The Virtuous Concubine

Compared to the hustle and bustle of the hunting ground, the atmosphere in the palace was much more peaceful.

Every time the emperor goes on a tour outside the palace, the Forbidden City becomes much more peaceful.

After all, the core object that the concubines usually compete with each other for beauty and fight overtly and covertly is not in the palace, so the drama of jealousy is naturally less exciting to watch.

Most of the concubines in the palace today hold high positions, and their children have grown up, and most of them live their lives peacefully.

The only time when the palace could be a little lively and bustling was when the younger generations came to the palace to pay their respects. However, this time Kangxi was traveling with many princes, and the princesses were always quiet and gentle, rarely showing up, so life in the palace became dull and uneventful.

Among all the princes' wives, only the first and fourth wives often visited the palace.

The first wife felt guilty because she had given birth to two daughters, and she felt guilty for not being able to surpass the crown prince in terms of offspring. Therefore, she often went to the palace to show her filial piety to Concubine Hui.

The situation of the Fourth Lady was different. She frequently went to the palace to avoid the Fourth Prince. Since the Fourth Prince became the regent, his temperament has become more and more erratic, especially crazy and moody. The Fourth Lady is now pregnant, and such an unstable emotional environment is not conducive to her resting and nurturing the baby. However, she could not tell others about this reason, so she had no choice but to run to Yonghe Palace whenever she found an opportunity.

She felt safe around the Empress of Yonghe Palace. Malu was kind and generous, never harsh on her, and never asked her to follow those cumbersome palace rules and etiquette. She just asked her to eat and drink well every day, go out for a walk in her spare time, and chat about trivial matters such as women's maintenance and child rearing.

The Fourth Lady enjoyed it very much, and over time, she began to like coming to the Yonghe Palace more and more. At first, Ma Lu was a little confused about the Fourth Lady's frequent visits, and didn't understand why she loved this place so much.

Isn’t it said that the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law is the most difficult to deal with?

But seeing how cautious and panicked the Fourth Lady was, Malu didn't have the heart to ask any more questions.

As time went by, the two gradually became familiar with each other, and the Fourth Lady's condition also improved significantly, with a more rosy and radiant complexion. The food in the Yonghe Palace was always good, and with her good mood, the Fourth Lady's figure actually became a little plump.

Seeing this, Malu couldn't help but feel worried, fearing that she had over-supplemented her and that it would be harmful to her body and the fetus. She thought that as a royal concubine, Malu naturally had the right to summon the imperial physician directly, but she was sensitive and took the Fourth Lady's feelings into consideration. She was afraid that she wanted to find the imperial physician to check the gender of the fetus, so she never mentioned the matter.

Until one day, seeing the obvious changes in the Fourth Lady's figure, Malu couldn't help but mention it tactfully.

The Fourth Lady suddenly felt a little embarrassed, her cheeks slightly flushed, and she wondered if she was too relaxed in front of the Imperial Concubine, so much so that she had no restraint in her eating and drinking.

She lowered her head quickly and explained softly, "Madam, the doctor in the palace has examined the child carefully and said that the child is healthy and lively. Perhaps it is because I have lived too comfortably these days that all the flesh has grown on me. Don't worry, Madam, I will be careful to eat less later."

Upon hearing this, Malu waved her hand and stopped her with a smile, saying, "Just follow the diet prescribed by the imperial physician and the nanny. This body is your own, and you know best whether it is comfortable or not. You don't have to care about other people's opinions. I worried about this in vain, but there is one thing you have to listen to me, eat less sweets on weekdays, understand?"

At that time, people were not aware that pregnant women were prone to gestational diabetes. Sugar was relatively precious at the time and it was difficult for ordinary people to consume it in large quantities, so this disease was not common. However, as the fourth wife was in the royal family, she could naturally afford all kinds of sweets.

The fourth lady smiled and nodded. She could truly feel Malu's love and care for her from the bottom of her heart, and the slight worry in her heart soon dissipated. But she still acted like a child and said that she wanted to go out for a walk.

"Your Highness, I am getting more and more lazy. Since you mentioned it today, I should go out for a walk to stretch my muscles. But...it's boring for me to walk alone. I hope you can go out with me so that I can feel more at ease."

Malu looked at her cute appearance, couldn't help but smile and patted her hands gently, and readily agreed. After all, no matter what, Guaerjia was still just a girl, and she was at an age where she needed love.

Malu could also understand the Fourth Lady's worries. No one knew when someone might have been offended in the palace, and the Fourth Lady was asking him to help protect her.

The fourth prince always had a sour face, and he was definitely not a kind person. Moreover, Malu actually knew that the fourth prince's temper was probably because he found out about her and the prince, so he took his anger out on Guaerjia, venting all his frustration and resentment on her.

To be honest, I owe her something.

Afterwards, Malu and Guaerjia walked out of the palace together, surrounded by a large group of servants. The huge team was quite eye-catching.

After walking for a while, beads of sweat appeared on the Fourth Lady's forehead. Malu had sharp eyes and saw her tiredness. She raised her hand and pointed to a pavilion not far away, saying softly, "Why don't we go over there to rest first? I feel a little tired after walking all the way."

The fourth lady nodded obediently and said "yes" softly. However, unexpectedly, when they were about to reach the pavilion, they saw someone hurriedly flashing out from the corner next to them and entered the pavilion first.

Seeing this, the Fourth Lady was slightly startled. She subconsciously tightened the handkerchief in her hand, looked at Malu helplessly, and asked softly, "Madam, what... should I do?"

Malu looked calm and waved her hand nonchalantly, then turned to the Fourth Lady and said gently, "It's okay, let's go. I see there are only two of them, and this pavilion is spacious, so there should be enough room for us. If you encounter a concubine you haven't seen before, I'll take this opportunity to introduce her to you."

Upon hearing this, the Fourth Lady clenched the handkerchief in her hand even tighter. For some reason, she felt an inexplicable sense of nervousness in her heart.

The people in the pavilion had already seen the imperial concubine's magnificent procession, and they quickly stood up and stood respectfully in front of the pavilion. When the two people walked over, they knelt down and saluted to Ma Lu: "I am Yuqing Palace Ulanara, paying my respects to the imperial concubine."