don't know if De'er Niang likes to drink it so she uses it every day, or if she asked me to serve this tea every time I come?